Currently, on Suzy Patterns!

Not much, I'm afraid. Back in June I had a fantastic plan in place for Suzy Patterns. I knew what I was doing and I knew when. But then... I got married!
Fear not, Suzy Patterns has not been abandoned, my head is still full of ideas and my drafting pad full of (awfully drawn) sketches. But I'm out of capital and without that I can draft as many patterns as I want but they will not make it to you. Grading, digitising, printing, packaging all costs and at this stage I simply cannot afford it. You might notice I say printing and yes, whilst the Antoinette Dress Pattern is available as a PDF it was always my desire and plan to move quickly to printed patterns. I, for one, don't really like pdfs (even though I admit they have many qualities) so keen to make my patterns available in good old paper.
So, being more realistic than ever, it might be another year or so until a design from Suzy Patterns comes out. Disappointing, but on the positive side, it will give me a chance to improve my skills and come out with a better product.

I thought it might be interesting to have a small weekly feature in my blog to share with you all the process of working towards Suzy Patterns and towards improving my skills. Kind of like a diary, sharing with you the good bits and the bad bits, my skills and my lack of! What do you think?

PS: I have disabled the annoying Captcha on my posts!

Accepting delays

How good are you at setting timeframes and deadlines? Are you one to plan carefully and realistically, bearing in mind foreseen and unforeseen obstacles or do you just wing it and go with the flow?

I confess I am more of the latter, which I must aceppt now, it a real problem in certain areas. Even though I feel frustrated that something hasn't moved along as I wanted, I find accepting it quite liberating. It means now I can re-think and re-plan.

I have come to the conclusion that it is impossible for me to release my summer pattern in August. So what has caused delays and what is in the way?

 - I’m getting married in about a months time (OMG!) and even with a very small number of guests there is SO much to organise (unbelievable!!)

 - I work full time in a target driven environment with deadlines looming frequently. I do end up doing extra hours in evenings and are often exaustead by the weekend.

 - I "suddenly" discovered I love gardening and have spent some time outdoors. First spring with a garden, you see!

When I get excited with something I want to do it now; here and then. I am extremely impatient! And that often means I‘m overly confident in doing it quickly. When obstacles arise and I can’t progress I get demotivated. Silly isnt’ it?

I am super motivated to take Suzy Patterns forward, but I rather compromise timings than quality. I am making great progress tackling grading issues and quite positive these will be gone with my next pattern. But to make sure I need more time. A few hours with excel and I feel I’m on track.

The next Suzy Pattern will be for a Autumn/Winter design with a tentative late release early to mid November. I’ll keep you posted on progress!

Thank you for your understanding!

Suzy Patterns: Design Inspiration

The main inspiration behind the next design for Suzy Patterns is the 1950s, the sea and the summer! All elements I adore.
Even though the first years of my life were spent far from the sea (inner Germany to be more precise) I moved to southern Portugal when still a child and remained there until I moved to the UK. Hot weather and the sea were natural and somehow mundane things. Popping to the beach at lunch time for a quick swim or after work was very normal and summer was always from May to September, uninterrupted.

Lazing on the beach with constant trips to the sea for a refreshing swim were a favourite of mine. And I loved the feel and taste of sea salt in my skin.

My parents are not "yacht" rich but I was lucky to have some friends whose parents were and those day trips out to sea were fantastic. On a hot day (proper hot, like at least 30 Celsius. No nonsense talk about 20 Celsius being hot ;)) feeling the wind as you travel by boat and diving in the cool sea water is beyond description.

(Sigh) Now I live in the UK where I am very, very happy but I do miss the hot weather and the sea. And I love to bits my other half but he's with the nonsense crowd of "20 Celsius is so, so hot";). There's no convincing him of Summer holidays anywhere southern of UK.

