Shiny Simplicity Party Top

Seasons greetings! If you follow me on Instagram, you'll have already seen me crowing about the Simplicity party top I reviewed for the current issue of Sew Now magazine - oooooh! 

Today I thought I'd share a few more details on the blog as I was limited to just 300 words, and I still have lots more to say about it. Plus it will give you something to read if you're lazing around, browsing your blog feed and eating chocolates (or is that just me?!)

Simplicity 8260 is an easy-to-sew top in two lengths, with a choice of sleeve options and an unusual cross over back. 

It's an elegant, drapey style with lots of ease, so I'd suggest choosing your size based on the finished measurements rather than your actual measurements. According to the body measurement chart I was a Medium (14-16), but I went ahead and cut a size Small (10-12) with no regrets. As I was reviewing this pattern in December, I thought the long sleeved version would be the most weather appropriate (although I really like the look of the sleeveless version), and I chose the longer length (view B). The pattern requires minimal fitting and I made no changes to the pattern. The only thing I would mention is that the full length sleeves are quite fitted. I personally prefer this, but you may want to add a bit of width if you don't like such a tight fit. 

There are only three pattern pieces (two if you go for the sleeveless option) and no darts or fastenings, so construction is very simple. One thing to note is that the back pieces are cut on the bias and liable to stretch out. I'd recommend stay stitching these edges before you begin to prevent this happening. The two back pieces are crossed over each other and basted together to form one piece and the sleeves are inserted flat, so the entire top comes together very quickly. The pattern recommends using bias tape to finish the back opening edges and hems, but I didn't actually finish mine this way. I bought some lovely metallic bias tape which I didn't use in the end, as it ended up distorting the edge of my lightweight fabric. I finished my edges with narrow double turned hems instead. 

The fabric was quite sheer and any hem rippling around the neckline would have been really apparent, so I drafted a simple facing instead, using the front and back pattern pieces. This gave a much cleaner finish to the neckline. I also used French seams throughout. 

The fabric itself was rather lovely and came from Clothspot, a new-to-me online fabric shop with a carefully curated selection of gorgeous dressmaking fabrics. It's called 'Mercury Falling' and is a fluid, metallic-silvered lightweight crepe. All of the fabric descriptions on the site are very detailed (which I appreciate) and they even include a video clip of this particular fabric in motion! It's supposed to be hand washed to avoid damage to the metallic in the fabric... I simply crossed my fingers and machine washed it on the hand wash cycle. A tiny bit of metallic in one corner came away, but otherwise there were no ill effects. It does require quite careful handling - don't forget to stay stitch bias edges as pointed out above, and be vigilant when pressing hems to avoid rippling. I needed a fabric with a fair amount of glitz, that also had some drape to it and I have to say, 'Mercury Falling' delivered on both counts. 

The fit of the top is a bit of a departure for me (the shoulders are dropped and there's no shaping to the front) and I quite like the elegant effect it gives. I also like the fact that it's plain and simple to the front, but turn to the back and there's a party going on. I have to admit, I haven't worn the top out yet, so can't testify to the wearability of the crossover back. The back pieces on the pattern envelope seem to cross further down than my version, which might be down to artful photography. I may end up tacking the back pieces together if I feel like I'm wearing a hospital gown - I'll report back on that!  

If you're looking for a quick, fun dressmaking project (even quicker if you omit the bias tape as I did) then this pattern is the perfect choice. As I said in the review, just add a pair of slim trousers, heels and a big necklace and you’re party ready! And if you've already had your quota of parties for the year, you can always make one to cheer yourself up during the bleak mid UK January! Have a good day. x

The pattern and fabric were given to me free of charge by Weaver Dee and Clothspot for review. All views my own.

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One Week, One Pattern 2016

The past week has seen me wearing different variations of New Look 6217 each day as part of OWOP (One Week, One Pattern) 2016. The challenge was run this year by Hannah at Cinderellis Sews and I had a lot of fun mixing and matching garments made from my current favourite pattern.

I cheated slightly as I've made both tops and skirts from the pattern, so it wasn't actually much of a stretch. But considering the pattern also includes trousers and a kimono jacket I think I was actually quite restrained! What I like about the top and skirt patterns is the fit: they have a fair amount of wearing ease but still skim the body to show off your curves. I already had three versions of the top and two of the skirt, but just managed to squeeze out another last minute top to give myself a bit more choice. Here's what I wore:

Day 1 - Red Swiss Dot NL6217 top and Gap jeans. I was visiting the Undressed exhibition at the V & A museum with Scruffy Badger. 

