We have a new pattern on the way! It's a fun to wear and easy to sew project suitable for all sewists. Check back here in just a couple of days!
 I'm channeling my inner 70's with this new addition to my closet. This is my Bronte Top by designer Jennifer Lauren Handmade and she got it on the mark with this pattern! It's fun, cute, EASY and retro 70's. I only wish I had a pair of my old Dittos to wear it with.
Jennifer Lauren is a fellow designer at Upcraft Club and Indiesew and her designs have a vintage and feminine vibe but are also very wearable. This is my first one and I am completely impressed! I used a Liberty knit I picked up from The Fabric Store in LA and used vintage buttons from my stash. If you're afraid to make a t-shirt, I would encourage you to try this one. The neckband is super easy (even though it looks hard) and the sleeve went right in. You can do this!  I plan on making another one soon but I've used every knit in my stash. Are you proud of me? With a pat on the back I'm headed out to the fabric store. More makes to come soon!
 There's nothing better than when you sew and gift and you know they like it and it fits! But when it's for your teenage son it's even better. That's what we have here...Mom got it right on this one. Our son is very easy to please but he also doesn't like to have a lot of "things". This is a wonderful trait (I wish I was more like this) but it does make giving him a gift a little bit tricky. Our family went to NYC for my husband's show a couple of weeks ago and I was so excited we were going to have everyone in the family together I decided to make something new for everyone in the crew.  My original plan was to make my son a flannel shirt so I cut out McCall's 6044 (my go to men's shirt pattern) but as I started constructing it, I realized he has a flannel hoodie in his closet that gets tons of wear and honestly could use a little break. So I made the body of the shirt using 6044 and I made the sleeves and hood from McCall's 7447 out of sweatshirting. The patterns were perfectly interchangeable (the sleeve popped right in and the hood was the exact length of the neckline). The only changes I made were lining the hood and adding twill tape to the neckline. This was a fast shirt. It's amazing how much faster a hood is from a collar and a knit sleeve is from a cuffed sleeve with a placket. Win, win here! This post isn't picture heavy but I'm not complaining since he was okay with me at least taking a photo and posting it. It was a dream trip with the family in NYC and the best part was seeing my husband's paintings up and on the wall in a beautiful space. Love!
 As you know, Puerto Rico has been devastated by the recent hurricanes. Im joining with Upcraftclub and other pattern designers in efforts to help those in need in Puerto Rico. 100% of proceeds from Blue Dot pattern sales will be donated to relief efforts. In addition, receive 20% off all patterns in the store with code PUERTORICO.
Visit Upcraftclub and Sewstrongtogether for a list of other designers that are participating and more info on where the money will be going. Together we can help!  There has been so much going on over here, getting back to school, a new pattern in the works and lots of sewing. I've made loads of samples for the new pattern (I can't wait to share it!), new fall samples for my current patterns and some new transitional and fall pieces for my wardrobe. I'm still busy putting the finishing touches on the new pattern but I thought I'd take a moment to share a quick dress I made to take me from summer to fall.  This is the Olivia Dress from StyleArc patterns. Although this is my first time using a StyleArc pattern, I have a student that's been using them and has had great success. This dress couldn't be easier, 5 pieces in total including the facings which is perfect for me when I want a quick dress that's as easy to pull on as shorts but looks cute enough for dinner. I've been saving some patterns ideas for a dress like this on my Pattern Box Pinterest board and now I finally added it to my closet. The fabric is a medium weight brushed chambray with a white pinstripe from The Fabric Store in LA. This dress is cute with sandals right now but it'll also be great with a darker belt and boots as it gets cooler. For sure I'll be using this pattern again and next time I'm going to add pockets to the sides.  The Olivia dress is easy enough for a beginning sewist but keep in mind StyleArc patterns have minimal instructions with few drawings so some garment construction experience would be helpful.
