Tag: dressmaking

White Christmas McCall’s Outfits

by two.sewing.sisters, posted in Sewing Project

We hosted a Christmas Party this year that had a theme of white and by accident McCall’s!  We were excited about the idea of creating some new cotton outfits in a colour that we don’t make a whole heap of.  We headed to the Sewdirect website to see what latest patterns we wanted to create. Then we went to Spotlight to the cotton section to see what textured fabrics they had available.  

McCall’s 8482 in white seersucker

Erin loved the idea of a set and had seen some fabulous versions of McCall’s 8482. She had created the top for her trip to Europe and we loved that is had a soft gathered neck but still a set-in sleeve which many of these peasant-style tops miss out. The skirt was LONG! So we had to adjust the length and bring it up which also allowed for a little bit more gathering in the top panel.

McCall’s 8385 in white Broderie Anglais

Lauren had been eyeing off this dress pattern for some time, so when the chance to make it came she had to go for it. She had a vision for it in Broderie Anglais which meant was also had to line it with a poplin to make it more opaque. With many buttons later the vision was fulfilled!

McCall’s 6044 in Quilting Cotton

It was a full matching set with James getting a new white shirt in his favourite McCall’s 6044. White he initially was planning a linen, our in house photographer and lighting designer ended up with a texture white quilting cotton in the long sleeve view.

Mr Fergus Banadana

Last but certainly not least, our slightly scruffy-looking host got a new bandana for the occasion. We also like to create him bowties but for this occasion, he went for a more casual look that you could more easily see amongst his fluff.

Best wishes for 2025 from Two Sewing Sisters

We hope you are having a wonderful festive season. May your 2025 be filled with creativity, joy and happiness

Vogue 1884 in Toile de Jouy from Tissus Coupons Saint Pierre

by two.sewing.sisters, posted in Events, Sewing Project

This beautiful feminine fabric called for a classic style.  While not a typical Melbourne Cup Day look the need for a wide brim on this lovely spring day.

Pattern: Vogue 1884

Vogue 1884 is a fitted bodice with a wide square neckline, flared skirt with diagonal gathers under the waistline, side seam pockets and low cut back. This pattern was supplied by Sewdirect Australia.

Fabric: Toile de Jouy from Tissus Coupons Saint Pierre

When Lauren was travelling in Paris earlier in the year she visited Tissus Coupons Saint Pierre and selected this green and white Toile de Jouy. The cotton piece of fabric came in a pre-cut length of 3 meters long. The print featured the iconic style of scenery in the print. It called to be a very feminine style so was the perfect pairing for this dress pattern.

.

Finished Dress of Ellie Whittaker Fabric

Photo Credits

Photographer: James Christie Media
Pattern: Vogue 1884 provided by Sewdirect Australia
Fabric:  Toile de Jouy purchased from Tissus Coupons Saint Pierre
Wide brim hat: Lauren J Ritchie Millinery

Know Me 2016 in Ellie Whittaker Fabric at Melbourne Cup

by two.sewing.sisters, posted in Events

Do you spot a theme from Lauren this Spring Racing Carnival?  Purple Floral maybe. When we spied this Ellie Whittaker drill fabric it was definitely on the make list for Melbourne Cup Day.  The race day is hosted at Flemington Racecourse and is known for bright and vibrant colours. 

Pattern: Know Me 2016

Know Me #me2016 is a design by Beaute’ J’adore, it is a dress with a shaped waistline sloping up slightly at the front and lovely design lines in the tiers with gathers. Let us not forget about the scoop pockets in the skirt. It has a high round neckline, bust darts from the sideseam and finished with an invisible back zipper. This pattern was supplied by Sewdirect Australia.

Fabric: Ellie Whittaker Drill from Spotlight Stores

The gorgeous fabric is a cotton drill that features green leaves and lovely purple hydrangeas designed by Ellie Whittaker. We purchased this fabric a Spotlight Stores.

.

Finished Dress of Ellie Whittaker Fabric

Photo Credits

Photographer: James Christie Media
Pattern: Know Me 2016 provided by Sewdirect Australia
Fabric:  Ellie Whittaker Studio cotton drill from Spotlight Stores
Green Boater: Lauren J Ritchie Millinery

Simplicity 9886 in Gingham from Marché Saint-Pierre at Derby Day

by two.sewing.sisters, posted in Events

Derby Day is here!  Erin cannot seem to buck the trend of wearing gingham on this black-and-white-themed day.  

Pattern: Simplicity 9886

Simplicity 9886 is a fitted colour-block dress that has a bodice with princess seams and bust darts. We created this version with the longest skirt length and without the sleeves. You can find this pattern on the Sewdirect website here.

