Everyone is excited about knits right now. I must admit, I didn’t have much interest in sewing knits when Moda first approached me with the idea of adding interlock to the City Weekend fabric collection. But when the sample fabric arrived, I realized what a wonderful opportunity I had been given. The fabric quality is simply amazing–unlike any knit I’ve ever used before. It’s substantial and stable, not spongy and fuzzy or thin and whimpy like so many knit fabrics.

Once I started using this interlock in the studio, I quickly remembered how easy and fun it is to sew with knits. I’ve been converted, and I’ve put together some tips and hints to show you how easy it is.

Getting Started

As with any fabric, wash and dry your fabric before you start cutting. Knits tend to shrink more than woven fabrics. The City Weekend interlock shrinks about 8% (which is substantially less than the 15% or more seen in many knit qualities), but you don’t want your beautiful project to get 8% shorter the first time you wash it, do you?

Use all-purpose thread and, preferably, a ballpoint needle. Also note that, whether you’re sewing on a standard sewing machine or a serger (see the guidelines below for sewing on a machine vs. a serger), be careful not to stretch the fabric as you sew. Just feed it through the machine evenly for a nice seam. Interlock stretches on the cross grain and doesn’t “recover” as quickly as jersey knits. If you stretch as you sew, your finished garment can end up wider than you intended. Interlock doesn’t stretch much on the vertical grain, so pay attention to the direction of the stretch when you cut your fabric so you can take advantage of it.

Because the seam allowances for knit patterns are small (seam allowances for Oliver + S patterns are 1/2″, but for sewing patterns using knits we have reduced the seam allowances to 1/4″ to reduce bulk and to work nicely with a serger), mark notches with chalk, a fabric marker, pins, or by cutting them to extend outside the cut edge instead of cutting into the edge of the cut fabric. Here is an example of the notched edge of a knit:

Using a Standard Sewing Machine

Sew all seams with a stretch stitch (some machines have special stitches specifically designed for sewing knits) or with a narrow, shortened zigzag stitch, about 1/16″ wide by 16 stitches long (that is, eight zigs and eight zags to the inch).

While you can leave the seam allowances unfinished, I prefer to finish them together, stitching over the raw edges with a regular zigzag stitch.

Using a Serger

A serger will stitch, trim the seam allowances, and finish the seam allowances all at once. A three- or four-thread overlock stitch is suitable for most purposes. If you’re unsure of the fit, baste the seams first to check before stitching. Be sure to guide the fabric so only the 1/4” seam allowance is used as you stitch. Press seam allowances to one side unless otherwise instructed.

That’s not too difficult, is it?

Several people have asked about the books we presented during last Saturday’s Crafternoon at the New York Public Library. Jessica Pigza, our wonderful sewing librarian who organized the event, has posted a summary with catalog links to many of the books on her blog. I hope you’ll have a chance to look at some of these materials–we enjoyed seeing the books and images that inspire each other and each managed to learn something new in the process.

This is a cover from the July 1928 issue of Amateur Golfer magazine. Who knew golfing could be so inspirational!

For me, the hardest and most time consuming part of drafting a new pattern is writing the instructions.

Our patterns feature more sophisticated design elements (and, therefore, include more fine dressmaking details) than other children’s patterns on the market. This means that the construction techniques need to be innovative and the instructions need to be especially clear, thorough, and well illustrated.

Before starting Oliver + S, I taught regular sewing classes here in New York. That experience gave me insight into where people struggle at each stage in their development as seamstresses. When I write the instructions for our patterns, I always think of my former students. I ask myself if they would be able to accomplish something by following the instructions I’ve drafted. If the answer is “no,” I rewrite a step.

It makes my day when I hear someone say that sewing with an Oliver + S pattern feels like taking a sewing class. I’ve always considered teaching to be a core part of what Oliver + S is about. (We make great patterns, but we also help make good home sewers even better.) These days I don’t get to do as much direct instruction as I used to, but I try to make our patterns clear enough that they can be used as self-teaching tools for the people who sew from them.

All of this is a long way of getting around to the purpose of this blog post. Now that we have a critical mass of patterns, with styles at many difficulty levels, I’m able to do something with the line that I haven’t been able to do before. I can offer you a complete syllabus for learning to sew (or improving from your current level) with Oliver + S patterns.

Absolute Beginner
You know the basics of how to operate your sewing machine, but you’ve never sewn a garment. Here’s your place to start.

