Fabric Flair

Success breeds a dress...

Okay, well maybe that's not how the saying goes, but in this case it really did!

I was so happy after completing my Amy Butler bag last week that I began to search for something else to make!  I decided that I wanted to try making a pillowcase dress for my 8 mo niece.  Pillowcase dresses appear fairly simple and seem like a low risk project so I decided to give it a try.

I searched Etsy for a pattern.  I found exactly what I was looking for at a cute little shop called  Owly Baby. 

There you will find some of the most adorable dresses and so many patterns it will be hard for you to choose!

The Betsy Pillowcase Dress is a pdf pattern that the shopowner emails to you, so you don't need to wait around for it to come in the mail.  Perfect!  I didn't want to lose momentum.  And the description indicates that it is a good pattern for beginners.  Even better!

I purchased the pattern and by the next morning it had been delivered to my inbox.  I read through the instructions a couple of times to make sure I mostly understood what I needed to do.  I was nervous, I was going to learn how to do a french seam and make bias tape, both of which I'd never heard of before reading the instructions!

I worked slowly and deliberately, and before I knew it, and only a couple hours later, I had one adorable little dress on my hands.  And it was so easy! 

Here's my Betsy Pillowcase Dress from the pattern by Owly Baby!  I used Daisy Path in pomegranate for the body and Henna Garden in brown for the trim and ties, both from Sandi Henderson's Meadowsweet collection.

 

But that's not all!  Let me tell you, it only took one dress to make me addicted to sewing with this pattern!  The very next day I just HAD to make another one!  Here's one using Lovesme Lovesmenot in grape and First Impression in potpourri from Anna Maria Horner's Innocent Crush collection.

 

I already have plans for another one!  So this sewing project definitely falls under "If I can do it, sew can you!"

Don't forget to stop by Owly Baby and check out her selection of clothing and patterns!

If I can do it, sew can you - Amy Butler's Style Stitches

I pre-ordered Amy Butler's newest book "Style Stitches: 12 easy ways to 26 wonderful bags" as soon as I saw it on Amazon, months before it was to be released.  When it came in at the end of summer, I eagerly flipped through it and drooled over all the beautiful bags made from her even more beautiful fabrics.  Then, as is typical for me, I put on the shelf and was too busy with other things to try out any of the patterns.

This week I decided not to wait any longer, that I just HAD to make the "Reversible  Everyday Shopper".  Why this one?  Well, for 2 reasons.  I love market style tote bags and it appeared to be the easiest pattern in the book!  The book is arranged from projects that are "easy" and require just some basic sewing knowledge to "experienced" which, let's face it, I'll never be able to complete!

 

The pattern indicates using home decor weight fabrics, but I didn't have any on hand that I wanted to use.  Instead, I chose 2 Sandi Henderson fabrics, Daisy Path in celery and Henna Garden in brown.  I ordered the interfacing and fusible fleece suggested by Amy because I wanted to make sure I had the right materials for the project.

 

 

I must have read and re-read the pattern directions 20 times before I began because I'm extremely novice at using patterns and following directions.  After some frustration with figuring out how to cut the pattern pieces from the fabric, it dawned on me that home decor fabric has a greater width than quilting weight cotton, so I couldn't quite do it according to the directions.  By the time I finished cutting all the pieces from the fabric and the fleece and the interfacing, I was exhausted!  I didn't realize that it would take me more time to cut than to sew!  But once I started the actual sewing I really enjoyed it.

 

The directions were clear and fairly easy to follow.  The bag design is simple.  It is reversible and features large pockets on the outside and inside.

 

What I learned from this process:

Read the dimensions for the finished size, don't just rely on the pictures!  The bag is a little too big for everyday use.

Following a pattern prevents reinventing the wheel, especially when you are inexperienced!

Interfacing should be exactly the same size as the fabric and not stick out at all on the edges.  It will melt and make a mess on the iron and fuse to the ironing board cover!

And the biggest lesson of all -- I can actually complete a project without a complete meltdown or breaking down into tears along the way!

 

    

Pick up Amy Butler's Style Stitches: 12 easy ways to 26 wonderful bags, or wait until Soul Blossoms arrives in December for your chance to win a copy!

If I can do it, sew can you! No Sew Fabric Window Treatments

When we purchased our home, the previous owner left behind all of the window treatments.  It was so nice to not have to worry about the expense.  And MOST of the window treatments are beautiful, way more expensive than I would have ever purchased.  But some of them were hideous floral nightmares.

