Palisade Pants →

Papercut Patterns June 23, 2020

step 1

Fuse your front waistband. With your 4cm wide fusing strips, fuse the fly front of one front piece, top edge of side pieces, top edge of pocket facings and line edge of strip up with centre line of pocket bag B pieces and fuse.

step 2

Fold pocket bag B in half along fused edge with wrong sides together. Press.

step 3

Place folded pocket bag B onto right side of Pocket bag A with top edge lining up with double notch, and lower edge lining up with lower single notch. Baste together around edge.

step 4

Pin pocket facing onto top edge of side leg panel with right sides facing. Stitch together. Understitch seam allowance toward pocket facing. Fold pocket facing over to the wrong side of side leg panel. Press edge.

step 5

Place side leg panel over pocket bag A matching up the top edges with other two notches. Place a pin on each top edge to secure in place.

step 6

Fold leg panel up out of the way and stitch pocket bags together. Neaten seam. Fold leg panel back down and press.
Repeat steps 2 - 6 for other leg.

step 7

Pin back leg and side leg panels together with right sides facing. Stitch together. Neaten seam. Press seam allowance toward back leg. Topstitch seam. Repeat for other leg.

step 8

Pin back crotch seams together with right sides facing. Stitch together. Neaten seam.

step 9

Fold the short ends of back waistband in half with right sides out. Pin the open ends along top edge of back pants panel. Stitch. Neaten seam.

step 10

Press the seam allowance down toward pants panel and topstitch down.

step 11

Cut a piece of elastic:

XXS - 43cm/17” XS - 49cm/191⁄4” S - 55cm/213⁄4” M - 61cm/24” L - 67cm/261⁄2“ XL - 73cm/283⁄4”

Attach a pin to one end of your elastic and thread it through the channel of your back waistband.

step 12

Stitch one end of waistband closed catching the elastic to secure. Pin the other end together with a safety pin so that you don’t lose the end of your elastic.

step 13

With right sides facing, stitch centre fronts together around faux fly and front crotch. Neaten seam.
Stitch down a couple of stitches from the top at centre front notch to secure.

step 14

Unfold front section so it sits flat. Fold the fly facing towards the side you fused and press in place. Pin the layers together at centre front so that it all stays in place.

step 15

From the wrong side, topstitch down through fly facings and front panel, around edge of facing until you get to your crotch seam. Press.

step 16

Pin front waistband to top edge of front panel with right sides facing. Stitch. Press seam allowance up toward waistband. Neaten open edge of waistband.

step 17

Starting on the side of waistband that has the elastic stitched in, pin front and side leg panels together, lining up the top of back waistband with centre notch of front waistband. Fold the remainder of front waistband over the back waistband with wrong sides out, so that the open edge of front waistband meets the bottom edge of back waistband. Stitch together. Neaten seam. Press seam allowance toward front leg and topstitch down. Pin other side together then carefully try on and adjust elastic length until happy with the fit around the waist. Once happy, secure elastic then repeat this step for the other side.

step 18

“Stitch in the ditch” the remainder of front waistband, catching the underside of waistband. Press.

OPTIONAL EXTRA

Stitch two rows of stitching through all layers of your waistband and elastic, all the way around, stretching waistband out to fit as you sew.

step 19

Pin inside leg seams together with right sides facing. Stitch. Neaten seam and press seam allowance towards back.

step 20

Neaten hem edges. Fold hems up to desired length, pin in place and stitch.

Rise & Fall Turtleneck →

Papercut Patterns June 22, 2020

In this tutorial we have made the Fall Turtleneck, however the process is exactly the same for the Rise, the pieces just look slightly different.

STEP 1

Pin front and back pieces together at shoulder seams with right sides facing. Stitch. Neaten seams then press seam allowances toward the back.

STEP 2

Lay armhole over sleeve with right sides together and pin in place starting from bottom of armhole upwards on both front and back. Evenly distribute any ease in the sleevehead while pinning. Stitch in place with sleeve laying under armhole as the differential feed on your machine will help work in any ease. Neaten edge. Repeat for opposite sleeve.

STEP 3

Fold neck piece in half widthwise, pin together and stitch with a stretch stitch or zig zag. 2. Press seam allowance open. 3. Fold neck piece in half the other way, wrong sides together, matching seam lines. Pin seam edges together. 4. Pull through to the right side. You should have a loop with all the wrong sides enclosed.

STEP 4

Find the quarter points of both your neck piece and neckline. Mark both the centre front and centre back points with a pin. Fold in half the other way, lining up your centre front and centre back pins. Place a pin at each end. Now you have your neckline and neck piece quarter points.

STEP 5

Thread neck piece inside neckline with right sides facing and raw edges together. Line up the centre back seam of neck piece to the centre back point of neckline and line up the remaining three quarter points of neckline and neck piece. You should have three layers of fabric, the neckline of the top and the two open edges of turtleneck. Pin in place, stretching turtleneck to fit neckline. Stitch together with a stretch stitch or zig zag then neaten seam edge.

STEP 6

Place a pin where front and back underarm seams meet up and pin down to hemline and out to sleeve hem. Stitch together then neaten seam. Repeat for other side.

STEP 7

Neaten sleeve and hem edges, turn up at notches, pin in place then stitch with a stretch stitch or zig zag.

The Pinnacle Top - Variation 2 →

Papercut Patterns May 29, 2020

Pattern Adjustments

Featured

How to Lengthen the Pinnacle Top

Step 1

On the wrong side of front triangle piece, mark in your stitch line at the top of triangle, on both edges with tailors chalk. The seam allowance is 1cm/0.39”. Where these lines intersect is where you will start your stitch line.

Step 2

Mark in the stitch line on the wrong side of your front body piece where the v-neck meets the front triangle. Do the same on the other front piece.

Step 3

Place your front triangle piece onto your front body piece with right sides facing. Pin together matching the marked point of triangle to the marked point of body piece. Also pin together at notch and bottom edge of triangle.

