Fabric Mart Fabricistas

Living in Colorado, I'm surrounded by people who have clocked in thousands of hours of time running.  While I won't be running a marathon any time soon, I do enjoy adding running into my workouts, and I've been curious about one particular subset of activewear: base layer clothing.  For my post this month, I decided to make a mini collection of wool base layer clothing.

Even though Memorial Day symbolizes the start of Summer for many, this past Thursday (6.21) marked the official first day of summer. What better excuse than the first day of summer to make a swimsuit? Truthfully I wanted to sew a swimsuit for my May post since it fell on Memorial weekend but I was distracted with the beautiful chambray that I used for a jumpsuit.



Since sewing just a swimsuit seemed a little "meh", I decided to add a cover-up for a whole "day at the pool or beach" vibe. This bright, floral chiffon screamed summer so I grabbed it. Sewing with chiffon can be frustrating so I chose Simplicity 8657 to limit the amount of seams. The only tip I have for sewing with chiffon is to use a rotary cutter and be patient. This print is still in stock, but some other prints that would work well is this similar spring green floral, this more abstract navy floral or this fun rainbow stripe.



This caftan pattern is definitely a simple sew but as a part of Simplicity&…

HI Fashionistas!

Hope you are having a lovely summer and staying cool. It is getting pretty warm here.  School is out and I am staying busy with summer camp pickups and dropoffs for my older kid. I recently started noticing that a lot of pre-school moms were wearing black lightweight maxi dresses at drop off and they looked so effortless and comfortable. I decided to make my very own easy to sew version up in a lightweight black knit.


I made the dress without a pattern. It was made in under two hours. To cut the bodice of the dress, I used a tank top as a guideline, and to make the skirt, I simply made very small pleats on my sewing machine (freehanded) to mimic the look of gathers. The bodice is self-lined, as the fabric is thin. The skirt is not lined. Its light and airy. I wore this dress to fathers day dinner. Matter of fact, I am wearing it now with a floral scarf for a pop of color. 


What I love about this dress is that it's so easy to wear.  You really don't have to worr…

Happy Saturday Loves! I am officially on summer break and truly enjoyed the first week just relaxing at home and working out at the gym.  I have not done any sewing this week but plan to start on my summer sewing plans next week.
 As an advanced beginner, I truly started my sewing journey 4 years ago working mostly with Ankara wax cotton, rayon, polyester and ponte knit and the only type of knit I was comfortable sewing with were scuba and ponte.  In my stash, I have other knits including lycra and mid-weight jersey but really never had the desire to make basic pieces that I can buy for less than the cost of the fabric. I came across 2 beautiful knit prints back in April and knew it was perfect for summer.
 I am in love with this top, made using Liverpool knit fabric. It is a beautiful midweight knit fabric for summer and is actually sold out but Fabric Mart has other selections including this beautiful flower print here.

This McCall pattern (M7686) has been on my to sew list for a w…

Hi everybody, it's Virginie from Jazz Couture.
Warmer weather has finally arrived here in eastern Canada, and so for my June post I made two summery garments which I'm happy to share with you: a dress from the sewing magazine Patrones, and the Bridget Top from Designer Stitch Patterns!
First, let's start with the dress...


I find myself lucky to get the spanish magazine Patrones translated in french ('Couture Actuelle' in its french version) each month at my bookstore nearby. Dress #27 from Patrones no 382 caught my eye for its simplicity and ease of wear - which sums up my idea of summer dressing!



My fabric:
I chose for this dress a wonderful plaid cotton shirting from Ralph Lauren that FM had recently (it sold out quickly!).  I just love the colours (aren't they a bit vintage?) and the slightly crinkled texture (that you might see if you enlarge the pictures). It also sewed and pressed like a dream, and even made the plaid matching easy peasy! That fabric is n…

How much do you love wearing cotton in the summer?  As much as I do?  When I spotted this periwinkle polka dot fabric, which by the way, is a sateen, it was love at first sight!  And for one of the first times in my life I knew exactly what pattern to use to make this fabric perfect for summer heat!


This fabric washed and dried like a dream!  It needed so little pressing when it came out of the dryer.  It also behaved beautifully when sewn!  As I am typing this up, it appears this fabric is sold out, however there are some really nice options you can see here: Sateen


If you are interested, here is the pattern I used: McCall's 7242 This is an uncomplicated and relatively easy sew.

I partially tissue fit this in the bodice.  Using flat pattern measurements, I knew the skirt would fit.  

I used a tiny narrow hem for the skirt.  Since the fabric hangs so nicely and moves so nicely, I didn't see any reason to make a wider or fuller hem.   What do you think was that a good choice?

I…

Summer is here!  Well, not officially until June 21st, but tell that to the thermometer!  I've been sewing up a few things for summer and I wanted to share with you a couple of ideas for cover ups to keep you warm in air conditioned offices and stores, or on chilly summer evenings, when you just need a little something over your shoulders and arms.  One is a dramatic, dressy waterfall cardigan made from chiffon, and the other is a very casual no-sew knit cover-up.  So, depending on your mood or the occasion, you might like both!

I made this waterfall design cardigan using a polyester chiffon stripe from Fabric Mart's chiffon section, and McCalls 7029 as my pattern.  Fabric Mart always has a fantastic selection of chiffon!



If you've never worked with chiffon before, I would recommend starting with something that doesn't have a lot of seams.  A kimono type pattern with no set in sleeves would be a great project for a first time chiffon project.



I chose this pattern beca…