The Victory Patterns Blog

Today is day one of construction in the Jackie sewalong! It's time to put all of your sewing practice from last week's post to work. For today we will be applying interfacing and preparing the back facing for construction. We will be creating our button loops, which involved turning out a tiny tube of fabric right side out. You'll learn tips on how this is done, and how to apply beautiful rouleau button loops to your facing.

Sewing with knits can be daunting; the fabric moves very differently from woven fabric and the small seam allowances means that you have to be really tuned in when sewing. However, with a little practice, you'll soon find that knits aren't as challenging as you once thought. The serger machine makes projects fast, but if you don't have a serger, don't let that stop you; a sewing machine can also be used to create your knit project.

Welcome to day 2 of the Jacke Sewalong. We've got a really juicy post for you! Today we will be selecting our size, determining if adjustments are needed and tracing the pattern. We'll guide you through three basic fit tutorials: full and small bust adjustments, grading between sizes and length adjustments for the Jackie pattern.

Welcome to day 1 of the Jackie sewalong! I'm so excited to have you join in on this project. I hope that you learn a lot from this series and I can't wait to see your dresses at the end of the month. It's time to gather your fabric and supplies for the Jackie Sewalong. We'll be starting to cut out the dress next week, so you'll have some time to pick out your fabric.

I'm really excited to introduce our newest pattern, Jackie! This style is named after my beautiful mama, who has always been a muse and a source of creative inspiration for me. Of the countless amazing things about her, one thing I've always loved is the pride she takes in the simple act of getting dressed. She manages to be stylish, no matter if it's just to pop out to the grocery. 

For a long time now, I’ve been in a bit of trouble with my sister. She’s given me big lectures about having not named a pattern after her as yet. After all, I’ve named Nicola and Hannah after her two best friends, but not one after her. What kind of sister am I ?!? Well, to tell you the truth, it’s kind of like naming a baby. The pattern has to feel like the person that it’s named after. Then along came this little number.

When it comes time to finish the inside edges of a garment, such as the inner edge of a waistband, cuff, collar, binding, etc, you can choose to secure the edge with a hand stitch or a machine stitch technique known as stitching in the ditch. This tidy stitch is fast compared to a hand sewn slip stitch and can save you a good bit of time.

If you had any idea how long this pattern has been in the works, you’d be very happy for me today! This pattern has been on a bit of a journey with me and has taught me a LOT! In the early days of her conception, this poor girl, along with my computer, was hijacked by a car washer named Dan, she’s been re-drafted, re-written and made into more muslin’s than I’d care to say. She’s waited patiently while I tended to write a book, she’s trekked to Australia and back, twice. After all of this, I’ve wanted to give up on her a few times, but I just couldn’t because, well, I’m stubborn and I just really love her! She’s taught me patience, perfectionism and the importance of simplicity.

I opened my inbox to dreamy email back in 2013 from an acquisitions editor at a publishing company asking if I would be interested in writing a book on sewing techniques and sewing patterns. My immediate reaction was “YESYESYES!” since it was a lofty dream I’d had. After calming down, I told myself I would only do it if I could think of something unique and useful to readers. Then I remembered this idea for a project I had in mind and wanted to explore for some time; I thought it might be just the right thing for this book. 

It’s REAL!!! It’s really real! Boundless Style is in my hands and I’m so excited that after almost two years in the making, this book is out in the world! I know some of you have received your copy and hearing your feedback is making all the hard work feel so worth it! If you haven’t grabbed a copy as yet, it’s in the shop. Check it out!

I wanted to share something exciting with you! As you may know, Boundless Style is almost out. Just a few more weeks to go! But I wanted to give you a bit of a sneak peek into what this book is all about so you can get your imagination going and plan some fun projects for the Fall. So, let me tell you! Boundless Style is a mix and match pattern book that gives you five bodice, five skirt and five sleeve patterns that you can combine any way you like to create your own design.