More Sahaara Adventures & Beginner Bee

 This weekend was the Beginner Bee. Even though I have some experience making bras, there were a few things that were clarified and some fresh info. I was even able to do a fitting with Ruhee of Ruby’s Bras, creator of the Sahaara bra pattern. She helped me measure better the BCD & HH called for in many patterns. I was wearing my Lansdowne and that squish caused me to measure at 38” bust, which is a full inch smaller than last week’s number, and two inches smaller than a month ago… With no change in my weight. Underbust still 32”, but the BCD and HH have been notoriously hard to measure. 

Ruhee suggested that I try the D size, with the changes I made to the center gore and strap angles. Also, to help keep the straps on better, change the back strap attachment to a more upright angle. 

I did all those, sewed it up, and something was off. The band that I applied has lettering, and I think the lettering stuck to the sewing machine foot and caused it to stretch in a bad way. I’m halfway through unpicking it. I really need to use the wash away thread with these trial bras! While holding up the bra, I wondered if there is not enough projection in the cup for me. I may have to play with that.

While I was hemming and hawing over the changes I need, I sewed a new bra for my daughter. She was happy, the size was better, but I need to go down a band size for her. Also, note to self: bring her strap attachments in also.

Hellebore, & a Sewing Bee

 This weekend is the Beginner Bra Bee. I’m still unsure what I should do yo get the Sahaara bralette to fit me. Shall I just keep going down in size? Are the alterations I tRied good? I dunno. I’d like to have a bra that actually fits.

One of the Instagram interviews recently suggested that panties are a good thing to work on if the bra seems overwhelming. So, I sewed up view A of the Hellebore Hi-cut ppattern. Is the front too low? The back is above my waist. How is it supposed to fit? Did I just find another rabbit hole to chase down?

I could work on my stitching.  The lace rolled in places. The seams are funky. But, they are pretty.

Jalie 4344, first try

 This one is for the cycling people, and I’m not talking bicycles.

Jalie 4344 is a Period Underpants pattern. I made it up in size Y. The absorbent area is the triple thickness because I had planned to have it done in time for my heavy flow day(s). Surprise, I was busy and didn’t get the waistband on in time. I’ll try it out on a regular flow or overnight and hope for the best. 

The pant is made from bamboo jersey, there’s a wicking lining, feels like polyester, and the core is made from Zorb or something similar. This kit came from BraBuilders for the Bra Sewing Bee. They are planning a class on Period Underwear. The lining fabric in the kit is not cut long enough for the Jalie pattern, so make sure to order the proper size. 

I have seen other period pants makers suggest using bamboo as the lining because it may have wicking properties, but if you do, don’t use the same color as the outside of the pants! You don’t want to accidentally wear them inside out.

Thoughts from just sewing it up? Three layers may be too thick, the edges of the crotch gusset look like they’re pulling something fierce. I took the time to pre wash the fabrics, so after my run, I’ll try these on.

Changes? I sewed FOE to the top edge instead of adding the self-fabric waistband or sewing on an elastic or lace waistband and cutting down the difference behind it. I generally have to make changes to a pattern for my body shape, but just sewed this straight to try it out.

Testing fit: The front rides about 2 inches lower than the back. The back is nearly at my natural waist. The built in pad (gusset) is not as far forward as I would wear one, and the back side of it is thick feeling. I expect if I shift the gusset forward a couple inches, the padding will ride at a more comfortable place.

Note to self: too much padding. Remember diapers back in the day? Better to make it able to dry in a reasonable time, and add an extra pad inside than deal with things that won’t dry and therefore have issues.one to two max layers in the future.

Bravo 2 Boyshorts

 I made my daughter matching underwear for her Sahaara. She likes a certain cut, don’t we all? But, in store they’ve been changing the cuts without really labeling the package well. The boyshorts have gotten rather cheeky over the years, and she doesn’t like that so much. I picked up the Bravo Bottoms #2 pattern, which has a Ruched Back Hipster, a Tanga, and a Boyshort pattern. The picture on the pattern shows that the Tanga is cheeky and the Boyshort is not. Happy daughter. 

