Tag: dana willard

Summer Day Top Review

2 Comments

I can’t believe the “unofficial” end of summer is near!  My kids are starting school in less than a month and all of a sudden I’m thinking about all things fall.  But I’m trying to hold onto the warm temps, lazy mornings with my boys, and days at the pool for as long as possible.  The Summer Day Top by Dana Willard is helping me do that.  I can wear “Summer” all year now!

First off, I want to mention how well written and thorough the instructions are in this pattern.  If you are a beginning sewist and new to garments, Dana walks you through the whole sewing process – from printing the pattern to selecting the right fabric to explaining all the technical terms.  I was very impressed!  The graphics are clean and simple to understand, but there is also a good bit of further explanation into adjustments and why the construction is the way it is.

The Summer Day Top was drafted for both woven and knit fabrics (bonus!)  I decided to use this Observer quilt cotton by April Rhodes for Art Gallery Fabrics for my make.  I’ve been sitting on this fabric for such a long time and knew it could be a striking garment.  But, I had to find the right pattern with it being a stiffer substrate.  Plus, I didn’t want a pattern with gathers that would distort the shibori’s composition.  I really wanted the fabric’s design to really shine through.

Quilt cotton is a wonderful substrate for a beginner.  The non-stretch nature makes it easy to sew and iron.  However, it holds more body which I love around the torso, but didn’t want in the sleeves.  Granted, I could have selected a fabric with more drape like a rayon or gauze, but I was pretty keen on sewing what I had. (Cheers for sewing my stash!)

You can see (on the right) how the sleeve holds shape with the quilt cotton.  My arms make me a bit self-conscious so I don’t like them highlighted (unless it’s to cover them up!)  So I tried to change the shape of the sleeve as if it were a more drapey fabric, as seen on the left.

What did I do?  I just added a few 1/4″ pleats centered at the shoulder seam. I played around with the number and width of the pleats until I was pleased with the shape, but still allowed the same movement around my arm as before.  I’m so pleased with the look of drapey sleeves, the body around my torso (more forgiveness after dessert!) and the ease of sewing quilt cotton.  You can’t beat that!

The Summer Day Top is a quick sew as well.  The neckline is finished with bias tape, which I made out of the same fabric, but you could buy pre-made tape from your local quilt shop to save even more time.  I chose the short-sleeve version, so everything else was finished with a hem.

Are you ready to make your Summer Day Top?  I’m already getting lots of use out of this top and love how I look put together…even in my ripped up jeans!

Project Details:

Happy Sewing Friends!

Cristy

The pattern was gifted but blog post was not required. I thought this pattern deserved a review though 🙂 All opinions, modifications and fabric are my own.  Please also note, there maybe affiliate links in this post, which helps to keep this website going.

Art Gallery Rayon :: Cookie Blouson Jacket

6 Comments

I’m kicking things off with Art Gallery Fabric‘s Rayon Blog Hop today!  Rayon is their newest substrate and I can’t even tell you how much I luuuurve it.  I was lucky enough to get an advanced preview when April Rhodes release her Heritage Fabrics and I just am obsessed with the drape and feel of this fabric.  You can read more about it here.

When most people hear “Rayon,” they think of summery dresses or slippery nightgowns.  But in this blog hop, we were tasked to come up with other ways to use the fabric.  As fall was approaching and while I was looking through the fashion blogs, the maker light bulb went off when I started to see bomber jackets.  The 90s fashion trends are back (some I’d rather not relive…) and I thought a fun bomber made of rayon would be perfect to ride the satin and army green trends showing up on the streets right now.  Check out my Pinterest Board here to see my inspirations.

I’ve had my eye on the Cookie Blouson by Waffle Patterns for awhile now.  The design is a great feminine take  on a track jacket with the gathered sleeves and gathered body around the yokes.  Even though it’s a track style versus a bomber, I knew this pattern would give me the same feel…The only difference  is the collar.

I was in-between sizes per the measurements, but after reviewing the finished measurements, I decided to size down for a more fitted look.  With the fabric and bold pattern, this jacket would look great in heels as much as in sneakers 🙂 I wanted to make sure it would be a great jacket to wear indoors and out.

For the right statement fabric, I chose Floret Sunkissed from the Blush fabrics collection by Dana Willard as the shell.  For the interior, I used Hex Rose from the same collection, but in quilting cotton.  AGF Solid Knit in Sahara Sun was a great complementary color to really make this jacket pop and add some fun!

