Sewing From My Stash: Update

Some may be wondering how sewing from my stash is working out for me. Its actually been a little of a challenge for some projects, but its also been very rewarding to see the pile of unused fabrics get smaller.

I have to admit I had to cheat once but it was for a good cause, it was for the Off the Shoulder top I made for the EYMM Think Fall Tour.

I may just have to keep sewing from my stash all through September too, I have a yards of flannel just yelling out at me to become PJ's and as it turns out JubeJube and Amelia are in some serious need of PJ's too. So I'm off to sew a few PJ sets for the girls and I might just let you in on what patterns are my favorite.

Until next time, xx


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Free Leggings Pattern by E+M Patterns

Last week E+M Patterns released a FREE 3/4 length leggings pattern up on their website, YAY for free patterns! Sizes range from 2-10 and the fit is really nice.
I'll be showing you how to add a cute little ruching detail to the leggings.

To get started you'll need:

• E+M Patterns Free leggings pattern, you can get it here!
• 3 inches of 1/4" elastic for ruching
• Measuring tape
• Fabric marker
• Tracing paper or light weight non-fusible interfacing 
• All materials listed in the pattern supply list in the pattern tutorial

The first thing I like to do is trace my pattern pieces. In this case only one piece :) 

Since there is no side seam to these leggings, measure out where you want to have you ruching detail. I like mine to be a little more to the front rather than on the side so I made sure to go 0.5 inches more towards the front of the pattern piece to mark off my elastic placement.

Cut out fabric and transfer markings for elastic placement to the wrong side of you fabric with fabric marker. Cut your 3 inch elastic in 2 so that you have 1.5 inches for each side. Just a suggestion, place your elastic 0.5 inches above the hemline so you don't have the extra bulk of the elastic to turn over when you hem your leggings.

Set your machine to a width 3 zigzag stich and length can stay at 3. On the wrong side of your fabric, backstitch starting closest to the hem working your way up stretching out the elastic as best as you can. Finish off your seam with backstitching to secure your elastic in place.

This is what the right side of the legging will look like.

Now you're ready to finish off the leggings as directed in the free pattern by E+M Patterns!

Enjoy the free pattern!
Until next time, xx.

Breeze Top for Women a Design by Peaches and Peanuts

Only a few weeks left of warm weather in my neck of the woods, but I'm fully taking advantage of the new pattern release, the women's Breeze Top over at  LKG...and its at a super low price for a limited time so hurry!

You may have seen the tween sizes for the Breeze Top here when I made one for my niece. When I saw the testing call for the women's version I had to make one for myself!

I made mine using a rayon blend fabric, so its super comfy, and fun to dress up for an evening out or as easy as flip flops and jeans in the park with JubeJube and Amelia. 

I never thought I'd be comfortable in a racerback top, but I really am. Another fun thing about this top is the neckline isn't so low that I feel I have to be watching how I move while running after JubeJube and Amelia. 

Her are some of the pattern details:

• Designed for knit fabrics (if you want to use woven you can, just size up and make a muslin to make sure you feel comfortable in the bodice)
• Clear and easy to follow instructions
• Size range for the women's pattern XS - 2XL
• Fast sew (it took me about an hour to sew up, including printing and cutting)
• I used just over a yard of fabric to make the top

I think I need a few more of these tops, maybe one with a lace overlay for the yoke! 

Until next time, xx.

PS. This top was sewn with fabric from my stash...I haven't had it for that long, but I do think it was perfect for this project!

The Cherry Blossom Dress by Mandy K. Designs

I recently got the chance to test the Cherry Blossom Dress by Mandy K Designs and I must say what a fantastic sew! Actually its been a couple of weeks and I've been aching to post about this dress. This pattern is part of the Aspiring Designers Challenge hosted by Pattern Revolution and the pattern is available as of today in their Craftsy shop and Etsy shop, and while you're at it check out all the other patterns Mandy K Designs has to offer becausee for now and for a limited time, they're all on sale, use the code "cherry20" for 20% off in the Etsy shop.

