Made by a Fabricista: Flirty Floral Denim Dress

Can you believe how fast summer is flying by? It's almost Labor Day! So despite the fact that it has been insanely hot here in the southeast and will likely stay that way weeks after the "unofficial end of summer" it's almost time for me to start sewing for fall.

If you follow me either here or on my blog you know that dresses are my favorite thing to sew and I sew them year round. Simplicity 8264 is a great transition dress due to it's sleeve length and recommendation of heavier wovens such as brocade, damask, sateen or denim.

When I saw this floral printed denim I just had to have it for this dress. Unfortunately it is sold out, I almost didn't get any myself. There aren't any other printed denims available but there are several floral brocades (here) that I think will work nicely.

On to the dress itself...the dress came together easily thanks to clear instructions. My least favorite part was creating the neck and sleeve ruffle. But that is to be expected as I hate gathering as a general rule. Thankfully, there is not much fabric to gather here so it wasn't that bad. Everything else was a breeze.

I graded from a size 16 at the neck and shoulders to an 18 from the bust to hip. My bust was closer to the 16 measurements, but my biceps tend to need a tad more room in the sleeve so I went with size 18 armhole. In the end, the dress was a tad to boxy in the middle for me. My first thought was to add a fish-eye dart to each back piece, but I have yet to draft those. I ended up simply taking in the sides grading from almost nothing at the underarm to about 3/4" to at the waist back out to the hip. I am happy with the fit, but I will be looking for information on how to draft my own fish-eye darts for future projects.

I was a tad concerned about the height of the neck ruffle, but it didn't bother me while shooting the photos even though I'm not a huge fan of anything around my neck. The dress calls for an invisible zipper, but depending on the fabric used I think an exposed decorative zipper would work great.

Though a little too hot to wear now, I'll be wearing this dress come fall and even into earlier winter over tights. Have you started your fall sewing yet?

I won't be posting during the Fabricista Challenge, but you can keep up with my lastest projects on my blog, TipStitched.

See you in October!!!

Made by a Fabricista: What's Black and Gold with Chevron All Over? This DIY Pant Suit, That's What!

Hope you're having a Golden day, get it? [I crack myself up sometimes!] This DIY pant suit is golden for sure. So tell me this, were you one of the lucky ones who were able to grab some of this fabric when Fabric Mart posted their new arrivals? I jumped on it so fast it was crazy and before you know it "poof" it was gone. So sorry I don't have any links to this fabric but all is not lost, you can use something else for these patterns. Try looking in the suiting selection for the blazer. The other awesome option is denim and as always check the New Arrivals. I went to my "tnt" blazer pattern for this project because I knew the metallic bias around the edges would look fab and I was on a mission to make another pair of mimi g's jeans and trim the seams in metallic bias as well. I recommend both of these patterns to any level sewist. I did a little pattern hack on the blazer pockets to make them a little more interesting and I made a pic...

Made By A Fabricista: Blouse with a Unique Neckline? McCall’s 8658 Is It!

Hi everyone, this is Byrd with my latest Fabricista make! If you’re looking for a polished, structured blouse that works just as well dressed up as it does dressed down, this one is definitely worth a look. I’m sewing up McCall’s 8658, View B, part of the Spring 2026 pattern collection, and I paired it with Fabric Mart’s charcoal cotton poplin by Robert Kaufman. I was initially drawn to this pattern because of its unique neckline and tailored feel, and I knew right away that a crisp poplin would give me the structure I wanted. This blouse is semi-fitted and full of thoughtful design details that really elevate it. The neckline is a standout, featuring a collar and collar band paired with a front button closure. I especially love the shape of the front hem and the way it opens slightly - it adds movement without being overdone. The back is where a lot of the shaping happens, with double-ended darts that give a beautiful, contoured fit. The sleeves are gathered at the sleeve head a...

Made By A Fabricista: The Skirt that Brought my Sewjo Back

I know it can’t just be me. My sewjo has gone away and I’ve been having such a hard time trying to get it back. I remember the days when I used to sew every single day without fail and now, not so much. I think about sewing and all the things I’d love to make, but I just haven’t found the motivation. I kind of know what the issue is. I started a new job last October and ever since I started, I’ve been sewing less and less and I don’t like it! Well, in comes Simplicity S3237. Summertime is here and it’s time to bring out all the skirts. Simplicity recently released S3237 as part of their summer patterns. This skirt is a full, gathered skirt with a bias-cut yoke with side seam pockets and an invisible back zipper. The skirt comes in 3 different lengths – mini, midi and maxi. I decided to make View B which is the midi length. I’m not much of a maxi length kind of girl and that mini was a little too small for me. I sewed up a size 22 with a few modifications. Let’s talk about th...

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