The Restitcherator

One of my last winter weekends

2012-02-26T18:40:00.004-05:00

I don't know where you all live, but here in CT it has been a strange, not-very-winter-like-winter. This was probably the last weekend for local skiing. Unless you go up north (VT or NH) it won't be cold enough to make snow, or keep what they did make...so we tried to enjoy it.

This is my step-son, who is a PERPETUAL teaser, chops buster and all around prankster extraordinaire. Lucky for me, Rob gave me this great photo opp. I NEVER get to pull one over on him, and he had no idea.

The best part though was, that he had a great sense of humor about it, and we both had a really good laugh.

I also have spent some time this winter making home made dog treats, and I think I've perfected this one recipe. I know how to alter it so that the texture is consistent and I can actually easily make these little disk shapes. I got the recipe here.

My daughter had her second horse riding show this morning, and she made such HUGE improvements, she actually took one blue ribbon home today. She was ecstatic.

And the tiny little bit of sewing I did manage to sneak in, was a strip based quilt that I started out of a Kaffe Fassett design roll I got on sale somewhere. Of course, I didn't realize that design roll means 28 strips, not 40. Thankfully though, I had enough to make the quilt. Once I get the top done, I'll blog about the book and the pattern.

Now off to watch the Oscars and eat popcorn. Not bad at all for a non-winter-like weeekend.

Not sure if I should laugh, or cry

2012-02-21T11:40:00.002-05:00

I had four days off in a row. I was determined to finish my Cosmo bag. I had made such good progress and I felt like I could finish it if I focused. And focus I did. I put it all together, but I still need a button, I didn't have a 2 1/2" one, but figured I take a picture to blog about it anyway.

And as I went to make my bag look as much like the cover as I could, I realized that my handles.looked.funny. That's right, I sewed the handles on completely the wrong way. This might actually be funny, if I hadn't already made, oh, 2-3 other HUGE mistakes. (Look at the funky curve on the front of my bag vs. the bag on the cover of the book).

I didn't attach the side pockets when I put the outer bag together...they are still on my cutting table. As are the other two interior pockets. Still on my sewing table. The pattern was very good, it was clear, it had plenty of steps. I just didn't really follow them very well.

This is what Amy calls an "easy" pattern. Sweet Baby Jesus. What are the Expert patterns like??

This experience was very humbling. I thought "they're big pieces, the directions are only 14 steps, how hard can it be?" Of course, that doesn't even begin to contemplate that I used my gorgeous Echo fabric and now it's gone (insert sobbing here).

But I am an eternal optimist...and so here is what I am taking away from this massive blow to my sewing ego...

1). It's got a huge inside, that looks wonderful and can hold a lot of stuff.

2.) It is still very usable, although not a polished as the one in the book. I will absolutely carry this bag this summer and proudly say "yes, I made it".

3.) If I ever get up the guts to make another one, I'll know exactly how to make it next time.

What's the worst sewing mess you've ever made with a pattern?

Doing the boring stuff - Cosmo Bag Part #1 (oh, and home made dog treats)

2012-01-16T16:51:00.010-05:00

I bought Amy Butler's Style Stitches at Joann fabrics for half price at the end of last winter. I've spent all this time looking at the beautiful bags and wondering when I would have the courage to try one. At my Heather Ross weekend, I bought some Echo by Lotta Jansdotter at Purl Soho to make a Cosmo Bag, but then I got sidetracked by the blouse that never was.

So, since I had a three day weekend, I decided to dive in. WHEW! Was that a lot of cutting to do! Every piece needing a matching piece of fusible interfacing. Then I had to actually FUSE them. That's taken all of my sewing time this weekend...but now, my pleats are pinned and I'm read to start sewing.

It looks like it might be pretty freakin' gorgeous when I'm done! (Sorry for the cruddy iPhone picture). The orange will be the lining. LOVE IT.

I also took a detour from sewing to make our puppies some peanut butter treats. THEY LOVE THEM. And I got the recipe here at Dog Treat Recipes dot org. I chose this one because I had the stuff on hand. There are so many other recipe sites, I'm sure I'll try others.

Christmas Jammies - and it's only mid-January!

2012-01-09T07:40:00.005-05:00

I love the idea of making special pajamas for Christmas Eve. So when Melanie (Above All Fabric) offered kits last year I jumped on them. They used Carla Crim's (aka The Scientific Seamstress) super easy pattern for Easy Fit Pants and the fabrics were flannel and super cute.

Of course the fabric sat on my cutting table for a good 3 months, but I finally made the pants. Thankfully the kids don't seem to care that Christmas has come and gone.

I made two pair in an hour. Not a bad return for your time!

WELCOME 2012 - Tula Pink "Field Study"

2012-01-02T13:13:00.006-05:00

Happy New Year everyone! I've had a wonderful 10 days off from work and it's going to be tough to get back into the swing of things tomorrow.

I am thrilled that I can start the year off with a blog post of a FINISHED UFO so soon. Both of the kids had friends over today so I got time by myself to sew and finish up this quilt top.

It's Tula Pink's Field Study pattern.

A few quick observations...I actually seem to cut smaller pieces much more exactly than I do large pieces. These blocks are 12 1/2" and my squares were not so square.

The pattern was well written, clear, and I LOVE that it's color on glossy paper. I'm rough with patterns and this will last well, and I will certainly be able to use it again. It went together quickly, when I actually WORKED on it.

(Clearly, one of my goals for 2012 needs to be improved picture taking!!)

This is the first quilt that I made entirely from my own stash. It was actually really satisfying to buy the pattern and "shop" on my shelves for what I was looking for.

I also am hopeful that this size quilt will be good practice for my very so-so quilting skills. I'll be sure to post when it's all made up. I truly love how it came out, so I'm motivated to get it done.

Do you make up entire tops from your stash?

Getting things accomplished! Hand sewing and shop update

2011-11-27T08:25:00.007-05:00

I hope everyone is enjoying the last day of their Thanksgiving weekend. I had a wonderful weekend with my husband's family in New York, and we took the kids to see the Muppets movie last night. All that and I still have a day left.

I often struggle with going away for the weekends, because I miss sewing time. A lot of weeks, the only time I get to sew is on the weekend. I haven't been a big hand sewer in a long time, and I find that with embroidery, I can only take it with me if it' already started and I know what I'm doing. I can't start a project away from home. Weird, I know, but true.

One of the things I've been dying to try is making hexagons. I had gotten some pre-cut paper forms this summer (because I am too lazy to cut my own) and they've been calling to me to use them.

I for the life of me, couldn't figure out how to tack down the sides once I cut the fabric. I had to go onto Youtube and look at a video of a 9 year old girl making hexis to understand...you have to baste THROUGH the paper. I was trying to avoid the paper, forgetting I would be pulling out the basting stitches, and would be able to pull the paper out. Can you say DUH?

This is my first four...

Once, I got going...I LOVED it. Making these absolutely feeds my need for immediate gratification.

I already have a bunch more cut and ready to make the next time I have to sit still somewhere.

Yesterday, once I got home and SOME of the laundry done, I made some napkins for my etsy shop. I didn't want this fantastic Christmas print to not make it to the shop before the holidays.

and I had a few scraps left from a remnant I bought at a Sis Boom sale last year. If you live anywhere near here, and you can get to one of Jennifer's sales, I strongly suggest you do. She has one coming up next weekend.

What do you all take with you for sewing when you travel?

Izzy N Ivy Addie Jo Pattern Review - Adorable Skirt pattern!

2011-11-20T12:10:00.003-05:00

I got this pattern as part of a kit from Above All Fabric. I love Melanie's kits. She does a great job choosing fabric choices and makes it easy to get the package in the mail and start sewing right away.

This was the first Izzy N Ivy pattern I've made. I always love trying new pattern designers, and this one did not disappoint. The pattern comes with 5 different style choices. My daughter chose version C, which had a ruffle at the bottom of the simple skirt top. This was my absolutely FAVORITE pattern type. The directions were very well written, with clear diagrams inside and it was easy to follow along with which version of the skirt I was making. The directions were fairly short, none of the versions of this skirt were very complicated. I made a modified size 6. My daughter is a skinny Minnie, so we have to really decrease anything with a big waist or too much fabric. This worked out perfectly, between the elastic waistband that I could cut to fit her, and the "just right" amount of fabric for a nice twirly skirt that was not too much to overwhelm her little frame.

Also, it came in a ziploc bag, which is wonderful. The cellophane with a sticker I always manage to make a mess of, rip the sticker and the cellophane gets stuck to another pattern. The directions were on nice thick stock, printed in an easy to read font. Perfect.

I would absolutely make this skirt again in another one of the versions. It went together very quickly. Including cutting, I would say a total of 2 1/2 hours. The only reason it took me that long is that I am NOT a good gather-er. I always break at least one set of gathering stitches and have to start over. Thankfully, this time, it was only once.

Who are your favorite pattern designers? For quilts and for clothing?

My Amazing Weekend with Heather Ross and friends

2011-11-18T10:56:00.016-05:00

I want to get this out as quickly as possible. I don’t want to lose the intensity of the emotion before I have a chance to get it written down. Do you know how some days, or weeks burn themselves into your brain, either in the moment, or afterwards, as having been really critical in some way? Maybe you learned something that you’ve been trying to learn for a long time. Maybe you finally became aware of something that has been nibbling at your subconscious. This past weekend was one of those times for me, and here’s why.

I signed up for this Heather Ross “Sewing Weekend” this spring. It was something to look forward to, and it was purely “me” time. It wasn’t cheap, but when I saw the slate of guest teachers, I knew I had to go. There was Gretchen Hirsch of Gertie’s New Blog for Better Sewing, Liesl Gibson, Moda fabric designer, Oliver & S and Lisette pattern author, and Jay McCarroll, winner of season 1 of Project Runway. These folks were IN ADDITION to Heather herself. An aspiring designer’s dream team. So I took my hard earned cube farm bonus and paid up.

(view from my hotel room...LOVE the water towers)

(blurry picture, but love this note on my bathroom mirror)

As is usually the case, as the weekend neared, I had doubts. Did I really want to be away, for a whole weekend, without my kids and husband? Was it really going to be worth all the money I had spent? Would I just be wasting one of precious fall weekends and come home exhausted needing another vacation? But I forged ahead, packed my bags, and headed to NYC on Friday evening.

We started out with a private shopping event at Purl Soho. The store closed at 7 and we got to shop from 7-8 with the guest teachers offering guidance. I was so star struck at first, I really found it hard to approach anyone, even the other students. As is often the case with me, I waffled between insecurity and that “oh, will they LIKE me” mess, and wanting to rip all the bolts off the shelves and run out the door to hoard the amazing fabric. I bought 2 ½ yards of a Liberty of London fabric to make a blouse pattern I had brought along (purchased 2 years earlier when I had a SERIOUSLY inaccurate handle on my sewing skills). I also bought fabric to make an Amy Butler bag, and this amazing ombre fabric that I have no idea what I do with, but just HAD to have.

(eye candy from Purl Soho)

(ONE of the many Liberty sections)

We went from there to a group dinner at Lucky Strike. They weren’t really ready for us, so we had to sort of stand awkwardly in the middle of the restaurant waiting for people to leave and for them to put our tables together. It was worth the discomfort though, because I got to sit across from Liesl and we had the most fantastic dinner conversation. (I have no idea if she thought the conversation was good, she was incredibly gracious). We talked about the fabric industry, her pattern making and how her Lisette patterns came to be. We talked about kids, charitable giving, and earning a living (or not) designing fabric and writing sewing and quilting patterns. If I had gone home that night, I would have been completely satisfied. I felt so fortunate to have gotten the seat across from her, and to have gotten to speak with her for so long. She was frank, honest, and forthcoming. It was wonderful. If that wasn’t enough, the dinner was fantastic.

Saturday morning we started sewing at The Sewing Studio, and in typical NY fashion, they packed a lot into a really tiny space. Each of us had a machine, and there were two large cutting tables in the centers of the sewing spaces. Not for nothing, but their cutting tables are the same Ikea ones I got this summer, so I was feeling pretty smart. Heather and Liesl convinced me to make a muslin of my pattern, which honestly terrified me at first. How crazy is that? What is that? Work the kinks out, make all your mistakes on muslin and NOT this $39/yard fabric? Liesel also helped to me to choose to make a size 12 muslin. I still get confused about pattern sizing vs retail sizing vs the fact that I am a real person and don’t fit into any one size…more on this later.

Heather also showed us this fantastic technique for copying patterns onto muslin or fabric using this cool waxed transfer paper (you can see it on the table next to her). Again, that information alone would have made my weekend complete (then we went to a store and we all bought it!). There was shopping at the FIT bookstore and Mood, then back to the studio for more sewing.
I managed to cut my muslin, sew together the front and back, including many darts, completely screw up the plackets, and get completely confused about how to make a collar stand. On Saturday night, about 8PM, I had my muslin on (embarrassing!) and got manhandled by Jay, Liesl and Heather all trying to decide if I should size up or let out darts.

Seriously.great.learning.experience.

We decided if I wanted to breathe or if I ever ate again, I should size up. Imagine if I cut that Liberty, and the damn blouse was too small??? I’d have sworn like a sailor on leave and jumped out the window. But I DIDN’T cut it first, and I got to cut the size up, and start sewing it on Sunday morning. Can I get an AMEN?

Of course all while this is going on I have extreme project envy. There are folks making children’s things, aprons, and messenger bags. And finishing them. And starting on second projects. Or thirds. I must have thought “oh I WISH I was making THAT” at least three or four times. But thankfully, as the last morning of sewing drifted away from me, and I got to see my fabric choice come to life, I decided that I was thrilled I had brought something so challenging for me. That was the whole point I told myself, right?? This was a rare opportunity to stretch, go outside of my teeny tiny comfort zone, reach to challenge myself and learn something new. Gain experience, knowledge and thought process from FOUR sewing experts. And learn I did.

What I learned, most importantly, were two things. One, that I need to “swim in my own lane” as my friend Bari calls it. I need to think for myself, make choices for myself, and be confident in my own skin. I am where I am, I need/want to learn more than I want to look like I can sew in front of total strangers. Every one of us is in a different place, and that it how it’s supposed to be. And two, maybe even more importantly, I learned that all this self doubt about how I look to others, or how quickly I’m learning, or how quickly I can make something, or how perfect my work comes out, or when I can create my own fabric line, is useless and wasteful. I’ll get there when I get there, and it will be exactly how it’s supposed to be.

Of course the caveat to all of that is that I need to actually DO it. I need to make time for myself, and for what I feel is my passion. What I was born to do. I need to go away for weekends, or spend time practicing and screwing up. I need to ask for help. I need to be willing to look like I don’t know what I’m doing (because a lot of the time, I don’t).

What I will get though, is infinitely valuable. Experience. Confidence. Comfort in my own skin. Pride in myself when I accomplish something hard. And the wonderful camaraderie with all my fellow sewists, designers, and bloggers. Well worth the bonus money spent on a weekend in New York City with total strangers.

She-Werewolf...from a vintage Simplicity 9206 pattern!

2011-10-23T19:23:00.005-04:00

I keep saying this every time I mention this project, but I am SO happy with how it came out. This is the werewolf costume I made for my 7 year old daughter for Halloween. We had to hunt for a pattern that she liked, and when we found this one, the smallest one I could find was the 8-10. She's no 8, so I had to re-size the pattern pieces myself to make her a 6, which is something I've never done before.

There was virtually no "fitting" to this costume. It went together like a raglan sleeve set of zip up pajamas. A nice easy fit so that she can wear clothes underneath. As great as this looks, it certainly is no Project Runway garment.

We were looking for something scary, but still, well, cute. I think we found it!

Maybe a little tough. 7 year old girls don't get to feel tough very much.

Of course, the tail was a HUGE hit. There was much butt swinging and wagging to see how she could get the tail to move.