Insert your needle into the marked point on triangle piece, making sure it also intersects the marked point on front body piece. This is your stitch line start point. Stitch down to bottom edge of triangle.

Neaten seam allowance (this can be done with an overlocker or zig zag stitch). Press seam allowance toward triangle.

Step 4

Pin side A of upper triangle piece to body piece with right sides facing, lining up top of triangle with notch. Stitch.

Step 5

Clip seam allowance at the top of triangle being careful not to cut through your stitching. Trim off excess 1cm from back neckline. Neaten seam of upper triangle, then press outwards, towards body section.

Step 6

Mark in your 1cm/0.39” stitch line where it intersects the bottom point of upper triangle stitch line.

Step 7

Pin front body pieces together with right sides facing, lining up notches.

TRIANGLE INTERSECTION

Step 8

Insert a needle and thread though the marked intersecting points from the lower triangle and the upper triangle on the body pieces and do a small basting stitch to hold the point in place. Now stitch the seam from top edge of upper triangle down to the hemline making sure you stitch directly on top of the basting stitch.

Step 9

Clip seam allowance at the top of stitchline being careful not to cut through your stitching.

Trim off excess 1cm from back neckline. Neaten seam of upper/lower triangle, then press the seam so that the upper triangle is outwards toward body section (The lower triangle will be pressed inwards toward triangle).

Step 10

Neaten both centre back seams from top to bottom.

Step 11

With right sides facing, pin together from notch to hem. Stitch. Press seam open all the way to the top neck edge, keeping the 1cm/0.39” fold back above the stitch line.

Step 12

Topstitch around open part of back seam allowance.

NECK BINDING

Step 13

1. Pin neck binding pieces together at a right angle with right sides facing. Stitch together with a 5mm seam allowance. 2. Press seam open. 3. Press the binding in half lengthwise with right sides out and press to create a centre line. 4. Open back out then Press the two long edges of binding towards the centre line, but not quite touching, with right sides out. 5. Press the two short ends of binding in. 6. Fold in half again lengthwise, enclosing your raw edges and press in place.

Step 14

Unfold your binding piece. The foldline closest to one of the raw edges is going to be your first stitchline. Find the centre point of the length of your binding piece and place a pin to mark it. Now find the centre point of your front neckline and place a pin to mark it. Match up the two points and pin your binding along that first foldline around the wrong side of neckline. Stitch together along foldline of binding. Trim seam allowance in half then press up toward binding.

Step 15

Turn over to the right side of neckline and fold the folded edge of binding over top of your stitchline enclosing the raw edge.

Pin in place all the way around neckline slightly overlapping your stitchline. Pin together binding edges where it extends past neckline to become ties.

Stitch together all the way around on the very edge of binding. Press.

Step 16

With right sides facing, pin together underarm/side seams. Stitch. Neaten seams.

Step 17

Neaten sleeve and hem edges then fold up at notches toward the wrong side and pin in place. Stitch. Press. Voila!

The Pinnacle Top - Variation 1 →

Papercut Patterns May 26, 2020

Pattern Adjustments

Featured

Apr 23, 2019

How to Lengthen the Pinnacle Top

Apr 23, 2019

Step 1

On the wrong side of front triangle piece, mark in your stitch line at the top edge, on both sides with tailors chalk. The seam allowance is 1cm/0.39”.

Where these lines intersect is where you will start your stitch line.

Step 2

Mark in the stitch line on your front body piece where the neck meets the front triangle. Do the same on the other front piece.

Step 4

Insert your needle into the marked point on triangle piece, making sure it also intersects the marked point on front body piece. This is your stitch line start point.

Neaten seam allowance (this can be done with an overlocker or zig zag stitch). Press seam allowance toward body section.

Step 5

Now you need to match up that same top point on the other side. Pin at top point, notch and bottom edge.

Stitch together, stopping your stitch line at the same point.

Neaten seam allowance. Press toward body section.

Step 7

Pin centre back seams together with right sides facing. Stitch.

Step 8

Fuse neck facing. Fold neck facing in half with right sides together and stitch centre back seam. Press seam allowance open. Neaten the outside edge of facing. On the wrong side of neck facing, mark in the stitch line 1cm/0.39” in from the inside edge. Find your point where the stitch lines intersect.

Step 9

Place a ruler or tape measure between the point you just marked and the inside pointed edge of facing. Measure up 1cm/0.39” from your marked point.

Clip the seam allowance up to the mark you just made.

Step 10

Place your neck facing over neck line with right sides facing. Pin together, making sure that the marked stitch line point on neck facing lines up with the top point of triangle.

This point is where you need to start your stitch line.

Step 11

Insert your needle through the two intersecting points of body and neck facing. Stitch right around neck facing until you reach the same point from the other side.

Step 12

Clip your seam allowance right up to stitch line being careful not to clip through the stitches.

Trim seam allowance in half all the way around.

Step 13

Press seam allowance toward facing and under stitch in place. Turn neck facing through to the inside and press well.

Step 14

Pin outer edges of neck facing in place. Topstitch along edge, starting and stopping your stitch line at the edges of front triangle.

Step 15

With right sides facing, pin underarm/side seams together. Stitch. Neaten seams.

Step 16

Fold hem allowances up at notches for both sleeves and hem and pin in place. Stitch. Press.

Voila!

You now have a gorgeous new Pinnacle Top to wear :-)

The Axis Dress →

Papercut Patterns April 22, 2020

Our timeless ode to Audrey Hepburn features a vintage-inspired straight neckline and waist ties that can be wrapped around to tie at the front, or fastened at the back to form a plunging back. You can choose between a figure-hugging pencil skirt with front split and an equally classic and flattering A-line silhouette. With the option to make either the entire dress or just the skirt from this pattern, you'll have plenty of outfits for your own Breakfast at Tiffany's.

