Carole wearing this super cool and breezy navy and white viscose lawn printed dress using McCall’s pattern 7189
Navy and White Viscose Lawn Printed Dress
Author: bessworks
Spotty Cotton Double Knit Jersey
Carol here using some lovely spotty cotton double knit to make a #toastersweater from @sewhouse7 . She lengthened the bodice by about 3 inches. This is a really comfortable jumper which will be worn a lot👍
Embroidered Red Selvedge Denim Mini Skirt
Bess made this red selvedge denim mini skirt to replace the one she had lived in since 2008. Someone had the audacity to suggest Bess shouldn’t wear mini skirts after 40 at which point she scoffed.
It is a near miracle that the skirt was ever completed due to Bess trying out a new pattern that did not remotely fit (why oh why do we not make a toile first?), and red selvedge denim, as glorious as it is, is not the round peg to force into a square hole.
Anyway, several bodges later the skirt was born. The treated to an abundance of purchased embroidery patches and some hand embroidered lettering.
Ta daaaaa!
She then attacked the denim with several sheets of sandpaper to prematurely age it in a bid to make it like her old one. Not very eco but the pain of breaking in raw denim was too much. It truly is fab denim that wears beautifully (naturally and with sandpaper!)
Kelly Anorak Jacket with Quilted Silk Lining and Beaded Epaulettes
Bess wanted a lightweight but warm jacket so used grey herringbone cotton poly and elastane -it’s a medium weight, the sort that would make lightweight chino type trousers, then she quilted silk crepe de chine (in the brightest coral colour possible) to wool wadding. The results are a super snuggly jacket that feels like you are putting on a duvet (if you ever wondered what the definition of hygge is, this jacket is it)
Whilst the outer fabric is not waterproof it is a tight enough weave to not get wet through in a brief shower.
The pattern is the Kelly Anorak by Closet Case Patterns, the instructions and drafting is simply brilliant. Bess shortened it and hacked the collar and hood pieces to enable both (the hood folds away into the collar)
A-Line Skirt in Ivory Stretch Suiting
Daiga wearing her super useful off-white stretch suiting a-line skirt which she says it’s very comfortable to wear and barely creases (yayyy!). The pattern came from Burda magazine (June 2013), it is lined in Venezia lining.
Banana Print Cotton Poplin Dress
Alice’s further adventures in bananas here with a cotton poplin dress (McCall’s McCalls 6696 view A). She made quite a few alterations to the pattern –
Changed the back bodice to get rid of the gathers at the yoke and added darts at the waist.
The front bodice was a bit too big in an 8 which is the smallest pattern size so pinched out the excess on the toile and re-drew the pattern which resulted in making the neckline smaller so the collar and collar band also had to be resized.
Trimmed about half an inch off the collar long edge to make it neater.
It sounds worse than it was in practice!
She decided to gather and line the skirt rather than pleat it and omitted the side seam pockets. This is the second dress she’s made for Lizby in this pattern which makes the adjustments worth the effort!
The fabric was a dream to work with and Lizby is delighted with the finished results.
Banana Print Josie Hoodie by Style Arc
Alice made this banana print sweatshirting into a hoody for her bananaphile daughter, Lizby. The pattern is Style Arc Josie, the only changes she made was to line the hood with a contrast ochre jersey and to omit the drawstring around the hem.
Sooooo much fun 😊
Multicolour Floral Print Stretch Cotton Sateen Tank Dress
Pamela with her Grainline Studio Willow Tank Dress made using a multicolour floral print stretch cotton sateen, is there anything more useful in the heat than a tank dress? ❤️ ❤️ ❤️
Red Ditsy Floral Print Cloqué Jersey Top
Pamela here in the fabulous textured cloqué jersey top made using the Style Arc Fran top (her tried and tested pattern). It’s so good when you get your TNT pattern sorted and can make it up in all sorts of things.
Green Pop-Art Print T-Shirt
Trevor here with his first ever t-shirt made by his own fair hands, the pattern is Simplicity 8613 and he used a cotton and elastane jersey, he’s (rightly so) very pleased 😊
Champagne Chunky Jumper Knit Como Cardi
Tina made this fabulous Como Cardi by Style Arc Patterns using the chunky but stable wool-mix jumper knit, she loved it so much she made two others (different colours) straight away (madness!)
