It was just a few weeks ago that I announced the release of a new bra pattern and kits for the Madalynne X Simplicity 8624, but I’m coming at you with another! As opposed to the 8624, which is a challenging sewing project, the Barrett bralette is more basic. It’s an every day pull-on style (no hooks & eyes) that is meant for all sewing levels. You want to know the two best parts about Barrett? One, it’s free and two, it can be sewn without a serger. Woo!
Pattern Overview: The Barrett is a sporty femme pull-on bralette (no hooks & eyes) that has adjustable shoulder straps, a triangle opening at center front and a wide elastic band at the bottom. It has a forgiving fit, and is meant to be an everyday basic style with a twist via cool fabrics and novelty hardware.
Intended Bra Makers: The Barrett is a soft bra, meaning that it does not have underwires. The amount of stretch your fabric has and the firmness of your elastics will play a big role in the amount of support your bralette provides. The pattern is available in sizes XS-XL and is intended for small to medium cup sizes – cup sizes AA-C.
Pattern Highlights: Because the Barrett was developed for all sewing levels, I assumed that some wouldn’t have a serger and didn’t include using one in the directions. The entire bralette has enclosed seams and no raw fabric edges on the inside. Also, for the vertical seam at the center front, I came up with a way to finish the elastics so that it lies flat and isn’t bulky. There was an easy, ‘cop out’ way I could have done it, but I went with the more challenging method. If you’re a sewing nerd like me, you’ll love it ;)
How long does it take to make a Barrett? Depending on your sewing experience, you could whip it up in an hour or two. Who doesn’t love a quick DIY? Woot woot!
Inspiration and Moodboard
Up until this point, the lingerie patterns I’ve offered are not the same as my RTW styles. If someone wanted to make the Macie ruffle bralette or undie, they couldn’t, unless they purchased it and created a pattern from the garment. Going forward, it is my goal to merge the two so that if someone wanted to buy a Madalynne bra/bralette, they could, and if someone wanted to make a Madalynne bra/bralette, they could do that too. The Barrett bralette is based on well, the Barrett bralette, which is available on my web shop as well as Anthropologie.com. Side note – for you folks who are wondering about the Macie pattern. Yes, it’s coming this year ; )
Barrett Kit
Trying to source all the fiddly bits for lingerie is a pain in the butt. Been there, done that. Yes, I am trying to sell my kits, but seriously, I’m saving you time and money. You’ll spend $3.00 on a hook and eye, and then spend $5.95 on shipping. You can easily end up with a bra that costs you $85 dollars or more. That’s why I’m offering kits for the Barrett where you’ll receive everything you need to make it. As of right now, there are three – a really soft yellow rib knit that makes an excellent t-shirt bralette, a blush pink glitter stretch mesh with silver hardware and a blush pink glitter stretch mesh with rhinestone hardware/rings and sliders. Considering that the pattern is free, I think the price is fair. Also, all fabrics and trims will be delivered in an exclusive Madalynne Intimates box that features a pull out drawer, which adds a nice, “intimate” touch.
Hop on over to the web shop to purchase a kit now!
Where to Download Barrett:
There is a link to download the pattern below, but in the future, if you need to download the Barrett pattern, hop on over to my Free Sewing Page. I will keep it there along with all my other free sewing patterns.
Click here to purchase the kit and click here to download the pattern!
A huge thank you goes out to Alexis Hughes, a former student who lives in Philly and helped develop and fine tune this pattern. Muchas gracias pretty lady!
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Thanks so much for the free pattern will be great to make for my daughters x
Lucky daughters ;)
Fabulous! Thank you for an adorable pattern and the beautifully presented instructions.
You’re welcome
This is so beautiful! I absolutely love your patterns, Maddie!
Merci!
Such a cute staple! Thanks so much for making it a free pattern. I’ve been meaning to replace all of my RTW bralettes with cute handmade ones, and this might be the push I needed. Then, after I’ve conquered bralettes, I can finally sew up the wireless bra using the kit I bought from you =) Yay for goals!
