Girl Can Sew

  This week I’m breezing in in my latest make, it’s the Pauline Alice – Coeli Blouse made in a light cotton voile from Minerva Crafts . Perhaps a little early in the year to be wearing such a billowy top but I’ve been waiting to make this since it came out and perhaps by wearing it I will beckon in more spring-like weather? If anyone could see the contents of my wardrobe they’d see that I am quite the sucker for a white shirt. They’re just so easy to wear, it can be smart, it can be casual, but either way, it’s effortlessly cool. There are some very pretty details to this specific blouse which I am particularly fond of such as the oversized sleeves, mandarin collar, and the cute little ties to close the back, not to mention the pleats! The fit is perfect but that’s not difficult to achieve as it’s not a fitted silhouette. It took a little longer to make than other shirts I’ve made due to the extra details: pleats, gathering, French seams, and button loops as opposed to buttonhol...

As I said in my previous review there were a few things I wanted to make from the summer Fibre Mood magazine and the Lola top is my second make. I had some funky patterned cotton in my stash (I really can’t remember where I bought this from, it’s been in my stash for months!) which I thought would give this top quite a quirky look. Then to push it more into that funky, modern style I added fluorescent piping to the yoke seam which I bought from Sister Mintaka . Like in my previous review there are a lot of things to consider when using a Fibre Mood pattern but I was prepared this time so the process was less stressful! It was a quick make which I pulled together in one day, the tricky parts were attaching the gathered frill and then attaching this to the rest of the shirt but if you take your time it’s fine. My favourite part of this make is the back, the gathered part sits really nicely against the back and adds some interest. I think I would have preferred the yoke to sit lower ...

Hey Sewers! In this weeks post I am reviewing the Wear Lemonade, Simona Blouse  which I have made in a classic William Morris 'strawberry thief' cotton from John Lewis .This is the first wear lemonade pattern I have sewn and it won't be the last! Their website is really colourful and inspiring with lots of great photos of all their garments made up in funky fabrics (They also sell their fabrics if your purse can stretch that far!). Their patterns are contemporary with interesting details that make them stand out. I was drawn to this pattern over other pussy bow blouses because the bow has more structure and the pleat in the back This pattern is actually quite a simple design which is why I paired it with this busy fabric. I knew I would need to pattern match so I didn't want to create too much of a challenge for myself. The only draw back I would say about this pattern is that it's French meaning that even though it is translated to English sometimes it...

Hello! This week I have finally finished my Vogue v8772 blouse, slightly delayed due to miscounting how many buttons I needed and having to wait for the rest to arrive in the post - doh! I got there in the end though and I love it! I was inspired to make this blouse by look a pinned on Pinterest, to wear with my Dani Pinafore dress. In the photos here I am wearing it with a simple hand drafted pencil skirt (fabric is an remnant from Ditto in Brighton) so you can properly see the whole blouse but it does look great with my pinafore dress. I'll try and get some photos up of that combo on my Instagram soon. I made the blouse in a cream satin crepe which I bought from Minerva Crafts after I had already been satisfied with a sample they sent me. I wouldn't normally bother with samples but I planned this make as part of the Design My Wardrobe  series which Seamwork ran last Summer and it was one of the activities.  I feel a little wary of big four patterns si...