I know I said I wouldn’t sew this pattern again so soon but … I just had to!

Way back in 2019 I went to my first ever Cooly Rocks On in Coolangatta and let me tell you, it was absolutely freezing. To be fair, a week and a half before the pageant I caught the plague and spent a week in bed wishing for death to be swift and merciful so I may have been feeling the cold a little more than most but the few cardigans I brought didn’t prepare me at all for the icy blasts. I ended up buying a coat and a hot water bottle because I was struggling so much and ever since that year, I always pack super warm clothes for Cooly Rocks On despite this being a one off event. In my preparation for this years Cooly Rocks On, I wanted to sew a pinafore style dress as it’s something I can layer, adjust and of course keep warm. Although I’ve only made one other pinafore on my blog, they are something I have been wanting to make more of and I am still waiting to find the perfect Queens Gambit tartan but alas, the hunt continues. For todays blog, I wanted to use Vogue 9100 and see how it translated into a pinafore.

When it comes to pinafores, tartan is the most common pattern/print you will find. On a recent trip to KL, I found some stunning tartan fabrics from Nagoya fabrics and having a small selection to choose from, I decided on a tartan with a turquoise, red, black and yellow pattern going through it. I’ve never seen a turquoise tartan and I did have a “why on Earth did I buy this colour way?” moment but looking back at the project, I absolutely adore the final results. If I’m being honest, I’m not that familiar with tartan fabric so I’m not sure which side of the fabric is considered the ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ side. For this project, I found that one side has a bit more “fluff” on one side and there colours seemed just a little bolder so this was going to be my ‘right side’ of the fabric. I had about 4 meters of this tartan and with the fabric being so wide, this was more than enough for my pattern pieces and I decided to utilise as much of the fabric as possible by adding a circle skirt but more on this later. Should we have a look at our pattern?

By now, we have sewn Very Easy Vogue V9100 four times on the blog (see all previous versions; barbie here, Christmas Snoopy here, Alice in Wonderland here and May Gibbs here) so I don’t think I need to go into too much detail but for this version I did have some unique challenges. Vogue 9100 is part of Vogues ‘Very Easy Vogue’ pattern line which still offers couture fits and multiple sizing options but the overall pattern design is something a beginner sewer can accomplish. Vogue 9100 features a princess seamed bodice, thin shoulder straps and a scooped back neckline. The bodice is lined and comes in a range of sizes and cup sizes to ensure a good fit. Personally I will be once again sewing a size 12 with a c cup bust as I find this fits me best. I will be lining the bodice but I will be using my tartan fabric to do so as I have plenty of it and don’t see the point in wasting it. For this version, I will not be adding a gathered skirt like I normally would but instead I will be adding a circle skirt with pockets to give myself a fuller look. If there is fabric left over, and at this point I suspect there will be, I also want to sew a head wrap so I have some fun styling options.

Sew, let’s get started. In order for this pinafore to look professional and cohesive, it all came down to pattern placement. Due to the nature of tartan and all the lines and stripes it has, it’s paramount to place and cut out your pattern pieces with as much cohesion as possible. I tried my best to match lines across the front pieces and keeping an eye on where the princess seams would end up. Although I didn’t perfectly pattern match, most of my pattern pieces were straight and cohesive with no major discrepancies. Ironically, the back pattern pieces were a perfect match. For the lining, I wasn’t as meticulous with my pattern matching as it wouldn’t be seen but I still kept the tartan lines as cohesive as I could. For my skirt, I cut out a 28 inch circle skirt in two pieces and instantly hung it up for the bias could fall as I sew the bodice. My circle skirts seem to be a bit all over the place so I’ve been wanting to make a fe more to improve my skills. Having this much fabric to work with made a circle skirt the obvious choice and I was excited for the fullness.

As I’ve made this pattern a few times before, this being the fifth version, the bodice came together really quick because it’s second nature at this point. There’s no real difficulty in this bodice construction but I did realise that I started getting confused as to which pieces and parts were the outer fabric and lining pieces. this caused me to sew the back bodice pieces incorrectly and I made the same side twice. Having plenty of left over fabric, this was an easy fix but I think next time I will better mark my lining and outer fabric pieces. As with my other versions of this pattern, I deviated from the sewing method and opted for one that I find easier and cleaner to do. The pattern asks you to sew the bodice together at the sides and then hand sew the shoulder straps where they meet but I personally don’t like this method as I can never hide my stitches well enough and I don’t personally trust my hand sewing to withstand daily wear especially at the shoulders. Personally, I sew my bodice front pieces together and then attach the back pieces at the shoulders. I do the same with the lining before sandwiching the right sides together and sewing along the neck and arm hole edges. From here, all I need to do is feed the fabric through the shoulder straps and flip it inside out. Pushing the fabric through is a little tough as the shoulders are so narrow but with some ease and care, they always come out really well and nothing an iron can’t smooth out. To finish my bodice I sew the sides together and then baste along the waist line. Vogue 9100 has to have one of the fastest bodices and the fit is always really good.

