The last time I updated my Sewing Pattern Height Chart was in 2022. It’s been a while since I’ve blogged so yay for a new post! For this year’s chart, I’ve checked links for the various sewing pattern companies listed in the chart and added a few more. Otherwise, some of these words may be familiar to you if you’ve visited this post before. Feel free to scroll down to the chart.

Everyone’s body is different. We come in all shapes and sizes, which can make it challenging to find a sewing pattern that fits your body. Luckily, some indie sewing patterns design for a particular body type. For example, Deer and Doe (now part of Closet Core) designs for an hour-glass shape, Cashmerette Patterns for curvy figures (cup sizes C–H), Sew DIY for tall women, and Skinny Bitch Curvy Chick Patterns (SBCC) and Petite Plus for petites. Each size is designed for a particular bust, waist, and hip measurement, but not every company provides the sewing pattern height on their websites.

Origins of the chart

I’m 5′ 7″ (170 cm) and when I first wrote this post in 2017, I hadn’t really given much thought to the height that patterns are designed for. That year I finished the Mimosa Culottes by Named, a Finnish pattern company that designs for 5’8″. (You can see my version of the culottes here.)

 

After that, I made Megan Nielsen’s Flint Pants. I discovered that her fit model is 5′ 9″ (175 cm). Her current size chart says, “Our patterns are drafted to fit most heights and we try to include multiple lengths where relevant.”

That experience made me want to find out what height pattern companies use for their designs. And that led me to make a chart listing sewing pattern heights. The height they design for is typically the height of their fit model. I began with companies whose patterns I’ve made and then added more several others.

This is by no means a comprehensive list. I will try to update it at least once a year. If you find it useful, please feel free to send a contribution to help defray the hosting costs of this blog (@chuleenan on Venmo and PayPal).

2025 updates to the chart

Since 2022, the last year I updated this chart, Burda Style added a curvy size chart. Those measurements have been added to the chart. Deer and Doe is now part of Closet Core so the link has been updated. A few pattern companies’ height is now a an inch taller, others increased their size range a bit more, including Made by Rae, the Big Four patterns (now owned by Design Group Americas), Pattern Scout, SBCC Patterns, Seamwork, and Sew House Seven. No longer in business or website is gone; thus no longer on the list: Marilla Walker, Pattern Union, Pipe Dream Patterns, and Rebecca Page. Today’s Fit by Sandra Betzina is no longer on the chart because her size chart is no longer on the Simplicity website. You are directed to the Big Four size chart.

I added Charm Patterns, Ellie and Mac, Fibre Mood, Forget-Me-Not Patterns, Jalie Patterns, Liesl + Co., Matchy Matchy Sewing Club, Maven Patterns, Pattern Fantastique, Sew Over It, Swim Style Patterns, Waffle Patterns, and Puff and Pencil, an indie pattern company in Copenhagen that I learned about from Harts Fabric in Santa Cruz. However, they only offer straight sizes (max hip 50.5″/128 cm). I meant to add Pattern Fantastique to the chart for ages but forgot. I even have an old email in which I asked Nita, the designer, about her cup size. Here’s her answer:

“I am very reluctant to talk about Cup size as it’s super misleading given Cup and Bust depth are quite different things and globally cup sizes vary wildly . The bust dept I cut in has a difference for front bust only this doesn’t include the back ( because we taper in over rib cage) of 8 cm. A “Cup” is for Bras and measures the depth and volume of a single breast and changes depending on back size. An E cup with a back strap size 8 might be a C cup if the back strap is a size 14. It just doesn’t make any sense to me to use Cups as a metric for garments.

I am an Au E cup and hollow chested I fit the 8 cm bust dept but another person with a similar cup size and less hollow chest it would fit differently and they would also measure up differently.”

As I update the chart throughout the year, I will post that in a dedicated Instagram Story highlight called Height Chart. 

Plus-size patterns

If you have a plus-sized figure, here’s a reminder to check out The Curvy Pattern Database, a great resource with an interactive list of pattern companies that include at least a 60″/152.4 cm hip. You enter your measurements and the database will filter the list.  The plus-size pattern companies in the chart include Muna and Broad and Petite Plus Patterns. Muna and Broad will also grade their patterns up at no charge if you need a larger size. (Check out this interview with the founders of Muna and Broad, Jess and Leila.) Cashmerette began as a plus-size company but has expanded to offer smaller sizes.

Reading the chart

The first column is the name of the company and it links to their size chart or to a recent pattern where you’ll find the size chart. If the company has patterns in different size ranges, I link to the sewing patterns page. You’ll need to look at the size chart for the individual pattern.

Several companies in the list have a single asterisk in the hip and size range column. That asterisk indicates that not all of their patterns go up to the largest size or they are in the midst of expanding their size range of more of their patterns. 

Sewing pattern heights

Not every size chart includes a height. In some cases, I’ve asked the designer for the height. I haven’t gone back to confirm all of that info but I will be doing that throughout the year. Back when Sarah Pondevie’s company Pattern Union was still around, she told me that she didn’t specify a fit height because that would be misleading: “Two people can be the same height, one has a long body and a short legs, the other long legs and a short body, their fit requirements are not related to height.” This is an excellent point, and, as I say towards the end of this post, “height is not everything.” Sarah also said she thinks “we need to look at body shapes/types rather than just sizes.”

Liesl Gibson of Liesl + Co notes “our pattern are also drafted for a height of approximately 5’6”, keeping in mind that body proportions can vary, even for this height. For that reason we include lengthen and shorten lines on our patterns, to easily enable you to adjust the proportions of the pattern to your personal needs. We also provide cup sizes for most styles, so every pattern is easy customize-able between the pattern sizes, the cup sizes, and the lengthen and shorten lines.”

A good rule of thumb is to look at the finished garment measurements and compare them to existing garments. That will give you a basic idea about how the garment compares to what you already have in your wardrobe.

The sewing pattern height chart

* The patterns in the chart with an asterisk in the size range column are pattern companies have some, but not all patterns available in larger sizes and/or are working on making all patterns available in an expanded size range.

**Merchant & Mills says their patterns are not tailored/fitted so they don’t really design for a particular cup size but if they had to say, they say D. Some patterns are available in size range 6-18 and others in XXS-XXL (6-28).

^Matchy Matchy Sewing Club says that the majority of their patterns are drafted for a height of 5’5”. Although the past two pants patterns, Kite Pants and Apron Pocket Pants, “were drafted for a height of 5’7” as that seemed to work out best for most of their pattern testers. In the future most of our patterns will continue to be drafted for 5’5” individuals.”

^^ Charm Patterns are designed to fit someone who is 5’6″, but because of the styles they specialize in, they noted that they also “often factor in high heels.” 

Not all of the indie designers include this info on their websites so in some cases, I contacted the companies to find out. 

If you find this chart useful, please feel free to send a contribution to help defray the hosting costs of this blog (@chuleenan on Venmo and PayPal).

Height is not everything

Sewing pattern height is an interesting measurement but it’s not the most important one. Patterns can easily be adjusted for length. The critical measurements are bust, waist and hips. Finished measurements are also very helpful when it comes to pants and skirts. When I make skirts or pants, all I first look at the hip measurement to pick my size. What measurements are the most important for you when you choose a size to sew?

Note: This post was originally published on May 1, 2017 and has been updated four times since then.

 

 

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Last fall, I was contacted by Needle Sharp, which offers monthly subscription boxes and standalone sewing kits, to see if I’d be interested in collaborating with them. They offered to send me a box in exchange for an honest blog post about my experience. This intrigued me because I have never bought a sewing box with everything included — fabric, pattern, and notions.

Needle Sharp’s website says they “bundle modern patterns, drool-worthy fabrics, and all the notions you’ll need.” The kits include patterns from a variety of indie pattern companies, such as Chalk & Notch, Sew House Seven, Closet Core, I Am Patterns, Merchant & Mills and The Assembly Line.

I like choosing my own fabric, which is why I have not tried a sewing subscription box before. But I was curious and decided to select one of Needle Sharp’s January kits, which featured quilted garments — the Wildwood Vest from Helen’s Closet, the Tamarack Jacket from Grainline Studio, and the Hovea jacket from Megan Niesen. This indie company offers three different levels of subscriptions for varying levels of sewing and offers more luxe fabrics for the “Sew Indulgent” box.

I have never quilted a garment before. I’ve used prequilted fabric, like the Hovea jacket I made in 2022 from Nani Iro double gauze that was quilted for Stonemountain & Daughter Fabrics. So this seemed like a good one to try out two new things: quilting and a subscription box. Thank you Needle Sharp for asking me to check out your offerings.

Warning: This is a long post — more photos of the completed vest are below — and if you make it to the end, details on the other garments I’m wearing in the photos.

Needle Sharp subscription box options

Needle Sharp gives you three fabric options to choose from to make a garment. For the Wildwood Vest, my choices were a walnut shetland flannel, a water-repellant, rose pre-quilted polyester, or 10 fat quarters in various prints in a colorway of midnight blues, blacks, and teals. I picked the flannel because I wanted to do some basic quilting and I wanted to keep it simple. The fat quarters were tempting but I thought it would take me too long to finish if I had to piece something together.

These were the fabric options.

The box was supposed to arrive in January but there was bad weather around that time and the post office lost a shipment of boxes. I sent a dm to Needle Sharp on Jan. 21 asking about the status of the shipment — and that’s how I found out about the delay. I was told that they were working with the post office to find them but they would reship if they didn’t hear anything. A new box was shipped and I got it on Jan. 26.

