#sim2015

Sewing Indie Month Interview with Fehr Trade

We both share a love for stretch fabrics and novelty prints on lycra (kitten print leggings anyone?), so it was a perfect match for me as part of the SIM2015 designer interview tour to speak with Melissa the seamstress and designer behind Fehr Trade! This lady not only creates visually interesting active wear designs for her patterns but she’s a bonafide active lady! Read on to find out more… Hey…

As part of the Sewing Indie Month of September, I introduce Jennifer from Jennifer Lauren Vintage. She is producing very pretty vintage inspired sewing patterns and showing us lovely coordinates on her blog. Here, Jennifer shares her stories and great sewing tips!

*** Hello Jeniffer! First, please tell us about you and your pattern brand. How you have started sewing and are background story behind your pattern brand?

Hello! My name is Jen and I live in a little 1940's house in New Zealand with my husband, brand new baby boy, 2 cats and 3 chickens and I run Jennifer Lauren Vintage.

When I first started, I mainly wrote about vintage clothes and styles, but that slowly morphed over time into sewing, as buying actual vintage clothing was getting a bit too expensive for me. Instead, I would buy vintage patterns to stitch up to fit me exactly (no more heartbreak when I would fall in love with a dress and find out it had a 24inch waist!) and it pretty much went from there.

I've always sewn but I took a break for a few years while I was at university. It wasn't until I got my first job that I started to get back into sewing again - I finally had some spare time.

Releasing sewing patterns though was never something I intended to do.  In 2014, when we moved back to New Zealand, I started teaching sewing classes. One of them was a garment construction class and I couldn't find a pattern I liked that had all the techniques I wanted to teach, so I decided to make my own. That was the Afternoon Blouse. After making the pattern and realising just how much work went into a pattern, I decided to list it in my Etsy shop to see if anyone else wanted it, and the rest is history.

*** I love your vintage classic style and coordinates ( I doodled my fave)! What is your inspiration for your projects? (any style icon or theory?)

Awww, thanks Yuki! I pretty much like anything with a fitted waist and a full skirt, I think they are flattering on all shapes and sizes and there are so many styles to choose from. My go to outfit for years has been a fitted knit top and a full circle skirt or a dress with a full skirt.

With that being said, I don't really like anything too fussy either. And since the birth of my first baby a few months ago, my go to has had to be adapted slightly with an added stretchy waistband - I've since fallen in love with scuba knit, it makes the most lovely twirly post-pregnancy circle skirts.

**** You just experienced giving birth to a baby (congratulations!) and we much enjoyed your maternity sewing blog posts. Any tip for maternity sewing ladies or newbie moms from you?

My tips would be to choose stretchy knit patterns! It means that you can wear your garments during pregnancy as well as afterwards. I would also advise on just making a few garments that will mix and match well - you might be sick of them by the end of your pregnancy, but it means you always have something comfortable to wear.

And cardigans - they change an outfit up completely!

*** Must have sewing tools for your customers.

A great sewing machine!! Don't be tempted by cheap ones with questionable origins - you want something sturdy, that will sew all kinds of different fabrics with ease. I don't think it's important to have 100 different stitches that you'll never use either (no matter how tempting it might be!) but it's a good idea to invest in a good quality sewing machine that does the basics well, it'll never let you down and will sew anything you think you might want to make.

If you're not sure sewing is for you and just want to give it a go, there a tonnes of inexpensive vintage sewing machines for sale, and to be honest, they're probably better than what you can buy new these days.

Oh, and then remember to have your machine serviced regularly :)

*** Suggestions/tips for beginner sewers.

Pick something to sew that is easy but that you'll wear or use - look in your own wardrobe to find your go-to's and pick a pattern that is similar. There are tonnes of basic knit tees and easy to sew a-line or gathered skirts.

Also, take proper measurements. I know how easy and tempting it is to make yourself smaller than you are, but when you finish your garment and it doesn't fit you, it just makes you feel bad about yourself, your sewing skills and annoyed that you wasted a bunch of time. Try having someone else do your measurements for you!

You can't beat the feeling of making something that fits you and that you know you'll wear all the time. Measurements are just measurements, don't let those numbers get you down, use them to make something that will flatter you and make you feel great about them.

*** Do you have any preferred or specially recommendable pattern from your collection and why?

I have a huge pattern stash! But one pattern that stands out is the Anna Dress from By Hand London for it's ease of fitting and quick construction. I love a good kimono sleeve and this dress has them in spades. I've added gathered skirts to the bodice instead of the skirt that comes with it and it looks effortless and put together every time.

*** If you have a free time, what do you love to do outside of designing and making patterns?

At the moment all my time is spent with my wee man and any spare time is spent sewing. But I do love to get out in the garden and grow my own fruit and veges.

My husband and I bought our house in March 2014 and the garden was an over-grown mess. We've spent the past 2 summers bringing it back to it's former glory and I'm excited that it's finally spring again now because that means it's back into the garden to plant our summer veges and flowers.

I have my fingers crossed for a lovely warm summer with lots of sunshine and a little Oscar-bug who will sleep during the day so we can spend lots of time out there. Here's hoping!

I also really enjoy knitting, though I'm still very much a beginner (and very slow!!).

*** Any sneak peek about new releasing from your brand?

I'll be updating one of my previous releases and I have some new ideas that will hopefully come to fruition in time for Christmas that aren't necessarily garment related, shhhhh! I'm still on maternity leave and will be until the end of September, but once that rolls around, I'll start revealing more tidbits on my blog and instagram as I get back into work and my ideas come together *wink*

Thank you Jeniffer! We are looking forward to your new release! You can connect with Jennifer on Twitter and Instagram, and hear from news on her blog.

btw, here is my doodle of her Emery dress.

Don’t forget to follow other great articles of Sewing Indie Month!  

*********************