Let me start by saying what I love about this dress! The length is prefect for playing, not too long or too short. The sash is not sewn in so the dress can be worn without the sash. The original design, how many patterns have you seen use frogs. 

The details of the front insert are fun but do require some time. The frogs are decorative and there are buttons at the back for dressing.

Some of the pattern details:

• Size range from 12 months to 14 years
• Easy to follow instructions with tons of photos
• Designed for woven fabrics
• For beginners that are ready for a little of a challenge

I used cotton fabrics but it can easily be made with satins...how pretty it would be with a satin brocard!  

Until next time, xx.

Think Fall Blog Tour With EYMM

I can't tell you how happy I am to show you my Off the Shoulder Top by EYMM (affiliate link). I have to tell you that I almost didn't make it, just say that I made a big booboo while making this top so yes, I do make mistakes but that's a story for another time.

So me and my morning coffee at 6am ready for pictures. I'm so glad I used a heavy knit to make this top because fall is coming and its cool out! "falliscoming" is also the coupon code you can use at checkout for 25% off your purchse of the Off the Shoulder Top & Tunic in either girl's (newborn-18tween) or women's (xs -5x) or you can purchase the bundle to get all sizes! Coupon expires August 20th at 11:59 PST.

 

I had to change the construction just a bit due to the fact my knit was so heavy. I inserted an elastic at the neckline for structure and I only used one layer of fabric instead of two layers cut on the fold for the cowl or it would have been just too heavy and I would constantly have to pull it back up. 

I also changed the direction of my fabric of the cowl, I had to make sure my knit had the same stretch in both direction so I wouldn't feel confined at the shoulders. 

Under normal conditions, this top would have been done in about 45 minutes, but even the best plans can sometimes fall apart at the seams. This top is not at all hard to get to put together, I woud say its for a confident beginner. You'll also want to know tha Kymy's patterns are so easy a quick to tape together because there are no borders to trim, just print and tape. 

I'm thinking I need to do 6am shoots more often, I acutally look well rested, ha!

Just a look at the other stops along this tour you'll want to check out!

Rebel & Malice - Sprouting JubeJube - Mimi's Mom

Bigg Stitches, Little Stitches - Stitching Insane- Sewn to the Core

Until next time, xx.

Best Friend Dress a Design by Ellie Inspired

I have another pattern to show you by Ellie Inspired! I thought I'd make this one for Amelia since all the attention has been on JubeJube as she gets ready to go to kindergarten. You saw the Primary Pinafore here, and today I'm showing you the Best Friend dress. By the way, great sales going on until Friday the 15th in Ellie Inspired's Esty shop...

The Ellie Inspired Back -to- School collection includes 6 new patterns for both boys and girls in sizes 1-16, 4 upgraded patterns, 1 Accessory pattern, PLUS a FREE tote pattern with every purchase. The More you buy the more you SAVE!Buy 2- Save 30%Buy 3 -Save 35%Buy 4- Save 45%Buy 6- Save 50%

Amelia chose her fabric form my stash and I think she did a fine job! Its a light weight cotton print so it can be worn all through fall layered with leggings. I didn't want to push my luck and have her wear leggings the day I took photos, it was just too hot and humid out.

The dress is knee length and has an elastic at the waist that can eithr be put in with a casing, or you can do a little bit of shirring. I went with the elastic cassing it was just easier to adjust the dress at the waist for Amelia that wasy.

The neckline is a boat shape and there is an option to have a little button closure in the back at the neckline.

Some of the pattern details:

• Size range from 1 - 16
• Designed for kint and woven fabrics
• Easy to follow instructions 
• Fast sew (I spent more time taping my pattern together than sewing up this pretty little dress)
• Dress is to the knee, short sleeves, boat neck with button closure.

You might want to take a look at what others have made with these patterns, just click on the links to other stops on the tour!

