New home, new project

When the Tsuru line by Rashida Coleman-Hale came out, I stashed a half-yard bundle with our new home in mind. As a military family that usually rents homes when we move, we are always happy to find walls that are painted any color other than white.  But our new living room, with 15-foot high tan walls and beige carpeting, needed some color.  Badly. I finally plugged in my sewing machine for the first time since May and got to work!

Before...

Knowing that two kids and a dog are going to use these pillow covers, I designed them to be easily removable and washable.  And since the beautiful fabric is organic cotton from Cloud 9, I quilted it onto some Pellon Thermolam to make it a bit sturdier for everyday use.  We have a habit of using our living room pillows as lap desks for computers, iPads, and maybe, um, ice cream bowls.  The quilting also makes the pillows feel extra cozy.

Zippers from my stash makes them easy to remove

Simple, straight-line quilting

I pieced each pillow for a little pop of contrast on the front, and used a coordinating print on the back, making them reversible, too.

 It's amazing what a little color can do to make a place feel like home.

And the kids are making a game out of rearranging the pillows every time I leave the room.

Next up: repainting that coffee table so it doesn't blend into the floor...

The roly-poly-along blog tour and giveaway

 

For the longest time, I was intimidated by sewing clothing.  I was making tons of bags, wallets, iPad cases, etc., but the thought of making something that actually had to fit someone and look good was scary.  Along came Rachael from imagine gnats, who is constantly posting cute pics of things she makes for her girls to wear.  When she asked me to test out her roly-poly pinafore pattern, it was the final push I needed to give garment sewing a go.  And now I seem to be slightly addicted!  Oops!

Really, though, if you have never sewn a garment, this is a great pattern to start out with.  It's cute, simple, functional, and can be made your own in a thousand different ways.  Have you stopped by the other blog tour spots?  There are some really amazing designs!  I chose to go a little more simple and focus on my sewing technique, but I did split the front into two different fabrics to give it a color-blocked look.  I made it fully reversible, with buttons on both sides.  My girlie loved the pockets on the original test version that I sewed up, but I hit a mind block when trying to figure out how to do pockets accessible from both sides of the reversible look.  After I decided to omit them altogether, I realized that I just needed two sets of pockets, one on each side.  Oh well--there's always next time.  Because there will be many next times with this one.

The reverse side

I took the time to really work on my pleats and
topstitching,
 especially since I used contrasting thread!

One happy roly-poly girlie!

How about a copy of the pattern for yourself?  Just comment on this post and be entered to win one!  You can earn an extra entry by liking my Facebook page and commenting that you did.  Be sure I can reach you via email.  Giveaway will close May 31 at 5pm AK time.
You can also purchase the pattern right now on Etsy here.

Be sure to visit the rest of the stops on the the tour!

5.13 Jill Made with Moxie / Stephanie The Crafty Kitty

5.14 Stephanie NeurosesGalore / Cherie you & mie

5.15 Ari Max California / Caila Caila Made

5.16 Veronica SewVery / Tara Girl like the sea

5.17 Nancy owen's olivia / Adrianna Crafterhours

5.20 Ajaire Call ajaire / Sarah EmmylouBeeDoo

5.21 Laura Craftstorming / Jessica a little gray

5.22 Frances Miss Matatabi / Nicke kiss kiss quilt

5.23 Amy formwork design / Kat Sew Chibi

5.24 Joanne Rose & Dahlia / Amanda Kitschy Coo

5.27 Celina Petit a Petit and family / Delia Delia Creates

5.28 Christy a.Amelia handmade / Carolyn Fake It While You Make It

5.29 Bonnie Fishsticks Designs / Maria La Inglesita

5.30 Jane Buzzmills / Kate Things for Charlie

5.31 Polly Jack & GeeGee / Molly Rose & Odin

Pattern Testing and Blog Touring

Ever since Rachael got me started on pattern testing and sewing kids clothing at the same time, I have been on a roll with both.  My kids are loving my newfound skills, and I love testing patterns because I always learn something new.