The Needle Sharp package

The sewing kit wasn’t an actual box. The package arrived inside a large opaque plastic mailer with all the materials inside a large cellophane bag. Here’s what the package looked like when I took it out of the outer bag. Inside were the sewing instructions, the printed sewing pattern, fabric, batting, lining fabric for the vest, notions, and a few other fun goodies.

Everything was very nicely packaged. Here’s a look at the notions. The thread was inside the polka-dot package. The yards of bias tape were bundled and kept together with a rubber band around the middle. There was also a little blank notebook, the floral print under the bias tape, and a mini Reese’s peanut butter cup, which I promptly ate. lol

Here’s are the spools of thread in the package. There was also a spool of thread that was a lighter color, more of a taupe if I wanted to have my top stitching stand out. I decided to go with thread that matched the color of the flannel fabric. These were the sew-on snaps that came with the package. I decided not to use them because I didn’t want them to stand out when the vest was open. I had some black sew-on snaps in my stash so I used those instead.

There was also a postcard with fabric care info and a fun label paperclipped to the info card. I sewed that label to the center back.

The nice thing about a sewing kit is that everything is included, including a printed pattern. Helen’s Closet’s patterns are PDFs so I was happy to avoid taping together a PDF or pay to get a large-format printout. You can get the Wildwood Jacket and Vest pattern here on Helen’s Closet’s site.

To subscribe or not?

I am not the speediest of sewists plus I have so many patterns and fabrics in my queue already so I don’t think I would subscribe to a monthly subscription box. I could see the sewing kits piling up and then feeling bad that I didn’t sew them up. But subscribing to Needle Sharp can be a great way to build your wardrobe.

The patterns and fabrics are actually things I would sew. It’s definitely worth exploring — maybe by trying out one kit to see if you’d like to subscribe. I will be checking out upcoming kits. If you want to simplify your options or you’ve lost your sewjo, a sewing kit could be a fun way to get it back.

Sewing details

I picked size 14 (bust 40″/101.5 cm, hip 42″/106.5 cm) so I would have enough ease to accommodate a bulky sweater or wide sleeves.  This vest/jacket can be made in three different lengths — high hip (cropped), low hip, and mid-thigh. I made the low hip version.

I didn’t make any adjustments in cutting out the pattern pieces. I usually make a square shoulder adjustment but with this vest, you can just adjust the overlap of the pattern pieces at the shoulder.

Helen’s Closet instructions are easy to follow and have a friendly tone. reassuring you that even if you don’t have any quilting experience, you can make this vest.

I cut out the fabric and the cotton batting for each piece with an inch margin around each pattern piece. Then I sandwiched them together — flannel fabric, batting, and lining — and pinned them together for quilting. I decided to sew diagonal lines  2 inches (about 5 cm) apart — with the diagonals at opposite angles on the front. I wanted the lines to meet in the middle.

So I marked the fabric with chalk but I could see that the marks were fading so I used some bright yellow silk thread to trace those lines. This also helped to ensure that all the layers would stay together.

For extra insurance, I also put some safety pins around the edges before I quilted. The instructions warn about the pieces shifting as you sew.  The instructions also tell you to start sewing in the middle and to sew in the same direction. This meant that the first diagonal line I sewed was in the middle of the pattern piece. I have to admit that that gave me pause — start sewing in the middle of what? lol

Here’s one quilted front before I put it in the washer and dryer.

Confession: I was lazy and did not want to use the walking foot, which I find tedious. I just reduced the pressure on my presser foot and sewed the lines. However, by not using a walking foot, my stitch length was not consistent. Oops. Some of the stitches were shorter than others. Oh, well. If I quilt again, I will use a walking foot. Lesson learned.

When I placed the pattern pieces over the washed-and-dried quilted pieces and discovered that the quilted pieces shrunk more at the top and bottom than at the sides. Hmmmm. Maybe I didn’t leave as much margin at the top when I was cutting them out.

I wanted the front pieces to line up in the center but I forgot that I would have had to offset the lines so they would line up when the vest is snapped closed.

You can see that the diagonal lines match up when it’s unsnapped.

Here’s what it looks like when it’s snapped — you can see that the quilted lines do not line up in the center. Oh well. I still like the vest, which I have worn several times because the weather has been cool. The Bay Area used to be quite warm in March and April, but we have been having more rain and the temperature drops whenever it rains.

The pockets

I love the pockets on this vest. They are so sturdy. You can easily put your phone, keys, and even a slim wallet in the pockets. I added a label to this pocket that says “You Can’t Buy This” from Kylie and the Machine. I stitched the diagonals on the pockets in the opposite direction of the front pieces because I didn’t want to figure out where exactly to sew the lines so they would match up.

Bias tape

There is a LOT of bias tape. It goes all around each raw edge, including the pockets. The Hovea jacket is also finished with bias tape so that was basic sewing. But I did take more care with pressing the bias tape after sewing the first line of stitching. I wanted to make sure the bias tape would lie flat around the curves. Steam is your friend. Then I basted the bias tape in place before sewing top stitching it in place.

The tricky part for me was overlapping the bias tape around the pocket so you had one continuous piece of bias tape. When I did it the first time, I sewed the diagonal in the wrong direction. Oops. So I had to do it again. Luckily there was plenty of bias tape to accommodate my error.

More views of the vest

Here are a few more views of the vest, including a couple of seated shots. I’ve been trying to make more of an effort to take photos seated so that people who use wheelchairs or simply spend a lot of time seated, know what the garment looks like. I really need to get a portable stool that I can take with me when I take photos. I sat on a fire hydrant that was in front of this mural — as you’ll see below.

View of the right side of the vest, unsnapped

If the armhole is gaping, you just sew some 1/4″ (~6 mm) elastic to reduce the gaping. It seemed to me that I had more gaping in the back so that’s what I put the elastic. However, I did not look at the vest with it pinned shut. If I had done that, I would have noticed that it was gaping a little in the front, which you can see in this photo.

For the back, I just stitched diagonal lines in one direction. I thought about adding another row of stitches going in the opposite direction, creating a diamond pattern, but I really wanted to finish it. I wasn’t making any attempt to match the side seams either. I didn’t leave enough fabric around the pattern pieces to do that anyway.

Back view of the vest, quilted with diagonal lines of stitching

You can really see the quilting in this photo. Basting my stitch lines took some time but it was worth it. See how straight my lines are? (It was a little windy that day so my skirt isn’t hanging straight down.)

A look at the inside lining of the quilted vest

I’m sitting on a fire hydrant so I’m not exactly sitting as I would in a chair. But you can sort of get an idea of what the vest would look like seated.

A seated view of the quilted vest

Another seated view of the quilted vest

And last but not least, a view of the sleeve of my top. You can wear wide sleeves with this vest! Congratulations and thank you for making it to the end! You made it to the end! I’m also wearing the Cuff Top, a pattern by The Assembly Line. I’ve actually made it several times but I haven’t blogged about this pattern yet. I lengthened the sleeves and cropped the length of the body. The colorful cotton print from Britex Fabrics. The skirt pattern is from the book Alabama Studio Sewing + Design and the skirt is made from heavyweight cotton denim knit.

If you’ve made this vest or any other quilted garments, I’d love to hear about what fabrics you used and how you quilted them (horizontal lines? free quilting? diamonds?). Did you make a pieced version using a variety of fabrics?

I definitely want to make this pattern again. Maybe my next one will be the cropped version using fabric scraps. Stay tuned — maybe that will be a project for next fall.

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Free Spirit Fabrics Color Me Kaffe Challenge inspired me to make the Matchy Matchy Sewing Club’s Collage Gather Top PDF pattern. The challenge was to use at least three Kaffe Fassett fabrics to make a garment. So I picked four Kaffe prints to make this top. I have never mixed so many colorful prints in one garment. My top is in the Pieced Garment category. You can vote for it here, by giving it a like/heart. Voting ends on Friday, July 14. (I confess that I’d really like the Oliso iron, which is one of the prizes for winning the category.)

It’s been a while since I’ve blogged. My last post was the Q&A with Nina of Nina Lee Patterns, which was posted in April. I have been sewing but not blogging. But hopefully, I will be blogging more this year.

OK, now that part is out of the way, I can give you the deets on the Collage Gather Top. This is the first one I made so I guess you could call it a wearable muslin.

I made size L, which calls for 2 yards (1.9 m) of 44″ wide fabric. I bought three fat quarters and 1.5 yards because I didn’t know how much I would really need. The fat quarters were not long enough for the center back/front pattern pieces. So I cut the yardage for those pieces. I didn’t have enough of the fat quarters for all of the gathered panels so I used two different fabrics for one and three in another, which I’ll point out below.

Collage Gather Top, Pattern Fantastique Sulis Hat and Tedra Skirt from Lotta Jansdotter Everyday Style

Collage Gather Top pattern adjustments

I made a slight square shoulder adjustment, just about 1/4 inch to the shoulder pattern piece. I left the center piece, which only has a sliver of shoulder, as is.

I thought I would play with the sleeve cuff and use two different fabrics. So instead of cutting it on the fold, I added seam allowance. However, I didn’t notice that the sleeve for the front and the back were not the same length. That meant that I wouldn’t be able to get the seams to match. Oops. So I lined up the shoulder seam to the cuff seam that I sewed, then I trimmed a couple inches on either side and sewed another Kaffe fabric. You can’t really see the third fabric because is mostly at the underarm area.

