Sinclair Cassie V1 made of 43” of 52” wide dark sage cotton double gauze, size 4p, modified to remove gathers and wrap sleeve bindings.
My first time doing a pattern test for Sinclair I ended up being the pattern cover girl for the Linda pattern. I haven’t had time to sign up for a pattern test since, but when the Cassie top and dress was announced, it appeared I would have time to make it before heading out on a trip.
Cassie is a woven pattern, and I don’t have a lot of woven fabric in my stash besides the 18 yards of cotton double gauze I bought on clearance last year and a lot of quilting cotton. I was worried that the quilting cotton would be too stiff for this pattern, so I went with dark sage double gauze. But I waited for other sewists to post some initial photos of their makes before cutting. I wasn’t sure I would like the fit of the dress, which appeared to be fairly loose, so I made the top version in a size 4P.
I initially tetrised the pattern in Affinity Designer to fit in 1 yard of 58” fabric before realizing that my fabric was actually 52”. At that width it takes more than a yard of fabric, but i made it all fit in 43″.
The pattern was released for testing with only partial instructions, as the pattern designer made some last minute changes. She updated the instructions a couple of times to add the missing information, but never released the full instruction set. As I worked on my top, I periodically checked the Facebook group for the pattern test to see whether new updates had been released.
The top has a crossover V-neck with cute notches. I wasn’t sure from the line drawing that I would like the notches and was tempted to leave them out. But I’m glad I kept them as they are a really nice and unique detail. The instructions for facing the crossover pieces was pretty easy to follow. The double gauze was a bit of a challenge because it is fairly fluffy and thus hard to get nice sharp points, but I made it work. I regretted trimming the facing to 1/8 inch (as instructed), as it made understitching the gauze more difficult — next time I think I would clip the curve but not trim.
Other sewists complained that the V-neck gaps open — this seemed to be a big problem for larger sizes. Besides the gaping problem, people were complaining that the top was too loose, and some who tried adding the optional ties did not like the look. In addition, there were some complaints about the cap sleeve being too pointy. I suggested that the pattern designer offer a sleeveless option to address the cap sleeve problem, a suggestion she adopted. The pattern designer polled testers about some possible changes and a couple days later posted some new line drawings while she worked on revising the pattern.
I could see from the new drawing that I would need to start over to make the revised design. So I decided to go ahead and finish the top I had started in the mean time. I sewed on the “skirt” and was not happy with the look of the gathered front and back, which looked to me like a maternity top. So I took it apart and cut the gathered pieces down so they would fit in place without gathering. I also graded in the waist a bit and trimmed the point off the cap sleeves.
As the top stitching on the neck facing stands out in the double gauze I decided to mirror the look by making a hem of similar width. I serged the bottom of the top, folded it up .25 inch and then another 1.25 inch, and top stitched it from the front.
The last bit to figure out was the sleeve binding. The pattern included narrow bias binding strips, but the instructions did not detail how to attach them. Having done this sort of binding before for double gauze necklines (on my purple Alva top and my orange Meet You There dress) I had a good idea of how to do the binding and I knew it would be difficult with double gauze. Therefore i cut wider bias binding (1.75 inch) and attached it wrapped around the armscye edges.
I finished my Cassie V1 top before leaving town, and even managed to do a photo shoot. It looks great with my matching PE Vacation Vibes pants, but also looks good with other pants and shorts. it was fun to try out a new pattern and be involved in the discussion of what worked well and what needed improvement. I uploaded photos to the Facebook group right before the pattern designer posted the V2 pattern, but making V2 had to wait until I got back into town a week later.
Photos below of my hacked Cassie V1. The final Sinclair Cassie pattern is now available, and as you will see, no longer includes the crossover front or the horizontal seam in the back. But it still has the cute notches on the neckline and now comes with multiple sleeve options. I’ll post the top I created with the final pattern next.
Wow, I’ve sewn a lot of clothes! To make it easier to find my makes, I’ve put together this index page. You can look for garments by type, or by pattern maker. You can also use the search box in the upper right corner of this page to find more specific items.
The Pattern Emporium Facebook group is filled with lovely Spill the Tea tie-neck blouses. I don’t own any tie neck blouses or even very many woven blouses, but I was intrigued by this pattern, especially the cute cap sleeve version. I normally shy away from any blouse that needs to be ironed or buttoned and has fussy collars or ties that I find always shift around and look sloppy when I wear them. This pattern doesn’t have buttons but I was a little bit uncertain about the tie.
I don’t have a lot of drapey woven fabric in my stash, but I found a couple of yards of medium weight 100% polyester Florence stretch woven in flourishing lavender than I bought last year from Surge, and decided to give Spill the Tea a try. The Florence fabric has a subtle crinkly texture and has a little bit of body but a very fluid drape. It doesn’t need to be ironed and it stretches a bit. The lavender Florence seemed perfect for this blouse, and it allowed me to get one more make with purple thread before changing the thread in my serger (my previous three makes were an Alva double-gauze purple top, Nori purple batik quilters cotton pants, and Be Mine purple double-gauze jacket).
I selected the regular length with the shorter tie and opted for the cap sleeves. I proactively added a 1/2-inch sloped shoulder adjustment and raised the center front opening by 1 inch (both adjustments that I tend to need). I finished the bottom hem by serging the edge and folding it under 1/4 inch twice and top stitching.
The Florence fabric is a bit slippery and made this pattern more challenging. It does hold a press, but takes some effort. The edges start fraying fairly quickly. I made a number of sewing mistakes that required unpicking and resewing, but in the end everything worked out ok. My good sewing machine is still in the shop so I’m using my backup machine, which adds to the challenge. When I sewed the front center seam, I don’t think I used a full 5/8-inch seam allowance, and thus when I turned under the seams and tried to top-stitch them at 1/4-inch, the turned-under seams were slightly too small. I should have serged those edges before turning them under to make sure the turned-under edge was more than 1/4-inch. I also accidentally sewed one of the cap sleeves on inside out (nobody to blame but me for this). The tie assembly is clever and a little bit tricky, and I managed to sew too far into the burrito and sewed the opening closed. But I recovered from all of these mistakes. I did take the advice to hand baste the cap sleeve edges together, and I was glad I did. I was also glad to have a serger to clean up all the fraying edges. With all those mistakes, the pattern wasn’t as much of a quick sew as it should have been.
