1 April 2020

Tilly's Gold Potato-Printed Safiya Dungarees

Tilly's Gold Potato-Printed Safiya Dungarees - sewing pattern in Make It Simple
[post contains gifted product]

What do you get if you cross a crafter with linen fabric, gold paint and a potato?

Gold potato-printed linen Safiya dungarees, that's what!

Harking back to more carefree times, I made these Safiya dungarees to wear to the launch of my new book Make It Simple. The pattern, which is included in the book, is a variation on the Safiya wide-legged trousers. For this version, I lengthened them slightly from cropped-above-the-ankle to full-length, partly because it was cold when I made them, and partly because I thought they looked nice like that when I tried them on mid-make.

Tilly's Gold Potato-Printed Safiya Dungarees - sewing pattern in Make It Simple
Tilly's Gold Potato-Printed Safiya Dungarees - sewing pattern in Make It Simple

When imagining my launch party outfit, I had the idea in my head for a metallic modern print fabric like this and set about hunting for it online. When I couldn't find it, I decided to make it myself, partly inspired by the fabric printing tutorial Zeena wrote for us a while back, partly inspired by a potato-printing craft session with my two year old son.

I had the linen in my stash already, and ordered some gold fabric paint online. I cut a potato into a vaguely rectangular wedge, and set about blobbing the paint onto the fabric. It only took about ten minutes and was so much fun!

Then came the more tedious part. The fabric paint label said that it would be machine washable if pressed for five minutes. "Five minutes?" I thought. "Easy peasy!" Then I realised it would be five minutes per iron-sized area of fabric, on dungaree-sized pieces of fabric. I set up a little factory system, leaving the iron on one area of fabric while I stitched a seam or two, then moving the iron to another part of the fabric and starting sewing a different part.

I learnt the hard way that, when pressing metallic paint for hours on end, you need to keep the room well-ventilated. It was a cold day, so only after about 90 minutes did I think to open a window... and by that time I had a pretty nasty headache. Oops! Don't make the same mistake as I did!

Tilly's Gold Potato-Printed Safiya Dungarees - sewing pattern in Make It Simple
Tilly's Gold Potato-Printed Safiya Dungarees - sewing pattern in Make It Simple

They were totally worth the pain though, as I absolutely love the finished result. These are my third pair of Safiya dungarees and definitely won't be my last. They're so comfy to wear, and can be layered over t-shirts, turtlenecks or blouses, depending on the occasion.

I'm wearing them with these gorgeous red clogs that were gifted from Lotta from Stockholm. I wore these to the book launch party too and adore them... especially paired with a pop of red lipstick.

Tilly's Gold Potato-Printed Safiya Dungarees - sewing pattern in Make It Simple

Have you made the Safiya dungarees yet? If you're tempted to experiment in vegetable-printed fabric too, I'd love to see! Do share your makes with us on Instagram tagging us in @TillyButtons #SewingSafiya and #MakeItSimpleBook so we can see.

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Photos by Jane Looker

Make It Simple - sewing book