EmmylouBeeDoo!

New Goods

2012-02-26T16:47:00.000-05:00

G'day!
My bff and I went fabric shopping today! (And to Wendy's! Best day evaaaaaah! lol ;)There's this place about 10 minutes from us called Osgood's. It's a massive, massive fabric store. It's like a single-story Mood. AMAZING. If you are ever in New England, I highly recommend paying Osgood's a visit... you will not be disappointed:

Via

That's not even half of the store! :O
I have been on a sewing-for-Emmy kick for so long now, I think it's time for some selfish sewing, eh?! Methinks yes! Last week when Tasia had a birthday sale on her patterns, I picked up the Renfrew Top and the Minoru Jacket. I LOVE that jacket so much, and everyone's versions so far have been fabulous! Definitely Google it if you haven't seen them!
I know I want to make the jacket in a brightish color, something good for Spring and Fall, so at Osgood's I got this tangerine-y/tomato-y canvas fabric. MAD love for this color!

And then just now when I was on Sewaholic.net to get these pattern images, I realized I am not the first one to make the jacket in this color:

Oh right! It's the same color as Tasia's example! Perfect then - I know it'll look great! Ha! :D
And then I got this pretty dark blue floral poly-something to make the Pendrell Blouse that I've had cut out for like a year:

Pretty, yes? I think I traced off view B, but I don't remember (and I don't feel like getting up to check because I just ate Wendy's.) I love it. Can't wait to make this one either!
So that's that! Awesome day. Must go sew now. :)

Love to all!

For Shame!

2012-02-25T14:14:00.002-05:00

Hi. Will you guys come play with me on Facebook so that I'm not the only person who likes my page?Lol.
I put the "Like" thing over on my sidebar, if you're so inclined. :)

Happy weekend!

Onesies to Tops - Two Ways

2012-02-22T12:18:00.000-05:00

Hello! Happy Wednesday to you all!
So in preparations for Emmylou turning TWO (!), we've been getting rid of all the clothes that no longer fit her, to make room for a new haul - she's grown like weeds in the past few months! Isn't it so hard to get rid of their adorable teeny tiny clothes??! SADFACE! But alas, we must. I am saving some things to make a baby-clothes-quilt (I think. Maybe. I don't know.), but most of it we're donating.
I came across these two onesies, and knew I could still make them work!
Exhibit 'A':

An 18 month St. Patty's Day onesie that was too long last year, but too short this year! It still had the tags on it! And she IS a McCutie! So, I hacked off the bottom to make it a top:

CHOP CHOP!

Then I put the bottom part on Emmy's head and went to town on the serger.Behold - my first ever lettuce edge hem!

So. Cool.This took literally like 10 minutes, not counting changing the serger thread and settings and all. Hooray for baby clothing longevity-creating!!

This next one I just flat out could not part with. It's my favorite of all of her wee onesies!

Oh swoon. :)So it's the same problem with this one - it's just too short, but fits fine otherwise. Here's what I did to fix it up:

CHOP CHOP!

POM POMS! :DThat's all - just sewed on pompom trim! Now it'll fit her through the summer! WIN!
Convo between me and the Hubs while I was pinning on the pomps':Me: "I'm adding red pompoms to this onesie, but it has no red in it."Hubs: "Now it does." Awesome. :D

Have a great day everyone! Is it warm where you are? We're in the 50's up here in Massachusetts! C'mmmon, Spring!

Valentine's Day Dress - Tiny and DONE!

2012-02-12T12:08:00.000-05:00

Here it is! Emmy's Valentine's Day dress!

This is the back, with the cut-out detail. Ahh!I'm like 99% in love with the heart, but it's just a bit wonky. I'm hoping that when Emmy is wearing it, it will sort of work itself into a better looking heart. Unfortunately, it's 21 degrees out today, so I'd be jeopardizing my mother-of-the-year award if I took her out to model it today! And t~~here's not much natural light inside~~ my house is a mess. :)

The front... My word - it's SHORT!But again I'm hopeful that when it's on, it will be utter perfection! Or at least decent. For a two year old who is used to flashing her diaper anyway. :D

Here's a closer shot of the front. Those we're by far the tiniest sleeves I've ever had to set in! I literally almost fell off my chair when I turned it right side out and saw that they were good! Miracle of miracles! I think I'll be sewing sleeveless summery things for the next... ever.

And here's a closer shot of the back! Squeee!For the top center, I sewed on hooks & eyes - I originally wanted elastic loops & buttons, but my machine really, really hates sewing over that tiny round elastic. Sadface. Does anyone have tips for sewing with that type of elastic? I'd love to hear'em.
So that's the dress! What do you think?! If you missed the post about this dress coming together, here it be.
Look at the original sketch and the finished dress...

BOOYAH! :D
So hopefully I'll be able to get pictures of Emmy in it before Valentine's Day, but if not I'll definitely get some next weekend. Valentine's Day is my sister's birthday, and me and the Hubs dating anniversary (I know - so cheesy, we totally still celebrate that), and my moms birthday is the 17th, so we'll be having a raucous fiesta next weekend. Hence the fierce dress.
EDITED TO ADD:

!
Love to ALL!

The Making of a Dress from Scratch - Valentine's Day Edition

2012-02-03T12:17:00.000-05:00

Marnin'! So I said I would share the Valentine's Day dress making process if it were to go smoothly. It has!! Dude, this dress is ridiculous. She looks like a mini Audrey Hepburn in it. Ha! So classy!

So here's how it came together. It still needs sleeves and a hem, but this is the effort so far. First, I have a crazy fit of inspiration and draw out the initial ideas...

Yeah, that's a heart cut-out.

I add details & whatnot's as they come to me... you can kinda see, I write down pretty random stuff so I don' forget!

From there, I work out any kinks that I can foresee, and get to the math-doin'. Fun! I use this large graph paper (purchased at Staples) and start making the pattern pieces.

The bodice was relatively easy to map out... Emmy is pretty much the same circumference from head to toe, so there was no fussing with darts or anything. The bodice is lined, so the only tricky part for me was figuring out the varying seam allowances. The skirt, same deal, I just figured out my finished measurements and went to town, no problems (or so I thought!). The sleeve - yeeps. I've never drafted a sleeve before (besides a little flutter sleeve - that doesn't count :), so I went scouring the interwebs for some direction. Ikat Bag saves the day! I followed the tutorial on her blog (written by Jen from My Measuring Tape), took a few measurements, and made a sleeve block! WOOT! It came out looking so... right! While I was at it, I made markings for a full-length, three-quarter, and short sleeve. AaaaweSOME. So, since I really had no idea how this dress would turn out, I knew I needed to give it a test drive in a fabric I was ok with sacrificing. Here's the test fabric and the fabric originally intended for this dress. I love the test dress so much that I don't even think I'm going to make it in the original fabric.

Test run fabric.

Original fabric.

Besides being madly in love with the navy dress, I've sort of realized that I don't like the literal-ness of the black fabric anymore. At first I thought it would be adorable, but now I think a) the piping would get lost, and b) the fabric is too busy for the design. Thoughts?

Business in the front...