Despite the mistakes, the end result looks great and has a very professional-looking finish. I really like the folded cap sleeves (no hemming required), and may used them on other patterns. It looks good both tucked in and untucked. We’ll see whether I end up liking tie-front blouses or not. I see from photos that people are wearing the tie sloppy, so I guess that’s the thing to do. I found if I folded it in half before tying it was a bit less sloppy. It also looks good untied. I’m unlikely to wear it tied in a bow.
I don’t think I would sew with the Florence fabric without a serger or a pattern in which all the seams were enclosed. But I like this fabric a lot: drapey with body, a little bit of stretch, opaque, washable, and doesn’t require ironing. I will probably buy more and would like to try making some wide-leg pants with it (and possibly other tops or a dress).
Summer is here and I reached for a pair of shorts to wear out of the house and couldn’t find any I liked. They were all either shorts I wear for playing soccer, shorts I wear for sleeping, shorts that don’t sit where I want them to at my waist, shorts that I find uncomfortable to sit in, or shorts with inadequate pockets. Clearly I need to sew myself some new shorts.
I used the Pattern Emporium Just Peachy stretch shorts pattern to sew up some black PyLos LiKnit shorts. I used this pattern once before to make grey cotton Lycra shorts that I mostly wear for PJs (the yoga waistband is super comfy but doesn’t stay put as well as I would like when I put my phone in my pocket. This time I used the mid rise with the elastic waistband option. I went with length 3, stitched pockets, and back darts. I adjusted the pocket opening to be higher (basically used the bottom of the high-waist pocket opening) — this makes it less likely for things to fall out of my pockets without the need to increase the length of the pocket bags. I stitched the pockets with a zigzag stitch. Next time I will try to cover stitch. I do love the way the look of the binding over the pocket opening edge.
I used the AU10 pattern with the AU8 waistband. I should probably have graded the waist of the leg pieces to match the waistband too — next time.
The rayon/nylon knit LiKnit fabric is very light and these are super lightweight shorts to wear and pack for travel. They look almost like linen shorts but are much softer and easy to care for. They also dry quickly when you get caught in a rainstorm (ask me how I know).
The shorts are modeled here with a short-sleeve 4p screwp neck Sinclair Bondi t-shirt in aqua wide lush poly spandex from Mily Mae Fabrics (which I made last year and may not have blogged). Normally I will wear the shirt untucked but leaving it tucked in here so you can see the shorts waistband and pocket details better.
Overall, I’m happy with these shorts and I have already worn them several times in the hot weather, including on a trip (they travel well!). They fit well but I personally would like them to sit a little higher at my waist, especially in front. Next time I make this pattern I would add a bit of rise, perhaps somewhere between the low-rise and high-rise line, and narrow the pocket bags so my phone will stay vertical.
Sinclair Kai men’s t-shirt, size 38 with waist graded to 42, 1.5 inch shorter than regular length, 1.5 yards cotton Lycra
My husband loves to wear striped t-shirts shirts but finding good striped t-shirt fabric in anything other than alternating white/color stripes is difficult. I bought this yellow striped cotton Lycra fabric when I saw it about a year ago and finally got around to sewing it up last week. I used the Sinclair Kai men’s t-shirt pattern, which I used to make him a sage green short-sleeve striped shirt last summer and two long-sleeve shirts (plus the striped shirt I made him for our family photo shoot last December). He wore the sage shirt a few days ago and one of his friends was surprised to learn I made it and said it looked just like a shirt from the Gap. I used the size 38 short, graded from the waist up to a 42 width to give him a little more ease, and used the regular length hem shortened by 1.5 inches because he never tucks his shirt in.
I gave him his new yellow shirt as part of his birthday present. He seems to like it. It was also the right color for wearing to the Riveters game yesterday.
Pattern Emporium Be Mine Balloon Sleeve top, size AU8, 1.5 yards woven rayon, mid neck, regular length, wide facing, no front seam or button loop, sloped shoulder adjustment
Ok, ignore the silly title, but do check out the lovely balloon sleeves I just made. I do adore them! As with many statement sleeves, they don’t play well with most sweaters (better break out the shawl for chilly days and over air-conditioned rooms), but who wants to hide fun sleeves anyway?
I’ve been wanting to make a Pattern Emporium Be Mine Balloon Sleeve top since it first came out a year-and-a-half ago, but didn’t get around to it until now. I even bought the fabric for it a year ago – a light-weight woven rayon floral from knitfabric.com (yes they sell wovens too). I don’t love that you’re not supposed to put it in the dryer (I did wash and dry it before cutting it so that if it does end up in the dryer sometime it has already been shrunk) and that it requires some ironing, but it was nice to work with and it made a lovely top. (Photographed here with my PE Urban Boldly mashup pants in orange LiKnit.)
I made the regular length with the wide facing option and the mid neckline (after much debate and staring at photos from other sewists). I omitted the front seam. I kept the back seam but omitted the button loop (thus the back seam is really not needed but it adds a little detail). I also did all the optional top stitching (there were too many colors in my fabric to pick one that would blend so I used white thread, which provides a little bit of contrast). After reading posts from a number of other women on the smaller end of the size range that they were sizing down because this over-sized top was a bit too big for them, I sized down from an AU10 to an AU8. I also added a 1/2-inch sloped shoulder adjustment, as that seems to usually make tops hang better for me. Otherwise, I sewed the pattern as written.
The top fits me very well in the size 8 (I’m glad I sized down). I’m short so I could potentially shorten the top a bit, but I think it works pretty well at this length. I often have to shorten sleeves, and these certainly come out longer on me than on many other people, but I actually like how the cuffs sit a bit lower on my arms. I’m also really happy with the mid neckline, which comes out as a scoop for me — the low neckline would have been very low on me.
As with all the PE patterns I’ve tried, the instructions for the Be Mine top are quite thorough and easy to follow. I’m not going to lie — the facings and sleeve binding are a lot of work. I used my serger and my sewing machine with three different feet! But if you take the time to do them right they come out beautifully. I didn’t do everything exactly right the first time: I started sewing a sleeve band on the wrong way and started sewing a hem facing upside down. But I recovered from these minor goofs and got back on track and I still got the whole top done in one Saturday afternoon/evening.
Now I need to figure out what fabric to try next (something with easier laundry requirements, maybe a polyester woven or a cotton double gauze). I would also love to try this as a jacket hack so I can wear these gorgeous sleeves in cooler weather.
I asked my college student what she wanted for her nineteenth birthday and she asked me to make her another pair of her favorite black LiKnit “flowy” pants (PE Urban Boldly pants similar to mine, but adjusted for her taller height).