The cuff sticks out slightly because of the seam and that fact that it’s quilt-weight fabric.

In the photo below, you can see the two different Kaffe fabrics I used for the front gathered panel. And if you look very closely, you can see that I used three fabrics in that back gathered panel — a sliver of one fabric at the top of the gathering and two other designs below that. They are all in various shades of green and blue so they blend together.

Sewing the Collage Gather Top

Once I figured out which pattern pieces would go with the various fabrics, it was easy to sew. There are just seven pattern pieces: center front, center back, front shoulder, back shoulder, gathered panel, cuff, and neck bias.

The instructions were clear, including when to put in a label if you want to add one.  I sewed one that said “You can’t buy this.” If you are mixing prints and using more than one fabric for a pattern piece, you just need to remember to add seam allowance  when you are cutting the fabric.

The instructions have you topstitch the bias tape at the neck line and at the hem. I didn’t want topstitching so I handstitched the bias tape and hem in place.

Mixing prints

I had a lot of fun mixing prints — and using such bright colors in this Collage Gather Top! I got all of the fabrics at Stonemountain & Daughter Fabrics in Berkeley. And I wore it to the Bay Area Sewists Pattern Swap, where we also had our own local Color Me Kaffe Challenge. Quilt-weight fabric is a little stiff so it will puff out due to the gathering as you can se ein the profile photo. A fabric with a softer hand will not be as puffy. This is a great pattern to pay around with different prints, which also makes it an excellent scrap buster.

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The Know Me pattern line is curated by Mimi G, designer, entrepreneur, influencer, blogger, and now vice president of design, brand strategy, and patterns for Design Group. Mimi launched Know Me because she wanted “to offer talented makers the opportunity to develop and design their very own patterns. And she hopes that “it will represent what our community of sewists truly looks like and give others the same opportunities I have been given.”

I meant to publish this post last fall, but I didn’t do any sewing or blogging then. But I did make an Adrienne Blouse in Dec. and sewed my shirt dress for Fabric Godmother in January. Then I had some technical issues with my blog that I just didn’t have time to sort out. In the meantime, Ella’s second design (ME2033), a crop top and pants, for Know Me patterns was released this spring! Apologies to Ella and Bay Area Sewists for taking so long to get this post done. Here (at last!) is the Q&A from that meetup.

Ella’s first design for Know Me patterns

Learning to sew

When did you start sewing and who taught you to sew?

I started sewing in mid-2019. I was on a tight budget at the time, but yearning to wear the latest styles that I couldn’t afford. Somehow I got myself latched on the idea of copying a Reformation jumpsuit that I wanted and thought “that doesn’t look so complicated.” In a spurt of passion, I found a sewing machine Bootcamp class at Workshop SF, borrowed my MIL’s sewing machine, and started off hacking a free pattern of a jumpsuit I found, into a wrap jumpsuit. It was soooo ambitious for a first project, and I’m not sure where my confidence came from, but I went for it. I made a gorgeous-looking jumpsuit, but in my naivité sewed with like ¼ in seam allowances and under some pressure that thing split wide open across the back on the third wear. It still cracks me up. But hey, it gave me the motion to get started.

I still am in majority self-taught from a variety of internet resources. YouTube, sewing blogs, patterns.

I did a few months later take Apparel Construction at CCSF as well, but honestly, I learned more online than I did at CCSF. 

Handmade Millennial’s sewing faves

What is your favorite thing to sew?

For some reason, I love sewing dresses. It’s so interesting because before sewing, I didn’t often wear dresses. It really comes down to the fact that I didn’t realize how much I like the look of long loose dresses, and for some reason, I would never have bought one of those to know that I liked that style so much, until I started sewing. So, sewing has kind of freed me and my style in a way, to try things I was too afraid to invest in before. I almost entirely sew with solids now, and before I was afraid to “waste” my money buying simple-looking garments, so I only bought really accent items. It’s really funny how different it is. 

Ella wore her Know Me patterns design to the Bay Area Sewists meetup.

How and where did you learn to modify and draft patterns?

Honestly, this skill has mostly been learned from videos! I have some pattern drafting books that I enjoy, but nothing is as helpful as seeing the visual of someone actually doing it. Most of the drafting skills I’ve learned have been on a case-by-case basis, but I’m also going back for some of the fundamentals with the online Patternmaking Academy. I think my approach that’s different than many who learn online, is that I research things very thoroughly. If I’m trying to learn a technique, I will probably look at 3 different videos or blogs to really learn about it, then follow a combination of the methods, or follow the method of the person who seems to know best what they’re talking about. 

I should say, there is a difference between being a “pattern designer” and “pattern drafter”. I am a designer for Know Me, not a drafter. The Big Five draft the patterns themselves.

What were the most useful things you learned?

Oooh the power of a tissue fitting, vs mocking up a whole garment. Also how differently a pattern can fit based on the fabric you’re working with. I learned this lesson the hard way toiling my wedding dress with stiff fabrics and getting the design *just right*, only to have it be ridiculously loose and inaccurate in my final toile fabric with more give.

Ella talking about her Papercut Patterns Nova Coat

Handmade Millennial on sewing advice & books

What’s the best sewing advice you’ve received?

That all of the important parts of a sewing project come before ever even cutting the fabric. To slow down and visualize. This is huge for me, I don’t think people spend enough time really visualizing their items in the planning process. This is why Instagram is so big for me. Also, Procreate on iPad can be a great tool for visualizing, and honestly, just wrapping yourself in your chosen fabric and trying to imagine the outcome. 

Maybe contrary to what others believe, I think my best skill is not necessarily my sewing, but my taste in fabric and combining that with the right pattern. In connecting color and balancing the right amount of “bold” with “minimal.”

What sewing books do you recommend?

Couture Techniques by Claire Shaeffer has been a huge help to me. I also have one called the Sew/Fit Manual that is really helpful. Whichever ones you can find at your local library.

How much time do you spend every week sewing? 

Depends on the week. Some none, or 1-2 hours. Some weeks it’s more like 6-8.

Ella discussing her experience sewing her wedding dress.

You designed and sewed your own wedding dress. What advice do you have for people who are considering doing that? [You can read about Ella making her dress on her blog, starting with part 1.]

Don’t be scared of it. It’s just another dress! I think a lot of people have a mental barrier about projects like this. It doesn’t have to be some elaborate thing, it could be as simple or complicated as the wearer wants and is prepared to design. 

This kind of project might be tougher for perfectionists. I wouldn’t recommend it for true perfectionists, honestly. It could lead to a lot of stress, pressure, and less joy in the process for those who might too much pressure on themselves. I think this project was well-suited for my personality because I didn’t have a lifelong vision for my wedding dress, was ok with imperfection, and I pick up skills pretty quickly/am diligent in researching. 

Handmade Millennial designing for Know Me

How did you end up designing a pattern for the Know Me pattern line?

Mimi reached out to me directly and asked me to design for her for the launch. I was really shocked! She said that she liked my style and that it was what she felt was missing from the lineup, she liked my presence and energy.

Handmade Millennial’s spring design for Know Me – ME2033

How much have you interacted with Mimi G? What is she like?

A moderate amount! We’ve been on a handful of Zoom calls, exchanging maybe one email a month. She texts me if she really needs something. She’s very kind, ambitious, and supportive. And really busy and does most of her work under pressure. When it comes to business, she’s very direct and to the point.

What made you pick a jumpsuit as your first pattern?

I love jumpsuits! That’s why I started sewing after all. I think they’re unique, a single outfit decision vs. two, and just really fun and stylish.

What was it like to work with Design Group?

They’re very corporate. A little last minute. They’re a machine pumping out a ton of content and I’m a fairly small cog in their wheels.

What was involved in the design process?

Each season, I get a week or two heads up that it’s time to submit styles. I create ideas and concepts, whittle down to one or two, and send sketches with inspiration clips or photos to Mimi. She looks at the full assortment and makes her decisions – it’s a very editorial feeling. When a design is chosen, it’s sent to a Designer at DG, who works with patternmakers. They send me line art to approve, they have a technical call to discuss details and construction, I’m sent photos of two fittings and mockups to which I give instructions for edits. Then I receive the pattern pieces in the mail, sewing up and photograph the styles for the packet cover. 

How long did it take to get from your initial idea to the actual pattern release?

We started in mid-February and the patterns came out in late September.

Do you design for a particular body type? 

I’m obviously biased by my own body type and frame because it’s what I know, but I try to design with the “average” sized American woman in mind. She’s probably a size 10 or 12 in RTW? The Big Five block I think is 5”7 and a size 10, a C cup.

Ella of Handmade Millennial at Bay Area Sewists meetup

Handmade Millennial’s Sewing Advice

What advice do you have for people who are just starting to sew?

Don’t rush it! Slow down and make sure you’re going to make something that you will really cherish, love, and most importantly, wear. I started sewing with patterns before self drafting, to learn techniques and have clean, finished garments. This gave me the confidence about construction and a number of little skills, before I used that knowledge to go out on my own and design my own styles. I think it depends on the person, but I’d recommend that approach. I didn’t like my early hacks and self-drafts where the results felt sloppy. But that’s just me. 

What advice do you have for people who want to start a sewing pattern line?