Party in the back! :D

I don't know if you saw on my CrazyNotes to 'not forget botton loops', and I'm happy to report that I didn't!, but my machine EATS little round elastic, so I'm going with hook and eyes instead. So I just have to attach the sleeves and give'r a hem & it'll be done! YAY!

I tried it on Emmy over her clothes and it's so flipping adorable, I can't even tell you. However. The skirt is tiny! It's short and um, snug. Hopefully that's because I put it on her over her jeans... If I do make it again, I will definitely make the pleats deeper so the skirt has more poof & room for the poor girl to walk. She's going to look fierce though. :D

We're going away this weekend, so I won't be able to post pictures of the finished dress until sometime next week. I can't wait to show it off on the little bean! :D

Have a good weekend everyone!

GO PATS!

The Dog Days of Winter

2012-01-24T11:58:00.000-05:00

Good day to you all! Just popping in to say hi, and to show you that adorable time-lapse. :) Currently on the sewing table... a Valentines Day dress for Emmy! People really, if all goes to plan, this will be the cutest, epicest (yeah) dress I've ever made her. We'll see! I designed it myself and made the pattern myself! Eeep! I think I'm going to take photos as it comes together, so if it seems like it's going to come out a success, I'll share the process with you! If not, I'll curl up in a shame ball. Wish me luck!

Hello, beautiful babychild. :)

Love to all! Pin It

Playroom Inspiration and Ideas - Part II

2012-01-18T15:04:00.002-05:00

Good Wednesday to you! Let's jump right back into the playroom eye candy, shall we? The last post was mostly about storage and the bigger things in the space. This time it's all about the decor - because what fun is a playroom without lovely things to look at and spark the imagination? NO fun! Seriously, the first thing I'm putting in the room is a pink Christmas tree. Fo' real. This past Christmas was the first one where Emmy sort of 'got' what was going on, and let me tell you - the tree and the lights were the most amazing things to her - it was true love at first sight. So I'm going to have a tree in the playroom for us to decorate for every different season and holiday! And pink just to save the real green one for Christmas. :) The hubs even agreed to it! :O BEHOLD!

Source: foreveradriana.tumblr.com via Sarah on Pinterest

I have no words. We're getting one. To counterbalance the overwhelming artificiality of a pink tree, I want to bring in some living stuff. I think either a cool potted plant or a terrarium! I'm leaning towards the terrarium because of the scale of it - I think it'd be more interesting to Emmy than a random houseplant. Here's a really cool set:

Source: marthastewart.com via Sarah on Pinterest

Pretty kid friendly! And we could have many! Totally dig the painted lid with the critter on top, too. The only expense for these really would be the plants themselves! Score. I'm sure that in time the walls will be covered with Emmys various masterpieces (masterpi?), but until then, the walls'll need some lovin'! I came across this sort of mini gallery wall below... What struck me was the dress! I am a big fan of gallery walls, especially ones with unexpected elements; ones that aren't solely framed art.

Source: covetgarden.com via Sarah on Pinterest

The first thing I thought of when I saw that was the Sunshine Sunsuit! It's not going to fit her ever again, so what a nice tribute to hang it on the wall for all eternity, no?! Plus the bright yellow will be a nice burst of color, since we're talking basement here. Oh, and I love everything else in the above room too. Another beautiful space with a dress on the wall:

Source: withtwocats.com via Sarah on Pinterest

How awesome is like, all of that? Even though we are getting the Expedit units for most of the toy/book storage, I am head over heels in love with this idea for books:

Source: dejligheder.blogspot.com via Sarah on Pinterest

Right?!! All of her favorites right there for her to flip through! I think it's genius. And really, what are we talking here - an old dresser drawer and some legs?!? LOVE. Making one. Now if I've left any room for anything else, I'd love to have a dedicated art area, like this:

Source: 2.bp.blogspot.com via Sarah on Pinterest

Epic, right!? I think I could make a mini version of this and be just as happy with it. :) And lastly here's what I'm thinking for a rug. Since rugs are bananas expensive - the ones I like anyway, I think I'm going to use this throw from Ikea, and just put a no-slip pad under it:

Source: ikea.com via Sarah on Pinterest

It's just a basic black and white striped job, and it's $19.99. No joke! I could get two and stitch'm together to cover the whole flippin' basement! I love how it adds visual interest, but it's still essentially neutral. So there you have it! I can't wait to really sink my teeth into this! I know Emmy's going to love it for years and years, and it will certainly help us stay in our small house much longer! Have any of you made a dedicated playroom in your house? Leave a link in the comments - I'd love to see it! Much loooooooove!

Playroom Inspiration and Ideas - Part I

2012-01-13T17:04:00.002-05:00

Happy 2012 everyone! Going good so far? All's well on my end... no natural disasters to speak of yet in this new year! Holler!

More good news... Emmylou has been in a speech pathology program for a month or so now and she's making ~~adorable~~ great progress! A few months ago, we had her assessed for a possible speech delay, as she was only saying about 5 words consistently, and we were starting to worry that perhaps she needed some help. We were right, she's delayed. She's almost two (really!?) and she's wicked smaaht as far as her social and cognitive skills are concerned - so the delay in communication was troublesome to us. But since seeing her pathologist once a week she's got several more words - and they absolutely slay us when she says them! Her tiny little voice is the most precious music to our ears! Seriously, I'm going to take a video of her saying "jooooooouice!" just so you guys can swoon with me. :)

Ahh... happy Mama.

Anyhow, let's get down to biddness! Playrooms!

Tambourine!

Source: polkadotsandpuppies.blogspot.com via Sarah on Pinterest

We live in a one-freaking-hundred year old farm house. To say that we are tight on closets/room/storage in general would be a negligent understatement (people, my sewing room is in our laundry room). The bulk of the actual 'space' in our house is in the unfinished attic (that has like, 12 foot ceilings - helloooo, master suite!!?!), and in the partially finished basement. Our living room, dining room, and kitchen are pretty small. Cute and functional, but small. And they're FULL of Emmys flotsam and jetsam. So with her second birthday approaching we've realized that she cannot receive one more toy/book/thing unless it has a place to go besides under the couch or in the bathtub. So we're putting our responsible adult pants on and changing the basement from what currently looks like a college frat house (we literally have Tool posters on the walls and coins glued to the floor ala Empire Records) into a playroom for the Emski! There is a TON of usable space down there and it would be much better served as a place for her than it is for guitars and beer cans and karaoke machines, amiright?

The basement is finished enough to get right to it, so all we need is some good storage and some delightful accents! Here are some of my inspiration rooms thus far:

First things first - we are going to get two (three?) of these Expedit book shelves from Ikea. They are the Holy Grail of storage solutions. Then I can hit up HomeGoods for all the lovely baskets my heart desires.

Source: younghouselove.com via Sarah on Pinterest

Books, toys, more books... Perfect!
Here's another room with Expedit units, two of 'em!:

Source: houzz.com via Sarah on Pinterest

Now that's what I'm talkin' about! So much storage, and yet they don't take up much floor space. Win win. I'll take 3, thankyouverymuch.