While working through the jacket, it was very important to reinforce the high stress areas since rayon is so delicate.  I used Pellon 906F interfacing around all the metal zippers (due to their extra weight) and even on the exterior yokes to provide some additional structure as well.

These zipper pockets are such a great detail.  However, the pattern called for a 5″ zipper opening.  After taking 1/2″ allowance away for the zipper head and stopper, I would be left with a 4.5″ opening….which is pretty tight (and I have small hands!)  I increased the opening to 6″ for a little more room to maneuver because I HAVE to use pockets if they are there.

With the track collar, I wanted it to stand up when zipped, but it also needed to handle the weight of the metal zipper.  So I doubled up the layers of the Solid Knit jersey.  Not only does the collar stand up (mission accomplished,) but it keeps my neck extra warm!

For the construction of this jacket, I used Polyester thread throughout for the strength.  A jacket is going to experience a good bit of wear and this thread allows for a bit more give and movement.  However, I used matching Sulky Rayon Thread for all of the top-stitching to match the sheen of the fabric.  I’m pretty hooked on the look of rayon thread….it’s so beautiful!

The Cookie Blouson pattern itself, was not too difficult.  Even with the zippers, I would rate this as advanced beginner.  But then came the lining…   It was a free add-on via a few blog posts by Waffle Patterns.  The pattern designer’s first language is not English, so the translations were a bit rough.   I was pretty frustrated at some points, but made it work.  I would consider the lining at an intermediate level because you are essentially drafting your own pattern pieces.  If I would’ve known this beforehand, I probably would’ve skipped the pattern altogether because I needed a lining with a rayon shell.  But, of course, I love the final product 🙂


I’ve made a handful of Rayon garments, and have a few tips I’d like to share:

  • For accurate cuts, I cut on the floor for an even cutting surface…especially if you are pattern matching.  Any fabric hanging off the edge of a cutting table can pull and distort your cut.
  • Don’t be shy with fabric weights.  This points to the slippery and shifty nature of rayon.  You want an even and accurate cut.  Iron and smooth out your fabric with your fabric aligned and then set the weights down.
  • A small rotary cutter is great to cut out patterns because scissors can cause movement and shifts in your fabric as you cut.  (This doesn’t matter as much if you aren’t pattern matching.)
  • I use ultra fine pins (with the blue heads, shown above) for construction.  The traditional quilting pins (with the yellow heads) are a bit larger and can cause pulls in the fabric.  With the slippery rayon, I also use a lot more pins that I would with cotton – probably twice as many to keep my fabrics aligned together.

Project Summary:

  • Exterior Shell Fabric:  Floret Sunkissed Rayon by Dana Willard for Art Gallery Fabrics
  • Lining Fabric: Hex Rose Quilting Cotton by Dana Willard for Art Gallery Fabrics
  • Accent Knit: Sahara Sun Solid Knit by Art Gallery Fabrics
  • Pattern:  Cookie Blouson by Waffle Patterns
  • Piecing Thread:  Gutermann Polyester
  • Top-Stitching Thread: Sulky Rayon 50 wt
  • Zippers: YKK Brass separating and jeans zippers in Camel by Wawak Sewing Supplies

Don’t forget to stick around all this AND next week for the rest of the #AGFrayonbloghop.  I’m so excited to check out all of the projects alongside you!

Monday, October 9 – Cristy @loveyousew_ (you are here!)

Tuesday, October 10– Nicole @modernhandcraft

Wednesday, October 11 – Sarah @sariditty

Thursday, October 12 – Jesy @needle_ink_and_thread

Friday, October 13 – Danyella @madesewmodern

Monday, October 16 – Nichole @wildboho

Tuesday, October 17 – Cynthia @cnytz51

Wednesday, October 18 – Vicki @orchidowlquilts

Thursday, October 19 – Amanda @pinkmandarinhandmade

Friday, October 20 – Jenn @jennrossotti

I hope you have found some inspiration or just enjoy some fabric eye-candy!  Do you have a rayon project lined up or on the wishlist?  I’d love to hear what you would make.

 

Happy Sewing Friends!

Cristy

 

***This post was sponsored by Art Gallery Fabrics.  While the fabric was provided for the post, the ideas, execution and post are all my own work and words.  Please also note there are affiliate links which help run this blog.  Thanks for your support!