As promised in my buttonholes post a couple weeks ago-- here she is, the finished couture tailored cape coat!

Hi, all! This is my daughter’s graduation dress, which I finished on Sunday for the ceremony on Monday. Part of the reason for the short deadline was that the design kept changing, and the other issue is that she lives abroad and was not available for fittings.

I was wondering if anyone knows how I can reduce how wrinkly it gets around the corners of the opening?

Made this frog purse for a friend to wear to ren faire! Now that he’s arrived at his destination I can post pictures. I’m SO incredibly happy with how it turned out!

Made from quilting cotton with a thrifted zipper I ripped out of a goodwill purse. He’s fully lined with a funky green print I got in a fat quarter stack and wasn’t sure how to use in a quilt. Feet are embroidered with a tight zigzag stitch for the details.

The feet are convertible straps - they can either clip around a belt for a more whimsical belt bag look, or they can open up and clip onto a longer strap for an everyday crossbody look!

Edit: this is a self-drafted pattern! He’s loosely based on a free fanny pack pattern I found online, but there’s a LOT of modifications. I might make a tutorial later if others want to make a little friend too :)

Seems all I do is sew things for my wife lately 🤣 She sent me a link to an Amazon bag she was wanting but it was too small. Being me I thought "I can make that". Final dimensions expanded are 12"x12" x6"

I've never made anything like this and took a lot of YouTube tutorials of similar bags before settling on exactly how I wanted to make it.

Self drafted following this how-to: https://youtu.be/1kFk2Ei49Iw?is=piFlccFi7vSzuyJY

Fabric: Cotton https://a.co/d/0eyyJQrH Lining: Nylon Ripstop

(Reposting as my previous post got removed)
Just finished my sister’s dress for the Jane Austen festival! The dress is supposed to be regency inspired, and I used Kitty J Berry’s pattern! I’ve previously posted my first project here:
https://www.reddit.com/r/sewing/s/FPnA16KGrM

I feel like I’ve learned so much already, and it shows as the second dress was so much easier to sew, and turned out so darling! I’m curious to hear which dress you think is cuter! We’ll wear them together so I tried to make them look like sisters too :D

The fabrics used are polyester crepe de chine for the base fabric and embroidered tulle for the overlay.

My sister asked for a passport holder for an upcoming trip, so I used Passport Wallet by TeethyMcGeeDigitals on Etsy to make this mockup that I will probably use for myself as I’ve had the same boring passport wallet since 2009.

The wallet has two passport pockets, a zipper pouch, and two card slots. It closes with elastic. I opted not to stitch around the edges because all of the pockets sewn together add a lot of layers and I thought it would look a bit unprofessional. The card pockets are a little dicey—I don’t really like how the cards hang over the pocket and they are a little loose for comfort.

I used leftover quilt cotton (Bella Firenze by Art Gallery Fabrics! Truly, this fabric was made to be a passport cover and it makes me want to go to Florence soon) and foldover elastic because it was the only elastic I have that isn’t white, and cut a zipper to size after sewing it on.

I like that it has a sleek profile, but it is pretty floppy with nothing inside it. Only the main piece has interfacing, and i worry that with all the layers, adding additional interfacing might make it more difficult to work with. It would be interesting to make this with thicker fabric and see if the added bulkiness would be worth it.

The version for my sister will feature Princess Mononoke fabric :)

Overall, this was a relatively quick evening project and a naturally stunning result with the fabric choice!

I’m super happy with how this dressed turned out! I think it’s perfect for a holiday, it’s so much fun to spin in!

The pattern I used is the McCalls M8036 in style A, I just followed the pattern instructions and didn’t need to seek any additional help. If I was to make this again, I would add some extra inches to the front of the skirt where it crosses over as it’s a bit risqué(hence why I made the shorts). The fabric I used is a poly cotton duvet set I got on sale from Asda, the white fabric is one side and the green is the other, I think they go really well together!

The shorts are made from the same fabric and I used a free pattern by Sewing With Max, they’re the DIY beginner friendly shorts without the additional ruffle on the bottom. The pattern is super easy to make as there is a YouTube tutorial, I’ve made 4 pairs of them now!

My next project is a tomato hat to match!

Photo credit to the talented @mrarcadra.

Pattern was Butterick B4254 for the bodice and Angela Clayton's M7885 for the skirt, however this dress has a heavy amount of alterations, deviations, and self drafting from said patterns to accomodate the fabric patterns and desired shape of the butterfly bodice. I added extra panels for the bodice that were hand stitched down.

