TL; DR – Sometimes you just want a simple party dress! And other times, you end up swearing at “velvet” fabric. I was so pleased to be able to test the new Mariko dress by Notch. There are about 75 different ways to make the dress/top, and I chose the long version with a gathered…
Tag: Knit
Pattern Review: LW Hoodie from The Sew Sew
TL; DR – MEASURE TWICE AND CUT ONCE. I’ve tested for The Sew Sew before and appreciate how creative she is with her zero and low-waste patterns. I jumped at the chance to test a Low-Waste Hoodie pattern that looked so cool and effortless. And, finally found a use for this grey wool stretch woven!…
Pattern Review: Polina Dress by CKC Patterns
TL; DR – Wear whatever you want, including horizontal stripes. I hate plackets. I have had this hot pink striped knit (again, the theme of knits) forever, and I have always wanted to make a cute polo dress out of it. I found the Polina Dress by CKC Patterns. It’s not as size-inclusive as I…
Kielo Wrap Dress, Take 10 (!!!)
TL; DR – I really, really, really, really, really love this pattern. More knit, more Kielo. The fabric was a bit tricky because it wasn’t slippy, so it was hard to move around. I mean, it wasn’t impossible, obviously, and I still managed to finish the dress in an afternoon. This print, though. I love…
Peacock Wrap Dress, Take 5 and 6
TL; DR – Works with knits, too! In my seemingly never-ending quest to work through my knit fabric stash (that I keep adding to because ADHD so that’s why it’s never-ending lol*sob), I decided that I wanted to try out using the Peacock wrap dress pattern with knits. The only issue was securing the facing,…
Olivia Wrap Dress, Take 2
TL; DR – I have a broad, broad back, apparently. I’m still being bombarded by the DVF Vogue wrap dress pattern re-issue, which is giving me some SERIOUS FOMO. I decided to try doing a broad back adjustment on the Olivia wrap dress to get rid of the reverse strangle. I also flared out the…
Mary Quant Mini-Dress, Take 7
TL; DR – Is there anything this dress can’t do? I am still desperately trying to use a bunch of my knit prints, and really, there’s no reason why some of my favorite woven patterns couldn’t be used for these relatively not-stretchy knit prints I have been collecting. So, this groovy print just screamed Mary…
Pattern Review: Estelle Dress from Sew Over It
TL; DR – FREAKING KNIT FABRIC. I had this dress that I called my Joan dress, as in Joan from Mad Men. It was figure-hugging and a deep shade of green. I stopped fitting me, so I let it go, but I haven’t let the idea of that dress go. I have been trying to…
Pattern Review: Olivia Wrap Dress by Named Patterns
TL; DR – Hey, stay tape is a thing that is useful! Vogue reissued the class DVF wrap dress pattern. I have made it before (under a different name), I loved it, but now…I’m outside of its size range. All over sewing social media was example after example of the dress and I was jealous….
Pattern Review: Parker Dress by Styla Patterns
TL; DR – Gathering self jersey can be a real pain. I am a Styla Pattern tester, and in my quest to sew through some of my knit fabrics, I jumped at the chance to sew up a Parker dress. I lengthened the bodice because I look…weird when the line hits me just below my…
Sirocco Jumpsuit, Take 2
TL; DR – I really need to make this one more. I’m trying to work through my rather large collection of knits, and as much as I love my original Sirocco jumpsuit, for whatever reason I haven’t made another one. I had clearly forgotten how freaking easy this pattern is to put together and sew…
Free Pattern Review/Hack: Cowl Neck Dress by Burda
TL; DR – I feel like I’m leveling up! So this expensive and not size-inclusive top keeps algorithmically taunting me. I had a lovely burgundy ponte, the Cowl Neck dress from burda patterns (which, questionable legality on me downloading it, but mostly the patterns shared on the site are/were free at one point), and the…
Kielo Wrap Dress, Take 9
TL; DR – Barbiecore in full force I’m pretty sure I cut this when everyone was obsessed with the Barbie movie, and all things pink, but I’ve only gotten around to sew it now. It took less than two hours. Pretty sure I’ve got this one down as long as I remember to put the…
Pattern Review: V1524
TL; DR – I will never, ever sew a knit-and-woven combo again if it can be helped. The daughter wanted a jumpsuit for Homecoming. I am so grateful for The Fold Line FB group who helped me find the right pattern, V1524 (which I managed to get on sale!), and helping me figure out how…
Pattern Review: Tyra Tank by Tammy Handmade
TL; DR – THERE IS A BETTER WAY TO DO A KNIT V-NECK I was invited to test this super-simple tank pattern. I love it. It was perfect for this cute knit I got. The tutorial for doing the V-neck finishing is GENIUS. I’m not going to spoil it. Anyway, I have a cute tank…
Aida Dress, Take 3
TL; DR – Interfacing is still hard. I got this floral knit on sale from Girl Charlee (an amazing place for knit fabric) mid-summer, but when it showed up it was a little heavy for summer weight. So, I made a transitional Aida dress out of it. The one complaint about the first Aida knit…
