Pattern Testing & New Azaire Pattern Giveaway [Closed]

Update: Giveaway closed & thank you for the comments. The pattern goes to comment number 4! Congratulations Carmen, I'll be in touch.

The Azaire dress and top is the newest sewing pattern from Gather and I was lucky enough to be a pattern tester. Caroline and Sandra (from Gather) have also offered me a copy of the pattern to give away!

 

 

 

The Azaire pattern comes with a detailed instruction booklet which includes size charts (sizes 8 to 18), fabric requirements, body and finished garment measurements, fabric and cutting layouts and very helpful diagrams illustrating the sewing instructions.

 

 

 

 

 

I sewed the Azaire dress (wore it to a wedding) and had an excellent pattern-testing experience particularly as the end result is a dress that I love wearing.

 

Though my measurements fall between 12 and 14, the "Finished Garment Measurements" included with the pattern indicate that the Azaire has a loose silhouette so I chose to sew size 12.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I enjoyed the whole process of testing this dress. My choice of fabric wasn't the best, being transparent! This meant I had to add an extra lining to the centre front and back of the dress.

 

The details of this dress allow for customisation and mixing different fabrics to highlight the style lines. It has a curved yoke, boat neckline, hi-low peplum, two sleeve options and front and back seams for fitting. Initially I wondered if the silhouette was too loose, but the style lines mean that the dress and top can be easily fitted. After testing the pattern, I fitted the dress more at my waist by sewing curves on the front style lines.

 

The pattern includes short petal sleeves on the dress and these are probably the most complicated aspect of the pattern. The sleeves are lined and overlapped so there are four layers of fabric to keep under control. The instructions for the sleeves are detailed and easy to follow. My only suggestion would be to muslin or fit the sleeves as I found them narrow-fitting. My 'strong' upper arms from heaving lifting in my previous nursing career means that I often have to take account of this!!

 

 

 

 

 

The pattern pieces all fit together perfectly and I was particularly pleased with how neatly I was able to match the back seams at the invisible zip.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It was such a joy to test the Azaire and I would love to pass a little of that on.

 

Just comment below with a way to contact you by email and I'll randomly pick a name next next Monday Oct 3rd. I will post anywhere in the world.

 

 

 

 

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A Ribbon-trimmed Fifi Camisole/Slip

Last summer Sew Crafty Online held a Facebook competition with a huge prize package. I couldn't believe that I won and was speechless when the incredibly generous prize arrived in the post. All of Tilly and the Buttons sewing patterns, with fabric, a carrier bag and a neat measuring tape were included.

 

It really is about time I sewed something from that wonderful parcel...

 

I picked the Fifi camisole pattern (extending the length), some beautiful AnnaMarie Horner voile fabric (from my stash), soft blue denim and sage gingham ribbons from Jane Means ..... et voilà!

 

 

 

This pattern was a very pleasant surprise - excellent & detailed instructions, easy to sew, neat finishing techniques, bias-cut and gently fitted shape. I hadn't expected these details from Tilly's patterns. My perception (inaccurate) was that her patterns were basic and mostly unfitted/loose as some of the earlier ones were.

 

 

I both simplified and complicated the sewing process. Using ribbons made it easier to create the straps, but making them adjustable needed a little more brainpower! I attached ribbon loops at the back and threaded the ribbons through. This was an easy alteration to make, and would be very useful if making the Fifi pattern as a gift with nobody available for fitting.

 

A soft ribbon like this denim ribbon is recommended as I was able to press it into shape, to conform to the curves of the pattern. Good pressing technique is crucial to make ribbons work for this pattern, and it is worthwhile for the time it saves in creating bias strips.

 

 

 

 

Not wanting to lose length at the hem, I sewed a tiny seam covered with gingham ribbon hem to preserve as much length as possible.

It was necessary to get very creative when I realised I was short a few cm of ribbon for the hem. I turned to another favourite ribbon company of mine, Farbenmix and added a woven patch and a short piece of one of their fun woven ribbons to cover the gap.

 

 

The beautifully neat, inside finishing details are, very impressively, all included in the pattern instructions. Usually I would have to figure out how to include these details myself.

 

 

Adding a ribbon to the hem is not included in the pattern instructions, but gives a little extra weight to the hem and also finishes it neatly - as seen from the inside.

 

 

All the inside seams are French-seamed and the inside back view shows how well the pattern is designed and styled for a closer fit at the back.