She did a lot of practicing with her "RRRAAAARRR" noises and holding up her claws. I am told that we have to cut the teeth out of the hood part. She tells me that she thinks she looks like she's in the werewolf's mouth.

Best of all, it's made of FUR. So it's super warm, and plenty cozy enough to actually lounge around in.

Given our success this year, I can absolutely see making more costumes in my future.

Sneak Peak - She werewolf

2011-10-22T18:14:00.004-04:00

I will be doing a much longer post about the costume I made for my daughter this year, but I finished the hood today and just cannot stand the cuteness. She doesn't like the teeth, so I promised her I wouldn't post this on Facebook (mwahahah!) until I take the teeth off for her. But this isn't Facebook, is it? The costume has a full body with a tail, and I am thrilled with how it came out.

Child's Artist Beret Tutorial PDF

2011-10-14T09:36:00.004-04:00

So, what's it been, a year?? And I finally found the time to learn how to make my tutorial into a PDF and make it linkable to my blog. Feeling very proud of myself actually!

So here is where you can find the one page version PDF.

And here's my daughter wearing her beret. She says it makes her feel very artistic!

On my way to 100

2011-09-30T10:21:00.004-04:00

I hate it when so much time passes between blog posts. I feel like you all will think I'm just lazing around, doing nothing. But that's not the case. I've been busy at work getting the kids back into their school routines, starting horsebackriding lessons, and dealing with our regulator at my "day job".

But I've also been making more ConkerrCancer pillowcases. I'm up to 15, and literally have 10 waiting to be sewn up.

I'm finally getting to the end of the donated fabric. Some of it was really had to find a match for, but I dug through my stash and came up with some bright colors. It's interesting, we did seem to get a good mixture of boys and girls fabrics.

This fantastic sock monkey fabric came from Above All Fabric. My son loves sock monkeys and his favorite color these days is lime green, so he got one just like this, and the other got added to my pile for donating.

During the day, I work for a very large insurance company. They had a great volunteer day a few weeks ago, and a co-worker set up a table for us to try to get some help sewing up pillowcases. You can find Peggy's blog here. She did an amazing job setting up an appealing table, and we got 25 volunteers! We're really looking forward to seeing how many cases we can collect, and the goal is 100 for the first drop off scheduled in later October.

Next up...a she-werewolf costume. My daughter has convinced me to try to make her costume this year. I found a vintage pattern, that will have to be altered (because I could only find an 8-10 and she needs a 6), so it's quite an undertaking. I'm cutting pattern pieces this weekend, so wish me luck!

What the heck I've been up to

2011-08-28T16:08:00.003-04:00

So I finally got to go on that vacation that I've been whining about. I took the kids and we went to visit my cousin, his wife and newly adopted son in Virginia. It was my daughter's first plane trip, and my son's second. He said he was too little to remember the first one, so he felt like this was his first too. We had a FANTASTIC time.

Our first day we spent at the National Zoo. It was close to 90 and just downright steamy. The kids are wet from the water sprays they have along the walkways to keep cool.

All that they cared about was seeing the pandas, which we did. From far away, but they were live pandas nonetheless.

The next day we spent at the Museum of Natural History and walking the National Mall. It was a wonderful day, but LONG for little legs.

The true excitement was being in a terminal at Dulles when the EARTHQUAKE hit. The whole terminal sort of slid side to side. Some pieces of tile fell from the ceiling. After a brief "huh, what was that?" my kids went right back to reading their books. Really. They are tough to impress apparently.

Now that we're home, I've been working on this blanket for a co-worker. I've made so many of these "a la Betz White Warm Fuzzies" style blankets now. They are really loved. I try to put some of my salvaged trims on each one. The blue on this one is one of my favorite and almost gone.

I usually put flannel on the back and they are just super soft and cuddly.

Last but not least, I am still on my two-per-week pace of making pillowcases for Conkerr Cancer. So far I've got nine. My goal is to donate a cool 100 over the course of the year. I'm hoping to find time to branch out and use different patterns as the year goes on. This one is just so easy and sews up so quickly, I've stuck to it for now.

What are you working on these last few days of summer??

Pillowcases for Charity - Conkerr Cancer

2011-07-25T07:10:00.007-04:00

One of my jobs for the weekend was to sew pillowcases for Conkerr Cancer. A co-worker of mine got people at our company to donate fabric, and got a few of us signed up to sew the pillowcases. I used a great, super simple, quick to sew up pattern from the 1 Million Pillowcase Challenge website called "Roll it Up". There are loads of great free patterns there.

The first two I made are exactly the same...

Now all the rest have been washed, just need to start cutting.

The challenge with donated fabric is that you don't always have stuff that goes well together. And this charity is specifically for children, so we want as bright and cheery fabric as possible.

Conkerr Cancer commits to keep the donated cases in the local community where the donations came from. Unfortunately, we don't get to see them actually go directly to the hospital, but for what we sew, they will likely end up at CT Children's Medical Center. It makes a huge difference to me to know that the sewing will go to kids in my own community.

I'll show you the rest as soon as I get them done!

Baby steps back into embroidery & welovefrenchknots

2011-07-13T07:28:00.007-04:00

Somewhere around a year ago, I began to notice embroidery making a serious "comeback" as sewing becomes more and more popular and mainstream again. I saw patterns for skirts, or children's clothes, embellished with some small amounts of embroidery. Then there were quilt patterns with embroidery on them. And then, full on embroidery patterns seemed to be everywhere all of a sudden.

Then my friend Bari texted me about a great new idea she had for a new blog, guess what...all about embroidery! That was it, I decided I had to give it a try. The cool thing is, I had done a ton of stitchwork of various kids as a kid. I LOVED cross stitch, and for years worked on project after project. Like so many things, when I became a teenager, it wasn't "cool" enough, so I stopped.

I was a bit intimidated, but I got some gorgeous floss from Bari's shop, some cloth, a cheap hoop, and some needles at Joann (ack!) and then I hunted around for something easy to start with. Here's what I chose.

I found some great, easy, BASIC, but cute iron on patterns at SewMamaSew, and chose this Aunt Martha's to start with.

The directions were clear, and the transfer worked super well. It was easy and took maybe a total of 5 minutes, including heating up my iron!

Here it is...my first "project" on the second stage of my embroidery life. I used only a split stitch, but by the time I was done I was feeling much more comfortable and confident enough to try other stitches.

Here's the back of my work. Not great, but not horribly messy. Again, I'm sure this will improve with practice.

One universal recommendation was to get this book. I got mine on Amazon here. I am so looking forward to my next project!

To see more about my friend Bari's new endeavor, head over to welovefrenchknots.com. She's got videos up already and it looks to be a super fun and exciting blog.

Starry Night BOM done?? It's been a YEAR already???

2011-06-26T19:58:00.006-04:00

It's hard to believe. A year has gone by, right before my very eyes. How do I know? I bought and finished my 12th block for the Starry Night BOM quilt I started forever ago.

Here is my 12th block, and I can see a huge difference between my first and my 12th. Both my sewing skills and my quilting skills have come a long, long way in the last year.

Here are the only filler blocks I've managed to make. 2 of 13. Ouch. But I have started to cut for them, and I do think they will go quickly because I can do them "assembly line" style. Yet another technique I've learned this year.

I think the next one is my favorite block, and it was the 3rd one we made. I really love the diamond placement.

This is the photo that they gave us when we started. I'm really looking forward to getting mine all together because I think it will look so much better. The colors are so much brighter in real life.

Which one is your favorite?

After a long dry spell...vintage sewing goodies!

2011-06-26T07:31:00.007-04:00

It feels so good to have something fun to share again! I have been working on some larger projects (still....boring!) and then just not sewing as much as I'd like. But last weekend I was lucky enough to have a great estate sale to go to, and I got lots of great vintage sewing "stuff". The ad had said "hundreds of yards of vintage fabric". Of course, when I got there, a huge portion of it was polyester, and not very old...but there was plenty for me to take home, and I only paid $1 for each "piece".

In this first picture, there's some nice cottons, but the black is a gorgeous light, almost georgette fabric. And there's enough to make a small dress. The colors are fabulous.

In the next photo the floral on the left is from Mexico. A lot of the fabric was still in bags, with tags attached, purchased in the 60's. As I was pawing through the boxes and boxes of fabric I thought "I'd better get sewing or someone will find fabric still bagged and tagged at MY house!" The small print on the far right has the prettiest gold in it.

The blue red and white, second from the left is great. One of my favorite things about vintage fabric is the color combinations.

The dark blue is a heavier, almost home dec weight. That may become my daughter's dance bag for next school year.

These are basic cottons, but they are large pieces...each about 3 yards, and remember that price? $1/piece? How's 33 cents a yard grab you?? Many of the cottons say "Concord Fabrics". I think the company may now be part of Springs Industries. Anyone know for sure?

There were only about 50 patterns, but these that I chose (got all four for $1!) are all uncut, and actually things I would wear. I especially love the cape, which I am seeing in fall fashion previews already. Best of all, I got some great wools that I could make one in (next photo down).

The left two are wools, 3 yard pieces, no smells at all, and nice quality. At least one of these will become a skirt. I seriously LOVE plaid skirts and boots in the fall.

The floral is linen...not very old, but I liked the pattern. It reminded me of my grandmother, so I took it.

I foolishly didn't take the large bags of buttons they had. There were 4 or 5 of them, but they had really new looking buttons. Of course I wished I'd taken them when I got home. I did take these though.

Last but not least I got two great vintage tablecloths. The one with the ADORABLE deer is in perfect condition, so that will get used this year. The other is a Wilendur that has seen better days, so that will become some cloth napkins for my Etsy shop (someday).

And what may you ask did I pay for this haul? A whopping $18. I didn't even get pictures of ALL of the fabric, and I also got an adorable white wicker purse. Serious bargains for seriously great vintage stuff! One of the great benefits of living in New England.

Starry Night #11 - Almost there!

2011-05-15T17:22:00.006-04:00

I've had this block for two weeks and just got to it today. I feel like I did a much better job cutting, but my sewing left a lot to be desired. I was in a hurry, and wanted to get on to the sashing for my Flipside quilt. (The baby shower that the quilt is a gift for is on June 4th, so I have to get crackin'.)

The year that I've been working on this BOM (which is the first BOM I've ever actually gone all 12 months for) has flown by. I'm really hopeful that I can motivate myself to do the filler blocks. I've done 2, I need 13. I don't tend to do well with repetitive sewing. I am for sure and instant gratification fiend!

Although I missed Quiltmarket this week, it's been great to see everyone's posts and tweets. I saw so many beautiful pictures, I almost felt like I was there. Almost. Here's to getting my work together for Houston...

Find me on You Can Make This!

2011-05-13T13:16:00.006-04:00

Now this is exciting news! I've had my very first pattern published on You Can Make This.com. I heard about his site from Carla Crim (aka The Scientific Seamstress), who is a pattern writer extraordinaire. It was at my very first Quiltmarket, last spring in Minneapolis. Carla said it was easy to get your patterns published and sold using this great website. It's a year later, but my first pattern was approved this week, and I am officially a pattern "author"!

The pattern is for a large pieced pillow, styled to resemble a garden maze. You can find my pattern here.

My favorite part about this confident beginner pattern is that you could easily quilt it and make it into a wall hanging or table topper.

Now I'm off to write another pattern!

My Pfaff and Me

2011-04-30T15:13:00.005-04:00

In the online sewing community of late there has been a high degree of finger pointing and nastiness. Sadly, I clicked on a link to a blog post that had dozens and dozens of comments about what people DIDN'T like. In between all of those nasty comments there were a few positive ones, and a few of them said they would like to know what kinds of machines people sew on, if they liked them, and why.

As I always do, I'm trying to stick to the positive only, so I decided to take a few pics, and share my baby with you all.

A little over three years ago I got back into sewing. About a year after I started, I realized that my machine simply could not do a zigzag. It was a 1950's Kenmore that was a handmedown. I had it serviced and it still didn't work, so I decided to buy a new machine. It was spring, and I had tax refund money burning a hole in my purse. I read everything I could find on the various brands and styles of machines. Then I stumbled across Pattern Review.com. It's an amazing resource, with an active community of posters. I read reviews like crazy. A LOT of reviews. And then I stumbled across a review by someone I KNEW (sort of). Ann from Gorgeous Fabrics.com online fabric store and Gorgeous Fabrics blog. She sewed on a Pfaff, and that was all I needed to hear.

I searched for all of the Pfaff dealers in Connecticut, but ended up finding one just over the border in Massachusetts. When I called, they said, lucky me, they were having a sale because the new models were coming out (music to my ears!). I chose a Pfaff Expression 3.0. It was the middle of that line, and it had ALL of the features I was looking for. I paid $1999 for it, and I had a coupon from the Pfaff website for a free Fab-u-motion attachment. GREAT DEAL.

Going from my old machine to this was like going from a bike to a Ferrari in one shot.

I got free lessons from the store, and took only one. I brought the machine home and just dove in. As you can see from the panel, there are a lot of stitches.

THE selling point to me on this line was the IDT technology. If you look you can see a black arm that comes down right behind the needle. It feeds the fabric evenly through the machine, and makes all the difference in the world to me in making the quality of my sewing more even and precise.

This is a picture with the front piece taken off. Inside this piece are the holders for the feet, bobbins, and mechanical stuff at the back (screwdriver, brush, and buttonhole attachment). When it's off, you can maneuver around sleeves or small cylindrical pieces, like for a purse or bag.

The opening to the right is really big compared to other machines. I have only quilted three things on this machine, but they fit very easily and nicely into this space without bunching.

I still don't know 1/2 of what this machine does. But I love sewing on it, and it's easy to use. It has all of the features I wanted, including the ability to program in favorite stitches. I expect to sew on this for a very, very long time.

Joel Dewberry's Sewn Spaces Yoga Mat Bag - Pattern/Book Review

2011-04-15T14:56:00.002-04:00

So, if you follow me on Twitter, you know I've been going to Bikram Yoga classes. I've gone enough that I thought it was time to make myself a bag to carry my mat. Not just for going to class, but also for at home. Instead of being propped up in the corner, I can actually hang my mat up now.

I just happened to be trying to organize my HUGE collection of sewing books and I noticed a pattern for a yoga mat bag in Joel Dewberry's book Sewn Spaces. The pattern looked pretty straightforward, but I liked the use of multiple fabrics, so away I went.

This is pretty much the amount of detail that is shown on any of the projects in the book. It's sub title is "fresh and modern fabric projects for your life and home". Most of projects are home goods with a few other things thrown in. There are cards, a teddy bear, and some great patterns for chair pads and the like.

I chose to use some of my Anna Maria Horner Innocent Crush not just because I love the prints, but also because they're darker and I thought they wouldn't get dirty so quickly.

As I started to assemble the bag, I realized pretty quickly that the directions were pretty brief. I learned a long time ago to READ THE WHOLE SET OF DIRECTIONS BEFORE STARTING THE PATTERN. I must have read through pretty quickly, foolishly "ass"uming that it was an "easy" pattern and I didn't need to look too hard. I was mistaken.

For the LIFE of me, I couldn't figure out how to make the drawstring casing so that it wasn't closed shut. The pattern referenced an earlier project in the book to make the drawstring itself, which I also read too quickly. If I had looked more closely, it talked about using buttonholes as an entry/exit point for the drawstring. But to be truthful, after re-reading it multiple times, it still wasn't clear in terms of order of steps to get the buttonhole made, and not sew the layers together. I had to rip it out not once but twice. I'm really glad the bag is for me, because the top is sort of uneven and stretched looking.

I am quite happy with the way the bag came out overall. I love the look, the mat actually fits in the bag the way it looks in the book, and now that I've made it (it took about 3 hours total), I could easily make it again in half the time. The pocket was a little bit tricky, but not too bad. I don't have a button cover maker yet, so I still have that to do, to add a button to the pocket.

