I chose this pattern because I had some embroidered mesh in stash that I thought would work well for the sleeves.  And I was right!  It did!

The sleeve fabric was a remnant that I had picked up from Darn Cheap Fabrics some time ago. There was just enough of it to eke out the sleeves. And becaue the mesh was black, I ferreted through my stash to find a solid black knit to use for the body. I generally try to avoid black close to my face – I don’t think that it does me any favours – but I reckon that it works well in combination with the sleeve fabric, a coloured necklace, bright glasses frames and some lipstick.

The pattern is Lekala 4805, also known as ‘blouson with lace’.  It’s designed for knit fabrics, and because it is Lekala I ordered it to my measurements.  There is some very clever shaping built into those deep armhole seams – they basically incorporate princess seamlines as well.

This was an easy sew, with an effective result.  The instructions are limited (like all Lekala instructions) but they’re adequate, especially since this is a very simple garment.  Recommended!

I don’t fully know why I don’t use Lekala patterns more often.  I gave this dress – Lekala 4517 – a try as an experiment.

Actually, when I stop and think about it a little bit more, I don’t use them more often because I’m never completely confident about the ease that’s included in their patterns.  Like Hot Patterns, there aren’t many photos available of the finished garments on people.  I do love a line drawing to get an idea of seam placement and details, but they don’t always indicate ease very well.  With patterns from companies like Style Arc I know what their ease is and therefore what size I prefer.  Lekala patterns are produced to your own measurements – so although they’re almost always guaranteed to fit, they’re not always guaranteed to fit in a way that I find pleasing to my eye.

Lekala do have these little tags on each pattern nowadays, and this one does say ‘loose fitting’.  So let’s see how the finished dress is on me!

You know what? That’s pretty good! This really was sewn as a muslin. The fabric is teal drill (a remnant from Rathdowne Fabrics) and I used some Liberty scraps as a contrast at the neckline. I decided not to bother with the patch pockets on the front.

I inserted a standard zip into the centre back seam. An invisible zip would have been less obvious, because this tightly woven drill looks a bit puckery along the topstiched lines that attach the zip, but as this was a muslin I used what I had in stash.  It looks too wide from shoulder to shoulder at the upper back too.  Photos are so helpful for figuring these things out!

The Liberty is a pretty contrast, but the neckline overall is higher than I’d anticipated from the line drawings.

I also think that the bust darts are a little higher than I’d anticipated or than required.  Or maybe it’s just a consequence of my fifty year old boobs being lower than I’d anticipated!  However, overall this fits me pretty well.

So, overall verdict?  I think it’s worth giving this pattern another try, actually.  I suspect that the same size, in a much softer fabric such as a linen, rayon or a more loosely woven cotton, would work very well on me.  But as is often the case, I suspect that my eye will be attracted to one of the as yet unmade patterns in my stash before I pick this one up again.  And this muslin will be entering the wardrobe in the spare room.

This was the final garment I sewed at Sewjourn in May.  That was a highly successful Sewjourn – I sewed less items, but was very happy with nearly all of them!  It’s nice when it all works out that way.

Lekala 4639 is one of Lekala’s more recent offerings. I knew as soon as I saw it that I’d be making it! Their description of it is “coat”. Well, yes. They do suggest cashmere, gaberdine or tweed as the suggested fabrics.

This is actually a fully lined coat, with the lining pattern pieces provided.  I can draft lining pieces if I have to, but the lazy in me much prefers it when somebody else has already done that work for me!  I used some slippery printed fabric that a friend whose husband works in the fashion industry had given me – I think that it was originally intended for scarves.

The main fabric was a remnant from Rathdowne Fabrics. It is a wool blend, and was very pleasant to work with. It sewed easily and pressed well. I did have to keep an eye out for fraying, but otherwise it was terrific. There are quite a lot of different colours in the weave, but overall it reads as fairly browny green.

