Sewing an Athleisure Set, Part One

“I have often noticed that people who routinely wear sportswear are the least likely sort to participate in athletic activity.” — Gail Honeyman

Guilty as charged! Though my closet may appear like I am a workout warrior, the reality is that the majority of my exercise comes in the form of chasing my little ones around, which I do on the daily. The fastest one of them all? My daughter, who just turned 6. So I figured I may as well turn this everyday habit of “running” into a fashionable moment.

Sewing Patterns Used for the Athleisure Set

Join me for a sew along of the Made For Mermaids athleisure patterns: Danika Top and Serena Skort. Both patterns were released as part of the “Barbelle Collection”, a group of sewing patterns aimed to transition between workout wear to everyday wear. They are available on Made for Mermaids website, and can be purchased as an adult-only pattern, a youth-only pattern, or as a bundle.

The Danika Top features a tie-back that can be worn wrapped, twisted, or tied in a bow. With multiple sleeve and hem length options, this pattern can be made in a myriad of ways. A full-length YouTube tutorial is available, making this sewing pattern the perfect place to start in the athleisure world. For this tutorial, I will be sewing the high-neck sleeveless long crop tie-back view.

Unlike the Danika Top’s numerous views, the Serena Skort has only one view, with varying hemline and waistband lengths. It’s a no fuss, straight to the point tried and true skort pattern. It features a petal skirt hem, a unique technique of the skirt pieces overlapping instead of being sewn down the sides. This allows the shorties underneath to show as the wearer moves about. Like the Danika Top, it also has a full-length YouTube tutorial available. For this tutorial, I will be sewing the contour waistband mid-length skort. I am 5’7 and tend to find the mini lengths a bit too short for my height.

Materials Needed to Sew the Athleisure Set

Both patterns were drafted for a light to medium-weight knit with 50% stretch, which was the perfect excuse to use these beautiful Stof Fabrics I had in my stash.

Both jersey bases, these Stof Fabrics provide the perfect stretch and recovery for an athleisure set. I was drawn initially to the coloring of the Flower Lines fabric and found the perfect coordinating aqua solid to go along with it. The contrast between the navy blue and the bright aqua really makes the fabric pop! The colors are suited for each other, making them a great option for mixing and matching. I see a lot of tank/skirt combos in my future!

Visit your local BERNINA Dealer to learn more and purchase these fabrics.

Other Notions Needed to Sew the Athleisure Set

• Ball point/Jersey Sewing Needle
• Pins/Clips
• Seam Gauge/Ruler
• Scissors/Snips
• Turning Tool

Preparing to Sew the Athleisure Set

• Take your measurements and find your size. Pages 4-6 in the instruction booklet of both patterns include a table of both Body Measurements and Finished Garment Measurements.

• Print the pattern and cut out your size. Both patterns also include an A0 and a projector file to reduce paper consumption. If between sizes, it is encouraged to grade your pattern to custom fit your own measurements.

Cutting the Pattern Pieces for the Athleisure Set

The real fun began when I started mapping out how I would coordinate the two fabrics into the pattern pieces. I wanted the Flower Lines fabric to be the main fabric, with peeks of the aqua showing through. So I opted to cut the aqua fabric in the shorts/pocket/waistband pattern pieces of the Serena Skort, as well as the neck/sleeve bindings on the Danika top. The rest of the pattern pieces were cut in the Flower Lines Fabric.

Pieces Cut for the Danika Top

• Front – Cut 1 on fold
• Upper Back – Cut 2 on the fold
• Lower Tie Back – Cut 4 (2 sets of mirror image)
• Neckband – Cut 1
• Sleeveless Armbands – Cut 2

Pieces Cut for the Serena Skort

• Shorties Front – Cut 2 (as a mirror image set)
• Shorties Back – Cut 2 (as a mirror image set)
• Optional Patch Pocket – Cut 1
• Skirt Front – Cut 1 on fold
• Skirt Back – Cut 1 on fold
• Contour Waistband Front – Cut 1 on fold
• Contour Waistband Back – Cut 1 on fold

With everything cut out and ready to sew, I prepared my BERNINA L 890 Serger with navy blue thread and selected Stitch #1 (4-Thread Overlock with Integrated Safety Seam). This is the main stitch I will be using on my L 890, but you can also use your overstitch function for hemming!

Ready to see it all come together? Part two of our Athleisure Set series is coming soon—you won’t want to miss it!