Lazy Days Skirt: This free downloadable design will help you get comfortable with your machine and will allow you to demonstrate to yourself that, yes, you can sew a garment. This very easy tutorial doesn’t involve an actual sewing pattern and is a perfect place to start for absolute beginners. It also involves a minimum of supplies. You’ll learn to make a simple elasticized waistband and a very easy ribbon hem that gives the skirt its finished appearance. This skirt doesn’t even require you to finish your seam allowances, so it’s fast and simple to make.

Popover Sundress: Ready to sew from a pattern? This free download for a simple sundress provides a good introduction to sewing from a pattern. It also teaches you how to apply bias binding, which is frequently used in sewing projects. You can also have fun with combining different fabrics and adding a variety of trims to this dress.

Novice
You’re able to sew from a pattern, and you’re eager to learn basic garment construction techniques. Our patterns rated one scissors in difficulty are designed for sewers at this level.

Bedtime Story Pajamas: Our easiest pattern, this pajama set features simple elastic-waist pants and a bias bound kimono top. You’ll gain experience cutting out and assembling pants and a top without needing to worry about more detailed elements like buttonholes. The sleeves are fantastically simple to assemble, and you might try combining unusual fabrics for the bias trim and ties.

Sandbox Pants: This pattern allows you to create a great looking pair of pants with some interesting details that are fully within the reach of a new garment sewer. This project will teach you how to make simple pockets and will give you practice making buttonholes. The pants have a simple combination elastic/drawstring waistband which is slightly more challenging than the one on the Bedtime Story Pajamas.

Sailboat Top, Skirt, and Pants: This pattern provides a simple pair of cropped pants, a skirt, and a top that can all be made by someone without a lot of sewing experience. The details of the finished garments (decorative topstitching, buttons and button holes on the flat-front skirt and pants) provide a high satisfaction quotient for the novice sewer. You’ll learn to set in an easy sleeve and will be amazed at how simple it is to construct the pants and skirt—with no zippers!

Advanced Beginner
Tea Party Sundress and Playsuit: This is also a one scissors pattern, but it is slightly more challenging than our other one scissors patterns. Using this pattern will teach you how to make a curved seam and how to use flat piping. The sundress will introduce you to our innovative hem facing, which is ideal for finishing flared skirt hems.

Intermediate
You no longer consider yourself a beginning sewer. You’re comfortable with your machine and with following a pattern. You’ve made a few garments, and you’re pleased with the results you’ve achieved. Our two scissors patterns are perfect for this level. They are a little bit more involved and challenging to sew because they introduce interesting new construction techniques, but they provide great results for the extra effort.

Bubble Dress: This fully lined dress includes a number of interesting details that will help you build your skills. The sleeve is part of the bodice on this pattern, so you can concentrate on the unique back placket, the scalloped side seams, and the hidden elastic at the hemline.

Sunday Brunch Jacket and Skirt: This tailored, unlined jacket will get you comfortable with sewing sleeves, gathers, and collars. As a result, it provides a slightly greater challenge—but also several opportunities to pick up new skills. The unlined jacket also gives the opportunity to practice bias binding, if you should choose to finish the interior seams this way.

2+2 Top and Skirt: This pattern features a unique placket and gathering treatment on the front of the blouse, bias binding at the neckline, and a button placket at back. The simple pleated skirt features a side placket. This pattern offers opportunity to develop your construction and technique skills while working on these features. Chances are that you’ll surprise yourself with your new sewing abilities once you’ve completed the outfit.

Advanced Intermediate
When you’re ready to invest a little more time and take on a greater challenge, our three scissors patterns are ready for you. They feature full dress
making details and, consequently, require a greater time investment to complete. But the outcomes are totally achievable (thanks to our detailed instructions) for an intermediate sewer looking for a new challenge.

Birthday Party Dress: You’ll gain experience sewing pleats, and you will use using accurate stitching to create the facing. You will experience a new and unique placket construction when you sew from this pattern.

Jump Rope Dress: This pattern features a straightforward construction technique that teaches you how to sew a sophisticated front placket. You’ll also get experience with sewing a collar. The detailed pockets and more tailored sleeves of this pattern result in a very professional final garment.

School Days Jacket and Coat: This is our “no holds barred” pattern for those of you who want a real sewing workout! Using this pattern will allow you to create a fully lined jacket or coat. You can even opt to make a removable, quilted lining. You’ll get experience sewing with laminates or wool. Sewing from this pattern is more time consuming than most of our others, but it will return excellent results for the investment. You’ll be amazed that you made it yourself!

