(Black) Betty Bra

So if I thought it was appropriate to swear on my blog I would.  That is how much I love this bra.  It's safe to say this is a new favourite.

I mentioned at the end of my last post that I was working on a bra using one of Erin's kits from her store, The Emerald Studio.  I purchased a black bra tulle kit and honestly can't rave about it enough.  There is plenty of fabric in the kit, buy plenty I mean I'll be able to make another bra or matching panties without worrying about running out of fabric.  To be honest I'm leaning towards the matching panties but I'm not sure what pattern just yet, more about that later.

For this bra I revisited the Marlborough pattern by Orange Lingerie.  This time I made a 36C (the same size as my Boylstons) and the fit is much better than my previous attempts with this pattern. I modified the curve of the lower up slightly to remove some of the pointyness I had experienced previously and as a result I am much happier with the shape of this cup.  It's resulted in a more rounded, more modern style which I prefer.

I was heavily inspired by Erin's Black Beauty Bra when choosing what to make.  I fell in love the the double straps and tried to recreate them here.  I also should have purchased this kit was a small findings kit, however I didn't know what I was making at the time.  Thankfully I already had a stash of FOE elastic on hand which was easy to substitute.  

This was my first time sewing with Bra Tulle and I think I'm converted.  I was prepared for my machine to try and it it and for it to be a nightmare to sew however it was the total opposite.  It was a dream to sew, my machine loved it, I loved it.  It only postage wasn't such a killer!  I used a double layer with opposing stretch and felt incredibly well supported when I wore it.  Of course my cup size isn't large but I can't recommend it highly enough for my size.  This bra did feel quite tight when I wore it yesterday however it did loosen throughout the day so with a few more wears it should be prefect.

One other thing I love about the bra tulle is the detail that appears with the double layer.  It might be my favourite detail in this bra.  I seriously love it.

As for a matching set I'm tossing up between a Watson, either completely from Bra Tulle or a bra tulle front and powernet back or a pattern with a ruched back like Ohhh Lulu's Lola.  I'm tossing up if I can modify something or just need to buy a new pattern, I'm leaning towards buying a new pattern, I think I do need to branch out from making Watsons all. the. time.

Anyway, if you're thinking about buying a bra tulle, or any other kit from Erin do it.  You will not regret it.

What new fabrics and products have you fallen in love with?

Marvellous Mint Milliskin Marlborough & Watson Bikini

I purchased a couple of Watson Bra kits from Greys Fabrics a month or so back.  I bought one in white and one in pink and only got around to getting into one of them earlier this week.  I started with the white kit, but white is boring.  I've also got quite a collection of Watsons going on so I decided I needed to try another Marlborough.

Anyway, I started by cutting out the pieces of my Marlborough, a 38B this time.  Last time I made a 38A and the fit wasn't right so I tried a different size this time, however more on the fit later.

After I'd cut all my pieces I threw them in a dye bath with some Teal Rit Dye.  Head. Over. Heels. with the colour.  It ended up the prefect shade of mint.  The elastics came out a bit more blue, as did the powernet but it all ties in well, especially with the rigid lace!  The only issue is some small parts of the fabric didn't appear to absorb the dye as well as the rest of it.  There are some small imperfections but I had read about this happening so I knew it was a possibility.  Thankfully I'm not too worried about them.

Everything included with the kit appears high quality, I mean I won't really know until they have a bit of wear, but all signs are looking good to start with.  The lace for the upper cup is the same as I used in my first Marlborough.  I'm a bit in love with it.  Thankfully the dyed milliskin ended up a great match!

As I said before, I cut a 38B this time, the cups on my previous Marlborough just weren't right.  Saying that I'm not sure the cups on this one are that much better.  I don't seem to fill them but I also appear to be spilling out the top. I used the same underwires, but they fit well and appear to be the exact same as my well fitting RTW bras. I'm not sure if I'm going crazy but I have a feeling that the shape of my breast might not be suited to the shape of the Marlborough.  I'm not ready to give up any time soon, but I'm thinking about trying a new pattern next time.

