Friday 28 February 2014

February Indie Pattern Update!



Phew February always goes so quickly doesn't it?! It may be shorter than other months but there's certainly no shortage of news from our favourite Independent Pattern Designers so here it goes:

New Pattern Companies

  • I have just discovered a new to me Swedish company that started up late last year called Garmenter. They sell their own basic sewing patterns, one for each type of garment (at the moment just skirts and dresses) and then via resources on their website instruct you how to alter those patterns to create different styles and fit you. What a fantastic concept hey?! The most fun thing is that their patterns come printed on muslin so you can get cutting and sewing up a prototype right away!

New Patterns


  • Disparate Disciplines released the Rose Hip Tights pattern. Yes, you heard right, a pattern for tights! Another step closer to wearing totally me-made! The pattern looks ingeniously drafted too, with a very clever 'sock' design.
  • Hot Patterns released the new and FREE Windsor Waistcoat, an ideal time to try out one of their patterns if you haven't already I think!
  • I was lucky enough to pattern test Pauline Alice's new Carme Blouse. It's a gorgeous design with some really interesting features, plus is a really satisfying sew! 
  • Stepalica Patterns released the Zlata skirt. The design includes box pleats which turn into belt loops at the waist; I'm very intrigued and am looking forward to seeing your versions made up.
  • Tilly and the Buttons released the super cute Coco, which is a lovely simple design for a knit dress or top. The most exciting news is that it's her first pattern to be available in paper form as well as as a downloadable PDF! The colour photographs in the instruction booklet look amazing.
  • The newest pattern from Sewaholic is the Gabriola maxi skirt. As always with Tasia, the drafting looks genius with panels around the hips creating shape and the illusion of length. She also announced that the Belcarra Blouse pattern, perfect to wear with the maxi, is coming soon!
  • Finally, Sew Liberated released not one but three new patterns mid January which I missed from last months post (whoops! there's just too much good news to keep a handle on!). They are the Bryanna Dress, Aida Top and Myla Tank; all very classic and wearable designs.


Sew-Alongs


  • Perhaps not strictly an Indie Pattern as she designs for Butterick, but Gertie is going to put together a sew along for her first foray into lingerie Her tips and tricks for sewing up B6031 a classic vintage slip will be on her blog at the end of March.
  • A sew-along for the Gabriola skirt from Sewaholic will be starting on 17th March. I've resisted clicking purchase so far but as a maxi skirt/dress is absolutely my choice of summer wear this might tip me over the edge!
  • Pauline Alice is putting together a VIDEO sew-along for her Carme Blouse which is going to be just fantastic to guide you through those slightly trickier elements. I'm really excited by the prospect of being literally able to watch a technique be demonstrated. Beginning this Monday, 3rd March.


Other Exciting News


  • For those of you who thought you'd missed out on purchasing the patterns from Named's first collection, I have good news! Named have been gradually uploading improved versions of their first patterns to their online shop. They've made some amazing changes including a wider size range, illustrated pattern instructions and the inclusion of all sizes with your purchases.
  • Tilly's upcoming book Love at First Stitch: Demystifying Dressmaking is to be released on 8th May, but you can preorder it on Amazon now! Have you seen the gorgeous cover design? I can't wait to see inside!
  • There were a few great sales on this month, both Named and Thread Theory ran Valentine's Day sales and Sewaholic had a fantastic sale to celebrate Tasia's birthday. Did you manage to snap up any patterns?
  • For those of you interested in the Colette Albion sew-along and contest, the posts are now all up over at their dedicated sew-along website. You've got until 9th March to enter the contest and the grand prize is a Bernina so get sewing!

As always if I've missed anything you feel should be included or if you're part of an Indie Label yourself and I've not seen your news then do let me know in the comments or shoot me an email and I'll be sure to add it in.

Here's some of the projects that inspired me this month to get your creative juices flowing ready for weekend sewing!


