This year I’m starting to venture back to the office and even down to Melbourne for work so I’m wanting to add some more colourful, comfortable work shirts to my wardrobe. I’ve also had a heap of really beautiful cotton prints in my fabric stash, so I don’t even need to purchase any new fabric.
Pattern:Butterick 5615 Top Fabric: 100% cotton Pattern Level: Advanced Beginner
This pattern is a really cute and very flattering style. It can be made in a number of different layouts, as shown below. I ended up making the short sleeve with the plain front.
I found the only complicated part to this was the front bow. It was a bit tricky to get it to sit right and you have to be careful not to stitch incorrectly and avoid damaging the front panel. However, once you have that sorted the rest is very simple. The collar and front is fully lined and turns out very well made.
I didn’t make any alterations to the pattern and overall it turned out exactly as I had imagined from the pictures.
The other shirts that I have in my sewing line up for the upcoming months are shown below! Let’s see how many I can actually get completed. I’ve also been loving getting back on Pattern Review and doing some research on patterns and outfits to add to my sewing queue.
Buterick 6026Butterick 6665Simplicty 9143
Would love to hear if you have any favourite shirt patterns! There are just so many to choose from!
I’ve recently had a bit of a sewing lul where I wasn’t super inspired to sew, I didn’t know where to start, and I kept making clothes out of “test” fabric which I didn’t really like once it was made. The plan was to make a second garment but it just went back on my sewing room pile and I fell back into my lul again.
I figured from now once I’ve checked the sizing I would just create the garment in my nice fabric and that might solve half my problems. I also have a bit of an issue collecting patterns, and now I have so many I’m overwhelmed with choice. Almost like sifting through the Netflix catalogue and in the end you’ve scrolled though tons of movies and just end up sitting there not watching anything because there is too much choice. So I went back to the pattern company I know fits me well… Burdastyle.
This dress is the Burdastyle 115 Sleeveless dress that I’ve had in my downloads for a few years now. It’s actually been a little while since I’ve cut out a pattern from BurdaStyle so I went to look at my sizing which indicated a size 40, but then once I did the toile, I realised that I needed a 42.
I ended up making it out of a Cotton Sateen from Spotlight, which did have a bit of stretch, so I actually had to take it in a little around the sides and back. This is really cute style of dress. It’s quite low cut and somehow it turned out quite short, which I can wear with black stockings (given it’s currently winter).
I also cut the same dress x2 to make a lining, so it’s fully lined! It has cotton sateen for the top and a poplin for the skirt.
I’m actually really pleased with the way this one turned out and it’s made me realised that I just have to keep sewing, even if it’s something I don’t love because that’s where you end up finding your gem patterns. I probably wouldn’t make a second dress in this (tiny bit too revealing for me) but at least I have one really nice version in fabric that I love.
I also had a look through my Burdastyle wish list and found a plus size dress that is seriously gorgeous. Given their plus sizing starts at 44 I think my next goal will be to make this version and simply size it down one sizing.
Overall I quite like this version dress and the combination with the cotton sateen fabric. It’s also exciting to have my sewing groove back and be able to post a finished garment that I’m happy with! Sometimes you just have to commit to a outfit and put your creative mind on getting it finished to get back into loving this hobby.
I also find it helpful to go and check out other sewers that have a similar style to your own and see what they’ve been up to. There are so many women who I’ve followed for years and just admire everything they create. I’ll hopefully have a few more gems to post online soon!
I’ve had a pretty long break from sewing with my focuses being mainly on work, my friends and partner. However, I would love to get back into sewing both personally and with my Etsy store. I’ve tried to make a half year sewing goal list to get my sewing mojo back! Hopefully this will allow me to create some nice pieces leading into the warmer months.
Misses McCalls 8252 Dress
I have a dress very similar to this and was thinking of creating it up as a possibility to wear to an upcoming wedding. I’ve seen some really gorgeous versions of this dress on Instagram when you search #M8252 and love how they all turned out.
