Surprise Sale!

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Most of you know we’ve been hosting some guest bloggers for the past five weeks… And with each post, there was a sale on 2 patterns for the week? Guess what? Now that it’s all over we’re bringing you a HUGE surprise sale!

Surprise sale!

In case you missed the previous posts, let me fill you in.

Week one we had Becky Petty of bigflynotions with the Emmaline.

Then, during week two Dora Serrano joined us with her beautifully sewn Amelia for her daughter!

Jennie Lindstrom joined us for week three with her adorable Primrose Panties for her girls.

Just perfect with pants too!

Week four brought us Laurie Roberts who writes the blog Make it Sew with The Bear and Pea Atelier and she sewed up an adorable little Hazel for us.

And finally, last week Fenna (who writes FABulous Home Sewn) wrapped up week five with the ever amazingly retro Sansa Flares.

Each of these weeks brought a great sale along with it… But tonight, that ends.

… Or does it???

Beginning tomorrow (9/27/19) through the end of the month, ALL of the patterns above will be on sale again! Along with the patterns they were paired with for the original sale, which includes Clementine, Apple, Coraline, Oceana, and Sahara! Prices for children’s sizes will be $6, Adult sizes will be $7 or get the bundle with ALL the sizes for only $12!

Once you’ve shopped to your heart’s content, please share your newly sewn wardrobes with us in our Facebook group! We love seeing the creativity… and you never know who you might inspire!

Back to School 70’s Style with Sansa Flares

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Today we’re wrapping up this year’s back to school series with the Sansa Flares! The lovely Fenna of FABulous Home sewn was kind enough to share her back to school adventure with these pants, so let’s see what she has to say!

Back to School 70’s Style with Sansa Flares

Hi there! I’m Fenna and I blog over at FABulous Home Sewn. 

I get to share the Sansa Flares with you today. 

First of all, this is a super quick sew. 

It’s three pieces. 

It comes with two different options–yoga waistband and an elastic waistband. 

One thing I really appreciated is that there is a whole separate piece for the pant depending on which option you choose. So, you can print out the piece you need and not waste paper and time printing the whole thing! 

One thing to remember is to use a fabric with at least 50% stretch. I did, but I didn’t realize that the 50% runs opposite of what is normal until I went to attach the waistband. 

‘Wait! What?! Why is this not stretching as big as it should?!’ 

That is why it looks a little snug in the pictures. Thankfully there was enough stretch in the fabric to make it so she could still wear them. 

Just don’t make my mistake! 

Overall I love this pattern and these pants–the flare is amazing and the yoga waistband looks so comfy. My daughter initially didn’t want ‘poofy’ pants but when she tried them on she loved them and wanted to keep wearing them. That is a win, I’d say. 

The Sansa Flares range in size from 6m to 12. 

And, as always BSD patterns have a good page of tips on sewing with knits if you’ve never done so before, so a beginner could definitely sew these up. 

Sales!

This week begins a new sale! Both the Sansa Flares and the Sahara will be on sale from Friday 9/20-Thursday 9/26. The child sizes will be $6, Adult sizes will be $7 and the bundles with both will be on sale for $12! Get them for some great prices to get your family wardrobes ready for the season!

Back to School with Hazel

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Welcome back to another installment of our Back to School 2019 tour! Today we’ll hear from Laurie and see the super sweet Hazel that she made!

Back to School with Hazel

Hi, I’m Laurie with Make it Sew with The Bear and Pea Atelier.  I am so excited to be on the Back to School tour and sharing my make with you! I have been lucky over the years to be able to test with BSD quite a bit and consider it a privilege to get to chat with you today.

Back to school can be such a hectic time of year between getting kids (and me) back on schedule, buying supplies and sewing new wardrobes. Fortunately for me, Lolli loves dresses so a bulk of my sews this year ended up being fill-in stuff for the transition to winter.

After taking a look at what Lolli needed most, I realized it was tops. I had been wanting to try the new Girls Hazel Dolman because I knew it is loaded with options and if Lolli loves it as a top then I knew I could use it for dresses too! 

