Yoanna's Studio

Sonata Set add-on pack testing has begun!
When I was designing the Sonata Set, I was brimming with ideas. To reduce option overload, I limited the main pattern to two sleeve variations, and two pocket options. This add-on pack will offer more customization possibilities, including belt loops, and three additional pocket options.
Over the course of my sewing career, I’ve made a number of welt pockets and have always found the process to be unnecessarily complicated. In this add-on pack, I’ve simplified their construction to make them more beginner-friendly. If you’ve admired the sleek look of welt pockets but shied away due to their perceived difficulty, now’s your chance to master them with ease!
This will be an add-on pack, so you will need the Sonata Set files to use this pattern. The instructions provided in this pack will only cover the construction of the add-on pockets and belt loops. For all other steps, you will need to refer to the Sonata Set instructions.
Can’t wait to bring another pattern to market!
+

The has now been graded in 22 sizes; C-X. I’m finishing up final touches on the pattern and before I start looking for a fit model and pattern testers! This is so exciting!
I will now be trying to photograph the last billion Sonata Sets I’ve made. There’s quite the collection 😆
So grateful for all of your support along the way!
Fabric: very sweetly sent to me by

This is extra special to me because of the pockets. My grandma recently passed away and when I visited her in hospice, I noticed her pillowcase and loved the floral pattern. It looked exactly like a fabric I’d use. I told her I really liked her pillowcase and asked to have it when she was done with it. She was unresponsive but I’m sure she would have loved for me to bring new life to it. That pillowcase is now featured on the heart pockets of this dress and I’ll think of my Me-Ma every time I wear it 🤍
The Sonata Set is finally how I want it and I’m currently doing finishing touches on the bonus pack. Can’t wait to learn how to grade this set in and get it out and available for all of you! I’ve been so overwhelmed with all the love and support. Thank you all!

Here’s my 4th and final (for now) . After making a dress or few, I like to start getting creative so for this one, I split the waist panel and wedged in another piece of fabric to create a ruffle. Totally obsessed with the results ☺️
Congrats to for yet another beautiful dress release! She put so much love and effort into finessing this dress til it was just right. So proud of her and so delighted to have developed a friendship over the testing period!

Here’s the 3rd my of my Sleeveless Eleonoras (View B.) My goal was butterflies and whimsey 🦋
Congrats to for yet another beautiful dress release! She put so much love and effort into finessing this dress til it was just right. So proud of her and so delighted to have developed a friendship over the testing period!

Congrats to for yet another beautiful dress release! She put so much love and effort into finessing this dress til it was just right. So proud of her and so delighted to have developed a friendship over the testing period!
Here was the first of my Sleeveless Eleonoras (View C with an extra line of shirring because I lengthen the waist 2 inches.) My goal was “colorful” but by the end I was getting rooster vibes 😂 So keep on scrolling if you want to meet Rudy the rooster 😂 🐓

As many of you may know, for the last two months, I’ve been taking a patternmaking course called .
As chance would have it, I ended up needing to travel for a month and a half of it but despite being away from all my sewing supplies, all the time on the road gave me time to dive into the lessons and draft a number of patterns. In these pictures, you can see one of the patterns I designed — the .
I first got the idea for the Sonata Set when I was climbing in and out of the car in a flowy mini dress I’d made. With all the movement, I remember feeling concerned about accidentally flashing somebody and suddenly I had the idea for a flowy mini dress that came with matching shorts.
When I think back on this pattern choice, it seems like both a wonderful and terrible choice for a first pattern release. It’s several patterns in one, giving me lots of drafting and problem solving opportunities. On the other hand, it’s several patterns in one, giving me lots of details to stress over. Offering two pocket shapes that can functionally and aesthetically fit in 3 different places has proven to be a lot more of an undertaking than expected. I have yet to actually sew the long sleeve version and see if it works. My mind keeps on thinking of more ideas for this pattern — what if I offered short puffed sleeves, a sleeveless option and bloomers? What if I offered different dress lengths? But after thinking it through and talking it over with some of you in the sewing community, I’ve realized this will be the first pattern I release and two sleeve options and 6 pocket variations are enough options. Besides, I’d hate to deprive my future customers from potential hacking opportunities haha.
Anyway, I’m super excited about this opportunity — both to take this course and to pursue something that’s always been a dream of mine.
Anyway, I’m now off to sew some long sleeves and hopefully improved back pockets 🤞

Here’s another make from my collaboration with .pattern.studio . I made this from vintage fabric gifted to me; the floral square fabric came from a pillowcase. While making the blouse, I took 6 inches out of the waist since it was a little too boxy for me. If I were to make it again, I’d probably add an extra button loop since the waist area tends to open up during any sort of movement.
The jeans are the , which I’ve detailed in other posts.
Finally, a shoutout to . These photos wouldn’t be nearly as lovely without the opportunity to use the studio, especially while it’s still cold out.

