Hi, I’m Beck, and this is what I sew!

When I first thought about starting a sewing blog, one of the thoughts holding me back was “but what about all the lovely things I’ve already made that I won’t get to blog about?”

I guess you might call this the fallacy of costs not sunk…

The idea of this blog is that I want to show you my makes right after I make them – it’s much easier for you to learn from my mistakes if I can remember them!

But, exceptionally, at the outset, I thought I would take you through a tour of some of my favourite things that I’ve made over the past few years. On today’s wardrobe stalking tour, the following makes will be on display: Colette Ceylon dress, Sew Over It Vintage Shirt Dress, Sew Over It Betty dress, By Hand London Anna dress, Megan Nielsen Tania culottes, Victory Patterns Ava dress,  Sewaholic Cambie, Sewaholic Saltspring and Papercut patterns Yoyo dress (well, kind of, more about that later).

Plus, the most important sewing tip in the known universe

And, most importantly – here’s the teaser –  I will use this retrospective as a chance to share with you my BIGGEST, MOST IMPORTANT, MOST SEWING LIFE-CHANGING tip (but for that, you’ll have to scroll down through my lovely dresses first …).

You see, preparing this post made me realise just how many things I have sewn over the years are NOT in my wardrobe. A lot of what I sewed as a beginner has ended up in the trash heap.

Dear sewing friends, I really want to save your makes from a similar fate.

Sew, let’s get started.

Colette Ceylon

This is my “come fly with me” Colette Ceylon, made out of this absolutely gorgeous fabric from Atelier Brunette. My if-I-win-the-sewing-lottery dream would be to stitch my way through every single fabric in Atelier Brunette’s collection. Just imagine …

This Ceylon dress is special to me.  It crossed my path at a time in my life where it served a very important purpose. Sometimes our connections to clothes can be more emotional than aesthetic, right?

This Ceylon dress was my saviour during the summer when I was at home on maternity leave, nursing my baby boy. Before my son was born, it hadn’t crossed my mind that nursing a baby resulted in very specific wardrobe needs. I realised only after his arrival that I didn’t have a single piece of clothing that: (a) opened in the front and (b) could cope with the fact that for the first time in my life I actually had more than an A cup!

So to the internet I went – in search of front-opening dresses…

Sewing with a baby …

I sewed most of this Ceylon with my sleeping son attached in front of me in a baby carrier. Yes, it is possible! To this day, however, I desperately wish it were possible to have an iron with an on/off switch. It was one thing to sew with him in a carrier, but constantly bending down to unplug the iron with him attached to me, a few weeks post-partum …

That nearly killed me!

As well as reminding me of a time in my life that was otherwise a blur, this Ceylon also reminds me that sometimes good things can come of being forced by circumstances to sew outside of my usual style.

While I like the feminine and vintage feel of the dress, there are a few details that just aren’t me, most significantly the drop waist. On this version, I have significantly shortened the length of the waist. Even with the shortened waist, it’s still out of my comfort zone. Yet, every time I wear it again, I am actually pleasantly surprised to realise that I kind of like it. Today, it looks like it could definitely have done with an SBA, but at the time that this dress saved my life, it fit just right!

Snap and go! Hmmm … no!

And speaking of bust access, the other change that I made on this dress is replacing the buttons with set-in snaps.

After I read this article in Seamwork magazine, I went through a bit of a snap phase because, well, frankly, I hate doing buttons. I’m never happy with the results and placement. And when you feel like you are sooo close to finishing a project, buttons seem to take way too long.

I thought I had found the solution to all my problems with snaps. Not true, people. Turns out, I had just found a new set of problems.

While snaps may be fast, I kept having serious quality control problems.

If anyone can recommend good quality snaps to me, please do!

The only snaps I have been able to find are cheap plastic ones more suited for craft and children’s projects. As a result of which, they often fail! The plier-thingy (watch out – I’m getting technical here) doesn’t press the plastic in precisely the right way and I often ended up with a ball that doesn’t quite fit into its socket. Which is a big problem because once that snap is pushed in place there is nothing you can do to remove it and rectify the situation (without just having a massive hole the fabric, which can’t really be turned into a buttonhole or anything useful).

