Day 1
Hey hey hey! I’m so excited to be doing this Sew Along with you. ALD has some gorgeous fabrics for spring. I live in Florida, so spring is only about 2 weeks here and it’s never at the same time. We have a fake spring, and then it gets cold again, and then it’s HOT. Y’all wouldn’t know anything about that would you? Haha!
This week we are sewing up the Caribou(https://sofionadesigns.ca/shop-all-patterns/miss-caribou-shirt-dress/. I bought this pattern for the sleeves and I’m betting you did too, amiright? They are STUNNING. I didn’t do all the extra options, but I was determined to make those sleeves be all they could be and I feel like I nailed it! If those look intimidating to you...you’re not alone. I was a little scared at first, but I took it step by step and in the end I felt super silly about the whole thing because it’s actually pretty easy.
Breakdown of what we'll be doing this week and when:
Day 1: Choose fabric and cut pattern
Day 2: Cut out fabric
Day 3: Bodice and neckline
Day 4: Close bodice and attach sleeves
Day 5: Cuffs
Day 6: Hem and catch up
Day 7: SHARE!
So first up, fabric choice!
Okay, here’s the deal. If we’re gonna be friends you’re gonna have to know this about me. I take sewing shortcuts sometimes. I don’t always pick the recommended fabric. I often fly by the seat of my pants, much to the chagrin of my mother (who is a wonderful seamstress herself). I’m actually learning to be better about this, but I’m not all the way there. I don’t know if I’ll ever be there. I see a pretty fabric and I want to use it whether it’s recommended or not. Do I have anyone who can identify with that? I can’t be alone! Haha! I ended up using a pointelle (https://www.amelialanedesigns.com/product-page/leslie) I had my eyes on, but I really would pick something a little more structured for this, simply because of the neckline. I’m making this work though, because I’m stubborn.
I did find some great choices for you though, these would be so pretty with the Caribou!
So make sure your fabric is prewashed today and get those pattern pieces pieced together and cut. I can't wait to cut out the fabric tomorrow!
See you tomorrow!
Day 2
Time to cut! I always find this the most annoying part. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve put off projects because I’m loath to cut it. A lot of it is not having a great space for it. I will say though, I super love seeing everything for a particular project in a tidy little pile, folded up nicely. It doesn’t stay that way for long, but I think we can all agree how utterly satisfying it is!
When you’re cutting, don’t forget to account for any optional pieces you are going to include, like the ruffle or the fancy cuff. Everytime I do a project like this I always end up forgetting one of those little pieces. I’ll see you back tomorrow and we’re going to start assembly!
Day 3
Sewing time!! So today we’re going to start piecing this baby together.
If you are doing the ruffle on the bodice, go ahead and run the gathering stitch through that piece.
Then you are going to sandwich the ruffle between the two front bodice pieces (if you’re doing the blocked bodice) and sew those together. Then sew together the two back bodice pieces.
If you are just doing the plain bodice, we start where we always start, with the shoulder seams. Pin or clip those together and sew or serge. Next, we’re going to attach the front and back facing so those are one piece as well.
Next, we’re going to sew the facing to the neck. This is the part where you need to be careful. I don’t feel like I did the greatest job on mine, and part of that is because I used pointelle (because I’m a rebel, remember?). So just be sure to match the front facing to the front piece and the back facing to the back piece, right sides together.
Day 4
Today it’s time to attach the sleeves!
I’m going to be honest. This is a part where I usually cheat. I prefer to sew the sleeve to the armscye, and then sew up the sleeve and the bodice at the same time. Rarely ever do I sew up the bodice, sew the side of the sleeve, and then turn the sleeve inside out and attach them that way. But dear readers, I did it for the blog. So that’s what we’re doing today.
We’re going to sew up the bodice. Sew up each side right sides together. Below you can see where I have both sides sew right sides together.
Then sew up each sleeve right sides together. Be sure to note that each side of the sleeve is not the same. Make sure you are matching the sleeve front to the bodice front.
Now that you have a complete sleeve and complete bodice we are going to attach the sleeve to the bodice. Match up the seam of the sleeve to the seam of the bodice and ease them together, again, right sides together. They should fit quite well. And honestly, that was enough work for today, haha!
I’ll see you tomorrow!
Day 5
I hope you’re ready. Today’s sew was the part I found the most challenging. This is where we construct the cuff. So if you are doing the simple cuff there are not as many steps, if you are doing tie cuff there is a little more involved.
First, you're going to fold in the raw edges of the loops towards the center and iron them in place, then stitch each side.
Use your pattern pieces to pin the loops on to the main cuff piece. Baste in place. Repeat for the other main cuff.
P.S. Does anyone have a great way to clean their cutting mat? Because I can see now mine needs some love!
My photo is a little hard to see since I didn't use contrasting fabric, but if you look closely you can see where I've pinned the loops to the cuff. There are marking pieces on your pattern to tell you exactly where you should pin.
Now sew the lining on to the main piece, right sides together along one of the long sides.
Now you're going to fold the tie piece lengthwise and sew it right sides together. I used this loop turner to flip them ride side out.
Grab two of your tie pieces and lay them one on top of the other with the seam side facing down.
Now we need to make the cuff a complete circle. Pin it like pictured, making sure that the ties are coming out of the top or bottom so they don’t accidentally get sewing in as well.
And that's the cuff! It wasn't nearly as bad as I thought.
Rinse and repeat!
And honestly, that’s all there is to it! They look so gorgeous and complicated but it’s actually really easy.
Now you need to run a gathering stitch through the bottom of the sleeve and gather it to fit the cuff. I had to gather mine quite a bit, as you can see. I always like to baste the sleeve on to the cuff, check the stitching, and then serge it on.
Don’t make the same mistake I did and sew it on inside out the first time! I like to baste this all in place and make sure everything looks right and then I serge it on after that. This way if I made any mistakes it's easier to fix later.
Now you hem...and you’re done!
Day 6
Use this day to catch up on anything you missed this week. I cannot wait to see what you have made! I'm positive it's going to be gorgeous!!