Make it Sew Modern Review

The fabric shop I work for provided me with a copy of Vanessa Christensen's new book, Make it Sew Modern.  

I made up the little white ruffle dress for Aeris for my first project, as we are going to run a class on it in the spring.  I thought the book was a great book for someone who doesn't spend their day on sewing blogs looking at all these freebie tutorials, because you can find one for just about every project in the book.  But that's just about anything these days...

I found the book to be very clean, crisp and beautiful.  The photos were simple and there were illustrations for more of the tricky steps.  I was a bit confused with the wording on the bodice but figured it out.  And just a note on the bodice, there wasn't much ease in the pattern, since you're customizing the size, so I will add a bit more next time.  I'm worried Aeris won't be able to wear the dress when it's actually warm enough.  No big deal though, I can just always make her another one :)

I think the book would be a great gift for someone looking to get into sewing...

Some days they just don't want to take pictures...you know??

Woodland Tea Party

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 I was torn with this week's challenge for Project Run and Play.  The Junebug dress screamed pea coat to me but as I was out purchasing fabric, I found the perfect green corduroy-for a dress.  Since I was already set on the jacket, I went with both figuring it was the perfect attire for a late fall woodland tea party!

 

The jacket is re-purposed from an adult hounds-tooth jacket scored from the goodwill.  I wanted something full and fancy to go over the dress and accommodate the fullness of the skirt.  I made the flap stationary on the right side of the dress, as it buttons over  the left, with piping on either side.  I added a peter pan collar and used full length, set-in sleeves.  I chose to extend the line from the bodice flap into the skirt, adding a black ruffle that follows along the bottom hem of the jacket. 

The dress is a fine wale, kelly green corduroy.  Eliminating the flap, I still wanted to keep the reference to the original dress and used a print for the bodice.  I created the cameo for the chest using embroidery thread and french knots.  It took me quite a while to do the french knots, but I love the added detail.  I widened the neckline to more of a ballet neckline and changed the sleeve to a set-in sleeve to slim it out.  I took the sleeve down to the elbow and added a satin bow in the back.  For the skirt, I used a very full rectangle skirt, with an underskirt and a tulle insert for additional fullness and flare.

I really love the fun accents I made for this photoshoot.  My kids naturally look great in green with their red hair.  I wanted to work the houndstooth jacket so I knew that I needed to incorporate some black and white into the dress and immediately thought of a cameo.  I've been into hand embroidery lately so it was such a fun addition.  The gold probably came from the holidays.  I wanted to add something fun to the outfit and gold is such a trendy metallic and looks great with green-and redheads!

The day we took these photos it was unseasonably warm.   Aeris just wanted to run around and play with Ephraim but had to stand and hold her little tea cup for me...such a trooper.  She would flash a smile here and there but really seemed to enjoy herself when I just let her run off with Ephraim.  So, I'll also add that the dress is great for stick fights with your brother!

I think Aeris felt like a princess with the full bottom on this dress.  I've never made such a full skirt, let alone adding tulle to one, and questioned the amount of gathering I was doing along the way.  In the end, it turned out fabulous and she wants to wear her "fancy coat" everywhere we go.

Welcoming Fall!

Today was sunflower day at Aeris's preschool.  I really love themed days!

 

Using fall and sunflowers as a starting point, I saw this plaid flannel at JoAnns and remembered this pattern from Sandi Henderson.  Honestly, the pattern is very "scarecrow" to me, but adorable, nonetheless. 

Now, this is my second go with this pattern.  The first time I made the pants, I failed miserably.  They didn't fit. AT ALL.  I blamed myself for not measuring correctly, or taking into account her diaper butt, or something.  This time, I had the same problem.  Way too small!  I measured her waist and she measured as the smallest size, like a 12mo.  I decided to work a size up, just remembering they were small, and went with the 18-24mo. pattern.  This should give her a few more inches on the waist, plenty to account for any sizing issues, right? NO.

You guys.  I had to take out the seams and sew these pants with 1/16" seams to fit her.  That is a bit crazy, right?  I love Sandi Henderson designs, but who is testing these patterns?  My daughter is in the 3rd percentile for ht/wt so if anything, they should be big...or at least fit her!  Have any of you had issues with this pattern?

