I’ve seen a lot of great versions of StyleArc’s “Bob” trouser pattern over the past few years, so I finally caved and bought it on a whim during a sale last year. They’re a pretty basic elastic-waist woven trouser apart from a rather bulbous outer leg shape.| FehrTrade
26 August, 2025Gallery | blog.fehrtrade.com
I had a busy yet productive weekend – not only did I finish my Colette Patterns Beignet skirt, but I also made the Patrones 292 sleeveless bias cowl top, too! I didn’t have enough time for a photoshoot over the weekend, but I did remember to finally document my favourite way of finishing the edges of thin blouses like the cowl top so I can finally share this with you.| FehrTrade
I keep saying each Interview with the Vampire The Vampire Lestat teeshirt is "going to be my last for a while" but I keep being tempted by new designs! But this time, it really will be the last teeshirt for a while (mumbles something about sewing a replica designer blouse seen in the S3 teaser instead...) The designs on this shirt are from the set of The Vampire Lestat (IWTV season 3's new show name) that's filming right now - extras going to the in-universe gigs were wearing teeshirts with t...| FehrTrade
Sometimes I plan my sewing in advance. Other times, I see a pattern or a fabric and I just instantly want to make it. I can’t even say exactly what it was about the Thorndike Tank (the Cashmerette Club pattern for July) – it’s just a basic woven shell top, really – but when it dropped it just felt right to sew it.| blog.fehrtrade.com
These two sewing makes don’t really “go together” except in the sense that they were both on my Summer Sewing list and they don’t seem terribly exciting to most people! The porthole curtains were on the list because the ones I’d made for the bedroom in 2014 were really looking ropey and mouldy, and the Axis Tank was in my plans because I really wanted a more comfortable, invisible option to wear underneath a few semi-sheer summer tops in my wardrobe now that I no longer wear “foam...| FehrTrade
I've been planning this shirt for a few weeks, but it was serendipitous that I already had the perfect fabric in my stash - some leftover black bamboo jersey from Fabrics Galore. The 2.5m I bought ended up making my Paris Sucks Versatili-Tank, the Dead Inside tank for my friend AND this tee! So it was excellent value on top of being perfectly soft, and somewhere between a viscose and cotton jersey in terms of weight and drape. This time around, I printed off a Loose Fitting Top Block from “...| FehrTrade
This might possibly be the world's longest UFO! I bought this fabric at a fabric shop in San Cristobel de las Casas when we toured around Mexico in 2013! To my credit, I tried to turn it into a skirt at least twice, with the latest iteration using a Burda magazine pattern with a scooped hem and loads of shirring at the waist. I did the shirring at the Sewing Weekender in 2018, back when it was in person! But no matter what I did, it just looked deeply unflattering.| FehrTrade
I'm posting a little out of order here since I sewed these before the broderie anglaise tee! I'll start off with the Bob trousers since I actually made these first - at the start of June, but then it was far too hot to actually wear them for a photoshoot... Red ramie Bob trousers If you recall, I've sewn the StyleArc Bob trousers twice before - first in brown linen, and then again in black linen. The black linen was far too thin and those wore out way too fast, but the brown Raystitch linen l...| FehrTrade
I’ve got a few garments to share over the next few days/week, but I wanted to start this off with a shorter post about a top I made with leftover fabric, but also a health/Long Covid update (scroll down to the photos if you don’t care!).| blog.fehrtrade.com
Ok I didn’t lie when I said in the last post that those were my last vampire shirts for a while… because I already had the vinyl cut and weeded for these by that point, and these were always planned. I just needed to make the shirts for the vinyl to go onto!| blog.fehrtrade.com
Hot on the heels of my fuchsia mesh lingerie set I sewed recently, the New Craft House ladies released sage green lingerie kits and I slammed that Buy button quicker than I ever thought possible! I absolutely adore my pink set and I’ve been wearing it so much and I knew that a green set would get equally as much wear so it was a real no-brainer for me.| FehrTrade
