McCall's 8553 zip front dress

This year two zip front dresses have been taking the sewing world by storm. After watching from the sidelines and seeing lots of lovely versions of both patterns pop up on my Instagram feed, I finally decided that I needed to jump on the bandwagon and sew one of my own. Here's my take on McCall's 8553...

The McCall's 8553 is a zip front dress, with a wide pointed collar, front bodice patch pockets, gathered long or short sleeves, and a gathered skirt in two different lengths with in-seam pockets in the front section. 

I made view B – the longer skirt (more on that below) and short sleeves, and I omitted the patch pockets.

The pattern is drafted for bust sizes from 30.5 to 46" and hips from 32.5 to 48". 

The reason that I chose M8553 for my zip front dress is that the zip opening and front neckline are finished with a facing, meaning that the neckline looks neat if you have the zip slightly open. 

In contrast, I read a review of the Fabric Godmother Aspen dress (the other popular pattern) that said there's no facing so you can see the zip tape on the inside of the dress when the zip is open. In the Aspen's favour, it does go up to a 57.25" bust and 56.75" hip, so it is more size inclusive.

I enjoyed sewing my M8553. You need to be quite accurate when sewing the collar and zip, but other than that it's not a particularly difficult pattern to sew. I found the instructions easy to follow and didn't have any problems during the sewing process.

As is often the case with Big 4 sewing patterns, this pattern is split into two size ranges (6-14 and 16-24). This always gives me a bit of a dilemma because my measurements put right between a 16 and an 18, but I know that there's often a lot of ease built into these patterns so it would be handy to have smaller sizes too. For me, it seems easier to reduce size than add extra width so I got the bigger size range. 

I ended up making a straight size 16, but having made a toile I decided to use a ⅞" seam allowance on the side seams instead of ⅝" to take it in a bit. I also lengthened the bodice by 1.5" (a standard adjustment for me).

One thing to note is that the skirt pieces for views B and C are LONG! I could tell the skirt would be longer than I wanted when cutting out, but I wasn't quite sure how much I'd want to shorten it so I cut out the full length pieces. When I added the skirt to the bodice, the dress ended up ankle length on me, and I'm taller than average (about 5'9"). I ended up cutting 7" off the skirt and using a 2" hem instead of the ⅝" called for in the instructions. You could definitely save a bit of fabric if you know you don't want the skirt to be quite so long.

If I make this pattern again, I'd possibly use a different skirt. The front skirt on this pattern is cut in three pieces, with the pockets between the side front and centre front panels. I think I'd prefer a more "normal" skirt with one front piece and the pockets in the side seams.

The fabric I used is a cotton twill that I bought from Jenny Stitches. It's not currently in stock in this colourway, but it is available in red, royal, yellow, emerald and cerise. Its a great quality fabric, really good value for money and a perfect weight for this pattern. The zipper tape and slider that I used were also from Jenny Stitches.

I feel like the plain fabric of this dress doesn't come across brilliantly in photos, but it's lovely in real life and it's a great dress to wear. I'm already considering a long-sleeved needlecord M8553 for the autumn/winter – let's see if I find time to make one!

Sew Hello St Mawes Top

A couple of weeks ago I made myself another Waves & Wild Kinjarling dress (you can see that on my Instagram profile, and there's a blog post about my original version of the pattern here) and after cutting it out, I realised I had enough fabric left over to make a top. I had a look through my collection of patterns that I haven't used yet, and chose to make the Sew Hello St Mawes top.

The St Mawes top is a cropped or long-length top with a scalloped or straight hem. The top can be made sleeveless, with straight short sleeves or with three-quarter length balloon sleeves. The sleeveless version has an all-in-one neck and armhole facing, while the neckline of the sleeved versions is finished with binding. The pattern also uses a hem facing in both the scalloped and straight versions.

The pattern caters for bust sizes from 31.5" to 59.5", and hip measurements from 34.75" to 62.5".

I enjoyed sewing my St Mawes top. It's quite a satisfying project to work on and the pattern seemed to be well drafted – everything came together with no trouble at all. I like the all-in-one neck/armhole facing (which is sewn using the burrito method). It gives a nice clean finish and means that there's no chance of the facing flipping to the outside as you're wearing the top.

The scalloped hem is a fun feature, and was nice and simple to sew with the facing. My top tip would be to mark the seam allowance at the top points between the scallops to make sure all of your pivot points are in the right place and are even.

The instructions are generally fine, although if I'm honest I don't think they're the best I've used. There were a couple of points that I think I might have found confusing if I hadn't already been fairly familiar with the processes. For example, the instructions refer to the facing as both a facing and a lining, and I think that the steps for the burrito method could have been a bit clearer. The diagrams are good though, and definitely help to clarify the steps.

I made a size 14, which is what is recommended for my measurements. I think the sizing is quite generous. I ended up sewing the side seams with a larger seam allowance at the underarm, tapering out to meet the intended 1 cm seam allowance at the hem. My top is fairly loose, but I quite like that in this sleeveless version and it was nice to wear on a hot day this weekend.

