Pattern Review: Jalie drop pocket cardigan

I love layering pieces and this is a great one. I (Major Moma) first heard about the Drop Pocket Cardigan at on the blog Baste and Gather.  I thought it would be a good addition to my girl's wardrobe and something I can sew over and over again.

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Pattern Source:  Jalie is a Canadian pattern company that sells both paper and pdf patterns.  

Sizes available:  One of the best aspects of Jalie patterns is the size range.  This pattern runs from girls to plus sized women ... 27 sizes in all.  How is that for a pattern for all of your girls?

Special materials required: The drop pocket cardigan is designed for knit fabrics and has a slim fit on the arm so you cannot deviate from using a knit.  Also, the front is doubled up so you should probably veer away from anything too bulky.  Jalie recommends knit with 40% stretch across the grain and 20% in the length.

Skill level required:  The construction of the front was not obvious to me and I had to read the instructions a couple of time.  So, I would not recommend this pattern to beginners.  But, once I started putting it together, it was a quick sew and I did not make any mistakes.  So it is not too advanced.

Good:  My tween loves the length and the deep pockets.  It is a comfy and stylish layering piece.

Bad:  The instructions have limited illustrations and so it is imperative that you read the instructions before you start and then as you go.

Overall pattern rating:  I would give this pattern 3 and 1/2 bolts.  It would be higher if the instructions were a little better.

Hibernis - Pattern Review

I (Stacy) have been lucky enough to test a few patterns for Sofilantjes in the last few months.  Anne is great to work with and has produced some very nice, and unique, patterns.  I love it when pattern makers move beyond the t-shirt and basic hoodie.

Here is a review of the Hibernis tunic by Sofilantjes.

Name of the pattern: Hibernis Top

Pattern Source: Sofilantes, pattern is in Dutch and English, it is layered and includes a copy shop copy for large format printing.

Sizes available: 12M- 14

Special materials required: Knit about 1.5 yds, snaps or buttons

Skill level required: Experienced beginner

How you came to choose the pattern: I volunteered to pattern test it

Did you deviate from the pattern?  No

Good:

I love this unique top!  She didn't have to make many adjustments to this one, and it was pretty well fitting from the start.  

The cowl is detachable and not a part of the shirt.  The tabs on the shoulders keep it in place.  The pockets can be placed in whatever direction you may choose.  This is a great cut, and it looked so cute on all of the testers’ girls.  I did the pockets different that the pictures, and put the small one in front and large one in back.  It gives access to the small one and the lines on the front look better with both pockets showing.

The front panel would be great for a panel fabric.  I added HTV to one of the tops for my daughter.  I went with a 10W and 12L measurement on this, and it ended up a little longer than I think it was supposed to be.  I like how it worked as a tunic, but measure the length to make sure it will be the length you want.

Issues:

The cowl is complicated to put together if you are not used to a bagged type of sewing.  There is a link to a Youtube video, so definitely watch that if you need help.

Overall pattern rating:

Mimi Revisited

Over a year ago we were apart of the Mimi Dress Tour for Filles a Maman.  Well, in order to bring a little variety to my daughter's back to school wardrobe I decided to break out that pattern.

Last time, Sally sewed up a beautiful white short sleeve version.  This time I sewed up a long sleeve version.  My daughter is thin so I made the width to her measurements.  Next time I will not slim it down so that it is not so fitted.

My daughter says it is very comfortable and she loves the way it turned out with the fabric she chose on fabric.com.

I think it was definitely a good call to break out a pattern that had been in storage.

Pattern Review: Cascade Jacket

My daughter loves to wear a hoodie or other type of comfy jacket during the winter.  It is part of her standard winter uniform.  And I like the idea of them because in the spring they can be a light jacket.  So when JoAnns had their big door buster sales during the holidays on fleece, I bought a bunch thinking I would use it for her.  My first use was grabbing a pattern I bought for me.  See, she is nearly as tall as me now so I am starting to reach for the XXS in women's sizes.  Are there any of you guys doing the same?  

Name of the pattern:  I chose the Cascade Jacket by Peek-a-Boo Patterns.  It is a high collar, in-seam welt pockets, princess side seams, and a zip-up front.

I screwed up the pockets by not paying attention so I just made a standard welt.

Pattern Source:  Peek-a-Boo Patterns (affiliate link) is a shop that sells both pdf patterns and fabric.

Sizes available:  This is a women's not a child pattern.  So it will work for the larger tweens.  It comes in the sizes XXS to XXXL (00-24) but makes it nice for tweens, is that it also has a cutting line for petite, regular or tall.  I used the XXS, petite size and it fit my 5'2" daughter quite well.

Special materials required:  It is a fleece jacket so you will want some sort of fleece or sweatshirt material.  You also need a separating sport zipper and two regular zippers for the pockets.

Skill level required:  The pattern has more pieces than most hoodies but the instructions are straight forward and really quite simple.  I would classify it as an advanced beginner project.  I got ahead of myself and did not stop to read some instructions while I was sewing the side panels and as a result, I messed up the pockets.  The pocket openings are in the side seam between the front and side front panel.  This is really a great construction technique because you get a welt pocket affect without the work of a welt pocket.  It really keeps it beginner friendly.  BUT, since I skipped that step and serged the seam, I just went ahead and made welt pockets.

