ISSUE 2 AUGUST 2017 THE FIRST DIGITAL MAGAZINE JUST FOR DRESSMAKERS SEW the look Midi skirts Sassy sweatshirts PLUS Transcend the seasons with tips for looking garments to take you into autumn after the most Denim, the hottest fabric this season precious item in your sewing room! TechniquesMakeTechniques your seamwork beautiful and invisible zips made easy WWW.THEPATTERNPAGES.COM Hello August Firstly, we’d like to say a huge thank you to all of you who took the trouble to download the first issue of The Pattern Pages. We’ve been overwhelmed by the wonderful response. It has now been downloaded more than 7,000 times, reached 12,000 people on Facebook, and 7,000 impressions from our pinned post on Twitter. So what can we say about issue 2? It’s all about the changing of the seasons with patterns and fabrics to see you through. We’re all hoping for more good weather but it’s time to start sewing for the unpredictable season where the in-between garments that we make take us from summer into autumn. The autumn edit does just that, and the patterns we’ve chosen will keep your wardrobe up-to-date Julie Bonnar too. We’ve tapped into two trends that are going to be big this season – midi skirts and there’s a new class of sweatshirt on the block! We welcome two guest writers this time – Jules Fallon from Sew Me Something shares her tips for making sure your seams are as good on the inside as the outside! And Debbie Shore, author and TV presenter guides us through inserting an invisible zip. Denim is the hottest fabric around at the moment and Kim Collins from Ann Normandy shares her tips on working with this fabric. We also look at patterns perfect for this fabric. This time, we enjoyed talking to Saara and Laura Huhta from Named Clothing and Caroline Smith from Sew la Di Da Vintage – both have some amazing patterns to sew. Hope you enjoy reading! Julie and Em Emily Bonnar Julie Bonnar Emily Bonnar ISSUE 2 AUGUST 2017 FRONT COVER PS We’ll be back at the beginning of November with issue 3. Thanks to Pat Bravo for our PPS Don’t forget this magazine is interactive so you can click on the wonderful front cover photo. links to view the patterns, fabrics and websites mentioned. THE FIRST DIGITAL MAGAZINE JUST FOR DRESSMAKERS The fabric is IBH-74206 from the Boheme Indie collection SEW from Art Gallery Fabrics, and THE PATTERN PAGES the maxi dress pattern is from the Midi skirts look Sassy sweatshirts Burda Style pattern. www.thepatternpages.com PLUS For your local Indie Boheme tips for looking Transcend the seasons with after the most stockist, CLICK HERE Twitter: @ThePatternPages garments to take you into autumn precious item in Denim, the hottest fabric this season your sewing room! Pinterest: www.pinterest/thepatternpages To download the maxi dress Facebook: www.facebook.com/thepatternpages pattern, CLICK HERE Instagram: www.instagram.com/thepatternpages TechniquesMake your seamwork beautiful and invisible zips made easy WWW.THEPATTERNPAGES.COM The Pattern Pages is an independent digital dressmaking EDITORS DESIGNER magazine that’s full of fashion, dressmaking, style and fun Julie Bonnar Sarah Barnes things to make Emily Bonnar [email protected] [email protected] www.thepatternpages.com 3 Transcend the seasons ALL SIZES IN ONE SEWING PATTERN, FOR ONE LOW PRICE! A FABULOUS COLLECTION OF DRESSES, SEPARATES AND CHILDRENSWEAR PATTERNS TO SEW AND MAKE YOUR OWN! PATTERN 6519 New Look patterns available nationwide. For local stockist information Tel 0161 480 8734 or browse and buy online at www.simplicitynewlook.com AUTUMN Simplicity 8385 Our favourite pieces to carry you from summer to autumn while keeping your wardrobe up-to-date with the latest trends. We’re praying for an Indian summer! 8058 designed by Cynthia Rowley for Simplicity LOVE THOSE LAYERS It’s still okay to wear your little summer camisole, just remember to take a jacket with you. DO IT FOR THE FRILLS Spice up your look with these pretty SEW WORK CHIC frilly heels, pair with the Sew Different These trousers are a perfect dress and wear from day-to-night. example of a pattern that can take These heels will go with practically you right through the seasons. every pattern from this edit! There are so many styling choices but pick your fabric colours wisely. Miss Selfridge, This pattern has a skirt option with missselfridge.com wonderful waist detailing, how fab! 6 www.thepatternpages.com New Look, newlook.com AUTUMN edit PINK TO MAKE THE BOYS WINK LIGHTWEIGHT KNIT Add a splash of pastel We’re always in need of that colour to your autumn comfy yet stylish dress that outfit. This cute pink bag you can throw on to go is ideal for pepping up anything. This Mimi G pattern basics in your wardrobe. will be your new go-to dress. Sew Different 8334 by Mimi G for Simplicity 8334 AN INDIAN SUMMER 1. Ease your wardrobe into autumn – don’t go for the wardrobe overhaul all at once, you never know, the weather can still be warm! 2. Before sewing, take note of what you already have in your FLOAT INTO AUTUMN wardrobe and make a list of the The perfect dress for the changing items you’re missing that will season, this tie-belt soft fitting complement. A-line dress will look great on those warmer autumnal days. 3. It’s all about layering up, a plain lightweight jacket with a handy addition to your favourite summer tops. 4. Don’t forget to accessorise! 