Tackling Fit Sewing Camp Weekend Retreat - May 2025

Do you love sewing but haven't mastered getting garments to fit the way you'd like? Do you have patterns you love, but something isn't quite right with the finished garment? Would you like to finally decipher the key adjustments you need to fit YOUR body? Join us for our first Tackling Fit Weekend Retreat at Makers Hideaway! 

Bring your problem garments, muslins, and patterns for a weekend of hands-on fitting help with our local fit expert, Marla Kazell. Enjoy 2-1/2 days of uninterrupted sewing time to work on any project you'd like and get the help you need along the way. Marla will be available throughout the weekend to help you learn how to take the measurements you need, how to adjust pattern pieces, and how your adjustments will translate to your fabric and finished garment. 

Marla will help you learn how you can trace your patterns onto tissue and pin them together to fit. Try on the tissue – you’ll be amazed at how much you can see even with paper. Learn how to identify where your fitting issues are and how to adjust for them on the paper pattern before you ever cut into your fabric. Marla will show you how to alter patterns for common adjustments like rounded or flat backs, broad, narrow, or forward shoulders, full busts, full upper arms, and more.

The Style Maker Fabrics shop will also be open throughout the weekend if you need additional supplies, fabric, or projects as you work.

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This is an all-inclusive sewing weekend escape! It includes shared luxury lodging, food + drinks + snacks, and instruction from our sewing expert. Bring yourself, your sewing machine (if possible), and all of the projects you want to work on for a unique weekend escape. And the best part? We'll take care of all the cooking and cleaning! You get to enjoy a weekend free from day-to-day responsibilities and focus on relaxing and spending time with fellow sewists.

Retreat Dates:

Thursday, May 1st thru Sunday, May 4th, 2025

Location: Makers Hideaway retreat center, Stanwood, Washington

• Roughly one hour North of Seattle.
• Fifteen minutes from Smokey Point (I-5 exit 206)
• Convenient from Stanwood or Everett train stations or Everett's Paine Field Airport (PAE). There is also a local shuttle from SeaTac Airport (SEA) if needed.

Registration Includes:

• 18 hours of hands-on fitting + sewing assistance from fit expert Marla Kazell
• 2-1/2+ Days of Uninterrupted Sewing (see tentative schedule below)
  
• 3 Nights Accommodations at Makers Hideaway + All Meals, Beverages, and Snacks
• Welcome Gift Bag
• Exclusive Discount for the Style Maker Fabrics Shop to Use During Your Stay
• Sewing Machines Available to Borrow On-Site (Limited number)

Tentative Schedule:

Other Info:

Do you have any dietary restrictions? Want to room with a friend? Need transportation from a local train station or airport? We'll do our best to help meet all of your needs. We'll contact each attendee in the weeks leading up to the event to make sure everything is in place for a worry-free weekend!

Instructor Bio:

Marla Kazell has been sewing professionally for over 40 years and creates beautiful couture clothing for special clients in her custom clothing business in Tigard, Oregon. Her focus is on fit and fine construction. She specializes in beautifully tailored jackets and suits, pants fitting, dresses, and separates.

She learned to sew in her 7th-grade Home Economics class and began her career in the sewing industry as a sample seamstress in the Research and Development Department at Stretch and Sew in Eugene, Oregon. As she developed her custom clothing business, Marla continued to learn all she could about fitting, fashion, and sewing from many well-known teachers, including 12 years of study with couture expert Roberta Carr.

Marla has written articles for the Sewing Update Newsletter and Notions, Threads, and Sew News magazines. She was also the featured expert for the Sew News "Q&A" column for four years.

Her love of sewing led Marla to share her expertise in classes and hands-on workshops in Portland, Oregon, and across the country. After being privileged to serve as technical advisor for Roberta Carr's book Couture: The Art of Fine Sewing, Marla created and taught the Palmer/Pletsch Couture Workshop for 10 years.

Cancellation Policy: For cancellations made on or before 4/1/25, there is a $50 processing fee. For cancellations made after 4/1/25, 50% of the registration fee will be refunded.