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A new month, a new sew-a-long!  Ladies, I have NEVER seen a SAL vote this close before.  It was neck and neck and seriously came down to the wire!!  It was a nail bitter for sure, and in the end, {PEARL} was our winner!  All the Pearl fans in VFT land were rejoicing, and I know this because you all were tagging me and messaging me about how excited you were!  Haha  

It's Day 1, and if you've followed one of our SAL's before, you know it FABRIC DAY!!!  I have said it before and I will say it again, it's the BEST DAY EVER!  Why??  Because it's the day we get to shop, and what sewist doesn't love fabric shopping?!?!

I shopped my stash this time around.  I found the PERFECT fabric Michael Miller Fabrics sent to me!!  Sandra Clemons Front Yard line is beyond adorable and screams springtime!!  The bunnies are to.die.for and I adore the colors!!  I knew it would make the perfect Pearl!!

While you are petting all that gorgeous fabric you have (come on, you know you do it!) brainstorm what options you are wanting to sew.  Pearl has a plethora of ways it can be made, so start thinking about which version would work for you!

If you haven't already purchased the pattern, pick up your copy here.  Gather all your supplies and snap a photo!  Make sure you upload your photo into the DAY 1 album!  If you aren't a member of our Sew-a-Long group yet, what are you waiting for?!?!?!  Come join us so you don't miss out on any of the fun!

And because we all love prizes, follow along each day and enter one photo per day into the specified albums for your chance to win a VFT prize pack featuring a Hawthorne Threads Gift Card and 5 VFT patterns!!!  WOO HOO!!!  See you all back here tomorrow!!

It's the last day friends.  Today we are finishing up our Claras.  Who's excited to see the finished product?  I know I am!  Let's get started!!!

Yesterday we ended with prepping our skirts for the placket.  Take your fabric you cut for your placket and place it right side of placket to wrong side of skirt.  Pin this and sew using a very small 1/8in SA.  Do not worry if you see a small pleat/gather in the middle.  It will not be seen once we are done!

Iron the SA up towards the placket.  Iron the top edge of the packet down 1in, and then again 1 1/8in.  This will cover the SA.  Sew along the edge to secure.

Now the skirt back in encased!!  YAY!!  Now we can to turn the placket inside the skirt.  Looking at the skirt, the left side of the placket will fold back into the skirt, while the right side will extend past the skirt.

Trim off the top of the placket so it is flush with the skirt pieces.  Now we need to run our gathering stitches.  I like to do top along the top.  I feel like I get more even gathers and they lay nicer with two rows.  You can do 1 or 2, whichever you prefer.  Remember to NOT include the placket in your gathering stitches!

Once you've gathered your skirt the width of your bodice, place your bodice and skirt RST and pin, matching up your side seams.  Sew using a 1/2in SA and finish the seam with whatever method you prefer!

We are almost done!  Iron the seam up towards the bodice, and if you like, topstitch!  Once more step and we are DONE!

It's time to add your buttonholes.  I used to be terrified of buttonholes.  On my newer machine it is much easier do I don't dread it!  A few tips, make sure your first button is 1/4-1/2in from the top of the bodice and do not sew too close to the SA at the bottom.  This is where I run in to trouble sometimes and then my machine messes up!  Evenly space out your buttons.  I like to use pins at the bottom of each button so I know where to put my buttonhole foot when sewing.  Sew your buttonholes!  Open up the buttonholes using small shears or your seam ripper.  Don't forget to sew on your buttons on the opposite side!

And that's it friends!  You have officially finished your Clara!  One of my most favorite patterns ever, and hopefully now one of yours too!  I love it because it is quick, easy, and an be used for all occasions!  Make sure to add your final photo into the Day 5 album!

If you haven't finished, don't worry, you still have time to catch up!  You have until Monday at noon to get a photo in each daily album!  Monday afternoon I will be picking a winner for our AWESOME VFT prize pack and Hawthorne Threads Gift Certificate!  If you need to catch up, here is Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, and Day 4.  Thanks for sewing along with me!!

Good Morning sweet ladies.  It's Thursday!  We are almost done with our Sew-a-long!!  I can't believe it.  One of my favorite things about the SAL is how manageable each pattern seems when you break it down into these small daily steps!  It becomes so easy and do-able with all of our crazy lives!  Ok, enough chit-chat, let's get to work on Day 4!

