Hi, my name is Valentine, or @happy_as_a_bee_ on social media. I’m trained as an agri-food engineer, and six years ago, my parents gave me a sewing machine to keep me entertained in the evenings. Ever since, sewing has taken over: I left my job as an engineer and I now earn a living sharing my passion for sewing and crafts on social media.
How did this idea come to you?
In my wardrobe I have a dress made from a collaboration between Minju Kim (a designer whose work I love) and & Other Stories. I wanted to remake it in a different colour. So I modified the Kika pattern to create the dress I wanted.
Do you often come up with hacks?
That’s virtually all I do ;). What I like about sewing is the freedom to create unique clothes that suit me perfectly. I almost always add a modification.
What do you like the most about creating hacks?
The possibility of creating the clothes of your dreams without necessarily knowing how to make patterns.
Do you have any other sewing projects on the horizon (with or without hacks)?
Yes, I want to sew the Judy or Lennox dress from the latest edition of fibremood for myself, and the Sienne blouse by the pattern maker Treize Coquelicot. For Lennox, I have a hack idea: I’d like to modify the skirt to create more volume ;).
What have you done exactly with the Kika pattern?
For this hack, there are two main modifications:
- The skirt length, because I no longer easily wear short skirts. I reduced the piece number 3 to obtain a length of 55 cm
- Adding a slit to the front to stay as close as possible to my inspiration from the MINJU KIM dress. You’ll find all the steps and instructions in the video:
Also want to hack the Kika dress? Get the pattern here!
