Made By A Fabricista: The Making of a Complete Outfit

Hi Guys! For this month’s post, I wanted to make a complete outfit. What does that even mean, right? To me, that means a top and bottom. I noticed that I make a lot of dresses and skirts and I wanted to make some separates this month. I decided on making these pleated trousers. This pattern is part of Sew It Academy. I also received Mimi G’s new book called, Make It Yours with Mimi G, which I totally love. To sum it up, the book comes with 7 basic patterns that help build your wardrobe and then she shows you how to hack these patterns into a different garment. I decided to make The Fitted Tee from the book to go with my pleated trousers.

Since I already knew what I was going to be making this month, I knew what fabrics I wanted to work with. For the T-shirt, I wanted a soft, opaque knit fabric. I came across this Coral Red Rayon/Lycra Light Weight Jersey Knit. This fabric is everything I was hoping it would be. It has a nice drape and opaque how I wanted it to be. Perfect for making a T-Shirt.

If you’re a beginner sewer, this T-shirt pattern is perfect for you! Believe it or not, this T-Shirt took me less than an hour to make, including cutting the fabric. There are only 5 pattern pieces to this pattern, the front bodice, back bodice, the 2 sleeves and the neckband. That’s it. I wouldn’t normally tell a beginner to start off with knit fabric, but this jersey knit was great to sew with. Also, make sure you use a ball point needle. People are also usually told to use a zig zag stitch when sewing with knits, but this is not a form fitting garment, so I used a straight stitch. You can also make this entire top using your serger, if you have one.

5 Steps to Sewing this T-shirt

1. Once all the pattern pieces are cut out, sew the front and back bodice together at the shoulders.

2. Pin the sleeves at the shoulders and sew. Next, pin the front and back of the T-shirt at the sleeves and down the sides and sew.

3. Hem the sleeves and the hem of the T-shirt.

4. Attach the neckband and wear your T-shirt!

Pleated Trousers

I’m not sure if you’ve noticed or not, but pleated trousers are all the rage right now. There is actually a pleated trouser in the McCall’s Fall patterns just released. As I mentioned before, the trousers I made are part of the Sew It Academy. I loved them the minute I saw them. Brittany J Jones and Mimi G both made them using linen and I decided to do the same. I used this Navy/Smoke Blue 100% Linen Shirt Weight Linen fabric. I don’t usually sew with linen and was excited to make these pants with it. I chose this navy linen because blue is my favorite color and I thought they would look great with a red T-shirt. This fabric has also sold out, but there are tons of other linen selections on the Fabric Mart site.

These trousers are wide leg and have a pleat in the front. They are meant to be loose fitting and are very comfortable. I dressed my trousers down by wearing them with a T-Shirt and sneakers, but these would look great with a nice blazer. I really like the way my pants came out and I see more pleated trousers and T-shirts in my feature.

My last post of the year will be the first week of December. You know what that means. Holiday attire! We’ll have to wait and see if I stick to that.

Until next time,

Johanna

Until next time!

JOHANNA | @soveryjo

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

Made By A Fabricista: Closing 2025 with a Lined Jacket

Hello again, sewing friends! It seems we have arrived yet again in the grandest season for layering, all this oncoming cold weather. I like ending the year with something warm and very useful. Seems based on my past Fabricista posts, I love to sew year-end outerwear, and this round is no different! I challenged myself with a new lined coat (wait, jacket? Coat? I feel like the presence of wool changes things?). Anyhoo, since the lovely Chalk & Notch Den Jacket has been in my queue, I proceeded ahead. I like the large pockets, the option to line or not, and the extra bodice and sleeve seams for topstitching. Sewing this coat is not at all difficult, but the many pieces and loads of topstitching will take a bit of time. My version took me a few multiple-hour sessions to complete. I sewed a size 2, which matches my measurements, and I made no alterations. Hint: for a quick size test, just employ the lining pieces. Gorgeous, muted blue as a soft wool flannel ? This is ...

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Hello Sewing Friends! It’s Sharon from Sharon Sews with my last Fabricista make for 2025. While many sew a special holiday outfit at year’s end, I went in another direction sewing two tops that couldn’t be more different. One is sheer and elegant while the other is easy comfort for everyday wear. These tops reflect how I dress at this stage of life. As an over-50 sewist, these two tops reflect how I dress at this point in my life. Sometimes I want something a bit special, other times more basic. Either way, sewing them in beautiful fabrics, custom fit to my body, makes all the difference in how I feel when I wear them. Even though I’m quite pleased with my two tops, my original plan was to sew a jacket with the tropical print stretch twill and pair it with a top sewn from the soutache mesh knit . Sadly, I wasn’t quick enough to get enough of the stretch twill to make a jacket, so a top it was! You do know you have to act fast when you see something you love on Fabric ...

Made By A Fabricista: Chalk and Notch Wren Dress: My Buffet dress for the Christmas season!

I recently sewed the Chalk and Notch Wren dress using a beautifully soft black voile from Fabric Mart, and it turned into such a satisfying, enjoyable project. The pattern itself is very easy to understand and straightforward with clear instructions, intuitive construction, and a relaxed fit that makes the sewing process easy. A buffet dress in the sewing community is a dress that is loose fitting, so you can eat at the buffet without your dress being uncomfortable afterwards, lol! Because the voile I chose is extremely thin and transparent, I opted to line the bodice and first tier. Adding a lining not only provided modesty but also gave the delicate fabric a bit more stability, especially around the neckline and button placket. A helpful tip when sewing a lining into a lightweight bodice is to treat the lining and the main fabric as one. I sewed the bodice as you would for a lined bodice, and the first tier I sewed the pieces together with a basting stitch to make the process...

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