I have another dress on which all three of the snaps at the top of the dress failed in this way. I literally ended up sewing in tiny little Velcro patches to try to hold it all together because I didn’t know what else to do! That’s right. Velcro closures.

Needless to say, I have learned to cope with my hatred of buttons and my collection of plastic set-in snaps its gathering dust in the corner of a cupboard someone.

It’s just not worth the risk.

Sew Over It Vintage Shirt Dress

Speaking of buttons, what do you think of my Sew Over It Vintage Shirt Dress?

No snaps in sight here.

I made it up with a geometric print that I picked up at a market. Here in the Netherlands, there is a travelling fabric market that does the rounds of major cities a few times a year. It can be a great source for inexpensive fabrics (although quality can be mixed, so you need to keep a critical eye out).

I added contrast cuffs to the sleeves of my Vintage Shirt Dress and I also just kind of pleated the front of the sleeves by hand because I couldn’t be bothered sewing in gathering stitches. I was having a just-want-to-get-these-sleeves-set moment.

I really like the Vintage Shirt Dress pattern and I especially like that it is, above all, forgiving!

Because, I must admit, I made one of my silliest sewing mistakes ever while sewing this one!

When it comes to shirt dresses, I like the look of a button-down bodice but I’m usually less enthralled by the button-down skirt. Not because of my hatred of buttons (well, not entirely), but I guess part of me has never been able to fully commit to the shirt dress concept.

Duh, Beck, duh!

So I decided that I would make the bodice as in the Vintage Shirt Dress as instructed but then just sew the skirt up as a full skirt. I made all the necessary adjustments and cut out my pieces and got to sewing.

Except that I hadn’t made all the necessary adjustments.

I forgot to add a side zip! Oops…

I only realised this when trying on my bodice and having a “how-will-I-get-that-over-my-bust-once-a-full-skirt-is-attached?” moment. So my non-buttoned skirt  was going to need buttons after all.

I had to do some scrabbling to make it work at this point. Every last millimetre of those front seam allowances became part of the skirt and since I had already cut short my facing at the bodice, I ended up fully lining the skirt.

In the end, I really love this Vintage Shirt Dress. I always feel very put together in it – very work appropriate. At least now I will never forget that a waist sized part of a dress will never fit over my bust or hips without the help of some kind of closure! Duh!

Sew Over It Betty Dress

Sticking with Sew Over It, here is my floral Betty Dress.

I made this one out of a very cheap remnant that I picked up at Coupons des St Pierre in Paris. I think it was 5 euros for 3 metres or something like that, which probably makes this Betty my cheapest dress ever.  At time of purchase, I convinced myself that the small-sized floral print was liberty-esque!

Again, I love this Betty dress. Nothing makes me feel more feminine than swishing around in a circle skirt … And I find the boat neck very flattering.

I have had my eyes on the Betty dress add on pack for a while because I find it really hard to find nice dresses with sleeves. A lovely sleeved dress is my sewing holy grail and, to be honest, I am still searching for it… Am I the only one?

Since it’s usually cold where I live and I hate wearing a cardigan with everything, sleeves really extend the wearability of my dresses.

Anyone tried the Betty add on pack? What did you think?

By Hand London Anna Dress

Sticking with summer dresses, if I had to choose a single item that  I love the most, it would probably be my Anna dress. Which surprises me because it is very plain compared to so many of my other makes.

I made this Anna out of a broderie anglaise, again from les coupons des St Pierre in Paris. The embroidery is actually a kind of modern floral/geometric design (I know, I must learn to photograph relevant details for the blog…), giving this a traditional but modern vibe.

I wouldn’t usually copy wholesale one of the designer’s sample dresses, but with this Anna, I just couldn’t help myself. Broderie anglaise, knee-length Anna is such a basic staple that everyone should have one!

