And by the way, Cindy recently also posted a tutorial on her blog for the amazing ruffled shorts that look so great with this top. She used the Class Picnic Shorts pattern, and you can find the instructions here.

Here’s what Cindy has to share. Thanks Cindy!

Gymboree had a girls’ clothing line a couple of years ago titled “Santorini Sweetie.” One of the tunics, in a blue print with a white facing around the neck, stood out to me. I loved the way the white facing looked against the blue. I pinned the top to my Inspiration for Children’s Clothing board on Pinterest and there it sat.

In the meantime, a blog that I follow called Sew Together had a post entitled Beyond the Basics: Colour Pop Tunic Tutorial in which Maryanne shows how to add a facing with an opening to the front of a basic bodice. Since I never did find a pattern that was exactly what I wanted, the tutorial was a great starting point. I went digging through my patterns and decided to use the Oliver + S 2 + 2 pattern in a size 4 as my basic bodice.

The first thing I needed to do was eliminate the gathers in the front. I took the front bodice piece of the 2 + 2 top and folded the pattern 1/2″ from the facing fold line.

This then became my front pattern piece and I cut one out on the fold. I went ahead and prepared the back of the blouse per the 2 + 2 instructions and joined the front and back at the shoulders.

Instead of using my pattern pieces to make the facing template, I worked off of my joined together front and backs. Here’s what I did.

1. Sew the front and backs together at the shoulders. Then lay the shirt down, right side up.
2. Place tracing paper over the neckline and trace the neck opening. Measure and mark the bottom edge of the facing 1 1/2″ below the  neckline, and draw a center point 3 1/2″ down and 3 inches wide. Add 1/2″ to the back edges for the seam allowance.
3. I chose to fold my facing pattern piece in half to make sure it was even. If you need to trim or adjust, now is the time to do it. I cut out 2 facings on the fold.
4. Pin the two facings with right sides together.

Now it’s time to sew together your facing pieces. Stitch the outside edges with a 1/4″ seam and the back edges with a 1/2″ seam. I shortened my stitch length from a 2.5 to a 2 to ensure the strength of the seam. Press, trim the seam allowances to 1/8″, notch the curves if needed, clip the corners, and then turn to the right side and press again. If you have a point turner, it will come in handy for smoothing out the curves. This is what it should look like.

Now it’s time to mark the stitching line for the opening. You’ll do this on whichever side you want to be your wrong side. I placed the end of the opening approximately an inch above the bottom.

Pin the facing’s right side (the side that you doesn’t have a stitching line) to the top’s wrong side at the neckline, making sure the ends of the facing and the button placket are lined up.

Sew along the neckline (I used a 2 stitch length and 1/4″ seam allowance) and around the stitching line (marked in blue). Press, clip the curves if needed, and trim the seam allowances to 1/8″  (photo A). Turn the facing to the top’s right side, press again, match the ends of the facing with the button placket, and pin into place (photo B). Topstitch along all the edges, rolling the seam slightly to the wrong side at the neckline and the opening (photo C). Press again.

The other modification I did was to bind the edge of the sleeves. I cut 2 bias strips 1 1/2″ wide and folded one long end 3/8″ to the wrong side. The unfolded edge was sewn right sides together to the sleeve edge with a 3/8″ seam allowance. I trimmed the seam allowance and folded/pressed the binding to the wrong side. Then I topstitched close to the edge from the right side.

Here are the finished top(s). This is BK in the original modified 2 + 2.

And here is MG in her modified 2 + 2.

And I couldn’t resist making one more using Lisette Lawn!

We’re re-releasing this today as our latest digital pattern. You can now purchase and instantly download the pattern in one of two size ranges: Birth-24M or 2T-5.

