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Last year fans and followers of Itch-to-Stitch designs joined together in a “Sew the love blog tour” to help Kennis after she had been burgled. This year we have another blog tour, simply called “It’s time to sew Itch-to-Stitch” and I was so pleased when Crystal from The Sewing Vortex asked me to participate.

All week there has been heaps of inspiration as 26 bloggers highlight their love for ITS designs (see the links towards the end of this post). Make sure you read through to the end to enter the Rafflecopter giveaway for the chance to win a fantastic prize from our generous sponsors and get a couple of special offers.

Here is a snapshot of our sponsors

I have made more than half of the Itch-to-Stitch inventory, but really wanted to make something new for this tour. I had the North Point trousers pattern, which I had never made and Kennis kindly donated the Bonn Shirt pattern so that I had a whole ensemble.

As part of her sponsorship of the tour Kennis is offering any readers of my blog the chance to buy both or either of these patterns for just $9 each today only.

I used fabric from my stash for the North Point trousers, but for the Bonn shirt I was sponsored by Tammy from D & H Fabrics, and I was very excited to try their fabric as they specialise in sustainable fabrics. A little quote from their website reads as: “D&H only sources high quality fashion apparel fabrics with the modern DIY dressmaker and home sewer in mind.  Whether you are sewing for yourself or to sell to others, the quality of the fabrics will be something you can stand behind. The more fabric we can source that is compliant and sustainable the better.” Sounds like my sort of shop! I ordered the Atelier Brunette Stardust gauze with little embroidered gold dots scattered over it and I can’t begin to tell you how marvellous it is.

The Bonn shirt is beautifully drafted, and among the many things I appreciate with the Itch to Stitch patterns is the inclusion of different cup sizes so that the attainment of a perfect fit is achievable without having to faff around with FBAs (not that I ever do, but I should!). Features of the pattern are:

• A, B, C, D and DD Cups
• Shirt length and dress length options
• Dress with sash
• Long, 3/4, short cuff and flare sleeves options
• Relaxed fit with slight waist shaping
• Front buttoned
• V neck with modified mandarin collar
• Integrated front facing

I really like the relaxed shape of this shirt, with the rounded tails and the mandarin collar, and it is proving to be the most perfect trans-seasonal shirt. The fabric is just a joy to wear, it’s soft and so comfortable. I made the long sleeved version with cuffs, but there are several sleeve styles as mentioned above.

The back view shows the simplicity of this design – there is nothing fussy about it, just a beautiful shape. The neckline sits beautifully flat and the shoulder seams are exactly on my shoulders, such are the joys of a well fitting shirt. I made no changes to the pattern, so this is the fit straight out of the printer.

I did add a little detail to the shirt in the form of some gold chainstitching instead of topstitching down the front. This fabric did not take to me topstitching it for some reason, and I felt it was too fragile to be forcing it to do something it didn’t want to do. In retrospect I am really happy about this as I was able to find a creative solution which I think makes the shirt even more bespoke.

My buttons are from the 1930s and are small gold balls, which go so well with the embroidered gold spots.

North point Trousers Feature:

• Classically sleek straight leg silhouette
• Medium rise and curve through hip and thigh
• Ankle length that can be lengthened or shortened
• Contour waistband for a better fit
• Streamlined front slanted pockets
• Strong and durable back single-welt pockets
• Fly front with zipper and double hook and bar closure
• Use of stretch woven fabric for comfort

I modified them according to my block, but I still had to run them in a bit at the sides and on the inside legs. On this pair I decided to not do the back welt pockets. This was a last minute decision as I had the pockets sewn on to the backs but removed them before cutting the welts. I’m not sure why I changed my mind, but I suspect I was afraid that they would stretch out in this fabric.

There are many reasons I turn to Itch-to-Stitch designs: the layered PDFs, which means that I only need to print my size, the attention to detail and rigorous testing process, but, as previously mentioned, the very best thing for tops and dresses is that Kennis always provides patterns for different cup sizes meaning that I don’t need to do an FBA, and the fit is always perfect.

If you want to check out some of the other Itch-to-Stitch patterns, here is the line up of Bloggers for the It’s Time to Sew Itch to Stitch Blog Tour, please go and check them out by clicking on their blog names.

Please visit our sponsors and enter our Rafflecopter giveaway for a chance to win this unbelievable prize package:

So Sew English Fabrics: Prize of $30 GC
Mabel Madison Modern Makers: Prize of 3 yard coordinated bundle
Sly Fox Fabrics: $25GC
Raspberry Creek Fabrics: $50 GC
Surge Fabric Shop: $20 GC
Organic Cotton Plus: $25 GC
WarmCrochet: Pair of scissors

For each sponsor you visit, you can earn another entry into the Rafflecopter giveaway. The giveaway is open NOW until September 23rd. The winner will be chosen by random.org, notified by email and announced in the Itch to Stitch Designs Facebook Group.

In addition, there are a couple of offers happening during the blog tour:

• Mabel Madison is offering $10 off a $50 order with the code ITSTOUR through September 30th. You have to go and look at the fabric on offer – including glow in the dark!
• Itch to Stitch is offering limited, discounted pricing for the patterns being highlighted in this post only good for the day of the post, so the Bonn Shirt and Dress and North Point trousers are both $9 each. This is the case for each of the bloggers participating in the tour, so make sure you check them all out.