Pattern Adjustments

Featured

Apr 22, 2020

Blend Between Sizes - Axis Skirt

Apr 22, 2020

Feb 26, 2020

Short Torso Adjustment for The Axis Dress

Feb 26, 2020

Step 1

DRESS: Fuse front facing (piece 5) and both back waistband pieces (piece 7).

Step 2

Pin back darts in place. Stitch. Press darts toward side seams.

Step 3

Place back waistband onto back skirt with right sides facing, lining up straight short end of waistband with centre back of skirt. Stitch together. Press seam allowance toward waistband. Neaten centre back seam of skirt and top edge of waistband.

Step 4

Place your invisible zipper so that the top of the zipper teeth line up with the centre point of waistband (the notch). Stitch one side of invisible zipper to the left neatened seam and the other side of zipper onto right neatened seam.
* for a step by step photographic tutorial on how to insert an invisible zipper click HERE

Step 5

Stitch centre back seam together below zipper. Press seam open, and tack bottom of zipper to seam allowance (this will help keep zipper sitting flat).

Step 6

Fold top half of waistband over the top of zipper with right sides facing and stitch edges of waistband to zipper tape. Clip corners, then turn through to the right side.

Step 7

Turn waistband through right sides out. From the right side of waistband, pin through the seam where waistband meets skirt, catching the underside of waistband below. Stitch in the ditch on both sides. Press.

Step 8

Neaten centre front seams of both skirt panels. Pin front skirts together along centre front seam with right sides facing.

SKIRT WITH SPLIT: Stitch from top edge down as far as notch.

A-LINE SKIRT: Stitch from top edge all the way down to hem. Press seams open.

Step 9

Pin bust darts in place. Stitch. Press darts toward side seams.

Step 10

Place back pieces together with right sides facing. Stitch together all the way around, leaving the side seams open.

At the top notch on one side seam, stitch in 1.2cm / 1/2”, pivot your needle again and stitch out to the side seam. Clip into corners. Trim seam allowance in half all the way around back pieces, clip corners and around curves.

Turn through to the right side. Press well.

Step 11

Place finished back pieces on to front bodice with right sides facing. Pin shoulder seams of back pieces to top edge of front bodice 1.2cm / 1/2” from the sides. Stitch in place with a 5mm / 1/4” seam allowance.

Step 12

Place your front facing over the top sandwiching the backs between. Stitch together around armholes and top edge. Trim seam allowance in half, clip corners and around curves, then under stitch seam allowance toward facing where you can. Neaten bottom edge of facing. Turn through to the right side and press.

Step 13

Place front bodice onto front skirt at waist seam with right sides facing. Stitch together. Neaten seam. Press seam allowance toward skirt.

Step 14

Pin front and back bodice side seams together with right sides facing. Fold edges of front bodice facing over the top and pin securely in place. Stitch together making sure you don’t stitch your side opening shut.

Step 15

Press your side seam toward front bodice and topstitch front edge of side seam opening.

Step 16

Place back skirt over the top, lining up waist seam of front bodice with the seam line between back skirt and waistband. Pin all layers together, keeping your ties out of the way. Stitch. Neaten side seams. Turn dress through to the right side.

Step 17

(SKIRT WITH SPLIT ONLY)

Neaten hem edges. Fold the hem allowance up with right sides facing at the centre front opening. Stitch together along centre front. Clip corners and turn back through to the right side. Press the remainder of centre front seam allowance back toward the inside and top stitch in place around opening. Press. Fold remaining hem allowance up at notches and pin in place. Stitch all the way around. Press. Voilà.

The Nova Coat →

Papercut Patterns April 16, 2020

We are so excited to share our new Nova Coat/Jacket with you - we've updated the construction method, added in a new length as well as a new sleeve option. We have added in two smaller sizes and one larger size. If you have our first edition Nova (Sapporo) and would like to upgrade to the new version PDF, you can find the details here.

Here's a step-by-step tutorial to take you through the construction of your soon-to-be favourite coat. We've used a heavy-weight linen and a cotton-silk lining from The Fabric Store.

Step 1

This is what your lower front pieces should look like once your fusing is in place.

Step 2

Pin upper and lower front pieces together where pocket bags meet with right sides facing and stitch together.

Step 3

Clip into corners on each side of pocket bag. Depending on what fabric you're using, you may also want to clip curved seam. Press seam allowances open either side of the pocket bag. Fold pocket bag down toward lower front and from the right side, press along fused edge.

(Showing pressed pocket bag from right side).

Step 4

Pin side back to back piece with right sides facing, matching notches. Stitch together.

Step 5

Clip around curved part of seams being careful not to clip through your stitch line then press seam allowances open.

Step 6

Pin front and back pieces together at the shoulder and side seams with right sides facing. Stitch. Clip around underarm curve. Press seams open. Repeat for other side.

Step 7

Fold sleeves in half with right sides facing, matching the notches. Stitch. Press seams open.

Step 8

Fold sleeve facings in half with right sides facing. Stitch. Press seams open.

Step 9

Place narrow edge of sleeve facing over the narrow end of sleeve with right sides facing and seams aligned. Stitch together. Trim seam allowance in half. Pull sleeve facing to the right side and under stitch seam allowance toward facing. Fold facing to the inside and press in place. Repeat for other sleeve.

Step 10

Holding facing and sleeve matching seam lines. Pull facing back 2cm down and stitch the seam allowances together.

Step 11

Pin sleeve inside armhole with right sides facing, aligning underarm sleeve seam to coat side seam and matching sleeve notch to shoulder seam. Stitch together. Press seam allowance open. Pull sleeve out to the right side. Repeat on other side.

Step 12

Stitch fused neck facing to front neck edge with right sides together.

Step 13

Pull the facing around the neck line and stitch to the other end of the opposite front neck edge. Press seams open.

