summer bits and pieces

it's a little bit late for this kind of a post right now
since it's almost winter
and there is a big chance it's gonna snow tomorrow night..
but, what the hell
lets pretend it's summertime, all over again
..
so, this summer
nikola and i have spent a month traveling trough herzegovina
and dalmatia..

we swam in ice cold water, at kravice waterfall
(in handmade swimsuit, of course)

and hiked a bit, with our croatian friends

 
visited medieval town of počitelj

and spent a week or two wild camping
at mouth of river neretva

since we came back from our trip

i've made ridiculous amount of clothes

but somewhere along the line, it stopped being fun to blog about that..

while i enjoy sewing, and sew every single day

taking photos of garments and writing about those garments 

or generally, writing about anything

became such a drag..

so.. dunno.. maybe it's just a phase

it's been a hard year (apart from that one month spent traveling)..

maybe next year brings blogging mojo back

..

mokosha

caramel and charcoal

cardigan - (burda 10/2014, #113)

dress - (burda 4/2013, #109, 

modified using pattern magic musubu dress diagram)

this cardigan is probably the cosiest thing i ever made

it's soft and warm and feels like wearing a blanket

(maybe even a security blanket of some sort)..

i'm always moody and cranky when fall is in full swing

all i wanna do is cover myself with mountain of blankets

and spend my days reading books..

and live off of roasted chestnuts and pumpkin cakes

..

of course, i can't really do that

as i barely see my home these days,

but at least now i can wear my blanket everywhere i go

without looking like linus van pelt

..

mokosha

transformer jacket

crazy jacket, right?
i guess bunch of people won't like it
as it's not tailored or fitted or lined
no hand sewing or pad stitching involved
..
and frankly, i hated it at one point too..
it started with burda's long cardigan pattern from october issue
well.. 'pattern' is a bit strong word,
as it's basically two long rectangles
plus sleeves,
but i loved the design anyways
and wanted to try it out
..
pattern is meant to be made in drapey knit fabric
but as usual, i ignored what they say
and went for thick wool knit fabric instead
not a drapey stretchy kind of knit at all,
so it ended up looking really funky at the back
(well, it still does
as you can see in pictures)





wasn't a fan of that look at all
but at some point
i got an idea to try the jacket upside down
and that totally transformed the look
into cool rather than the odd one
(to my eye, at least)
..
also, it looks way better on my friend sandra
so we bartered, she got the jacket
and i got one fabulous ring (sandra makes jewelry)
..
here is the pic of collar before i added lining to it
when it only had wool trim:

..
jacket closes with large black sew in snaps
(and can be closed in few different ways
to create different silhouettes)
but you'll have to take my word for it
cause i added snaps after we took pictures
..
and isn't it hilarious how that flag photobombed almost all pics?
haven't even noticed it, until i got home and saw pics on my computer
and at that point it was too late to go back and take photos again
and i was too lazy to try removing it in photoshop
..
mokosha

rooftops

dress and top - self made

skirt - sun skirt

yes, these are some silly photos,

but we just couldn't be serious for one second..

and how can one be serious

standing barefoot on a rooftop

'modeling' 

and in my case holding a stone in palm (why?!)

..

i always feel really awkward taking pics

and hate every second of it

but, damn, clothes look way better on a human

than on a hanger or a dress form

so i keep on taking pics anyways

..

and because i made these two garments

using the same fabrics and piping

and they are similar in style

i figured it would be the best to picture them together

so i asked my friend sandra to model the top 

..

dress is from october issue of burda

and top/sweater or whatever one wanna call it

is made using pattern from neue mode magazine

(from april of 1981)

both are made out of same wool

and with silver faux leather piping

..

mokosha

birdies

dress - self made

it feels like these pics were shot ages ago 

while it was more like a week ago

while we were still traveling..

they were shot in dalmatia

in the village where my mother was born and raised

..

a week later

i'm back home

back to a month of piled up work

and weather went from indian summer to full on november 

so.. i'll be sewing trench coats and wool jackets any day now

but today, i wanna share my last summer dress of the year

..

it's made using burda's pattern 

(from august this year, no. 116)

i had 1.3m of fabric, while burda calls for a bit over 2m

hence the center front and back seams

but i don't really mind the seams

since the pattern is quite bussy 

..

i used french seams (except for the waist 

where i sewed a regular seam, with elastic added to it)

..

not much to say about the dress

it's a  really easy one to make

no zippers, no lining, no facings..

also, it's my first ever mullet skirt

and i really like the way it looks

so might give it a go again

(maybe make a shorter version)

..

mokosha

travelers

top - self made

pants - self made

sandals - second hand

i'm on vacation for almost a month now

traveling through herzegovina and southern croatia

(gonna write a post about the trip, once i'm back home)

and my nikon broke right before the trip

so 10 years old olimpus point and shoot had to take the lead

..

made bunch of casual comfy clothes for the trip

there was lot of camping involved, so it's all just really simple stuff

racer back tops and jersey shorts

that kind of thing..

and one dress, just in case we get to go somewhere fancy

..

 made another pair of my favorite pants for the trip

(burda magazine 7/2011, mod 102

previous versions here and here)

this time in super light and wrinkle free fabric

some sort of man-made fabric, but comfy and soft nonetheless

..

not much to say about the top 

(or tops, since i've made 3 using the same burda pattern)

it's so simple and fast make

and although it doesn't look like much

i wore it a bunch, and it's one of my favorite tops to date

..

mokosha

working out

top and shorts - self made

few days ago lindsay posted about her new shibori pneuma tank

and got me thinking of all the activewear i made in past months

..

never even considered to post pics of my activewear..

although they are fun to make

(especially if you have access to an industrial coverstitch machine)

i kind of find those makes  a bit boring..

but hey, they may not be as boring to you

so i decided to post a few pics anyways

..

i started working out over a year ago

 got real hooked on to it

and still work out 6 days a week

(i switch between insanity and t25)

..

i workout in my living room

so can get away with minimal amount of wear

without feeling uncomfortable about it..

no way in hell i'd go to the gym dressed like this

(but, then again, i've never set foot into a gym..

i just hate the idea of working out

among bunch of unknown people)

..

mokosha

navy is the new black

dress - self made

i wonder why i never wore any navy colored clothes..

it's less harsh and easier to wear than black

it's neutral and pairs well with so many other colors

plus it looks great against ginger hair

(you can't see that in these pics, cause my hair is wet

and appears way more dark than it is..)

..

i also wonder why i newer sewed with jersey suede before

i love working with jersey, it's super easy fabric to work with 

and great to wear.. but is too plain, and to my eye it never really looks cool

but this suede kind has that fabulous textured finish

that plays beautifully with light

and take simple jersey dress to another dimension

..

mokosha