While I was at it I made her another cropped Bondi (size 4R but graded the waist to a size 0 and then graded the back waist even more, bottom cut at the horizontal waist line shown on the pattern) out of leftover cotton lycra fabric from a shirt I made my husband.
I made her a pair of pants just like this when she went to college, and another pair with the same pattern but in black ponte. I don’t think I have a photo of the ponte pair. She has apparently been wearing these two pairs of pants and the Cleo palazzo pants I made her on repeat all year. In fact I had to rehem two pairs of pants with frayed hems from dragging on the ground and reinforce some threadbare spots.
Bondi is my most-made pattern, and now that I have it adjusted to perfection, I’m making even more. I made two short-sleeve, screwp-neck, 4p Bondi shirts in one evening. I made one from a yard of seafoam and off-white pencil stripe stretch modal jersey that I bought last Fall from Cali Fabrics because it matched my seafoam pants perfectly. I made the other one from a yard of green frost ITY from stylishfabric.com (the color looks like avocado to me) that I ordered last year while collecting greenish fabric options for my daughter’s prom dress. I was in the middle of a lot of light green sewing so I decided to knock these two out before I took the seafoam thread out of my serger.
I cut the striped shirt out carefully and used my fabric glue stick to match the stripes. I was also careful with my placement of the blue stripe in the neck band. I think it came out better than my previous attempts at striped shirts.
I fused all the hems with HeatnBond Soft Stretch and finished with a cover stitch (which did require changing the thread after all, but I did this last after I was done with all my seafoam sewing). I’m still not great at cover stitching, but each time I do it I try to read some tips or watch a video and I’m slowly getting better at it. I can setup my Triumph for cover stitching pretty quickly now, and I have now mastered the technique of pulling the top threads to the bottom at the end so they can be easily tied off. I also realized I was using the wrong table attachment (the hazard of having too many accessories?) and that was making it harder to sew over seams.
I’ve spent the past few months pondering back and shoulder adjustments and trying them out. While making my first Wanderulst dress I realized I needed a swayback adjustment to remove the extra folds of fabric at the back of my waist. But I also noticed that my shoulders slope down quite a bit so I tried a sloped shoulder adjustment as well in my second and third Wanduderlust dresses.
I also noticed that my Sinclair Bondi t-shrts and sweaters didn’t look as good in the back as they did in the front. Here’s one that I made recently in size 6p from rayon/poly/spandex plum sibley brushed sweater knit from Surge Fabrics. The fabric is super soft and stretchy and it fits reasonably well but you can see some minor issues in the back.
Then I made a Bondi sweater with the sloped shoulder adjustment from a washable wool with only about 25% stretch. I noticed that I have more significant drag lines under my arm pits in the back, probably due to the fact that this fabric is not very stretchy. I posted photos in one of the online sewist Facebook groups and someone pointed out to me that my shoulders are both sloped and broad. I set up my cell phone behind me transmitting its camera image to my laptop so I could study my back, and tried on a bunch of different tops and jackets so I could see what was going on.
I made a Bondi t-shirt in size 6p with both sloped and broad shoulder adjustments (and bishop sleeves) from an aqua wide lush poly-spandex fabric from Mily Mae. This was better, but the drag lines were not completely gone.
After studying the black ponte Onyx blazer I made a few months ago, I eventually noticed that the top of the shoulder seam was not actually at the top of my shoulder and had a tendency to slip down my back. I realized that when I pulled my shirt or jacket forward to get the shoulder seam where it belonged, it tended to bunch up around my neck. And this is why I find it uncomfortable to wear most jackets with collars! I thought perhaps what I needed was a forward shoulder adjustment, which involves basically taking the top of the shoulder from the front pattern piece and moving it to the back. I went into Affiinty Designer and moved an inch of the Bondi tshirt pattern (already adjusted for sloped and broad shoulders) from the front to the back and cut out another tshirt. I didn’t take a photo, but the results were not great.
I decided to stick with the sloped and broad shoulder adjustment for my next Bondi in size 4p, made from purple (looks like magenta) monaco rib poly/rayon/spandex from Mily Mae. I think it came out pretty well, despite some minor back issues. I think I’m done adjusting the Bondi for now.
I bought three yards of a beautiful magenta ponte fabric from Mily Mae last year because I love the color (it matches the highlights in my hair) and I love working with this kind of ponte (67% Rayon/28% Nylon/5% Spandex). I thought about making a dress out of it, but eventually decided on a magenta suit. I already have a (store-bought, me altered) purple suit, but I don’t have a pink suit. Magenta is on the more purply side of pink, which means it can be interpreted either as pink or purple.
Unfortunately, magenta doesn’t seem to quite match either pink or purple threads, so I had to order several threads online until I found a close match that I could use for top stitching that would blend into the fabric. None of the Gutermann or Coats & Clark threads I ordered were quite right, but Amann Saba all purpose poly wrapped poly core thread tex 30 color 1059 did the trick.
I used the Boo & Lu Onyx blazer pattern for my magenta suit jacket, with the same modifications I used for my hip length grey ponte version with pockets. I had hoped to get the facings interfaced and catching in the top stitching properly this time, but still ran into problems that required extra gluing and fusing to resolve. I still feel there must be a better way to make the facings, and if I make another Onyx maybe I will figure out what it is.
I used the Pattern Emporium Urban Wide Leg pants pattern to make magenta pants to go with the jacket. I haver previously made three tapered and three wide-leg pants with this pattern (plus a few mashups with this pattern and the PE Walk Boldly pants). I made these size AU10 low-rise (which ends up being high-rise on me), with the waist graded in and the waistband modified to be a contour waistband lined in athletic knit and with elastic added. I added front jeans pockets with straight pocket openings.
Last winter I also bought some super soft purple 86% Poly/12% Rayon/2% Spandex Monaco Rib fabric from Mily Mae, and it turns out to be almost the exact same color as the magenta ponte. Why they don’t call them both by the same name is a mystery to me, but regardless, I clearly needed to make a rib-knit sweater to go with my suit. I used my favorite Sinclair Bondi classic fitted t-shirt patten in size 4p hip length with a screwp neck, adjusted slightly for a broad and sloped shoulder. I cover stitched the hems, using the magenta thread spool and a bobbin wound with the same thread for the needle threads.
The whole outfit looks great together, and I will wear it as a suit with my matching magenta booties! I expect I will also wear the pieces as separates. Although this is a color I wear year round (I also have a cashmere sweater and a winter parka in this color), to me it is really a spring color.
