I’ve been hard at work behind the scenes, keeping a secret for quite a while now. And today is the day that I get to make a very VERY exciting announcement!!! I have collaborated with some of my very favorite sewing friends to create an eBook with 10 amazing dress designs that I think you’re going to love! Five & Ten Designs is debuting today with our first pattern book, Volume 1. The basic premise behind our work is this: we’ve taken one basic pattern block – the bodice block in this case – and from that, we’re showing you how to design 10 totally unique dresses! (Please note – Five & Ten Designs no longer sells the basic patterns for the designs you see here.)
The designers behind this new venture are: Jessica Abbott from The Sewing Rabbit, Delia Randall of Delia Creates, Jessica Christian from Craftiness is Not Optional, Heidi Kettner of Elegance & Elephants, and me, Stef! Get it? Five Designers – Ten Designs – Five & Ten Designs!!!
Grace was all over it when it was time to model the first design – the basic dress for Volume 1. I put together this tutorial and it is used as a foundation for several of the other looks in the book. It’s your staple dress – lined bodice, full gathered skirt. Perfect for embellishing or whipping up a closet full to practice your basic sewing skills. If you’re ready to take the leap into garment making – this dress is the place to do it.
And then when you’re comfortable with the basic techniques of constructing a sleeveless dress, you can delve into some of the more complex designs…there are pattern pieces for a cap sleeve, peter pan collar, even pockets! And then step-by-step instructions and high resolution photos to guide you through each of the ten designs.
Comments & Reviews
Marie says
Wow, this looks so great! Cute, cute dresses.
kristin says
Congrats Stef!! When I saw that princess dress I immediately knew it was you. 🙂
Anneliese says
I have always loved this basic dress. So classic. Your version is beautiful. Congratulations on this fun collaboration!
Rochel says
These are adorable! One question before I buy 🙂 I’ve not really done a lot of buying patterns off the internet. This is an e-book, right? So how do the pattern pieces work? Do you just print them off? And if your printer doesn’t print the right size, is there a way to fix it? The one time I did order a pattern online when I printed it it was the wrong size. I was able to adjust it, but I don’t know that I would want to do that for several patterns.
Thanks!
girlinspired says
Hi Rochel! Thank you so much for your enthusiasm! Yes, it is an ebook – and since it includes 10 different designs and tutorials, it is around 180 pages. HOWEVER, the pattern pieces are only a few pages (for the bodice and optional cap sleeves, collar, and pockets) – so you just print up those pages and tape them together – instructions on how to do that are included. Each tutorial uses the basic pattern pieces or teaches you how to manipulate the basic pattern pieces to make the dress. And then the remaining pieces (like the skirt pieces) are provided as measurements in a cutting chart, so you don’t need to print out any pattern pieces for that. You can print out just the pages for the specific tutorial you’re using or just reference it on your computer. The pattern pieces should print up just fine on a standard printer, but if you have any trouble, you can email us (there is a contact form on the 5&10 website) and we’ll be happy to help you out! It is really a simplified process with just a few pattern pieces to print and piece together. I hope you love the ebook! I’d love to hear what you’re making with it!
Rochel says
Thank you! I just bought it 🙂 So excited!
Abby says
Yay!!! Congrats Stef, this is so awesome! You are all amazing and I’m sure this is going to be a big hit!
girlinspired says
Thank you Abby! We are super excited about it! I hope people love it!