And... Done!

OK, so I'm feeling a bit better after my long to-do list this morning.  Today I did actually get some work done around the house plus I got around to making 2 dresses!  Yup.. TWO of them!  I even got a few more rows knit on my sweater as well :)

My sister came by after stopping and picking up some fabric at JoAnn.  I took a few measurements and got started with her new dress(es).   A few days ago, my sister, Whitney (of Caught You on Camera), sent me a link to the McIntosh Knockoff Dress at Maybe Matilda... and asked me to make her one.  It's a super cute dress and honestly, really very similar to my Kate Dress that I have made for my daughters.  Same basic concept, except the McIntosh Knockoff features this really fun sash and the best part... pockets!

I was really excited to make a dress with pockets in it... I've never done it until today, and I must say I'm hooked!  I'll probably never (or rarely) ever make a skirt again without pockets.  Shoot, I might even go take a look in my closet and start figuring out which dresses and skirts I could add some pockets to.  hehe  I better slow down though for now. :)

Anyway, the tutorial was super easy to follow and really simple to do.  To be perfectly honest, if you can cut a square/rectangle and sew a straight line, then you can make this dress.    Here's how mine turned out...

This was the first one I made...

I followed the directions exactly - the measurements given in the tutorial were exactly the same as my sister's measurements - how lucky is that!? :) We measured to have the waist of the skirt fall right below her belly button.

On the second one, we made the skirt about an inch above the belly button.

This one I did a little more A-line. I didn't have a skirt to trace, so I just cut my squares a little wider then folded in half length-wise and cut a diagonal line from the top to the bottom, making sure that I left the width of the waist large enough so that I could gather the skirt still. I just did a straight hem on this skirt and it worked just fine.

The only problem we had was with the sash.  I didn't cut it long enough the first time around, so I ended up going back and having to cut it and add more.  The extra fabric is still here so I think I'm going to re-do the sash to make it look better.

Oh yeah, and the sash... this was the fun part of how it turned out for me - I had the idea that since the fabrics that Whit brought over coordinated, that we could make the sash double sided.  This way I only had to make one sash and also both prints would show when it was tied, adding a little bit more fun to the outfit. :)

These dresses would be really cute with various belts really... just to mix up the outfit a bit...

I'm going to make myself one soon hopefully!!

A First of Many - Peasant Blouse

When I found this tutorial for a child's peasant blouse at Prudent Baby I just knew that I had to make one for the girls.  If it really was as easy as it looks, then I'd make several.  I mean seriously... what a perfect addition to any little girl's wardrobe.

Well, I am happy to announce that it really was as easy as it looked.  I followed the measurements that were listed for the 18mo - 2T size because, conveniently, that was the exact size that I needed (it's always nice when you can follow the instructions exactly as written instead of having to do the math to make it a different size).  The instructions were perfect and super simple to follow.

I've been really needing some sort of project that could give me some instant gratification and this was definitely a great one for that.  It took me most of the day (between wrangling two toddlers, one of whom was sick) but could have easily been done in about an hour for those people who can sit for an hour and just work on a single project.

Of course, I made a few customizations myself though.  I did not add the waistband elastic piece from the original tutorial.  I might try it out on future versions just for some variety, but didn't feel like it for this one.  But, I did add some cute little pockets on the front.

I really like this fabric because it's almost got a vintage feel to it.  Nora actually picked it out herself when we were at the fabric store this past weekend.  It was cute and on clearance, so of course I couldn't say no.  :)

Another thing that is so awesome about this top... I really think that I could make it using 2-3 fat quarters (depending on the size).  I'll probably try that at some point and let you know how that turns out. :)

As you can see, my model wasn't really up for the job tonight - too busy watching Toy Story. :)

I like how versatile this type of top is.  You can wear it as a shirt, or as a dress.  With short sleeves, long sleeves, or even no sleeves if you wanted.  It's nice and cool when the weather is hot but can also be worn with a long sleeve shirt underneath during the colder months.  I definitely see myself making lots of these types of tops in the future - maybe even eventually one for myself!

large(er) version of my buttercup bag

Remember when I made my first Buttercup Bag and I mentioned that I was going to make another one, but the enlarged version?  Well, I did... and now I'm finally getting around to sharing it with you :)

I made a few changes with this second bag that I think were definitely helpful, and made it turn out even cuter :)

First, I had recently come across this tutorial for making your own custom piping and thought it was really cool looking.  I had also been browsing through Flickr photos of the Buttercup Bag and got a bit of inspiration from other people's alterations.  Mainly, to use the piping on the bag and instead of having a single strap - to make two separate handles.

