neon floral Tate Top

Hemlock, Mandy, Sorbetto, Plantain, Polly. There are some fab free sewing patterns available from some amazing indie pattern designers, aren't there? This is another one, the Tate Top by Workroom Social. I put this little beauty together pretty quickly for a recent wedding where I wanted something cute (check), nursing friendly (check) and dressy/casual enough for a country farm wedding (I wore it with black skinny jeans- so check check!!). Thanks Jennifer for a great pattern!


 Some notes...
  • The download is only for the pattern (no instructions) but the construction is pretty easy to figure out.
  • I made a size 14, after checking the finished measurements and allowing for the ease I wanted. 
  • I made the back of the top less "racer back" by eyeballing the armholes when cutting, to allow me to wear a nursing tank underneath without the straps peaking out.
  • Fabric is a neon printed poly from Spotlight. 
  • This is my first time using self bias! (True story!!) Not as hard as I thought- and I used the great Grainline tutorial to get a good finish.
  • I cut the tunic length, then cropped the front hem, and left the back a bit longer.
  • I omitted the zipper for a button/loop closure. (Inspired by Nishi - that is one fantastic Tate Top!).
I'm super happy with this make. I think I'll be giving the Mandy Boat tee a sew next :) What's your favourite free pattern?




Popular posts from this blog

Almada Robe : a Lovefest

Image
Dressing gown, robe, kimono, cover-up, wrapper.  Call it what you will but I am a total sucker for them. I get so much use out of my Nani Iro kimono robe (it is total double-gauzy-dreaminess) but was instantly taken with the lastest Almada Robe from the February Seamwork magazine. I made two in two nights, both gifts sadly. Sadly because I want to keep them for myself. I have dreams of a liberty version... Wouldn't that be perfect?  Some notes I made up the XS as both my recipients are quite petite. It fits me pretty well so I think I will stick to that size. As this style is a fairly generous fit it makes sewing for a gift pretty easy! This pattern is drafted so beautifully. The gorgeous curves of the seams and cut-on sleeve means using French seams is a breeze. (I always get caught on how-to French seam the right-angle corner of the sleeve/body in a traditional kimono pattern. This pattern negates that with a beautiful curved seam. )  Fa...
Read more

striped ruched maternity skirt

Image
My new motto in life is: "embrace the bump" . I've definitely hit that stage of my pregnancy where the bump is obvious & (in my opinion!) cute. I'd bought the Ruched Maternity Skirt pattern by the fabulous Megan Nielsen a few months ago & I'm so glad I did. It really makes getting dressed in the morning pretty easy, in a stage where finding things to fit is a bit hard! The beauty of this pattern is that this skirt covers the bump. Which means I can wear non-maternity tops (that wouldn't otherwise fit) very easily by tying a simple knot in them.  A few notes: I bought the PDF pattern and it goes together SO easily- only two pattern pieces (there's a third only if you add the optional frill) I cut a size medium, and with this fabric is a great fit. Like Megan mentions in the instructions, you need a pretty stretchy knit fabric for this make (minimum 40% stretch & she explains how to figure out what % your fabric is). If your kn...
Read more

Darcy Boxer Shorts

Image
I've read a few sewing posts lately about "fast sewing", and the shortcuts people take. While I do think it's great to streamline your sewing to suit yourself, I'm totally guilty of not reading/following instructions & not taking the time to fit properly. Even if I do make fitting changes I'm not very consistent in marking those changes on my pattern for next time. Add to that my growing baby bump and not wanting to make something that will only last a short while wearing-wise.  All this is to say: I've had a few sewing fails lately that have just left me frustrated (and mostly at myself for cutting corners). So I needed a project to make me slow down... Something easy that I knew the end result would be totally "satisfaction guaranteed". I downloaded the (free!) Darcy Boxer Shorts pattern from Measure Twice/Cut Once a few weeks ago and then saw Jo's make over at Jo-Sews . This was the perfect pattern just to make me focus on m...
Read more