 

I love this pattern and have a bias-cut, ivory bamboo silk version with gingham bias trim and straps cut and ready to sew.

 

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From Refashioned Men's Shirts to Children's Clothes

 

Sewing during summer holidays needs to be in short bursts, so refashioning fits in with what little sewing time I have. Previous shirt refashions that I've blogged are a dress & waistcoat, a sailor dress, a denim dress, waistcoat and a knit top & skirt, all children's clothes.

 

The inspiration for these recent remakes is The Refashioner 2015 series by Portia at the Makery blog.

 

 

I started with this shirt as I loved the fabric. This is the only shirt I've upcycled for an adult to wear!

The pattern is 'pattern k' a lovely fitted blouse from Sato Watanabe's Basic Black by Tuttle Books. I previously sewed this asymmetrical top from the book.

 

 

 

I removed the collar, and stitched the collar stand, so it looks like the stand-up collar in the book. I cut the sleeves off at the armhole, shortened them, reshaped the armholes and the sides and added front and back darts for shaping. It still needs hemming, but is a now a perfect shirt for Autumn.

 

 

There's no 'before' picture for this one, and no pattern was used, but a mans polo shirt was recut to use as a school top for my daughter. I kept the collar as it wasn't too big and resized the rest of the shirt using another top as a guide.The little pocket was added to hide a logo of a sailing ship - not part of the school uniform policy!

 

 

 

Then I got a bit more creative. It seemed that there should be enough fabric in a shirt to sew a boys pyjamas, but I needed to find a way of avoiding buttons, so it would be comfortable to wear.

 

 

 

 

This is what worked - After cutting off the sleeves, I folded the shirt in half, half the front and half the back and turned it upside down. The pattern I used was the Oliver&S Bedtime Story Pajamas / Pyjamas pattern because it has a one-piece leg pattern. The pattern fit easily on the shirt fabric.

 

Cutting a shirt this way would also provide plenty fabric even for some adult-sized shorts.

 

 

The waistband was cut from the yoke, though not on a fold, so it had to be pieced.

 

The legs were cut from the sleeves without I picking the seam and using the lower part of the leg pattern as a guide only, to get the length correct.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I sewed the pyjamas, mostly following the pattern instructions.

The leg had to be pieced together and I didn't want that inside seam to be uncomfortable. The simple solution was to sew the seam on the outside and cover it with ribbon. The ribbon is a vintage blue stitched ribbon from janemeans, which was a perfect match for the shirt fabric.

Not a perfect pair of pyjamas by any means, but not bad for zero fabric cost and a quick sew. There's also a 10 yr old boy who loves that these were sewn especially for him!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Basic Black - A Japanese Pattern Book Review

Basic Black is a book of sewing patterns by a Japanese designer Sato Watanabe. This is one of the more interesting and exciting Japanese Pattern Books that I have used, particularly because it includes patterns for garments that are designed with shape, rather than the usual loose fitting Japanese styles.

 

Unlike Sato Watanabe's Stylish Skirts book that I also reviewed, there is a lot less drafting, measurment and creation of pattern pieces in this book. Pattern sheets, which are printed on both sides, are included with the book.

 

What is most surprising about this book, is that the original publication date of the Japanese edition was 2005, but you would never guess that based on the designs in this English translation from Tuttle Publishing.

 

 

 

There are 26 patterns in the book - 7 shirts/blouses, 10 dresses, 8 coats/jackets/vests and 1 skirt in both loose and fitted styles. There is some minor pattern drafting needed, in approx half of the patterns. This involves adding length, facings, marking pleats, simple skirts & rectangular shapes.

The sizing is unlike most Japanese pattern books, in that the finished measurments of garments are shown. This means that when taking measurments to pick which size to sew, you need to consider how much ease you like and add this to your measurments before comparing them with the chart. This makes choosing a size awkward, but accurate. Taking this into account the largest size in the book is about the same as US size 16-18, but because the patterns are multisized, they could easily be graded up a size or two.

 

 

Garments are grouped into 3 different types of fit - those with shaping, fitted & loose, and there is even a fitted jacket.

Most of the patterns are at an advanced beginner level, with only 3 that I could identify as beginner.

 

 

Wanting to write a fair review the book, I sewed pattern 'w'. This is a pattern for a long sleeved knit top with an asymmetrical neckline finished with bias and an asymmetrical hem finished with ribbon trim.