Step 14

Fold back the centre front along fused edge with right sides together and wrap facing around neckline. Stitch all the way around the top edge of neckline. Trim the seam allowance in half, clip seam allowance and corners. Under stitch seam allowance toward facing.

Step 15

From the inside, fold all facing edges in at fold-line (fused edge) and press well in place.

Step 16

Fold the top 2cms of hem edge back and pin securely in place about 3cms up from fold-line.

Step 17

Slipstitch folded edge to outer layer between side seams to secure hem in place.

Step 18

Fold lining pleat in place, bringing the top notch down to meet the bottom notch, folding the excess upward. Edge stitch in place. Repeat on other side.

Step 19

Pin back lining to side back lining piece with right sides facing. Stitch. Press. Repeat on other side.

Step 20

Pin front and back lining together with right sides facing at the shoulders and side seams. Stitch together leaving a gap between notches on one side seam only. Press seams open.

Step 21

Fold sleeve lining in half with right sides facing, matching the notches. Stitch. Press seam open. Repeat for other sleeve.

Step 22

Pin lining sleeves inside armholes with right sides facing, aligning underarm sleeve seams to side seams and matching sleeve notches to shoulder seams. Stitch together. Press seam allowances toward sleeves. Pull sleeves out so that the whole lining is inside out.

Step 23

With your coat and lining right sides facing together, pin together along facing edges at centre fronts and around back of neckline. Stitch, starting and stopping your stitch line 1cm from bottom edge of lining. Press seam allowance toward lining.

Step 24

Pull your lining to one side and your shell to the other with wrong sides out.

Step 25

Fold your sleeves in to the centre to meet each other.

Step 26

Overlap your sleeve lining over sleeve facing.

Step 27

Stitch edges of lining and sleeve facing together. Repeat for other sleeve.

Step 28

Cut a small strip of lining about 3cm/1.2” in length and stitch to the underarm/armhole seam allowance of both the coat and lining to stop the lining shifting when turned through to the right side. Repeat on other side.

Step 29

With right sides facing, pin bottom hem of lining to the raw edge of hem facing. Stitch together starting and stopping your stitch line 1cm from each end.

Step 30

Pinch together the remaining 1cm excess of facing and hem. Stitch together.

Step 31

Clip outer corner and press seam open.

Step 32

Carefully pull coat through the opening in side seam until its the right way out. With coat lining side out, hand sew side seam gap closed.

Step 33

Give your Sapporo a final press. Voilà!

The Guise Pants →

Papercut Patterns April 16, 2020

These pants are an absolute must have, the perfect balance of comfort and cool.

You can rest easy knowing you'll always have the perfect pants to throw on whilst also feeling comfortable.

Featuring stand out inverted pleats, zip fly, side front pockets, back welt pockets with button closure and an elasticated back waist band.

Step 1

Fuse the pocket edge of both front pieces. Fuse both front waistband pieces, fly shield, fly facing & welt pocket piece.Transfer welt placement from pattern piece onto the wrong side of trouser back. Place Welt Fusing over the marking evenly on each side and press in place.

Step 2

Fold front pant piece in half matching up pleat notches and stitch down a few stitches. Open out and evenly distribute pleat on either side of stitch-line.
Edge-stitch along top edge to secure in place. Press. Repeat for opposite front.

Step 3

Place pocket bag A onto pant front with right sides facing and stitch together. Open out, trim seam allowance in half, clip curve and under-stitch toward pocket bag. Press.

Step 4

Place Pocket Bag B on top of Pocket Bag A with right sides facing and stitch together around edge. Neaten edge.

Step 5

Fold pocket bag behind front pant, press then edge-stitch in place at top and side to secure in place.
Repeat steps 3 - 5 for other side.

Step 6

Trim off 1cm flap from **left** trouser crotch seam (note: left side when wearing garment).
Neaten centre front seams of both front pieces.

Step 7

Fold Fly Shield in half lengthwise with right sides out and neaten the side and bottom edges. Press.
Place zipper right side up onto the neatened edge of Fly Shield, making sure zipper teeth start 1.5cm/3⁄4” down from top edge and baste in place.

Step 8

Fold back the centre front flap of right crotch seam and press in place. Place folded edge along the edge of zipper teeth. Top stitch in place with a zipper foot so you can get nice and close.

Step 9

Fuse and neaten curved edge of fly facing. Pin to left trouser front at centre front seam with right sides together. Stitch from top edge down to notch. Fold bottom of fly facing up and clip, with your scissors, where the stitching ends only on the pant. Trim seam allowance back and under stitch seam allowance toward fly facing. Turn fly facing over to the inside and press.

Step 10

Stitch crotch seam below fly zipper together. Clip a small notch into seam allowance below fly facing where stitching starts.

Fold seam allowance toward Fly Facing and topstitch down.
You can also topstitch right to the top edge like we have in our instructions. It depends what look you’re after.

Step 11

Place left side over right, overlapping the zipper by 1cm at the top. Pin securely in place along centre front.

Step 12

Now that it’s pinned securely in place, from the inside, fold fly shield out of the way and stitch the other side of zipper to fly facing where it lies.

Step 13

Top stitch fly facing in place with a single row of stitching, making sure to keep fly shield out of the way. It may help to draw this line with chalk first.

Step 14

First prepare your welt. Fold along fold lines from notch to notch and press creating a fold-line. Draw stitch lines in place.

Step 15

Transfer welt placement from pattern piece onto the wrong side of trouser back. Place Welt Fusing over the marking evenly on each side and press in place.

Step 16

With a tailors chalk, draw welt placement marking from pattern piece on to the right side of back piece. Lay your welt piece onto marking, right sides facing, with edges folded in along fold lines and stitch through welt and pant along stitch lines holding the excess of the other side out of the way.

Step 17

Turn back over to the wrong side and check that your stitching lines start and stop perfectly in line (this is really important!) you may need to add or unpick a few stitches.
Cut through the middle of stitch-lines stopping about 1.5cm/1⁄2” from each end then clip out to end of stitch-lines being careful not to cut through your stitching.

