Cloud 9 giveaway win

Back in May I won a giveaway from Cloud 9 Fabrics. My prize didn't come before the mail strike in June so I expected it to turn up when the posties went back to work in July.  Still nothing.  I contacted Michelle at Cloud 9 and she immediately sent out a package with 13 fat quarters (the giveaway was for 10).
Look at these beauties:

There are fat quarters from Cut Out & Keep and Nature Walk

The softest one, however, is from a past collection, My Happy Garden.  I love these little birds!  I'm not sure yet what to do with them but there are some lovely colours for fall so I'm sure I'll come up with something!



Lisette Traveler Dress

I love Oliver + S patterns for kids so have been itching to try a pattern from the Lisette line.  With some time between contracts for work this week, I was able to make the Traveler dress (Simplicity 2246).  I wasn't disappointed -- the instructions are fantastic and the pattern well written.  I can't get over how professional this dress came out considering my lack of experience sewing adult clothes!

I wear a size 12 in off the rack clothes but cut out a 16 on top, graduating to an 18 on the bottom to leave space for my rather large rear end.  I think it was the right choice for my comfort level but it meant the dress was very sack-like in the middle and, when I added the tie, the material bunched up.   There was likely some type of alteration I could have done to avoid this when I cut the pattern but I don't have any clue what it might be. I added four fish eye darts (not sure if that is the right term) -- two in the front and two in the back -- it helps a bit but I would like to know the correct way to fix this for next time. 

The fabric is a linen-cotton blend I bought at 50% off from Fabricland.  My husband is not a fan, which is too bad because I ended up with enough left over to make skirt.

Party Dress

My eldest is "graduating" from a Montessori program tonight so she needed a special dress. I used the Party Dress tutorial from The Cottage Home along with the bodice from Butterick B4282 (view A, cut short).  The material is Anna Maria Horner voile -- Coloring Garden in Dusk and Solid in Water -- ordered from Hawthorne Threads   It is so soft and flowy!

I am a little concerned about the voile holding up but I used full 5/8 inch seam allowances and all of the seams are enclosed (the bodice is lined, the skirt has french seams on the sides and the hem is enclosed by the skirt band) so hopefully it will be okay.  Following the tutorial, I added covered buttons on the back.  Aren't those a fabulous invention??  I love how elegantly they finish things off.  Why have I never used them before?

My daughter is really excited about this dress and can't wait to wear.  My littlest wants her own version but I've run out of time plus I'm a little gun-shy with her -- for reasons I'm not aware of she hasn't deigned to wear either of the last two things I've made for her (an Oliver + S Ruffled Halter and a Reversible Kimono dress.)

School Quilt

This week my eldest will be completing her last year of a three-year Montessori program so I volunteered to make a quilt with artwork from the "graduating" class. 

I ironed a square of fabric to a piece of freezer paper and sent it home with each child along with a set of Pentel Fabric Pastel Sticks.  I asked the kids to draw whatever they wanted and send it back to me.  The sashing is Kona Coal ordered from the Fabric Depot, the binding is a made up of scraps, mostly from this quilt.  I embroidered the year on the bottom (I had visions of re-creating the school logo in applique but seeing as I only just finished this, I'm glad I scrapped that idea!)

The kids will present it to the director of the school tonight!

I have a sneaking suspicion that one of the kids did not do their own artwork.  Very uncharitable of me, I know.  Can you spot the one I'm talking about??

Butterick B5640

This month my hubby and I celebrated our 10th anniversary by going on a cruise.  Two weeks before we were due to leave, I got it into my head that it would be easier to make a dress for the semi-formal night than shop for one (ha!).  I had 3 yards of Alexander Henry Cotton Lawn Mocca bought from Pink Chalk Fabrics that I thought would be perfect.  I had been looking for the perfect pattern for it and finally stumbled upon: Butterick B5640.  I knew it wouldn't get here in time if I ordered it online but because it was brand new my local fabric store didn't have it in stock yet.  I phoned them every day for a week until they received it.  Yes, I'm sure they thought I was crazy!