We love ❤️ ❤️ ❤️
Red and White Spotty Hat
Kathryn made this amazing retro looking hat using red and white spotty jacquard (suiting weight) and black binding. I want I want I want I want I want!
It’s a fabulous hat.
Heavy Washed Linen Self Drafted Dress
Susie the amazing sewing-on-the-side-of-harping self-drafted this linen dress in heavy washed Damiel linen. Dress up dress down – such a versatile and lovely dress. You can see many more of her creativities on Instagram
Black Cocoon Coat
Margaret came visiting in her black cocoon coat with over-sized collar she made in divine designer jacket weight wool. So cosy and warm… and FUNKY. We love
Nani iRo Printed Linen Wrap Dress
Julie in Dubai wearing her fabulous Nani iRo japanese printed linen wrap dress which was a somewhat troublesome make due to accidentally overlocking a hole in the front panel and having to recut.. but she got there in the end!
Hotch Potch Stash Busting Military Style Jacket
Jane made this amazing military style jacket from two different brocades and a piqué textured jacket weight wool. The pattern is Vogue 7975 with some major/minor adaptations to make it more military looking (the pattern is classic Chanel style jacket). It is lined in fabulous electric blue silk seersucker satin.
Horse Print Denim Pinafore
Miaow chose her fabric for Granny (Jane) to make up as a pinafore, the pink trimming and top-stitching was a surprise (she loves it).
The pattern comes from Ottobre magazine issue 29 spring 2013
*EDIT* 9 months after making it Miaow says this is still her favourite dress. Win!!!
Aqua and Yellow Lemons Print Stretch Cotton Sateen Dress
Marion on a cruise in Nova Scotia wearing the most fabulous lemon print on stretch cotton sateen. The dress was made by Dawn at Hardy and Hooper (Maidenhead), Dawn has been making Marion’s dresses a while and they are always stunning.
Green and White Stripe Merchant and Mills Heroine Jeans
The superstar Ilse made these jeans at school (I wish they had let me make jeans at school!) and we love this bold stripe cotton twill in these loose fit jeans. The Pattern is the Merchant and Mills Heroine Jeans, their teacher Jane Norris is now teaching freelance which is a great thing for those of us who need a bit of help but a sad loss for those students.
Black and White Mary Quant Dress with Daisy Pocket
Bess downloaded the free pattern from Alice and Co at the V&A Museum in a flash and made up this Mary Quant dress with little to no alterations (unheard of for her- she nearly died of shock), the pocket took the longest and this was the second go as the first one looked like a fried egg! She used bondaweb to applique the daisy and slowed down her normal sewing speed in the hope she could sew accurately (more or less!). The black is a fabulous piqué weave viscose (very similar to a viscose twill) and the collar and daisy is a lightweight linen (probably not the ideal fabric as it frays like the devil but the colours were right and it more-or-less worked so don’t knock it!
Classic Navy Long Wool Coat with Spotty Lining
Jill is a brilliant dressmaker who doesn’t usually get to sew for herself so it is extra special when she comes in wearing something me-made. Made up in classic navy wool Melton coating with frog fastening and spotty viscose lining. Beautiful.
Black and White Cloqué Pintucked Jersey Dress
A super flattering and comfortable dress here in monotone print cloqué jersey with a fit and flare dress pattern. Made by Jacoba who has been sewing up our fabrics so long she even has her own tag 😉
Loose-weave Geometric Print Cotton Shirt
This is Carole wearing this super loose-weave cotton shirt using the Butterick 6070 which she has used several times as the buttonholes are hidden behind the placket. Great if your buttonholes have the occasional wobble!
This cotton is super soft with a gauzey jacquard type weave (unusual), it resists creasing and is great to wear in the hot weather as the drape tends to hold it off the body.
Aubergine Spotty Silk Blouse
The lovely Celia sent us this pic of her wearing her p blouse using a spotty print silk chiffon blouse, the pattern is Vogue 1385, and she says was technically straightforward as it consisted of only 5 pattern pieces. However, the neckline tucks were very time consuming as the dart markings were on the facings as well as the main pattern pieces and the two had to be aligned exactly. Very fiddly!
Worth the effort Celia- beautiful Blouse, thanks for sharing!