Pattern Review: Naya T-Shirt from Tammy Handmade
TL; DR – Stretch stitches are my nemesis, this pattern is great! I’ve been neglectful at posting pattern review for patterns I’ve been tester for, so I’m clearing out the backlog. I tested the Naya t-shirt pattern from Tammy Handmade, a straightforward knit top pattern that was easy to make and looks amazing. Except for…
Garment 100-ish: Aida Dress, Take 2
TL; DR – This pattern works well with stable knits, I’ve lost count of how many garments I’ve made, Mood Fabrics in NYC is EVERYTHING. A few weeks ago, I got to go to New York City for work. And I was within reasonable walking distance to Mood Fabrics. So of COURSE I had to…
Mary Quant Mini-Dress, Take 6, for #sewfrugal23
TL; DR – This works fantastic with a stable knit, maybe reprinting it in a larger size isn’t so bad after all Last year I made 10 dresses in the month of March for #sewfrugal22. This year, I barely made one. Two, I guess, if you count adding fabric strips to last year’s Mary Quant…
Yet ANOTHER Kielo Wrap Dress
TL; DR I don’t really have much left to say about this pattern. Maybe next time I try the jumpsuit version. It’s almost March, and I’m only just now finally making my first garment of 2023. I had so many plans to try new patterns, use some amazing fabric I’ve accumulated, do more dopamine dressing……
Pattern Review: Heart and Soul Dress from Ellie and Mac
TL; DR – Stretch velvet is pain to sew, why does my size keep changing? This was my last make of 2022. And while that was six weeks ago, I’m back-dating this post so that history knows when I actually made this dress instead of when I finally got around to writing about it. I…
Kielo Wrap Dress, Take 7
TL; DR – How is it I can still make a mistake on the seventh time through? I had this black sweatshirt fabric, it’s getting cold, and I still need dresses that feel like warm hugs. So I made another Kielo dress. And somehow messed up the sleeves? The directions for the dress say to…
Pattern Review: Staycation Dress from Ellie and Mac Patterns
TL; DR – It’s…fine. When I was in my OMG I DO NOT HAVE ANYTHING ORANGE phase I picked up this jersey fabric. I wanted to make a tiered dress out of it, and while I wanted to make the free Laurel dress from Styla Patterns, it turned out the bodice was lined and I…
Kielo Wrap Dress, Take 6
TL; DR – OMG THIS DRESS IS THE BEST. Look, this is my 6th (!!!!) Kielo wrap dress. I don’t even remember all of the Kielo’s I’ve made at this point. I’ve made winter ones, and summer ones, and transition ones, but I haven’t made a sweater one. And now I have. I got this…
Free Pattern Review for #sewingcpd2022: Veronika Skirt from Megan Nielsen
TL; DR – I should make skirts more often. October is #sewingcpd2022, or Sewing Curvy Pattern Database 2022. The Curvy Pattern Database was started by Sarah (aka @curvysewingdatabase on Instagram) and it is a database of size-inclusive sewing pattern designers, meaning they have sewing patterns available for those with a 60″ hips or higher. Anyway,…
Free Pattern Review: Jersey Days Dress from Love Sewing
TL; DR – Shirring isn’t as hard as I thought it was going to be. Use stay tape. Orange was, like, *the* color this summer, and in true ADHD fashion, when I realized I didn’t have any orange, I went nuts and bought a ton of orange fabric (see, for example, ORANGE MOD DRESS), including…
Kielo Wrap Dress, Take 4
TL; DR – A versatile pattern ROCKS! This is my fourth Kielo Wrap Dress from Named Patterns. I had always been enamored with one sample dresses, done in a floral print. When I saw this lovely pastel violet jersey knit from Mood (ON SALE!), I knew that a) I was going to buy it and…
Free Pattern Review: Portia Party Dress by Rebecca Page
TL; DR – I still need to work on V-necks, I should just bite the bullet and learn how to use my serger. This was supposed to be Entry 11 for the #sewfrugal22 challenge, but alas, the last week of March was absolutely awful and I ran out of time. I had been trying to…
Free Pattern Review: Laundry Day Tee from Love Notions Patterns for #sewfrugal22
TL; DR – IF THIS IS YOUR FIRST PATTERN DO NO SELECT THE V-NECK OPTION, because other than that, this pattern is easy-peasy…as long as you don’t get cocky and anger the sewing deities, like I did. Y’all know I like a good IG challenge. Every March (apparently) the challenge is to make garments using…
Pattern Review: Sirocco Jumpsuit from Deer and Doe Patterns
TL; DR Pattern matching is ROUGH, knit jumpsuits are secret pajamas, I love it when a pattern company works to be more size-inclusive. When I first started sewing and was looking for much-loved patterns, I found the Sirocco jumpsuit pattern from Deer and Doe. At the time, the pattern didn’t *quite* make it’s way to…
V8379 Take 4
There’s a reason why I called this project, “The 70s Called, They Want Their Dress Back” in my sewing Airtable. I fell in love with this fabric as soon as I saw it, and knew it had to be a DVF-style wrap dress. For the first time ever, I cut and sewed a complete garment…
