.MIP Pattern Parade: THE JANELLE WIND COLLECTION.

Welcome to Pattern Parade catwalk Janelle from The Janelle Wind Collection! Janelle is a fellow Aussie pattern designer with a big heart who loves all things vintage, thrifting, sewing and her beautiful family (not in that order!) Each Wednesday on her blog, Janelle shares a fashion post often featuring thrifted clothing and accessories. I'm excited today for this post to coincide with her appearance on the Pattern Parade!

Isn't she a stunner?! Janelle has such a gorgeous, unique style. I love her Poppy Tunic and entire outfit and could find myself quite comfortably wearing it every day. Make sure you visit The Janelle Wind Collection for more photos of this beautiful outfit.

The Make It Perfect Pattern Parade Virtual Catwalk introduces...

A Happy Stitch // A Lemon Squeezy Home // Behind the Hedgerow

Craftiness is not Optional // Craftstorming // Cut Cut Sew

DoGuincho // Film in the Fridge // Girl Like the Sea

Horris & Deedle // Glitter + Wit // Imagine Gnats

Janelle Wind // Made with Moxie // Miss Matatabi

No Big Dill // Noodlehead // Probably Actually

Sanae Ishida // Sew Charleston // Sewing in No Man's Land

Skirt as Top // Stitched Together // The Drapery 

Things for Boys // Zaaberry

.MIP Pattern Parade: CRAFTSTORMING.

Well, my dear audience members of the Pattern Parade...we are half-way through the month! Hope you've enjoyed meeting some new bloggers, picking up some inspiration and seeing all of the wonderful creations as much as I have!

Joining us on the catwalk today is Laura from Craftstorming. Laura lives in the UK and is an avid sewer and baker - you will find lots of great sewing creations and tutorials on her blog, as well as mouth watering sweet treat baking. Laura has also designed a couple of great sewing patterns for children that she sells under her Titchy Threads label.

Check out the beautiful Poppy Tunic Laura is sharing in the Pattern Parade - this is still one of my absolute favourite patterns...makes me want to sew another! And she added pockets too, which I always wish I had done after I finish!!! See more and win a PDF pattern over at Craftstorming.

The Make It Perfect Pattern Parade Virtual Catwalk introduces...

A Happy Stitch // A Lemon Squeezy Home // Behind the Hedgerow

Craftiness is not Optional // Craftstorming // Cut Cut Sew

DoGuincho // Film in the Fridge // Girl Like the Sea

Horris & Deedle // Glitter + Wit // Imagine Gnats

Janelle Wind // Made with Moxie // Miss Matatabi

No Big Dill // Noodlehead // Probably Actually

Sanae Ishida // Sew Charleston // Sewing in No Man's Land

Skirt as Top // Stitched Together // The Drapery 

Things for Boys // Zaaberry

.A Poppy Tunic in Nani IRO.

It's no secret that I love Nani IRO fabrics. Naomi Ito, the designer behind Nani IRO is my favourite textile designer by far. I love her style, especially for clothing sewing. Everything she produces is a careful mix of pretty and playfulness and her fabrics are one of the most luxurious textiles that I have sewn with.

My favourite place to purchase Nani IRO fabrics is from Miss Matatabi. Miss Matatabi has declared the month of June "Nani IRO Month" and has invited some of her friends to help celebrate! I didn't need much encouragement at all to join in, another excuse to sew with Nani IRO fabrics...I'm in without hesitation!

 

I've got a looooong list of "things to sew" (mostly made up of things to sew for myself!) and a new Poppy Tunic was at the top of the list. Poppy Tunics are one of my favourite items of clothing for layering, and I especially love wearing them when it's cold over a pair of skinny jeans or leggings with my boots. So, I thought I would kill two birds with one stone and sew a Poppy Tunic from Nani IRO fabric.

I had in my mind that I wanted to sew my Poppy Tunic from one single fabric, usually I make them with a contrasting chest piece and hem but have been wanting to try one out with no contrast fabrics for awhile now. I also had in my mind that I wanted my Poppy Tunic to be a dark colour, which narrowed my fabric choices right down and actually made it easier to decide on which fabric I wanted to use. The fabric that I decided on is Shine Many Ways B. It is completely different from fabric I would usually select, but now that I've sewn with it I love it. So wearable and a lovely, earthy colour palette with enough detail to stop it from being boring. If you look really closely in some of the photos, you might be able to see that the bronze colours in the fabric are actually metallic - so cool!

