The best of Štepalica in 2013

Dear readers, we're sending off another exciting and creative year, and are greeting a new one, that will hopefully be even more interesting, productive and inspiring. As usual, we make a retrospective of the things that happened in the past year, we remember to good and bad moments, wishing to experience the positive ones few more times and to avoid the negative ones in the following year. We make a wishing list for Santa Clause and make resolutions that should make our lives better and easier. Welcoming a new year fills us with an excitement - we celebrate it with the loved ones, exchange gifts, nice wishes and tenderness filled with optimism for the tomorrow.

* za verziju teksta na srpskom, pogledajte ovde.

At the end of 2013 I wish to share some of the best moments that brought me joy. The year that's going away has been a turning point to me, as it is a year when I started working actively on achieving my goals. I hope that 2014 and the years to come will bring more success to Štepalica Patterns and completely fulfill my dreams.

So, in February I completed the TR Masterclass, which was an amazing experience to me. I learned a lot, met some great, creative and talented people across the world, and I got inspired in a completely new way. The course thought me some new exciting techniques, improved my sewing skills and gave me some great ideas for new projects. I entered the finals at the end of the course, but had to drop out due to lack of time.

The highlight of the year was launching a new line of sewing patterns, called Štepalica Patterns, with the first pattern being for the Nougat dress in three variations. Obviously, the TR Masterclass influenced the choice of the first pattern.
For the first time I have experienced what it really means drafting a multisized pattern, how to make it in a digital format, how to write good and detailed sewing instructions, and I've learned the greatest of all the mysteries - how to draw nice sewing illustrations. I've learned a lot, and I met some great people who help me with proofreading my texts (Jelena Mitić) and preparing the pattern for print (Muffin Studio), thus making this job quite enjoyable.

The 2013 brought some new collaborations with some domestic magazines and foreign companies. My blouses were featured on pages of local magazine Vešte ruke (Skillful hands) back in April, and in October I appeared in a web magazine Anita Mei. Both collaborations were one-time experiences, but I learned a lot from them.

The dress I made for a friend using Vlisco fabric became a hit on the internet, it became viral like no other garment I had ever made, a reached its peak when Vlisco itself contacted us! I can't describe the excitement we felt at the moment. This brought to another collaboration, but I'll talk more about this in the year that's coming.

Even though 2013 was all about sewing, I haven't made many garments this year. I haven't posted about some of the items yet, but they'll have their chance. I've been working on a new pattern recently, and will publish it at the beginning of the following year.

All in all, I'll remember the 2013 as the year when I moved myself. I've been wanting to start my own line of sewing patterns for a long time, and it took me awhile to make the first step. It's interesting that some unexpected people moved me to make the first step, and I guess they're probably unaware of it :-). I have to learn a lot, and I have some great plans so the 2014 will be dedicated to meeting them.

For the first time in years I'm entering a new year with a wishing list, resolutions and goals. I haven't felt this determined to accomplish the plans in a long time. This gives me a great will to work more and better, and feeds me with an optimism that I've missed a lot, so I'm welcoming the beginning of 2014 impatiently.

Finally, my dear readers, I wish you lots of laughter, joy and happiness in a new year. May it be cheerful and playful and the year that will make you move and accomplish your dreams!

Happy New Year!

Najbolje od Štepalice u 2013. godini

Dragi čitaoci, ispraćamo zajedno još jednu uzbudljivu i kreativnu godinu, i dočekujemo novu, koja će, nadam se, biti još zanimljivija, produktivnija i inspirativnija. Po običaju, pravi se retrospektiva minulih događaja, prisećamo se dobrih i loših momenata, priželjkujući da nas dobri još koji put obraduju, a loši zaobiđu u godini koja nam sledi. Pravimo spisak želja, prizivamo poklone od Deda Mraza i donosimo odluke koje bi trebalo da nam dogodine olakšaju i poboljšaju život. Doček nove godine sa sobom nosi uzbuđenje - slavimo ga sa dragim i voljenim ljudima, razmenjujemo pažnju, poklone i lepe želje i iščekujemo novo sutra puni optimizma.

* to read the text in English, click here.

Na kraju 2013. godine želim da sa vama podelim svoje najbolje momente, koji su mi doneli radost. Godina koja odlazi za mene je bila prekretnica, jer je to godina u kojoj sam aktivno počela da radim na ostvarenju svojih želja. Nadam se da će 2014. i naredne godine donositi nove uspehe za Štepalica krojeve i u potpunosti ispuniti moje snove.