Believe it or not, I didn’t actually set out to post this on the same day that shooting finally (finally!!) begins on season 3 of Interview with the Vampire, but it just turned out to be a ha…| FehrTrade
After a few weeks, a head cold, and a lot of hand stitching through two seasons of Ru Paul’s Drag Race, my cape is finally finished! I’ve made an awful lot of coats over the years but t…| FehrTrade
Let me just start off by saying I love this coat. I would jump up and down on Oprah’s couch like a crazy woman for this coat. It makes me happy just to look at it, and to touch it makes my da…| FehrTrade
As I mentioned in my last post, I really needed a lot more sleeveless tops, as I only had one or two that still fit. I really loved the shape of the FibreMood Elza ever since I saw it in their magazine last spring, but I hadn't quite gotten around to sewing it. I'd traced in size L then, though, so I had to re-trace it again in XL now - not a huge deal since it's only four pattern pieces. I had 1m of Ivory Ribbed Jersey in my stash that I apparently bought from Textile Express for £5 this ti...| FehrTrade
After I sewed The Kiss dress, I had a fair bit of fabric leftover, but it was in odd shapes due to the asymmetric cutting layout. It looked like I should be able to fit a teeshirt or a vest top (tank top) out of the remnants... and since I've got a lot of teeshirts that fit, but hardly anything sleeveless, I opted for the latter. Jalie 3245 (View C) is an "oldie but a goodie"! I first made this pattern back in 2018 as part of my "Serging Activewear" Craftsy course (still going strong!). I'm s...| FehrTrade
I actually sewed this jacket before the broderie anglaise dress, but I’m already wearing it a lot in the cooler summer evenings. It felt at the time like I’d been sewing this jacket for…| FehrTrade
After talking about the inspiration and my goals for this outfit, the drafting and sewing of the cape, and the incredible details of the silk shirt, we’re now onto the final piece – the…| FehrTrade
For once I’ve actually coordinated my sewing with the weather! Though, like most of my makes, this had a rather long lead time… I actually bought this 1.5m of Atelier Brunette “Sh…| FehrTrade
I’ve been wanting to make the Saraste shirtdress from the Named book, “Breaking the Pattern” ever since I first saw it at their UK launch party. It comes in three different views …| FehrTrade
Check back on Sunday around noon (London time) for wedding dress photos! Around the end of August, I got an MMS (photo text message) from my bridesmaid Pip’s boyfriend Rob of a brown case nex…| FehrTrade
I’ve sewed a bunch of jeans over the past few years, and with every single one, I’ve been disappointed by the quality of the rivets available to buy as a home sewers. I’ve tried t…| FehrTrade
I have got such a backlog of finished makes to show you! The problem with working an office job in amoungst spending every weekend at the boatyard AND trying to push out a new pattern (which is 95%…| FehrTrade
Like the best comic book superheroes, this dress has an almost unbelievable origin story. As you know, I’ve been sick with multiple viral infections for months, and have been pretty down abou…| FehrTrade
When you find yourself literally patching the patches on your first pair of cycling jeans, it’s the world’s way of telling you that you need to drop everything and make a replacement pa…| FehrTrade
I’ve made a lot of jeans since I started sewing 14 years ago. I remember I made my first pair before we even bought the boat, which would put them back in 2006 or 2007, and I really havenR…| FehrTrade
Sometimes you have to just close yourself into your sewing room, try to block out the world, and just make. This weekend I closed myself in my sewing cave and emerged on Sunday with a new pair of j…| FehrTrade
By the time I was able to release my Tessellate Tee pattern, I had made so many samples of all the different uses and features that the photoshoot required something like 8 wardrobe changes in the …| FehrTrade
I’m posting a bit out of order here, but I wanted to make sure I posted about this Cashmerette Irving Dress because it’s the May 2025 Cashmerette Club members pattern, and I want to give you all a chance to grab it before May is over. This one is a breezy, casual dress for knits, and as soon as I got the email about it, I knew I wanted to make it!| blog.fehrtrade.com
