I'm a Know Me pattern Designer

Get to Know Me…

I’m still pinching myself and my Fall pattern ME2006 is in stores!

When I got the call from Mimi I was having a very tough time still dealing with a miscarriage and had recently been relocated on my 9 to 5, 50 miles from my home. I’m not gonna lie, I cried a lot mainly because I was talking out my dreams with a sister a year or so before telling her I wanted to make my own patterns. After that conversation with my friend, I simply wrote down my goals and I didn’t think about it again until Mimi reached out.

Once the news got out about “The Big 4” now being “The Big 5” the love and support from the sewing community has been so amazing.

So how has being a Know Me designer been?

Well, keeping the big news a secret was really fun lol. Then there’s creating designs. I didn’t know when Mimi wanted designs or how any of the process would play out but I went to my sketches and I had about 10 designs ready. I sat on those designs for a few months (maybe more than a few lol) but when Mimi came back and said okay I need your fall designs I was more than ready.

I sent her like 3 designs and finally decided to go with my jacket/dress design. I absolutely love blazers, coats, and jackets so this look was it for me. In my mind I already knew how I wanted to style this pattern (both casual and dressed up).

Once the pattern drafting and instructions were complete, I received my pattern and then it was time to sew it up and photograph. After sewing, cutting out, and hacking so many patterns over the past 10 years it was surreal to now cut out and sew my own pattern. The only other time I have ever been so intentional and focused on sewing a garment was when I made my vow renewal dress. It was kinda easy and that’s when imposter syndrome kicked in. Having sew brothers and sisters to help navigate all the feels really helped during the process.

I have to talk about the pictures because y'all, my husband has never been labeled as my photographer but for my pattern pics…I needed him to step up. For those who don’t know, I take 99.5% of the pictures you see on my socials and here on my blog and I’m a photographer. I was not blessed with a partner who will tell me I have a wrinkle or this angle aint it honey. He will snap 100 of those bad shots with no words lol. A whole ass struggle y’all. We managed to finally get on the same page while shooting and he got some really good shots. So for that, I’m thankful.

Then there are the other amazing Know Me Designers who are sharing this experience with me. Everyone brings something different with their designs and I’m so honored to be apart of this group of creatives. I actually want to sew the mens patterns for hubs and that normally takes an act of God!

This journey is just getting started and Early Spring 23” is right around the corner. Thank you again to you all for supporting me on my creative journey. And thank you for supporting Know Me Patterns and all the designers.

Sew alongs are now live on the Know Me YouTube channel HERE

Shop Know Me Patterns Here or in craft stores like Joann!

Fabric: Spoonflower Velvet

Fabric: Suade

Fabric: Joann Denim

Purple Rain-Bow

Welcoming Spring

This Spring I’m all about the many shades of purple! I’ve been sleeping on this purple stretch corduroy from Melanated Fabrics all winter and finally decided on the perfect match. Sorry they’re all out of this purple but there are a few other colors to choose from. I used McCalls 7997 to create this look and the darts on this one help to give the dress a little more shape for those curves. If darts aren’t your strong points, check out this method I use to cut the dart portions out of the pattern pieces for easy markings.

There’s quite a bit of handsewing for the hem, sleeves, and lining. So if handsewing isn’t your jam, I’d get ready for it with this pattern. I managed to sit and handsewing the entire dress while watching a movie. The buttonholes were also fun (not). Corduroy can be tricky and with this being a stretch corduroy, the fabric wasn’t as firm as I would like for a buttonhole. You can strengthen your buttonholes by adding cording or a stronger interfacing on your front facing.

Overall, this was an average sewing project. There aren’t welt pockets but if you want to get jazzy you could definitely add them.

Tip: I cut out the front facing pattern piece with angle incorrectly. I was definitely not paying close attention. So you want to be sure if you’re sewing this version, to cut the slanted facing piece correctly. The same goes for your lining. Luckily I had enough corduroy to cut out one more facing on the correct side.

I hope you enjoyed my Purple Rain-bow lewk! Until next time,

Peace & Blessings!