Besides, I make it my own in other unique ways. For example, I have spilled tomato sauce and red wine down the front of this baby more times than I can count. How’s that for an original spin on things…

Skirting the details…

My Anna is entirely self-lined, although you can see from the photos that I ran about an inch short of length for lining my skirt.

When I find a fabric that I love, I often can’t bring myself to line it with anything else because, well, it’s that fabric that I love. And I just want that fabric everywhere possible… Especially, rubbing up against my skin. So I self-line my dresses pretty often.

I struggled a bit figuring out how to attach my shell and lining at the sleeves. In the end, I kind of just pressed a little hem inwards on both pieces and hand sewed it all together.

To all those technical experts out there, any ideas of how I could have done it better?

There are a couple of features that I really love about the Anna pattern.

The kimono sleeves are great. They provide flattering upper arm coverage but are still just as easy to sew as sleeveless.

But my absolute favourite part of Anna is the six panel skirt. It has become a “go-to” skirt pattern for me. I find it super flattering and feminine. In fact, I think of it as my circle skirt substitute.

I adore circle skirts but I haaaate hemming them, like so many of you, I imagine. I hate that they grow and stretch and I can never get them quite straight enough (why do you think I am twirling in those Betty photos above?). I hate that the hems are so, so, so, so long.

Aside: I will never forgot when I made Megan Nielsen’s Tania Culottes in a transparent fabric, deciding that I would fully line them. If you are at all familiar with that pattern, a fully lined pair of culottes basically means you have 4 (that’s FOUR) circle skirts to hem at the end of the process. It almost killed me (although I do love the end result and they are perfect for anyone whose daily commute involves a bicycle)!

Since that experience, I have kind of avoided circle skirts somewhat, despite my undying love for them. But whenever I want a skirt that looks feminine, floaty and elegant but I can’t stomach hemming around a circle, I turn to my beloved six panel Anna skirt (which can be made to match up so nicely with another favourite of mine – a princess line bodice).

Victory Patterns Ava

Speaking of feminine, another pattern I adore is Victory Patterns Ava.

The details around the sleeve and neckline on Ava are just adorable (although I should have ironed my pleats down for these photos).

Out of all my makes, my Ava dress is probably the item which is commented on most frequently by strangers. There is a woman in my building at work who stalks me on days that I wear this dress. She tells me that she has piles of waxed cotton at home and if I could just sew one of these for her she’d pay me anything…

I think of this Ava as my Dolly Clackett dress. One of my favourite sewing blogs when I just want some raw sew-spiration is Dolly Clackett’s blog.

Can that lady rock a colourful print or what?

I mean honestly, can you imagine what it would be like to work in her office and see that parade of dress and shoe colour every day? And was ever a better phrase uttered than: “Yellow is basically a neutral to me and I love all of my yellow clogs” . It was on her blog that I first saw waxed cotton in action.

While I have started to tone down somewhat my own love for print and colours, I still feel on top of the world every time I wear my Victory Patterns Ava extravaganza.

This is the only thing I have ever sewn with waxed cotton and  it made me think “why isn’t this the only fabric that exists?” What do we need all the other ones for? It’s so sturdy, yet malleable. It presses so well and is just a breeze to work with.

There definitely needs to be more waxed cotton in my future.

Are you a Sewaholic?

Finally, the last stop on this wardrobe favourite tour?

My Sewawholic Saltspring and Sewaholic Cambie dresses.

I have a lot of Sewaholic patterns. When I first started sewing, I was really attracted to them because they were designed for pear shapes – just like me!

It was only after I started sewing and taking my measurements regularly that I started to learn a bit more about my body and realised that maybe I wasn’t actually exactly a pear shape after all.

In fact, maybe we are all just people-shaped with lots of variations in between (but that’s a subject for another post).

Even though I wasn’t a real pear, there was still a lot to love about many Sewaholic patterns. I really learned a lot from both them and Tasia’s (unfortunately now défunt) blog.

