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Round 2: Round up of the Summer Sewing Contest

July 22, 2025 1 Comment

Again, we were blown away by all the amazing entries we had for our Summer Sewing Contest (June 2025), and today we are sharing round 2 of the submissions (because there were so many great ones!).

We could only pick 2 winners, but there were so many that were really impressive, and beautiful, and practical -- garments that we loved seeing. We hope these will inspire you as well! If you missed the first round, go here!

First I will start with the other winner!

woman in a purple embroidered engish smock

woman in a purple embroidered engish smock, arms out wide

woman in a purple embroidered engish smock, back to camera

Sherry really stunned us with this 221 English Smock that she made in a purple linen/tencel blend and embroidered and smocked with the pattern's designs. This was so beautiful! And we love the added pockets!

prairie dress on a dress form with a bonnet

Kimberley made this lovely 201 Prairie Dress for the Historic CN Train Station in Fort Langley BC, Canada. "We think this is what the station agents wife would have worn every day during the 1910's when she helped her husband in the station gardens and running the station." I love the historic nature of this project.

This 205 Gibson Girl Blouse by Jo seems perfect for summer -- light and airy. And so beautiful! I love the fabric choice!

Another 205 Gibson Girl Blouse but in a lightweight lawn -- also perfect for summer. I love this print also! This customer made pintucks in the blouse and used pretty purple buttons on the back.

Woman standing with her daughter in a white blouse and yellow skirt

Kalah sent in this adorable entry. She says, " the 225 Childhood Dreams. I made it with a glow-in-the-dark butterfly jersey knit fabric and modified it to have short sleeves without ruffles. When I first made it, it was a knee-length dress. Now it is turning into more of a shirt as she grows, but it is still one of her favorite things to wear. And, I am wearing the 209 Walking Skirt in a yellow linen fabric and the 205 Gibson Girl Blouse in an ivory cotton Swiss dot fabric. The yellow Walking Skirt was my very first Folkwear project about 5 years ago. The Gibson Girl Blouse is my most recent, just finished about a week ago, using the instructions from your blog to button on the shoulder instead of the back."

Three beautiful patterns in one photo!

woman twirling in a middie top and split skirt

Christina says that she loves this 211 Middie Blouse made in a lightweight linen for summer. The sleeve are perfect for providing air and sun protection. And she was surprised to also love wearing her 231 Big Sky Riding Pants -- even though they are made of wool suiting, the wide legs give plenty of air flow and are very comfortable in summer. We love this outfit!

This was such a fun 212 Five Frontier Shirts made with some fun fabric combinations (plus piping)!

Woman standing outside in a blue empire dress with a bonnet

We loved this pretty 215 Empire Dress made by Michelle. The fabric is perfect for summer.

Woman outside wearing a lavendar empire dress. her back is to the camera

And this 215 Empire Dress by Patricia, who had this sweet story about it: "I started making this when my mother, an excellent seamstress, was alive. We cut out the pattern pieces together. Then she died and the cut out fabric languished for a few years. After a cross-country move, I pulled out the unfinished dress and completed it. It was the first garment that I sewed without my mother around to help me or answer any questions. I made the traditional view, with the drawstrings that tie in back and the longer sleeves that have the interesting gathering details. The length is just below the knees."

close up of a red gingham english smock with white smocking and embroidery on a child

This 221 English Smock made for a grandchild was so pretty (made by @stitch1hook1 on Insta). We loved the choice of red gingham fabric!

Older man wearing a patched vest and a plaid shirt sitting at a tablen with a book

Cecile made this amazing vest from our 222 Vintage Vests pattern. She adapted this one with a patchwork of clothing labels for the front panel, flannel back and button-on hood, lining with extra pockets inside ... and yes, a bowtie to go with it! She made it for a friend for grunging around, but to her surprise, he wore it to a wedding as formal wear! Cecile says, "Not boasting, but it is an Heirloom!"

Grey Sailor Pants hanging on a white door

Always a great sewing project, we liked these 229 Sailor Pants made by Arsenal. We love the scarlet cuff edging.

Woman standing on a rock wearing a blue 1940s dress

Abby made this wonderful 233 Glamour Girl Dress in the mid-calf variation. In keeping with the 1940's wartime effort and using what you have, nearly all of the materials used were secondhand from the pattern itself to the ironing board and thread (she even managed to find the shoulderpads!). The only materials used that were bought new were the sewing machine, scissors, table and chair. Abby is a new-ish sewist and we were really impressed.

green printed smoking jacket on a dress form

green printed smoking jacket on a dress form from the back

blue printed smoking jacket on a dress form

We adored these 238 Le Smoking Jackets Remette made! She says her husband loves this pattern so she has made over a dozen of them. The bold fabric he likes makes them even more fun to make. Usually she uses cotton, but has made a black velvet one too.

Woman twirling in a two toned swing coat

Twyla made these two 254 Swing Coats that really show how much fun you can have with fabric in them. The first coat was made with cotton canvas and she added an extra pocket. The plaid coat was made with salvaged cotton upholstery material and the back panel/boxpleat was made with a coordinating cotton. Impressive!

Also check out Twyla's blog post about all the 271 Sunset Wraps she has made (and her love for the pattern).

woman wearing a blue camo pinafore dress

Judy says the Basics Pinafore Dress is one of her favorite patterns. Easy and fun to make with great fabric. We loved the great summer dress she made here!

We love all the summer contest entries! Thank you so much to all our amazing cusomters, whose creativity, fun, and skill impress and inspire us so much. We love to be providing patterns for you and to see what you make. What a privilege!

1 Response

Dolores

August 01, 2025

I absolutely love your site! It takes me all over the world! However, I have been so lost for the last 2 years because I moved back to Texas from Florida, and it was a quick move, so I had to leave my sewing machines in storage in Florida. I thought I would have them by now, but so much got in the way (surgery, etc.) and I just didn’t have the money to get back there and get them. But I’m going after them some time between September and January, thanks to my wonderful daughter! Once I get back to sewing, I want to make the Paris Promenade Dress. I made the Flamingo Dress several years ago, but the customer never came and got it. I will have to get it entered into one of your contests because I did a fabulous job on it. It took me 10 hours to roll-hem edge all of the flounces with gold thread, but I’m proud of it. Okay, I’m rambling on, but now I’m re-inspired, which makes me all the more anxious to get my machines here with me in Texas!

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Round 2: Round up of the Summer Sewing Contest

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Dolores

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