At the end of January my Dad became suddenly critically ill with a list of serious problems as long as my arm. While I anxiously waited for my last-minute transatlantic flight to leave to go over a…| FehrTrade
Earlier this week I talked about my inspiration and goals for this project, as well as taking a deep dive into the making of the cape, and today’s it’s time to talk about the shirt! The…| FehrTrade
After yesterday’s post detailing the inspiration and fabric sourcing for this outfit, today I’d like to talk about the standout piece – the cape! As I mentioned in the earlier pos…| FehrTrade
I’ve been sewing my own jeans for something like twelve(?) years now. Over the years I’ve built up my own preferences in how I like to construct them, but also how I like to wear them. …| FehrTrade
Sorry for the radio silence, but I’ve been suffering with an awful ear infection on top of my usual Long Covid for the past two months(!!), despite three trips to hospital and four prescriptions that did absolutely nothing… I’m finally starting to feel like my ear infection is dissipating, putting me back at my standard, awful Long Covid baseline fatigue again (so, err, please don’t offer congratulations, okay?).| blog.fehrtrade.com
Blood drip socks As you well know, my love of vampires is year-round, but it did work out nicely that this first pair of blood drip socks were ready just in time for Halloween! 🩸🧦&#…| FehrTrade
As promised, after sharing our usual daytime photos to document all the different ways it can be worn, the seamlines, and details, etc, I really want to take some photos of my recent Wolfkiller Cloak at nighttime, too. I mean, it’s a coat inspired by a vampire AND it’s nearly Halloween, so what better way to capture the vibes than to do a photoshoot in a local graveyard??| FehrTrade
Yes, this is both a big project AND yet another make inspired by “Interview with the Vampire”! Big enough that you’re going to get at least one In Progress post, in addition to th…| FehrTrade
My final summer sewing this year came in the form of three separate teeshirts, all in the basic colours (pink is a basic, right??). Please forgive me that I’m not modelling these – I’ve had several utterly awful weeks fighting multiple infections on top of the Long Covid I’ve been fighting for the past 11 months, and I didn’t want to hold up posting about these!| blog.fehrtrade.com
I’m mostly posting these because I have a bit of a backlog of posts building up and I didn’t want to make them even longer than they already are – also one is a swimsuit from July and it’s November now! And because I felt I owed my long-term readers an explanation as to why I haven’t posted in nearly two months…| blog.fehrtrade.com
Multiple apologies for taking so long to post about these (both!). 11 months in and I’m still struggling massively with Long Covid, not just sewing in small bursts, but also less keen to take…| FehrTrade
While many of my tops from before Covid still fit me, the same cannot be said for trousers or shorts. I haven’t been able to fit into my jeans (which were hardly tight pre-Covid!) since last Fall, and I really only have three pairs of trousers that fit comfortably, all of which I’ve made in the past few months.| blog.fehrtrade.com
A few months ago I visited a good friend who used to work in the fashion industry. Since she doesn’t sew anymore, she ends up gifting me with random jewlels from her stash that I graciously accept. This time around there were some small offcuts of an Alexander McQueen leather! It’s a pale peach-pink with a white crackle top, and the pieces were all fairly small.| FehrTrade
I’m still not sure whether I actually like this design of trousers or not, but my previous StyleArc Bobs are one of like three non-legging bottoms that still fit and aren’t uncomfortable, so making another pair was a necessity sew. | FehrTrade
It’s my 45th birthday today!! It’s not been a great year, tbh, with a truly horrific last 6 months, but to quote my friend Louis de Pointe du Lac, “A shit life beats no life.” And maybe this birthday will mark the start of a fresh new year, eh?| blog.fehrtrade.com
I own the very first Fibre Mood magazine but for some reason I’ve never made any of their patterns before. But when I saw this latest issue I bought it immediately and as soon as I got home f…| FehrTrade
It’s been years since I’ve had a reason to sew something for Halloween. I’m pretty sure the last time was when I made the badger and fox suits for J and myself, and that was 6 yea…| FehrTrade