In the introduction, Sato Watanabe writes about loving black clothes since she was a child. But I didn't quite keep to the colour ethos of the book .....

...... it's more of an 'Orange is the New Black' look! The orange jersey was bought recently from Volksfaden.de and the ribbons are from janemeans.com

 

 

The pattern indicated that the neckline should be finished with bias, but I chose to match the neckline with the same brown striped ribbon that I used on the front and back hems. As jersey tends not to fray, I sewed the ribbon directly onto the outside of the fabric with a long stitch.

 

 

The sleeves were cut in three pieces and slightly narrower than indicated because I had only 1metre of fabric. I added flat piping between the sleeve seams and sewed the sleeve hem with sage green stitched grosgrain ribbon also from Jane Means. The technique I used for sewing the sleeve hem is one I used before and described in detail here

 

 

 

There are quite a large variety of sewing techniques illustrated in the clear diagrammatic form that Japanese Pattern books are renowned for. These techniques include facings and bindings as well as collars and plackets among others. Each part of the technique is drawn in detail and diagrams are numbered to make them easier to follow.

 

 

The fit is exactly as it looks in the book picture, except that my sleeves are narrower. I also added about 5 cm of length to the front and back as the top seemed shorter than I preferred. Because only finished garment measurements are given in the book, I measured my pattern pieces against a RTW top to make sure I picked the correct size.

This book is beautifully presented and has an excellent selection of diverse patterns for coats, dresses, skirts and tops in loose, semi-structured and fitted styles. It took me ages to decide on a pattern to sew because there are more that I want to make, including a zip-up jacket, two dresses and a shirt.

 

 

(Tuttle Publishing sent me this pattern book free. All opinions are my own. I have been happily sewing from Japanese language pattern books since 2009)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Stylish Skirts - A Pattern Book Review & Make

One of the more interesting and unusual Japanese Pattern books, which I have seen, is written by Sato Watanabe a popular Japanese designer & author. This pattern book - Stylish Skirts, published by Tuttle Publishing, is an English version of the similar Japanese pattern book.

Most Japanese Pattern books have the patterns included, and others have a range of sizes which you use to draw pattern pieces based on your measurements. Unlike the other books from Tuttle Publishing that I have reviewed, Stylish Skirts, goes even further and intends that you use your own measurements to draw pattern pieces. That makes this book both a challenge and fitting dream all at once!

 

 

The challenge is that the book requires the patterns to be drafted. Some of the patterns require you to divide your waist and/or hip measurment by anything from 2 to 10, depending on the style of the skirt.

I decided the best way to review the book would be to sew up one of the skirts. I chose Skirt D which is a faux-wrap skirt and used a linen-cotton mix fabric.

 

 

 

Pattern instructions for each skirt are provided in the form of detailed illustrations with numbered sewing steps, a list of materials and cutting layouts with suggested seam allowances. Measurements are given in both inches and centimetres. For skirt D I had to use my waist measurement divided in 2 (for the main 2 pattern pieces - front and back). I decided to use my high hip measurement as that is where I prefer a skirt to sit. The front panel seemed to be missing a measurement, but I worked this out from the length of the fabric on the cutting layout.

 

 

The big surprise for me (a bit of a 'd'oh' moment!!) was how beautifully the skirt fit. (Yes, I realise I used my own measurements to draft it!)

I had a few minutes of mild panic when I held up my newly drafted pattern pieces to me and they looked too small, but I trusted my measurements and kept going.

Though the book mentions adding extra for a looser fit in "Tips for Making Better Skirts" p33, this could easily be missed, so it is important not to forget to add wearing ease when drafting a pattern from the book. Adding 3-4 cm as mentioned in the book, or measure a skirt you already own, will help you decide on the amount of ease.

 

 

The sewing instructions are listed in bullet points, which is similar to all books like this one. Many of these individual points are clearly illustrated (sometimes on other pattern pages) and so were straightforward to follow. I made some minor changes to the pattern. As I had a matching lace zip I used that instead of the invisible zip suggested.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The pattern lists a leather cord for the tie but I picked a matching striped ribbon from Jane Means, which worked just as well, and was probably easier to sew.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Simple seam finishes are illustrated in the diagrams for each pattern. The cotton/linen mix fabric, that I used, frayed easily, but I covered the inside seams with gingham ribbon, also from Jane Means to neaten the inside and strengthen the seam and fabric.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Altogether there are 23 skirts, of a wide variety of styles which are constructed from different recommended types of fabrics. The patterns range from easy gathered skirts to skirts constructed from trapezoid shapes and rectangles. I identified about 7 easy skirt patterns, 8 medium and 8 difficult patterns after reading through the pattern and sewing instructions.