I totally adore Saltspring. I actually have a couple of these dresses. I feel like they are totally effortless and fluid. In fact, this is the only maxi dress I own. The only problem is that it is rarely hot enough where I live to justify wearing it all that often (let alone to wear both of mine!).  If I still lived back home in Australia, I think I would wear this dress every day for half the year.

Saltspring also holds a special place in my heart because it is the first garment I ever sewed a zip into. Which is kind of ironic since Saltspring doesn’t actually even need a zip. I never even use it!

 

As for my rainbow Sewaholic Cambie, check out this pattern placement and matching! I usually never manage to get it right.

I love this rainbow-coloured silk Cambie dress because 4 year-old me would have refused to wear anything but this. That’s enough of a reason for grown up me to love it, as far as I’m concerned.

While it’s definitely not an everyday dress, I often get it out on slightly grey and overcast days, so that I can bring the colour with me.

My Top Tip for Beginners

So, this little tour of my wardrobe made me reflect upon what’s not in this post.

Many things that I have sewn are currently not even in my wardrobe at all. I would say that I have ultimately gotten rid of at least half of everything I have ever sewn. That’s a lot of sewing hours in the trash!

 

But, why?

And how can you stop it from happening to you and your precious makes?

This is what I want to share with beginner sewists that I wish I understood when I first started. When I first began sewing, I was obsessed with skill-based sewing. I wanted to learn the new skills I needed, in the right order. I wanted to start with beginner projects and then advance to intermediate. First a simple skirt. Then a no-closure top. Then something with a zip. Then buttons. I was so concerned with what skill I needed to learn next that I lost focus on the most important thing: sewing things that you will love and want to wear.

So, the one thing I wish I had realised at the time was this: If you wouldn’t by the item RTW, then don’t waste your time and money sewing it.

I ended up with lots of pieces that, while perfectly nice, weren’t really my style. I would never have picked them up off a rack and I just made them because I thought they represented what I needed to learn next.

Learning to sew is less about cultivating specific skills and more about a broader journey and on that journey you need to keep that bigger picture in mind. What do you love to wear and how will the pieces you want to sew integrate with your wardrobe and style? Don’t confine yourself to “beginner” patterns and don’t sew totally outside your style.

I think that my own failure to follow this advice is the main reason I have thrown away so much of what I sewed in the early days.

Oh and one more thing…

Stop what you’re doing and go change your needles, folks!

Finally, one more indispensable tip in order to avoid your makes resting in peace in a sewing graveyard.

Change the needles on your sewing machine! Really!! After every project!!!

Please, please, please, just do it for me!!!!

I had always been pretty good at this, but after I had a bit of break from sewing while pregnant and came back to it, I somehow just kind of forgot. So I just kept sewing on the same needle, dress after dress.

I’m coming apart at the seams, oh my!

I had a rude awakening one day when a number of my recent makes just started to fall apart. Lliterally unravelled. The most heart breaking one was that I had sewn myself a nice black “back to work” dress for the end of my maternity leave. It was a bit of a distraction project to make the prospect of full-time work and leaving my little boy each morning seem a little more bearable.

I made the YoYo dress from Papercut patterns, out of this amazing Atelier Brunette fabric. I adored both the pattern and fabric and I especially loved the  YoYo because it was so refreshing, during this I-need-front-closures time of my life, to not have to deal with buttons. Yeah for feature front zippers!

I think I had worn my starry night YoYo only 2 or 3 times when I looked down at my stomach at work and saw that my waist seam was just completely fraying apart in big 2-3 inch chunks.

Back before I had a serger, I would finish my seams by pinking as much as possible (again, I’m lazy), but this wasn’t enough for fray-happy fabrics. My poor finishing technique, combined with the fabric having been totally massacred by my big, blunt, not-changed-in-months needles, meant this dress simply disintegrated beyond salvage while on my body.

Talk about a wardrobe malfunction!

So change your needles folks or things can end in tears.

Well, that was a long one folks!

I promise my posts won’t usually be so long, but I did just walk you through three years of sewing makes and mistakes.

And besides, we’re sewists, right? We know that sometimes things can take a little time…