Sewing Hazel

So the details of the pattern include:

  • Sizing range of 6m- 12yrs
  • Top, Tunic or Dress length
  • 3 sleeve options: sleeveless, short or 3/4
  • Simple or ruched sleeve

I opted for the short-sleeved tunic version with ties because I like the detail. I knew Lolli would love being able to have short sleeves and the option to make the sleeves shorter. Once we figured out our options,  we went to figure out fabric choices. Lolli decided on using this fun floral dino swim fabric from Run Amok Fabrics.

Floral dinos fabric from Run Amok fabrics

For Lolli’s version, I graded between a size 3t chest and 5t length. The instructions for grading are excellent, as usual.

Lolli with the ruching ties pulled tight.

Rouched shoulder tied loosely for the short-sleeved length.

I really love how this pairs with both shorts and pants.

Loving this with shorts to finish out the summer.

The Hazel Dolman pairs perfectly with pants too!

I know it’s going to get a lot of wear this year. Lolli has picked out fabric for 3 more (2 tops and a dress), so I would say it’s pattern love!

*One quick tip: this pattern is for confident beginners. The most complicated step is creating the channels for the sleeve pulls. If you are a beginner or not familiar with sewing swim fabrics, I would not recommend using it for this project. It’s very slippery and made sewing things more complicated than it needed to be. If you decide to live dangerously, like I do, and go for it; make sure to thoroughly pin OR my favorite trick, use a little Elmer’s school glue in a stick and that will help make the edge a tad stiffer and easier to keep in place.

 

Back to school with Amelia

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Time for another guest blog with another amazing guest blogger! Meet Dora Serrano and see what she has up her sleeve for this back to school sew! *Spoiler alert~ it’s Amelia!*

Rise and shine, Sunshines! We’re Back to School! I’m Dora, mother of three, sewist, tester, blogger and teacher. So… since we’re all getting back to lessons and books around here, for this series, I’m sharing with you one of my favorite Back to School dresses: Amelia

Back to school with Amelia

“S”… is for School, September, Start…

At my home, September is always the month for fresh new starts. This year we have even more of these… my older girl is starting high school, my younger girl has a new teacher, I’ll have new classes to teach… it’s so much to get excited about! My little girl usually wears a new dress on the first day and this year I’ll be joining her with my own Amelia dress.

Blue and Pink

For this dress, I decided to play with pink and blue. I love blue and my girly girl loves pink, so… why not? I went for different shades of pink and burgundy for my dress. And I used blue french terry with pink bunnies for hers. I could have played a bit more with the pattern: mixing fabrics and colors ( the bodice could have been different from the skirt/bottom of the top)… but the fabrics were so beautiful as they were…

  

The pattern requires a 4-way stretch knit fabric with at least a 50% stretch and similar or lighter weight fabric for the lining. The skirt can be in either knit or woven. I used a knit with a nice recovery for my bodice and woven with a small percentage of stretch for my skirt. For my girl’s Amelia top, I used soft french terry.

Sewing Amelia

After measuring me and my girl, I checked the sizes and ended up selecting size 12 for me and a 4 for my daughter.
Although I’m between sizes (12 for bodice and 14 for the skirt), this is a gathered skirt, so it’s pretty forgiving.

And if you think blending sizes is difficult, think again! This pattern (and all of them in Bella Sunshine Designs) includes straight forward instructions to guide you through blending sizes. Nothing to fear!

What did I struggle with???

Well… It wasn’t really a struggle, but I always twist my arm when it comes to lining a pattern. However, it does give your piece a better finish and with this pattern, you really benefit from the lined bodice.

I only added one thing after lining: a small pink binding for contrast at the neckline and at the armscye. I think it really made the fabric pop.

All in all, I really enjoyed sewing this dress. It has been on my to-do list for quite some time. Since my girl usually wears either leggings or shorts, I ended up sewing the top length version for her and the knee length dress for myself.

 

 

 

Still having some doubts? Well, we’ve got you covered!

• Amelia sew-along album

• Need help? Shout out in the Bella Sunshine Designs Facebook group. The BSD community is pretty helpful and will be there for you.