Being a Lekala pattern, it was drafted to my measurements. And wow, that fit is just great! The lengths and the proportions are just right for me. I really do love that about Lekala! There is not a great deal of structure in this coat – just interfacing through the front panels and back neckline, as well as the in the sleeve facings. I didn’t even include shoulder pads, although it may have benefitted from a small one. You could definitely add them if required.

I chose to use large snaps as the fastenings instead of buttons. I also found that I needed to hand-sew the coat hem and the sleeve facings in place, or else they bagged down, even with the linings. The linings were of course a big larger than the coat to allow for movement, but this also allowed the narrowed hemline to fall down at first. A bit of hand sewing fixed that right up.

There are darts around the hemline that give this jacket its lovely cocoon shape. They aren’t hard to do – in fact, this wasn’t a difficult garment to assemble. Not all that many pieces, and they were all logically assembled. Lekela provide an order of construction rather than hand-holding instructions, but with a garment like this one (and plenty of years or sewing experience behind you, or a few good reference books) that really is all that you need. And a bit of common sense!

Once upon a time I would have laughed at coats with half or three quarter length sleeves, but nowadays I really like them! The shaping in this one is really nice, with the curve up to the underarm seam.  It doesn’t sit quite a perfectly as I’d like on the inside there – maybe I needed a bit more clipping and grading. The back neckline and shoulders fit nicely and there isn’t any obvious fabric pooling due to my short back waist, which is always a win – although with this coat style choice it shouldn’t have really been a problem anyway.

Overall, this coat is a BIG win for me and for Lekala. It’s a very current style, and it fits me so well! If you haven’t taken a look at Lekala or Bootstrap patterns yet (they use the same software) I really recommend that you do. They release new styles regularly, and with a bit of trial and error regarding style ease (there’s generally not much!) you end up with fit that you can rely on. And did I mention the price point? Very reasonable – especially if you buy a pattern bundle.

Last year I had a call from my cousin Freya asking if I had any ball dresses in my wardrobe that she could borrow.  Although I have a fair few formal dresses, none of them were quite right for Freya (although we are similar heights we are shaped quite differently) so I offered to sew her a dress, with the proviso that it was a Lekala pattern.  I knew that we wouldn’t have much opportunity for fitting so a pattern made to measure was the safest bet.

We ended up choosing Lekala 4403, described as “dress with long skirt”.  I took all the measurements that we needed, and ordered the pattern (they arrive the same day via email – usually within about 15 minutes of placing the order).  I rummaged through my fabric stash and found some vintage red jacquard fabric – just perfect for a Fire Ball!  I bought matching silk/cotton fabric to line the dress from Darn Cheap Fabrics.  Then I went for it and sewed it up.

I dialled Ada’s measurements down to better match Freya’s and tried the dress on the dressform.  An issue immediately became apparent – check out the depth of that neckline slash.

As always, I should have listened to my instincts that said, as I was sewing the neckline notch and slashing into it, “my goodness, this looks a little too deep”. It most certainly was! Neither Freya nor I mind showing a bit of cleavage, but as it was this dress gave almost full exposure.  The line drawing was definitely not accurate in that regard, and because I was in a hurry when I sewed the dress I didn’t stop to listen to that little voice that was trying to alert me. So it was time for a save.

I made a little insert from the same fabric and pinned it in place, but wasn’t able to get it just right until I tried it on Freya. Then we had a bit of an issue with the neckline corners. Would they sit flat against the body? Not really at that stage – they would have needed interfacing. There was a definite tendency for them to flop forward.  Unfortunately I hadn’t taken the time to think about that during the construction process.

Otherwise, the dress fitted Freya perfectly! I was really happy with all the other proportions on her, and it showed off her small waistline beautifully. That is one of the things that I enjoy about sewing for Freya – she has the little waist that I have never had, and I sew quite different styles for her as a consequence. It’s fun!

The invisible zip inserted easily and zipped up beautifully when she put the dress on.  It also sat nicely across her body, including across her back and shoulders. Getting the waistband seams and pintucks to line up exactly at the side seams was more of a challenge.

Not perfect, but not too far off either! So, what to do about those front neckline corners?

