Breaking the Rules!

I am continuing to glamp it up with the Wanderlust collection. (Can I make that an official catch phrase? "Glamp it up"...this could be fun!) Anyhoo, this time, I, (GASP), broke a few rules.

Alright, I admit, if you have followed me for some time you already know that breaking rules isn't new for me. After all, rules are made to be broken! But I have been a surprisingly good girl lately by following the patterns I sew as is. So it felt quite refreshing to mix things up again.

Are you looking at the pictures trying to figure it out? Let me help... I made the Kudzu Cargos and the Fawn Lily. Okay, the sleeves probably gave away the Fawn Lily, but you didn't guess Kudzus, right?
Let's take a closer look.

I actually didn't make major changes to the Kudzu pattern, and I just love how they turned out! For my girl I chose to make the skinny style. But, being that the weather is warming up rapidly this time of year, I decided to make a cropped length. First, I started by measuring my daughter's inseam. I eyeballed approximately the length I wanted and took note of that measurement, which was 16 inches for my size 6 girl. When I cut my fabric I took into account the hem allowance. It ended up being approximately 3.5" I off the length.

The next change I made was to forego the knee pleats. I used a very stretchy denim with great recovery so I decided to streamline the look by skipping the knee pleats. To do this I simply folded the pleats on my tissue paper, and taped them down, before cutting my pieces of fabric. It worked out perfectly, and I couldn't be more satisfied with the result!

Other than those two changes I made the Kudzus according to the pattern. And how stinkin' awesome are they! These crops will definitely be worn on a regular basis.

Now on to the Fawn Lily. You may have noticed that the front yoke has neither buttons or a crossover. That's because it's made with knits.

I decided to make this a simple, everyday tunic by using knit fabric for the yoke and skirt pieces and creating a basic front yoke. The knits allow the tunic to stretch enough that it doesn't need to open wider at the neckline to make it easy to get on. The sleeves are made with a light stretch twill. It is super soft and works superbly with the knit.

I trimmed the yokes with flat piping to help reinforce the neckline. All in all I love how it turned out and think that I will continue to play around with fabric selections and different yoke and skirt variances for the Fawn Lily.

I hope maybe I have inspired you to think outside the box when making your patterns. Understand the rules first, then break them to your hearts content! ;)

The Mulberry Tunic from Willow & Co Patterns

I knew from the very first moment I saw the sketches that I wanted to sew the Mulberry Tunic. This is the first pattern from Olga of Kid Approved. It was released as part of the Willow & Co Pattern collective for the Wanderlust collection. 

I LOVE this tunic. It is a totally timeless style with modern elements - such as such as button tabs on the sleeves and pieces that can be color-blocked.  And the hood! What kid doesn't love hoods?

Apparently R2-D2 likes the Mulberry Tunic too :)

Yes, we are gearing up for May the Fourth!

Since R2 (that's what his homies call him) is my son's favorite Star Wars character at the moment, 

I sewed up this Mulberry with an R2-D2 pocket.

The main body of the shirt was sewn using a yummy gray chambray. I wish I had like ten more yards of this fabric because it is awesome. It sews easily and looks great! It does fray easily, but since the Mulberry Tunic has some neat finishing techniques the fraying is no worry.

The front yoke and button tabs on the sleeves were sewn using a blue sateen. It has a nice tight weave and was so easy to work with. The fabric resists wrinkles pretty well, which makes for a lovely finish.

 Than I used a deep yellow, almost mustard colored, contrast thread. The bias binding on the neckline is this same yellow color. I love how the yellow thread really played up the details in the tunic and brought the colors together.

I made a size 12 for my son and the fit is spot on! He is getting so big that it has become increasingly harder to find sewing patterns that still fit him. That just makes the Mulberry all the more awesome!

 All in all, the Mulberry Tunic get s really big, HUGE, thumbs up! 

Thanks for checking it out. Stay cool! B)

Fawn Lily - pattern release

The long silence is over. My first pattern, the Fawn Lily, has officially been released!

 Can I get a "Woot, woot!"?

 The pattern was released along with 6 other amazing patterns in the Willow & Co Wanderlust collection.

Today I am on the Willow & Co blog talking about the Fawn Lily and sharing all the awesome creations my testers made.

Here is just a sneak peek of what you will see...

You will also find the links to all these great posts so that you can see more.

I have to give a huge shout out to all my testers. You have all been so wonderful and I am just in love with your fabulous creations! Thank you, THANK YOU SO MUCH, for being a part of this joourney with me!