I decided to bring all these memories, inject some vintage elements I adore and create a pattern for the Summer. I've had delays: had to change design elements 3 times (once quite dramatically), my full time day job is reaching crucial deadlines and key staff has left, meaning many days working 8am to 8pm. I am also organising my wedding and the date for that is fast approaching. Saying that I am hoping I can pull it in time for Summer. Wish me luck!

Suzy Patterns Guest Post

Just a quick check in to let you know I wrote a guest post on Suzy Patterns on the wonderful blog Sewing  and Style Den. Check it out, I hope you enjoy it!

A Green Linen Antoinette

I want to share with you the beautiful Antoinette Dress Esz made. Isn't it a beauty?

Esz was one of my pattern testers and I am forever grateful to her for helping me suss out sizing issues. I think she did a fantastic job and especially love the fact she used lace for the sleeves as well. You can read more about this make and see more photos here.

And if you don't follow Esz's blog I strongly suggest you race over to Kittys Drawings and subscribe. She makes gorgeous clothes and is gorgeous herself!

Antoinette Dress Pattern Release

The Antoinette Dress Pattern is here. Ready for you to download, print and sew!

Illustration by the talented Danielle Meder

Hop over to The Antoinette Dress Pattern page to access download link.

Note: You might remember I was looking to launch a Suzy Patterns website around the same time, but I didn't quite managed to do it as yet. For now, the pattern will live on my blog on a page of its own. (see horizontal bar above.
In the meantime, you can get more regular updates on Suzy Patterns on my Facebook Page!

The Antoinette III and the last

This is my latest and also the last version of Antoinette I am sewing. For those who know me and my blog a bit, the fabric choice won't surprise you.

I sewed this version in the original fabric I had planned Antoinette to be sewn on from day one. I love how it turned out. This is also the version I used to take in progress photos for the pattern instructions. I opted to encase the sleeve raw edges in black bias binding and quite like the result.

I used the multisize pattern to make this version, instead of my personal pattern. I've cut a size 8 at bust and hips but had to taper to a 10 at waist. Again, this is because the grading was not done according to my measurements. The fit turned out fine, although it does run small all round and it's quite close fitted.

I have Saturday 14th April marked as the release date and plan on having supporting fit posts to help you choose your best size and make a dress that fits and you love.

Cutting Layouts and an update

Thank you so much all for your comments regarding cutting layouts, both here, on my Twitter account and on Suzy Patterns Facebook page.
General feeling I got: Cutting layouts are really not followed but attention to grainline is still important!
This is very, very true! You can cut up your fabric pretty much however you feel like but you cannot loose sight of the grain line and must always ensure you are aligning the fabric correctly (either straight or on the bias). I would add to that attention to nap or fabric pattern direction.
Some of you like cutting layouts:
 Alice said:
"I like the cutting layouts. I like to arrange my fabric and then make sure there wasn't a better way!!
Oh, also, I do like to check that I have put the pattern pieces the right way up for nap etc. Sometimes I get confused."
And Marina, whom I am a huge fan of said (on twitter):
"yes, absolutely - it helps even if i want to change the way it's laid out"
And for the extreme beginners out there, having a cutting layout is essential not to feel lost with a sewing pattern. I can totally sympathise with this, when I started sewing I never did without one but I do confess that I quickly learned that there was a better way to lay my fabric and started ignoring them.


Like I previously mentioned, the Antoinette Dress pattern will not have cutting layouts, but not because I do not use them myself. As this is a first pattern, of a almost experimental nature to be available for free, I limited the work I sourced elsewhere, and as I did not have a vector graphics programme I decided not to include them.  I am now in the process of self learning Illustrator and plan on having both cutting layouts and instruction diagrams and illustrations on next pattern (Antoinette has photographs). 
I am now in the process of finishing the pattern instructions and will have final version ready either tomorrow or Monday. I will them have it proofread and after that, it'll be ready to go. It's definitely taking me longer than I wished or thought but I'm loving the process.


I'll leave you with a (bad) photo of the last instalment of Antoinette. I'm sure the fabric choice won't surprise you!