Go on… Take advantage of this Back to School sale and grab these awesome patterns that are featured this week:
Amelia (top, dress, and maxi) and Apple cardigan. Two great patterns at a great price!

*I used affiliate links in this post. If you click on an affiliate link and make a purchase,
I will receive a small commission from your purchase, at no additional cost to you.*

Blue for Back to School

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Happy Back to School Sunshines!

Hi, I’m Becky and I normally blog at bigflynotions. I am excited to share this dress as part of the Bella Sunshine Design’s Back to School Blog Series.

Back to School Spirit Day Blues

My kids’ school has spirit days sprinkled throughout the year. The school announces the theme and children can decide whether to participate or not. There are things like Superhero Day, Wacky Wednesday, or Backwards Day (remember Kris Kross?).

The most popular day is sports spirit day. The kids wear blue during the hockey season to support the local team. My pink princess has “nothing to wear”. I went for the two birds/one stone approach with this dress: my daughter gets a new back to school dress and I am not caught unprepared for a blue spirit day.

                   

Blue on Blue on Blue

I could have used one shade of blue and made a lovely dress but why stop there? Bella Sunshine Designs has the perfect pattern for monochromatic bliss: (affiliate link) Emmaline. I purchased the ladies/girls bundle (affiliate link) in the recent Sunday Sunshine Sale and was eager to give it a try!

I used three different shades of cotton lycra from The Fabric Fairy. The pattern calls for knits with four-way stretch and good drape. Cotton lycra might have felt too boxy if I were sewing this dress for myself but it worked great for my daughter.  

Sewing Emmaline

I followed the pattern suggestions for selecting sizes. My daughter is slender and needs the size 12m for width and the size 4 for height. The pattern includes simple instructions for blending. Melissa also made this helpful video for blending sizes for the chevron skirt.

I did not perfectly execute the gathered sleeve. Next time, I will pay greater attention to evenly gather between the notches and ensure that I am not stretching as I insert the sleeve. Using a fabric with more drape might also make those small gathers a little easier to manipulate.

I really liked piecing together the skirt and watching the chevrons form. I sometimes worry about how blocked pieces will feel against skin. The skirt’s ease means this is not an issue with Emmaline. Ironing per the pattern instructions worked great but the seams would be simple to topstitch too. 

Tadah!

The outcome is a gorgeous dress with amazing twirl: 

Still intimidated by the Emmaline? You’ve got support:

 

*I used affiliate links in this post. If you click on an affiliate link and make a purchase,
I will receive a small commission from your purchase, at no greater cost to you.*

Back to School Blog Tour ~ Day Five

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Today is the final day of our whirlwind Back to School blog tour! I’m so sad to see it come to an end, but all good things must. Last (but most certainly not least!) on this final day of our tour, we will see the creations of Laurie Roberts, Julia Jones, and Teronia Sherece Wilson! Let the fun and cuteness commence!

Back to School Blog Tour ~ Day Five

Laurie Roberts

Laurie Roberts is a Southerner living in the rural Green Mountains of Vermont. It was living in a small town that encouraged her to rediscover sewing after a 20-year break. She’s married to a man that indulges her love of rich textiles and sewing by helping support her small custom dress business. She has 5 children between his, hers and ours and has no shortage of people asking for special custom stuff but really loves to stretch her creativity by indulging the youngest 2 with their specific demands for cosplay inspired and upcycled costuming. She started a challenge at the beginning of the year, which led to a blog chronicling that sewing journey. You can see more of her amazing dragon Gabriella’s Coat here.

Julia Jones

Julia Jones AKA the scatty sewer. Sewing for 6 years, but has become very accomplished, favorite makes are regency dresses for the Jane Austen Promenade in Bath UK. Recently bought a restaurant with her husband and hoping to make all her own business clothing. Mum of 2 adult children who have both moved out of the home, its time to focus on what she wants to do and that’s SEW.

