Phat Quarters is working its way into adult patterns and out of the gate they were size inclusive through a 66 inch hip. I love this so much! The most recent pattern is called Catalina! Catalina is a lovely Raglan pattern that comes with various length options and a variety of sleeves and collar heights. I sewed up the dress length with the elbow bishop sleeves and a slouchy collar. I really adore the sleeves and this fabric makes them feel super lux.
The Catalina comes with two bust options – B and D sewing cups. This is like the Full Bust Adjustment included option that several other designers have. The pattern is drafted with a little extra room depending on which sewing cup you choose. I really love that both options are included as it means I don’t have to do my own full bust adjustment. I did adjust for my larger than life biceps though! The Bishop sleeves have a lot of ease built into them, but I still adjusted so they had the proper amount of fullness. I LOVE them! I mean, I LOVE THEM! I want these sleeves on everything! You can choose Bishop sleeves for the elbow or long sleeve lengths.
I styled my long dress in two ways to show you just how versatile this pattern is. You can wear it as a dress or belted and pulled out for a great tunic! I love when I am able to style garments in different ways to expand their use. I really adore this over jeans with sandals. I am so ready for warmer days to arrive.
Let’s talk about this amazing fabric! Roxy!!! I feel like only super foxy folks should wear fabric called Roxy, so I have been saving this fabric for something special! This fabric is from Stitchin’ Pretties! Laura is still packing and shipping at warp speed, so keep her busy during the madness that is our world right now! She will continue to do her “Buy 2 yards and I will send you a surprise coordinate”sale, until things settle down!
Please pay attention to the sizes at check out. This link has the higher size range. There is a separate pattern for the lower end, bundles, and kiddo options. 🙂 This way you only buy what you need! Shop soon while the new release sale pricing is in effect!
Happy Wednesday everyone! I hope you are having a good week so far, getting some sewing time in and most importantly, I hope you are healthy! Welcome to my stop on the Spring Fling Blog Tour! The theme of this blog tour is my favorite spring or summer sewing patterns. We could pick anything we wanted to share. I decided I wanted to make a dress from this adorable light plum and white mini dot printed double brushed poly fabric. I picked it up from Surge Fabrics a few weeks ago, but now it has sold out. Don’t worry, there are still tons of fabric options over at Surge!
Without much thought, I knew I was going to make the Willow Wrap Dress from Love Notions. I loved it when I first noticed it and was thrilled it was being offered in LN’s new expanded size chart. I decided to choose the bodice view with more front coverage. A lot of times, cross front bodices expose a bit more of the girls than I wish to share with everyone, so I was happy to see this one offered options for more or less coverage. I used the full bust pattern pieces. I used the gathered side option, elbow length sleeves and the longer skirt. I didn’t not adjust the skirt length for my height as I wanted my skirt to hit just below my knees.
This wasn’t a super quick sew, but it went together nicely and fit well! This pattern has 9 pieces and a mile of hemming, but it is worth it. This dress is pretty, easy to wear, and will have you feeling just a bit dressy for any party! You can sew it with or without the flutter at the cross front or choose one of the shorter length options.
This dress will be perfect for a spring afternoon, Easter Sunday, or dinner with friends, but we are under lock down here in Ohio. So for the foreseeable future, you will be treated to photos taken without my photographer. 😦 Whomp. Whomp. Anyhow, I figured out how to use the timer on my camera and brought all of you into my sewing space! My happy place! Welcome. This next photo looks like I am dancing!
So I have some exciting news!! Love Notions has generously offered to donate a pattern to one lucky reader who leaves a comment below! Please leave me a message to be entered to win a free pattern! I will leave comments open until Saturday early morning and then pick a winner through a random number generator! Good Luck!
I *think* I have sewn 7 Gloria tops! One of my favorite ones is missing from the college below. I can’t locate a picture of it. 😦 This is one of my most loved patterns. I love that it is loaded with options on its own, but it is super hackable!
Hacked!
Hacked!
Pattern.
Pattern.
Pattern.
Pattern.
Today I am sharing a new hack and it is for Momma Mia! You will notice she isn’t in lock down and was able to be in the pictures. I took this photos a few weeks ago before house arrest! So let’s talk about what I did…
First off, this isn’t your typical Gloria bodice. I added 3 inches to the length of the bodice as Momma Mia requested it to attach to the skirt closer to her hips. That was easy to do by just lengthening the bodice. For the skirt, I used the long hi lo skirt option. I love that the hi lo shows off her stylish boots while still swaying as the wind blows. She wanted long sleeves and the higher neck line. I was able to make her dress exactly how she wanted it and she was so pleased with it.