Dakle, u Februaru sam završila TR Masterklas kurs, koji je bio fenomenalno iskustvo za mene. Naučila sam mnogo, upoznala fenomenalne, kreativne i talentovane ljude širom sveta, ali i u zemlji, i bila inspirisana na potpuno novi način. Ovaj kurs me je naučio mnogim novim tehnikama, usavršio je moje šivenje i dao mi ideje za mnoge nove projekte. Na kraju kursa plasirala sam se u finale, ali sam od istog odustala zbog nedostatka vremena. 

Vrhunac ove godine za mene je bilo pokretanje sopstvene linije krojeva, pod nazivom Štepalica Patterns, a prvi kroj je za Nugat haljinu u tri varijacije. Očigledno, TR Masterklas je imao mnogo uticaja na odabir prvog kroja. 

Prvi put sam iskusila šta zapravo znači praviti krojeve u više veličina, kako ih digitalizovati, kako ispisati kvalitetne i detaljne instrukcije za šivenje, i najveća od svih misterija - kako napraviti lepe ilustracije za instrukcije za šivenje. Naučila sam mnogo, upoznala sam fenomenalne ljude koji mi pomažu oko lekture tekstova (Jelena Mitić) i pripreme kroja za štampu (Muffin Studio), i zaista uživam u ovom poslu.

2013. godina je donela i neke nove saradnje sa domaćim časopisima, ali i stranim firmama. U aprilu su se moje bluze našle na stranicama magazina Vešte ruke, a u Oktobru sam gostovala na stranicama web magzina Anita Mei. I jedna i druga saradnja su bile kratkog daha, ali veoma poučna iskustva za mene. 

Haljina koju sam sašila drugarici od Vlisco materijala je postala pravi hit na internetu, viralno se širila kao ni jedna druga kreacija koju sam do sada napravila, a vrhunac je dostigla kada nas je sam Vlisco kontaktirao! Našem uzbuđenju nije bilo kraja. I ovde se rodila nova saradnja, o kojoj će biti više reči u godini koja nam dolazi.

Iako je 2013. bila sva u znaku šivenja, napravila sam relativno malo garderobe ove godine. Neke stvari nisam još uspela ni da vam pokažem, ali biće još prilike. Uveliko radim na novom kroju, koji ćete moći da vidite početkom sledeće godine.

Suma sumarum, 2013. ću pamtiti kao godinu u kojoj sam se pokrenula. Želja da pokrenem izdavanje krojeva je dugo tinjala u meni, trebalo mi je mnogo vremena da donesem odluku i napravim prvi korak. Zanimljivo je da su me na taj prvi korak naveli potpuno neočekivani ljudi i događaji, koji verovatno nisu toga ni svesni :-). Treba još mnogo toga da naučim, imam velike planove koje želim da realizujem, i 2014. godina će biti posvećena tome. 

Prvi put u poslednjih par godina ulazim u novu godinu sa listom želja, sa odlukama i ciljevima kojima stremim. Dugo se nisam osećala tako odlučno i rešeno da svoje planove realizujem. To mi daje neverovatnu volju da radim više i bolje, i hrani me optimizmom koji mi je veoma nedostajao, i sa nestrpljenjem očekujem početak 2014. godine.

I, na kraju, dragi čitaoci žečim vam mnogo smeha, radosti i uživanja u novoj godini. Neka bude vesela i razigrana, i neka bude godina u kojoj ćete se i vi pokrenuti i ostvariti svoje želje! 

Srećna vam nova godina!

Emerald chevron skirt

Do you have a favorite fabric pattern / print you keep using when sewing? Do you like making your own fabric pattern, by making a new ornament out of an existing one? Do you stick with a safe, tried and trued fabric combination, when it comes to print, or do you explore new options and experiment with your fabrics?

* za verziju teksta na srpskom, pogledajte ovde.

I like sharp and angled lines, high contrasts and geometrical prints, and these three qualities can be seen in lots of my clothes. Chevron is probably my favorite pattern, though I can't remember if I ever bought a fabric with such a print - I've always made it by using striped, plaid and plain fabrics in various ways. You can see some of my experiments with chevron on the emerald shirt, striped pants, purple dress, heart box integration bodice, and many other of my garments.

Whenever I see a striped fabric, I think of all the ways I could arrange stripes to make interesting designs.

I made this skirt to match it with the emerald shit. The two fabrics matched perfectly, but I didn't like the pattern of the boucle - I felt I would look too old and formal if I made a plain straight skirt out of it. So I decided to play with my favorite design and make the skirt more modern.

I used the already described technique for sewing chevron. Skirt panels and waist band are cut on bias, so that the striped fabric is perfectly matched on horizontal and vertical seams. This kind matching stripes made an interesting diamond shape on the sides.