Need a little Bubble Dress inspiration? Look no further than Sarvi’s spectacular creation.

photo from the Colorado Chautauqua website

I had never heard of a chautauqua when I met Ali Dejohn last year during a trip to Colorado, and when she invited me to come at teach at a retreat she was organizing I didn’t really know anything about The Makerie, either.

photo by Teryn

photo by Linda

Turns out, The Makerie and the chautauqua have a lot in common. And, as it happens, The Makerie is held at the Colorado Chautauqua, a spectacular site on the edges of Boulder which is one of the few remaining chautauquas in the nation and which is located right at the base of the Flatirons. It’s really a perfect place for a creative, inspirational retreat, with adorable little cabins set at the base of the trails and community buildings nearby for meetings and classes. The scenery and location are breathtaking.

photo by Teryn

I tend to be a little skeptical of retreats. Maybe it comes from too many years of summer camp, too many forced group activities, or maybe it comes from living in New York for so long and developing a little bit of a New Yorker’s cynicism. I don’t want anyone tugging on my emotions and trying to get me to connect with a group–unless I want to do it. So I was a little suspicious when I arrived at the Makerie and walked into Academic Hall to pick up keys to the cabin I would be sharing with three other instructors.

photo by Teryn

While I might be a little suspicious of the retreat experience, I’m still a big believer in the power of a weekend getaway. Lots of good things can happen from a little change in scenery, a chance to to meet new people, and time to be inspired and to learn something and make something.

photo by Teryn

photo by Linda

photo by Linda

It turns out, the Makerie is nothing and everything like that. Yes, it’s a retreat. No, there’s no kumbaya or campfire or forced activities. Instead, it’s full of like-minded people (mostly women, with a few brave men–go, men!) who are enthusiastic about making things, about exploring creativity, and about being part of a new community. It’s a relaxing and energizing experience, and everyone can do what they want, which is enormously freeing in itself.

photo by Linda

photo by Teryn

I was hooked almost immediately. I learned new things. I made new friends. I was inspired. I didn’t want to leave. And I was a teacher! I can just imagine how much more fun it would have been if I could actually have taken the classes instead of planning for them and doing the teaching! There are two days of classes, and this year’s offerings included intuitive painting, multimedia embroidery, crochet, photography, food styling, letterpress printing, and sewing. With some really impressive teachers, too! You can see this year’s class offerings here. How can anyone choose, given all those amazing options?

photo by Teryn

The sense of community at the retreat was what really grabbed me. One evening we had a panel discussion about creativity, and several of us teachers continued that conversation well into the night when we got back to our cottage. I had so much fun getting to know many of the people who attended the retreat, and it was amazing to see how many friendships grew. I know that I’ll be staying in touch with quite a few people, and I’m sure I’m not alone in this regard.

photo by Teryn

You know I’m a sucker for details, and Ali’s attention to detail is disarming. The tone was perfectly set at check-in and continued all the way through the weekend, with adorable little class signs, the most amazingly packed picnic lunches, and a wonderful lounge area filled with craft books and snacks and comfortable chairs to sit around in while we chatted and spent time together.

photo by Teryn

Will I be going back? You’d better believe it! I’m already making plans for next year. And if this sounds like something you would enjoy, I would encourage you to put your name on the Makerie’s mailing list so you’ll know when enrollment opens for 2013. But start planning now, because the size of the retreat is limited, and I’m certain that as word gets out it will fill up quickly. This is something you don’t want to miss!

If you’d like to see more photos from the Makerie, you can find a whole bunch of them here. Thanks so much to Teryn and Linda for letting me use their wonderful shots!

It’s been about a year since she made it, and I haven’t been able to stop thinking about what a wonderful job she did with it and how she came up with such a creative solution to making a wearable costume that made a little girl very, very happy. When we started this little series of posts on customizing with Oliver + S, I immediately thought of Jan and wanted to feature her fantastic dress.

I recently asked Jan if she would share her process, and she was kind enough to write up a description of how she did this for our series on customizing Oliver + S patterns. Here’s what Jan has to say about her project. Thanks, Jan!

The Thought Process

We were planning a trip to Disney World, and I had bought my daughter Delilah some princess outfits to wear.  But as I looked at them, although they were pretty, they didn’t appear comfortable for hanging out in the Florida sun.  The fabric was scratchy, and they were not sized quite right for her.  I imagined her wearing them for all of two minutes and then needing to take them off.

So I decided to make her something to wear using cotton, something comfortable, that would breathe, and still be pretty and “princess.”  I bought some fabric with princesses printed on it, and considered making a dress out of that.  But when it came down to it, I just didn’t like the fabric.