Notes about the book and pattern...first and foremost, I LOVE Joel Dewberry's fabrics. I love his color choices, and aesthetic. I love the projects in the book. The choice of projects is great, and the photography is very pleasing. That having been said, you would actually have to read the whole book, or make the projects in order (which I NEVER do) to understand all of the directions easily. The patterns are not written for beginners, I don't think. There are very, very few pictures of how to lay things out or what things look like as you're sewing. That's one thing I really utilize in a lot of patterns I make. The illustrations and drawings. Finally, I think for just a few more sentences, which would easily fit onto the page, the directions would be much more clear.

I also got a gorgeous spring day to take pictures, so I took them all outside. I couldn't take an action shot of myself with the bag. Maybe on Sunday when I go back to class I'll have my husband take a picture of me.

Catching up - Starry Night BOM x 2

2011-04-10T17:53:00.005-04:00

So as part of my unintentional hiatus in March, I didn't do my BOM projects. I had both March and April's blocks to do, so I got right to work this weekend. I actually did these two blocks simultaneously, so it felt like I was getting a lot done in short time.

Here is one...

I wasn't thrilled with my points on this one. For some reason, I find that this black is a bit slippery, and that it's really hard to make super straight 1/4" seams.

This is the other (April's Block) and I think that because it's more of the two main colors, I was really able to get my seams nice and straight, and my points nice and sharp. What do you think??

Here are the two of them together. I should maybe take another photo of the 10 I have done so far. Only May and June and I'll have all of the main blocks done.

I need to make 13 of the filler blocks, and I've only done 2 so far.

In other news...my daughter DID NOT like the laminate I chose for her raincoat, so I'll have to find another use for that great polka dot. In the meantime I'm going to take what was to have been the lining and make her a dress.

Do you have any projects that use laminate that you love? What are they? I need to find a use for this great dot.

March - In like a lion, out like a lamb.

2011-04-03T17:43:00.006-04:00

It was a loooonggg month of March at my house. I had two kids with strep throat, and ended up sick myself. Sicker than I can remember being for an awfully long time. The germs have passed, along with the ending of Daylight Savings Time, and I am really ready for spring to kick in.

I did quite a bit of sewing at the beginning of the month, and just finally finished the top to a baby quilt for some friends on Sunday. It's another "thanks to Twitter" project. The pattern designer, Rachel Griffith, tweeted about her new pattern, "Flipside" being available at Fat Quarter Shop. When I saw it, I knew I had to make it for someone. Anyone. So I ordered the pattern right away. Just so happened, that I also saw a tweet (or a newsletter) from Above All Fabric saying that Kate Spain's Central Park was available. Just what the pattern called for! Much internet shopping ensued.

I didn't read the pattern carefully enough, and I just started cutting as soon as the fabric came. I ended up making the larger size (not the crib size) of the quilt, which was 4 blocks by 4 blocks. I decided to keep it that size, I'd always rather have a quilt a little big than too small. Don't you think??

Here is the finished top. Which I LOVE. Funny though, when I finished my blocks, I was so proud...they all measured around 12 1/4" and I thought "look at me! I'm finally not making those wide seam allowances anymore. I can just trim them all to the perfect 12" size, isn't this GREAT". So trim away I did. Then I re-read the directions to find that the blocks were supposed to be 12 1/2"!! So, I had to trim my sashing and center squares to fit. But everything is nice and square now!!

After my "adjustments", I'm very pleased with how my sashing lined up.

On a more personal note the best part of March, by far, was my first "vacation" with my husband since our honeymoon almost 3 years ago. We went to Vail, Colorado to ski for 3 days. I had only ever skied in the "east" and was absolutely blown away by the breathtaking Rocky Mountains. My husband is a photographer AND a skier, so he was in his glory for this trip...

This was the first year I would actually call myself a legitimate skier. I'd been skiing before, a handful of times, but I went around 20 times this year with all of the record breaking snow that we got, and my skiing improved dramatically. I was actually able to ski this...which is part of the China Bowl on the back side of the mountain at Vail. It was SO much fun and I was really proud of myself.

We had an absolutely fantastic trip. Best of all, I'm actually looking FORWARD to next winter, which I never imagined I would say. The weather was perfect, and we came home to happy kids. You can't ask for anything more than that!

Hopefully, I can hop back on the blogging bandwagon. Up next, I'm going to start on a raincoat for my daughter with Amy Butler's Little Splashes pattern.

Dream Come True...Sewing Room Clean Up

2011-03-11T16:00:00.006-05:00

So the pictures were tough to take, because, well, because it's a tiny hole of a room in my basement that had a single bulb to light it. These are the before pictures of my sewing room. It's emptied out for our super-de-duper general contractor to come and spruce it up. Note the HORRIBLE brown ceiling tiles. YUCK!

I had originally intended on going with lots of color and a full on "studio" re-do. However, while I was waiting for the contractor to be available, we decided to finish our attic into a master bedroom. So....that means that I'll have a real upstairs room to sew in sometime this year, and I wanted to keep the cost of this room to a minimum. The reason I decided to go ahead and finish it at all is because we live in a 1929 Tudor, and are VERY short on storage. People just didn't have big closets then. So when I move upstairs later this year, this will become a legitimate storage area/closet. It was so dusty and dirty before...pretty much unusable for anything not in boxes or plastic bins.

But now...

Note the super bright white walls. There's even crown moulding! I hung one thing, it's a piece of art my dear friend Kari gave me for Christmas (she is an amazing cupcake maker, see Sweet Emotions). You can also see my stack of blocks for my Flipside Quilt. One piece left and I can sew them into rows.

I can now press where I sew, which means awesome time savings. I cannot wait to fill up the shelves with my fabric in an organized way...they had literally just been stacked and thrown in before.

Now I will grant you, this is super basic, but it is the Taj Mahal compared to how it used to be. The light alone makes me want to go down and sew. Like right now!

Winner!!

2011-03-02T07:17:00.002-05:00

Hi everyone! I let my kids choose the number for the winning comment, and they chose lucky number 7. Congratulations Aubrey! i will get your Bari J treat package out this week!

Thank you all for your comments, and here's to reaching 100 followers!

The Little Things Make Me Happy

2011-02-24T18:18:00.008-05:00

It’s hard for me to believe that the time has passed by so quickly, but in the middle of January, my blog turned two years old. The first year, blogging was very intermittent for me. As my sewing skills improved that year, I cared MUCH more about sewing than blogging about my sewing. Then last year when I got my new machine, and I attended BOTH Quiltmarkets, I worked on trying to be more consistent blogging.

This year, as part of my plan to move my business and craft to the next level, I drafted an actual PLAN. A calendar. With short term goals and long term goals. And targets. You name it, I planned for it. So far, it has been a smashing success! I have blogged at least once a week and I have watching my subscribers slowly tick up.
I told myself that if I hit 50 followers I would have a giveaway. Just because it would be a cool thing to celebrate.

So here’s the rules for entries in the giveaway…you can

1. Follow my blog
2. Leave a comment if you’re already a follower about your favorite post I’ve done
3. Leave a link to one of your other favorite blogs (if you’re already a follower), or
4. Leave a comment about what you’d like to see more of (if you’re already a follower).

One entry per person please! ** BE SURE TO LEAVE ME AN EMAIL OR WAY TO GET IN TOUCH WITH YOU **

Here’s the fun part…the giveaway!

Because I have been blessed with such amazing fabric friends, I have some gorgeous fabrics used to work on samples for them. I have 5 fat eighths of gorgeous FULL BLOOM fabric by the amazing and awesome Bari J. Her book “Inspired to Sew” can be found on Amazon, and at your local Barnes & Noble, or even on her website. She has an AMAZING new line coming out this spring called "Paris Apartment" that she sneak peeked on her blog HERE, so grab this great bundle from her first line before it all disappears forever. Her fabrics are so much fun to work with!

So help me celebrate, spread the word, and enter to win a great little package of fabric. Drawing will be open through Monday (February 28), and I’ll post a winner on Tuesday of next week (March 1)!

Learning to Wonk

2011-02-17T21:18:00.006-05:00

I tweeted some time ago (how long? it all blends together, but I think about 4 weeks ago) that I was interested in trying to make some wonky blocks this year. I got lots of great comments back, and suggestions, but without a doubt, the most common response I got was "Go to Quilt Dad's tutorial...it's the BEST". So I went right there, printed it out, and it sat on my cutting table. And sat, and sat.

Another new time sucker upper I've been fooling around with is Pinterest. It is the most amazing site for inspiration. Every day people add gorgeous new photos they find all over the net. And you can make your own "boards" of any topic you like. Fun, fun, fun. Without question, every few days, I'd see a new wonky block, and my inspiration would grow. My NEED to make a wonky block just became too much to handle. So I dove in.

Now, I didn't do all that formal "planning" and "prepping" Quilt Dad talked about. I just DOVE in. I started digging through my scraps to find fabric and had at it. This is what I ended up with.

One of the things I love the most about wonky blocks is that they look different from different sides. So if you turn the block, it looks like a whole new block. Again, FUN.

I was able to make it an actual trued up square, so I was very happy with that. I really enjoyed the spontaneous nature of making it, too. I'm sure this is the first of many.

Just for a little eye candy...here's some of the photos that inspired me. These photos are all courtesy of Pinterest, where they have the original source built into the link of the photo. Go look for yourself!

Aren't they delicious?

Starry Night progress and how to enjoy a snowy winter

2011-02-16T17:26:00.006-05:00

It's hard to believe, but February is the 8th month of my Starry Night BOM. With each of these that I do, I can really see improvement in my piecing. I really like the colors on this block too. I'll for sure be making one of the filler blocks with these colors.

Switching gears...as you may well know, it has been the snowiest winter in VERY long time around here. The result is that my sweetie has gotten full on back into skiing and has pulled me along with him. Last weekend we drove up to Stratton Mountain in Vermont on Friday so we could ski for the day Saturday.

Here's WBR (that's World's Best Rob) at the top of the mountain...look how low to the ground those trees are and how caked they are with snow!

I'd never been to a "big" Vermont mountain, so I really enjoyed the view from the top. It was challenging skiing for me for sure, but there were loads of trails to try, and many lifts, so we got a full day of skiing in. I went down my first "glades" trail (where they don't take out the trees and you have to ski through the woods) and only fell down four times!

Just so you all can see what a goober I can be...this is a picture I took of myself (with my new iPhone, my old one got dropped in a bathtub and died the night before). You can see how giddy I am, both to be at the top of the mountain, but also to be enjoying my new toy.

We had so much fun on our day away, that when we came home, we decided to take the kids to a smaller local mountain in Massachusetts called Butternut on Sunday to see how THEY liked skiing. These pictures were taken BEFORE any skiing was actually done. Note the happy faces.

And here's Ally, making sure her big brother is actually smiling for the camera (which he wasn't).

For better or worse, they both did ok, but neither of them seems to be clamoring to go back. So for now, it looks like skiing will by my thing to do with Rob. Which is ok by me.

What do you do with your family outdoors in the winter? I'd love to hear about it.

Next up, an update on my argyle quilt for my little (big) man, and my first wonky block!

New York Sewing Weekend Workshop with Heather Ross!

2011-02-11T08:50:00.004-05:00

I don't have any pictures...just a teeny, tiny note from Heather that I got in...

http://heatherross.squarespace.com/journal/

On Veteran's Day weekend, I'll be off to NYC to soak up as much knowledge and inspiration as I can from...are you READY???

Heather Ross
Jay McCarroll
Liesl Gibson
Gretchen Hirsch

Yowza! The description is brief, but full of promise...

"Workshop Fees include accommodations (tentatively The Ace Hotel) Friday and Saturday nights, most meals, a sewing machine and workspace in our sewing studio, all instruction and participation in sewing labs and demonstrations, plus guest-teacher-led shopping (with a little culture thrown in) trips to New York City’s best sewing, craft, and design shops. We can also promise loads of inspiration, laughs, and some excellent pastries."

Pastries?? Does Heather Ross know me already??

I cannot wait to share.

First of the Filler - Starry Night

2011-02-09T20:27:00.004-05:00

It was month seven of my Starry Night BOM project, so we got the pattern and specs for the filler blocks in January. Very thrifty design, because you actually use the leftovers of the blocks to make the filler blocks. There will be 13 (lucky!) filler blocks in all, so there will actually be color duplicates.

In an attempt to try to learn how to piece more efficiently, I tried to make these two blocks simultaneously. I chose two of my favorite color combinations so far and dove in.

While I'm happy, overall, with the outcome, boy am I realizing just exactly how crooked my work is! The finished blocks are supposed to be 12 1/2" square. HA! Both of mine were 12" and a mighty crooked 12" at that.

My other observation is that when I press the finished block, clearly I press too hard, because you can see shiny spots! Eww, that's horrible!! I definitely need to press the finished blocks, it does help to make the lines look straighter and set the stitches, but I'm not sure if my iron is too hot, if I should only press on the back (I don't think this will cut it, though, in achieving my goal of straightening my blocks), or if I need a pressing cloth between?

What are your pressing tips?? I need them all.

I have to say, I love way the colors are coming out, and how they look with the black. I think the quilt will be beautiful when it's done.

Gammill Long Arm Certified!

2011-01-30T20:44:00.008-05:00

You know you're a sewing geek when...you take a half day from work to go to a quilting or sewing class! Last Friday I did just that. Sew Inspired, my local quilt shop was offering a class on getting certified on their Gammill long arm machine. While I believe my regular machine will be sufficient for quilting most of the quilts I make, I want to have the option of getting something done FAST. That's what this machine can do.

There were seven of us, and the first part of the class was around getting to know the machine;

Learning about threads to use, and how to load the bobbin properly;

And how to get the bobbin thread up to the top of your work. The size alone of the machine is pretty impressive.

The second portion of the class was about how to prepare your quilt top and attach it to the zippers that will connect the quilt to the machine itself.

Pretty cool, and truthfully, fairly straightforward. The pieces go on rollers, which pull the quilt sandwich through evenly (we HOPE) as they get quilted.

One of the things I think will work best for me is that you don't have to baste or pin your top to the batting and backing. In fact you can't. That's part of why the process is so much quicker.

The remainder of the class was about how to program the computer, how to continually monitor the progress and roll your quilt through after the various rows of quilting were finished.

The next photo is the machine checking where we said the edges were and calibrating for the size of the quilt. There is a cool red laser "eye" that shows up at the edges of the top. All together now.."ooooh!".

And finally, the quilting itself begins...

It was a wonderful class, and although I'm sure it would take me multiple times going through the process to get comfortable, it is a wonderful option to have. My goal is to have 3 tops to take with me when I go back. That way it will really be clear in my mind when I'm finished.

Next up, updates on my projects. God willing I will get my sewing machine back tomorrow. I've been without it for over a week because of the weather, and the shop being closed. Think dry, warm thoughts for me!

socks appeal - Fun & Funky Friends from Socks - book review

2011-01-28T06:45:00.007-05:00

This book has provided literally hours of fun in my house. Both of my kids are "plushy" fiends. Of course they love the traditional stuffed animals, but they are also big Uglydoll fans.

I was given this book at last spring's Quiltmarket by the lovely and gracious Suzanne from Stash Books/C&T. When I saw it, I actually think I gasped out loud, telling her how much my kids would love it and she gave it to me. Needless to say, that only added to my love Quiltmarket.

The book is titled "socks appeal" and is a how-to book for making all kinds (16 different) sock creatures, written by Brenna Maloney. The projects range from very easy, like a snake, to pretty challenging, a mermaid or octopus! Of course, having made sock puppets before, my kids just chose right from the middle.

