Giddy-up with yellowly yellow
The Melbourne Cup was run today; a horse race that apparently ‘stops the nation’. I’m not into horse racing, but I love that in Melbourne we have a public holiday in it’s honour!
I’ve been quietly stashing away some lovely bits of silk over the last few years. Admiring it, but too scared to sew with it. Yes, silk was another one of those silly sewing fears that I need not have worried about. Last week when my sewjo returned and with Cup Day fast approaching, it seemed appropriate to turn this lovely horsey (or is that zebra?) silk from Darn Cheap Fabrics (they still have the blue colourway in the Heidelberg Store)… into a garment.
A new-to-me type of fabric called for a old faithful… I pulled out my Scout Woven Tee pattern with a full back adjustment (my first version can be seen here) and I was out of the gate and racing! I know that was lame, but I couldn’t resist!
The silk was much easier to sew than I imagined. The general advice for sewing silk is to go slow. I also…
- did all the cutting with my rotary cutter on my large self healing mat (numerous pattern weights were used)
- used a microtex sharp needle in my machine
- turned my machines tension down one notch (from 4 to 3)
- stablised the neckline with fine fusbile stay tape; and
- silk pins were a must.
A trick that I learnt at an overlocking course… cut up plastic bags under your stitching stops the feed-dogs eating fine fabric. The plastic is easily torn off in one piece (no little bits are caught under the stitching) when the seam is finished. It worked a treat when I was joining the bias binding.
![photo[1]](https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7533/15684406086_b689081e0b.jpg)
Setting in a sleeve is something I often don’t get right first time. Surprisingly, these sleeves when in without a hitch!
Silk is luscious wear and it drapes like no other. I love this top so fingers crossed it washes and wears well (I will have to dry clean it as I naughtily didn’t pre-wash) and fits into my mummy lifestyle.
Pattern: Grainline Studio’s Scout Woven Tee
Size: 10
Fabric: Silk from Darn Cheap Fabrics
Alterations: I completed an FBA (see details here) and used Grainline’s full back pattern tutorial to add volume to the back.
Accessories: Necklace by Marigolde (puchased at Scarlett Jones), hat from Uniqlo & shoes from Florsheim.
Your silk scout looks gorgeous and just because you were naughty you should still be able to hand wash your silk without fear of shrinkage – cold water (since you didn’t prewash), scant amount of wool wash detergent or baby shampoo, and dry flat on a towel. Maybe test with a scrap first to be safe. I hand wash all my silk shirts and prefer it to dry cleaning.
Thanks for this info Jen. I will definitely give the handwash option a go. The top is loose fitting so even if there is a little shrinkage, it will be okay.
This is beautiful! No shame in using a tried-and-true pattern!
I love my TNT Scout & I predict you’ll see more silk versions in the future.
Lovely work and I always sew the same good patterns over and over, Nothing wrong with that.
I totally agree Christy. I would like to say this is my favourite version, but I often say that about items just finished!
LOVELY! The top’s style is my fave kind of top. I really like your style, I would happily wear what you make, though the wide cropped pants look is not something I’ve tried before, but you look so good in them, I might give them a go 🙂 Hmm come to think of it, they look like the culottes that I want to sew.
Another thing I would love to ask you is how do you choose colours in a fabric? Do you choose them bearing in mind what you have to co-ordinate it with? When I sew coloured tops, I seem to have a problem with co-ordinating them with my bottoms. Maybe my bottoms are in too limited a colour range? Any advice?
I read through your post very carefully and picked up tips on sewing with silk. I use tracing paper when I sew with slippery fabrics, so the plastic bag tip is new to me. I cut slippery fabric pinned and sandwiched with a layer of newspaper which makes it like cutting cotton.
Most of all, I like how you used a tried and tested pattern to sew your first silk, so I’m going to do that too, buy a small piece of gorgeous silk to sew into a simple top to test the waters. I think that will greatly reduce the scariness factor for me.
Hi Erin.
I can see we have a similar style & a love for Japanese patterns. I think the general rule is floatier & over-sized tops look best with skinny jeans/pants, but I also like how my silk Scout goes with these cropped boxy pants (RTW). It’s good to experiment sometimes.
With regards to colours I know what I like & what suits me so tend to stick to these. My wardrobe is full of green, blue, red, teal, orange, magenta, cream & a touch of brown & grey. I definitely stick to these colours when buying fabric. That being said, I do spend a lot of time in jeans & it’s easy to match a top to some denim 😀.
I’m trying to be more mindful of my purchases & makes to ensure they seamlessly enter my wardrobe. My strike rate of ‘keepers’ is growing as my sewing & blogging journey teaches me more about my body & style.
Thanks for your silk sewing tips & questions. It’s fun to stop, reflect & share my thoughts.
Good luck with your sewing your first piece of silk. My only other tip is ‘French seams’.
Cheers Anna
Gorgeous silk, and the top looks beautifully fitted. I am also a but afraid of silk…
I understand your hesitation about silk. I’m sure there will be a day when you feel ready for the challenge. Just like there will be one day when I make some shorts or pants!
You really can’t go past the Scout for wearability and I love those horses!
I totally agree Andrea. I feel like I’ve pushed this pattern to the limits and it still delivers each time!
Beautiful work – as always!
Thank-you 🙂
This. Is. Rad. You really have nailed the fit on this pattern and the fabric is gorgeous! I may need to grab some plastic bags next time I am in NSW… 😀
Shucks! What, no plastic in our nations capital?