I was trying to convince myself to go ahead with the project and started looking through my Oliver + S patterns to see how I could use the princess fabric. When I saw the Puppet Show pattern, it struck me that it could be made into a great Snow White dress.  It probably helped that Snow White was the first Disney princess movie I showed my daughter, and by then I had probably seen it 100 times.  Her outfit is so ingrained in my head!

How To

I bought Kona cottons and used three different colors of buttons. Then I thought about the sleeves. At first I bought red ribbon and considered sewing that on in stripes, but when I held the ribbon to the blue fabric I just didn’t like it. I went looking for feedback by posting on the Oliver + S discussion forum. I watched the movie to see how the animated character moved in her dress. And I finally decided to try pleating in the red.

After I was done, I wrote a short tutorial on how I made the sleeves.  The tutorial contains photos of the construction method I used and the dimensions of the pleats.

The Trip

Delilah wore the dress at Disney World May 2011 when she was 2 1/2. She and I returned in January of this year and she wore it again!

Delilah wore the dress to dinner at Cinderella’s castle.

The princesses couldn’t get enough of her.

Snow White spent more time with us than anyone else!

We have actually gotten quite a bit of wear from the dress and it always gets compliments.  I am going to make it again in a larger size for our next trip!

I love her fabric choices, too. The brown and robin’s egg blue gingham paired with matching blue for the piping really make this shirt great for boys, don’t they? And you may also have noticed this version of the shirt, which she also made and I adore. So let me introduce Vivian and let her get started with her tutorial. Thanks so much for this great piece, Vivian!

HOW TO ADD PIPING TO THE AFTER-SCHOOL SHIRT

The lines of the After-School Shirt are so gorgeous that I didn’t want them to be lost in the pattern of my fabric.  I added piping all around the neck opening as well as the yoke seam to highlight the design, and the results were well worth the effort.  I’m not a professional seamstress by any means, so give it a try because it’s easier than you think!

PREPARE THE PIECES FOR PIPING

Cut out all your fabric pieces.  Interface the yoke facing according to the pattern instructions.  (Please note that I cut the facing pieces out of a solid aqua cotton and so my photos may look slightly different than yours.)

Assemble the shoulder seams of the front and back pieces of the yoke.  Do the same for the front and back yoke facings.  Do NOT sew the yoke to the yoke facings yet.

yoke shoulders sewn

yoke facing shoulders sewn

MEASURE FOR THE PIPING

Figure how much piping is needed by measuring along the edges where the piping will be with a tape measure.  Measure: A) short ends and neckline of right yoke + B) short ends and neckline of left yoke + C) top edge of the front shirt piece + D) top edge of the back shirt piece.

yoke labeled A B

shirt labeled C D

For a size 3T, I measured about 62″ in total.  Add 10″ to your measurement to make sure you don’t run out of piping, so a size 3T shirt would require approximately 72″ of piping.

You can purchase pre-made piping from the store or make your own.  There are numerous helpful on-line tutorials on how to make your own piping (e.g., Prudent Baby’s how-to sew piping tutorial)

prepared piping

TRIM THE PIPING

I made my piping using 1/4″ wide cording and trimmed the seam allowance to 1/2″, which is the same as the seam allowance of the After-School Shirt pattern.  This makes the piping easier to work with, as the cut edge of the piping will line up with the fabric cut edge.

piping with 1/2′’ seam and how cut edge would match

When you are trimming the seam allowance of the piping, make sure you are measuring from as close to the cording as possible to the piping cut edge. Our final seam will be butted up next to the cording.

measuring seam allowance of piping

If you are using purchased piping, it is perfectly fine if the seam allowance is narrower than 1/2″.  The only difference is that the cut edge of the piping will not line up with the cut edge of the fabric.

purchased piping pinned on fabric

PIN THE PIPING IN PLACE

Attach the piping to the right side of the left yoke (not to the yoke facing). Pin the piping onto the yoke with a 1/2″ seam allowance so the seam line will be right up against the enclosed cording.

