Hey there! Well, it’s the end of another year. The holidays are in full swing and I’m not in the mood to prepare for them, so I figured, what’s the end of the year — and the start of a brand new blog — without a good, quick round-up post?

It was a year to be as comfortable as humanly possible. I didn’t get to sew as often as I would like this year. When I was up to it, however, I did sew up a few of my favourite comfy and cute things ever. Thought I’d share them with you today.

Please note this post contains affiliate links to products I recommend, which just means if you buy anything after clicking them, I may earn a small commission that helps this blog stay afloat. Thanks!

 

My Top 5 

First up, the Top 5. Each of these was a fave for a different reason. Feel free to have a look at these makes and read more about them below!

1. Lexi Loungers by Made for Mermaids

These may be my favourite ‘jogger’ style pants ever (…or ever, so far). I had made the Lexi Loungers in the loose cut before, but I wanted a more jogger feel for lounging around. I’ve also made a pair of Lexi shorts in this same fabric but in a different colour because they are just so comfy.

Fabric: Blueberry Cobbler Solid Summer Treats jersey knit from The Fabric Snob

 

2. Cavallo Leggings by Greenstyle Creations

A leggings pattern with massive pockets and without an inseam, made from great quality athletic custom fabric that I took a year and a half to decide for sure if that’s what I wanted to do with them. These were a pretty easy sew, and flattering as well as comfortable to wear for a workout. 

I’ll definitely make them again! I’ll have a full post up about these Greenstyle beauties that I will link here very shortly. (Just waiting on a bit better lighting outside so that I can get more detailed pictures… come onnnnn, December!) If you’d like to make these or any other Greenstyle pattern, click here for my affiliate link to save 5%!

Fabric: Honeycomb Petals athletic knit by Blended Thread Fabric

 

3. Loggers by Patterns for Pirates

This pattern was another I had made before but just in the shorts version — which is how I like to test pants patterns for size, usually with cheaper fabric. I loved the way those shorts looked, and I needed some warm comfy pants for winter, so…

I whipped these pant-length Loggers up! I love the cut and fit of these, and the length of the pockets makes them extremely helpful. Also, this was one of my first projects to use my coverstitch [Amazon affiliate link] and I really love how the topstitching on the pockets came out — something I had been nervous to try and I’m so glad that I did.

I learned a few things from this pair of P4P Loggers, such as: French terry waistband and cuffs may look super nice throughout but they don’t stretch a whole lot (or at least, this FT did not). I thought I could make it work, and I did, but next time I’ll look for coordinating fabrics that are more stretchy. Other than having to pry them off my ankles when taking them off, these were a major win!

Fabric: Heather Charcoal French terry by Angry Ballerina Fabrics

 

4. Remi Racerback Tank by Made for Mermaids

What can I say about this tank? I had wanted a fabric close to this colour for a long time, because of a really cute top I had years ago which probably shrunk or got otherwise ruined because I no longer have it. So the fact I now have a tank in a flattering cut in a similar colour has created a deeper connection for me than I normally have with clothes so fresh off the machines. (Yep, that’s me getting sentimental about a tank top.)

The fabric I used for the Remi Racerback made it hard to keep good creases in the binding to fold and sew it on properly (I think it was a rayon or something?), but the colour and the cut of this tank made it all worthwhile. The completed racerback has a built-in shelf bra, which I was very excited for, but it turns out that, no matter how hard I try, I just can’t do bras made with thicker elastic or other compression. So after extending the elastic length a few times to no relief, I cut out the shelf bra entirely and just wore this as a regular tank with a properly fitted bra. Absolutely love the shape of this tank and it’s great for summer. I will make more.

Fabric: Mystery blend knit (possibly containing Rayon?) from Fabricland

 

5. Summit Peak Hoodie by Pattern Niche

Let me start this off on a low note… ha! This hoodie took a really long time to complete, probably because I was just familiarizing myself with settings on my coverstitch for sewing over thick French terry seams. And because I was working with yet another custom fabric that I was kind of scared to cut into — that adds hours of mental prep when you’re me! Haha.

I would love if this pattern included instructions for a more polished finish to the inside of the zipper but I will figure that out on my own next time.

All of that said, I’d wanted a longer zipper hoodie for a while to (sort of) replicate a solid blue one I’d had years ago. It can be made as a pullover as well, but I wanted zippy! I think all said and done, I got what I came for.

This Summit Peak by Pattern Niche (affiliate link) has become my go-to hoodie for throwing over workout clothes going to and from the gym. The style of it is just so flattering — all of the testers for this pattern made my jaw drop for years until I finally got brave enough to make one of my own. I’d do a few things differently next time, but I love the way this hoodie turned out. I want to make another, and I hope it takes less than a few (broken up) days to get it done when I do. That’s just me being impatient to wear a finished hoodie though.

Fabrics: Dreamy Floral French terry by Blended Thread Fabrics; Heathered Charcoal French terry by Angry Ballerina Fabrics;
Zipper: 32″ separating black metal zipper from Fabricland

 

So those are my Top 5! Quick and painless. I did have some honourable mentions as well that squeaked in just under the above-listed. So here those are:

 

Honourable Mentions

Elevate Crop by Greenstyle Creations

What a cool looking crop, and it’s like nothing I’ve ever made for myself before. And despite what some might say about crops, this style is flattering on every body type I’ve seen test it! I wrote a post all about the Elevate if you’d like to read it. As mentioned earlier, if you want 5% off a Greenstyle Creations pattern, use my affiliate link!

 

Harbour Joggers by Drape & Stitch

The Harbour Joggers by Drape & Stitch are a great pair of woven joggers. Yes, woven! Not stretchy. I kind of love this different style because it’s a … dressier jogger, I guess? I lengthened the pattern a little for my 5’10” body. Wish I had used a bit better elastic for the waistband and that the calves fit a little nicer without pulling the rest of the leg when I sit, but they’re very nice, especially in the  linen I used. Maybe I’d go up a calf size next time. Unfortunately I can’t find Drape & Stitch anywhere online anymore, so perhaps they’re not a thing anymore. If you find a link for their patterns, please let me know in the comments.

 

Free Tulip Tee by Patterns for Pirates

Ah, the Free Tulip Tee. (It really is FREE! Go get it!)

I did the plain front and back version rather than the typical tulip cut. These are fast and fun to make, and versatile. They are great alone and they also make for nice layering tees. My most worn one is probably the one on the left in (again) Blueberry Cobbler (stripes this time) Summer Treats by The Fabric Snob, but a sweet teenager did compliment me on the one on the right one day at the playground, and she wasn’t even being sarcastic!

These are a nice, fast sew that I will definitely end up wearing.

 

All Ears Hoodie by Max & Meena

My little guy had wanted me to make him a raccoon hoodie for quite a while, so my first thought was to use the All Ears Hoodie from Max & Meena. Of course, this pattern offers up every commonly adored cute animal except for a raccoon, but after careful and very scientific analysis of raccoon ear images VS. the pattern pieces available to me, I think I ended up settling for the bear ears and trying to make them as trash-panda-y as possible. I also added a tail (not part of the pattern, I designed it myself), by special request, with a little snap to keep it out of the way when he sits down.

His review: He loves it, and it is so warm. 😀

So there you have them! My Top 5 Favourite Sews of 2021, and a few honourable mentions just to round things out a little. If you liked this post, please feel free to share it with others who would too!

Have you tried any of these yourself yet? Any patterns you’ve sewn recently that you’d like to recommend to other sewists? Let’s discuss in the comments!

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