Kielo Wrap Dress, Take 3
TL; DR – Hey, following directions works. Sometimes you just want to make a simple dress that feels like a warm hug. I’m still struggling with buying fabric online. I thought I was getting a nice stretch corduroy to make myself a pair of pants. Instead I got a SUPER STRETCHY “corduroy” that was more…
V8379, Take 3
TL; DR – HEY, not all knits are the same! A walking foot is a miracle! I figured out how to use a hemming foot! Feeling fancy! I had this shinny red knit ponte that I was struggling to figure out what to do with. And then, it hit me. A HOLIDAY WRAP DRESS! I…
Pattern Review: Belgravia from Liesl + Co
TL; DR – WHY NO STRETCH STITCH EVER WORK, having a cutting table is still awesome, and you can always do tiled patterns better. Look, I have an aesthetic. One of them is that I love a tie-waist. After the debacle of the Willa dress (which was all on me and not noting that there…
V8379 Take Two
TL; DR – Use clips instead of pins for slippery jersey fabric, sometimes it’s ok to do the steps out of order, oh and stitch length matters! This is my second wrap dress using the classic Vogue Pattern 8379. This time around, I chose not to add a collar and did short sleeves instead of…
Pattern Review: Easy-As-Tie Dress from Sew News
TL; DR – I am a massive sucker for Instagram social sewing challenges, easy patterns are fun. I get sewing challenges almost weekly from The Foldline blog. And I want to do. Every. Single. One. So I did this dress on impulse for #sewtogetherforsummer, where I had to make a summer dress, which means, basically,…
Pattern Review: Sleeveless Kielo Wrap Dress by Named Patterns
TL; DR – Sometimes knits are a pain to sew, sewing machines are temperamental, sometimes you sew when you can control anything else in your life, and it still won’t be something you can control. This is going to one of those posts that people (including me) complain about, where I am going to tell…
Free Pattern Review: The Meadow Jumpsuit by Mood Fabrics
TL; DR – The machine you use MATTERS, and I might have to accept that I’m not a jumpsuit person. I love jumpsuits. Except I have a big chest, a short torso, and I am a little on the short side (AVERAGE HEIGHT I SHOULD SAY). So…jumpsuits don’t always love me back. I saw the…
Pattern Review: Axel Curve Skirt by Megan Nielsen
TL; DR – Check the damn stretch of your fabric before cutting out all the pieces. I call this one my “Aimée skirt” because she has been posting her pandemic fashion on her instagram, and one day she posted one of her in a windowpane checked asymmetrical skirt and HAD TO HAVE ONE. I found…
Pattern Review: Kielo Wrap Dress by Named Patterns
TL; DR – This pattern is a cult classic for a reason: it is awesome. The weather turned cold in late January 2021. I still wore dresses to “work”, learning early in the pandemic that I needed to still put on work clothes (and then take them off at the end of the day) to…
Pattern Review: V8379 by Vogue Patterns
TL; DR – Sometimes commercial patterns are really, really good. I wanted a classic DVF 70’s style wrap dress. Wrap dresses have been a bit of a fit issue for me, with a large chest and a short torso. This Vogue Pattern is a CLASSIC – everyone knows about it, and when you say “wrap…
Pattern Review: Pukeko Pants by The Sewing Revial
TL; DR – Not enough fabric to make a full toile or muslin? Just make the waistband. Pants terrified me. I hate buying pants, and I’m not such a big fan of wearing them, either, hence the dresses. I heard good things about the Pukeko Pants by The Sewing Revival. Behold the wide waist band!…
Pattern Review: Willa by Fibre Mood
TL; DR – READ THE DAMN INSTRUCTIONS, seam allowances matter, fabric choice matters, and sometimes you can mark everything and it still ends up weird. Readers, I’ll fully admit, I got cocky with this one. I love love loved the wrap look of the Willa Dress from Fibre Mood. I didn’t read the instructions carefully…
Free Pattern Review: Drapey Knit Dress from Sew Magazine
TL; DR – Transfer each and every pattern marking onto the fabric, the fabric you choose matters, and pay attention to your finishes, even if you are tired and frustrated and just want to be done with it. The Drapey Knit Dress turned up in many of my “best free dress patterns” searches, and I…
Free Pattern Review: Copen Dress by Made to Sew
TL; DR – Great free beginner pattern but not very size-inclusive, neck facing is a pain in the ass, it’s easier to fix too big than too small, and make sure you have a stretch needle – beware, those fuckers can pierce your thumbnail, which will cause the needle to snap in half. What’s the…
The Geneva, Pt. 1, 2, and 3
TL; DR: Learn your machine, pay attention to seam allowances, stretch fabric can be a pain, band neckline finishes are amazing, and don’t throw out “scrap” fabric when you’re mad. My favorite dress is the Geneva Dress, by Universal Standard. A friend who sews drafted a pattern for it for me. I bought my first…