As you approach a corner, stop and make a mark on your piping 1/2″ from the fabric edge.  Cut a diagonal slit into the seam allowance of your piping to that mark so you can bend your piping around the corner.  Be careful not to cut the stitches enclosing the cording.

approaching the corner

 diagonal cut

pinned around the corner

Shape the piping along the curves as you pin.

pin piping on curve

You may need to clip the piping seam allowance along the curves in order for the piping to lay flat.

clipped piping on curves

You don’t have to start or finish the piping in any special way. Just trim it even with the cut edge of your fabric as it will later be enclosed in other seams.

beginning of piping

ATTACH THE PIPING

Sew the piping to the yoke by using a zipper foot and sewing with the stitching line ALMOST butted up to the cording.  I like to leave a little space between this stitching line and the edge of the cording because I don’t want any of these stitches to show accidentally when sewing the yoke to the facing.

sewing piping on almost butted up

There are four corners on the yoke pieces to deal with, so you will be an expert at sewing piping around corners when you’re done!  I find it difficult to turn a 90 degree corner when sewing on piping, so here is how I make sharp corners.  Sew your piping along the cording and stop at the corner (should be 1/2″ from the fabric edge).

stopped at corner

Lift up the presser foot and pivot your fabric clockwise 45 degrees and sew 2-3 stitches to cut across the corner, being careful to keep the cording out of the stitching.  You may want to hand crank the machine for these 2-3 stitches.

stitches cutting corner

Pivot the fabric clockwise 45 degrees again to finish rounding the corner and continue sewing on the piping.

rounding the corner

Attach and sew the piping in the same manner to the other yoke piece.

attached piping yoke

ATTACH THE PIPING TO THE FRONT AND BACK SHIRT

In a similar manner to how we attached the piping to the yoke, sew the piping to the top edge of the front shirt piece with a 1/2” seam allowance.  This should be easy compared to the corners and curves of the yoke as it is only a straight line of stitching.  Do the same for the back shirt piece.

attached piping on front shirt

ASSEMBLE THE YOKES

Follow the pattern instructions and pin the yoke facings to the corresponding outer yoke with right sides together.  Keep the outer yoke pieces with the piping as the top layer and the yoke facings on the bottom, with the piping sandwiched in between.

top layer pinned with piping

TIPS FOR SEWING PIPING

Tip: I like to pin my piping with the pins running vertically and butted against the cording so that they can be a guide for my stitching line.  Make sure you remove your pins before the machine needle reaches it so that you don’t damage your needle.

vertical pins on piping

Tip: Using your zipper foot (or a piping foot if you have one), sew with your stitching butted up as close to your cording as possible without sewing onto the actual cording.  Your previous stitching from attaching the piping also serves as a guide–you want to sew to the left of that stitching.

sewing left of previous stitching line

Tip: Use your finger tips to feel for the bump of the cording as you guide the fabric.  Go nice and slow, and watch your finger tips!

As per the pattern instructions, trim the seam allowances to 1/4″, trim the corners, and clip the curves.

trimmed and clipped yoke

Turn the yoke to the right side and admire a line of clean, even, lovely piping. Employ the seam ripper and re-sew any little “accidents” as needed.

finished piped yoke turned right side

OPTIONAL: EDGESTITCH THE YOKE

If desired, edgestitch the short edges and the neckline of the yoke.  I did not use my zipper foot and simply used my regular foot on top of the piping.

regular foot edgestitching

finished edgestitching on yoke

You now have the left and the right yoke piped and turned right side out.  Note that as per pattern instructions, the button holes have been made and the remaining raw edges of the yoke and where the yoke overlaps on the bottom edge are basted together.

piped and edgestitched yokes

ATTACH THE YOKES TO THE SHIRT

Pin and sew the front and back shirt pieces to the front and back yoke pieces respectively.  Use a zipper foot (or a piping foot) with the stitching line butted against the cording.

sewing the yoke to the shirt

As per the pattern instructions, finish the seam allowances together on the yoke seam. If you find this seam too bulky, do not trim all the seam allowances to 1/4″, but instead open the layers of seam allowances and trim some of the interior seams to 1/4″ prior to finishing with your preferred method.

trim interior seam allowances

serged seam allowance

EDGESTITCH THE YOKE SEAM

Use your regular foot to edgestitch the yoke seam on the front shirt piece. Do the same for the back shirt piece.

edgestitching the yoke seam 

finished piping

Continue to follow pattern instructions to complete the shirt. Finally, admire your finished project!

finished shirts

baby shirt close up

Happy sewing,

Vivian

VIVmade

We wanted to make some sewing patterns for little, fun projects. Projects that wouldn’t take a lot of fabric and might even allow you to use up some of your stash. (I know you have one.) Sewing patterns with an attitude (because I know you have one of those, too–don’t play all innocent with me). Sewing with the patterns would feel a little bit like attending a Friday night sewing club with your girlfriends. You know those nights when you get together, open a bottle of wine (or something a little stronger), and get busy making whatever excites you that week while you blow off a little steam.

These are projects that are fun and creative and get you out of a sewing rut. For not a lot of money and not a giant time commitment.

And that’s how Straight Stitch Society came to be.

Anyone can become a member of the Straight Stitch Society. You don’t even need to be able to sew a straight line to join. All it takes is an honest attempt (perfection is definitely not a requirement for membership) and an affirmation of the beliefs expressed in the society’s manifesto.

These are projects that we hope you’ll make as gifts for your friends and to keep for yourself. (It’s OK to make things for yourself and not feel guilty, you know.) We hope the project will help you re-discover the fun in sewing again. Sew them as we designed them by following the clear, detailed instructions, or make them your own and fly by the seat of your pants. Add your own little touches to them. You want to make a frog coin purse instead of the dog, cat, or monkey included in the pattern? Go for it. And if a seam is a little wonky, so what? It’s just fabric, after all.

Which reminds me, we thought our society needed a ridiculous manifesto. You can read it over on the new Straight Stitch Society website. We also created a monster glossary of sewing-related terms over there, just because we could (it’s fun to have your own website; you can do whatever you want!) and because we thought you might like to have all those terms in one place for quick reference, no matter what you’re sewing. Feel free to use it, print it out, link to it from your blog, or do with it whatever you want. It’s there for you.

Now, because you’ve been waiting for it, here’s a little introduction to each of the four patterns.

Apples to Oranges Sewing Kit

Comparing fruit to sewing is like comparing apples to oranges, right? Not exactly.

We’ve brought the two together in a fruity sewing kit that’s cute enough to eat. It’s got everything you need—a pincushion, a zipper pouch for notions, and an optional needle pad, all buttoned up in a tasty little package.

Choose from a red delicious apple with an embroidered core or a zesty orange with playful seed appliqué.

You can purchase the Apples to Oranges Sewing Kit pattern from the Oliver + S shop.

Split Personality Reversible Bag
We all have two sides to our personalities—a wild and crazy side and a quiet, thoughtful side—don’t we?

Make both sides happy with this supercute reversible slouch bag. Use an unexpected combination of colors and prints on one side for a bold look and a subtle mix of fabrics on the other side for a more sedate look.

Simply flip the bag inside out when you want to change the side of your personality that’s on display.

The Split Personality Reversible Bag pattern is available in the Oliver + S shop.

Feed the Animals Coin Purses
Ever feel like something is eating up all your money? You’re right!

Let these supercute coin purses gobble up your change, cash, and credit cards. Choose from a mischievous menagerie of money-eating friends, including a monkey, cat, and dog.

They’re so irresistible you can’t make just one!

You can purchase your copy of the Feed the Animals Coin Purses pattern from the Oliver + S shop now.

Change Your Mind Slipcover Bag
We’re women. And everyone knows that it’s a woman’s prerogative to change her mind when the mood strikes, right?

That’s why you’ll love this stylish bag. Instantly alter its appearance to match every one of your moods—and anything in your closet—by choosing one of two different slipcover designs that can be sewn in a kaleidoscope of colors and prints.

The Change Your Mind Slipcover Bag pattern is also available now in the Oliver + S shop.

Now, go have some fun! And take it a little easy on the wine and chocolate while you’re sewing, will you?

You haven’t heard about Straight Stitch Society? That’s OK; we’ve been quiet about it so far. But now that it’s almost ready to launch I’ll be telling you all about it shortly. Stay tuned! Can’t wait? You can check out the new Facebook page for the brand to get a preview.