Teronia Sherece Wilson

Teronia is a crafty mom to two girls, foodie wife to her husband and all around crazy lady to everyone who knows her. Her oldest daughter inspired her to start sewing when a special first birthday dress was needed in a special size. Her favorite things to sew are special occasion dresses and custom fitted pants for her oldest petite princess. The Sansa Flares were the perfect choice to kick off her back to school sewing this year. Be sure to check out her blog for all the details.

I don’t know about you, but I am SO inspired to get do my own back to school sewing after this week’s tour! These ladies really killed it! If you missed any of the previous days, just click for Day One, Day Two, Day Three, and Day Four! Which was your favorite sew this week? Please share in the comments below!

Back to School Blog Tour ~ Day Four

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We’re on the downhill stretch of this back to school blog tour and have seen some truly amazing things, but there’s still so MORE much to see! Are you ready for it? Today’s features will include sews made by Jessica Cotriss, Taish Bruton, and Nathalie Van den Bossche! I can’t wait for this one!

Back to School Blog Tour ~ Day Four

Jessica Cotriss

Jessica Cotriss writes from her hobbit hole, otherwise known as her spare room/”studio”, where she sews in the a/c to avoid the scorching surface-of-the-sun heat outside in Central Texas. She and her hubby have toured the world, thanks to her former military service, and his continued military career. She’s been sewing since the 1980’s and loves making things for others. For this blog tour, she focused on options for the high school and college students and their teachers, as everyone needs to be stylish and fashionable when heading back to school, even if it’s to teach the next generation.

Taish Bruton

Taish is a sewcialist, creativepreneur and graphic designer who doesn’t like to limit her creativity. Mother of a handsome son and beautiful baby girl. She believes creativity is courageous, inspiring, and always evolving. For this blog tour, she made the Josephine Dress through the lens of a preschooler.

Nathalie Van den Bossche

In 2013, Nathalie was intrigued by the mysterious art of creating clothes. Could she do that? She registered for a local class and has not looked back since. The world wide web turned into an inspirational playground full of patterns, techniques, and fabrics. She started blogging in Dutch and recently added an English version. When she’s not sewing, Nathalie is a teacher. The dress she picked smoothens the transition from lazy days to the classroom. Summer still lingers in the scooped back of the Sahara. At the same time, the UV reactive fabric promises a magical new start for her daughter. You can find the English version of her post here. And the Dutch version here.

If you’ve missed any of our other wonderful bloggers on this tour so far, you can find Day One, Day Two, and Day Three at these links. And don’t forget the week-long sitewide sale going on this week! You don’t want to miss out on that!

Back to School Blog Tour ~ Day Three

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It’s hump day! And the third day of the Back to School blog tour with Bella Sunshine Designs! Are you ready to see some awesome back to school gear? I am! Today we’ll get show-and-tells from Jillayne Whipple Richey, Amanda Cross, and Becca Olson! I’m ready to see what they’ve whipped up, are you?

Back to School Blog Tour ~ Day Three

Jillayne Whipple Richey

Jillayne is a mother to 4 and Arizonan at heart. She likes dancing in her bare feet, balanced budgets, books, quilting, sewing (especially when it looks good), music, playing music, baking bread, being warm, getting organized, making stacks, getting organized again, soft beds, baby noses, chick flicks, hugs from her kids, skipping ahead to read/watch the ending, quiet, chaos, singing really loud, her family and sharing her sewing on her blog ‘Hazelnut Handmade’. For today’s share, she hacked the Maggie Top for her daughter’s back to school outfit.

Amanda Cross

Amanda Cross, Cross Stitches Custom Clothing, was inspired by the seamstresses in her family to also take up the art and has been sewing for 24 years. She appreciates the ability to create a custom fit when it is near impossible to find it off the rack from Ready-to-Wear garments. She enjoys sharing the creative process, wonderful fabrics, ground-breaking patterns, and the necessary know-how for taking a garment from Home-Made to Hand-Made.

