Tag: pdf pattern

PDF Pattern Companies to Try in 2021
Paper or PDF pattern?

It’s easy to have a paper pattern buying addiction. I’m *far* from immune to the 2$ Joann’s pattern sale which has left me with a collection of over 1000 printed sewing patterns.

But having so many paper patterns… from the same big companies is kind of a problem.

These printed patterns take up a lot of space. They also tend to all be designed from the same pattern block. Sometimes, they tend to not be so fresh (design-wise.) And, potentially worse, the designers may be hit or miss as to whether or not they align with your personal values.

Enter PDF pattern companies.

This post features three PDF pattern designers I’m excited about right now and encourage you check out!

PLEASE NOTE! This is not a sponsored post. I’ve actually not worked with their designs in the past. But I think they’re doing some interesting work and wanted to highlight them in this post.

Friday Pattern Company

Their PDF pattern designs are modern but with minimalist sensibilities and some cute details!

What I particularly love about Friday Pattern Company is that their pdf sewing patterns go up to 7X! The increase in size range makes these designs extremely inclusive, opening the door for more people to dip their toe in and make something that makes them feel like a million bucks.

The two patterns below, the Davenport Dress and Sagebrush Top are gorgeous.
- Davenport Dress
- Sagebrush Top
Both designs are feminine, practical, and have a completely different feels if sewn in different fabric. Both are extremely accessible.

A few other reasons to be excited about Friday Pattern Company:
- The Friday Pattern Company size range demonstrates they’ve been committed to the mission for a while.
- Their patterns are both available in PDF AND paper
- They donate 5% of their pattern sales to charity and each pattern has a different correlated charity!
Untitled Thoughts

Besides being absolutely in love with the company name, the commitment to eco-consciousness is real with Untitled Thoughts! Brittani, who owns the small design studio, goes in depth in the About Me page about how she’s staying committed to caring for the planet.

This even includes information about the light bulbs which are used in the studio to ensure energy efficiency!

The two patterns below, the Amelie and Mathilde dresses are both beautiful, and are really in the spirit of a summer picnic.
- Amelie Dress
- Mathilde Wrap Dress
In addition to what I’ve mentioned above, Untitled Thoughts also donates 5-10% to charity. There’s even a yearly transparency report breaking down where the funds were sent! The amount of integrity with Untitled Thoughts is extremely refreshing, and for a PDF pattern company which is a one-person operation, it’s extremely impressive.

Bambini del Mare

The PDF pattern company I’m most excited about right now is Bambini del Mare. Serah, who owns and designs this small brand, is a Bay Area local who attended CCA (California College of the Arts) — just a stone’s throw away from the VoT studio!

The two patterns below are my favorite from what has been designed so far:
- Farmers Market Dress
- Dolcezza Bolero
A couple more reasons I’m excited about Bambini del Mare:
- The looks are all extremely romantic– they’re all gorgeous and vintage inspired without being frumpy
- Serah is focused on sustainability and philanthropy and donates 5% of her earnings per quarter to a rotating list of charities.
PDF pattern companies are doing interesting things.

From donating to causes they care about, to going above and beyond with size inclusivity, to even sourcing their sample fabrics to ensure they’re sustainable, it’s extremely impressive. These are examples of what us, as sewing consumers, have an opportunity to support and vote with our dollar on.

While working with PDFs can come with their own set of challenges, there’s opportunities to explore new (pattern) points of view and new pattern blocks, all while supporting a small company.
May 9, 2021
The Billie Collection Skirt by The Fold Line

If you’re building an autumn wardrobe, a good place to start is The Billie Collection Skirt by The Fold Line.

Seasonal changes for me always start with packing up my off-season clothing and putting it away for next year. There’s nothing quite like only having rich, warm colors and fabrics at your finger tips when you’re ready to rock a pumpkin spice latte (viewer discretion is advised ? ?) But autumn brings more than PSL, though: it brings thick wool fabrics, comfy scarves, and hats.