Here’s a little trick that will prevent an elastic waistband from turning and getting twisted.

Leave a little extra space in the width of the casing, and edgestitch the top edge of the waistband before you feed the elastic through. For some reason, that top row of stitching will prevent the elastic from folding over on itself when the elastic is added.

You can use this little trick in any elastic waistband, but it seems to be more of an issue in waistbands that have elastic all the way around; back-only elastic waistbands have less of a tendancy to twist and turn.

Try this little tip in the Lazy Days Skirt, the Bedtime Story Pajamas, and the Puppet Show Shorts and I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised at the results!

I spent a little time in the garment district last week visiting my favorite fabric shops for a few items I needed. And while I was there I was thinking about you!

Several blog readers have recently requested ideas for a summer wardrobe much along the lines of our fall wardrobe concept. And a few of you have been bemoaning the lack of good fabric stores near you. While our patterns are designed specifically for printed quilting cottons, that doesn’t mean you are limited to those fabrics, so here are some other fabrics you might use. Call it my fantasy summer wardrobe, if you will:

I had no particular theme or concept in mind when I started shopping. But after a few items caught my eye, I started selecting fabrics with a nautical theme–based on red, white, blue and a natural flax color. Come to think of it, that color story and theme links back directly to my inspiration boards for our new spring patterns. (I’ll show you those images soon.)

In any case, after I gathered my collection of swatches, I headed back to the studio to create my conceptual summer wardrobe. And this is what developed:

A Tea Party Sundress with cranberry red yoke and red toile printed on linen for the skirt.

Two Swingset Tunics and Skirts made of a Liberty floral, two cotton shirtings, and a dark blue chambray.
A Sailboat Top (pattern arriving very soon…) made of yarn-dyed cotton shirting, plus natural flax Sailboat Pants and a Japanese printed-canvas Sailboat Skirt.
Puppet Show Tunic in a Liberty floral combined with a polka dot printed lawn for the yoke. And two versions of the Puppet Show Shorts (a favorite style of mine), one in polka dot cotton shirting and the other from a cotton mattress ticking.
Bubble Dress in navy and white Liberty floral.
And the same Liberty floral used for the Puppet Show Tunic is used as the bow for the Birthday Party Dress (pattern also arriving very soon), combined with a bold navy and white polka dotted canvas for the body of the dress.

In all my planning, I completely forgot to include the 2+2 Blouse and Skirt, which would also be great for summer. The pattern includes a really cute short sleeve option. I’ll be making it for S this summer, even if it’s not part of our fantasy wardrobe shown here.

I’d love to actually sew all these garments so we could play with the many outfits that might be created by mixing and matching the separates. For example, wouldn’t the Puppet Show Shorts look great with the Swingset Tunic? Or the Sailboat Pants or Skirt with the Puppet Show Tunic?

In any case, if you’ve fallen in love with any of these fabrics, you can purchase them from the shops where I got them with just a phone call. The following list will give you purchasing details for each of the fabrics. Match the numbered list below with the swatches at the beginning of the post and contact the shops directly if you want to order. B&J; Fabrics, the source of most of the swatches, has amazing customer service and will happily ship you anything from the list as long as the fabric is still in stock.

Please drop me a line or leave a comment to tell me if you order something from this list. If I know you’ve made use of the swatches, we can continue to do special posts and collections like this in the future. Have fun!

1. Liberty Tana lawn, $42.95/yd, 54″ wide, B&J; Fabrics reference 1502
2. Liberty Tana lawn, $42.95/yd, 54″ wide, B&J; Fabrics reference 1503
3. Polka dot printed canvas, $18.95/yd, 58″ wide, B&J; Fabrics reference 100827
4. Navy ticking stripe, $7.50/yd, 54″ wide, purchase online
5. Linen toile, $26.95/yd, 54″ wide, B&J; Fabrics reference 100828
6. Yarn-dye cotton shirting, $12.95/yd, 45″ wide, B&J; Fabrics (sorry I forgot to get a reference number for this one)
7. Japanese printed cotton, $26.95/yd, 44″ wide, B&J; Fabrics reference 1501
8. Polka dot cotton shirting, $12.95/yd, 45″ wide, B&J; Fabrics reference 100829
9. Windowpane cotton shirting, $12.95/yd, 45″ wide, B&J; Fabrics reference 100831
10. Polka dot cotton shirting, $12.95/yd, 45″ wide, B&J; Fabrics reference 100830
11. Natural linen, $8.25/yd, Gray Line Fabrics Warsa linen
12. Liberty Tana lawn, $42.95/yd, 54″ wide, B&J; Fabrics reference 1504
13. Polka dot lawn, $15.95/yd, 52″ wide, B&J; Fabrics reference 1505

Let’s talk about the economics of sewing, shall we?