Really hone in on your personal style. Know what represents you well and keep in mind the aesthetic you’d want to put out in the world. There are lots of resources out there for learning to draft patterns, and how to digitize them. Honestly, anyone who has adobe illustrator can become a pattern designer these days. I don’t get know how to digitize, but after seeing some behind-the-scenes of how it works, it feels like something really approachable that I’ll probably pick up in the next few years. Grading, on the other hand, I may leave up to the professionals at first. 

Mimi’s intent with Know Me is that it will be for makers, by makers, so who knows, maybe you could have your own line someday as well. She’s continued adding to the designer lineup, and I think it will refresh every so often. I signed a two-year contract.  

Instagram thoughts

What do you find most useful, inspiring (or annoying) about Instagram as a sewist? 

I love using it as a tool to research, to hear from others and learn from them, to help me visualize my makes. I’ve sewn mostly indie patterns to date for this reason, I can get the most information thanks to indies and Instagram. What I try to watch out for – getting sucked up in the “hype” of some items. I talked recently about feeling like I got lost in the hype around the Hokkaido poppy linen and I regretted it. Some of my key principles for myself on the gram are to always be authentic (I don’t try to clear out every piece of clutter in my house before it gets filmed, or put on makeup to post a video), to share in the learning of mistakes and celebrate that we all make them, to create a space to connect with people. with like-minded people that I couldn’t mind in my day-to-day life.

The post Q&A with Handmade Millennial appeared first on C Sews.

When I realized that Nina Chang-Smith, the designer and founder behind her indie pattern company, Nina Lee Patterns, had moved from London to the Bay Area, I invited her to be Bay Area Sewists‘ guest speaker in September 2022. It was our first indoor, in-person event since the pandemic began. Our Meetup group had been meeting on Zoom since May 2020 and then had a couple of outdoor meetups in the summer of 2022. I’ve been the organizer for Bay Area Sewists since 2014.

The event was a Q&A with Nina Chang-Smith held in the classroom space at Lacis in Berkeley. After the Q&A, Nina also showed how you can change the closure on a pattern (i.e. from zippers to keyhole openings). I took all the photos except for the one of her in the lavender jumpsuit.

I meant to publish this post months ago but I just didn’t have time to blog. Plus I had maxed out the space on my account and I couldn’t upload anymore images. So I procrastinated, wondering if I should pay more for space, close it down, delete images, or leave it as is. So I finally made a decision this week and went ahead and added more space. If you like what you’ve read, feel free to buy me a cup of coffee and make a donation via PayPal (@chuleenan).

Here are the questions I asked Nina at the event — and her answers, which she also answered for this blog post (thus the English spelling for some words). You’ll find more of my Q&As here.

Sewing experiences

When did you start sewing and who taught you to sew?

I learnt basic sewing as a child, taught by my mum. She used to make us clothes as children, as well as things for herself, whilst my grandmother would knit for us. It wasn’t until my mid-teens that I got really into dressmaking. 

What was the first garment you sewed?

It was a lilac gingham sundress when I was about fourteen, with an empire line waist and little puffy sleeves — it wouldn’t look out of place today!

What is your favorite thing to sew?

I love sewing outfits for specific occasions – a party, a wedding, a trip. Even if it’s not a grand occasion – I really get into the planning, choosing colour, fabric and design, and then sewing something imagining how much fun I’m going to have when wearing it. 

Learning clothing design

How and where did you learn clothing design?

Almost since I began to sew my own clothes I started to hack patterns, copy RTW garments and draft ideas from scratch. I never undertook any formal education in design but prior to launching Nina Lee Patterns I spent a year doing online pattern drafting courses and developing my drafting skills by making bespoke wedding wear for friends. 

What were the most useful things you learned?

How having well-fitting clothes can be quietly revolutionary – I’ve had some very emotional moments when I’ve made a custom garment for someone and seen how it’s changed the way they see themselves when they look in the mirror. Obviously, when you make a sewing pattern it won’t automatically fit everybody, but everyone sewing their own clothes already has an advantage when it comes to fit. Clothes should be working for our bodies, not the other way around.

Sewing advice

What’s the best sewing advice you’ve received?

Slow down! It’s what my mum always says to me. Once I get an idea in my head I can’t wait to make it reality, and in the past that would mean rushed garments. Now I’m still eager, but I know where I can afford to cut corners and where it’s worth taking my time to get it just right.

Also – just because you made it, doesn’t mean you have to keep it. I used to hoard clothes I’d made, whether I wore them or not, because ‘I made it, so it’s precious, right?’ Well, yes, but now I’ve realised that once I’ve made it, it’s just another garment in the world, and garments need to be worn. If I’m not using it, someone else could be. 

What garment construction books do you recommend?

Couture Sewing Techniques by Claire Shaeffer; the Dorling Kindersley Complete Book of Sewing; Shirtmaking by David Page Coffin; and the Winifred Aldrich pattern cutting series. 

Nina Lee Patterns design beginnings

How did you get started designing patterns?

I was in a job I wasn’t well suited to, and my main form of escapism in breaks became reading sewing blogs. This was at the height of sewing blogging, when there still weren’t many pattern companies around. As I was already making up a lot of my own designs, I decided to quit my job and try something that was simultaneously familiar (sewing) and completely new (running a business)!

What inspires your patterns?

My designs are fashion-conscious, but not slavishly so. I spend a lot of time browsing shops, perusing magazines and generally immersing myself in what’s going on with high street fashion (well, this was in the UK before lockdown – it’s been a bit different lately!). From that ideas just emerge of garments I want in my life — usually, they’re a sort of ‘ultimate mishmash’ of lots of things I’ve seen in RTW. Then, if I want a garment to exist and I can’t find the exact pattern for it, I make one!

Design development

How long does it take you to develop a new design? Do you grade your patterns or do you have someone do that for you?

It usually takes me a week or two once the idea for a design has taken hold to draft it into something wearable. This will involve a lot of toiles and tweaking. Then I will send it off to be graded externally – this is the one aspect I don’t do myself as it’s much more efficiently done by software that I don’t own. After that, the less fun part happens – the pattern formatting, fabric requirements, cutting layouts, instructions etc. I can usually do all of that in two weeks if I don’t have other work on. Then it goes off to pattern testers for another two weeks. I usually try to release about a week after pattern testing concludes, unless (and this has happened once) the pattern testers come up with too many issues.

What software do you use to design your patterns?

I draft by hand, on paper, and then digitise using Adobe Illustrator. Everything pattern-related is then managed in Illustrator, whilst I use InDesign to put together the instructions.

Design and size range

Do you design for a particular body type? 

I design for a roughly hourglass figure in the 6-20 range, and a slightly more pear-shaped figure in the 16-28 range. 

You began expanding your size range in 2020. Now some of your patterns go up to UK size 28, which has a 54-inch bust and 57-inch hip. What is involved in expanding your size range?

I draft initially for the 6-20 range as I use my own body to test on (UK size 10). Then I employ a specialist pattern drafter who will adapt the pattern for the 16-28 range, using size 20 as the base, and grade it accordingly. I’ve got my final 3 main designs in progress at the moment. 

When did you move from London to the Bay Area?

I moved here on November 1st, 2021. We’d originally been meant to come in May 2020! We moved because of my husband’s job and I had to pause my business whilst I waited for my employment authorisation to come through here. The move also meant shutting down the physical side of the business, the printed patterns. So now I sell PDFs only.

Closure hacks

Nina brought some great examples of the variety of closures you could choose for a pattern top or dress. It was an excellent reminder that you don’t have to follow a pattern’s design. You can hack the closure!

Here are Nina’s variations on closures. She used red thread to highlight the stitches on these mock-ups.

Thank you, Nina, for sharing your designs and pattern hacks!

The post Q&A with Nina of Nina Lee Patterns appeared first on C Sews.

This is my first I Am Irma shirt dress, an I Am Patterns design, and my first make as a Fabric Godmother ambassador! I made the I Am Irma shirt in cotton lawn and organza last year. For the shirt dress version, I chose this print, Ava Floral Viscose ECOVERO Satin with a navy background to make the dress-length version of this French pattern. I confess that when I picked this fabric, I chose it for the print and didn’t notice that it was satin. So when I got it in the mail last month, I thought, uh oh, shiny and slippery! But as you can see, it was fine. Read on for sewing details.

This photo from Fabric Godmother is a better look at this luscious fabric, which has a lovely drape and is so soft! I didn’t know what Ecovero was so I looked it up and it’s apparently a more sustainable viscose.

I Am Patterns is a French company and the I Am Irma pattern was released in 2020 as part of the I Am Magic collection. The size range goes up to 52 (hip 47.25″/120 cm). I made size 44 (bust 38.5″/98cm). When I made the shirt, I picked size 46 and I’m not sure why. But 44 is a better fit for me.

I made the version with bishop sleeves. The I Am Irma pattern also has a classic cuffed sleeve option.

I Am Irma has a hidden button placket. After I finished taking photos, I discovered that I missed buttoning the button below the collar stand. Oops. So if you see some odd pulling there, that’s why.

I Am Irma shirt dress pattern adjustments

The only pattern adjustment I made was a 3/8″ (1 cm) square shoulder adjustment. There is a bit of ease in the sleeve cap so I did not raise the bottom of the armscye to compensate.

