May 2025
Welcome to your May 2025 Dream Wardrobe.
UK SIZES 6-30
I always like to say that Summer is blouse season. Whether worn casually with shorts at the beach or dressed up with a bias satin skirt, you can’t go wrong with a cotton blouse. What could be better than a unique broderie anglaise blouse in periwinkle blue, the colour of summer? The distinctive palm tree design that we created really makes this stand out and totally unique.
About the fabric:
This wonderful tropical cotton broderie anglaise celebrates summer and is available in a variety of bright tropical colours.
Featuring a detailed palm tree design, this broderie anglaise dressmaking fabric is defined by characteristic cutwork and detailed embroidered elements throughout. It would be perfect for creating beautiful, eye-catching summer dresses, blouses, and skirts.
As with most fabrics, we recommend you prewash to remove any dressing and allow for pre-shrinking. A cool wash will be fine; just make sure the temperature you use to prewash is the temperature at which you plan to wash the final garment. You don’t want your final garment to shrink.
The fabric would also work well for:
Tilly and the Buttons Samara Top
About the pattern:
For May's Dream Wardrobe you will get all the pattern pieces for the Top version of this patterns. The Champagne Field Top is a prairie-style top. The front and back bodice include soft gathers that sit above the bust. The top is a babydoll style top with soft gathers that sit above the bust and a flowing bell sleeve. The length is semi-cropped and hits right below the natural waist.
Instructions can be viewed and printed here.
Notions:
- Coordinating thread (included)
- Fusible interfacing
We did not line our version as I find it less bulky to wear a vest or bra, that matches your skintone. We also stock matching bias binding, which you may choose to use. It can be found here. You will need 65cm of bias binding to recreate our version.
The matching lining fabric can be found here if you decide to line yours. You will need 1.2m if you also use it to create bias binding, or 1m if you plan to buy bias binding. (This does not include lining the sleeves)
The Champagne Fields Top would look great in:
Sebastian Narrow Stripe Tumbled Linen - Red
Tropicana Palm Viscose Crepe - Purple
Baxley Check Tumbled Linen - Multi
About your gift:
We are so excited about this one! Our Friend Jenerates has created a one-of-a-kind tool, the FLEX Silicone Hemmer. It is 100% unique and original! The Silicone Hemmer is loved by sewists all over the world. This one can curve in either direction or even both simultaneously, perfect for shirt tails.
You can use the holes to mark the position of the hemmer with a chalk pencil or iron-off pen; the holes are at 1cm and 2cm, and the hemmer is 3cm wide.
But more importantly, pin through the holes to keep it in place while you press. You can also use the FLEX hemmer on straight edges. Just add a little tension when pinning to inhibit the curve.
The FLEX is heat resistant up to 230°C, won’t buckle under steam, and stays cool to the touch. Its overall size is metric 300x30mm, or 11.8” x 1”. It is made in Scotland in small batches, supporting local businesses.
#fgdreamwardrobe
Want to share your Dream Wardrobe? Use the hashtag #fgdreamwardrobe and share your unboxing and final makes on social media.
Happy sewing, Josie xxx
Sewing Notes
Firstly, when this fabric launched, we shared a tips guide on how to sew with Broderie, so head over to our blog to read it here.
Zoe sewed up this sample, and below are her sewing notes:
-Due to the direction of the palm design, we have created a new lay-plan for this top. Please use this image here for reference.
- Be aware of the palm tree design when prepping your fabric to cut out the pieces. We advise you to fold the fabric so that the centre of a palm tree will align with the Centre Fronts and Centre Backs of the yoke and skirt pieces.
- During the cutting process, decide which side of the fabric will be your ‘right side’ and stick pieces of washi tape or stickers to all the right sides of your pieces as you cut them out. This will save you from staring at both sides whenever you pick up a pattern piece. The difference between the two sides is very subtle.
- Usually, we’d advise marking the notches with a small snip into the cut edge. However, with the broderie anglaise fabric, it can be hard to mark notches because of the holes in the fabric design. We’d advise using pins placed perpendicular to the cut edge to denote where your notches, and Centre Front and Centre Back markings are.
This design requires you to create four sets of gathering stitches. To make the sewing process quicker by not having to readjust your sewing machine so often, you can do all four sets of gathering stitches at the beginning at the same time.
- When stitching your two rows of gathering stitches, sew the row closest to the cut edge in thread that matches your fabric so you don’t need to remove these stitches later. Stitch the other row (the row furthest from the cut edge) that you WILL need to remove, using thread that contrasts with the fabric colour so you can see it more easily. You could even use different colours for the top thread and the bobbin. You’ll be able to see which the bobbin thread is more easily, as the bobbin thread is usually the easiest to pull on when creating gathers.
- If you plan to use your broidery anglaise fabric without a lining, and you plan to use an overlocker/serger to finish the raw edges of your garment, we’d advise you to use matching thread in your overlocker/serger because contrasting coloured threads are likely to show through the holes in the design. You could buy one or two additional reels of matching thread and decant some onto bobbins to use on your overlocker. When using your overlocker/serger to finish edges of woven fabric (as opposed to sewing the seams of knit fabric projects), there is no need to thread up both needles. Thread the left needle only, and the loopers as usual, to save on thread.
-It is advised that you use matching, pre-made bias binding for the neckline rather than trying to use the embroidery anglaise fabric to make the neckline bias strip, as it is too bulky to get a neat finish. If the bias binding is too wide, press open one of the folded sides and trim along the crease, making your strip 3/4 the width it started as. Then press the new raw edge over to the folded side (in thirds).