I love the idea of having a swing in the basement! I think Emmy's a tad too young right now, but in the future I can see this being really fun:

Source: remodelista.com via Sarah on Pinterest

And see that HUGE map there? I love that too! But maybe just a US map for now - I don't see us setting off to tour Switzerland any time soon. I realize that a world map has wonderful educational purposes, but she's not even 2. ;)

Here's another playroom with a swing:

Source: blogs.babble.com via Sarah on Pinterest

So cool.

We also want to have a cozy place in the playroom, for movie nights and book reading and spontaneous cuddling and such. Here are a few adorable inspirations for such coziness:

Source: shelterness.com via Sarah on Pinterest

Source: fancyhouseroad.com via Sarah on Pinterest

Hey, another world map!
I LOVE the storage in the above room. It's a whole wall of cozy organization. Ahh...

Ok, wow! That's enough for now!
Stay tuned for Part II!

Much love!

Happy New Year!

2011-12-31T13:23:00.002-05:00

And Emmy's Christmas dress!
Happy New Year's Eve, everyone! Hope you all have fun doing whatever you'll be doing tonight. I'm going to my sisters' and will be eating way too much food and likely drinking way too much champagne. Cheers!
Here are the photos of Emmylou's Christmas Dress, to close out 2011. I LOVE this dress! She did too - it was adorable. Are there pictures of her in it? Of course not. :/

I got her this little snowman brooch... isn't it darling? :)

Mad happy with my improving zipper skillz.

So there it is! What do you think!? She wore it with ivory tights and black patent Mary Janes (of course, right?) and a little black rosette in her hair. Ridiculously cute. :)
For reference again the skirt and bodice are Butterick 4718, and the StayPuft Marshmallow sleeves are from Simplicity 2674. And there is a boat load of tulle - I basted it to the skirt(s) and then serged it to the bodice as one happy skirt/tulle unit. And the sequin belt is jacked off a store-bought dress. :)
I hope you all have a wonderful and safe weekend, and a great start to 2012! I am SUPER looking forward to a new year! Love to all!

Christmas Dress Progress

2011-12-18T12:14:00.000-05:00

Hello, and happy weekend!
Thought I'd pop in and show you the progress I've made on Emmy's dress! Behold!

So cute! :D

The giant sleeves aren't as bad as I thought... I still have to hem them & put in the elastic though, so the poof factor may still go up.

WHOLE buncha tulle!

I used ribbon to hem the skirts, and I like how that worked out. The skirts have a very hoopy look. Adorbs.

Gold neck binding - how festive! :D
All I have left is finishing the sleeves and putting in a zipper! Yay!And I think a skinny patent leather belt is in order, no? And I'm on the hunt for the perfect holly berry corsage. :)

Have a good weekend everyone!

Oh Hi, Blog!

2011-12-15T16:45:00.000-05:00

Hello friends of yore! How is everyone!? I'm a little stunned that it's been over a month since I last posted. Geesh! Thanks everyone for sticking around, and I'm sorry you've had to look at that depressing satellite map for a month!Want to know what I've been up to? Come! In no particular order, here's what I've been doing.

I made this log thing after Snowmegeddon.

Actually, I shouldn't say "I" made it... Here's a brief tutorial:

FIRST: throw yourself a big, freak snowstorm party before a single leaf has fallen off of any tree. Make sure you have at least 14 inches of the wettest, heaviest snow you can muster, so that you're sure to kill/maim as many trees as possible - for optimal log selection.

SECOND (not pictured): take a chainsaw to the poor fallen bubs, and pick yourself out a nice log.

THIRD: ask Handsome Husband to get out the power tools & drill holes for you. Tea lights are a convenient inch and a half wide, so get your significant other one of these (below) for Christmas, and you can carve tea light holes into every horizontal surface in your house. :)

Lastly, spark'er up and enjoy! Cute, non? :)

I ran my first 5k!

Yay!! Now, I've only been running for a few short months, although I used to run a lot like, a decade ago. Me and my male BFF did pretty good! Meaning, we didn't come in last and second to last! :D We're planning on running a lot more races in the near future!

I love running because I have ridiculous amounts of mental energy that spill over into the jitters (ADHD much?), and I just feel this incredible need to go flying out the door. It's especially good for me when I have no time to sew and be creative - that energy needs to get out somehow, and I can bump out a few miles in the time it takes me to trace out a pattern!

Emmy had squash. And liked it.

A lot.

My in-laws came to visit! It was a wonderful week! We went and chopped down a Christmas tree & then dressed it all up, took a leisurely drive through Bright Nights, and Emmy got to really reacquaint herself with her Nali's (Navajo for grandparent). It was lovely! :)

♥

I have been sewing! But since all I'm sewing right now is Christmas presents, I can't post about them until after the holiday! Bummer! (that's going under the assumption that my family still reads my blog... :)

BUT! I am also making Emmy's Christmas dress, and being fairly certain that she does not read my blog, I can show you!

It's just in pieces right now, but I can show you what I'm working with.

This is the original inspiration:

Source: zulily.com via Sarah on Pinterest

Gorgeous, right?

So I'm doing a frankenpattern mash-up to make something similar. I'm using this pattern for the skirt & bodice.

B4718

The skirt will be in shiny red satin and a textured (dupioni-ish) green satin, and the bodice & sleeves are in ivory stretch velvet. I'm using the 3/4 sleeves from this pattern:

S2674

But my stretch velvet is like... really stiff. I'm pretty bummed about that and I don't know how the fabric will handle all that volume in the sleeve. Emmy's going to look like a linebacker, and I've come to a place where I'm ok with that. There's just no time, people.

Suggested to Emmy that maybe she oughta help out and make her own dress.

Don't touch my thread tension, kid.

Been spending a lot of time with that sweet little one above, and a lot less time internetting. My Reader has been at 1000+ for weeks, and to be honest, I couldn't care less. There are a lot of blogs I love to read and be inspired by, but there are also a lot that are - for me - just time consuming and inspiration-sapping. Do not want. So now my evenings involve a lot of singing and dancing, and very little farting around on the computer. I still hit Pinterest pretty hard though. ;)

Kokopelli training

But I think with a much-needed time management overhaul, I can once again become a more-than-once-a-month blogger.

Stay tuned for the finished Christmas dress, will you?

And if you made it through this whole post then you get TEN interweb points!! Woo!

Love to all!

Seriously.

2011-11-13T12:42:00.001-05:00

Sorry for another lengthy absence, friends! This mess happened:

I'm in that circle there. We were out of power for SIX FREAKING DAYS. That's longer than the tornado.
Long story short, we got hit by a big epic snowstorm before the trees had time to drop all their leaves. So pretty much every tree within a hundred mile radius (probably more, actually) is half of what it was a few weeks ago. I think Mother Nature is trying to eradicate us. Fo realz.
But since there have been trees falling all around me for months, I figured, Hey! Let's make something outta all this timber! Here's a sneak peek - I'll write a non-half-assed post about it here soon. I've had no crafty/bloggy mojo lately - too much going on. But trust, I'll be back. Always am. :)

LOVE to all!

Just a heads up

2011-10-17T13:45:00.001-04:00

Hi again! I wanted to let anyone who loves this pattern as much as I do...

McCall's 6120 - 1978

...know that there's one to be had on the CHEAP over on the eBays, in a size 2!

