What to sew for spring: light layers and fresh prints

For spring, sew light layers and prints that work across changing weather: a puff-sleeve blouse in printed cotton lawn, a half-circle skirt in viscose, a shift dress in Tencel, a striped long-sleeve T-shirt, straight trousers in chambray, a linen kimono jacket as the outer layer, a cropped sweatshirt in light French terry and a set of printed cushion covers. The fabrics weigh 100 to 200 g/m² (3 to 6 oz/yd²), heavier than summer and lighter than autumn, and the layers are made to be put on and taken off through the day. A trench coat is the classic spring outer layer and not something a drafting engine draws; the linen kimono jacket is the nearest.

Which fabrics suit spring sewing?

Spring fabric sits between seasons, so pick fabrics that look right over a T-shirt in the morning and alone by lunchtime. Prints come back after a winter of texture, and the light cottons take them best.

Prewash everything, prints included: a printed viscose can shift color slightly in the first wash and you want that to happen before cutting.

Which spring tops and layers should you sew?

A puff-sleeve blouse in printed cotton lawn

The puff-sleeve version of the woven top pattern in a small floral lawn is the spring blouse. Lawn is fine and crisp, so the puff holds its shape with a gathered sleeve head and an elastic cuff and does not collapse the way a soft viscose would. Match the print across the center front if the motif is larger than 5 cm (2 in); for a ditsy print you can ignore matching. The cotton lawn post covers the fine needle and the short stitch length that keep the seams from puckering.

A striped long-sleeve T-shirt

A boat-neck long-sleeve T-shirt in a striped cotton jersey is the under-layer of spring. Cut it with the stripes matched at the side seams and the sleeves, which means laying each piece on the same stripe; the stripe matching post shows how to use the notches. Keep the body fitted, 0 to 2 cm (0 to 3/4 in) of ease, so it sits flat under the blouse and the kimono.

A linen kimono jacket as the outer layer

Spring wants a jacket that is light enough to carry over an arm by the afternoon. Trench coats and tailored jackets are outside Sewly's library; the kimono jacket in a medium-weight linen, hip length, with patch pockets and no belt, does the job. Linen holds the T-shape without interfacing and softens with every wash. The linen sewing post has the settings. In a plain linen it goes over every print on this list; in a print, keep everything under it plain.

A cropped sweatshirt in light French terry

For the cool mornings, the sweatshirt pattern cut cropped to the waist in a 200 to 240 g/m² (6 to 7 oz/yd²) unbrushed French terry. The crop lets it sit over the half-circle skirt and the trousers without covering the waist, and the light terry is a layer rather than a heat source. Sew it in a pale color that matches the chambray trousers and it reads as a set.

Which spring bottoms and dresses should you sew?

A half-circle skirt in printed viscose

A half-circle circle skirt in a printed viscose challis swings when you walk and takes a large print well, because the panels are big and uncut. A full circle in viscose is heavy and drops unevenly; the half circle keeps the movement with half the weight and nests on 140 cm (55 in) wide fabric. Let it hang for 24 hours before hemming. An elastic waist or a zip and waistband both work; the circle skirt calculator gives the waist radius and the fabric length for either.

A shift dress in Tencel twill

A short-sleeve shift dress in Tencel (lyocell) twill, knee length with in-seam pockets. Tencel is a wood-pulp fiber with the drape of viscose and far less creasing, so the dress looks the same at six in the evening as it did at nine. It frays, so finish the seams, and it shows pin holes, so pin inside the allowances. A plain Tencel in a spring color, sage or sand or sky, pairs with the printed blouse and skirt worn on other days.

Straight trousers in chambray

The straight option of the pull-on trousers pattern in a chambray. Chambray is woven like a plain cotton with a colored warp and a white weft, so it looks like denim and weighs half as much. It is the trouser for March rain and May sun alike. Cut them ankle length, add in-seam pockets, and topstitch the pocket openings in a contrasting thread for a denim look.

Printed cushion covers for the house

Spring cleaning ends with new cushion covers in the same printed cotton as the blouse, or in a leftover half meter of a print you could not use for a garment. Envelope backs sew in minutes, and a set of three changes a room for the price of 1 m (1 1/8 yd) of fabric.

How do you mix prints and plains in a spring wardrobe?

Pick one print per outfit and keep its partners plain. The printed lawn blouse goes with the chambray trousers; the printed viscose skirt goes with the striped T-shirt only if the stripe is narrow and in a color from the print. The linen kimono, the Tencel dress and the cropped sweatshirt are the plains that make the prints wearable.

Choose prints by scale as well as color. Small prints suit the blouse, where the pieces are small and gathered; large prints suit the skirt, where the panels are wide. A print with a clear direction, such as a stem that grows upward, needs a one-way layout and 10 to 15 % more fabric; the directional print entry in the glossary explains how to spot one.

In what order should you sew the spring projects?

Sew the cushion covers first on the print you like most; they tell you how the fabric presses and sews before you cut a garment from it. Then the T-shirt and the cropped sweatshirt, which share needle and stitch. Then the chambray trousers and the half-circle skirt, which share the elastic waist. Finish with the blouse and the dress, the two projects with sleeves and facings, when the first warm weekend arrives. The kimono fits in anywhere: it is the quickest garment on the list and the one you will wear most.