A blog of Sewing Sweetness. Pattern Reviews, Tutorials, and More.
Yesterday was the release of the Samantha and Sammy Swing Top and Dress from Laela Jeyne Patterns*! I’ve been able to participate in sewing up both the Women’s and Girl’s Versions. These patterns have many options, so be sure to get the scoop and check them …
The Women’s Version of the Desert Breeze is ready to go! It includes some new fun features that weren’t available for the girl’s version, so you are going to want to find out more about all the new goodies included in this new Striped Swallow …
The best part about being a kid is getting to believe in all the great magical creatures of our bedtime stories and childhood movies. I’m so excited to be taking the time to credit these great legends by joining in on this blog tour.
I have three daughters, so there isn’t a better legend or creature to celebrate than mermaids for this tour. One can not simply take a bath in my house, rather they must pretend they are mermaids swimming in the ocean. The tub is cluttered with diverse collection of mer-toys. Dora, Barbie, and Ariel are just a few who congregate in the tub for a daily (or almost daily) swim.
I grew up on a lake and as a child. I used to have some of the strangest dreams about creatures that lived in the lake. I currently live on a lake now, and sometimes those weird dreams try to escape even now as an adult. I’m not sure where these come from, but I wish that just for once I could have a peaceful dream where a mermaid lived in our lake rather than something similar to the Loch Ness Monster.
To celebrate our love of mermaids, I stitched up a few outfits for the Littles.Believe it or not, finding perfect mermaid match in fabric was harder than I thought. I used Riley Blake Saltwater Mermaids that I picked up at a local fabric shop in St. Louis last weekend while on a day out with my husband. Poor guy, he barely survived 15 minutes in the little shop before he was asking when we were leaving. Bless his heart.
I sewed up a dress for my prissy diva using the Lil Luxe Collection Lil Luxe Dress. I used a single circle skirt and none of the fancy extras that make the fancy version oh-sew-lovely. If you want to see a fancy one, check out this post. It was such a quick sew for a simple dress. I hemmed the skirt with some single fold bias tape. Ahh! I’ve got to do that more often. Add hemming with bias tape to my “Tried Something New in 2016” list because it is a keeper for the toolbox.
My sporty girl got a top and shorts for her outfit. I used the Lil Luxe Dress again, but this time I used the tutorial from the blog to create a top with a gathered skirt that buttons, or in my case snaps, down the back. If you read my last post about how to line up snaps, you may notice that I will be using them more frequently now. Who wouldn’t really? The top needed some fun bottoms, and there may not be a faster pair of shorts than Tadah’s Flexi Shorts. I used some denim I had purchased from Persnickety (back before they were “reorganizing” their fabric until the end of time). That pattern is so versatile, check it out if you haven’t.
I hope you have enjoyed checking out my creation in honor of the most popular legend among females everywhere. There is nothing better than dreaming of being a mermaid. Heaven knows that if I could see one, or even be one for a day, I would jump all over that! I love the world of legends and hope to keep it alive in my home as my children grow.
Be sure to check out all the stops on the tour and participate in the giveaway too! Good luck. There is also a link up at the bottom for you to share something you’ve made in the last three months that is related to a legend. Be sure to link up to be entered into a drawing to win the latest OneThimble magazine and be considered for the CraftingCon Event.
3/14
The Wholesome Mama•Skirt Fixation•Amazing Adventures Of Bubba and Bug•Bella Sunshine Designs•From-a-Box
3/15
Wild + Wanderful•The Fairy Dust Bin•GYCT Designs•The Kisses Co.•Call Ajaire
3/16
Handmade Boy•Mae & K•create3.5•Pear Berry Lane•Sewing Mama RaeAnna
3/17
The Inspired Wren•Rebel & Malice•Sew Starly•XO Jessica•Falafel and the Bee
3/18
PenSeb&Rox•Knot Sew Normal•Beatnik Kids•Lulu & Celeste•Swoodson Says•Friends Stitched Together
And be sure to check out our giveaway sponsors and enter below!
