It seems that at around the same time each year, I sew a Tessuti Isla top. This one is my third.

I sewed size Small, grading to Medium through the arms as I did last time. This is a smaller size than my measurements suggest. To refresh your memory about this pattern: The Isla Top is a stylish jersey top that sits firm on the hips. It features a back yoke, dolman sleeves and wide neckline with finished neck band. This simple pattern has only three pattern pieces making this a quick and satisfying make and is a great wardrobe staple for all seasons. Ideal in any light weight stretch jersey.

I used a panel print that I’d bought from Crafty Mamas Fabrics ages ago. I wanted to have full length sleeves, so added a long cuff. It was actually WAY too long when first added – I had to remove it and shorten it around two inches before reattaching.  I didn’t have enough fabric for the lower back, so used a plain contrast (which had the additional benefit of removing the need to pattern match down the side seams).

This is a shape that works really well for my body. It’s reminiscent in shape of the Style Arc Sunny, but without the cocoon body. The Isla has definitely entered my tried-and-true pattern collection.

The last time that I sewed the Tessuti Yuki dress, it was for summer, in a summer fabric.  This time around I sewed it in wool crepe.

It seems that there is a little more black creeping in to my wardrobe. My greying hair makes the black work a little bit better than it used to, but I still don’t like it too close to my face. Although the wool crepe would have worked well in the collar/cowl, I rifled through my stash and found some linen that is cross dyed, with brown threads in one direction and black in the other. This worked nicely with the main fabric, providing some colour without too much contrast.

From the pattern page: The Yuki Dress is a loose fitting, knee length, pull-over tunic dress that features extended shoulders, tapered hemline, side pockets and a funnel style collar with drawstring tie. The contrast collar drapes around the neck like a soft cowl. Worn on its own or layered over a fitted top, it’s a fabulous trans-seasonal wardrobe piece. Sizes (AUS): XXS-XL Recommended fabrics: Dress – drapey fabrics with great body such as wool crepe, rayon/tri-acetate crepe, viscose, acetate, heavy silk satin and linen. Contrast collar and tie – viscose georgette, silk crepe de chine and double georgette

This is a great pattern for me – the sack rules! I sewed exactly the same size as my summer version.  It layered nicely over thick winter leggings, boots and an Aldi merino long-sleeved tee.

I first sewed the Tessuti Lily dress in 2012.  That dress is still in my wardrobe and is still worn!  I have actually sewn the pattern another three times since then (once for Mum and twice for me).  The orange linen version is still in my wardrobe getting regular wear, and the sleeveless version was worn and washed so much that it’s actually been worn out!  Each time I wear the Lily dress I think about how much I like the fit across my shoulders, and think that I really should use the same pattern to make a top.  Finally, that’s what I did!

The beautiful Japanese seersucker that I used was a gift from a generous friend. The check is printed, not woven in to the fabric. I decided to keep the flare in the side seams, and just cut the pattern straight across at the desired length (mostly determined by the amount of fabric that was available).

I find this such an easy top to sew! The neck is finished with bias binding used as a facing. Hems are simply a narrow hem turned twice and topstitched. I used the overlocker to finish seam allowances, but otherwise sewed it on the machine.

Have you noticed the white pants that I am wearing with it? These are the same pattern as the orange pants in the last post – McCalls 2699.

This time they are sewn in linen from The Cloth Shop. I had a pair of wide leg white linen pants many years ago that I wore to death (I had a wide leg black washed silk pair as well that was also worn to death) and I’ve always thought that I should sew a replacement pair. It was a bit of a challenge finding white linen that was the right weight for pants, but fortunately The Cloth Shop had a range to choose from. This linen is just right.

I did a stash dive again for elastic and a toggle for the waist. This is a very easy adjustable finish.

At around the same time I was planning to sew the Lily dress as a top I saw in this Instagram post from Tessuti, showing Silva’s Lily dress as top. She removed flare at the hemline and used the fabric selvedges at the hems. I might give that a go next time I am working with a fabric that has an interesting selvedge!

