I'm loving being involved in blog tours at the moment, here is my stop on the first Sewing by Ti tour I've been involved in! I've followed Ti's blog and tours for quite a while now so it's a little nerve wracking to be involved myself this time! Ti's blogtours are all themed but what that means to us is up to our individual interpretation! This tour is themed "Dress up this Town" and my immediate thoughts on that were dresses for occasions, not just for Weddings, Christenings and evenings out but for the lunch dates with your girlfriends, for attending Church, for any occasion where you want something a little more than an everyday casual dress. What I came up with may not surprise those of you who know me and know what a HUGE fan of Itch to Stitch Designs I am, so here we have 3 dresses all from ITS all very suitable for occasion wear when sewn in the right fabrics whilst still working brilliantly as casual everyday dresses in others. PS. make it to the bottom for the great giveaways!

With well drafted sewing patterns for wovens becoming harder to find as the preferred jersey knit patterns seem to be increasing in popularity, I was happy to see Itch to Stitch's new pattern was another designed for wovens! I have to admit, I was just a little outside my comfort zone on this one as I've never worn a jumpsuit before, so I signed up for testing out the dress version only but a combination of curiosity and trust in the designer led me to trying the jumpsuit too! AND I'm glad I went with it as it's opened up a whole new avenue to explore and create with this Summer! 

I'm always eagerly on the look out for the next Itch to Stitch* pattern tester call as I just KNOW it's going to be amazing. Not necessarily always in design, although everybody needs the basics too, but amazing due to how brilliantly and professionally the patterns are drafted, graded, illustrated and finished! So when the call for the La Paz* came out, I admit, I squealed a little! And what can I say but WOW?! An unlined, beautifully tailored, notch collar blazer for knit fabrics with all the bells and whistles! Seriously I'm in awe of this jacket pattern, it made a garment perceived to be impossible to make at home, easily achievable for any confident experienced sewer and I just know I'll be making more.

Double brushed poly, or DBP, as it's often abbreviated to, is a relatively new fabric base available to the UK market, so when I was offered the chance to sew it up and review it I was very excited! I sewed up a sample from a lovely custom fabric company, Lulus Fabrics UK, and as usual, I like to test to the max! I washed it, tumble dried it, checked for colour running, fading and shrinkage and sewed it up into various different garments to test how it sews, stretches, wears and looks! Here are my projects, thoughts and findings....

When the testing call came out for this along with the Tierras Joggers, I didn't hesitate to apply, as although it's not a style I would usually go for, I haven't yet made a pattern from this designer which doesn't suit me or isn't flattering and I'm glad I did!

Far apart from my usually very fitted clothing, this is a boxy style easy wearing comfy top with a lovely overlapping envelope style boat neckline and lends itself well to such a variety of knit fabrics which change the look from anything from a drapey feminine tee to a very boxy sweater! 

I'm especially looking forward to wearing mine in the summer when it's really too hot to wear clothing which is extremely close fitting as well as teaming with Tierras for comfy lounge wear.  

A unique cross between joggers, loungewear and workwear, the Tierras Woven Joggers* have just been released from Itch to Stitch* and they are totally brilliant! I've made 2 pairs in completely different fabrics, I'll only be showing you 1 pair as they weren't final version pattern but I'll talk about them because the fabric is definitely one to consider which you may not have.  I'm looking forward to wearing my Tierra's in the summer as a great alternative to dresses whilst also being light and breezy, keep an eye on my blog as I've plans to make some new tops to go with these in the upcoming weeks as well!

The newest pattern from my favourite ever PDF pattern maker Itch to Stitch* is this beautiful pleated Paro Cardigan!* I didn't need to think twice before applying to test it, it's the perfect shape to emphasise my body shape whilst being pretty and comfortable too! Absolutely perfect for work, daytime or evening wear!

You have probably noticed the blog has been quite quiet recently, this is due to me taking a break from pattern testing for a while to get some other things sorted.  With those done, I popped online to see a few open tester calls from a couple of my favourite designers and jumped straight in! What better way to get my 'sew-jo' back than with some excellently drafted feminine makes?! So the first I'm sharing with you is the beautiful flounced skirt from Itch to Stitch*.  I don't usually wear skirts in the winter but with some boots and tights, I might just start! 

You probably already know that Itch to Stitch* is one of my absolute favourite indie pattern designers and that pretty much all of her patterns are exactly my style and very flattering for me so I always make sure to keep an extra close eye out for any tester calls!  The Bonn shirt* has beautiful details, a super pretty collar and neckline and is once again totally my style for work or casual wear!  I had lots of {non sewing related} hurdles to overcome during this test but I wasn't going to let any of them stop me from getting it finished albeit pushing me a day late.

If you are a regular reader of my blog, you've probably already realised I love Itch to Stitch* patterns {and if you're not, continue reading to find out why I do!} so when I saw a tester call for these cute shorts and skort, I had no hesitation and immediately applied with my fingers crossed in hope! I made 2 pairs during testing although the pattern was spot on from the start and even the weather seemed to like them as a rainbow appeared just as I was giving up hope of photos that day!!