So I set out to make my own custom piping to match the lining fabric that I was using.  I didn't have enough fabric to cut my strips of fabric on the bias, but that was really not necessary for this project.  I could see where it would be necessary if we were putting the piping around lots of curved edges, but this was a pretty straight line, so it wasn't necessary.

I simply stitched the piping to the upper outer part of the bag before attaching that piece to the lower outer piece. It's really nice that if you don't get quite close enough to the edge of the piping then you can always re-stitch it to get closer.

Do you notice anything else a bit different about the photo above?

Instead of stitching the pleats in the lower outer pieces, I got a little lazy and just did a gather instead.  Honestly, I almost like the look of it better... plus it was much quicker than having to measure, press, pin and stitch all of those pleats.

For the handles, I simply measured out how long I wanted them to be, then cut strips of fabric (two of the outer fabric, two of the lining) of that width and length plus my seam allowances.  I pressed the edges of each piece and then did a top stitch all the way around to have the two pieces of fabric attached.  Oh yeah, I also used some heavyweight fusible interfacing on the outer fabric to give it a little more strength.

Once the handles were assembled, I just marked where they should be, pinned and then stitched them as I was stitching the outer and the lining together.  Simply make sure that your handles are on the right side of the outer fabric, but sandwiched between the outer and the lining (before it is turned right side out)... sorry, I forgot to get a photo of that part (I know it's a bit confusing, but maybe you get what I'm trying to say).

And here is the final product...

the outside

and the inside

Not too shabby huh?

*oh yeah, I kinda ad-libbed the pocket too - the size that the pattern called for was a little too small for what I needed.

Another difference between this finished bag and the first one I did (following the pattern exactly) was that I did not put in a magnetic closure... actually, I didn't add a closure at all.  I honestly didn't think it was necessary, especially with the double handles.

I've been carrying this bag around ever since I finished it, and I just love it!  It's still a little on the small side for me (I'm more of a big purse kinda girl), but it holds my essentials and is comfortable to carry.

I'll probably try to make another one sometime this year, but try enlarging the pattern even more.  I'd also like to try adding in a zipper closure maybe.

Experiments with patchwork...

I got this book (I Love Patchwork: 21 Irresistible Zakka Projects to Sew) for Christmas and decided that I was going to start off with the little patchwork bag project.

Photo from book

Cute huh?  I had run across this post and The Crafter's Apprentice and that gave me a little extra push to go ahead and have this be my first project (there were quite a few really cute ones that I was trying to decide between).

Anyway... here is how mine turned out...

Not bad, huh? Well... it was a struggle.

This is my first ever patchwork project... so my blocks don't line up exactly. I partially blame this on the fabric (it wasn't the easiest to work with). Oh well. It takes practice.

One thing that I have found invaluable for piecing pieces of fabric together (quilting, anything patchwork, anything with a 1/4 seam) is my new 1/4" quilting foot. Wow this thing was so helpful!

There are a few things about the book though...

I noticed that the illustration in the book where it shows you how to lay out your squares is backwards. It shows a solid linen square where the patterned fabric is supposed to be. I started laying out my squares according to the book and got confused when I didn't have the right number.

They obviously got it right when they made theirs for the book (it's correct in their finished photo) so It's just lazy for them to not have it right in the illustration.

This is how it should be

Anyway, so I got started piecing and ironing and had all the pieces assembled. Now to attach everything together. This is where the zipper comes in.

well, I started reading the entire rest of the instructions to figure out how everything goes together. I did not like how they had written the instructions to attach the lining though. I really didn't want to hand stitch the entire lining to the bag (and have to be careful enough to not let my stitches go all the way through. Too much hassle!

So, I made a few adjustments - this caused me to make some changes on how the zipper was inserted.

I started by laying my outer piece right side up and the zipper face down on it and stitching it with my zipper foot. This has the same effect as the instructions in the book (which said to press the edge down 1/4" and then stitch with the outer piece on top of the zipper - which would cause the stitch to show on the outside) but mine does not show the stitches on the outside.

(oh yeah, sorry for the difference in quality of the photos here... I just grabbed whichever camera was closest to me)

See?

I did follow instructions for the next steps - but they were a bit confusing. Here is how I did it...

Here you have to reinforce the zipper ends, I slid the tube of fabric around my machine and stitched back and forth a few times at the ends of the zipper. Be careful and go slow - you could easily break your needle if you hit the wrong part of the zipper.

And you get this...

Now you will stitch up the sides. I kept the zipper closed while I was stitching the first side to make sure that it was lined up correctly.

When you flatten your bag so you can sew it, fold the zipper part in half - so that you can stitch right up near the edge, but don't stitch all the way through the zipper this time.

