Made By A Fabricista: A Pretty Dress Perfect for Spring Time

Hi Guys! Not sure where you currently are in the world, but I hope spring has finally sprung wherever you are. It’s time to tackle that spring sewing list and make all the pretty dresses you can. I figured I would jump right in and start on my spring sewing with this adorable dress I made.

I decided I would start off with Simplicity 9329. What is there not to love about this dress?! I mean, if you don’t like a dramatic sleeve, then I guess this dress isn’t for you. I love a good dramatic sleeve, so this dress was right up my alley. Besides the dramatic sleeves, there are two length options and you can choose to add the back tie or not. Almost forgot to mention that the back is open and it also has pockets.

I have a few confessions to make. Originally I made a size 18 and the bodice fit well but the waist was a little tight so I made a size 20 instead. What I really should have done was grade the pattern at the waist for a better fit. Honestly, I wasn’t sure how to do that with princess seams so I didn’t. Don’t be me. Lol I still love this dress. What I love the most is how the dress comes together and all the little details. Here are some photos of the sleeve. I have never made a garment with pleats and elastic in the sleeve. It’s just so good!! I also love the binding on the sleeve hem.

Now let’s get into this fabric! I was intentionally looking for fabric for this pattern and I came across this. It’s called Royal Brown/White 100% Cotton Large Single Border Overlapping Dots Print Sateen and it’s still available. This fabric is a stretch sateen and has just a little sheen to it. Are you ready for another confession? The fabric placement wasn’t really what I was going for. What I really had in mind was to make the entire dress in polka dots and have the solid brown at the bottom of the skirt hem or vice versa. That didn’t really work out because of the print layout and the direction of the grain. I’m still in love with my dress although it didn’t really come out how I envisioned it.

I say all of this to say that sometimes things don’t go as planned, but that’s alright. Just keep moving forward and either try again or just love what you make and the outcome. Lol I may make this dress again in the future out of a solid color and I might grade the waist size this time. The back of this dress is open in a V shape and I would close that up next time. This pattern comes together very easily and there is also a tutorial for it online. If this is your style then I would definitely give it a try. Also, if it’s not your style, you can always modify the patter to your liking. This is why we sew, right?

Until next time,

JOHANNA | @soveryjo

Unfortunately Fabric Mart Fabrics sell out quickly!
You can find similar fabrics by shopping the following categories: COTTON & SATEEN.

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

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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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