Yesterday we talked about adding in sleeves to our bodices, and some of you may have already done that!  Go You!!!!  Some of you might have waited until today!  I want to talk to you all about sewing a sleeve in the round!

I do this often, sometimes on purpose and sometimes because I decide all too late that my garment needs sleeves!  I talked about this during our last Clara SAL.  You can find that here, so I am going to just do a quick overview of how to add your sleeve in after you've sewn your bodice sides closed.  And pardon my mismatching photos, these are from the blog post linked above!

Take whichever sleeve you'e chosen and fold it in half, right sides touching.  Sew down the side with a 1/2in SA, trim and finish the edge.  Do this for both sleeve pieces.  you should now have what looks like a sleeve.  Run a gathering stitch along the top of your sleeve, leaving 2in on each side of the seam ungathered.

Take your sleeve and place it inside the armhole.  This can seem tricky but I promise it works.  You want the right side of the sleeve touching the right side of the bodice.  Make sure to match your side seam and your sleeve seam.  Start pinning your sleeve to the bodice,and pull your gathering stitches to make your sleeve fit.  Sew your sleeve with a 1/2in SA, trim the seam and finish it with a zig-zag or serged edge.  Do this same thing for the other sleeve.  Yay!  You've now added in your sleeves in the round!!!!

Now let's get started on our skirts.  Grab both skirt pieces and place them right sides together.  Sew along the short ends.

Trim off 1/2 of the SA and finish the edges.  I am using my zig zag stitch today because I am too lazy to rethread my serger after little hands got to it the other day. {Real like folks}

Now let's hem.  Iron up 1/4in and another 1/4in.  Take over to your machine and sew.  Now let's do one more quick thing before we are done!

Match your skirt side seams and place a pin in the middle back of your skirt.  Open it up and measure down 3.5in and place a pin.  Cut down the back of your skirt to the pin.  This is the start of your skirt placket!

And that's it for today friends!  If you need to catch up, take a look at Day 1, Day 2, and Day 3.  Don't forget to add your photo into the daily album!  See you back here tomorrow!

It's Wednesday, which means we are halfway through out sew-a-long week.  Wednesdays can be rough, especially for me, as a mom of 4 who works from home and has a million and one after school activities, obligations, and duties!  It's exhausting, so let's all take a collective "sigh of relief" when I tell you that today is EASY PEASY!  Seriously, if you aren't making ruffles, 5 min and you will be ready to kick your feet up and relax!!  If you are making ruffles, well, tack on another few minutes.  

When I am prepping for sewing, I let me daughter help pick out what details her outfit will have.  Clara is one of her favorite patterns, she has about 12 million {seriously, we big puffy heart love this pattern}, but because of that, she told me absolutely NO RUFFLES!  So I am sitting out this portion of the pattern, but all you rufflers, it's time to get started!

Grab your ruffle pieces and hem the long each of each one.  You can do a small hem or even a rolled hem!  The choice is yours.  Once that is done serge the top raw edge to prevent fraying.  Take your top edge you just serged and run a gathering stitch 1/2in from the serged end and side and gather each ruffle to 1/2 it's original size.  Now grab your bodice and a ruler.  Measure 1/2" from the shoulder seam and draw a line down the front and back of the bodice.  Take a ruffle and pin it directly on the chalk line, right sides together.  Make sure the gathering line is on the chalk line, and sew right over the gathering stitch.  Flip the ruffle over, iron flat, and topstitch with a 1/8" SA.

For the second ruffle, measure over from the edge of the sewn ruffle 1/2" and make a line from the front to the back of the bodice.  Place ruffle on line with gathering stitches on the drawn line.  Sew it down, flip and iron, then topstitch.  Repeat this process of the other 2 ruffles on the other side.

For those who didn't sew bodice ruffles, are you ready to sew??  It's your turn!  If you are adding in sleeves you can follow along with me {OR} you can open up your sleeve pattern and follow those instructions!  Totally up to you!  I like to add my sleeves in the round sometimes, so will will talk about that tomorrow!

Grab your bodice and and open up the main and lining fabrics, matching the armhole, right sides together.  Pin and sew with an 1/2in SA.  