The Barrett is DEFINITELY a staple. You’ll wear it over and over. This pattern is also a great project to get you ready for more challenging bra styles.
Thanks for the freebie Madalynne!
Thanks so much, Maddie! This is so nice of you :)
Thanks for the free pattern! I’ve already sewn one up in stretch velvet and printed mesh, and it’s lovely. I cut in between sizes, so it fits perfectly even though my cup size definitely falls well outside the AA-C range. Your patterns are always so versatile that way!
Velvet sounds lovely! Be sure to share it on Insta! Tag @mmadalynne so I can regram!
Wow! Thank you for a new free pattern. And concerning the Kit – I like this idea so much, unfortunately, in my country nowbody sell kits for underwear sewing. And I have to spend a lot of time buying all components for one bra or bralette. Have a good day!
Thank you! That’s exactly why I offer the kits – so that you don’t have to go through the hassle of sourcing all the little components.
Thank you so much for the pattern. Making bras is one of my sewing goals this year. I love non – wired basic bra (lette) s.
You can do it! I’ll be your biggest cheerleader ;)
Gracias por compartir el patrón gratis. desde Venezuela, soy una admiradora. Gracias por las enseñanzas
For the life of me I can not get the Barrett to print. I have been able to use printfriendly on another site, but not yours. I’m disappointed as I wanted to make it for my daughter.
I’m sorry to hear that. Can you explain what trouble you were having? I haven’t heard of anyone else having trouble and would like to address it if there is an issue. I just tried and the pattern printed correctly.
I’m still a bit new to the bra sewing stuff. Can I use a 4 way stretch fabric? Or is it better to use a 2 way? I have an E cup breast, but I’ve adjusted the cup size using the usual full bust adjustments. I’ve just had trouble with the cup seams being too rigid compared to the cup fabric around it. Thanks
Hi Cassandra! You can use a 4-way or 2-way stretch fabric. If it’s a 4-way, you don’t have to worry about what direction to place the pattern pieces when cutting. If it’s a 2-way stretch though, be sure to place the stretch going around the body. The pattern was designed for fabric that has approximately 30-50% stretch, so anything higher or lower you may want to size up or down.
If you haven’t purchased fabric or trims, check out the latest lingerie kit below. The swiss dot is super nice and the bottom band is wider than the other kits, so it offers more support. The swiss dot is very lightweight, so I DEFINITELY suggest using 2 layers of the nude mesh (there is enough in each kit) as the lining if you’re an E cup.
https://madalynne.com/product-category/diy-lingerie-kits/
All in all, I think the Barrett is a great place to start with sewing bras
Cassandra – beginning sewer here. How do I adjust the cup size here? Any tutorials you can recommend? I wanted to get into sewing because I can never find things that fit me properly with a 32 F bust, alas! I want to make some cute bralettes…
Thanks for the cool pattern. Why are the DOGS running up and down? I thought the DOGS go around the body.
Great question! For the back band, the DOGS DEFINITELY have to be around the body to allow for breathing and such. So that you don’t feel constricted. According to “bra rules” however, the stretch should be minimized in the front (cups) for stability (read: to keep the girls in place). I believe that you should know the “rules” in order to break them. So with that said, I have made Barretts with both the DOGS running up and down as well as sideways and been fine. Depending on the fabric and how much stretch it has, you might want to size up or down (size up if placing the DOGS up and down, size down if placing the DOGS sideways).
Let me know if that answers your question! Always here to help ; )
I love the pattern. Seems like a good one for a small-busted beginner! Is there a tutorial for doing the elastic that crosses? I am having trouble conceptualizing how to do it. Can you use fold over elastic or only picot edge? If elastic is wider than 1/4 “, which way do you extend beyond? So it hangs off the edge or so a bit of the bra cup material is showing? Also, when are you to sew the side cups to the front cups?