My sewalong Tiramisu
My favorite part of teaching a “project” type class is to watch all the variations of a pattern develop into individual creations in the hands of other sewists. It’s endlessly fascinating. I had a ball during the Tiramisu 30 Minutes A Day Sewalong– both watching the dresses develop and also getting to know a *lot* of you better as sewists and as people. Sometimes I found myself dying to get my hands on your seamlines, I found that the most challenging part- to talk you through the fit customization rather than doing it myself.
Thanks for sewing along, for working so hard and sharing so much. Some Sewalong stitchers really pushed their comfort zones by working with a knit fabric for the first time, or creating a dress, or by setting aside time to complete their dress a little every day. Congrats! Some raced to the finish, others stitched along with the daily posts, and others had to set their dress aside when life got in the way. That’s the way things go, and I’m thrilled to have been a part of it.
I’ve included here as many Sewalong Tiramisus as I found in the flickr group. All photos are taken by the stitcher herself and represent a great deal of hard work and perseverance. I salute you!
If I mistakenly used your photo, or if I’ve left you out, please let me know. Also, feel free to link in the comments to any blog posts I might have missed.
All photos should link to the flickr page, which often links to the uploader’s blog. This is handy if you see someone in the Tiramisu Party with a similar body shape or sense of style- you can get a more accurate idea of how the Tiramisu Dress might work for you, and if you click through and leave a comment for the sewist you can make a new friend, too.
EmSewCrazy completed the first Tiramisu in the flickr stream- on Day 5!
Melanie made 2 dresses so far- one of her goals was to add some nice wearable basics to her depleted wardrobe. Check!
Melanie worked very hard to achieve this fit, and she also spent almost as much time as I did helping others with fittings. Thank you, Melanie!
Merry kept us all laughing with her fabric hijinks during the sewalong, and made this loooovely tone on tone red stripe Tiramisu!
Sewhopeful was super helpful, uploading her pattern photos for others to see. She writes “The 30 minutes a day really helped… I just took it one day at a time and somehow managed to make a dress in a week that usually I would not have got any sewing done. I am going to continue the 30 minutes a day routine. It really works and makes me feel like I can indulge my “hobby” and have precious precious “me time” without neglecting my family or other parts of my life. “
Chris’ jungle print Tiramisu and her spirit put a big smile on my face, click here for all her deets and photos!
bella’s Tiramisu passes the swirl test. I really like this as a photo. Beautiful stripes matching, too.
Ellen made her Tiramisu into a peplum top, paired with a black skirt.
Maryanne used a fine stripe binding for the neck, arms, and also on the hem of her Tiramisu dress. I really like the effect of the bound hem, might have to try! She outlines her process at her blog Sew Together.
SewMentalMama used LIBERTY jersey for her first Tiramisu. It’s tough to get good knits in Ireland, can anyone share a source? Let her know!
sew_stylish in stripes says: “I have been wearing it this afternoon for photos and it is so comfy. I just got changed back into my jeans and my 2 year old got upset. When I asked her why, she said “I want you to wear the pretty dress all the time” – to get compliments from a toddler, wow it has made an impression!” I love it.
Megan paired her sky blue Tira with cowboy boots IN THE SNOW. I call that style…
Shar made a Tiramisu with pretty, understated tonal contrast- I want one like this, too!
Whhhhaaat?? After finishing one Tira, EmSewCrazy went…crazy… with this really cool sleeve hack! She’s working on the drafting instructions, so go stalk her blog if you (like me) REALLY WANT these sleeves…
Shell cut her Tiramisu and we fit it together in person in class here in Brisbane. I was dying to see it finished, so she uploaded! This fabric has a beautiful hand, and the fabric has a curious light/dark shading. We took some time to carefully place the pattern pieces, and I think it turned out really well, great work, Michelle!
Check out Ali’s red polka dot Tiramisu! What fun! (Fwiw, Ali, I think the fit looks great!)