April update: I couldn’t resist some magenta jacket photos with the magnificent magnolia trees in front of my house!
Winters in Pittsburgh are generally relatively mild, but we’ve had more cold days than usual this winter, and the forecast for this coming week predicts more snow and below-freezing temps. I like the instant gratification of sewing in-season items that I can wear right away, so I tend to only sew warm sweaters in the winter and lightweight dresses in the summer. I bought a whole bunch of heavy sweater knits on sale at the end of last winter and only sewed some of them before it got too warm to contemplate wearing them. I was in the middle of futzing with suit jacket pattern adjustments, but decided this week’s forecast called for a new heavy sweater: Something warm and snuggly that can be thrown on over multiple layers and worn on repeat both around the house and outside.
I’ve previously made three Pattern Emporium Sweet Cheeks “roomy” sweaters. But I sized down three sizes to an AU4 and made them all at the cropped length so that they wouldn’t be so roomy. I made a brown mid-scoop neck and a green v-neck out of brushed hacci knit and a purple v-knit out of stretch sweatshirt fleece. This time I decided to go full-on roomy, slouchy and made my normal AU10 size hip length and with a v-neck. I made the pattern without any adjustments other than shortening the sleeves by 1 inch and slightly reducing the diameter of the wrist bands. I used Morraine double cashmere sweater knit from Surge Fabrics in the kelp color. This is a soft 320 gsm 44.5%Rayon/35.9%Poly/19.6%Nylon fabric with 4-way stretch. I used matching Banff ultra thinck 1×1 rib sweater knit for the v-neck, cuffs, and bottom band. (I like the kelp color, even though it isn’t purple. My daughter has a thrifted wool sweater in this color that she wears constantly and I had to darn it when she was home over winter break.)
I cut the sweater out yesterday morning and sewed it all together after dinner. I’m getting better at making all the bands, but they still take some effort. My normal size is, indeed, very roomy, but not too roomy. I think going one size down would still be roomy enough, and if I was using a lighter-weight fabric I think I would want to size down. The hip length gives a very different look than the cropped length, and I like them both. I’m modeling these with PE urban tapered pants in black ponte, but they also look great with leggings or jeans, including my wide-leg cargo jeans for a totally relaxed and slouchy look. (Also, I made the necklace at a ceramics party a few years ago.)
I was so pleased with my Pattern Emporium Sweet Cheeks cropped v-neck sweater in sweatshirt fleece that I decided to make another one in brushed hacci. This time I used the peat moss color of the versailles brushed hacci sweater knit from Surge Fabrics. This is the same polyester/spandex fabric I used previously for the scoop neck version in a different color. It is brushed on the inside so it is super soft and cuddly. Once again I sized down from an AU8 to an AU4 so it would be less oversized.
It was still a lot of work. I love the split hem band detail, but it takes some effort for proper alignment. The v-neck and the arm bands also take some time. That said, I did finish it all in one day yesterday (even with only limited use of my right hand after surgery) so it didn’t take that long and the instructions are very good.
One thing I like to do that isn’t in the instructions is to zigzag over the raw edges of the bands with a wide and shallow stitch before attaching them to keep the layers of fabric aligned and prevent them from curling under. It takes a little bit of time but saves having to unpick and redo when a layer slips out of place (which has happened to me multiple times on other projects). I’ve seen fabric glue recommended to do the same thing and I’ve tried it and found it doesn’t work as well for me as you have to wait for the glue to dry and on some fabrics it doesn’t seem to hold well.
In August 2023 I bought my first serger, a Brother ST4031HD that I bought on Amazon for $379.99. I paid a $100 premium for this “heavy duty” version rather than the very popular Brother 1034D, which is a very similar machine but known to struggle with serging fleece and heavy fabrics. Even so, it is still on the low end of serger pricing but offers pretty good bang for the buck as far as being a perfectly functional serger at a very reasonable price point, that is not too difficult to thread because it comes labeled with a color-coded threading system.
Even with the color coding, there was definitely a learning curve to figure out how to thread it and I did have to watch the YouTube video multiple times and use the tweezers it comes with. And sometimes I had to fiddle with the four tension adjustment knobs. And I did try to just use grey thread for as long as possible so I wouldn’t have to rethread the machine very often. And the machine sure does make a racket. Even so, I would probably have been content with this starter machine for quite some time, except that about a year after I bought it, I did something I shouldn’t have and broke it. I’m not actually entirely sure what I did, but in the process of disengaging and re-engaging the knife blade, I managed to swing the knife around into a position that it should not be possible to get it into and the only way I could figure out to get it out was to unscrew the blade, take it off, and put it back on again. I did that, but the knife would not cut any more. I took it off and put it back on again multiple times and then brought in my husband to try. He could not get it to work either. We inspected the blade and saw no signs that it was broken, and yet, it would not cut. I tried to order a replacement blade and found that the official replacement blades for this machine are very difficult to get and cost over $100.
So I took the machine to a sewing machine repair shop and asked them what to do. They refused to accept my “disposable” serger for repair, telling me that their minimum price for putting it on their repair bench would not be worth it for such a cheap machine. I did get the repair technician to take a peak without putting it on his repair bench, and he couldn’t find anything obviously wrong with it but thought it couldn’t hurt to try changing the blade. The repair place also sold sergers so I took a look at a couple of Baby Lock sergers they had on display and was intrigued.
When I got home I went back to searching for blades and found that inexpensive blades that fit other Brother models, such as this one, reportedly worked with the ST4031HD even though they were not advertised for that machine. So I ordered a new blade for $13.98 and then browsed the Baby Lock website. (We eventually fixed the Brother serger after my husband realized that the knife holder had been upside down when we screwed in the knife — it had appeared symmetrical but he finally noticed that it wasn’t. We rotated it 180 degrees and everything worked fine. But by that point I had already ordered a new serger.)
