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Sewing a Japanese Kimono - Part 1

March 18, 2025

The 113 Japanese Kimono is one of Folkwear's first and oldest patterns.  It was originally published in 1977 and has not really had any changes made to the pattern over those nearly 50 years.  Which shows what a classic pattern it really is.  Our Japanese Kimono pattern includes pattern pieces and instructions to make a traditional Japanese yukata, or informal kimono -- an everyday kimono.  This garment has a long history and the pattern goes into the history, as well as teaches sashiko embroidery (traditional Japanese running stitch embroidery), and shibori dyeing (traditional Japanese resist dyeing).  

Close up of Sashiko stitching on bottom of blue kimono
Sashiko embroidery on the bottom of Folkwear's kimono sample.

The construction of our Japanese Kimono is different than a typical sewing pattern, and I thought it would be helpful to make one here so you could see how it goes together.  This is a pattern we sometimes get questions about since it comes together a bit differently than a typical Western-style garment.

Flat drawing of Japanese kimono front and back

Sizing

Our kimono pattern is sized for a "small woman" to a "large man".  Though this sizing seems a bit vague and there are no other measurements to see what the size might mean, the reason for this sizing also goes back to the traditional nature of this pattern.  Japanese fabrics were woven on 13" to 15" wide looms, so kimonos were made with 13"-15" wide panels of fabric (or panels that were half of that size).  The whole (or half) panels were used because if you have a hand-woven fabric, you would not want to cut small sections off to fit a smaller person.  Hand-woven fabric was precious and kimonos are usually made with very little, if any, extra cuts in them -- there's a small curve cut for the neck opening and a diagonal for the front overlap, but even that can be cut so that the two pieces could be cut from one half-width of fabric. So, instead of cutting a fabric to size, the kimono is made to fit the person, with seam allowances that grow or shrink with the size you want to make.  

The kimono is not a fitted garment.  It is supposed to be somewhat loose and straight, depending on how you want to wear it.  It is usually worn over clothes or undergarments.  I list finished measurements for the kimono below (these are without overlapping any of the front), so you can see what size you might want to make. Remember that the kimono can be overlapped in the front and the overlap on each side of the front is about 6" wide (see image above for what this looks like).

In general, you can pick the size that you feel you are.  There is a lot of room in a kimono so as long as you are not making it way too large or way to small, you should be fine.  I feel like I am a medium-sized woman, so that is the size I chose to make.  

Finished Measurements for the 113 Japanese Kimono:


Women's Small Women's Medium  Women's Large/Men's Small Men's Medium Men's Large
Chest/Bust 41.75" 44.75" 47.75" 50" 52.25"
Waist 44.25" 47.25" 50.25" 52.5" 54.75"
Hips 45" 48" 51" 53.25" 55.5"

 

Yardages

Yardages in this pattern are given for the height of a person.  Again, this goes back to the traditional width of a Japanese kimono fabric.  All the pieces of the pattern will fit on the width of the 13" wide fabric.  So all sizes are included in the pattern pieces.  And therefore the yardage depends on how long you want to make the kimono.  Yardage on our pattern is provided for a person that is 5'4" to 6' tall.

Our pattern has yardages for fabric that is wider than 13" also.  We provide yardage for up to a 45" typical commercial width of fabric that you can find in the US.  For my kimono, I used a hand-batiked fabric from Ghana that was 45" wide.  I was able to get nearly the whole kimono cut from only 3 yards of the fabric.  I cut the inside yoke from a white muslin and the overband for the neck.  Since this part shows, I would recommend cutting the overband from matching pieces of fabric, but I just hand stitched a section of the main fabric over the overband to cover the white part.  

So, take the yardages as a suggestion -- you can probably get away with less yardage for wider fabric, but be prepared and maybe measure first.  You mainly need enough yardage to cut the whole front and back length of the kimono plus the length of the sleeves.  Then you can likely cut the rest of the pattern from what is left over.

Sleeve length makes a difference.  If you are cutting the longer, more formal sleeves, you will need more yardage.  Since I only had 3 yards, I could only fit the shorter sleeves (and I had to be creative about how I cut them as I only had room for one sleeve after cutting the front/back, so I cut the only sleeve on the cross-grain from the leftover fabric.

Fabric

As mentioned above, the kimono is sized to be cut from traditional 13" wide fabric.  However, since it is often the case that people don't have traditional Japanese kimono-width fabric, the pattern also has options to cut from wider fabric.  With the 13" wide fabric, it is basically a no-waste pattern.  But you can cut your kimono from just about any type of fabric.  Cotton is a traditional yukata fabric to use, especially in blue or indigo. But silk is also popular.  You can make your kimono from a wide variety of fabrics.  Generally, a medium to light weight fabric is best.  Since the front and back are cut as one piece, you don't want a fabric with a one-way design or nap/pile.  Otherwise, there are loads of options.  

I chose to make my kimono with a hand-batiked cotton that I got from Ghana.  This cotton is lightweight and does not have a one-way design.  The large leaf-like fronds remind me of the plant prints you sometimes see in Japanese fabrics.  Again, I only had 3 yards of this 44" wide fabric and it was just enough to make my kimono with some creative cutting of the sleeves and overband.  You'll want at least 3.5 yards or more if you are making the longer sleeves.  

purple batiked cotton fabric
A sample of the fabric I used to make my kimono.

Notions

The only notion you need for making a basic kimono is thread.  Use polyester or cotton thread.  You will machine sew most of the kimono, but some parts require hand sewing (whipstitching).  Our pattern teaches sashiko embroidery and shibori dyeing, and you will need extra supplies for those techniques if you want to incorporate those in your kimono.  If you want to use these techniques, you should read about them in the pattern before starting on your kimono.

Part Two will show how the kimono is made! Stay tuned!

If you are inspired to make your own kimono, check out our pattern here, 113 Japanese Kimono.

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Basics Pinafore Dress and Tunic

February 27, 2025 1 Comment on Basics Pinafore Dress and Tunic

A few weeks ago we were offered some fabric from Fabric Wholesale Direct, and I thought it would be a great opportunity to make a couple of simple garments I wanted to have for myself this spring and summer, and show them off to you.  

Fabric Wholesale Direct is sponsoring this post, and they specialize in discounted wholesale fabric for designers, event planners, fabric retailers, and more.  They have a variety of fabrics from linen, to silk, to upholstery.  They also have a referral program, so if your friends also want to shop there, you can get store credit.

First I made the Pinafore Dress from their cotton/poly blend that looks very much like linen (it comes in several colors).  This dress is so simple and this fabric is great for a summer -- lightweight and easy to care for.  I've made this dress before in a stripe like this and I love the look.  You can check out my post about how to make the extended back hack, or you can make it just like the pattern, as I did with this one.  I made a size small because there is plenty of ease in the hips (where I go to size Medium in our grade rule).  It fits well, and I like that I put the buttonholes a few inches up from the end of the straps -- this helps it fit a little closer on the chest.  The fabric stripes are fun because you can play with their direction.  I changed the pocket and strap stripe directions for some fun contrast.  This fabric is wide enough that I could cut the dress with vertical stripes.  I really like this dress (and I love the color), and I'll be wearing it a lot this summer on hot days, at the beach, and over tanks or T-shirts, but also this spring with a long sleeve (as below, last photos).

woman standing in front of a brick wall wearing a blue and white striped pinafore dress
woman standing in front of a brick wall wearing a blue and white striped pinafore dress
woman with back to camera standing in front of a brick wall wearing a blue and white striped pinafore dress
woman standing in front of a brick wall wearing a blue and white striped pinafore dress and white long sleeve shirt
woman standing in front of a brick wall wearing a blue and white striped pinafore dress and white long sleeved shirt with side to camera

  

Fabric Wholesale Direct has a nice selection of silk charmeuse, which I find to be a difficult fabric to source online.  The weight of this charmeuse is perfect for tops and dresses, and there were lots of colors to choose from.  I thought of our Basics Tunic as a great pattern to show off a nice silk charmeuse.  Not to mention, I have been wanting a simple silk top to wear with jeans or leggings.  The Basics Tunic is a very wide pattern and requires 60" fabric to be able to cut the pattern, for all sizes.  However, the silk is only 44" wide.  I always find yardages to be more of suggestions, and that with some thought and creativity, I can often work around yardage and cutting layout challenges.  First, if you want to make the Basic Tunic and don't have 60" wide fabric, you can cut the fabric with a center front and back seam.  Just add 1/2" seam allowance to the center, and cut at the fold line (with the 1/2" seam allowance added).  Or you can do what I did and make the sleeves shorter.  To do this, you just adjust the length of the sleeve by making a parallel line to the current cut edge, but as short as you want the sleeve to go.  Or you can fold out the amount you want to shorten.  Just be sure to keep the width of the pattern piece so the sleeve is not too tight (it was almost too tight for me). 

pattern piece on a yellow silk with pattern weights
You can see that the sleeve is too long for the width of the fabric.
close up of pattern piece on yellow silk fabric
This is how short the sleeve needs to be.  You could cut at the red line, or fold out the extra pattern.  

Here the extra pattern is folded out.  If you do this, be sure to widen the sleeve end to the original width so that the sleeve won't be too tight.

I also made a size Small for this pattern.  And another pro-tip for making this Tunic is to make a thread eye for the hook in the back, if you are going for a hook-and-eye closure.  And check out our sewing tutorial for this pattern here.  