We decided on the Hamster project and cheerfully went to Target to find some "cool" socks. We found all kinds of socks, for really reasonable prices, so we got a few pair. The best thing about Target is that they usually have holiday themed ones too.

The photos in the book that guide you along the steps to making the creatures are very helpful. They are up close, and show what you actually need to see examples of. I really enjoyed Brenna's conversational writing style. It lent itself well to the overall "fun" feel of the book.

Repeatedly, in many places, she notes that however your creatures come out, it's ok. They are meant to be unique and one of a kind. This is particularly good with children. My kids started talking about their creatures as if they were alive as soon as the eyes were attached.

Unfortunately, I only have pictures of Stinky. He is my son's creation, and the first one we made. Tanner, my daughter's hamster has been loved to the point that he is lost somewhere in the wilds of her room. When he resurfaces, I'll be sure to take a photo of him, too.

(Those piles are over 6' high!)

What I do have, are ACTION shots. Here is Stinky, longingly looking out at all the snow we've gotten...a record 55+" in the month of January alone. You can see his cute blue tail in this photo.

And here he is actually out in the snow. It was a quick trip, but he wanted good photos if he was going to go "public".

My next post will be about my certification on the long arm quilting machine at the local quilt shop. I hope they let me take pictures!

Tools of the Trade

2011-01-22T15:44:00.003-05:00

I had a wonderful rare, day to myself today. Not just an hour or two, but 9 AM to 4 PM. I spent a great deal of time this week deciding how I'd spend it, and as I'm sure you can imagine, once it started, it flew by!

After a manicure and pedicure (the world's best accessible luxury), I headed off to JoAnn fabrics. When I need a bunch of supplies, this is usually where I go. The other hobby/craft stores in my area have little to no sewing tools. I had made a list of things I'd read about (like the quilting gloves in Bari J's new book "Inspired to Sew") and I've seen the binding clips on a number of quilts-in-progress on Julie's (Jaybird Quilts) site. I have two quilts that need to be quilted and bound, so I want to be ready, right? Somehow, I always manage to come home with a bag full of stuff.

I try to spend the vast majority of my sewing dollars at either online independent stores, or local quilt shops. Alas, sometimes I need to go to the Target of sewing...and here's what today yielded.

The best purchase by far are these great baskets to hold all of the many patterns I accumulated last year. They were $5 each, and i think they look so much nicer than a plastic bin. One of my goals for 2011 is make fabric ones for my sewing room, but in the meantime, I had to clean up the mess!

The other great thing I got was a Clover mini-iron for my upcoming work on the Roses of Remembrance BOM. Everyone I speak to says you "HAVE" to have one of these to make applique easier.

Truth of the matter is, I am a total tool geek. Not to mention a magazine hoarder. I can't wait to dig into my new issue of Stitch magazine.

But here's what I'd like to know...what are YOUR favorite tools? What can't you sew without?

My newest toy - Accuquilt GO!

2011-01-18T20:42:00.003-05:00

If you follow me on Twitter, you know that right after Christmas I scored an Accuquilt GO! at Joann for the amazing price of $199. I guess it was Christmas gift to myself. I had been complaining about not being able to cut anything straight. Funny thing is, just as I was getting better at cutting, I bought this really fun machine.

I was trying to figure out what to try first with it. It comes with one template, that has squares and triangles, but I wanted something more. After scouring the internet, it seemed that the lowest prices for the templates was on SewVacDirect. I have been itching to try tumbling blocks, so I bought a 6 1/2" tumbling block template. I'm just going to make something simple like this free pattern from the GO! website.

I had a bunch of black, white and red fat quarters that I bought during last year's CT shop hop. I bought them to go with a piece of minky my daughter picked out for the back of her quilt. You read that right...choosing the back fabric, and making the front match THAT. Here's what she chose:

The cutter works exactly like the company says it does. It actually seems to cut better with more layers of fabric. I could easily get six tumbling blocks out of each fat quarter. I didn't even have to cut it, just fold it.

I was able to cut around 75 pieces in, maybe 35-40 minutes. WAYYYYY faster than I could have cut on my own, and for SURE much more exactly than I am able to cut.

What was left, because the tumbling block is not square, were these great scraps. Lots of pieces, plenty wide enough and long enough. They are going right into my next experiment, wonky blocks!

As great as this machine is, and as happy as I was to get the pieces cut out that quickly, I know I won't be using this for every project. First of all, the templates can get pricey. And, to be truthful, I almost felt like I was cheating. I didn't get quite the same level of satisfaction as cutting the pieces myself. Net, net, I LOVE the machine, and I'm very happy I bought it, but I won't be using it for every quilt I make. If I'm making a special shape, or I need to make a top quickly, the Accuquilt GO! is for sure the way to go.

BOM new and old with some argyle on the side

2011-01-09T15:18:00.010-05:00

We are heading full on into the winter drudgies. At least that's what I call the time between New Year's Day and Easter. The long, cold, often dull time we New Englanders spend waiting for Daylight Savings time to come back. One of the things I love to do is force bulbs to bring a littler color into the house...

We got these gorgeous paperwhites for a Christmas gift from White Flower Farm, and amazing plant/gardening company here in CT that has an amazing catalog and mail order business. Everything I've ever gotten from them has been gorgeous.

I, like so many of you, put together a 2011 plan this week. It has goals for my sewing, design, and blogging. It has dates. It is written down, and I will be doing my darnedest to follow it. One of the more vague concepts is to keep learning, and to allow myself to make mistakes sewing.

With that in mind, I set out to do my seventh block in my Starry Night BOM quilt. I never posted doing block #6, so here's that one.

As you can see, my borders don't line up with the inside of the block. This has been an issue for me for all of the blocks. I am still not a proficient 1/4" sewer. I'm getting A LOT better, and I see improvement with every block, but I'm not there with the precision yet. Knowing this, I started number 7.

When I got to the edges, as usual, they were off. But...in honor of my new goals, I actually ripped the pieces apart *gasp*...the dreaded...UNSEWING. I actually walked away from the block for about 15 minutes, but I couldn't not finish, and I couldn't leave it as it was. So I started over. This was not an easy thing, but I was VERY happy with the second try.

Can you see the difference between the last one and this one? (PLEASE say you can).

I buckled down and did this, in great part because I got my first block for the Rose of Sharon BOM quilt. I've mentioned on Twitter, I am WAYYYYY over my head on this one. But I am for sure, if nothing else, a "sink or swim", baptism by fire kinda' girl. But...*gulp*...look at this...

This is block ONE?? Dear Lord. But I am diving in this week. I am bravely going to cut into that juicy fabric. (After I've confirmed, measured, and placed at LEAST twice). I will take any and all suggestions, tips, and know-how regarding applique. The whole purpose of this BOM is to get me over my debilitating fear of applique. I want to be fearless when it comes to my sewing machine...so what the heck, let's go full on.

Of course, I won't be feeling this brave all the time. So I'm working on a quilt for my son, that we bought fabric for close to two years ago. It's from a pattern in this FALL 2009 Quilt's 'N More magazine.

I am a huge sucker for argyle. I showed my son the pattern, and he picked out greens and creams for the fabric. And he picked gold minky for the back. You read that right. Gold. Minky. He's obviously into the "luxe" look.

I've got four of the 9 rows done, and all of the side pieces. I'll be excited to post pictures when the top is done.

What hairbrained project have YOU started this month?

Edith Twirl Skirt - Pattern Review and Pictures

2011-01-04T14:38:00.008-05:00

I know, I know...it's been weeks since my last blog post. I have been working on a number of great projects, but the prospect of taking things out in the frigid cold to take decent pictures has not been very enticing...throw in the holidays, a snowstorm and well, you get the idea.

I wanted to get started again with a BANG, so I want to share my review of a pattern by the crazy talented Jona G. of Fabritopia. She has her own line of sewing patterns out, and I was fortunate enough to have her as one of my roommates at Quiltmarket in Houston in October.

The pattern I made up was her Edith Twirl Skirt. It comes with sizing for 2-10 and two different styles. I made a size 5 in View A, the one with only single fabric for the main skirt body (shown on the left in the pattern cover).

There are a few things that I LOVED about this pattern. First and foremost, there are no pattern pieces!! The pieces are all rectangles or strips cut the width of the fabric. What that means is that I can use this pattern over and over again, in different sizes WITHOUT TRACING. Can you say Hallelujah?? It also meant that it was quick to prepare, and I got right to the sewing.

The second thing that I loved, is that the paper it's printed on is very sturdy, and it's a single fold out page, two sided. WHAT did that just say??? No crazy pages to fold and try to re-order? That's right! Just follow, and flip. Again, simplicity is often genius.

The pictures that Jona included are also very clear. I did have to pull out and re-pin one part. Thankfully I had not sewn yet, and I realized by looking at the shading on the pieces that I had them placed incorrect sides together. The directions were clearly written, and the graphics were very helpful.

I bought a number of pieces of Anna Maria Horner's Innocent Crush after I saw it at Quiltmarket in October. It is just GORGEOUS and the fabric quality is outstanding. My daughter Ally chose three of the patterns and told me exactly where to use each of them. The result was just adorable. No pictures actually on Ally yet, but they will come.

I will say, that is a whole lotta' skirt for a tiny girl. My daughter is only about 37 pounds at 6 years old, so she's a Skinny Minny. But she loves the volume.

Other things I would note about the Edith pattern...

There is some serious gathering to be done with this pattern. If you are not comfortable with gathering techniques, this might not be the first one I would try. I thought I actually enjoyed making ruffles and gathering. That was until it took me three tries to get the gathers for the skirt lining to match up with the outside skirt panel. The results, though, once I got it, look adorable. My only comment would be this is not necessarily a beginners pattern.

And then, there was the snow...

On another note...we got that big blizzard the day after Christmas that the rest of the Northeast (and some of the SOUTHeast) got. We ended up with maybe 12-14" at our house. Ally LOVED it. The dog, not so much.

Here's my fun girl doing one of her favorite things to do in the snow...make snow angels. And boy, is she good at it!

What did you do over Christmas vacation??

My First Tutorial! Child's Artist Beret

2010-12-03T13:50:00.009-05:00

Wow, I don't know about you, but this is pretty exciting for me. This is my first tutorial on this blog. I'm going to show it as a post here, but I've also made it into a PDF. It may take some wrangling for me to figure out how to add that...but it's done and just a matter of getting it to work.

I blogged about making 25 of these last winter for my daughter's kindergarten class. They were doing a unit on "Fine Art", so to get themselves in the mood to work like artists, they each wore a beret, like Vincent Van Gogh, or, if you prefer, Fancy Nancy. When the teacher asked me to make them, she gave me a photocopied sheet of someone's hand written directions. Immediately I thought I should do a tutorial, and here we are, a good 7 months later. All in good time.

Please, please, share any comments or suggestions you have if you make any of these. Without further ado...

Child’s Beret – A la Fancy Nancy or Van Gogh, or whomever your favorite artist might be

Materials:
18” square piece of craft felt
2 yards of double fold bias tape
2 ½ yards of ¼” elastic
Coordinating thread

Steps:

1. Cut an 18” diameter circle from your felt

2. Pin the bias tape, open side towards the cut felt edge ¼” from the edge. Do not overlap the ends of the bias tape, but put the two cut edges as close together as you can. (See Image A) The closer you’re able to get them, while not overlapping, the better the beret will sit evenly and the more “round” looking it will appear.

3. Stitch along the open edge of the bias tape, as close as you can to the edge, ensuring that you stitch through both layers. I suggest pinning a lot. This seems to help keep the layers from slipping apart, which the bias tape seems to do when you’re not looking!

4. Make sure you leave enough room in the “pocket” of the bias tape to slide the elastic through.

5. Put a safety pin through the end of the elastic to make it easier to pull through your “pocket” of bias tape. Start at one end of the opening, and slide the elastic through, all the way around your beret. Try to keep it as flat as possible as you do this, it will help to make the beret sit flatter on your child’s head.

6. Pull the ends of the elastic together to tighten the circle up and create your beret. Use your child’s head as a guide for how large or small you need the hat to be. Knot both ends of the elastic, but DO NOT CUT IT.

7. You can knot the two pieces together and tuck them up inside the beret to keep the size steady. The reason for not cutting is that you can adjust the size as your child grows.

8. Make a tiny slit (and I mean tiny!) at the very center of the beret. You can use yarn, ribbon, or rickrack folded in half to make a loop. Once your loop is folded in half, push the folded end through the slit in the center of the beret. You can either knot them together, or make 3-4 stitches to hold it in place. (Image B)

9. Voila! You have a fancy beret to inspire your little artist to make wonderful creations. (Image C)

So run, run to make your kids some berets so they can make you some FINE refrigerator art.

UFO! Baby Clothes Blanket for Jane

2010-11-29T07:42:00.003-05:00

Because a pretty big portion of my sewing gets done in the dark (aka before sunrise) I figured what better way to photograph this baby clothes blanket than with the morning sun coming up. I made a promise to myself that I wanted better blog pictures, so I braved the cold this morning and went out on the back porch to find some natural light.

This is a small lap quilt I made out of baby clothes sent to me by my sweetie's cousin. They are from her youngest daughter (she has three, which means there are two more projects quickly to follow behind!). The back is a crib sheet. The bag of sweet baby things has been in my sewing room since JULY! Now, in the land of my sewing room, that might not even qualify for a UFO, just something that I've put down for a few days.

Jessica asked me to make something simple (thank GOD) with squares and triangles. So every time the mood struck me, I'd carefully go through the pile and cut a few more squares. When the pile looked pretty big...I started sewing. Not very scientific, or very organized, but I have to tell you, I love the way this came out.

Of course you can see that my quilting leaves SO much to be desired still...but I did learn a whole bunch of things while I was working on this project.

1. Different fabrics, even when cut into relatively small pieces, can still give you loads of trouble trying to sew straight, with even stitches.

2. Using an insane number of pins for binding makes all the difference in how straight the stitching comes out. (Speaking of which, I see some people use those hair clips to hold their binding...do you?? why?? is there something I should know about binding using hair clips?)

3. Cats love baby clothes to lay on even more than freshly laundered fabric.

4. For some reason, the sweetness of upcycling a baby's things, even when it's not your own baby, makes the project really enjoyable. I can just imagine the adorable skirts and dresses on my cousin-in-law's daughter, and I hope she loves seeing her things made into a blanket she can keep forever.

5. I have given myself permission to love satin blanket binding. It reminds me of being little myself. I always had blankets with that kind of binding on my bed, and they seemed so glamorous to me then! I had to press into half size, or it would have taken up too much of the outer squares, but it really looks cute with the clothes. It would have taken me 10 years to make a binding out of the tiny clothes I had left.

Of course, I did all of this cutting before I bought my AccuQuilt Go! cutter the other day. I got it at Joann for $199. I've been searching and hunting for it, to find the lowest price possible, and I snagged it as soon as I saw the flyer come out. I'll be cutting my next quilt with it, so I'll tell you all about how much I love it.

Starry Night BOM #5

2010-11-21T11:07:00.006-05:00

It's so hard to believe, but FIVE months have gone by. I don't think that's one of the goals of BOM clubs, but boy do they help you see how quickly time passes.

This is my fifth block.

I actually ripped out one of the rows and re-sewed it because it was so far off. I do see progress in the tightness of my corners, but boy, do I still have a long way to go.

I also signed up for a Sharon Pederson, Roses of Rememberance applique BOM that starts in January. I'm really excited about that because I have almost no experience with applique.

My next pictures will be of the baby clothes blanket I'm making for a family member. It's all cut and laid out, all that's left is the fun part...SEWING!

Babies, Babies everywhere

2010-11-16T06:22:00.005-05:00

For the last week, the only sewing I've done is to make two baby blankets. They're done in the style of one of the projects in Betz White's book Warm Fuzzies. I've made so many variations of these great blankets since first buying Betz' book it seems. It's such a quick project, and people really seems to love them.

