Yacht Club - A Perfect Fabric Line for Summer Sewing! -

Hi everyone! Mary Burroughs-Mayer from Ember Craft Company here, and so excited to share my latest makes for Riley Blake Designs!

Yacht Club is the newest fabric collection by Amanda Niederhauser, you can find her on Instagram here. This line is full of sea creatures, sail boats, and flags in a sweet palette of reds and blues, and is perfect for sewing that sweet summer set. The entire collection makes me think of a beach club and I adore the nautical themes.

Now, these fabrics were screaming “Preppy!” to me, and I couldn’t wait to go through my library to find the perfect patterns for this theme. I am a huge fan of Little Lizard King patterns for kids clothing (find their website here). They are well-written and contain links to tutorials for any tricky parts. I’ve basically learned to sew garments via their patterns and cannot recommend them enough. The patterns for all of these makes are from LLK and I will add individual links below!

For Connor’s fit, of course we needed the white shorts. I used the Mendoza pattern (find it here) and the Main print in White from the collection. This pattern comes together quickly with a faux fly and elastic for the back to fit. We added a bit of the Sailboats in Blue print for the front pocket lining – it’s a fun little sneaky peek, though you really don’t see it unless the shirt is tucked in (and if you have had a five year old, you know how unlikely that is!).

For Connor’s shirt, I knew we needed a proper button-down. This is the Bayfield pattern (find it here). It can be made with long or short sleeves, and a curved or straight hem. Connor chose the Flags in Sky print from the collection for his shirt – I love letting them pick the fabrics for their clothes when I can, I hope this keeps them interested in letting me sew for them! I added the Main Red print as a contrast on the cuff and collar, and I have to admit that I’m super proud at how this came out! And could this be any preppier or cuter?!

For Emma’s dress, she chose the Flags in Multi for hers, which was a little surprising. I’m not sure if she wanted to match Connor (they actually love doing this still!) or if she didn’t see some of the other florals in the collection, but here we are! This is the Bellevue dress pattern (find it here). It is a pinafore-style dress that ties in the back. It has enough coverage in the front to wear with or without an undershirt, depending on the occasion, and also uses elastic to fit in the back bodice. We chose to add the double ruffle flutter sleeve and hem (ruffles are still LIFE around here), and we were able to scavenge enough of the Main in Red print for this AND a hairbow!

I used the Accuquilt Bow Tie die to create a hair bow to match her outfit, and this might very well be the perfect finishing touch for this dress. For a tutorial on how to make your own matching bows using this die, check out my YouTube channel here for a direct link! To get your own Bow Tie die, head over to the Accuquilt site and see what it’s all about!

These littles are so incredibly fun to sew for, I can’t wait to see what project comes up for them next!