Happy Trees

I saw the inspiration for this pillow on Pinterest months back and my finished pillow is quite similar to the one pinned. When I went back to the original pin, i realized it linked to etsy. Not realizing this was an original design, I want to credit the designer (who sells some lovely bags in her shop).

For the pillow base, I used linen. I lined the front panel with some fusible fleece to keep the surface smooth, because the existing pillow I'm covering is tufted. I especially was glad that everything I needed for the project was on-hand...no need to run out and break my streak of productivity. For the back panel I used a simple envelope closure and even used the linen selvedge as-is for the visible edge.

This pillow was a nice, quick project. I have come to realize that small projects that allow me to play with color and pattern are the ones I need to keep my sewing mojo. For awhile I immersed myself in garment sewing and nothing else and have little to show for it. The tedious fitting and finishing of garment sewing brought my motivation down a bit. I still have plenty of clothing on the to-sew list, but will be sure to pepper in some happy, colorful instant gratification projects, too.

Pretty as a Picture Dress

Little Girl #2 is on the way, so I am motivated to do some baby sewing.

This is from Anna Maria Horner's Handmade Beginnings book. The skirt is pieced to highlight a panel of special fabric, but I went with the paisley lawn all over. Since the lawn is so lightweight, I lined the skirt in addition to just the bodice which the pattern calls for.

The size is 0-3 months, so the dress is tiny and cute. Let's hope for a relatively hot September so little one can wear it.

BBB Pants in Giraffe Fleece

Earlier this year, I made another pair of Rae's Big Butt Baby Pants. These are done in fleece from my stash. These are my third pair of BBBs. The pattern sews up quickly and is perfect for fun kid prints.

These were cut in the 12 month size, but in the spring they were too large for my nephew ...and now that fall weather is approaching and the boy is growing, the pants are likely too small! In an attempt to make them still wearable, I cut off the bottom hems and added the 3 inch gray bands to the legs.

How cute is this giraffe??!

The Crepe

So. I didn't quite adhere to Gertie's Crepe Sewalong schedule. I started with Gertie in December....and finished nearly eight months later. I just didn't want to rush things...or more accurately, I am a procrastinator who allowed the near-finished dress to hang on my dressform for months because I hate hemming.

The pattern is the Crepe by Colette Patterns. My fashion fabric is a medium-weight cotton purchased from Denver Fabrics online (still available here). The navy and cream cross-hatch pattern is set on the diagonal and is incredibly flattering and wearable. I underlined the entire dress with a navy cotton batiste to add body and opaqueness to the dress.

Along the way, I made a few adjustments to the construction to make the dress my own and suit my personal style. The simplest alteration was adding length to the ties (about 6 inches) so that I could tie them in front rather than back. I knew that a back bow wasn't my style necessarily and would not allow me to add a cardigan on top. I also removed the curve from the sweetheart neckline. Finally, I cut about 3 1/2 inches from the skirt length for a knee-length hem.

I hesitated adding the pockets concerned about adding bulk in the hip area, but they really are *essential* to making this a great dress. I love them...not that you can tell from my so-so expression in the picture!

Fitting the bodice of my Crepe was a long process. My first issue was that I just started with the wrong size. I cut my first bodice muslin as a 10 and quickly realized my mistake. Next I cut an 8 and still made many adjustments. Some of my adjustments were apparently lost during transfer to my pattern, because once the fashion fabric was cut and the bodice sewn, there were still significant fit issues to overcome. At that point, in my head, I heard Tim Gunn saying "make it work"... and that I did. I just started pinching and tucking the excess fabric and realized I could carry those tucks directly into the line of the sleeves (on both the bodice front and back) creating a more flattering sleeve shape in the process. An unorthodox method, but it somehow worked for me! With the busy fabric it is difficult to see what I did, so I will take some detailed pictures another day and show the adjustments.

The new sleeve shape and neckline is much more flattering for me.

I love the finished look that the underlining adds. This was my first time following the steps of a sewalong and I learned some great techniques, such as underlining and using silk organza to stabilize the neckline. Because I enjoyed Gertie's instruction, I recently purchased her online Perfect Fit Bombshell Dress class on Craftsy.

Simple Skirt in Madras

A month or so ago, I whipped up a skirt for my daughter using Dana's Simple Skirt tutorial. The fabric is a super-soft madras I scored on clearance at Hancock for $2/yard.

Elastic waist skirts are a nice instant-gratification project. And so easy for little girls to wear in summer.

I addded a 3 inch ruffle hem. Since I cut the fabric on the bias, I kept the edges raw so they would fray nicely after washing. Easy. Cute. Done.

A Simple Summer Top :: McCalls 5388

McCalls 5388 is my one entry in Rae's Spring Top Sewalong for 2011. I had grand plans to put some of my fabric and patterns to use, but found no time for execution! The fabric is a cotton lawn I picked up in Joann's red tag area for $1/yard a couple of years ago. It is quite light and soft and will make for a cool, breezy top in the summer heat.

The pattern is straightforward. I sewed View C but skipped the ruffles, so the top is really quite simple. For the back, I cut two pieces to allow for a swayback adjustment. (Sorry, no rearview pics; my 5 year old photographer only snapped a few at my request. Note, having a shorty take your photos is not flattering for the ol' double chin....) If you are planning to sew one of these up, know that the neckline is as low as the pattern envelope photo shows. I cut a size 10 (and wear an 8 in RTW clothing), but once finished I realized I should have cut a smaller size since the front was falling foward and exposing quite a bit when bent over. Since I had already bound the armhole and shoulder seams in bias tape, I did not want to pick the seams apart. Instead, I took vertical tuck in the center of the front yoke. (Later, I will add a close-up photo to show this.) With the gathered bodice, the tuck blends right in. The final fit is much better with the small adjustment.

Quick Kid Projects

For Christmas, I made these Composition Book Covers for my daughter and niece using two fabrics from Amy Butler's Love collection. I just winged the pattern based on the book measurements. If you look closely you'll notice that I sewed the pencil pouch upside down on my daughter's! No worries, it still holds the pencil snugly. This fleece robe is from New Look 6847, a versatile patttern, with options for unisex kids robe and pajamas (woven bottoms and knit tops). So far, I have only sewn the robe pattern.The fleece was chosen by my daughter at our local Hancock Fabric. I let her choose anything she wanted (but did strategically steer her away from the licensed character prints!). I have found that fleece is so easy to work with. Fleece edges don't fray, so for the pockets, I just pinked the edges and topstitched the pockets right onto the robe. When sewing with fleece, I have used a regular straight stitch, although I've read that a stretch stitch is best. Rather than make loops to hold the belt, I just stitched it right to the back of the robe. One of my robes is finished this way and it makes so much sense, rather than always matching the belt to the robe after laundering or constantly rethreading the belt through the loops...especially for a little person.