Size wise, I sewed the Medium, which according to their size chart is for a 96cm/38″ bust. My measurements are one size up, but the Medium seems to fit me well. Tessuti offer this pattern from a 32″ to 42″ bust, so the size range is pretty limited. I find that Tessuti patterns are ones that work well for me and stay in my wardrobe for some time.

It’s just under a year since I last sewed the Tessuti Isla top. Last time it was too big, but I knew that the style worked for me. So here it is again!

I always feel comfortable in this style and silhouette.

This time around I sized down and sewed size Small, graded to Medium through the arms (although as it turns out, the Small would have been okay in this fabric). This top is SO fast to sew. One pattern piece for the front/sleeves and back yoke, another for the lower back, plus a neckband. That’s it! If you look closely at the next photo you can see the seaming a little more clearly. The other seams are the side seams.

I constructed this top on the overlocker, and used a zig-zag stitch on my sewing machine to secure hems and neckband seam allowances. The fabric is a divine Liberty print viscose knit, once again from a generous friend. It’s a prettier design than I would usually choose, but it works beautifully for me in this colourway. It also feels lovely against the skin. There just might be enough left over for a tee for one of my daughters.

From the pattern website: This stylish jersey top pattern sits firm on the hips featuring back yoke, dolman sleeves and wide neckline with finished neck band. This simple pattern has only three pattern pieces making this a quick and satisfying make and is a great wardrobe staple for all seasons. Ideal in any light weight stretch jersey.

There’s really not much more to say about this top! I suggest that if you’re making it you size down. Keep in mind that the sleeves are fairly fitted and are cut on, so make sure that your fabric has a good amount of stretch both lengthwise and widthwise (or grade up those cut on sleeves accordingly). I know that I will get plenty of wear from this top, and I’ll use the pattern again.

Recently I sent my overlocker and sewing machine away for a routine service.  This meant that I was without my machines for a little over a week.  So what did I do when the impulse to sew something became very, very strong?

I hand sewed it together! This really was an impulse sew. It’s the Tessuti Amara vest pattern. I was aiming for wearable muslin, and pulled out two largish scraps of ponte from stash to sew it from, and pulled out my embroidery supplies.

This vest is designed to have overlapped, topstitched seams, so I simply joined them with a running stitch. I only needed to sew the shoulder and the side seams, although I also attached the patch pockets to the front in the same way.

I have always admired Alabama Chanin hand-stitched embroidered tops, but have never had enough oomph to actually sew one. Maybe I’ll feel more inclined soon, as this vest didn’t take long at all! All edges are left raw.

From the pattern website: This loose, boxy vest/top is the ideal layering piece to add colour, contrast or texture to a relaxed look. Style features include drop shoulders, patch pockets and a wide neckline. View A has overlapped and raw edges for a super quick and satisfying sewing project. View B has bound edges for extra interest and more fabric options. Recommended fabrics: View A: boiled wool knits, felted wool, ponti. View B: woven wool, wool blend, tweed and knits.

I sewed size 2, which I am happy with other than the big fold of excess fabric at the centre front neckline. That could partly be due to the fabric choice, but I think it’s also the width of the neckline on my body shape. I will address this if I choose to sew this pattern again.

It was a bit of fun to spend a Friday evening hand-stitching a vest together in front of a movie! However, I’m very pleased that my sewing machine and overlocker were back in their places before we started lockdown 2.0.

So many Mandy boat tees.  At a rough count the number I have sewn is well into double figures.  It’s a simple shape that I return to over and over.

I am now using the updated version of this (still free) pattern. When it was originally released it was a ‘one size fits all’ pattern. It now comes in four sizes, ranging from XXS to XXXL, with a three quarter length and a full length sleeve option. I think that the sleeves are now slightly roomier than they were in the first rendition.

