Tag: ruffles

Review || Fibre Mood Paulette Blouse

When I saw the previews for issue 13 of the Fibre Mood Magazine, I was awestruck with the flirty and fun nature of the Paulette Blouse.  This button-up top has a ruffle starting from one princess seam running around the back to the other.  The hem line runs straight and hits right at the high hip.  With a band collar and two-button cuff, this blouse has all of the features of a classic shirt, but has that feminine touch with all the ruffles! We’re still in a life of Zoom calls, so statement blouses are all on trend.   That means the prairie influence of last year is hanging around even a little longer than trends generally go — YAY!  I know not everyone is into that “cottage-core” style, so updating it with the right fabric can make the look last a little longer than the all-out trend.

FABRIC

I LOVED the sample version of the Paulette when I first saw the stock photos!  Is anyone not surprised it made the  cover of Issue 13?  There was just something with the directional play on stripes and the classic mix with softer ruffles that just really worked for me.  But, of course, I wanted to make this blouse with my own spin… While in the middle of deep Ohio snow, I knew I needed to start thinking about warm weather and spring clothes.  This cheerful green and white striped lawn came up in one of my late night searches.  While I initially found it on Fabric.com, I was worried about delayed shipping times (due to COVID-19) and not being able to make my FM ambassador deadline.  PRO-TIP ->  I checked  Amazon to see if they carried the same fabric (since they also own Fabric.com.)  If you have a Prime Membership, many times you can get the same fabric cheaper AND faster than if you purchase through Fabric.com.  I even have a business account with Fabric.com and it turned out Amazon + Prime was still a better deal!!! #winning I chose to use lawn since it’s very lightweight and breathable — perfect for warm weather.  However, it also tends to be semi-sheer.  So lawn is great for blouses and other tops….but you will definitely need a lining for a dress or pants.  The other great feature of lawn…especially 100% cotton version, is that it holds great structure while still having a soft hand.  While the fabric is light, you can really get great body and volume that won’t cling onto every curve and still make  some gorgeous statement ruffles!  If you like the look more of the FM cover sample, something more drapey like a rayon challis or light tencel twill would give you that look. This fabric purchase was made on a whim since I loved the green and white stripes.  And…I’m happy to report I would definitely buy it again.  It washes and dries well since the fabric is 100% cotton (and I do NOT like to line dry if I don’t have to!)  It sews up easily without shifting issues like your typical quilt cotton.  Since the fabric is lightweight, I did drop my regular needle size down to 70, but used my normal all-purpose Gutermann white thread for construction.

PATTERN

Fibre Mood sells their patterns either as a full set through their magazine (definitely a great deal if you want 3 or more patterns) or digitally, a la carte.  The instructions are available to any registered user through the website (in 5 different languages!) which is a really generous feature.  So, you can read through the complete instructions and understand the steps BEFORE buying the actual pattern! I printed the Paulette pattern at home and loved being able to uncheck the other tiled sizes I didn’t need.  While it’s definitely more labor intensive to print and assemble the pattern at home, I was working against the clock and with bad weather conditions, I didn’t even want to send the A0 copy shop version out to the local printer. For this Fibre Mood pattern, I measured as an 8 in the bust and waist, while also being  a 12 in the hips — which is typical for my body.  Construction went very well with the ample amount of notches (I do love them!) and the great instructions.  I have made many other blouses with button plackets like the Archer and Aida tops, so I knew what to expect. Overall, I stayed true to the pattern and made only the following modifications:
  • Graded the waist out to a 12 in the hip
  • Used a 1/4″ hem instead of 3/4″ to lengthen the top.  Next time, I may add an extra inch for more coverage to tuck in…and I’m only 5’3″!
  • Increased the overall bust by 1/2″ by letting out 1/8″ from each princess seam.  The finished measurement of the blouse is suppose to be ~40″.  But when I tried on the blouse, it was pressing against my chest as I moved and didn’t have nearly the ease as it should.  Even after releasing that 1/2″ from the princess seams, the finished bust measured at 39″ and not 40″ as stated.  My pattern pieces and seam allowances were correct, so I would highly recommend a muslin and/or sizing up if you are in-between.
This Fiber Mood Paulette was a great sew and I love the final results!  This is a nice fresh take on the ruffle blouse and makes me long for some sun and warmer temperatures!  What’s on your spring maker list?   Hugs and Stitches, Cristy
Please note, I am on the Fibre Mood influencer team and an affiliate member. I received this pattern for free but was not obligated to write this blog post.  This post may also contain affiliate links.  Please read my disclosures here.
Derby Dress by Love You Sew

Derby Dress: Maxi Hack

Derby Dress Maxi Hack by Love You Sew

I was so excited when D&H Fabrics approached me to collaborate with their exclusive fabric collection with Katie Kortman.  I was asked to make something using one of the three available prints and I knew I would have to make a statement maxi dress using the Dash fabric with the Derby Dress pattern by Christine Haynes.  Katie’s designs are always so colorful and dramatic.  I wanted to make a garment that’s also fun, bold, yet approachable – like the designer, herself!

