In this episode, we review components of design (volume, colour, texture, print, and more) so that you can pinpoint your ideal personal style. Then we offer suggestions to bring your ideal down to earth so that it’s wearable in your everyday life. Plus: how to have fun with fashion, a listener question about getting flat knit neck bands, and our favourite part: the phrases listeners use to describe their style!
The transcript for this episode is on this page at the end of the show notes.
From the listener question section:
- “How to Sew a Jersey Neckband (with Video!)” on the Tilly and the Buttons blog
- “Sewing Tip: How to Decide Whether to Staystitch Knits” in Threads Magazine
Previous episodes mentioned:
Our personal styles:
- Helen’s style phrases are: Matisse Painting Come to Life and Pacific Northwest Hipster Caught in the Rain!
- Helen wears a March Dress with an added gathered tier in block printed cotton
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- Helen wears a scrap busted Ilford Jacket in various denims, corduroy, and chambray
- Caroline’s style phrases are: West Coast Gardener on Lunch Break (at home) and Chic yet Approachable Fabric Mogul (at work)!
- Caroline wears a Mildred Jumpsuit in red linen
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- Caroline wears a Jackson Pullover in a daisy print sweater knit and Lander Pants
Resources:
- “How to choose a colour palette for your wardrobe (+ 36 sample palettes)” by Anuschka Rees on her blog
Helen’s Refashioners Makes:
Transcript:
Caroline: We are recording today on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territories of the Coast Salish and Kwakwaka’wakw peoples, including Tsleil-Waututh, Squamish, Musqueam, and K’ómoks first nations.
Hello, and welcome to Love to Sew. I’m Caroline, the owner of Blackbird Fabrics.
Helen: And I’m Helen, the designer behind Helen’s Closet Patterns.
Caroline: We’re two sewing buds who love to sew our own clothes and want to encourage you on your sewing journey, too.
Helen: Join us for today’s topic. What’s your Me-Made Style?
Caroline: Ooh, I am excited for this one. Hello, Helen.
Helen: Hi, Caroline.
Caroline: How are you?
Helen: I’m doing great. How are you?
Caroline: I am excellent.
Helen: I think we say this every year, but I love this time of year because I get all the back to school butterflies, even, you know, 15 years after school.
Caroline: I know. It’s like a new beginning. It’s like that feeling of, like, we’ve got three and a half months left in the year. Anything could happen. We’re going into, like, pumpkin season, all the very important…
Helen: Gourds!
Caroline: Scarves!
Helen: Yes!
Caroline: Can’t wait!
Helen: The scarves! And boots! I wanna wear boots again.
Caroline: Yes, and, actually, when this episode comes out, we’re gonna be about a year from my wedding, so…
Helen: Ooh! Countdown’s on.
Caroline: T-minus one year to make my dress.
Helen: Perfect. I love it.
Caroline: Cool. Yes. Okay. Well, before we get into today’s very fun topic. We have a question from Elli:
“Hi Caroline and Helen!
I’m an intrepid newbie sewist who could probably be categorised as an advanced beginner. I’ve made half a dozen or so woven garments and multiple muslins to support them, and I recently decided I was ready for knits. I was able to wrap my head around crappy neckline number one – although I knew my knit fabric needed to be handled with care to avoid stretching, I did stick a tailor’s ham in and out of it while pressing shoulder and arm seams. By the time I attempted it, the bodice had stretched by at least two inches resulting in a neckline that I absolutely could not attach the neckband to. So I ran to the internet for help; I found a great Jersey Neckband Tutorial from Tilly and the Buttons, and also purchased the new Dawson Top from Helen’s Closet which was filled with so many helpful knit tips that I decided to apply to tee number two. I cut out my pieces, stitched up the shoulders and then immediately jumped into attaching the neckband. I was as gentle with the fabric as I could possibly manage, stretched the neckband and not the bodice while sewing per the Tilly tutorial, and yet still ended up with numerous ugly folds and tucks around the seam line. I’m afraid to unpick it and try again since that seems like a surefire way to stretch out this stupid neckline even more.
What the heck am I doing wrong? I take it that stay stitching is not a thing I can apply to knit garments, so what else can I do to avoid overstretching the neckline apart from handling with extreme care and praying to the sewing gods? Any tips or tricks you could provide would be SO greatly appreciated!”