The dress came together really quickly.  As I finished it, I was so pleased I was already planning other variations of it in my mind . . . until I tried it on . . . (I wish I had taken a picture before I altered but I was running out of time) . . .  it looked like an old lady's house dress -- the neckline was really high and the sleeves were way too stiff.  I didn't have time to rip out and redo the facings on the neck so I just turned them over 3/4 of an inch and topstiched in place.  I gathered the sleeves with a row of elastic thread and was much happier with them.  Because I was in such a hurry, I used the blind hem stitch on my machine and, although it's going to take some practice to get it perfect, I think I might be a convert!

I wore the dress on the cruise and was happy with it.  Before wearing it again, though, I may rip it apart -- I'd like to change the waistband to a solid blue to break up the print and also take it in a bit.  I like this pattern enough to try making it again -- after redrafting the bodice and sleeves.

Cowl Neck Spring Top

I've been thinking about making this top for a couple of months and was finally spurred on by the Spring Top Sewalong over at Made by Rae.  I didn't use a pattern -- just traced a sweater I usually feel good wearing.  I don't sew much for myself but as this is only three pieces and ummm, . . . six seams I felt fairly confident :). 

It took under a metre of a knit I had left over from another project.  The fabric was originally $10 for 3 metres so it's a pretty cheap top! 

I had a couple of problems though -- I wasn't sure what to do with the exposed seam on the inside of the collar so I just left it as it's usually going to be covered by the cowl.  Maybe a flat felled seam next time?  (Can you do that with a knit??)

There's also an exposed seam at the back of the cowl, which I just stitched down but it doesn't look all that professional either.

My other problem was the hem going all lettuce-y, which wasn't what I wanted.  I tried lengthening the stitch and that helped a bit but it's still not flat.  I didn't want the same thing on the sleeves so I left them unhemmed.  Not so great if I want to wear this as a more "dressy" top. 

All in all, I do like how this turned out and I think I will be comfortable wearing it so I will definitely try again with some nicer fabric.

Art not Craft e-book

I've never won a giveaway before last week when I won a copy of the e-book Art not Craft from Christie Burnett of Childhood 101.  She has some fantastic ideas on her blog and the book looks very inspirational.  I'll post more when I try out some of the activities with my girls.  Thanks Christie!

Fabric Easter Baskets

This year I actually got around to making fabric easter baskets for the girls.  They're quite big -- over 9 inches tall and 25 inches around -- so that they can fit all the eggs our Easter bunny hides for us.  The fabric is Heather Ross' Far Far Away II, which I have also used for this plastic bag caddy, this quilt, this skirt and this diaper clutch.  I've been trying not to hoard it but it's hard because it's so lovely!

I didn't use a pattern -- I just traced a child's plate for the bottom and cut a rectangle big enough to go around it for the sides.  I added quilt batting to the exterior before sewing it together and lined the baskets with quilting cotton.  The top band and handle on the one above is linen.  The handles on both baskets are interfaced with craft interfacing.  It's obviously not strong enough to keep the handles standing up so I actually should be calling them buckets rather than baskets :)

Oliver + S Ruffle Halter

I made this top using the free pattern from Oliver + S. It came together really quickly and looks fantastic. The designer is right -- the sewing method is very elegant. I can see myself making these in every colour (and pattern!) for the girls for summer. And maybe even lengthening it to make it a dress. 

I used a lightweight shirting in a pale yellow ordered from fabric.com.  I love how cutting the ruffles on the bias shows off the subtle grain of the fabric.  The back is slightly see-through but I don't think that matters, and the layers on the front provide enough coverage. 

Fabric Easter Eggs

I made these fabric eggs out of scraps using the free pattern from Retro Mama (I'm envious of how smooth hers are!).  Our easter bunny is going to hide these around the house along with the plastic and chocolate variety.