Join Meg Healy of Sew Daily for a mini-series on sewing sustainably at home!
Take one sewing pattern and learn five different hacks to make it look completely different. Use materials you already have and revive your style without ever leaving the house.
Watch Style Revive: Antero Shell Hacks
The Antero Shell pattern is easily our favorite go-to top pattern, and we also love how adaptable it is! In this mini-series, Style Revive: Antero Shell Hacks, Meg Healy takes you through five different modifications that you can do to the pattern to make it look completely different. She even shows you how to draft the hacks directly on your fabric so you don’t need a ton of extra paper.
Pattern hacking is such a useful skill to know, and once you get the hang of it you can utilize these hacks on even more patterns! The idea of modifying a pattern for style is to not alter the fit, so once you determine your size you just use that as your base. The Antero Shell is a step up from your classic T-shirt and is the perfect wardrobe staple – so when hacked to be a dress, button up, and even a tank, you are just adding to your closet essentials.
In each episode of this mini-series, Meg will guide you through the drafting process as well as how to transfer the pattern to a more durable template so you can cut it out again and again. The pattern PDF is included as well as sewing step by step handouts and drafting references. So, if you enjoyed the sustainable sewing theme of season 1 of Style Revive, then you will love this fun and engaging “hack-along”!
Hacks: Button up, dress, wrap, ruffle, tank
Materials: Antero Shell Pattern (included), 1 sheet of poster board, marker, scissors, fabric marking chalk, measuring tape, curved ruler, straight ruler, rotary cutting system (optional).
Watch the Introduction Now!
Take a look at the episodes included in this mini-series:
Episode 1: The Button Up Hack
It’s always nice to have an excuse to put buttons on your garment, whether matching, contrasting, big, or small – buttons are a fabulous way to elevate a wardrobe staple. This hack transforms the Antero Shell to have a button up front closure finished with a facing as well as side seam slits.
Materials: 1 – 1 ½ yards of medium weight woven top fabric (twill was used in the video), a small piece of lightweight fusible interfacing, 6 decorative buttons; ½” diameter, matching all-purpose thread, serger (optional).
Episode 2: Make it a Dress!
There is just nothing like putting on a dress to start your day – no bottoms to think about, just accessories! In this hack Meg demonstrated how to add a gathered skirt pattern to the top as well as a round neckline and arm bands.
Materials: 3 yards of medium weight woven fabric (linen was used in the video), matching all-purpose thread, serger (optional).
Episode 3: Wrap It up
Making a top into wrap style is a great way to bring in the silhouette, and it’s easy to do! This hack utilizes the full front Antero Shell pattern and integrates a side seam slit opening and crossover neckline finished with binding.
Materials: 2 yards of lightweight woven top fabric (viscose was used in the video), 2 yards of pre-pressed double folded bias tape, matching all-purpose thread, serger (optional).
Episode 4: The More Ruffles the Merrier!
Ruffles just make everything better! Especially when there is a lot of ruffles. This hack is so simple to do, just cut some extra rectangles and round out the neckline to finish with a piece is bias.
Materials: 3 yards of lightweight woven top fabric (cotton dot was used in the video), matching all-purpose thread, serger (optional).
Episode 5: Color-Blocked Tank
This hack looks like a completely different pattern! Color blocking is great for using up bits and pieces of scrap fabric, and while you are adding center front and back seams, why not alter the neckline to create a sporty racer back style!
Materials: ½ yard each contrasting lightweight woven top fabrics (linen was used in this video), small piece of fusible interfacing, matching all-purpose thread, serger (optional).
Watch the full season of Style Revive: Antero Shell Hacks on Sew Daily TV or download season one today! Get a sneak peek insides Meg’s studio loft while she sews with her husband and pet rabbit by her side. If you have a lot of little bits and pieces of fabric, old damaged clothes, or even just a lot of random studio build-up, this series will be sure to motivate you into refashioning what you have on hand. Turn old into new again and revive your style.
Watch the full mini-series, now on Sew Daily!
About the Host: Meg Healy
Meg has a passion for sewing that led her to study Fashion Design in NYC where she also interned for Vera Wang as a pattern maker.
Meg now writes for Sew News magazine and Creative Machine Embroidery in addition to instructing online sewing classes on BurdaStyle Academy. She’s a frequent instructor on Sew Daily, teaching video series, project sew-alongs, and tutorials, as well as lending her voice to the blog. She also co-hosts Sew & Tell podcast as another outlet to inspire the sewing community!
Follow Meg at megsayssew.com and @meg.says.sew to see more!
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