I love the print on Fiona’s longer-than-usual Tiramisu. So lively! And it’s a good fit, too.
Joanne has very limited sewing time to herself, yet she managed to complete her beautifully fitted basic black Tiramisu. AND stood out in the snow! Woman of steel!
Do not adjust your monitors! S made this beautifully fitted Tira from a really cool knit print, and used the pattern in the fabric for maximum impact!
S. is also one of Cake’s newest stockists, in Sweden!
Shelley’s Tiramisu has a vintage vibe, with contrast binding and a ditsy print! If only I had time and wardrobe space to make another one…
“Here is my finish Tira. Sorry for the angry eyes in the one picture as my son was helping me take the pictures and I was giving instruction to him. I cut a 30b and NO gaping. Yippie!!! One thing though I will never work with a slippy ploy-knit again. Love my wearable muslin. Can’t wait to make a few more of these babies.” Your dimples make up for it, Casandramama. (Sorry, I didn’t catch your name? I’m Steph..)
Staci made her Tiramisu in classic black with 3/4 sleeves, and can’t wait to make another! This is so ladylike without being prim, nice work walking the line!
When Merry was quiet a few days, I knew she was up to something! She whipped up another Tiramisu in a plaid knit with a full circle skirt for swing dancing!
Jillian will soon have more Tiras under her belt than I do! It does go together quite easily once you have the fit down….
The thing I find so interesting about this collection is we aren’t models, we aren’t photographers- we’re hard-working sewists sharing our craft in our precious spare time. The photos have a certain immediacy and reality to them, don’t they?
They are each a snapshot in time of a dress on a woman… and of one dress shared by many women. Thanks so much for making this sewalong such a success, and for being so willing to share your sewing experience.
Click to view the Tiramisu Dress Pattern available for sale on Etsy
Future
I have the Pavlova Sewalong in the works already (separates, 30 Minutes a Day, flickr)! You’ve all inspired me during the sewalong and I had several ideas for other ways to extend the teaching space from my sewing room to yours. I’ll be blogging about them later this week and also dipping into more incredible vegan makeup (with many pretty little boxes of color coordinated samples to send your way!).
I *must* buckle down and focus on production for Hummingbird and Lamington over the next several weeks- while I’ll post a bit here and continue tidying and building sewingcake and updating the email newsletter and responding to emails. I just can’t mentally process production work and my regular correspondence and regular blogging at the same time. It’s too hard, the work suffers.
I have some *really* great posts lined up for the week that Pavlova ships, which will be quickly followed by another presale (Hummingbird)! Then the Pavlova sewalongs, and all manner of delightful Pavlova fun. In the meantime, I’ll be writing light posts on makeup and little sewing projects, introducing the first Cake Riff patterns, those kinds of things.
Did you sew along? What did you think about the 30 Minutes A Day concept? Tell me- what gets in the way of your sewing? I’m curious…
Oh! And while we’re at it, do let me know if you know about a good knit retailer in Europe, please!
3 Hours Past the Edge of the World 
all the dresses are amazing and both the red and hello poka dots are my favourites.
Yes! Polka dots are such fun. :)
these all look great! with my new found love for knits I am sure I will jump on the bandwagon next month! loving the perplum top especially!
I like it too, I have *got* to find a few minutes to stitch one up… :)
Wow…ladies of Tiramisu I salute you. These are SPECTACULAR dresses and all of you look sooooo amazing.
Steph…you’ve done a great job with this pattern. All of these ladies are different shapes and all of these dresses fit so well. They all look so very beautiful.
Very inspiring.
Thanks… It’s such fun. :)
I’m inspired, too! :) It’s really fun, I’m looking forward to the Pavlova sewalong…
What a great showcase of amazing dresses… this pattern truly suits so many women of all different shapes and sizes… thank you Steph for a pattern that I know I will get soooo much use out. I loved the sew-along and the 30 minutes a day was great on my working days as I could easily fit it in… I did though jump ahead on the weekend as I had more time and was just too darn excited and wanted to see my dress finished LOL. The great thing is though is that I can still go back to the sew-along posts and review them over again and still pick up more tips for the next time I make another Tira… and yes there will definitely be another, and another, and another. Thank you again Steph for a great pattern and a great sew-along. Looking forward to joining you for many more :)
It’s amazing what a little fitting work can do..