Helen: Hello, Elli. Thank you so much for writing to us. We can feel your frustration just radiating off of this email. And we have to say, don’t feel too bad. I know that’s easier said than done, but even sewists who have been successfully sewing woven garments for years have a learning curve when they start to sew with knits. It’s totally normal. Frustration and mistakes are all part of growth, so, actually, you are well on your way to a level up, but let’s talk nitty gritty with the neckband advice.
First of all, you actually can stay stitch a knit. You would just need to make sure to use a stretch stitch like a zigzag, but stay stitching’s not your only option. And, in some cases, stay stitching can even stretch out that neckband even more…
Caroline: Mhm.
Helen: …so it’s a good thing to test before you attempt it. You could also use a thin strip of interfacing to stabilise a neckline. Make sure to use a knit interfacing, also called a tricot interfacing. You can cut it on the crosswise grain (that’s the one that’s perpendicular to the selvedge) in about a ⅜ of an inch strip. Fuse it to the edge of the neckline. And we’re gonna link a tutorial so you can see how this looks. There’s a great Threads article that we’ll put in the show notes, but, basically, just fuse that to the edge, and it will stabilise the area that you’re attaching the neckband to.
Also, you’re gonna wanna make sure to pay attention to the direction of greatest stretch on your knit, or the DoGS. When you’re cutting out both the shirt and the neckband, the DoGS should be along the long side of the nec band. In other words, you want the neckband to be as stretchy as possible. If your neckband is not perfectly flat after you sew it, but it doesn’t have any tucks or folds, often a good steam press will flatten that out for you.
Caroline: Yeah, and Elli, I’m also wondering about fabric here because you didn’t really talk about the type of fabric that you’re working with, but some knit fabrics are really prone to stretching out. And while I do believe anyone can sew anything, I wonder if a lightweight knit with, like, poor recovery is causing these issues.
So, for your next couple of projects, I wanna recommend trying a stable cotton jersey with spandex. This is gonna bounce back when you stretch it and feel really substantial, but not too heavy in your hands, but it’ll feel stable. Try that out. And I think you might have better luck just practising on a knit that’s a little bit easier to work with, and then you can, kind of, work your way up to those slinkier, stretchier knits or the ones that maybe have a little bit less recovery.
And I’m just gonna reiterate the tip that necklines, especially knit necklines, always look a million times better after a good steam press. So steam the crud out of that thing and see how you feel after.
Helen: Yes. And there’s no accounting for practice.
Caroline: Yeah. Yeah.
Helen: Like, you really are going to end up with wonky neck lines on your first one, at least, maybe even four or five t-shirts. I’ve seen this happen with my mother-in-law Laurie, who’s just been learning to sew in her knit journey over the past year. She started off making a few t-shirts. The necklines are all wonky, still wearing them with pride, of course…
Caroline: Mhm.
Helen: …because it’s still amazing that you completed the project, but she’s come so much further with them. And now they’re starting to look just perfect. It is just, kind of, a muscle memory thing I find with knit neckbands. You’ll get there.
Caroline: Mhm. Ooh, I actually have one more tip, if you’ll allow me, Helen.
Helen: Of course!
Caroline: Check the stretch percentage requirements for the pattern that you’re working with against the stretch percentage of your knit because neckbands are drafted based on the stretch percentage that the knit is supposed to have. So if your neckband feels like it’s too short and you’re having to stretch it too much which is creating that bunching look, you might just need to cut a longer neckband to account for the stretch of your fabric or work with a fabric that is within the recommended stretch percentage of the pattern. So that might be the issue here as well.
Helen: It’s so true. I do this sometimes, and it comes back to that muscle memory thing. You pin the neckband on, and you’re like, I can already tell that this is not long enough.
Caroline: Yeah.
Helen: Or not short enough. And so you shorten it or you cut another one and that is something you will just learn with time. And you cannot draft a pattern that’s gonna work for every single stretch percentage of knits. So, like you said, Caroline, we have to choose one, and your knit just might not fit within that parameter.
Caroline: Yeah, exactly. Alright. Are we ready to get onto the show, Helen?
Helen: Yes! I’m so excited for this one. One of the reasons that sewing is so great is that we get to make a lot of choices about what we wear. We do not have to pick and choose from what’s available in the stores. We pick our own patterns, fabrics, fit, colours, details, finishing; the possibilities are truly endless. And we get to create the wardrobe that we really want.
Caroline: Yes! And in today’s episode, we wanna explore all the ways that sewing and personal style meet. So we’re gonna talk about how to define your me-made style. We’ll name a bunch of different style elements, so you can decide on your faves. And your personal combo of favourite style elements is your dream style.
