Sydney's New Suit (George & Ginger, Patterns for Pirates Mash-Up)

 

I found this lovely plaid wool on sale at Fabricland, and knew I had to make something for my daughter.    It was difficult for me to put my ideas on paper and then find patterns for the outfit I had in my head.

 

YouTube Video of The Sydney Suit

 

As I knew I wanted to make some sort of suit, I thought the Downtown Coat from George & Ginger would be ideal for the jacket. (This is such a cute pattern, but unfortunately the pattern has been discontinued.)

Now to find the perfect skirt. After searching high and low, I could not find a pencil skirt with a flounce that didn't have a zipper.  I have a book I have called Improv Sewing.

In the book there are instructions on how to draft your own woven skirt, using knit panels. This way I didn't have to add any closures. 

 PERFECT!!! 

I thought. 

So the Sydney Skirt, as I'm calling it, it is a mashup of the Pirate Pencil Skirt, the method in the book Improv Sewing, and an added flounce.  



Pirate Pencil Skirt is a free PDF pattern, from Pattern for Pirates.  I just used the size her measurements fit. 









To make the flounce I cut off the bottom 8" of the below length skirt.  And then slit the fabric all along at 2" to create the flounce.  I followed this great tutorial on how to do it. How I create a flounce Pattern-- Sew Custom  I was pretty nervous since I'd never done anything like this before, but it all came together.  For the added fabric panels on the sides, I had to add 1.5" to each piece. I am so happy with how it turned out, my daughter loves it.

It all came together beautifully!!!! I am so pleased with this entire outfit.  It is definitely one of my more challenging outfits to date.

 

 

Finding a top to match is always tricky but thankfully my friend Heidi at Pollywoggles Patterns was doing a pattern test for some tops.  Enter Grasslands T-shirt.   Check out my next blog post for more info on the new release, but here's a sneak peak!!!

 

Just kidding ahhahaha

 

Grasslands t-shirt from Pollywoggles Patterns Blog post

We had a lot of fun taking some photos.   

Floor Pouf--Anmial Ball From Max and Meena

Welcome to the Spring Fling Blog Hop! 

  Sew Much Charm kicked off the Spring Fling with the  Spring Fling Giveaway!  A huge congratulations to the winners: Lorna P. of England & Patti V. of Texas!  Each prize package had a retail value of $191!

Let's keep the fun rolling this week with more sewing and more fun.  Sew Much Charm is now also hosting the Spring Fling Blog Hop and I'm going to introduce to you our Bloggers for the Blog Hop!

Be sure to check each day by 6AM (Central Standard Time)!  Each day there will be a blogger (or more) doing a giveaway!  So be sure to check each blog post & just comment on their blog post from this blog hop and you are entered to win! You will have until Friday at midnight (Central Standard Time) to comment away on each blog post for a chance to win! 

Monday - Sew Much Charm & Vlogger Sewing From Scratch
Tuesday -  TPtheModestDoll22 & That's Sew Venice
Wednesday -  SewGr8ful & Sequoia Lynn Sews
Thursday -  Let's Go Hobby! & The Sarcastic Sewist
Friday -  The Bear & the Pea Atelier & Wildflowers & Whimsey    

YaY it's Tuesday, that means it's my day, welcome everyone, I hope you enjoyed yesterdays posts.  My item is not super springy per say, but it was a fun project to work with my daughter on while we're all home.  Let me now present the Stuffed Animal Ball, by Max & Meena.   Make sure to comment below for a chance to win your own free copy!!!

My daughter has been wanting one of these for a while now.  Why is it called the animal ball?   That's because you use it to store your stuffed animals.  The side zipper makes it easy to get them in and out and keeps them nice and tidy while providing a comfortable place to sit.

I bought the pattern Animal Ball, floor pouf from Max & Meena, and have been waiting to have enough time.  Well, guess what???? I have the time.  I didn't get a chance to go buy any fabric specifically for this, and she does recommend a heavier weight then I had on hand.  So because of this, I made a few additions to my project to help reinforce it.


I hope it'll hold up to the 'love' I know this is going to be getting.  And Gizmo heard 'animal ball' and is trying to convince her it's his!  She was smart and put it in her room. 




This is a very simple pattern to put together.  Just make sure to prep your fabric first and get everything cut out.  We chose this super soft flannel and a pink zipper.

Like I said this pattern goes together easily.  If you are a bit hesitant about the curves you can easily put a few notches on the pattern yourself, and transfer to each piece to make it faster to line up, or just a mark at the fold, so you know where the center is.




When attaching the zipper I found the center of all three pieces, and then made sure it all lined up.