Thanks for that! :) I’m never quite sure if I write too much detail or not enough, so it’s good to know the microscopic posts were helpful.
great sewalong – it was really fun! i will definitely be making another – i love the contrast binding that maryanne used and em’s print/ plain one with those gorgeous sleeves! and some more blogs to stalk – thanks steph! can’t wait for pavlova!
I know! I’ve been wanting to do a little contrast binding, it’s almost as satisfying to simply see it on Maryann… :)
Pavlova will be soon!
Hi Steph, sorry for my tardiness, I have posted up my pics in the Flickr group and at my blog http://busylizzieinbrizzy.blogspot.com.au/2013/01/tiramisu.html. I had so much fun at our afternoon class and I appreciate all the knowledge you shared.
Thanks, liz! Looking good, and it was super fun to sew together. :) How’s the dot marking going? ;)
hehe, I think you would be impressed, I am improving by the day :)
btw – my dress is getting longer and longer, silly fabric, just keeps stretching, but sooo comfy – I am torn as I know when I wash it, it will shrink back up
oh excellent… :)
Oh dear! Sounds like what happened to my gray and gray striped Tira… She just kept growing and growing, then the fabric started to pill so she’s a nightgown/housedress and I don’t really care about the dropped seams. The t-shirty cotton jerseys and the one with a hint of lycra didn’t give me any trouble, though. :)
I have bought a couple of t-shirt ones with a bit of lycra, also from the Fabric Store and they seem more stable. Doing a black basic, and a grey one. Yep, boring colours perhaps, but I think they will be a good wardrobe addition, plus will be good winter colours.
Those should work really well, especially since you’re making that travel capsule wardrobe. :) And boring colors make a great backdrop for exciting stockings, bags, shoes, hats, brooches, scarves, etc….
Exactly – all part of my travel plan – then I can tie them in with cardis, pretty coloured tights etc. Will let you know when done so you can see them in an improved fabric!
Gorgeous group!!
Agreed. :)
Thank you for organising the sewalong! I had never sewn a knit dress before and have learnt so much, including the fact that there was no need to be intimidated by knit fabric!
The 30 mins a day concept has really worked for me. I can only sew in the evenings once my toddler is asleep and the dining table is clear. Sometimes, I don’t bother as I feel I don’t have enough time but breaking tasks down into smaller chunks really helps. I have been so productive over the last two weeks!
I also really enjoyed the social aspect of it. I have lots of new blogs to follow and I hope to get involved again with the Pavlova sewalong!
Oh good! That’s the main thing really, learning not to be afraid of the sewing. :) I’m so pleased that came through.
Oh cool! Also a win! :) I like the concept, too, even though I had a few super busy days and had to play a bit of catch up, myself… hehe.
Yeah, the social part was way fun, and I found a lot of “new” and awesome blogs, too…
It’s great to see all the final Tiras in one place after watching everyone’s progress! It’s amazing how one dress pattern can look so unique and flattering on so many. The 30 minutes a day was the perfect way to schedule my sewing. Thank you so much for hosting the sew along and I really look forward to the next one!
Yeah! It was really interesting putting this post together, focusing on all the finished dresses and realizing all the work and effort that went into the sewing. Just wonderful.
Thank you! We should have some fun in the next one, I have heaps of notes on construction stuff that didn’t make it into the 4 pages of construction instructions… Though we did sort of spread out a bit, with one whole page that’s a Construction Overview… :D
I really enjoyed the Sewalong – even though I didn’t really sew along! I thought the flickr community was amazing. WIth so many people commenting and giving advice, it really had momentum. (I’ve been in some sewalong groups where that is not the case!) Thanks for building that kind of atmosphere!