I made the long version, and that's a nice length on me – although I wouldn't say it's particularly long. The cropped version would have been very cropped on me, but I am 3" taller than the pattern is designed for.

One point I would mention is that when I made a toile I could only just get the top over my head. In my "proper" version, I used a 1.5 cm seam allowance around the neckline instead of 1 cm and that has helped. I do have an abnormally large head (all those hats that claim "one size fits all" are lying!) so it may not be an issue for most people, but it would be worth checking.

The fabric that I used is a lightweight cotton poplin that I bought a few months ago from a shop that has since closed. I did see it for sale in a few online shops at the time though, so it may still be around somewhere if you need some apples in your life!

All in all, I think my St Mawes top turned out quite nicely. I particularly like the scalloped hem, and it'll be a nice breezy top to wear on summer days. Plus, I always enjoy getting a bonus extra project out of a piece of fabric!

Simplicity 8384 dress

I enjoy hunting out bargains in charity shops, and always keep an eye out for sewing patterns. A couple of months ago I stumbled upon a box of patterns and treated myself to a couple of them, one of which was Simplicity 8384. I particularly liked the look of view A, which is what I've sewn here. 

Simplicity 8384 is a shirt dress or top with various length options. All the views have a collarless rounded neckline, and buttons at the centre front of the bodice. There are sleeveless, short sleeve and three-quarter sleeve options. The dress has a handkerchief hem for the knee and mid-calf lengths, and a straight hem for the ankle length and peplum top versions. The back of the waistline is cinched in slightly with elastic.

The pattern covers bust measurements from 30.5" to 46".

I enjoyed sewing my dress. The neckline/collar band in particular turns out really nicely and was very satisfying to sew. 

The instructions in Big 4 sewing patterns often get a bad reputation, but I usually find them clear and easy to follow. They maybe don't hold your hand as much as indie patterns and they're generally a lot more concise, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. I had no problems while I was making my dress.

That said, I did take a slightly different approach to inserting the elastic in the back of the waistline. The instructions call for you to sew the edges of the seam allowances together to make a channel and insert the elastic into that. I thought that might be irritating to wear because the seam allowance could move about. Instead, I pressed the seam allowance up and made my channel by stitching the seam allowance to the back bodice to anchor it in place. It worked nicely, and isn't irritating at all (although, to be fair, I don't have any evidence that the version from the pattern would have been irritating either!).

Another thing that Big 4 patterns are renowned for is having lots of ease, and that's very much true for this pattern. It's definitely always best to look at the finished garment measurements (on the pattern paper) – I think in this case the pattern includes 5" of ease. 

That would have given me a dress that was looser than I wanted, so I went down a couple of sizes. I made a straight size 14, whereas my measurements would put me between a 16 and an 18.

I lengthened the bodice by an inch, which is normal for me (I'm 5'9"), and actually shortened the skirt by 3". Those skirt pieces are long! It's intended to be ankle length, but it would have been on the floor if I hadn't shortened it, and I'm a bit taller than average. 

It's also worth mentioning that if you have a non-directional print/plain fabric without nap, you can definitely get view A out of less fabric than the pattern suggests. It calls for 3.4 metres for size 14, but I managed to cut my dress out of just over 2.5 metres. 

Talking about fabric, this is a cotton poplin that I bought from Minerva but I can't seem to find it on their website now – sorry!

My finished Simplicity 8384 feels lovely to wear – the elastic in the back waist cinches it in nicely to give it some shape, but it's still really comfortable. It's a bit different from my other dresses, which is nice. I'm glad that I found the pattern in that charity shop box!

Pauline Alice Nautic Set Blouse

The Pauline Alice Nautic set appealed to me as soon as I saw sneak peeks of it on Instagram, so I was fairly quick to purchase the pattern when it was released. I already had some fabric that was just right for the blouse, so it jumped to the top of my sewing list.

The Nautic set includes a blouse, skirt and shorts. The blouse, which I've made here, has a sailor collar, short sleeves, decorative binding/ribbon and front buttons. The shorts have an elasticated waist, slanted pockets and contrasting bias binding, while the skirt has an elasticated waist and gathered tier.

The pattern covers bust sizes from 31½" to 47¼" and hip measurements from 34" to 49½".

I enjoyed sewing my Nautic blouse. The instructions and accompanying diagrams are easy to follow. They maybe don't hold your hand quite as much as some instructions do, but they're still perfectly clear and I didn't have any trouble sewing my blouse. 

The pattern is rated as beginner level, which I'd say is probably fair. You probably wouldn't want to sew the blouse as your very first pattern, but if you've made a couple of projects and are looking for something to build your skills a bit, this could be a good option. 

You need to be quite careful and accurate when sewing the decorative ribbon/binding, but other than that it's a fairly simple blouse.

In terms of sizing, my bust is currently 39" but I made a size 42, which is intended for a 38" bust. I could tell from the finished garment measurements that it would be big enough, and that the next size up would probably be bigger than I wanted. 

