patterns Archives - Page 10 of 10

Elegance & Elephants Ruffle Tunic Top – FO 02/2013

March 6, 2013

Last week I was giddy with excitement to be chosen as one of the pattern testers for the new Ruffle Tunic Top for Elegance & Elephants. It’s Heidi’s first PDF pattern (hopefully the first of many) and it’s just delightful.

Each of the 3 versions, tunic top, A Line dress and swing dress are adorable. Can’t you see the swing dress in cotton voile or eyelet for summer birthday parties?

For the testing I made the A Line dress from some cute nautical print cotton that I’d been gifted by Himmelbjerget.

I’m not the worlds speediest seamstress, but even I had this dress sewn and on a small girl within an afternoon. I was amazed!

The pattern is so beautifully drafted and it’s a joy to sew. It’s hard to believe this is Heidi’s first pattern…she’s done an amazing job on it. I’ve sewn PDFs for the kids from several independent companies and this is without a doubt the best drafting of them all.

The ruffles add a cute edge to the styling…and wouldn’t they look great in contrasting fabric?

You could also add contrast neck binding and ties. And piping at the princess seams. So many options!

There are no zips or buttonholes or tricky fastenings. The instructions are clear with great photos to help you along. This dress could easily be sewn by a confident beginner with great results.

And although I tested the age 6 pattern, which I’d thought would absolutely drown Button as she’s so petite, the ties at the back cinch it in nicely so she can wear it now, with room to grow.

Which is a relief, because she absolutely loves this dress…and it passed the twirl test. Which, as we all know is the most important test of all!

I’m delighted to say that this pattern will be on sale next week. If I were you I’d be hanging around Elegance & Elephants until it becomes available, then nab your pattern as soon as possible. Or maybe just follow her blog and FB so you don’t miss out.

Either way, I think you’ll love this pattern as much as we do.

***Edited to link up to***

The almost shirt and some future t-shirts

February 14, 2013

Such a creative post title! One day soon I’ll actually have a finished project to show you…but not today!

The Husband’s Christmas shirt is slowly coming together….I’ve just front plackets, collar and stand, buttonholes and buttons to do.

Just!

I swear this is testing my abilities to the max and is full of creative “design features”! 😉

His birthday is in March and I’m determined to have it finished by then.

I’m even more motivated at the moment as I learned this week that I’ve won a copy of Sewaholic’s much loved, and much coveted, Renfrew from Miranda at One Little Minute, as part of her Stretch Yourself blog series. It’s a really cool series of posts all about working with knit fabrics, and it’s really informative and user friendly.

I’m ridiculously excited at the prospect of finally having my own copy of Renfrew. I’ probably the last sewist on the planet to actually make this, but I’m hoping it will be worth the wait.

Much as I’m keen to start on the 13 dresses…my wardrobe is particularly sparse at the moment and I need some everyday, school run basics. Renfrew will fit that bill perfectly with jeans and I already have 3 pieces of fabric in the stash that will be fantastic!

Ok…this is an odd photo because it’s heavily cropped, but it does show the three fabrics. The one on the left is a heavy navy I bought from The Cloth House during my last visit to London…the green and brown prints are from my lovely friend Liz’s stash.

I think by the time I’ve made these three I’ll have ironed out any fitting issues with the pattern and will have a TNT t-shirt pattern that I can pretty much cut and sew.

I’m very excited about that prospect. It’ll be my second TNT pattern…having already got a pretty well-fitting trouser pattern. I’ve wanted to created a portfolio of TNT patterns for so long, I’m pinching myself that I’m finally making a start.

A pair of perfect patterns

December 17, 2012

Ok…I know…enough with the alliteration already! I just couldn’t resist but I will do better next time!

This post verges on showing off, but I’m so lucky and so thrilled I just had to share.

First up…my in-laws bought me Colette’s Anise jacket pattern as a congratulations for my exam results.

I have some stunningly beautiful Scottish tweed that my friend Liz gifted to me that will be perfect for this. I would share a photo of the fabric but it’s hidden under a pile of Christmas gifts at the moment. The sewing room is the acknowledged hiding place for presents pre-Christmas as it’s out of bounds for the kids unless I’m with them!

The fabric is about 20 years old and in pristine condition…and is the colour of Scottish meadows. It’s so beautiful and I knew as soon as I saw it that the only jacket I wanted to make with it was Anise.

So you can imagine the squealing that ensued Chez Stitches when the postman brought me a lovely package from The Village Haberdashery last week with this pattern in it.

It will be my first foray into tailoring of any sort, but I do have the Anise companion booklet, so I think I’m in safe hands. I just need to hunt down some lovely lining fabric to make the whole thing pop!

As if that wasn’t enough…the lovely Andrea over at Stitch Parade recently held a very generous giveaway and I won the Miz Mozelle Dress pattern by Jamie Christina!

I can’t tell you how delighted I am.

I’m planning to sew a whole raft of dresses next year and this is definitely on the list. Isn’t it so pretty! I think so far I’ve got half a dozen dress patterns that I’m simply itching to sew. I’m sure I can push it to seven to make a whole weeks worth.

So I just wanted to say a very heartfelt thank you to my in-laws and to Andrea for their kindness and generosity. I’m one very happy seamstress.

Vintage cheer

August 7, 2012

Last week I was feeling really rather miserable as I’d received my results back for my final paper for the English module of my degree and, quite frankly, I’d blown it. My score for this paper was 36% lower than my worst score for the rest of the module. To say I was disappointed with both the score and myself would be a bit of an understatement!

Thankfully the postman brought me a parcel from the very talented and clever Kristin. She too has been clearing out her sewing room and had a number of lovely patterns to share.

I was lucky enough to receive the two larger sized patterns, which means less grading/altering for me (cue cheer from the crowd) and they are absolutely beautiful.

First up is a lovely Simplicity Slenderette pattern number 3475:

As you can see by the date stamp, this was sold by Mille and Rhoads on May 15th 1961. Miller and Rhoads was a Virginia based chain of department stores that are now sadly defunct.

The pattern says it is suitable for rayson, silks and synthetics. Amazingly I have some lightweight synthetics in the remaining stash that are simply perfect for this dress. I’m planning version 1, although I may leave the collar off this version…I’ll see how it looks on me before making a decision.

Next is this gorgeous Marian Martin dress number 9115:

This one has the original postal envelope with it, complete with date stamps:

Don’t you find these little details just as charming and fascinating as the patterns themselves?

The Marian Martin pattern pieces are the “proper” vintage ones without markings, which will be a first for me. I have some more synthetics that would work beautifully with this pattern, but I also have some pale green linen that might work too. Especially piped in navy!

I’m so thrilled with these patterns and can’t wait to make them up. I have a top sitting on Maud waiting for sleeve bindings and hems and the infamous jeans have had their waistband removed and just need a new one adding. Once these are done I’m starting one of these dresses I think.

Regards the jeans, I decided to suck up redoing the waistband rather than let them languish awaiting weight loss. Especially as they are most definitely a prototype for future pairs and I want to wear them to work out where the kinks in the pattern are.

I’m hoping to share both of these projects with you soon but between school holidays and final papers, sewing time is a bit limited. I know I’m not alone with this predicament at the moment. 😉