Woot!

Lisette Charlotte in Action!

2011-10-17T10:25:00.001-04:00

Morning! Hope everyone had a fab weekend! We went to a gorgeous outdoor wedding... There's really nothing like October in New England. Beautiful!

We also got to snap some pics of Emmy in her Lisette Charlotte dress! It's fits her so perfectly - love it!

Ahhhh I love her so much!!! ♥ ♥ ♥ Again, check out this post for the pattern and other deets! Love to all!

Wordless Wednesday 10.12.11

2011-10-12T12:15:00.001-04:00

Chevron baby blanket made by my Momma for my Emmylou.Isn't it beautiful?! Love to all!

Wide Hem Knit Top - Make it!

2011-10-11T18:03:00.000-04:00

Evenin' partners!
I'm over at A Couple of Craft Addicts today to show you how to make this top...

...from a FREE PATTERN!
Come check it out!

Cheers!

Holy Bleep

2011-10-10T08:49:00.000-04:00

Good morning friends and family!
If I may nudge you every so slightly...

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! I'm over on Prudent Baby today! I couldn't be more excited!Thank you Jamie and Jacinda! :D

Lisette Charlotte

2011-10-09T20:59:00.000-04:00

((Update - go HERE to see this dress in action!))

Hello friends!
Today I made a super random, "I just need to make something right-this-second!" dress.

It's my go-to dress pattern - the Charlotte Dress form Mama Stellato. This time, I actually made it as a dress, with the sash and everything! Holler! (See my shirt versions, here, here, and here!) I know I pimp this pattern like it's my job, but I truly adore it! It's instant gratification.
Gotta apologize for these photos. Take one good camera with a dead battery and missing charger, and an old camera of ill-repute, and this is what you get. Hopefully the cute shines through anyway??I'll take pics of Em in the dress as sooooon as I can!

This fabric you may recognize is from the Lisette line that is super cute and popular, for sale at Jo-Ann. I love it to bits! The color is definitely not translating in these pics, but it's delightful. Good for a Fall dress, no? And the ribbon is just an inch wide grosgrain. I literally just went to look at the dress to remind myself what color the ribbon was so I could explain it. Ha! These pictures! The ribbon is called 'Wildberry', and the picture below is sort of the most accurate. :D

So there you have it! Naptime sewing, and a new Fall dress for LouLouBee! Win!
Are yall off work tomorrow? Have a fabulous day off if you are!

Cheers!

Meet Ellen! & a Halloween Powwow

2011-10-07T14:24:00.001-04:00

Happy Friday! Woot! May I please introduce you to my new lady friend, Ellen:

Isn't she a dear?! I found her on Craigslist! And I named her after the adorable lady with whom she lived previously. She isn't quite as endowed in the northern region as I am, so she's wearing a stuffed bra. Which is so, so weird. I'll get over it. :)

And she's modeling a new shirt that's going to be featured as a guest post project on another blog! Stay tuned for that!

So now, down to business. Halloween!

I want to whip up something for Emmy, but I am seriously running out of time! Yall want to help me pick what to make? Check out these costume ideas that I'm loving:

Mermaid costume! Unfortunately, It's def going to be too cold for this unless I make it long-sleeved. Meh... Maybe. It's so cute though!

Source: etsy.com via Kathleen on Pinterest

That shell! I love it so much.

Now this next one is the MAJOR front runner!

Little sheep!!!

Source: parents.com via Alissa on Pinterest

Could you just keel over from the cute?!! Plus this little munchkin looks about Emmys size, so I know it would be comparably adorable. I think I would just purchase the black tee, already have black leggings, and use this pattern (below) that I already have to make the sheep body, sans sleeves and pocket!:

Seriously, so cute. And how fun would it be to fill a cart at Michael's with bags of big ol' pompoms? Answer - wicked fun. :D

Candy Corn costume!!! This one is just so sweet, and I know for sure that it would whip up in like, one evening. One evening plus wine. Now that's an easy project.

Source: soyouthinkyourecrafty.com via Pita on Pinterest

I love the matching hat and bag! I think I could make a long sleeved version with my go-to dress pattern, the Charlotte Dress from Mama Stellato. Totally doable! I'd have to source out orange tights though... Hm.

Owl costume!! This one is as insanely cute, but I do not harbor the required patience it would take to make it. Not this year anyway, I'm already running late!

Source: blogs.babble.com via Lisa on Pinterest

CUTE!

So what do you guys think?! Do you love the sheep one as much as I do??
Are you making any costumes this year?

Holler attcha boo!

Wordless Wednesday 10.5.11

2011-10-05T10:31:00.000-04:00

Gold toes! Via Jamberry Nails.They lasted 2 and a half glorious months! Have a good day all!

Wordless Wednesday 9.28.11

2011-09-28T10:16:00.000-04:00

Hi! So I decided I want to start posting Wordless Wednesdays, like a lot of other bloggers do. I have so many pictures I'd like to share! K? K.

Onset, MA. September, 2011 Love to alllll!

Simplicity 2593

2011-09-26T11:05:00.000-04:00

Finished the foldy bits! :D

Styled here with my pj pants. Hot.

I'm going to borrow the Pattern Review format to talk about this top.

Pattern Description: Simplicity 2593, a Cynthia Rowley pattern. Looks thusly:

Pattern Sizing: I have the 14-22 because I bought this pattern way back when I thought I was like a 40 in sewing pattern sizes. I am not a 40, as it turns out. I cut the 14. :)

Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it? Yes, except for the foldy bits. Discussed below.

Were the instructions easy to follow? Totally. Easy as pie, this pattern.

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern? I love the simplicity (ha) of it. It's a great basic which lends itself to showing off great fabrics.

Fabric Used: Friggin' delicious stretch rayon from Fabric.com. They still have the pink colorway of this on clearance for $3.49 people. I am telling you - this fabric is a dream. Sooo soft and drapey and just stretchy enough. Love. And it's machine washable, aaaand dryable!

Pattern alterations or any design changes you made: So I folded the neckline piece 6 times instead of the 4 times the pattern instructed. I couldn't tell you why though... what fool dare mess with Cynthia Rowley's genius?! I wish I hadn't because now it has more of a 'twisted' effect than an origami effect, like the original. But the hand sewing I did to attach this part to the shirt is laughable, so it would take like one swipe of the seam ripper to undo my sins.

Also, I used store-bought bias tape for the arms and neck. This fabric is way too slinky to be messing around with self bias binding. No way, Jose.

Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others? I will definitely sew this top again. It's so easy and fast and you could use really almost any fabric. Score. Recommended highly. :)

Conclusion: Great pattern! Go sew it!

Cheers!

Copy That

2011-09-19T10:27:00.000-04:00

Good Monday all! :) So, yall are on Pinterest, right? What an epic black hole of time sucking wonderment, eh? I love it. So. Much. Inspiration! But with all the drooling that goes on there, I have to remind myself, often, that Pinterest is full of other peoples ideas. If I want let my creative ideas out of my head, I need to close the damn laptop, ya know? Seriously, how many times have you said out loud while on Pinterest, "why didn't IIIIIIII think of that?!?". Right??! Oye. Anyway, that said, there are still massive amounts of clever ideas that I want to recreate. I saw these onesies a few weeks ago and I fell in LURVE! My step-bro and his beautiful wife are expecting twin boys (!!!) so these were so perfect. Behold!