Anyhow.....since I fixed the issues, they're totally adorable!  Everyone we ran into throught the day, running errands, etc. commented on how cute they were.  I want to make 20 more pair! (now that I have the sizing figured out)

For her hair clip, I used some National Nonwovens Wool Felts and had to stitch (still haven't found that glue gun!) a hair clip.  Since she was learning about sunflowers, I wanted to give her a little lesson at home on them.  She thought it was fantastic.

And now that fall is here, I'm off to make some soup for dinner.  I'm literally shivering as I type this post! Brrr!  I'm going to have to dig out those fuzzy socks! 

Sweet Style::Back to School JCrew

Ever since I was a little girl, back to school time has felt more like New Year's.

New grade, new teachers, new classroom, new supplies, new friends, and most importantly, new clothes!

All families buy clothes differently, but I felt like I was going on a shopping spree when I was little. We would drive out of the small town I lived in to the BIG mall; it was such an adventure!

Anyhow, my little girl is too little for school, but I still feel the excitement with the back to school catalogs.


JCrew's Crewcut line for fall was adorable, as always, but not worth breaking the bank for when you know how to sew!

I'm new to garment sewing, so I didn't feel quite confident just whipping up a pattern on my own. Actually, I didn't feel like spending hours trying to figure it out when I could just run a quick google search and find a lovely blogger who has probably done a tutorial on what I was looking for! (you sewing bloggers are just lovely!)

So the JCrew skirt I was looking for was a bubble skirt with drawstring waist. Simple enough I found a tutorial and went with it. I figured out the drawstring on my own-I just had to leave the length of the outside skirt a bit longer to compensate for being folded over a bit more.


This is some of the fabric I got on my trip to Minnesota. I really love the menswear and the contrast of the blue and yellow. I was unable to find yellow twill like I was looking for so I used a bit of yellow bias tape for the drawstring and made some button holes instead of grommets for the opening.


I think this skirt is utterly adorable and wonder if I can get away with making one my own size?


Here is the link to the tutorial I used. Thank you, Sew Hip Mama!

Anthropologie Cirrus Duvet::Tutorial

I love how crib and toddler bedding is interchangeable, making the lifetime of things much longer. My daughter recently transferred from a crib to a toddler bed and I was so excited to be able to transfer the bedding along with her.



Anthropologie is a great place for inspiration, especially since I sew and can get similar results on the cheap! Also, they don't make goods for my little one's room so I'm on my own there!

I've been coveting the Cirrus Duvet for a while. I'm really undecided between that and the Tuxedo bedding for my own bed. I'm thinking of giving the Tuxedo a go...but a king size is sure a lot of fabric to work out a tutorial on!


For this version, I worked with some king size jersey sheets. I liked the softness provided from the jersey. I'm all about softness, especially on my little one.




Here's how to make your own:
The final dimensions of this crib/toddler duvet will be 28" x 51". If you want to make one for a standard size bed, just keep in mind to double or triple the width of the fabric to account for the gathers.

1. You'll need four main pieces of fabric:
Front Panel-84" x 52"
Back Top Panel-29" x 12"
Back Bottom Panel-29" x 47"
Strip-29" x 1"


2. Divide the Front Panel piece into 6 sections so each row has a height of roughly 9". (If you are making a larger duvet, I recommend the height of each row between 8" and 9". Just find a clean number to work with to make your life easier)

3. Go ahead and draw the lines onto the wrong side of the Front Panel.


4. Sew down each line with a basting stitch, making sure to leave the thread long on each end. Also, baste the top and bottom of the Front Panel with 1/4" seam allowance.

5. Cinch each row to measure roughly 29" wide.


6. Take the 29" x 1" strips and sew, right sides together, with 1/8" seam allowance. Trim, turn right side out. Iron flat with the seam on the back middle.



7. Lay the strips over the right side of the gathered rows, but not the top and bottom gathers. Sew each strip with a narrow seam.

8. Take the Back Top Panel and iron over 1/2" towards the wrong side. Fold over again 1 1/4" towards the wrong side and press. Sew the flap with 1/8" seam allowance. (I did both ends of the flap because I liked the detail)


9. Do the same to the Bottom Back Panel.

10. Now lay the back panels on the floor, right sides up. Overlap the Top Back Panel over the Bottom Back Panel, making the total height 52". (You could tape this to the floor at this point to prevent it from shifting while layering the Front Panel)



11. Overlay the Front Panel, right sides together. Adjust the gathers at the top and bottom to fit the Back Panels.


12. Sew around the entire perimeter with 1/2" seams.


13. Done! Add your duvet and tuck in your babe.