While packing things away, I realized that I was missing transitional pieces which are imperative to San Francisco. Luckily, The Fold Line came to the rescue with their new Tribe Patterns venture! It was no coincidence that the moment I was shoving spring clothes into a box in my closet, I got the e-mail from The Fold Line, announcing their collaboration with House of Pinheiro. The Billie Collection is their inaugural collection, “Designed by the Sewing Community”– which I absolutely adore. The next collection is currently being sourced by a competition which closes out on Nov 4th, 2016 and will then be voted on!

The dress and peplum top are lovely- but I knew The Billie Collection skirt was what I needed, ASAP! Within an hour of buying the pattern, I had all ready printed out the PDF and was taping it together.

What I loved about the pattern was that it was super straight forward and the directions were written with an intermediate seamstress in mind. There were no unnecessary photos or explanations and everything was “searchable,” meaning that there was enough explanation of each step that doing an online search to find additional information was easy to do. For example, the exposed zipper, which I had never done before. I was able to watch a quick video online and was able to start sewing right away.

For changes, I added 7″ (17.5cm) in length to make it more suitable to my height and for the season. Also, I changed the hem depth to 1.5″ (3.5cm) which I prefer more in general. I also used rayon hem tape to hand sew my hem in place and used a contrasting rayon printed fabric for the pockets.

Things that took a little bit of adjusting while I worked on this skirt from The Billie Collection was in the organization of the instructions. The size charts, cutting layouts, and general notes were at the back of the packet and I had to awkwardly look for them every time I needed to reference something. Quick fix, though- just staple those sheets in the front (technically out of order) Also, the instructions for the exposed zipper at the waistband were a little bit awkward as well. I recommend leaving the ends of the waistband open at the Center Back so you can sew the zipper up to the top of the waistband, then fold the waistband down and sew by hand, encasing the zipper completely.

For pattern adjustments, I didn’t do any, which in general was fine except for the back panels which need a little more… “fullness” for my booty. Not a deal breaker, though, and I will gladly make this piece again.

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October 31, 2016
Completed: The Gable Top, Jennifer Lauren Handmade

The Gable Top is something I want to make 10,000 of.

Simple- practical- straight forward, what more can a seamstress ask for? When it comes to my workflow here at Vintage on Tap, I’m constantly working on projects that stretch my skills (and time, and patience, and funds, and brain cells…) Most of the time, it works out fine, but sometimes all I want is a feel-good pattern that I don’t have to fuss with and just fits.

I think I’ve found that pattern for me.

Jen from Jennifer Lauren Handmade reached out for me to give her Gable Top pattern a shot and not to gush, but I’m so happy with this pattern! It whips up quickly and without hiccup that I’m all ready planning on stitching up a few more Gables in black, black, black, and red. And yes, you read that correctly, in a lot of black jersey because this piece is a basic I can see being incorporated and used quite a lot.

From Jen’s website-

The idea for Gable has been floating around in my head for a long time. I love knit tops and since releasing Bronte all that time ago, I knew I needed to revisit the world of knits again. They’re so easy, so quick and so satisfying to make and wear. Gable is a true slash-neckline top, which basically means it sits at a 90-degree angle straight across the neckline from the inner shoulders.

The only change I made to the pattern as pictured is that I shortened the length by at least 1.5″. For future versions, it also needs about 3/4″ taken in on the shoulders to fit my frame a little bit more comfortably. I also sewed my neckline differently than the directions or Abi’s from The Crafty Pinup version. I did a simple fold over without a curved seam, to keep a straight stitch line between shoulder reinforcements and neckline.

Would I recommend this top? Absolutely! I think it’s super important to have a go-to jersey pattern that you know is flattering and no-fuss. My muslin of this top was made in 45 minutes (including cutting) and I wore it out right away to go have a beer as soon as it was off the sewing machine. This blue one took about an hour because I took extra care to make sure not to cut the fabric at an angle. To be honest, the hardest part was cutting everything on grain, but that’s not too bad.

Disclaimer: This post was made possible by Jennifer Lauren Handmade who kindly donated this pattern to review :)

August 25, 2016