And if you find silk charmeuse to be a tricky fabric to sew with (and I'm not sure who doesn't ), check out our sewing tips for sheer and slinky fabrics here.  

This is an easy and quick pattern to make and this silk makes it feel luxurious to wear!

woman standing against a brick wall wearing a long gold tunic top.
woman standing against a brick wall wearing a long gold tunic top.
woman standing against a brick wall wearing a long gold tunic top.
woman standing against a brick wall wearing a long gold tunic top.

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Gibson Girl Blouse with neck opening: How To

February 09, 2025 3 Comments on Gibson Girl Blouse with neck opening: How To

by Molly Hamilton

I have been wanting to make our 205 Gibson Girl Blouse for several years, but it never came to the top of my "need to make" list until late last year when we bought a roll of this dainty dark floral silk/viscose blend fabric.  This Italian fabric was a Liberty-style print and felt so light and airy.  I loved that even though it seemed light enough to be sheer, it actually was not sheer.  It was so pretty and I knew it would be perfect for my Gibson Girl Blouse.

Then, when I was looking through our Gibson Girl Blouse information, I saw a customer comment on a blog post that a great modification for the shirt would be to have the opening for the shirt at the shoulder and neck rather than the buttoned back.  This made a lot of sense to me.

Originally, the blouse buttoned in the back because it signified one was wealthy enough to have a servant help you get dressed.  And the front was not marred with buttons or fasteners.  This was very popular at the turn of the 20th century.  And even now, having a buttoned back can be helpful for dressing anyone with limited mobility.  But for many, a closure in the back can be difficult if you aren't able to button it all the way up on your own.  However, I have found that only the top 3-4 buttons need to be undone to be able to slip the blouse over your head.  Then, you can often button those on your own.  So a back-buttoned dress is not impossible to do yourself.  But, it is not necessarily conveinent.  If you want to read more about the history of the Gibson Girl, check out our post here.

In this post, I am going to show you how I added a buttoned shoulder/neck opening to this blouse, as well as a few potential tips and tricks for making the blouse.

Sizing

I made size Small.  I am usually a size small to medium in our grade rule, but a small bust, so I just went with a straight size small.  This blouse just needs to fit at your neck and bust.  The armholes are a little narrow (because that was how they were worn in the early 1900s), so if you want more room, you might want to make adjustments there.  I found them to have plenty of room for me (but this may have also been because of my fabric (read below)).  The waist of the blouse is very large and you likely won't need to fit there.  There are ties for each size, and I think you should make the ties a bit longer (maybe 6" longer) if you want to use them and you have a wider waist.  I also think the ties should be a bit longer anyway, no matter what size your waist.  I like a longer tie and hate a tiny bow with short tails.

I cut the blouse on the longer cutting lines and added 1/2" to the bottom front, back, and side panel.  The traditional cutting line makes the back a bit shorter than the front in order to accommodate a bustled skirt.  My waist is a little long, and I wanted my blouse to cover the top of my pants or skirt and be able to tuck in if I wanted, so the longer version with additional length was perfect for me.  If I would have added the ties, I also would have lowered the line for the ties by 1/2".  So check where your waist lands on the pattern and place your ties there, if you are using them.

Fabric

As I said above, I love this fabric.  It is so pretty and light and moves beautifully.  I used about 2.5 yards for this blouse.  My go-to method for pre-treating any fabric I am going to use to make a garment is to launder it the way I would launder the garment I am going to make.  As much as I love fine fabric, I need to be able to wash most of my clothes normally, so fine fabrics don't get treated as if they were precious in my house.  So I prewashed this fabric and was a bit surprised at how crinkly it came out after the wash.  I pressed it slightly, but the crinkles did not really come out and I decided I did not want to have to press this blouse every time I wanted to wear it.  So I cut it as it was.  I lost a few inches of width in the fabric and some length.  Viscose shrink a lot when washed, which may have been what caused the crinkle -- the particular blend of viscose and silk.

It turns out that the blouse was more "blousy" with this fabric because it basically ended up having some stretch to it, as if it was a seersucker.  This made this blouse even more comfortable with plenty of room in the armhole and at the wrist/lower arm.

Making the Neck/Shoulder Opening

I wanted the buttons to be on the left side of the neck. If you want the opening to button on the right side, just change the instructions below to the righthand side. 

If you have the pattern, you will realize that the shoulder seam falls toward the back and is not actually at the top of the shoulder.  To be able to button the blouse at the shoulder easily (and to look more typical), I needed to bring the shoulder seam on the left side forward to the top of the shoulder.  Luckily the shoulder line is marked on the front yoke.  

I needed to change the pattern pieces for the Neckband F, Front Yoke D, Back B, and Back Yoke E. 

Neckband

First, needed to move the opening on Neckband F from the back of the neck to the left side of the neck.  I traced the neckband to the notch for the left side of the neck and made that into a side.  Then, I moved the Neckband to the other side (where the righthand back was) and added the rest of the neckband there (traced from notch 6 to the end to make a complete neckband.  It helped to visualize where the center front is and to mark the new notches for center back.  Note: We re-use our tracing fabric.  It is sturdy stuff and we often cut it over and over.  So, you can ignore most of the markings on the tracing fabric below (other than for this neckband).

paper pattern of Neckband F
Original Neckband F.  You can see where I marked the new end at notch 6 on the right (the lefthand side of the collar) of the pattern piece. And a close-up below.

close up of Neckband F
Close up of neckband F
Neckband with the new side marked at notch 6.  Note, we re-use tracing fabric, so other markings are from another pattern we were using before.
close up of neckband pattern piece
Now I moved the pattern piece to the other side of the neckband (to what was the original center back), and I added the section of the neckband after notch 6 to this side.  The line where these two join will be about at the center back.

two neckband pattern pieces on a tableThe new Neckband with center front (CF) marked, center back (with a line), and a notch for the right shoulder seam is shown above. The seam allowance was built into this piece so I didn't need to add a seam allowance.  However, the notches (and CF) may be off by up to 1/2" when you use this collar.  Just pay attention to where things should approximately line up.  Also, note that this image makes it look like the new neckband is larger, but it is exactly the same size!

Center Back 

The Back Yoke and Back can be cut on the fold rather than as two pieces, since there won't be an opening in the back.  Fold the pattern pieces so that the center back line will be placed on the fold of fabric.  Note, you only need to cut one Back and one Back Yoke (not two as the pattern pieces say) because you are cutting them on the fold.

Back yoke pattern piece
Back Yoke E -- I am pointing to where the fold in the pattern piece should be made which will be placed on the fold of fabric (to cut one Back Yoke).

Back pattern piece
Back B above, and folded with at the center back below.

Back pattern piece with center folded
Cutting and Sewing Front Yoke and Back Yoke
The Front Yoke and the Back Yoke also have to be adjusted at the left side (or right side if you are making the opening on the right).  I wanted to turn under 1/2" (13mm) twice to make the button placket on the left shoulder, and I needed the placket to overlap by 1/2".  So I needed to add 1.5" (3.8cm) to the left side of the Front Yoke and Back Yoke. 
However, since the shoulder seam falls one inch behind the shoulder, I only wanted to add 1.5" to the top of the shoulder.  For the Front Yoke, I added 1.5" from the shoulder line to make the new cutting line for this pattern piece.  You can see the extra paper I taped to the left side of the Front Yoke to make it longer.
Front Yoke pattern piece with adjustment
For the Back Yoke, I needed to add the extra inch that I took off from the Front Yoke (the distance from the shoulder line to the shoulder seamline) so it would go to the top of the shoulder, plus the 1.5" extra that I needed to make the button placket.  You can see my adjusted pattern piece before I cut it out below. 
adjusted Back Yoke pattern piece

I cut the Front Yoke as one piece with the left side longer than the right side (as I made in the step above).  And I cut the Back Yoke with the center back on the fold.  However, since I only needed the left side to be longer, I cut the right side of the Back Yoke down to the size of the original pattern piece.

Back Yoke cut from fabric
Back Yoke cut on the fold.  You can see the left side and the right side are longer than the original pattern piece.  I needed to trim down the right side so that it would fit with the pattern. I only needed the left side to be longer for the shoulder button placket.

Back Yoke with right side trimmed off
Trimmed the additional fabric off of the Back Yoke on the right side.

I then sewed the Front Yoke and Back Yoke to the blouse as instructed.  When the directions call for sewing the front to the back and the shoulder seams, you will need to only sew the righthand side of the shirt together at the shoulders.

On the left hand side, I turned under 1/2" (13mm) at the shoulder and another 1/2" and then stitched close to the folded edge.  I did this to the left side of the Front and Back Yokes.  

close up of the folded edges on the left side of yokes
This image shows the yokes on the left side after they were folded over twice and stitched (the front is facing up).  

After sewing the shoulder seams, I attached the Neckband.  I added a strip of interfacing to my neckband (on the facing side) to give the fabric at the neck a little more body.  I attached the Neckband the same way as the instructions indicated, however, the opening was at the left side of the neck, rather than the back.  The center front and center back that we marked on the pattern piece earlier should line up.  And, the side seams on the Neckband should line up with the finished edges of the left side opening.  Mine did not, but that was mainly because my fabric had a weird stretch to it because of the crinkly aspect of the fabric.  I probably should have staystitched it before doing anything, and that would have helped.  However, I just trimmed the collar down to where it needed to be and continued on.

