Hi everyone, welcome to my stop on the Simple Life Pattern Company and Sew Caroline blog tour. Before I begin, I just want to mention that although I received both patterns for free, all opinions are still my own. The women's version of both of these patterns are available through Sew Caroline. The girls' versions are available through Simple Life Pattern Company. I only sewed up the girls patterns, and so this post is limited to those two.
Let's begin with the Magnolia Shorts, shall we? They are a flowy short (skort?), that works well with any lightweight fabric with good drape, woven or knit. The instructions are fairly straightforward and well illustrated.
I had this strawberry/daisy print cotton that I'd been hording for summer shorts for awhile and I was excited to finally use it, now that one of my kids finally actually needed some summer clothes. It doesn't have quite enough drape, but I''m still really happy with the result. I made the size six, according to her measurements, and they fit really well. I do find them a bit short, but that's because my little miss is 8, and has really long legs. I'll probably lengthen the next pair I make for her.
There are a lot of pluses to this pattern. They are easy to construct, easy to fit, can be made with either an elastic, or knit waistband (regardless of what fabric the rest is constructed from), and can be made from a wide variety of fabrics. As for minuses, it only has one minor one. I did find that the back center seam isn't trued, which cause a small peak in the center back of the waist. That is easily fixed by either trimming the back, or allowing the serger (if you're using one) to trim it off.
Overall, I think it's good beginner's pattern. My younger daughter is already asking for several pairs, and has been rummaging my stash trying to claim all the pretty fabrics.
Next we have the Waterfall Tank. I really like this one. This one is also very versatile and can be made in any lightweight fabric with good drape, woven or knit. HOWEVER, this bias tape must be woven in order to provide the stability that this pattern needs.
I chose to make it in a simple black cotton, because it was lightweight, and breezy for those warm summer days. I guess black is a little counteractive, but what can I say, I like black. (Plus it goes with the shorts really well.) I made my own bias tape out of the strawberry/daisy cotton so that the top would coordinate with the shorts. Also it added a bit of color. I made a size 6, but made the mistake of adding 3 inches of length. My kiddo is fairly tall, and she wasn't home to measure the pattern against her, so I thought I might need the extra length. While the length will be really cute with leggings, fitted shorts, or jeans, it's a bit long for these shorts, so I folded the top up a bit for the photos. I could've hemmed, but I kind of like the almost tunic length.
Back view
The Waterfall Tank has a lot of pluses. It is easy to construct, has instructions on how to make your own bias tape, and is versatile in terms of fabrics. Also the flounce is a great way to use all those pretty scraps that we hoard. (I'm not the only one, right?) This one also has one small minus. When making your own bias tape, it is rather confusing trying to figure out how much to make. I made the fixed strap version (versus the tie strap) and I found that using a piece of yarn or string to measure the distance around the top worked well to find an estimate for the piece that you need for the armholes and back. It does give you the measurement of the second piece of bias tape that you need for the fixed straps and neckline, but if you're doing the tie straps you're better off making a generous amount so as to make sure you don't come up short. I recommend this pattern, and will definitely be making more of these. I'm already imagining a white cotton and eyelet combo, or light chambray, or double gauze... I might need to go fabric shopping.
Thanks for stopping in, and be sure to check out these patterns at Simple Life Pattern Company.
Check out the other stops here!
May 15
May 16
May 17
May 18
Rebel & Malice
Rebel & Malice
May 19
That's-Sew-Kari
That's-Sew-Kari
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