I recently discovered some gorgeous Japanese Character fabric that I’ve had in my sewing room for over 10 years. I was saving it for a special occasion, not wanting to use it since I purchased the fabric on a holiday in Japan. However, looking online you can now get very similar Japanese character prints on AliExpress – so I’ve ordered some more and looking forward to using it all up for something cute!!
I’ve slowly started to get back to working in the office (after 2½ years working at home) so I wanted to add a few more simple, stylish work shirts to my wardrobe. I found this shirt in my stash and hoping to use some really gorgeous shirt fabrics!
If you’ve checked out any of my blog posts you may have noticed my two little pugs (Busta and Bella) who make an appearance in some of photos or posts. Unfortunately in February this year I had to say goodbye to my cheeky girl Bella who fell extremely ill with cancer. This was one of the hardest things I’ve had to do, especially since they’ve both been with me through all of my ups and downs and never failed to make me smile. Busta (now 14 years old) is doing well though and Ziggy, my new ginger kitty, has been keeping him company and cheering us both up. She will always remain in my heart but I miss her each and every day.
Since I’ve been working from home since Covid hit in 2020, I’ve been finding it harder to stay motivated and put time into myself. I find that I often working late hours, feeling the pressure of new roles or promotions. However, this year I’ve been trying to put more time into myself and been part of a local HIIT gym who run fitness challenges. I’m currently doing my own 8 week challenge, going to 4-5 classes a week hoping to get back on track to feel amazing for when summer arrives.
The last little hobby I’ve also taken part in is my graphic design for pets and animals. This was somewhat inspired by Bella passing away, as I wanted to create a design of her to put onto mugs and other prints. I’ve really enjoyed getting back to a skill I used when I first started my career.
I guess for me it’s good to set some new goals and challenges and make sure I don’t waste the weeks that seem to be flying by at the moment. Also, to ensure that I make time for myself and don’t work long hours. It’s always great to commit to creative hobbies that fill our cups up!
I’ve been wanting to sew this dress for a while now and seen so many beautiful versions of it on Instagram. This pattern has a number of variations too so they all look completely different from each other. I purchased this Cotton Sateen fabric from DK Fabrics that I have been holding out to use, wanting to find the perfect style of dress. I’m glad I did, as it worked amazingly and is so soft and comfortable to wear.
I started my tester dress by just using the bow tie front, shoulder straps and the skirt pattern pieces. However, when I gathered the skirt it felt too bunched and it didn’t sit well on me. So I’ve changed it up and still using the skirt pattern I just removed the extra width to the skirt (removing the gathered section). This then created a slim-fitting skirt pattern instead. I also found it strange that you had to try and tuck the top of the skirt top part under and it just felt a bit messy on the inside and not very well lined. To fix this I just cut out a strip (along the top of the skirt) to line the back and stitched it at the same time as the skirt to top piece.
Description: Close-fitting dress with a tie-front bow and slim fitting skirt with back zipper. Pattern: McCalls M7789 Dress Fabric: Cotton Sateen Dress & Lined Shirt – DK Fabrics
The only issue with the bow at the front is it’s hard to find the perfect bra to wear with it. You could end up lining the inside of the top with some padding, which would remove the use of wearing one. Or if you’re like me, you could just just tie the bow really tight and wear a strapless bra anyway.
I loved the style of this dress so much I ended up cutting out a shirt version to wear with jeans. I had the most gorgeous linen fabric in mind, so I jumped straight to it and made this pink version. It’s crazy to think I originally used this fabric for a Baby Doll Dress when I was 18. This was probably one of my first sewing projects that I completed with my mum.
There is so much inspiration on insta for this pattern that will want you creating your own version! Just search the tag #M7789. You can also see the different ways you can mix and match the top and bottom parts.
Each year I usually try to find new patterns to test out, some of which never even make it to my blog. I think this year, given how little I’m going to work or out socially, I’ll probably just stick to a goal of using the fabric that I have in my stash and creating the garments that I already know and love.
