We’ve just published a new pattern on this website: Bella, a bodice block for womenswear. It’s a block with bust and waist dart, and a waist dart at the back.
My goal when venturing into womenswear was to make one foundational block from which we could then spin out a range of different garments.
Which is why we have Breanna, which I designed from scratch. Unfortunately, it hasn’t been the end-all be-all that I — perhaps naively — hoped it would be.
For Bella, I worked with someone from the industry to implement a design that is commonly used for commercial garment making. As such, I am curious to see how this one will pan out.
My initial plan was to also make a variation with a shoulder dart at the front, to replace the bust dart, but in the end I settled for getting it released, rather than work on it longer.
Which brings me to:
I’m taking a break from womenswear
I feel like I’m expending a lot of effort here for little result. It’s getting me down, and I need a win.
I want to work on something that I can not only design, but also make and wear. Something that gives me joy, and makes me feel like I know what I’m doing.
So while I’ll still help out people who want to design for women themselves, I am taking a break from womenswear.