I'll be sharing more makes and a new pattern soon! Be sure to follow me on Instagram as I share more about what's going on in the studio there. Keep sewing my friends! Diane  It's a 3-day weekend which means there's more time to sew! Let's celebrate with 25% off all PDF patterns in the store now through 9/5/17. That means all patterns are only $7.50! Use coupon code "WEEKEND" for the discount.
Sew away the weekend and enjoy!  I'm excited to say there's a new pattern coming soon and I'm looking for pattern testers! The new Blue Dot pant pattern is designed for beginning/intermediate sewists sizes 6-18 (see size chart below). The call for pattern testers will stay open until all spots are filled and the test will begin in early September. If this sounds interesting to you, here's what you'll need:
Here's what you'll do:
Here's the other stuff you may be wondering:
If this sounds good to you, email me here with the following info and I will contact you about being a tester:
 The Georgia Top is one of those patterns you can use over and over (and it's on sale right now!) I've been inspired by sewists out there that have done some amazing Georgia hacks. This one from Mahlicadesigns is one of my favorites. And this one from That'sSewAmy is a don't miss. I've said it before, I love nothing more than seeing someone get creative with one of my patterns. I thought I'd show you how to take the simple Georgia pattern and make it up in three VERY different tops.  This is Georgia in a cold shoulder version. I made this so quick I sewed it in the morning and wore it to work in the afternoon. Check out the blog post on how I did it.  Here's Georgia View A in her purest form straight out of the package. An adorable easy to wear dolman sleeve top in a black and mint green rayon stripe knit.  Georgia isn't just for knits but also for wovens. I took this dreamy Anna Sui cotton/silk vintage print and made it up adding a bias neck binding, pintucks and a keyhole neck. I have all the details in this post.
I have a Georgia Pinterest page with even more ideas. I'd love to see your makes! Send me pics! The Georgia Top pattern is 25% now through July 4th! Enjoy!  Nothing makes me happier than when I see someone hack one of my patterns. I don't attach any pride to the pattern by expecting for the pattern to only be made as I first designed it. In fact, The Georgia Top is the perfect simple design to have at it. Now it's my turn...  The cold shoulder trend is hotter than SoCal in August and Georgia needed to hop on that party wagon. This fan print rayon jersey came from my last haul from Craftsy. It's a cream background with peach colored Asian fans and is soft and cool for the warm summer.
This hack couldn't be easier and I think I finished sewing it in under 2 hours. It was one of those pieces I made in the morning and wore to my class in the afternoon. To start, I left the armbands and waistband off of view A. To make the cold shoulder I stitched the shoulder seam from the neck 2" and stitched the last 4" from the shoulder to the sleeve hem. I finished the opening by folding back the seam allowance and stitching in place. Seriously....that's it!  Because I want you to have fun with Georgia too, the pattern is 25% off now through July 4th!
Check out my Georgia Top Pinterest page with even more ideas! Have fun! Happy Sewing!  I set aside my selfish sewing for a bit to sew for my favorite girl. She's home from college and a girl needs something new when she comes home, right? I made a wrap skirt out of this rayon challis print she found at Joann. It was quick and easy and she's very happy.  I used New Look 6456 and made View C and made no changes (not even to the length) and it's perfect. You really can't go wrong with a wrap skirt, they're an easy fit and easy to make. The fabric shrunk like crazy so I had a difficult time getting all the pieces out of the fabric. I think figuring out how to make the pieces fit took almost as long as making it. Cutting and sewing was under 2 1/2 hours and I only had a few square inches of fabric left over. Yay me!  She's going away to work this summer and my plan is to make her another one before she gets back. Chambray maybe? I'm going to miss her so sewing for her will make me feel better.   There's still so much more I've made and haven't blogged about. Coming soon!
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About MeHi! I'm Diane, a wife, mom, sewing teacher and pattern designer from sunny Southern California. I share my sewing adventures here on the Blue Dot Blog formerly Gatorbunnysews. For more info click here. 
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