Made By A Fabricista: Feeling Festive in Red

Happy Holidays! I’m so excited to bring you this all red holiday look that would be a hit at any holiday gathering this season. Whether you’re headed to your company holiday party or just going to sit in your living room, you’ll fabulous doing so.

For this month’s post I knew exactly what I wanted to make. I have been a Sew It Academy student since Mimi G opened it back in 2016. Sew It Academy is her online sewing academy that shows you what to do once you open your sewing machine and different lessons come out every month showing you different techniques and how to sew different things. Sew It Academy now offers PDF patterns and sewalongs that come with them. I made the Boxy Pullover Top and the Bubble & Wide Hem Skirt which are both Sew It Academy patterns.

The Boxy Pullover Top is the first garment class offered in Sew It Academy, so it’s super easy to make. I’ve seen several YouTube videos for the same top and they are all pretty much contructed the same way. I cut a size 18 and I graded at the waist to a size 26. The way that I did that was by making a line from the size 18 until I met the size 26 line.

I also added 5” to the hem. I’ve made this top before and wanted to make it longer this time around. Below is the first one I made with left over fabric from my last Fabric Mart make.

There are only a few pieces to this pattern. The front and back bodice, the front and back facing and the sleeves. First, staystitch the neck line of the front and back bodice and then sew them at the shoulder seams using the seam allowance the pattern requires. Then you want to sew the front and back facing pieces and then you want to pin the facing to the neckline.

Once you sew down the neck facing, you need to under stitch and then turn the facing to the inside of your top and press everything nicely.

Next the sleeves will be sewn in using the flat method where you open out your top flat, place the sleeve on top of the sleeve opening, right sides together and then you sew them in.

I also like to baste in the hemline to make it easier to sew later. I press the hem in at the hemline and it makes it so much easier to sew later. Once you’ve sown in your sleeves, right sides together, pin down each side up to the sleeves and sew it down.

Once you’ve sewn your top closed, all you have to do is sew your sleeve and top hem and you have yourself a boxy top!

I then moved on to the Bubble & Wide Hem Skirt. With this pattern you can make the bubble skirt or you can make a wide hem skirt. As you can see, I made the bubble skirt for this make. I made a size 24. This is another simple pattern with few pieces. You have the front and back of the skirt, the lining, pockets and waist band. I never really thought about how a bubble skirt is contructed and I thought it was so clever. Basically, the lining is shorter than the outer skirt. The outer skirt is gathered at the hem and then attached to the lining hem! I really think this is so cool. I’m easily impressed. lol

Since I already had an idea in mind of what I wanted to make, I set out to look for the perfect fabric to bring my vision to life. I came across this Fruit Punch Pink Polyester Mikado Twill Suiting fabric. I love how it had the right amount of shine and was very easy to sew. The fabric is sold out, but you can find other Twill Suiting fabric on the Fabric Mart site.

This is the perfect holiday party set. I also love that they are separates and I can wear each piece with something else. My holidays will be low key so I may not wear the skirt, but I’ll be wearing this top with some cute jeans and some heels. Maybe I’ll make the other view for the skirt which is the wide hem skirt. If you are interested in these patterns, you can sign up to Sew It Academy using my affiliate link.

Well, this is my last blog post for 2024 and it’s been an amazing year of sharing my makes with you all in the beautiful Fabric Mart fabrics. I try to share a tutorial or something that I learned while I made my Fabric Mart makes and I hope you all enjoy that style. I’m hoping that I can share something new with you or a different way of doing something and I hope you find it beneficial.

Hoping you all have a joyous holiday season and I’ll see you all in 2025! Below are a few more photos of my boxy top and bubble skirt. Until next time!

JOHANNA | @soveryjo

Made by a Fabricista: The Bernadette

Hello friends, My Latest Fabricista Make: Friday pattern Co Bernadette Skirt x Midnight Navy Cotton/Lycra Sateen Stretch Denim Hi everyone, this is Byrd with my latest Fabricista make! When I saw Fabric Mart’s Muted Midnight Navy Cotton/Lycra Sateen Stretch Denim , I knew it would be perfect for my next project. The color is rich and versatile—a deep navy that works as a neutral but still has presence. The stretch denim has just the right balance: structure with a bit of give, making it great for a garment that needs both shape and comfort. It’s an ideal fabric for fall transitions, but it’s sturdy enough to carry straight into winter with tights and boots. For the pattern, I chose the Bernadette Skirt by Friday Pattern Company . This is one of their newer designs, and I knew immediately I wanted to sew it up. It’s a modern skirt that blends structure and style, with darts in the back and pleats in the front for a flattering fit. One of my favorite features is the belt, and of co...

Made By A Fabricista: Falling for Knits

We are now well into Fall, even though the temps are still relatively warm here in Texas. I love the fall season and dressing for Fall. When it comes to the conversation of knits vs. wovens I typically sew mostly wovens. So for this post I decided to sew completely knits! With the holiday season right around the corner I saw these three dress styles as perfect for Friendsgiving/Thanksgiving gatherings. The first look is a tried and true pattern Simplicity S9372. Using this gorgeous burgundy ponte knit , I like how this pattern fits throughout. I chose this color to add to my typically neutral palette in my closet. I also wanted something I could wear to my sorority meetings and found this color perfect. It's an easy sew with back fisheye darts and invisible zipper to add to the tapered style. The neckline and armholes are finished with bias binding giving it a clean finish on the inside. I used a universal needle to sew a...

Made By A Fabricista: The Art of the Slow Make: My La Forme Double-Breasted Jacket

I started this project back in July — one of those mid-summer sewing plans meant to get me ahead for fall. My idea was simple: start my wardrobe a season (or two) early so that when cooler weather came, I’d already have a few handmade pieces ready to wear. That was the plan, anyway. But as sewing often reminds us, plans evolve. This jacket, made using La Forme pattern No. 0303, is a double-breasted design with peak lapels and an exaggerated hip detail that gives it such a striking silhouette. I fell in love with the structure of the pattern right away — it has that timeless, tailored feel I can never resist — but it also asked for patience. I picked it up and put it down several times over the months, letting it rest while I worked on other projects, until finally, the timing felt right to bring it to life. And now, here we are — the leaves are turning, there’s a chill in the air, and some parts of the country are even seeing snow. My summer-started jacket is finally finished, and it c...

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