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Solis Reversible Swimsuit Hack

Hey guys! It’s Karly from Paisley Roots and today I am sharing how to turn the Solis into an awesome reversible swimsuit top!
Grab some swim and the Solis Pattern and lets get started!
Since this pattern is already a pretty tight fit, I just use the size my kids measure into. If you would like a tighter fit, size down but make sure to lengthen the pattern to the size your kid fits into.
*Note: This is just for the swim top, you will still need to use a swimsuit or undies pattern to make the bottoms.
First cut out the front and back of Fabrics A & B. Cut out the Neckband and Back-band of a print that coordinates with both A & B fabrics.

 

Prepare the bands first.

1 – Fold Neckband and Back-band right sides together. Press bands using a heat suitable for the swim you are using.
2 – Sew along edge with a 3/8″ (1cm) seam. Turn both right-side out. Press both well.
Again, since this is swim, be careful with the amount of heat and time you leave the iron on the fabric. You don’t want to burn a hole in your fabric!
3 – Fold Back-band in half.
4 – Set aside.

Place Fabric A front and back right sides together. Sew along both side seams.

Place Fabric B front and back sides RST. Sew along both sides but leave a 3″ opening on one side.
Turn right side out. Press seams.

Place Fabric B bodice into Fabric A bodice, right sides together.
Line up side seams, neck and back.
Sew along top leaving openings at the shoulders and back middle.
Leave bodice inside out and grab the Neck-band.
Sandwich each side into the shoulder seam openings, right sides together.
Sew straight across each shoulder seam.
Turn right side out. Press well.
Grab Back-band and fold it over the Neckband.
Sandwich the Back-band into the back opening, right sides together.
Sew along Back-band opening.
Turn right-side out. Press well.
Turn bodice inside out and pull Fabric A and Fabric B sides away from each other. Make sure the sides aren’t twisted.

Fold one side over and match the side seam of Fabric A to Fabric B right sides together.
This will make a tube and you’ll have to consistently pull it slightly out as you go around.
Pin/clip the bottom edges together.
Sew all around the bottom. 
Pull Swimsuit right-side out through the side opening.
Press well.
Slip stitch opening closed.
You are finished!
Now go make some swim bottoms to match and you’ve got yourself an awesome and reversible swimsuit!
You can grab the Solis pattern here: Dutch, English
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Foliis and Domi Jumpsuit Mashup

Hey! It’s Karly and today I’m sharing how to mash the Foliis Jacket and Domi Sweat Pants into an awesome jumpsuit! My son has been begging for another jumpsuit for ages now and I couldn’t get this hack out of my mind!
I went with super simple and didn’t add pockets, but I really should have! You have so many fun options for pockets though, so this gives you an opportunity to let your imagination run wild!
So lets get started with this!
First grab the Foliis Jacket and Domi Sweat Pants patterns (links to these patterns will be posted at the end of this post).
Measure your child and using the sizing charts, print out the size that your child is in from both patterns. Print them out and put your patterns together.
Do not cut out yet though!
Measure your child’s trunk measurement with clothes on (shoulder down to their crotch and back to the shoulder). Don’t pull the measuring tape tightly.
Add seam allowance and 1/2″ to this measurement.
Divide by 2. Trunk measurement + Seam allowance + 1.2″ , divide this sum by 2.
Example: Trunk measurement is 44″, seam allowance is 3/8.
So you would have 44 + 3/8 +1/2 = 44.88″.
Now divide that number by 2, and you get 22.44″.
Cut along the very top of the Domi pants so you can line up the pattern easier.
Line the Foliis front with the Domi front.
Start measurement from the top of the shoulder and have it line up with the crotch.
Either tape or pin in place to keep from sliding.
Repeat with the back piece.
The pattern pieces don’t line up perfectly, so you will need to redraw the lines to have the pattern pieces flow together.
Make sure the side and inseam lines are the same length on both front and back pieces.
To do this you can cut out one of the pieces and use it as a guide for the other piece.
Cut pattern pieces out.
Cut out all of your pieces from your fabric.
2 Front
2 Back
2 Sleeves
2 Hood
2 Arm Cuffs
2 Leg Cuffs
Zipper
2 Interfacing (1/2″ wide by length of front)
Line up the shoulder to a front and back piece and sew shoulder seam together.
Serge seam.
Repeat with the other side.
Sew arm to shoulder, then line up the side seams, right sides together and sew side seam together.
Serge seam.
Repeat with other side.
Line up the crotch seam and sew along this.
Serge and repeat with the other side.
Pull one side right side out and place it in the other side, right sides together.
Starting from the back, sew along until you get 7″-10″ from the front crotch. Backstitch.
Using a long straight stitch sew the rest of the of the way up. Do NOT backstitch.
If you want to serge, start from the stop point in the crotch and go towards the back.
DO NOT serge the front!!
Pull jumpsuit wrong side out.
Press front seam open.
Iron on interfacing under the seam on either side.
Align zipper along the front seam, making sure the zipper is face down and that the stopper is 3/8″ from the top.
Pin in place.
Using a 3/8″ seam allowance, sew along one side of the zipper.
When you get to the bottom of the zipper (or close to the stop), pivot the needle and sew across, pivot again and sew up to the top.
Make sure to backstitch at the beginning and the end!
Turn the jumpsuit right side out and unpick the seam to expose the zipper.

Sew on the hood, arm and foot cuffs and you’re done!

Next one is definitely getting pockets!
I hope you enjoyed this tutorial!