The tumble tee pattern test was no exception.  Here's a little sneak peek at the dress version of the pattern, coming soon from imagine gnats.  Her included tips on finishing seams in knits made me pull out my sewing machine manual and learn the overlock stitch, which is pretty darn close to a serger stitch.  Who knew?!  It's pretty obvious that my girlie loves the dress.

Thanks to the afore-mentioned first pattern that I tested for Rachael, the roly-poly pinafore, I'm a stop on the roly-poly-along blog tour that is going on right now!  Stop by on May 28 to see a new version of the roly-poly that I made, and check out the other stops on the tour for lots of fun ideas. I'll even have a copy of the pattern to give away!

Indie Quilt: Finished!

Finally.  After much procrastination, it's done.

I put off the backing and binding for weeks.  It's my least-favorite part of making a large quilt. It's just so hard to get the fabric completely smooth.  At least the front was already quilted, so I knew that part would look wrinkle-free.  I don't recommend the use of quilt basting spray.  Yikes.  What a mess.  Just ask my poor husband, who really tried to help me with that part.  By the end, our socks were sticking to the floor, and the quilt was crooked and creased.  But we emerged victorious!

This came out exactly as I envisioned it, which nearly never happens to me.  I kinda made it up as I went, with the intent of having large enough pieces of the prints to be able to fully appreciate them.  I just love this fabric! (Indie by Pat Bravo, in case you missed that part.)  I sewed up the strips first, and then quilted as I sewed them together into rows.  The top corner has a blank navy rectangle, which adds  a fun bit of asymmetry.

I detest hand-sewing binding, so I wrapped the edges of the backing around to the front and machine stitched the whole thing.

The backing is a couple of large pieces of my favorite prints from the front.

Kids Clothes Week

I took a little detour from finishing my quilt this week.  Who am I kidding--backing and binding are my absolute least favorite parts about making a quilt.  So, the towering stack of fabric on the floor next to my sewing desk and the Kids Clothes Week buzz inspired me to procrastinate a bit more.

First I made a raglan tee.

 Then another pair of No. 9 Trousers, with woodgrain-print pockets and orange contrast stitching.  My little guy loves to match stuff, so out came the orange shirt.

Then I saw the Prefontaine Shorts pattern test request from ThatMoxieGirl.  I couldn't resist!  I love testing patterns because I always learn something (or things) new.  My kids think I'm nuts because we are still wearing winter coats, but they will need shorts after our move south this summer.

This pair is not quite finished because I ran out of elastic.

Flash Sale!

I'm having a flash sale on my Facebook page, starting today.  I need to clear out some stuff that is filling up my guest room.  View the whole album of sale items RIGHT HERE!

Pattern Testing: My First Garment

With all the sewing I have done, you'd think I would have made some clothes for my kids by now.  Nope.  None at all.  I don't know why, but the idea has always intimidated me.  Maybe because everything has to be exact to make it fit correctly.  Bags and accessories are a little more forgiving.  But I have intended to try out garment sewing.  I even ordered a Renfrew pattern and several knits (because I had no idea what kind I was supposed to use!) last fall.  It all still sits in a pile in my guest-turned-storage room.

So, when Rachael at imagine gnats asked me to test a pattern for a girls' pinafore shirt, I knew the time had come.  If she thought I could do it, I probably could.  She sent me the pattern in a .pdf, with no photo of what the final product was supposed to look like.  The mystery made it fun!  And for such a simple top, I learned several new skills.  Pockets set in the side seams.  Fully lined.  AND---I had to learn to make buttonholes.  Yet another skill that I have avoided thus far.  It turned out rather fabulously, if I do say so myself.  I used some fabric from the bottom of my stash, in case it turned out to be a disaster, so it's not my favorite.  But my girlie loves it.  And has asked for matching pants.  Oy!  What have I done?!

Want your own chance to test patterns for Rachael?  Head on over to her blog and sign up to be on her tester list.  She also has a pattern shop on Craftsy, where I suspect you will find the finished version of this pattern soon!

Pockets at the sides, buttons at the shoulders

I had a lightbulb moment when I realized that it crossed in the back!  Silly me, not knowing what a "pinafore" was!

Her best model pose!