Step 18

Pull welt through the slit and give it a really good press, making your welt nice and crisp.
From the underside, hold your triangles firmly with the welt and stitch together as close as you can get to pant on each side.

Step 19

Cut a rectangle of fabric 3cm/11⁄4” x 17cm/63⁄4”.
Fold edges to centre, press.
Fold in half again and edge-stitch folded edges together. Press.
Fold in half ready to stitch onto garment.

Step 20

Find the centre point of pocket and stitch loop to the top section of welt from the wrong side.

Step 21

Edge-stitch back pocket facing to right side of pocket bag along top edge.

Step 22

Stitch pocket bag to top and bottom of welt with right sides facing.

Step 23

Stitch together sides of pocket bag. Neaten seams. Press.

Step 24

Pin Centre back crotch seams together and stitch. Neaten seam. Press.

Step 25

Pin front and back pant pieces together at side seams. Stitch together. Neaten edges. Press seam allowances toward the back. Repeat on other side.

Step 26

Pin inside leg seams together and stitch. Neaten seam.

Step 27

Fold short ends of belt loop strip to centre, with right sides out. Press in place.
Fold in half again so that the folded edges are together and edge-stitch in place. Press. Edge-stitch other side to match.

Step 28

Cut your belt loop strip into 5 x 6.5cm/21⁄2” pieces. Pin belt loops in place at centre back, each side seam and at each front pleat. Edge-stitch in place.

Step 29

Trim off end of **left** front waistband along dotted line as indicated on pattern piece.

Step 30

Place your front waistband pieces over back waistband with right sides facing and pin together at side seams. Stitch. Press seam allowances toward front waistband pieces. Neaten edges.

Step 31

Pin the waistband around top edge of waist opening on right side of pants, making sure the trimmed end of the waistband is positioned on the side of the fly facing, not the fly shield. Make sure that the waistband overlaps the fly opening by 1cm on each side. Stitch in place. Press seam allowances up toward waistband.

Step 32

Fold top edge of waistband down so that it overlaps the stitch line by 1cm. Pin only the back in place and stitch, starting and finishing your stitch-line 1.5cm/1⁄2” toward the back from side seams.

Step 33

Attach a pin to one end of your elastic (you can find the length you need in the fabric needs chart) and thread it through the channel of your back waistband. Pin in place on each end. Try your pants on and adjust elastic accordingly to fit. When you’re happy with the fit, stitch the ends of your elastic securely to the inner seam allowance of waistband on each end.

Step 34

Fold the centre front edges of your waistband in half with wrong sides out overlapping the bottom edge of waistband 1cm below seam-line. Stitch edges together, clip top corners then turn through to the right side. Press.

Step 35

Pin remainder of waistband in place and stitch in the ditch from the right side making sure to catch the underside of the waistband beneath. Press.

Step 36

Press open edges of belt-loops under 1cm and edge-stitch along top edge of waistband. Press.

Step 38

Stitch buttonhole in place and hand-sew on your button.

Step 39

Hand-sew back welt pocket buttons in place.

Step 40

Neaten hem edges. Fold hems up to desired length, pin in place and stitch.
Voila!

The Solar Sweater →

Papercut Patterns April 16, 2020

A ruffle sleeve sweater or tee featuring beautiful drop shoulders, a relax fit, short or long sleeve options and hem/cuff bands for sweater versions.

Step 1

Pin front panel to back panel at shoulder seams with right sides facing. Stitch. Neaten seams then press seam allowance towards back.

Step 2

Fold neck binding in half lengthwise, pin together edges and stitch. Press seam open then fold binding in half the other way.

Step 3

Pin the centre back seam of neck binding to the centre back of neckline and match the clipped edge of binding at centre front.
You should have three layers of fabric, the neckline of the top and the two open edges of binding. Stretch binding onto neckline, pinning it in place. Stitch together then neaten seam edge.

Step 4

Give neck binding a good press, pressing seam allowance of binding toward tee to make it nice and flat. Topstitch seam allowance down.

Step 5

Neaten the straight edge of the frill and fold up by 0.5cm. Press and topstitch. Repeat on other piece.

Step 6

Create a gather by using a long stitch length to sew across the top edge, but don’t backstitch one end.

Step 7

With right sides up, place raw edge of frill along top edge of sleeve. Pin evenly in four places and pull gathering threads until frill fits sleeve with gathers evenly distributed. Line up the edges of frill to side edges of sleeve. Edge-stitch in place.

Step 8

Lay shoulder seam of tee over sleeve piece with right sides together. Pin in place starting from bottom of armhole upwards on both front and back. Stitch in place. Neaten edge. Repeat for opposite sleeve.

Step 9

With right sides together, place a pin where front and back underarm seams meet up. Pin down to hemline and out to sleeve hem.
Stitch together catching the edges of ruffle between layers, then neaten seam. Repeat for opposite side.

Step 10

Take sleeve cuff piece and fold it in half width ways. Stitch edges together then open out seam allowance so that it sits flat. Pull the bottom of the seam allowance up to meet the top of the seam allowance and thread the rest of the tube over itself so that all the seams are in the inside.
Now that your cuff is complete, you need to attach it to the bottom of your sleeve.
With right sides together put the cuff around the circumference of the sleeve opening with the raw edges together. Pin then stitch together. Neaten edges.

Step 11

Fold hem cuff piece in half with right sides facing, stitch edges together then press seam open. Fold it in half the other way so that the seams are on the inside.

Step 12

Place hem cuff over hem edge. Line up the seam of cuff with one of the side seams of tee. Evenly pin remaining hem band around the edge then stitch on. Neaten edges.

The Twist Pants →

Papercut Patterns February 19, 2020

Step 1

Fuse the pocket edge of both front leg pieces lining up the top edge of fusing with the notch and the bottom edge will overlap towards the leg panel by 1cm. Fuse all 4 waistband pieces. Fuse fly shield and fly facing.