Helen: After that we’ll share some style phrases. We asked you, our listeners, for short phrases to describe your me-made style, and you really delivered and gave such fun, specific answers, so we’re gonna share our faves as well as our own style phrases at the end.
Caroline: And then after that, we’ll discuss how to sew garments you’re actually gonna wanna wear. This is all about taking your dream style and bringing it down to earth.
Helen: And then we’ll talk about style evolutions. Almost everyone’s style changes over time, so we’re gonna talk through our journeys.
Caroline: And finally, we have a little pep talk about having fun with fashion and not taking style too seriously. Style is what you make of it. It doesn’t have to feel like homework or like the most important thing about you. It can be a space where you can experiment and play.
Helen: And if the whole idea of figuring out your personal style sounds a bit overwhelming. We recommend checking out Episode 108: Create your Dream Wardrobe. We made a free worksheet that you can get by signing up to our email list. We’ll link that up in the show notes. The episode follows us as we work through the worksheet and chat about all kinds of style possibilities. It’s a great companion to this episode if you’re listening right now and you want more.
Caroline: Yes! Okay, so let’s start by discussing how to define your me-made style. There are a bunch of style components that you can think about. So the first one would be silhouette. It’s a fancy word for the shape that your garment makes. So if you were to take a photo of a garment and trace the outline without filling in any details, you’ll find its silhouette.
Volume is a big part of it. Volume can go anywhere on a garment: sleeves, bodice, skirt, pants. For example, the 80’s power silhouette has big, broad shoulders, a fitted waist, and sleek pants or skirts.
Maxi dresses are usually shaped like a column. Swing dresses are, kind of, triangle-shaped or, like, trapezoid-shaped. You know what I mean. And figuring out which silhouettes you like will help you so much when looking for patterns.
Helen: Yes! Another component of style is, of course, colour. Some people like to make a palette for their wardrobe. Anuschka Rees, who’s the author of The Curated Closet, recommends choosing three main colours that represent the essence of your style concept, four accent shades to add variety, and two neutrals to support and balance out the rest.
If you keep running into the problem of making garments and figuring out afterwards that you don’t actually like wearing that colour, a colour palette can be a lifesaver. Think of it as like your tried and true colours, rather than a rule. The palette works for you – you don’t work for it.
Caroline: Yeah. And if you don’t want to create something super specific, like a palette, you could just think about how you feel about broad categories of colours. So some ideas to get you started would be pastels, jewel tones, earth tones, brights, metallics, warm colours, cool colours, neons, and grey scale.
Helen: Yes. Have a look in your closet and think, like, which of these things am I wearing most often and thi-, see if there’s colour consistencies.
Caroline: Yeah, totally.
Helen: You can also consider prints versus solids. Many of us like to wear a mix of both, but there are definitely sewists who prefer one over the other. So think about where you are on the scale from Print-Head to Solidly Solids. And if you do like prints, think about what kind of prints you like. Is it small-scale florals? Is it large-scale abstract prints? Soft watercolours? Tie-dye brights? I mean, there’s so much to choose from here.
Caroline: Yeah, and texture is an often overlooked component of style, but it actually is a big impact. You could wear an entire outfit in one colour, but give it dimension with different textures. For example, black twill pants and leather boots with a black bouclé sweater and a black boiled wool coat. Very cool look. So when you’re thinking about textures, don’t just choose one favourite. Think about what textures you like to see mixed together.
Helen: Ooh. I love texture in fabric. There’s so many great opportunities and I feel like I don’t play with it enough in my wardrobe. If I do, it’s, like, accidental.
Caroline: Yes!
Helen: Our next style element is details. Do you prefer super minimalist garments or do you like to pile on the ruffles, ribbons, pleats, button packets? Or maybe you’re somewhere in the middle? Here is a short list of details for you to think about wide cuffs, tiny buttons, appliquéd ribbons, pin tucks, pointy collars, pork chop pockets, fringed sleeves, embroidered accents, and hand-sewn buttonholes.
Caroline: I love the idea of pork chop pockets being, like, part of a style identity.
Helen: My favourite style of pocket is the pork chop pocket.
Caroline: Yeah. The next one, isn’t really a style component, but more a style inspiration. We’re gonna call it ~vibes~. These are more general terms that describe a mood, like “casual” or “fun” or “spooky” or “cute,” or maybe there are more specific terms that match up to your style, like “cottage core” or “vintage.”