The moment I saw this .pattern.studio asymmetrical side runched top, I knew I needed one for myself. So far I’ve ended up with three lol. There’s something about gathers and bows that I just can’t get enough of.
This is a really quick make and I can’t wait to rock them during the hot months of summer.
The pants features are ‘s pants and the skirt is ‘s . I’ll do another post about the Henrietta because I am obsessed with that skirt.
The red floral fabric is from , the white lace fabric is from and the cream and navy floral fabric is from .
These photos were taken at , one of my favorite places to photograph my makes, especially when it’s cold out.

I had the pleasure of collaborating with .pattern.studio , who sent me several patterns to sew and photograph. This romper is one of those patterns.
The original romper doesn’t have the extra line of elastic at the waist but since the torso ended up being too long, I created a 1/2” channel, pressed it down, topstitched it and sent my elastic through. That solution both took an inch out of the bodice length and created an aesthetic effect I liked. I love creative problem solving.
I also made a piece bias tape and placed it beneath the single ruffle strap for extra structure.
Overall, I really like my make but I had a small fabric mishap. I have a lot of that green fabric and the bodice pieces must have either come from a separate dye lot or have been sun bleached from sitting on the outside of the bolt too long. It’s less pronounced in person but still kind of a bummer for me. I wish I’d caught the discrepancy sooner and cut out new pieces before proceeding with the sewing.
In the future, I’ll be posting several more of .pattern.studio makes. I’ve made a number of tops from this designer and I find their patterns to be fun and often my style. Sometimes the instructions can be a little sparse but they’re usually relatively easy to figure out.
These photos were taken at , one of my favorite places to photograph my makes, especially when it’s cold out.

I’ve loved this dress ever since I first saw it. Finally got around to making one in this cute flowered flannel from .
Once again, this shoot was a success thanks to ‘s fabulous space ❤️

Spring is coming 🌷✨
Top: .ihde and with my hacked gathered back
Pants: . I hacked the waistband to be a paperbag waist and added a gathered pocket to match the waistband. I’m totally in love with this floral fabric from
A special thanks to for providing such a lovely photography space. It so surpasses my 3 ft white wall where I have to edit out my closet 😅 I love how provides beautiful natural light and switches out their decor for variety.
This shoot started out a little crazy since I only realized I’d forgotten my intervalometer (my add on device that allows me to more easily photograph myself) once I’d arrived at the studio. I live 30 minutes away from the studio and going back to get it would have been an hour long round trip and I’d only booked 2 hours. Fortunately (and unfortunately) David was sick at home and was willing to bring it to me, complete with the extra batteries it needed. Bless him! I can’t tell you how much of a difference it makes not having to hit the 10 second timer 😅

In case you can’t tell from these photos, I really fell in love with this . One of Matchy Matchy Sewing Club’s goals this year is to show their patterns in a wider range of styles and body types to give the sewing community the best idea of how a pattern will work for them. As a result, I’ve had the honor of pattern previewing their upcoming release and I can’t wait for the 19th of this month when the rest of you have access to this wonderful pattern!
The really is so cute, fun and versatile; it can be worn as a set or mixed and matched.
Wishing Matchy Matchy Sewing Club all the success with their newest (upcoming) release! So honored to have been a part of this pattern! ☺️
A special thanks to for providing such a lovely photography space. It so surpasses my 3 ft white wall where I have to edit out my closet 😅 I love how provides beautiful natural light and switches out their decor for variety.
This shoot started out a little crazy since I only realized I’d forgotten my intervalometer (my add on device that allows me to more easily photograph myself) once I’d arrived at the studio. I live 30 minutes away from the studio and going back to get it would have been an hour long round trip and I’d only booked 2 hours. Fortunately (and unfortunately) David was sick at home and was willing to bring it to me, complete with the extra batteries it needed. Bless him! I can’t tell you how much of a difference it makes not having to hit the 10 second timer 😅

