THE DRAPERY BLOG

  It's (relatively) really, stupidly, biblically chilly here at the moment. We need layers, and lots of them. Fortunately, this winter we started to stock this fantastic Japanese wool blend fabric, and I was keen to whip up something toasty - fast. Enter the Liesl+Co Woodland Stroll Cape . Three main pieces for each outer shell and lining - stitch them together, add some buttons and you're done. It's a really stright-forward sew, and it comes together fast. If you're tentative about sewing warm outerwear because of the complicated nature of most coat patterns, then this cape would be a great place to start. It also uses a modest amount of fabric - another plus if you are dipping your toe into sewing with (sometimes more pricey) wools for the first time. The pattern is download only, but with so few pieces it takes less than an hour to complete all the necessary sticky taping and cutting. Even though it's a beginner's pattern, because it is a Lies...

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...

Mmm, the feeling of wearing velour on a cold day. So soft. So snuggly. You know you want to. This is another Grainline Hemlock (my first here ) and I've barely taken it off since finishing it two nights ago. It's made in this splendid Japanese velour in 'Smoke Grey' . Not much more to say about it except I shortened the bottom by about 4cm/1.5". And even if velour totally evokes my 70s childhood, or perhaps because of this, I love it very much. Trying to get a good photo of dark velour is a bit like photographing a black dog, except without eyes for a reference point!  The whole top, with awkward hand pose (I think I was telling my son to move the camera down a bit to capture more than just the waist up). Worn with Grainline Moss Skirt in hemp/organic cotton denim , because it goes with everything . Also, while I had black thread in the overlocker, I gave my bagged-out grey leggings a quick overhaul (i.e. trim down inside leg). Much better. Anyw...

First of all, this post wouldn't have happened without inspiration from one of our fab customers, who was buying the grey colourway of the pink French Terry ( find both here ) to make the Grainline Hemlock tee. I totally stole her idea. Sorry/thanks!! Left: Linden. Right: Hemlock. The Grainline Linden Sweatshirt pattern has been a big seller for us lately, and it's no surprise. In the Grainline style, it's a well-drafted pattern for a wardrobe staple. We ordered a whole bunch of French Terry fabrics with the Linden specifically in mind. The minute they arrived Fiona and I were both cutting, pre-washing and whipping up a Linden each, both of which have been in heavy rotation for casual winter wear ever since. (This is mine after a lot of wash & wear.) And in action at the shop: I added a kangaroo pocket because I had a similar RTW top with one that I'd pretty much 'worn to death'. (The pocket openings are stabilised with a small strip of fusib...

Oh Full Bust Adjustment, why did I not try you sooner? Thank you for all the lovely feedback on my previous post. It seems I'm not alone in my avoidance of the FBA issue, and that it was a helpful thing to share. If, like me, you are a pear-shape with a bra cup size greater than B, I highly, highly recommend you get onto the Full Bust Adjustment if you have not already. Of course, everyone's shape is unique and this may not work for you exactly as it has for me. However, even as a starting point for fitting, I've found it nothing short of a revelation. Here are the details of my second garment-with-FBA. The pattern: Simplicity 7530, from my, ahem, fairly extensive collection of vintage (mostly 1960s) patterns. Which just happened to be in my high bust measurement of 34 inches. Woot! And to think until recently I presumed I'd need a complete size grade-up to make this fit. The fabric: a fantastic mid-weight border print by Kokka of Japan. (Selling quickly so ...

Natalie Chanin has just released her fourth book of inspiring and beautiful sewing projects in her 'Alabama Chanin' style. (On order and due soon at The Drapery.) Not only does it contain all her previous patterns, plus some new ones, it offers advice on how to adjust them for your own unique shape, to ensure a custom fit. The patterns are on CD rather than printed like her previous books, but it's quite an incredible resource at a very accessible price. We can't wait to get our hands on it! In the meantime, I'm continuing my quest to Alabama Chanin all the things . Which was never going to be a fast process, but that's part of the appeal. If you like hand-work like embroidery, hand-quilting, knitting or crochet, you'll probably fall in love with the process of hand-sewing garments with soft cotton knit. Before I went the full reverse appliqué, which is a big commitment, I tried a couple more plain garments. Last summer I made (and wore, and wore, and...

Hello, it's Jane here with a rather long and introspective blog post! Those of you following The Drapery on Instagram will have seen that we were posting photos for 'Me Made May', an initiative started a few years ago by blogger Zoe of 'So, Zo... what do you know? '. Sewists pledge to wear 'me-made' clothes - as much as they wish to commit to - and document their outfits for the month of May. Now, I don't know how to link to Instagram since I'm not on there myself but if you are, you can look up The Drapery and have a peek. Warning: possibly TMI to follow Now, I'm kind of putting myself out there in this post and examining my body shape and probably providing Too Much Information, but I hope it's useful to sewists out there! Me Made May is a bit different to sewists posting pretty posed pics of their freshly-made garments. Not that there's anything wrong with that! But MMM shows what really is worn day-to-day, how it's w...