I started reading about Baby Lock sergers — they all have really positive sounding names. I started with the inexpensive Baby Lock sergers and worked my way up. Each machine had more features and I wanted all of them. Air threading, YES. No tension adjustments, sign me up. If I’m going to buy a new machine I want one that doesn’t require tweezers to thread or tension fiddling for every different kind of fabric. I was ready to buy a Baby Lock Victory (list price $1,649) but then I realized that it’s threading was only partially automatic. The Acclaim (list price ($2,749) had a more advanced threading and tension adjustment system. But then I realized if I went up a step to the Accolade (list price $3,849) I could also get cover stitch features. I had considered previously whether to get a serger or a combo serger/cover stitch machine, and settled on just a serger because the reviews of most of the combo machines complained that it was too much of a hassle to switch machines between serging and cover stitch mode. But, if the machine could thread itself automatically, maybe it wouldn’t be so bad. Maybe I do want a combo machine. I kept reading the web site and finally got to the ultimate Baby Lock serger: the Triumph (when they inevitably come out with a new model that is better than this one, what will they call it?). It is a combo machine with all the features of the Accolade, and a few extras, but most importantly, it has a knee lift. My Bernina sewing machine has a knee lift that I absolutely adore. It let’s me raise and lower the presser foot with my knee, without having to take my hands off the fabric. Since I use the same leg to run the peddle, I never accidentally start sewing without lowering the presser foot. In contrast, my Brother serger does not have a knee lift and I regularly forget to lower the presser foot, start sewing, and end up with a nasty thread nest. The knee lift sold me on the Triumph, but I was taken aback by the $5,499 price tag (typically available for about $500 less at sewing machine stores) — and the fact that buying all the accessories I might want for it would cost even more (another $1,500 or so).
I decided to read some reviews of Baby Lock sergers and watch some videos to see how easy or difficult they looked to use. I stumbled upon a review titled “Was it Worth it? Why I bought Babylock Accolade Serger Coverstich Machine” by Jessica Capalbo. I don’t know if Jessica gets a commission from Baby Lock, but by the time I got through her 6-minute video, I was completely sold. Besides her account of how much easier it was to sew with a high-end serger, her justification to spend the money on a serger if your hobby is sewing since other people spend money on ski vacations, completely resonated with me. I would have bought an Accolade right then and there, but I really wanted that knee lift, which required stepping up to the top-of-the line Triumph. In some of the Facebook sewing groups, people had mentioned getting good deals on refurbished Baby Lock machines so I checked out eBay, and sure enough found several Triumphs for sale. I found one in excellent condition that came with all the books and almost every extra foot (in a handy carrying case) and accessory that Baby Lock makes for this machine (not including a trolley — it is huge and if you want to take it anywhere you really do need a trolley with wheels) plus a DIY 3D printed thread bin that someone had made as the machine doesn’t come with a thread bin, all for $4,128.95. I decided to buy it, and a few days later it arrived on my doorstep.
(Incidentally, I briefly also considered the Bernina L-890, which is a similar high-end combo machine that also has a knee lift. People seem to really like the fact that a lot of the control is through a touchscreen with good instructions. But it’s list price is $7,999 and it’s fairly new and so it doesn’t have much of a used market.)
The first time I threaded the Triumph, I followed the instructions in the manual very carefully. It took some time to fully understand some of the diagrams, but once I understood what I needed to do I succeeded in threading it properly with four spools of black serger thread on my first try! With just a few adjustments to stitch height and width, I produced nicely balanced 4-thread serging stitches. I immediately noticed that the Triumph was much quieter than my Brother serger and sewed much more smoothly. I had two pairs of black pants cut out so my first project was to sew them.
After my triumphant first projects, I was traveling and busy for a couple of weeks. My next project was to serge the unraveling edges of a green shawl that a friend brought me. I showed her my Triumph, unthreaded the black thread, and started trying to thread the green thread. Only this time I didn’t read the manual carefully enough and inadvertently skipped some essential steps. I had to unthread and rethread a couple of times and learn how to change the needles after I broke one. But eventually I got it sorted out and produced a beautiful serged edge. After my friend went home I unthreaded and rethreaded the Triumph twice to make sure I could do it. I would say it is still not completely trivial and I could still easily forget a step, but threading a serger completely without the use of tweezers and having it sew perfectly without any tension adjustments is really awesome.
I read through the accessory book and watched a video on using the overlock table and fabric guide accessories and gave them a try. The table has a slot for the serger knife and gives you a bigger surface for serging and allows you to use accessories that normally would not work in overlock mode. The fabric guide makes it easier to sew a straight and consistent distance from the edge of the fabric. It will be quite some time before I figure out how to use all the other feet and accessories, and even though in theory you can sew with 8 threads at the same time, I probably won’t try it any time soon.
I finally worked up the courage to try cover stitching. This requires getting the included small screwdriver out of the convenient side compartment, unscrewing and removing the two needles, moving the needles over into cover stitching position and screwing them back in. While I was at first taken aback by the need to use a screwdriver and move the needles to switch back and forth between serging and cover stitching, it was actually pretty easy to do. It is easy to align the needles and see whether they are properly in place before screwing them in, and if you accidentally drop one while screwing it in there is a convenient drawer with a magnet to catch the needles that slides out from the bottom of the machine so you can retrieve the dropped needle without having to open or lift the machine. I selected the wide cover stitch and followed the instructions to setup three spools of thread. I sewed some practice cover stitches on some heavy sweatshirt fleece and admired the results. Then I tried a stretchy rib knit and was not as happy. After adjusting a few settings I decided that this stretchy fabric would be better off with a narrow cover stitch. I moved one of the needles and rethreaded it and tried again, and was pleased with the results. When I was done cover stitching I moved the needles and threads back to serging position without too much difficulty. I can see why a lot of sewists prefer to have a separate cover stitch machine as it would be annoying to have to switch back and forth multiple times during a project. However, I think as long as I’m doing most of my cover stitching together at the end of a project, switching is not too bad.
For my first big combo project I ended up serging four shirts and then cover stitching the bottom hems and sleeve hems of all of them at once. The shirts are made from a soft rayon/nylon/spandex Monaco rib knit from Mily Mae Fabrics. I used the Sinclair Demi and Tao patterns for the raglan shirts and the Sinclair Bondi pattern, cropped to the waist line for the short-sleeve shirt. I also used Bondi and color blocked the sleeves for the last shirt.
And I made a Sinclair Kai for my husband from a cotton lycra yarn-dyed rib knit in colors that coordinated with the kids’ shirts. (I’m wearing a Pattern Emporium Sweet Cheeks sweater in this photo that I made last winter in a cuddly brushed hacci sweater knit.) I was able to switch the serger back to serging mode and switch to off-white thread pretty quickly. But I was pressed for time and a bit lazy so I just zigzagged the hem on my sewing machine rather than switching it back to cover stitch mode again.
I’m looking forward to a lot more triumphant sewing yet to come!