Helen: Yes! And when you’re considering each of these style components, take note of your favourite. You can write a list if that helps. There’s no limit to how many you can choose for each category. This is for you.
Also, it’s okay if you have more than one style mode, maybe you have one style for work and one for home or one for hot weather and one for cool weather. You can make more than one list if you want. In the end, your list of style components will be a combination that is uniquely you and, hopefully, give you some guidance.
Caroline: Awesome. And what if you don’t even know what you like best? We’re gonna discuss some ways to figure out how to tell what you like. So the easiest way to figure out what you like is to consider what you already have.
What garments make you feel best when you wear them? Which ones make you feel the most like you? Look closely and think about the components of each garment you like. Maybe you love the way the colour lifts your mood. Maybe you love the way the silhouette feels. Maybe you like the drape of the fabric. Take note of all these things.
You can also work backwards from the garments you don’t like, think about why you don’t like them, and what you would change to make them better.
Helen: Yeah. Maybe you can even change them to make them better.
Caroline: Yeah.
Helen: A super fun way to discover what you love is to find your style inspirations! Think about the movies and TV shows you love, make opinions about how each character dresses. You can find Instagram accounts or style blogs and bookmark the best outfits. It can be super helpful to have a pantheon of style icons, people whose clothes you would love to have. You don’t have to copy their clothes exactly, but you can pull elements from each of them to make your personal style. I mean, of course, Pinterest is also great here.
Caroline: Yes, and window shop. Another cool thing about sewing is that we can make the kinds of high quality garments that many of us couldn’t normally afford. So don’t put a price limit on your browsing, check out everything from fast fashion to couture designers to find the components of style that you love.
Helen: And to keep track of all your style inspiration, consider making a mood board. This can be as simple as creating a new board on Pinterest or as complex as an art project. For digital boards, Caroline, I know you like using Canva, which is a free online tool that has a lot of mood board templates. It’s super easy, right?
Caroline: Yes! I love using Canva. I’ve talked about it on Patreon before, especially when I’m planning a special outfit, like something that I’m wearing to a wedding or a party. Um, something that’s gonna take me a little bit more time that I really wanna think through the concept. Um, I love to do a little mood board in Canva, and then, it’s so fun to see that come to life.
Helen: Yeah. You can even print it out and put it up in your sewing room for a little inspo.
Caroline: Yes. Okay now, uh, just for fun exercise, use all the info you’ve collected and make a short phrase that describes your style. Helen, could you name some of your fave style components and then reveal your style phrase?
Helen: Okay. I actually was feeling a little bit scared to do this because we got so many great style phrases from our community. And I couldn’t think of one that was nearly as good as the ones that people sent us. But, at any rate, my personal style: I love playful prints. I love high contrast black and white, linen, volume. I like things that show off my butt and my shoulders. I like rich colours, bold graphic elements, ease of movement, a touch of drama, and that swish of fabric. So when my personal style is on point, I’m like a Matisse Painting Come to Life, and on a slower day, I’m like a Pacific Northwest Hipster Caught in the Rain.
Caroline: I love it. I can totally see the Matisse Painting Come to Life. Like, it’s very accurate to me.
Helen: Oh, good!
Caroline: Good job.
Helen: Thank you. Okay. Tell me yours. I’m so excited.
Caroline: Okay. So I love bright colours. I also love autumnal shades. So I think it’s, like, a little bit in contrast there because I wouldn’t necessarily put those things together, but I like both of them. Love a good print, but generally, I gravitate towards smaller scale prints. Checks and stripes I like as well. I would say my favourite silhouettes are voluminous and billowy. I definitely like things that cinch at the waist and pants, skirts, dresses that fall to my mid-calf or ankle. I almost never wear short skirts, or shorts for that matter, but I am, kind of, working on that. And I would say my wardrobe is almost completely made up of linen and cotton.
So, definitely, like, comfortable, breathable. I don’t know. Okay. So, like, I, I came up with two cause I feel like my at-home style is quite different from my office style. So at home, I am a West Coast Gardener on Lunch Break.
Helen: Love it.
Caroline: So, like, not sweaty and, like, not necessarily wearing, like, full gardening attire, but, like, I’m outside. I’m in the garden. I’m comfortable.
Helen: There’s a billowy dress involved.
Caroline: There’s a billowy dress involved. There’s a sun hat.
Helen: Yeah.
Caroline: Um, and I wouldn’t say this is the most descriptive, but the only thing I could come up with from my at-work style is Chic yet Approachable Fabric Mogul. What do you think?
Helen: You’re so chic yet, somehow, strangely approachable.
Caroline: Yeah. And I feel like I had to include fabric in there because, like, I do dress in all Blackbird fabrics most of the time. Um, so, yeah, you know, you gotta represent.
Helen: You gotta represent.
Caroline: Right?
Helen: Okay. Amazing. I love it.
Caroline: I have to say, like, the most hilarious part of this whole episode is gonna be right now when we share your style phrases because we have the most stylish listeners and y’all really delivered with these. We were on the floor laughing when we first read through all of these comments. So here are some of our faves.
Helen: Fräulein Maria Meets Lisa Frank.
Caroline: I love it. Powwow Picnic! This one is from former guest Kat Brown Akootchook.
Helen: Minimalist Maximalist. Minimal silhouettes with maximal prints and fabrics!
Caroline: Okay. This one is so funny. “Studio Ghibli Background Character” though “Town Witch” works, too!
Helen: Town Witch.
Caroline: Town Witch.
Helen: I love it. Neon Splatter Buttercream Cupcake.
Caroline: Yes! Okay. Earthy Hot Mom.
Helen: Vintage Star Wars.
Caroline: Art Museum Curator on Vacation in Santa Fe but also Coastal Queer Aunt Who’s an Art Teacher in the 70’s works.
Helen: I love when there’s two, but one of them is, like, preferable, and the other one is like, I’ll take it.
Caroline: Yeah.
Helen: Goth Office Casual Victorian Yoga Flow Twirly. With pockets.
Caroline: With pockets. I love the “with pockets.” Okay. Inaccurate Time Traveller.
Helen: Kulturtant which is Swedish for “culture aunt.”Having had to dress conservatively for work for years, now that I’m retired I can make and wear whatever flamboyant fashion takes my fancy.”
Caroline: Love it. Couch Slouch.
Helen: Yeah.
Caroline: Yeah. We’ve all got a little Couch Slouch in there.
Helen: We’ve all got a little Couch Slouch in there.
Caroline: Yeah.
Helen: Curvy Business Pirate.
Caroline: Comfy Colour Blocked Cartoon Cottage Core Cutie.
Helen: Ooh, cutie! Camp Counsellor Couture. More c’s.
Caroline: Sensible Scandinavian Chic.
Helen: Oh, that’s, like, what I want my style to be, but it just isn’t.
Caroline: Yeah.
Helen: You know?
Caroline: Yeah.
Helen: Executive Motorcycle Babe. Yes!
Caroline: Winter: Corduroy Grandpa. Summer: Chic Magnifique.
Helen: It’s important to have seasonal looks. Caroline, is your gardener one still accurate in the wintertime?
Caroline: I was actually trying to think of, like, a winter style identity, and all I could think of was, like, Hibernating Bear. It’s like…
Helen: You do love a chunky sweater.
Caroline: Yeah, but then I was, like, trying to look up, like, is this, like, possible to use? Yeah. That was…
Helen:I mean, I wear my, like, flowy garden dresses around the house in the winter, too, so…
Caroline: Yeah. No, I’m mostly, like, a leggings, t-shirt, and a big sweater in the winter…
Helen: Yeah.
Caroline: …around the house.
Helen: Yeah. Okay. Our next one is Secret Elastic.
Caroline: I love it. Don’t we all want a secret elastic? Okay, next up: Heiress to an Oat Farm.
Helen: This one’s my favourite, I think.
Caroline: Yeah.
Helen: Cause I don’t, I do not know what that means.
Caroline: Yeah, like, please send us a follow-up, and let us know exactly what your style is.
Helen: We’re picturing you in a field somewhere. You’re wearing a gorgeous dress. There’s a little luxury to it, right?
Caroline: Yeah. Definitely.
Helen: You’re an heiress.
Caroline: If you’re an heiress. But I’m imagining, like, a prairie chic, kind of, vibe as well.
Helen: Yeah. Yeah.
Caroline: Totally.
Helen: Okay. Bold, Whimsical Garden Party Chic with a hint of Miss Frizzle mixed with DW from Arthur.
Caroline: Love it. Okay. Next one is Forest Gremlin.
Helen: I need pictures.
Caroline: Yeah.
Helen: 1940s Normcore / Space Peasant (bold shapes in rustic fabrics). You’re wearing a lot of rust and brown and tan.