Sahaara for Smaller Busts?

I still need a few changes on the Sahaara bralette to fit me. But, I have a daughter with similar fit issues. And, since I needed a new kit to fit me, why not pick one up to fit her and see if I could figure this out whilst going through less fabric? 

I started with her measurements and decided on a straight 34C. No, I immediately took out 1 cm from the BCD, and I moved the straps in towards center by a quarter inch. 

She was swimming in it. 

I took out the cups and made the next pair 3/4 inch shorter above the apex. I may have pulled the elastic too tight, there’re wrinkles like crazy, but she’s happier. To her, it’s a summer top, so it’s a win. 

And, a bonus for those who are in the Barbie movie craze, this Bubblegum pink color is right there in the Barbie shade.

(Future self note: just go down cup sizes before adjusting! This is a large triangle for our genetics.)

Step Away From the Lace, Lady

 

 Azalea. Have you seen it? So pretty, so lacy. I picked it up last month, and today I decided to see if I have lace in the size it calls for. Answer: not really. So, it’s a fitting pair that I’ve sew up. I have just enough pink for half, and just enough yellow for half. The pattern that I purchased is light on instructions. Basically, here are the pieces, here is the list of ingredients needed. And, that’s it. I started sewing it up in size 42 before I realized that I should have done things in a slightly different order. Good thing it’s a practice pair of pants!

Then, I couldn’t figure out why the lace didn’t meet right. I put the front overlay together wrong! It’s supposed to make an upwards point like ^ not a v. That may be why they’re a tad snug. Or my butt is bigger than I thought. I have ordered some more lace - I found the pink one again, but in black. Patience awaiting its arrival…

Pandering to the Right

 I wore the yellow half tulle bra yesterday while making adjustments and sewing up a new version in black with purple roses. My left breast aches today. I need to rework the pattern with more space in the left cup because that side is at least an half cup size larger than the right, probably a full size larger. The purple and black one came out cute, though. Back to the drawing board.

Sahaara the Third

 

Another longline, but this time with FOE for the bottom edge. It does roll up a bit, but we’ll let it be a trial run. I still have the second bra elastics kit; I had requested the add-on. I have enough back band fabric for 2-3 more goes with this color tulle, so I decided on using other strap elastic and hardware for this attempt. I have some hook and loop tape, so the  back closure is four high. It’s not dyed, nor are the straps, do you think that if I soak these together, excess dye may bleed from the fabric to the undyed closure? Doubt it, but ya never know.

Pattern alterations (future me let’s you know that I did this the hard way): the center point of Watson fit me pretty well last time I made it, so I printed out the largest cradle and played with the Sahaara. I used the center front shape and height (matching the center cradle curve), and that brought the center front down at least an inch, plus gave it a steeper curve because there just isn’t as much space there as the Sahaara desires me to have. Following the Rubies video, that meant that I should remove as much from the center cup. I also removed 1/2” from the BCD.

How’s the fit? The band is a touch tighter because my hook & loop is only 2 columns wide - the 3 high premade ones were also 3 wide. The cups don’t fit, the previous bra felt better and didn’t cut across tissue as much. Too many changes at once. It’s hard to afford fitting bra patterns. This one is not going to be called wearable. 

Does it fit me like a desert?

 Bra Bee is coming up, and the beginner bee uses the Sahaara pattern (not Sahara, like a desert). 

Measure: 40” bust, 32” underbust, but 33” ribcage just below (hey, learning, I’ve got a bit of rib flare). That puts me in a 32G. What? I look, and that’s actually the next pattern… I have the smaller sizes. Okay, sister sizing? I’ll just make 34F. (Note: Sister sizing is NOT the same on this pattern, the cups all have the same name while the band changes, not both changing!)

Sewed it up, tried it on. BraBuilder’s Sunshine is super bright! Too big. Like band is baggy big, can’t even about the cups with the baggy band. Weird. 

Let’s cut it out again. Wait, the printing page shows that ALL F cups are the same pieces, same volume… so, I’ll go to 32E?