This is my second Sweet Cheeks Sweater. I previously made one in a lighter weight brown brushed hacci sweater knit to go with my pink plaid Walk Boldy pants (but actually I wear it with all sorts of things). Last time I made the mid-neck cropped length, and sized down from an AU8 to an AU 4 so it wouldn’t be so oversized. This time I did the same combo but switched up the neck to a V-neck. I really like the V-neck but it was more work to assemble. The sweater has more structure with the sweatshirt fleece than the hacci, which gives it a somewhat different look and causes the cropped length to sit a bit higher (more cropped). I like it both ways!
I’m really happy with the sweater, but note that it includes several components that require an extra step or two in order to get good results. The V-neck and bottom bands (see photo below for all these sharp details and a peak at my Triumphant surging) require some extra basting and alignment and the sleeve cuffs must be gathered and basted too. The pattern comes with terrific instructions and tips for how to do this, and I’m pretty pleased with my results. All of these features add too a really nice looking garment. Still, these steps take time and effort. I think the sweatshirt fleece was a little less forgiving than the hacci I used previously, which caused me to go even slower to prevent any mishaps. Nonetheless, I already have plans to make this pattern again! At some point I would like to try the hip length version and maybe also a t-shirt version without the sleeves.
A while ago I bought a couple of yards of PyLos LiKnit in almost every color. I’ve previously used the black, seafoam, lavender, and linen colors. There are also several lovely warm Fall colors that I have been contemplating using in coordinating garments for months.
I started with a pair of orange pants (LiKnit “metal rust” color), very similar to my previous Pattern Emporium Urban Boldly mashup pants with the low rise size AU 10 Urban pants mashed with the Walk Boldly wide leg and a high contour waistband lined in athletic knit. This time I tweaked the contour waistband a bit from my last mashup and sewed half-inch elastic into the waistband.
I wanted a LiKnit top to go with the pants. I previously had made a black Sinclair Bondi LiKnit top, but I find the LiKnit doesn’t quite stretch enough around the bust and has drag lines, even though I sized up. I decided either darts or a boxier cut was probably needed for a LiKnit top so I went with the Sinclair Loop drop shoulder knit top pattern, which I had previously used to make a sweater. I made this one in Marsala LiKnit with the scoop neck, cropped length, simple hemmed bottom. I think this pattern works well with the LiKnit fabric. The LiKnit stretches surprisingly well for the neck band. I would like to try this pattern with a narrower neck band too. I think the split hem might also work well with this fabric.
I actually finished the top and pants back in August and took them on my Switzerland trip. I didn’t post these photos earlier because I have plans to complete my me-made Fall ensemble with a jacket made from light mustard LiKnit. But I’ve been super busy with other things, my sewing machine is in the shop, and I need to finish a quilt and some pants for my daughter before I sew any more clothes for myself. So the mustard jacket may not materialize for a while. In the mean time, I’ve been wearing the outfit with a store-bought purple sweater. I also have a surprising number of other tops and jackets in my wardrobe that go with orange pants… who knew?
Before I took my youngest daughter to college in August, she insisted that I make her some more black “flowy pants.” She has a pair of black LiKnit pants I made using the Sinclair Cleo pattern extended into palazzo pants that she wears pretty much non-stop. They have held up really well through lots of wear and wash and dry cycles. They are not stretched out and have no pilling. Unfortunately, they did come in contact with a spot of bleach, so there is a light spot that my daughter periodically colors in with a black sharpie. Anyway, she asked for another pair of black LiKnit flowy pants, as well as black ponte pants for cooler weather. She is about the same size as me but taller and a little slimmer so I used the same Pattern Emporium Urban Boldly mashup approach with the same base size as I used for my orange pants, but added 1.5 inch to the waist height (basically the high-rise version plus an extra half inch) and didn’t shorten the leg before hemming. The pants fit her very well and she loves them, but I didn’t manage to get a photo before she packed them up to take to college. She asked me to make another pair just like them in black ponte and send them to her.
October update: Ponte pants finished and delivered. She was wearing the LiKnit pants when I saw her so I got photos of the LiKnit pants (outside) and the ponte pants (inside).
Last winter when Petite Stitchery introduced the adult Dovie longlline crop and dress pattern, I knew my teen daughter would love it. Sure enough, I showed her the pattern and for months she kept asking me when I would make it for her. She picked out a 180 gsm light sage green polyester/spandex yummy rib fabric from Surge Fabric and I finally got around to sewing her dress. I sewed the size XS knee length option with the regular front neckline (there is also a lower cut option). The bodice is lined and I used the same fabric for the lining.
The dress was pretty quick to sew — I would have finished the whole thing in one afternoon/evening, except that I added pockets (not in the pattern) and that took extra time so I had to finish hemming it and sew the shoulder ties the next day. The pattern instructions were ok, but could have been clearer. I’m spoiled by Sinclair and Pattern Emporium, which provide very detailed instructions and tips in their patterns. This pattern offered on a little advice on what type of stitches to use (I ended up using a shallow zigzag on my sewing machine for most of it and surging around the waistband, pocket bags, and sides of the skirt) or detailed fabric recommendations for dress and lining (I lined it with the same fabric as the dress but saw suggestions in the Facebook group for lining with power mesh or athletic knit for more support). The pattern also inexplicably is calibrated off by a factor of 10. All of the measurements in the pattern have to be multiplied by 10 (my projector calibration setting is 12.8% for all the other pattern companies but is 128% for PS) — easy to do but why? This pattern uses the burrito method to make the lined bodice straps, and I would probably have been stumped by the instructions if I hadn’t just made a Sinclair Bloom top that used the same technique. I briefly thought I was supposed to attach the waistband to the bodice and the lining waistband separately to the lining, but after pinning it that way figured out that all four layers get sewn together at once.
The pattern suggested that this dress would require 2 7/8 yards of fabric, but from looking at the pieces for size XS, I figured I could make it in less than 2 yards. Indeed, I had almost half a yard left from my 2-yard piece of fabric. I think the crop top version could be made out of leftovers from other projects.
The pattern suggests adding clear elastic in several places, some of which didn’t seem necessary to me. I ended up adding clear elastic to the horizontal part of the front and back neckline as well as right under the bust.
My daughter and I agree that pockets are required on all dresses, so I borrowed the pocket pattern from the Sinclair Yasmin dress and added deep pockets that easily hold a cell phone. The waistband provides sufficient anchoring for pockets and there is enough room at the hips that the pockets do not show through the skirt (although if you put enough in them they will obviously show). My daughter went out with friends and put her phone and wallet in the pockets and came back and told me the big pockets were great and her friends were jealous.