Caroline: So the next few are, kind of, related. Elaine Benes style. And someone else said Selina Meyer in Veep, so Julia Louis-Dreyfus must be really inspiring!
Helen: I can relate to this. I love Elaine Benes’s style. I want to do my hair like that.
Caroline: Yes!
Helen: …with, like, a big scrunchy in the back and, like, a halo…
Caroline: Oh, my gosh.
Helen: … of hair in the front. And then Selena Meyer is, like, a very different look.
Caroline: Mhm.
Helen: Very put together and polished.
Caroline: Yeah.
Helen: Um, office chic. I love it. Our next one is very relatable: Beginner Chic.
Caroline: Yes! Okay. Next up is Menopausal Coachella. Don’t know what that is, but I’m into it.
Helen: Next up: Dita on a Dime.
Caroline: 1980’s Sierra Nevada Backpacking Couch Potato. Love it.
Helen: Thrifty Frida Kahlo.
Caroline: 1920’s Lady Archeologist.
Helen: Oh, I love a good archeological vibe or, like, you know, safari kinda situation.
Caroline: Yes. Um, next up: Summer Witch. I mean you and the Town Witch really need to get together.
Caroline: Spaghetti Western Nonno Core! Note: “Nonno” means “grandpa” in Italian.
Helen: I love it. Fat Jackie O Forever.
Caroline: Love that one. Um, and this last one is, “Are Those Pyjamas, Mum?”-core.
Helen: Your children telling it like it is.
Caroline: Yeah. Oh, my gosh. Those were amazing. Thank you to all of you who wrote in with your style phrases. We loved reading them, and we wish we could share them all. You are all so creative and cool. Thank you so much.
Helen: Yes, and if you don’t have one yet, hopefully that gave you some inspo. It can literally be anything.
Caroline: Anything goes. Exactly.
Helen: So now that you’ve figured out your dream style, let’s bring it back down to earth for a minute. How can you make garments that you actually want to wear? And I think the first step here is you have to think about your lifestyle.
Caroline: Yeah, definitely. What do you spend most of your time doing? What sort of clothing will suit that well? If you’re caring for toddlers, you’re gonna need something that’s easy to wash. If you’re working from home, you might prefer loungewear over three piece suits, or maybe the suits would help you get in a working mindset. I don’t know your life.
Helen: There’s also climate. What is it like where you live? If you live in a warm climate, you’re probably gonna want breathable fabrics and lightweight garments. If you live in a colder climate, sun dresses will probably have a smaller role in your wardrobe, and you’re gonna wanna think wearable, warm layers.
Caroline: And then think about what level of comfort you want and need. Some people want their clothing to be roomy and soft at all times. Others don’t mind so much and prefer fitted styles in any fabric they think looks good. Where do you fall on the spectrum? What makes a garment comfortable to wear? And how important is that to you?
Helen: Think about the clothes that you reach for now. We’ve already mentioned this, but look at your closet and find what do you want to wear over and over and why. Maybe it’s about how soft it feels against your skin. Maybe it’s the way that it highlights your legs. Figuring out what you actually like versus what you like to see on other people will really help you to make things that you’re gonna love to wear.
Caroline: And is there something you feel is missing from your wardrobe? Have you ever thought to yourself multiple times I need a lightweight jacket or why do I only have one pair of jeans? These are important clues.
Helen: And there’s one more thing to keep in mind. Sometimes our dream style on paper or on Pinterest doesn’t exactly translate to what we love to wear in the real world. I remember as a new sewist getting so excited about all the pretty fabrics and not necessarily thinking about how they would transition into a cohesive wardrobe.
Even though I love a great print, I have learned that I like them in strategic doses. And now I get really excited about a solid fabric in a beautiful colour because I know I’m gonna love wearing it. And the goal here is to define your dream style and then blend it with the clothes that actually make you feel confident and that work for your lifestyle. And sometimes you’re just gonna have to buy the black linen, even though you want the hot pink linen.
Caroline: What do you have against my hot pink linen, Helen?
Helen: You can have both. You can have both. It’s fine.
Caroline: And remember, there’s not just one answer to all of the questions we just asked. We all have different modes: work mode, socialising mode, chill mode. Part of the fun of considering all these factors is figuring out how you can make your dream style work for all of your real life situations.
Helen: Alright, we’re gonna talk a bit about style evolutions now because it is totally normal for your style to change over time. This can be because of changing trends. I mean, styles cycle in and out, and you might get excited about a new trend or two and leave some others behind, but that’s not the only reason your style can change. It can change when you start a new phase of life, when you move to a different climate, or just for no reason at all. Sometimes it just happens.