 Oops, I forgot to fold up the band on the 32E, so I’m trying a longline. But, there isn’t enough fabric now to cut out all the pieces. What to do? I search for scraps from another bra that used this fabric: none. I look through my kits for a match: not really. I go to Etsy to clear my head, and take a minute to review my orders. That takes me back through everything, and I happen across some yellow bra tulle: jackpot!

The one thing I didn’t do is stabilize the edges. The twill tape in the kit is very wide! If I fold it over the edge, then sew the fold over elastic (FOE), that would make the edge very thick. Isn’t twill tape a fabric weave, so if I cut it in half , it could fray? Next time, I may try it, and put the cut edge out to be in the fold of the FOE.

How’s it fit? Well, better than most bras? The triangle in the frame is too wide. The cup seam may only be crossing my apex because the center is well away from my sternum. The outer edge of the cradle is far back - I watched their alterations video, though, so does that get pulled into place when I reduce the BCD through “moon darts”? The top of the cup is wide and baggy (same fix?). The straps are really uncomfortable, but maybe I just need more elastic because of the length of the longline? It seemed really tight, but after wearing a while, it relaxed or I adjusted.

I was thinking of adding some to the back band, but then I printed out the 34E band and found that it is TWO inches wider than the 32E… um, shouldn’t that be ONE inch per side to increase two inches across a bra band? And less than that because of stretch percentages? This bra has me a touch confused.

Alright, time to try actual fit adjustments. If I can get the center to fit where it ought, will I need to change a cup size?

(Future self note: This 32E is comfortable enough that I’ve been wearing it. Just need to adjust straps inward for my narrow shoulders)

Maris Time Again

 Third time’s the ..? Uh oh! I was so close, but I did not check the stretch of this kit fabric compared to my practice ones. The mesh isn’t as stretchy as the other two sets. The band elastic does not stretch like the ones in the other sets, The lining that it came with is a strong power net (back band fabric for heavy duty bras), much less stretchy than the lighter power net I’d used in the previous two. This set is just too small.

I did try altering the pants back to the Noel width - following Madalynne’s instructions in the sew along.

All in all, this was a good pattern to learn adjustments on. It’s not my usual style, I like more coverage on my bottom. The top would certainly be a cute swim top. I might keep adjusting, or I may switch to another pattern. I still have several pattern styles suggested for the Bra Bee that I’d like to try manipulating to fit.

Second Verse, not Same as the First

Mara, go two. I’ve been watching the Madalynne Maris sew along. She has a bunch of information in there. I started with the cup alterations.

Cup apex seam moved according to her instructions (slash and spread, slash and overlap). Shoulder strap gets both the adjustments suggested. 

How’s it fit? Better! Lower cup looks good, strap needs a bit more off the neckline edge. Not too bad. The elastics are still a touch tight, though.

The bottoms, though, hrm… They need an adjustment. I’m taking an inch from the front length and adding that to the back.

Maris, First Go

One of the Bra Sewing Bee sew alongs uses the Maris pattern. I would like to get close to a good fit so that what I sew next month actually might fit me. It just uses the underwear pattern, but it doesn’t hurt to practice fitting the top, too.

Let’s follow the fitting chart: measure ribcage, 32.5” = Medium. Measure full bust, 40”, difference is 7.5” = E/F cup. Okay, but doubts are in my mind already. How about the bottoms? Hip 41”? Maybe 42”? I”m usually one size larger for my trousers than my t-shirts, large.

How well does it fit? Not well, might be close… Next go, I’ll size the bra up to a large, the back and elastic band need more width. The shoulder strap is pressing into my shoulder, it’s just way too wide. The cup seam may be too far out to the side. The cups seem loose.

If I just made the next larger band size, I would have to size down the cup letters to get the about same size cup: medium E/F is about the size of large C/D. I’m going up a band size, but also want to go down a cup size to try the difference. So, next try should be a Large A/B. If that’s too small, I’ll have to shorten then Large C/D cups to fit my short chest.

How about the thong? Not horrible, but the elastic is a touch tight. I’ll try the XL. If the band fits and the crotch length is too long, then I might just need to keep the Large size and use the XL elastic length.