The first one is a very small version, for my cousin's newly adopted son, Jaden. Dave and his wife traveled all the way to Korea, and are home with their amazing new family addition. This one is traditional blues and greys.

The second was for a co-worker, who is going to his niece's christening later this week. This blanket is for a baby who lives in Miami, so the backing is quilting cotton instead of flannel. One thing we talked about is that even though they're in Miami, everything is air conditioned, so a warm blanket is still top on a new baby's list.

I try to include some vintage trim on every blanket. It feels more personal to me that way. And bigger babies and toddlers seem to like the textures to run little fingers over.

You'd think I'd learn my lesson about taking photos indoors. No more. Chilly weather or no, back outside I go. The colors are just not vibrant enough.

Up next...I picked up my November BOM project, and I have a blanket started made out of actual baby clothes. Should be fun! The blocks look really cute so far.

A Wonderful Non-Sewing Weekend

2010-11-08T06:06:00.007-05:00

I hope I don't disappoint, but this post will have nothing to do with sewing other than a reference to my NEXT post. My husband and I went to NYC overnight to go see my favorite musician ever, Bob Mould at City Winery. I've seen him probably 5-6 times before, but I go any chance I get. Besides, it was a nice excuse for a quick getaway. One of the benefits of being so close to New York.

City Winery is a great venue to see musicians. You are close enough to feel like they are performing just for you, and yet the acoustics are amazing. I was 5 seats back from the stage and in sheer heaven.

Saturday morning, we started our day with a breakfast at Katz Deli (a la When Harry Met Sally). Who doesn't like pickles with their corned beef breakfast??

Then we walked all the way downtown and walked over the Brooklyn Bridge. It was so much fun.

This is what you see when you hit the boards that are actually the bridge. Funny, I couldn't decide if they were trying to say "yes, you CAN walk here" or something else. But I loved these walking men.

Then we have Rob, camera ready to take great shots of this really cool landmark. His pictures are amazing, and I'll have to post a link to his site. Mine are just barely enough to remember where I went and what I saw. As you can see, a lot of my pictures are of him, taking pictures!

Then my sweetie did the "hold the phone out and snap a picture of ourselves" thing. I actually think it's cool because you can see the bridge in the background.

If all of that wasn't exciting enough, on Sunday, we got in the car and told the kids we had a "HUGE" surprise for them. They have been begging for a dog for what feels like forever. Every now and then, either I would look at rescue dogs, or Rob would. And we would email each other pictures of ones we thought might be a good fit for our family. It was pretty whirlwind, and after all of this waiting, actually a pretty impulsive feeling decision, but we made an appointment to meet Ellie on Saturday and went to get her on Sunday.

We got her from Companion Pet Rescue, a great rescue and transport group that brings dogs up from Tennessee. Ellie was found pregnant in a field there. All of her puppies were adopted, and she was left. She is friendly, happy, housetrained, affectionate and basically, all around perfect for our family. We couldn't be happier.

I did manage to sneak in a little sewing on Sunday afternoon. I made a blanket and a half for my cousin's new adopted son, and for a co-worker going to a christening. I'll post pictures of those next. I also made great progress on my first tutorial. It's all written, and pictures taken. I just need to make it into a pretty PDF to link for folks to be able to print out.

Happy Monday!

Fall Quilt Market 2010 - My Whirlwind Version

2010-11-04T07:34:00.008-04:00

Last weekend I went to QuiltMarket for the second time. It was a completely different trip from my first Quiltmarket this spring in Minneapolis. Last time, I went to meet people, get the lay of the land, and experience what exactly this whole “Market” thing is about. The intention was that when I came back in the fall, to pitch my fabric line, I wouldn’t be so intimidated. Oh. Well. So much for that.

Ever since my trip in May, I’ve been working on my fabric line. I’d been compiling a book of “inspiration” long before that. I ended up with five designs in three colorways that I was happy with. Ones that I felt were strong enough to be presented. I had loads of other designs that I had started on, that were either unfinished, or “unworthy”.

I had the guide from the Minneapolis market, so I reached out to a number of companies to make appointments to show my work. After all was said and done, I had four set appointments and a few “stop bys”.

I met with the Art Directors of companies, and got some great, solid feedback. There were shortcomings in my line, which were universally pointed out by all of the companies. The positive in that, is that because the feedback was so consistent, I know exactly what I need to do to fix it. The negative part was that I had to hear “we need more than this” so many times in a row.

My path ahead is quite clear. I know exactly what I need to do. Three of the four Art Directors clearly said, make the changes and come back to me. That’s a heck of a lot better than “take this junk out of my booth and don’t ever come back here”.

One of my big goals is to blog about my sewing adventures, at a minimum of once a week. My goal for 2011 is twice a week. I hope you’ll all hold me to it.

Until then, here are the few measly pictures I took of quilt market between my appointments:

My roomie and pattern designer, fabric designer, all around sewing guru extraordinaire Bari’s amazing first booth ever

AMAZING and so Bari...loved it.

A bad blurry shot of the amazing Amy Butler’s booth, with her raincoat (I already have this pattern; I’m waiting to find just the right laminate to make it in).

And a really great quilt in Tula Pink’s booth with modern graphic alphabet letters.

This Week's Projects

2010-10-12T06:23:00.005-04:00

This whole BOM thing is working out pretty nicely. I can usually get them done in about 45 minutes or so and I really feel like I accomplished something. Here is this month's block. I was really happy with how my points came out, until I saw what they looked like in the photo! I tried doing all of the light points first this time, just to try something new. It seemed to help with those points, but then, some of the others seemed more off as a result. Hmmmm.

My second quick project for the long weekend was this ADORABLE bag, in the Fall 2010 issue of Quilts & More magazine. The pattern is by Monica Solorio-Snow, also known as Happy Zombie. She is amazingly talented, and this quick bag is one example.

In the magazine they're shown with "treats" for Halloween, but I made mine with something else in mind. I used some Amy Butler Love for the main body and some Oliver & S City Weekend for the coordinating bottom and inside (one of my spring Quiltmarket Sample Spree scores!).

It is the perfect size and shape to hold a gift card with a little bit of tissue sticking out. I'm going to make a whole bunch of these for teacher gifts for the holidays to put coffee gift cards in. I'll probably make some for the friends and family too. They go together super quickly, about 35 minutes for my first one (bet I'll be a lot faster now too) and they are like instant gratification. I also used some vintage grosgrain ribbon from my stash. What's better than that?

I'm trying to work on a last round of edits for my designs that I'm taking to Quiltmarket at the end of the month. I can't wait to share how that goes.

Green Living Market Bag by Bari J

2010-09-26T19:52:00.007-04:00

I am so proud to be sharing this great pattern with you all! It's super usable tote bag, designed by my Quiltmarket roomie and designer extraordinaire, Bari Ackerman of Bari J. Designs and Keeping it Real Sewing Patterns.

This is the cover of the pattern.

The first time I made this pattern up it was as a pattern tester for Bari. One thing I really love about her patterns is that they give very clear directions, and usually pictures of the more difficult steps in the pattern. Another great feature is her "keeping it real" commentary. These are tips Bari includes from having made the pattern multiple times, and great bits of info about how to avoid snags, or mistakes. This was my first Green Living Market Bag made up in Bari's Full Bloom line of fabrics.

I love the vintage look with the roses in the fabric and the velveteen ribbon.

The other two bags are both made with Bari's Country Lane line of fabric. One thing I really enjoy about Bari's designs and color palettes is just how many different ways you can mix them up. I could easily have mixed these in other combinations and come up with almost endless variations.

This version, again, is softer and more feminine. The biggest challenge for me with this pattern is sewing on the bottom triangles. Once you construct the bottom using french seams (great technique by the way, really makes the bag look finished, and much sturdier), you fold up the corners to make the bottom flat. See the last photo for a good shot of this.

I don't know about anyone else, but my Pfaff does not seem to like going through that may layers of fabric. I tried using different needles, I tried sewing very slowing. I broke multiple needles and kept getting my motor jammed. What worked best for me was to hand turn the wheel for 3 stitches through the thickest part. Works like a charm and gets through the super thick corner. Again, in Bari's tips, she addresses this.

This last red and blue version just knocks my socks off. I think I'll be keeping this one. A great part of this pattern is that the ribbon is used to tie the bag up so you can keep it in your purse, briefcase, diaper bag, or car for whenever you need to schlep stuff. For me, that is a very common occurrence!

After I made these three versions, I think overall the time it took was 2 hours for each one, start to finish, including cutting, sewing and pressing. Really quick if you need to bring a gift to someone, or want to change out your look with the seasons.

Bari has also written a book, Inspired to Sew, that is due out in January. It has wonderful projects ranging from small and quick to complex and fabulous. The photographs are gorgeous and inspiring.

Starry Night BOM #3

2010-09-24T11:42:00.004-04:00

Hello everyone! I am suffering from tremendous guilt over not having posted in so long. I've been working on the same stuff, what feels like forever.

I'm back in the saddle though, and I whipped up my latest BOM in the last few days in my little 20 minute stints in the morning before I get the kids ready for school.

As usual, my corners aren't great, but I do feel like I'm improving. I think from far away, the block will look pretty. You just have to squint...

Here are the three blocks that I've done so far. Truth be told, they don't look too much like they are a set to me...but you never know. Once they're all done, if it looks like the picture we got at the beginning, it'll be beautiful.

Starry Night BOM #2 - Much better!

2010-08-01T10:51:00.004-04:00

I'm not sure if I mentioned this with my last block, but when I was at the fabric store buying that first block, I saw a co-worker there. She bought the other colorway, and we agreed to bring our blocks into work each month to share what they came out like. She emailed me last week, and said she was going to the shop last Monday and would I like my 2nd block. Well heck yeah! Sew Inspired actually had the blocks for August ready last week, a week early!

Peggy (my co-worker) had hers done two days after she delivered me my block, so embarrassed by her diligence, I got right to work on mine.

I actually think my second block came out MUCH better. My corners are much more exact. The only thing I don't really love is the way the lime and purple look together with the black. It has a Halloween-y sort of feel to me. But I do think that mixed with the other blocks it will be pretty.

This is what the first block looked like.

And here's a pic of the finished project, I don't think I shared this last time.

I've been working on garments so much that I forget how exacting you need to be with quilting. It's actually fun for me now to go back and forth between the two. What do you think? Do you like garment sewing better, or quilting and why??

Starry Night BOM #1

2010-07-18T10:14:00.003-04:00

The first BOM I joined, I only managed to get through 5 of. They came with a "class" and I just couldn't get there. This BOM is with Sew Inspired in Simsbury, CT. A fantastic store, that seems to "get" how to manage all of the details of these things.

The group is called Starry Night because they are inspired by Vincent Van Gogh. There were two colorways to choose from. Black, blue and green or black, yellow and red. Funny, I chose the darker colors thinking the wouldn't show dirt as much.

Here is my finished first block.

I am definitely getting better at cutting, but you can clearly see that my top border is not even. Nor do the squares line up with the side sashing. I WAS pretty happy with my points, but I realized that I had sewn a few of the boxes in the wrong order and had to unsew them and resew. Of course, the second time, the points were not as even. Finally, the center had just the tiniest bit too much fabric, and it puckered when I sewed the four boxes together.

Of course, these are all comments for a "perfect" square. Overall, I'm actually happy with it. I think the colors are going to be really pretty together. And I'll take all the practice I can get.

This block took me 1/2 hour to cut, and about 1 hour to sew (counting the unsewing and resewing!).

Bare Feet Only - My first floor mat

2010-07-12T06:35:00.003-04:00

This is a huge accomplishment for me. I am the Queen of unfinished projects. Or, if you like a positive spin, the Queen of started projects. This great rug I started a mere 3 weeks ago!!

I got a wonderful package of fat quarters from my super creative buddy Bari of her Art Journal line. The colors just jumped out at me and screamed "make something with us!". And I happened to have this pattern on my cutting table, because I was thinking it was an "achievable" project, and VOILA! I'm pretty sure I got the pattern from Above All Fabric. The idea of a sewn floor mat/rug just seemed SO cool to me.

The pattern is "Bare Feet Only" by Sweetwater. There were only three pieces to cut (6 of each), but that was a bit deceiving. I really had trouble making the circular trim pieces neat. They are only about 1/2 inch wide, and clearly, I flunked kindergarten, because I can't cut on a line to save my life it seems. I also found it challenging to cut the double sided interfacing for these pieces. By the time I was done my pattern piece was a mess, and I wished I had traced it and left it in the pattern. I will have a hard time if I try to use this pattern again.

I just love the little nests in this fabric, and I managed to find the most perfect pearlized teal buttons in my vintage button stash. They match the teal really well. The sewing itself for this pattern was simple, however, I had a few problems there, too.

I realized how difficult it is to zigzag stitch around a flower and make it neat and even. When I took the rug out of the sewing machine to examine my work I was surprised just how non-curved some of my sewing was. That having been said, I managed to convince myself it looked "authentic" that way. Ha ha!

I didn't have enough large pieces of the Art Journal for the back so I went to Sew Inspired and found this Art Gallery fabric that I think coordinates really well. The Art Gallery fabric has the most wonderful feel to it, but it's a bit more silky than a lot of cottons I've sewn with, and it didn't hold with the adhesive spray as well as I am accustomed to.

The result was that the back of the rug ended up having a bit too much fabric and being sort of bunchy. Overall, I am not thrilled with the workmanship on this project. I sort of see it as a prototype or a sample. I wanted to see what the whole process was like more than I wanted it to be perfect.

That having been said, I am THRILLED with my binding this time. A wonderful blog reader, Sara Strange (find her blog "Joy in Everything" here), posted a comment about my first quilt binding with a link to a Monkey See video for slip stitching. WOW!! The video made it super clear what I wasn't doing right before, and after seeing the video just once, my binding went from so-so and unattractive to just exactly what I wanted. Thank you Sara!

My daughter has already claimed this rug. She loves the colors and the "cute little birdies". I can't wait to upload these pics to Bari's flickr group. I am crazy excited to be pumping out projects at this rate.

McCall's 5430 Vacation Skirt in gorgeous Timber Fabric

2010-06-29T20:06:00.006-04:00

So this is the skirt that is one of my four projects from vacation. I did everything but the buttonhole, which I did when I got home this week. I got the Gingko Timber fabric (by Jessica Levitt) at Purl Soho when we were there this winter. I just fell in love with the colors.

I chose this pattern because I wear a lot of A-line style skirts. I think they flatter me best, and they are super comfortable and easy to move around in. Now, I don't know WHO on earth they had write this pattern up, but "skirt in an hour" is just hogwash. The pattern was fairly easy to follow, but the cutting alone took me 25 minutes. Then there was the interfacing, which took another 15. This, by the way, was NOT clear in the pattern, I put interfacing on more pieces than I needed to. Of course, if I did more than scan the directions, I might have looked at the pictures on the last page showing which pieces needed interfacing. Alas, I thought to myself "it's only going to take me an hour, how confusing can it be????" Am I the only one who deludes themselves with these thoughts?

That having been said, the only other thing that took time was adjusting the small amount of gathering to get all that fabric inside the curved waist band. Not difficult, just sort of "picky" work. NOT a one hour skirt. A two hour skirt, yes. But to my mathematical mind, they were off by 100%!!

I am very pleased with the final garment. I will definitely make another one. I made version A. I might try to make the version with the pockets next time. I did submit this also, to the Sew Mama Sew "Sew it Wear it" Challenge group on flikr. Some great submissions there, if you like to see what other folks are making.

Up next, I'm hoping to FINALLY finish the small round rug I'm working on. Super cute so far, and likely a gift for my mom. Pictures coming shortly...

