The holidays are always a super busy time, and as we all take time out to share our love with our friends and families, I am reminded that the Pattern Revolution Review Team is some of the best "family" I've got. These talented women live, sew, and love hard. Their dedication to their craft and professionalism always brings new opportunities, and I am so glad to be able to offer a platform that encourages these ladies to push hard, to grow, and to reach higher than ever before. I am so proud of the success my team members have enjoyed in 2015, and as several women have began new ventures and their time for PR has waned, we need to open our doors to some new friends.

Today and tomorrow, we'll be sharing "mini reviews" of some of our favorite holiday patterns by our sponsors and affiliates to introduce you to some of the new team members, plus we'll throw in a few by our current members too. Please join me in welcoming our new team members!

Meet Jane

Hi...I’m Jane from Not Sew Plain Jane. I had the opportunity to sew up the new girl's Harlow pattern from Violette Field Threads and am absolutely in love. The pattern offered so many options…peplum top or dress, cap sleeve or sleeveless, ruffle details or a fancy tulle overlay. I haven’t sewn much with special occasion fabric so I decided to give it a go. All of the fabrics used for this dress were found at my local Joanns in the special occasion section. The tulle overlay option was a nice introduction to working with tulle because it provided the skirt with the fullness I was looking for but I didn’t have to work with multiple layers of tulle. I was a little intimidated by the zipper because I have only sewn an exposed zipper, but it was actually very simple and I enjoyed the break from buttonholes! Another nice thing about the girls Harlow pattern is that there is already a ladies pattern to match!

Meet Jo

Hi this is Jo and I am the owner of Lemon Drop Closet. I am going to give you my review on the Sweet Lilly Pintuck Dress pattern from Bella Sunshine Designs. And it is definitely SWEET! This pattern consists of bodice pintucks and ruffles creating the perfect heirloom keepsake for generations to come.

Now for all the sweet details. Due to so many lovely one of a kind details it is slightly time consuming to create, but well worth it! The bodice features pintucks, a center panel with ruffles allowing your creativity to go wild. The sleeves are GORGEOUS with gathers and ruffles and bands, OH my!!! The back of the bodice buttons down to a placket making it easier for little ones to get dressed. The skirt ends with two rows of ruffles for that perfect twirl factor.

The instructions are very detailed and includes photos for us visual learners. In printing the pattern you have the option to print in layers for the size you are making. It is a must however that the front bodice sides to be printed in the size you are making due to all the pintucking guides. The Size range is from 6m -12 girls. It also can be made in dress length or baby doll/tunic length.

Since the Holidays are nearing I wanted to make a dress that would stand out from all the racks of Holiday style dresses at the clothing stores. I am pretty sure I accomplished that with choosing to pair the chambray and linen fabrics with the Sweet Lilly Pintuck Dress pattern.

P.S. During our “photo shoot” everybody was complimenting my daughter on her SWEET dress!

Meet Jane (again, she's an overachiever)

When I scroll through social media sewing groups I see tons of photos of little girls in their mama made dresses. I have to admit that although it gives me a warm fuzzy feeling….it also makes me miss the days of my daughter wearing whatever I wanted her to wear (minus those days when she was throwing tantrums on the floor because she wanted to pick out her own outfit…he he…you know what I’m talking about, we’ve all been there unfortunately). My daughter is getting older and I have a passion to continue sewing for her even though most of her friends wear clothing with glitter and quotes all over them. I love how sophisticated and classy my daughter looks in this dress I made using the Violette Field Threads Phoebe pattern. The great thing is she loves it too and thinks it’s so comfy and stylish. The bodice of Phoebe is knit, but is such a simple sew because the bodice is lined so there is no neck band to attach. For this dress I used a medium weight cotton lycra blend with good stretch and recovery. The skirt is a bubble skirt so there was no hemming involved either…….just gather and attach! The skirt material is Rustic Blush by Verna Mosquera for Free Spirit. I love that this dress is so simple with such a dramatic finished looked. The optional lace or ruffle on the sleeves is the perfect touch for dressing it up or can be omitted for an everyday look. The bow at the waist is optional as well. The fit was spot on and the directions were very clear and simple to follow. The Phoebe pattern would be a great pattern for anyone new to working with knit as well as an established seamstress.

OK, that's enough introductions for today. Here are two of our current members Katy and Rebekah sharing their Baby Ayda dresses from Simple Life Pattern Company.