Piedmont Fabrics

 It's time for spring! Mom came to town and this trip before my gallbladder surgery was one of the highlights of our time together, for me at least.  I discovered this quaint fabric store a few months ago and found many of the pieces I've used to make Gabby's clothes out of, including her jacket and jumpers made from bright bold fabrics (more like home fabric weight or bottom weight cottons), like the one below which I paired with light chambray gap jeans for the day.

Oh, and did I mention all the fun fabric we found? will post pictures after I do some sewing.

Peter was happy to sit and pose before our shopping trip. the picture at the top was taken after our trip, notice the different boy. Guess he doesn't like fabric stores yet :)  and NO he doesn't need a stroller only his sister was done sitting so he took his turn.

girl's jumper

Here's a little dress or jumper I made for Gab. The pants I made a while ago and now they're faded compared to the waist band. I included a zipper since some of her jumpers are getting challenging to fit over her head and then I lined the entire bodice including the waist band. The hem was also hand stitched to keep it from turning up, hopefully. Oh and the little blouse was made by Ralph Lauren, most likely the spring line from Macy's. It has a tie in the center which I tucked in for the picture. I really LOVE Ralph Lauren's little girls' clothes especially when it comes to their pretty little tops.

fabric pears

I thought I'd give you a sneak peek at one of the projects I'm working on. The chances of Judy, who's new kitchen is the inspiration for this project, looking at this is slim to none so I thought I'd quick post this.

I have a book full of super cute shabby chic sewing projects for the home and even as Judy's kitchen pears project has been motivated as an act of love towards my dear friend it looks like if all goes well a few other friends will also have a basket of pears on their dining room table. So this is just the first one. Becky, Judy's daughter, spent an afternoon cutting these out with me, it was definitely a memorable time spent together.

I got my wire basket at Target and picked out shades of green fabric along with other fun accent colors which I'll be sure to post when I finish. Now it's time to run out for kabob skewers for my stems, I used a match stick here minus the tip but I think round would be more realistic than square.

Little girl's apron

My little friend Karinna has an apron that's apparently been around for a long time (passed down from her cousins) and each time I see it I find myself drawn to it and even feel compelled to make one like it for Gab. So I used hers to inspire this little apron. Oliver wore it to make pizza with me last Friday night so since it really doesn't fit him or look quite appropriate for a boy I'm sure I'll soon be making 3 boys' aprons most likely with their names on theirs if/when I have time.

To make this I first decided on the size and shape I wanted to make the apron and cut out the back fabric first which is one solid piece. Making it again I'd probably *measure* the width of the apron,  add the seam allowance x6, and divide by 3 giving the width for 4 vertical panels. I didn't do this so i ended up randomly piecing each vertical strip on top of the bottom pattern and in the end cut down the bottom a little to make it look okay. To assemble the top I worked with vertical pieces, piecing each one and sewing it together and then deciding on the next row's fabric combination trying to contrast the fabrics as much as I could.  Once the top was assembled I ironed the seams open and wanted them to stay flat with out quilting everything in place so I used the thinnest fusible interfacing I had on hand, sewn to the wrong side. This does give the finished apron more structure than if it was not there and obviously the stronger the interfacing the stiffer the apron.

To make the straps I used 2&1/2" strips of fabric cut to the desired length. I used 2 different fabrics for the top straps and picked the back fabric to make the side ties. I folded the strap fabric in 1/2 length wise and ironed then tucked each side in to the center, as if I was making bias tape (not cut on a bias), and then top stitched each one with the ends tucked inside to finish. Each strap was zigzagged in place to reinforce on the top of the apron facing inside so the back could be layered on top and secured by stitching all around the apron w/ a small opening at the bottom. Where it was necessary I clipped the seams and then turned it right side out, ironed & top stitched all around. 

I have washed this and it seems to hold it's shape well. As a side note, I love to use contrasting fabrics and in this case decided on these fabrics based on the fuchsia, blue, yellow & pink theme that several of the fabrics repeated.

boys' neckties

Okay so I'm a little behind on posting pics of projects but I wanted to share this picture of my kids with the boys wearing their ties. The inspiration for my tie project was chapel. The boys go to a school where they are required to wear neckties on chapel day and since there's not a lot out there I thought I'd take a stab at making my own.

I first bought a men's pattern just to read and try to understand how they're made. I also looked online and found directions that seemed to work better for me. http://purlbee.squarespace.com/little-boys-tie/ the purl bee website gave me the clearest directions where the store bought pattern was done partially by machine and seemed most confusing, although a smart friend figured it out and explained it later. Still I think doing them by hand is best. Of course cut the fabric on the bias. I was able to cut 3 ties of one cut of fabric. If I remember right I used 3/4 of a yard and got 3 of the same tie, so perfect if you're trying to make matching neckties or want to make some as gifts or to sell.