I’m 5’7″ (170 cm). I Am Patterns designs for a height of 5’5″/168 cm, as I’ve noted in my sewing pattern height chart. The I Am Irma shirt dress is quite long in the back. When I looked at the finished length, I saw that the length increases slightly as the size goes up. So I didn’t think it was necessary to lengthen my pattern pieces.

Tips on sewing viscose fabric

I consulted Sandra Betzina’s All New Fabric Savvy and read her entry on rayon viscose. One thing she noted is: “Despite your best efforts at accurate cutting, seam lengths seem to differ when you pin together.” So she suggests placing the side with the longer seam on the bottom so the feed dog will ease it to match the shorter side. She also recommended using cotton thread and a new sharp needle because a dull needle will snag. I used Mettler cotton thread and a Schmetz 70/10 microtex needle.

Given what she said about cutting, I decided that it would be best to trace all my pattern pieces and then cut them. Years ago when I cut pattern pieces that I pinned to slippery fabric, some pattern pieces were off. And I mean way off, like I had to buy more fabric off. lol

I prewashed my fabric and used pattern weights to hold the pattern pieces in place — one of my heavy pattern weights (3.75 pounds/1.7 kg) that I got from Wawak and several smaller pattern weights that I got from Thanks! I Made Them. (Note: These are not affiliate links, just providing them for your convenience.)

Tracing pattern pieces

I used a yellow chaco liner to trace the pattern pieces on the right side of the fabric, per the instructions. Of course, after I was done tracing, I discovered that the chaco liner worked better on the wrong side. But if I had traced on the wrong side, I would have had to keep track of which front pieces to flip. So no biggie.

I thought I was accurate when I traced the pieces but the chaco liner does snag a little on the fabric so there was a little distortion. There’s a lot of ease in this pattern so I didn’t really care if I was off on most of the pattern pieces. The only pieces where it really mattered was the collar and collar stand. So I placed my pattern pieces on top of the cut pieces and trimmed any excess. I think by tracing, you don’t end up with smaller pattern pieces but slightly larger is some areas. And larger is certainly better than smaller!

Interfacing

The I Am Irma shirt dress calls for interfacing in the collar, collar stand, and cuffs. I also added a strip of interfacing to the button placket. This fabric has a soft hand and needs some extra support where the buttonholes and buttons go.

When I looked at the lightweight interfacing in my stash, I picked a black woven and a black knit interfacing. Then I cut half collar pieces to test them and picked the woven interfacing. The knit interfacing didn’t lay flat after pressing. I don’t know if you can tell in this photo but the top collar is the one with the woven interfacing.

I also made a test button placket, complete with fused interfacing, sewing about eight test buttonholes before I was satisfied. When I unpicked a buttonhole, I saw that it left a white line where the stitching was. The good thing about a hidden button placket is that no one will see it if you have to unpick the buttonholes on the shirt dress. But the buttonhole on the collar stand is visible. Sewing that buttonhole was a little nerve-wracking.

If you are using a fabric with drape for this pattern, I highly recommend doing test buttonholes. And you should try some with tear-away stabilizer or just some tissue paper. I started to get some slight distortion after the fifth or sixth buttonhole. So then I put some tissue paper behind it and it sewed more smoothly.

Note on sewing buttonholes

The instructions say to sew the buttonholes and buttons at the beginning, before you assemble the back or attach the sleeves or collar. When I sew a garment, I always sew the buttonholes and buttons last. So that’s what I did with this dress. However, if you wait until after you have attached the collar and collar stand, then it’s tricky to sew the first buttonhole because you can’t fully open up the placket.

So I just moved that buttonhole a little further down from the top to compensate. The next time I make this pattern, I will remember to sew the buttonholes right after sewing the placket!

Collar detail

I hand sewed the collar stand in place instead of topstitching it in place. And I added this fun Kylie and the Machine label, “You can’t buy this.”

Pressing the fabric

Use a press cloth to protect the fabric or press from the wrong side when you can. Use low heat or you may damage the fabric. Seam allowances may leave an impression so be careful when you press near seams. I pinked my side seams rather than serging them so they would not have much of an impression when I pressed them.

For the hem, I sewed a 5/16″ seam and used that seam line as a guide to press the first fold. Then I made a second fold and pressed it.

Back yoke

The pattern instructions have you sew the outside back yoke to the back piece and then attach the inside yoke and stopstitch it in place. I used the burrito method, which worked, even with such a long back piece. I was able to roll up the back piece and fit it in there.

The bishop sleeve

I love statement sleeves — just look at my latest Adrienne Blouse — but they do require quite a bit of gathering. To make it easier to spread out the gathers I quartered the cuff and the sleeve (folding it in half with the seam allowance on one side and in half again) and used pins to note each quarter. Then I pinned the sleeve to the cuff. The instructions call for a single line of gathering 5/16″ or slighly less than 1 cm. This pattern has 3/8 (1 cm) seam allowances so there really isn’t any room for a second line of gathering. Plus, if I removed any visible gathering stitches, it might leave a white mark. As you can see, that’s a lot of fabric to gather!

Final thoughts on I Am Irma shirt dress

I just realized that this is my first shirt dress! I’ve made shirts and dresses, but not a shirt dress before. I really like this pattern and fabric. This shirt dress could also be worn unbuttoned as a jacket. I’ll be sure to take photos of that. I Am Irma is an intermediate-level pattern.

This viscose fabric feels great. It’s like wearing comfy pajamas. In fact, this it would also be great for pajamas, a nightie, camisole, dress, or a blouse.

If you are going to use this fabric for a pattern that has buttons, you’ll want to use small lightweight buttons. The pattern called for 5/8″ (1 cm) buttons. I went with black plastic buttons that were slightly smaller because I was afraid anything larger would be too heavy and drag down the fabric. The top button is an green Atelier Brunette Joy enamel button (12 mm), which I got at my local fabric store Stonemountain & Daughter Fabrics in Berkeley.

And last but not least, I just wanted to mention that I am wearing a vintage beret, my favorite black beret, appropriate for a French pattern, n’est-ce pas?

The post I Am Irma shirt dress in a Fabric Godmother floral print appeared first on C Sews.

I made an Adrienne Blouse in a Lady McElroy print (Epic Spectacle)! I absolutely love this fabric, which I got from Stonemountain and Daughter Fabrics two years ago (sorry, sold out now). My original plans for this fabric were to make a Kielo wrap dress. But this viscoe crepe jersey seemed a little delicate and I wasn’t sure it would wear well in the seat. So I decided to make a top. In the above photo, I’m also wearing a hat I made from a 1960s vintage McCall’s pattern. I’ve made one in black and white wool felt, too. The pants are the Jalie Renée Ponte Pants.

This is my second version of this Friday Pattern Company design. My first Adrienne was a floral rayon jersey print. That fabric was slightly lighter in weight and hangs lower in the neckline than this one. for this pattern, the neckline depth depends on your fabric and the elastic at the shoulders. You can adjust the elastic length. This pattern goes up to size 4X (bust 53-54″/134-137 cm).

In this photo, I’m wearing a cap I made from a pattern I drafted. I’m wearing this cap backwards, with the brim in the back.

Adrienne Blouse pattern details

This pattern has zero ease in it and negative ease in the bust. So the second time around, I decided to make size XL instead of L. I made size L for my first Adrienne Blouse and it was too snug in the bust for me — that’s just my preference. (You can read about what I did to fix that in this blog post.)

This pattern has just three pieces — bodice, sleeve, and neckline ribbing. The bodice piece is the same for the front and the back. How simple is that? And there’s 1/2″ (1.27 cm) elastic at the shoulders and sleeve. I really love this pattern. It is simple to sew, but you do have to be accurate in cutting the pattern pieces, especially at the neckline. If you don’t cut and sew the neckline pieces accurately, the neckline ribbing will not line up with the elastic at the shoulders.

Pattern adjustments

When I traced size XL, I made the waist an inch smaller by using my French curve to come in 1/4″ on the side. That’s the only adjustment I made, other than sewing a larger size. (Side note: The waist on my first Adrienne is a bit loose now since I’ve lost some weight.)

Size XL is for bust 40-43″/102-109 cm, but my bust is really the Adriene Blouse size L (38-39″/95-99 cm). I’m also an A cup but size L was just too fitted for me. If you want a tight fit, pick the size for your measurements. If you want something that has a little ease, go up one size.

Thread and needle

I used Gutterman polyester thread 865 (an ochre color) and used a Schmetz 70/10 jersey needle. I looked at my thread stash and considered off-white and red before settling on ochre. I wanted a color that was sort of neutral and would blend well with all the different colors. The ochre matches the hair of the person with the pink glasses and orange top. Plus there’s yellow and green in the background. So ochre seemed like the best option.

I used a small zig zag stitch for the side seams but when I sewed the channels for the elastic and when I hemmed the bottom, I didn’t want to use a zig zag stitch. So I tested a straight stitch with wooly nylon in the bobbin for the elastic and a double needle for the hem. Wooly nylon is stretchy so when you sew a straight stitch on jersey knit fabric, your stitches won’t break. I didn’t have matching wooly nylon so I was testing the colors I had — black, red, and white — in my test stitches.

I did not like the double needle for the hem. The print is on a white background and the white is more apparent in the double needle stitches than the single straight stitch with wooly nylon in the bobbin.

Sewing tips

When I inserted the elastic at the shoulder and the sleeves, I taped my safety pin shut using some washi tape, which is thin and flexible.

