The men's fitted shirt

We are busy hard at work putting together the finishing touches on our men's fitted shirt sewing pattern.

Good news though, everyone who purchase our men's simple waistcoat sewing pattern between now and 1st May will receive this pattern free of charge as soon as it's launched on our store!

GOOD NEWS!!! We have decided to extend this promotion until 31st May 2016!

My friend Jude being a model on my behalf

HAPPY SEWING!

The life of a sewist

Today is a grey and overcast day, perfect I think for working in my PJ’s while a draw up a few new sketches for patterns I’m going to be releasing.

I have been running my sewing business now for five years, it’s amazing how time flies. Selling my digital sewing patterns has allowed me the opportunity to work from home, sometimes I feel so spoiled to be so lucky.

I want to say a big thank you to all my amazing sewing fans who have allowed me to achieve this in my life. Anyone who knows me knows that my cats and dogs are my children (I currently have 8), and for the last 6 months my oldest baby has been terribly sick, my Jack Russell named Onyx. She has chronic renal failure and some days she requires 24 hour care. Being able to work from home has allowed me to look after her and help her to live a full and happy old age. I am truly grateful to everyone who buys my sewing patterns and online products, you have done more for me than I can possibly express. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

I hope you all have an amazing week ahead, and very successful sewing projects. Now enough of the serious stuff and back to the sewing fun.

Here’s a tip when putting together your newly printed A4 pages to create your sewing pattern: Use 2 sided tape to join the sheets of paper together. I do this firstly because the pages are less likely to come apart in the long term and secondly it allows me to fold up my patterns when I put them away, and when I am ready to use them again, I unfold them and use a warm iron to go over the pages to smooth them out (no steam, this will damage the paper).

This week’s patterns in review

Isabella Maternity dress

Our first maternity dress sewing pattern was launched last week. (I tried to make my dressmaker's form look pregnant by pinning a pillow to it o_O )

This fashionable dress is perfect for the mum-to-be who has a special occasion to attend, or who simply wants to look stylish in the upcoming spring and summer season.

I also launched a set of two maternity sewing patterns, the Isabella dress and the Jacqui dress together make the perfect combination.

Sewing Patterns for a year

To celebrate 5 wonderful years of sewing we have decided to launch this amazing offer. You can opt to have our range of brand new sewing patterns sent to you, every second week for a year.

 

The total value of this is over $80, but instead we decided to practically give it away at $29. Which means you’re making a huge savings of over $50! We are only running this amazing special until 10^th March, so take advantage of it now!

When you purchase this amazing offer, you will be receiving your first pattern immediately available to download, the ladies short waistcoat.

 

Until next time...

Happy sewing!

Marching along

My mind is just blown by the fact that another month has gone by already. On the bright side, with new months there are a lot of new opportunities, and a few more sewing projects to begin.

I know some of our sewing fans weren’t too sure about the new Shopify store we have been using with our Facebook Page. We do still have our Craftsy store up and running for those who prefer to use this site, and we also launched our Etsy store this past week, which has already become quite busy. So you are welcome to use whichever platform suits you best, our aim is to make access to our sewing patterns as easy as possible for you.

Our  March sewing challenge. It is “ON TOP”, so you can make anything from t-shirts, to blouses to waistcoats the choice is yours! Remember to look up our previous post on the sewing challenge, so you know the rules and stand a chance to win that cute little Acer Chromebook!

This week’s patterns in review

We had an incredibly busy week last week, we launched a whole new range of waistcoats. Our waistcoat patterns have always been some of our top sellers and we are proud to be able to now offer you a much wider variety.

Our new range includes the Men’s Simple Waistcoat

 

My friend Jude being a super awesome model for me

We then have the LadiesSimple Waistcoat which is super stylish, and a huge hit already.

 

The Ladies Simple Waistcoat

Both of these waistcoats include slit pockets, as well as adjustable belt straps at the back for a more tailored finish. We have also included them in a Simple Waistcoat sewing pack together, so you can purchase both and save money!

 

And to top it off, I included this incredibly cute and fashionable Ladies Short Waistcoat in the range to help you finish off your new look.

There are plenty more sewing patterns being launched this week, to keep posted on what’s coming up, like our FacebookPage! Until next time...

Happy sewing!

Some latest sewing news

What an exciting week. We have so many patterns in their final stages, and we’ve launched a few new ones. Most importantly though, this week we launched our biggest competition!

Join our monthly sewing challenge and you could stand a chance to win an Acer Chromebook (click on the featured post to the right of the page to view all the finer details).

For our January sewing challenge the theme is “TIES”. I look forward to seeing all your entries on twitter (Remember to follow us at @Booleheart)

 

This week’s patterns in review

Our high waist skirts

There are a few items that every woman should have in her closet that are not only stylish, but timeless too. The pencil skirt is second only to the little black dress on this list.

