The Fleur Pinafore
Untitled Thoughts
Introducing the Fleur Pinafore, the new pattern from Untitled Thoughts. This was my first time making an Untitled Thoughts pattern and if you haven’t made one before, you’re in for a treat! Brittani writes her patterns as if she is talking you through them. And she even tells you the best time to pause for a snack break. (And you’d better believe I listened!)
The Fleur has 2 strap options (tie straps or button straps) and has a cute button placket on the sides and has an optional bib pocket. It is intended for confident beginners and up.
If you’re looking for more Fleur inspiration, check out the tester round-up here.
Construction
I made my tester version in a stretch denim that I’ve had in my stash for many, many years and lined the bib and waistbands with a plain white broadcloth. There were a few testers who made the pinafore in a solid and the lining in a really fun print, and now that’s something I’m interested in doing in the future.
I made the pinafore in a size 8. I decided to lengthen the skirt by 3″ just for personal preference. I also decided to use snaps and not buttons on the side placket openings because a) I didn’t have 2 sizes of matching buttons, and b) I wanted to make the waistband slightly smaller than it was (and it would be obvious if the buttons weren’t lined up completely vertically).
The skirt itself was an easy sew. The instruction booklet has clear pictures and instructions. Also, the method of doing the side plackets was new to me, and I love learning new sewing tricks.
The only problem that I ran into during construction was that the top of the bib didn’t lay flat. It would either gape quite a bit, or if i tried to push it back in, it would wave (as seen in the picture on the left). I wasn’t the only one who had the same problem in the tester group, but it seemed like it was only the people with a larger cup size that were affected. I decided that I would fix the problem by adding a strip of lightweight boning across the top, and it worked great. (Picture on the right)
Note: For my next version, I won’t need to use this method. I could just sew the boning in as I go. In this case, I had already understitched the lining and attached the waistband and skirt before noticing the problem.
Adding the Boning
I chose a lightweight plastic boning. I didn’t want to make the top heavy, because that would cause the same problem.
I sewed a casing for the boning. I took the measurement of the boning, added a small amount of ease and my seam allowances.
Trim the seam allowance and use a rouleau turner to turn the seam allowance to the inside. Press with seam centred on the back
Insert the boning into the casing and tuck the two ends under. Handstitch the casing to the top edge of the bib.
Final Thoughts
This pattern was so much fun to sew and is so much fun to wear! And the pockets are so nice and roomy.
I would like to try this pattern out again, but just as a skirt. I think the side plackets with buttons would make it an original and flattering skirt pattern.