Tag Archives: cat lady sewing challenge

Cat Dream Archer


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I’ve been wanting to make an Archer for awhile, but I’ve realized that I really hate pdf patterns. They are a pain to put together and store. I was recently on Grainline Studio’s site and I noticed she had a preorder for a paper Archer pattern. Woohoo!

Around the same time MissCrayolaCreepy posted about the Cat Lady Sewing Challenge.  So it seemed like a good time to sew a cat-shirt! There are a lot of cute/kitschy cat prints out there, but I’ve realized I rarely actually wear clothing I make with that sort of print. Then I came across the Cat Dream fabric from Lizzy House, which is still pretty cute but in my eyes a little more sophisticated and wearable.

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So one of the big reasons I wanted to make a shirt is that I’ve never owned a button down shirt that didn’t gap around the bust. Now that I’m an FBA-pro I wanted to try my hand at getting a really well fitting shirt. I did all my pattern adjustments using the Palmer Pletsch method, which lead to a 1″ FBA. With the print on this fabric you can barely see the darts. But look…I can raise my arms and no button gap! Hallelujah!!

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The rear view is pretty good too! I made no modifications. On big 4 sometime I do 3/4″ broad back adjustment.

IMG_8503 The one thing I’m not too sure about is the shoulder width. Where is a shirt like this supposed to hit you? I have a feeling it might be a smidge to wide in the shoulders.

My only outstanding fitting issue is the sleeves. The upper arm fits fine, but the lower cuff is ridiculously wide. I didn’t check this until after I sewed the cuff on and at the point I wasn’t changing it. So I ended up sewing my cuff buttons almost 2″ over from the button marking! The sleeves are also about 2″ too long so I will make both the length and width adjustments on my next version.

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None of my cat shirt + cat photos came out great, but I had to include at least one with a kitty! Here’s my little monkey named Magi. I also have a black cat names Cleo. I couldn’t find my camera remote, so I had 10 seconds to hit the shutter, grab a cat, and get in the shot. So apologies that we both look a little weird!

Cat Lady Sewing Challenge – Katmono!


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Miss Crayola Creepy is hosting the Cat Lady Sewing Challenge for the month of October.  Yay..I get to embrace my catladyness!

Recently one of my good friends celebrated her 30th birthday and I thought she needed to up her loungewear game. So when I came across all these tutorials for kimono jackets, I knew it was perfect!  She is also a cat lover so I wanted some kitty fabric. I was thinking more cute kitty fabric but this is the best I could do on short notice.

Forgive the terrible photos as I only finished sewing 30 minutes before I had to leave for the party!  It looks rather Rrrrawrrrr! with the slip Bertha wears, right? It’s a Kat-mono…haha!

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I based my pattern on the tutorial by Elle Apparel, but I constructed it differently as I wanted some nicer finishes on the inside of the garment. I plan to make one for myself too, and for that one I plan to draft facings as well.

catmono-2I purchased 1.5 yards of fabric and I could possibly have done with a little less, but I wanted to make sure the sleeve print went the right way.