With my bodice together I could turn my attention to my skirt. Before I joined my two circle halves together, I added two large pockets to both side edges and I made sure to sew the pocket seams with extra reinforcement as I was wanting the tartan to be as sturdy as possible. Once the pockets were added, I sewed the two circle halves together to make one big circle. Using a template for my circle skirt, I cut out my waist hole and a slit to add a back zip. If you remember back to this sewing project, I also used a template for my circle skirt and it turned out way too big. The same thing happened in this sewing attempt so I’m beginning to feel somehow my template is faulty. With my waist now being a bit too large, I added one large inverted box pleat to the front which turned out to be a lovely feature. Circle skirts are something I want to get better at sewing so for my next attempt, I don’t think I will be using my template. I have also noticed the website I got my template from is gone so I don’t quite know what happened there but that’s a mystery for Scooby Doo and his gang to solve, I need to keep sewing.

Attaching my skirt to my bodice was a simple process as I didn’t need to do any gathering. It all came together really easily and I love the fullness and swirl that the skirt added to my dress. The pockets I added are the perfect size to carry my phone and of course, snacks. Hemming the bottom of my skirt included using my overlocker to serge the edges before folding the edges down and sewing them into a neat hem. I think I am slowly getting better at circle or curved hems but there is still much room for improvement. To finish off my dress, I used my overlocker to serge as many of the exposed seams inside the dress to prevent fraying and then it was time to add a zip. I used a normal black dress zip which went in fine and in the span of one quiet morning at home, I had my new dress/pinafore.

Pinafores were generally worn over tops and shirts which was my main intention with this version of Vogue V9100. I took this dress on my trip to Brisbane/Coolangatta and I ended up wearing her on 5 separate occasions all with different styling which is what I want from my garments. I love making pieces which I can style in different ways and can make to look different each time. One of my favourite ways to wear this pinafore was by adding a simple black turtle neck top which I thrifted a while ago as the black really made the tartan stand out and I could pair it with my black beret hat and a turquoise or black belt. I did also wear this dress completely on her own without a top underneath and thought she looked fun, cute and elegant. Before I left on my trip, literally the night before as I was packing, I decided to make a head wrap using the left over tartan as I thought this would make a fun accessory. Using an old head wrap as the base of my pattern, I cut out a long rectangle with curved edges and then I added black bias tape to the edges to seal it all in. Turns out this head wrap was a stroke of genius as I got to wear it to cover my hair when I desperately needed to wash it but needed it to last one more day as well as wearing it with my poodle curls sticking out for my sashing event for the Cooly Rocks On Pinup Pageant.

It was a pleasant surprise that this version of Vogue 9100 was so versatile and with the upcoming colder months, I already have many ways to wear this garment. This being my second pinafore, I think I will be wearing it a bit more than my first pinafore attempt as I love the skirt, the fit and the colours just a tiny bit more. This version has also inspired me to make a few more tartan outfits before winter is over as I’ve noticed I tend to sew more summer clothing and come winter, I get a little stuck. Sewing a similar dress and adding large front pockets would also be really cute and I’m tempted to sew a black button up shirt with a matching tartan collar. This being my first winter inspired version of Vogue 9100 has given me a burst of inspiration to turn some of my summery patterns into winter ones but also to use simple patterns and see if I can make them into more versitile garments.

I really love how this tartan version of V9100 came out. For a few hours one calm morning right before I had to leave on my trip, I made a garment that I would wear over and over again for my travels and it was something versatile and comfy. The pockets were a huge help and styling and accessorising my pinafore was easy. Although I already promised not to make this dress pattern again so soon, I’m glad I listened to my gut and made something that I really love and want to wear over and over again. I do however see the irony in sewing this dress to be a pinafore but in the photos I took for this blog I was wearing it just as a simple dress. In saying that, it’s still a cute dress and I’ll share some simple phone photos of the dress worn as an actual pinafore below.

If you’d like to read about my time at Cooly Rocks On and find out everything that I got up to, check out this blog here.

Cooly Rocks On Pinup Pageant 2024 Recap

Note: This is not a sponsored post. All opinions and thoughts expressed are solely my own and not influenced in any way. There are no affiliate links and I do not benefit from any link clicks or purchases made.