When I was growing up, my Mom sewed to save money. With five girls, and five parochial-school tuitions to be paid on a professor’s salary, there wasn’t much left over for clothing. Mom made all our school and church dresses, which was great for me since I’m the oldest. My younger sisters probably weren’t so thrilled with my hand-me-downs, but we’ll have to ask them about that another day.

Anyway, waaaay back then (it wasn’t all that long ago, I swear), sewing was a great way to save money. Manufactured clothing was expensive, and it was rare that we found something in a store that cost less to purchase than to sew.

These days, due to globalization and the offshoring of fabric manufacturing and garment production, clothing is amazingly inexpensive. You can purchase cute dresses at Target and Old Navy for next to nothing–often for less than what it would cost you to purchase the materials to make a similar garment yourself.

So why do we still sew clothing? And why bother making clothing when you can purchase it for much less? Here’s what I think. And I would love to hear your opinions on this, as well:

1. The pleasure of the process. Personally, I love to make things. I love to sew, and I get great satisfaction from making something with my hands. It’s more than a hobby for me; sewing helps me to calm down, relax, and feel a sense of accomplishment.

2. Creative options. I love to make something that is unlike anything anyone else has. I think the word “unique” is over-used these days. But when you make something by hand and select the pattern, fabric, and trims that are used, it truly is unique. There’s a lot to be said for that, especially in this day of mass-produced products.

3. The inhumanity of the global supply chain. Let’s be honest. If you purchase a dress for $10 at a big retail store, someone somewhere was paid very, very little to make that dress and may have produced it in suboptimal working conditions. This is a dirty secret in the garment industry that the more reputable brands try to address. I’ve worked for companies that employed full-time overseas managers whose sole job was to be a presence in the factories of their suppliers–ensuring humane working conditions for the vendor’s employees. While I applaud these efforts, I still believe that in instances where prices have been pushed so low someone is being treated unjustly. It may be the factory owner who was pressured to reduce prices to a level at which there is no margin profit in order to stay in business, or it might be the line worker. Pricing has become so sensitive and competitive that the big retailers aren’t always playing fair with their suppliers. This is a complicated issue and deserves more consideration than I can give in this venue, but let’s just say that I get a little concerned when I see clothing sold for such low prices. When I sew a garment for my daughter to wear, I know that no one was treated unjustly in the creation of her dress. Unless I poked my finger with a pin or something. Or hollered at the cat when she jumped onto my sewing table while the machine was running….

Those are just three of the reasons why I sew. What about you? I’d love to hear what your motivations are.

(continued from part 1)

There are usually several stages in the development of sizes for an Oliver + S pattern. I always draft the first pattern in a 12-18 month size and fit that garment, or several consecutive garments, to one or two children who wear that size and match our target measurements. Once I’m happy with the fit, we develop a size 3 pattern. Since all our dress forms are a size 3, this is the size we show at trade shows and in trunk shows.

While these two sizes are being tested and fit, I’m writing the sewing instructions and checking to be sure all the notches and details are in place on the patterns. Then once we’ve checked the fit of the size 3 and are happy with both sample sizes, the grading begins.

Most size grading these days is done on a computer using specialized, expensive programs that are specific to pattern making and the industry. Smaller companies (like us) can’t afford the hardware and software to do our own size grading, so we hire other companies to do the grading for us using our grade rules. Size grading itself takes very little time, but the development, testing and fittings that happen around the grading are labor-intensive, time-consuming, and expensive. I want to be sure that the sizes are accurate and fit well, so we test many sizes before a pattern is approved.

Once patterns are graded and we’re satisfied with the fit and details of the pattern, we start formatting the graded sizes for printing. Everything needs to look nice on the pattern page, and the sizes need to be “nested,” or fit inside each other so they’re each legible without taking up too much space on the patter page. After all, the heavier tissue paper needs to fit into the envelopes once they’re printed!

Sometimes the pattern pieces can’t be nested, in which case we lay them each out independent of each other on the tissue paper so they won’t interfere with each other when a size is selected and cut. We also format the lines of the various sizes so they can be distinguished from each other. One dotted line indicates a size 3, and another dotted and dashed line indicates a size 4, etc.