I used a very simple A-line skirt pattern that I drafted myself. It's always interesting to me to see how different two garments can look even if they're made using the same pattern, when different fabrics are used or when the fabric is cut on grainline and one bias. The skirt looks like a straight one, even though the hem's circumference is approximately 20 cm longer than the hips' circumference. But when you look at the skirt from the back you can see the flounce that falls from the rear to the hem, but when looked from the front, it looks straight.

Sewing a bias cut fabric can be tricky, since the fabric doesn't act the same way it would if it was cut on the grain. The fabric cut on bias looses its solidity which normally comes from its weft, and the fabric becomes stretchy. In some of my previous attempts to sew on bias I had problems with a shape of the skirt - I would use a plain straight skirt pattern, but the end result looked like a very tight pencil skirt, which isn't very flattering on me. The bias fabric would stretch across the hips and shrink around knees, thus making a pencil skirt look. The same thing happened with this skirt, but the extra volume at hemline gave it a shape that looks flattering on my body.

Along with the shape, sewing in a zipper can also be problematic on bias cut fabrics. When the zipper is not sewn well, the seam can get all bumpy, thus very unflattering. I had some minor issues with the zipper while working on the skirt - first I sewed it to a center back seam and got the bumpy seam. Then I moved the zipper to the side seam, which solved the problem. The body gives the zipper a support, which gives the seam a shape, and that's what was missing when the zipper was sewed to the center back seam.

Another trick I used was leaving the skirt panels to hang for a few days. I put some clothespins to the hem to add some weight to and so that the panels would additionally stretch. This way, the fabric stretched well before I started working on it (I didn't measure the length before and after stretching the fabric, but I believe it lengthened a bit after this).

Related posts

• Zlata skirt Pattern #1401
• Zlata skirt pattern - view A
• Zlata skirt pattern - view B
• Zlata skirt pattern - view C
• Zlata skirt pattern - the lining pattern

Smaragnda suknja sa šarom riblje kosti

Da li imate neki omiljeni dezen ili šaru, koju iznova i iznova koristite kada šijete? Da li volite sami da kreirate dezen materijala, aranžiranjem njegovog originalnog dezena u novi ornament? Da li volite da se držite sigurne, već proverene kombinacije, ili uvek istražujete nove mogućnosti za vaš kroj i materijal?

* to read the text in English, click here.

Ja jako volim oštre linije, velike kontraste i geometrijske šare, i ova tri atributa krase većinu garderobe koju pravim. Riblja kost je verovatno moj omiljeni dezen, mada ne pamtim da sam ikada kupila materijal koji zapravo ima ovaj print na sebi - svoju omiljenu šaru sam uvek sama pravila, koristeći prugaste, karirane ili jednobojne materijale na različite načine. Neke od primera mog eksperimentisanja ste već mogli da vidite na smaragdnoj košulji,  prugastim pantalonama, ljubičastoj haljini, srcastoj bluzi, kao i mnogim drugim stvarima. 

Kad god vidim prugast materijal, prva pomisao je - kako mogu da iskoristim pruge i napravim neku zanimljivu šaru od njih. 

Ovu suknju sam namenski pravila, da bih je kombinovala sa smaragdnom košuljom. Boje ove dve tkanine su se savršeno uklopile, ali mi se nije preterano dopao dezen buklea koji sam uzela za suknju - plašila sam se da bih izgledala previše staromodno u klasičnoj kariranoj suknji, pa sam rešila da se poigram još jednom sa omiljenom mi šarom i time učinim suknju modernijom.

Koristila sam već opisanu tehniku za krojenje i šivenje šare riblje kosti. Osim panela suknje, i pojas je ukoso iskrojen, tako da se linije materijala savršeno poklapaju duž vertikalnih i horizontalnih šavova. Ovakvo uklapanje šara za posledicu ima veoma zanimljivu šaru u obliku  romba (zapravo deltoida, da budem preciznija) na bočnim stranama.

Kroj je jednostavna A-suknja koju sam sama modelovala. Uvek mi je zanimljivo kada vidim kako isti kroj ima različit izgled, zavisno od vrste materijala, kao i od toga da li je tkanina sečena po liniji tkanja ili ukoso. Ova suknja izgleda prilično ravna, iako je obim poruba 20ak cm duži od obima suknje u kukovima. Tek gledano sa zadnje strane možete primetiti valove koji se formiraju na porubu, dok sa prednje strane suknja prilično ravno pada.

