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Showing posts from August, 2016

Made by a Fabricista: 70's Inspired Peasant Dress

I came of age in the 70's, and the Peasant Dress style made popular by Laura Ashley and Gunne Sax are near and dear to my heart!  I knew that it would just be a matter of time until they came back, and recently McCalls patterns introduced a Laura Ashley design with 7242.  The pattern has several different views, and I originally thought that I would make the short dress, but when I actually tried it on, it was screaming for the ruffle, so I added it at the last minute. I didn't have quite enough fabric to make the full width of the ruffle, so mine is about 8", instead of 12" wide as the pattern is.  I also serge finished the ruffle hem instead of narrow hemming to save time and keep the ruffle as long as possible. I wanted to make it with a true 70's vibe which meant soft flowy fabric in earthy or muted colors. Fabric Mart had a challis that was just perfect for it with a Muted Teal and Fiery Orange Rayon Challis . I haven't worked

Summer of T-Shirts Event: Bell Sleeves

This is the last week in the Summer of T-Shirts Event! We had a lot of fun putting this together for you and I hope it helped broaden your creativity. If you followed along with us, be sure to post photos of your finished projects on Facebook and Instagram using #FMSummerofTshirts. You will be entered into a random drawing for one of two prizes: a $75 gift certificate for Fabric Mart or 3 patterns of your choice from Palmer/Pletsch or Melissa Watson. Post your photos by August 31st. Winners will be chosen on September 1st. This week's post is by Tereza from the blog, Sewing For Me . She will be sharing with you how to change straight sleeves into bell sleeves. I just can't get enough of my StyleArc Adele Top ! For this version, I took into account my changing body as my twins are reaching 20-ish weeks out of 40. With the changes, straight sleeves feel a little snug some days. Therefore, I drafted up 3/4 bell sleeves. Step 1- Set up your sleeve pattern to 3/4

Made By A Fabricista: Bomber Jacket Trend

I've wanted a bomber jacket for a few years now and what do you know, they are in style now in a major way! I've been seeing lots of florals and lots of satin bombers. I knew I wanted mine to be a bit bold ( for me ) and when I saw this printed ponte, I decided a knit bomber jacket would be mine! At the time, I wasn't buying new patterns (broke that fast - shhhhh!) and went for a stash pattern - Burda 2/2013 #125 It comes in sizes 34 - 42 (8 - 16) and needs just 1 1/4 yard of 55 inch fabric - score! I couldn't find ribbing locally so I went with a black ponte for the bands. I wanted to line it and picked up a run-of-the-mill poly interlock knit in black. It's a bit shiny but it's okay; it serves the purpose. I don't think I'll ever make another jacket again without a back facing! I cut a size 40 at the neckline and shoulders, grading to a 42 for the rest. This is standard for me with Burda. After taking measurements, a

Summer of T-Shirts Event: Designing with a Simple Pattern

I’m so impressed! Everyone in the “Summer of T-Shirts Event” has come up with some amazingly creative ways to change up that ol’ T-shirt pattern!  As a fashion designer and patternmaker, I’m always trying to come up with new and interesting designs while sticking to classic silhouettes. At the end of the day, when you are sewing something yourself, you are the designer because you are making the decisions for fit and fabric. One of my favorite things to do is to take a simple, yet well-fitted T-Shirt pattern, (I love my mom’s Palmer/Pletsch Basic Knit Tee #M6964 ) and find really interesting, even unusual fabric to make it out of. I take the one T-shirt pattern and fit it slightly differently for each type of knit based on its weight and stiffness. I like to use border and large-scale prints or even plaids to play with interesting print placement. Sometimes the simplest pattern can be made so interesting if you place your print well. I’m usually writing about fitting and alterat

Made by a Fabricista: Color-Blocked Athletic Wear

  When trying to decide what to sew this month I was inspired by a  Fabric Mart email that featured a sale on athletic fabric. ( Side Note: If you are not their email list, SIGN UP !)  I’ve been wanting to sew some workout gear since shortly after I began to sew a little over 2 years ago. As a newbie I purchased athletic wear patterns but avoided sewing them because I was a little unsure of sewing such stretchy fabric (even though I learned on knits). I figured this month was as good as any to make a workout outfit, especially since I’m trying to recommit to fitness and healthy living. So I pulled out Butterick 6295 and McCalls 7261 from my pattern drawer. I chose B6295 because I love the large pockets on the hip of the leggings (View D). I NEED music to get through a workout and that music is played from my Samsung Note, a HUGE phablet. So these pockets will allow me to keep my phone on me as I squat while listening to my Spotify playlist. I know, I know I need to just g