Sprouting JubeJube - Sweeter Than it Seams - That's Sew Kari 

Pattern Revolution - Chasing Merma

Still more to come tomorrow!

Until next time, xx.

Primary Pinafore and Blouse a Design by Ellie Inspired

Back to school sewing continues, and today I have a sweet little pinafore to show off! Its a new pattern from Ellie Inspired. I'll have a couple more to show you through the week. The Primary Pinafore has a classic look, perfect for school uniforms. See what gorgeous patterns are available in their Etsy shop and some older patterns have been upsized!

I must have posted in the past few weeks that my little JubeJube will be starting kindergarten. I remember as a child I loved back to school for  all the fun new outfits I got to wear. Some were store bought but a lot of them were made by my aunt. One of my favorite ourfits was my classic grey skirt with pleats and white blouse with a grey pinstirpe. When I saw the pinafore it brought me back to my school days and how fun it woud be for her to have this fantasitc wardrobe of classic school clothes.

By the way, Laura from Ellie Inspired gave me a bundle of 3 patterns to giveaway to one reader! Thank you Laura! More details below so keep reading!

This is the test version of the pinafore, so it has undergone some adjustments. The length did stay the same however. The front features inverted pleats and the back has a zipper closure and its fully lined.

The blouse is buttoned down the front with a puffed sleeve and features a peter pan type collar. 

Some of the pattern details:

• Size range from 1 - 16 
• Easy to follow sewing instructions
• Fully lined pinafore for beautiful structure
• Advanced beginner (back zipper for the pinafore and buttons with buttons holes for the blouse)

Just in case you're keeping tabs, this is another one sewn from my stash, the plaid fabric was first featured here on my niece.

This is one smart looking outfit, if you want to make your own don't forget to enter the giveaway! Stay tuned, tomorrow I'll be showing you another pattern from the back to school collection by Ellie Inspired! Here are few other stops on this tour, go check them out!

Sprouting JubeJube - Sweeter Than it Seams - That's Sew Kari 

Pattern Revolution - Chasing Mermaids

Until next time, xx.

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Mallory Dress a Design by Love Notions

I got to test the Mallory Dress by Love Notions. The pattern has been out for a couple of days now in their Etsy shop and Craftsy shop, and if you're one of the first 100 to purchase the pattern there is a discount 15%  on Etsy, use the code "Mallory" at checkout!

This is one of those back-to-school must haves! Simple, comfy and easy to wear. I made the long sleeve version knee length. There are 2 other sleeve options available with the pattern and also a long dress version that goes to mid calf. There is also an option for inseam pockets, but I omited them seeing that I had limited fabric. The fabric is form the stash, from over 12 years ago (yay another one gone!).

JubeJube was not impressed by the fact that I was dressing her up for fall in this heat, all was good once I offered her my vintage viewfinder with the 3 Little Pigs story card.

The hood is lined, it gives the grament a really nice finishe look. I used a blanket stitch to trim out the hood.

Some pattern details:

• Designed for knits
• Different sleeve option
• 2 length options
• Inseam pocket option
• Quick and easy sew
• Size range 12 months to 14 years

Until next time, xx.

Bedroom Redo for Little Girls on a Budget

This post first appeared on July 3, 2014 as a guest post on GYCT, and I thought it might be nice to share it here....

I'm so glad to be part of the Sizzlin' Summer Series that GYCT has organized. I'm going to show you how I organized my two preschoolers in their bedroom with a tiny closet for them to share. I thought that now would be the prefect time to redo Julia's and Amelia's bedroom seeing that Amelia is out of her crib and Julia is going to start kindergarten in the fall. I wanted to give them a real little girly room that they could grown into.

Every time I walked by their room I hated seeing the mismatched bedding and bare walls. Here's a quick look of what I started with.  