 

Our knee length under dress makes the perfect LBD

Since we launched an ideal little black dress pattern last year, we thought that naturally the next best thing to do is launch out High Waist Business Skirt. It really compliments any business wardrobe with it’s strong, professional lines.

 

Me doing a selfie in the new skirt

This skirt is incredibly simple (only 2 pattern pieces) and very quick and easy to make. You can make a few of these skirts in different fabric options.

We decided to even create a shorter version. The Short High Waist Skirt really makes an ideal summer and party skirt. Make one in a fun print to suit your personality, or in simple black for a more elegant look.

 

Selfie time in the shorter skirt

Have fun with these skirts, they can even add a pin-up style to your current wardrobe, they are so straightforward and look like they are professionally made and not home made.

Happy sewing!

Demystifying our digital patterns

Our patterns come in a very easy, printable format. They are downloaded as pdf, and can be printed on any home based printer, on standard A4 paper.

I even did the maths, and most of the time it works out cheaper to purchase and print patterns in this way, than the traditional way of going out to purchase a physical pattern.

For today’s blog post I just want to go through the basics of how to use our patterns so that you can see that they are so user friendly, anyone can use them.

What you will need:

• A printer to print out on
• Plain, normal A4 sheets of paper
• Sellotape
• Paper cutting scissors
• Additional: I like to put my patterns in an A4 PVC envelope when I’m not using them, just to keep them safe.

 

How do you do it?

1. Print your pattern on your standard, every day printer.
2. You will see that each A4 page has a grid border, these grids are marked on the sides to help you to match up the pages.
3. Each page shows a column and reference number to help you to line them up in the correct order.
4. Once you have assembled your pages (like a really big and super easy puzzle), you tape all the pages together. You will now clearly be able to see your pattern on the pages in front of you.
5. Cut out the size you choose, and just like that your pattern is ready to use.

 

You also still have digital copy on your computer, so if you need a different size our your pattern gets damaged, no problem, you can easily print a new one.

Remember to check our previous blog posts for the competition we are currently running.

Happy sewing!

Bridal designs galore

My bridal range has just taken off so well with my patterns having become extremely popular. I am super grateful and I am hard at work expanding my range.

Sweetheart Trumpet style gown

This is a fit and flare style gown, it is designed to hug the figure closely until midway between the knees and hips, where it flares out. Adding applique lace to this design gives it an elegant and timeless finish.

Princess style gown

The pattern for this dress is currently available for pre-order. It has a corset bodice which is complimented by the layers of skirt that flow behind the bride to be. This gown will make any bride feel like the amazing, special person that she is, on her wedding day.

Empire style gown

A classic and timeless cut, this gown suits the bride who knows who she is and carries a natural grace and beauty with her wherever she goes. It can also be used to create bridesmaid dresses.

Plus many more to come

This is just the beginning, there are many more designs to come over the upcoming year.

Holding my horses

What a busy start to the new year! I am already in the process of creating a whole lot of new patterns being launched over the next month and am really excited to be sharing them with you soon.

I often find I am so impatient and just want to start sharing everything with you straight away, but alas I have to hold myself back, as hard as that may be. Creating samples and testing the patterns is time consuming, but necessary, to at the very least make sure my patterns work before I launch them.

With my bridal range though, as this process can take longer than expected, I do like to post the patterns available for pre-order sales. Keep your eyes open for these as the pre-order sale prices are much lower than the final pattern prices, so you really get a huge bargain by taking advantage of these... and I usually throw in a free gift pattern too.

This week’s patterns in review

Our Sunglasses pouch

I must admit, the popularity this pattern gained absolutely blew my mind. It become a much bigger seller than I thought, but let’s face it, who doesn’t own sunglasses (or even normal glasses at that), and these are items that we do want to keep safe and in good shape for seasons to come.

 

And for beginning sewing fans, this really is an ideal starter pattern to give a try and hone those skills in creating fashionable homemade accessories.

Available for pre-order

Our next bridal pattern is in the process of being created to be launched in February 2016.The Taryn dress is a simple yet elegant strapless dress. It is a timeless design that is ideally suited for the woman who has an effortless and confident sense of style.

 

It will go on sale for the price of $9.99, but for now is available for pre-order for only $5.99.

As a bonus gift, whoever takes advantage of the pre-order special will receive a FREE pattern and instructions for our long thin tie. This is the perfect accessory for a date who would like to wear a little something to compliment the woman wearing our Taryn dress. It can be made in matching fabric or colours to the dress itself.

 

Remember to check our previous blog posts for the competition we are currently running.

Happy sewing!

Batty about bat wings

Happy New Year! May you have a wonderful year filled with blessings and exciting sewing projects.