Becca Olson

Becca Olson Nana to 2 adorable monsters. Addicted to sewing, quilting, and basically anything she can add to the studio without getting busted by hubby. Her favorite thing to do though is sewing for those monsters. For the back to school blog, she focused on the FREE Regan Raglan…
Please check out Day One and Day Two if you missed them! Also, don’t forget that Bella Sunshine is having a week-long Back to School blowout sale in effect ALL week long! It’s the perfect opportunity to grab some of those patterns you’ve been on the fence about at a great price! Come back tomorrow to see what new pretties we have in store for you!

Back to School Blog Tour ~ Day Two

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This is the second day of looking at some amazing back to school fashions created by amazing sewists using Bella Sunshine patterns! Today’s post will feature Becky Petty, Dora Serrano, and Jennie Coffman Lindstrom! Let’s meet them and see what amazing things they’ve created for us!

Back to School Blog Tour ~ Day Two

Becky Petty

Becky Petty is the mom of twins and lover of coffee and creating. When she’s not doing mountains of laundry or watching Frozen for the umpteenth time, Becky enjoys documenting her sewing journey. Her passion and mommy zen time is making clothes for her family to wear for real life. Check out the full BSD outfit (leggings, tunic, cardigan) that Becky made for her pink-loving princess. We think you’ll agree, she’s too cool for school!

Dora Serrano

Teacher, sewist, tester, blogger… a creative mind on the loose, Dora is a mom to three children and married to the love of her life. She gets her inspiration from her family and she loves to sew for them. This time, she was able to do what she likes most when it comes to sewing: mix fabrics, colors, and textures in a beautiful dress!! Find out more on her blog!

Jennie Coffman Lindstrom

Jennie Lindstrom is a wife, mama to four daughters, homeschooler, veteran, and Dr. Pepper lover. She loves to sew and be creative, and writes all about it on her blog, Stitched by Jennie. Since she homeschools her daughters, she decided to go for a comfortable, yet cute back to school outfit. Her 15-year-old requested a new shirt with a fun quote and the Reagan raglan worked perfectly to fulfill her request. Some Eden leggings and an Apple Cardigan complete the outfit.

How great were those blogs? I love seeing all of the creativity people use when sewing Bella Sunshine patterns! Here’s a jump back to Day One if you missed it! Oh! And if there are some patterns you’ve been eyeing and haven’t jumped on yet, I have a surprise for you! ALL of our patterns are on sale ALL week this week! So hop on over to the shop and grab a few while they’re cheap! You won’t regret it.

Back to School Blog Tour~ Day One

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We’re pretty much all gearing up for back to school. What better way to prep and get a little stress relief too, than by sewing up some new wardrobe pieces? Each day this week we will feature three talented seamstresses who have sewn up some Bella Sunshine goodness for back to school! Today’s post will feature Auke Leufkens, Miranda Bodo, and Leisel Engelbrecht.

Back to School Blog Tour ~ Day One

Auke Leufkens

Aukje from Sew Cucio loves to sew for everybody in her family including herself, although the girls get most of the sews. She especially loves to sew dresses and with a deadline, therefore she loves blog tours and pattern tests. Her sews are recognized for its bold fabric combinations with lots of colors. For the back to school blog tour, she used three patterns, two free patterns, the Eden Leggings and the Reagan Raglan, and the third is the Apple Cardigan, to create a full outfit.

Miranda Bodo

Miranda from Inspinration sews fast, has a passion for sewing with knits and is a hacker at heart. For the back to school blog tour, she used all those qualities and created an all knit mini capsule. It contains eight pieces, four tops four bottoms that can be mixed and matched to create sixteen different looks. Miranda has a passion for color and print which leads to her kids looking like walking happy rainbows, but for the tour, she tried something new, a basic color scheme and several uni-colored fabrics.

Leisel Engelbrecht

Liesel has been sewing for several years, and enjoys sewing for children the best! She homeschools her four children and loves photography, music, and thrifting as other hobbies. Her blog is “It’s Liesel” and you can find all her sewing shares there. She made the Maggie dress and a modified Clementine top for back to school outfits for her girls.

I think these three ladies did an AMAZING job, don’t you? Make sure you check back tomorrow to see more awesome back to school sews!

 

 

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