With jersey fabrics arriving in the shop, I felt like getting back to my overlocker and making myself a sweatshirt ;-)
It reminded me of the Artesane masterclasses held at the end of 2020, which showed how to make a sweatshirt, embroider it, alter it... In short, Artesane offered the pattern and masterclasses free of charge. So I went back to the website and found all the information I needed to create my own version.
I'm sharing this great find with you. Let's get started!
To make your sweet sweat, you can download the pattern free of charge from the Artesane website. Click here to download it.
The pattern comes in sizes XS to XXL, corresponding to a bust measurement of 84 to 104 cm, a waist measurement of 65 to 90 cm and a hip measurement of 90 to 110 cm. It is a women's pattern with a fairly loose fit, rather than a close-fitting style. If you prefer something closer to the body, you can size down, meaning that you choose one size smaller than the size corresponding to your measurements.
The pattern is designed for a woman who is 1.68 m tall.
In your sewing basket
- sweatshirt fabric (French terry, sweatshirt fleece, brushed-back sweatshirt fabric...). Artesane recommends 1.5 m to make the pattern. I managed to fit my pattern into 1.1 m because I shortened it to suit my height of 1.53 m and used ribbing for the cuffs. You'll find a lovely selection of knit fabrics and ribbing in our shop.
- some ribbing if desired (for the cuffs)
- clear elastic tape (if desired)
- matching thread
- a stretch/jersey needle
- a stretch/jersey twin needle
- an overlocker or a sewing machine with a stretch stitch
Construction steps
Artesane has created a masterclass explaining the construction steps, which I will describe below.
1. Cut out the pattern pieces. Seam allowances of 0.7 cm are included in the pattern. These allowances are suitable for making the sweatshirt with an overlocker. If you want to sew it with a sewing machine, you can increase the seam allowances to 1 cm.
2. Lay the pattern pieces on your fabric and pin them in place.
3. Cut out your fabric pieces. If you've chosen ribbing for the cuffs, use the cuff pattern pieces provided in the pattern. The specified length will give you fairly snug cuffs like the ones I made. If you want wider cuffs, feel free to test and adjust the length of the ribbing used for them.
4. With right sides together, pin the front and back pieces at the shoulders and side seams. You can also use "wonder clips" to hold your fabric instead of pins.
5. Use your overlocker to sew the shoulder seams (this is when you can add clear elastic tape) and the side seams, or use a stretch stitch on your sewing machine.
6. Close the sleeves (pin each sleeve into a tube and stitch).
7. Attach the sleeves to the body. Place the sleeve head into the armhole with right sides together. Pin and stitch around the armhole.
8. Join the ends of the neckband using your overlocker or sewing machine.
9. Fold the neckband in half lengthways, pin it to the front and back neckline with right sides together, and stitch everything together.
10. Join the ends of the cuffs (fabric bands or ribbing).
11. Sew the cuff bands or ribbing to the sleeves. As I chose to make the sleeves wider at the wrist, I sewed a gathering thread so I could adjust the width of the sleeve opening to the length of the ribbing. I gathered the sleeve opening and then attached the ribbing to the sleeve.
12. Turn up the lower edge of the body to form a hem. I chose to overlock the edge all the way around before turning it up.
13. Stitch the hem using a twin needle.
Ta-da, your sweet sweat is finished. All that's left is to wear it!
I've included the Artesane masterclass video on assembling the sweatshirt below, with timings so you can go straight to the parts that interest you.
- 10:00: introduction
- 12:15: the stitches
- 19:50: construction steps
- 25:30: clear elastic tape
- 36:50: attaching the cuffs
- 1:09:55: attaching the neckband
- 1:37:25: twin needle
- 1:54: the different sleeve versions
- 1:57: ruffles
You'll also find the Artesane masterclass on adapting the sweatshirt pattern below. Perhaps you'd like to alter the sleeves as I did, or even create ruffles?
