it's all about the lady skater today! surely you've seen this fab pattern from Kitschy Coo?
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so you might be thinking that this doesn't look like the lady skaters you've seen here or here or here. (and seriously, you need to stop by the Kitschy Coo blog to see all of the amazing lady skaters that everyone has made! i mean, this? awesome!) well, i was lucky enough to be a pattern tester so i had already made the more standard version of the pattern when Amanda asked me to be a part of the pattern tour... being me, of course, i started thinking about what else i could do with the pattern.
but let's start at the beginning with my tester version. hot pink (that has been in my stash for goodness knows how long and i learned is not cotton when i attempted to iron it. oops!) with baby pink binding. it's a bit shirley temple, funny and fabulous and adorable, but quite unlike my normal everyday wear.
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the dress construction is more simple and straightforward than you might expect for such a cute dress, which is great... but my most favorite thing about this pattern is the fit. those sleeves and shoulders? yup, perfection. i should note here that some fit edits were made to the pattern after i stitched up this version, and the final pattern version is absolutely spot on.
something else i love about this pattern is that i wasn't trying to make something that looks good on a size two fit a very-much-not-a-size-two-me. the last few women's patterns i've made have been frustrating to no end in that sense. i just don't feel like a size twelve should be an extra-large! part of the reason i want to sew clothes for myself is because clothes in the store are not made for people with actual real-life bodies. hello, hips. hello, boobs! i want to give Amanda a big hug for making a pattern that has a range of real sizes with thoughtful details and a flattering fit. good work, my friend! and you out there... yes, you! go get this pattern and sew up a bunch immediately! you'll be happy that you did, pinky swear.
as soon as i made my tester version and saw how great the basic structure of this pattern is, i knew that i wanted to adapt it to make myself some t-shirts. i've been feeling less than confident about my *ahem* middle section *ahem* as of late, so i wanted something with some shape but also something that skimmed over that area a bit. in this first skater tee iteration, i lengthened the lady skater bodice and pulled the side seams out in a gentle curve, increasing the ease by a total of nearly 10" around by the bottom of the shirt.
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while good, this shirt was still not quite right. so i added some width to the front and pulled out the side seams ever so slightly more (adding about 3" additional ease total) and made this second version.
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granted, not the most exciting garment ever, but there is something really fabulous about making yourself a wardrobe standard that can be worn effortlessly. (gray knit from Denver Fabrics) i'd say more on the topic, but the lovely Laura of Behind the Hedgerow just wrote this post: A simple t-shirt that's changed my approach to sewing. perfectly put and worth a read.
i then made a third tee out of a lace-ish knit from Jo-Ann (used originally in this tumble tee). and when i put it on, i felt very grandmotherly. eek. not exactly what i was going for.... so i chopped off the arms and made a skater tank, but i still wasn't in love with it. but then i grabbed it to throw on over my bathing suit for our trip to the water park yesterday and it was perfect!
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last night i felt compelled to make one final lady skater tee. i extended the new tee version into a dress. sometimes these things just have to be done, who knows why? i used a fun organic knit print from Stitch Organics and i was crossing my fingers that it would work because the fabric is adorable. and it did!! it needs to be hemmed (i want to wash it first) so excuse the poofy pinned hem look i have going here.
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all in all, the lady skater is a fabulous pattern exactly as written... and with such a great structure, it lends itself well to any turning and twisting you might have in mind. oh, and in case you somehow missed it, there's a little girls version of the pattern as well (available here in sizes 18m-8).
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somehow this looks more "surfing" than "skating" to me (not that i'd know, as i haven't done either), but i had to try! and i leave you with a few more fun outtakes from my myriad of lady skater photo shoots. never a dull moment...
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happy skating!
![]()
so you might be thinking that this doesn't look like the lady skaters you've seen here or here or here. (and seriously, you need to stop by the Kitschy Coo blog to see all of the amazing lady skaters that everyone has made! i mean, this? awesome!) well, i was lucky enough to be a pattern tester so i had already made the more standard version of the pattern when Amanda asked me to be a part of the pattern tour... being me, of course, i started thinking about what else i could do with the pattern.
but let's start at the beginning with my tester version. hot pink (that has been in my stash for goodness knows how long and i learned is not cotton when i attempted to iron it. oops!) with baby pink binding. it's a bit shirley temple, funny and fabulous and adorable, but quite unlike my normal everyday wear.
the dress construction is more simple and straightforward than you might expect for such a cute dress, which is great... but my most favorite thing about this pattern is the fit. those sleeves and shoulders? yup, perfection. i should note here that some fit edits were made to the pattern after i stitched up this version, and the final pattern version is absolutely spot on.
something else i love about this pattern is that i wasn't trying to make something that looks good on a size two fit a very-much-not-a-size-two-me. the last few women's patterns i've made have been frustrating to no end in that sense. i just don't feel like a size twelve should be an extra-large! part of the reason i want to sew clothes for myself is because clothes in the store are not made for people with actual real-life bodies. hello, hips. hello, boobs! i want to give Amanda a big hug for making a pattern that has a range of real sizes with thoughtful details and a flattering fit. good work, my friend! and you out there... yes, you! go get this pattern and sew up a bunch immediately! you'll be happy that you did, pinky swear.
as soon as i made my tester version and saw how great the basic structure of this pattern is, i knew that i wanted to adapt it to make myself some t-shirts. i've been feeling less than confident about my *ahem* middle section *ahem* as of late, so i wanted something with some shape but also something that skimmed over that area a bit. in this first skater tee iteration, i lengthened the lady skater bodice and pulled the side seams out in a gentle curve, increasing the ease by a total of nearly 10" around by the bottom of the shirt.
while good, this shirt was still not quite right. so i added some width to the front and pulled out the side seams ever so slightly more (adding about 3" additional ease total) and made this second version.
granted, not the most exciting garment ever, but there is something really fabulous about making yourself a wardrobe standard that can be worn effortlessly. (gray knit from Denver Fabrics) i'd say more on the topic, but the lovely Laura of Behind the Hedgerow just wrote this post: A simple t-shirt that's changed my approach to sewing. perfectly put and worth a read.
i then made a third tee out of a lace-ish knit from Jo-Ann (used originally in this tumble tee). and when i put it on, i felt very grandmotherly. eek. not exactly what i was going for.... so i chopped off the arms and made a skater tank, but i still wasn't in love with it. but then i grabbed it to throw on over my bathing suit for our trip to the water park yesterday and it was perfect!
last night i felt compelled to make one final lady skater tee. i extended the new tee version into a dress. sometimes these things just have to be done, who knows why? i used a fun organic knit print from Stitch Organics and i was crossing my fingers that it would work because the fabric is adorable. and it did!! it needs to be hemmed (i want to wash it first) so excuse the poofy pinned hem look i have going here.
all in all, the lady skater is a fabulous pattern exactly as written... and with such a great structure, it lends itself well to any turning and twisting you might have in mind. oh, and in case you somehow missed it, there's a little girls version of the pattern as well (available here in sizes 18m-8).
somehow this looks more "surfing" than "skating" to me (not that i'd know, as i haven't done either), but i had to try! and i leave you with a few more fun outtakes from my myriad of lady skater photo shoots. never a dull moment...
happy skating!