The Croquet Dress, Secret Agent Trench Coat, and Badminton Skort, Top + Dress are all now ready to ship. We hope you’ll enjoy sewing them!

A long time ago Brooke asked for a sailor dress. I thought that was a great idea, but I wanted to do a pattern that wouldn’t be limited to JUST a sailor dress. After all, many of you purchase our patterns and make them over and over again as your children grow. So why not design a dress that could be made as both a sailor dress and other dress styles?

So here is the Croquet Dress. It’s got a nautical influence and can certainly be made into a sailor dress, as demonstrated by S in her linen chambray version. It’s got a cute shoulder detail that takes twill tape or ribbon stripes nicely, and the little collar is very sailor-ish. Plus, I think the dropped waist with the bow has a nautical flair, doesn’t it?

But the same style can take on other appearances without the stripes. On this version we used the border print from my upcoming Ladies’ Stitching Club fabric collection (it will be available this coming July), and the results are very different from the sailor dress version that S modeled above.

There’s also a second version included in the pattern envelope. View B eliminates the collar and replaces it with a simple yoke that can be left plain or embellished. I think the yoke would look great with some embroidery or made up with a really special fabric that you want to highlight. You know, the scrap that you’ve been saving for just the right project.

Other details: This is a pull-on style with a keyhole opening at the back neck, which means no buttonholes! Also, the waistband is an elastic casing, so the dress is very comfortable to wear and can be adjusted for just the right fit. It’s not hard to sew. In fact, we’ve rated it two scissors. It’s a pretty quick pattern. Great for quilting cottons, linen, chambray, cotton shirtings (Can you imagine this in a men’s shirting? It would be fantastic.), you get my drift. And, as I mentioned, the straight hem of the skirt works beautifully with the border print in our upcoming fabric collection, The Ladies’ Stitching Club. I think it’s a great spring and summer dress, and it could also be really cute in the fall if you use a heavier fabric. The skirt isn’t very full, so it will still hang nicely even if the fabric has a lot of body.

So I wonder what Brooke will request next? I think I might know, but I’ll wait to see if I’m right.

First, the pull-on skort. It’s got an elasticized back and a flat front with a yoke that keeps the skirt from being too poofy at the waist. Because you can’t have a lot of poof when you’re hanging upside down at the playground, right?

The scalloped hem is such a lot of fun. Because it’s made with a hem facing (you know how much I like an elegant hem facing—it solves so many issues), you can use a contrast fabric for the underside of the skirt if you want a little surprise that peeks out at the hem. Which makes it all the more fun to hang upside down.

You can’t tell there are shorts under the skirt at all, and the scalloped hem skirt part looks sweet and innocent while the shorts let you get into whatever mischief you’re going to get into. That way everyone is happy.

Then the coordinating top features a curved yoke that doubles as shoulder straps. It’s simple, it looks clean, and it lets you play with contrasting or complimentary fabrics. You’ve seen this type of yoke done before, I’m sure. But two things make this style really fun and unique. One is that we added these cute little ruffles at the shoulders, and the other is the fun drawstring at the front. The ribbon tie cinches up the gathers a bit and looks really sweet.

But wait! There’s more! (I’ve always wanted to say that.) You can also make the top into a dress with a scalloped hem. The hem uses the same technique as the skort, but the pattern includes different pattern pieces for the dress hem because of the shaping. I think it makes a really cute dress. It’s gently shaped at the side seams so it’s very flattering. Even when paired with silly accessories like pink boots and a giant pink flower headband. (Not to mention sticker wallpaper. All the wallpapers in these photos were lent to us by our downstairs friends at Flat Vernacular. Brian and Payton at Flat Vernacular made the wallpaper in the photo below by individually placing hundreds of stickers on the underlying paper in a perfectly symmetrical design. Crazy cool, right?)

This pattern is also rated two scissors. And yes, you’ll get a lot of use out of it. It’s recommended for use with quilting cottons, linen, shirtings, you know. The usual fabrics. But what about dupioni or something fancy? I know you’re going to make something fun and fabulous with it. Whether you wear it with rain boots or to hang upside down at the playground.