Caroline: Yeah, I think this is part of the fun of sewing. We can keep trying out new styles, colours, and fabrics, and we can get surprised by what we love. Helen, tell us about your style evolution.
Helen: Well, when I was a kid, I was that kid in class who wore costumes to school and fully got dressed out of the dress-up bin. And I went through a lot of phases of style in elementary school and in high school, including some goth vibes and very short skirts and crop tops. I mean, it was the early 00’s, so midriffs were, like, the thing , but I had trouble nailing down my style.
And thankfully, my parents were very supportive of me wearing whatever I wanted, but in my late teens and early twenties, I was still struggling to find my style foothold. I really loved thrifting, and I loved clothes, so I had a lot of them. Sometimes I would dress like somebody in their mid-thirties with an office job, like floral blouses and trousers. Sometimes I dressed like an unemployed skateboarder. Sometimes I went full vintage 60’s dress, shoes, handbag.
I had a lot of fun with it, but I don’t remember ever feeling like I knew what I wanted to wear. It was, like, a day-to-day thing. I was, kind of, confused, and I would wear anything that I thought looked good regardless of the style. So, you know, I had a lot of fun with it, but I didn’t, I don’t think I had, like, a super clear vision…
Caroline: Mhm.
Helen: And then sewing really helped me to find my style in my later twenties and into my thirties to where I am now. And in my early sewing days, I definitely gravitated towards the fit and flare look. I mean, that was what was really popular at the time when I got into the sewing world, but I’ve tried looser silhouettes over the years, and I absolutely love them.
Now I think I have a much clearer vision of what I want to wear and how I wanna present myself and the colours and textures and patterns that I enjoy. I’ve gotten better at fabric shopping and picking out things I’m actually going to use, and that’s a really great feeling. But it definitely didn’t happen immediately. It’s been a process.
Caroline: Mhm. Do you think your style is still evolving? Cause I think that in a previous episode you mentioned that you’re getting more into, like, fitted styles again. So do you feel like you’re moving away from the volume or is that just, like, in addition. This is another mode is your fitted style.
Helen: I think it’s a, another mode. I enjoy both. I love wearing, like, a voluminous tent, but I also like wearing, like I said earlier, things that show off my butt.
Caroline: Mhm.
Helen: If I’m wearing something voluminous, I usually like to have my shoulders exposed. If I’m wearing something tight on the bottom, I like a boxier top. Um, so I like a balance, you know? I’m definitely not stuck in my ways.
Caroline: Mhm.
Helen: I really enjoy experimenting. And that’s one of the fun things about being a pattern designer is sometimes you think, I don’t know what I wanna do next. And then, you know, the next week you’ll just have this, like, onslaught of ideas and inspiration…
Caroline: Mhm.
Helen: …because things are always evolving, and there are always new trends and new things and so fun to design and bring in different elements and try to create things that you think people are gonna wanna wear. So I’m definitely always evolving, of course.
Caroline: Awesome. Cool.
Helen: How about you? Tell me about your style journey.
Caroline: Okay. Well, I wore a lot of black and grey in college. I won’t go, like, before college cause I just wore a lot of, like, Gap and Banana Republic.
Helen: You weren’t getting dressed from the costume bin?
Caroline: No, I think my style was pretty boring. And even before that it was Northern Reflections, so I dunno. Um, but in college, like, I don’t know, I just, me and my friends just wore a lot of black, and it was, kind of, boring.
Um, and then when I started to explore more making my own clothes and, kind of, dressing myself in that way, I dressed in a lot of neutrals. I wore a lot of brown and rust, a lot of denim, like navy blue kind of garments which I still do love, but I’ve talked about this on the show before, in the last couple of years, I felt super inspired by all of the Birdie makes around the office and even the sewing community at large.
I feel like we have such a rich community with so many different styles, and I feel so inspired every time I go on Instagram and see what people are making. And the sewing community and the office style has made me feel more adventurous and wanna wear more colour. So I’ve definitely incorporated bright colours in my wardrobe, and they honestly make me so, so happy.
I also love a good, like, tonal look. Like, I love to layer all the same colour in an outfit, which is, I think originally inspired by Katie Courtman’s, like, “dress like a crayon” trend that she started a couple years ago. Um, but I just think it’s so fun to do, like, an all yellow look or an all orange or an all blue, like, and just really own that tonal, kind of, layered look.
