Sarah’s Teddybear Fleece Cosy Cardi

Posted by Sarah Wadey
on March 12, 2019

How gorgeous is this teddy bear fleece fabric we just got in?  When it arrived I just knew I had to make something out of it immediately!

 
 
I can’t keep up with what the weather is doing, one minute it’s looking like spring is sprung and the next minute it’s snowing! So I thought a nice cosy cardi would be ideal. Plus the awesome thing is it will fit me right through the rest of my pregnancy and be so useful afterwards too!
 
This is the free pattern which we have contributed to Love Sewing magazine this month.  It features an edge to edge front, long line length and huge pockets. Perfect for keeping all the necessities close to hand on the shop floor!
 
I made the cardi almost entirely on the overlocker apart from stitching the hem with a three step zigzag and the pockets with a stretch stitch on the sewing machine. Which meant this speedy make took me about two hours in total! 
 
My top tip for sewing through the bulky layers, especially when attaching the front band over the top of the pockets, is to zigzag stitch the edges together first using a really wide and long zigzag and then remove the knife from your overlocker, as it can get stuck in bulky layers, and overlock over the top of this. This really squished the seams down and produced a much neater finish.
 
One of our customers made this pattern but didn’t have an overlocker, so she bound the front band seam allowances instead and that really worked to neaten the raw edges! 
 
I went for the tan colour because it would go with lots of things in my wardrobe but I really want to make a longer one in the gorgeous dusky pink now!
 
What would you make? 
Happy Sewing! 
Sarah x