So Jess Sew - Ellie and Mac Miami Wrap Top

Wrap style tops are super popular right now. The Ellie and Mac Miami Wrap Top has a criss-cross front that is fun and flirty and the tie is so cute. I actually made a few modifications to mine. The original pattern is lined, but in the interest of saving fabric, I hemmed all the way around it instead and left the sleeves off. Lining it does give it a more professional look on the inside though. If you don't have a coverstitch and still want to keep it unlined, you could cut a band for around the neckline instead.

This pattern has some other fun options too. It can be a crop top or a peplum style like what I made. It also has 4 different sleeve options including regular sleeves, flutter sleeves, double flounce sleeves, and triple layered peasant style sleeves. I guess it's 5 styles if you include leaving the sleeves off as I did!

I used rayon spandex I picked up from Girl Charlee (an online fabric store). I only had a yard of it and managed to make the whole top from that yard, so exciting when the pattern pieces fit!

The peplum portion is slightly gathered and attached to the bottom half of the top with the seam at the natural waist. Be sure to adjust for your natural waist length if needed (I added one inch for mine).

The pattern happens to be on sale today (7/17/19) for only a dollar on the Ellie and Mac Wacky Wednesday sale. You can see the Miami Wrap Top on the site HERE. Have fun if you decide to sew it up!

Happy Sewing!

So Jess Sew - Ellie and Mac Be Bold + Pinsperation Upcycle

This post is part of the Ellie and Mac Summer Pinsperation event. What is a Pinsperation you might ask? That is finding a picture or "pin" from Pinterest that you like and trying to re-create the look. How did I do?! I used the Ellie and Mac, Be Bold pattern to recreate this off the shoulder striped look. An old shirt from my husband was the perfect way to make a fun quick shirt for next to nothing.

The Be Bold  is really a cute pattern. It also has options for a flounce at the neckline, a few different sleeve looks, and an elastic waist for a full dress. A perfect pattern to use up lots of woven fabric!

Using an already made rtw shirt makes this sew super fast. I started with a large sized mens shirt.

Laid the pattern on top to see the length and width needed. It was a little bit longer that the pattern, but the width was close. So I kept the side seams and hem the same and just cut out the top and armscyes.

*Use a ruler at the top to ensure you cut straight across. If you have a cutting mat, you can line up the shirt and ruler to ensure a straight cut.

Make sure to flip the pattern over to cut the opposite side out.

This was a short sleeved shirt, so I placed the pattern piece on top of the sleeve with the hem line near the short sleeve marking and cut the sleeve out. Remember since it's already sewn on the side, it's okay to leave the width of the pattern piece off the sleeve a bit.

 Then use the first sleeve to cut out the second for ease.

Finally, just use the pattern instructions to complete the shirt!

If using a larger sized shirt or making a smaller sized pattern, you might be able to cut out a flounce for the top too or make longer sleeves! No old husband shirts? Check out nearby thrift stores!

If you don't love the off the shoulder look, I have a friend who uses a shorter piece of elastic to pull the neckline onto the shoulders and it looks super cute too.

Click HERE to see this pattern on the Ellie and Mac Website. Have fun with your Pinsperations and Upcycles!

Happy Sewing!

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So Jess Sew - The George and Ginger With Care Dress

Every year George and Ginger releases a pattern to fund raise and use the proceeds to donate to a good cause. This year the pattern is called the With Care Dress. The money raised from this pattern through Sunday 7/14/19 was donated to an organization called NAMI which is the National Alliance on Mental Illness. This organization supports people with mental health illnesses as well as the families involved. Here's the blurb straight from Kristi of George and Ginger, "Now through Sunday, all of the proceeds from the weekend release will be donated to the non-profit National Alliance on Mental Illness. NAMI is the foundation for hundreds of NAMI State Organizations, NAMI Affiliates and volunteer leaders who work in local communities to raise awareness and provide essential and free education, advocacy and support group programs."

*UPDATE - George and Ginger was able to donate over $2000 from the proceeds of the pattern!

The With Care dress is a tank dress with an elastic casing at the natural waist. The skirt hem is a curved side hi-lo, so the longest part in front and back hit right above the knee and the sides curve up and down. It's super comfortable and really cute. I love having casual tank dresses for the summer.

The top is actually supposed to blouse as you can see from the tester photos on the GG website HERE. I have a long side waist that I didn't adjust for on this dress, but I love the look of that blousing! So I'll be adjusting for my side waist on the next one. (btw, the side waist on GG patterns is about 8.5 inches). I will also mention that I tested this dress for George and Ginger, so this is the first version. The second version is better! There is more blousing up top and the casing is flipped down instead of up, so the skirt ends up being an inch shorter. I gotta make another!!

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If you wanted to add sleeves, you could extend the sides out to a dolman or look at the With Love dress from last year. The armscye feels the same as other GG bodices, so I would guess you could add sleeves from say the Mix it Up  or any of the other newer patterns. The pattern comes in sizes tween 12 through ladies 5x.

You can find the pattern HERE on the GG website. And by the way, you can still donate to NAMI on their website HERE if you are interested.

Happy Sewing!

So Jess Sew - Rebecca Page Bondi Bikini/Tankini

Making a swim suit sounds super scary right? It's actually not like I thought it would be. I got some swim fabric on clearance a while back and had been scared to make one. I tested the Bondi Bikini for Rebecca Page and was surprised and delighted to find out it was not any different than making regular clothes, just maybe a bit more elastic. This pattern had a lot of little pieces, but they came together easily and the instructions were great; step by step with pictures.

I had a tankini just like this in high school (except it was pink!) that I loved. It's all worn out now, but I did steal the foam cups out of it and sewed them into the lining of this suit. The cups are gathered at the bottom, although the lining is not. The next time I sew this one up, I'll probably either reduce the size of the outer cup or gather it at the side, it probably wouldn't be an issue for people who are more blessed in that area, lol.

So the bikini/tankini part might be confusing until you actually see the pattern pieces.The top and bottom look the same for all versions, it's just the bands that are longer or shorter. So this is the tankini top, with the bikini bottoms. The bikini and tankini bottoms are both shorts style, the band in the tankini version just comes up higher on the waist. Hopefully that all made sense!

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The suit is a halter style, so the back is just bare until the bands. It ties at the back of the neck, and also in front in the middle. I added 1/2 inch to the length of the shorts because I wanted them to be a bit longer. After making a muslin, I also scooped out the front rise just a tad to fit my short rise better. And that is the beauty of making your own clothes! You can modify things to be exactly how you prefer them right?

You can see the pattern on the Rebecca Page website HERE. And if you haven't made a swimming suit and want to, just go for it! It's not as scary as it seems.

Happy Sewing!