Made By A Fabricista: Sew House Seven Mississippi Ave Dress

Oh, c'mon people, let's make believe it's time to walk barefoot in the sand on the beach! I sewed this sweet little hot pink twill rayon challis dress during a record breaking cold spell so there was no way on this frozen tundra of earth I was going outside to take photos in this dress. So squint your eyes and think "white, sandy beaches". I've been quite curious about the Sew House Seven patterns--- they have a feminine and casual appeal. No one has really talked much about them in the sewing blogosphere, so I was super exited to sew up their Mississippi Avenue Dress that Fabric Mart has in stock.

The pattern itself comes in a nice paper envelope comparable to the Big 4 companies' envelopes. The instruction booklet is in black and white with these really nice illustrations. I was pleasantly surprised. They're very detailed. I agree with this pattern being labeled "beginner", it was a breeze to construct with most of my time being spent on finishing the neckline and arm openings. The pattern itself is printed on three heavy weight pages, I just cut out my size being that I was feeling too lazy to trace it off.

Being uncertain of what height these pattern are drafted for I just went ahead and added 1" of length to the bodice. There are no markings on the pattern pages for this. I went just below the side notches to cut and slash then add the inch on all my pieces. I'm 5'8", two inches taller than what most commercial patterns draft for, so this is a typical alteration for me.

This is a perfect spring or summer dress. The neckline dips a little low so a camisole underneath along with a cardigan will work nicely if I were to wear it in a casual workplace. How fun are the little ties on the shoulders? The dress is unlined but this rayon challis twill is plenty opaque to keep a girl modest.

I sewed up View C, the longer version of the dress. I needed a size 10/12 for my top half but for the sake of my sanity I cut a straight 12 upper bodice. I had to grade out to a 14/16 hip. I did have to take in the sides of the bodice down to about a 10. I feel like the underarms dip down a tad low giving a sneak peek at my underthings-- I would likely draft them up higher if I were to sew this again. FYI, sizing is similar to U.S. ready-to-wear sizing. It ranges from 0-20-- or a 32-46" bust and a 35-50" hip.

Rayon challis can be a tricky fabric to work with. I made sure to pre-wash and dry it to shrink it up nicely. The neck and arm openings are nicely bound on the inside edge, which looks great and prevents these areas from stretching over time. You can see in the picture (above-left) my back neckline. I really like that inset panel in front, a future version of this is dying to have some contrasting piping in those seams, yes?!

I love a drapey, swishy, looser fitting dress in the dead of summer. If you could zoom in here, you'd surely see goosebumps on this 20F day. Who else has washed their hands of cold weather sewing here in the northern hemisphere?!

Happy Sewing!!

~Kathy

Kathy Sews

Made By A Fabricista: A Tipsy Martini Transitional Three Piece Look

Hello Sewing Friends! It’s Sharon with Sharon Sews with my latest Fabricista make – a three-piece set I can wear as the weather transitions to fall here in Texas. It may look like a summer outfit but there will days filled with sunshine and high temps well into November. At first glance it looks like a nice, lightweight jacket, top and pants. But look closer – it’s sewn from the designer Tipsy Martini cotton sateen that was originally used by the designer for a pajama set. Now I could have sewn myself a pair of pajamas using the Closet Core Carolyn Pajama pattern (available at Fabric Mart) and replicated the designer pajamas. But if I had gone that route the only ones who would have seen this adorable kitschy fabric would be my family. This print is much too cute to hide out at home. This Tipsy Martini cotton sateen fabric was lovely to sew. I used black thread, an 80/12 universal needle, and Palmer/Pletsch Perfect Fuse Medium interfacing (link here). Note that this is a rayon fu

Made By A Fabricista: Hooray for Cozy Fall Sews!

Greetings, all! I am in such high spirits with the best-of-all-seasons just beginning and change is finally in the air. I always rejoice when the sweatiest time of the year passes and we can all take a deep breath and gear up for cozier times. Neighborhood Patterns is a new-to-me designer, and I came across them on Instagram in late summer and fell in love with the Plain Jane Skirt. This is such a simple A-line skirt, but with nice details like large inseam pockets and an optional drawstring, and though I’m sure I could draft this style myself, the appeal of having it all done for me was too tempting to pass up. A sew such as this is a lovely palate-cleanser and this was the first project I sewed after returning from a cross-country trip. Perfect! The gorgeous plaid flannel is exactly what I want to be wearing in the fall. The fabric is SO soft and a pleasure to snuggle up in. Because flannel does not have much body and is prone to stretching or shifting with all its mechanical give,

Made By A Fabricista: Quilted Jacket Chronicle

What do you get when mixing the best things about apparel sewing and machine quilting? A quilted jacket! It's funny that I elected to sew myself a quilted jacket for this Fabricista blog because I don't consider myself much of a quilter. I can count on my hands the number of quilted projects I've made over the last few years. While I fully appreciate the end product of quilting, I don't normally gravitate toward starting quilting projects. That's why making a quilted jacket is a new and exciting project for me! It gives me the fun of making a quilt on a much smaller scale. If you are an avid apparel sewist and are new to quilting, this is the perfect project to take for a quilting test drive! For my quilted jacket, I used the Seamwork Easton Jacket pattern. I decided to stick with a solid-colored fabric for the jacket's exterior and ordered 4 yards of Dark Umber Brown Lycra Stretch Canvas Suiting from the Fabric Mart website. I wanted a contrasting color for the

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