After making a toile, the only adjustment I made was to lower the bust dart by an inch. 

Rather than lengthening the pattern (I'm just under 5'9"), I simply used a smaller hem. I used a total of 1" for my hem, whereas the pattern calls for you to use 2⅝".

Another non-fitting change that I made was to interface the facing pieces. This isn't included in the instructions, but I just thought that it would give a better finish. 

I also used 5 buttons instead of 3. It's a personal preference, but I just felt like 3 buttons wouldn't be quite enough and might result in gaping.

The main fabric that I used is a lightweight cotton that I bought in a charity shop a few months ago, and the white that I used for the collar is part of an old sheet. So this was a pretty thrifty project! I bought the ribbon and the buttons locally, and I love how they highlight the little pops of pink in the fabric print.

I'm really pleased with how my Nautic blouse turned out, and I like the fact that the collar makes it a bit different to other blouses in my wardrobe. I'd definitely like to try making the skirt from the set too, so there may well be more Nautic projects in my future!

Konfetti Patterns Erna Top

I always like discovering new-to-me sewing pattern companies, so I was intrigued to come across Konfetti Patterns on Instagram recently. I particularly liked the look of their Erna top pattern and decided to give it a try.

The pattern is in German, but that's fine for me because I work as a freelance German to English translator. 

Erna is a raglan sleeved sweater with an extra detail that makes it a bit special. Instead of using a plain raglan sleeve, the top of the raglan sleeve has three pleats, which give it a slightly puffed shape, and it joins onto a small shoulder yoke. The top can be finished with wrist and hem bands, or with plain hems on the sleeves and around the bottom – which I used.

The pattern sizes cover bust measurements from 82 to 118 cm (roughly 32 to 46").

Sewing the Erna top was no trouble at all. The instructions have a good level of detail, and are illustrated by helpful and clear photos. The pattern is well drafted and everything came together exactly as it should. 

There are also lots of photos included showing versions of the Erna made and worn by different people. I think that's a really nice touch because it's always good to see how patterns look when made up in different fabrics and worn on a range of body types.

I made the size recommended for my body measurements, and it turned out well. It's a relaxed fit as intended, with just the right amount of ease. 

The fabric that I used is a French terry that I bought from 1st for Fabrics (sadly it's no longer in stock – I think I might actually have bought the last of it!). It's a slightly unusual print, and I really like the colours so I couldn't resist it. I think it works well for the Erna because the print doesn't hide the detail on the sleeves.

All in all, I'm really happy with my Erna – it was a fun project to sew, and I think I'll wear it a lot. I was impressed with the instructions and the drafting of the pattern, so I'd definitely sew more patterns from Konfetti Patterns in future.

Chalk and Notch Reya trousers

Towards the end of last year, I was lucky enough to win a Chalk & Notch PDF pattern of my choice through a giveaway that they held on Instagram. After some deliberation, I decided to give the Reya trousers a try because they're a bit different from other sewing patterns that I own.

The Reya pattern is for wide-leg trousers and shorts with a front pin tuck detail. The trousers/shorts have an elasticated waist with an optional drawstring, and have high-rise and mid-rise options. You can also choose between in-seam or back patch pockets (or both). The trousers can be made with inseam lengths of 26", 28, 30" or 32", while the shorts have a 3" inseam. 

The pattern covers waist measurements from 25" to 49" and hip measurements from 35" to 59".

For my version, I used the high-rise option and the back patch pockets. I debated adding the in-seam pockets too, but I thought they might cause the side seams to gape a bit with the fabric that I was using, so I omitted them.

I enjoyed sewing my Reya trousers. The pattern is relatively simple and fairly quick to sew. I also found the instructions very easy to follow, with a good level of detail and clear diagrams illustrating each step. 

I didn't have any trouble at all when I was making my trousers.

I think the pin tucks are a nice touch and keep the trousers feeling like actual trousers and not pyjamas. Speaking of pyjamas though, the trousers are really comfy so could definitely be classed as secret pyjamas for me!

In terms of sizing, I cut a size 14 as recommended for my measurements. I made a quick toile and the fit seemed good so I didn't make any adjustments. I think the fit turned out nicely on my finished trousers as well - they're definitely wide-legged without feeling like they're too oversized.

I couldn't decide whether to cut my trousers at the 28" or 30" inseam length. To err on the side of caution, I cut the 30" length. Once I had my trousers made, I ended up shortening them by an inch and folding up a total of 6 cm for the hem instead of the 5 cm called for in the pattern. So in the end my length is just a bit longer than the 28" length.

The fabric that I used is a lovely turquoise needlecord. I bought it from 1st For Fabrics, but this colour of needlecord doesn't seem to be available on their website now.

As I mentioned above, my finished Reya trousers are really comfy to wear and I love the colour. I'll think they'll look nice with quite a few of my tops. The pattern was also really enjoyable to sew, so all in all I think this has been a pretty successful project!