At the wrists, I overlapped the elastic and sewed two lines of stitching, which is probably overkill because there is no stress on the elastic at the wrists.

This lightweight viscose crepe jersey pressed beautifully. Because it was so lightweight, I pinked the side seams rather then finishing them on a serger or using a zig zag stitch. And to reduce bulk at the side seams at the hem, I graded the seam allowance, just at the hem.

I used Design Plus double-sided fusible tape to stabilize the hem and ensure the the top stitching would look good. It comes in a roll and one side has a strip of paper that you iron in place. Then you peel off the paper and then press in place. You can see that the fusible is very lightweight.

Then I pressed the hem in place. This is what it looked like before I sewed the hem. It’s a bit tedius to iron on, especially because the hem of this blouse has a slight curve and the fusible tape is a straight line. I had to cut it a couple of times so it would curve. But the results are worth it.

More photos

Here are a few more views of this top — the left side…

… and the right side.

And here’s the top with my colorful Pilvi Coat, which I had also photographed in front of this same mural back in 2017. So I thought I’d wear it again. At first I thought, oh, too much? Prints clashing? But I like it!

This is my last make of 2022. Goodbye 2022. Happy new year, everyone! Here’s to a safe, happy, and glorious New Year!

The post Adrienne Blouse in a Lady McElroy print appeared first on C Sews.

SewOver50 is hosting a color-blocking sewing challenge this month so I decided to make a color-blocked Seamwork Bo Top. If you are familiar with Seamwork’s patterns, they are designed for a C cup. I am an A cup so I wondered what size to make because there is a lot of ease.

I decided to rejoin Seamwork to have access to all the patterns and for sewing inspiration and sewing community. Seamwork members get access to all the Seamwork patterns, tutorials, etc. I had been a member a few years ago when one of my sisters gifted me with a membership but I didn’t renew it due to inertia. When I recently got an email about joining, I decided to take advantage of the discounted membership.

Picking a size

After I chose this pattern, I asked the Seamwork community if I needed to do a small bust adjustment. People helpfully pointed out that I should look at the finished measurements and that it is a boxy design. Good advice. Picking a size based on my measurements would likely work. A member with a B cup picked a size based on her measurements and it was fine.

In the end, I decided to go a size smaller, given my small bust and cut a size 8 (bust 37″/94 cm) instead of size 10 (38 1/2″/98 cm).

Fabric color inspiration

The sewing challenge is focused on solid colors, not prints. So I perused my stash and rediscovered this lightweight lavender cotton sateen that has been in my stash for years. I bought it at an online sale (impulse buy). But the color was a bit dull and I don’t really wear pastels. This sewing challenge was the perfect time to do something with it. But I needed to pair it with something that would make it palatable. I had some royal blue fabric — not sure what it is, maybe a linen blend. I thought it was cotton but it has a bit of a loose weave and ravels. The lavender is a lighter weight with a softer hand than the blue fabric, which is a little more crisp. It would be better if the fabrics were more similar but it’s OK.

I had always wanted to do something with a pastel and an intense color ever since I saw Bandwagon, the Vincent Minelli-directed musical starring Fred Astaire and Cyd Charisse. In that entertaining 1953 film, there’s a scene with Fred Astaire wearing a gray flannel suit paired with a pastel blue shirt and royal blue socks. I never forgot the pairing of contrasting colors. You can see that ensemble in this post on the blog BAMF Style. Do you have any favorite films that inspire your sewing?

I am really pleased with this color combination. I still have a few more yards of the lavender sateen so stay tuned for more projects with this fabric combination! Thanks to SewOver50 for hosting this challenge.

Back of the color-blocked Seamwork Bo

I had intended the back to be the reverse of the front, with the royal blue on the left side with a lavender cuff and lavender on the right with a royal blue cuff. But I cut the lavender fabric the wrong side up. I wanted the shiny side of the sateen on the inside. The royal blue fabric is the same on both sides so I just flipped it and decided to just go with it.

I had already cut the cuff pieces so I decided to leave them as is. So they the cuffs match the fabric in the back but they are the opposite in the front.

Construction details

This Seamwork Bo pattern is supposed to be cut on the fold. To color block, I simply added 5/8″ seam allowance along the fold line to the front, back, and cuff pattern pieces.

The neckline is finished with bias tape that you understitch and then top stitch in place. But when I attached it, I liked the way the bias tape looked standing up.

It reminded me of the neckline finish of the Basic Blouse in the Nani Iro Sewing Studio sewing book. The model on the left is wearing the Basic Blouse. But this neckline has a raw edge. The book recommends hand washing if you leave it with this raw edge. No, thanks – I don’t want to hand wash if I can help it. lol

So I cut another strip of bias tape, measured it against the bias tape that was already attached. Then I sewed the ends together and stitched that to the attached neckline bias tape. Note that I top stitched at the bottom before I top stitched at the top. Oops. I didn’t think it through but I wasn’t going to unpick all the nice top stitching I did. [Please excuse the varying color tones in the photos due to different lighting conditions.]

So I hand-stitched the bias tape in place on the inside and added a Kylie and the Machine label, “You can’t buy this.” That one gives me a chuckle. Hand stitching is tedious and time-consuming but it’s a good activity to do in front of the TV. Plus the inside looks quite nice.

Bias neckline notes

For the bias neckline of the Bo top, you are instructed to measure the neckline and cut a length of bias tape equal to that length plus one inch. I measured incorrectly because my piece of bias tape was too long. Whoops! I think I must have started at the center and then went past the center to the shoulder. Of course I didn’t notice that it was too long until after I sewed the ends together. LOL

So if you make this top, pay attention to where you start measuring the neckline. It would have been nice if the instructions just gave you the length of the bias tape for each size but they don’t. Just measure correctly!

To attach the bias tape to the neckline, I decided to use the technique I use when attaching binding to knit tops. I quartered the bias tape by folding it in half and then in half again, putting pins at each quarter. Then I folded the top in half lining up the center front and center back, putting pins on the left and right. Here’s what the pinning at each quarter.

Then I pinned it all the way around …

… and I took the added step of hand basting. I like the control hand basting gives me. It’s annoying to pull out so many pins as you sew on the machine. And sometimes when you pin, the fabric underneath may be folded over. Basting saves time because then you don’t have to go back and unpick stitches and sew again. I used Japanese silk thread because it comes out so easily. I used yellow silk thread to baste my Hovea Jacket, which I mentioned in this post. (You can get Kinkame silk thread at Britex Fabrics.)

And then I added a second circle of bias tape to have a finished edge — as described above. Seamwork has a video about the construction of Bo. I didn’t watch it because it is a simple top to put together. And I just didn’t have the time to spare. The directions were straightforward.

Hem finishing color-blocked Seamwork Bo

I top-stitched the cuffs with lavender thread as you can see in this photo.

And I hand-stitched the hem of the body, using matching thread, rather than machine-stitching the hem in place via topstitching, which is what the instructions call for. I didn’t want to see stitching there.

Ta-daaa!

My hat is a vintage wool Kangol. There is no logo on the outside and no kangaroo on the inside. I’ve had this hat for more than 25 years.

The post Color-blocked Seamwork Bo top appeared first on C Sews.

I finished my cropped Hovea Jacket! This was made with Nani Iro double gauze that was pre-quilted especially for Stonemountain & Daughter Fabrics in Berkeley. They picked several lovely designs to pre-quilt and there are still several still available as of this writing, including the one I chose, Air Time – Ocean. I love the watercolor design on this fabric!

The Hovea Jacket is by Megan Nielsen Patterns and has six versions (available in two size ranges: 0-20 (max bust/hip: 46/48″, 117/122 cm), 14-34: max bust/hip: 60/62″, 152/157 cm). I made size 14. I’m wearing cropped version F with my Megan Nielsen Flint Pants in black linen and a jersey knit top made from the Japanese sewing book She Wears the Pants. The tweed cap is self-drafted. I’m wearing it backwards so it looks like a beret from the front.

I was nearly done last week but I had to make a little more bias tape to finish the sleeve hems. That bias tape is leftover Nani Iro double gauze from the Array Dress I made last year (fabric also from Stonemountain but sold out).

If you missed my post from last week on making the Hovea Jacket, you can read all about the construction details there (added length, Hong Kong seam finishing, extra pockets, and more).

I have really long arms so I added an inch to the sleeves. Megan Nielsen drafts for a height of 5’9″/175 cm (see my sewing pattern height chart) and I’m 5’7″/170 cm. I also like covering my wrists. The sleeves are likely long for others or just the right length.

Inside pockets

Here’s a look at the inside pockets I added to my cropped Hovea Jacket, which was a change I made to the pattern. You can also see my Hong Kong seam finishing on the inside.

And here’s the other side — showing how my cell phone fits in the pocket.

The only problem with putting my cell phone in a pocket is that it drags down that side of the jacket because the fabric is so lightweight — double gauze with poly batting. You can see how one side is lower than the other in this photo. I suppose you could put something of equal weight on the other side, maybe a wallet, to balance it out? Or just know that you will look a little lopsided.

In this photo, you can (sort of) see the label I attached to the inside left, attached to the Hong Kong seam, just above the pocket.

Here’s a close-up view of the Kylie and the Machine label, which says “You can’t buy this.”

Outside pockets

The seam just to the left of my hand is machine stitched along the pre-quilted line of stitching. My hand is on one side of the divided pocket.