Vacation = Four Projects at Once

2010-06-26T11:05:00.007-04:00

So I didn't get to post anything last week because I was on vacation, and I purposefully didn't take a laptop with me. I wanted to at least "try" to unplug a little bit. I did have my phone, and I did Tweet. But no surfing, no blog reading, and no shopping.

The results were excellent if I do say so myself. I managed to finally bind my first quilt, sew a skirt with some Timber fabric I bought last winter at Purl Soho, work on my applique rug, AND start cutting for my second quilt.

I'll post pics of the other projects as I move them along, but here is my binding...I would LOVE comments about what method people use to sew the back shut. I tried a simple slip stitch, but I couldn't get it neat enough, and it looked like the gaps were just too big...so here's what I went with.

I love how it looks from the front, and I'm ok with how it looks on the back. I'm anxious to get started on my second one though, to see if I can improve my technique.

I also managed to get in lots of fun with the kiddos, and go on a whale watch with them. We saw around 20 whales, and one group that included 3 generations, something they said was happening more and more frequently now, as the whale population gets a bit stronger.

AND I managed to find this pic of my Castle Peeps bag from Quilt Market, as it went on it's first whale watch! Thank you Lizzy!

The next day we got to visit the fabulosity that is Yummygoods, and our Unicorn Queen, Melissa Averinos. The kids were not very compliant, so I only got to chat with Melissa for 10 minutes or so. But let me tell you, if you have a chance to go, RUN, don't walk, to Yummygoods. She has wonderful, unique stuff. We did not leave empty handed!

We had a wonderful trip, and I can't wait to tell you all more about my projects. What I'm hoping to finish next is a floor rug that I'm making with Bari J's adorable Art Journal Fabric. Stay Tuned!

My first actual quilt...a super long term UFO

2010-06-14T20:35:00.004-04:00

The weekend before last I took the kids up to Cooperstown to visit my cousin Amy and her parents (you can read more about them on my Mother's Day post). The weather actually cooperated, and it was a lovely 80-ish and sunny. I love going there because I really relax. This is me lounging, while Ally enjoys the pool with Auntie Amy.

Amy's mom, who is my Aunt Pat, is a crazy accomplished quilter. So I dragged my sewing machine and my first quilt top with me, thinking with Aunt Pat's guidance, I would swallow my fear of quilting and binding and just dive in.

This quilt top mind you, has been done for at least a year. The pattern is from an easy quilt magazine, I'm not even sure which one. But it's made with Mark Lipinski's Califon, the first designer line I ever fell in love with.

Of course, I forgot to bring my batting, so we had to make a lightning fast last minute run to a quilt store (as it was closing at 5 pm on Saturday!) to get some batting. I used this great green stuff that is made from recycled plastic bottles, and I actually really love how nice and heavy it makes the quilt feel. The top is about 42" square.

Aunt Pat helped me with the spray adhesive and get everything nice and flat. Then she said "Go ahead and baste it. Starting from the center, out into eighths." So I did. BY MACHINE. You can see what my not-so-smooth quilting looks like. It's not perfect...but I do like the look of the curved quilting stitches.

Of course, when she saw me she said "Oh, I meant by HAND. That's going to take you forever to rip out." I may actually have seen a tiny smirk when she said that last part.

Can you say UGH?? It took me a full hour and half to pull out the basting stitches. But it's done. And because I saw some of his amazingly gorgeous quilts at Market, I asked Scott from Blue Nickel Studios what his preferred binding method was, and he sent me a tutorial.

So my longest running UFO is slowing becoming an "FO". I have the binding started. I'll post pics as soon as the quilt is done. But I'm proud of getting this far.

Stay tuned!

Winner Winner Chicken Dinner!

2010-06-07T20:56:00.001-04:00

The two winning entries were #3, Ellie from Craft Sew Create and #51 Chris M from sew_caffeinated!

Congratulations!

Please send me an email to restitcherator@gmail.com with your full name and mailing address and I'll get you prize right out to you.

Thank you so much, everyone, for the follows, and great comments.

Quilt Market Part 2 - Including a GIVEAWAY!

2010-05-28T11:57:00.010-04:00

One of the highlights of my trip to market was the opportunity to act as "camera girl" for some interviews that my roommate Bari J. did for Boutique Cafe. She interviewed some fabulous designers, including Pat Bravo, Lizzy House, Amy Butler, and more! The first was the amazing and very gracious Pat Bravo, here is what some of her booth looked like.

Pat designs up to four lines a year, has an amazing pattern line, and her new Grab 'n Sew kits. Talk about prolific!

I was lucky enough to be invited to the second (annual?) Cake Party hosted by Lizzy House as well. Everyone had cake to celebrate her mom's (Cherri House) new book City Quilts (among other things!). It was a great little gathering, with not one cake, but FIVE! I had carrot cake.

Above are Melissa Averinos of Yummygoods and Jana of Izzy & Ivy Designs.

This is the Melissa's friend Unicorn, taking a quick snooze while we all ate cake.

And in this photo are Lizzy, Betz White, and Patty Young...all enjoying cake and nice mid-afternoon chat.

Here are some adorable owls from the Bunny Hill Booth.

I loved these letters that say "SEW WHAT".

These are two pictures from the adorable notions area inside the Riley Blake booth. I LOVE me some rickrack!! Wow, talk about eye candy!

This is a shot from the amazing Kokka booth. I adore the Sleeping Beauty print by Heather Ross on the bag to the left.

These are some of the amazing display quilts that were part of the exhibits in the center of the show. They were part of a series of quilts (I think in a competition) about doorways. These just really spoke to me. The two in the second photo are clearly of Venice, and reminded me of my honeymoon.

Last but not least, I enjoyed an amazing tapas dinner on Saturday night with this group of ladies.

I'm on the far left, then there's Violet, Betz, Bari, Brooke, Michelle and Gina (Cloud 9), then Cherri and Lizzy House (in the center front).

In honor of the amazing time I had at my first, of what I hope to be MANY quiltmarkets, I have two giveaways. Both were part of my wonderful scores at Sample Spree. To enter, you can:

1.) Follow my blog!
2.) Follow me on Twitter (@restitcherator)
3.) You can reply here with your favorite quiltmarket memory, or
4.) You can reply here about why YOU want to go to quiltmarket.

You can have multiple entries, just email and let me know what you did. I'll randomly pick two winners from the entries a week from tomorrow, Monday, June 7.

The first is Pieces of My Heart Pattern and Charm Pack (& more) by Sandy Gervais! It comes in a sweet little Moda drawstring bag, and the pattern is for a 25" x 29" quilt called "Oopsie Daisy" and the bag has everything you need except the thread and backing fabric!

The second is Me and My Sisters Desgins pattern set (including THREE designs!), and fabric to make a pattern called "Happy" shown as #6 on the pattern booklet. It also has the fabric to make the whole top and the binding, and comes in a Moda drawstring bag. It's a nice size lap quilt at 44" x 53"!!

I can't wait to see all of your entries! Good luck, and thanks for sharing my first Quiltmarket experience with me.

My first Quiltmarket...set the bar HIGH

2010-05-23T19:17:00.007-04:00

I literally do not know where to start. Somehow, between sheer grit and determination, and the stars aligning, I not only went to Spring Quiltmarket, but it more than exceeded my wildest dreams. I met so many Twitter friends, bloggers, fabric designers, pattern designers, quilt designers, shop owners and all kinds of wonderful people. Without exception, they were warm, friendly, open and a lot of fun to be around.

These are pictures of the winning multiple booth by Michael Miller Fabrics. It was like walking into a magical snowy land of glittery gorgeousness. This was the home of the super gracious and lovely Sandi Henderson, whose new book "Sewing Bits and Pieces" I bought and she signed for me.

It was also home to Patty Young, and her new line "Playdate".

I attended my first Sample Spree, and with people lining up a full four hours ahead of time, it made the Filene's Basement Bridal Sale look like a walk in the park. I will say *blowing on fingertips and rubbing them on my shirt* I DID manage to get all THREE colorways of Lizzy House's new line Castle Peeps, AND a fat quarter pack of Oliver & S's new line for Moda. That's right. BOTH of the things I wanted. Some of the hardened Quiltmarket pros were impressed with my skills. All that shopping has to come in handy somewhere right??

I have so much more to share....but I had the time of my life. I made connections. I got great information, and insight. Best of all, I have new friends. My roomie, the fabulous Bari J. was there to promote her new line "Country Lane", which is simply to die for. She answered my endless questions, she introduced me to EVERYONE, and she even put up with my constant tweeting and bumping into her while we walked. She was recently featured in Better Homes & Gardens Quilts and More with a designer feature AND an adorable project. Check it out!

I have loads more to come, and some super awesome pictures to share. So sit tight, and check back...I'll post a few times this week.

I will go to bed tonight with visions of fabric and thread in my head. Just how I like it.

Ode to Mothers

2010-05-07T08:57:00.004-04:00

It's amazing how very different I feel and have felt about Mother's Day at various points in my life.

When I was little, it was a time for making cards, and picking flowers, and generally being as artsy as possible. Pulling out all the glittery, glamoury stops to tell my mom and grandmothers how much I love them.

When I got pregnant, I was THRILLED at the thought of just getting to BE a mom on Mother's Day. The idea of breakfast in bed, or being treated like a queen for a day held such appeal.

Now, with older children, I am in yet another completely different place on Mother's Day. I feel like I have the best of both worlds. I have the perspective of some time with motherhood, and a true appreciation for what it takes to be a good mom, and the joy and fulfillment that can bring. And almost as importantly, how incredibly grateful I am to have such wonderful women in my life, to show me how to go about being a good mom.

This is a picture of me and my family up on a mountain ( I think in VT) where we used to go blueberry picking every year. I labeled all the people so you can tell who's who. Credit where credit is due...I'm pretty sure it was my Uncle Phil taking the picture.

As an Ode to Motherhood, I'd like to offer the following.

My Mom - sacrificed a lot for me...in so many ways, at so many points. She gave me an incredible work ethic, but now, more importantly, I realize what that REALLY means. It means that I can be truly independent, self-sufficient, and not have to muddy the waters of my relationships by relying on other people financially. I am free to enjoy people for who they are, and what we mean to each other, without baggage. She taught me to stick up for myself. Without question. And if that means dazzling people with $10 words all strung together, then so be it. Plus...all that other good mom stuff, like good manners, giving to other people, even when you have just enough for yourself, and how to make a mean super-neat bed.

My Nonni - told me time and time again, "you can do anything if you put your mind to it". She taught me to drive. She bought me those ridiculously expensive Jordache jeans. She taught me that chocolate chip cookies and hugs can pretty much comfort any woe. She taught me a love of hand made things. I had hand made sweaters galore, many that I still have and wear now. She taught me super cool phrases like "I'm busier than a one-armed paper hanger" and "pain in a bucket!". I think I get my love of clutter and chocolate from her. Which makes her that much cooler.

My Aunt Pat - inspired me to reach for lofty goals. She became a doctor when she had school aged kids I
(I know! right??). She was my mom-away-from-mom for countless summer vacations, and holidays. She taught me an appreciation for how wonderful a family meal can be ("What, you don't like my cooking??") I'm sure that my sense of humor somehow came from her. We love the same kinds of movies (The Princess Bride). She is just generally happy, and always insanely busy. But smiling. And loving and living life to the fullest every moment. On another note...Aunt Pat is a seriously amazing seamstress and quilter. She is in great part responsible for my wacky love of fabric, and sewing. It's her hand me down machine that I got started with I got back into sewing.

My cousin Amy - we've had a lifetime of memories. She has taught me what true friendship is. She has been there for me when I felt most alone. Best of all, she can keep a secret. Any secret. It's like having a sister, without actually having one. She has parented gracefully through things I cannot even imagine LIVING through, let alone parenting through. My admiration of her is profound. She taught me that sharing someone else's dessert is actually better than getting your own. She taught me that sometimes, if you can manage to make the best of a bad situation, go right ahead and do it. Even if other people might not agree with you. She just plain rocks.

Part of this is awkward, there have been SO many other wonderful women in my life. I wish I had photos of them all, and time to tell you my life story. But these four, they are the team I would want going into a fire. And they are the team I would want celebrating my life's finest moment with.

So go hug your mom. And tell her you love her.

Vacation Week Sewing Treat - Kyoko Dress

2010-04-23T14:28:00.002-04:00

This is the week my kids have had for April vacation. Crazy late it seems to me. Everyone else has been on vacation, come home, and is back at school. My "day" job has been really busy (see my earlier post), so I couldn't take the whole week, but I did manage to squeeze in 3 days off. I knew I had only so much time, so on Tuesday night I cut...and yesterday, I dove in.

I've been saving some Meadowsweet from Sandi Henderson that I bought, you guessed it, from Melanie at Above All Fabric. I really love the color palatte, especially the orange and the lime...and for some reason, the plaid just SPEAKS to me. I decided to try it with Patty Young's Kyoko dress. My five year old is dress crazy, and I know how beautifully Patty's patterns are and how well they fit my peanut. The result was nothing short of stunning!

We ran a few errands this morning, and without exception, everywhere we stopped, someone commented on Ally's dress. Maybe she's used to it now...but she sort of smirks and says an exaggerated "Thhhank you!" Truth be told, I love when people ask me where I bought it. And when I say "oh, I made it for her" their mouths always fall open. *LOVE THAT*

One of our stops today was at CVS, where she got some new sunglasses. She didn't really want to pose, so her focus is more on Snow White on the arms of the glasses.

The pattern went together super smoothly. I would say maybe 2 hours of actual sewing and pressing time. I take forever to trace patterns, and cut them out. I also take forever to pin. I am mad-crazy over pinner. Mostly because I keep trying to NOT pin, and I have to "un-sew" because it's crooked.

The only challenge I ran into was in making the obi. I had another print cut, and was informed by my lovely daughter that it wasn't "the one". So I cut a second. Funny, I like her choice better than mine, but in cutting the second set, I rushed. And the two were not 100% equal on both sides (from my too-quick rotary cutting), so I had to go over some of the areas twice, because one side was narrower than the other and the stitches didn't catch the fabric underneath. *NOTE TO READER* this is not a short coming in the pattern in any way. The directions are clear, and actually really easy. I just tend to get ahead of myself.

I love when I start something, and it goes together this easily, and the result is so fantastic. I also traced this pattern, instead of cutting it, so I could use it again in another size. It was the first time I had used a tracing wheel. I love it when those "easy" tools work as well as this one did. I will be much more confident using it now, and will likely get a lot more use out of my patterns.

What do you think of my print mix? I'd love to know what you think works about it, or what you'd do differently.

Green Living Market Bag - by Bari J. Pattern Review

2010-04-18T07:24:00.004-04:00

So, I am not quite meeting my goal yet, of blogging once a week. But hey! I'm posting more often than last year, and I'm actually starting to remember to take pictures of the things I make, which is a big improvement. I'm all about progress...not perfection.

My official Quilt Market roomie (*squealing with excitement*) Bari J. asked me to test another pattern for her. And FAR be it from me to say no to some fat quarters of yummy fabric and an early sneak peak of a pattern! I tested her Green Living Market Bag pattern that was one of the four in her first grouping of designer patterns.

This is how the finished pattern looks...and as a side note, this is my favorite style. The pattern is like a booklet (with pretty glossy paper) and the pattern itself is on sturdy white paper folded inside. It's also in a zip top bag. I'm sure this costs more money, but GOD does it make for longer lasting patterns, and easier storage.

The rest of the photos were taken by Rob, my photog extraordinaire. He actually puts the majority of his stuff right on Facebook...but I figured this was a shameless enough plug.

The pattern went to together really easily, and I love the ribbon to tie it together. It actually folds down into a tiny square so that you can either put it in your purse, or you can put a bunch of bags together to go to the store and not carry what looks like a tent.

