Tuesday, September 27, 2011

A Compendium of Lingerie Patterns... Let's talk about a sew-along!

On my last post quite a few said YES! to my thought that we should do a sew along on lingerie. I really want to show you all that lingerie is not hard, not scary, and a very rewarding sewing project. Like all things small, underwear or bras don't take forever to sew, and are practically instant gratification projects.

I would love to get your votes on what you would like to sew with me, and the pattern with the most votes will be what we tackle as a group. Do you want to sew a bra, panties, tap pants, slip, teddy or camisole? Should we use an inexpensive pdf pattern that will be super easy to find or do we want to use a paper pattern, offered in multiple sizes?

Here are nearly all of the great lingerie patterns that I know about. Most of them I'm very familiar with already. Some of them are pdfs from my shop, some aren't. Some are pricier than others. Please don't feel obligated to vote for one of my pdfs just because. Don't pick the pattern that looks the easiest. Pick the pattern that you think you will feel gorgeous in. Pick something that will make you feel special when you wear it. That's the one you want to vote for. I'll help you with the hard stuff!

Leave a comment to tell me which of these you'd like to sew in the sew-along. I know, there are a lot of them, so we'll narrow it down to 3 in this post, and in the next post you can vote again for your favorite.

Slips/ Camisoles:

Vintage Pauline Slip and Camisole Printable Sewing Pattern PDF Copy 34 bust.
One Size, $5.

Colette Patterns Cinnamon - No. 1012
Multi-size, $16.00

Monday, August 15, 2011

All about pdf patterns

The new frontier of sewing patterns is digital. Everything seams to turn to digital at some point and sewing patterns are no exception. E patterns are now being offered by the big four (Simplicity, Butterick, McCall's and Vogue) as well as a dozen websites including Etsy.com.

The great thing about digital patterns is that you can buy them and print for a fraction of the cost. There's no waiting for the mail to come, as most are emailed to you within 24 hours, or better, directly downloaded. I highly recommend Burdastyle.com for downloading patterns. Here's my favorite:

That's right, you click download, and this pattern (which is free, by the way) is on your computer. You hit print, tape the pieces together, and start sewing.

Now, my very favorite thing about digital patterns is that some enterprising individuals, (yes, including myself) have started taking rare, expensive, hard to find patterns and making them available for download. Most of these are vintage originals whose copyrights have expired. Some are just used as inspiration to create an original pattern that still reflects the style and design so sought after in certain digital patterns.

Mary Anne Bandeau Pattern

Now there are some drawbacks to print at home patterns. They can be bulky and hard to store. There are two ways I store my larger printed patterns. One solution is to store them in a labelled file folder. My favorite way to store them though, is to print the pattern picture out and tape it to an envelope. I use the 6" x 9" manilla envelopes so they fit right in with my other regular patterns.

Marilynn Apron Pattern

Another great thing about pdf patterns is that once you buy them, they are saved on your computer. If you rip a piece, or lose one, or want to make it in a different size, you can just print again.
Some pdf patterns are larger and more complicated to put together. Many buyers are put off by the paper and ink they'll have to use up on their home printer. An easy way to get around this is to save the pattern to a cd or small thumb drive, take it to your local print shop (xerox, staples, they all do it) and have them print it for you.

So just in case you're interested, and so you know I'm not just plugging my shop, here are a few of my favorite pattern pdfs: