Making Butterick 6685

This is one of my latest Minerva Fabrics projects. As a Minerva brand ambassador, I’m able to choose from a variety of fabrics. This time, I chose a supima cotton lawn for making Butterick 6685.

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The Fabric

This is a Minerva exclusive supima cotton lawn called Sylvan Secrets. It is a lightweight, breezy fabric that I thought would be perfect for the hot summer weather we’ve been having. And this was my first time using this type of fabric. There’s no stretch in the Minerva fabric. The fabric is POD which means print on demand, so as it’s ordered, that’s when the design is put onto the material.

The Result

Originally, I had other plans for this fabric. I wanted to make a flowy dress that would be nice to wear during the summer. Unfortunately, a tree fell on our house which caused some damage and a low electrical power situation in the home. As a result, the only way I could get a project done in a reasonable amount of time was to make something very fast and easy. So making Butterick 6685 was the perfect solution.

I do have enough left over for a skirt or some palazzo style pants. View C is the view I made this time. I had previously made View A. One of the differences with this make is I opted not to make the sash.

If you are interested in purchasing this fabric, here is a link so you can check it out for yourself. There are many other prints available for the cotton lawn POD fabric that Minerva offers.

*You can use my code MSS251DT to get 10% off your order.

I didn’t make any alterations to the pattern. But I did try to use one of the rolled hem feet that I have for my Bernina sewing machine for the sleeve hems. This being the first time I’ve really tried it, it came out a bit wonky, but the foot works great. It is something that requires practice and patience. Honestly, I’m not convinced that it is really easier or faster than how I’ve done narrow hems before. But sometimes I believe in trying new things, especially since I had already purchased the foot.

If you’d like to check out the video I made about this project, you can check that out here.

Making A Tunic With New Look 6105

When I received this viscose challis from Minerva, I know right away the type of project I wanted to make. That’s how I decided that making a tunic with New Look 6105 would be the perfect patten/fabric combo. The pattern calls for some type of flowy fabric that can move.

The Pattern

This particular pattern is from 2012, and I honestly don’t know if it is still available. There are four variations with the pattern (sleeves, length, hem). I made View A. It features a high/low hem short sleeves that roll up and a one-button front placket.

The Fabric

This ia a non-stretch, 100% Viscose fabric in “Amber” that was gifted to me by Minerva Fabrics. It is super soft and flowy. I also love fabric that washes and dries well (without shrinkage). And because it is a natural fabric, it is breathable so it’s great for summer.

Viscose challis is a versatile fabric that can be used for many different garments. Here is another Minerva make I completed last year.

Making a tunic with New Look 6105

The only change I made to the pattern was to add a snap about 2″ above the button. Otherwise, the shirt was just WAY to open for my tastes.

If I was to make this again, I would shorten the length. In the photo on the pattern envelope, the tunic doesn’t look as long as mine turned out. Now, this isn’t a problem for this one, but in the future, I would make that change.

Conclusion

Overall, this is a pretty easy pattern to make. Here is the post I wrote that’s over on their site. This was something fun to make that is easy to wear with jeans or even some linen pants.

Because of the length on this one, I would be careful to style this with slimmer pants or jeans.

The Style Arc Avery Tunic

The Style Arc Avery tunic was part of a pattern haul I did last year. I chose this because it is for both woven and knit fabrics. It’s an interesting (and unusual) combination to have in one pattern, so I wanted to give it a try. The top also features an exposed zipper which is something else I’ve never done. So, here are my thoughts on the Style Arc Avery tunic.

Pattern Features

As mentioned, the Avery features an exposed zipper. It also has a high-low hem with hem facings, and can be made using a combination of woven and knit fabrics. Or, it can be made using all knit fabric without the zipper.

The Process

Because I hadn’t done the exposed zipper before, that was what I was most looking forward to. It’s also what gave me the most trouble. I actually wasn’t even sure what it was supposed to look like when done. Once I figured that out, it was still a process to install. The instructions for this task I felt were not clear. After some research, I was able to get some ideas on how to install it. It wasn’t perfect, but it was done.

As far as the rest of the top, It came together easily. The facings for the hem is a nice touch because it gives a neat, clean finish.

The pattern I used for this is multi-sized, so I traced off the one I needed. You can purchase one size or multi-sized PDF patterns, or a paper pattern.

My fabrics are black cotton interlock knit and cotton blend lemon print. Both of these are really easy to work with. This patten would be great for color-blocking with solid fabrics as well. There are also different pattern pieces for the back, if you choose not to insert the zipper. In that case, you are making this from all knit fabric.

The Results

With all the challenges putting this together, I’m very happy with the results. Once I got the zipper installed, It took hardly any time to put the rest of the Style Arc Avery tunic together. I really do like their patterns and have made other tops and pants from Style Arc and haven’t had any issues.

I might try one from all knit fabric next time with some color-blocking. That could be something really cute (and much easier to make)!

Until next time…