As for the dresses – It’s really amazing to see so many different women feeling beautiful in their new frocks!
Honestly, I don’t know that I can claim credit for doing that, everyone else did it! :) But yeah, amazing momentum and really informative, I’m super impressed.
So inspired to see so many fabulous completed garments – and a little annoyed at myself for not getting organised – but seriously sewing in this humidity and heat is hideous!
However I’m now inspired again to try fabric shopping – I attempted last week at a certain Brisbane store Steph and was a little deflated from the experience and didn’t find anything I liked for a Tira – might have another go later in the week and see how I go :)
Yes, the heat is hideous indeed. I spent an entire long hot humid day taking fitting videos and etc, by the end of the day my makeup had settled at the base of my neck and my hair was plastered to my head. Worth it though… ;) I know not everyone is as nuts as me. If I wait til it’s cooler, the light is bad. If I work when the light is good, it’s hot. Sigh.
Did you go to The Fabric Store? What were you looking for? I can’t imagine they wouldn’t have something suitable… or do you mean The Place That Should Not Be Named- spotlight? They are so hit and miss…
Hi there! Also sorry for being late, but now I’ve uploaded photos to the flickr group of my green polka dot Tira dress (complete with underlining).
Thanks so much for setting up the sewalong, it has been so good to now where to find help from you and the other “sewalongers”.
It looks great! :) How does it lie? Did you have to do an underbust tune up to account for the extra weight of the lining? So many questions… ;)
They all look so gorgeous! I love seeing it on all the different body shapes—it’s fascinating. Well done, everyone!
Endlessly fascinating, for sure.
Everyone’s is great! The best part is that it looks good on all of different body types.
Yeah for sure. :) I have a bit of a guiding principle that most cuts look good on most shapes as long as the fabric and fit are decent… We’ll see how that bears out over time…
This was my first sewalong and I had a blast. I have lurked on several of your blogs and it is nice to kind of “meet” some of you finally. I will certainly be joining in on the Pavlova sewalong, although I missed the pre-sale (how did I do that??). In the meantime, I will be making a few more Tiras. I have plans for two more dresses and perhaps two Tira shirts, maybe more. Hopefully I will be able to add enough diversity through mods and hacks that they don’t all look the same, but since I have such a limited wardrobe and the Tira is just so darn flattering and easy to make I am not sure at this point I really care. Tiras first, more pattern diversity later. Let the Reign of Tira begin!
Oh good! Me too, I know I keep saying it but I really had a great time sewing along…
Ah… The pre-sale had to be at an awkward time of year, nothing to do for it… : / But she’ll be up for regular sale as soon as I have the patterns in my hot little hands next month…. Snow White (Leila, Cake Dist. for NHemisphere) and I have to get all the pre-orders out and then I’ll make the regular sale patterns available and put up the electronic pdfs as separates… I’m kind of thinking of separating out some of the sizes, too, but we’ll see.
Yay! Everyone looks so lovely! Thanks for hosting such a splendid sewalong, Steph, and I can’t wait for the Pavlova one! I need more swing dance clothes!
Thanks, Mary! :)
Thank you Steph. This has been my first sewalong and I have had a blast! The pattern is amazing and I know I will sew it many more times.
I’m also a lurker on many a blog, so it feels good to participate in something at last.
My missing pattern turned up after 6 weeks astray in the post, so I hope you noticed that I sent you the payment for the replacement? I swapped the duplicate pattern with a friend and she is now itching to sew a Tira :D
I can’t wait to see what else you come up with. Bring on the Pavlova!
Just need some nice weather now, so I can wear it ……..
Yaaaaaaay! :)
I’m so glad your pattern showed up, that was very curious indeed. And of course it turned up after you received the second one. I did receive the payment, thank you.
*insert mad scientist laughter* I do have some really fun things cooking at the moment… ;)
These are so beautiful! Nicely done, gals! :)
Hear hear!
