Well, I never had a sister, but I do have a brother. A talented guy who is the designer of Nina Kraviz's albums artwork (how COOL is that, I´m so so proud of him I had to share this!)

Well, and I never had a Sister mini quite like this too. The pattern is by Vanessa Pouzet and it is traffic stopping. Plus, I want that hair.


Don´t be fooled if you think this is just a plain skirt: there are 8 darts in total (4 exterior fabric, 4 lining) and really worked curves on the waist that go down to the hips to accomplish that fitted effect.
As I'm trying to build a well fitted and balanced wardrobe, I'm trying to get out of my comfort zone and sew things I normally wouldn't buy, but by adapting them to my personal style, so i feel compelled to use them.
I found some suiting fabric I thought would be suitable for this, because jacquard like that in the picture is really hard to find here in Portugal, unless you go to a tapestry and decoration fabric store, but I wasn´t sure about the weight and finished effect of it, so decided to start light. Besides, I don´t want to go walking down the street and hear "Hey, i have a chair with that fabric !".




First considerations: the pattern is easy to assemble and there is no cutting, you just join the sheets of paper as they are (meaning you have printed them 100%). The hardest part for me was to get all my darts exactly the same; as you now, I´m a steam power fan and my iron is always on when I´m sewing. This is definitely a pressure point and should not be rushed.
There is interfacing required for the waist line and along the zipper. I used a medium weight one to go along with the fabric, but either the fabric is too light for this or the zipper is too heavy, because I got a wavy effect along that line. Darts don´t look exactly the same either (though I measured and they were apparently equal!) so I got some pointing effect.
The zipper is separable and though in pictures it may seam like it will open, it doesn´t. I already test drived both of the skirts and it remains closed so no embarrassing moments expected, and you can use it backwards as well!

On a more personal note, my husband would like to thank Vanessa Pouzet for that ingenious zipper feature: easy on, easy out. Men.
It seams I only talked about faults here, but don´t be mistaken: the construction faults were my own, darts are no easy business, and I don´t expect perfection but wearability. If I saw it in a store, would I buy it, even with those little fitting issues? Hell yeah.

Do you know when you see a dress in a shop that is a copy of a high end designer? And you buy it because you would rather spend 30€ and look awesome than 300€ and... well, look just as awesome.

Patterns are the same: you can choose a free pattern, and play the lottery game of having to make alterations until your boobs don´t have pointers that could blind someone (though there are some free patterns that are excellent), or you can choose from a series of multi talented pattern designers which offer stop-the-traffic tested patterns for a very affordable price.

Isn´t it a wardrobe staple? It´s an explosion of style and I wanna buy make (we don´t buy clothes anymore, remember?) 5 of it at the very least.
For the pattern testing I couldn´t take any chances, this time I would definitely need to make a muslin. I had a grey linen blend (blended with some gin, thank you sir) I was saving for a Tessuti Alice Top but I knew it would be a match made in heaven for this.
For the muslin I made no alterations to the original pattern (except for skirt lenght, cause I'm a midget short) and thoroughly followed all the tutorial instructions. Although it is "Intermediate" rated, a courageous beginner would do it too. All steps explained, with diagrams, tells you how many seconds you should hold your breath while applying bias, you know, the usual.


The first draft had bust darts and these were a first for me. I had read a lot before about it and already knew a few techniques (like skipping the back stitch at the beginning) and it went smoothly, with a lot of steam power from my Rowenta friend and turtle pace stitching. Although the final version is dartless and fully lined, I zoomed these pictures to show you some construction details that are more noticeable in linen.






I found a gorgeous light twill for a second make, and although it's heavier than recommended fabric, it still has a good draping. For this one i used satin bias. Satin. Bias. What the fuck was i thinking? Sarah has developed a great tutorial for this here.

Making this dress gave me the perfect opportunity to shave my legs (I'm a mom of two toddlers don't judge me!) try new techniques and improve old ones, like the bias binding.  I begged Sarah for a lined version (and I bet all the other testers as well) and she indulged us! Seriously, the lined version is awesome because the back and front piece are whole, so how do you fully line it? Ahh, role in the tube is one of the ways I knew but, again, Sarah brings us a very very smart and easy way of doing it.
So, for the final version of this wonderful pattern I choose a beautiful silk fully lined with crepe. Again, what.was.i.thinking. It was hard working with it, but totally payed off for the end result and it feels like a second skin. I don´t need to talk about the perfect fit, do I? ;)






To celebrate the launch of this new Basics Line, Sarah is offering 30% off your entire purchase with the code CALIFAYEBASICS and you can find them here. I´m so grateful for this opportunity and loved loved loved being part of this awesome creation. <3

This blog post contains affiliate links but all opinions are my own.