Now, open your zipper (at least enough to get your hand through) and then stitch up the other side the same way.

Turn it right side out to admire your work!

OK, really... you aren't done quite yet.

I followed the instructions for stitching the bottom corners of the bag - except I kind of measured wrong and took it in 1 1/2" instead of the written 1". Oh well. It was too late to change it when I noticed this. It just makes for a smaller bag on the bottom.

Now, you need to attach the lining.

I stitched up the lining as instructed and slid it over my outer piece (you'll have to turn the outside piece inside out again).

When I went to iron down the 1/4" seam allowance at the top (so that there is a clean edge) I noticed that my fabric wasn't quite tall enough to do so. I know that I measured my piece correctly... so there is another flaw in the written instructions.

This is where my trusty Heat-N-Bond tape came to the rescue!

I simply ironed on the tape where I needed the fabric to stick to...

Then took off the paper and ironed my lining down to it (being sure to turn the edges under at least a little bit).

Not bad, huh? Now, since this tape is so strong I guess I could have just left it like that. But, it really did need the top stitching - and it's always usually much better looking that way.

So I took my zipper foot and attached it to my machine again and did a top stitch around the top edge of my bag.  Going around or near the zipper ends was tricky though.

On the end where the zipper pull was (when it's unzipped) I even broke my needle and jammed up my machine for a little bit.  Not cool.

I decided that since I couldn't easily get to that one little bit of area to finish the top stitch, that it could just stay open there.  The Heat-N-Bond tape is holding the lining to the bag, so it's not technically needed at least.

I think that if there were some tabbed ends on the zipper part, like I have done before using this tutorial, then that might have helped a good bit on the zipper troubles.

So, it's done... far from perfect but it's OK.  It will either be used by me... or maybe I'll give it to the girls to play with so I'm not really concerned about it being "just right"... Lessons learned at least.  If I try this bag again I've definitely got some ideas on how to adjust it to make it better.

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Valentines PJ Pants

I've been wanting to make some pajama pants for the girls for awhile now.  I had big plans to make some for Christmas but ran out of time... so Valentine's Day PJ's it is!

I stopped at the fabric store on my way home from work one evening and unfortunately there were some major slim pickings when it came to the Valentines holiday fabric.  Fortunately... I found ONE that I liked.  I was really hoping for two that coordinated but that wasn't happening... so this time I just had to make both pairs the exact same.

I'm not too big into making the girls stuff that matches exactly.  It's pretty rare that I dress them the same... although I do like when they coordinate :)

Anyway, here's the fabric that I came home with... the madras plaid is for a future project (I'm not 100% sure what it will be just yet... but I'm making something with it :))

I spent one evening washing and pressing the fabric to have it prepped to start working with. I also traced my pattern on to a large sheet of paper. Why? Well... the pattern I used had sizes 1/2 to 4... my kids wear the size 1 and I figure I'll make plenty of these pants over the years. No need to waste my pattern and cut the thin little pattern paper. If you trace the pattern to a more sturdy sheet of paper then you can re-use it over and over.

Oh yeah, the pattern... if you are curious, I used this Simplicity 2734. It says "It's So Easy" and it really is... These were super simple to make... just as I had hoped!

I began by cutting my pieces out then sewing the inner leg seams together.

Then I slid one leg inside the other and stitched the crotch pieces together.

That's it... there are only 2 real seams on these pants! How simple is that?

All that is left now is to put in the waistband and then hem the pants. Sorry... no pics of that - it's pretty boring and basic, you understand :)

And here they are!

I added a little tab of felt ribbon on the back side as a little detail and to also let me know which side was the back.

That's it! Cute huh? My little model was a bit too busy to be bothered by Mom wanting to take her picture... her eyes glued to Toy Story, of course :)

I actually made it through a project without any major issues... only one visible flaw too... have you seen it yet?

How about now?

Oh well... this was the result of my fabric being folded weird when I cut the pattern pieces out. I say it just adds a bit of character :) hehe

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Linked up today's post to:

the "Kate" dress

I have seen tons of tutorials all over the internet showing how to attach a skirt to a shirt and make a dress.  I've seen tutorials for girls of all ages and had been wanting to finally make one myself.  Today, I finally did!  I didn't follow any specific tutorial that was out there, just kind of made it up as I went along... so I figured I'd share my own tutorial on what I did.  And just for fun, I'm going to call this the "Kate" dress - just cause it's fun to name stuff :)

Supplies:

• Shirt
• Fabric for the skirt
• coordinating fabric for the band at the bottom and the optional belt/tie
• sewing machine
• matching or coordinating thread
• scissors
• measuring tape

Step 1:  Choose your shirt
The shirt you choose should fit your child, at least in the head/arms/chest area.  This is a great project for tops that are stained on the lower half or are a little short for normal wear.  Ours fell into the category of simply being too short.