The puffy roman shades in my office were one of these I-cant-stand-to-look-at-these-one-minute-longer styles.  Huge pink and purple "old lady" roses on a pale yellow background, with all these dangling purple fringe beads...shudder.  Did I mention the room is painted a deep garnet red?  So I needed to find a solution. 

The window in this room is a large double window, with a rather large arched transom above.  So if I decided to hang drapes it meant they should probably be hung above the transom, thus making them at least 9' in length.  Shopped around for long length curtains recently?  Not much to be found over 84" that isn't custom (read: very expensive).  So shades instead?  Maybe.  But those roman shades that come pre-fitted are usually boring white, and the fancier ones aren't available in custom sizes, unless you order them custom (read: very expensive).

But I found an alternative.  Yeah!  I found this video that demonstrates STEP-by-STEP (I love step by step because I'm such a sewing novice) how to make a flat roll up shade.  Oh wait, did I mention they were NO SEW!!  Music to my ears!  I did end up doing a little sewing, however, because I wanted them to be lined, but that was not too difficult.  I can sew in a straight line...sort of.

There are 2 styles, a softer, tie-up style and one that lays flatter and rolls up.  I chose the roll up because it suited what I wanted.  So make sure you take a look at both options.

So if you are looking for an easy (and affordable!) idea, are able to buy supplies, iron, and cut straight, you can make these!  7 short, easy, how-to videos on Monkey See by Sherry Tyra, owner of C.H.I.C., and the Assistant Designer on HGTV's hit show "Designed to Sell" will help you do just that.   Here's the first one, the introduction.  The rest can be found at How to Make No-Sew Window Treatments on MonkeySee.  If I can do them, anyone can!

Oh, but what I couldn't seem to do was to take a picture of my window treatments without the outside light just blinding the camera.  I tried so many different settings, but to no avail.  If anyone has any suggestions on how to go about this, I'd love to hear them so I can post decent photos of my blinds!  This one will not be winning any awards for sure!

If I can do it, sew can you - Amy Butler fabric leaves

Okay, first things first.  Is that title lame?  You can say yes.  How lame?  Very?  I guess that's okay.  My feelings are not hurt.  Much.

Remember back when I said that I was going to work through learning to sew better using decor patterns and then share the frustrations results here with you?  Well here it is!  Installment 1 of "If I can do it, sew can you"!

I started easy.  Really, really easy.  I found a free pattern download available on AmyButlerDesign.com for Fabric Leaves.  Here's Amy's:

So pretty, right?  I really wish I had more left over Nigella, it clearly makes a lovely combination for this project.  I decided to go with my favorite stand-by fabrics from Sandi Henderson's Meadowsweet collection.  I love these reds and greens, and I thought they would make very pretty leaves.

Amy's pattern instructions are very clear, and very easy to follow.  I do recommend, though, that when she specifies to use a heavy duty sewing machine needle... just do it.  I was lazy and I broke 2 needles.  I'm not quite sure why they broke, but once I got the heavy duty replacement, I had no more problems.

The directions called for using heavy weight double sided, fusible Peltex.  I'm going to be honest.  I don't know what that is, exactly.  I have a roll of HeatnBond lite, so I decided to use that instead.  It has and iron-on adhesive with paper backing that you peel off and iron onto your second fabric.  Here's what I mean:

  Fabric cut-out's wrong side against iron-on adhesive cut-out's exposed side.

Turn it over and iron on medium setting with no steam.

Do not iron the paper side.

Peel off the paper backing, exposing the sticky adhesive.

Lay the second fabric on top of adhesive, right side up.

Iron again, same as before.

Do this about 8 more times!

Follow Amy's directions for straight stitching, zigzag stitching,

cutting edges with pinking sheers, and sewing on the stems.

   

 

   

 

And voila!

All I needed to do was the other branch and then put them in the vase.

Okay, now here's what I'd do differently. 

Amy suggests a lightly wired stem and I popped the daisies off the closest stem I wasn't using.  It was a bit thick and chunky and didn't give quite the graceful appearance I was hoping for.  Maybe I can try to change it.

I think this would be pretty with different sized leaves.  I may consider filling it in with some smaller, more petite leaves.

Other than that, I thought this was an great project, with easy to follow directions, and it didn't take a whole lot of sewing experience what-so-ever.  With a few tweaks, I think I'm going to be happy to this on my shelf!

For a list of materials, tools, and complete instructions, download the pattern from Amy Butler's free sewing project section of her website.