I got lots of excellent feedback on Part Two of my diary, which centered on the two main options for my bodice’s inset. Now it’s time to really mix things up and show just how much fun you can have playing with fabrics to achieve the perfect 1912 look! In addition to the two inset

Pinning the toile to fit properly, lining up the inset, and cutting into the fashion material make up Part Two of this fun project. And I'd love your opinions on the bodice inset option!

We've got a centenary memorial event for Titanic coming up on April 12th, which is a costumed formal dinner reproducing the last meal served in first class on the ship. The event promises to be a spectacular one, so I'm making an authentic evening gown from my 1910s Tea Gown pattern.

The second batch of Kangas in the ">Esty shop sold out, but the next batch will go up around the end of April, so be sure to bookmark us!

Planning to attend Titanic memorial events this year? I've pulled together vintage images from 1911 and 1912 to inspire you, and I've also got step-by-step photo instructions for a 1912 boy's outfit. Enjoy!

I'm delighted to announce that Sense & Sensibility's creative order fulfillment gal, Heather (who packages and mails all your orders with her homeschooling family!), is now creating beautiful pinafores and pantaloons from my patterns for her new Etsy shop, Sew In Joy!

It has been fun to see responses come in to my recent pattern design survey. I closed it today and went through all the stats and comments, and what a huge array of tastes and preferences you have!

I sent out a survey link in my most recent eNewsletter and posted it on my Message Forum, but I think some wires got crossed somewhere, which left me with some jumbled responses. So I'm going to try this again with some illustrations to help identify the pattern eras in question.

Over the past 13 years, I've revisited patterns many times to make changes, correct errors, or add something to the instructions or illustrations. Most of these changes have come from suggestions made by my wonderful customers, and I always appreciate the feedback. As I've sewed for my growing daughters, I've started making notes on what needs tweaking, so there are some needed changes afoot!

I held the drawing for the Edelweiss pattern through Random.org, and the winner is marchsisterjo! Thanks so much to everyone who spread the word about this wonderful new pattern company. I am excited to see all the lovely comments for Katrina, and I know she’s off to a running start with her beautiful designs. It

I've had the privilege of encouraging many young women to learn pattern drafting and start up their own businesses, creating beautiful patterns of their own. A young friend of mine has just launched her new business, Edelweiss Patterns, and she's produced a lovely "Liesl" dress pattern perfect for stage productions, dancewear, and more.

A customer wrote me earlier this year, asking for help with the ballgown sleeve in the Elegant Lady’s Closet pattern. She was having difficulty matching the underarm seams–finding she had “leftover” material at the top (or too little material at the narrow end of the sleeve). I discovered that the sleeve that ended up on 

Congrats to marmota.b, winner of the Grace Kelly book drawing (see the full results HERE)! Thank you to everyone who blogged, Tweeted, or shared about a favorite Sense & Sensibility pattern. It was so much fun to read your posts and see what you’ve made. Stay tuned for more giveaways in the coming weeks. I’ve

Congrats to c.barbarino, winner of the Jane Austen craft book giveaway! (The drawing verification is available at Random.org.) Thanks to all who participated in the scavenger hunt. It was a lot of fun, and this was just a warm-up! I’ve got another giveaway coming down the pipe tomorrow, then still more to follow. Stay tuned!

We took pictures Friday of gowns made from two new patterns. The Girls’ 1780s Portrait Dress pattern will be ready to ship soon — we are waiting on the final cover art, which will be ready in a matter of days if all goes well. Once everything is at the printer, we will go ahead

Stay tuned for some exciting news and beautiful photos. We are shooting today for two new patterns! 

You have more little ones than I do and not only do you find time to sew, but to design beautiful new patterns. Can you share a little about how you make time to do it all?

This question was recently posted to the S&S Facebook page, and it's one I get from time to time via email as well. I've posted in my FAQs about the "do-it-all" myth, but I thought it might be time to just blog about this topic, since it's near and dear to my heart. :)

If you’ve followed S&S Patterns over on Facebook, then you’ve probably seen this coming for a while, as I took a poll to see which fashion era people would like to see in patterns next. The 1780s won out, hands-down, though the 1930s came in a close second. Funny how this works out, but a

The girls send along updates from their experience with prom, being featured in the news, and more! Update includes several photos and news clippings.

What do you get when you cross great film costumes with two high school seniors possessing exquisite taste in clothing? The answer is a challenging dressmaking project which will thoroughly involve the seamstress and keep her on her toes!