My biggest challenge with the pattern was folding the pointed ends of the flat bottom up on either side. The only challenge was that the fabric was many many layers thick. So I actually used a denim needle, and sewed really slowly. It gave the bag a very polished looking exterior, instead of just the normal flat bottom.

I'm pretty sure my mom is getting this for Mother's Day, so mom, if you read this...sorry to ruin the surprise! It's a great bag to carry books, groceries, or better yet, I actually carry mine in my purse, so that when I stop in somewhere like the pharmacy, or even somewhere at the mall (*gasp*) I don't have to take a plastic bag.

Think green, and look super fashionable. Gotta love that.

This UFO is finally "F" - Fig Tree Bon Voyage Pattern Review Garment Bag

2010-03-27T14:02:00.006-04:00

I'm on a roll folks! And I'm going to run with it. If I've learned anything in life so far, it's how strong and powerful momentum can be. I've had this unfinished project on my sewing table....wait for it...since November. It was supposed to be a Christmas gift! I do realize in the grand scheme of sewing lives, that's not even "long", but it's been taking up valuable space and taunting me...so finish it, I did.

The garment bag is for my mother in law. Every time she comes to visit us for the weekend (yes, weekend) she brings bags, and bags and BAGS of stuff. I decided that she needed something personal to carry it all in. After much digging, the Fig Tree Bon Voyage bag looked to be exactly what I was trying to find for her.

After reading the pattern, and realizing my own limitations as a quilter, I decided to go ahead and buy pre-quilted fabric. I know, I know...I can hear the gasping and choking and see the chest clutching from here. But really folks...I'm a sewer first, and a quilter, like, 10th. My quilting skills are still very mediocre at best and I wanted to be able to focus on the construction of the bag. Besides, this print is SO my mother in law. I know she'll love it. (AND, it took me over 4 1/2 months as it was!).

Here's my finished product:

A few things to note about the pattern before I start. I didn't use a contrasting gusset fabric, as they did in the photo. Nor did I add on the optional pocket. I had a lot of trouble trying to figure out the placement of the pocket, and how it would work without your things all falling out, and I made the executive decision to just not add it. (Again, it took me over 4 1/2 months as it was!)

What I liked about the pattern the most, was the labeled pieces diagram at the beginning, which were also color coded. Had it not been for these, I would have struggled even more than I did. The steps were laid out well, and the overall directions were written very clearly.

What I didn't like about the pattern was the lack of detail around how you got the two gusset sides to come together at the top. I couldn't for the life of me envision it while I was putting it together, and there was no graphic or diagram in the pattern. I ended up trying a few different ways before I got it work out the way I think it was intended. Now that it's done, it looks great, and actually is pretty straightforward, but...alas...as is often the case, I overthought it.

Another thing I really love about the pattern is this:

All of the interior seams are bound and it gives the bag a really lovely, "finished" feel.

I also did add a little zipper pull, beacuse there wasn't any mention of one, and the only zipper I could find that was long enough was brass and isn't as smooth as I'd like. The long pull makes it much easier to slide it up and down to open the bag.

One photo on the back of the pattern shows the bag folded in half using the loop, and I really liked that feature. Especially if you have to travel on a plane or somplace that you are super limited in hanging space. You could fold the garments in half, and the bag looks fantastic, and I think, given it's structure, will hold the clothes nicely.

All in all I'm happy with the final product. Please, under no circumstances ask to see what the inside looks like, or for detail shots. This is most definately a "prototype" version.

I would say this pattern is for an intermediate sewer, at least. It's certainly not a beginner pattern. But the end result is polished and chic looking. If I had actually chosen the fabric and quilted it myself it would make a downright gorgeous bag.

My Once and Someday Former Life

2010-03-19T06:53:00.005-04:00

I've been having a lot of trouble balancing things lately. My life is really full. I have a full time "day" job, two kids, a husband, friends, family, and then...I have my dream. My dream of turning my love of fabric and creating things, into a career. My latest big step forward is taking a class in Illustrator and Photoshop so I can feel confident in getting my design ideas into reality. But that adds to the "really full life" thing. It's a lot of work. And going back to homework every week is ROUGH. But it is oh-so-worthwhile. I love the class, and it's only until mid-May.

My bigger news, is that I have...ready??? Bought a plane ticket. I am GOING to Quilt Market. That's right. I AM GOING. I have roommate to stay with (I KNOW...how cool is THAT?) And it's not just any roommate. It's Bari, as in Bari J. Fabric and now pattern designer Bari. I KNOW. I also already have my pass to get in. Is your heart pounding like mine yet???

So I thought I would give you a glimpse into my day to day life as it is now. Because as I see it, it's only a matter of time, and it will be different. Here goes...

I drive to work every day, after waiting with the kids at the bus stop. I live outside of Hartford, CT. Small as cities go. I park my car, and this is what I see.

I try to park on the roof of the garage every day I can. Just so that when I come out of work, I can breathe real (non-re-circulated) air. And look around. It's spring time, so for now...it's pretty nice.

I work for Prudential. The Rock. Mother Pru. You know who that is. Enough said. I live in the insurance capital of the world. Pretty much everyone works for an insurance company in some capacity. Overall, as much as I beef, it's a great company to work for, and I love my co-workers. (Especially the crafty ones!) So, I go into my building, and head up to the cube farm.

I'm the Treasurer for Pru's Bank. So it's a geek fest every day. Accountants, actuaries, and finance types everywhere. Part of me loves it. The challenge, the number-ness of it. But I've done it what feels like forever. And in my heart of hearts, I know I will be fulfilled in a whole new way when I'm creating for a living. When I sit down to work (or dream) this is what I see. The edge of my cube, my sweet little owl from WBR (with it's italian translation, because I want to learn to speak Italian, but that's a whole different post!), and the wide, blue yonder.

This is my CFA charter. It took four years of misery, self study, discipline and many, many brain cells to get this. It basically says I'm about as finance-geeky as they come. I am very proud of this. BUT...it has served it's purpose. I'm ready to get a CFA in fabric design.

So...to help myself along, I write things on my white board to look at every day and inspire me. What's there right now is this...

When I shared that on Twitter, Whipstitch had this to say "Burn the boats, Baby". THAT is the kind of awesome inspiration, comraderie and community I thrive on.

So, without further ado...onto my Once and FUTURE life.

Following my Bliss & Making Connections

2010-02-07T15:04:00.005-05:00

It's been well over a month since I posted anything. I had told myself that for the new year I wanted to post at least twice a month on my blog. So much for that!

I thought to warm myself up, I'd let you know about two great things that are going on for me now.

The first, is that I'm taking a class in Adobe Creative Suite CS4 online at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco. It's an accredited program, so if I decide to keep taking classes and actually get a degree, I could actually use it. Which is good, because the classes are NOT cheap. But, I felt like I needed to learn Illustrator and Photoshop if I want to successfully design fabric, so I signed up. I'm also one of those people who (sadly) is more diligent about something once I've opened my wallet. So spending the money is a motivator to stay on track.

I'm loving the videos and presentation like format of the learning so far. And getting to see all of my classmates work is both inspiring and motivating. Some of them seem so good, already, after only the first week. I may have to step up my practicing time.

In more local news, I had a great Etsy shop owner from Hartford reach out to me and say that she was looking to start an Etsy Team of Hartford artisans...how cool is that? I was actually able to give her some additional names and emails of folks who might be interested. Her name is Katie Tolve and her Etsy shop is cute.n.boot and she makes great pen pal supplies. She also started us all a blog (Team HartBeat), and we have our first get together scheduled in March. Last but not least, she made us a great button (at my suggestion!)

How great is THAT? And irony of all ironies...we actually work in the same BUILDING in our day jobs. I'm hoping to meet her for lunch soon.

So, that's it for now...I'm hoping to post more often. I'm dreaming of going to Quilt Market in May. Even if it means I just get to meet some of the awesome peeps I've met on Twitter. So send all the positive vibes you can. Following your bliss can be a lot of work.

Holiday Sewing & Hazel Pattern Review

2009-12-24T14:38:00.006-05:00

Wow, so here it is, Christmas Eve. And not only am I just now finishing my final gift, but I managed to take a bunch of pictures so I can do a review of the pattern. Talk about multi-tasking!

Before I continue, I must say, that Twitter (my name is @restitcherator if you'd like to follow my tweets) is just about my favorite thing in the world these days. After I post pictures or talk about doing one pattern review or test, I get a request to do another one! It's like heaven! I follow quite a few fabric designers, pattern creators, sewing book authors, but also a ton of other crafters and sewistas like me.

My most recent project was from the very talented and wonderfully friendly Trish Preston, of Two Peas in a Pod Designs. She also has an Etsy shop where you can buy this great pattern for a hipster bag.

The pattern comes with multiple variations, pockets, no pockets, smaller, larger, etc. I made the basic version as a purse for my cousin for Christmas. She hates to carry big, heavy purses, so I thought this would be perfect for her. I used Sandi Henderson's new Meadowsweet fabric, which I think is absolutely GORGEOUS. It was everything in me not to keep the bag and get something else for my cousin!

The pattern was very well written, with great "tips" along the way for important notes to remember. One of the things I liked the best, was that there was a blank line between each of the numbered directions. And the font was a decent size. So often I get patterns that have tiny print on a page that's folded up 10 times and I flip back and forth and get myself confused.

Trish's steps were easy to follow, and I am super pleased with the results. What do you think?

I will most definately be making more bags with this pattern. It took me maybe a total of 3 hours including cutting, pressing, and sewing (and even the pictures). And I will be looking at Trish's new patterns when they come out too!

Annual Christmas Trip to Beantown

2009-12-13T18:27:00.010-05:00

It's actually become and annual tradition..we started going four years ago when we were just getting to the "serious dating" stage. We take a trip to Boston for some great food in the North End, some Christmas shopping, and a quick little getaway in the chaos that is holiday time.

This year we stayed at The Langham, Boston. It's right in the heart of the financial district. The room was very nice, but no free breakfast. A pretty big drawback in my book! We decided to walk to dinner, although it was pretty windy and cold, and saw this along the way, and I just loved it.

We got to dinner, at Trattoria di Monica on Prince Street in the North End. It came pretty highly recommended, and being the research geek I am, I read tons of online reviews. It was exactly the type of restaurant we love. Small, great atmosphere, romantic (ok, that's my favorite, not Rob's), and amazing food. Very cozy on a cold wintery night.

Even though it was tiny, Rob managed to snap a few pics, and caught me smiling at the amazing choices. At least this time I wasn't tweeting, or updating my Facebook page, which is what he usually catches me doing.

After dinner we stopped at Mike's Bakery, on Hanover Street, which was actually rockin' at 10:30. There were literally throngs of people going in and out. Some sitting with coffee, some taking boxes of sweet deliciousness home. That I did manage to tweet about.

I got a decaf cappucino, and about 8 different chocolate treats. Giant peanut butter cups, giant chocolate dipped pretzel rods with toffee crumbs on top, coconut clusters...oh lord. All of them were amazing, and we actually have a few left.

When we got back to the hotel, the concierge actually managed the truly rare and elusive photo of Rob AND Rebecca. These don't happen often, so I was glad it came out as well as it did.

The next morning we went to Sowa Holiday Market, which is a fantastic show featuring 80 amazing artists and craftspeople. I tell myself that I'm there to buy gifts and then manage to come home with presents for myself! My favorite artist was there, James Polisky. He designed my logo.

He has an amazing perspective. He manages to show the darker side of people, kids, animals, you name it, with what to me feels like a beautiful, funny overlay. For some reason, his work just speaks to me.

As we were eating lunch on Newbury Street, I was looking out the window and saw all kinds of people in Santa hats run by one block up. As luck would have it 5 minutes later, the Speedo Santa Run went right past us. I had never heard of it, but I guess it's to raise money for a few local charities. Needless to say Rob got TONS of pictures, but just to give you a flavor...these people were CRAZY.

As always, it was a wonderful, memorable trip. We will most definately be going back next Christmastime.

Pattern Test for Patty - Flora & Fauna Blossom Pillow

2009-12-09T14:08:00.005-05:00

Once again, thanks to Twitter, I was given the fantastic opportunity to test a new pattern for fabric/pattern designer Patty Young.

Patty launched a new set of patterns this week, and I was asked to test one of the decorative pillows from her "Pillow Trio" pattern. This time around Patty sent me her new Flora & Fauna fabric, and a suggested layout for the fabrics.

The fun part is that my finished test pillow gets to be in the actual pattern once it's printed, and Rob's great photos of the pillow get photo credit in the finished pattern too!

Overall, the pattern was super simple to complete. Something a new sewer could make with ease, and get some super immediate gratification. All of the pillows are a finished 18", so they really look fantastic and stand out on a chair or bed.

Super Duper Tote with a Zipper (& pattern review)

2009-12-04T20:25:00.011-05:00

Unfortunately, more than one of the projects I've worked on the most lately have been TOP secret. So I am very happy to be able to share this one.

It came as a special request from Rob's cousin. She asked me if I could make a tote bag with a zipper. She said she was looking for something that she could carry snacks and drinks around in, but that could pass for a handbag. My two kids are ALWAYS asking "what do you have to eat?" and oddly enough, there's usually something rumbling around in my purse. But I love the challenge of custom requests, so I started hunting.

I asked my fellow Tweeps for suggestions on a pattern to use. I figured that I at least needed a place to start. Melanie, (owner of Above All Fabric) who has now pretty much become my "go to" fabric/sewing resource suggested this book:

It looked like it had exactly what I needed so I ordered it right away. I decided on the tote from the back that has pink and purple stripes and black buttons, but I knew that I was going to choose a single fabric so I thought it would be pretty straightforward.

Well, pretty straightforward. I am a huge grosgrain ribbon fanatic. So I try to put it on just about as many things I make as possible without it looking silly. After two other fabric choices which ended up getting cut and then re-folded and re-stashed (that's a whole 'nother story!) I found this Joel Dewberry Tiles fabric and knew it was the right choice. I have the most awesome huge amount of siler/grey ribbon in a few different sizes, so I dug in.

The pattern was pretty clear, and well written, but as with many other patterns, it was really important to read through the whole thing a few times and have all of the pieces they told you to cut, ready. I tried to skip right to the directions, without being properly prepped and it didn't make any sense at all. Once I got into the meat of the pattern, it was easy to follow.

I will say that because the fabric was home dec weight, by the time it had a front, back, lining, and padding, it was pretty thick. I broke not one, but TWO needles going around the outside edge to finish it.

But finish it I did and I love the end result. I worked very hard to line up the sides,

and outside of the zipper...

and the inside is lined with some pretty plain, tonal cream color paisley fabric. It does, however, have a pocket made from my precious stash of Pussy Willow fabric from BariJ's Full Bloom line. These birds just make me HAPPY, so I fit them in where ever I can.

I am totally thrilled with the finished product

although it is much more than the quick bag I thought I was going to throw together. I realize with my horrid photographic skills the grey grosgrain actually looks like reflective tape! But I promise it's not.

Now I just hope Jessica likes it!

Next up, I"m going to do a little show and tell about my day of Serger School on Thursday. It was fantastic...

My Biggest Etsy Shop Update Thus Far...and News

2009-11-08T16:27:00.004-05:00

So, it's pretty exciting, now that I've had a few more Etsy sales, to keep adding things to my shop. It's really motivating to actually finish things that I've had lingering on the table, or worse yet, just waiting for pictures. So here the new things are, with more to come this week I hope!

Felted Baby Block

Super Luxe Cashmere Scarf

Cloth napkins from repurposed vintage tablecloth

Potholders from repurposed vintage tablecloth

And, because I've done a few test patterns now, I'm getting asked to do more! Which I love. One pattern for a designer who I've done one for in the past, the amazingly talented Patty Young. And the other is another Tweep, Trish, of Two Peas in a Pod. So much fun to test patterns, because it's almost like a challenge, and it makes me what to get right to work as soon as the pattern arrives in the mail (or email as the case may be!) and not come out of my sewing room until it's done.