Step 2: Measure and Cut
Figure out where you want the skirt to begin, and mark it.  Add a half inch to this mark (for seam allowance) and cut the bottom of the shirt off.  Since the shirt I chose was a polo shirt, I made mine fall about 2 inches below the bottom button.  In retrospect, I should have made it closer... maybe just one inch below.

Step 3: Measure some More

Lay your shirt out flat and measure across the bottom.  Mine was 11".  Take this measurement and multiply it by 2.  This is the width that your skirt fabric should be.  Now, figure out low long you want the dress to be, then add an inch for seam allowances - subtract the width of the band for the bottom (in Step 5).  It's easiest to measure the person who will wear it... but if they are unavailable, then you'll have to just wing it.  I measured, but still somehow mine turned out way longer than I intended.

Step 4: Cut your skirt using the measurements from the step above.  You'll need two pieces - one for the front, one for the back.


Step 5: Cut the piece for the bottom band.
Decide how wide you want your bottom band to be, then cut a strip of fabric the same width of the skirt piece but the height that you want it to be plus 1 inch.  You need two pieces, just like you did for the skirt.

Step 6: Sew the band to the skirt.  Make sure right sides are together.  Press.

** I like to zig zag stitch the raw edges together (or serge it if you have a serger).  It makes for a more professional look and is more durable as well.

Step 7: Sew the gathering stitch at the top of the skirt.

At the top of each skirt piece, make your gathering stitches - I like to make 2... one at 1/2 inch and one at 1/4 inch.  I'm not completely sure what the purpose of this is, but I've seen it lots other places.  It does always help me if I break one of the strings while I am gathering then I still have another to work with so that I don't have to start over.
Oh, and for a gathering stitch... you just need a really loose straight stitch with no backstitching at the ends.  This way you can pull the thread at the ends and gather your stitching.  I've also seen people make their tension on their machine really tight, and the stitch really loose and the machine can gather it automatically for you.  This has never worked for me... but try it if you'd like.

Step 8: Sew your skirt together

Place your front and back skirt pieces right sides together.  Stitch up the side seams making sure that your bottom border pieces match up evenly.  Zig Zag or serge the raw edges and press flat.

Step 9: Hem the skirt

Go ahead and hem the bottom of your skirt at this point. I like to fold the edge over 1/4" and press, then fold over again and press, then stitch.

Step 9: Gather your stitches

I like to go ahead and gather my stitches as tight as they will go... or at least pretty closely (be careful to not break your strings though).  If you gather it much smaller than you know it should be then you can always spread out your stitches to the actual width a little easier and spread them out evenly.
 

Step 10: Pin your skirt to your shirt

To start, you should make sure that your right side of your shirt and the right side of your skirt are facing each other.  Slide the shirt inside your skirt (right sides facing) and line up the edges.  I like to start pinning at the side seams.

Step 11: Stitch your skirt to your shirt.
Stitch your top ans skirt together and then Zig Zag the raw edges and press flat.

Step 12: See what you've got!
Turn your dress right side out and see how far you've come!  Looks great doesn't it?  Now, you can leave it as is and have a perfectly beautiful dress... but why stop here??

Optional:

Step 13: Do a little topstitching...

With your dress turned right side out, top stitch around where the skirt and shirt meet, also top stitch on the band.  The top stitching gives it more of a professional look, and also helps reinforce your seams a bit.

Step 14:  If you want, add a little belt/tie
I thought it would be cute to add a little belt to this... my daughter had other ideas and didn't want to wear it.  If you'd like one... choose your fabric (I made mine the same width as the original skirt pieces 22")  YOu'll need one piece twice the height that you want the finished belt to be... mine was 1" tall so I cut it 2".

Fold and press the fabric in half (right sides together) then stitch around the open edges - leave the ends open for turning.

Turn belt right side out and press flat.  Fold in the edges and press those in too.

then Top stitch.

Ta-Da!  You are done... now go find your favorite little girl and try it on!

I had a feeling that mine was a little long... and when I tried it on NK, it fit - but was definitely on the long side.  I wanted to fix it, but she had other ideas.  Apparently the dress was a hit because she didn't want to take it off.  She wore it all day long :)

She even let me take her picture :)  It's pretty rare that she'll allow me to take her picture anymore, so this was great!

Anyway... hope you enjoyed my little tutorial.  I hope this was helpful!  If you have any questions, please ask in the comments section.  If you make one... I'd love to see it!