Erin and James are off jet-setting to Europe this month so this was a fantastic excuse to plan a capsule travel wardrobe. We will share some of the makes on the blog but also follow along on our Instagram for all the outfit updates. The first make featuring on the trip in London is the Adrift Shift by Gracie Steel in Faces Canvas from Spotlight.
Fabric: Faces Canvas from Spotlight
Pattern: Gracie Steel Adrift Shift
Photos by: James Christie Media
Did someone say fun pants?! 🎉
We’ve been staring at McCalls 8098 for a while now. It has an elastic waist (therefore VERY comfortable), and gathered (therefore FUN) – so we couldn’t wait to make them. We made view B, the full length view without the contract panels.
The only issue is deciding what fabric to use… there are so many options! Plain colours, stripes, floral, checks – so many options that would look great in these pants. When we saw this crepe, we just loved it. The contrast of the orange and black so eye catching! 😍
This is the Stretch Woven Polyester Crepe Fabric Orange & Black from Minerva. It is a deadstock fabric, which has a 15% stretch on the width of the fabric (which helps with how comfy they are to wear!). It is also 150 cm wide, which makes it really easy to be creative with the pattern layout.
We decided to make the most of the width of the fabric. So we widened the bottom tier of the pants to stretch to the full width of the fabric. To balance out the tiers, we also extended the middle tier of the pants to help balance the gathered. Next time we make these pants, we can’t wait to make them in a more stable fabrics like a cotton poplin – something that makes the most of the gathered tiers!.
These pants are quick and rewarding to make! We wore them for the first time today and got so many compliments. This is probably because the style is so unique, but it was definitely amplified by the fun fabric!
The McCall’s 8098 is also available on the Minerva website here.
Now… the ongoing issue we have with pants is deciding what top to wear with it! This issue is usually why we decide to make dresses, but we decided not to let this stop us this time! So it was time to make a matching top!
You may think this is quite a bold combo to have a matching top and pants in this fabric… and you are not wrong. we love the matching set, but we also have plenty of black tops to wear on days we want this outfit to be less “bold”.
This top is the Quin Cowl by Gracie Steel. The cowl neck sits like a dream in the cowl neck! We’ve made this top in plain back, but it is the first time we’ve made it in a pattern. It is such an easy to sew, tank top style pattern.
Fabric: Stretch Woven Polyester Crepe Fabric Orange & Black provided by Minerva
Pattern: McCall’s 8098 available on Minvera, Quin Cowl purchased from Gracie Steel
Have you tried shirring? This might be the time! Gracie Steel has just released the Shirley Shirred dress that features a shirred bodice and a gathered skirt. We joined the testing team to explore this new pattern.
The pattern includes a range of options a fully shirred bodice, milkmaid style (not shirring across the bust) and a combination of skirt designs with a dropped waist, v yoke with a regular seam or exposed ruffle. We created the fully shirred v front bodice with v yoke skirt.
The pattern called for opaque light/medium-weight wovens with good drape such as linen, cotton, viscose, silk. We wanted to create a fun Summer dress so chose this Ellie Whittaker Leafy Sea Cotton Poplin in pink.
We would highly recommend including the option of including a channel for the elastic around the waist. As you are combining two varying pieces of material, a gathered skirt and a shirred bodice there is nothing that pulls the material into the body, both have movement and a tendency to stretch.
Pattern: Shirley Shirred by Gracie Steel
Fabric: Ellie Whittaker Leafy Sea in Pink
We were excited to be invited to be part of the testing team for the new pattern release from Gracie Steel. This dress is a great beginner make with a loose fit. It has simple bust darts and a tie feature at the top of the centre-back keyhole.
The Adrift Shift Dress sewing pattern is a classic and timeless shift dress. This shape was a staple of the 60s and continues to stand the test of time.
The swing bodice shape features a bust and shoulder dart. You can choose a round neck or sweetheart’s neckline with a back keyhole and tie feature.
Gracie encourages hacking of her patterns but for the pattern testing, we wanted to create the pattern just like the original design with the round neck for the first time we made it. However, we have a few hacks up our sleeve and can’t wait to see the different versions that come through in the #adriftshift on Instagram.
The pattern is described as being suitable for a range of fabrics, both knit and woven, including cotton, linen, and silk or jersey.
We went through our stash to find a fabric looking for a bold print that would be a great showcase for this dress. We came across this canvas from Nerida Hansen that we had purchased at a Finders Keepers Market in Melbourne a few years ago.
When we were testing this pattern the fabric requirements had not been released so we worked out that we would need two lengths of the dress, as we assumed the front and back dress pieces would not fit side by side.
The fabric we found was not quite wide enough to place them side by side. As a result, we made the width of the doubled-over section and were the fold the width of the dress so that we could keep the long length for another project.
Once we had placed the front and back dress pieces we then fitted the facing pieces in around the larger pieces.
The instructions provide great step-by-step instructions for a beginner sewer and a “Super Speedy Construction Summary” for those more familiar with garment construction. If you would like some more support for the construction you can also watch Gracie’s sewing along video on YouTube.
For the back keyhole feature, the facing piece provides great coverage of the seam. It is a great technique to mark the centre backline and then stitch either side of the chalk line before cutting it open.
Photographer: James Christie Media
Pattern: Adrift Shift Dress by Gracie Steel
Fabric: Canvas print from Nerida Hansen