In the end, Freya decided that they looked good as an open neckline, a bit like a collar. Fortunately I’d matched the lining perfectly and had made certain to sew very accurately in that area. I only managed to get one photo of Freya all dressed up for the ball (she was on the organising committee so spent her evening dashing around being busy rather than relaxing for photos) but I think that she looks gorgeous!

Pretty good for a two week timeline with only one opportunity for fitting, I reckon! Having that Lekala pattern as a base was the key. I know that Nicole uses Lekala a lot for her daughter’s formal dresses – they have a terrific range of formal designs and it really does make a difference in getting that fit right.

I’m about 10kg into the overweight category, and most of that is firmly deposited around my middle, especially on my front.  This is where Lekala patterns are a godsend.  Enter Lekala 4590.

Lekala patterns are ordered to your measurements.  How fabulous is that!  It does take a little while to figure out their ease – generally their drawing of the garment on a person helps with that – and it also takes a little while to figure out what tweaks you need.

For me, entering the measurements on the “main” tab – my height, full bust, underbust, waist, hip and full hip – seems to work quite well.  The “full hip” adjustment puts more of the waist measurement at the front, which is where I need it. It doesn’t just distribute the circumferential measurement evenly between the front and the back pattern pieces, so I end up with the back waist measurement smaller than the front waist measurement. Perfect!

I’ve tried some of the other adjustments on this tab, such as narrow shoulders, before, but through trial and error have discovered that I don’t actually need those.

Lekala  patterns are very reasonably priced, so it’s well worth trying out a few of these adjustments to see which ones you do and don’t need.  They have a few free patterns as well, so it really is minimal risk to order, print and re-sew with each of those changes to see what works best with your shape.  Even if you only go with the basic measurements, as I do, with Lekala you end up with a pattern that requires much less alteration than most.

The fabric is a substantial textured knit that was a gift from a lovely sewing friend but originally came from Darn Cheap Fabrics. It probably isn’t my best colours – a much cooler palette than usual – but I really like the fabric and it is very cosy to wear. The neckband is meant to be interfaced for structure – I decided to leave out the interfacing as the fabric is pretty beefy.

There are pockets in the angled side seams. I made them from the same fabric as the rest of the dress, but they would have been better in something more lightweight.

Although Lekala patterns (and Bootstrap patterns) are drafted to your measurements, you still need to choose patterns that you feel most work with your shape. Their patterns will fit, but will they look and feel good on you? I still don’t choose patterns with a fitted waist; it’s just not my style. If you haven’t given Lekala (or Bootstrap Fashion, who use the same software) a go yet, I highly recommend them.

Sewing this skirt has convinced me that Lekala truly are the answer to the straight woven skirt.  As far as my body is concerned, anyway.  This is Lekala 5264, also known as the “Two-Seam Skirt”.

Okay, as part of an outfit photo you really can’t see why this is so great. So here are some more photos.

Firstly, the fabric. This is a vintage wool that was a gift, and I had JUST enough to cut the front and back with checks matching. But as you can see, there wasn’t enough to make the waistband match as well, unfortunately. But since it will never be seen again outside of this blog post, it doesn’t matter all that much. It was lovely fabric to work with – ah wool, such a dream. And that lovely wool smell when you steam it!

This is a super simple skirt, with a front piece that has darts for shaping, a back piece also with darts for shaping, and a waistband. There is a zip set into the side seam. That’s it. I chose to do a lapped zipper, and sewed it by machine. I also decided to line the skirt.

The back darts were much deeper than the front ones, as appropriate for my shape. The waistband could have been a fraction longer, to give a bit more overlap to do it up at the side. I also added lace to the skirt hem before hand-sewing it to secure it. Mum always used to do that to her skirts, all of which had hand-sewn hems. I think of her whenever I catch a glimpse inside this skirt.

This is a free Lekala pattern. Enter your measurements – and be accurate when taking them – and the pattern is emailed to you in whichever sized pdf format you specify. I love the pot gut feature – actually known as full hip or belly protuberance. It gives me that extra room that I need in the front of my skirts. Lekala, you win again.