I fall between the size 2 and size 3 according to my measurements, but really when you’re choosing a size for this pattern, it’s very much about your style preferences. I really like the wide loose body with fitted sleeves, so overlaid the original pattern on the new one and decided to go with size 3. I’m happy with that choice.

Of course, as with many successful garments, it’s about getting the fabric choice right for the intended silhouette. This knit (I found it at Restash earlier in the year) is perfect. It’s really soft, quite stretchy, and drapes beautifully. I’ve sewn Mandy tees in a few fabrics now and the ones that have been nicest to wear have been those in fabrics that stretch well in both directions (especially for sleeve comfort).

I did what I often do with the leftovers, and sewed them into a tube for a simple scarf/cowl that I can wear with the tee to add a fraction more neck warmth and a change of style when desired.

It’s Easter Monday here – what a different Easter it’s been.  The kids had the fun of our usual egg hunt yesterday, which is always entertaining to watch, but otherwise the four days have been so different to usual.  Easter has usually been about family for us, mostly in a relaxed country setting.  Everything over the last month is full of contradictions – familiar, yet unfamiliar.  At the moment we’re focusing more on what we can do and the blessings of our lives than what we currently can’t do and are missing out on.  But that focus changes.  Anyway, it’s back to work for me tomorrow, and back to school for the kids on Wednesday (edited to add: both work and school are from home for the foreseeable future as per the stay-at-home guidelines in Victoria).  I’ve enjoyed getting sewing and craft projects done, and we’ve also managed to complete a few of those household tasks that get put off for ages but don’t end up taking long to do.  We’ve watched loads of Netflix and Stan.  When you don’t have to go anywhere for anything, there’s much more available time at home for both doing and simply being.  The days are going quickly yet the weeks are taking forever.  It’s a very strange time.

This top got an awful lot of love when I posted it on Instagram a few days ago.  I first sewed the Tessuti Hilary top last year in printed silk, and it was one of the favourite things I’d sewn last year.  Then Tessuti posted a tutorial for a sleeve ‘hack’ (I still don’t like the term as applied to pattern alterations and modifications – they’re done carefully!) of a shorter, fuller sleeve.  Looked great!  Maybe I could do something similar?

This is one of those times when I got the fabric and pattern combination just right for me. The fabric is printed rayon from Spotlight – I found it on the clearance table, so given that I’ve already used this pattern before, this garment is a very low cost garment (in terms of materials – my time is not factored in to the cost).  This type of delicate and detailed print is not one that I usually wear, but the colour was just perfect and I figured that I’d still feel like ‘me’ in it.  I knew that because I’d chosen to sew it in rayon I wouldn’t get the same ‘boofy’ sleeve as the top in Tessuti’s tutorial, but that was the look I was after. Fullness but not excessive volume.

I thought that many of you might find it helpful to see the modifications that I made to the pattern pieces. Here’s the sleeve:

I traced the sleeve pattern that I already had, then slashed and spread it according to the tutorial. I think that I made the measurement from the armhole to the hem a bit longer than they’d suggested. The top in the tutorial has the sleeve ending above the elbow; mine is obviously below but part of that is related to the fabric type, elastic length and where the sleeve ‘cuff’ is pushed up to (or not) on the arm.

I also made some modifications to the body, and I’ll show you those pattern pieces too. I added length, added width at the hemline, and lowered the front neckline (and the corresponding facing) by an inch. My previous version was just too ‘chokey’.

I wasn’t terribly scientific about the added width – I just measured out 5cm at the hemline, then another 5cm, and drew two lines that angled up to the armhole. Which line was used was likely to depend on what fitted on the fabric width. As it turned out I was able to use the 10cm line. This means that there was an additional 40cm added to the hemline width in total. I really like the way that it hangs and drapes at the sides.

This top could do with some bra keepers being added right beside that wide neckline. I have fairly narrow and rounded shoulders, and prefer not to expose my bra straps. I sewed size Large, because that’s the pattern size I’d used before and was suggested by my bust measurement, but I really could have sewn this in a Medium. However, it doesn’t feel too big when I’m wearing it.