Step 2

Pin back darts in place and stitch. Press dart toward centre back.

Step 3

Place pocket bags over pocket extensions on both front and back leg panels with right sides facing. Stitch together along edge. Neaten seam. Press seam allowance toward pocket bag.

Step 4

Pin front and back leg pieces together along side seam and around pocket bags with right sides facing. Stitch. Neaten seam. Match up pocket fold notch on both front and back and stitch down a couple of stitches from this point to secure.

Step 5

Fold pocket bag toward centre front and edge stitch to front panel along top edge. Press seam allowance of leg toward centre front then top stitch down starting your stitch line at pocket opening.

Step 6

Trim off 1cm flap from LEFT trouser crotch seam (note: left side when wearing garment). Neaten centre front seams of both front pieces.

Step 9

Fuse and neaten curved edge of fly facing. Pin to left trouser front at centre front seam with right sides together. Stitch from top edge down to notch. Fold bottom of fly facing up and clip, with your scissors, where the stitching only on the trouser. Trim seam allowance back and under-stitch seam allowance toward fly facing. Turn fly facing over to the inside and press.

Step 11

Folding the right side of pant front and fly shield completely out of the way, fold the crotch seam allowance toward the left pant front and top stitch from crotch to the top edge, right along the edge.

Step 12

Place left side over right, overlapping the zipper by 1cm at the top. Pin securely in place along centre front.

Step 13

Now that it’s pinned securely in place, from the inside, fold fly shield out of the way and stitch the other side of the zipper to fly facing where it lies.

Step 14

Top stitch fly facing in place with a single row of stitching, making sure to keep fly shield out of the way. It may help to draw this line with chalk first.

Step 15

Fold fly shield back behind zipper and stitch a couple of bar tacks through all layers at bottom of curved stitch line (where we’ve placed pins) to secure in place.

Step 16

Pin back crotch seams together with right sides facing and stitch. Neaten edges. Press seam allowance toward one side.

Step 17

Pin front and back inside leg seams together with right sides facing and stitch. Neaten seam.

Step 18

Trim off end of one pair of waistband pieces at notches as pictured.

Step 19

Place one long and one trimmed waistband piece together at centre back with right sides facing and pin together. Stitch. Press seam allowance open. Repeat for other waistband pieces.

Step 20

Pin your waistband pieces together with right sides facing aligning centre back seam and stitch along top edge. Trim seam allowance in half and clip around curve being careful not to cut through your stitch-line. We’ll come back to press and under-stitch this soon.

Step 21

Pin the waistband around the top edge of waist opening on wrong side of pants, making sure the trimmed end of the waistband is positioned on the side of the fly facing, not the fly shield. Make sure that the waistband overlaps the fly opening by 1cm on each side. Stitch in place. Press seam allowances up toward waistband.

Step 22

Fold open edge of waistband up by 1cm and press. Press the seam allowance that you created in step 20 away from your 1cm edge. Under-stitch.

Step 23

Fold your waistband in half with wrong sides out at the seam-line between waistband and waistband facing. Stitch edges together to be in line with edge of fly facing and outer edge of fly shield. Clip top corners of seam allowance then turn through to the right side. Press well.

Step 24

Pin remainder of waistband down so that the folded edge slightly overlaps the stitch-line and top stitch down from the right side all the way around waistband. Press.

Step 25

Stitch buttonhole and button in place. For this pair we instead used a hook and bar set.

Step 26

Neaten hem edges. Fold hems up at notches, pin in place and stitch.
Voilá!

Kochi Jacket Tutorial →

Papercut Patterns September 22, 2017

The Kochi Jacket is the ideal layering piece for whatever season you're in. The three variations mean you can use any woven fabric from wool to chiffon!

Today we're showing you how to add lining to variation three of our Kochi Jacket. This version features the neckband and let's you play with contrasting fabric.

So, let's get to it.

How to Line Your Kochi Jacket

This tutorial is just showing you how to line variation 3, which has the band along the neckline and centre front, but doesn't include lining. Until now.

You will need 1.8m/2 yards of both outer fabric and lining fabric. If you are sewing a contrast band, you'll also need 25cm/10" of that fabric (if it's cut from a bolt at the fabric store) or if you've been lucky enough to source Kimono fabric, you'll want 1m of that for the band.

For this particular version, I've chosen rayon fabric throughout.

Select pattern pieces numbered 1, 2, 3 and 5.

Cut identical front and back pieces in both your lining and outer fabrics (ignoring the red line for 'lining').

Cut your band piece as per the instructions.

For the sleeves, cut your outer fabric as usual and the lining along the red line as marked on the pattern.

You can choose whether or not to finish the edges as explained in step 1. The fusing is optional too, depending on the weight of your fabric and whether or not you think it needs strengthening.

Stitch your front and back pieces together at the shoulders as per step 6. Neaten/serge the edges. Repeat for the lining.

Attach the sleeves as explained in step 7. Repeat for the lining.

Sew sleeves and side seams together as in step 8 (all the way to hem). Repeat for the lining.

So far, you should have identical lining and outer pieces.

Take your lining piece only and trim the bottom hem by 6cm/2.5".

Stitch your band pieces together as per step 11.

Finish the short ends of the band by stitching the end with right sides together. Turn this new corner the right side out and press.

Place your outer and lining kimono pieces together with right sides together. Pin together the bottom hem edge of the outer and lining pieces. Stitch. Remember that we trimmed the lining piece, so don't worry if the rest doesn't line up. Just focus on that bottom edge. Press the seam allowance towards outer fabric.

With right sides of your kimono together, carefully pin your band piece around the neckline (between lining and outer layers) with raw edges matching.

The bottom of your band should match the notch on your front outer pieces (as marked in this photo by the horizontal red pin). The band notches near the centre back seam should also match the shoulder seams.