Trim your seams and fold the bodice back right sides out.  VIOLA!  A lovely armhole!  Repeat these steps for the other side, then take over and iron both seams flat.  If you have more bodice embellishing to do or you just plain didn't want to do it yesterday, now's the time to do it!

Last thing I want you to do today is topstitch!  I'm going to let you in on a little secret, I often do not topstitch.  I know, the horror!  But seriously, I am sometimes lucky even get time to sew, so topstitching is a luxury these days!

That is it for today!  If you were like me, your sewing only took 5 minutes, and that is exactly what you needed on this rather dreary freezing cold Wednesday (at least where I am at}.  If you did ruffles, well, yours took a little more time, but it was still a rather quick day and totally worth it!  Perfect for hump day!

Day 1 and Day 2 are available if you are just joining us.  And don't forget to add in a day 3 photo to the FB album!  Tomorrow I'm going to talk about adding sleeves in the round and we begin constructing our skirt.  See you all tomorrow!

We are {FINALLY} back in action!  Thanks for being patient with me!  I am beyond appreciative!!  I am back and ready to sew!  Let's get started on Day 2, shall we??

Today is the day to get our patterns put together and fabrics ready to go.  First off, if you didn't already, print off your pattern pieces.  Don't forget to print off the sleeves pattern if you are wanting to add that onto your Clara!!  I am going simple this time and dreaming about summer, so my Clara is going to be sleeveless!  

Once everything is printed, assemble you pattern whichever way you like!  My methods differ depending on my mood for the day!  This time around I am taping, since I actually had some tape floating around my craft area!  When you've got all your pieces assembled, it's time to start cutting fabric, so grab your pins and get to work!  

Can I be honest?  This may be my least favorite part.  I really do not like pinning and cutting.  Who wants to come over and do this part for me???

Everything is cut so now it's time to get sewing.  We are starting with our bodice construction.  Take your front and back bodice pieces and place them RST, lining them up at the shoulders.  Sew using a 1/2in SA.  Do this for both the main and lining fabrics.

Once sewn, iron the seams open nice and flat!  This helps minimize bulk in your seams!  Make sure to do this for both lining and main bodice pieces!

If you are thinking about adding in an embellishment to your bodice, now is the time!  While I was looking at my fabric, I was feeling a little blah about it.  I didn't love the lace detail I chose, and ended up finding a scrap of this {GORGEOUS} lace I used on a top a few months back!  It was perfect to use on the front of my bodice!  This is the time to get creative and play around!  Add in a bib, button tab, lace details, embroidery.  You name it!!  The sky is the limit!

Now take your main and lining pieces and place them RST.  Pin up the back, around the neckline, and back down the other side.  If you are not adding sleeves, you can pin your armholes now too!  Sew using a 1/2in SA where you have pinned.  

We now need to trim 1/2 of the SA off.  I like to use my pinking shears for this.  I adore my pinking shears.  These were handed down to me from my mother when I started sewing a few years ago.  I love these so much!!  If you don't have a pair RUN to the store and get some now!!  You won't regret it!

Turn your bodice and give it a good steam!  And you are done for the day!  What an easy and fast day!  Tomorrow we will add ruffles, topstitch and finish our bodices!  If you need to catch up, you can find Day 1 here!  Don't forget to add your daily photo into the Day 2 album!  See you tomorrow!

Today is the day!  We are kicking off our first sew-a-long of the year.  This year we are doing things a little differently!  Every month we will be bringing you a new sew-a-long!  And to keep all sew-a-long things in one place, we have a brand new FB group where you can chat about all things SAL related!  

Back by popular demand, for our first SAL of the year, is Clara!  This is a pattern that always delivers, and everyone over at VFT adores.  You can't seem to go wrong with any version of Clara!

If you've done a sew-a-long with my before, you know I love Day 1!  It's laid back and quite possibly the best day, because today is all about fabrics and trims!!   But before you run to the closest fabric store, we need to get our patterns printed.  If you haven't already, head over to the shop and pick up a copy of Clara, or Clara baby, or Clara doll!  Or all three???  I mean, that's what I would do!  They are 25% off after all!

