Evie La Luve's Top Tips for Sewing Lingerie and Bella Lace Knickers Kit Review, DISCOUNT CODE INCLUDED

Morning you lot!

I've got a jam packed post for you today. Hannah, the proprietress of Evie La Luve is popping by in a short little interview on what inspired her to start her online store and to give you some tips on sewing lingerie. I've also got my review of her Bella Knickers made from an ELL kit! 

*I purchased this kit and other supplies from ELL myself without any sponsorship, all opinions are my own but there is a cheeky discount code for you in this post!

So to kick things off!

Hannah is the brain behind Evie La Luve a pattern and lingerie supply online store. I'm forever stalking her site for beautiful inspiration and her tutorials on youtube are always great if your stuck with a particular lingerie problem. (i'm looking at you bra straps and sliders!)

So without further ado here is our interview and Hannah's tips for lingerie success!

Hi Hannah, Great to interview you! When/how did you become interested in lingerie making?
Beautiful lingerie is something I've always been interested in, it was one of the many things I considered designing/making after my fashion degree. I've always been drawn to pretty, lacy, very girly things and lacy lingerie, I think, is about the girliest thing you can make. I first drafted myself a simple, woven, pair of knickers and from then I was hooked. The amount of time it took me to create something (and complete it!) was no time at all, took very little supplies and filled me with so much joy. I was addicted from the start and began sewing more and more lingerie.

What was your impetus to start your craft business?
I've always had an entrepreneurial spirit. I've always tried to make money from things I enjoyed. I've had two previous small businesses before this one! I always knew I wanted my own business. My father and grandfather and great grandfather etc. have all had very successful businesses of their own so I guess you could say it's in my blood. It just came down to how I could turn my passion into my own successful business and designing/sewing/creating new things is my passion!

What is your favourite fabric to use for stitching lingerie?
I adore lace. I think thats what got me hooked on lingerie. It's so feminine and beautiful, how can something you make with it not be beautiful too?! On the flip side my new obsession is scuba fabric! Holds its shape, easy to sew, usually comes in awesome prints. Whats not to love!

Hannah's 3 top tips for sewing lingerie!

1. Don't be scared of it. Its really not as scary as it can look. Lace is surprisingly easy to sew! 
2. Sourcing quality supplies is half the battle. Its not going to make sewing elastic any easier if you use naff stuff! I try and stock some of the harder to find lingerie supplies in my Etsy shop. Things you can't find at your local fabric store. 
3. If your new to sewing lingerie there are so many great blogs/vlogs around now all geared towards lingerie making! Get lost in the void of blog posts and youtube videos/tutorials and you'll learn so much along the way! I have a YouTube channel myself, full of tutorials on sewing your own lingerie and where to source supplies etc.

Thank you so much to Hannah for those top tips! I know i've used a lot of Craftsy and Youtube on my bramaking adventures recently. So here is my quick review of Evie La Luve's Bella pants kit that can be found on Hannah's Etsy store here. 

I ordered a few supplies, fabrics and a kit from Evie La Luve not long ago, you may have seen it on instagram.  I was really pleased with my purchases, which included some of those stunning rose gold rings and sliders!

I also added the Bella kit which contains everything you need to make them:

• Stretch Lace
• Fold over Elastic
• Jersey scrap for crotch/gusset (I don't know which word is worse! *shudder*)
• Teeny little bow!

You can also choose to include a paper version of the pattern, or if you have it at home you can just buy the kit. I opted for the pattern included and I was super impressed with the quality of the paper. It was like a very firm swedish tracing paper. 

I really loved this coral lace included in the kit, I bought extra to make myself a matching bra but i'm finding it tricky to get coral findings so if you've seen any please let me know in the comments below. I fear I may have to dip my toe into the dyeing trend! 

The lace is lovely quality, really good stretch and nice and soft on the skin. I've worn these a fair bit since making and i'm pleased with how they are holding up. I think sometimes we forget how tough we are with our lingerie, washed then only worn once and back into the machine again. I think lace in particular as I'm always clumsily putting my fingers through it!

 I made an L based on my measurements. I could have done a XL but all I really need to do is increase the rise at the back. This isn't immediately easy as this lace would just about accommodate the pattern piece width wise. If your making knickers make sure your lace width is wide enough. I think a 16inch or above is great for these kind of cut. I did measure all of my stretch laces and I had a real range from about 8inch width to 17inch so its definitely worth checking that if you want to make a specific pattern. (Especially Ohh Lulu!)

