Melly Sews Empire Waist Maxi Dress Pattern Review

More maxi dress making over here!  Today I'm sharing my latest maxi dress make and accompanying pattern review of Melly Sews Empire Waist Maxi Dress Pattern. 

In June I shared that one of my summer sewing goals was to make myself some maxi dresses.  I made it into a dress making challenge for myself (and anyone who wanted to join me) by noting some maxi dress patterns I'd found and was considering trying and this is one of them.  

A few weeks ago I shared my results with the 

Seamingly Smitten Racerback Maxi Dress Pattern:

And now I'm onto Melly Sews Empire Waist Maxi Dress Pattern.  One of the big reasons I decided to try this one was that it was free.  You can't beat that price!  Another was that I've sewn some of her other patterns and they were straightforward, simple sew items that were really flattering, like this Blank Slate T-Shirt Pattern: 

So I felt confident giving this pattern a go and it did not disappoint.

The finished result is definitely flattering and comfortable.  I LOVED the colors and print of the fabric chosen for her sample, so I was hoping I could make one I liked as much with fabric I had in my stash.  My 4 way stretch knit was one I'd bought on a vacation eons ago while in Canada (because prioritizing going to fabric stores on vacation is totally normal, right?).  I'd been saving it to make myself something to wear, but hadn't found the right thing until now.

As I've mentioned in past pattern reviews I'm not any kind of affiliate, so this is an unbiased, independent review.

Pattern Review Time!

The big plus for me was this free pattern came in my size, S (4-6).  If you need bigger, you'd need to scale it up accordingly.  The original pattern tutorial (which is where the actual pdf pattern pieces can be found) was called the Striped Maxi Sundress and also featured a drawstring waist.  I skipped that bit and just ran elastic through the casing and sewed it closed.

The bodice is the only printable part of the pattern - you do have to measure out the skirt portion.  My print was non-directional so I was able to place my pieces creatively to make the entire dress from 1.5yds rather than the 3yds indicated in the how-to.   

The dress is self-lined at the bodice which was SO nice and easy to sew.  No fiddly bits on the neckline or arm areas, which made it come together really fast.  

It's also nice in that it gets the all-important neckline right.  It's not too low and lies flat at the chest:

The instructions are really clear and there are lots of photos, so if even you're a new to sewing or just to sewing with knits you'll be fine.  Melissa also has a helpful YouTube channel, Melly Sews, where she shares a lot of tips & help for apparel sewing, modifying patterns and sewing with knit fabric.  

Now I've got another beautiful, bargain priced, summer dress and another go-to maxi dress pattern for future seasons. 

My Pattern Review Score?  

FREE Summer Clothes Patterns for Kids

Summer is right around the corner & the temperature outside is already there: hot & sun-filled.  Dressing the kids is a challenge for many of us due to all the new hurdles surrounding what used to be basic shopping (both in-store & online), still being restricted to the house most of the time and trying to live on less income.  

I've started sifting through my fabric & outgrown clothes stashes and past used pattern to get a to-do list together for sewing as much of a summer wardrobe for the kids as I can to ease things a bit.  I thought a helpful start would be to compile some easy and FREE patterns available for kids of all ages, so anyone can join me in this sewing for summer effort.

Here are a few 

Easy Any Size Baby Bubble Romper.  I created this pattern with a free pdf for size 3-6 months and give step-by-step instructions for drafting any other custom size desired.  

Runaround Romper for babies.  This is my own pattern and it's sized for 12-24months (btw my now 27mos old still can wear it unaltered!), but can easily be tweaked to also fit 6-12 & 2T-3T.

Girls Ginger Shorties from Sew Like My Mom.  It covers size 12mos to kid's 16.  See my review HERE.

She also has this great unisex Sycamore Shorts pattern for sizes 12mos to kid's 8.

Easy & Free Knit Girl's Tank Nightgown by Scattered Thoughts of a Crafty Mom.  It offers sizes 3-16:

as well as this Girl's Apron Top in size 2T-6:

And this shirred waist Cover Up Skirt sizes 3 & up.

 

 Ester & Ebbe Kid's T-shirt from Threads By Caroline. It covers sizes 9mos to kid's 11 for boys and girls.

Ottobre Design offers this free Kid's Tank Top pattern.  It covers sizes 12-18mos to kid's 7.