Once you have your pattern/s {because you know you just bought all 3} take a look at all the options and decide which ones you'd like to sew up!  Do you want a dress or a top?  Maybe you meet in the middle and make a tunic!  Are you going to sew the bodice ruffles or leave the bodice plain.  Maybe you want to add sleeves!  This would be a good time to pick up the Sleeve basics pattern!

Once all your details are ironed out, it's time to talk fabrics!  I am going with this greyish lilac dot, because if you know me, you know I'm a sucker for a polka dot.  While you are choosing fabrics, take a look at your laces, trims, buttons, and any other embellishments you'd like to add!

Gather up your sewing supplies!  You're going to need your basic supplies for this sew-a-long, so gather up your fabric scissors, a tape measure, some pins, thread, and don't forget your buttonhole foot!  

Once you have everything ready, lay it all out and snap a photo!  We want to document all our daily steps, so head over to the FB group and add your Day 1 photo into the daily album!  Tomorrow we will be cutting our fabrics out and starting bodice construction!

How about some extra incentive???  If you are anything like me you LOVE winning prizes!  So how about an absolutely amazing prize for one lucky person!  Follow along and post your photos on the daily albums and in the final album, and one lucky person will win a VFT 5 pattern prize pack PLUS a $50 gift card to Hawthorne Threads!  Who wouldn't love to win that!!   Have fun and we will see you back here tomorrow!  

Hi there!!! It's Cassie- the new girl! I am beyond excited to share with you my *first* pattern with the incredible team of Violette Field Threads. It has been an absolute joy to join such a fierce force of creativity, passion and encouragement that the entire team brings to the table. I started my journey (like many of you) with VFT when the epic chevron, floppy hat beauty of Emmaline released! It seems so long ago but such an iconic moment in pdf pattern history! I quickly became obsessed with all things VFT and vintage inspired and couldn’t stop sewing their beautiful patterns. I started testing for Jessica and Ericka back with the Ladies Whitney pants and they’ve been stuck with me ever since. It has been a pleasure to switch gears to designing patterns with them, and I can’t wait for our first release together- the Nora dress pattern.

Nora was inspired by my two darling daughters, ages 4 and 6. They are in love with all things romantic, princess, and whimsy. When I was searching for inspiration for my first VFT design, I came across this incredible sleeve detail that was a must-have! I love Nora’s sweet puff sleeve bottom, darling ties and tailored set-in sleeve. It reminds me of Victorian era dresses with a delicate, princess feel.

Another favorite detail in the Nora dress is the smoothed square neckline. I adore a great, crisp square neckline but sometimes getting those sharp corners presents a challenge to the sewist so I took some creative freedom in smoothing out those tricky corners! I was inspired by the beautiful gowns worn by Emma Watson in the upcoming live action movie, Beauty and the Beast, and the gorgeous necklines shown in many of her incredible dresses. In fact, now I want to sew one up in yellow just for the movie premier!

Nora will release in girls sizes (2T-10), baby sizes (0-3 mos through 18-24 mos) and doll. There are two options for the top pleated skirt- open or closed sides. The open sides really let the beautiful underskirt show. There are also two options for the underskirt- simple or tiered. The tiered underskirt has a pettiskirt look with lots of fullness and twirl! Nora also includes two sleeve options- cap or the puffed sleeve that hits between the elbow and wrist. The back closure is a button back bodice with a super simple skirt placket.

I sewed up the Nora's for my girls in incredible Art Gallery Fabric's linen and florals from the Wonderful Things fabric collection.

Here are some more lovely Nora's for inspiration!

I am blown away by the beautiful Nora’s our incredible testers have sewn up and cannot wait to see what you all create! Have fun with Nora- dress her up, or keep her simple. Either way, I am sure your little princess will love her new Nora dress!

-XOXO- Cassie

It is a GIRL! Congratulations!

We are so excited to welcome to the family, Baby Pepper!

Hello VFT Family, Alexis here taking over the blog and sharing my latest pattern. The well loved and very popular Pepper pattern has now shrunk to baby sizes. lol

Sizing: 0-3 mos, 3-6 mos. 6-12 mos, 12-18 mos and 18-24 mos.

She is just like the bigger sizes and comes with the cutest petite collar and a full gathered skirt. Baby Pepper also includes a placket to help with the ease of dressing those wiggly bodies. :)

Baby Pepper also comes with 3 sleeve lengths Full, 3/4 and above the elbow. All season sleeves, right??!!!

