THE DRAPERY BLOG

  When we first started stocking Merchant & Mills patterns, they told us that the Trapeze Dress was their biggest seller. Blinded by the goodness of some of the other M&M dresses like the Factory and Dress Shirt, we were resistant to the allure of the Trapeze until a customer came in wearing one she made out of a heavy, drapey denim. It looked fantastic. Finally, the pen ny dropped - we got it! I've since made this pattern up twice. The first version, in black washed linen (above, b lack linen currently out of stock ), has become one of my most reached-for handmades. It's easy to wear and layers up well on cooler days. The Trapeze is also a great one to wear out for dinner: there's a lot of volume in that there skirt - second helping s are no problem! I could smuggle my smallest child under there if the need ever arose.  Hence my second version , a party Trapeze, made from Tsumiki black & metallic gold linen. ( Black also sold out, but nat...

Merchant & Mills, who produce some of our best-selling women's patterns, have recently released three patterns for men . The Merchant & Mills style of casual elegance - understated and slightly rumpled yet distinctly tailored - translates well into these garments. I was quietly excited when I saw the All State shirt . My husband has a chequered history of wearing my handmades. He's very particular. But could this be the breakthrough? What's not to like? My cunning plan was to make a 'sample for the shop' that just happened to be in Andy's size and choice of fabric. So here I present, The (no pressure at all, really) Shop's Shirt.  And, maybe not The Shop's Shirt after all.  I'm not sure if I've ever made a garment so true to the pattern cover image.   There's lots of nice topstitching, although in matching thread it is quite subtle on this substantial linen. The pattern came together nicely, with som...

This year we're turning the gift-giving attention to the sewists. Perfect for sewing friends and relations, or for you to use as gentle hints to your nearest and dearest! Just in is this beautiful new book, Boundless Style by Canadian Kristiann Boos of Victory Patterns. It's a treasure trove of patterns and sewing information. At its heart is a collection of bodice and skirt patterns that can be combined to make a practically endless variety of women's garments. But more than that, this book has a wealth of information set out with excellent clear diagrams and photos. It's a fabulous resource for the beginner or intermediate sewist. More experienced garment makers will appreciate the creative freedom to create the dresses, skirts and tops of their dreams. On the Victory Patterns website there's brilliant little mix'n'match style creator where you can swap around Boundless Style's sleeve, bodice and skirt line drawings to create your own...

Summer is certainly here and like us you may be looking for clothing that is loose and cool. Allow us to introduce (if you haven't already met), the Roberts Collection by UK designer Marilla Walker . It's only available as a pdf downloadable pattern at the moment (follow link above to her Etsy shop), which means a lot of printing and stickytaping together. But I'm here to tell you it's well worth it! What's more you get four distinctly different versions, and one not-so-different which is just a longer version of the dress. I want to make them all! But first up was View A. Yes, a jumpsuit... gasp. This is actually my wearable muslin. Since the pattern takes 2.5m of 150cm wide fabric, it was a lot to risk on something that may not fit or even suit me. So I made up a straight size 4, which best met my measurements, in ordinary calico. And then since it fit so well I went ahead with the second part of my plan which was to dye it into something wearable. I lov...

  Frocktober may be done and dusted but we are still sewing the frocks (all in the name of pattern research, heheh). Aaand, if it happens to be simple frocks with uncluttered lines you're after then this newly released book, "Handmade Style" by Lotta Jansdotter may be exactly what you've been looking for. I'm a long time fan of Lotta's, so it's no surprise that I've found this book super inspiring. It's aimed at beginner garment sewers, but we think that more experienced sewists will quite possibly find a good go-to pattern or two in here as well. All patterns are full sized in the back of the book and the size range is (a standard, but somewhat limited we think): 32" - 43" bust / 24.5"-34" waist / 35.5" - 45" hips.   Lotta admits that she ha d never sewn her own clothes prior to writing this book. She's designed the garments here and the patterns have been expertly drafted by the talented...

Well this may be our last official Frocktober frock post for 2015 but rest assured, the frocks don't stop here! Frocktober has had us thinking all the frocks, all the time and we will do our best to keep the inspiration flowing. We've been very pleased with the support of our Frocktober fundraising and awareness for the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund. Thanks to all who have got behind this important cause! The Sylvie Dress pattern was released by Christine Haynes early this year, just as we were heading into the cooler months. So this sleeveless style is really just starting to make sense about now for us southern hemisphere types! I made this in a lightweight denim that we recently began stocking at The Drapery, and neither of us had tried yet. I am pleased to report that it was lovely to work with, and is soft and relatively non-wrinkling to wear. A lot of blue dye came out in the pre-wash so that is something to be aware of - although generally to be expected wit...

Our final Frocktober Guest Post is our lovely customer and friend Amanda. We've seen Amanda's sewing skills blossom over the last couple of years. She's been able to create some really beautiful clothes custom-fitted to her tall, slender frame. She really is one of the nicest human beings you could possibly hope to meet and is always generously thinking of others, so we were pleased to encourage her to do some selfish sewing for Frocktober. Amanda doesn't have her own blog so we welcome her to ours, with her stunning new frock! The Drapery kindly invited me to be one of their Frocktober friends. Ovarian cancer is difficult to diagnose and is rarely caught early. Its impact can be widespread and devastating. By supporting Frocktober we're raising awareness and much needed funds for research and support. The pattern I chose was the Deer & Doe Belladone which I've made once before. I really love the feature back and of course the pockets!  The on...

In this Friday's Fortnightly installment of fabric goodness, we have a simple classic: navy and white striped cotton jersey that we call 'Hello Sailor' . (It may look black on your screen but it's really a very dark inky navy.) This is a 100% cotton jersey, made in New Zealand, and a lovely quality. We've had the red & white stripe 'Where's Wally' (just a metre left at time of writing!) from this manufacturer and also 'North Sea/Kalamata' and been very happy with the fabric. So although we had to wait several months for this deep navy stripe colourway to have its turn at the knitting mill, it was worth the wait. Jersey fabric has a right and a wrong side, like a tiny version of traditional plain hand-knit, as you can probably just make out below. The edges can be a bit curly so you may want to do a fair bit of pinning as you use this, especially to accurately match the stripes. You'll find that this 100% cotton jersey doesn...