The Derby Dress (aff link) pattern has been in my library for awhile now.  I’m a sucker for the classic feminine styles which Christine has in her patterns.  I made the knee-length version a few years ago with a rayon challis and it’s still on rotation in my closet.  So I knew a full maxi version would get the same wear…if not more!

Fabric

After checking out the available prints at D&H Fabrics, I fell in love with the vibrant pink and red Dash.  There was just something about these analogous colors that pulled me in.  I admit my garment fabric game is a bit neutral (aka boring) so it felt good to step out of my comfort zone a bit…especially for summer!  If you follow Katie on IG, you know she has her own personal movement to get more of us sewists to use fun color combos.  I SO appreciate the extra fun inspiration and color push 😉

This gorgeous print is made of a 56″ wide lightweight rayon poplin which is incredibly soft with a soft hand and beautiful drape. The tight poplin weave makes the fabric easier to handle than a rayon challis which is much more slippery. With this more delicate fabric, I like to use a smaller universal needle sized 75/11 or 70/10.

The fabric design is printed directly on a white basecloth and washes very well. Most of these pictures were taken after three washes and yes, even with delicate tumble-dry.  (I wash my handmade garments along with my RTW.)  The colors remain saturated and I even sweat through this for hours in 90* heat.

Pattern & Modifications

As I mentioned above, I’ve made this Derby Dress by Christine Haynes before and love the flirty ruffle feature — plus it has pockets!  I actually use this pocket pattern as my go-to for any dresses which need an in-seam pocket.  It’s just a nice shape and perfect size for my hands.  I’ve used these pockets on my Sylvie seen here, and my Alix dress found here.

The front of the Derby is drafted with 3 separate panels for princess seams and the back has 4 panels for additional shaping.  This is great for a solid fabric or a busy print, but I didn’t want to disrupt the dashes in this fabric design.  I definitely did not have enough fabric for all of the pattern matching either…nor the time! So, I used a RTW maxi dress from Target (aff link) I have to work out the width and length of the dress.

I laid the RTW dress over the fabric on the fold and used the facing of the Derby to cut the top of the dress (of course, adding in seam allowances.)  The Derby uses two different facings for the front and back, but I took the easy route and made my front and back pieces identical since all of the panel seams we eliminated.   I then cut out two of the front facings on their own to match the front and back of the Derby.  The straps were later shortened to account for these changes to the neckline.

With the dress lengthened out to a maxi, I also extended the length of the neckline ruffle by 1″ to balance the proportion.  I though the ruffle would be cute on the back as well, but it ended up being  a bit “too much.”  Sometimes you have to know when to edit, and the back looks much better with a clean line.  To play with the neck ruffle, I also added a 7 1/4″ (finished) x WOF ruffle to the bottom of the Derby to make it as close to the ground without touching as possible.  It adds to the flirty feel of the dress and adds some extra swing.

I LOVE how this maxi version of the Derby came out.  The print needed to become a statement dress and I can definitely tell you it turned a lot of heads at the airports!  The lightweight rayon poplin was just perfect with the dress pattern for all the great movement.  It’s the perfect summer dress for travel and pairs beautifully with my vintage denim jacket….so that means I can also extend the season on this make! Yay!!!

Derby Dress by Love You Sew

Project Summary

 

Are you a bold and colorful person or usually a bit more reserved and neutral like myself?    I have to admit that stepping out of my usual color scheme was a lot of fun and I’m reaching for this dress a lot more than I thought I would!  Try it out if you haven’t already!!!

 

Hugs and Stitches,

Cristy

 

The fabric for my dress was provided by D&H fabrics for advertising but I was not contracted to write a blog post.   As always, I like to share my makes and good fabric finds 🙂  There are affiliate links in this post and you can read up about my disclosures here.