Prize Package 1:
Phat Quarters: $20 Gift Card
Momma Quail Patterns: 1 Pattern of Choice*
Bella Sunshine Designs: 1 Pattern of Choice*
Handmade Escapade: 3 Digital Downloads of Choice
Sewing Mamma RaeAnna: 1 Pattern of Choice*
XO Jessica: 1 Custom Shirt
Knot Sew Normal: 1 Pattern of choice*
Prize Package 2:
Phat Quarters: Legendary Pattern with 3 piece FQ Bundle
One Thimble: 1 Magazine Issue
Modern Yardage: Paul Bunyan FQ
Love Notions: 1 Pattern of Choice*
Beatnik Kids: 1 Pattern of Choice*
Swoodson Says: 1 Pattern of Choice*
GYCT: 1 Pattern of Choice*
Call Ajaire: 1 Pattern of choice*
Skirt Fixation: 2 Yards of Fabric
*Excludes bundles
We will draw a random link-up to win an issue of One Thimble Magazine!
Be sure to link up to have a chance to win the latest issue of One Thimble and be considered for the next CraftingCon Event as a participant.
Last week I stitched up Vivie by BLAVERRY, then waited and waited…and waited for the rain to stop to grab some photos. We had a very small window of cooperative child and no rain so we grabbed these to give you a sneak of our …
Well, thanks to Kristi from George & Ginger patterns, I have been able to sew up some new shirts just for me. These aren’t just comfy lounge around raglans… They are truly sassy selfish pieces that I can, and need to, add to my oh-so-boring …
This week I cranked out the Blaverry Decklyn on a surprise snow day! (I feel like I’m living for snow days right now so I can get all my projects finished.) I have had everything all cut for a while, but I was basically terrified to get started and kept delaying it. Thank goodness for sew days and biting the bullet to complete projects! We are in love with this jacket. Peyton wore it to school today in fact, complete with rain boots too. 🙂 If you are afraid of jackets, zippers, or snaps… Fear no more!
So, why was I so scared of sewing this up? Zippers, of course. Decklyn not only has a front zipper, but also zippers at each arm cuff for some extra style. I’ve done several zippers, but they were in small pouches and in a few pants for decor at the ankle. Separating zippers that actually need to function in public were a bit scary to me. The directions were very clear and the way they are installed hides all the seams! I also used Wonder Tape to help me line everything up without using pins. I struggle with pins in zippers and the Wonder Tape kept everything in exactly the right place without any run away fabric. If you haven’t used this stuff… you are seriously missing out. It’s a total game changer for zippers, and many other things for that matter.
I also must admit, I’ve only been using KAM snaps for a short period of time. Another sewing accessory you have got to invest in if you haven’t yet! (This pattern doesn’t actually call for KAMS, but I used them instead of buttons at the collar. Per pattern directions, buttons are sewn at the collar without button holes.) The thing about snaps is that you put them in when everything is finished. I’m always afraid I’m going to mess up installing the snaps and then all the time and material invested will be lost. So far I haven’t had any issues with my KAMS, it’s those stupid metal prong snaps that I wish to cast into the the fiery pits of hell. Those things are worthless!
So, Decklyn is all finished. The jacket has a clean, high fashion finish. I should have taken some photos of the interior. It looks awesome! It is totally worth tackling and I’m so glad I did.
The only sad thing about this project is seeing how grown up my baby looks in it. Can you believe she is going to be 8 next November?! My baby isn’t a baby anymore. Here is a few more photos before you check out how you could get a Blaverry coupon code. (This never happens, so if you are interested, be sure to read below.)
Are you loving Blaverry so far? Check out my first Blaverry post here, Finn.
*This pattern was provided to me for the purposes of marketing. However, any opinions expressed are my own.
Blaverry now has a Facebook Group *When the group reaches 500 members there is going to be a coupon code for the first 500 people that join and share a photo of a patterns they have stitched up! Hurry before you miss the once in a lifetime Blaverry coupon!
Follow my blog with Bloglovin Yay! This is my first official blog tour! Thanks to Momma Quail Patterns to letting me join in on the fun. Let’s get to it. For the tour we were given the opportunity to select a Momma Quail Pattern and …
Hello 70’s style… Is there anything more 70’s inspired than these pants? Maybe I should have made them in polyester to take the full jump back in time. Laela Jeyne Patterns is releasing their newest patterns, the Little Birdy Pants and the Little Birdy Top …
As I’m hopping into blog tours and sewing challenges, I have found the original host for Pear Berry Lane is not the best fit. I hope you will follow me by entering your email on the right hand side of your screen (or at the bottom if you are mobile). I want you to know when I make a new post! Be on the look out for new content this week. I have tests coming up from Laela Jeyne Patterns and Striped Swallow Designs, along with some fun tours I will be joining in on. I hope you will check them all out!