How you came to choose the pattern:  I bought this pattern when it first came out last year for myself, but just as my daughter has started to steal my shoes, she is now growing into my sewing patterns.  (But not really ... there is NO way I would fit in an XXS.)

Good:  Without raising the difficulty of the sewing, there are great details to this jacket.  I loved the zipper guard and the flat pockets.  It even reminded you to make a little hanging loop at the neckline. The panels give it a nice shape and give opportunities to color block.  I got this fleece in the remnant section and thus was able to use those panels to make two remnants work for one great jacket.

Bad:  Nothing.  I thoroughly loved sewing this jacket and Abi has been wearing it at least three days a week.  WIN!

Overall pattern rating:  I give this pattern a 5 bolt rating.  

Spotlight on Winter Wear Designs

One of our favorite things here at Sew Cool is to match up pattern designers who design for tweens and those who sew for tweens.  And today we get to do that by having a designer spotlight on Winter Wear Designs.  Suzanne designs for all ages and sizes so her patterns have a great size range but also a great style range.  She has great patterns for boys and girls so no matter who you are sewing for, I am sure you will find a good pattern at Winter Wear Designs.  Over the holidays we interviewed Suzanne and here is what she has to say about Winter Wear and designing for tweens.  (at the end of the post we have a special discount for our readers)

How would you describe the Winter Wear brand?  What makes it unique?

The Winter Wear brand is classic, wearable, and all about the details.  When it comes to my kids, I want them to be these cute adorable little models.... and then I remember that they have to actually WEAR the clothing... it needs to fit well and be stylish and yet they need to be able to keep it on for longer than the 20 minutes of a photoshoot.  For this reason, I really think about the details of how my garments are finished and that makes all the difference in the final look and feel.

When it comes to my women's patterns, I am very body conscious.  All of my women's patterns talk about body shape and how to adjust and alter to best flatter the body God gave you.  For tweens who are starting to develop and change in shape, this can be especially useful.  I want all of my customers to feel great when they put on a garment that they have sewn for themselves, it might take some time figuring out your body, but when you start sewing clothes you LOVE it is an amazing transformation.

None of my patterns are really hard to sew, but the details can be a bit time consuming.  I promise though - they are worth it!

How long have you been designing patterns?

I have been running Winter Wear Designs for  a year and a half, but I have been designing since I was in college.  I worked as a teaching assistant in the costume shop for my theatre department in college.  I was able to take classes in design, drafting, and draping, and I designed and constructed 3 main stage shows.  

What made you decide to be a pattern designer? 

Robin Hill...... Hahahahah, no but seriously.  She saw all the things that I was creating for my kids and kept asking me about it.  Finally she lined up my writing a full review of Lauren Dahl's Pattern Workshop for Pattern Revolution by taking the class.  I think she knew that if I branched into the digital ends of design (which really didn't exist when I was in school) that there would be no stopping me.  And she was right ;o)

What is your inspiration?

I'd love to give a lofty answer about art and the fresh breeze of sea salt off the ocean, but I live in Central PA and my current art immersion is scrubbing my kids' crayola masterpieces off the wall (but hey, we graduated from the poo-caso stage).  I am inspired by what I want... I want to dress my kids in really expensive clothes that I could never afford off the runways, I want to have new and current clothing for myself that fits me right - and sadly that rarely happens for me with store bought.  I want clothes to make women smile and keep kids running and playing.  These wants inspire me constantly, and I'll never have time to get on paper all the things I WANT to design.

What do you find to be the most challenging part of designing pdf patterns?

Math - I really and not great at math, and that can get me in trouble with basic elements in the pattern design process.  Beyond that, just finding the time.  With three littles underfoot, I deal with a lot of interruptions that can slow down the process.

So many designers shy away from the larger children’s sizes; what motivated you to size up to 14yr?

Well, with a 3 year old who wears a size 6x and a 4 year old who is between a 7/8, it just made sense.  As I was starting to draft patterns I constantly saw parents of older children begging for bigger sizes, and then one day I saw a sweet mom asking how to grade up a pattern for her 7 year old who needed a size 12.  This was still a little girl who needed cute clothes that would fit her properly.  I will be that mom in just a few years, so I just decided there and then that all my patterns would go up to a 14.  I'm currently looking at expanding that to a 16 for future patterns, but haven't decided yet.  All of my patterns come with suggestions for combining sizes to get a perfect fit.

You have a few patterns for women that start at size 00; would those work for a tween?

Yep!!!  My women's patterns are designed for curves, but with young girls developing at younger ages, many tween moms are finding themselves with curves that children's patterns aren't designed for.  Moving up to small women's sizes will actually be more flattering and comfortable for these budding figures.

Thank you Suzanne for taking the time to share about your process and your patterns!  She has also been kind enough to provide a 20% off code on patterns at Winter Wear Designs.  Just use the  code: TWEEN20.