I slip-stitched the collar to the inside of the neck by hand.  And once finished I pinned the left shoulder together, overlapping the folded edges of the button placket and 1/2" (13mm) of the neckband.  This kept the shoulder together so that I could add the sleeves.

neckband added to shirt
Neckband is added and is flush with the button placket on the shoulder.

close up of closed neckband and shoulder
Pinned shoulder and neckband on left side (armscye is on the righthand side in picture and neckband on lefthand side of picture).
I sewed on the sleeves, matching notches and seams as instructed.  The sleeve is easy to adjust because there is a lot of gathering at the top.  

close up of left side of shoulder with blouse on a woman
I tested the blouse to show how the opening looked before buttons were added.  This is the left side of the blouse with the shoulder and neck placket open.

Close up of the blouse left shoulder with a woman wearing it.
You can see where it will close when the buttons are added.  

Once I put in the sleeves, I just needed to add buttons and buttonholes to the left shoulder and neck, and hem the shirt. 

Close up of a woman wearing a floral blouse, view of left shoulder with buttons
I added 1/2" mother-of-pearl buttons.  I only had 4 (2 pair) and they did not match, but they were the same size and only on close inspection would anyone see they didn't match.  So I alternated the buttons so that it was an intentional choice to use mismatched buttons.  You could use smaller buttons, but I would not go larger than 1/2".  If using smaller buttons, you may want to add more buttons.  Keep the buttons and buttonholes evenly spaced.  I added the buttons to the front of the shoulder and the buttonholes on the back.  You could do the reverse, especially if you wanted your "opening" face the back rather than the front.  Be sure to set up the overlap of the front and back yoke as you want it when you pin them together before the sleeve is added.

Woman wearing a dark floral blouse and jeans with left side toward camera
I love this blouse!  It is so comfortable, light, and airy.  It is also beautiful and exactly what I was envisioning.  I am glad I made the shoulder opening (and I love the pretty buttons there).  I also find that I only need to unbutton 2 buttons to get the blouse over my head (this may not be true of everyone).  

Another modification I made was not adding the waist ties.  At first, I left them off to see if I liked the blouse billowy.  If I wanted a cinch, I thought I could add them later, which I still could, but I did not want to.  So I left them off entirely.

Woman standing in front of brick wall wearing a dark floral blouse and jeans
Woman standing in front of brick wall wearing a dark floral blouse and jeans.  Back is to camera
No buttons in the back!



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205 Gibson Girl Blouse Resources for Sewing

February 06, 2025 1 Comment on 205 Gibson Girl Blouse Resources for Sewing

The 205 Gibson Girl Blouse is a popular pattern that makes up a feminine and romantic Edwardian-era blouse.  It is a pattern that can be as simple or complex as you want.  The blouse can be made with or without lace at the edges or lace insertion.  It can be made with fine silk or with a sturdy cotton.  You don't even need to make the open cuffs. The sleeve can be sewn together to the "wrist" and the cuff made as wide as you wish to fit your hand and lower arm.  And, the cuff pattern piece provided generally fits this area.  

line drawings of front and back of blouse

Views A and B are the same, but View A has the collar made of fabric which can be finished with lace.  The Yokes can also be finished with lace at the seams for View A.  View B (more traditional blouse, pictured above) has a collar that is made with rows of lace that are stitched together, and it has bias bound cuffs (both things which were typical of the time period of the blouse).  Lace insertion and pin tucks are optional and can be added to either blouse, but is more typical for View B. 

View A (with fabric collar, cuffs, but no lace at seams)Brunette woman standing surrounded by greenery with hand on her hip looking to the right, wearing 205 Gibson Girl Blouse.
View B (with lace collar, pintucks, bias cuffs, and lace insertion)Brunette woman smiling, standing in front of a white studio backdrop wearing 206 Gibson Girl Blouse.


We wanted to provide a list of resources all in one place that might make sewing this pattern easier for you.  

To start with, read a short history of the Gibson Girl and the (tenuous) connection to Folkwear.

pen and ink illustration of two women in Gibson Girl Blouses and one man in Edwardian clothes

If you are interested in trying to add lace insertion to your blouse, read our post with the basics of lace insertion here.  And we have insertion lace and edging lace here.

Close up of a woman wearing a cream colored gibson girl blouse with lace insertion
Are you going to add pintucks to the blouse?  We have a simple tutorial on how to make pintucks (and not get too frustrated with them).

Close up of a woman wearing a Gibson Girl Blouse in cream color with lace insertion
Often this blouse is made with fine, light-weight fabrics.  We have tips for sewing with lace and sheer fabrics.

sheer light blue fabric


The 205 Gibson Girl Blouse closes with a row of buttons in the back.  We have several very detailed posts about making buttonholes and using buttons.  Buttonholes 101, Part 1 and Buttonholes 101, Part 2.

Woman wearing cream colored gibson girl blouse from the back
close up back view of brunette woman wearing 205 Gibson Girl Blouse, back fastened with tiny buttons.
For a tutorial on how to make the back buttoned opening into a shoulder opening, read more here.

close up of woman with a blouse with shoulder buttons

Have you made this blouse?  Do you have any sewing tips to add?


 

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231 Big Sky Riding Pants: Sew Along

January 24, 2025 2 Comments on 231 Big Sky Riding Pants: Sew Along

by Esi Hutchinson

The 231 Big Sky Riding Skirt is a genius example of the evolution of a riding habit (clothing for horse-riding) for women to something practial. The riding "skirt" allowed women to ride astride a saddle rather than sit side-saddle (which seems impossible to me).  A flap on the front buttons to one side to look like a skirt and to the other to transform into pants. 

Surprisingly, sewing this garment isn't as time-consuming as it may seem at first glance. The only thing that might be a little confusing, or take extra time, is assembling the front flaps, and the one back pleat, and buttonholes. After finishing this pair of pants, I was very impressed with the construction and ingenuity of this garment.

We just resized this pattern, and now sizes XS-3XL are available in the PDF pattern (and very soon the paper pattern).  I have always wanted to make this pattern so this seemed like a great opportunity to do a sew along.  For this sew along, I made the midcalf length with size medium in the body of the garment and a size small at the waist. 

Pattern pieces for 231 cut out of brown sanded cotton twill with physical pattern on top of fabric all on a green cutting mat.

Let's get started!!!

Fabric and Sizing

This pattern calls for medium to heavyweight cottons and blends such as poplin, denim, gabardine or corduroy.  Medium weight linen, wool, or silks like dupioni, jacquard, or raw silk would also work well. I made my pants with a sanded cotton twill Cotton Sanded Twill - Tobacco for this blog post.

The first time I made these pants (and after I sewed the buttonholes), I realized I made a size too small by mistake. My measurements fit the size medium, but I needed the waist smaller. Instead of narrowing the waist area, which I usually need to do, I narrowed each pattern piece along the side seams. That was a really silly mistake, but it happens.  I had to start over, and I used a dark brown linen instead for my final pair of riding pants.  So the lesson is, make a muslin to start out if you are at all unsure how the fit will be on you.

Tips for cutting out the pattern

Make any fit adjustments to the leg pieces (and waistband) before cutting out your fabric. 

Don't forget to transfer all the stars and boxes, darts, and pleat lines on your pattern pieces.

You can also label your pieces with a water removable marker or chalk to make it easier for you to see what the pieces are.

Seam Finishes

The seam finishing recommended for this pattern is a flat felled seam if you don't want to do that overcast, serge or zig zag your seam allowances.  However, the flat felled seam makes the inside nice and neat and it adds a bit of topstitching to your garment.  To make a flat felled seam read this blog post on How to Make Flat Felled Seams.

I like a faux flat felled seams, however.  It is quicker and easier to do and looks good on the outside.  To make a faux flat-felled seam, serge, overcast, or zig zag the seam allowances and press the seam to one side. Then top-stitch about 1/4" (6mm) away from the seam line, stitching the seam allowance in place. 

Sewing the Pattern

Front and Back

To start, stitch front legs C together with right sides facing, at the center front seam, and matching notches 7.  

Right sides together pinned front leg C at the center front seam matching notches 7. On a green cutting mat.

To attach the front panel, pin the left side of the front panel A (as you wear it) to the right front legs C with right sides together and matching notches 2, 6, and the center front of panel A to the center front seam of front legs C.  Stitch from the bottom hem to the waist and across the top of the waist to the center front seam of front legs C. Stop stitching at the center front seam, and backstitch to secure.

right sides together front panel A and left leg C pinned from waist down. On a green cutting mat.
right sides together front panel A and left leg C pinned at waist on a green cutting mat.

Clip to the stitching line at the center seam.

Clipped fabric at the stitching line at the center seam, on a green cutting mat..

Clip the corner to reduce bulk and turn the pieces with right sides out and press.

clipped corner on a green cutting mat.

Put the front of the skirt aside for now.

The back piece B is a bit strange-looking. There is a deep box pleat in the back that gives the skirt its fullness. Stitch the back pieces together at the center back seam, matching notches 3. 

Keeping the back pieces with right sides together, stitch on the pleat line, matching the pleat stitching lines.  Now, we put this piece aside for a minute.

Sew the darts on pieces E and press the darts toward the side (towards the double notches 5). 

Pinned dart on piece E on a green cutting mat.

You will then stitch the side back E pieces to each side of the back, matching single notches 7.

