Painted Circles Pensée Dress

August 20, 2020 Becca

Hello Internet Friends!

Today I have a special treat of a make! My lovely Painted Circles Pensée Dress by Deer and Doe! If you’ve been following my Instagram you’ll have seen this dress on my lovely dress form, Zadie, way back in May. I had hopped for some good weather to finally wear it out but alas, due to a Vancouver ‘June-uary’ (when it’s June but it really feels like January because it’s so rainy) and a general covid lack of social events I never got a chance/excuse to wear it until recently.

Caftans & Cocktails with a Twist 2020

August 8, 2020 Becca

Hello Internet Friends!

Today’s post is going to be a bit different from my normal content; instead of being focused on the handmade garment I’ll be discussing some important issues around systemic racism in Canada as part of #CaftansAndCocktails2020

As a POC who was born, raised, educated, and currently living in Canada I have been shaped by a system that simultaneously affords me privileges not afforded by my BIPOC peers while also at the same time denying me privileges of my non-POC peers. This system, deeply embedded in colonialism, has imparted internalized biases though daily interactions and life events as well as through generational biases imparted by my POC ancestors as they navigated both colonialism and immigration to Canada. These biases run deep, in all of us, and it will be hard and life long work to identify and correct them, and this work MUST continue long after the initial ‘shock and anger’ surrounding this current wave of anti-racism awakening has ebbed. This is why I loved the idea that Meg and Loni have incorporated into their planned summer sewing event, caftans and cocktails. You can read more about the idea behind this event and how it evolved into much more on Meg’s blog here. I’m so grateful to both Meg and Loni for the opportunity to talk about the anit-racism work that us Canadians need to do as well as to elevate local Canadian voices.

Favorite Sleeveless Tops: Victory Vs. Hadley

July 23, 2020 Becca

Hello Internet Friends!

Quick blog post today on a head to head comparison of my top two sleeveless tops, the Victory Tank by Chalk and Notch and the Hadley Top by Grainline Studio. Both are patterns I’ve made before and both are part of that core set of patterns I know I’ll return to time and time again! For today I thought it would be fun to compare them head to head in the same fabric. If you want to read more about each pattern and the modifications for fit that I’ve made head here for the Victory and here for the Hadley.

Before we talk about the two patterns, I’ve got to tell you about this fabric first! This is some of the Urban Leo Printed Viscose Twill that I managed to snag from Blackbird fabrics earlier this year! I had originally planned on making a dress out of this fabric but since I had managed to get both colour ways of this print and I had already begun to cut a dress out of the other colour way I decided to make two tops instead 😁

So! Let’s talk about similarities between these two patterns (other than the obvious that they are both sleeveless tops lol)! Both of these patterns offer a bunch of mix and match options which is great as it means once you get the fit right you can make a lot of ‘same same but different’ versions. In terms of difficultly both of these are probably around the confident beginner stage, with the Victory being just a bit more tricky due to the way the lining is attached.

Now for differences! Off the bat the biggest difference is the presence of a full lining on the Victory vs. facings on the Hadley. This also means that the victory does need more fabric than the Hadley, although if you were super short on fabric you could perhaps do a half lining on the victory to save! Another major difference is how these two patterns drape on the body, the Victory has a more loose fitting ‘swingy’ vibe to it while the Haldley is decidedly more close fitting (though still lots of positive ease, it’s just more close fitting than the Victory. Because of this body draping difference the Victory is best suited to fabrics with a good deal of drape, like this viscose twill, vs the Hadley which can work with both drapey fabrics and those with a bit more structure.

In terms of which of these two I like more I really can’t say! I’ve worn both with equal frequency since I made them and I can see both as being wardrobe staples for a long time to come! Do you guys have a fave out of these two? Let me know in the comments!

Linen Hanna Tank and Winslow Culottes

July 13, 2020 Becca

Hello Internet Friends!

In keeping with the sunny weather we’ve been having I have a two more summer makes to share with you! My linen Hanna Tank by Pattern Scout and another pair of Winslow Culottes by Helen’s Closet. The Winslows are one of my tried and true patterns, this is the second or third pair of shorts I’ve made from this pattern. For this iteration I used a bright yellow viscose linen noil from Blackbird fabrics. As with my previous pink pair, I opted for the elastic backed waistband, I meant to try out the slanted pocket hack with this pair but forgot when I cut the fabric (which I actually did way back in March as I had intended to finish this pair in time for my trip to Bali but then never got to sewing it until now). All of the sizing and everything has remained the same since my last pair which you can check out in this post here. I used my brand new set of wide rolled hem feet to quickly hem up this pair of culottes which meant that I was able to finish sewing the whole pair in one short afternoon! This is why I love having patterns pre-cut for me to sew, when the motivation/need to sew strikes I can just have at it!

Linen Free Range Slacks

July 6, 2020 Becca

Hello Internet Friends!

It’s been a bit of a ‘June-uary’ here on the west coast, really rainy and cold, but it finally looks like the weather has turned and we are getting some really nice summery sunshine which means I was finally able to snap some blog photos! Today I’m sharing my latest fave pant, the Free Range Slacks by Sew House Seven. Now, if you’ve been following my blog or instagram for a while you’ll know that my all time favourite pant is the Mid Rise Ginger Jeans, and while gingers are still at the top of the list, the free range slacks are a nice ‘jeans alternative’ without being full on ‘trousers’ (I’ve never been much of a trouser girl but things can change!).