Was so excited to sew along…. But life came along (mom had a stroke) so I couldn’t make it. Will be making a tira on my own hopefully and will definitely join next one. Everyone looked so pretty and proud and happy. Wonderful post and wonderful job by you!
oh! *hugs* life gets in the way sometimes, I hope you’re alright because that sounds so hard. We’ll be here for the second one, and it’s always acceptable to stitch a dress up any old time. :)
Thanks for the great sew-along! So much fun to sew toghether and being able to help eachother! I always like seing the results togther like this and admire the great work!
I sell fabrics to Ireland ;) but I do know of a few shops sp if you could let her know me email I will help her find some good ones!
Looking forwards to new sewing adventures later this year! :)
/sy_stromming
Susanna, your yellow dress turned out amazing :-)
Also, I saw your shop link in the Flickr group, so I’ll go check it out
Excellent… Great fabrics for solid sewing. Thanks, Susanna! :)
well done to everyone, all the dresses are beautiful, i hope everyone gets lots of wear out of them!
Steph you must be absolutely bursting with pride, best of luck with production work, hooe it goes smoothly…
off to click through & compare notes on Irish fabric shopping with Angela :-)
Looking forward to it Louise – we are a bit deprived in Ireland when it comes to fabric shopping ;-)
Yes… Production work… I like leaving the sewing room door open, so to speak, so I think I’ll set something up on the sewingcake.com so y’all can get a feel for what I’m working on… Nothing fancy or well-explained, just some prog shots of what I’m working on…
Knit fabrics for Ireland!!! ;)
Yay! So lovely to see all the dresses together. My favourites are all the stripey ones, particularly sew_stylish’s one. But the one I’m absolutely dying to copy is Maryanne’s blue with stripy binding
As for what gets in the way of my sewing. I’ve been sewing for many years but I have very few wearable objects for myself because of perfectionism/trouble fitting/trouble getting a good finish. I think the Tira pattern and the sewalong has finally cured me of this. In particular the post on the underbust seam gave me a lot of confidence to just shut up and sew!
Thanks Steph xxx
perfectionism is all well and fine until it gets in the way of the sewing… I have some major perfectionist tendencies myself, I think that’s why I mention perfectionism so often. Like I’m reminding myself! ;) I’m really glad you’re feeling more confident with the sewing, because at the end of the day no list of “sewing rules and regulations” can replace a little common sense and “fingertip knowledge”… It’s just learning to trust your fingers and instincts, I think….
I think, anyway! Like I said, my name is Steph and I’m a recovering Perfectionist… ;)
Thanks Steph! I had such a good time and I loved every minute of sewing my dress up. I’m really happy with how it turned out, and a lot of that was due to all the feedback and lessons that you gave. I wore it to my sewing day and the other stitchers were all ooh-ing and aah-ing over it. I felt like I could barely take any credit because you’d been such a big help!
Thanks again!
Oh I’m so glad! Comments like yours make the work worthwhile. ;)
Nah, there’s only so much I can do. *You* stitched that lovely dress, well done.
You are all beautiful and it is so cool to see these gathered in one place! I learned late about Tiramisu and Cake and missed the sew-along, but my Tiramisu pattern is somewhere over the ocean now. Steph, you’re so right about the immediacy and realness of these pictures. Models can go soak their heads; I would rather look at you all any day.
Hehehe. Models are people too, but no, I’m not wanting to put Cake on models… It wouldn’t seem right somehow. :)
Steph, thanks for posting all our dresses like this. It shows how wonderfully versatile your pattern, and the fit is.
The sew along was very enjoyable, even though I sometimes fell behind. Breaking the pattern instructions into your 30 min posts, meant that I never got too lost or overwhelmed. Also the fact that you took the time to comment on nearly every pic in the Flickr group, was really encouraging.
I have participated in a few sewalongs, and found this one to be the most supportive, both between participants, and between the ‘teacher’ and the participants.