Day 2 - Denim NL6217 skirt and 1960's Shoulder Tie top (without shoulder ties!) I was at the allotment pretending to help, so this combo was actually really comfortable, although a white top probably wasn't the wisest choice for picking raspberries...

Day 3 - Liberty print NL6217 top and denim Arielle skirt. I hadn't tried this combo before now and was surprised how much I liked it.

Day 4 - Denim NL6217 skirt and Gingham Granville shirt. The Ginghamalong went live today so I wore my new gingham shirt with my New Look denim skirt. It's a bit of a polka dot/gingham clash but I think they look good together! This photo was taken outside my local boozer, complete with splendid old tiles.

Day 5 - Ivory Crepe NL6217 top and Liberty Carline Delphine skirt. This is a new, unblogged version of the top made from a 80cm remnant of prestige crepe from the Fabric Godmother sale. The drape is perfect for this pattern and I loved wearing it on its first outing. Being off white, it's also useful for pairing with garments that are difficult to match things to (like this skirt!) 

Day 6 - Black crepe NL6217 top and Bamboo skirt. Suitably smart attire for visiting the Buckingham Palace state rooms with my mother-in-law!

Day 7 - Black Crepe NL6217 top and Sew Over It Ultimate Trousers. Here I am meeting the lovely Mark from Girl Charlee UK at the Handmade Fair in Hampton Court (more on my visit in the next blog post).

A few reflections on the challenge:

• I'm sooooo pleased I chose this pattern, everything I've made from it feels like such a natural part of my everyday wardrobe. 
• The top is a simple shape and easy to make, but I think fabric choice and colour are key to wearing them often. The fact that I had three solid, neutral colours tops meant they could be paired with anything. Plus the lovely quality of the fabrics made them feel just a bit more special than a T shirt or cotton top in the same colours.
• I love the slim silhouette of the skirt and the quirky little side split - I'll definitely be making more of them.
• I'm still not very adventurous with accessories!

Thank you to Hannah for hosting the challenge and I'm looking forward to seeing what everybody else has been wearing for the past week! Have a great weekend. x

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Christmas Joan Dress

Four years ago I made myself a fitted red dress with a tie neck, heavily influenced by the lovely Joan from Mad Men. That dress has been a real success. It's made from double knit, so as well as being warm, it has a handy amount of stretch to accommodate festive eating marathons. Alas, it's now gone slightly bobbly and is a bit past its best so I needed to replace it. And what better pattern to use than Sew Over It's very own Joan Dress! It has just the right amount of festive dressiness and fifties glamour and was actually inspired by the beautiful Miss Holloway herself - perfect!

For fabric, I applied the 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it' philosophy and went for red again. I picked up some posh double crepe at a recent John Lewis fabric sale, which at £11 a metre was an absolute bargain for such lovely quality fabric. For the lining I kept it simple and used a plain red poly viscose from Goldhawk Road. The girls at Sew Over It had kindly sent me a copy of the Joan pattern when it first came out so I was ready to rock.

Having read on a couple of reviews that the finished dress was very fitted, I decided to err on the side of caution and cut a size 12. Big mistake. Once it was sewn up the dress was way too roomy - it was wearable but just didn't have the oomph that comes with a closer fit. Doh! I did actually compare the pattern pieces to my bodice block pieces beforehand and they were pretty similar, so I think it may had been something to do with the fabric which has a bit of stretch to it. Never mind, a bit of unpicking* and re-sewing of seams later and it finally fitted correctly. Not too skin tight (I need to be able to stuff my face in it and pick things up off the floor remember!) but just right. *This is a slight euphemism - it actually took an entire day. 

Apart from the cock up with sizing, the only other changes I made to the pattern were to shorten the skirt by two inches and reduce the height of the back kick pleat by another two inches. I'm a shortie (5'2") but even if I was normal height I'd still have been in grave danger of flashing my arse. That split comes up very high! I'd recommend taking a few leg measurements beforehand.

The dress is fully lined (including sleeves) so it took me a loooong time to cut everything out and mark all the pattern pieces up. I then spent a whole afternoon on the sofa when my son was ill, pinning the darts ready for sewing. Including the outer dress and lining this adds up to a LOT of darts - 20 in fact! It was worth the tedium though, I think the darts are what gives the dress its fabulous fifties shape.

