The Fabric Challenge

As someone who only buys fabric with a particular project in mind, it has been a wonderful challenge to be given a box of  fabric from a sweet friend.  Every piece is something that I would have picked out and how convenient that some will work for the boy and some for the girl.  As with all my fabric, I am trying to use it within a couple of months.  In this case for Fall sewing.  Is there anything sadder than fabric that sits on the shelf for months or years having lost the vision that it was purchased for?  

How about you!  Do you start on your new fabric right away or is it stashed away for future projects?

Thank you Janice, two out of the five are now outfits!  :)

Michie'

The Print Dress

The dress was so happy to finally have someone to wear it.

It just knew that the sweet little print with green trim was just right for someone who is rapidly becoming a big girl.

The dress may be made by pattern #131-S or #131-L.

Michie'

Smocked Baby Owls

I did plan ahead and purchased plenty of navy Imperial Broadcloth and Little Memories smocking plate "What a Hoot" for outfits for Fall.  But once again Fall was almost here before the outfits were finished.  If any of you are really good at seasonal sewing ahead of time, I sure would like to know your secret! 

The boy's outfit is made using pattern #134.  I only wanted 6 rows of smocking so I only used the smaller baby owls from the smocking plate and adapted the branch that they are sitting on.

The dress is made from pattern #135 with 7 rows of smocking so once again only the baby owls were used.  Although the smocking plate is not designed for a bishop style dress, the owls worked out great with the right combination of stitches for them to sit on.

I did find that after completing the smocking on one outfit, turning around and starting the second while I still had visions of little owls in my head was extremely easy!  

White rickrack edges the sleeves and a couple of rows of smocked baby waves add a touch of color to the sleeves.

I would have loved to have a picture of the kids in their matching outfits, but we call that "Herding Cats" around here!

Michie'

Dedication Baby Jumpsuit

Miles was quite handsome in his dedication outfit made by Mommy.  Mommy used Baby Jumpsuit pattern #138 and the free "Cross" smocking design.  Made from white Imperial Batiste, not only was the outfit stunning but also practical.

Mommy might be fairly new to smocking, but she certainly is not a beginner.  Great job Carrie!

Michie'

Follow That Giggle

I would like to think that he was excited that Nana was making him a new outfit, but I knew that he was checking to see if it was a hat.  Everything is a hat, including Nana's bracelet and Grandda's biscuit pan!  Yes, the boy does have a real hat he just stays on the outlook for more.

Michie'

The Girl Get Away

"Excited" is a little mild to describe how Anna and I felt when we left the guys to watch football while we headed to Florence, Al to take an Alabama Chanin workshop.  Not only is Anna an avid "Chanin stitcher" having made several projects from Natalie Chanin's books, but I had the opportunity to learn something new and be the student and not the teacher!
 

We were able to meet other stitchers, enjoyed a relaxing afternoon of stitching, and loved getting a tour of the studio and examining the fabrics and creations in person.  It really was hard to leave and head back home, but there was a group of hungry guys watching football and waiting for dinner.

Home was only an hour away, so as we enjoyed the drive through the country while Anna stitched on her project, we had time to talk of all we had seen and plan new projects.  An easy dinner was prepared, I had time to play with Christian, and was finally able to catch Rex between ballgames and head back home. 

I woke up this morning feeling refreshed and energized!  Apparently a change of scenery was exactly what I needed!  :)

Michie'

Matching Prints Tutorial

 Do you like to match the prints when sewing a garment with a straight front seam such as a Jon-Jon?  To tell the truth, sometimes I do and sometimes I don't bother.  If the urge does hit, I have a few steps that I follow that are easy and gives a good match.

1. Cut out one front and mark the center seam allowance using a ruler and a wash-away marker. You will only be marking the straight section of the front.

 2. Fold under and press the seam allowance that you just marked and laying it down on the uncut piece of  fabric, position it until your prints match and pin in place.  Here you will see that my elephant is divided in half.  Using the wash-away marker, mark close to the pressed fabric edge the length of the seam on the new piece of fabric.

3. Unpin the fabric and being careful not to shift the fabric, lay the cut out front, right sides together, on top of the fabric so that the previous markings match up.  The pressed line of the front should lay directly on top of the marks.  Peek and make sure everything looks good before cutting out the second front.

 4. I like to baste the seam with a stitch length of about 3.5 to make sure that everything lines up just right before stitching the normal seam. 

 If your prints match perfectly on the first try you are entitled to a little victory yell!

 
Keep in mind that matching the prints will take  extra fabric depending on the size and pattern of the print. 

Michie'