Now to make the deep box pleat.  Place the pleat stitching line over the center back crotch seam and press flat - fabric will to to each side of the pleat line. Baste the waist of the pleat to the waist of the back. The pleat will overlap slightly on the side back pieces E.

pleat stitching line over the center back seam and pressed flat. Basted on the waist.

Pockets!

 I like big pockets, so I made my pockets larger as you can see below.

Pocket pattern piece enlarged on the outer edge of the pocket pattern piece. On a green cutting mat

Sew one pocket piece to each side front D, with right sides together and matching double notches 5. Clip the seam allowance to the stars and press the seam allowance towards the pocket pieces.

one pocket piece F pinned right sides together on each side side of front D.

Do the same with the back skirt, stitching one pocket piece to each side back pieces E. Again, clip the seam allowance at the stars and press the seam allowance towards the pocket pieces.

One pocket pieces pinned right sides together on either side of back B
After I sewed on the pocket pieces, I understitched the seam allowance to the pocket to prevent the pockets from rolling out. This image is taken after I assembled the skirt front and back.

close up of under stitching of the pockets.

You can now stitch the front and back pockets together around the outer edge of the pockets up to the star. Put the front and back of the pants together and start sewing at the pockets.

pinned pockets around the top and outer edge.
Continue stitching the side back to side front, from the star at the bottom of the pocket to the hem. You should have clipped to the star when attaching the pocket pieces to the side back and side front. This will make it easier to sew a flat-felled or faux flat-felled seam. The seam should be pressed towards the back, and the pockets to the front. 

pinned side front D to side back E from star of pocket to hem. on a green cutting mat.

Waist

There is a little bit of gathering of the pants at the waist. I think it gives the appearance of making the "skirt" look fuller.

Make the two rows of gathering stitches on the side fronts within the seam allowance.  Make sure to keep the pockets out of the stitches. Press the pockets towards the side front, if you haven't already. I did not bast the pockets to the side fronts, I did not want it to be bulky when I pull the gathering stitches. I just had to remember to make sure the pockets are towards the side fronts when I attach the waistband.

two rows of gathering stitches at waistline, on a green cutting mat.

Waist Plackets

Press under 1/2" (13mm) on the long edge of the placket facing G and placket H on the side opposite of the box. Then press under 1/2" (13mm) on short edges of G and H.

 

Press under 1/2" (13mm) on the long edge of the placket facing G and placket H on the opposite side of the box. Then pressed under 1/2" (13mm) on the short edges of Placket facing G and placket H. On a green cutting mat.

Only on the placket facing G, topstitch the pressed edges on both the long and short edges 3/8" (1cm) from the pressed edge.

 

3/8 (9.5mm) stitching line on placket facings G pressed edges, on a green cutting mat.

Take one placket facing and with right sides together, stitch it on the right side of the front panel A (as you wear it) at the waist. 

One placket facing G and pinned right sides together on the right side of the front panel A as you wear it. On a green cutting mat.
Clip the seam allowance to the box and trim the seam allowance of the facing only.

Clipped at box.

You will do the same with the remaining placket facing on the left front leg (as you wear it).

Press the previously stitched side of the placket facings to the inside of both panel A and leg C, and slip stitch the pressed edges of facing on the inside.  

Slip stitching of the pressed edge of facing G to the inside. On a green cutting mat.

Now, stitch one placket H to each side front piece D from the waist to the marked box. Clip the seam allowance to the box. Trim the seam allowance of the placket only. Press the seam towards the placket.

Pinned on placket H stitch to one side front piece D from waist to box. On a green cutting mat.

Trimmed seam allowance on placket H only.

Placket H has a center fold line. Press along the center fold line of the placket H and place the pressed edge of the placket over the previously stitched seam line and top stitch on both long and short edges. 

topstitched placket H to inside of side front pant leg E

Now you can sew the front and back sides of the skirt together. Make sure the placket on the side front and the placket facing on the front panel overlap slightly at the box and 1/2" (13mm) above the box.

Stitch from the hem to the box and 1/2" (13mm) above the box.

Front and back of skirt right sides together, pinned from the hem to box and 1/2" (13mm) above the box. 
Overlapping of Plackets and chalk line 1/2" (13mm) above box on plackets.

You should then secure the bottom of the placket and placket facing pieces (G and H) by stitching, with right sides together, through both placket and facing 1/2" (13mm) above the box on the short edge of the pieces.

Right side of secured bottom of plackets together at short ends

I did not interface my waistband. I felt my fabric was sturdy enough to not use it. 

Press under 1/2" (13mm) seam allowance of both waistbands I and J as instructed, fold in half along the center fold line lengthwise, and stitch the short ends. Clip the corners and turn right side out.

Pressed under 1/2" (13mm) seam allowance of both waistband I and J on one long edge. On a green cutting mat.
stitched short ends of waistbands I and J.

To attach back waistband pieces, place WRONG side of skirt to the RIGHT side of the waistbands. Pin the front waistband to the raw edges of the front of the skirt. Stitch, clip corners, and turn and press. 

Pinned front waistband to front of skirt.
Pin the center back of the waistband J to the center back of back B then continue pinning and pull in gathers to fit the waistband on either side

Pinned back waistband to back of skirt.

I like it when instructions say to sew the waistband right side to wrong side. It makes the outside look neater when you topstitch from the right side rather than the inside of the garment.

Press the folded edge of the waistbands over the previously stitched seam lines (to the right side) and top stitch. 

Pinned pressed folded edge of the front waistband over the stitched seam lin. On a dark grey cutting mat.

Pinned pressed folded edge of the back waistband over the stitched seam lin. On a dark grey cutting mat.

To secure the waistband at the sides. You can sew two skirt hooks on the short ends of the inside of the front waistband and two skirt eyes on the short ends of the outside of the back waistband. You can also sew buttonholes on either side on the short ends of the front waistband, or whatever closure you prefer to secure the waist on the sides. I used buttons.

Buttonholes

This is where my sewing got a little frustrating. I have not mastered buttonholes they do not all end up looking the same -- but it's okay, I am still learning.

You can read a lot about of general information about making buttonholes and attaching buttons in our blog posts:  Buttonholes 101: Part 1 and Buttonholes 101: Part 2.

Sew the buttonholes on the left front leg C (as you wear it) and along both sides of front panel A. You can use 8 to 12 (or more buttons), depending on the length you are making, the size of your buttons, and the spacing you want to use.  Use the template if it makes it easier to space the buttonholes, or space the buttonholes as desired. 

Marked buttonholes for left leg C.

 

Marked buttonholes on the wrong side of the right side of front panel A.

Marked buttonholes on left side of front panel A.

half an hour later....

After I sewed all the buttonholes (I got lots of practice), I realized the pants would not fit me. So I made a new skirt out of dark brown linen and I will be demonstrating the rest of the sew along with my final riding skirt (dark brown linen rather than the brown twill).

You will sew buttonholes on left front leg, and both sides of the front panel.  DO NOT CUT ALL THE BUTTONHOLES. Cut only the top three buttonholes on the right side of the front panel, the top three buttonholes on left front leg, and all buttonholes on the left side of the front panel. 

There are options to cut your many buttonholes. You can use a buttonhole cutter. This would be my preferred choice (it makes it a lot quicker and neater).

Or, you can pin either side of the short end of the buttonhole and use a seam ripper to cut the buttonhole open. The pins prevent you from cutting past the buttonhole. However, you can still cut the sides of the buttonhole by mistake, so be careful.

button hole cutter near a buttonholetwo pins on either side of the end of a buttonhole and a seam ripper near that buttonhole.

You will only cut the top buttonholes that attach to the plackets on the right side of the front panel and the left front leg, as you wear it.

three buttonholes on the right side of panel A on a dark brown linen fabric.
Right side of front panel A

three buttonholes on the left side of panel A on a dark brown linen fabric.
Left side of leg C

Cut all the buttonholes ONLY on the left side of the front panel A. 

All 18 buttonholes on the front panel of front A.
All the buttonholes on front panel A

Finishing

The bottom hem is 1-1/2" (3.8cm), so press under 1/2" (13mm) then 1" (2.5cm). The instructions say to slip stitch but I topstitched the hem in place. 

If you want, you can topstitch the front panel A using a 1/4" (6mm) seam allowance starting from the center front across from the left top half and down to the left side to the hem.

Attach the buttons:  I think it's wise to use thread shanks when attaching the buttons, as it will accommodate the thickness of the fabric in the panel. It will prevent puckering and pulling of the fabric if you make a thread shank. This blog post has lots of information about buttons and shows how to make a shank. 

Below is the final 231 Big Sky Riding Skirt I made. I love them, this is such a unique pair of pants that fits quite well into modern-day fashion. I've never owned a pair of culottes, and I was a bit nervous I was not going to like the look. However, I think they are great and I will definitely be wearing these!  I have always wanted to make this pattern. It was really frustrating that my first skirt didn't work out, but I like what I ended up with.  Sewing is always teaching me lessons!

Here I've paired the skirt with 210 Armistice Blouse and all I need now is a helmet and a horse. Haha!

