How the hack did you do that?! Meet @geri_in_stitches and her #Chloe

The social media-sewing combo is trending hard. Making unique garments and posting them on a blog or Instagram to inspire others? The growing number of blogger and Instagrammer Sewist(a)s worldwide shows no sign of slowing. That’s why Fibre Mood regularly features Sewist(a)s with their original hacks of Fibre Mood patterns.  This time, we’re showcasing Geri from @geri_in_stitches and her coveted #Chloe pattern hack. Check out here her creation that has captured all our sewing hearts!

Meet Geri!

Hello Fibre Mood Sewist(a)s! This is Geri and you can check out my sewing blog, Geri In Stitches, or you can also find me on Instagram @geri_in_stitches. I took up sewing as a serious hobby a little more than 3 years ago, when my husband gifted me a Heavy Duty Singer 4432 for my birthday. 

I was born and raised in Singapore where most girls were taught how to sew in Home Economics classes, and I remember getting really excited about making my first gathered skirt, even though it was not the coolest thing to do back then. As a tween, I was already armed with basic sewing skills, but was too hormonally distracted to pursue sewing as a craft. Later, these skills served me well when I worked in the theatre department’s costume shop for my work/study at university in the USA. I was thrilled to go and work in a place where costumes and period wear were designed and created, but still the sewing bug hadn’t bitten. Then after giving birth to 2 kids, and feeling completely drab with a wardrobe full of child-proof RTW loungewear, I decided to do a complete closet overhaul by making my own clothes. It was a powerful way to hone my sense of style, and in the process I regained my sense of self. 

The idea of hacking the Fibre Mood Chloe top came to me as soon as I saw this one-shoulder beauty. Not only did I want to convert it into a maxi-dress, I also wanted to make it the most swishy mega maxi-dress I’ve ever made. I’ve done many pattern hacks before and this one was probably the most exciting one I've done so far. Pattern-hacking is a great way to make a garment even more personalised, and it tones up my “sewing muscles”. 

Currently, I am spying the Viola Top and plotting another dress hack for this pattern. 

A guide to my Chloe pattern hack

For the Fibre Mood Chloe dress hack, I decided at the beginning that this dress was going to have 3 tiers. So the first thing I did was to shorten both front and back bodices by 12cm. In order to create maximum swish for my mega-maxi dress, I had to tent out the first tier, which is also the bodice. To do so, I drew straight lines dividing the bodices lengthwise into sections. Some of these lines are positioned with the help of the notches indicated on the top edges which meet the yokes. 

Then I cut up the bodices according to these lines drawn from the hem to the top edge. However, I kept a couple millimeters still intact on the top edge so that I can fan out the sections. What I was aiming for is that both bodices when sewn together would make a semi-circle, and this would provide enough swish factor for the dress. With a piece of drafting paper placed underneath, I traced out the new pattern for the bodices.

The important notches were transferred, and the bottom edge or the hem of the new paper patterns had to be rounded off. Then I had to measure the bottom hems of both redrafted bodices, and the 2nd tier of the dress would be drafted based on these measurements. They are basically rectangles and I made them 53cm tall. The width of them is 1.66 times the width of the bottom hems of the bodices. I picked 1.66X just because it fit my fabric that way. Keep in mind that the 2nd rectangles are gathered up at the top edge where they meet with the bodices, and have to be at least 1.5 times the width of the bodice hems. Remember to include seam allowances to all your gathered tiers

The third tier is 21cm tall and again, the combined width of the rectangles should amount to at least 1.5 times the width of the 2nd tier. Mine turned out to be about 1.7 times the width of the 2nd. And there you have it, those are all the changes made to hack the Chloe Blouse into a maxi dress with enough swirl and twirl to last 2 lifetimes.

Warning: this dress makes you want to make endless turns in it, and there’s a danger of getting swirl-sick, so beware! It also immediately makes you light-headed and giggly and girlish; giving you all the effects of imbibing without actually drinking a drop of alcohol. Maybe leave the driving to someone else when wearing this dress? Otherwise, this hack is guaranteed great fun to sew and wear. Happy sewing!

Fancy making your own Chloe and adapting it into a swinging dress? Get the pattern here!