Our Barbelle Collection is growing! The Tinsley Tennis Dress released today and has so many fun options. All options feature a scoop front bodice with seaming. For the back, choose between a full back, high scoop, or low scoop. The neckline is finished with thin or thick binding. There are more than five hemlines included! Not feeling a dress? You can opt for the separate sports bra (lined and finished with a band/elastic), separate longline (can be unlined or finished with a shelf bra), plus separate shorties or skort. The shorties feature no front seam, a gusset, side panels, optional pocket, a contour waistband, and 3″ or 4″ inseam. You can also make a skort, using the skirt and shorties.The tennis dress is my favorite, with three options – finished with a shelf bra and shorties, unlined, or fully lined with attached shorties. The skirt is an a-line skirt with front seaming, optional slits, and it comes in micro mini or mini lengths. We hope whether you’re hitting the courts or you’re out for a hot girl walk, we hope you love Tinsley as much as we do.

Getting Started

Before you purchase your patterns, there is a ton of helpful beginner information between the M4M and P4P blogs, in case you are new to knits, or new to PDF patterns in general:

• New to PDF patterns? Check out our helpful tips here
• New to sewing with knits? Brittany has some great info here
• Not quite sure how to measure yourself accurately? Don’t worry; check out the post here!
• Having issues printing? Most issues can be resolved by using our FAQs/troubleshooting tips
• Join our Facebook group here.

Choosing Your Options

We have lots of tester photos in our FB group and on the site if you want to see a variety of photos of each option before you decide! Here is a quick snapshot of the different options:

Fabric + Notions

Tinsley is drafted for medium-weight knit fabric with 4-way stretch, great recovery, and a minimum of 50% horizontal stretch, and 50% vertical stretch. Look for high spandex content, preferably 12-25%. The higher spandex content coupled with heavier weight knits (250gsm+) will feel tighter and provide more compression. For more casual wear, options can include cotton lycra, double brushed poly, thicker ribbed knit, etc. For athletic wear, look for ribbed athletic knits, athletic brushed poly, nylon spandex, poly spandex, supple, yoga knit, nylon spandex tricot, poly spandex tricot, ribbed tricot, athletic foiled knit, etc.

You may also need:

• Optional: 1″ knit elastic for enclosed shelf bra elastic band

Tinsley Hacks

These are some of the quickest hacks we’ve ever given you! No tutorial is even required; they are simple swaps, steps, or mashes that you can use to your Tinsley for even more options.

Unitard Hack

This is so, so easy – all you have to do is leave the skirt off! That’s it! Follow the written Tinsley tutorial as usual.

Solid Front Hack

Another easy hack; to accomplish a plain front, use the lining front piece as your main front bodice piece. I used this hack with the unitard hack for the brown one, and I love it! Note- the white and black longlines on my daughter and me are a pretest version!

J Hook Back

This will make getting your Tinsley on/off easier. Using the hook is especially helpful if your bust and hips have a significant size difference. I ordered my j-hook rings from Etsy. You can get them in several different sizes and finishes.

Make your Tinsley exactly per the tutorial. In the final step, instead of adding the bartacks to the back straps, you will add the j-hook rings.

Cut your straps where you want your hooks. I used the bartack marking on the strap piece, but if you can’t easily reach your upper back, you may want to cut them closer to your neck/a little higher.

Loop one end of the strap in the ring with wrong sides together and pin in place. Loop the other end through the same ring and pin in place. Repeat with the other strap and ring, ensuring the hook side faces the center.

BASTE the straps on and quickly try it on to see if you want to see if you need to adjust the straps. Once you’re happy, stitch the straps to the rings with a narrow zig zag.

That’s it! My cousin quickly stole mine to wear to the Barbie movie!

Wrenley Mash

How cute is this Wrenley + Tinsley mash up?? If you love the idea of the Tinsley Tennis dress, but would feel more comfortable with a wider strap, Wrenley is a great option to mash with.

Florence Mash

Looking for a fuller skirt on the Tinsley? Mash with the Florence pattern for a little extra oomph. If you want to keep the same finished length, you’ll need to adjust the length of the Florence skirt. I compared the finished measurements and adjusted them so they were the same.

Swimsuit Hack

We love Teri’s vision to use Tinsley as a swim top or even dress! Use your favorite swim fabric and add swim elastic, and you are ready to hit the pool or beach!

 

Which version will you sew up first?? We can’t wait to see!

 

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