Supersoft Dogtooth Tweed Coat
Bess made this black and white tweed up into a coat using a tried and tested Claire Shaeffer Vogue pattern 7467 (now discontinued) which is a jacket pattern so there were a fair few alterations to do. The tweed is very soft and lightweight (it feels like cashmere) so Bess blocked it onto silk crepeline organza to stabilise it. The lining is a mix of a floral print viscose crepe (used at the upper back and pockets), and then a cupro and silk blend heavy habotai for the rest. She had great fun choosing the buttons and loves the little sparkly one on the inside, and hand sewed the gimp braid all the way round on each and every loop (that’s dedication, that is).
This coat was made on a weekend retreat, the side effect of intensive sewing like that is the brain does have a habit of disengaging from time to time, hence how the button holes on one of the sleeve vents are going sideways (DOH!). After an initial ohmygodwhatamigoingtodo moment Bess decided to just go with them and now rather likes their asymmetry.
It is a glorious coat to wear, light yet warm and often gets comments. Bess admits now that it was worth the hard work!
Ivory Silk Taffeta and Chiffon Wedding Dress
Here we have Tom and Zoe celebrating their special day with Zoe wearing the most spectacular dress made by Diane. The main dress is silk taffeta with pleated chiffon added to the skirt and a beaded tulle jacket. We love the way the dress floats in the wind. The jacket and headpiece is Simplicity 8364 and the dress is from Diane & Zoe’s imaginations. Simply Stunning.
Cream Wool Melton Skirt with Contrast Pockets
This is the very talented Asaka who made up this beautiful cream wool coating and contrast wool tweed into an a-line skirt, the pattern is from www.couleure.jp and we have booked Asaka to help us translate those mind bending but cleverly cut Japanese patterns!
Silk Mix Penny Spot Brocade Skirt Suit
The lovely Bernie from French France made this amazing silk mix brocade up in a fitted skirt suit for a family wedding, both the patterns are tried and tested, they originally came out of the Burda sewing magazines- the dress from March 2001 and the jacket from sometime in 2012. Isn’t she fabulous? Here we have proof that style never goes out of fashion 🙂
The hat was made for her using a scrap of the brocade in a local hat shop in Pézenas. Perfection 🙂
Sandwashed Modal Jersey Dress with Long Sleeves
This is the wonderful Antonia wearing her Merchant and Mills Curlew dress made up in wonderful sandwashed Modal Jersey, it was so successful she made one up for her mum too!
This silky jersey has a wonderful drape and not too much stretch so is great for the customer who is not sure if jersey is their thing… just watch out as that lesser stretch means you cannot ease sleeves in the way you can cheat with a normal stretchier jersey.
Self Drafted Cavalry Twill Jacket With Peplum
This is the beautiful and talented Anna who made her wonderful self drafted jacket using a heavy worsted twill weave suiting . Cavalry twill is a superb fabric to use as jackets, the tight dense weave is good at repelling wind and rain, and the weight is perfect to allow for precise tailoring.
Red Leopard Print Wool and Alpaca Coating
Sarah from the blog Wanderstitch made this glorious coat out of the red leopard print patterned wool and alpaca coating and we suggest you head over to her blog for an entertaining and extremely informative read. In Brief this is the ‘Le 809’ from DP Studio which is a coat with an incorporated gillet, she used our animal textured wool and alpaca coating for the project and we hope you agree she got some stunning results.
Black and White Stripe Wool Jersey Dress
Catharine sent us this pic of her black and white stripe pure wool double jersey from LG dress that she made. We love the way the stripes go vertical on the kimono sleeves. It’s so fab
Black and White Stripe Double Jersey
Nicola made this perfect long cardigan using pure wool double jersey from LG. As with all double jerseys the stretch is moderate which makes life a little easier when matching all those stripes (these are matched perfectly)
She made a slightly modified Grainline Studio Driftless cardigan. There’s more written about it on her blog.
“The fabric was a dream to sew, although matching the stripes was tricky! It’s a really cosy cardigan and just the right weight as we move towards winter. I’m so glad I chose this fabric.”
Navy and Multicolour floral Linen Mix Wrap Tunic
The wonderful Pamela here in her wrap front tunic top made out of a light – medium weight linen and viscose mix – a great blend that gets its drape from the viscose and the coolness and structure from the linen, it’s perfect for this top. We love the proportions of this tunic- the length, the little sleeves, the way Pam has used plain navy to define the wrap neckline. Superb!
