Not too long ago I connected with Gabriela from Chalk and Notch about her foray into women’s pattern making and we had a great chat about the indie sewing world. I love how amazingly open designers and sewists in this community are and how ready and willing others are to share and support one another. She mentioned she was planning a summer tour for her latest pattern, the Farrah top and dress, and I was keen to join in! I am the first in an awesome line-up of bloggers who will be sharing their Farrah’s this week! This tour is sponsored by Miss Matatabi, an online retailer of amazing Japanese fabrics. I hope you enjoy this collaboration! 

The Farrah pattern was provided to me from Chalk and Notch free of charge. This tour is being sponsored by Miss Matatabi, so the fabric was provided free of charge, too! Thanks Miss Matatabi!  All opinions are, as always, my own. I don’t do a ton of promotional posts of this nature, but I really like the Farrah, Miss Matatabi, and all the ladies on this tour, so I am really happy to join in.

If you want to give the Farrah a try, use the coupon code HELEN to grab this pattern for 15% this week!

You can also enter to win a $50 gift certificate from Miss Matatabi! Her fabrics are simply gorgeous, don’t miss out!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

I chose to make view A of the Farrah top, the version with the ruffled sleeves. Now, if you follow my blog regularly, you might guess that this is a bit out of my comfort zone.  I don’t really ‘do’ ruffles, but that is part of the reason why I wanted to take part in this tour! Sometimes it takes an outside push to try something new, and I am really enjoying these flouncy, bouncy sleeves!  Ruffles are pretty trendy this season, and I now that I am wearing them, I can see why!

The fabric I chose from Miss Matatabi is this gorgeous palm leaf printed rayon crepe. Is is the perfect weight for this pattern because it drapes beautifully and is not too thick. The print is stunning, I love this ‘pen and ink’ style. The ruffles for the Farrah can be finished two ways, Either you fold over the edge twice and sew, or you double layer the ruffles to get a hidden seam. In many fabrics, double layering these ruffles would make them too thick, but I decided to give it a try because this crepe is so thin. I also hate hemming curved edges in fine fabrics – I can never get it to look perfect! I think the double layer worked out here, I really like the clean edge.

The Farrah is very well drafted and it has some really nice design details. They are a little hard to see in such a busy print, but there are gussets under the arms to allow for the ruffle placement. There is a yoke in the front and the back, with some gathering in the back to give room for the shoulders. The slight high-low hem is finished using mitered corners and split sides, one of my favourite methods. I really love the length of this blouse, too. I did not lengthen it and it fits me perfectly (I am 5’10”).

I made no adjustments to this pattern. I often have to do a small broad back adjustment and a small FBA, but neither were needed this time. I have a 2” difference between my high bust and full bust so I am right on the edge of needing a FBA. Gabriela included instructions for making a FBA in the pattern if you need it. This pattern does not have darts, so basically you just add them in.

Overall, I really love this blouse. Even though the ruffles are a bit out of my comfort zone, the fabric is really well suited to the design and the shape is SO comfortable. It is honestly one of the most comfortable blouses I own now, so mega points for that! I love how it looks with shorts for summer, but it also dresses up really easily when tucked into a skirt or my tencel Winslows. Also, it looks amazing when you are jumping or twirling…case and point: 

If you want to give the Farrah a try, use the coupon code HELEN to grab this pattern for 15% this week!

Thanks to Gabriela from Chalk and Notch, Frances from Miss Matatabi, and Leslie from Threadbear Garments for having me on this tour! Check out who is up next:

CHALK AND NOTCH FARRAH SUMMER TOUR

If you want to give the Farrah a try, use the coupon code HELEN to grab this pattern for 15% this week!

You can also enter to win a $50 gift certificate from Miss Matatabi! Her fabrics are simply gorgeous, don’t miss out!

a Rafflecopter giveaway