Question Time: Cutting Layouts

Working on  my pattern instructions booklet

Today I want to hear from you: Do you use cutting layouts? Do you like them or find them useful? For what reasons?
I can say ahead of release that the Antoinette Dress Pattern will not have cutting layouts but it doesn't mean future patterns will not.

Curious to see what you think! I will dwell into it more on a follow up post with my opinion and yours.

The Antoinette Dress - The Big Reveal

Click for bigger versions

Meet Antoinette I! The original design, the original idea. A lovely 3/4 sleeved fitted dress with a sexy pegged skirt and a lace bodice panel that extends high at the neckline. The version in the photos was the first sample and the very floral fabric a coincidence only. I wanted something a bit more colourful than calico. Being very honest I thought I had to do massive tweaks to pattern after first swatch but I didn't, hence this version is presented to you.

For something different...meet Antoinette II!

Click for bigger versions

Antoinette II is the same pattern as Antoinette I but what a difference! It uses the same patterns pieces but with a small alteration in the front bodice panel (which will be covered in the pattern instructions). I used a gorgeous blue gingham and some red piping and buttons. The neckline is also slightly lower in this version.

I sincerely hope you enjoy Suzy Patterns first pattern. I am starting to receive the wonderful feedback from my testers which will help me do any sizing tweaks that I need to and sure there are some. It seems the pattern grading company I used ignored my size chart and ease specifications. For example the bust has some ease but the waist measurements used are even smaller than the ones I provided. I'm now on the lookout for other pattern grading companies so if you know any that are reliable and good, please let me know.

Saying this, the pattern will still be available to you all for free, hopefully at the beginning of April. I will adjust size charts to help you cut the best size for you (planning a whole blog post on sizing).
I have already received some sneak peak photos of the versions testers are doing and oh, my, I am so excited!

I have also started a Facebook Page, where I'll keep you up to date with what is happening at Suzy Patterns. Click here or on the link at the top bar to like it!

Have a lovely weekend!

Suzy Patterns: The Antoinette II (another sneak preview)

Hello everyone! Things are still quite busy here at Suzy Patterns base, but as promised on my previous post here is a sneak preview of the Antoinette II. Same pattern but a much different look with just a slight pattern alteration and a different fabric.

This version of Antoinette should really be called the Tilly dress. Firstly, the gorgeous bow belt you can see is not part of the pattern nor a creation of my own. It is the most famous bow belt by Tilly and the Buttons. It is such an adorable and quick accessory to do. Head over here to learn how to make your own.
Secondly, the pretty gingham was part of my loot from the fabric swap at the Brighton Me-Made June 2011 meet up and it came from Tilly's stash.

Tilly, I hope you like what I made with it!

Suzy Patterns: The Antoinette I (a sneak preview)

There is a lot of work going on regarding Suzy Patterns. I have a lovely group of talented seamstresses/ sewists/ sewers (did you read the latest discussion on what we should be called?) making up my first pattern as we speak. This is terribly exciting and also slightly nerve wrecking. Whilst I gather feedback on the pattern and its sizing I am busy sorting out Suzy Patterns webpage, the front and back pattern envelope and the instructions. At the same time, I am also researching other potential pattern graders and also commercial large format printers for future releases. I'm getting there, but when you don't know where to even start looking it's hard going (you know when you move house/ city, know no one and have to get a plumber? You can google one but you don't know what you'll be getting).

Because the official release date is a month away I wanted to give you a little sneak preview of the pattern. In this case Antoinette I, the first sample:

Antoinette I was my first sample. When the time came to sew this, I had two meters of unbleached calico on my table, ready to cut and sew but I felt quite uninspired by it. I trawled trough my fabric stash to find    just the right amount of a very floral curtain fabric I bought for cheap at a local charity shop. I knew I wouldn't use it for anything else so decided to sew Antoinette with it. And I do love the result, even though it's quite floral (all I need now is an invitation for a tradition countryside English wedding and a hat :).