Carefully stitch around the neckline from one hem to the other.

Turn your kimono to the right side out by pulling the garment through one of your sleeve ends.

Hand stitch your sleeve hems together. There are numerous way to do this, so just do what works for you. I like to match the edges of the hem, fold them inwards and pin them together at the seam allowance.

I then stitch along the seam allowance by doing one long stitch ...

... then turn the needle to do one small stitch backwards.

Repeat that stitch all the way around the hem. Tie off your thread and hide the tail inside the seam allowance.

When you hang your garment, you will see that hems are turned toward the inside for a professional finish. Carefully press your seams and voila!

Congrats on your stunning kimono. Go rock your style!

Make a Long Kochi Jacket →

Papercut Patterns August 28, 2017

A long Kochi is perfect for easy elegance. Think cotton and fringe for a boho look or silk and embroidery for a classic feel ... make it your way. You're the designer!

Here's how you can adapt your Kochi Jacket pattern to be as long as your heart desires.

How to Lengthen the Kochi Jacket

Take the pieces you want to work with, excluding the sleeve. If you're making a lined Kochi, don't forget to include those pieces too!

Starting at the second notch up from the bottom, draw a line against the grain from the side seam to the opposite edge.

Cut along this line.

We're going to add some paper into this new gap, so work out how much length you want to add and grab some spare paper that is a little bigger than that.

Tape the top portion of your pattern to the spare paper.

Place a ruler against a straight edge and draw a line that continues down the new paper as far as you desire.

Trim along that line.

At the point where you want your added length to end, draw another line parallel to your top pattern piece.

Tape the bottom portion of your pattern piece along this line, making sure the straight edges (parallel to the grainline) line up perfectly.

Draw another line along your untrimmed edge.

Cut along that line.

Well done! You've lengthened your first pattern piece. Repeat that process for all pieces including the neckband, lining and front pieces.

Because the front piece is shaped, the lines will be a little different there so let's take a closer look at that.

After adding my length using the same method as above, I've drawn a new centre front by placing a ruler between the notches at the centre front and trimming the pattern piece along that. You'll see that it adds an extra little wedge to the width of the bottom portion. That's fine. It's just creating a more streamlined edge

Now sew your Kochi as usual by following the instructions

Voila!

Kobe Dress/Top Tutorial →

Papercut Patterns July 3, 2017

The Kobe Dress/Top pattern was inspired by a mixture of clean minimalist lines and crisp origami, which could sound contradictory but they are perfect companions! We love this edgy combination of structured and casual and the resulting pattern is going to be in solid rotation here in the studio when summer rolls around.

The Kobe is designed to be used with a light-weight woven fabric like chiffon or rayon, so make sure you choose a fabric that will softly drape from the back pleat.

How To

This is a photographic tutorial designed to help guide you through the Kobe pattern alongside our standard instructions. While we don't do this for every pattern, we thought it might be particularly handy for anyone stuck with the formation of the back pleat, so it quickly became a full walk-through.

While I'm making the top version here, the techniques used will still apply for the dress version.

Alright. Let's start at the very beginning (a very good place to start).

With right sides out (wrong sides together), press the binding pieces in half lengthwise.

Open out the binding pieces again and pin the front binding to the wrong side (the side that will be against your skin) of the front neckline, matching the raw edges. Stitch with a 5mm seam allowance.

With wrong sides together, press 5mm of the opposite raw edge on binding towards the centre crease.

Pin that folded 5mm edge to the right side (the side that is going to be on the outside) of the neckline. Stitch in place along the folded edge, enclosing your raw edges inside and making sure you hide the existing stitching with your new stitches.

Repeat for the back neckline. The finished necklines should look something like this.

Back Pleat

Now we'll work on assembling the back pleat.

There are five notches along the back shoulders, which I've marked out here with pins for you. That centre notch is going to be your first fold point.

Fold at that centre notch with right sides together. Your other notches should line up, but don't worry if they don't. There are a few bias cut edges in here and they can sometimes warp with handling. It's not a problem though. Just work with an average between the two notches or whatever will give you the best finished result. The photos below will help you know what we are working towards.

Stitch from the folded edge and stop at the next notch. Clip into the seam allowance, but stop at the stitching.

Turn your stitched portion right side out, taking care to get a crisp corner. Gently press the seam. If you are using a delicate fabric that can be prone to damage from the iron, place a handkerchief or cloth between your fabric and the iron. This will help protect your garment.

You have just created your first back 'pleat'. Repeat for the other side.

Fold the pleats toward the centre back. This may seem like a bit of a fiddle, so I've taken a few photos to show you what we mean. Above is the garment from underneath. The pleat is lying to the right and the back binding curves around towards it. At the shoulder, the pin marks the remaining notch where we folded the pleat inwards. I've edgestitched from that notch to the binding to hold everything in place.

This is the back with both pleats folded towards the centre back.

You want to try and have the edge of your binding line up with the upper corner at the neckline of the shoulder. It's not a deal-breaker if you can't, but it does make for a nice finish.

Match your front and back pieces at the shoulder seams. Stitch and neaten the seams.

Now we add the sleeves. You're nearly finished! With right sides together, pin the top edge of the sleeve to the garment, matching the centre of the sleeve to the shoulder seam and using the tips given in step 6 of your instructions.

Before moving on to the next step, don't forget to neaten all remaining edges! It's so easy to miss this step, but it's very important for sewing your side seam splits later.

Match your underarm seams of the front and back pieces and stitch from sleeve hem down to the first side seam notch (marked by the top pin here). The second notch will be where you fold up the front hem (marked by the lower pin here).

Fold your side seam allowances back and press. Fold up your hem edges and press. Top stitch around the slit and hems. You'll see here that I have made the top version of this pattern, but the same applies if you are making the dress. It's just you'll have a square hem on the back rather than this curved one that you see here.

Turn up your sleeve hem and press.