Any Size Knit Play Dress.  The name kind of says it all.

Another any size design, my Easy Make Maxi Dress, is ideal for beating the heat:

My Sleeveless Sunday Girl's Dress.  The PDF file fits size 8-10, but can easily be tweaked down to a size 6 too.

And my new Sleeveless Sunday Tween Dress.  The PDF file fits tween girl's 10-14.

I'll continue to share any more free finds, as well as versatile inexpensive patterns too and some new goodies as I make them.  

Happy Sewing!

Summer Sewing Starts Now! FREE Shorts Pattern Find

Summer is nearly here and it's so good to be sewing for it!  A couple of weeks ago I shared my latest fabric buy - some cool Solar Color Changing Jersey knit.  I had to put working with it on pause while tending to a sick baby, but now that things are back to normal on the home front, I got a chance to get rolling on some projects.    

The real question was what to make??  I wanted to do some shorts for my daughter with this color changing flowers print that turns from this black & white design....

To this colorful print in the sunshine:

I poured through my pattern collection to see what I could find. I had used this free Ginger Shorties pattern by Sew Like My Mom for the first time a few years ago, back when my daughter was 6.  It covered sizes 12 months-8yrs and was free so it was a great find.

It was such a great and quick sew I made several pairs as the bottoms of some shortie pajamas too, which she really loved.

I wanted to use it again, but with my daughter being nearly 10 I was afraid the largest size would be too small and I'd have to scale it up myself.  So imagine my delight when I saw that Sew Like My Mom upgraded it to go through size 16!!  And it's still FREE!  You can get it HERE.

It was just as easy to make as before.  It's literally just 3 pieces to cut (two legs and a waistband) and three seams to sew.  SO quick to put together.  By using a nice rib knit I didn't even need to add any elastic to the waistband.  

Of course the sun refused to cooperate when I was taking photos and hid behind a cloud while she was wearing them, but a little later I was able to get an in-the-sun photo for the full color change magic effect:

I also made another pair with some stretchy stripe terry knit I had in my stash (yay stash-busting!!).  

Sew Like My Mom has several other free shorts patterns there and some cute patterns you can purchase too.  I'm definitely going to make some more and since the sizing covers so many ages, I can make stuff for my 1 yr old up to my 13 yr old.  With fabrics from my stash + the free patterns clothing 3 out of 4 kids for free is a win for sure! 

Free Pattern Finds: The Snapazoo Soft Toy

As much as I like making my own patterns and dreaming up designs with my imagination, sometimes it's relaxing to just start sewing.  And sometimes there are great ideas already created & ready to sew up, like this Free Pattern Find:  The Snapazoo®  Soft Toy.

Like all my Free Pattern Finds, this is a pattern that doesn't cost a thing, so you can go grab it yourself for FREE!   

The Snapazoo toy is clever design from Ross Miller Studio, Inc. that involves a two sided fabric shape and a boatload of snaps that can be folded and snapped into all sort of things.  Like this teddy bear:

or a little fox:

or a sting ray:  

Or some sort of bird/duck:

I think that's what I love most about this idea - the infinite play options.  It's been around for a while and was even sold as a finished toy years ago, as you can see from some of retro videos on the Snapazoo site.  There are links to different templates and how-to's for making it here.  For personal use only though - commercial selling is prohibited. 

This pattern is best suited for fabrics with some weight & a bit of stretch like heavy knits, minky, felt or fleece.  I used anti-pill fleece for mine.  It's a great way to use up scraps, since it's not very big.   

It's an easy sew, so a good project for a beginner.  Literally, just cut & mark based on the downloadable template:

Then stitch:

Turn right side out and set the snaps according to the instructions:

Plastic snaps are ideal because they are strong and you can get fun with the snap colors if you want.  I just used boring grey for our first one, but I feel like some of the shaped snaps in my stash, like stars or flowers, would look fun too.

There are handy instructions here on how to make various animals with it.  Including this elephant and most of the critters shown earlier in my post:

We had fun just making weird & wonderful creatures too, like this....well, I-don't-know-what:

Definitely a fun Free Pattern Find for us.  My kids love the Snapazoo, what about you??  

Got a freebie pattern find you love? Share it in the comments so we can all try it out!



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