Tag Archives: Hollyburn

Hazelburn Dress


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I’ve had Colette Pattern’s Hazel Dress in my stash for awhile. I bought this red/blue seersucker fabric from Fabric Depot in Summer 2014 with that pattern in mind, but it never happened. So this summer when I decided I needed a sundress to wear to Pie Hard at Ecliptic Brewing, I had everything I needed.hazelburn-1

Well…except an adjusted pattern. I knew that this bodice was not going to to work for me straight out of the envelope. So I did a 1 inch FBA to the bodice front.  Then I had to adjust the length of all of the other pattern pieces. I also added one inch to the top of the front because I read that on bustier women it was a little low cut. On the side front I tapered that from 1 inch to nothing at the side seam so that the back remained the same.

Hazel AdjustmentsBased on reading other reviews on this pattern, I also widened the straps so they would cover my bra straps. Since I had a print-at-home pattern I had decided to forgo printing the giant rectangle that is the skirt, and just cut it out with my quilting ruler. However once I sewed it, my belief that gathered skirts are not flattering on me was confirmed.  But I had an idea!hazelburn-4I really love the Sewaholic Hollyburn skirt and the Sewaholic Lonsdale dress, which basically is a Hollyburn skirt with a bodice sewn on. So I grabbed my Hollyburn pattern pieces and set to making it work. I removed the pockets, because I feel like the style lines didn’t work with the angled seams of the Hazel bodice. I should go back and add side pockets, because EVERYTHING NEEDS POCKETS!

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I adore the result of my frankenpatterning! In my Hazelburn dress I have a unique bodice that fits perfectly and a fun, flirty skirt. I love the way this looks. The seersucker is a great fabric for this pattern since it highlights all the bias cutting and looks cool in the half-circle skirt.

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I did not have an appropriate length zipper, so I put in a way too long invisible zipper. I should go back and shorten that at some point. I have plenty of time before next summer, right?  I also love this little red bobble button I used to fasten the back. I made small fabric loop for the closure and I think it’s darling. Little details are the best!

Denim Hollyburn Skirt


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It seems like the rest of the blog world is finally discovering the awesomeness of the Sewaholic Hollyburn skirt.  I made this one up at the end of last summer and this skirt immediately became a wardrobe staple for me. It’s the View B length.

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SIZING

Hollyburn is a Sewaholic Pattern which means it’s designed for pear shapes..which I definitely am not! However it was very easy to tweak the pattern to accommodate my lack of a waist.  When sewing pants or skirts Sewaholic patterns you definitely want to pick a size that fits your hips and then adjust the waist. Waist adjustments are generally the easiest.  In my case my hips fit a 16 but my waist was bigger.

ADJUSTMENTS

I figured out the difference and used the slash and spread technique to make the waist larger.  In order to calculate this you need to take the difference, let’s say 2″, and divide that by 4 to get 1/2″. This is how much will need to be added to the front and back skirt pieces to get a total of 4″.  This does slightly distort the half circle shape but with such a small adjustment it’s not noticeable.   You’ll also need to add to the waistband. This is cut on the fold so just add half of your waist difference (2″/2 = 1″) to the end of the waistband piece.  If anyone is interested in seeing how this was done, leave a comment and I will do a post with some photos.

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I’ll let you in on a secret. I was lazy when I made my adjustments and only added to the front pieces. See how my side seams and pockets are too far back? Oops. Don’t worry – I fixed this on my next version 🙂

FABRIC & FINISHES

The fabric for this skirt is a lightweight denim I picked up at Joann.  To keep with the denim look I used a jeans zipper on the back. I like seeing the slightly exposed brass zipper.  I finished all of the seams with self-made bias strips and a Hong Kong seam finishes.

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STYLING

This a style that requires tucked in or cropped shirts. I’ve found that leaving something untucked just looks frumpy as it squashes down all the fullness around your middle.  I’ve been thinking I need to make some Closet Case Files Nettie bodysuits to wear with this skirt! In the meantime I wear it with my silk Tucker blouses for work and with slim fitting JCrew t-shirts or tank tops for more casual settings.

I think this skirts has a slightly 70’s vibe that works great with chunky platforms or sandals.  View C is a shorter flirty version that would be very contemporary and festivalwear-like in a girly floral print.

Reasons I love this skirt:

  • Fit n Flare style makes me look like I have a waist
  • Great pockets
  • Dressed up denim works with everything from fancy silk blouse (in my photos) to a basic tee or tank
  • Easy to follow pattern

Reasons to not love this skirt:

  • Waistband can be a little constricting. I think I wear too many knits these days and expect everything to be stretchy and comfortable
  • Adjustments needed to make waist fit. (This is expected with a Sewaholic Pattern).

Save some $$$

One last note on this pattern.  It’s based on the lovely Sewaholic Lonsdale dress.  I own both patterns so I compared the skirt pieces and they are totally identical! So if you like the Lonsdale too, just buy that pattern and you can make both! All you’ll need to do is make your own rectangular waistband pattern piece, which you can base off of the one on the Lonsdale.