Slightly overlap the two back pleats and handstitch in place using a button over the top.

I've also added a couple of stitches at the back of the shoulder seam to help pull the seam allowance out of the way. It's not in the instructions, but I found it useful and thought you may too.

Voila! You've finished.

I hope you love your new Kobe Dress/Top! We have a tutorial coming soon to help you make a belt for your Kobe Dress, so stay tuned for that.

And don't forget to tag us on #papercutpatterns or #kobedress so that we can celebrate your projects with you!

Soma Underwear Hack →

Papercut Patterns July 20, 2016

Kick your 'back-up undies' to the curb and whip up some fancy new intimates using our Soma Swimsuit pattern.

Today we want to show you how to adapt the Soma Swimsuit into a cute pair of knickers and best of all, these can be made on any home machine that does zig-zag stitch. You don't need an overlocker/serger! But if you do have one, by all means, break it out. Both techniques will work just fine.

Now you just need to find that perfect fabric. Look for something lightweight with a bit of stretch and that feels nice on the skin. Otherwise there are no rules! Lacy, jersey knit or slinky ... the options are endless. You'll also need a bit of jersey knit (like t-shirt fabric) for the gusset.

What You'll Need:

Start by downloading your free Soma pant gusset here to turn your Swimsuit pattern into an intimates pattern. You'll also need:

Stretch Lace
2 metres of knicker elastic
Ballpoint/stretch needle
Stretch cotton (like t-shirt fabric for gusset

How To:

Cut out your fabric, checking that the stretch of the fabric will be widthwise. Use the stretch cotton for your Pant Gusset piece.

Take your gusset piece and overlock the wide straight edge only. That's the one with the pointy corners. If you don't have an overlocker, don't worry. You can either zig-zag this edge or leave it raw. Knit fabric doesn't fray, making it very friendly to work with.

Layer your fabric as follows, lining them up to meet at the crotch: gusset (bevelled straight edge, not the overlocked end), back pant piece with the right side up, front pant piece with the right side down. I've flipped the layers in the photo above to give you a better view, but just make sure the back pant piece is sandwiched in the middle. Overlock or zig-zag all three pieces together along this edge.

Match side seams at hip and zig-zag or serge together.

Now we attach the elastic. On the right side of your fabric, zig-zag or overlock the elastic to the waist edge without stretching it. If you prefer, you can stretch the elastic ever-so-slightly, but don't go overboard or your underwear will be too tight and no-one wants that. Amiright?

When you get back to the end of your elastic, butt the two ends of elastic together and secure them by sewing back and forth with a zig-zag stitch.

Turn your elastic to the inside of your pants and topstitch down using a wide zig-zag. If you have cute elastic, you may want the edge to peek out a little on the edge.

Repeat the last two steps for the legs, attaching the elastic around the opening and being sure to catch the edge of your gusset along with your fabric. Just like with your swimsuit, you'll want to slightly stretch the elastic at the back of the leg opening only.

And you're done! Seriously, your underwear draw may never be the same again. So long, back-up undies!

Soma - Make Your Own Straps →

Papercut Patterns August 2, 2014

For those of you finding it difficult sourcing Bikini strapping, this tutorial is for you.

Read on to see how to make your own fabric covered elastic strapping!

Cut a long strip of fabric roughly 4cm 1 1/2'' wide.

Place your 1cm/3/8" swimwear elastic on top, on the wrong side of fabric strip, 1cm 3/8'' away from the edge.

Sew elastic onto fabric with a zig zag stitch. You don't want to stretch the elastic at all whilst sewing.

It should look something like this on the right and wrong sides of the fabric strip.

Fold fabric in half right sides together so that the edge of the elastic is on the edge of the fold.

Stitch together with a long narrow zig zag as close to the elastic as possible without the needle touching it.

Trim excess fabric from the seam allowance.

Attach a safety pin to the end of the strip.

Manoeuvre the safety pin into the hole opening.

Feeling through the fabric, find the safety pin and keep manoeuvring it through. Once the safety pin has reached the other end pull it right through so the elastic is completely enclosed.

Voila! You are left with a beautiful new fabric covered strap! The right side is lovely and stitch free and the back has a zigzag stitch. No elastic twisting around inside the fabric with this method!

Soma - Make your own Binding →

Papercut Patterns July 31, 2014

If using fold over elastic isn't your cup of tea, or if you'd prefer to use your own matching fabric then this tutorial is for you!

We are going to teach you how to make your very own binding! Hooray!

For our example here, we have made the Soma Bikini Top Var. 1, however this binding technique could be used almost anywhere.

Please Note, the right side is the turquoise and the wrong side is the stripe. This is a snippet from an upcoming tutorial on how to make your Soma reversible!

First cut a long strip of your chosen swimwear fabric 4cm or 1 1/2 '' wide.

Place your strip along the side of the edge you're going to bind, leaving a 10cm/4" excess allowing for the top triangle (If this is the variation you're making). Cut at bottom edge.

Making sure the 10cm/4" excess stays as that measurement, pin in place with the right side of the binding strip facing the wrong side of bikini panel and stretch on as you pin. You want to stretch it a bit as you want it to sit firmly whilst wearing it. You should end up with a bit of excess binding at the bottom edge also.

Sew binding on with a 1cm seam allowance, using a long narrow zig zag stitch.

For the overhang of binding at the top edge, fold the binding in half width ways with right sides together and pin until you reach the edge of the Bikini top.

Try to make sure the last pin is at the exact point that you need to stop stitching. You want the stitch to be as close to the bikini edge as possible without it hitting the fabric.

Stitch edge together with a 1cm seam allowance, using a long narrow zig zag. Stop just before it hits the edge of the bikini top, as previously mentioned. Back tack.

We are now going to turn the binding through so the right side is facing out and the seam is enclosed. Find a small safety pin and attach it to the end of the binding. You want to manoeuvre the safety pin into the opening hole of the binding.