My fabric is a Liverpool base and these flowers are so pretty. I picked it up at Zinck’s Fabric Warehouse just before Christmas. What you can’t see from these pictures is when I got the fabric home, there was a large section of fabric that the ink had been smeared/discolored so I had to do some fancy cutting. I ended up having to put a seam down the back of the skirt in order to get this skirt length. It all worked out in the end, though it was super annoying at the time.
Options Include:
Regular Bodice and 1″ FBA Bodice pieces.
Peplum, Short or Long Skater Skirt Lengths
Peplum, Short or Long Hi Lo Skirt Lengths (with instructions on how to combine for a more dramatic Hi Lo effect)
Traditional Sleeve with 5 Lengths: Sleeveless, Short, Elbow, 3/4 and Long
Split Sleeve with 4 Lengths: Short, Elbow, 3/4 and Long
2 Neckline Options: High or Low Scoop
Full Bust Adjustment Tutorial section
Instructions on making the Gloria skirts without the bodice or adding a Circle Skirt to the Gloria bodice
I am back with another Love Notions Vivace and this time it is for Momma Mia. She liked mine and I wanted her to have her own. Who doesn’t love comfy clothing? It is lovely enough to wear out, but comfy enough to lounge around in. I used my left over fabric from my hacked Calypso. It was still laying on my cutting table and it matched the white and gold stripes I used for my Vivace. Win-Win! Two scraps off my table! You can pick up the Hailey DBP I used from Stitchin’ Pretties with this link!
I am obviously blogging this dress without having pictures of Momma Mia wearing it. We are all aware of the global pandemic happening now… COVID-19 and she is staying in and healthy. I don’t blame her, everyone should be doing their part during this time. Today is the last day of the new release sale, so I wanted to remind you how awesome this pattern is!
I gave Momma Mia the same length option as I made for myself. She does prefer a longer sleeve, so I may hack her some sleeves at a later date! I have said so many times, the best thing about sewing clothing, is you can make exactly what you want!
XS-5X
Knit and woven versions
Full Bust pattern pieces if needed
Dolman style sleeve
Three lengths- shirt, tunic & dress
Trimless pattern format
Layers
Print at home
In addition to the print-at-home
file is a large format file for copy shop printing is included for both standard and full busts. These files will print on six A0 (33″ x 46″) size sheets. Be sure to instruct your printer to print actual size in black and white on their cheapest paper. We recommend PDFPlotting for printing the large format files.
A projector file is also included for those using projector technology
As always this blog contains affiliate links, which is a small commission I earn when you make a purchase from my blog links. Thank you for helping to support my sewing.
Vivace is about to be your most comfortable everyday garment. As a shirt, tunic, or a dress, you can’t beat it! This is a super fast sew, but the extra wide neck band and the front pleat makes it a little fancy! Don’t worry, the wide V neck collar isn’t too tricky. The designer, Tami, even made a little video to show you how to do it.
So first up, fabric choices. I used a beautiful floral double brushed poly that I picked up from Ksews AKA The Material Girls on Facebook. I had 3 yards of this beautiful fabric. It sewed up so neatly. I adored the bright cheery colors of this one and then I added the striped contrasting fabric for the neck and sleeve bands for even more color. This stripes are cut on grain which is the opposite of the directions tell you to do, but I wanted my strips to be short instead of long. This pattern requires a knit fabric with 40% stretch and DBP has the required stretch in both directions, so it worked out fine! You could also make your top out of a woven fabric as that pattern is included as well.
Now let’s talk about options.
XS-5X
Knit and woven versions
Full Bust pattern pieces if needed
Dolman style sleeve
Three lengths- shirt, tunic & dress
Trimless pattern format
Layers
Print at home
In addition to the print-at-home
file is a large format file for copy shop printing is included for both standard and full busts. These files will print on six A0 (33″ x 46″) size sheets. Be sure to instruct your printer to print actual size in black and white on their cheapest paper. We recommend PDFPlotting for printing the large format files.
A projector file is also included for those using projector technology
I sewed up the 4x FBA graded to a 5x. I used the 5x sleeves so I wouldn’t need to do a bicep adjustment and my sleeves would still fit. These sleeves are a roomier fit which is nice. My original plan was to make the tunic length, but I had enough fabric for the dress length, so I went for it. I am happy I did, I could easily tie a knot at one side and wear this as a tunic! Double-Duty without the work! I could absolutely see sewing a few of these up, just to wear around the house as a house dress. Ultra comfy, super cozy. Totally a win-win
This dress sewed together very quickly as most Dolamn style garments, but it will take a few minutes to interface the neckband pieces..Don’t skip this step. It will make a difference in how neatly your neckband lays.