This was an easy little project for this room because I  pretty much started with a blank slate. The room had already been painted a creamy off white. The beds (from IKEA) had been assembled and stained an espresso brown, and the two dressers that I got for 50.00$ for both (what a deal!) where sanded and painted a bubble gum pink.

To keep my project on track and on budget I like to use lists, so I put this one together as a printable that I could just print out any time I wanted to... 

And I'm sharing it with you so if you'd like to try it out with your next project you can download it and save it and print it out...If you want to share it, please share the link and not your downloaded version to share as your own.

Now to do something about the bedding! Off to IKEA (one of my favorite places to go) to get some inspiration. Not only did I find inspiration by I found a king size duvet cover on liquidation for 14.99$. A king size duvet when cut in two fits perfectly for twin beds. Found the white was a little too white so I soaked the pillow shams and duvet cover in tea for about 20 minutes. I found quilts for the foot of the bed at another store for 5.98$ each. 

The letters for their names are just simple wood letters I found at a craft store for 1.47$ a piece. I painted them and used rubber stamps to add some interest to the letters.

I also found some images tucked away that were my grandmothers and decided they neede to come out of the box.

And now for that closet! I got what I didn't need out of there. I decided that I wanted to stick with one closet pole, two of them would be fun I could hang JubeJube's on one pole and Amelia would get the other, but in the end I needed shelving more that pole space. To keep the clothes organized I put everything that belongs to JubeJube on the pink hangers and blue was for Amelia. I found some great under the bed storage containers for the off season clothes to reduce the amount of stuff in that tiny closet, and added some baskets to put on the closet shelves to store extra sheets and blankets.

I still haven't decided on the window treatment, but who knows I might find this amazing deal.

Until next time, xx.

Uptown - Downtown Dress Blog Tour

Here is my Uptown/Downtown dress by Sew Straight & Gather. Amelia was so pleased with her new dress. This one is comfort and style all in one! You'll want to read to the end because there's an awesome giveaway thanks to amazing sponsors! 

Be sure to visit Sew Staight & Gather on facebook to see what's new, you can also purchase the pattern in the Sew Staight & Gather Esty shop, use the code uptowndowntowntour for 30% off at checkout. 

This dress was so easy and fast to put together with detailed instructions of different finishing depending on the style you want to achieve. Different sleeve lenghts are also included in the pattern, long, half sleeve and cap sleeve.

I finished off the neckline and the sleeve hems using the French bias method. For the hem of the dress I used my serger to make a rolled hem.

And let's pause to pick some dandelions becasue she says they match her dress...

Just a few details about this pattern:

• Design was intending fro knit fabric only
• Size range is from 2 - 10
• Instructions including for diffrent styles of finshing
• Quick and easy to put together, degree of difficulty I would say confident beginner

I'm sure I'm not the first one to have said it, but I want one like this for me!

Just so you know, this pattern was given to me at no charge for the purpose of creating something for the tour, but all opinions are my own!

Be sure to visit the other stops on the tour, some great dresses have been created with this pattern!

August 4th:

Paisley Roots  -  Elegance & Elephants  -  L'Oiseau Fabrics

August 5th:

Love Notions Sewing Patterns  -  Ginger Peach Studio  -  Orange Who?

August 6th:

Sprouting JubeJube  -  Pienkel  -  Lulu & Celeste 

August 7th:

Straight Stitch Designs  -  Jaime Johnson  -  Ali Cat & Co.

August 8th: 

The Crazy Tailor  -  A Jennuine Life  -  Mingo & Grace

August 9th:

SewsNBows  -  Rebel and Malice

Now, its giveaway time! Here are some of the amazing sponsors

Winners Choice Pattern from Filles a Maman
Winners Choice Pattern from Elegance & Elephants
Winners Choice Pattern from Paisley Roots Designs
(My All Spice Dress will be out soon!)
The Soliel & Foxglove Pattern from Selvage Designs
The LOL Swing Top from Jennuine Designs
$30 worth of fabric from L’oiseau Fabrics

Until next time, xx. 

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