The Jamie/Marissa Sew-A-Long Wrap-up!

If you have been reading the blog you know that we have had a Jamie/Marissa sew-a-long going on recently! We had our lovely seamstresses add their pictures to an album in our facebook group and then everyone had 2 weeks to get a picture loaded into the album to be eligible for a prize, this time around the prize was a 3pattern pack! (Winner picked by random.org)

I LOVED every one of the gorgeous entries in our sew-a-long album!!!! (As you can see by the awesomeness below there is a reason random picks our winner!). 

We had 81 GORGEOUS entries and here are just a few of them :) I absolutely love how this pattern looks great on everyone, little girls and ladies from xs to 3xl!  

Both the Jamie (womens) and Marissa (kids/tween) dress patterns can be found in our Etsy shop 

Terri's entry in beautiful butterfly print

Amanda's Jamie, I love how elegant this one looks, she's ready for a yacht!

Brianne keeping it summery fun in plaid 

 Bridgette rocking her Jamie is gorgeous Jennifer Paganelli fabric!

Candace made 2 Jamies in the sew-a-long!!! I can't decide which I like better the maxi length or the knee length!

 

Cara made this gorgeous Jamie, I just love the fabric choice! 

Chaiki just looks lovely in her Jamie, I love the soft colours on her! 

Cori made this Jamie for her sister!! (Lucky sister!)  

And then she made herself a Jamie too! the blue is lovely! 

Courtney made her little one this adorable Princess themed Marissa! I know my girl would be jealous! 

Crystal made a mother daughter matching set! I just love mother daughter matching! (I also love her use of fabric and fabric placement!) 

Darcie extended the front waistband around and decided "hems are for suckers" haha! LOVE this fabric choice as well! 

I LOVE the herringbone print Davette choose for her Jamie! 

Denise made this lovely Jamie, in a print that is too die for! 

I love how summer fun this chevron looks in this Jamie by Diana 

Gena was one of the first to get her Jamie completed,  doesn't she look just lovely in it !  

Love the pink and grey Heather! 

I just love the use of different prints with a solid that Jaqueline did! She is ready for date night I say! 

I will admit pink is my favourite colour, and this Marissa really showcases why! Great work Jane!

Janelle choose a lovely blue for her Jamie :) 

I love how classic this Marissa by Jo is! 

Julianna showing us all how to rock a Jamie into the fall! I have decided a cropped denim jacket is high on the to buy list! 

 Now you won't believe this, but this is the first selfish sew that Kari has done!!! Love the piping detail on the waistband!

Kelly in her lovely Jamie

These next two were made by Lisa, 2 Jamies and 2 completely different looks! 

I love how Martha added some flowers on her waistband ! 

Meghann looking lovely in her Jamie! 

and Michelle rocking hers! 

Next we have 3 dresses by  Naomi! One for each daughter and one for herself! 

Great job Naomi!!! 

Nin's Jamie is certianly one i want in my closet! The tiny little butterflies and this gorgeous blue just make her Jamie have that wow factor! (and she was even brave enough to include a zipper shot) Lovely construction!

 I love the soft summery colours Rachel choose for her dress!

 Rachel made a beautiful maxi length Jamie! We were all swooning over the Jamie in maxi length over at the Lab!

Rebecca made her daughter a dress in gorgeous blues and florals! Lucky girl!

Shannon ready to go out in her Jamie! Love it! 

Tera made 2 Jamies for the sew a long - and this linen one was the winner! 

and here she is rocking her floral one! I swoon over this fabric! and she is looking lovely as always! 

Lastly, this gorgeous Jamie by Jill! I ADORE this fabric!!! If you are a wedding photographer or know one you really MUST make her this Jamie!

So there you have it! If you were on the fence about this pattern or thought it might not suit you i think it is safe to say it looks GREAT on everyone! 

Thanks so much to everyone for participating in the sew-a-long!!!!! We will be having another sew-a-long towards the end of August so keep your eyes peeled for that announcement!

Jamie/Marissa Sew-A-Long Day 4!!!!

Oh my gosh - today is the last day of the Jamie and Marissa sew-a-long!! Can you believe it?! Are you excited that the sew a long is done in time to wear the dress for Sunday? I know I am happy to have it done!

So let's get started! The hardest part of this dress is done, so today we have a fairly easy sewday !

First I want you to take the two strap pieces and fold them so the longer ends are together and then sew them up!

Turn them right sides out :)

Now to cut your elastic, cut the back  according to the chart whether you are nursing or not. If you are a nursing mom cut the elastic like 4 inches extra - I only used about 2 inches extra after adjusting ( more on that later) but better safe than sorry I always say.

now put the seam of the strap towards the middle and then bunch it up - attach it so the front of the strap is facing the front of the bodice

Sew it on. Do this for both sides of the straps to elastic on the bodice front!

