Hello... welcome to part two of things I've made. I now realise there will be a part 3 as there's more I can't post tonight. These things I made last year before I went to South Korea for a holiday. The photos of the top that I made with the Vogue pattern above are down below. Don't know why Blogger won't let me move them, but I don't have time to argue with it! Anyway, I made it with some merino French Terry I bought years ago. It is merino loops, but the outer facing part of the fabric is nylon. It's very lightweight, warm and comfortable but not the best for this pattern as the nice high neck doesn't stay up high, but it's still really nice and useful in my warmish winter. I made it as the vest top and hemmed it and bound the armholes with some fold over elastic I bought at some markets in Lisbon in my trip last year. I put a chunky metal pink zip as the closure. I will make this again as I really like that it's not a boring old pullover. I...
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It did not turn out very well and I am not sure I will use any of their patterns again.
The instruction is in English, but not that well written.
The pattern pieces are marked in Russian and if you are making something simple it wont be hard to identify the pieces, but more complex items will be harder. For the blouse it had to use google translate and it isn´t that helpful when it comes to sewing terms.
The fit isn't great. I made a muslin and had to make quiet a few alterations and still I am not satisfied.
I just remember now. I have also made a skirt 5933. Just one pattern piece, and easy to sew. But the fit isn't great, so wont be making it again.
And yes, the instructions are very minimal, just words, no pictures and written in English by someone for whom English is not their first language.
They might be cheap, but take into account the wasted time and fabric on a poor design and its expensive.
These are just digital designs, not actually made up to test the fit or made in actual fabric.
I would skip it in future.
Some marking on the pieces may yet be in Russian in the old models, but in case you ever have a question - about any model really - just send me an e-mail at info@lekala.co and I'll be happy to help. We are in the process of updating the whole portfolio including old models to make sure there's no confusion in the future.
As for the pattern 5573 itself, I can see it is a rather intricate cut, and it is implied to be sewn from a rather heavy cloth - wool fabric suitable for costumes. The choice of fabric might have really affected the way it looks. I shall pass on this info to the designer so that the model is double checked.
I have ordered 7 of these patterns. I just made up test garments for two blouses. One fits great as it was drafted. The other fits well, but required some adjustment. I had to move the underbust seam down to allow for my full bust. I'm going to try some of the others soon.
Pros:
great designs and variety
personalized for my measurements
only my size on the printouts- I don't have to deal with lines for other sizes
fast delivery
price
Based on my limited experience so far, while I may still need to do some adjusting to get the right fit, it seems like the patterns are pretty close to fitting. It seems like I have to do much more adjusting with the Big 4 and Burda.
Though I don't like taping patterns together, Lekala patterns are not too annoying to tape together, especially compared to other downloadable, non-personalized, multisize patterns that require taping.
The translation is a little tough to understand, and some steps seem to be missing from the instructions. This makes me a little nervous about trying the more complex patterns, but is just fine for most for me.
Lara from http://thornberry.wordpress.com
With careful measurement and dispassionate assessment of the peculiarities of my figure - and believe me, it's very peculiar in parts now that advanced age has taken, and is still taking, its toll - I have had good-to-excellent fit on all the free patterns that I've tried so far. I shall shortly be blogging about my experiences with Lekala patterns, and comparing them to others.