I'm also going to be honest and say I had a bit of a struggle ensuring that there were no puckers when I attached the underwire casing, I sewed and unpicked and sewed and unpicked and it is still far from perfect.  I'm trying to believe that finished is better than perfect, at least in this case! Again I added a little blue rose, best $5 I've spent in a long time!

The back is powernet (also dyed, you can notice the difference in the colour and the way the fabric has reacted).  I used the three hook closure from the kit.  I do find it a little strange that the pattern requires a three hook closure when my cup size is so small.  It's not an issue, just an observation.

I lined the cup and bridge and all the seams are enclosed. The lining (one way stretch) was also dyed and it came out a similar colour to the elastics and casing.  It's funny how the different fabrics react differently and result in different colours.

I also covered the side seams with some underwire casing. You will also notice that the casing is a different colour, I didn't dye enough so I had to make do.  Thankfully no one will notice it. Especially as it can't be seen from the outside.

I made a matching Watson Bikini.  As I've said before, this is my new favourite underwear pattern so it was an easy choice.  The elastics are of course from the Greys Fabric kit.  The milliskin makes them lovely to wear and the little rose just adds a bit of a feature to it.

Anyway overall I'm still thrilled with this set and can't wait to get some use out of it.  I plan on working to perfect the fit, while trying another pattern in the mean time.  I'm leaning towards a Bolyston Bra, but who knows, I'm likely to change my mind.

What have you been sewing this week?

Emma

Marlborough Bra & Alice Knickers

I did it.  I made an underwired bra, a Marlborough by Orange Lingerie to be precise.

I'm a little in love with it to be honest.  If I'm being completely truthful this wasn't my first Marlborough.  I made another and totally stuffed it up and the cups ended up being huge and it will never see the light of the blog.  Thankfully I tried again and ended up with much better (also known as wearable!) results!

I cut a 38A, based on my measurements (and also because that is the size I made my Watsons) and am pleased to report it fits okay.  It is far from perfect and I'm tempted to try a B cup next time to see if the fit is any better but we will have to wait and see. I found the instructions fairly comprehensive and easy to follow.   The pattern is not as detailed as the Watson pattern but still fairly good.  I had to read a few bits more than once, but after having completed two now I feel more confident.

 I used a polyester satiny fabric from Spotlight for the lower cup, power bar, bridge and frame, an embroidered lace from Lincraft for the upper cup and powernet from Booby Traps for the band.  The elastics is from Measure Twice, Cut Once and the closure is also from Booby Traps.

Inside it is not the neatest bra on the planet.  I still haven't quite perfected attaching lingerie elastic and have a habit to miss the fabric when zig-zag stitching the elastic.  Thankfully this is all hidden on the inside and no one will see it.  Well until I posted a photo of it online!

I did alter the bridge slightly to make it narrower.  Since I started making my own bras I've noticed that the bridge of my RTW bras don't sit flat.  Admittedly this one doesn't either but it is much closer with the alteration that the initial Marlborough I made.  It also needs a bow or flower to cover up the stitching at the top of the bridge.  I didn't have anything to match in my stash already but thanks to a tip off by Maddy of Miss Maddy Sews I've got these little ribbon rosettes already on the way. I'm hoping the apricot colour will set it off perfectly.

I'm not sure the fit is perfect, but for a first real run though with the pattern I'm pretty happy.



Now I didn't really know what to do about matching undies.  I prefer my undies with more stretch than a bias cut generally offers but what is the point of making a bra if you're not going to make matching undies to go with it. Then I remembered the Alice Pattern by Ohhh Lulu.



I have made these before and I think this second pair is much nice than the first.



I've actually got a dress out of this fabric too.  I wore the whole set the other day and felt very put together.

In other news life is keeping me more than busy.  I'm trying to do keep doing my job at work while taking over and doing part of the job I applied for but I haven't actually been offered the job yet so I'm stressed to the max.  Hopefully things calm down in the coming weeks and I can spend a bit of time sewing.

Til next time,

Emma