This pattern was heavily influenced by my love for period fashions like the one below, from the book "59 Authentic Turn-of-the-Century Fashion Patterns" by Kristina Harris.

High necklines and lace might have their place but sometimes you might want something more day to day wearable. So, I decided to sew a 2nd sample with slight pattern alterations including lowering of the neckline plus no lace. But for Antoinette II, you'll have to wait a bit more!

Via Pinterest

But now tell me? Do you love period fashions as much as I do? And what do you think about high necklines?

What's next and life goes on

Let me start by saying thank you so much to everyone for the outpour of support I received, following my announcement last Saturday. I was close to tears when I realised my announcement post held as many views in two days as some of my most popular posts. Your comments and emails really brighten up my day and gave my plans a different and awesome perspective. Thank you, thank you so much everyone!
I am now just finalising the last details on the pattern so I can finally make it available for testers. Every time I come to the conclusion it's ready to go, I find something else that needs adding/doing/improving. It will be ready at the weekend, so for those of you who have offered to test, an email with information will be sent out early next week. Once the email goes out with all the info, you can then make a decision, whether you want to test or not. Do remember that once I am more certain size charts and grading were done correctly, this pattern will be made available for free. I'm aiming for a official launch with a new website at beginning of April.

In the meantime, life goes on. I am still sewing and knitting here and there. I'm currently working on the Minoru Jacket  and about to start Susan Khalje The Couture Dress from Craftsy. I'm hoping that techniques learned here will help me construct my wedding dress. Gertie has also announced a new class which I strongly suspect I will buy in the very imminent future. Not sure when I'll be taking it though.

What are you working on at the moment? And have you fell for any of Craftsy fantastic classes?

And not forgetting today is knitting day, I'll leave you with a couple of scans from Vogue Knitting from late 1955.

Secret Project S revealed

Presenting to you the elusive and secret Project S I have occasionally alluded to in the last year or so.

Suzy Patterns are the result of a mishmash inspiration pool mainly from Victorian and Edwardian eras to the gorgeous 1940s and 1950s. They are developed with the petite women in mind however with some alterations, everyone can sew a Suzy!

That is right, I decided to design sewing patterns. I cannot begin to tell you how excited I am. But it is also scary!

This little venture of mine (as it remains for now a small venture) has started pretty much around the same time I started sewing. When that happened I knew I wanted to do a bit more with all the design ideas floating in my head. Whilst the idea of launching a small line of clothing was briefly thought of, I wanted something that would allow me to stay involved with and connected to the fantastic sewing community. I have benefited in many more ways than I can possibly describe from this fantastic community and have met many wonderful people I call friends, both personally and online. 

Suzy Patterns is, like I have said, a small venture and I plan to take it slowly but steadily. Whilst I am taking this very seriously I'm also planning on relaxing and enjoying it. Coming to this stage has taken a long time researching, learning, practising, asking questions, etc. I fell out of my comfortable zone when I had to rely on someone else to do something (I am a control freak) and now need your help:

After I drafted and tested the current pattern I'm working on I had to research pattern grading companies that would digitise my pattern and grade it in different sizes. Pattern making and grading software is very, very expensive and grading by hand a true art which I do not fully have. I found a company and sent them my size chart and pattern pieces and they have done it for me, which is fantastic. However, I want to be sure that a) I have made my size charts right and b) the company that graded did it correctly with specified ease, etc. Initially I thought about sewing all sizes myself but then I decided to announce this and ask for your help!

If you would be interested in testing this pattern for me, please leave me a comment with your email address. I already have a few people who expressed interest on my Twitter account and plan to email everyone next week with some details.

Please do not feel obliged to do this, I can say now that a decision was made from the start to make this pattern available for free to mark the beginning of this venture, so if you don't want to risk sewing something that might have wrong sizing on, it's fine. 

That's it then, the cat is out of the bag!