Tag: Minerva Makes

McCall’s 8244 Top

This is another project I made for my monthly Minerva make. While I didn’t get the fabric from them, I was gifted the pattern from Minerva. This is part of the #SewnWithMcCalls Minerva Challenge. I’ll add details for that challenge down below. I decided to make this McCall’s 8244 top. The only change I made to this was to leave the hood off of the long-sleeve top.

The Plan

Because this is a color blocked top, I wanted to make sure I kept everything organized the way I wanted.

Sketch and plan of McCall's 8244 top

The first thing I did was to make a sketch of where I wanted the fabrics to be. Part was based on how I wanted it to look, and part was based on the amount of fabric I had available. All of the pattern pieces are cut out on a single layer (right side of fabric faces up). One of the easiest and fastest ways of cutting out all of the pieces is to use a rotary cutter.

Sewing The McCall’s 8244 Top

McCall's 8244 top front

Although the pattern calls for a 5/8″ seam allowance (standard for the Big 4), I used 1/2″ for the most part. I wanted to make sure that the top had enough room. There was no way I was going to attempt to do an FBA on these pieces. Thankfully, everything worked out really well.

M8244 knit top back

Things worked out so well that this came together in a couple of hours. I sewed everything on the serger except the hems. Trimming the hems with applique scissors or curved scissors is really helpful to reduce bulk. Twin needle for the win to do all the hemming. I used scrap fabric for all the pieces in this.

I actually have leggings that match the paint splatter fabric at the bottom, so that could be another look for this top. This was actually more fun and less stressful than I thought it would be.

Minerva Makes and Challenge

Here are some previous Minerva makes I’ve made recently.

As far as the #SewnWithMcCalls Minerva challenge, anyone can enter if you have used a McCall’s pattern. You can check out their site to learn about the challenge rules, etc. And you can also get a free dress pattern (PDF).

*This contains affiliate links…

Separates Made With Minerva

I was gifted this fabric from Minerva.com recently. It’s a stretch cotton sateen. It washes and dries well and is super easy to sew. I enjoy using fabric like this for outfits like what you’ll see below, because it’s a medium weight that makes garments look fantastic! The patterns used for this outfit are out-of-print (OOP), but you can easily achieve a similar look with a button up shirt and a skirt. So, this post is about my separates made with Minerva.

Jardin Stretch Cotton Sateen
Top: McCall's 2094 Skirt: Vogue 8295 Separates made with Minerva fabric

What I wanted was the look of a dress, but achieved with separates. Although I do plan to make a shirtdress (and I considered it for this fabric), I wanted more options. With a print this bold, I figure I will give myself the opportunity to break this up.

Top: McCall's 2094 Skirt: Vogue 8295 Belted separates Minerva fabrics

In the photo above I am wearing this belted. That’s a good way to break up the print and add some visual interest to the outfit.

M2092, V8295 top and skirt belted (wide), minerva fabrics separates

In the photo above, I’m wearing this with a wide belt. It’s just a different look rather than the other leather belt.

If you’ve never used this type of fabric, it has a bit of stretch but I think it stitches up beautifully. It’s great for things like this because it allows the garments to have some structure.

McCall's 2094 top made with Minerva fabrics

This shirt pattern is pretty much my go to for this style of top. It has 8 variations, including sleeveless.

Vogue 8295 skirt made with Minerva fabrics

I love the wide band on this skirt pattern. It has some length variations as well. There are also options that are more decorative. Here is a previous time I sewed up this pattern (you might need to scroll down to get to the picture of the skirt). Overall I’m very happy with how this turned out. I love the versatility of this outfit. I can wear it belted or unbelted, tucked in or out, and split the whole thing up! If you want to add some options to your outfits, especially if you want the most from your sewing time, you might want to consider sewing this way. I hope you enjoyed this post on separates with Minerva fabrics. I’ll leave another link below if you want to look at this fabric (or any others they have).

Minerva Jardin Cotton Sateen
https://www.minerva.com/mp/1247273/jardin-stretch-cotton-sateen-fabric-blue&variant=1247262