Ha! :D

Aren't they great? Here is the original inspiration, along with very handsome models:

Source: humor-in-photos-and-pictures.blogspot.com via Sarah on Pinterest

Those cheeks! :D To make these, I used the same freezer paper stenciling method as my Lucky in Love Onesie tutorial found HERE, or up there under the Tutorials tab. Super duper easy.

Well played, Pinterest. Well played. Hey! If anyone needs an invite to join Pinterest, leave your email in the comments, and I'll send you one. We can waste several hours together! :D Have a good day!

Pillowcase Hamper - Tutorial

2011-08-22T22:30:00.000-04:00

Yall want to make a hamper?! For like less than 10 bucks, with one of those vintage pillowcases you've been collecting fo-evah?! Yay! Let's, then!

I made this one when I was expecting Emmy, and it has withstood almost 18 months of use! I love it so much... and it was a cinch to make. The room she is in now is super tiny, so I needed a hamper that didn't take up a lot of space. So out of necessity, I made this contraption and hung it on the wall! Woot! We're in the process of moving her into a different room (if you can call Pinning ideas and daydreaming "the process of moving"), and the decor is going to be different from her current digs, so I am making a new hamper to match. Thought I'd take you guys along for the ride! I hope you'll give it a try! It's crazy easy - except for the picking which pillowcase to use part. ;)

You will need: * a delightful pillowcase* an embroidery hoop* grommets/grommet setting tool* scissors* a hammer* a hook to hang your hamper on

-NOTE- When I made the first one, I actually took my pillowcase to the craft store with me (crazypregnantlady) to ensure the hoop I got wasn't too big or too small. For reference, my new pillowcase measures 19 inches wide across the top when laying flat, and my hoop is 12 inches in diameter.   I got my grommets at Joanns - they are 3/8ths inch and antique brass. MAKE SURE you also purchase the grommet setting tool that corresponds with the size grommets you are using. The tool item number you need will be on the back of the grommet box. Easy peasy.
Also, the size of the grommet only really matters as it pertains to the hook you will be using to hang your hamper. You want to make sure the grommet hole is large enough to get over and onto your hook. Also, a scrawny grommet may not hold up as long as a bigger one. Go for bigger.

o1. Lay out your pillowcase, nice and square and flat, with the side you want as the front facing up. Iron it if you need to.

o2. Measure along the top opening and find the center. Mark where I have here... On the side of the pillowcase that's furthest from you. Err... the inside. ;)

o3. Measure down two inches or so from your center point & mark.

o4. Place one of your two grommet pieces over your marked point, and trace the inside circle:

o5. Cut out the circle you just traced. No need to be fancy here... just err on the side of a smaller hole. You want the grommet to fit nice and snugly.

o6. Insert the male piece of the grommet into the hole you cut. This is the piece that's not flat.

Above is how it'll look from the right/front side.

Above is how the back looks. We'll work from the back now.

o7. Lay the female/flat grommet piece onto the male piece as pictured above. You want the concave side facing up.

o8. *Not pictured because I LOST MY GROMMET SETTING TOOL*, ugh. Don't loose your grommet setting tool. I literally went out to the deck and hammered the whatfor out of this poor grommet, after like an hour of searching for my setting tool. Fail. Anyhow, set the grommet gracefully by following the tools instructions, and....

o9. Now, grab your hoop. We're going to work with the part of the hoop without the screw.

10. Pull your pillowcase up through the middle of your hoop.

11. Even out the pillowcase around the hoop. For this one, I folded the pillowcase over until I hit the edge of the... what do you call it? That 4-5 inch band at the top of a pillowcase? I went to the end of that. :)

12. Place the other embroidery hoop (with the screw) over top of it all and tighten her up!

13. Hang on a wall and enjoy your saved floor space!

Let me know if yall make one! Or two - I was thinking this would be SO cute for kiddos who share a room - you could personalize them so easily!
Also, if anything was unclear or you have any questions, holler!

See ya sooon!!! :D

Working on...

2011-08-21T13:56:00.000-04:00

Hi all! Happy weekend :)
I thought I'd share what I've been *slowly* working on... Getting back into the groove as the summer winds down.
First, I've fallen deeply in love with all of the DIY bracelets that have been popping up all over the place! Here are some of my favorites:

All images via honestlywtf.com
So being a proud child of the 80's I decided to try my hand at the chevron friendship bracelet. I literally could NOT wrap my head around it at first - for 80's shaaaaame!! But it came back to me and it's coming along nicely now:

Don't look to close at the top there :O Yeesh...

And I'm almost done with Simplicity 2593. I'm making the version with all the foldy business around the neck, and my hands are aching with Lymie arthritis just thinking about the hand sewing. Ugh. But I really wanted to challenge myself to do this, and so far I love it!

Just needs side seams, a hem and the foldy business. Should be done today!The fabric, fyi, is a delicious, wash AND dry-able stretch rayon from Fabric.com. It looks like they're out of this color, but they still have it in pink and coral! For $3.49 a yard, people!!! GO! I have the coral too and can attest to its' gorgitude.

And soon I'm going to start on this precious little number:

I'll be sewing view B, the overalls! CUTE!

I'm using this suuuuper fine, lightweight corduroy. Isn't it amazing!? I love the large print... I think they're going to be so adorable. It's a size 2 which I think is going to be pretty big for Emskie, but I'm just going to take a really deep hem on the legs so she can grow into them. Yay. :)

This fabric can be lusted after - here. :D

So that's that! Hope yall have a great rest of the weekend with lots of sewing and planning involved!

Summer

2011-08-09T11:29:00.000-04:00

Hello friends and family! As is now evident, I am no good at summer blog updates, summer sewing or summer anything-that-takes-time-away-from-summer things. I do apologize! The Hubs works evenings most of the year, but in summer he works days, so we've just really been enjoying our family time while it lasts. I've got a slew of crafty things on the horizon, but for now I'm making sure I soak up this time with Emmy... It's been an awesome summer so far. :) Hope yall are having a good one too!

Testing the waters with Grampy

Yes, that IS a Coors Light cowboy hat, why?

First braids! SO sweet! :D

Playing with fancycamera off the back deck of the beach house...

Collecting rocks...

Score.

Helping Papa build Stonehenge...

Beach bath! (aka token funny bath picture to show her boyfriends)

Rainbowy goodness...

Ahh... want to go back!

This was Jonas's first stay at a beach house, if that wasn't already made clear by this photo. lol

Also, awesome Kim added a spot to the side of the blog for things 'in the works'... I think it'll help me stay focused! Keep a look out there for upcoming projects and whatnot. Enjoy the rest of your summer everyone!

Been at the beach!

2011-07-28T13:19:00.000-04:00

Back to craftiness soon! :D

I have upholstered my daughter.

2011-07-12T13:11:00.000-04:00

Doesn't she look like a 1970's settee?

Source

I'm glad I ultimately opted against the protective plastic though. :D

Anyhow! Here's another vintage sunsuit from the coleccion!