(Above the Elbow)

(3/4 Sleeve)

(Full Sleeve)

Of course every good Pepper Dress needs a pocket (you never know what those babies will put in there. ;)

(Yes, that is a Lego guy in the pocket. That is what happens when you have a boy in the house.)

Baby Pepper comes in two lengths:

Dress Length- Finishes 1- 1 1/2" above the knee

Top Length which is SOOOO cute with bloomers! That is seriously one of my favorite "looks" when I was sewing for my own Etsy shop. It was also one of the most popular sellers.

I swear I could eat up all the adorable babies every time their amazing Mommas posted pics in the tester group. One thing is for sure they don't sit still to pose.  Right ladies???!!! Hahahaha!

If this was not exciting enough we are offering one person a chance to win the  Baby Pepper pattern and 4 yards of Art Gallery Fabric's newest collection, CAPSULES! 1 yard of 4 of the Capsules prints.

1 yard each: Roses and Letters, XOXOXO , Slanted Lines and Alternate Angles

The giveaway will run from today until Sunday 12 pm. I will announce the winner by Tuesday on VFT group page! 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Grab your copy of Baby Pepper HERE for only $5! Oh and GUESS what, Kid Pepper is on SALE for only $5 From now until Sunday Night. Wahoooooooo!!!! We now have Baby Pepper, Kid Pepper and Tween Pepper!!! 

Until next time VFT Family!!!

XOXO

-Alexis

The weather outside might still be frightful for most of the country, but I am daydreaming of warm breezes, sunny skies, and flower filled gardens.  Winter is in full force here in Michigan.  It's cold and snowy, which my kiddos adore, but it makes me long for springtime.  The one good thing about this weather is that the days are long, which makes it easy to start planning for spring and summer wardrobes.  And what better way to start planning than by looking at what's hot for this coming season!

Spring will be here before you know it, so it's time to put pen to paper and get a hold of what the big trends are going to be!  The biggest trend of any season is color.  I anxiously await the start of New York Fashion Week to see what Pantone's colors of the year will be!  This year did not disappoint!  

Greens are going to be huge this upcoming season, with Greenery and Kale making the cut.  I love green, even though I rarely use it in my sewing.  Looks like it is time to start sewing all the greens!!  What a lovely way to usher in spring as the season changes.  As nature once again sprouts new life, so will our wardrobes!

We love this green Clara Dress!  What a gorgeous splash of color!  Such a fresh look.  And that fabric, Circa by Jennifer Paganelli, is {Stunning}!!

For all you blue lovers out there, blue hues are once again something you can't go wrong with.  From bright happy blues to rich dark tones, and even shades in the middle, blues never seem to go out of style!

We at VFT love blue!!  It's a color that makes us think spring and brings a smile to our faces.  This Pearl Dress is the perfect way to show off your favorite blue fabrics and is a great pattern for Spring and Summer!  This stunning blue is Little Fawn by Hawthorne Threads.

And neutrals never looked so good!  Who would have thought that Pale Dogwood would be your new go to!  It is the epitome of neutrality this season!  It pairs well with all the Pantone 2017 colors, and is gorgeous on it's own too!  I am betting we will see a lot of pale pink this spring in the {VFT Groups}!

You can't go wrong with pale pink and lace!!  This knockout Odette dress will definitely turn heads and is the perfect way to show off this color of the season!

Now that we know what colors we {NEED} to be using this upcoming season, let's talk prints.  All of these bright and cheery colors scream sunshine and beach to me!  And this is perfect, because a huge trend for SS 2017 is bold and colorful prints.  

All over prints, bright pops of colors, and florals too, are what's hot this season, like in this Madison Dress, sewn up in Chalk and Paint by Sew Caroline! For a fun twist, try your hand at dip dyed fabrics or color blocking!  These will be all the rage with the tween crowd!

For those who have a nautical flare, have no fear!  Nautical is back this spring and showing off it's softer side.  Toned down hues will grace our garments to show off a less serious and more vintage feel!  Red white and blue in stripes, florals, and even in tiny prints, make our hearts skip a beat!  If you are looking for that {boutique} feel, then nautical is the way to go this season!