Just sew the strap/s into the end, be sure to tuck in the edges nicely (see above pic). 

*If you are doing the nursing modifications sew in only 1 of the straps and then pin the other. 

Now take your back elastic and feed it through

I always pin with a bit of extra out so it is easy to attach the straps

Attaching the straps to the back bodice - I really couldn't take better pics than in the pattern, so hopefully if those confused you this will help :)

Sew the straps down into both sides of the bodice back, again being sure to tuck in the edges.

Now if you are a nursing mom - check the fit of the front elastic, to make sure it sits nice but you can still nurse :) This pic is me at 11 pm with no make-up and hair obviously not done haha. Black and white to make it even scarier!

Now hem that bottom and you are good to go!

Dress is DONE!!!!! YAY!!!! Do you love it? Try it one and snap a pic and post it in the Album in the Facebook Lab Group and you are entered to win a prize! (you don't have to post a modelled pic if you are uncomfortable, just thought I'd throw that in there - especially if you are making the Marissa )

Here is my finished Jamie picture ! I LOVE my dress!!!! and my husband says he loves it too! I also love that I did the pockets from the Angie pattern :) YAY pockets! 

Jamie/Marissa Sew-A-Long Day 3!

Welcome back to the sew a long!!!! Today is the "scary" day! Which means zipper installation - but no worries - I did a couple videos for you! If you would rather see it in pictures check out Cathy's album in the Lab Group on Facebook!

but before we get to the zipper we MUST attach this skirt to the bodice!

Sew your 2 skirt pieces together on only 1 side! So you will have one LOOOONG piece vs. a tube/skirt. I used my Angie pattern for the skirt - so I have pockets

Now sew 2 gathering lines (longest stitch length and no back stitching) along the top edge of your skirt

Pull the bobbin threads to gather

Line it up with your bodice - I pull each side to get the center to line up. I find that the easiest way to get even gathers.

Pin your skirt to bodice, right sides together

Sew it up and then trim and zigzag or serge to finish the edge

Now onto the other side of the skirt, fold it over and line up - pin up and then mark where the zipper metal stop is (as marked by the pen). Mark that point

Now I had to trim my pocket on the zipper side... 

Now sew up the side until you get to the point you marked for zipper end - 1/2inch seam allowance for this part!

video of zipper putting in part 1:

video of zipper putting in part 2:

Now we will take our dress to the sewing machine, move your needle over to the far position and sew nice and close to the zipper and being careful to keep the edges aligned. (I still do a few pins just to keep it in place since I don't have patience to wait for the glue to dry.

Stop sewing a few inches from the end (as seen below)

Repeat the zipper sewing for the other side.

Now you will turn over and mark to finish the square - be sure to have a peek at the good side to make sure everything is staying neatly in place with the glued in bits. 

Sew that square up! and then turn around and admire your tidy zipper install! 

So how was the zipper putting in? Was it easier or harder than you expected?

Remember you can find us on Facebook in the Lab if you need any extra help or want to chat! The album for finished Jamie/Marissa's will be open until the end of my day on the 7th of August!

Tomorrow we will do the straps and finish off the dress!

Jamie/Marissa dress Sew-A-Long day 2!!!

Welcome back ladies! (and men?) Today we will be working on the bodice! 

For both the front and back bodice pieces you will do the following steps!

Pin the lining to the outer, right sides together, for both the front outer and lining and then the back bodice outer and lining.

Sew the arm side seam up until the point which is the little circle on the pattern piece. You can mark this point with a pencil, disappearing ink, notch... I personally do a tiny little slit and it is easy for me to know where to stop ! Then sew along the top edge. In the picture below you can really see where my slit is and the stitching along the arm edge

Next sew along the top edge of both the front and back bodices

clip the little edges of the top edge

Now, turn your bodice right sides out, and iron flat - or if you are lazy like me, just really roll out the edges and pin and then sew. I start at where I stopped sewing for the arm side and sew along until i get to the other edge - staying under the opening. (arm bands will go in the openings!

Se the pretty little opening for the armband:

and thus concludes the following of the same steps for front and back bodice pieces.

Front bodice to waistband:

Next sew a gathering line along the bottom edge of the front bodice (stitch the bodice outer and lining)

Pull the bottom threads to gather! (Remember 2 gathering lines will give you a very pretty and even gather)

 Now gather until the bodice front is the same length as the waistband

Pin it, right sides together, and stitch along the edge with the usual seam allowance, and then zigzag or serge to finish the edge.

Now for page 12 I decided to just a quick video for you all! It goes together very fast once you can see it, I think :) Remember if you need anymore help (or just want to chat with an awesome group) to check out the Lab Group!

About this time my baby was needing attention and thought stealing my camera away would be sooooo funny. .. So I think this feels like a good place to stop sewing for today!

See you tomorrow!!! Day 3 we work on the skirt!