Sewing for your man

I made these trousers about a year ago for my fella, Michael. I chose a light weight linen/cotton which is perfect for those summery days! The instructions for this pattern are not great and you need to spend some time with youtube and sewing blogs to figure out the best ways to insert the back pockets (tutorial here) and the fly. I made a slight alteration to the back seam as it was gaping at the waistline. But other then that I enjoyed making these trousers and would recommend the pattern for the great silhouette. 


Since having sewn these trousers I have recognised that there are not a great deal of sewing patterns for men. A good friend of mine (male who sews) gets really frustrated with the lack of options with regards to mens sewing patterns. He even wrote to Burdastyle.de about the problem! Their response was something like, 'women don't want to sew for men, so we don't produce many mens patterns'.  I strongly disagree! Yes, girls do sew a lot for themselves, BUT girls are definitely interested in sewing for the special men in their lives. There has been a recent shift in the availability of sewing patterns for men. More blogs are blogging about their sewing ventures and there are some inspiring men sewers/crafters. E.g. My fantastic friend Ralf -burdastyle, the great mens sewing blog Male pattern boldness , kalepso , mr x , crochet bloke 

A few patterns for your fella...........


Pants
Burdastyle - Jochen, Thread Theory - Jedediah
  
Cardigan
Thread Theory - Newcastle cardigan

Shirt
Colette - Negroni - I have fitted this shirt and recommend it! Still have to make the final version.
Burdastyle -  mens shirt

Shorts
We are running in the marathon this year and I need to make a pair of shorts for Michael perhaps I will try this pattern
Burdastyle -Andre

Other places to find mens patterns
Thread Theory (mens only pattern store), ebay, Simplicity, Burdastyle ,  vogue, Drafting mens trouser patterns.

(Guys) Have you sewn something for yourself or others?

(Gals) Do you sew for your fella, dad, brother, friends, granfather etc ? 

Which mens patterns do you like?

My Colourful Crab Print Dress

Photos: Michael Dooney

Woo Hoo Summer Holidays have begun! Summer in Berlin! Today it is over 30 degrees. A rare event in this mostly overcast, grey city. 

SCREEN PRINTING BLUE CRABS

At the moment I am loving this simple slip silhouette. The shape lends itself to creating some interesting textiles. On this occasion I screen printed these little crabs onto the dress. Why crabs? I was inspired by the Schiaparelli and Dali collaboration lobster dress(which I previously posted about here). I will definitely be creating some more quirky prints on fabric. 

Screen Printing blue crabs onto my fabric

I used the colette Laurel pattern to create the dress

CHOOSING COLOURS FOR THE DRESS
My fiancee, Michael has been working on some art installations which focus on light, colours and perception. He uses complimentary colours to produce these crazy perceptual experiences. The video below shows what it looks like, but you can't experience it properly unless you are standing in the space.  

My crab dress uses the complementary colours blue and orange. When looking at the dress in a bright environment your eyes struggle to focus on the blue crabs. It kind of looks like they are scurrying around. Freaky! 

 

Has anyone else incorporated or been inspired by science when creating garments? 

It would be great to hear about any other experiments:)

Could you refrain from buying new clothes for 6 months?

It is no secret that I am mad about slow fashion and the blog 'i give 2 hoots' is the space dedicated to spreading the sustainable fashion love. Over the past few months I have been searching for people to list on the blog as well as feature.

When I came across Mia's 6 month shopping ban on heylilahey I realised that she was the perfect candidate for the minimalist category. Mia is taking part in her own 6 month shopping ban. Check out 'i give 2 hoots' to get some advice and tips about how to start your own ban!

Mia from heylilahey                                      photo: Michael Dooney

Check out the table below to see which category you identify with. Contact me on 'i give 2 hoots' to be listed!

FINALLY: the sun has come out to play:)

my princess seam dress: Blogged here                            photo: Michael Dooney

The sun has finally arrived in Berlin.... but who knows how long that will last.  Berlin is full of energy during the summer months so it can be a little difficult to maintain any type of productivity regarding indoor tasks. Within the coming weeks I will hopefully find a good balance of indoor and outdoor tasks.

1. Outdoor - German homework in the sun!

2. Indoor - screen printing fabric for sewing 

3. Outdoor - this is our first week for training for the Berlin marathon in September

  4. Outdoor - holiday planning for the summer!

  5. Indoor - Sewing & creating

  6. Indoor - making items for my new screen printing etsy store FSScreen Printing 

  7. Indoor - Summer (usually spring, but spring came later this year)  means strawberries. Strawberry jam making time! 

   8. Indoor & outdoor - going to exhibitions and taking our own photos

   9. Indoor - getting wedding plans sorted.

CREATIVE TALENT: Karin Lindeskov

On a trip to Hamburg we were lucky enough to meet up with the uber talented Karin, a Danish illustrator. In her shop you can find totes, postcards, prints, and cute cushion characters! I love the fox! Below you can find her inspiring words regarding being apart of the creative world:) Thanks to Karin for finding the time to meet up with us whilst we were in rainy Hamburg.

'Go for it and have no fear!'

 Karin Lindeskov

Shop:      :Etsy
           :Karin lindeskov shop
Blog:      :Facebook
Portfolio: :www.behance.net/KarinLindeskov 

Four adjectives which describe my work:
Illustrative, graphic, colourful, playful
 
Currently residing:
I moved from Copenhagen to Hamburg about 1,5 year ago
 
Hometown:
I grew up in the windy north-west-countryside of Denmark on a small island called Thyholm. 

How did you start creating?
All children draw - I just never stopped. I studied illustration and graphic design and now work as a freelancer in both fields. I love the mix of working on client´s projects and my own things: One day working on a logo for a client, the next day sewing a rocket in fabrics or drawing a crying owl...I believe that this interaction is very important for my constant development and ideas.

Inspired by? 

For some time now I have been very inspired by animals, especially cats (my cat) and birds, but I actually find inspiration all over the place: a walk to the supermarket, blogs, people, music, colours. 

 

Any encouraging words?
Go for it and have no fear!