Šivenje ukoso iskrojenog materijala ume da bude prilično nezgodno, pošto se tkanina ne ponaša isto kao kada je iskrojena u pravcu tkanja. Naime, ukoso iskrojena i postavljena tkanina gubi čvrsinu koju joj  inače obezbeđuje potka, pa materijal postaje rastegljiv. U nekim ranijim pokušajima da šijem ukoso krojen materijal, imala sam probleme sa oblikom suknje - dešavalo mi se da koristim kroj za ravnu suknju, koja na kraju ispadne mnogo uža u predelu poruba nego u predelu kukova, što na meni ne izgleda ni malo lepo. Razlog za to je to što se materijal zategne preko kukova, gde mu telo drži formu, a skupi od kukova naniže. Slično se desilo i sa ovom suknjom, ali joj dodatni volumen daje oblik koji i dalje lepo izgleda na meni.

Osim oblika suknje, čest problem je i prišivanje rajsferšlusa. Ukoliko se ne prišije dobro, šav ume da bude sav grbav, što veoma ružno izgleda. Na ovoj suknji sam imala malo problema - rajsferšlus sam prvo prišila na leđni šav, i dobila upravo taj ružni, grbavi izgled. Potom sam pomerila rajsferšlus na levi bok, što je rešilo problem. Razlog je to što na boku telo daje potporu materijalu, držeći formu šava. što nedostaje na leđnom šavu.

Još jedan trik kojim sam se poslužila je to što sam panele suknje okačila da vise nekoliko dana pre nego što sam počela da šijem. Na porub sam zakačila nekoliko štipaljki, kako bi dale težinu materijalu i dodatno ga istegle. Na ovaj način, materijal se lepo istegao (nisam ga merila pre i posle istezanja, ali verujem da se malo i produžio) i bio je spreman za rad.

Povezani tekstovi

• Zlata kroj za suknju #1401
• Zlata kroj za suknju - varijacija A
• Zlata kroj za suknju - varijacija B
• Zlata kroj za suknju - varijacija C
• Zlata kroj za suknju - kroj za postavu

How to shorten a jacket zipper

How often do you sew jackets with a zipper closure? Do you have a favorite type of zipper you keep using again and again? What do you do when a pattern calls for a non-standardized zipper length? Do you know how to shorten a zipper and how do you do it?

* za verziju teksta na srpskom, pogledajte ovde.

A few days ago I started working on a new jacket which, you've guessed, has a zipper closure. This has given me an idea to show you a very simple technique I'm using on almost all the zippers.

But, before that, I'll give you some technical details about jacket zippers. These mechanisms can be found in various lengths and with various teeth, which can be metal or plastic teeth, and can be spiral or single teeth.

 

I usually use the ones with single plastic teeth. Although I like the looks of the metal zippers, I find these mechanisms too rough and heavy for jackets made of light and soft fabrics. I avoid the zippers with spiral teeth, as I don't like how they look. So, I'm left with the ones that have single plastic teeth.

Slike preuzete odavde

These zippers can be easily shortened. The teeth can be easily removed, but the question is how to secure the zipper end and keep the zipper head from falling off? I'll show you how I do it in the following text.

Measure the length of the zipper you need and the length you need to cut off. I usually measure directly on the jacket, as this way I am sure I will measure just the right length.

I shorten the measured zipper length by 2-3 teeth, as shown on the picture - the upper pin marks the exact length I need, while the bottom pin marks the length shortened by 2 teeth. This way I am sure the zipper teeth won't get stuck in a seam.

Then I make a zipper stop using a thread in a matching color. I make a few stitches around the zipper band, and then I make loops around the stitched thread.

Once the zipper stop is made, I can remove the extra teeth. I use these two wire pliers for this.

I remove the teeth one by one, starting from the top of the zipper band and moving towards the new zipper stop. This way I make sure I don't damage the teeth I need.

Once enough teeth has been pulled out, I cut off the extra zipper band and I'm left with the zipper in a length I needed.

When sewing the zipper to the fabric, I additionally secure the zipper stop by folding the zipper band to the side and twisting it one more time. This way I make a fold that will stop the zipper head from falling off of the zipper band.

Here's how the zipper looks once it's being sewed into the jacket and closed. You'll notice I left the right zipper band longer than the left one, as I wanted to make the zipper a trim of the jacket. The zipper head is secured from falling off, and my alteration on the zipper is invisible. If I wanted to secure the zipper more, I could have added the zipper stop to the right side of the zipper. I will consider doing this once the jacket is completed.

P.S. You have probably noticed double posts - one in English and the other in Serbian. I wanted to try blogging this way, so you could read the posts more easily. Let me know if this suits you!

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