The pattern instructions were easy to work from and I had no problem following them. For trickier steps such as attaching the tie collar and sewing the back kick pleat, there are additional tutorials on the Sew Over It blog. One good thing about the pattern is that all the seams are hidden inside the lining, which means you don't have to finish them if you don't want to, hoorah! It gives the dress a very neat, professional finish - in fact this is probably the most polished looking dress I've ever made. The picture below shows the dress inside out, apart from the hem being visible, it's almost wearable!

View of the lining

It's not a quick sew by any stretch of the imagination (there's quite a bit of hand sewing), but it's definitely a pattern to consider for a special occasion. The fabric, the lining, the design and the finishing details all add up to a very smart dress! I'm delighted with it and I think it will be perfect for the festive season. x

The Joan pattern was given to me free of charge for review. All views my own.

Bonjour Francoise….

Just in case you think you've been transported to France, you haven't, you're still here with me and my appalling O Level French.….and the new Frenchy-style pattern from Tilly and the Buttons - the Francoise dress!

Francoise is a simple fitted dress designed for woven fabrics, with raglan sleeves, French darts for shaping and an A-line skirt. It comes in two variations: long sleeved or sleeveless, with a choice of added collar or waist tabs. I tested this pattern for Tilly prior to printing, so thought I'd share my finished Francoise with you today. My first thought when I saw the initial line drawings and photos was that the dress might be a bit youthful for me, I mean me in a mini dress, really? But I did like the raglan sleeves and French darts, so decided to go for it with a few tweaks. As I was testing the pattern, I couldn't muck around with the overall design, but I did increase the length by 1½" and omitted the collar and waist tabs for a more 'mature' look. 

I swear the hem hangs properly - I just don't know how to stand up straight

This pattern isn't as short as I originally thought. I had visions of a Twiggy-style mini dress, but actually lengthening it by just a small amount takes it to just above the knee on me which I'm happy with. Size-wise, I cut a straight size 4, but ended up taking in the waist and hips significantly. So I'd say the fit of my finished version is a 4 at the bust and a 3 everywhere else. In terms of construction, it's straight forward if you pay attention to the instructions. The pattern comes with full colour photos of key steps which really help with some of the less run-of-the-mill techniques such as the raglan sleeves and French darts. Here's a tip: although there's actually an instruction that tells you to "stay stitch the neckline and raglan sleeve lines", I still only stay stitched the necklines. There's even a photo showing you the step for goodness sake, what more did I need?! In my defence, I think it was just habit, I see the words "stay stitch" and associate them with necklines (or waistlines). I did realise before it was too late and stay stitched the raglan sleeves - make sure you do too! If you've never made raglan sleeves before, don't worry - the pieces fit together perfectly so you can't go wrong.

My other piece of advice with this pattern is to choose your fabric carefully. I, of course, did not and learnt the hard way. The dress has French darts which are large, diagonal darts coming up from the waist. They take up a lot of fabric so you don't want anything too bulky or you'll get an unsightly bulge. The fabric I used for Francoise is a lovely, heavyweight crepe in a sort of sea green. I was actually fabric shopping with Tilly when I bought it, and even though she told me it might be a bit heavyweight for the darts, I totally ignored her and went ahead and bought it (I'm stubborn like that). I don't regret it as the fabric is simply goy-jus, but she was absolutely right, there was way too much fabric for a smooth line, even on the bust darts. I ended up cutting all my darts up the middle, trimming them down and pressing them open flat. This worked, but does leave the dart edges unfinished. A small price to pay for a nice, flat dart though!

My fabric was also a bit troublesome in other areas - I realised my neck facing was far too bulky (after stitching it in place) so ended up finishing the neckline with bias binding instead. It looks fine, but doesn't have the clean, stitch-free finish you'd get with a facing.

You could also cut your facing from a lighter weight fabric (Liberty Tana lawn is a perfect weight) or just choose the correct weight fabric in the first place. However, once I got past my bulky fabric woes, I had a finished dress I was really pleased with. I think it's chic, classy and grown up but still retains a vintage edge. The French darts create a surprisingly flattering shape, which is a big bonus for those of us with curves!

In summary, I like it! There are some different design techniques involved, which makes for a slightly more challenging make. I'm talking about the raglan sleeves and French darts, so not exactly rocket science, but if you're hoping to move on from a first dressmaking project and expand your skills a little, then the Francoise dress would be a good pattern to try. If you do make the Francoise dress, don't forget to enter it into the Sewing Francoise contest - you could win a £500 Janome sewing machine or one of nine £100 fabric vouchers!!! Yikes!! x

The Francoise pattern was given to me free of charge for pattern testing. All views my own.