The elastic at the top of the shoulders does stand up a little from the body – I may have made the casing a smidgen too tight and/or used elastic that was a smidgen too stiff. But it’s not a deal breaker. For the sleeve hem elastic I measured around my upper arm to get a guide, then inserted it, then adjusted until the measurement felt right on me. I didn’t really want the elastic to be tight around my arm; rather, I wanted it to act as more as a cuff.

I am extremely happy with these pattern modifications.   I’ve now seen a few tops like this in the shops, and the recently released Friday Pattern Company Adrianna dress also has this type of sleeve treatment and a similar silhouette to my modified Hilary.  It’s not difficult to sew, yet looks a bit out of the ordinary.  I’d like to give this pattern one more go in something crisper to really get the boofy sleeve effect, but that will probably wait until next summer. There is already a to sew pile developing in my sewing room in anticipation of autumn and winter!

Sometimes you see a fabric that you just HAVE to sew with.  That’s how I felt when I spotted this linen/viscose blend at The Cloth Shop, Ivanhoe shortly before Christmas.  And if the comments on Instagram when I posted this photo were anything to go by, I wasn’t the only one that loved it!

Yes, it’s the fabric on the top of the pile in the photo. I’ve already blogged what the other three fabrics became – a tunic for Mum from the printed viscose, and Infinity scarves (with secret pocket) from the two spotted flannels. When I bought the linen/viscose, I was pretty sure what I wanted to sew from it – a Tessuti Yuki dress. And in the end, I wore it for Christmas day celebrations.

The Yuki dress pattern was released in March 2017 (the introductory blog post is here) and I pretty much dismissed it at the time, mainly because I saw it as a ‘winter’ pattern, and already owned a Vogue pattern with a cowl neckline with similar lines. However, I reconsidered it when browsing for a ‘sack’ dress pattern that I hadn’t used before. I liked the angled side seams, and the collar isn’t a regular cowl. So into my shopping cart it went, and was promptly printed, taped and cut out. I chose to sew size Medium, one size smaller than the Large my bust measurement would have put me in.

In retrospect, I have no idea why I had thought this was a ‘winter’ pattern – maybe because Tessuti had shown their sample in black, layered over a long-sleeved top! The fabric recommendations are for the main dress in drapey fabrics with great body eg. wool crepe, rayon/triacetate crepe, crepe blends, viscose, acetate, heavy silk satin, linen etc, with the collar and tie done in a contrast such as viscose georgette, silk crepe de chine, double georgette etc. Clearly I was way off base in my original thoughts about the pattern! It’s perfect for summer!

Now, I have to say that this is not your average ‘sack’ dress. The pattern website describes it as follows: This loose fitting, knee length, pull-over tunic dress features extended shoulders, tapered hemline, side pockets and a funnel style collar with drawstring tie. The contrast collar drapes around the neck like a soft cowl. The Yuki Dress can be worn on its own or layered over a fitted top, make it the perfect trans-seasonal wardrobe piece.

The line drawings really do say it all. The side seams (which have in-seam pockets) angle toward the tapered hem (a style that always works well on my shape), and take note of the neckline shape with it’s rounded V at the centre front and centre back. Very nice, a bit of a departure from the usual, yet easy to sew.

I topstitched around the seam where the cowl-like collar is attached to the main dress to provide a bit more support and structure. The collar is a single layer, which means that the wrong side of the fabric can show when it’s being worn, so take that into consideration. The tie and the casing for the tie are very easily sewn.

I shortened the pattern pieces at the shorten/lengthen here lines, removing the entire shaded area (about two inches) from the length. I am 158cm tall, and the finished dress now hits me pretty much right on the knee. You need to make length alterations before cutting out, as the dress silhouette is tapered.

I was incredibly comfortable wearing this dress on a hot summer day.  It felt celebratory and fun, while being easy to wear.  My eyes are now open to the many possibilities of this pattern; you’ll definitely see it used again at some stage.

