Hello sew-friends! Just a quick post today to share a knit top that I sewed a couple of months ago. I love the style of this top and it was really fun and quick to sew. The last few years, I've been wearing more loose fitting, very casual clothes and it's been fun to wear something more form fitting. I used the Seamwork Goldie, which features negative ease, a deep sweetheart neckline and puffed sleeves.
I have an exciting new project to announce this week. But first I'll start with a little background. I started Sew DIY 10 years ago and while I still love designing patterns, I've been feeling disenchanted and uninspired. I've been spending a lot of time thinking about what kind of project I would be excited to work on and share about. And when the idea finally came to me it was half "ah-ha!" and half "oh, of course it's you, old friend".
The thing that gets me really excited is math. Well, math plus sewing and pattern drafting. I feel like I've done every sewing construction tutorial I can do but what I'm really excited to work on is solving math and design challenges. I earned my degrees in math and design so it's delightful that I still find these topics interesting. (I hope you do too!)
Anyway, drumroll please. I am starting a new Substack newsletter all about math, sewing and pattern drafting. My goal is to simplify and explain the pattern drafting process using math and show you how fun, useful and empowering math can be.
The new Substack is called Sewing With Numbers and I will feature a different drafting project every 6 to 8 weeks. There will be a newsletter about once a week with topics such as drafting exercises and design variations.
My plan is to keep things straightforward and uncomplicated. After all, when projects go well, we're more likely to keep trying new things and to eventually try more challenging ideas. There are so many fun things that you can make and design when you embrace math. I'm excited to explore these design challenges with you.
You can learn more in my Welcome post on Substack or enter your email address below to subscribe.
As always thank you so much for supporting me! (If you have a friend who wants to learn pattern drafting, please send them my way!)
Today, I have a super cute, casual and easy hack of my Lou Box Dress 2 pattern. As a bonus, it's also a great stash busting project. I made this long-sleeved boxy top out of a fabric remnant that was just under 1 yard long! I'll share cutting layouts, pattern adjustments and tips for how I hacked the layout to make it work. This DIY boxy top is a great cozy, oversized top and I've been loving wearing it. Use a lighter weight knit fabric for a boxy top or a medium-weight loop-back fabric for a true sweatshirt style.
