Ruffled Girls skirt!

Even though I don't wear many "frilly" things myself, I adore making them.  My neighbor's and friend's little girls' birthdays were a perfect excuse to make some adorable ruffle skirts from Snazziedrawer's "Ooh La La Ruffled Skirt Pattern."

Here are a few pictures of my process and one of the finished skirts.

I must say that Snazziedrawer's pattern is great for beginner and experienced sewers.  She gives enough information that a person can start sewing with this pattern.  Those who are more experienced can use her pattern and alter or skip some of her instructions, as necessary.  


For example, instead of making the requested 1/4" turned hem on the ruffles, I used my serger to make a narrow rolled hem on each side.  The results weren't quite as pretty, so I stitched grosgrain ribbon over the top hem of each ruffle.

Personally, I think the ribbon trim gives the design some kick:

What do you think?

A Refashioned Skirt!

I'm finally getting around to posting about this skirt that I refashioned.  It used to be a nice navy skirt with a floral print.  It is very comfortable and it's just my size these days.  However, it was a bit too short to wear anywhere but around the house.

My solution: add some ruffles!  I had just purchased a few yards of light blue baby-whale corduroy from Joann's red tag wall.  I used about 1/4 yard of it to form the longer ruffle, and found some silk georgette that I had ordered months ago to add a bit of spice as the top ruffle.

This was my first experience with silk georgette, so I did some experimenting.  I recall reading somewhere that tissue paper was great to use as a tear-away stabilizer, so that's what I did.  It made sewing this stuff infinitely easier!

Because the georgette was so slippery, I decided to forego my handy-dandy ruffler foot, and I used the two-lines-of-basting technique to gather it.

Before gathering, however, I finished the edges on my serger with a narrow rolled hem.  After a bit of practice and adjustments to my machine (on scraps, of course), my rolled hems came out beautifully!  

Once I had gathered them to the correct lengths for the hem of my skirt, I overlocked the two ruffles together at the top.  This made it so much easier to attach them to the skirt, as the corduroy gave some body to the ruffles, and I didn't have to worry about the georgette slipping all over the place.

On my ruffles, I made sure to match up seams, so I could then match the ruffle seams to the side seams of the skirt.  I pinned, then stitched the ruffles on the underside of the existing skirt hem, using navy thread and a straight stitch. 

Voilà, a great new flirty skirt to wear anywhere!

"Family" life

I know I haven't been prolific with posts recently (ok, in the last 4 months).  I've had some things going on.  We took in a person whom we thought was a former "street kid" in early to-mid January. 


She was 18, turning 19 and professed to wanting to earn her GED. What I didn't think about, when we let her move in, is the nature of a regular, normal, 19-yr old. Of course she wouldn't be as motivated as someone 5-10 years older!  I must say here that I feel a bit old a wizened at my 33 yrs. 


I have learned so much patience over the last 4 months, for which I'm grateful.  My only question is: How in God's Great Green bum-hole does one raise a teenager!? 


As I have borne no children myself, but see myself as the neighborhood's Auntie/Grandmother (ha! Grandma @ 33... beat that!), how do I deal with the adult teenager?!  I've been through her MIP court,  lack of legal action to sexual assault, plus the (almost) normal teenager drama.  


Any advice?

So I checked out Denver Artsy Gal's blog (ok, I follow her) and found a linky to this Right Brain/Left Brain quiz for Artists.  Apparently I'm 75% Right-Brained.  
 I always knew I was right-minded, no matter what my folks told me!  (Joking.  My folks always told me I could achieve whatever I set my mind to.

So, are you more right-brained or left-brained?

For the Doggy Lovers

Personally, I like both dogs and cats.  My husband, however, is staunchly a cat man.


My parents have a dachshund that would look super cute in a dress, if I could ever find the time to make one for her.  Oh, and my sister's Teacup Yorkie is adorable in her little pink pooch couture.  



Which brings me to this cool pattern from the 1960s, Advance 724.  It tickles me that people 50 years ago liked to dress up their dogs, too.

I think some of these doggy duds would look awesome in some Moda Hello Betty or Love U (ok, ok, shameless plug).

Oh yeah, if you want this pattern exactly, you can find it here.

Have a wonderful day!

Dreams of Sewing...

I love my job, truly.  It is so fun to be able to order fabrics, "treasure hunt" for patterns, and make things to sell as well.


Because of a recent Fabric Love site snafu, I've had to do more fixing, listing, and what I call "squid work" than actually creating things.  I started a victorian-style purse.  Here is a picture of my plans for it a few weeks ago:  

I've made a few changes and would really like to get back to it sometime soon.  

Of course, while I'm doing said computer work, sometimes I veer from the path for a few minutes to look at interesting things.  For example:
 

Wouldn't the above fabric from Fabric Mart look stunning when used with this pattern?  

Perhaps in a bias... (evil genius hand-rub) ye-e-es.  


Now I must decide whether I will keep or sell this 1949 treasure of a pattern.

Gift certificates are great for last-minuteValentine's Gifts!

http://www.fabric-love.com/content/25-gift-certificate

Fabric-Love.com now sells and accepts gift certificates in denominations of $10, $25, $40, $50, $75, and $100 USD.  

These also apply to Sanourra Designs, a division of Fabric Love. 

What a wonderful last -minute Valentine's  Gift! Certificate code will be mailed to recipient after checkout.

Jelly Roll Giveaway- Moda's Hello Betty Retro Colorway

I'm sponsoring a giveaway of a Moda Jelly roll over at Audrey's Giveaway Blog! No, not the kind you eat, the kind you sew into cool stuff!  This Jelly Roll contains two cuts of each of the fabrics in the Hello Betty Retro colorway.  The colors are teal, brown, gray, and a rust orange.

Head on over and get in on a chance to win!
 

Valentine's Day Sale

 

Wishes you a very happy February and Valentine's Day.

So now that we're in the spirit of things, we'll spread our love around by giving you a coupon code for a 10% discount at checkout.  Yep, this Valentine's Day Sale allows you to take 10% off your total amount (excluding shipping).  Now through February 14, take 10% off your entire order at Fabric Love or Sanourra Designs by entering the code BEMINE*.  

*You must enter the code to get the discount.  Orders through Etsy will have discounts refunded through paypal.  Discounts at Fabric Love calculate automatically in the cart.

Do you <3 handbags? Drool over retro fabrics? Get a spring in your step when you see a beautiful vintage item?  

Would you just love to sew a dress designed in your mother's or grandmother's heyday?  Take a look at some of my favorites here, then go find them in my shops, Fabric Love and Sanourra Designs.  All items will be shipped as quickly as possible, sometimes even the same day.

Click on the image below for a better look.

Richie (wonderful tech-god of a husband that he is) got my new site implemented, so it's much easier to navigate now.  New patterns, fabrics, and vintage up soon!

Wine and cream frilly wristlet preview

Here's a sneak preview of a new wristlet I'm making.  I will be finishing it up in the next few days (other responsibilities prevail), and then it will be for sale on Fabric Love.  


 Here's just the front. 

 This photo shows what both sides will look like.