Tuesday, November 22

Petite Stitchery for Everyday Wear Blog Tour

The girls from Petite Stitchery kindly asked me to join along in their blog tour.  You can find all the lovely ladies participating below.  There is a super giveaway as well.  Rafflecopter link below.




I have been testing some of Petite Stitchery patterns but of course we are in Oz so the weather here is decidedly different to the majority of the testers. 

One of the patterns that I fell in love with was the Rosemary Sweater, but being 30 plus degrees (that's celsius for those of you US gals) it was a bit warm to be wearing a cowl and long sleeves.  But I adored the front curve of it.  So I hacked it a wee bit and made it suitable for our long, hot and humid summer days. 

It was a super easy hack and my DD just adores it and is wearing it non-stop - albeit with a camisole underneath for when we are out and about but at home, with a pair of denim shorts and its nearly her favourite outfit.  

I went with the straight size 10 - my DD has a tiny chest - somewhere between a 7 and 8, but is tall with legs that go on forever, so I 'should' have made an 8 and added length, but given that for us its pretty much a layering top, I went with the straight 10.

To make the top as shown, you'll need the following pieces.

Front x 1
Back x 1
Sleeve x 2 -  decided on a length for the sleeve based off another pattern - for the size 10 I have a pattern piece length of 16.5cm or 6.5 inches.  I turned up a 1.3cm or 1/2 inch hem and pressed this before sewing up the side seams.


Neck Binding
For the neck binding I went with my standard measure the neck hole and do 4/5 of the measurement.  So for the size 10 that is 49cm or 19 1/4 inches.  Once I've made a pattern I mark it on my tracing, but everyone sews a little different, so I do recommend that you check your own neckline measurement, then divide by 5 and times by 4 - if my binding is super stretchy I sometimes make it a little less, but for the most part when using cotton lycra or ribbing for my binding the above method work perfectly every time.

So I've used a Euro 95% organic cotton/5 % elastane in a unicorn print, which I funked up by painting one of the unicorns.  Teamed with Lillestoff black and white stripe available here.

To put her together, I sew the shoulders and then press to the back.  Join the neck binding and then press wrong sides together (I like to pre-press my binding in half before joining it up).  Mark both there neckline and the binding into 4 even sections.  Match up the pins and then overlock the binding on, gently stretching the binding to fit between the pin marks - DO NOT SEW OVER THE PINS - the overlocker does not like them :(




Give it a little press then sew on the sleeves (I have already overlocked the hemline and pressed it up).  Sew up the side seams - I do one side, then overlock the hemline, press it up and then sew the other side seam.  Then you can topstitch the hem and the neckline and ta dah - all finished!


And of course the modelled shots - I used Jo Sonja with textile medium to paint the unicorn and fish.






And whilst I was on a roll I've also made my DD her Christmas Outfit using the Aspen Skirt with folded hem and three different Christmas prints from stash and Sapphire with the flutter sleeves using white knit and gold dots and red stripes all available at Zebra Fabrics.  Embroidery Design is from Embroidery Library.



And as you can see the twirl factor is major!!



There are so many ways to mix and match these patterns and even though they are a Fall line, you can adapt to suit for those of us in the southern hemisphere, you just need to think a wee bit out the box.


a Rafflecopter giveaway

8 comments:

  1. that unicorn is awesome Lesley, thanks for the pattern hack

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  2. So pretty. That skirt is gorgeous.

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    1. Thank you Tas, Katherine loves the twirl factor.

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  3. I love how you turned a sweater into a shirt! Such a perfect way to enjoy the pattern all year long! Thank you so much!

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    1. Thank you - it is currently my daughters favourite top.

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  4. OH my! That fabric you used for your Rosemary, LOVE!

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    1. Thank you Deborah, I have a soft spot for Unicorns!

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