After having a bit of a break from sewing I started the year fresh by going back to a pattern I love making. This was a perfect dress for the summer holidays, looking casual but still dressy and cute. I wore this dress for a day up at the Sunshine Coast and even made a matching mask to wear with it.
Description: This is a beautiful two-toned dress including front pockets a pleated skirt and small capped sleeves. Perfect for beginner sewers as Colette includes easy-to-follow instructions. Pattern: Colette Macaron Dress Material: Striped Denim and cotton jersey
This is a close up where you can see the striped pattern of the dress and I absolutely just love this combination. As you can see I’ve copied this style for all of the Colette dresses that I’ve made. You can see these blog posts with my flower patterned and the bright fabric version.
The main things that I love about this pattern is the two-toned layout (which you can mix and match with so many different fabric types – even sheer), front and back pleats, front pockets and cute capped sleeves. It’s such a flattering, cute style of dress, I just love wearing them!
Even though this is one of my favourite dresses I’ve only ever purchased two other patterns from Colette (now on Seamworks website). I’d love to know if you’ve made or love any of the other patterns from this brand? It might be time for me to invest in a new style!
In saying that, the next dress on my sewing table is actually a black version of this I’m going to create with a bright linen type of fabric. I’m hoping to get the most out of what’s left of summer 🙂
Firstly, Happy New Year! I haven’t been able to blog for a while but I wanted to take everyone back to Christmas! It was only a month ago and has to be one of my favourite times of the year. Everyone is so excited and winding down for the holidays and it’s usually when I get a few weeks off work and get to spend the holidays seeing my family and friends.
Last year we starting to slowly make our way back to office for work and luckily I was able to meet up with my colleagues for a Christmas party right before the next wave of Covid came through. To celebrate this I made myself a Christmas themed work shirt from Disney Mickey Mouse fabric I purchased at Spotlight.
Pattern: BurdaStyle Button up tunic Fabric: Spotlight Disney Fabric Fabric Type: 100% cotton
There are so many ways to dress up a Christmas work shirt. I purchased Christmas earrings, a red bow for my hair and wore Christmas themed scrunchies around my wrist. Below is a photo of the day I went into the city for one of the first times all year!
This pattern is really easy to make and apologies I can’t seem to locate the pattern on the new BurdaStyle website. However, there are loads of similar patterns online. I’ve made this pattern a few times you can see more on my Button Up work shirts post, where I made an entire collection when I first started working in the city. You can easily find some bright, fun fabric that will make people ask you where you got your shirt from. I can safely say I was one of the brightest people in the city that day and got a lot of positive comments on my shirt.
I’ve been back at work for nearly a month now and it’s bitter sweet that they holidays went so quickly. But it’s nice to look back and reminisce on the amazing break and look forward to the next one. Above is a photo of my nephew and I wearing matching Kmart shirts on Christmas day! I decorated my garden and backyard so we could take some photos this year.
If you wanted to create a work shirt similar, I’ve also done a how-to on how to easily stitch on the buttons! Hopefully this latest round of Covid will die down soon and we may be able to make it back to the city for work. While I love working from home I do miss the social aspect of seeing my colleagues each day! However, it’s certainly encouraged me to look at my goals and mindset and ensure I stay motivated and challenged.
Late last year I completed an 8 week challenge which made me focus entirely on my health and fitness, something I hadn’t done in a while. I was so amazed at how great this experience was, meeting new friends, it got myself out of the house each day where I got to see my sister and over the 8 weeks I lost a total of 5kg! Now I’m making exercise and my HIIT classes part of my weekly routine. This year I’m hoping to focus on goals that will help me learn and grow. Here are some snaps from my challenge!
This is something I was super proud of and I highly recommend it for anyone wanting to feel healthier and fitter! Now I can sew outfits for myself, while feeling good about myself and my body. I’m really looking forward to an exciting new year and hope to post some of my latest creations for you soon!
Honey Love Sewing 