I think this dress will make the perfect summer dress. A little fancier than the basic tshirt dress, but just and easy to make and wear. I have one cut out for Momma Mia already. Give my blog a follow and stop back in a few days to see it!
As always this blog contains affiliate links, which is a small commission I earn when you make a purchase from my blog links. Thank you for helping to support my sewing.
I am back with another Love Notions Dress and a mash up to boot! So I sewed up Momma Mia’s first Tessa dress a month or so ago and she loved it! Actually I loved it too, but sadly it hasn’t been on the Love Notions size upgrade list yet so I will keep sewing them for Momma Mia. Last time, my promo fabric from Stitchin’ Pretties came with a note saying it would love to become a beautiful dress. So I made the fabric’s dreams come true and it became a Tessa Sheath Dress! This time I received this pretty red floral double brushed poly fabric without a note, but it was screaming at me to make it a dress.
I have a confession to make, when I order fabric, I usually don’t have a plan in mind. My second confession, I told Laura at Stitchin’ Pretties to “just send me something.” I trust her and her product. She doesn’t let me down! When this fabric arrived on my door step, I knew that it would be a dress. I typically feel that fabric with larger open spaces of background does well as dresses. Compared to a tank top, there wouldn’t be as much room to show off a great print! I love print, busy prints! Momma Mia isn’t quiet as flashy as I am in the print department. I knew I was making her a dress with this fabric! I decided on another Tessa, but with a twist. In case you do not know, you can mash the Tessa Bodice with all the skirts from Sybil. I used the Aline skirt from Sybil. This will give her dress a little bit of flirty flare, but not full on twirl factor! Also I only had 2 yards of fabric to work with. Speaking on the 2 yards, since the back bodice is “Cut as mirror image” you can use less fabric than if you had to “Cut on the Fold.”
*You can use this tip for any top pattern. If you don’t have enough fabric to cut a front and back bodice on the fold, you may be able to use the mirror image cutting technique. Just remember to add seam allowances if you adjust from cut on the fold to mirror image or your neckband won’t fit properly.
Tessa #2 with the Sybil skirt portion.
Tessa #1 with Tessa skirt portion.
You may have noticed that I colorblocked this Tessa with the fantastic Royal Blue. I have a bunch of smaller usable scraps from a few months ago, plus still some yardage tucked away. I have SO MUCH LOVE for this color! So at first glance, I was torn as to whether this royal blue was too bold for the red print. Typically, I encourage folks to “mind the tones” of your colors. For example, the royal blue is a jewel tone and the red isn’t. I posted a side by side picture in the group and asked if it works, yea or no. I got both responses, so that wasn’t at all helpful. In the end, my mind was made up and I made the first cut. Speed work for about an hour and TA-DA! Momma has a new dress. I put the finished dress on the dress form which has basically taken up residence in my living room window. I LOVED it! Like really loved it. I left it there for 3 days! When I delivered it, Momma Mia loved it too. She just happened to have perfectly matching shoes and a purse to add to her photo session! She is too much some days! Side note, I delivered this dress Monday evening. When I saw her on Tuesday, she was wearing it. She had been grocery shopping in it! 🙂 You go Momma! I am glad she is always willing to wear the clothes I make her. She makes this daughter proud!
This red floral print is called Felicia and I knew Momma Mia was going to LOVE it! This fabric was easy to sew and it drapes nicely. I did notice a little bit of wrinkling after I had thrown it in a bag to take it to Momma Mia, but a quick tumble in the dryer fixed it right up! This fabric has a nice weight to it also. As usual, Laura ships within a day and runs great sales and has really awesome fabric. Honestly, if you don’t know about Stitchin‘ Pretties, you are missing out.
I used the same boat neck line as the first Tessa, color blocked at the yoke and 3/4 sleeves. The above photo really shows the width difference in the skirt compared to the Sheath Style of the original Tessa. I love the that all 7 of the Sybil skirts fit with the Tessa. Maybe Momma Mia will end up with the entire collection. 🙂 I don’t think she would mind.
**The dress features a bateau or scoop neckline, optional yoke detail and five sleeve lengths: sleeveless, short, elbow, 3/4 and long. Two hem lengths are also included- above knee and shin. Bonus- the bodice part of the pattern can also be easily mashed with the Sybil Skirt Collection.
