Frankie Tankie

Featuring Fabric from the Maaidesign Artist Collection

I’ve always wanted to come back to sew the Vanessa Hansen Frankie Tankie and with summer coming around it was perfect timing when Maaidesign sent me a preview sample from their Artist Collection. The Maaidesign Artist Collection features three talented designers; Jessica Neilsen, Jennifer Bouron and RouCouCou. The collection features these beautiful designs in three premium fabric bases. They include super smooth cotton lawn, soft cotton jersey and drapey viscose twill. There are no pre-launch orders available so the best way to make sure that you don’t miss out is to subscribe to the Maaidesign newsletter! Maaidesign have set their launch date for the 5th of December but it is best to keep an eye out with a subscription to their newsletter.

My little piece is called Messy flowers by Jennifer Bouron in a super smooth cotton lawn. It is beautifully lightweight and luxuriously smooth to feel. Maaidesign cotton lawn feels very silky and drapey. It’s woven at a very high thread count giving it that luxurious quality. This lightweight fabric is perfect for summer blouses and dresses.

As usual, I started my sew with preparing the fabric. I do this by washing the fabric on a cold cycle , air drying and finishing with an iron because cotton lawn is one hundred percent cotton. There was no shrinkage or loss of colour in the fabric which is what I would expect of good quality fabric. I then prepared my machine by swapping to a 70/10 gage needle on my machine which I feel suits the lightweight fabric (80gsm) and the finer needle prevents snagging the finer fabric.

The Frankie Tankie can be sewn as a double-sided blouse or with a facing. I’ve chosen the facing option. I used a white cotton muslin for the facing. I had about one meter of the super smooth cotton lawn. It is quite wide in width at 150cm, so it was sufficient for the Frankie Tankie. My measurements of 38-inch bust, and 33-inch waist fell into the size 12 but the pattern does run a little big so I could have also comfortably fitted into the size 10. The top is a cropped length, but I did lengthen the top by 2cm because I wanted to have the choice of tucking it in or wearing it out.

Vanessa Hansen Frankie Tankie worn with True Bias Mave Skirt

Maaike and the Maaidesign team have really curated the best quality fabric which is great when you’re buying online. I feel that it’s easy to trust that you’re going to get the best for your sewing projects. So excited for this launch of the Maaidesign Artist Collection! Messy Flowers by Jennifer Bouron is a beautiful bold abstract print. She is a designer that is known for her beautiful bold prints and illustrations, and I’ve been a great admirer for a long time. I’m so happy that Maaidesign have made it easy for Sewists to find these beautifully designed fabrics in one place. A blog post was not a requirement for receiving this fabric but I really wanted to share!

Thanks for reading and happy sewing!

X Em

It’s winter in Perth but I just couldn’t wait to sew up the Frankie Tankie which is a pattern by Vanessa Hansen Studio. Vanessa worked for many years in the London fashion industry and she has posted some of the designs she has been involved in on her Instagram Page. She is extremely talented and her patterns are one of a kind.

The Frankie Tankie is so cute with the tied strap detail. I’ve made the hacked shift dress version but I can see myself making this pattern a few more times! It’s just one of those patterns that will be easy to refresh and reinvent. Vanessa has acknowledged this by giving instructions for not one but TWO dress hack versions! This is such a cool inclusion in a pattern.

The pattern is beginner friendly. She has very detailed instructions with lots of explanations. It feels like she is holding your hand through the sew with easy-to-follow tips along the way and includes a bit of humour which makes it fun to follow. It felt like she looked into my brain when one of the steps said, “… do not use your scissors to push even if it is tempting”.

My dress version was simple to do. I’ve just increased the length of the tank by 15 inches. The lengthen and shorten lines are included on the pattern pieces which makes it easy to do this. In fact, there is quite a lot of detail for different options which I enjoy. Choices are given for if you want to use a facing, a lining or to make it double sided.

Sizing was spot on. I made the UK 12 B Cup. My measurements are 37 inch bust, 33 inch waist, 38 inch hip. No modifications were needed. Size range for garment measurements are from 34 ¾ inch to 41 ¾ inch full bust, 38 ¼ inch to 45 1/8 inch waist. The pattern is drafted for three different sewing cup sizes A, B and DD.

I really can’t wait to sew this again. I used a light denim fabric with a ditzy daisy print to make this version of the Frankie Tankie dress. I’d love to make another with an even lighter drapey woven like cotton lawn, silk or rayon. The options are endless. Definitely one that I’ll enjoy wearing on a hot summer day.

Thanks for reading and happy sewing!

X Em

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Frankie Tankie Dress Hack