My daughter is about 5’5″ and the knee length comes exactly to her knee. I’m a few inches shorter so would probably cut the skirt about three inches shorter for me.
This is a super cute pattern. The optional (and removable) shoulder ties take it up a level of cuteness too. The cup size options make it easy to get a good fit at the bust. In the Facebook group people report that if you use supportive enough fabric for the lining the dress can be worn without a bra.
After I finished making my daughter’s dress, I decided it was so cute that I needed a crop top for myself. Except I don’t actually wear crop tops so I took the size small Dovie crop top pattern and added an extra 2.5 inches to the waistband height (extending a total of 5 inches, but it gets folded in half). I used about 2/3 yard of lavender DBP.
I cut and sewed the entire bodice in about 2 hours, having already figured everything out for the dress. The waistband assembly is a bit different for the top, and that’s where I got a bit stumped and there was some trial and error until I landed on the following approach that worked very well for me. I sewed up the sides of the waistband to form a tube and folded it in half so that it has an outer and lining piece. I aligned and pinned the raw edges of the outer and lining and then used a large zig zag stitch along the edge to hold them together. Then I aligned the waistband with the bodice main and lining, pinned, and stitched all 4 layers together with a large zig zag. Finally I surged over the zigzags and added clear elastic to the seam as I went, giving it a gentle stretch. I didn’t bother with the shoulder ties since I expect to wear this with with sweaters or jackets.
It’s a cute little top, but I don’t think it is quite as cute as the dress. Nonetheless, it will go with a number of pants and skirts in my wardrobe, and I expect I will get a lot of wear out of it. I’m modeling it here with DBP Sinclair Cleo palazzo pants I made last year. The look is definitely enhanced with the the right bra (on me that means wide straps, padded cups). I think the straps are set slightly too wide for me, and possibly a tad too long, and if I make this again I’ll try to adjust that.
I had some lavender PyLos Liknit in my stash so decided to make a Pattern Emporium Songbird Kimono jacket to match. I used the crop length with the narrow binding and extended the binding to the bottom (as I have done previously with this pattern). I used 1-inch fusible knit stay tape again to interface the binding. I used the tapered sleeve option and shortened it by 2.5 inches. This is a fantastic pattern with very clear instructions and lots of useful sewing tips. This time I got it right the first time.
I have made several pairs of pants and a cardigan from PyLos LiKnit fabric and I adore all of them. I made a Sinclair Bondi elbow sleeve top from black LiKnit which is ok, but the LiKnit doesn’t really have enough stretch for this pattern without some adjustments (more ease or maybe adding darts?). Since the LiKnit behaves almost like a woven, I decided to try making a woven top with seafoam LiKnit and I selected the recently-released Sinclair Bloom. I made the sleeveless version at the shortest length with the rounded back neck. I treated the LiKnit fabric exactly as if it were woven, using regular straight stitches for the seams and top stitching.
There is some complexity to this pattern, but as usual, the Sinclair pattern is fairly detailed and pretty easy to follow. The front and back yoke are lined (I used the same LiKnit fabric), and the front yoke is interfaced with fusible woven interfacing. I used a medium weight, which was probably a little heavier than needed–next time I’ll try a lighter weight interfacing. The front and back have some gathers, which I’m afraid I didn’t distribute evenly enough, but they’re mostly ok. The sleeveless version uses the “burrito” method to encase the neck and shoulders, which is a fun technique.
Despite being a knit, the LiKnit fabric worked pretty well with this pattern. I may try one in another color of LiKnit with sleeves. I would also like to try this pattern with cotton double gauze.
I’m overall pretty happy with how this top came out, and it looks great with my seafoam LiKinit Urban Boldly mashup pants! In fact I wore this outfit to a conference last week and got complements from complete strangers. Also it was very light weight and packable, and doesn’t need to be ironed.
The Pattern Emporium Heartlight Stretch Flared Skirt pattern is a versatile pattern for very flattering flared A-line knit skirts of all lengths. It’s also super fast and easy, unless you’re me and you make it harder for yourself. I did two things that made constructing my skirt harder the first time (adding pockets and using a waistband fabric a lot firmer than the skirt fabric), but now that I know what I’m doing I can continue to add pockets and add firmer waistbands and it shouldn’t be too bad the second time around. And if you want to try either of these things, keep reading for some tips.
I was planning to use this bright floral DBP fabric for a dress, but liked how it went with my purple double-gauze pants, so made a Sinclair Bondi v-neck t-shirt instead. I also realized that the colors in the fabric coordinate with a number of other things I own (including my sneakers), so having separates in this fabric would be useful. I decided to make a skirt, and coincidentally Heartlight was the Friday discount pattern a couple of weeks ago, so I bought it and figured I would give it a try. I loved the shape of the skirts this pattern makes and the soft yoga waistband, but I was disappointed it didn’t come with pockets. I read on the PE Facebook page that people had added pockets, some using another PE pattern that I don’t own, and others improvised based on the pockets in PE pants patterns.
I cut the pattern out using my projector. I cut a size AU10 about 2 inches above the knee length (thinking that since this wasn’t a petite pattern, this is what I would need, but it actually ends up being more above the-knee than I was expecting). The skirt front and back plus the pocket pieces I cut used less than a yard of fabric. If you are taller or want a longer skirt it will obviously use more fabric, but the pattern has some tips about how to cut the skirt in pieces to use the fabric more efficiently and to allow this pattern to be used with narrower fabrics. Because DBP is very soft and stretchy, it does not have enough hold for a yoga waistband unless you add elastic or line it with another fabric. Especially since I was planning to add pockets, I knew I needed a different fabric for the waistband. I also realized that my floral fabric was very busy and might benefit from being broken up by a black waistband. I decided to use black 256 GSM athletic brushed poly for a nice firm yoga waistband.
I referred back to the PE Walk Boldly pants pattern jeans pocket instructions. As the shape of the hip on the pants does not match the skirt I could not use the pants pattern piece, but I improvised following the same concept. I made pocket rectangles about 6 inches wide and 8.5 inches deep, and then doubled them for the front and back of the pocket bag. I angled the rectangle to align with the skirt side seam and adjusted the top edge to align with the waist of the skirt. I opted for a straight slash pocket opening.