Denim Jersey Body-Con Dress
Sewing for the tweens is always tricky but this was deemed a success with the super Kitcat. Fabric is a heavy denim cotton jersey with only a little stretch (plenty for this dress) made by Jane (Granny).
Printed French Terry Sweatshirt
Silversewer (carol) made this fabulous #southbank sweater 🤗. with this fun people with binoculars printed french terry backed cotton sweatshirting. This was her second make of this patter -time adding the bottom cuff. The collar can be either folded over or left upright. This is such a great pattern😊. Her daughter 💕 loves it !
Red Herringbone Tweed Wool Dress
Amy made up this red herringbone wool tweed pinafore dress using the Deer and Doe Belledone pattern, and she looks FABULOUS. 😍
Heavily Embroidered Viscose Crepe Coat
The amazing Janet made this Peter Pan collar coat for one of her clients in a viscose crepe that has been heavily embellished with metallic thread – so whilst the fabric base has drape the embroidery has stiffened it all up and Janet has shown some serious skills by getting it all to seam together beautifully. Finished off beautifully with covered buttons with gold rims.
Navy Silk Crepe Self-Drafted Top
Jayne made this fantastic self drafted top using our super slinky navy blue crepe de chine silk and the grey and navy cotton and elastane ribbing for cuffs and neck opening.
Black Stretch Wool Trousers with Stripe Braid Side Seams
Bess was covetting those Gucci wide leg trousers spotted on the interweb for AGES and then eventually gave in and made herself some. Never mind the fact the Gucci ones would never have fitted these have saved her a small fortune (which she can spend on more fabric). The pattern is Burda 6613, the wool is a stretch worsted (97% Wool 3% Elastane) and the trim is H0511.
Black and White Pinstripe Hoody
Bess made this hoody from an old Burda pattern on the day before going off to a festival and realising she had nothing warm for the evenings. Being somewhat busy she got up a bit early and made it before breakfast – even though it was a pattern she hadn’t used before (needed to be cut out)/there were patch pockets that needed to go on evenly/stripes to match/zip to be inserted. We would like to say it was Bess’s skillz as a dressmaker but most of the credit needs to go to this lovely double wool jersey that behaved soooo nicely.
Space Rocket Print Cotton Jersey Pyjamas
Miaow made these space print cotton jersey pyjamas with a little help from Granny (Jane). Hardly any help really, Mia pinned out the pattern onto the fabric, cut them out, overlocked them together and even made ‘Arfur’ the rabbit a matching nightshirt and nightcap. The only thing Jane did was hem them (which she did because they needed to be done TONIGHT and Miaow didn’t have time).
Miaow is 8. When she grows up she wants to be an astronaut.
The pattern is McCall’s M7499 (discontinued but similar things are available).
Tropical Toucan Print Viscose Piqué Playsuit
Miaow very pleased indeed with the viscose piqué playsuit granny made her (Jane). The print is huge and you barely get a toucan across that waif-like chest but it looks fabulous, don’t you think? Mia thinks so!
The pattern came out of the Burda magazine (06/2018)
Red Designer Print Cotton Voile Dress
The lovely Sian here visiting all the way from Australia* wearing her lovely red cotton voile shirt dress that she made with her purchases from her last visit. The pattern is Burda 6353 (lengthened in the skirt), it’s lined in an equally fine cotton lawn to keep the lightness and coolness. (and it is very cool 😎)
*I don’t think Sian travels 10,000 miles just to see us.
Nani IRO printed Linen Karl Lagerfield for Vogue Dress
Jane made up this old Karl Lagerfield pattern FINALLY after it lurking in the pattern drawer for nearly 20 years. The Linen is the Japanese designer nani IRO for Kokka. Jane had a bit of tweaking to get it right – too small on the bust but massive everywhere else – such as life goes with a pattern for the first time, but having been altered it is now PERFECT 😊
It’s got pockets!
It is lined in Venezia faced with extra light interfacing and there is a concealed zip up the back. The pattern is Vogue 1412 (long since discontinued but possibly available second hand).
Rudi the Siamese cat has to be in the photo too. Even if he didn’t get his ‘best side’.