Close up of African woman wearing a dark brown linen 231 riding skirt, in pant form, with hands in her pockets. Standing outside in the woods.
African woman wearing a dark brown linen 231 riding skirt with black buttons in pant form, and a beige 210 armistice blouse. She is looking up and standing outside in the woods with her pockets in her hands.
African woman wearing a dark brown linen 231 riding skirt with black buttons in skirt form, and a beige 210 armistice blouse. She is standing outside in the woods with her pockets in her hands facing towards the front.
back of African woman wearing a dark brown linen 231 riding skirt with black buttons in skirt form, and a beige 210 armistice blouse. She is standing outside in the woods.

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All the 231 Big Sky Riding Skirts

January 15, 2025 2 Comments on All the 231 Big Sky Riding Skirts

Our pattern for the 231 Big Sky Riding Skirt is one of the most interesting historic patterns we have (in my opinion). The pattern is based on a real split skirt that was owned and worn by rodeo star Fanny Sperry Steele (1887-1983).  The split, or divided, skirt enabled her to ride astride, but preserved the "look" of a skirt (and therefore propriety). In actuality, this garment is a culotte with a movable front panel that buttons either to the left, for a skirt effect, or to the right for a pant effect.  So even though these are pants, it can look like a skirt. The deep pleat in the back helps with this look (and is flattering).  The main change we made from the original design was to add pockets for convenience.  

We have a couple of samples of our 231 Big Sky Riding Skirts here at Folkwear and they are all beloved.  I am going to show you some of them in more detail today.

First is our mid-calf version, which you can make from the pattern by cutting at the calf-length markings.  This one is made from a medium to heavy weight woven brown cotton and has machine appliques (made of silk dupioni) on the side of the legs.  The applique pattern was an artistic creation by our sample-maker at the time and shows something interesting that can be done with these pants!  In the photos below, you can also see how the panel is unbuttoned and moved from the left to the right to go from a skirt look to a pair of pants.  We had help doing this because we were in a photo shoot, but you can easily do this yourself!

woman walking outside in a white long sleeve t and brown split skirt
woman walking outside in a white long sleeve t and brown split skirt - facing away from the camera
woman walking outside in a white long sleeve t and brown split skirt, unbuttoning top button on pants
woman walking outside in a white long sleeve t and brown split skirt, with another older woman unbuttoning the front flap
woman walking outside in a white long sleeve t and brown split skirt, buttoning up the side panel with an older woman helping
woman standing outside with a black and white cow in a white long sleeve t and brown split skirt
woman outside in a white long sleeve t and brown split skirt, showing off the side leg red and blue appliqu

The next sample we have is the longer version and it is made from an off-white medium-weight linen with flat buttons.  This is a casual version and moves really well. In these photos, we have paired the Big Sky Riding Skirt with a short-sleeved version of the Thai Blouse from 134 South Asian Tops & Wraps.

 Woman wearing a green short sleeve wrap top with off white linen pants
Woman wearing a green short sleeve wrap top with off white linen pants, facing to the side
Woman wearing a green short sleeve wrap top with off white linen pants, walking toward the camera outside

Another sample we have in our collection has not been photographed before and is a mid calf-length made from a light to medium weight denim with decorative rounded metal buttons down the front, and with smaller coordinating buttons on each side of the pleat in the back.  Unfortunately, and the reason it has not yet been photographed, is because most of the buttons on the front are missing!  When did this happen and how?  I have no idea, but we are working on replacing the buttons now :-).  You'll only get a back view today!

Woman standing by a brick wall wearing a white shirt and denim coulottes, back to camera
close up of denim skirt with missing buttons

My own Big Sky Riding Skirt is made with a navy sanded twill.  We have the navy in stock right now, and we have several other colors available too.  I made mine split skit ankle-length and with flat, large navy buttons.  This fabric has a lot of body and doesn't move fluidly, but it holds shape really well and looks structured.  I made my pockets from some Liberty fabric scraps.  I love this skirt/pants!

Woman standing by a brick wall in a white shirt and navy wide leg pants
Woman standing by a brick wall in a white shirt and navy wide leg pants
Woman standing by a brick wall in a white shirt and navy wide leg pants
close up of inside of pocket with navy coulottes
Woman standing by a brick wall in a white shirt and navy wide leg pants

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Folkwear Year in Review: 2024

December 30, 2024 1 Comment on Folkwear Year in Review: 2024

2024 was a full and busy year for Folkwear!  Below are some highlights from the year.  But our biggest challenge as well as our biggest growth came at about the same time.  Hurricane Helene hit our area and devasted it tremendously.  We were very lucky to have survived as the neighborhood around our business location was flooded and destroyed.  We had just moved to this new location as we expanded our business by buying a printer and folding machine.  And Folkwear had just purchased The Green Pepper and moved it from Oregon to our place in Asheville, NC.  All these events happened within a few weeks of each other in August/September.  Read more about these changes here.  What a whirlwind!  We are so grateful to be on our feet and running both companies.  And we are printing our own patterns now! 

We absolutely love The Green Pepper, and have enjoyed running Folkwear alongside it. If you feel like helping with hurricane relief, there is still a huge need in our area, and you can find more information here.  

photo of the entrance to Folkwear with a banner at the top and a white dress in the back ground with a lot of cardboard boxes

 

The Green Pepper logo with words and a green pepper

 

Folkwear re-released several older patterns . . . 303 English Cottage Kitchen, 234 Cameos, and the 246 Calico Day Dress. 

pen and ink illustration of a woman and girl in a kitchen wearing aprons and holding dishes
pen and ink illustration of 4 women wearing camisoles
pen and ink illustration of scene of two women in dresses in a kitchen

 

We put out one completely new pattern, and we love it!  280 Resort Kaftan. And a free pattern - Origami Bag.

woman standing in a door frame wearing a green and black leafy floor length kaftan

 

Folkwear traveled to Guatemala and Italy this year!

woman standing in a yellow dress in front of a textile stall in Guatemala
Wearing my 121 Guatemalan Gabacha in Guatemala.


Riomaggiore, Italy

 

We created several sewing hacks for our patterns that were a lot of fun:  Upsized the 106 Turkish Coat and made it as an unlined coat, made the 229 Sailor Pants into a skirt (part 1 and 2), Added front pockets to the 229 Sailor Pants, made the 250 knickers into pants (part 1 and 2), and I made a modern 246 Calico Day Dress.

woman wearing a blue long skirt and white tee in front of a grey wall.
Esi wearing her long skirt made from the 229 Sailor Pants. 

 

I also made a kilt from our pattern, which was a great learning experience!

man standing outside facing away and wearing a blue and green kilt


We are now working on our goals for 2025, and excited to bring more Folkwear patterns, tutorials, and fabrics to you.  What are your sewing goals for 2025?  What suggestions do you have for Folkwear in 2025?

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Free Pattern: Origami Bag

December 12, 2024 8 Comments on Free Pattern: Origami Bag

This small Origami Bag is inspired by the Japanese azuma bukuro bags which are also known as bento bags, Japanese market bags, triangle bags, and origami bags.  In Japan, they are commonly used as shopping bags (when made a little larger) or for carrying lunches. Azuma bukuro, which translates to "east bag," refers to bags developed in the eastern part of Japan during the Edo Period (1603-1868), a region that corresponds to modern-day Tokyo. We are Folkwear appreciate the ingenuity of this Japanese design, its simplicity, and the small amount of fabric needed to make this bag.  

This little bag is perfect for packing your lunch, but it also makes a great reusable and sustainable gift wrap.  You can use scraps from your fabric stash to make several of these very quick and easy bags.  

If you want to make the bag larger, extend two sides of the bag evenly and extend the folding lines to correspond.  Once you get the hang of the technique, you can make bags in lots of sizes!

We are offering this bag pattern for free!  You can get the instructions and pattern piece for free at this link, or you can keep reading for how to make the bag.

FABRIC SUGGESTIONS
This bag takes good advantage of fabric bias for stretch and pliability. It can be made in any lightweight fabric, but is especially nice in a silk, rayon, or other fabric with good drape. For a bag to hold, or wrap, gifts, a fabric with more body (like a cotton or linen) is great.

YARDAGE REQUIREMENTS
3/8 yard or .34m of fabric in any width fabric 34” or wider. If you make a larger bag, you will need more fabric (basically the length of the short end of the pattern piece).

SEAM FINISHES
Serge, Overcast, or Zig-zag; OR French Seams. In our original, the bag is made with French seams. We give you instructions for how to do these below. In general, with wrong sides together, stitch seam only 3/16” (4mm). Press to one side. Turn right sides together and stitch on seam line, taking care to include previous seam.

CUTTING THE PATTERN
You can layout the free pattern piece along the edge of a fabric.  Or you can cut a rectangle that is 11" x 33.25" (27.9x84.5cm).  You can adjust the size of the rectangle as you desire, especially once you understand how the bag comes together.

FOLDING and SEWING

Transfer Fold Lines to fabric, if desired. Fold Lines and notches are numbered on the pattern piece.  Though you don't really need them to make this pattern work.

NOTE: If using French Seams, and your fabric has a wrong and right side, fold as below, but start with your fabric with the right side down.  If using other seam finishes, start with the right side of the fabric up.

Fold along Fold Line 1 as illustrated below, or fold up bottom left corner to meet top long edge. Pin in place at top edge.

drawing of first fold of the rectangle bag

 

Next, fold along Fold Line 2 on the opposite end as illustrated (fold top right corner to meet bottom long edge). Pin in place along bottom edge.

drawing of bag with second fold -- into a trapezoid

 

Then, fold along Fold Line 3 so that outside edges and notches line up (fold bottom right up so that outside edges match).

drawing of bag folded third time into a bag

 

For regular seams, with right sides together, and matching notches 1, stitch seam at a ½” (13mm) seam allowance. Finish seam and press to toward bottom of bag.