 Then just sew the sides up, and follow the instructions.  I chose to use a 1/2" seam allowance instead of the 1/4", because I know how badly this fabric frays and I wanted to give it a bit more stability in my seams.  I also serged the seams as well, to combat the fraying.

I pulled the fabric taut and topstitched down each side of the zipper so we shouldn't have to worry about any fabric getting caught in the zipper later.  Kids can be pretty rough on zippers.



Another tip I have is if you're using directional fabric put a clip a the top of each piece after you cut it, so that when you're attaching the sides you don't forget and sew one upside down (don't ask).

To further reinforce these seams that will have a lot of force on them I decided to top stitch each seam down, make sure to do this before you attach your final sections together to make it easier.  As I said it's totally optional, but I'd rather reinforce it now then have to go in and make repairs later.  I ended up doing two rows of top stitching on each seam, and around the top and bottom center sections. 





It was nice to share my sewing with my daughter and had her sew up a few of the seams as well, she's still terrified of the serger though. She enjoyed the ironing and thought it was satisfying to see it smooth out.  Home Ec at it's finest.

Now about the size.  This is pretty big!!! hahahaa  I am so glad used the small size.  I can't even imagine how big the other sizes are, definitely would work for an adult.  I didn't see any actual finished measurements online, but noticed in the group how big most of them were.  So I have stuffed it and we've sat in it, and I'll give you the basics on the size small.    If you want it even smaller you can increase the seam allowance, or print the pattern off at say 90% or something. 



It's a perfect size for your average pug or 10 year old though :D

Leave a note in the comments with more ideas of what you could store in your Stuffed Animal Ball, or what you'd use it for, and you'll be entered to win your own copy!!!!!

 https://maxandmeena.com/products/stuffed-animal-ball-pdf-sewing-pattern,


Other things you could fill it with to use for storage ideas:

Winter clothing, snow pants, jackets, mitts
Summer beach towels
Extra linens
Holiday linens 
Fabric scraps
Baby clothes you just can't part with.

                             And the winner is Julie BEE!!! 

Priscilla Top - Mamma Can Do It

 What a fun quick test this turned out to be. 

Mamma Can Do It

I'm in love with this pattern, it's so fast, and has a fun fit and flare shape to it.  The handkerchief hem adds a lot of nice movement, and can be hemmed or left as is.  It was so flattering on everyone that tested it, even the newborns hahaha. 

I did lower the neckline on mine, I wanted it about an inch or so lower then the pattern calls for.  Here's a video clip I did on how I did that.  It's pretty easy to do.  You just decide where you want the new neckline to lay, cut it and make your binding 85% of the total length of your new neckline.   I did hem the test one as per the instructions, and it was the perfect length, but for my final I chose not to hem, since that fabric draped so nicely as is. 

 Here's my YouTube video about how to change a neckline on any pattern.

(I would like to take this time to apologize for the horrible selection of thumbnails that were available ahaha. )

 

This is one of those patterns that is flattering on everyone.   There are 4 sizes available, baby, kids, women, and plus, so something for everyone for sure.  Make sure to grab your copy while it's on sale, and get a bundle while you're at it!!!! 

Collection: Priscilla Handkerchief collection

Moss -- Sofiona Designs

 Moss by Sofiona Designs. 

Well spring is supposedly on its way, so what a perfect time for a sleeveless top.  This pattern is amazing and so versatile.  It comes in 3 lengths; Top, Dress, and Maxi.

It has an option for an oversized hood and pockets, literally something for everyone!!!  My daughter's jaw dropped when she saw the line drawing, and I even sacrificed some fabric I'd been hoarding for myself.

I made an 8/10 mashup, and it fits perfectly, even the pocket placement was spot on.  I could hardly get it off of her for bed.  This is an intermediate pattern.  It's not hard, but there are some areas you need to be be very precise when sewing.  So just make sure to read through each step, and follow the directions.  I made 2 and they both turned out beautifully.

To add the beads to the end of the straps, I just waited until I was done, and used my loop turner to pull them through.  That said my beads had a very large opening.  If you're using narrower barrel beads I would leave the ends open, or just cut them off, slide the bead on, and then knot it.  It was such a quick and easy add-on, but I think it really makes the straps pop. 

This dress is perfect for summer, you can wear it over leggings or as a cover-up which is the intended purpose, since it pairs beautifully with the Narwhal swimsuit, also being released. 

The detailing on the front panel is so unique, and pretty.  I really love this pattern. 

Hop on over to Sofina Designs to get it on sale, with it's companion pattern the Narwhal swimsuit.  You can get the bundle here Swim Bundle.

And don't forget to join their pattern group for some help, inspiration, and codes!!! 

Sofiona Designs Fan Group