It was 90+ degrees out... She was in no mood for a photo shoot.

No. Mood.

Here's the pattern! It's from 1977 - fitting :)

I sewed View 1, sans pockets, and I went with grosgrain ribbon for the halter instead of self-fabric. I wanted a really flowy, exaggerated bow in the back, as per usual, and I thought ribbon would work better for that. Score.

Trying to pick which rock to eat...

That one, I guess. :P

Weeds almost the height of baby = fail.

A SUDDEN HIGH-SPEED CHASE!!

Weapons!

"Emmy, please don't off the puppy..." = ^^ this face.

Ready!..... Aim!.........

"Aw, c'mon you guys..."

Emmys BeachTACULAR!

2011-07-07T09:17:00.000-04:00

Hey friends and family! No sewing related ramblings-on in this post... Just a good ol' Emmylou post, chock full of pictures!
Do enjoy :)

We love you all! Happy Summer!

HotDAMN!

2011-07-05T11:32:00.000-04:00

Happy 5th of July everyone! I hope you all had an excellent weekend! We sure did - Emmy went to the beach for the very first time, and ate her weight in Fish 'n Chips. Ha! Beach pictures forthcoming... But I just wanted pop in and give a HUGE thank you to the amazing blogs who featured the Sunshine Sunsuit! There are FOUR of them! :D Check these blogs out, if you haven't already! I ♥ them. :)

I hope yall won't take this as bragging... I don't ever post when I've been featured, and now you get all this up in your face. lol :D It's just that this little number means so much to me. I've never put more care or love into something I've made than this sunsuit for Emmy - and I'll never forget the where, when and why's of making it.So the fact that others are lovin' on it too - that feels good :)

We thank you!

Sunshine Sunsuit in ACTION!

2011-06-28T09:54:00.000-04:00

Photoshoot time! :D Here's Emmy in her Sunshine Sunsiut! It's bonkers cute, if I do say so :)

Cup of water + Mama saying "nononononono" = This face.

Well played, Baby. Well played.

Armed and dangerous...

So, whadaya think?! :)

Sunshine Sunsuit

2011-06-27T10:01:00.001-04:00

HELLO FRIENDS! :D So after the 'nado, it became pretty clear that I needed to take a hot minute and regroup. I had a few ~~mini~~ mental breakdowns following the tornado. It's a difficult thing, as it turns out, to make it out of something like that unscathed - but to see on a daily basis the devastation that missed us by yards. It's the definition of bittersweet. I just needed to slow down and go on auto-pilot for a little while. I allowed the breakdowns to come and go as they pleased, and I am happy to report that things are better now. It takes me a while to process things in general anyway, but this... This was a biggun'. We stayed at my parents house for the first several days. They were running on a generator and my sweet mother said "hey, why don't you go home and get your sewing machine?". YESSSS! So I did, and I chose to make the happiest, sun-shiniest thing I possibly could. Enter the Sunshine Sunsuit:

Here's the back! Bow Butt! :D

The front - so simple and classic.

Here is the pattern... It's from 1945, and it's probably my most dear pattern. I'm glad I made it when I did - it oozes happiness. :)

SwoooOOon

Two rows of top stitching - my new go-to awesomeness.

I added those belt loops... Definitely needed them!

My first-ever facing! I avoided them like the plague (why?!), but now I want to face EVERYTHINNNNNG!

I didn't bring my serger to my moms (ha, can you imagine!? "Hey, unplug the fridge so I can SERGE!" ;), so I finished the facing with my regular overlock stitch on my sewing machine. Plenty good enough :)

Can you stand the level of cute this thing is!? I can't.

I haven't had a chance to get pics of Her Nibs in it yet... The weather's been unworthy of this little gem. I probably have a chance for pics today though! Woo!

*See the Sunsuit on Emmy HERE!* So yall can consider me back in action! I have more things to show you soon - I've been a'sewin'! :D Missed you guys :)

Tornado

2011-06-04T10:58:00.000-04:00

Looking north up my street. There are never this many cars - these were people who couldn't get home. They went as far as they could and walked, or in many cases, ran.

My backyard. We are so, so lucky.

My neighbors backyard.

6 houses down from ours.

A very different skyline than we're used to.

Stairs. No house.

Again, stairs with no house. This man was home and he doesn't have a scratch on him.

Cathedral High School.

National Guard.

My family and I are all ok. Just shocked. We are so incredibly lucky, it's difficult to explain. We have no power, and won't for maybe a week? Two I've heard? So we're camping out at my moms house, and going back into our neighborhood when we need things. We went back yesterday and there was already so much progress. Lots of trees removed from the roads, and power crews everywhere. And there are many many volunteers with water and food. I love my neighborhood so much, and I know we'll all get through this mess.

Allll sorts'a cute

2011-05-31T09:48:00.000-04:00

Morning!

How was everyones Memorial Day? It was hot HOT hot here! And the pool's not open yet, so that's not good. :P

We went over to my sisters house and watched Emmy play in the sprinkler - and it was lovely. :) I also got about 20 minutes of sewing in in the morning! YAY!

This guy ^^ paid me a visit while I was sewing! Isn't he gorgeous?! :D

And this little darling got a new hair bow!

Look at that face. If you say "Say cheese, Emmy!", you get this precious mug. :)

I used Funky Polkadot Giraffes' Bow Tie Hair Clip tutorial for this, but I just made it bigger... Like Minnie Mouse big. :D I didn't actually measure the pieces I cut, so I couldn't even tell you! Next time I make big ones like this, I'll measure and share. ;)

So cute!

:)
Hope you all had a great long weekend! I sure did! NYC pictures to come... :D

Pompom Pillow

2011-05-27T22:49:00.001-04:00

Friends, I really have mixed feelings about this pillow.

It looked so good before I put the pillow form into it. The pompoms looked more like banners or buntings - which was the goal! They were nice and swoopy. But once I put the form in, the curves sort of straightened out.

Craft Fail?!

Switched to a zipper foot after that hot mess stitching on the dark purple row! YEEesh.

Meh.

But I do love that I have a new friend for Foxy Pillow! I think they'll look fab together... After I fix this one. :)

Envelope style, ala From An Igloo.

Good idea, poor execution methinks.Either the poms need to be totally straight, just like plain ol' stripes, or way waaay more swoopy. This in-between business ain't cute. :P

Hey, happy Memorial Day weekend everyone! Hope you all have good ones! I'm off to NYC tomorrow morning! Woohooo! I'll take tons of pictures, especially in the Garment District!

Love to all,

*ETA* Thank you all SO MUCH for your kind words about this pillow! I think I was looking at it with a judgmental craft-stank eye.It's pretty cute, I guess. ;)

Winning!!

2011-05-26T09:44:00.000-04:00

We have winners!! Thank you all who entered the Giveaway! This was fun :D So... The winner of the Michaels Gift Card is:

STEPH @ CRAFTING IN THE RAIN! ----------------------------------------------------------------------- The winner of the Heather Bailey fabric is:

KRISTA @ THAR SHE SEWS! ----------------------------------------------------------------------- The winner of the Summer Sewing Patterns is:

CINDY @ CINSARAH! ----------------------------------------------------------------------- YAAY! Congrats ladies!!! If yall could email me and tell me where oh where you live, that'd be great! If I don't hear from you by this evening, I'll email you. I'd do it now but I'm ~~at work~~ very busy. Ha! Check ya later peeps!