I made a whole bunch of workout clothes back in October but somehow never got around to photographing any of them 😅 Here I am finally photographing 2 of them. One day I’ll photograph the rest 🤞
The olive top is .pattern.studio ‘s . I had to take it in on the sides but that also seemed to stretch the top decreasing the gathers in the middle of the loop. I’ll probably modify the pattern to have more gathers in the middle of that loop. I really like gathers ☺️
The olive leggings are ‘s .
The navy top is ‘s . I added the heart, which is also a secret pocket. Not sure what I’d put in it though since sliding my phone in there looks a bit like a baby carrier 😂 Oh well, experimenting with design is fun even if it doesn’t always work out.
Last but not least, the navy leggings are ‘s . They work out quite well, though I had to lower the high waisted waistband.
In the future, I think I’ll be designing my own workout attire which I’m quite excited about ☺️
A special thanks to for providing such a lovely photography space. It so surpasses my 3 ft white wall where I have to edit out my closet 😅 I love how provides beautiful natural light and switches out their decor for variety.

Just me and bae

Happy pattern release day to and .ihde ‘s new ! I had the pleasure of pattern testing this top and it was so great to work with both the designers and the fellow testers. This top is so hackable and I have so many ideas for the future!
‘s are featured in these pictures and pair great with the Calvin. Other testers also paired the top with ‘s and I can’t wait to create that pairing!

I found this gorgeous fabric at several months ago. I had no idea what I’d use it for but I’ve found the perfect pattern for it. Here’s my newly made . I’m loving that it kind of has an vibe 🌺

Super excited I discovered this (let’s sew pink) challenge by ! I had some pink fabric I didn’t know what to do with yet and it fit the challenge perfectly.
The guidelines were to use one of the qualifying patterns (I used the ) and make a pink garment within the month of July.
To add subtle interest, I sewed all the edge stitching in rainbow colored thread.
Loved being part of this and hope to win 5 free patterns! 🤞
Shoes:

This is my second pair of culottes (my first pair was a shorts version and this is the longest version, version C). They’re pretty easy to make and I love that they look like a skirt but have the practicality of pants. I also love that with the billowy-ness of the legs, I don’t have to grade the hips. Nothing to complain about with this pattern, only good things to say. Definitely plan to make more!
Fabric from

Here’s the first I made. The pattern came with a straight hem, but due to my fabric, it looked oddly reminiscent of a scrubs top so I hacked the hem asymmetrically and liked it much better. Since then, I’ve changed my pattern to reflect the back and as you saw recently, I made a chambray version, too.
I was delighted to find some buttons that matched the fabric perfectly.
While I wouldn’t usually give Style Arc an A+ for clear instructions, this one was pretty easy to figure out.
Photo by me since the paparazzi still haven’t caught up with me

Patchwork for the win!
For this project, I used a quilt topper from a HOME2HOME estate sale and mixed it with some denim. Tada! A colorful and unique pair of jeans.

Behold the ! I was looking for a top of this style that I didn’t need to add zippers or buttons to. Ta-da! The Frida Blouse. I had a certain vision in mind so I ended up adding a lot more rows of shirring than the pattern called for (the pattern actually calls for 1/4” elastic so the shirring was a sort of hack). I also lengthened the top by 1 3/4” to make it less cropped.
The instructions are pretty easy to follow and all the seams are french seamed.
I really like this top, so there’s a good chance I’ll be making more!

I’m obsessed with ‘s ! I’ve already made 3 pairs (black, blue and yellow) and I’m not nearly done 😅 I love the vintage feel and the hidden side zip.
For my Marilyn Jeans, I shortened the hem 4 1/4” and didn’t use any of the offered cuffs. I also took an inch out of the center back waist (it starts at size 2 so you’ll have to alter the pattern if you need to go smaller) then I graded up to a size 4 for the hips and legs. I have hips but a thigh gap so I always grade down for the top inner leg to avoid a gapey crotch on narrow leg pants.
The instructions are relatively clear though the zipper took me a few read throughs before I grasped what it was saying.
I’m sure it goes without saying that I love this pattern! I’m making a cream pair with pastel rainbow stitching next.
Also, the red and white tops featured are the

Here’s ‘s . The asymmetrical hem is my hack.
While I wouldn’t usually give Style Arc an A+ for clear instructions, this one was pretty easy to figure out.
Photo by me since the paparazzi still haven’t caught up with me

Had the pleasure of making ‘s new and I’m in love with the result!
I ended up putting a hook and eye at the chest because at least on my bust, it only lay flat when I was standing or sitting with good posture (which doesn’t always happen 😅)
In the future, I’d like to lengthen the hem a bit because my torso is a little longer. Fortunately, with the nature of the ties, I can pull them down to my natural waist and nobody would know the inner is a little short.
As always, ‘s detailed instructions were top notch and easy to follow. All in all, super happy with this top and can’t wait to make more!