In this photo, I wasn’t sure which pockets to put my hands in. The timer on my phone was about to take a photo so I just stuffed my hands in. As you can see, one hand went into the pocket closest to the front. My other hand went into the smaller pocket closer to the side seam.

More cropped Hovea Jacket views

This pattern has a lot of ease. In this photo, you can see the dropped shoulder, which makes it a great pattern for a variety of body types. I have broad, square shoulders and I didn’t need to make any shoulder adjustments.

Here’s the other side. I think in this photo below, my phone is in the inside pocket so that side is hanging a little low, which is why my sleeve looks extra long.

The jacket looks quite boxy from the back. Oh, and you can see the bill on my cap in this photo.

Inside out

This version of the pattern has the option of being reversible. But, as I said in my post on making the Hovea, I didn’t intend for mine to be reversible. So I opted for a Hong Kong seam finish instead of enclosing the entire seam allowance in one binding.

I took a couple of photos of my cropped Hovea Jacke inside out. Here’s the front…

… and here’s another look at the sleeve.

It is possible to sew this jacket up fairly quickly. For example, serging instead of binding your seam allowances like Emily Gutman did when she made her cropped Hovea Jacket. She made her jacket in an evening. In her Instagram post on her jacket, she said “I used pre-made double gauze bias tape which I machine-sewed closed, and I serged the insides, so the whole jacket was done in under a couple hours.” 

Here’s Emily’s Hovea, which she also made with Nani Iro prequilted double gauze.

I opted to take some extra time to make a lot of bias tape for a Hong Kong seam finish. And for the binding that goes around the outside edges and sleeve hems, I opted to hand stitch the bias tape in place rather than stitch in the ditch.

Here’s a closeup of the inside of the binding at the front of my jacket. All my hand stitches are hidden. If my jacket flaps open, you will see a neat and clean finish.

And here’s one last photo.

Have you made a Hovea Jacket? Which version did you make and what fabric(s) did you use?

The post Cropped Hovea Jacket is done! appeared first on C Sews.

I am making version F, the cropped version with binding. I took this photo of the instruction booklet (excuse the glare and off-center photo). The cropped quilted jacket is shorter than the one in this photo.

The Hovea Jacket pattern by Megan Nielsen is available as a paper pattern and as a PDF in two size ranges: 0-20 (max bust/hip: 46/48″, 117/122 cm), 14-34: max bust/hip: 60/62″, 152/157 cm). I got a paper copy at Stonemountain. There are six, yes, SIX variations of this pattern, three different lengths — mid-length jacket, coat, and cropped jacket in unlined, lined, and quilted options. This pattern company designs for a height of 5’9″ (175 cm), as you can see on my sewing pattern height chart. I’m 5’7″ (170 cm).

I picked the fabric called “Ocean – Air Time” because I loved the beautiful watercolor design. It’s very light and will feel like wearing a cloud. There’s the Nani Iro fabric on one side, natural (off-white) muslin on the other side, with poly batting in the middle. It’s hard to capture what this fabric looks like in a photo. Here’s what it looked like as it was air drying in the bathroom after I prewashed it.

The pattern calls for 2 7/8 yards/2.6 meters (45″/115 cm wide) for size 14, which is the size I made. I bought 3 yards to give myself some flexibility in pattern placement, to allow for shrinkage, and because I wanted to make the cropped version a little longer. Also, this Nani Iro fabric is 41″ wide, another reason to get a little extra yardage.

Pattern adjustments

I bought the pattern in April and then bought the fabric at Stonemountain. Emily Guttman, one of the store managers made a cropped Hovea using this Nani Iro quilted double gauze from the store. You can see more photos of Emily’s Hovea on her IG feed (@emilygutman).

Her version is the inspo for mine. She told me that she added a little length to cropped jacket and additional depth to the pockets. If you make the cropped jacket, I recommend making the pockets deeper like Emily did. When I traced the pocket pattern piece for the cropped jacket, I saw that they were really shallow. Such shallow pockets are more decorative than useful. And I don’t know about you, but I want to be able to use the pockets of a garment.

I decided to add an inch of length to the body, the pockets, and the sleeves. I have really long arms, which is why I thought it couldn’t hurt to add a little length to the sleeves. And if they were too long, I could just trim them. These were the only pattern adjustments I made. The other changes I made were in constructing the jacket.

This is a loosely fitting jacket with a drop-shoulder, which is forgiving for various shoulders. I have wide square shoulders but I didn’t make any adjustments there. Also, I scrutinized the shoulder slope of the pattern and it had a gentle slope. So no square shoulder adjustment necessary.

Construction details

When I was looking at the required fabric for version F, I saw that it mentioned lining fabric. So I thought, oh, let me get some lining fabric and got this lovely batik fabric at Stonemountain that had a watercolor feel to it. Then when I was ready to cut my quilted Nani Iro, it dawned on me that I didn’t need the lining fabric because I was using pre-quilted fabric. Oy! What was I thinking? Clearly, I did not reading the info on yardage very closely. For version F, you get fabric, lining, and quilt batting only if you are quilting your fabric. Uh, duh.

It would have been nice to have the batik fabric on the inside, it would have meant adding an extra layer of fabric. For about two minutes, I thought, “What about cutting the batik fabric, pinning it, and just holding it together with the bias tape binding?” But if I really wanted that as a lining, then that would mean quilting it to pre-quilted fabric. Uh, no.

Extra pockets

I didn’t want the inside to just be a solid off-white, so I decided to cut two extra pockets for the inside of the jacket using the batik fabric. Here are the inside pockets, bound with some bias tape I had made from leftover Swiss dot fabric from my Girl Friday Blouse.

I also made yards of bias tape from leftover Nani Iro double gauze from my Array dress to bind the front pockets as well as the raw outer edges of the jacket. I followed the instructions found on Rocky Mountain Sewing & Vacuum on how to make continuous bias binding. (If the instructions don’t quite make sense, check out this video by @texiatelier on IG.)

Rocky Mountain also has a handy chart that does the calculations for you about the size of square you need for certain widths/lengths. I cut two 13″ (~33 cm) squares, each square makes 72″ (182.9 cm) of 2″ wide (~5 cm) bias tape (about 4 yards/~3.7 m). That was the largest size square I could make with my leftover fabric. I estimated that that would be enough to go around the outside edge and the exterior pockets. The pattern says view F needs 8 7/8 yards (~8.1 meters) for binding. I used the batik fabric to make bias tape for the inside seams (more on that below).

Here are the front pockets with binding.

Dividing the pockets

Even though I did add an inch of length to the pockets, they are still rather shallow. I put my cell phone in one of the pockets and the pocket really drooped. So I sewed a line of stitching along the line of quilting, three rows in from the center, about the width of my cell.

Here’s what it looks like in front.

And here’s the pocket on the inside with the line of stitching.

After I did this, I saw that the instructions recommend “dividing the pockets into sections using topstitching.” Haha – I did that. And yes, it is an excellent recommendation. Otherwise you really can’t put anything in the pockets. Stuff will fall out.

Double gauze fabric isn’t very sturdy. The pattern instructions said to baste the pockets in place. I did do that but I also decided to machine stitch them in place with a very narrow seam allowance. I thought the pockets would need some extra support, especially since I had two sets of pockets.

The batik fabric is a crisp mid-weight cotton, which adds a little more structure and sturdiness to that part of the jacket.

I probably should have made the pockets deeper but I wanted the quilting topstitching to line up with the front pieces. And I wanted the pockets to have more of the green and blue design on them.

Sewing quilted fabric

I did a test on the quilted fabric with my walking foot and then I took off the walking foot and sewed the fabric with zero pressure on the presser foot. Sewing with zero pressure was fine so I didn’t use the walking foot. I have to say that using the walking foot is really slow. I really didn’t have the patience for it. I’ve found that reducing the presser foot pressure works well.

The quilted fabric was easy to sew but sometimes when I was sewing a seam, the very bottom layer of fabric would fold under. So I did some unpicking every so often.

Update: As I was hand stitching the bias tape in place around the outer edge of the jacket, I noticed that the machine stitches got smaller around the curves in front. My stitches would have been even if I had used a walking foot. And I should also mention that if I had needed to unpick any stitches in the curve, it would have been a pain because the stitches were so small. So please keep that in mind if you don’t use a walking foot on your quilted fabric. My advice is to test your stitches around a curve and see what works best with your machine. Or maybe switch to a walking foot around the curves.

Finishing inside seams

You can make this jacket reversible but I knew I didn’t want to make mine reversible so I did not bind my inside seams per the instructions. The instructions have you use bias binding to finish the internal seams. You enclose the entire seam allowance with bias tape. Because I was not making it reversible, I decided to finish my raw edges with Hong Kong seams. I made 1″ bias tape using the batik fabric.

Double gauze tends to ravel as you can kind of see in the photos above. So I wanted to enclose the raw edges. In this photo below, I pinned the other side out of the way so I didn’t accidentally sew it to the other side.

Here I pinned the binding before I stitched in the ditch.

Here’s what the inside side seam looks like.

Shoulder and armscye

The instructions recommend sewing and then inserting the sleeve, noting that during testing, this method draped better for the quilted jacket. So I followed the instructions, except that I finished my seams with a Hong Kong finish. I looked at Threads magazine’s article, “Hong Kong Armscye Finish” to see how best to finish the armscye. The article said to use 1 3/4″ wide bias strips for a 5/8″ seam allowance pattern but it was easier to make 2″ wide strips and then trim it down after I sewed it. To reduce bulk, I made the seam allowance more narrow around the armscye.

