Sew Essential Blog

Hand sewn button loops and rouleau loops are such a pretty way to fasten a garment, particularly when a feminine finish is required or when working with delicate fabrics. They are ideal for the pretty summer garments we are all working on right now and are relatively easy to master so I wanted to share the love! Here is a little step by step guide on how to create them.

As promised here is the next instalment of our fabulous spring/summer fabric range. This week the John Kaldor range will have you weak at the knees!

This week I'm thrilled to bring you my contribution to the McCalls Cocktail Hour blogger tour. If you haven't already heard the McCalls pattern company have selected 20 gorgeous Vogue cocktail dress patterns for the initiative (see the list at the bottom of this post). Over the next seven months a contribution from the sale of each and every one of the designated patterns will be donated to the Eve Appeal, a charity that raises funds to fight the five women's only cancers.

To promote the initiative 26 bloggers have been selected to take part in a tour and make their favourite pattern. There is also a yummy cocktail recipe and you can share your makes and join in the fun using the hashtag #sipandsew. So grab a cuppa cocktail and have a read about my most exquisite and challenging make to date!

Our hotly awaited, glorious selection of new spring summer fabrics are now up on the site. We've had one day of balmy temperatures and it had me in a tizz! There's nothing worse than warmer weather finally arriving and then feeling like you have nothing to wear.

My spring summer handmade wardrobe is currently on hold whilst I'm beavering away on my McCalls cocktail hour dress, but that hasn't stopped my mind racing with ideas of things I would like to make. So here's some of the key catwalk trends for the current season with suggestions for the patterns and fabrics you could use to make them. Come on sunshine, we're ready for you!

Feast your eyes on our fabulous range of new dressmaking fabrics perfect for the new season. Get an idea of the drape, get inspiration for what to make and get ready to drool - they are beauties!

Ruffles are one of the key trends this season adding a hint of feminine detail to any garment. Here are our top tips for sewing them, using a gathering foot, attaching them to a garment and some of our favourite ruffle riddled sewing patterns. Whether you want to customise an existing garment or create something new ruffles will up the prettiness stakes and bring it bang up to date.

Put simply choosing the right dressmaking fabric can make or break your sewing project. A number of customers have told us they struggle with this aspect of dressmaking so we've written this guide to help you along the way. Fabric shopping should be nothing but a purely joyful experience after all! Plus we want you to reap the rewards of the time and money you invest in every project.

I recently shared my #makenine list over on the vlog featuring this vintage pencil skirt pattern and cami top pattern. I had some John Kaldor Ohio stretch cotton fabric in my stash perfect for the skirt and decided to make the cami top in our Mystique satin backed crepe. Worn together they make the perfect outfit for summer evenings out.

It's time for the next Sew Essential vlog instalment and I thought it would be nice to share a video of me sewing one of my recent makes and one of my #makenine - a lovely simple 90s Simplicty 1366 cami top.

In this blog post we'll show you how to get super professional results when piping seams and customising a garment with machine embroidery. Piping is a beautiful way to finish the seams of a garment adding an interesting extra bit of detail to really give it the wow factor. Combine piped seams with embroidery you've chosen to customise that garment perfectly and you have a truly original design in exactly the right colours to match your accessories. This is how the idea for this unique dress made by our very own Angela (co founder of Sew Essential) came to life. You see Angela has a bit of a shoe obsession and just couldn't resist these gorgeous green LK Bennett shoes, but had nothing to wear with them so she did what any respectable seamstress would do and made something.