Makeover!

2011-05-24T09:25:00.000-04:00

Good morning! Check out my new digs! :D If you're viewing this in a Reader, pop on over to see how fabulous EmmylouBeeDoo is today! Credit and mucho thanks go to Kim at Seven Thirty Three! She's awesome. :) Isn't it gorgeous?! Go'head and take a look around! And while you're at it, enter the Giveaway that ends tomorrow night, HERE!

Because You're Awesome.

2011-05-21T00:01:00.036-04:00

So since you are all exceptionally awesome for being 100 in quantity (and 1 bazillion in quality :), I wanted to extend a big ol' thank you!

THANK YOU!
I have prezzies for you!

You may have noticed around here that I am ~~a fan of~~ crazybananas for Mama Stellato.

See the three tops I've made from her Charlotte Dress pattern alone:

Post

No post. Made this pre-blog. It's like, the second thing I ever made! :D

Post

If those old crummy pics didn't already give it away, I sewed these precious (if I do say so ;) tops when I was completely new to sewing. The first one took just one evening, and the others took even less time - couple of hours at most.

If you are a beginning sewista, or are thinking you want to start sewing (YES!), Mama Stellato Patterns are perfect! The intructions are crystal clear, there are no fancy requirements like a serger, the size range is wicked expansive [meaning buy a pattern once and sew it 400 times as your babe grows], and the styles are SO CUTE!

And all of you seasoned seamstresses, take a look at these and imagine all the possibilities!

Right?!?!?

So getting to the point. Rachel of Mama Stellato is so kindly offering all of you

30% off your entire order!
Squeel!

Enter Coupon Code EMMYLOU30 like so:

* This offer is good Saturday and Sunday (5/21 and 5/22) only! *

Yay! I hope you are all able to take advantage of this offer!

What's that you say? Not sure what fabric to use for your new Mama Stellato pattern??
Would a yard of Heather Bailey Rose Bouquet in Emerald help you decide?!

Yeah, I have it. You want it?

I've got one prewashed yard of this deliciousness. [See this fabric in action in Peach HERE]
If you'd like to have it in your possession to drool over, keep reading!!

BUT! That's sooo not all! I'm also giving away a Summer Pattern Pack! Check it peeps:

Click pic to see the sizes better.
I'm a 12/14 in patterns... Is there a worse size to be as far as purchasing?! Jeebs!

Want to sew for yourself this Summer? Yeah, me too! :)

Seeing as how I have 8 thousand patterns, and am still loading everything into PatternFile, I sometimes buy duplicates, or patterns that are ridiculously similar to patterns I already have. Boo for me. Yay for you.

Enter these three patterns: Simplicity 2245 (Lisette), New Look 0692 (OOP), and Simplicity 2599.
All three fabulous - all three I already haaaave! Gah! Seriously, I'm like a tornado at the JoAnns sales. I take my list'o'patterns in there and scoop up all my patterns [proudface], not realizing that I did the same thing two weeks ago, and didn't cross any patterns off my list. Hot. Mess.
Want 3 cute patterns? Ok! You got'm!

If I haven't twisted your arm enough to git to sewing (what friggin' gives?!), I have something else for you.
Do you craft? If you're here, I assume you're a creative type, yes?
Do you like Michaels?

Do you want a $25 Michaels Gift Card?
Yes??!
Sweet!

♥

So, in all seriousness, I love you. I love this blog!
It is what it is because of my dear friends and readers. I work 40+ hours a week, I have a toddler, and I have a disease I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy, so I am always wishing for more time to blog. But more importantly, and I know yall can relate, I wish for more time to create. That's why we're all blogging in the first place, isn't it? To have an outlet for sharing and receiving encouragement. In the short time I've been at this, you guys have been so supportive, and I want to thank you. So thank you :)

♥

Aaaand back to the fun!

First, GO make use of your Mama Stellato discount!

Then, leave me a comment here and tell me which gift you'd like.

FABRIC (Heather Bailey - 1 Yard)
PATTERNS (Three summer sewing patterns)
MICHAELS GIFT CARD ($25 Michaels Gift Card)

YOU CAN LEAVE THREE SEPARATE COMMENTS - ONE FOR EACH GIFT!
Make sure they're separate comments though. :)

If you're just interested in one thing, let me know which one in your comment.
If you're interested in two, leave two comments, etc.

Make sure you leave your email address! Better yet, make sure you're not a "noreply-comment" Blogger.

I'll do a random drawing on Wednesday night, and announce the winners sometime on Thursday!

I wish I could give all 100 of you gifts!

Have a fabulous weekend all!

Are you a noreply-comment Blogger?

2011-05-20T10:33:00.000-04:00

I need you not to be! Pretty please!

I get all of your comments via email, and I can't reply to more than half of them! NoooooOoo! ::headdesk::

I can't reply to this person!

I was a noreply-er and didn't even know it. I just figured bloggers weren't writing me back. No big deal I guess. But if your asking a blogger a question, you'd sort of like a response, right?! Right! So what I used to do was just keep checking the comment section of the post I asked the question on... waiting for an answer.

But from what I've learned since starting my own blog, replying to every comment in the comment section can make for a hot mess. Shooting a quick email is a hellavalot easier. And more private!

So, one fine day I came across THIS POST at House of Smiths, and I realized - I am a noreply-comment blogger! No wonder all I was getting was static!

So please, please my lovely (100;) readers, go HERE and learn how to un-noreply yourselves! It takes two seconds and then I will be able to endlessly chat you up! :D

Plus, if you want to be a pattern tester, I definitely need to be able to relpy to your comment!

K? K.

Happy Friday!

Friends, Patterns, Ziplining, and Mood. Hee!

2011-05-19T13:19:00.000-04:00

I've got 100 friends!

I can't believe it! Thank you guys so much for following along, and supporting my crafty endeavors. I've got the warm fuzzies :)

I believe another GiftAway is in order, yes? I'll get on that lickity split. What would you guys be interested in? A vintage or modern pattern? Fabric? Chocolate? Box'o'Wine? :D

Also, WICKED IMPORTANT!, I am in need of a few more pattern testers for my Wee Linen Blouse pattern. It's all tweaked and the photo-tutorial will be done soon. Again, it's a size 12-18 months, and if you are willing, that's the size I'd like you to make - i.e. don't grade it up or down in size. And if you have a model who is said size to take pictues of in the top, that'd be a bonus!

Make me!

So if you are interested, please holler atcha boo - SarahBethHaag@gmail.com

Those of you who I've already spoken with, don't worry about emailing again - you're all set. Thank you sista-friends!

In other news, being 30 is officially awesome.
This is what I did last weekend with 12 great friends:

Ziplining! There truly are no words to describe how amazing this was. If you are ever in the greater New England area and are looking to be humbled and thrilled at the same time, you must go here.

But oh, the birthday goings-on don't end there! Memorial Day weekend, me and one of of my bffs are going to the NYC to meet up with another bff! And I'm going shopping at Mood!