The skirt was made with cartridge pleats, which I am the most proud of, as it took the better part of three days to complete. The underskirt is a massive amount of tulle on a petticoat, edged with a wide band of horsehair, however, it still falls flat on itself so I will be creating a new cage skirt. I won't go back to tulle only after this dress, sturdy cages are much better and easier to walk in.

Fabric is synthetic curtain fabric from a double wide bolt, no information on fibre tipe is available.

🦋 Wilhelmina Hollin, or Mina for short, is the Fey Princess of the Autumn Court. She loves insects, but has a particular fondness for butterflies and luna moths.

I love this character so much and am very happy to have finished her Autumn Court coronation gown. I've also made her daily court wear that I'll share in the future!

**Constructive Feedback Appreciated**

I made the Bootstrap Fashion Full Body Dressform! This was such a long project but I think for me making this for the first time I feel like it worked out better than expected! I followed instructions for the fabric part of the dress form. I added onto the original pattern in a few ways. First, I added zippers which I call "Service Zippers" on the main sections: Both arms, both sides of the legs, and both sides of the torso. I did this because I wanted to be able to go into the dressform later if something is broken, the fabric rips, or some other problem so I can unzip the section that needs repair and then zip it after I finish the repair. I also decided to add in some internal PVC Pipe structuring so the arms were anchored onto something firm in case I am putting weight around the arms or upper torso. I attached these internal 1/2 inch PVC Pipes onto some 2" to 1" PVC Pipe fittings to allow me to anchor the PVC Pipes onto something firm. This was then glued onto a wooden version of the waist piece with epoxy so that it was also on a firm base. I glued the leg PVC Pipes onto a wooden waist piece as well with epoxy to have a firm base to anchor to. I used wood for the arms and waist pieces. I used a circle hole saw for the wood to drill a hole and then sewed a hole in two fabric pieces together and then wrapped it around the wood and sewed those to the holes.

There were definitely hurdles to doing it this way. One is that I messed up on the lengths of the 1/2 inch pipes for the Torso so I had to improvise with fittings left over from my first duck tape dressform to get the height right to match where the arms were. Another hurdle was I didn't drill holes in the wooden pieces for the arms in the right spots so I had to awkwardly glue the pipes to the sides of the fittings I glued together (btw drill the holes in the middle of the arm hole piece not the sides. That's lined up with the center of the holes in the waist piece).

Some lingering things I need feedback on are the following. I feel like this is extremely lumpy with how I guess I filled it with stuffing. Maybe I didn't stuff it correctly??? I used muslin fabric with interfacing on all fabric pieces. I know I had problems with some of my fabric pieces getting messed up and slightly wrinkly with accidentally leaving the iron too long when fusing some of the interfacing. Idk how to get the lumps out. Also, I think the bottom and maybe the sides of the Torso section is too wide. Again, did I stuff it too much??? I sewed the fabric piece with the right seam allowance on the torso section. Idk, probably maybe need to fiddle with the stuffing? Or did I mess up the lengths of the torso fabric pieces? What might be causing the mismatch on the bottom? Please let me know what you think might help with these problems I seem to have with this.

Hi, very exciting to be posting these trousers that i made. I don't currently own a sewing machine so I had to sew them by hand. These are the first garment I have made in over 7 years and the very first pair of trousers (with a fly and everything!!!)

They are the burda polyester cargo trouser pattern 114 https://www.burdastyle.uk/polyester-trousers-114-burda-style-09-25-pdf-pattern sewn with a navy cotton drill and cute little bit of pink cotton poplin. Though the fabric choice may not have been the best as it doesn't hold the pleat.

I know the fit around the back of the thighs is also not the best but the smallest size in the pattern was 2 sizes too big so I think overall the fit is okay.

What do you think?

Hey sewing community! I got a great deal on this adjustable dress form recently after searching for ages to find one that wasn’t going to cost beaucoup bucks. But in my excitement of finding it at the thrift, i completely forgot to consider the material this thing is made out of.

it’s basically a plastic sheet formed to fit the shape of a woman, so no way to pin it to hold fabric to it… i can’t even get a straight pin to stay in place through the thin fabric already covering it 😣 so i’m hoping to ask for some help or thoughts: what should i add to this dress form to give me the ability to pin garments to it? basically how to i get this dress form to behave like a dress form 😅

some initial thoughts/ideas:

IDEA #1: i was thinking i could try to find some sort of magnetic tape or something to line the inside of it so i could use magnets to hold the fabric up, then hopefully as i pin material together it would just hold on its own from tension…???? feels like a way dumber idea now that i’ve written it out though, LOL.

IDEA #2: i also have a good amount of aida fabric that i found thrown out behind a michaels, and that would hold pins well but doesnt want to conform to the shape of the mold at all. i could cut them into strips though, which might make shaping a bit easier.

