Tween sewing came up on instagram yesterday, with a question asking where are all the tween patterns? I will do a separate blog post especially about that at a later date, but in the meantime will share some current tween makes.

Both this top and skirt are another example of using up scraps. It’s always such a satisfying feeling! Firstly, the top.

This top is based on BurdaStyle No 144 10/2014, which is a pattern I have used before for dresses for Clare. I cut it at top length. So really, it’s just the basic pattern pieces for a raglan top – front, back sleeves. I used scuba scraps for the sleeves and scraps harvested from my friend Karen for the front and back.

I bound the neckline by applying a strip of the scuba to the neckline right sides together, stitching it down with about a 1cm seam allowance, then wrapping it around to the wrong side and stitching in the ditch from the right side. I hope that’s clear!

I sewed the side seams with a 1cm seam allowance by machine so that I could leave this little split at the hemline. I like the added detail. All hems were secured by machine as well. This was a very fast garment to sew, and apparently filled the brief from Clare for a top that was somewhere between casual and dressy, not to loose and not too tight.

I’d sewn the skirt a month or two prior, while at Sewjourn in May. It is very straightforward. Armed with Clare’s waist measurement, and her desired skirt length, I sewed a strip of fabric into a waistband with elastic encased in the centre. Remember that this fabric is scuba, so it easily stretches enough to pull on. The elastic in the waistband provides a bit more structure and stability. Then I sewed the rest of the fabric into a tube, pinned the side seams to the waistband side seam locations, and started to play.

I created box pleats, distributed evenly with three in the front and three in the back.  I think that in the above photo the skirt is twisted around a little bit.  This took a little bit of maths and a little bit of measuring, but basically once everything was pinned to fit and it looked okay I just went ahead and overlocked it to the waistband.  A quick hem and it was done.

Clare now wears her skirts on her natural waist, after years of wearing them on her hips. A style like this is SO easy to make, and in a knit fabric like this scuba is comfortable to wear as well as to put on. It doesn’t look like ayet another gathered waist skirt, as the waistband is flat and the skirt fabric is pleated, but it still has some fullness. She likes it.

If you are wanting to know what other tween patterns I have sewn over the past year or two, I have tried to remember to tag them as “tween” so you can sort by the categories drop down somewhere over there on the right.