For French seams, wrong sides will be together and you will stitch scant ¼” seam allowance.

drawing of stitching on a seam line of origami bag

 

Repeat on the other side matching notches 2.

drawing of stitched seam of origami bag

 

Remove all pins.

For French seams, go back to each seam, turn so the right sides of the fabric are together (trim notches if needed), press, and stitch with a ¼” seam allowance, enclosing the previously made seam. 

Finally, hem the top unstitched raw edges of each handle by pressing to the wrong side ¼” (6mm) and another ¼” (6mm) and stitch close to pressed edges. This will be a little trickier with French seams, but works fine. You can also use rolled hems on the handles for a very narrow hem.

Also, if you wish to reinforce the bag corners, above the seams, you can add a small, hemmed triangle of fabric and top stitch it to the hem on two sides.

drawing of two bags, inside and outside view, with a stitched triangle at the corner seams

 

Turn bag right side out, and tie to close.

origami bag right side out
Finished Origami Bag
drawing of finished origami bag tied up
Origami Bag tied at the top

 

And that is all there is to it!  Have you made these bags before?  Will you be making some?  How do you use them, or plan to?

three origami bags -- red, yellow fronts, and japanese print -- laying on a green cutting mat

Perfect for packing in your lunch!
See how to tie the bag here on our YouTube channel (Or see the video below) :

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A Modern 246 Calico Day Dress

November 13, 2024 3 Comments on A Modern 246 Calico Day Dress

When we decided to bring back the Calico Day Dress from the Folkwear archives, I had my doubts.  We had many customers over the years contact us to ask us to bring it back, but I saw the dress as a bit dowdy, maybe only for costume, and I was also concerned that it used so much fabric (making it expensive to make).  However, once we started working on the pattern, my mind changed.  

When we started the work to bring it back into print, we decided first to grade the pattern up to 2XL.  The original only went to our current size Medium (which is pretty tiny).  And, then we improved the instructions, clarifying certain areas and making sure it came together easily.  It really is a pretty easy dress to sew!  Even with the ruffles, the flounce, and the inside bodice lining, it takes less time and effort than I thought to make this dress.  

I made the brown Calico Day Dress sample below with a calico cotton print I found at Joann's.  I made the inside bodice lining with a cream colored print, which I though made an interesting contrast to the brown.  I enjoyed making the dress below a lot and it got me thinking of the ways to make a more modern, everyday type dress I might want to wear.  

woman wearing a long brown calico dress walking in a yard.

Then I came across an ad for Boden, and the dress they showed in the ad looked so much like the Calico Day Dress!  I had been thinking about a dress that would be warm to wear in winter -- long and with long sleeves.  So I decided to make one for myself based on the look of the Boden dress I'd seen.

First, I wanted fabric that would be flowing -- not a cotton, but something with silk or Tencel.  We had a couple of lovely Tencel twills in stock (red and green) and I decided to use the brick red colored Tencel.  The twill gives the dress just enough weight to make it a wonderful winter dress -- it has some heft and is flowing (and does not wrinkle easily).

I cut a size Small for this dress.  I am just about between a size Small and Medium for Folkwear grade rule, but the medium can sometimes be too big for me.  If the garment is not very fitted, then a Small is usually perfect.  That was the case for this dress.  There is actually lots of room at the bust, waist, and hip.  The most fitted area is the lined bodice at the waist (but I left that part of the dress off).  

For my dress, I did not want the bodice lining because I wanted the front to button up (not the lining) and I wanted less bulk inside.  I also did not want the yoke shoulder ruffles so I left those off as they seemed too vintage/historic and I was wanting a modern look.  Finally, I wanted just a collar stand and not the full turndown collar.  So I only cut the collar stand piece and not the collar.  I wanted the belt to be longer so that I could tie it, so I added about 9" to the middle of the belt.  If I did it again, I would add more length (and I could always easily remove this belt and make a new one).   Finally, my fabric was nearly 60" (150cm) wide, and I was trying to save fabric, so I only cut 2 flounce pieces rather than 3 and I used the whole width of the fabric for the flounce (rather than the pattern piece length).  This still gave me lots of flounce and room to gather.  And possibly, 3 flounces would have been too much, especially for the size small.  

Woman standing in a long red dress in front of a brick wall. Hands in pockets, looking down.

So, because of all the pieces I did not use (bodice lining, ruffle, collar, and extra flounce), I was able to cut out this maxi dress from just 3.5 yards of fabric!  That felt pretty impressive to me.  Though I was definitely doing some pattern tetris to get all the pieces to fit!

AND, I added pockets to the dress.  I had enough fabric from the left over scraps to cut 4 pocket pieces to add to the side seams.  We have a whole tutorial on adding pockets to side seams, so you can get a free pocket pattern and read all about it here.

close up of red dress with hand in pocket

Construction-wise, this was pretty simple, especially without the extra pieces.  It is pretty easy to leave off the bodice lining; nothing depends on the lining for further construction.  I sewed the the collar stand as I would have a collar (sewed all sides but the one to attach to the neckline) and attached it as normal.  It all came together pretty easily.  Gathering the flounce is always a bit of work, but marking centers of the flounce and dress front and back is a huge help.  I sewed the center front seam all the way up to my waist (which was much higher than the box in the pattern) because I wanted to have buttons just go from my waist up.  I only added 3 small buttons to the front seam/hem so that it buttons up the front.  Again, there was enough ease in this pattern that I can easily slip it over my head to get it on and off.  If you want it to be easier to get in and out of, keeping the front seam attached from the square in the pattern to the hem is a better idea.  But, this works perfect for me.

Image of top half of woman wearing a red dress in front of a wooden barn wall.

I really like how this dress turned out!  I can wear it to work or church.  I can wear it with tights or leggings underneath for more warmth, with a scarf, with a jean jacket.  It feels quite versatile.  I also have some thoughts about adding embroidery down the center front seam and/or the collar stand.  

What do you think?  Does the Calico Day Dress work as a modern dress?  How would you make this pattern up?

Image of top half of woman wearing a red dress in front of a wooden barn wall.
Woman standing in front of a brick wall wearing a long red dress and a denim jacket
Woman standing in front of a brick wall wearing a long red dress with a hand in her pocket.
Woman standing in front of a brick wall wearing a long red dress with her hands in her pockets and back to the camera.

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How to add side seam pockets to 119 Saroulles!

October 30, 2024

By Esi Hutchinson

In a previous blog post, Molly makes a good point that some of the Folkwear Patterns don't have pockets due to the traditional and historic nature of the garments (based on how the fabric was woven and the culture they come from), but that doesn't mean you can't add them. Read the blog post here about adding a patch pocket to your pants. I would also encourage you to read this blog post about the history of pockets and the hierarchical roles they have played in clothing. 

In today's short blog post, I will show you how to add a side seam pocket to 119 Saroulles.  It is very easy! The pattern pieces make it very simple to add a side seam pocket. You will need a pocket pattern piece, plus the 119 Sarouelles pattern.  You can download and print a free pocket pattern piece here, and you can read more about side seam pockets in this blog post. The fabric yardage won't change if you include a side seam pocket for this pattern.

The African and Turkish pants in this pattern are cut with the side of the pants on the fold.  So there is not normally a side seam.  However, to add a side seam you just need to add 1/2" (13mm) seam allowance on the fold line for your size. I'm making a large, and the green line in the image below is the original fold line and the pink line is my new cutting line. 

Pattern piece of leg pant B with highlighted original line in green and half seam allowance in pink
Zoomed out view of the whole pattern piece of leg pant B with highlighted original line in green and half seam allowance in pink

You can add notches to the new side seam if you like.  I included double notches about 18" down from the waistline so it would make it easy to line up my side seams.

Pattern piece of leg pant B with highlighted original line in green and half seam allowance in pink with double notches on the new cutting line



With the side seam, you will now be cutting four pants legs instead of cutting two on the fold.

pattern piece pant leg with cut one on fold marked out with pen and written cut 4 instead.



I wanted my pocket bags to be larger than the free downloadable pockets we have (linked above) so added some extra room.  This is an easy pattern drafting step anyone can do.

pocket pattern piece extended with a pink marker.



Usually pockets are placed 2" to 4" (5-10cm) below the waist. I marked 2" (5cm) below the waist for the top of my pocket placement.

marking 2 inches from the waistline for pocket placement.



Sew one pocket piece to the side seam of each of the four pant pieces, from the top of the pocket to the bottom of the pocket, and press the seam toward the pocket. I placed dots 1/2" (13mm) above and below the bottom and top of the pocket.  I added the dots to indicate where to start and stop sewing on the outer seam of the pocket when I sew the pants legs together. You can also understitch the pocket so the pocket doesn't roll out -- stitching the seam of the pocket/pants to the pocket.

pocket piece pinned to pant leg.



Sew the two pants pieces together starting from the waist down to the dot of the pocket, around the outer edge of the pocket up to the lower dot and down the rest of the pant leg. 

side seams of pants legs with pockets sew together and orange direction lines for where to sew.

 

side seams of pants legs with pockets sew together and orange direction lines for where to sew.