Last steps

The last steps are to attach a loop at the center back and bind the outer edges. Here’s the loop that’s basted in place and the bias tape going around the back neckline.

Here’s the binding going around the front.

Sewing the binding in place.

Then I pressed it flat. Double gauze is soft and drapey so I just used my fingers to fold it under and pin in place.

I decided not to stitch in the ditch because it might not look very good on the inside. So I basted it in place using Japanese silk thread, which is very slippery and will be easy to remove. (I got this silk thread from Britex Fabrics.) By hand stitching you have a lot of control. As I basted, I occasionally checked the right side to see that the width of the binding was consistent. And I noticed that the seam allowance on the bottom front curve on one side got a little wider, closer to 1/2″ SA, instead of 3/8″ (1 cm). I unpicked it and sewed it again.

And then began hand stitching it in place. This photo shows the basting and my hand stitching.

Needless to say, all these details take time. I will be hand stitching for a while. This can be a much quicker sew if you serge your seams, which is what Emily did, and follow the instructions on binding. Hong Kong seams take longer because you are doing each side of the raw edges.

Once I finish it, I will write another post, with photos. Stay tuned!

The post Making the Hovea Jacket appeared first on C Sews.

I’ve had the Sew House Seven Free Range Slacks in my sewing queue for a long time (available in paper and digital versions). The pattern comes in two size ranges, standard (00-20) and curvy (18-34), with a max hip of 65″/165 cm. Way back in June 2020, I bought some coral linen fabric from Stonemountain & Daughter Fabrics with the intention of making this pattern. This was when the store was not open to the public due to the pandemic so I bought the fabric online. When I saw the color in person, it just seemed too bright to me for a pair of pants. So I set the fabric aside for something else, maybe the Aura Skirt by Papercut Patterns.

It’s a bit discouraging when the fabric you purchase doesn’t quite fit the pattern you have in mind, isn’t it? And with Covid raging at the time plus a super busy job, sewing (and my blog) took a back seat.

Whole 30 Fabric Chalenge

I started the Whole 30 Fabric Challenge (hosted by @pinkmimosabyjacinta on IG) in July 2021. The challenge prompted me to make a list of all the garments. Just before I started the challenge, I had recently bought several fabrics with specific patterns in mind. I also went through my older fabrics, such as this black linen, and discovered I had enough. I also went through my patterns to see what I could make. The fabric is likely from a fabric wholesaler when she was getting rid of stock a few years ago. I can’t remember what she was charging but they were reasonable rates.

At the time, 30 yards seemed really daunting. I had not been keeping track of how much yardage I actually had. As I measured, I quickly realized that I had well over 30 yards in my stash — and I still have not measured all of my fabrics. If you haven’t measured/tracked your yardage, you might want to consider it. The numbers may surprise you. It doesn’t take very long to get to 30!

Mock-up of version 1

I made a mockup of version 1, the tapered leg design of this pattern. For my mockup, I traced and cut size 14 (hip 44″/112 cm), making a slight adjustment at the hip. I made it about 1/8″ smaller from the waist through hip on the side piece and the back piece (1/4″ on each side for 1/2″ total). I did that by folding the pattern pieces 1/8″ in at the center. Folding, not cutting, is a tip I learned from a Bay Area Sewists meetup a few years ago. I tried on my mockup and it seemed like it fit well. But I probably didn’t need to make that pattern adjustment. lol

When I sat down, I realized it was a little too tight around my calves, which would mean more wrinkles. I didn’t feel like making that pattern adjustment so I opted to make version 2, the straight, cropped design instead. I didn’t take photos of the mockup, which were made from a very cheap muslin.

I lined up the back pattern of version 2 against version 1 to see if the crotch curve was the same — and they were. So I cut size 14 as is, no adjustments. Sew House Seven designs for a height of 5’6″–5’7″ (168-170 cm). I’m 5’7″ so I didn’t make any height adjustments (see my pattern height chart).

Free Range Slacks, version 2

Making the Free Range Slacks, version 2, got me closer to 30 yards but not quite. [Side note: I broke my fabric fast in April. I blame it on the Nani IRO quilted cotton double gauze, which is only available at Stonemountain & Daughter Fabrics. They had it quilted for their store. I got it in Airtime – Ocean. So I went nine months without buying any fabric, not bad. I was tempted many times by so many beautiful fabrics. But I resisted because I did want to sew what I have.]

This pattern was exactly what I was looking for, casual pants with an elastic waist. And that’s why it had been in my queue for such a long time. I think I finally started sewing them in early April. This is what my Free Range Slacks look like after wearing them about four times over the past week. A little wrinkly but not too bad. I sprayed them with water and let them air dry before I took these photos.

The instructions for the Free Range Slacks are straightforward and easy to follow. I like the deep pockets. To attach the pocket lining to the pants, you topstitch on the outside. You can see the stitching outlining the pocket in this photo.

I followed the instructions until I sewed the front, back, and sides together. The next step was to attach the waistband. That’s when I decided to line the Free Range Slacks, which meant I had to buy some lining. More delays.

Lining the Free Range Slacks

My linen was a medium/lightweight fabric. I was concerned that it might not wear well — lining them will make them last longer. If you want to learn more about that process, read my post, Lining the Free Range Slacks. I wrote a separate post or this one would have been really long. Here’s an inside view of the waistband before I stitched the channel for the elastic.

The Bemberg lining feels great — smooth and breathable. I got my black Bemberg lining from Stonemountain & Daughter Fabrics. Bemberg lining is made in Japan using a fiber called cupro, which is made from “unused cotton linter,” according to Apparel IX News.

The verdict

I love my Free Range Slacks! They are very comfortable and go with a variety of tops I’ve made. In these photos, I’m wearing the Asymmetrical Top from the Japanese sewing book, Drape Drape 2 by Hisako Sato. It’s made from one big pattern piece with just one shoulder seam and one side seam. I checked the book out from the library, but from what I recall, sizing is limited. I think the largest size was XL. This top is likely size L.

I plan on making another pair of Free Range Slacks, perhaps making them longer. I’m thinking ankle length — and in an Essex linen/cotton blend (pickle green) from Needles Studio.

The post Free Range Slacks in black linen appeared first on C Sews.

Pattern pieces for lining

You can line nearly anything by using the pattern pieces you already have. There’s a nice breakdown on Threads website on lining pants. Basically, you create two pieces, a front and a back pattern piece, using your existing pieces and make them a little shorter. The Free Range Slacks have a front pocket extension and a side pattern piece. I’m lazy so instead of tracing lining pieces, I pinned the front pocket piece to the front to make my front lining piece. Here’s the pattern piece pinned to the lining fabric — after I cut it.

I pinned the side pattern piece to the back piece to cut the back lining piece (sorry, I forgot to take a photo of that because I just wanted to finish the pants!). I cut the lining about an inch shorter than the pattern pieces. You don’t want to see the lining so it needs to be shorter than your pants.

Cutting Bemberg lining

Bemberg lining is quite slippery, which is what makes it a great lining fabric. You want something smooth so you can easily slip on the pants, jacket, skirt, etc. But it can be annoying to cut because it is slippery and shifty. I did some online searching about Bemberg and most sites say that Bemberg is dry clean only. But I knew I didn’t want to dry clean my linen pants. So I decided to take my chances and soak the lining fabric in water in the bathroom sink for 15 minutes or so and then hang it to dry over the bathroom shower curtain rod.

The soaking make the Bemberg rather wrinkly but I didn’t care because no one’s going to see it. Plus it cut down on slipperiness. Yay.

I pinned the pattern pieces to the lining, put one of my heavy-duty cast iron pattern weights in the middle to really make sure it didn’t move and cut the lining. Here’s what the 3.75 pound (~1.25 kg) weight looks like. I got two from Wawak last year. Each one is 9″ x 2.5″ (22.9 cm x 6.4 cm).

Then I followed the same instructions for sewing the front and back, except that I had fewer pieces — no side pattern piece or pocket piece.

Then I turned them right side out and then inserted them inside the pants — wrong sides together — and pinned them. Here’s my wrinkly Bemberg on the inside and my linen pants on the outside. As you can see lining the Free Range Slacks is simple.

Next, I machine basted the lining to the linen fabric at the waist. Then I just followed next step in the construction of the pants to attach the waistband. Below is the waistband attached and understitched. I hand-basted the bottom of the waistband before sewing the channel for the elastic. The red pins mark the opening for inserting the elastic.

I hand hemmed the lining with silk thread because I wanted a smooth finish next to my skin. I once machine-stitched the hem of some Bemberg lining on a skirt several years ago using Gutterman sew-all thread. The stitches felt rough against my skin.

Finished lining

Here are the Free Range Slacks inside out. The lining gives them a nice clean finish on the inside — plus it feels great.

And here’s a closer look at the waistband and the lining below …

… and the hem. How’s that for invisible stitches!

I will take photos of the finished Free Range Slacks soon. Stay tuned!

Update on my Whole 30 Fabric Challenge progress— sewing these pants got me to 26.375 yards sewn, not including the lining. Does lining count as fabric? Well, I did not make it to 30 yards before buying the lining fabric. I did not have any lining fabric in my stash so I bought some. I did cut out two Odgen Camis a while ago and that’s about 4 yards. So I think I’ll include that in my total count. lol

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