Fabric: Black and white Cotton Gingham

When Erin was visiting Paris she went to Marché Saint-Pierre and found this great pair of matching gingham in different scales which was perfect for her love of gingham for Derby Day. Then the great debate come as to which scale gingham to place in which panel.

Finished Derby Day Look S9886

Photo Credits

Pattern: Simplicity 9886 provided by Sewdirect Australia
Fabric: Black and White Gingham purchased at Marché Saint-Pierre in Paris
Millinery: Lauren J Ritchie Millinery

Know Me 2038 in Tie Die from The Fabric Store

by two.sewing.sisters, posted in Sewing Project

We’ve officially entered the festive time of the year! Yesterday we got to celebrate love at one of our friends Hen’s Party 💚

It was the perfect excuse to finish this dress 🧵 We cut out Know Me 2038 at the very end of last summer, and it’s sat in our unfinished pile over the winter months.

Pattern: Know Me2038 designed by Miss Alisha Grace pattern provided by Sewdirect Australia
Fabric: Satin purchased from The Fabric Store

Elena Dress by Schultz Apparel

by two.sewing.sisters, posted in Pattern Testing

The clever design and pattern-making by Schultz Apparel just keep calling us back!  When Amalie reached out to us about her latest design we jumped on board to explore what she had been developing.  The answer is this sweet peasant-style dress the Elena. 

Pattern: Elena Dress by Schultz Apparel

The Elena dress has an elastic neckline with a raglan line that falls out into a glorious puff sleeve. It has a waist seam that flares out to a full skirt with gathering in the side panels with waist ties. As with many Schultz Apparel patterns no fastenings are required to get in and out of this dress, it just tightens around the waist with the tie.

Fabric: Jungle Garden Multipurpose Cotton from Spotlight

To sit well in the gathers and milkmaid style top with elastic the fabric for this style needed to we light enough to gather in yet sit well in the skirt and sleeves. We wanted a printed fabric but one that would still showcase the lines of the dress.

We used this jungle green printed cotton from Spotlight, which we found in the upholstery section!

The trick to sourcing fabric for this project is to find 150cm wide cotton, we didn’t have success with this so had to compromise on the fullness of the sleeve which was not ideal.

Finished Elena Dress

The Elena Dress is a very sweet style with some clever design features including the gathered skirt panels and belt at the waist to create the shape.

Get your copy of the pattern here

Photo Credits

Photographer: James Christie Media
Pattern: Elena Dress by Schultz Apparel
Fabric:  Jungle Garden Multipurpose Cotton from Spotlight

Marimekko Unikko Fabric in Vogue 9237

by two.sewing.sisters, posted in Sewing Project

It is the 60th anniversary of this iconic Unikko print by Marimekko. We came across this fabric while fabric shopping in Newcastle – we couldn’t help ourselves, and we had to bring home a piece!

Also… enter our new fabric pattern! We have claimed that Know Me 2016 is our favourite pattern for a couple of months. Only now we might have found a new favourite Vogue 9237! It is easy to wear and easy to sew – it also has limited pattern pieces, so the wonderful print of the fabric isn’t segmented between too many pattern pieces ✂️

Fabric: Marimekko Unikko Fabric

Mini Unikko, conceived by Kristina Isola, is a scaled-down rendition of the iconic Unikko print that has captivated global audiences. Originating in 1964, Unikko emerged in defiance of Marimekko founder Armi Ratia’s decree against floral motifs in the brand’s fabrics. Despite this prohibition, artist Maija Isola boldly crafted a collection of floral patterns, ultimately prompting Armi to incorporate eight of them.

Unikko has since become a symbol of exuberance and innovation, seamlessly woven into Marimekko’s design ethos. Maija’s work stands as a testament to the enduring power of creativity in spreading joy.

Pattern: Vogue v9237

Vogue 9237 is a Very Easy Vogue Dress pattern with a loose-fitting pullover style that has a round neck with a button and loop closing at the back neck. The main feature is the back ruffle panel create a playful design element.

Finished Make

Photo Credits

Photographer: James Christie Media
Pattern: Vogue 9237 provided by Sewdirect Australia
Fabric:  Marimekko Unikko Fabric

Lucca Dress pattern by Schultz Apparel

by two.sewing.sisters, posted in Pattern Testing

We joined the pattern testing team for Schultz Apparel’s latest release the Lucca Dress 

The Lucca Dress pattern is a style with both modern and vintage inspired details.
All options comes with a curved
front waist seam, a front button
closure and a faux-shirred back.
Options can be mixed and
matched.

