Hey you!

I’m back with my second pair of Avery Leggings.

I made these about 15 minutes after I finished my first pair.

The fabric…soft Bamboo Jersey Knit from Blackbird Fabrics. The colourway is Deep Ocean and you can buy it here.  This fabric has really strong recovery. I’ve had some issues with baggy knees when sewing my own tights and I’m pleased to report that despite the softness of this fabric, my leggings keep their shape beautifully. I made the same view as my Workout Leggings. I won’t get into construction details here as my previous post goes over all the deets.

The Avery’s wide waistband isn’t a typical design feature in tights that are destined to be worn under tunics and dresses and I expected some seam-line show-through, but nope, nada. They have a very smooth silhouette. They’re comfortable and I feel good wearing them.

My tunic…or very short dress {which will never  be worn sans leggings or pants}…is my self drafted t-shirt pattern lengthened. My t-shirt pattern has made a couple of earlier appearances on the blog, here and also here. 

The reason my dress isn’t longer is because I only purchased 1 yard of this juicy fabric. The reason my tunic isn’t shorter is because I was determined to maximize the use of my fabric. Now. If I had had {Is that right? had had or is it just had?, wonders me.} a meter of fabric I would have been golden. It’s a bit of a departure; buying yardage rather than meters from a Canadian store. And wot store might this be?  Thread Count Fabrics, a lovely online shop discovered via Crafting A Rainbow.  This dreamy knit is 95% cotton and 5% spandex. The print is Charlston Garden of Dreams.

So.

Two knit garments.

And both of them sewn with fabric purchased from online shops.

I like knit garments but I’ve always found it a challenge to find quality knit fabrics that I love.  It’s not just quality that I struggle with. I haven’t had a lot of success finding colours and prints that I like either. Most colourways tend to be either muted with a grey-ish undertone…think dusky roses, heathered blues and fawn browns etc….or pretty intensely bold and graphic…royal blues with black and whites for example.

In December 2017 Gillian from Crafting A Rainbow wrote a post on Canadian sources for knit fabric. {You can read it here.} Blackbird Fabrics was the one business mentioned that I was already familiar with…I’d met Caroline in person last summer. Well. There I went…down the rabbit hole that is online fabric shopping. Yes, I opened every link. My focus was knit fabric exclusively and, interestingly, I discovered that certain fabric stores speak my language.

Although I ended up with a few different knits in various shopping baskets that evening I was…not skeptical…but tentative. I can’t couldn’t imagine buying fabric without having seen it for reals. I mean, there’s the feel, the drape, the weight, the true colour. Fabric shopping is so tactile.

Anyways, long story slightly shorter…I bought just one yard of this red knit. And….of course…I was giddy with glee upon its arrival.  All my purchases were just as I anticipated and my confidence has grown. I’ve ordered twice now from Thread Count Fabrics and I’ve been really happy with my purchases.

Ditto for Blackbird Fabrics. I’ve ordered both knits and woven fabrics from the shop and I love the quality. And yes….I have many completed garments to blog about. 

Okay, quickly. One last thing before I let you go. I’ve bought some lovely blue and white striped fabrics….in a variety of widths and weights, but the fabrication that eludes me still is a heavy weight blue and weight striped knit. Do any of you dear readers know where I can source this?

Thanks bunches for reading and I will be back soon with a new pattern company reveal!

Wearing:

Avery Leggings also seen here by Helen’s Closet

Self drafted t-shirt also seen here and here