New Look 6936 in Denim Knit

As many of you know, last weekend was Pattern Review Weekend 2018, and it was held right here in my town of Stratford, Ontario. I was lucky enough to be one of the organizers this year and we had a wonderful time coming up with a program and fun activities for everyone to enjoy.

It was enormous fun and all the hard work paid off -- I had such a great time meeting new sewists and visiting with those I've met before. If you weren't able to attend, check out the #PRW2018 hashtag on Instagram for some great photos, and of course, also take a look at PatternReview for a roundup of the event, coming soon.

Anyhow, one of the things I did for Pattern Review Weekend was try to finish and wear some new makes. Now it is time to review some of those pieces!

I'm starting with a repeat of a pattern I've made twice before, New Look 6936. I think this may be out of print by now, unfortunately, because it is the best secret pyjama pattern ever. Especially in a fabric like this one!

I found this very stretchy, quite thick denim coloured knit on the remnants table at Fabricland ages ago. I've been trying to use more of my stash fabrics this year so I matched this bit up with this pattern -- perfect combo. The knit is very soft and stretchy, but heavy enough that it holds it shape and doesn't cling. The denim colour matches with everything! I've worn it with red, cream and purple accessories and each time it looks great.

Of course I added pockets - a very easy addition using my favourite pattern piece from another dress which I've traced and keep pinned to my corkboard in my sewing space in order to reuse it whenever I need to add side seam pockets to a dress. This time I used scraps of the very stable knit from my recent Margot Peplum top for the pocket pieces.

Because of the amount of fabric I had in this remnant end, I did have to add a centre back seam to the bodice in order to fit the piece onto my fabric bits. That was simple enough to do, and is barely noticeable in wearing.

Because of the weight and stable nature of this knit fabric I just did a quick turn-under-and-stitch finish on the hem, sleeves and neckline; usually I avoid that quick and dirty finish but it seemed reasonable to use it here. I've had no puckering, stretching or waviness so it seems to have worked well. I'm all for the easy route if it seems like it'll work out.

One thing to watch with this pattern is the bodice length - the seamline is quite high so if you don't like an empire-ish waistline be sure to adjust to your taste. Also, there is extravagant ease in this pattern: I cut a 12 at shoulders and 14 at bust, instead of 16, but did grade out to 16 at the hip/derriere area. So be sure to figure out just how much bodice ease you really need.

But once you have those little things sorted, this is a workhorse pattern. So, so comfortable and flattering, with a number of bodice and sleeve options. Great way to use up a nice knit!