Sound like fun? It’s certainly the most technically challenging part of my job (aside, perhaps, from writing detailed sewing instructions that can be easily followed, which is a fairly challenging task as well), but it’s also the part that I think is the most important. What’s the fun of sewing a pattern if it doesn’t fit?

I’m always interested to hear from you about the fit of our patterns. If you follow our measurement chart and have comments or suggestions about the fit of the resulting garment, I encourage you to contact me (liesl@oliverands.com). I think we can always improve our patterns and would love to hear your ideas and experiences with them. And of course I always love to see photos of the clothing, as well. Don’t forget that Flickr group, where you can share your creations with other appreciative seamstresses. I can’t wait to see what you make!

Have you ever wondered how clothing gets made in different sizes? It’s a rather technical process, and I thought it might be interesting to explain some of the steps to you.

Clothing and sewing patterns always start out from one size, which is called the sample size. For children’s clothing, there are often more than one sample size due to changing proportions, diapers vs. underpants, and various rates of growth from one age to another. One sample size simply wouldn’t cover the multitude of changes from one size to another and may result in a poor fit somewhere down the line.

Surprisingly, it’s more difficult to develop sizes for children’s clothing than for adults, which you probably wouldn’t expect since kids’ clothing is generally looser fitting and the silhouette isn’t as specific as it is for adults. But because of the many variables of children’s growth and development, many patternmakers and technical designers steer clear of children’s clothing. It’s considered a more challenging and demanding job than other patternmaking work.

Pattern grading uses a set of mathematical formulas to grow a pattern piece by a specific amount. This is how the various sizes of a pattern or design are developed. Every company has its own set of grade rules, and these are usually guarded closely as a trade secret because they take a lot of time and effort to develop. Once a company has an established set of grade rules, they don’t want to be knocked off by other companies.

Grade rules can also vary from company to company depending on the target customer. For example, a company that makes clothing for young women versus another company who produces a line for a more mature figure will use different measurements for their sizes and, as a result, different grade rules. Some companies prefer a closer-fitting garment, and other companies design clothing drape more loosely on the body. All of these factors come into play in size grading.

Back when I was working for another designer, I often conducted fittings for the activewear line of my employer. Our fit model was a muscular, athletic man who was built like V, with wide shoulders and slim hips. Unfortunately, not all that designer’s customers were built with the same physique, and the bike jersey I fitted on our model looked quite different when worn by my adorable husband; the slim, snug fit looked rather baggy in the shoulders and tight in the waist when worn by a more, shall we say, “average” man?

Developing a larger size from the sample size isn’t simply a matter of enlarging the pattern piece like you would on a photocopy machine. For example, a collar might grow longer to fit around a wider neck on a bigger size, but the height of the collar will probably stay the same or grow only a little bit taller. For this reason, it really does pay, in the end, to sew the correct size of a pattern. Occasionally I hear or read that someone simply eliminated the seam allowances to make a pattern smaller. This always makes me cringe because I know that the pattern pieces probably didn’t fit together properly, and the final garment most likely fits and looks entirely differently than what was intended. Plus, the frustration level on the part of the person sewing the pattern was likely very high when notches didn’t match up, sleeves didn’t fit into armholes, and so on.

(part 2 can be found here)

I hope you enjoyed the holidays are are excited about the new year. We certainly enjoyed a little break over here, and I’ve been busy finishing up some personal projects that have been languishing. Now I’m ready to go with some new ideas for the new year.

What are your crafting plans for 2009?

Here is a project you might want to consider. We’ve just received yet another reprint of the A Day in the Park convertible backpack tote pattern. This was the very first pattern we produced, and it’s become a favorite of our customers. Many of you have called and written to tell us that you liked it so much you’ve made them as gifts for friends and family as well. I like it because I can carry the essentials to the playground, grocery store, or wherever I’m going and still have my hands free. We even use one at S’s preschool for the first aid kit when we take the children to the playground and on field trips.

This is a pattern that was written for a second-level sewing class, so you can make it even if you don’t have a lot of experience. It does involve several layers of fabric, and I recommend using a walking foot to prevent the layers from shifting while you’re sewing. The pattern offers lots of room for creative embellishment, like this little house fabric-covered button we added to ours.

Visit the Flickr group for this bag if you’d like to how other people have made and embellished it. And have fun!