Ohhh god, I can´t even. I.MADE.A.COAT. A real coat, fully lined, inseam pockets, a little yoke. I´ve made some coat wannabes in the past, from japanese patterns and Burda, but these were quite simple and had no lining, just simple facings, and I´ve been longing to do some serious sewing with a good pattern and instructions. I choose the lovely and trendy Brenna from Cali Faye Collection. This pattern designer is off the charts with style, it´s definitely my kind of wardrobe.

Construction wise, I was quite fearful my brain would tangle somewhere along the way, especially adding the lining, but fear not: it´s a lazy, beginner, fast friendly pattern.
I don´t know how she did it, but am quite jealous of the architecture of the coat. There are not to many pieces, so you won´t spend two days cutting fabric. There is no interfacing. The yoke and pockets are optional and if you dismiss these it´s even faster. There are no turn-and-loop-fabric-and-main-and-loop-again-and-turn-to-wrong-side-lost-me-at-loop tricks to add lining: the pattern pieces are very well constructed and, with no fancy high couture sewing, you´ll get fantastic results and a designer-look coat.
IF, and this is the tricky part, IF you can read and follow instructions bit by bit, you´ll get through it with no pain. I followed all the instructions like a bible, but when adding the base liner I complicated more than I should: inexperience and a little misinterpretation that I only fully understood by the time I finished it.
So, I´ll give you a quick glimpse of all steps involved should you decide to give it a go, which you should!

The pdf pattern assembly is easy and fast and I used the paper sheets since there is no overlaping pieces, just cut your size and it´s ready. Really go through the tutorial and mark doubts or things that are unclear; this will help you not stumble on some unexpected construction errors and make the sewing go faster.
Light weight wovens are recommended, but I wanted a mid season coat (also, it´s still cold here in Portugal!), so I used a linen wool blend I already had (and now know I committed a jewish sacrilege - ohh internet, the things you learn!) and for the lining I used a... well, it´s polyester for sure because it frayed like mad.
All pattern pieces have notches to match and I must tell you: i never ever made anything that matched so well at all of them (i never tried that hard anyway). For the lining yoke I used real leather from an upcycled old bag I had, and I wish it could have been better: the curve is not perfect as well as the topstitching, but it will do, I just wanted to add a little something special.


The inseam pockets were not that hard, the steps are fully explained and easy to follow; just added a little under stitching to the lining because it is very light weight and I wanted it to stay where it belonged.

Now, the lining attachment at the bottom is constructed in a very simple way: there are three pieces at the bottom (which are the same fabric as your main coat), you join them and sew them to the bottom of your lining, right sides together. And then I wondered, but what about the sides of it, where do they attach to the inner coat? It´s quite simple, you just fold the seam allowance in and topstitch, ha! By the time I understood it was this simple, I had already close them a more harder way (with no seams at sight).




Now, you must think I have a fancy modern sewing machine to make things like this, wrong: I have a very modest and simple Alfa next 20 and though I now feel I need more features, she still pulls it off. It has no stitch lenght option, just twelve stitches but has a great motor, as all Alfa have. That engine rocks and she has endured my stubborness on wanting to sew 4 layers of fabric plus filling plus bias plus whatever. With the right needle, with the right pedal control, she sews through everything. I have to work a little magic sometimes to get the desired effect, especially with topstitching, but I learned a lot from just learning to work with it (it comes with a great instruction manual and some online videos that guide you through all those beginner steps).

The fit is obviously great and there is an optional button mark for closure, but I left it open because those front flaps have a gorgeous draping and should be honoured. I finished it in two days, from pattern assembly ´till sleeve closing, and did not work in a hurry. Prepare your work in advance, needles, threads, iron always on, and you´ll do it in a breeze. I thought I was too lazy to do such a multiple step project, but I was wrong. And so are you, if you think that too. I think sewing is also a matter of the heart, and nothing can go wrong when love is around.

This blog post contains affiliate links but all opinions are my own.