5. Make the most from your patterns – many of these pieces PERFECT PLEATS can be made in different fabrics That perfect in-between season top, for both day and night. lightweight and cool but got that extra arm length so you can carry on wearing it 6. Stick to a colour story, and right through the autumn. Style with your make garments in fabrics from favourite jeans and pair up with sandals the same colour palette so you or boots depending on the unpredictable can mix and match. weather to complete the look. Trend Patterns www.thepatternpages.com 7 On our radar Things we thought you might like to know...... Fans of hand embroidery For anyone looking to embrace the embroidery trend, then look no further than these wonderful transfer sheets from the Threaders collection by Crafter’s Companions. Choose from beautiful designs including vintage sewing, florals, nature and vintage tea party themes, each set consists of six sheets of reusable designs featuring borders, sentiments, embellishments and alphabets in both lowercase and uppercase letters, making them ideal for personalising your sewing. The sets are great for beginners as they include an embroidery guide. Embroidery has never been so easy! Embroidery transfer sheets come in sets of four with free Sew like a pro! stranded cotton for £19.96 from Crafter’s Companion The Atelier series is the latest range of computerised sewing machines from Janome, and have been designed to meet every sewing challenge thrown at them! The contemporary styled, well-illuminated, Plan your next sewing adventure free arm sewing machines have easy-to-use features, which are perfect to take your sewing By Hand London has just launched a PDF sewing planner. Choose from 6 to a new level. The larger arm space and silhouettes and 3 different layouts to help you keep track of your favourite feeding system ensure they’re equally suited to fabrics, trims, and tools. There’s also a croquis page where you can design both larger projects and precision sewing. your garment, and create mini There’s an amazing range of stitches and mood boards. And because it’s a you can enjoy the sewing time saving features PDF download you only have to such as a one-hand needle threader, automatic buy it once. Mistakes become thread cutter, easy reverse button, locking no big deal as you can keep stitch button, memorised needle up/down, reprinting it forever. speed control slider, and a start/stop button for It costs £7 from the ladies at stitching those long seams. By Hand London The specially designed bobbin case and cover mean there’s no need to pull long thread tails up and through when you first thread the machine. Slip the bobbin thread in the cover plate guide and the built in cutting blades trim the tail to the correct length. After the initial threading, the auto-thread cutter takes care of trimming and re-setting the tails each time. A feature that is a must for dressmakers is that you can remove part of the machine base to reveal the narrow protruding arm under the needle area making it easy to sew cuffs, trouser legs and other tubular objects, and ideal for sewing in hard to reach areas of a project. Using the right tools at the right time is important in dressmaking. When using lightweight fabrics, the straight stitch needle plate makes all the difference. The One Step Plate Converter allows you to easily switch and use the perfect plate for your sewing. The Atelier series of sewing machine can be viewed on the Janome website. www.thepatternpages.com 9 Shows you shouldn’t miss Great British Sewing Bee contestants lead packed workshop programme Talented contestants from The Great British Sewing Bee’s four TV seasons are lining up to share their dressmaking and tailoring skills at The Great British Sewing Bee Live between 21st - 24th September at ExCel London. FROM SEASON 2 Chinelo Bally shares her freehand method of mapping body measurements directly onto fabric, darting and fitting, to create a perfectly fitted bodice.