Collars, Facings, Necklines and a Blog Tour

The days of having a four-year-old in the studio to model for me are long gone (she's in secondary school now!), so I had to make do with a clothes line.  Still, these little blouses swinging in the breeze looked sweet and made me happy today.

They're all made from the same base pattern, with the collar, necklines, sleeves and facings altered to vary the design. You guessed it... using the patternmaking and sewing techniques from my book The Savvy Seamstress.

We launched the book at Can Do Books in December, but until recently, I haven't had much time or brain-space to to promote the it (you might have followed my "why" on Instagram ).  However, now I'm all about the BLOG AND INSTAGRAM TOUR.

You can see what other people have made and sneak a few more glimpses inside the book if you follow along. There will also be givaways, so you might like to hop on board.

The tour schedule is as follows:

23rd April - C&T Publishing ctpub.com 

24th April -  @mrsbeckinsale, cravingsfrocks.blogspot.com 

25th April  @sewthispattern, sewthispattern.com 

26th April @fibresmith

27th April  @cookinandcraftin, cookinandcraftin.blogspot.com/

28th April  @handmakersfactory

29th April  @patternreview, patternreview.com 

30th April  @usefulbox, usefulbox.com.au 

1st May @annewhalley, annewhalley.com 

2nd May  @thornberrylara, thornberry.wordpress.com 

3rd May @yousewgirlpatterns nicolemdesign.blogspot.com 

And now, a closer look at those little blouses...

This is a simple little button-fronted number with cap sleeves and a round neckline. It has a full neckline facing that also covers the button area. (The book will also show you how to make this design detail on a pattern that originally had a zippered back and no front opening, or on one that previously had a collar.)

An easy alteration from here is to change the shape of the neckline (and maybe the arrangement of the buttons into 3 sets of 2...?).

Alternatively, you can add a Peter Pan Collar. This one has a simple binding on the neckline and a folded facing.

Or you can raise the neckline and add a collar. This one (below) has a higher neckline and a slightly higher "roll" on the collar. It also has cute little 3/4 sleeves (..ahem... because of a "design opportunity" that arose when I cut two sleeves in the same direction from the small amount of fabric that I had, and then arrived at my local fabric store half an hour after the last on the bolt was sold... and I had a deadline.... Aargh...).

And it has cuffs on the sleeves. Aren't they cute in a kids' size 5?

And just like this one, it has a Convertible Collar style finish (with a neckline facing on the garment front).

(But this one has full length sleeves.)

The same kinds of alterations can be made on dresses, shirts and blouses, and all these patternmaking and sewing techniques are included in the book.  

Please note that this blouse pattern is one that I use in classes and is not yet developed for sale. There was a plan to have this done before the book was launched, but life and its curve-balls got in the way.... It's on the to-do list!  

So - watch this space, and watch the blog and instagram tour. There'll be more Savvy Seamstress news and opportunities to win yourself a copy.

Pattern finished and winner drawn..

 

 

I'm about to send the finished TWEEN SEASONS COAT pattern to the printers. 

 

 

The grading, labelling and sampling of all the sizes took a lot longer than I imagined it would... I graded it to US sizing (8, 10, 12, 14) first and then realised that Australian kids sizing has a size 9 between 8 and 10 (with exactly the same grading increment as sizes10-12).  Changing that (and all the little size numbers) added a couple of extra days.

 

Then I had to organise models who actually fitted into the larger coats.... My poppet looked awfully sweet, but a little bit swamped in anything above the size 8. 

 

 

I borrowed some older, taller children. That took a bit of organising, too, but well worth the wait until the weekend.  The kids were great and they fitted into the larger coats (and really liked them, too).

 

 

It feels wrong to blur out beautiful faces like this, but I feel strongly about not posting images of mine or other people's children here,where anyone can have access to them.

 

Just look at the coat and imagine the beautiful face of a child you love.

 

 

This is the back view of the hooded version.

 

 

 

 My darling girl loves her Size 8 coats.  She has both hooded and collared versions (hooded version was left at her father's house before it was photographed).

 

 

 

She finds it's the perfect Spring coat - ready to pop on when the breeze is a bit too chilly... and pretty damn perfect for indoor sewing on a warm Spring day, when everyone else is in T-shirts....apparently.

 

 

Mr Random Number Generator drew a winner for my giveaway.  Amanda - we'll be sending you a pattern as soon as they're back from the printers!

 

Thank you to everyone who left a comment on the giveaway post.  I'm so sorry I haven't had time to respond to any of them, even in the smallest way.  I hope you all got my little telepathic messages....?

 



A Coat for All Seasons

The new pattern is at the printers... and will hopefully be here and ready to pack tomorrow.

 

 

It's a trans-seasonal coat for little girls (sizes 4-8), that can be made in anything from medium-weight cotton to winter-weight wools, and it's called the All Seasons Coat.

 

 

 It can be made with a collar and belt, like a little trenchcoat...

 

Or it can be made with a hood, and the belt is completely optional so it can be a cute little swing style coat.

 

Here we have a gorgeous-yet-anonymous child, modelling the hoodie version....

 

And the back....



It's fully lined, and has some fancy new tricks for making patch pockets and cheats-methods for a tailored-looking collar. 

 

 You'll be able to see a few of the pattern-testers' versions around the bloggy traps soon.  There may even be a couple of giveaways.  Watch this space... and perhaps ask your favourite YOU SEW GIRL stockist to get it in for you!