Happy Friday campers!
I’m so happy to see so many of you joining in and excited about this Sew-a-long. We currently have 45 members chatting fabric choices and sizing on the Fold Line group and everytime I look at my phone there are new followers of the Pinterest board too!
It’s great to hear that some of you have even jumped way ahead and finished yours, and that’s brilliant- I totally get that you may just want to make your project a bit faster and not wait for the next instalment of the sew-a-long so go for it and please show us your makes! You can upload the pics straight to the group to admire and inspire us.
So today I am going to go through the bits that may not be so exciting but are essential… determining your size, cutting out the pattern, the fabric and then marking it.
SIZING
Firstly, I would say if you want to skip this step, Sophia is a simple enough make to fit everyone- there are no darts on the top and as long as you have your waist measurement correct for the waistband of the skirt then you’re all good to crack on! If you want it to fit like a glove though, read on…
As I am no expert on sizing issues – I have yet to do a bust adjustment or much resizing of patterns at all so I am going to point you in the direction of those who really do know what they are talking about to help you!
- CHINELO BALY video on how to measure yourself
- THE THRIFTY STITCHER on how to choose the correct pattern size
- THE CURVY SEWING COLLECTIVE with a Full Bust Adjustment
- CHRISTINE HAYNES with a Small Bust Adjustment
Hopefully with all their help you now know what size you are and how to achieve the right sizing for these garments.
Right, grab a cup of tea and stick Netflix/ the radio on because the next bit can take a while!
CUTTING OUT THE PATTERN …or TRACING IT?!
This bit is totally up to you – if you want to preserve all your pretty patterns (maybe in case your mum or friend wants a version made in their size too) and not let scissors near them then you want to get tracing at this point. There are many options for what to trace onto – if you want nice big rolls of amazing Swedish Tracing paper then this is the site you need *and there’s a brilliant tracing tutorial there too* or if you want something bit cheaper but definitely smaller (and probably will be needed to be taped together in places) then head to your local Pound shop and stock up on baking paper – it does the job wonderfully! Then you just need a sharp pencil and patience! You might find it easier to trace the lines if you draw around them with a black pen but then you might not even want to mark your pattern. Either way, trace around all the lines of your size, notches and any markings/info of the pattern piece. Then you can cut out the pattern pieces on your tracing paper.
If, like me, you think:
Patterns are for cutting into and I will look after the delicate vintage ones and take my time to trace them!
Then cut away! It’s best to have the line you are following to the left of the scissors so you can see where you are going clearly. Leave all the notches and markings in tact just follow the outside line as close as possible.
THE SEAM ALLOWANCE OF 1.5cm IS ALREADY INCLUDED SO JUST CUT YOUR SIZE.
NB, Do use paper cutting scissors for this bit and keep your fabric shears well away as paper will blunt them!
CUTTING OUT THE FABRIC
First you want to lay down your fabric, right sides together (RST) selvedge to selvedge with the fold of the fabric closest to you so it’s easy to reach- if you can reach all bits easily the fold can be on either side.
Follow the layplan above (plus my tidy scribblings) choosing your fabric width, to place all the pattern pieces on your fabric, with the writing facing up.
For both the top and skirt pin the pattern pieces to the fabric (without lifting the fabric) and carefully cut around the pattern pieces with a lovely sharp pair of fabric shears.
OR use loads of pattern weights (cheap big washers from your local hardware shop like above work great) and a rotary cutter and (most importantly) a cutting mat so you don’t cut into your antique dining table/ other half’s desk!
NB, Cut the waistband twice on the fold so you have 2 long pieces
For the interfacing cut out:
4 x No.5 ARMHOLE FACING
2 x No.3 WAISTBAND (on fold)
TRANSFERRING THE MARKINGS
Sophia doesn’t have a lot of markings so this bit will be quick and easy…
Cut the all notches including the start of the skirt pleats (just a little snip into the fabric is fine – but don’t go further than the seam allowance and if May Martin asks, I didn’t tell you that! )
Here’s a little picture tutorial in a completely different fabric on how I mark pleats (click on it to enlarge so you can read the teeny text!)
Okey dokey we’re now ready to sew… well almost… just a tad of interfacing to apply and we’re off!!
I’ll see you next time to make the top!
Happy cutting!!