Monday 24 February 2014

Pattern Testing: The Carme Blouse from Pauline Alice

Diary of a Chainstitcher Pattern Testing Pauline Alice Carme Blouse Sewing Pattern

Pauline from Pauline Alice contacted me a few weeks ago to see if I would like to test her new pattern (the Carme Blouse which was released last Friday!) Of course I said yes! I'd never tried one of Pauline's patterns before but have often been tempted by them as she creates very classic and wearable designs with a retro twist. I know her Cami Dress is very popular amongst sewing bloggers but I think I've got my eye on the drop-waisted Malvarosa Dress next!

Diary of a Chainstitcher Pattern Testing Pauline Alice Carme Blouse Sewing Pattern

The Carme Blouse is a feminine shirt with a small mao style collar and lots of lovely details! I think made up in different fabrics it has the potential to be very versatile, perfect for work or weekend wear. I've styled mine here with jeans for a casual look but it looks equally great tucked into a pencil skirt. 

Diary of a Chainstitcher Pattern Testing Pauline Alice Carme Blouse Sewing Pattern

For my first go I chose to go with plain white cotton lawn (from Simply Fabrics in Brixton) and show off all those lovely details! It was the perfect weight for this blouse, sturdy enough to make sewing and pressing all those pleats a breeze but soft enough to drape nicely which is important as there's a lot of ease around the waist. I'd really like to try making it up in a gorgeous print now I've seen some of the other amazing pattern tester versions. I may have finally found the perfect pattern to use with Liberty Tana Lawn! The white lawn is lovely and soft to wear but is too sheer to get away without wearing over a vest which is a little disappointing.

Diary of a Chainstitcher Pattern Testing Pauline Alice Carme Blouse Sewing Pattern

My favourite feature is the pleated bib! When I first saw the design I thought I'd maybe taken on too much of a challenge as putting it together accurately seemed like it must be a complicated procedure but Pauline has an amazingly failsafe way of doing it which involves stitching the pleats before cutting the bib piece. The centre front button placket is constructed the same way as the sleeve plackets on Colette's Negroni Shirt which might well be my favourite and most satisfying sewing technique yet!

Diary of a Chainstitcher Pattern Testing Pauline Alice Carme Blouse Sewing Pattern

The lovely full sleeves are gathered into narrow cuffs with a single button. There's also the option of rolling up those sleeves to a three quarter length and making use of the lovely sleeve tabs. I know this will be popular with you all as I've seen these added to quite a few Archer's and I really enjoyed constructing this part. I think I like the blouse most with the sleeves rolled up, I very rarely wear long sleeves without pushing them up anyway!

Diary of a Chainstitcher Pattern Testing Pauline Alice Carme Blouse Sewing Pattern

It was a fairly challenging sew for me as it involved a few fiddly techniques which I'd never tried before or at least only had one previous go at. Binding those sleeve vents was not the most relaxing experience! The instructions are clear and well illustrated but the pattern is suggested for intermediate seamstresses, HOWEVER Pauline is putting together some fab video tutorials for the more complicated aspects on her blog making this a great pattern for a beginner wanting to take the next step with a little bit of hand holding...

Diary of a Chainstitcher Pattern Testing Pauline Alice Carme Blouse Sewing Pattern

The blouse is very straightforward to fit because of the relaxed style. I cut a size 36, which is a size smaller than I would normally choose but looking at the finished garment measurements I was concerned about my shape being swallowed up in the ease. I tend to prefer more fitted or figure skimming garments when they have such a high neckline. The fit round the bust and waist has turned out great but the version is a little tight around the hips so I think next time I'll go up a size here and perhaps down a size at the waist to ensure it tucks into a skirt sleekly.

Diary of a Chainstitcher Pattern Testing Pauline Alice Carme Blouse Sewing Pattern

I've been sewing up a shirt and blouse storm recently so it looks like I've finally conquered my fear of those buttonholes! Keep your eyes peeled for my first venture in to menswear which I'm hoping to get some photos of soon!

Friday 21 February 2014

Big News!!!!!

Apologies in advance for the excessive amount of exclamation marks in this post but I have been trying to contain my excitement about this for a little while now and I am FIT TO BURST!