Once I figured out how to make the pockets work they were pretty easy to cut and sew. I stitched the top of the pocket to the skirt front, understitched and topstitched, then folded it in half, surged the bottom, and then basted the rest of the pocket top and side to the skirt front piece (ok I realize that really requires an entire tutorial and not just a diagram and single sentence unless you are already familiar with making these sorts of pockets). The pockets are big enough for my phone and are well anchored in the waistband.
My biggest problem came attaching the waistband, largely due to the difference in stretch and firmness of the two fabrics. I followed the pattern instructions and used the quarter method to distribute fabric and pinned in place with 8 pins. I knew that stretching the athletic knit waistband to fit the DBP skirt would be difficult, so I decided to machine baste it before sewing it together. It was a complete disaster, with parts bunched up too much and some parts not joined together at all because the waistband had curled under. I unpicked a few spots and tried to fix them, and grew increasingly frustrated as I went. I eventually declared it a mess and went out to dinner. After I came back I unpicked the entire waistband (easy because it was basting stitches) and started over. This time I started by basting the two edges of the yoga waistband together with a wide zigzag stitch over the edge. This ensured the two edges would stay together and prevented them from curling. Then I applied the quarter method again, but this time used a lot more pins. I machine basted the whole things and it looked much better. Finally, I surged the layers in place, stretching the waistband as I went. After that all that was left was to hem the bottom, which I did using hem tape and a zigzag stitch.
The end result is comfortable and looks good, and I even like it untucked too… actually I’m more likely to wear it that way. I like the fact that the skirt is a little big swishy, without having all the fabric of a full-circle skirt (I love those too, but not for every occasion) and that it doesn’t require any gathering to make it. I’m pretty happy with how the pockets came out, although with DBP you always have to be careful how you load pockets to keep them from stretching out awkwardly. The PE “foxy” pocket style would also probably work with this pattern. Although the firm athletic knit was a bit of a pain to deal with, it makes for a great waistband that feels like it will stay put as I wear it, even with loaded pockets. I might make a black skirt entirely out of this fabric. I would also like to try this pattern in a rayon ponte and also try a longer length.
For my husband’s birthday I made him a Sinclair Kai short-sleeved t-shirt in a soft yarn-dyed pine green two-tone striped cotton-Lycra fabric (looks like sage to me) from knitfabric.com. It’s an easy pattern to sew and it looks great! I previously made him two long-sleeve Kai shirts; this was my first short-sleeve Kai.
My husband loves cotton yarn-dyed knit stripes but they aren’t so easy to find in interesting colors (lots of blue and white or off-white stripes). I really like this green stripe and it goes well with all the sage and sea foam I’ve been sewing for myself and my youngest daughter.
I haven’t sewn many garments with woven fabric lately because I don’t like to iron my clothes after I wash them and I would also rather not deal with zippers. I also find knit clothes just tend to be more comfortable to wear. However, “fluffy” cotton double gauze is trendy right now, you don’t have to (and you really should not) iron it if you wear it crinkled, and when you use it for loose fitting summer clothes it is cool and comfortable and does not need a zipper. I bought three yards of purple fluffy from Mily Mae Fabrics and decided to make some woven palazzo pants.
I love the Pattern Emporium Walk Boldly and Urban knit pants patterns so selected their Vacation Vibes pattern for woven palazzo pants. The pattern has both a low-rise and high-rise option, as well as several pocket choices and options for subtle or dramatic flare legs. I love wearing high-rise pants so I went with the high rise waist, subtle flare leg, and foxy pockets. I cut a size AU10 short and made no pattern modifications whatsoever.
I washed and dried my fluffy fabric before use and did not iron it at all to keep it nice and fluffy. I projected the pattern onto the fluffy and cut it with a rotary cutter. It is a little tricky to sew because you want to avoid having it stretch out. I used a walking foot on my sewing machine with a slightly longer stitch length and surged all the seams after I sewed them to tidy up the edges. every time the pattern suggested pressing with an iron I ignored it, and just did some light finger pressing. I made a bias binding for the large foxy pockets (big enough for my phone without any modifications), but it requires several passes through the sewing machine to attach. By the time I got it attached it had stretched out a bit so I moistened the pocket openings with a damp cloth, reblocked them to their proper shape with my hands, and let them dry before I finished attaching the pockets. The pants were very easy to sew, and went together quickly. The waistband was super easy to assemble as there was nothing to stretch: I made a casing and threaded a piece of 2″ elastic through it. I’m 5’2″ and ended up hemming the short length 2.25 inches to wear with flats. The only time I touched my iron was to very lightly press the hems.
Here I am modeling the pants with my new Chorus top. I tucked it in so you could see the waist band but I will probably wear this shirt untucked. I like the subtle leg option, which is plenty wide on me. The dramatic leg could be fun with the right fabric, but may be more pants than I really need.
I thought the pants looked pretty good and were comfy to wear. But the rise was really sky high on me and the crotch was sitting pretty low. I am a big fan of high-rise pants, but as a short person, I sometimes find high-rise too high when there is no petite version. I also find I frequently have to size down and/or grade in the waist on PE patterns, despite choosing sizes that match my measurement. I decided to wear my pants to work all day and see how they did. They were comfortable and looked alright, and the double gauze was just right in both the 75-degree F outdoor weather and indoor air conditioning. but by the end of the day I was convinced that the waist was definitely too high for me. I also noticed that the pants slipped down a bit as I wore them and I kept stepping on the hem. The pockets were kind of droopy and I was concerned my phone could fall out when I sat down.
I cut off the waistband, removed about 2 inches from the top of the pants and graded in the sides from the hip up to the waist. I took about 3 inches out of the waistband circumference and sewed it back on. I think they fit much better now. They sit right at my natural waist rather than above it and there isn’t so much extra fabric around the waist. Next time I make these I think I would cut a size smaller (especially if I use double gauze since it stretches out a bit when you wear it), low rise, and still probably grade in the waist. I would also reshape the pocket opening to attach higher on the leg and hem them a bit higher. I might try a yoga waist band in a coordinating athletic knit (the pattern has instructions for that too!).
New photos show the reconfigured waistband. As an added bonus, since the pants are pulled up more the hems have risen and I no longer trip over them. I made a Sinclair Bondi v-neck tshirt (my first Bondi v-neck) out of a floral DBP in my stash to match the pants. I was going to make a dress from this fabric, but I liked how it paired with the pants so decided to make separates instead. I also like the shirt untucked. Skirt coming soon. I wore this outfit to work, and by the time I walked home it was 92 degrees F. The whole outfit was still comfortable, even in the heat and humidity!