This year will see us increasing our patterns in two areas. Firstly our bridal collection will be growing and secondly we will be adding in a good few basic patterns, such as a simple woman’s dress shirt, and pairs of smart and casual pants that are simple and easy to follow.

Our aim is to create easy and user friendly patterns for everyone!

 

This week’s patterns in review

We love our bat wing tops and dresses, not only are they easy to make but they are very fashionable.

The Bat wing Top with pleats

Our tops and dresses can be made in a variety of fabrics, from comfortable t-shirting and warm knits (even cut and sew wool) to chiffon and the softer range of fabrics, adding a variety of styles for all different occasions, formal or casual.

Summer bat wingdress in chiffon

They can be made as sweaters or winter tops for the cold seasons and they even make gorgeous costume covers for the upcoming summer months.

Jacqui Batwing top

Knee length summer batwing dress as costume cover

These are some of our favourite and most versatile sewing patterns, and you can have so much fun with them.

Remember to check our previous blog posts for the competition we are currently running.

Have a wonderful New Year. Happy 2016 and happy sewing!

Adding a belt to your batwing dress

This is a quick guide on how to create a sash belt to compliment my pattern for the summer batwing dress.

Dress before and after adding a belt

You will need:

·         Your summer batwing dress, made from the sewing pattern available in my online store (click on the button to the right of the page).

·         10cm / 4 inch length of fabric, cut from the width of the same fabric used to create your dress.

Step 1:

Cut your piece of fabric 10cm / 4inch wide (The bias will form the short sides of the section of fabric cut).

Step 2:

Fold your fabric in half, right sides facing and sew the open seam closed (keeping a 1.5cm / 5/8” seam allowance). Use your overlocker / serger to neaten the edge.

Step 3:

Turn the belt the right way around and press flat.

Step 4:

If you would like to add the belt as a permanent feature, find the center point of the belt and attach this to the dress by doing a hand stitch on the center back seam along the the waistline.

Your dress with matching sash belt is now ready to wear!

Happy Sewing!

Add a waistband to your Rockabilly Style dress

Our Easy as Pie dress is incredibly cute on its own, but you are always welcome to give it a little extra something to have your friends and family complementing you on your sewing brilliance and stylish fashion sense.

Before and After

So to add a waistband to your Easy As Pie RockabillyStyle dress follow these few easy steps.

What you will need:

1.    The front and back bodice pattern pieces from your Easy as Pie Rockabilly dress sewing pattern (available in my online store, click on the button to the right of the page to buy yours now).

2.    25cm / 10” width of fabric of your choosing.

3.    25cm / 10” width of iron on interfacing

4.    25cm / 10” width of pattern tissue

5.    One to four buttons. The quantity of buttons you end up using will depend on how broad your waistband is and how big the buttons you choose are.

6.    Your completed Easy as Pie dress, in the size of your choosing.

Step 1: Place your pattern tracing paper over your back bodice pattern piece and trace the outline of the bottom of the pattern. 1.5cm / 5/8” above the bottom seam measure the desired width of your waistband. (I have gone for a 5cm / 2” width. Measure a further 1.5cm / 5/8” above this line for your seam allowance.

At the centre back seam add an additional 1.5cm 0r 5/8” to allow for an overlap for the button(s) and buttonhole(s)

\

Step 2: Do the same as above for your front bodice piece (except for the additional 1.5cm or 5/8”), only remember to exclude the dart from your waist band. Do this my measuring your waistband up the dart, then moving your pattern piece to continue after the dart again.

Make circles on the section where the dart would have been. You will be transferring these markings to your fabric to help you line up your waistband on your dress.

Step 3: Out of your waistband fabric cut four pieces of fabric for the back waistband pattern pieces. For the front waistband pattern piece, cut out two pieces of fabric on the fold.

Step 4:  Add iron on interfacing to the wrong side of two pieces of the back waistband section, and one piece of the front waistband section.

Step 5: Sew together the side seams of your waistband pieces and press open.

Step 6: Attach the waistband pieces together. Sew along the top and bottom seams and only one centre pack seam. Clip corners.

With the second centre back seam, measure 1.5cm / 5/8”, roll seam inwards and press into place. Loose tack to keep in place as you turn the waistband right way around.

Step 7: Turn waistband right way around and press. Stitch along the edge to finish off and to close the opening in the centre back seam.

Step 8: Make your buttonhole(s) and attach your button(s).

Step 9: With needle and thread catch your waistband onto your completed dress at the side seams and front darts.

Style tip: instead of stitching your waistband to your dress you can add press studs to the dress and waistband, making it detachable. This will allow for you to make an assortment of coloured waistbands that you can mix and match with your dress!

Step 10: Your dress is now ready to wear!

Happy Sewing!

Back of dress, before and after