Now you can continue with the pattern instructions to finish your pants.  This pocket tutorial was made with my muslin to make sure I cut the size I wanted.  I made my final pair out of a Lyocell Twill in the color Balsam.

pant leg pieces pinned at both crotch seams

 

cut out pant pattern pieces out of balsam lyocel twill fabric. On a green cutting mat.



Below are the African Pants from 119 Saroulles. I picked this fabric for a casual dress pant look. I think these pants are super comfortable and with the right fabric the pants could work for different occasions. 

African women smithing standing in front of a brick wall wearing a black and white stripe cardigan and wearing 119 african saroulles in dark green.
side view African women standing  in front of a brick wall wearing a black and white stripe cardigan and wearing 119 african saroulles in dark green with hands in her pockets.
back view African women  standing in front of a brick wall wearing a black and white stripe cardigan and wearing 119 african saroulles in dark green with her hands in her pockets.





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Pocket Series: Patch Pocket

October 21, 2024 1 Comment on Pocket Series: Patch Pocket

This post continues our series of blog posts on pockets by showing you how to add a patch pocket to garments.  More pocket posts are below! 

  • Read a controversial history of the pocket here. 
  • How to add a side seam pocket to a garment.
  • How to make an easy welt pocket. 
  • Other pocket posts:  Add pockets to 142 Old Mexico Dress; and Adding Front Flap Pockets to 229 Sailor Pants.

Some Folkwear patterns do not have pockets due to the historic or traditional nature of the garment (read more about the controversial history of the pocket here).  But, we want to help you be able to add pockets whenever you wish!

The patch pocket is a useful and easy pocket to add to any garment.  It can change the look of the garment because, unlike the in-seam pocket, it is very obvious and in plain site.  It can easily become a design feature of your garment if you want to make it in a contrasting color or pattern.  You can also choose to make the patch pocket in the same fabric as the garment, matching patterns to keep it as unobtrusive as possible.  

You can make patch pockets in many different shapes, but I am going to show a fairly simple rectangular pocket with a diagonal opening.  You can find the (free) pattern for this patch pocket here.  This pattern can be printed on one sheet of 8.5"x11" paper or A4 paper. 

patch pocket paper pattern laying on a cutting mat with scissors

You can change the design or look of this pocket fairly easily by extending or widening the pocket, rounding the corners, making the straight opening into a curve, or adding bevels to the corners.  You can use your imagination and think about what shape you like best for your garment. Here you can see a couple of options for different looks of this pocket.

line drawing of beveled cornered patch pocket line drawing of rounded cornered patch pocket line drawing of classic patch pocket with rounded opening

Patch pocket designs: beveled corners, rounded corners, curved opening

I made this patch pocket large enough to fit my phone (since I am usually hauling it around with me), and I made it to add to my favorite pair of Sarouelles.  The 119 Sarouelles pattern is perfect for a patch pocket.  There are no side seams to add a pocket into the seam on this pattern, so the only other option is to cut in a welt.  Which I did not want to do.  The patch pocket is so much more simple, and this fabric will be perfect for a patch, seeing as it is already made from pieced together cloth strips.  And, I had some extra fabric leftover after making the pants.

pieced pair of African pants from 119 Sarouelles pattern

To make patch pockets

First cut out the pattern and use it to cut the pockets from your fabric.  You can use the PDF pattern we provide, or the measurements I have here in the photo (6" wide by 4.5" tall on one side and 8.25" tall on the other, and 2.5" wide at the top - add 1/2" seam allowance all around and/or 1" at the opening).  This pattern does not take much fabric.  You will need about 1/4 yard (or less) for two pockets.  

paper pattern on top of fabric to cut a patch pocket

If you want two pockets (which is the norm), be sure to cut so you are getting two opposite pockets (i.e. fold the fabric wrong sides together and cut two).  

patch pockets cut from fabric lying on a green cutting mat

First, finish seams on all edges except the opening edge.  You may want to stay stitch the opening edge so that it does not distort while you are stitching (and folding and pressing).

Then, you can turn under the opening edge twice and stitch.  Or, you can finish (or serge) the opening edge and turn down once and stitch.  I serged my edges, and turned down the opening edge twice.  Then, press under all outer edges of the pocket by 1/2" (13mm).  

patch pockets with edges folded under laying on green cutting mat

Now place your pocket on your garment where you want it to be sewn.  I marked where I wanted my pockets with tailors chalk and pinned the pocket to the pants.

patch pocket placed on pants with tailors chalk lying on top

pocket pinned to pants

Sew pocket to pants by topstitching close to the folded edges along all edges except the opening edge.  I also like to add a bar tack or to sew a small square or triangle at each opening edge to reinforce the opening (I hate it when my pockets rip).  You can also add another row of topstitching about 1/8" (3mm) from the first row of stitching to help reinforce the pocket.  I like to increase my stitch length a bit for topstitching - to 3 or 4.  And, to manage corners, keep the needle down and pivot fabric at each corner.  You may need to adjust with the flywheel when nearing the corners so that you don't over- or under-shoot the corner (i.e. go too far or not far enough to make a neat corner).

close up of corner of pocket with triangle stitched for reinforcement

patch pocket sewn onto striped pants

These patch pockets are perfect!  I love that these pants now have pockets, making them much easier more convenient to wear.  They look great with lots of tops (this one is actually a dress that I made from silk noil from Stone Mountain and Daughters Fabric).  

So I hope you will be able to now easily add patch pockets to your clothes, even after they have been finished!

 woman standing in front of a grey wall wearing ikat pants and teal top.



Bottom half of woman wearing ikat pants, hands in pockets, teal top.

 

 Watch the video on patch pockets for the 119 Sarouelles below: 

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Making a Kilt - a few tips and tricks

September 24, 2024 8 Comments on Making a Kilt - a few tips and tricks

by Molly Hamilton

When I was growing up, my paternal grandmother had a shop in Banner Elk, NC called The Gaelic Shop.  She sold imported goods from Scotland and Ireland, many of which she sourced from her trips to those countries.  She would find crafts people working from their cottages and set up a relationship for supplying her shop.  She carried hand knit wool sweaters, scarves, belts, sporrans, leather goods, tea towels, and many other things from classy-but-touristy knick-knacks to estate jewelry.  And she also carried kilts, in many of the clan tartans.  Her shop smelled like wool, leather, and lavender and I loved it.  

We also participated in the Grandfather Mountain Highland Games for many years when I was a child.  My grandfather had some kind of leadership position in the Armstrong clan for a few years and we would spend all day, every day of the Games on the mountain.  I cherished those times -- an amazing picnic that my grandmother would pack, bagpipes and fiddles playing, dancers to watch, all the games, and the vendors with their beautiful things to buy.  And all on top of a beautiful mountain meadow with the summer sun and breeze and everyone having a good time.

When we at Folkwear decided to feature the 152 Scottish Kilts pattern this month, I also decided we needed to make a kilt for our sample collection.  We have a (women's) kilt skirt and a child's kilt, but no man's kilt.  And I've been wanting to get photos of a kilt for the website too.  The woman's kilt pattern is included in the 152 Scottish Kilts (called a kilt skirt), and a child's kilt pattern can be found with our 154 Child's Scottish Kilt and Jacket pattern

And, I wanted to make a kilt from our pattern.  Our instructions for making a kilt are slightly intimidating when you read through it -- very detailed and with a lot of steps.  They were developed for Folkwear by Ann Stewart, a world-renowned kilt maker (her daughter still makes kilts in her shop). These instructions are detailed and authentic for making a tailored, traditional Scottish kilt.  And they do not use any pattern pieces.  The kilt is made from a length of tartan.  No pattern pieces are needed -- just some good measurements, rulers, thread, and needles.  And a bit of time and patience.  Once I started the kilt, I found that it went fairly easily if I took it step-by-step.

In this post I am going to go over a few things about making the kilt. I am not going to show you how to make the kilt (that's what the pattern is for - and it is too involved for me to do at this point), but I am going to give a few helpful tips and tricks that I hope will help you navigate this pattern easily and successfully.  

Most of the kilt is hand sewn. So keep that in mind when starting on this pattern. 

First though, this was also my first attempt at making a kilt.  So, if you see something that looks wrong (or is wrong), please forgive (and kindly let us know if the comments).  I am not a master tailor and I skipped a few steps (I'll let you know about that below).  This may be sacrilege to some, but mostly I want to help make this kilt pattern accessible to everyone.  So, don't be intimidated, but also don't be too critical!

Measuring

First of all, I did not have great measurements for this kilt.  The measurements I was given turned out to be too big for the person I was making it for (I am not sure what happened!), but the kilt fit the measurements I was given!  So just bear with the not super great fit on our model (I need to find a larger man!).  But the instructions made the right size for the measurements, so that was good!  However, a big tip will be to get good measurements and test the kilt out on the person it is for (if you can) before sewing the pleats at the hip-to-waist (Step 3).  You can always adjust pretty easily at that point  by adding a pleat to either or both sides (adjusting the over- and under-apron size and darts) and/or adjusting the pleats at the waist to get to the size you need.

Measuring, and measuring accurately, is critical for making a kilt.  Waist and hip measurements, length measurements, difference between waist and hip, distance between waist and hip -- all these are important measurements.  And I found it helpful to have a sheet of paper with all these numbers on it and space below where I could do some of the basic calculations that are needed for making the kilt.  So, I made a simple sheet you can print out and use when you are making a kilt to help you keep track of these numbers and refer back to when kilt-making.  Download and print the free PDF here.

