Transitional Dressing

That cotton lawn dress from this summer was so lovely & easy, I decided why not have a fall/winter one? Why not, indeed! It is a rare occurrence that I make something more than once, but I think this is the beginning of a trend. FYI: it's much easier to make something the second time (duh!).

Here 'tis - not totally finished, but it's the general silhouette:

Fabric from Blackberg Creative in colors that go perfectly with a Fall/Winter palate....

Putting A Hex On It

Starting a new project using the skills from Blackberg's class on English Paper Piecing! 

Plus, I'm utilizing fabric I've tried to find a need for over the last 8 years at least! Ole! 

Trying to figure what it'll be. Guess patience will determine that answer....

Denim!!

I had this heavy denim for a few years at least & finally figured out it's destiny. 

An ancient cheap denim skirt of mine (maybe from early 2000's?) is almost at it's end, but fits really well. So, why not pattern it? With an asymmetrical opening! And asymmetrical hem! Why Not??

Hopefully, the pictures show this decision:

Oh, and remember these adorable tags?

 One has a new home inside this project!

This & That

Well, that's it: a little of this, a little of that.

Red summer handbag from years back with new (re-used) red handles attached. Easy-peasy & finally finished thanks to an evening at Blackberg Creative's Pints and Purls get-together! (note the dress from a previous post!)

Also from an evening at Blackberg, this English Paper piecing sample. So cool, this method! Above is the artsy shot in the backyard, below is the one where you can actually see what's going on.

The grey felt is about 5" square & it's all hand-stitched. 

Like a Phoenix....

Yes, like a phoenix from the ashes, my unfortunate patterning/stitching choices are being repaired. Little by little, the wardrobe is growing.....

I just wish I had 'before' pix of this one! Anyhow, 3-4 years ago I made it with way too much fabric flowing around to be attractive but I gave it a serious try, doggone it. (It's from one of those amazing Japanese pattern magazines, so I couldn't tell the sizing.)

I lopped off the sleeves (3/4 length & slightly puffy), took in the center back & took in the center front by way of a keyhole opening. Works much better!

CB tucks (got gold metallic thread topstitching)

CF new opening (with ties braided from this cool metallic-ish yarn)

Dress, newly reconfigured, ready for finishing!

Having A Ball With Fashionable Voile!

So, the fabric from Blackberg Creative Studios (this fabric) totally became a dress! And within this calendar year! (impressive!)

Here are the pictures:

Really bad selfie of dress. I wanted to see if it looked bad with a dark slip & didn't get the bodice in the pic. But the French seams are obvious in this photo. J'adore French seams! 

New Fabric!!

New Fabric & a new place to buy it!!!

Just opened in Asheville's South Slope is Blackberg Creative Studios (friend Stephanie is the owner!)! It's a fun space to take classes, purchase beautiful supplies & material & possibly teach a class (if so inclined). Fabulous, bright & cheery - you know I'll be back again & again!!

Look at this lovely voile! And those doggone labels? Yes, thank you! One has already made it onto a skirt just finished (post to come). 

There's another fabric - a fabulously striking purple & orange combo - I'll get a pic sooner or later.

Prehistoric Pals

Recently finished project started about 2-1/2 years ago (!) for certain young shavers, but never completed. It seems like such a random present now! 

What to do with a generously sized stuffed green wooly mammoth?? (we shall see....)

Soooo 70's!

Some shots of 'in process'. The pattern envelope didn't mention the finished size, as far as I could see. It was a surprise at first, let me tell you!

(above) Bad shot of the fuzzy pal on the operating table about to get stitched up!

Voila! Only 2-1/2 years in the making! Green fake fur from B & J's in Manhattan & bright turquoise fine corduroy ears & feet (I think from the same place). Oh - the tusks are a corduroy-like upholstery fabric. 

Chairs are Tricky

So. I've found that occasional chairs are trickier than I thought. Can you imagine?

This little guy is getting his/her second go at reupholstering in a little over a year & 1/2!! 

Any-how......here's the finished product:

So happy I did this, though! The last permutation, though soooo comfortable, was way too marshmallow-looking. The amount of padding I'd added was insanely out of proportion to the lightness of the design. So, subtract 1/2 of the padding out & change the fabric from dark teal velvet to cotton/linen light grey & white. Viola! It makes sense!

Quillow for Two, Please!

And then there was the other Christmas gift/challenge.....can a certain aunt who gets inspiration at the 11th hour make TWO of something for the sweet twin nephews by the time she has to ship them??? Well, it all ended up as a resounding "yes" (thankfully!), in a Project Runway kinda way. 

I stumbled upon Crafty Ady's tutorial on how to make a 'quillow' & that was the answer! (BTW, 'Quillow' = literally quilt + pillow) I'd never heard of it in all my years of stitching, but it's totally common knowledge I guess. Brilliant idea! It's a blanket (doesn't have to be a quilt) - no wait, wait, it's a pillow!! At any rate, here 'tis:

Of course, certain aunts can't just purchase a pre-made blanket ("that's cheating", she says), they must make one! Well...also, the blankets required didn't really exist. The chosen fabrics were Hot Wheels and Angry Birds. Oh, yeah, and unlike a lot of stitchers, this was the FIRST time I'd sewn fleece! (crazy!)

Folding the blanket into the pillow is a bit like folding one of those reusable bags - not hard once you get the hang of it.

Folded & ready for the flip into the pocket.

Successfully flipped into pocket. Pillow achieved!

In pocket, from the side. 

Guess that's it! The boys will be all snuggly warm with a blanket  or comfy with a pillow - 

whichever they choose!

Pillow-Rific!

Here's the latest project finished: a pile of pillows using this amazing Dutch wax fabric from Color By Hand. (Here's an article about this style of fabric) Bought the yardage at the Asheville Quilt Show - the Color By Hand proprietress said that they only sell this particular fabric at their show booths, so naturally I had to jump at it!

The long pillow showing the black backside fabric & piping (must have piping!). Green & gold fabric has a chartreuse velvety backside.

Close-ups of the fabric & markings.

Finished! Glitz & comfort in one package....what could be better?

Clutch, Yes!

A Christmas gift/challenge for 2014: try to make a store-bought looking clutch purse for my fab niece. I chose black vinyl with a bright gold zipper - kind of disco classique! (one hopes!)

Some images as a play-by-play:

Zipper in place....

Made more than a few alterations to get the correct proportions....

Proportions correct, time to put in the linings! (Oh, wait! That pic is actually before all the size changes. But you get the picture. Anyhow...) The white stuff is this spongy stuff from a millinery class a million years ago & the gold lining is from bridesmaids' dresses from my brother & sis-in-law's wedding (niece's parents).

Inside view - always must have pockets in purses! (green & gold fab is vintage)

Little charm at edge of pocket.

Finished product! AND, even better, finished by the date I had to ship by! :)

yikes!

So, the top mentioned in the last post did not turn out well (no pix, it was that wrong), so back to the drawing board!