Helen: Coordinated cutie.
Caroline: Yes! But honestly, like, when I think back, I think my style used to be, kind of, boring, like 15 years ago me, but now I feel like I am more adventurous. Maybe not as adventurous as you because I, kind of, think of you as, like, the most bold, adventurous dresser I know, but I love to experiment with new details and silhouettes and fabrics and colours and just have a lot more fun with my style and not, like, think too much about it anymore. I just like making things that seem fun to me.
Helen: Yeah. I love that. I’ve definitely noticed that you’ve been incorporating more print and colour into your wardrobe, and it really suits you. I think it does.
Caroline: Thank you.
Helen: [inaudible]… to witness. And, I mean, thank you for saying I’m an adventurous dresser. I think I’m far from the most adventurous dresser out there in the world. I do like to have fun, and I actually wish I would push myself more when I’m getting dressed to, you know, go to the grocery store or something.
Caroline: Yeah.
Helen: Wear those bold pieces that I put so much work into, but I often will just default to, you know, the jeans and t-shirt cause I don’t want the attention. And I feel like now that I live in a small town, like, I wanna be that person. I wanna be that person that people, like, see, and they’re like, oh, I’ve seen her before, you know?
Caroline: Yes! Yeah. I think about The Refashioners and some of the garments you made there, like your, um, like, denim, sort of, pieced dress and that, like, amazing shirt dress that you made and that really bold print with the glasses and, like…
Helen: Yeah.
Caroline: Often when I think about your bold style, I think about those photoshoots that you’ve done for your blog.
Helen: Yeah.
Caroline: It’s so inspiring. And even if that’s not how you dress on the day-to-day, it’s still, like, part of your style identity. I think it’s the part that you, like, present to the, to the sewing world, you know? So, yeah, it’s very, very cool to see your evolution as well, Helen.
Helen: Oh, thank you. Yeah. I mean, we’re gonna continue and we can continue to push ourselves.
Caroline: Yes, definitely, and share it with you all on the pod, of course. Okay, let’s wrap up this episode with a pep talk. We’re gonna call this one: how to have fun and not take style too seriously!
Helen: Yes! I mean, style is a funny thing. Like, as much as fashion writers love to drone on about what it means. You can’t really pin it down. People dress the way they do for all kinds of reasons, and you can decide those reasons for yourself. Maybe one day, you wanna grab attention with wearable art, like we were talking about and go to the grocery store in that eye-catching piece. And another day you wanna dress in a cosy black cocoon. It’s not like you’re a different person on those two days. You’re free to play around with your style and wear what you want when you want.
Caroline: Yeah. And I think it’s important to remember, too, that you don’t always know what you will love ahead of time. Your next style evolution could be just outside of your wardrobe comfort zone, so give yourself permission to take risks and don’t be hard on yourself if you make something that you don’t love. It’s all part of the journey. You can take that garment you don’t love and remake it into something better, or stuff it into your scrap pouffe or give it away. No one’s gonna know. Just take that time to experiment and play.
Helen: Yes! And lastly, throw away the style rule book. So many of us have memorised style rules about what we’re allowed to wear based on our body shape or other irrelevant factors. You don’t have to follow those at all. Many of our favourite style icons are rule breakers. So let’s join them and wear what we like best.
Caroline: Yes, let’s do it.
Helen: That’s it for today’s episode of Love To Sew. You can find me Helen at HelensClosetPatterns.com and Caroline at BlackbirdFabrics.com. We’re recording today in beautiful British Columbia, Canada.
Caroline: Go to LoveToSewPodcast.com to find our show notes. They’re filled with links and pictures from this episode. And if you’d like to get in touch with us, you can send us an email at hello@LoveToSewPodcast.com.
Helen: If you love Love To Sew and want more, you can sign up for our Patreon. For $5 a month, you get a full-length bonus episode and weekly behind-the-scenes pictures. And for $10 a month, you get all that plus a mini-episode focused on sewing techniques and 15% off codes for Helen’s Closet and Blackbird Fabrics. Patreon is the best way to support us so that we can keep making quality content for you. Go to patreon.com/LoveToSew for more info.
Caroline: And thanks again to our amazing podcast team. Lisa Ruiz is our creative assistant. Jordan Moore is our editor. And Margaret Wakelee is our transcriber. And thank you for listening. We’ll see you next week.
Helen: Buh-bye.
Caroline: Bye.
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