I've joined the Mood Sewing Network as an international guest blogger! I can hardly believe it and I keep doing little happy dances every time I remember!


If you don't already know about Mood Fabrics and the Mood Sewing Network then where have you been?!! In a nutshell Mood is a US company who sell beautiful designer fashion fabrics. They have two stores, one in New York (which I was lucky enough to visit last April and which is often featured on the awesome Project Runway) and one in LA. They also have a pretty incredible website and now offer international shipping which is why bloggers outside the US are now able to join the network.





The network itself is a group of sewing bloggers of all abilities who love to make their own clothes! Each month the bloggers (now including me! Eee!!!) get an allowance to spend at Mood to buy the materials to sew a garment of their choosing. Due to international postage times e.t.c I'll be posting every two months rather than the standard monthly post, hence my status as a guest blogger! As is usual, I'll be blogging about my Mood makes both here and on the MSN blog.

Me in Mood NYC last year!

Since I found out I've spent more hours than I care to count up browsing the website for ideas and trying to make some decisions, and every time I end up on there I find something else new and spectacular! I've already got more 'Mood Boards' on the go than should probably be allowed and I'm so excited to have such a variety of new to me fabrics at my finger tips! I can't wait to put them to good use making them into my best projects yet.

Thank you to Meg and everyone else at Mood who were involved in the decision to invite me! I'm honoured to be joining such an incredibly talented group of bloggers and am really grateful for this amazing opportunity. I'm looking forward to being able to push the boundaries of my sewing and hopefully step my makes up another level. In case you didn't get it yet...I'm really REALLY excited!

I'm going to borrow the words of Tim Gunn to finish this one off...



Monday 17 February 2014

Quick Project: A Scrap Catcher

I've got a fun little make to show you today which would make a great gift for any seamstress! I made this 'scrap catcher' a little while ago and it has proved itself indispensable since so I thought I would share.


I'd never have thought to make one of these for myself but for Christmas one of my Mum's friends (who is an amazing quilter and seamstress) gave me a little kit as she knew I was getting my amazing overlocker and in her wisdom knew one of these would come in very handy! Elaine said she had intended to make it for me but when it came to it realised I would probably get more enjoyment out of sewing it up myself. So I received a lovely package containing instructions, fabrics already cut to the right size, some strong plastic tape and a little bag of sand. Skipping the cutting section of the project and being able to jump straight on the machine was such a treat! It was such a great gift!


It was incredibly quick and satisfying to sew up, involving only a minimal amount of hand stitching. The scrap catcher itself is a fairly large pouch with a flat bottom and round opening which is reinforced to stay open for easy 'scrap catching' with a plastic cable threaded through a casing at the top. It hangs from a sand filled pin cushion, the weight of which means you can just sit it on the edge of your sewing table with no need to secure it to anything. I will admit I was a little sceptical about a sand filled pin cushion but it's lined with thick calico and the sand itself is fairly coarse so there have been no leakages so far and that thing has been in constant use. I keep it just to the right of my overlocker so it's easy to just sweep the mess into. It's made for a much tidier and easier to clean up sewing experience...plus a happier boyfriend! Ha!


In other news there has been a helluva lot of sewing going on in these parts but I don't have a huge amount to show for it on here! There's been some secret test sewing which should be making an appearance in the near future and if you follow me on Instagram or Twitter you may have noticed that I'd submerged myself in the world of tutu construction for the second time! This time I've been making the pancake tutu and I'm feeling pretty proud of it. It's VERY time consuming but I'm o so nearly finished so will hopefully get some pics to share soon. Other than that I've developed a bit of a nasty habit of starting a not finishing projects for no good reason! Some of the projects I've been working on have been fairly fiddly so I decided to give myself a break by starting something simple, then ended up flitting between them, then getting distracted by pattern testing and now I've basically got 5 projects all in various stages of completion. Plus the Georgia Dress sew-along to catch up with. I'm intending to put in some serious sewing hours this week to rectify the situation! Then it's just finding a time when my photographer and I are both at home at the same time...when it's daylight...and not raining...