You can grab the patterns here using the affiliate links:
Foliis Jacket & Dress in Dutch, English
Domi Sweat Pants in Dutch, English

Until next time!

Domi Sweat Pants Review

Domi Sweat Pants

Hey! This is my first post for the Sofiliantjes Blog Team and I’m so excited about it! I’m no stranger to their patterns, with the Solis Dress being a very big staple in my girls wardrobe, but this was my first time making the Domi Sweat Pants.

Domi Sweat Pants Front

As always, the patterns come together so well and the instructions are very easy to follow and understand. They also come in a large range (12m-14y). Perfect if you have multiple children (like me!) or if your child loves them so much that they become a staple in your wardrobe too!

Domi Sweats Front

The Domi Pants have 3 length options:

Full Length
3/4 Length
Bermuda Shorts Length

With the cooler weather pretty much here, I chose to make the Full Length version. I made the size 11 for my almost 11 year old, based off her measurements, and the fit is spot on! I made them out of French Terry, and they’ll be perfect for our desert winter!

Domi Cuff DetailDomi Pocket Detail

The pattern also gives you two choices for pockets. Round pocket or Square pocket. I chose to make the Round pockets for this pair. I love being able to use my cover stitch for some added detail!

Domi Pants Back

I love the fit of these. They aren’t super skinny, but they’re slimmer than your average sweat pants. Zoe seems rather comfy in them and has requested more, so that’s always a win! I can easily see these becoming a staple in my kids wardrobes too! Especially my Jude who loves knit pants.

Domi Pants Front

You can check out my Solis Braid Strap Hack here.

Until next time! -Karly

A New Kind of Foliis

Foliis Bell Sleeve Hack

Foliis Crop Bell Sleeve Sweater

Foliis is such a great pattern on its own, but I had an idea that I couldn’t shake when I came upon some super soft brushed French Terry. I went with my gut, and started hacking away, and I couldn’t be happier with the result. Meet the Foliis cropped sweater with bell sleeves! Okay, maybe I’m a little too excited, but since this will go great over my daughter’s Solis and Optimum dresses this fall, it was exactly what she was needing. I know I’ll be making more with different sleeve variations.

Foliis Crop Bell Sleeve Sweater

Pattern Pieces Needed:

  • Bodice Front (option B)
  • Bodice Back (option B)
  • Sleeve (I printed her size and the smaller size to narrow the sleeve as it went down the arm)
  • Waistband height measurement (pattern piece not needed)

Bodice Hack

  • Trace out the bottom of your bodice pattern, from slightly above the armscye to the bottom of the bodice.
    Bodice Hack 1
  • Draw a line parallel with the grainline from the top of the side seam (at the bottom of the armscye) down past the waistline.
    Bodice Hack 2
  • Extend the waistline to the new side seam. This line may be curved slightly, if it is, continue the slight curve.
    Bodice Hack 3
  • Cut out the changes and tape to your original bodice front/back, and repeat for the other bodice piece.

When cutting out the front bodice, cut on the fold, eliminating the seam allowance from center front. For help, refer to this tutorial, this tutorial will also come in handy for the neckband length.

Sleeve

Use the 3/4 sleeve length to cut your sleeves.

I chose to slim my sleeves to the smaller size as it went down the sleeve, then as I was sewing, I made a larger seam allowance to slim it even more, so you could slim your sleeves more, so that you keep a consistent seam allowance.

Before cutting out the bell part of the sleeve along with the neckband and bottom band, you’ll sew the top together so that you can figure the measurements for the rest. Following the steps in the instructions, the following:

  1. Shoulder seams
  2. Attach sleeves
  3. Side seams/sleeves

Neckband

Refer to this tutorial, step 5 for your neckband. I chose to use the same fabric as the rest of my top instead of ribbing, and it didn’t have nearly as much stretch, so I used something between 85-90% instead of 80%. This percentage really depends on how much stretch your fabric has. Top stitch if desired.

Bottom Band

  • Measure the bottom of your top (hem area), add seam allowance to sew the 2 ends together, this will be the length.
  • Measure the height of the wasitband pattern piece.
  • Cut your bottom band using these measurements.
  • Sew the two short ends together and press.
  • Fold wrong sides together, and attach like the pattern instructions, although it will fit the bottom of your top exactly.
  • Press the seam allowance toward the top (away from the band) and top stitch if desired.

Bell Sleeves

I’m not going to pretend this part was really easy to figure out, instead of going through the headache I did, here’s what I suggest:

  • Measure half the sleeve opening measurement, basically if the sleeve is sewn, measure from the fold in the fabric to the sewn seam. Don’t include seam allowance here.
  • Measure the difference between the 3/4 length sleeve, and the long sleeve, and add your seam allowance to attach it to your sleeve as well as the hem.
  • Draw a rectangle using these measurements on a piece of paper.
  • Use the slash and spread technique, spreading the hem side until it’s to the fullness that you desire. My sleeves are about 1.5” extended on each side.

    Bell Sleeve
    This is my bell sleeve using a slightly different method of achieving the same effect as the slash and spread method.
  • Once you have it figured out, tape another sheet of paper to the open spaces, and add a seam allowance on one straight side of the bell, the other side will be cut on the fold.
  • Cut out 2 bell sleeves on the fold.
  • Sew the straight edges together and press.
  • Hem both using the amount you chose.
  • Attach the bell to the sleeve of your top matching the seams. Press.

Foliis Crop Bell Sleeve Sweater

All done!