Erica Bunker | DIY Style! The Art of Cultivating a Stylish Wardrobe: Baby Lock

Making Activewear with the Baby Lock Victory Serger!

11:00 PM

I'm 6 months shy of my 50th birthday. So, health and fitness (both physical and mental) are number 1 on my list of priorities. Because without good health, nothing else matters to me. In an effort to keep motivating myself to make it to the gym at least 4 times a week, I'm adding new and cute workout clothes to my closet!

As a Baby Lock Sewing Brand Ambassador, I received the Baby Lock Victory Serger. I've been challenging myself to find different ways to use it. And one of my favorite things to do is to make activewear!

Making Activewear with the Baby Lock Victory Serger: Pants: McCall's 6404 - Erica Bunker DIY Style!

I was inspired to make workout clothes from the Sew Your View Monthly Challenge on Instagram.

They used McCall's 7261. I didn't have that one in my pattern collection. But I do have McCall's 6404 (out-of-print), which is basically the same draft. I just widened the waistband.

I made this pattern a few years ago... it was prior to a full seat adjustment being one of my standard pattern adjustments. I just made the workout tights and when I tried them on -- big problem.

They were hella dipping at the center back. So, I just added a "yoke" to fill in that space between the back and the waistband.

I cut the size large. But I ended up taking about 3" off of each side so that they'd actually look like workout tights with the negative ease.

For the navy blue pair, I used Navy Perfotek Compression Jersey and Navy Stretch Polyester Power Mesh. The navy is currently out of stock, but this is one of Mood Fabrics reorderable fabrics... and they have other great colors as well. It's not rough or scratchy... it's very soft with excellent stretch. And let me tell you just how soft that Perfotek Compression Jersey is! It feels amazing against the skin.

The print is Shocking Printed Max-Dri Anti-Microbial Performance Tricot. This one is such a fun print. And the fabric is drys super quick. This would make a great swimsuit as well. Workout tights are super expensive. The good kind usually run $100+. And you're still not guaranteed to have a nice high-waisted pair that are long enough. That's the greatest benefit of being able to create your own.

And for the creating, I used a 2-Thread Flatlock Wide Stitch. This stitch is known as a "natural flatlock" and on the Baby Lock Victory Serger, it didn't require any tension adjustment. I made the wide stitch. This is done by using only one needle in the left position. The thread for this needle is passed through the top thread guide that is normally used for the upper looper (3rd from the left) and down the front and threading the needle normally.

To create a 2-thread flatlock stitch, the eye of the upper looper needs to be blocked to form this stitch. On some machines, you have to add an attachment to the looper. On the Victory, it has what's called a "subsidiary looper".

Here's a tutorial to show you how it's done:

Of course, I needed matching tops. I used Simplicity 8560 sports bra pattern. It has 3 different views and I made two of them. The is a great pattern because it's sized like a regular bra with band width and cup sizes. I cut the 34D.

On the printed top, it's sewn in its entirety on my Baby Lock Aventura II, using the stretch stitch. It's the one that looks like a lightning bolt.

For this version, I used the 2-thread flatlock stitch in a decorative way.

This one has the mesh inset with a bound finish. And Italian Navy Elastic Trimming for the band.

Not only are these pieces cute and fashionable, they're comfortable during the workout.

Nothing rides up. I highly recommend both of them if you're looking to combine high performance with high style!

Baby Lock

Adding an Embroidery Design to a Pattern with Baby Lock Sewing!

3:00 PM

When I purchased this Italian Black/Off-White Stretch Cotton Print, I bought a large cut of it because I knew I wanted to make a two-piece.

The jacket is McCall's 7730 and the pants are Simplicity 8655. I cut the size 14, D cup in the jacket. I like the style of the jacket, I felt that the lines were a little plain. So, I decided it could use a little zhooshing up.

I selected this design -- Midnight Blooms from Urban Threads.

On my Baby Lock Aventura II, I adjusted the colors so that they would show up on my fabric and compliment the print.

I made a test design and decided where I wanted to place it and using my 6.25" x 10.25" embroidery hoop, I hooped the jacket fronts prior to sewing the darts so that it would lay flat. And I flipped the design orientation the opposite way for the other side. Instead of using stabilizer, I interfaced the entire fronts.

This project required 14 colors. So, if you're just starting out in embroidery, I suggest you buy a thread kit, like I did, to get you started. I bought the New Brothread 63 Spools Color Kit from Amazon.

I like the way the design turned out. I wanted to do more and get really creative with the placement. But sometimes, less is more. I didn't want to overdo it and end up trashing the whole project. So, I decided that as I get use to adding embroidered designs, I'll gradually become more playful with placement.

For the inside of the jacket, I lined it in an Antique White China Silk/Habotai from Mood Fabrics.

This was a really easy jacket to bag a lining on, even with the vent. I added an embroidered stitch to the lining as well.

I didn't want the sleeve flounce to collapse, because I think that would take away from the design. I added horsehair braid to the hem.

I absolutely love the fit of these high-waisted cigarette pants (women print pants). I don't think I'll EVER wear pants that don't come up to the natural waist ever again. They're comfortable and you don't get muffin top or butt crack. Who wouldn't want that? I cut the size 16 and lengthened the hem by 3". They're very fitted at the waist. I found I needed to let out the center front and the center back seams a little bit because I wanted to give my invisible zipper a littler more ease.

I love adding separates to my wardrobe. They create a great ensemble and also work with the other pieces in my closet.

Baby Lock

Machine Embroidery on Knits Using Baby Lock Aventura II!

11:00 AM

Baby Lock

Review: Simplicity 8891 - A Summer Suit with Baby Lock Aventura II Decorative Sewing!

12:00 PM

I'd always wanted a sewing machine with the embroidery feature and lots of good decorative stitches. I had a lower end, big box model in the past. But it just wasn't advanced enough for my liking and I never gave it more interest than adding a design or so to my linings in coats and jackets. When I got my Baby Lock Aventura II a few weeks ago, I was determined to learn about embroidery from the ground up... starting with the decorative sewing. I did my research because I wanted to use decorative sewing and embroidery in a sophisticated and polished way. I want my garments to look high-end and not like a craft project.

I wanted an easy-to-make summer suit, one that I could wear together or mix the pieces into my wardrobe. I picked Simplicity 8891. The thing about "easy" is that it can possibly mean painfully plain. And that's how I felt about this pattern. It's simple, but it has good details. I knew it needed some zhushing up.

My fabric is this incredible Italian Canary and Moonstruck Double-Faced Stretch Cotton Twill. This fabric is super soft and has a real comfortable amount of give. It feels like a double knit and it has a really good bottom weight. Really good for a body con dress or fitted pants. I pre-treated the fabric in the washer and dryer. It came out pretty wrinkled. But after a good pressing, it was beautiful.

For the jacket, I cut the size 14 and graded out to the 16 at the hip and added 1 inch to the length. I decided to use the decorative stitches instead of basic topstitching.

I picked this diamond looking 7mm satin stitch which I felt would really pop using embroidery thread.

Using the Edit/Stitch switching key and selecting the elongation key to make the pattern shorter and the single/repeat key to indicate that I wanted this to be a continuous stitch and not just a single pattern. I pressed the memory key (the pocket) to save it, so I wouldn't have to go through all of these adjustments each time, because I was going to be using this stitch throughout this project.

I'm really loving the detail that it added to the jacket.

I used the decorative satin stitching to tack down the pleats in the front and the back.

Additionally, I created a belt. I'm not the biggest fan of self tie belts, so I wanted to make a real belt. I interfaced with weft fusible to give it body and carried out the decorative stitching too.