SewBaby News

  Butterick 5493 Pattern Description: Sleeveless tops with four neckline variations- draped, asymmetrical drape, cowl, and ruffle. The ruffle variation is for a knit. The other three are for wovens. The top has bust darts. Pattern Sizing: Misses 8-24. Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it? Yes, I made View C which has the asymmetrical front drape. The pattern of the fabric on the neck drape somehow managed to line up almost perfectly with the top piece, so you have to look closely at the photo to even see the extra piece of fabric there. Were the instructions easy to follow? Yes, it was quite easy to sew. What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern? I just love each and every style in this pattern! I think each one is a great unique variation on a standard tank top. The pattern calls for stretch wovens or crepe for views a-c. I did not use a stretch woven, but my fabric ...

You would think that the last thing you'd want to do on a hot July day is sew with wool, but with Fall coming up before you know it, that is exactly what I did today! Julie from the Pendleton Woolen Mill store in Portland, Oregon, sent me several pieces of some beautiful Pendleton wools to make models for their store of our Petal Jacket and our Wonder Jacket patterns.  This first one is the Petal Jacket made from a floral wool stripe called Rosalita Lisere and lined with a rust wool flannel.  This jacket is completely reversible.  It only has partial sleeves, so it is easy to put on and like a poncho. The next jacket- a Wonder Jacket, is made from a Native pattern, an exclusive Pendleton fabric called Rio Rancho .  It is stunning!  If you like any of these fabrics, you can order them from the Pendleton Woolen Mill store .    Take a look at the back.  I folded the fabric so that this pretty starburst pattern would be in the center of t...

This post is by Emily from Illinois. I was inspired to make the SewBaby Reversible Sundress for my daughter after finding the quirky Ivy League Bees print by Jay McCarroll (of Project Runway fame) for Free Spirit. For the contrasting side we found some gorgeous Kaffe Fassett fabric in a bright garden print. This is a medium weight woven, not quite a home dec weave, but pretty sturdy. I was a little nervous that it would make the dress too heavy, but I think it gives the finished product some nice body and helps with skirt swing out.     Technique wise, I used a walking foot for sewing the front and back together. This made it easier for me to keep the pieces lined up perfectly, but a walking foot definitely is not required for this project. Before cutting the fabric I traced the 18 month size of pattern using Swedish tracing paper , so I can reuse the pattern for making gifts or larger sizes. I used 2 buttons back to back on both sides of the dress so it is truly reversib...

I bought this lovely Prada silk cotton voile and hunted for a loose fitting tunic top pattern to make it into.  I found Burda 7486 and thought it looked like it had interesting lines.  Although I'm a Burda magazine subscriber, I hadn't bought one of their envelope patterns in a while, and was surprised at how confusing I found it to be. First of all, the printing was terrible- very, very faint, and nearly unreadable.  The type face is extremely small-  maybe like an 8 point.   There are three columns of instructions- a column each for French, English and Spanish, and then one column of illustrations.  Second, the illustrations were severely lacking, and weren't lined up with the instructions that they correspond to (although they are numbered, so you can figure that out).  There is an option to put this on the bias, as in the striped view, but no layout diagram to guide someone who would not know how to do that.  And when I saw both grainl...

Timeless Treasures has several new fabric lines out.  They are so pretty in person.  The colors are rich and saturated, and the hand so soft, that we couldn't resist playing around with them. Shirley, my assistant, loves to make bags, and she chose the Purple Berkeley line to make a sample of our Double Duty Bag above. Shirley's mother-in-law, Ruth, made several samples from the Momo line :   The green booties are from our Snap Happy Bootie pattern ,  the yellow backpack is from our Totpacks pattern , and the black bib is from the Hug-Me-Bibs pattern . I chose the Berkeley Blues collection to make this Easy Pieces Jumper and Easy Pieces Pants sample outfit.  It's a size 4T. The great folks at Timeless Treasures displayed these samples at the Spring Quilt Market, but now they are back in our hands, and we are ready to give them away ! (Just the samples, not the fabrics!) Give-Away Guidelines: To register for the giveaway, just leave a comment on m...

I've been in a dress sewing mood lately, although I haven't had much time, so I've been trying to pick patterns that are simple and quick.  I've found that Vogue usually does this really, really well with their Very Easy Vogue pattern line.  This first dress is from Vogue 8645.  Their description: loose-fitting, pullover, lined dresses A, B have front and back v-neck, removable shoulder ties, side seam pockets and sash. The fabric I chose is a sheer silk cotton blend from Vera Wang, and I lined it with a very lightweight dark grey lining.  It feels scrumptiously lightweight- like wearing a butterfly.  And yes, it was Very Easy!  I will definitely be making this one again if the right sheer fabric comes along.  It does take quite a bit of fabric.  I had 3-1/2 yards of this fabric which was just enough, as it is a very full skirt.  I cut the hem right in between the two versions as my fabric wasn't quite wide enough to get the full length ...

For sewists, I think that sewing prom dresses is either the most fun that you can have, or the most intimidating.  You want everything to be just perfect for the big night which can be intimidating, but the fabrics and styles that you get to sew with are amazing.  This year, I made two dresses and had fun with both.  One for my daughter, and one for one of her good friends.  Luckily, both girls chose simple designs and I didn't have to do any significant alterations, so this was a fun year for sewing prom dresses. Choosing the pattern is half the battle.  My daughter likes simple and classic, and she ended up choosing one from the December 2008 Burda magazine- style 104 .  This is such a gorgeous yet simple style, that I think it would work for just about anyone.  The key to it is to find a beautiful fabric.  I had bought some Vera Wang Silk Satin from fabric.com when they had it on sale for $2/yard.  Unbelievable!  This should be $40...