This fabric is a cotton sateen...I usually pick the double gauze when I purchase Nani IRO fabrics and I haven't sewn with cotton sateen before. I wasn't sure how it would go but it is AMAZING! Absolutely perfect for sewing clothing with. It has a heavenly feel and drape - kind of reminds me of that soft, buttery feeling of voile but has a bit more substance to it and isn't as sheer.

Most Nani IRO fabrics are a double gauze, which I've sewn with lots but there are other substrates to choose from as well - such as this cotton sateen, brushed cotton, cotton canvas and even knits! I've got a big pile of Nani IRO fabrics in my stash, I will take a pic and share them and my previous Nani IRO projects with you later on in the month.

I know that I will get so much wear out of this Poppy Tunic. The only thing I wish I had added to this one is pockets in the side seams because I keep looking for somewhere to hide my hands! They will be easy enough to add in if I ever get around to it anyway.

Make sure you keep in contact with Miss Matatabi for the rest of this month as she shares more of her friend's Nani IRO creations (see the list below for participants). And if you make (or have made) anything from Nani IRO - or even if you just want to share a photo of your stash, then hash-tag "ilovenaniiro" to share it with us all on social media! Thanks for having me Frances, love your store and grateful for your friendship and for doing cool things like hosting Nani IRO month!

Straightgrain ∆ you & mie ∆ Lizzy House

A Little Goodness ∆ Make It Perfect ∆ skirt as top

imagine gnats ∆ Petit à Petit and family ∆ Saké Puppets

Sanae Ishida ∆ verykerryberry ∆ Craftstorming

Cirque du Bebe ∆ Groovybaby And Mama ∆ Miss Matatabi

SUPPLIES:
Make It Perfect, Poppy Tunic pattern (avaliable as part of the Perfect Pattern Parcel #3 until Friday!)
Nani IRO by Naomi Ito, Shine Many Ways B cotton sateen

.Poppy Tunic for maternity wear.

When I designed my Poppy Tunic pattern I wasn't intending it for maternity wear. The tunic is quite slim-fitting and I couldn't imagine it accommodating a big belly. During the week, I was sifting through my Make It Perfect samples and came across some Poppy Tunics I sewed for the cover photo shoot. These tunics are a size bigger than I would usually sew for myself when I'm not pregnant so I thought I'd try them on and see how they fit me now.

Turns out, if you sew a Poppy Tunic a size bigger than you usually wear, the fit is great for maternity-wear! I like to pop them on with a belt, and they have been extremely comfortable and cool to wear this week. The shorter, top length will be great for post-baby too when I want to hid the excess baby fat and find it easier to feed in a loser fitting top.

 So if you're expecting, or plan to have a baby in the near future and are wanting to sew yourself up some comfy clothes to wear, give the Poppy Tunic a try! And keep an eye out here for a brand new "maternity-friendly" pattern coming up in the next few weeks...fun, I'm loving it!

 

SUPPLIES:

Make It Perfect, Poppy Tunic pattern

Kaffe Fassett, Shot Cotton in Eucalyptus

Amy Butler, Lark, Heirloom in Jade

Kaffe Fassett, Shot Cotton in Lichen

Lotta Jansdotter, Echo, Moira in Deep Indigo

.Kelani's Poppy Tunics.

Yup!  Two more Poppy Tunics!  Not for me this time...these ones have been sent to Kelani Fabric as samples and for Elissa to wear at the Sydney Craft & Quilt Fair.

It's always fun to work with someone else's fabric choices.  The blue tones are just delightful and would be really easy to wear.

I was really excited to cut into this Scandanavian fabric, Spira.  The fabric is a little more pricey than usual, but is of superior quality and beautiful to work with. 

They were very hard to send away, but I know Elissa will have fun with them!  If you want to see these tunics up close and personal, be sure to visit Kelani Fabric at stand G40 at the Sydney Craft & Quilt Fair from the 13th-17th June!