IDEA #3: i could use very thin foam sheets? like a sew-in foam sheet like you might use for stabilizing a bag or something you might get in a pack for other crafts. i do need to add an inch to the butt lol so this could be a good fit.

maybe a combo of 2/3?? have any of you run into a situation like this before?? please lend me your wisdom 😭😭😭

I started drafting my dress last year and then had to put it down for a bit. I began with draping muslin on my form and then used a polyester crepe. There was some flat pattern drafting involved for the train godet. I’ve come back to it and after 5-6 toiles I’m finally happy with the fit. The 4-ply silk crepe is a dream to work and I can’t wait to get this under dress finished. There will be a layer of tulle with lace motifs that have hand embroidered beading (also by me) on top. So far I’ve spent about 900 hours on this project.

Briar Pants by Daughter Judy Patterns
Vest by Kiana Bonollo on Etsy

I'm obsessed with this jacket, I would love to recreate this!

However I'm a bit confused about the fabric used here;

Looks like sherpa for the body.

Then the bright stripes look like ripstop fabric.

What about the patterned fabric though??

I see it's quilted and it's some kind of synthetic fabric, but I would appreciate any recommendations. What kind of fabric would work the best with fleece and also ripstop and have a good variety of prints to choose from?

I'm not sure if it's a ripstop as well, it doesn't really look like one to me or maybe it is, idk.

Would appreciate any help/thoughts

Thanks!

Looking for a dress pattern like the one Dita has. I had this pattern (vogue 8280) but it’s been out of print and sizes I had is a max of 8, and I’m a 12(bust) 16/18 hips. Etsy has is for $55(mind blown) and I just can’t justify spending that much.

Any recommendations for a current in print style that’s the same/similar pattern?

Been making lots of purses and bags lately, here are a couple I’ve made in the last month or so.

All are made up of faux leather and cotton ribbed fabric and lined with suede.

I just moved and have a sewing room all to myself. What you use for storage? I’ve tried thrifting for organizing drawers but haven’t really found anything, it’s either too small or too big. Im fine just keeping fabric in boxes but digging through a box with all sewing supplies all mixed up is driving me insane. Also im very much on a budget so please don’t suggest anything too too expensive

Hi everyone! I’m currently making a new evening gown for an event. I’m really happy with the corset so far, but I’m not happy with my first attempt at pinning the skirt.
The fabric is a jacquard with a vertical pattern, so cutting it as a circle skirt isn’t really an option because I want to keep the pattern running vertically.
I’d love to create symmetrical pleats, but obviously that leaves me with a lot of excess fabric at the waist since I have about 4.3 yards of fabric for the skirt.
How would you approach this? Would you simply cut away some fabric at the top between/around the pleats to reduce the waist circumference and create a smaller radius? I really love how the fabric falls at the bottom right now, so I’d like to keep that fullness and drape if possible.
I’ve looked at examples online using the same fabric, but I don’t really like how they handled the skirt because the pleats aren’t symmetrical.
What would you do?

My waist is only about 72 cm (28.3”), but with all 4.3 yards of fabric pleated directly into the waist, it visually adds what feels like 50 kg to my waist 😅 There’s just way too much bulk at the top.

My sister in law likes clowns so for her birthday I made her a clown doll. I have started making handmade gifts instead of buying things for my loved ones recently, and I’m really happy with how it turned out.

I lost my grandmother in November 2024. She was ready to leave us, but we weren’t ready to say goodbye. I fell pregnant with my daughter just one month later. We named her after my grandma and I know she would have adored her. I hold onto a lot of my grandma’s possessions because I’m still not truly ready to let go, but repurposing this one felt right. It currently lives on a shelf in my daughter’s room because there wasn’t any way I could attach those eyes that would I feel confident giving to a toddler.

Puppy toy made with Simplicity S9837, using fabric cut from the dress in the last image. Used wooden buttons for eyes, attached with Gutermann sulky cotton 12 thread. Ribbon is also sewn together and then sewn to the toy. The fabric is an unidentified soft fabric, similar to brushed cotton (the tags were all removed so I can’t be more specific sorry).

Hi! I'm hoping to make a flat front, elastic back skirt (Friday Pattern Company Saturday Skirt) out of silk chiffon with a bemberg lining. I have never sewn with chiffon before. I plan on doing a gelatin soak and am keeping my fingers crossed. My question is- how to deal with/create the waistband, preferably keeping the chiffon as the top visible layer? I have some flexible-ish medium weight interfacing (I don't know what type- I got it at a fabric sale) but I don't think that would be enough by itself. I have googled and couldn't find any ideas. Thanks for any tips or ideas!