Towelling Jersey Hoody
Miaow on the beach wearing the the big beachy hoody Jane made for her. The pattern is McCall’s 7044 (Jane extended the length). A twin needle was used for the hems, all the seams were done in a jiffy on the overlocker.
Jersey Circular Skirt
Kitcat (age 11) made this viscose jersey skirt more or less all by herself. We would say she is clever but don’t want to be accused of favouritism 😉.
No pattern used, just a circle and a straight elasticated waistband 😊
Coloured Denim Arielle Skirt and Viscose Blouse
This is Joy who came by the shop wearing this fabulous outfit of chartreuse geometric print viscose lawn blouse (New Look K6471) with a turquoise coloured denim skirt (the Arielle by Tilly and the Buttons). ❤️❤️❤️
Eye Print Cotton Poplin Sleeveless Shirt
Bess made up this sleeveless shirt using a fabulous eye print poplin cotton. The pattern is taken and amended from an old White Stuff shirt, the buttons are wiggly eye buttons but how long they will last is debatable as she keeps ironing over them!
As the poplin is very stable and Bess wanted the shirt as light as possible no interfacing was used apart from down the front placket so the button holes would be stabilised.
Whilst Bess lined up the front and back when cutting out no attempt was made to match the pattern. It actually does match where the yoke meets the back piece but that was an accident.
Washed Linen Assembly Line Cuff Top
This is a woven shot lightweight linen top made by Sue in France using the Assembly Line cuff top pattern. It’s a lovely simple make with elasticated cuffs, she plans to make it up in velvet for Christmas pressies. Perfect!
Strawberry Print T-Shirts (a pair of strawberry tarts)
When we received the email entitled ‘a pair of strawberry tarts’ we weren’t quite sure what we were opening. 🙀
This is Rachel and Rachel wearing their matching strawberry print cotton and elastane jersey t-shirts along with wolfy the dog (whippet the whippet was locked outside after rolling in fox excrement).
This is possibly our favourite catwalk photo EVER ❤️❤️❤️
Sugar Plum Fairy Print Dress for a “Grown Up”
Rachel doesn’t believe that kids prints should be solely for kids. Here she is in her self drafted quilting cotton dress printed in sugar plum fairies.. and frogs… and things. 😊
Yellow Seersucker Sundress
Jane made this lovely pineapple print yellow seersucker sundress for Mioaw, she chose the fabric herself which has proved a good move as she has lived in it all summer (YAYYYY!). The pattern is Burda 9417.
Floral Printed Needlecord Long Sleeve Child’s Dress
Martine made this lovely printed needlecord dress up for her 9 year old granddaughter in dressmaking classes in the South of France. We ❤️!
White Broderie Anglaise Dress
Bess nearly didn’t make this white cotton broderie anglaise dress because she was worried about cursing the summer but in the end decided 2018 sunshine was a dead-cert. Yayyy for proper summers! The pattern came out of the June 2018 Burda magazine, it’s supposed to have wing type things over the armholes but Bess decided to not do them <s>because she couldn’t understand the instructions</s> because she decided they were overkill.
The dress is lined in white cotton lawn with a splash of red in the piping around the neck. Bess’s favourite bit is the POCKETS 😊
Rainbow Print Viscose T-Shirt
Bess couldn’t resist this dichroic glass mirror in Amsterdam for a selfie of her rainbow print viscose T-Shirt (pattern drafted from a fallen apart Great Plains linen T-Shirt). The neck is bound with the same jersey and a stay tape is inserted on the shoulder seam to keep it stable.
Photobomb of Kitcat was unavoidable.
Black Sweatshirt with Eye Patches
Bess embellished this simple black sweatshirt with iron-on eye patches, she intends to sew them on but so far (6 months down the line) they are mostly still attached so in the name of indolence she hasn’t done it yet. She will. Honest.
Yellow Self Drafted Linen Dress
This is Braenna wearing her self drafted yellow linen circular skirt dress; made all on her own in the summer holidays. Isn’t she amazing? We ❤️❤️❤️!
Space Travel T-Shirt
Rachel in her brilliant space travel print t-shirt using a self drafted pattern. The neck is bound with the same jersey cut binding. 😍😍😍
Medium/Heavy Weight Denim Cleo Dungaree Dress
Louisa here wearing her lovely denim cleo dungaree dress from Tilly and the Buttons, complete with impressive top-stitching and super fastenings.