**Meant for knit fabrics, the Sybil comes with seven variations: pencil, a-line, swing, drop yoke with swing, gored, asymmetrical wrap and pleated. All versions, with the exception of the drop yoke, also have knee and midi length options as well as inseam pockets. All skirt waistbands can include the optional hidden control panel or a yoga-style waistband, no closures needed.
Before you leave my blog, did you check out The Fitting Experiment from 2 days ago? Did you leave a comment for a chance to win a pretty Love Notions Sabrina Slims pattern?
You can follow my blog by clicking the Follow button on the right side of my blog.
As always this blog contains affiliate links, which is a small commission I earn when you make a purchase from my blog links. Thank you for helping to support my sewing.
Background: I am hanging out with some new bloggers friends and we are calling our adventure, The Fitting Experiment. Our goal is to test out patterns that are drafted with a large size range to determine if the pattern has a great fit across the board. We are looking at comparing the fit across the size chart, construction techniques and directions, included options, and anything else the bloggers want to chat about. With some friends, we began this group because there is so much talk about size inclusiveness and why it is important. I was getting some strong feelings towards the entire topic and as a larger size person, I know it is more difficult for me to find a pattern drafted in my size compared to someone who is a size medium, but honestly everyone struggles. If a pattern companies “Block” isn’t suited to your body it won’t matter what size it comes in. Through this experiment, maybe you will learn a little bit about fitting patterns to your shape. One of the best things about sewing is knowing how to correct these issues and get a great fit. Our hope is that you can see and maybe learn how to better fit your handmade clothing.
The Mission: This is our first run, a test drive if you will. we have been delayed for a knee injury and the flu so far, but we made it! I suggested the Love Notions Sabrina Slims while it was still in the size expansion phase. Since the re release, it has become a great seller and loads of folks are sewing up some awesome pants! First off, I want to mention we have 8 bloggers who have sewn and reviewed the Sabrina Slims and we are all different sizes and shapes! The fun thing about that we are all so different- short, tall, thick, thin, and we are doing exactly what we love! The only rule for the experiment is to sew the pattern up and blog about it. We quickly had our bloggers on deck. Love Notions was super generous and provided all the bloggers with the pattern, plus two extras to give away to our readers. As an extra bonus, they gave us a discount code to share with our readers to get the pattern for themselves!
The Experiment: I keep talking about my mission to get great fitting pants and I am soooo close! So I am sharing my 3rd pair of Sabrina Sleeves with you today. I made two pair in testing and improved on the fit with each try out. I will tell you a secret, LN’s wrote a pants fitting guide that is truly amazing! Even the seasoned sewists have commented on how extensive it is. This pair of trousers is made with Liverpool. I love Liverpool fabric for my “dressier” garments. I like that they hold their shape and is so comfortable. So between my first 2 pair, both made in Ponte, and my third pair in Liverpool I am loving the process. Here are those 3 photos side by side.
Round 2
Round 1
Round 3
As you can see each pair has been slimmed down slightly through the seat, hip and thigh areas and the fit is getting better. I think my next pair I will add about 1/2 inch to the calf area to reduce the pull lines I am seeing there. Other adjustments I made –
Full Belly Adjustment 100% needed as my belly size doesn’t match my booty size.
Smoothed down the curve of the hip. I don’t have womanly hip curves at all.
Shorted length above the knee and below the knee. Removed 1 inch from the rise.
The Results:
These pants are about to become a staple in my wardrobe! They are so comfy! I even added butt pockets! For me, pockets are life. If I love a pattern, I will sew all the pockets. I paired my Sabrina Slims with a Love Notions Laundry Day Tee…in the tank version! I blogged about it here.
A special thank you to Love Notions for sponsoring The Fitting Experiment bloggers with patterns so that we can share our thoughts with you. Love Notions has kindly provided a 20% off shop discount code for all our readers. Please use this code at checkout: FittingEXPSabrinas
In addition, Love Notions has given us TWO copies of Sabrina Slims to giveaway. For a chance to win, comment below. For more chances to win, comment on the other blogs too! You can check out their posts below:
Here are all the options that come with the pattern!
Cigarette slims pants pattern
Pattern pieces for 2 different pant styles: solid front and back or seamed front and back as well as 2 maternity waistband options and three hem styles: plain, zippered and split hem
2 pages of slims pants inspiration photos from pattern testers.
Cutting guide and the ability to print just your desired size(s) with the Adobe layers feature and a print chart to print the needed pattern pieces.
14 pages of bright and clear step by step color illustrations and photos.
