Happy 30th Birthday! (to me)

Yesterday was my 30th birthday!  Yep, the big 3-0!

I have been busy with my visiting family, and we had a birthday bash in honor of the big day on Sunday.  It was absolutely beautiful!  I will always remember how special it was for me!  There were about 10 people that showed up (excluding my own family), and everyone was great.  I got a lot of wonderful gifts, and the food was great too!

My mom made one of her famous cheesecake's, and I did not have to think about the kids for most of the day!  How sweet!  It is too bad that days like this only come once a year!

To top everything off, my parents bought me a serger!!  Not that I know how to use one, but I was so surprised that they believe in my sewing ability and talent!  I am a nurse by trade, and sewing is something new I have started, and truly, truly enjoy.  I am honored that they see how serious I am about it!

The serger is on its way, a Brother 1034D, and I will post pics and a review once I get it (next week or so).  I would have had it sooner, but my parents were unsure of the brand I wanted, and my dear hubby, who was sent out to buy the serger, couldn't find any of the Brother sergers in the store.

So, all is well,  I thank God for another year of His goodness, and I look forward to what is to come!

Passing it on

This week has been a great one for me!

I admit I have not been sewing much.  Why?  Well, this week my husband's niece and cousin came to visit, and my niece expressed that she was interested in learning to sew.  Those were just the words my ears LOVE to hear!

The following day we made a trip to Joanns for fabric and some simple patterns.  We decided on two projects: an envelope pillow cover, and pajama shorts.

The pillow cover came from Crafty Gemini's video tutorials, and is one that I blogged about when I first started my blog.  I love this project, it is amazingly easy for beginners, and the satisfaction upon completion is big!

Here she is practicing sewing straight lines on paper.  It is a good exercise for beginners, and really helped her to get a feel for the sewing machine.

Alas, the finished project, and a big smile!

She chose zebra print because it is her favorite!  She already has her own sense of style!

I guess I should have taken a picture of the back of the pillow.

The second project we did was pajama shorts from Simplicity's 4889.  This is a cute unisex pajama pattern.  

 

I wish I had a picture to show you how these came out, but it was late when we finished.  Suffice to say, the shorts did look like the View D that we made, and we made them out of a cotton flannel print.  I will say that this particular pattern was more for an intermediate to advanced beginner than someone just starting out, but the instructions were laid out in an easy to understand manner.

All in all, I was inspired to be passing along my sewing knowledge to someone that wanted to learn!  My niece said that she was going to get her sewing machine out when she got home and learn to thread it and wind the bobbin like I showed her!  If all I did was spark a small flame in her to get her creative juices flowing, I am thankful to have done my part!

I will get back on the ball with my own sewing projects this week.  Thanks for staying tuned in.

Stay sew-filled!  

Still constructing

Hello everyone!

Somehow my latest projects have been stretching out over a week instead of just days.  It isn't because I am having any difficulty, it is merely because I have only sewn here or there, rather than every night like I was in a habit of doing.  The market skirt for my daughter is coming together nicely, though I still have to attach the pocket and buttons, fix the waistband, and hem the skirt.

Here is what I have so far:

I doubled up on the fabric for the second tier so that you would not be able to see through the skirt.  I think the combination of fabrics came out better than I hoped, and I think adding the pocket will add extra cuteness to the garment.

Stay sew-filled!

Coming up next

I have been putting some thought into what I would like to sew next when I came across a website I used to visit all of the time: Made.  This is a cool website created by a mom in her 30s, and  is all about sewing for kids.  Most of the projects she creates and sews do not require a pattern, and are so cute!

Out of all the tutorials she has on her website, the one called "market skirt" stood out to me.  It is sized for a toddler a little older than my daughter, but the neat thing is that she gives a formula for the dimensions so that you can adjust the sizing to fit a girl of any age, even yourself if you like!

My thoughts on fabric choice is the following (I should have made sure I have enough of it first!):

This is a blue gingham, 100% cotton, next to a blue flannel (excuse the wrinkles) that looks a little green in the photo.  Now I just need to find some cute buttons to go with the fabric.  That should be easy enough!

Check out the market skirt tutorial here.  Wish me the best!

I'll check in with you all soon!

Stay sew-filled!

Little lady ruffles

Last night I sewed my heart out, so that today I could present this to you...

Yes! The ruffle jumper, or Simplicity 2572.

Here is a close-up of the front.  I decided to use yellow binding instead of red, because I thought the red would draw too much attention, and I wanted the prettiness of the dress to be the main attraction.  Also, I started making my own binding from the same fabric, but that just looked all wrong.  I ended up using store-bought bias binding, but I just am not a fan of it because I can never get it to lay right.

This is the back.

And a close-up of the back.  I used a yellow 7" zipper for the closure.  Eventually, I will get back into buttons again.

And here is my "principessa" in the dress!  Mind you, it is still big around the bodice on her, but I love how cute she looks in it!  

All in all, I really like this dress!  I think it is my favorite of the things I have made for her so far!  On the next dress, though, I plan to work on some fitting techniques to get a more fitted bodice for her.  I know she will grow into the bodice, but I want her to be able to wear the things I sew for her now, not later.  Besides, I don't want it to be fall or winter before she can fit them.

So, my latest book on fitting is this one:

I borrowed this book from the library and it has a great section on fitting children.  It shows you how to take their measurements correctly, and choosing pattern sizing.  Right now I am not sure what the next project I am working on will be, but I will be using this as a reference guide for my future sewing adventures!

Sewing it up

Hey everyone!

Can you believe it?  It is June!  Half of the year is almost gone!  Doesn't time have a way of creeping up on all of us?  I hope you are living out your year well.

I am!

I have been surprised at how much I enjoy to sew.  Even though I am not the best at it yet, I am so content working on projects (the easy ones, that is).  As you can tell by this post, the week has been going well so far with sewing Simplicity 2572's jumper for my daughter.  It is not finished, but here is an in progress photo...  

So far I am loving it!  I tried it on my sweetie today and it fits pretty good.  If I were to make it perfect, I would decrease the width of the bodice a little because my daughter is slimmer there for some reason, but has a little pot belly!  Because of this, I ordered a book to help with the fitting issues I have.  I love to sew, but I would also love for the clothing I make to fit well.

The name of the book is Fitting Your Figure from Threads.  It is an older book, published in 1994, but the reviews of the book were excellent on Amazon.com so I figured I would try it.  Also, I got is used for a good price.

My plan is to work my way through this book, but there are a couple of other fitting books I've had my eye on too! Fit for Real People is one of them, and Pattern Fitting with Confidence by Nancy Zieman is another.  By the time I start working on the kid's fall wardrobe I want to have some fitting skills under my belt!

So I am working on finishing the ruffle jumper now.  I am making my own binding for the armholes and attaching that tonight.  I am debating on using the same fabric, or red for a little punch of color.  Anyhow, the details will work themselves out.

Thank you so much for all of you that read and follow my blog!  It is an honor that I do not take lightly.  Thank you also to Toocutedobs for your helpful comments!  You are a great blog buddy!

Stay sew-filled, and I will return with the finished jumper and some pics of my sweetie in the dress!