Congrats on getting through the hosting of your first sew along, despite those pesky WordPress gremlins :-) and thanks for putting a call out for knits in Europe!!!
Oh good, I’m so glad the framework helped you chop the sewing into manageable pieces. :)
Thanks.. Been teaching locally for quite a while, the “shift” started one day in class when I realized I could fit people without touching them… And teach without actual contact… That kind of opened up a world of possibilities to me, and I’m glad to know the teaching carries electronically, I’ve had something of a tech knowledge learning curve… Still working on it… :)
Ugh. I still feel a bit melodramatic when I think of those Day 9 gremlins…
Wow, a bunch of pretty, pretty dresses!
yes! Such different fabrics…
I made one! Well, actually I’ve made two – one for a friend (that needs an underbust tuneup) and one for me (that isn’t perfect, but oh so comfy).
http://greenhillsinapril.wordpress.com/2013/01/15/tiramisu-magenta-french-terry-2/
I don’t have final photos yet, as I wore it, then washed it, then it took forever to dry (possibly the worst fabric for a dress I want to wear always!). Hopefully I’ll have time to get photos up this week. :)
Oh good! If you find you have some fit issues, don’t hesitate to email me… I think we’re still working on a sloper, too? I can’t get out into the blogosphere as much as I used to, unfortunately, so miss blog posts….
Haha. Sort of slopering? I should work on that too, but it feels like work, especially after my 9-10 hour days (mainly focused on… calculus.). Tiramisu is fun. And totally wearable, although having less chest on display would be better for me.
Here’s the link to my first finished dress! http://www.flickr.com/photos/melbaweatherspoon/8378632432/
I want to start working on another, we’ll see when I am able to get to it. :) Thanks so much everyone for posting your photos and doing blog posts, it was inspirational to a non-blogger/not so experienced knit sewer to both see you solve your fitting problems and just how you manage to take all the photos, put everything up, etc. Especially you Steph, I am amazed at how you manage to get everything organized! Thank you!
I mostly did my dress in 3 or four chunks (as opposed to 30 minutes a day) and then had to postpone the next version I want to make when family came into town. But, I still really enjoyed it and think I will be able to get some really good things out of this pattern, and I will be grateful to have all these posts to look back on! I like the 30 minutes a day idea, I will try to actually do it on the pavlova sewalong. I think I have a hard time stopping once I start, so I tend to do bigger chunks and then skip days when I feel like I won’t have a lot of time. I think the project box is smart though, and helps make those a productive 30 minutes. It is liberating to just do a little and then be okay being done.
Oh! Apologies, very remiss of me. Thanks for linking.
Yeah, no problem. :) Organization is not my strong suit so I’m learning to generally over-compensate…
Oh! I’m glad you liked the project box idea, if I didn’t have boxes I’d never get anything done… I should open up my sewing room and show y’all my box system… Hmmm… That might be fun.. I’ve always been the type of sewist to have 3 or 4 major projects going at the same time, some things never change…
:)
I loved seeing all these!!! It’s so great seeing all the different variations and on all different shapes and sizes! :) Thank you so much for sharing! :) I couldn’t participate in the sewalong but I have my Tira fabric (a plum bamboo jersey!) ready to go and I’m really looking forward to sewing it up soon – can’t wait to add mine to the list! ^_^
Wow! I’ve already made two but looking at all of these makes me think I’m going to have to make another – I’m thinking some kind of animal print….
I just wanted to say THANK YOU for putting on such a great sewalong! It was my first one so I don’t have anything to compare it to but I really appreciated the 30 mins. and the specific tasks. I could usually set aside 30 minutes to sew or if I got behind the tasks made it easy to know what step I had to catch up to. I loved all the visiting in the Flickr group too!
The biggest thing that gets in the way of my sewing is being self employed. I always think there should be something business related I should be working on. In a way the 30 mins a day really helped with that because I realized how much you can get done within a time frame.
Thanks for liking my sleeves too. I was hoping you would like them and wouldn’t mind I hacked the pattern right off the bat.
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