Downloadable fitting workbook designed specifically for the Sabrina Slims
Large format file for copy shop printing
Projector file for those using a projector in their sewing
Glossary of needed sewing terms.
Troubleshooting guide.
You can follow my blog by clicking the Follow button on the right side of my blog.
As always this blog contains affiliate links, which is a small commission I earn when you make a purchase from my blog links. Thank you for helping to support my sewing.
A few weeks ago, I made Momma Mia a beautiful green Calypso dress and I was a little jealous and wanted my own. I have a lot of dresses in my closet so I knew this time I wanted a tunic. The Calypso actually comes as a top or a dress which means I was going to have to make a few adjustments to get exactly what I wanted.
I printed my pattern as usual. I used the 4x FBA for the shoulders and bust then graded out to the 5x. Since I wasn’t going for the dress version I planned to not use the bottom layer. In order for my top to be a tunic, I need to lengthen the second ruffled layer. I split the pattern piece in half near the middle. I added paper to the opening and expanded the pattern by 10 inches. This will give me an appropriate tunic length. I regraded the sides so they were even. Now it is business as usual. Cut the fabric, change serger threads and get to work.
My fabric is from Stitchin’ Pretties and it is a pretty Navy background with a mix of golds, tans, creams and white floral print. The base is double brushed poly. This fabric is called Hailey and it is currently in stock so you can order yourself some! I knew I wanted to wear this top with dark skinny jeans and felt this fabric was a perfect accompaniment. Also it sewed up sooo nicely!
I mentioned on Momma Mia’s Calypso, I was making a video of how I quickly gathered all the layers of this tunic/dress. As promised, here it is! Be sure to give it a like and hit subscribe to keep up to date on all my videos.
So I am sure you already know that 5 out of 4 has tons of options with all their patterns. So here is the list of included awesomeness with the Calypso. I used the 3/4 length sleeves with the key hole cut out.
Short, 3/4, or long sleeves with a cute bow detail.
Top or Knee-length skirt length for the dress
Sizes XXS – 5X (see the last image for yardage and size chart)
As always this blog contains affiliate links, which is a small commission I earn when you make a purchase from my blog links. Thank you for helping to support my sewing.
Psst I am sharing pants again…Candy Pants!!! I told you, I am on a mission for the perfect fit. These pants are pretty much awesome sauce out of the gate! For both pairs I made, I used the yoga pants pattern which is a little wider in the leg than the leggings options. Oh wait! Did I say options?!?! How about we switch things up here and start with all the options. We know 5oo4 always loads up on the options!
Solid or Colorblocked versions for both yoga pants and leggings
Optional side pockets (to be used with the colorblocked version)
7 Lengths: 2″, 5″ and 7″ shorts, pedal pusher, capri, ankle and long
4 rises: High, Mid, Low and Extra Low/Maternity
Regular waistband options include exposed elastic, regular knit, foldover yoga band and contour
Maternity waistband options include full overbelly panel, contour, regular knit and foldover yoga band
Full, half or no gusset options
Check out this YouTube video of all of our testers’ versions!
For my fit test pants, I made the 4x waist with the legs graded down to the 3x. I found the legs a little snug for a yoga pant. I think in testing I told Rachelle that “they gets stuck on my legs.” LOL meaning the were a little clingy at my knee and calf. You can see in the side by side photos that the black with rust floral print is a bit weird at my knee and calf compared to the navy with colorful floral print. Ahh improving my pants fitting game. This is why we do a muslin, so we know what works, what needs improved, and how to best good our good fabric.
I chose to use the full gusset for both pair of pants. A gusset in pants is added for a little extra room in the crotch. Usually a full gusset is used in athletic pants so there is a little more room for doing squats and stuff. 🙂 I just don’t like tight fitting anything! This pattern can be made with a full, without the gusset or with a half gusset. The first time I botched a gusset was another 5oo4 pattern. The Rip Tide Shorts. They worked out fine, but after watching the video in the pattern, I did it right the first time!
These pants turned out super comfy and I will need to add a bunch of them to my closet as well as some shorts for wearing under all my dresses. By the way, did I tell you how quickly these came together. No outside leg seam makes them super speedy and one less annoyance for folks with sensory issues.
I *Think* the black with rust flower print is from Sew Blessed and the Navy with colorful ones is from Ksews. Both companies have loads of great deals, quick shipments and are lovely with customer service.
As always this blog contains affiliate links, which is a small commission I earn when you make a purchase from my blog links. This doesn’t change the price at all for you, but gives a small amount of the pattern price to me. Thank you for helping to support my sewing.
SequoiaLynn Sews 