What is great about this pattern is that Hannah marks the edge where the scallops should sit. there is no point putting the scallops on the edge where the elastic will be going, but oh my! It looks so pretty on the legs and makes this knicker much faster to sew as no further finishing is required on the legs.

Overall I can see myself sewing up loads of these in an array of colours. I think its a great basic and would go great with a pretty lace bra such as Cloth Habit's Harriet or her new Fenway pattern. (Which i'm crushing on so hard by the way!)

Yay! Thanks for sticking with us to the end!

You can get 10% off in Evie La Luve's Etsy Store this week only with the code BEEBEE10

Thanks to Hannah for giving us an insight into her life as an Indie pattern designer and store owner!

Anatomy of a Bra Kit

When I started to look at bra making it was pretty overwhelming, I mean everything was pretty! Ohh that lace! Oh those straps! Those sliders and rings! (Yes really!) It was so difficult to know what I needed and why I needed it. So I opted for a Bra Kit. These are packs you can buy consisting of everything you need, all the accoutrements required (often without the pattern) to make your bra.

Even with all my enthusiasm and joi de vivre, when the kit came and I laid it out I still felt a little confused. Its all beautiful but where does this bit go?
So I thought i'd do a little run down of a commercial bra kit giving you an idea of what might be in your bra kit and what it is for.
I found when making Harriet, I made myself some sticky notes that I labelled with each items name to remind me during the making process. Think of this as a bit of a guide.

Within this post i've run through a recent bra kit i've purchased. I know not all kits will be 100% the same but they should have some standard items to get you going on your bramaking journey. This kit is from Elise patterns

 

First up is Powernet - This is used as the strength fabric in your bra. Its used for the back bands and often the bridge. The places where stability is an important factor. 

Main Fabric - This is where the magic is! There is many different fabrics you can use for a bra but something with less stretch is best at the start if you want to get the fit right. I've seen some stunners in Liberty Tana Lawn, but my first attempts were with Mesh and Cupro. Of course there is always lace!

Lace: Stretch or Rigid - Stretch and rigid laces are pretty self explanatory, one has some stretch created by some elastane content and the other has none and is more like a conventional fabric. This lace pictured is slightly stretchy. You can choose to put lace on the top piece of a cup or the whole thing. The fabulous thing about bra making is that you can really experiment with this, but don't forget to mirror your pieces! Lace often has one or both edges scalloped so you it doesn't require any further finishing. This looks great at a neckline and you can get lace in different widths and with directional prints. We also have some rigid nylon below that can be used for lining a sheer cup.

 

 Bra Strapping - Does what it says on the tin. It is used for the straps that hold your boobs up in the bra. It often has a "Plush" side (A slightly brushed, softer side,) this is the side that makes contact with the skin. This pink strap elastic has a pretty quilted pattern on the non plush side.

Band elastic- Often fairly wide and sturdy looking. This is sewn to the bottom edge of your bra so that it fits snugly around your ribcage. You sew this the wrong side and then flip it.
Picot elastic - Used to finish the top edge of most bras. This gets sewn along the top edge of the bra and along the top of the underarm. It has a little scalloped edge that peeks above the seam after being stitched. (Sometimes our band elastic also has Picot edges, but it should be easy to tell by the width of the elastic. The wider is used for the band.)

Bra Channelling - You will need this if you are adding an underwire to your beautiful bra, but often its still used to add a bit of structure to the cup. Its often difficult and fiddly to do, but if you squeeze the edges of the channelling towards the middle you will see the middle open up into a tube. When sewing on channelling it pays to be careful that you sew right at the edges otherwise you can have a bit of a battle with the underwire. (Not like I have experience of that or anything! Ahem...)

Bra Hooks, Rings and sliders - Last but certainly not least are the parts that hold everything together! The rings and sliders are used on the straps. The ring for the front or the back attachment of the strap to the main body of the bra and the sliders to make those straps adjustable. There is a fab tutorial from Evie La Luve of how to do this on Youtube.

The bra hooks, well we've all had to battle with these! They are your most common fastening on a traditional bra. Although now you can get some awesome front closures. I would also add underwires to this list if you so choose them. This particular kit doesn't include them but i'm sure there are others that do, finish it with a bow and you are done!

So there you have it! The anatomy of a bra kit! I hope this is helpful during your bra making adventures! Are there any supplies you can't live without?