THE DRAPERY BLOG

Welcome back to our occasional Fabric Friday series! This 'Old Navy' mid-weight 100% Linen is an absolute beauty, and since our first bolt of it sold out in no time, we nabbed all the remainder from our supplier. It's unlikely to be repeated since it's a remnant from clothing manufacture. 'Old Navy' refers to the colour  (in case you're wondering whether it's related to the US clothing store, it's not). It's really a deep blue-ish toned charcoal.  The 'right' side of it has a bit of polished sheen, while the back is matte. Old Navy Linen is a pleasure to work with. It's extremely tightly woven and stable so all your pattern pieces will match up beautifully. The thing to watch out for is that the tightly woven linen has little to no 'give'. Bear this in mind if making a garment that requires a little breathing room, e.g. with a fitted waistband! (Speaking from experience....)  This pair of Deer and Doe ...

Winter shorts. They're a Thing.  I've been looking for an alternative to my denim Grainline Moss Skirt that I wear so much, I don't even want to admit quite how much. (Let's just say it's a testament to the strength of hemp in the denim how well it's holding up.) Enter the Deer and Doe Chataigne Shorts. In, um, exactly the same denim .   Hello, new winter staple. Deer and Doe patterns are designed and printed in France on recycled paper. They are drafted for an average height woman of 168cm (5'5") with a C-D cup bust and larger hips . I find their patterns very true-to-size and so far, they fit me right out-of-the-box. If you are a similar shape, you might love Deer and Doe as much as I do! (See Aubepine dress here , Datura blouse here , Plantain top here .) I made Chataigne View A, which has a low waist and cuffs. There's a side zip, for which I used the regular kind rather than invisible as suggested. Due to the thickness of th...

  At The Drapery we're always on the lookout for patterns that are reliable basics that you will return to over and over. Also, patterns that make great beginners' projects: easy to tackle but also skill-building. The KID Shorts pattern by MADE (Dana Willard) is only available as a pdf download - you can't buy it in our shop - but it's such a good one we don't hesitate to recommend it. Make it up using some of our fabrics, of course!   This is the size 6 (on my almost 7y.o. who is on the slightly spindly side), with the options of boy length, flat front, 'racer' trim and front pockets. There are so many options with this pattern that allow for so many different looks. All these options have their own beautifully clear instructions on the MADE blog with Dana's bright and inspiring photography.  Fabrics are this adorable little tiger print on Japanese linen/cotton , by Alexia Abegg for Cotton + Steel (half a...