A few years ago, I launched my second pattern: the Tinny dress. It was a retro style dress, with 4 collar options, 3 skirt options, and 2 sleeve options. All in 1 pattern. It was my first successful pattern, and it is probably the pattern which many people still associate most with my ‘brand’.
I took it offline last year, however, because I wanted to update it. Adapt the sizing to the measurements I had been using for my newer patterns. Add sizes up to 10y. Add printing layers, so that you can print just the size you want. Make the sleeves a bit slimmer and shorter. Give it the same neckline as the Hanami, so that the collars could be interchanged. And so on.
It was supposed to be a rather quick project, after I launched my Lua sleep sack. But then, I created a little dress for the Miss Matatabi Makers series, and got many requests to turn it into a pattern. And around the same time, Regina asked me if I would be interested in turning her beautiful Elena dress into a pattern. Would I? Well duh! Creating the Ishi and Jaanu pattern would not take very long, I thought (I’m hilarious, I know), so I decided to – irony signaling cough – “quickly” make and launch those patterns first.
Many, many (many) months later, I’m finally working on the updated version of the Tinny, which I hope to release next month. With apologies to those of you whom I promised that the Tinny would return back “soon”. I hope that in the end, you’ll find that it was worth waiting for, and you will forgive my tardiness 😉
Because I have decided that the new Tinny pattern will be more than just an ‘update’. Tinny 2.0 will not just have more sizes, but also a lot more options. And a completely different concept. Why am I changing it so drastically? Well, there are two main reasons. One is that, when I launched the Tinny, it was a unique pattern. But times change, and I would like Tinny 2.0 to be as unique as Tinny 1.0 was. A second reason is that there is very little creative satisfaction to be gained from just updating a pattern. Making something new is so much more exciting than making something old.
So, what will these changes mean? First of all, Tinny will no longer be a retro style dress. Don’t worry, you’ll still be able to make beautiful vintage looking dresses with it. And all the current collar and skirt options will return in the new pattern. But together with new options, I will introduce a new concept, which I’ll reveal step by step in the coming weeks. You know I’m a bit of a tease 😉
Rather than boring you with a simple list of changes, I will reveal the new concept and options by means of a number of themes. The first theme is: speed. Sounds ironic, I know, because making a lined dress with sleeves and a collar takes time. So that is why I decided to add integrated cap sleeves as an option. Not having to cut, close, insert, hem, and serge sleeves saves a lot of time, and will enable you to make a quick Tinny.
I made my own quick Tinny earlier this week. For this second test version (I still have to take pics of the first one), I used a very special fabric. It is a 56% silk, 24% linen, and 20% cotton mix from Mon Depot. And yes, it feels just as amazing as it sounds! I love the combination of the soft hand and the rough weave. I combined it with neon piping – thanks again for the great advice, Instagram friends 😉
This test version combines the quick sleeves with the regular peter pan collar and the full circle skirt. Remember when I made a dress with a circle skirt for the first time, and explained how it instantly turned me into the most popular mom on the planet? Well, more than two years later, things haven’t changed even a single bit. Norah was overjoyed with the dress; not because it is pink; not because of the neon piping; simply because it has a circle skirt. Again, she wanted to put it on immediately, have pictures taken, and twirl and spin all day long.
She said she felt “like a princess” in it. And I got looooots of hugs and kisses :-))
From the top of my head, these are some of the main differences between the old and the new Tinny:
– sizes 1-10y
– several more options
– printing layers so that you can print just the size you need.
– print shop version included (A0)
– digitally drawn illustrations instead of pictures
– quick summary of the different steps included
– collars can be used on Hanami, Jaanu, Ishi, and upcoming StraightGrain patterns
– combines with the long sleeves of the Ishi
– Dutch version available (Nederlandse versie)
Now if I could please get some decent weather here, so I can take pictures of the other test versions?