Category Archives: White Tree fabrics

White Tree / GBSB lacy tee

Lace tee

Just a quick one today to show this tee I made as part of a White Tree Fabrics blogger challenge. They invited their blogger network to pick a lace fabric to celebrate this week’s lace-themed episode of the Great British Sewing Bee – I still haven’t seen the episode so no spoilers please, but I hear someone on the show used this very same fabric for their dress! I went for a Burnt Orange corded lace because the colour is so beautiful and, being quite inexperienced in sewing lace, I thought a more rigid lace would be easier to deal with. It’s not quite as neon as it came out in these photos by the way!

Lace tee

To show off the lace I picked a simple T-shirt pattern – the Salme pleated t-shirt. I did plan to add the pleats initially, but decided against it in the end as I wanted the lace pattern to be the star of the show. I made sure to line up the bodice and sleeve hems against the selvedge to be able to use the scallops for the edges.

Lace tee

I cut the seam allowances down to about 5mm and finished the raw edges together with a small zig zag (the fabric barely frays at all anyway). The neckline is simply turned and hemmed and there was no hemming required on the cuffs and bottom hem, making this a very speedy sew.

Lace tee

Pop over to the White Tree blog to read a bit more and see the other bloggers’ lacy makes. Tomorrow I’ve got a review of the new GBSB book coming too!

Style Arc Simone cardigan with White Tree fabric

Style Arc Simone cardgian

I’m very behind on photographing and sharing finished projects again (the old work effect, sigh), so this snuggly cardi is no longer very seasonally appropriate thanks to the lovely London sun we’ve been having lately. But it’s still a handy wardrobe builder and great for throwing over a dress or cami when the temperature dips. It’s a Style Arc Simone cardigan in Warm Jersey, which was kindly sent to me by White Tree Fabrics.

Style Arc Simone cardgian

I was going to make another Julia initially but decided to try the Simone, mostly because pockets. I’m – eh – moderately happy with the pattern. I agree mostly with this Pattern Review post that the drape is not like how I expected from the diagram. It hangs very heavily and rather sticks out around the hips, one place where I really don’t need any extra weight! The pockets are made by sewing a large dart in the front then folding it to the side seam, so you have six layers folded up in the hem which obviously makes it quite bulky. A lighter knit that the one I used is recommended, so maybe that would help. The instructions are typically brief but easy enough. There’s one error to be aware of: you need to cut two neck binding bands and seam them at the CB (the instructions have you cut only one which obviously isn’t long enough).

Style Arc Simone cardgian
Style Arc Simone cardgian

Chunky pockets aside, the fit it pretty good. It’s a bit longer than I expected, ending below the bum on me when I was hoping for mid-hip. You can’t shorten it from the hem because of the pockets, so next time I would take a couple of inches length out from around the waistline.

Style Arc Simone cardgian

The Warm Jersey fabric is a finely-knitted poly/elastane mix with a heathered effect from different coloured strands. Isn’t the colour just gorgeous? It matches both my living room and my blog! It comes in more scrummy muted colours too – red, brown, grey, blue (and Erin just used the richer aubergine purple for a hoodie). As the name suggests, it’s very soft and cosy and has a beautiful drape. I definitely snuggled in it like a blanket while deciding what to make it into. It was also great to work with – my overlocker and sewing machine both loved it. Despite being a proper knitted-looking knit it doesn’t fray or get fluff everywhere and it’s sturdy enough to not stretch all over the place when being cut and stitched.

Style Arc Simone cardgian

Style Arc Simone cardgian
The fabric behaved beautifully for the neck binding and I love how polished it looks – almost like a slim blazer lapel. There’s clear elastic in the shoulder seam to support the weight. One more change I would make next time is to hem the main cardigan before adding the neckband with the short edges pre-finished, because it feels a bit odd to me to have the hem going right over the band.

Style Arc Simone cardgian

I think it looks best on me with the pockets shoved to the back, not hanging around the front in its slightly weird trapezium-shaped way. It will definitely get plenty of wear this summer and beyond, and I might make it again with the fitting tweaks I mentioned as I do like the style. Obviously, the grey warm jersey is calling my name for next time.

whitetree

Oh, and I almost forgot! White Tree Fabrics also gave me a 20% discount code and free shipping offer for everyone, just enter code WHATKATIESEWS at the check out. Happy shopping – I’m eyeing up lace and broderie for my next project…

Thank you to White Tree Fabrics for supplying the fabric; views as ever my own.