Fabric

This pattern called for light weight woven
fabric and can be lined in the same fabric or another light lining fabric in the same fibres.

We created this Lucca dress in printed cotton from East Coast Fabrics. It was a white floral pattern with a green background.

Finished Lucca Dress

Get your Lucca Dress Pattern

Photo Credits

Photographer: James Christie Media
Pattern: Lucca Dress Sewing Pattern from Schultz Apparel
Fabric: Green floral cotton from East Coast Fabrics

VRC Kennedy Oaks Club Lunch at Crown Palladium in Vogue 1884 and Vogue 1723

by two.sewing.sisters, posted in Events

We were very excited to attend the VRC Kennedy Oaks Club Lunch at Crown Palladium for the first time.  Where did we start with our outfits for this ladies’ lunch?  We went for a hunt in our stash and found two fabrics that were just waiting for the occasion.  We created two Vogue patterns for these fabrics Vogue 1723 and Vogue 1884.

Vogue 1723

We had seen a fabulous outfit of silk blue organza created by Laura Wolfgang on Instagram and set out to create our own version.  The outer dress is Vogue 1723 by Carlos at Vogue Patterns in embroidered tulle from New York when we were there earlier this year.  The underdress is Vogue 1834 in a peppermint rayon blend from The Fabric Store. 

Vogue 1884

The fabric for Lauren’s dress was purchased in Vienna and patiently waiting in our stash since 2018!  The border style print called for a skirt that would showcase the lovely design.  When Vogue 1884 came out we knew it was just the design for this fabric.  

Photo Credits

Pattern: Vogue 1723 and Vogue 1884
Fabric: We wish we could remember the locations but sadly all we can offer is New York and Vienna.
Millinery: Lauren J Ritchie Millinery

We also got see see fellow sewer Bryony Bourke who was wearing a fabulous me made outfit!

Know Me ME2016 in Minerva Wildflower Cotton Sateen

by two.sewing.sisters, posted in Sewing Project

Does anyone have a favourite pattern? That they keep sewing over and over again? We go through phases of different patterns depending on the weather, what we are doing for work at the time and our general style “vibe” at the time.  Right now, we can’t get enough of Know Me ME2016! The gathered skirt, pockets, shaped bodice and full sleeves… we just love everything about it

Fabric: Minerva Exclusive Wildflower Fusion Cotton Sateen Fabric

We used the Minerva Exclusive Wildflower Fusion Cotton Sateen Fabric – it is the most wonderful whimsical print! The purples and pinks are the most beautiful hue. This is our fourth version of this pattern (did we mention we love it?!). We have made it in a heavier polished cotton fabric and quilting weight cotton, all of which look good, but none as whimsical as this version! Find out more on the Minerva website here.

Pattern: Know Me ME2016

Know Me 2016 is a design by Beaute’ J’adore. The dress is a fully lined bodice that features a shaped tiers with gathers at the front, a high neckline, bust darts, slant pockets, and an invisible back zipper. The dress pattern includes full sleeves in mid or long-length options and elastic at sleeve hem.  Find this pattern on the Minerva website here.

Three tips we have for making Know Me 2016:

1 – Skirt Gathering: If you follow Tricky.Pockets on Instagram, you might have seen her make a version of Know Me 2016. In her fitting comments, she mentions that there isn’t very much gathering in the bottom tier of the skirt that she had imagined, and we totally agreed! In this version, we added more fabric to the skirt to ensure it was gathered all around the bottom part of the skirt. As the fabric is 142 cm wide, we just made the most of the width of the fabric, which also saves fabric waste.

2 – Lengthed Bodice: The bodice has a shaped bodice, with the centre front being higher than the back bodice. As we are quite tall, we extended the length of the bodice while still keeping the shape so the bodice finished closer to our waistline.

3 – Sleeve head: This pattern has a snazzy gathered sleeve trick – a sleeve head piece! It is a petal-shaped piece cut on the cross and folded in half. Yes, we know it sounds odd, but it is life-changing for gathered sleeve heads! Tip – we have learnt the hard way, with a couple of broken needles, that overlockers do not love going through 5 layers of fabric when 4 of those layers are gathered! Overlock the sleeve seam (which attaches the sleeve to the lined bodice) and the sleeve head piece separately. You can then stitch the sleeve head onto the bodice – we joined the two together using a zip zag stitch for extra security.

Finished Make of ME2016

See more about the make

Photo Credits

Photographer: James Christie Media
Pattern: Know Me ME2016
Fabric:  Minerva Exclusive Wildflower Fusion Cotton Sateen Fabric provided by Minerva