Sewn: Hearts Bra & Panties

Well hello there! I have a bit of a surprise for all of us today, some Valentine's themed underthings!

Until I started sewing my own lingerie, my selections were very practical - black, white & beige. Have I made any black, white, or beige bras for myself? Nope. But I am missing them in my life. So before I get stuck in to a batch of neutral bra sewing, I tested out some of my pattern alterations on with this adorable red heart mesh that I came across while out shopping a couple of weeks ago. It wasn't something I was looking for, but half a yard came home with me anyway - I know we've all been there!

First, let me give you a quick recap of how my bra sewing and fitting has progressed. After taking a class and buying all of Beverly Johnson's excellent Craftsy classes about three years ago, I did make a couple of Pin Up Girls Classic bras. I prefer a fair bit of coverage, so with minimal style adjustments, I was happy with the bras that I made. However, I noticed that I didn't reach for them regularly as the band felt too tight. I experimented with quickly sewing on another set of eyes to make the band larger, but that wasn't it. Eventually, I came to the conclusion that it was the underwire shape that was bothering me. But I took another 8 months to finally try some new wires!

In the mean time, I made not one but three quite beautiful Harriet bras. I really like the cup shape, but the width at the strap attachment was too wide for me, cutting into my underarm and giving me grief. I tried to adjust the shape of the cup at the top, but I couldn't make it work. And the straps themselves bothered me, too. With a softer finish elastic, I'm sure that wouldn't be a problem, but the sturdy stuff I have was cutting into my shoulders. So another set of rarely worn bras linger in my lingerie drawer. And the underwires were still not right.

The bra that I kept reaching for is a very different shape, that I think of as more of a "tear drop". It's this one from Wacoal, but early on I replaced the wires with some from another shop bought bra. Are you sensing a theme? It's always been the wires!

At long last, I ordered some new wires from Bra Makers' Supply - the horizontal wires. This particular bra was made with the 44 wire, in an approximately 34E bra.

Amazingly enough, I had already made the adjustments to the Classic pattern for a horizontal seamed bra, so I whipped up a tester last weekend to check the fit. The straps were too long, but that is the easiest fix of all. I quickly pinched and tacked them shorter, and spent the rest of the day comfortable in my new bra. Unfortunately, it was a tester, so none of the elastics matched, and the straps and hook were not securely attached. When I had to put on a "real" bra to leave the house, though, it felt terrible. Time to sew up a new one!

This red mesh is VERY stretchy. Beverly recommends using a fabric with a slight stretch when lining stretchy fabrics, but I didn't have anything appropriate to hand. I used some bra lining that was kicking around for the lining, and the heart fabric does slightly "float" over the top. For a spur of the moment project that I probably won't reach for very often, it's ok. Lining meant that all of my seams could be neatly enclosed, which I love. I even used the red mesh to cover the beige power mesh of the back band! Hearts all over!

Just look at those beautiful "U" shaped wires!!!

I have a couple of small tweaks and adjustments to make to the pattern for my next bra, but I'm well on my way at long last. Since I had fabric left over, I made a couple of pairs of very difficult to photograph panties, too. They are both based on the Watson bikini, with some fun design elements. One pair has a ruched back, and the other has a sort of "heart" shaped mesh back, courtesy of a little window shopping at Victoria's Secret.

I had to adjust the colour a bit, but you can see the "heart" seam at the top.

And this pair has a ruched back. Very sassy, if I do say so myself.

 And with that, I wish you a happy Valentine's/Galentine's/Palentine's day!