If you like muted tones, then this next trend is for you.  {Toned down tropical} is the perfect blend of playful prints and subtle muted colors.  From mint and kale green to pale pinks and peaches, tropical has now gone pastel!  Still that same fun and funky vibe with a sophisticated twist.  These color combos are {TO.DIE.FOR} and the fun prints are out of this world!

 Ladies, how about some soft flowy fabrics?  Out with stiff structure and in with soft and loose.  Ruffles and all things that drape scream {SUMMERTIME} to me.  I live for a long flowy skirt and a blouse with interesting ruffles.  This season we all will be donning oodles of ruffles!  Such a feminine look!

We have loads of patterns with ruffles if this is the look you adore.  We are fond of the Emily dress for a soft feminine look!  It's such a pretty look!

 And last but certainly not least, it's time to go dotty!  That's right!  Dots of all shapes and sizes are {IN}!  I love me a good polka-dot.  It's the one print that often can serve as solid or print, depending on the style!  Dots for ladies of all ages are going to be a huge hit!

A great way to go bold is to mix prints!  This Sommer Romper is oh so lovely in blue dots!  Dots and prints look great together and is a fantastic way to show off your personality!

There you have it!  Some of the {hottest} trends that will be hitting the town in the coming months.  Spring and Summer never looked so good.  Which trends are you loving?  Leave a comment below and share with us what you are loving about SS 2017!

As always, the incredibly talented Bari J has captured our hearts with her new fabric collection, Sage.  Inspired by the desert landscape of her home, these fabrics feature gorgeous florals and colorful prints.  They're so perfect for spring sewing! Sit back and take in all of this incredible photographic eye candy from some of our uber talented tester/designer team. These ladies seriously have such creativity! 

Sage is available in two color palettes and I think it's impossible to choose which is more lovely!

The Late Desert color palette showcases these gorgeous purple and green tones, reminiscent of dusk in the desert.  The green is so on trend for spring as Greenery is the 2017 Pantone color of the year.  Depending on how you pair the fabrics you can have something soft and elegant or bright and playful.

I can't get over how incredibly beautiful this Maisie made from the Painted Desert in Night print is! Our own lovely designer, Alexis, really nailed showcasing this print. 

Maisie and Luna are perfect pattern choices for these fabrics!  Maisie gives you the opportunity to showcase that gorgeous floral and it is always SO fun to mix and match prints  with Luna!  The Luna shown here was made using Yuma Lemons in Glare for the skirt, Bougainvillea in Lilac for the pockets, and Saguaro Crest in Olive for the bodice.  Such a winning combination!

Here's another Luna made using the late desert palette- this one features Cactus Flora in Flora Lily for the skirt, Sunswept Canyon in Sage for the pockets, and Primrose Field in Light for the bodice.  

This Clara also showcases the Cactus Flora in Flora Lily for the skirt, I love how the purple trim Rachael added accentuates the purple flowers in the print and really makes them stand out.  The bodice fabric is Coyote and Quail in Lavender.  This whole look is soft and sweet yet also so elegant! 

The Early Desert color palette is equally beautiful and showcases these rich pink tones that remind me of sunrise every time I see them!

 These prints are so warm and bright and have me excited for spring when everything is fresh and green again!  

This Clara sewn in the Painted Desert in Morning print is utter perfection!  Dawn added sleeves from the Sleeve Basics Pattern and they just completed this dress!  The entire look, from her sweet little hair accessory to her boots is perfect. Dawn, of Gracie Lou, just blew us away! 

And, this {fabric love} post wouldn't be complete without showcasing one of the knit prints from the Sage collection.  Art Gallery knits are absolutely the best and are my favorite to sew with.  The quality is second to none.  

I used the Julianna pattern to make this top from the Coyote and Quail in Jojoba print.  The sleeve detail on the Julianna makes it a little extra special.  My girl still gets a comfy knit top but that little extra bit of gathering makes it fashionable and fun.  

This Annie dress is absolutely stunning in Baja Weave in Currant!  The fabric is perfectly showcased with a maxi length skirt. Ali, of Because of Brenna, really captivated the emotions of this fabric line. 

We've also teamed up with Bari J, the artist behind Sage, to do a giveaway!  Would you like to win 3 yards of Sage Fabric??? Enter using the rafflecopter below!