Darcey and Binky Blossom Add On - Can it get any better?

Having decided on a DIY Christmas I thought I would get on and make a start on the cards but then SewMyStyle announced November would be some of my favourite Evie la Luve patterns. So for the challenge I thought I would make one of the few versions that I had not done before. Even better I had a beautiful floral scuba kit to use. As with all Evie la Luve’s products the quality is amazing. How gorgeous is this?

There is so much going on in the fabric. With so many colours to pick up it is was really difficult to choose what to do first - pink, peach, green, purple even a small amount of blue/mint. I felt quite dizzy with all the variations going around in my head. What I really wanted to do was a Blossom Add On set which is mainly stretch mesh. So I decided on the pink theme as I had some lovely stretch mesh from Costura Secret Shop.

There are two styles for the Binky Blossom add on. Style 1 I had done so this time I would try Style 2. The Darcey Blossom add on is a front overlay with a longline option. I was going to try the longline version but I struggled to find continuous tape for the fastener in the right colour. The choice was made. Then on to cutting perfect scallops from the scuba.

I thought I would share how I got it to look so perfect. I used this technique on my previous make but did not go into any detail. I will introduce the Cricut Maker - the ultimate cutting machine. Bought on whim last Christmas, I cannot tell you how much it has changed my crafting life and now rivals my sewing machines for my affection. That said on to the technique. The free Cricut software it uses is called Design Space which works with SVG files. My idea was to upload the pattern pieces. You can upload photos and clean them up to create precise designs but this wasn’t producing a clean cut. Then after some research I found a free program called Inkscape which lets you upload a PDF and map it or, as I did, simply trace the shape.

I had to watch a few videos to pick up the basics that I needed to do this but it was well worth the 10 minutes. First I imported the page I needed and then I flipped the image 90 degrees as I found it easier to work this way around and zoomed in so the shape filled the screen.

Then I used the Bezier tool to go from point to point along the pattern. You can see the green line from node to node. Next you edit the path of the nodes to match the curves of the pattern. With the closeness of the lines you really have to zoom in to get this perfect.

Once you are happy you delete the imported page and you are left with your pattern piece which you then save as an SVG file. For the pattern pieces that are on the fold you don’t join the nodes along the foldline but duplicate the shape, flip and join the open nodes to create one piece.

The next step is to import the file into Cricut Design Space. For some reason you have to resize the design as they do not load at the correct size. You need to copy the measurements from Inkscape into Design Space. I also physically measured the dimensions on the paper pattern piece to double check. First I cut out in thick card to check the size. I am amazed at just how perfect a fit they are.

Then on to the actual fabric. Pink fabric mat out, rotary cutter in the machine and spandex setting for the cut. I used the card template to fussy cut the pieces so I could up the pink in the fabric. Perfect scallops and such beautiful colours.

Rather than pin or baste I use temporary spray adhesive to keep in place whilst I sew around the scallop edge. I did this really slowly so I could sew perfect curves as I was using dark blue thread and you would see this on the reverse side. I did all my pieces in one go so I didn’t need to keep changing the thread from blue to pink. I could incorporate the gusset into the front piece but I prefer an enclosed gusset. I did pattern match but it’s hard to see as the scuba doesn’t lie very flat.

To finish you return to the regular Binky pattern. I used the overlock stitch on my regular machine for the side seams. Good enough on a small seam.

Onto the Darcey. A little more fussy cutting and remembering to duplicate the side front piece and then mirror.

The seams are rather bulky so I did grade them. Normally I would leave the seam allowance that is pressed against the main fabric the longest but this would mean you could see the dark fabric through the stretch mesh on the reverse so I did the other way around. With the front done I had to decide what fabric to use for the back pieces. I had noticed that because of the dark colour of this scuba it doesn’t look good when stretched too far. I also thought the stretch mesh would be too light even with two layers so I used a strong powernet for the lining.

I like the way the straps are enclosed in the bottom band. Then as usual I check the fit of the fastener before applying the fold over elastic to the top edge. I used my curved ruler to redraw a smooth line and then cut with sides together for a perfect match. The neckline elastic went in well - you just need to keep the elastic taut when you pivot at the centre front.