Earlier this year I sewed the Tessuti Demi pants in a fairly rigid denim, which was not the recommended type of fabric, but has been fun to wear nonetheless!  Recently I sewed the pattern again, this time in a woven rayon.  Just the type of fabric this pattern was designed for!

The fabric came from Spotlight. They have some marvellous rayon prints this year! There’s a really nice combination of colours in this print – the smaller darker spots are really more of a blue than a black. I sewed the same size as last time, and the pattern pieces were already shortened to take my height into consideration.

I used very wide elastic in the waistband, which is very comfortable to wear. You can’t really see the pockets because of the print. They are in the side seams, and are topstitched to the front of the pants.

The tucks at the hemline give the pants their interesting balloon shape. There’s a deep tuck on both the front and the back leg pieces near the outer leg seam. The hems are bias bound.

From the pattern website: This pull-on, cropped pant pattern features an elasticised waist and full leg with side stitched down pockets. A clever pleat detail at the front and back hemline is finished with a bias bind band at hem. Comfortable and stylish, the pattern is quick and easy to make and suitable for day or night. Ideal for woven fabrics including linen, lightweight wool, cottons, viscose and crepe. Not suitable for knits or stretch wovens.

I think that these will get lots of wear when we head to Borneo after Christmas. Length to keep off the sun and the bugs, although I’ll still need plenty of DEET on my ankles. Insects (especially mosquitoes) love me.

When I bought the Tessuti Hilary top pattern I was thinking of my teenager.  After all, I’m not likely to wear a peplum top.  But she wasn’t keen on it.  Then I spotted a version sewn without elastic in the waist, and a light bulb went off in my head. Just lengthen the body and leave off the peplum and waist elastic!

I cannot say just how much I LOVE this top.  It’s just what I envisaged!  It has the fun shoulder and sleeve hem treatment, and my preferred silhouette. This version isn’t perfect – but I’m not going to point out the imperfections at this stage!

Tessuti describe the pattern as follows: this pretty, peasant style top features a bloused bodice, pleated peplum, boat neckline, gathered waist and sleeves with gathered wrists. The perfect item to up, it can be worn with pants, shorts or skirts. Recommended fabrics: Suitable for woven fabrics such as lightweight linen, cotton poplin, cotton voile, cotton eyelet, silk crepe de chine and viscose.

I made life ever so slightly more difficult for myself by choosing to sew it in silk.  Yes, that scrumptiously beautiful fabric is silk, and it’s as delightful to wear as it looks.  All my colours, and the type of bold print that I prefer.  So many thanks to the generous friend who knew that I would adore it!  There was just enough fabric to squeeze out the top – the finished body length was entirely dictated by the amout of fabric available.  As well as lengthening the body I widened it into a slight A-line shape (also entirely dictated by the available amount of fabric).

There really wasn’t much to the construction! Front, back, raglan sleeves, front and back neckline facings. The elastic at the top of the shoulder was easy to insert and gives lovely gathers. I used french seams for the body and sleeve seams. The sleeve hems are finished with a casing for elastic. Easy peasy! The only thing that I would do differently next time is to lower the front neckline a couple of inches. It feels a fraction too high during wear.

I may also consider sewing a size smaller next time. I have a feeling that I sewed size Large, but the Medium would have been okay. Maybe. The hem was secured by machine with a narrow double fold. Given that this is a special fabric, I could have considered a hand-rolled hem. Maybe I would if I were sewing it from a similarly luxurious fabric in future.

It’s worth doing a trawl of the Instagram tag for this pattern or of the internet in general to see the different versions that are popping up. It’s lovely as designed, and is also easy to sew with variations to the body – like mine – or with altered sleeve length. I do rather fancy trying a linen or a voile version with a shorter sleeve for summer.

This top is definitely on my top ten – maybe my top five – list of finished garments for this year.  I feel absolutely fabulous every time that I wear it.