In my opinion the fabric that works best is something silkier or more polished than not. I tried to use a batik but it didn't tie right, okay that was my first try and I didn't cut it on the bias either but I think the slip factor was lacking. So the more like flannel the fabric is the worse it would be. Just my opinion based on my limited experience and since most ties are made of silk there's a good reason.

If you're new to tying ties like I am you might look for the Full Windsor knot. I love that it's balanced and full. if you're planning to do a smaller knot then you'll want to consider that as you are deciding on the length and the size of the little man you're making this for. The Full Windsor knot uses more length.

There are so many fun fabrics out there to choose from. I look forward to making these again but maybe in the summer and I'll let the boys help pick out fabric.

new projects

It's been so long since I've written but for good reasons, my 4 kids and the need for new clothes for Gab.
Since I've written last I made 3 boys' neckties, inspired by the new school year for which 2 boys wear ties on chapel day. I've made several girls jumpers and pants with ruffles on the bottom, most of which mix and match. Also a jacket and most recently (well I'll finish hand stitching the hem today) a jumper and matching (or maybe coordinating) bottoms. I'll post pictures of each of these soon and give some details, things I've learned through the process.

I've also been making icepack covers that I'm selling at my chiropractor's office and also to friends who've placed orders for Christmas gifts. Right now I'm not selling the ice packs but the covers I'm calling "comfort covers" and really they're so simple anyone could make them, it's a pillow case concept made from flannel. I am serging them for durability. Most I've made from flannel but the ones I've made from my fabric stash which is mostly quilting fabric I've doubled the fabric using muslin for extra protection. If I had energy which I may find, then I'd consider approaching other people to see if they'd be interested in selling them.

The day after thanksgiving I ventured out to the big fabric store with cheap fabric, which I wouldn't typically use but found flannel for these bags for super cheap so....I will be making PJ bottoms for everyone at my house this Christmas, well that's the plan.

So I'm not blogging since I'm sewing instead. My serger is my favorite gift to self (a couple years ago) which I've not used but now I can't imagine putting it away.

today I happened to notice this http://www.annkelle.com/ornaments-a-giveaway/ and now I'm inspired to make Christmas ornaments with the boys, I'll have them do the hand stitching but I'll cut them out. I'll use white flannel or something in the center for stability but will go through my fabric scraps to get inspired. Oliver has his own bag of scraps, which I supply, he'll be really excited. He loves to create which makes me so happy!

I hope you're having fun preparing for the  holidays. Pictures will follow.

1st birthday...another reason for a new dress

A few weeks ago my good friend came to visit since moving out of state and I was totally inspired to make a bag for her since she had recently given birth to Baby Josie her 8th child and also celebrated an important birthday. Jen is really the inspiration behind my fabric choice, you see I picked it out to make a bag for her.

I've started the bag and intended to make another bag at the same time, maybe one to sell but then after looking at the fabric sit on my table and get shuffled around it was lying next to a crisp white fabric that i had made Gabby's bloomers out of and this overwhelming thought came over me that i needed to make Gabby a dress.

Since it's getting closer to feeling like fall I decided to make a blouse and jumper. I had part of a pattern for a top but the collar was huge and the sleeves were not part of the pattern so I added my own and they seem to work. The collar I cut down after realizing the "pattern" (which I used only for the pieces but should consider reading in the future) made a collar which touched her shoulders, a bit too big for my little girl.

The jumper presented it's own challenges, in the end I realized, thanks to skyping with Mom, that the bib in the front was too small. The waist band needs to be tacked down in places still to have more of a scrunched affect. Upon dressing Gabriella I realized that the ties on the jumper are not practical, even though i thought earlier that they would give more options for size, in the end unless your baby is sleeping I don't see how they're going to work realistically, getting everything evenly adjusted with the crisscross in the back. The other issue with the ties is that they get in the way of the collar so a top with no collar would work best.

After cutting out the top and putting it together and on I realized that I had cut it too short, ideally I wanted a little peplum on the bottom so i added more fabric and now she can wear the top with a skirt and it works well.

I've decided to embrace her Afro and will start making hair wraps hoping she'll let me keep them on her head.

This has been another big learning experience and soon I'll be back to Jen's bag once I make a quick trip to the fabric store for a little more of the yellow fabric, good thing it's close and a current fabric.