SewLSC

Is there any style more elegant than a classic sheath dress?  For years I could not wear a sheath dress because I found few in petite sizing. Once I started sewing, I could make the styles that I want. TNT McCalls 7085 Sheath dresses are comfortable to wear and easy to sew. I often get asked what are my favorite patterns for making a sheath dress. I have a few. Only two are currently in print:  Butterick 6624 has lovely princess seams. I've made this pattern up in stretch cotton sateen and denim with lycra. McCalls 7085 has great shaping with darts. I've made this up in cashmere, wool, cotton sateen, batik and silk. I've sewn both in different hem and sleeve lengths to get very different looks from a basic pattern. A number of my very favorite patterns are now out of print but can frequently be found on Amazon, Ebay and Etsy. Here are my favorite out of print patterns for making a sheath dress: OOP McCalls 7714 This pattern has a straight and a-line skirt options. I've...

 I love T shirt dresses. They are soft comfortable and make dressing decisions easy. Pull on your dress and you are ready for the world. TNT Vogue 8663 I prefer to make my T shirt dresses with 100% cotton interlock or silk jersey. You can use any interlock or jersey fabric. It's your T Shirt dress, so you can choose your favorite fabric to make it. I often get asked questions about favorite T shirt dress patterns. I have a few. For a classic T shirt dress, nothing beats TNT: OOP McCalls 6886 . It has only three pieces total: a front piece, a back piece and a sleeve. Although M6886 is now out of print, it has been replaced with McCalls 8058 . TNT McCalls 6957 For an A-line dress, I have three favorites. I recommend: McCalls 6957 or beginner basic pattern McCalls 7122.   I also like McCalls 7348 , which includes an option to have a handkerchief hem. I almost always make a self belt to wear with this style dress to add shaping at the waist.... but you do not need to do so. Like ...

Silk Georgette Gown  Silk is wonderful to wear but it can be tricky to sew. These are my favorite tricks when sewing with silk (based on experience with silk chiffon, silk charmeuse, silk dupioni, wool/silk blends and silk jersey): (1) Be sure to have a very sharp rotary cutter and/or scissors. When I sew with silk I always sharpen and/or change blades. Silk slips. A lot. So sharp tools make precision cutting easier. (2) Use a presser foot designed for a straight stitch. (3) If that is not adequate, use a presser foot designed for slippery fabric. I use a plastic roller foot. I've tried my walking foot but I find the walking foot cumbersome when working with slippery fabrics. (4) Start with a fresh needle. Sharps needles work best. (5) Use a fine needle. I typically use Schmetz universal size 70/10 (6) If the fabric is really fussy when cutting, you can tame the silk by laying a piece of tissue paper over it. (7) Press with LOTS of steam. Finger pressing with a stea...

  Did you know that bust darts often need to be moved? I did not. I thought I was sewing my darts poorly until I learned the issue was not how I finished the darts but where I put them that was causing my garments to have fitting drags. Typically, I now know that I need to lower my busts darts by about 1 inch, and I need to shorten the top of the fishy eye darts by about 1 inch in most darted dresses or tops. Lowering bust darts are actually common adjustments needed for older women as the commercial pattern companies assume a perky B cup when drafting. Many women find the apex sags lower as we age. Bust darts should point to the apex of the bust. If yours do not, like in these examples, you may need to move the bust darts. To calculate how to move the bust dart, I compare my measurements to those on the pattern piece. In my case, my apex is now about 10 inches from the shoulder seam and about 6 inches to the natural waistline with 6 inches from apex to apex. Tha...

  Everything that is old is new again.   This project was designed for the Pattern Review Modernize Vintage contest but was not completed on time. It was also part of the January 2025 Pop-up Sew-along: Nothing But Stash and a part of my year long commitment to the 2025 Fabric Fast and 2025 50 Yard Dash . I used Vogue 2288, a 1979 pattern that was part of the Vogue American Designer series by John Anthony to make my dress. Although the pattern featured both a coat and dress, I made only the dress. The dress pattern was described as follows: Loose-fitting, straight dress, four inches below mid-knee length has bias turtleneck, shoulder pads, back zipper, pockets in side seams, side hemline slits and narrow hem. Full length sleeves narrow at wrist. Topstitching. The completed dress did like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once I was done sewing,  except I "modernized" it. Sorry John Anthony.   The instructions were easy to follow. I really like...

 February is the border and panel print contest on Pattern Review.  In 2024, I committed to sew every contest as if it was a month long seminar with a particular challenge as the focus. I really enjoyed sewing along with others. So I decided to continue to do so in 2025. Designing for the monthly challenge is half the fun. When the rules of the contest are announced I revisit my pattern and fabric stash to see what might work.  I also like to revisit past work to get inspirations from “me made” garments that I particularly like. As it turns out, last year I made both a panel print and a border print dress. Both were sewn using TNT sewing patterns. And both were among my most worn, favorite makes of 2024. The first is an incredible yummy silk charmeuse border print I found at Mood. I’d made a quick stop at Mood before my train, saw this lovely fabric, took it home and sewed it up the very next day. I used a favorite classic pattern. The formula worked. Really well. I love ...