Sew Cucio

Testing for myself is something I really like because my wardrobe grows with handmade items, which always fit much better than store bought clothing, and I often get challenged during testing. Sometimes with new techniques, sometimes with clothing that are outside of my comfort zone, but turn out awesome in the end, sometimes also with fabric choices. I also like that I learn about my own body measurements and the changes that I have to do for each pattern. This makes it easier for future patterns that I am going to make. Meet the new pink (!) Miss Dandelion dress  by  Sofiona Designs . I never thought that I would wear a pink (well maybe dark fuchsia) dress, let alone sew one for myself. But this stripe fabric (it has very small stripes, which are difficult to see in the pictures) is a colour I just fell for when I saw it at Nooteboom Textiles. This dress, and the colour, where definitely out of my comfort zone. I loved the Dandelion peplum tops that I sewed for our gir...

Twisted and asymmetrical clothing are my weak spot, so I fell in love the moment I saw this outfit, the Adult Romy Twist Tee and Skirt from Petite Stitchery*. They look complicated and sophisticated, but they are actually very quick sews. The twist top has three different lengths, I made the regular top length, also the modest top length and mini top length are included in the pattern. I don't really see myself wearing anything shorter than the regular top length, but I must admit, everybody in the tester group looked great in the shorter top lengths. Besides the crew neck option, also a v-neck option is included and 4 different sleeve length. So you can make many different options with the twist tee. That skirt! Wow, it is just two pattern pieces, one for the skirt and one for the waistband, you need to fold and flip and there you are, you have your new twist skirt. Well not exactly, that is in theory how it works but it was a bit puzzling at first what should go where. I length...

When I saw this breeze shirt from plus2is5 I knew I had to make it for my husband. During our holiday in Hawaii two years ago we bought a shirt like the breeze shirt and he loves it. So after a year he requested another one. I started looking for a pattern but found it difficult to search. So when I saw the breeze shirt pop up in my instagram I bought the Breeze shirt from Twig + Tale right away and sewed it up for Fathersday. My husband loves it, it is nice and breezy. I made it in linen fabric that I bought at Textielstad. What makes the pattern to great is the attention to detail. There is contrasting fabric in the hem and the back of the top of the bodice. Also the difference in length of the front and back bodice gives it such a professional look. The pattern also uses french seams, which was a first for me. So also the inside looks perfect. My husband at first thought it was a big big on him, as he had to get used to the dropped shoulders. Let's see how he feels a...

Meet Gemma Twin set from Sofilantjes* . It is a great set that includes a top and a bottom. I have made 4 tops and 4 bottoms and can say we love them all! The Gemma twin set ( Nederlands patroon ) includes a top with short or long sleeves and for the bottom you have the choice of a culottes or a skirt. We all love the culottes because they look like a skirt, however it is just as practical as a short. You can use both woven and knit fabrics for the culottes. Our eldest is wearing a culotte that I made with knit viscose, so a very nice and flowy fabric. For our middle one I used a woven fabric, 100% viscose rayon. During testing I used 100% cotton fabric, which also works well although the culottes is not as flowy. I do like the more wider look of the cotton fabric. Our girls love their skirt (although they asked me why there was a piece of fabric between their legs...). There is also a skirt included in the pattern, so I tried that out for our youngest, in regular knit. Besides the cu...

I love dresses with a stunning back. Also with the knit breeze dress from Tadah Patterns , I immediately fell in love with the back. After buying the pattern I immediately ordered the bra closure for the back and after almost a year I sewed up the pattern. Our girl is over the moon with it! This dress has not seen the inside of her closet yet. I love patterns with lots and lots of options. The Knit breeze dress has lots of options. I used the sliced front with the panelled skirt so that the front colour block in the bodice continues in the skirt. A half circle skirt and a full circle skirt are also included. I like patterns that include half cirlce skirts because they need less fabric and our girls find half circle skirts twirly enough. In total 6 different sleeve options are included in the pattern, so even for colder weather you can use this pattern, although you might need something to cover the bare back. I anticipated on the Dutch weather and therefore made a top that matches th...

Looking for a flattering knit dress? The Hourglass dress from Made by Runi is just that. The hourglass shape in the dress accentuates your curves and gives the look of a slim waist. The hourglass dress is quite a quick sew I would say. Although it took me almost 4 hours because I wanted to make sure that it would not end up too tight around my hips. I added a bit more seam allowance (seam allowance isn't included in the patterns from Made by Runi anyways) to the dress pattern pieces, but it took me a couple of hours and many fittings to get it to the way I wanted. I don't like making a muslin and added too much seam allowance. It was totally my fault and not the pattern. Now I am really happy with the fit. It fits perfectly and still fits loose enough around my hips, the way I like it. Lesson learned! Purple isn't a colour I often wear, although I did make a purple top before. I started out with the flower fabric in the middle. For the hourglass to come out and accentuat...

A couple of years ago I made two mini pals for our two daugthers, one for our eldest and one for our middle daughter . After that my dad requested another one for himself (the one with the glasses). So I made one for him. And recently our daughters said that our youngest daughter didn't have one. So I made one for her and decided to also make one of my husband and myself. Have a look at our family in mini pals (pattern from Heidi and Finn ). What I like about sewing the mini pals is that they can be personalised and they are perfect scrap busters. You might recognize some fabrics I have used from my previous projects. For the clothing I used woven fabrics. It is recommended to use woven fabrics for the mini pals, nevertheless, I like to use a little more structured fabrics for the hair. I have used fleece and some hairy type of fabrics from other projects or clothing. All our girls love to play with them and love that they represent our family. They are a great pr...