Hi, my name’s Andrew, you can find more from me on Instagram @SewAndrew or my blog SewAndrew.com however, today I’m here to tell you a bit about men’s underwear and this lovely jersey from Britex. I got a yard each of black/white cotton jersey, navy/white striped cotton jersey, and another yard of white cotton jersey with a cute cherry print on it. Also a yard each of star motif elastic in red, blue and black (this fabulous waistband elastic available in our notions department - A). The elastic is soft and strong, perfect for underwear and the jersey felt so nice that I changed my plan a little (but more on that later!).

I’ve been trying out some different patterns and thought I’d share with you a few things I’ve learnt along the way. There aren’t that many modern men’s briefs patterns available, but this is by no means an exhaustive list - these are just the three that I could get my hands on easily! First up, Ottobre Magazine Family Edition - Men’s Briefs.

  I made this Papercut Patterns Sapporo Coat from this luscious teal wool melton ($49.99/yard) from Britex Fabrics. It’s the first coat I’ve made from a melton fabric. I’m happy to say that it was easy to sew. My lining fabric is also from Britex – it’s a lining specifically made for coats. This black warm-back coat lining is satin on one side and flannel on the other, which makes it easy to sew (more on this later). It’s 60″ wide and $15.99/yard.

Hey! It's Shams from Communing with Fabric with a project made from a stunning Britex fabric! For this project I selected a fabric from the Novelty category, Smoke Striped Leopard Smooth Brocade: This reversible brocade leopard print from Italy is truly a stunning fabric. I wanted to make a coat and quickly settled on Butterick 6385, a Lisette pattern. I made this coat once before for my Paris wardrobe and I have loved wearing that coat.

  As soon as I saw this colorful fabric, I thought to myself, "Pilvi Coat!" A simple design is great for a large print because you can show off the print to full advantage. That's what I like this pattern from the sewing book Lotta Jansdotter Everyday Style. Plus the coat has pockets! I had fun using colorful fabric scraps for my pockets.  

Hey! It's Shams of Communing with Fabric with another garment made from a beautiful Britex fabric! For this project, my assignment was to choose a fabric from the Wool category. I quickly settled on this beautiful bouclé, Coat-Weight Black & Winter White Wool Blend Bouclé (Made in Italy). It's 80% wool and 20% polyester. I absolutely love this fabric! If you know bouclé, you know that it's more loosely woven than most wool fabrics, and it can ravel. And, yes, this fabric ravels, but that means that you can use it to make fabulous fringe! Its content is mostly wool, but I did not find it to be scratchy. If possible scratchiness concerns you, order a swatch. I've been inspired by recent Chanel collections (and, of course, Chanel is famous for their use of bouclé). The 2018 Spring show was held recently in Paris. If you watch just the first few minutes, you'll see wonderful bouclé dresses, tops, pants, and coats featuring long fringe:

 

(Tulle and silk flowers for headdress above were purchased at, and are available for purchase at Britex Fabrics brick-and-mortar store.)

 

If you haven't met Sonya Philip of 100 Acts of Sewing, here's your chance. She'll be teaching our very first Pop-up Britex on March 14 where she'll demonstrate all the skills necessary for making an a-line tunic dress. Here's a peek into her creative process using two pieces of linen from the our online selection.

Why did you choose these fabrics for your project? I adore linen. It is wonderful to work with and has a beautiful hand. Living in San Francisco, I find I can wear linen almost year-round. I chose the main fabric (Golden Wheat Linen/Silk Blend) primarily for the color--mustard and curry yellows just really speak to me right now. I wanted a strong contrast color and was taken by the richness of the Two-tone Raspberry Linen.

Heather Habig is an expert in her field, which is why we invited her to participate in December's BF Contributor. She lives in San Francisco, is launching a clothing line in 2013 and offers custom design services. The black & white wool double knit was a perfect choice for her pattern. After seeing her classic-but-bold, perfectly fitted jacket, we had a few questions for Heather. Here's what she had to tell us: 1. Why did you choose the black and white double knit for your project? What did you love about the fabric? What did you learn about the fabric? I'm always drawn to fabric and prints that are high-contrast, especially in black and white, and when I saw this fabric I was really excited. The fact that it's wool and a double knit sounded like fun to work with, and I knew I could get a great-fitting garment out of it. When I made the pattern for the jacket, and I kept the silhouette relatively simple because of the bold pattern. As I was working with it, I was surprised by how much it was shrinking under the steam iron. I might recommend to someone else using this fabric to buy an extra 1/4 to 1/3 yard - to account for shrink as well as matching the stripes.