Planning Your Kilt

For this kilt, I used a piece of wool tartan that I found in my fabric stash.  It was one my maternal grandmother had bought many years ago, and from the label is a Douglas clan tartan.  Her family may have had a connection to the Douglas clan, but I also think she really loved the name Douglas and liked the tartan.  Anyway, you can search official tartans on the Scottish Register of Tartans to find your family's tartan.   Finding tartan fabric is not easy.  You likely won't find it at the local fabric store or even your regular online fabric shop.  I will list some suppliers of tartan fabric at the bottom, but you can also find these fabrics at any of the Scottish Games or Festivals that happen in various places.  

The pattern (and a kilt, in general) calls for 8 yards of single width fabric (30-32" wide) or 4 yards of double width (60" wide) fabric.  Again, this might be sacrilege, but I only had just over 3 yards of double width fabric, and I was making a kilt for a large man, and it worked fine.  You may not get quite as many pleats (though it seemed good to me), but you can work with shorter lengths than suggested and still get good results.  

I cut the long folded edge of the fabric off when I cut the fabric down to the length I needed.  Later I used this folded edge piece to make the waistband, belt pieces, and belt loops.  I laid out my two pieces on the ground (where I had the most room) and labeled each side with chalk to mark the right-side-up and which side was to be the under-apron and over-apron.  This was a huge help and I think very important.

blue and green tartan fabric on a brown carpeted floor

I also used chalk for all my markings on the kilt.  Chalk was a great option - works well on wool, can be brushed off (erased), and can be pressed without issues.  I did have to re-mark the kilt if I took too many days away from the project or moved it around (which I did often because we moved offices when I was making this kilt).

 

green and blue tartan fabric with white chalk marks on it.

 

Pleats and Darts

The pleating and darting was a little tricky, but again, I just started with one step at a time in the instructions.  The waist and hip measurements were very similar for the kilt I made, so I made very tiny darts at the apron waists.  

green and blue tartan fabric folded with chalk marked dart
You can see the tiny dart marked here - based on the measurements for the kilt
green and blue tartan fabric folded into a dart and pinned - view from the top of the dart
Looking at the top of the dart - you can see how small it is.  These darts were handsewn into place

 

I ended up doing dress pleating on this kilt, which meant I kept the tartan pattern with the pleats (you can see the tartan pattern even though the fabric is pleated).  I did not use the waistband/cut off piece to test or plan it.  I just started folding the tartan to see what I thought looked good and it worked very well.  One of the little "tricks" I felt I learned is that the pleats don't have to be exactly the same size all the way through.  As long as they are about the same size, and they match up to get the look you want, it is fine. 

My pleats were supposed to be .74" wide according to my calculations.  I had an even number of setts between the aprons so I took my number and subtracted 7 (36 setts - 7 = 29 pleats).  Then I took half of the hip measurement (for me was 21.5") and divided this by the number of pleats (29) -- so 21.5" / 29 pleats = .74".  So I went with approximately 3/4" wide pleats, but sometimes they would be narrower or wider by almost 1/4".  But it was not noticeable because of how the plaid pattern showed.

I had 2 sections of fabric to work the pleats on and I just put them together as if they were one, pinning them at the center back.  I worked the pleats so that this seam would fall in the back of one of the pleats and would lay flat.  This was easy to do because I also had several inches of fabric to work with since I was only considreing full setts as part of the pleat plan -- and there were not full setts left at each end of the fabric in the center back.

I will also note that my fabric had a few moth holes in it, but I was able to manipulate the pleats so that they were completely hidden in the garment.  Just a little extra bonus to making this kilt!

I also hand basted all the pleats in place instead of using pins as the illustrations show.  I think this was really helpful and if I needed to access inside the pleats, I could just snip the basting threads away.

green and blue tartan fabric with pleats being basted by hand
blue and green tartan fabric pleated for a kilt laying on a brown carpet.
Here you can see the kilt pleating is done with the under-apron on the right side and the over-apron on the left side.  I was able to work the center back seam into one of the back pleats.  
blue and green tartan fabric pleated for a kilt laying on a brown carpet.

 

Again there was a very small difference between the hip and waist for the kilt I was trying to make, so I did not have to take in much at the waist on the pleats.  But, my feeling was that I would just adjust each pleat at the waist by about the same amount to take out the extra width to get down to the waist measurement.  This is a good place to measure your kilt to see if it is coming out the size you expect.  Mine was a little larger than the measurements I had, so I took in a little more at the waist than my calculations indicated I should, but that way it finished at the correct waist measurement I was using.  

blue and green tartan fabric being stitched at the pleats
Fell stitching the pleats at waist-to-hip on the kilt back.  Fell stitching is very easy and is basically an applique stitch.  It is flexible and mostly invisible, so works well for this application.

green and blue tartan fabric that has been pleated with two rulers, clear one above and metal at bottom.
This shows how I took in a little fabric at the waist when I sewed the pleats from the hip line to the waist.  The tartan does not stay even when you do this.

  

Buttonhole (and finishing pleats)

I did not cut the excess fabric from each pleat in Step Four of the kilt.  By the time I got to this step, I was running out of time (and maybe patience?).  So I only cut out the extra fabric in the pleats past the buttonhole so I could open the buttonhole pleat up.  It wasn't totally clear to me that the pleat where the buttonhole goes has to be cut open.  The extra fabric is not cut away, but the pleat does have to be cut open to access the stitching that needs to be opened up to make the buttonhole.  And the pleats to the inside of this pleat were in the way of opening up for the buttonhole.  So I cut the extra fabric away.  But that was all I did.  I am sure by leaving all that fabric, I was leaving in quite a bit of bulk, but I just didn't feel like it was worth it for this project.  

green and blue pleated tartan with one pleat cut down the back and blue handled scissors.
You do cut through the pleat to get to the stitching to make the buttonhole for the belt tab.
blue and green tartan fabric with extra fabric in the pleats cut away.
Extra fabric in the pleats were cut away here just to the left of the buttonhole pleat.
blue and green tartan with buttonhole pleat open all the way to show the place where the buttonhole will go.
Here you can see the pleat is open all the way and make bartacks above and below where the stitching will be taken out to make a buttonhole for the belt tab.
 

Interfacing and Lining

I used a medium-weight linen for the interfacing and a light weight white muslin for the lining in this part of the pattern.  These fabrics worked well and they were scraps that I had on hand.  I thought they did a great job, but I don't know if they are considered totally appropriate for the application they were used for.  They worked for me, but perhaps you would want to try something else. 

I also trimmed my belt loops down before I turned them right side out (which made them much easier to turn out).

inside of the blue and green tartan kilt with white facing/lining showing.
The insides of the kilt with lining/facings finished. 

 

Waistband and Buckles

It was very hard to find buckles for the kilt.  There are a number of Scottish wear and kilt shops but very very few that have the kilt-making supplies.  I ordered them from Highland Xpress, but also saw them on Amazon (coming from Scotland).  Highland Xpress had exactly what I needed for this kilt.  I made my own buckle tab as instructed in the pattern, but didn't have it made (because the buckles had not yet arrived) when I took the photos of the kilt. 

For the waistband, I used the fabric I had left from first cutting the tartan for the kilt.  I could have tried to line up the band so that the vertical lines of the tartan matched, at least for the over-apron.  They won't match elsewhere on the kilt because of the pleating at the waist and probably won't match on the under-apron either. And that is because the pleats at the waist are manipulated to fit the waist and so take in some of the extra fabric.  

Also this is a good place to note that wool has some stretch to it.  You can manipulate it a bit when fitting the waistband (and lining) to get it to where you want it to be.

back of blue and green tartan kilt laying on the floor.

Back of the almost finished kilt 

Finishing

I also did not do the finishing technique that has the hem edge at the double sett pleat and corner of under-apron hemmed.

But I did do a LOT of pressing.  I pressed the pleats consistently throughout the kilt making process once I had them basted.  I pressed with steam from the front and back.  I did not place them under books or other heavy items, but that is not a bad idea and could help keep the pleats super sharp.

Finally . . .

I really did enjoy parts of making this kilt.  I liked designing the pleats and getting the kilt finished.  I loved working with the fabric -- wool is so nice to work with.  And I do like hand sewing and this was nearly all hand sewn.  It took quite a while to finish this kilt, but I am proud of it.  It is certainly not perfect, but it would look beautiful at the Highland Games on a summer day!

Man standing with a black dog on a wooden porch wearing a grey tshirt and blue and green kilt
Man standing with his back to the camera on a wooden porch wearing a blue and green kilt and a grey shirt.

Resources for Kilt Making (USA)

Highland Xpress 
shophighlandxpress.com
This is the best place I've found for resources for kilt making supplies like buckle tabs and fabric.  They also have good buttons and accessories for the vest and Prince Charlie Jacket.

The Piper's Cove
Has regalia for the kilt outfit, some supplies (you may have to email or call them to find out), and tartans.

The Celtic Croft
www.kilts-n-stuff.com
Has belt tabs, tartans, and accessories.

USA Kilts
Has tons of accessories, pretty pictures and videos.  It's hard to find kilt making supplies here, but lots of accessories and regalia.

Scottish Kilt Shop
Has tartans by the yard

Atlanta Kilts
Has tartans by the yard

 

 

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