 

 

Like all Japanese Pattern books the garments are beautifully photographed and I really wanted patterns for all the beautiful tops shown with the skirts! The descriptions of each skirt reads like something from a literary couturier. How could you resist this skirt for example? ........ "This unashamedly feminine lace skirt is lined with sheeting to give it body. It's flattering line is neat around the hips, with gores beginning below the hips and flaring out to a full hemline." p8

 

 

This book is not for a new sewist or beginner at sewing. Even the 7 easy skirts in the book use some symbols which would be more familiar with a little sewing experience. An advanced beginner with an interest in pattern drafting and who likes to visualise sewing techniques would enjoy this book. There are diagrams for some excellent techniques, including seam finishing, a welt pocket which is attached like a patch pocket, bellows/cargo pockets, zippers, elastic shirring, sewing buttons, sewing hooks & eyes and more.

 

I'm delighted that Tuttle Books are continuing to add to their selection of English translations of Japanese Pattern Books. They are also about to release (July 8th 2014) another (must have) pattern book Basic Black by Sato Watanabe.

 

(Tuttle Publishing sent me this pattern book free. All opinions are my own. I have been happily sewing from Japanese language pattern books since 2009)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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How to Sew a Ribbon Hem

Sewing ribbon to the hem edge of a garment is an easy finishing technique. It adds an extra detail and can also be used to preserve the length of the hem. I regularly use ribbon to finish hems as well as sleeve and neckline edges, though I wasn't always confident in doing so. The soon-to-begin Belcarra Sewalong means that it's as good a time as any to show how I sew ribbon hems.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I sewed ribbon hems for the two Belcarra blouses from Sewaholic Patterns that I recently made. I liked the unhemmed length of the blouses, and didn't want to turn up a full hem. Also, the fabric in both was lightweight, so I wanted to add a little weight to the hems.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A huge variety of ribbons will work for hemming purposes. It is useful, but not necessary, to match the ribbon type with the fabric type. For the beige Liberty tana lawn cotton Belcarra blouse, I used a cotton stitched ribbon from janemeans. For the green AnnaMarie Horner cotton voile blouse, I used a polyester ribbon also from janemeans.

I would strongly recommend prewashing the ribbon in the same manner that you will treat the finished garment.

What you need:

-A sharp/new sewing machine needle

-Good quality grosgrain or cotton ribbon, the same length (+1.5cm overlap) as the hem

-Matching thread colour - matched to the ribbon colour rather than the fabric.

-Garment with side seams sewn & finished, ready for hemming

 

 

Step 1:

Place the wrong sides of the fabric and ribbon together. If the ribbon doesn't have a wrong side, choose one side as the wrong side.

Place the ribbon on the fabric so that the right side of the ribbon and the wrong side of the fabric both face up as in the picture

Ensure the ribbon overlaps the fabric edge by approx 1cm or up to half the width of the ribbon.

Sew the long left edge of the ribbon to the hem edge using a long stitch length. The line of stitching should be approx 2-3mm in from the long left ribbon edge.

 

 

 

Step 2:

When you have stitched all around the hem, cut the ribbon allowing for an extra 1.5 cm to fold under. Fold the end of the ribbon in by 1.5 cm and continue sewing. Backstitch when you have sewn the overlap. This line of stitching will become the lower edge of the garments hem.

 

 

 

Step 3:

Turn the garment so that the right side of the fabric faces upward. Fold the ribbon over at the stitching line, so that the ribbon covers the raw hem edge and the right side of both the ribbon and the fabric are facing up. Press the ribbon and fabric.

 

 

 

Step 4:

With the right sides of the fabric and ribbon facing upwards, sew along the edge of the ribbon, enclosing the raw edge of the fabric.

 

 

 

Step 5

When you reach the folded short end of the ribbon, sew across the ribbon width and backstitch to finish.

Step 6:

Press hem edge again.

 

 

This technique works perfectly on straight hem edges, but will also work on a slightly curved edge. If you wish to sew a ribbon hem on a circle skirt/dress edge, a narrow ribbon will work better.

 

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