SUPPLIES:
Make It Perfect, Poppy Tunic patternTexan Light Weight DenimJapanese fabric: Doily Spot in Blue 
Indy Mid Blue 6GSM Light Weight Denim
Spira, Dagmar in Blue

.Poppy Tunic obsession.

I'll admit it.  I've fallen behind on all of my work because I am obsessed with two things.  Knitting and Poppy Tunics!

I sewed a few tunics for Kelani Fabric to take to the Craft & Quilt Fair in Sydney next month and thought I'd make another one for myself while I was at it (you know how much I love a good production line!)

I loved the Lotta Jansdotter fabric used for the front cover picture of the pattern so went with the same print but in a different colour this time.

And it's been worn and washed many times already.  These tunics really are so comfortable to wear.  I'm still trying to decide on the right Liberty of London print for a full-print version...so hard to choose, especially when the fabric is so pricey, I don't want to make a bad choice!!

I'm slowly starting to see your Poppy Tunics appear around the blog world - if you've made one please send me a link or photo, I'd love to see!  This one is super cute - and made using a knit fabric too (thanks Jane!)

SUPPLIES:
Make It Perfect, Poppy Tunic pattern
Indy Mid Blue 6GSM Light Weight Denim
Lotta Jansdotter, Echo, Scattered Blooms in Agave

.A Poppy Parade - Day 3.

And the last Poppy Tunic in the parade is for moi!  Well, it's the last for a few weeks anyway, I'll definitely be sewing up MORE!  I've been wearing this one to death.  It is by far the most comfortable, go-anywhere outfit I own at the moment.  

I'm really looking forward to seeing some customer creations using this pattern.  Remember you can always upload them into my Flickr group or send me an email of your finished product - it's always so inspiring to see what you've sewn!

SUPPLIES:
Make It Perfect, Poppy Tunic pattern
Texan Light Weight Denim
Denyse Schmidt, Flea Market Fancy, Posie in Grey

.A Poppy Parade - Day 2.

Day two of the Poppy Tunic parade is one that I made for my other sister, Carli.  I wanted to show you the tunic with a cardigan (because I am cardi-obsessed) + boots.  Cute, huh?

We used a different denim for this one - once again from Kelani Fabric, but a little more light-weight that yesterdays.  And darker blue.  I love denim.  It is such a versatile medium - coordinates with any other fabric and gives a lovely base for the tunic.

I don't think I mentioned yesterday that I've added 3" in length to these tunics aswell, so bear that in mind if you are looking at these as a guide for the finished tunic length.  The pattern cover is the true length of the pattern.  Adding length is super easy though, I kept the width of the original hem the same, dropped it down 3" and then drew a new line from the underarm point to the edge of the hem line.  (That way you don't have to change the length you cut your contrasting strip and the tunic doesn't get too much of a triangular shape to it.)

SUPPLIES:
Make It Perfect, Poppy Tunic pattern
Texan Light Weight Denim
Sarah Watts, Feather N Stitch, Nest in Red

.A Poppy Parade - Day 1.

I considered sharing my latest three Poppy Tunics in one blog post, but was finding it hard to condense the number of photos I was using, so instead...let's have a Poppy Parade for the next three days!

This first Poppy Tunic is a birthday present for my little sister, Filipa who turns 28 today.  Happy Birthday Filly!!! She is pretty pregnant at the moment, so I'm not sure if she will be able to squeeze it on but I'm sure it will be good and comfy to wear post-baby!

I loved this fabric-combo so much and was seriously considering holding onto it for myself!  The denim is brilliant to work with and easy to wear.  I've had this Anna-Maria Horner fabric in my stash for aaaages and always thought I didn't like it, but I'm loving it in this tunic!

I'm seriously addicted to this pattern.  I love making the tunics and have been wearing mine to death and am just about to choose some more fabric for my next one!  It is so much more comfortable to wear than jeans on a cold day! 

 

 

SUPPLIES:
Make It Perfect, Poppy Tunic pattern
Indy Mid Blue 6GSM Light Weight Denim
Anna Maria Horner, Innocent Crush, Shattered in Circus