Thanks for your support everyone! I can't wait to blog about my new pattern tests. Happy Fall!

Pattern Review- "The Ruffled Chef" from Indygo Junction

2009-11-04T18:16:00.005-05:00

I wish I had some better pictures to go along with this post, but if I wait for pictures, I'd post even less than I do now!

I've had this pattern for a while, and was looking for a reason to make it. Then I got a request for a special order from one of my West Coast cousins for a full length apron for her daughter, and we agreed on this one. I always love an excuse to try a new pattern, and this is the first garment I've made with an Indygo Junction pattern. (Although I have more patterns, just haven't used them yet!) So here's the cover...

I used some great pink cupcake fabric, along with a stripe and a dot. I had orignally chosen another pink pattern, instead of the stripe, but after starting to assemble the apron, the colors just didn't do it for me.

One challenge I always have is when there are directions and notes on the pattern pieces about numbered sides, or something to that effect. The two triangle tops of this apron had that, and I sewed them on backwards the first time around. The only other thing that I didn't like about the pattern was the width of the ruffle around the neckline. I found it really difficult to get the ruffle to lay the way I wanted it to, and it was almost like trying to sew a bias tape (which usually results in me cursing up a storm).

Other than those two small nits, overall, I think the pattern was very well written. Directions were clear, and easy to follow. Steps were separate enough that I felt like I made real progress, moving from one to the next. OH! And the pattern recommends that you serge most of the edges of the fabric. This made for a really well-finished look to the apron when I was done.

Poor picture and all, here it is.

I'm 5'4", and it was actually really long on me, past my knees. So it would be a good apron for someone who is quite a bit taller than me. Also, the ties are really nice and long, so you can either tie it in front, or in back and make a nice size bow. One final note, the pockets ended up feeling nice and substantial. I was afraid that they would feel flimsy, as the seam allowance was small on the bottom, but they were a pleasant surprise when I was done.

I'm hoping Laura loves her apron, and I'm looking forward to making more Indygo Junction patterned items soon!

Super Double Top Secret

2009-10-18T21:46:00.003-04:00

There are no pictures with this post. I would LOVE to...but I can't! I've been sworn to secrecy. Now doesn't THAT sound exciting??

I did my second pattern test for a fabric designer for the last two weeks. It's a pattern that will be in a book that she's working on. It was different than anything I've ever done, and I was thrilled with the results.

I'll share pictures as soon as I'm allowed!

Ally gets featured and I won a gift certificate!

2009-09-29T16:57:00.004-04:00

An online fabric store where I buy quite a bit of my fabric is called Above All Fabric. The owner, Melanie, has a flickr group, where she asked people to share pictures of things they've made with fabric purchased at her store. After people posted, Melanie chose some to write a blog post about on HER blog.

Well, not only did one of the first try pics of Ally in the Julia outfit make it onto Melanie's blog, but I won a $25 gift certificate! Talk about feeding someone's habit. Melanie also has a new feature at her shop where you earn points for all of the fabric you buy, that can be used, or saved and used towards future orders. Wowee!

I'll post what I buy with the certificate, but in the meantime, I'm making more upcycled napkins and some special order baby blankets for my Etsy shop.

Oh yeah, and check out my new banner in the shop...I'd love to know what you think?

Ally in Julia

2009-09-22T18:22:00.004-04:00

DSC_7494
Originally uploaded by restitcherator

I am totally addicted to Twitter.

One afternoon as I was driving, I saw my phone light up with a Tweet from designer Patty Young. She was looking for new pattern testers for her new girls' clothing patterns that are coming out at the Fall Quilt Market.

Needless to say I jumped at the chance. It's a two layer skirt with a shirred drawstring that shows off the underlayer, and appliques put onto a purchased top.

I used fabrics from Patty's Mezzanine fabric line. Maybe it's because I'm a child of the '80s, but pink and green as a color combo just make me smile.

I got to use my new Pfaff overlocker on this pattern that I got for my birthday. And I got to use that great dark green large rick rack that I bought during my first Shop Hop.

The pattern went together like a breeze, and Patty's pattern was laid out beautifully. The fabrics from Michael Miller are a very nice quality. Over all, more fun than I think one sewer should get to have!

P.S. Fabric was purchased online at Above All Fabric.

DSC_7449
Originally uploaded by restitcherator

DSC_7483
Originally uploaded by restitcherator

Weekend project - cloth napkins upcycled from vintage tablecloths

2009-09-07T19:37:00.004-04:00

So, it seems like forever that I've had this giant Rubbermaid tote full of vintage tablecloths that I've managed to accumulate over time. Lots and lots of them have small holes, or thin spots. Some of them have great patterns or images on them. Most of them have those gorgeous vintage color combinations that you just don't see anymore. Pretty much all of them had some stains. But I found one at a Goodwill store recently and it reminded me to pull them out. I made a huge batch of bleach and water to soak them in, and started cutting.

The first set had these great roosters, chickens, and farm houses. It also had lots of tiny pea-sized holes. But once I was done with them...

They are double sided, and not 100% perfectly square, but they are all intact, and what I did use is in wonderful condition. And who can beat that pattern?? Best of all, they are super Earth friendly, eliminating paper napkins, and re-using something that would have been in the landfill. They are absorbant as all get out, just to make them that much sweeter.

My favorite pattern and color combo of all time was in this cloth...the red white and blue (but more like teal). Best of all, these are 15 1/2" square, which is nice and big. Just the most gorgeous shabby chic looking napkins you'll ever want to see.

Both sets are now in my Etsy shop, with many more to come.

Thinking Fall...and Purses!

2009-08-30T13:35:00.005-04:00

Wow. Can it be? Almost six weeks since I posted? Clearly I need to get a better routine going. I've made all kinds of stuff, but haven't had the foresight to take pictures, let alone post about them. I made a gorgeous Amy Butler halter top for myself, that's been worn and washed already. I'll definately post about that later.

Most of my very favorite projects are usually things that I sort of dream up, and wing as I go along. I find that with a pattern, I have this preconceived notion about what stuff will look like, and if it doesn't, I'm never quite as happy with it as I want to be. This project was one of those organic ones...it started with some great lucite handles I bought at Mood in January. They were really reasonable and I have another pair of light grey ones. Since this bag came out so well, I'm sure I'll be making another with those shortly!

The result was this...

I've seen these types of purses a lot of places, and wanted to make one with a simple shape, but as interesting a pattern as I could find. Something I might be able to use a lot. So, of course, it's black and white. It's made from an upcycled, felted Fair Isle cardigan, and some awesome Michael Miller Disco Dot for the lining.

It's not very big, only about 7" square, with about a 1 3/4" width. I've seen people with these really overstuffed, and the sweater just stretches out and the handles stress...so I thought if I made it small, it would be harder to overfill.

The handles are sewn on with the cuff edge of the sweater, so the color matches perfectly. I was so thrilled that it fit through the opening on the lucite handles, it seemed perfect. I did stitch the sides closed again, I wanted them to be as strong as possible.

I LOVE it...but I am promptly putting it in my Etsy shop. My first sale really got me motivated. It's already time to start thinking about the holidays and gifts...where does the time go???

My kids never seem to have a shortage of great, new, creative ideas. This project was no exception.

My son, for some crazy reason, has been asking for a pillow with the state of Connecticut on it. He does love maps, and we do live in Connecticut...other than that, who knows why.

So I showed him some of the stuff from my ridiculously growing stash that I thought he might like for the back. He ended up choosing some very cool Echino that is black with pigs and cobwebs.

For the front, I used a grey base from a reclaimed men's wool sweater, and then I cut out the state freehand from a reclaimed men's black wool sweater. Thank GOD we live in a relatively easy state to cute out! Can you imagine if we lived in Virginia, or Alaska...EEEK. But here's the final result.

The whole project took me maybe an hour or so, and he LOVES it. He slept with it last night. I used a 12" x 16" pillow form and slip stitched the opening shut. I am thinking these might be a cool thing to offer in my Etsy shop? What do you think?

Amy Butler Placemats in Lotus

2009-07-17T15:38:00.006-04:00

Wow...these made up super quickly and easily. The pattern is from Amy Butler's book "In Stitches". I bought the Lotus fabric from Above All Fabric, a wonderful online fabric store. The owner Melanie offers super quick shipping, an amazing selection and top notch customer service.

I love when I actually make the projects out of the MANY books I own.

All aprons, all the time

2009-07-14T11:45:00.007-04:00

So, when I get into something, I really get into it. I started out making two more of Jona's "Apron in an Hour" from the free PDF on her blog/fabric website Fabritopia. I'm spreading the fabric love around though, because the fabric came from Close to Home in Glastonbury, CT (super nice staff) for the pink and green preppy one, and Lisa's Clover Hill Quilts in Berlin, CT for the mum and purple one.

I had gone to both shops to check out how close they are to me, because they're both participating in the 2009 CT Shop Hop (my first one!). I figured it would be good to scope places out before I had to visit all 18 in such a short time. I'm really looking forward to it!

The last one is for my dear friend/coworker Kari (you can follow her on Twitter at @KPlavcan13), for a belated birthday gift. She is a talented cupcaker extraordinaire, and I figured she needed a cup-cakey apron for when she's working her magical goodness. The pattern for this came from Bari J, an amazing and talented fabric designer. Her pattern has great tips, and I can assure you, I needed all of them! The fabric is a very cool mix of Joel Dewberry Aviary (pink) and some of Project Runway Season 1 winner Jay Carroll's Woodland Wonderland fabric line.

I'm getting much better with my new machine, and I'm looking forward to making some more actual garments. I made a skirt this week that came out just god-awful. So bad, there's no pictures!

Until next time...

Pillow pair

2009-07-06T18:10:00.003-04:00

This is a pair of pillows that I made from ALL recycled (upcycled, found, etc). fabrics. I was laying in bed one night, thinking of the fabric, and I decided it would look great with one bold flower from the pattern for the front of the pillow. The best part is, I had ALL of the materials, I just had to dig them out and sew!

The fabric on the back was purchased at a Salvation Army store. There was a bunch of uncut fabric, that must have come from an elderly person because there was a TON of stretch 70's polyester. Not that I have anything against 70's prints...but none of it was for me...too much lilac and olive green (ewwww). But this is a sort of nice burlap/woven feel to it, so it sewed up really nicely with the felted wool sweater I used for the front.

The small one is for my daughter to use in the car. She's always saying she needs a pillow to "rest her head". Those were the days...

I will definately be doing more of this, found fabric back, felted sweater front. I'll likely put zippers in from now on though, because pillows at our house tend to get spilled on.

My first Etsy Listings!

2009-05-22T16:41:00.003-04:00

This is scary and exciting all at once!

http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=6459539

My very first quilt block

2009-05-22T10:43:00.005-04:00

Oh boy. That will teach me to be overconfident! Hats off to all of you quilters out there.

I found a quilt shop that is actually pretty close to my house, and lo and behold, they have classes. Just what a budding fabric junkie needs, right? Classes to learn to make things with all that yummy fabric that I can't seem to stop buying. They have a Saturday Sampler class (this is Close to Home in Unionville, CT) where you learn a new technique, or try a new gadget each month, and at the end of the year, you have enough blocks for a quilt. GREAT! A block a month. I can handle that, right???

I started this with two very erroneous assumptions...one, that I can sew a straight line. HA! It's much harder than I thought. And two, that because I like math, and puzzles, I can cut squares neatly with a ruler. HA HA! I may use a fancy shmancy calculator at work and I may be good at fuzzy math, but cutting out perfectly square squares...not so much.

So after much cursing, and sweating...VOILA

And for those of you quilters out there, you know this was EASY! The instructions were to make 8 rectangles. Dear lord...

I'm actually very pleased with the result, given that it's my first attempt. I'll take more pics once I have the border on my square. Can't WAIT to see what they have us building next month!

Some of the things that have kept me busy

2009-05-17T11:25:00.008-04:00

Whew! I had no idea so much time had passed. I've made all kinds of cool things, and never posted any of them. I've also been making a bunch of things to open my shop on Etsy, but never posted any of them either. So...before I post about the Etsy shop, here are some of the things that have been keeping me so busy...

First, there is the handsome Charles, with his cashmere sweater...he poses like a pro! Charlie is our sitter Nikole's dog, who both of the kids adore (I mean the dog, but they adore Nikole, too!)

Then, there is the apron I made for my mother in law Kris for Mother's Day...

I love this because it was made from a yellow Mary Englebreit fabric and FREE pattern I got from Fabritopia (which is an amazing website by the way), and the poppy fabric is vintage purchased on Etsy. The whole apron took me maybe an hour and a half. It was only supposed to take an hour, but with kids, interruptions...you know, and hour was kind of wishful thinking. And Kris loved the apron. I will most definately be making more of these.

Last but not least was my very first special order baby blanket. It's made from upcycled felted sweaters, both wool and cashmere. The person who ordered it wanted the baby's name appliqued on the front, and simple, classic colors. The back of the blanket is new flannel, with an owl pattern. These glorious photos are courtesy of my husband.

So for today...I am going to sew up my very first quilt square, from a class I had last Saturday. It's a block a month class, so I want to make sure I'm done early in case I have to redo it.

Looking forward to posting that the first items have gone into the Etsy shop...

I'd love feedback on any of these things. It's hard to make constructive changes when you're in the middle of making things.

The Art Smock

2009-04-03T09:09:00.008-04:00

Maybe it's because I grew up during the '80s, but I just LOVE those old reversible raincoats. In my constant search to find materials to salvage and make into something else, raincoats are one of my favorite finds. I spend a lot of time thinking about what I can make out of which materials. I had this brainstorm about making an art smock for my daughter, because she's forever painting with those so-called "washable" paints, that always seem to leave color in her clothes. But if you know Ally, any smock would have to be pretty special to go over whatever her outfit-du-jour is. Old raincoat...washable...perfect art smock!

Lucky for me, I found this amazing opalescent purple girls XXX raincoat at the Salvation Army. It had a few stains on the INSIDE...how perfect is THAT? So I paid a whopping $3 for it, and brought it home. The result was the new "FAB" art smock.

Now, leave it to Ally to wear it over a chicken costume...but the good thing is that you an see what it looks like. It was a simple kids apron pattern, Simplicity pattern 3802 (Which I got on sale at Joann for $1!!).

Just three pieces and some double fold trim. I must admit, I used new trim, not reclaimed. I was too excited to finish it to wait to find just the right one. I also stole the pockets from the front of the raincoat and put them on the front, which was a bit different than the original pattern.

I'll have to have Rob take some better pictures, but if you look closely, it's been used already, and has been christened with some blue paint near the collar. And Ally loves it. Mission Accomplished!

Rrrrrribbit!

2009-03-13T15:47:00.003-04:00

Well it's finally finished! This is what I've been working on for the last 2 weeks. It's a baby blanket for a co-worker (and neighbor!) who is having her second baby very soon! She had mentioned to me that she and her husband bought a frog stuffed animal for the baby, and I remembered this great flannel that I had for the back...

I'm actually at the point where I've made enough blankets that I'm ready to move on to something new! I've got some ideas all ready and the fabric all purchased. Now all I need is for my new Pfaff to get here!

Come on Baby Light my Fire

2009-03-02T13:56:00.003-05:00

I've been busy doing a whole bunch of things other than my usual sewing projects for the last few weeks. I did make a second doggie sweater, but then I was on to a baby hat, and these...some flame pajama pants for my step-son Schuyler. We had been in JoAnn and he saw the flame fabric and his eyes just lit up "what could we make with THIS?" he said. So pajama pants it was.

When I went back to buy the fabric, the woman at the cutting counter said "you must have a son, that's the only people who like this!" Pretty funny, but he loves them, so I guess that means they're perfect!