Mood!

And since I ~~believe~~ know that Tim Gunn lives at Mood, I'll be meeting Tim Gunn, too.
Amazing, yes?! We're staying on the Upper West Side... any recommendations on where to eat, drink, and/or be merry? How 'bout shopping? Tell me, tell me! :D

So, sewing is a bit slow right now due to all the birthday rabble rousing, and trying to get the pattern ready for debut. But I'm brimming with ideas as per usual, so I'll be back on the horse soon :)

Check back for the Box'o'Wine GiftAway!
Or whatever... ;)

Love to all!

Thir-TEE!

2011-05-12T19:35:00.001-04:00

It's my birthday today!

I'm 30!

WooooHOO!! I can't tell you how happy I am. My twenties were long as all get out and I. Am. OVER. Them. Literally. :)

*sigh of relief*

So anyhow, me and my 30 year old self have had the privilege of testing a pattern for Mama Stellato! It's her newest pattern [not out yet, but will be soon!], a unisex raglan tee! And it is SO cute! Her patterns are always super easy to follow and are sized perfectly.

Check out the pics!

These are from our Mothers Day brunch at my beautiful sisters' house. :)

Baby buns. Pug buns.

The Tee speaks for itself, doesn't it?! So flippin' cute!

Go 'head and take a nibble on those cheeks... There's plenty to go around. :)

Bart the pug. Emmy the baby.

Getting better at the fancy camera! This was taken from 20+ feet away! :D

Attacking Papa.

Kissing Papa to make up for attack.

Fort.

So do you like the shirt?! It took me less than two hours from tracing to finishing - and that's including distractions along the way! Have heaps of old tee shirts that you don't wear anymore? This pattern is perfect for them!

Keep a look out in Mama Stellato's Etsy Store for this pattern!

So, happy birthday to ME! :D

And a happy almost-weekend to YOU!

As always, partying HERE!

Selfish Sewing!

2011-05-11T11:13:00.001-04:00

At last, I made myself something!

Before I started this blog, I actually exclusively sewed for myself. I was so scared to sew baby clothes! In my defense, Emmy was like the size of a puppy back then, so yeah. Too small. :) Now she's fun to sew for.

Annnyway... Here is the finished McCalls's 5884!

Head cropped per order of Hot-Mess Police.

I LOVE the huge bow. Love it.

Like I said in my last post, I cut this top way, way too big. Which I always do - need to stop that. But I hadn't sewed the side seams or the hem before I realized the ginormity of it, so I was able to take it in. Phew!

I am not a model. Just realizing this.

I used a pink floral rayon from Jo-Anns clearance. They seem to always have some variation of this fabric at my local Jo-Anns, and I dig it. I have it in black, too. It's buttery soft and super drapey. Yum.

French seams! I took out about an inch from each side seam. AND, omg, my first ever rolled hem! Let me tell you - I could have sat there rolling hems all flippin' night long. So lovely. I was litterally bummed when I finished the hem. Ha! I chopped off about an inch from the bottom - both to shorten the blouse and to account for the hem allowance. The length is perfect now. Awesome.

I also took the advice of one Pattern Reviewer and skipped a bunch of the collar/tie steps. I just sewed it on right sides together (just like you would do in the first step of bias taping) and then serged that bad boy [I flipped that serged edge out in the pic above so you could see it. It's not visible when I wear it]. The way the collar lays once it's on makes this method perfectly acceptable (to me, anyway). :)

So there you have it! A sewn garment for grown folk! I also had the wherewithall to enter this into Rae's Spring Top Sewalong at the last minute, so that oughta be fun! Hopefully people like it as much as I do!

G'day to you!

As always, partying HERE!

A happy Cinco de Mayo to you!

2011-05-05T12:03:00.000-04:00

Arrrrrriba! :D

I'm just popping in to say hi, and that there is sewing going on at la Casa de EmmylouBeeDoo. Just nothing 100% completed or photographed. I'm just about done with McCall's 5884, view A:

I sort of stalled out on it because it's flipping gigantic. I did some research on Pattern Review and was plenty warned that it's a big ol' blouse with a BIG OL' tie, but that's pretty much what I was going for. I love the giant tie, but I wasn't expecting the whole blouse to be so damn big! [Disclaimer: I have never, ever picked the right size when sewing for myself. It's the fear of making something too small and wasting fabric. Make a muslin you say? My patience and sewing time are scant, people. C'mon.] So that may have something to do with it being ginormous. We may never know. ;)

Anyhow, it's done except for the side seams and hem, so there's still time to talk it off the ledge. It's been a really easy sew, though! Only three pattern pieces and a handful of steps. I'll definitely make this one again, but like 3 sizes smaller. Yeesh. I'll give all the construction deets when it's done.

Also, wicked exciting, I am testing a new pattern for Mama Stellato! That should be done this weekend and I'll show yall that whenever I get the go-ahead from her! It's super cute. :) You can see things I've made using her Charlotte Dress pattern here, here, and here. Love!

Buenas dias, muchachas! :D

Love to all,

The Sewing Room Re-Reveal

2011-05-02T10:24:00.001-04:00

Hey all! Check out where Foxy Pillow is today! :O

So, I wanted to repost the grand room tour here in case you missed my big fat feature on Craftaholics Anonymous!

It looks a bit different now than it did when I first posted about it here. It's much more lived in and stocked!
So, here she is! The sewing room in all her sewy glory! :D

!!!%^%&%#%@@@#!!11!!!!!

So first, a little background... This was actually my laundry room. Still is, except the laundry goings-on live to the right of this picture. And that's where they'll stay. You're welcome. ;)

If you want to see some of the construction photos, check out this post.

The actual area I occupy in here is only about 7 foot by 7 foot. So, anyone out there who's short on space, let this be your inspiration! You don't need a whole entire room to store a lifetime supply of fabric and patterns. Trust.

Here's my ironing area. Beneath that is my Unfinished Business Box. Sadly, it's at capacity. Hanging above is my press cloth, a pattern I'm working on, and my favorite little sign.

Under my ironing board to the left is a pot (?) where I keep my freezer paper and rolled-up patterns waiting to be traced... some embroidery hoops... a bookshelf with my glue gun and glue related paraphernalia, sewing machine manuals and books, fabric paint, dye, and a basket on top with all of my needles and feet and whatnot.

Did you notice my ribbon holder?! It's an old CD rack! Holler! I highly recommend scooping one of these up if your out thrifting. Most can be hung on a wall, and they are perfect for ribbon-housing. Awesome.

And a hammer and pliers, 'cause every girl needs a hammer and pliers at the ready.

Here's my desk! And my Bro's. :) This desk is actually an old artists' desk that I've had since I was probably 12 or 13. It's great. It's super huge, and it has several little compartments on the right side there. I didn't get a great picture, but those compartments are where I keep my scissors, rulers, pattern weights, etc. Very handy indeed.

Getting to the good stuff! To the left of my desk is my notions drawer unit. On the wall above is a picture of my sweet Emmylou, and a thing (old spice rack?? No idea.) that is the perfect size for fat quarters. Further to the left, my fabric and pattern shelves! Gah!

This wooden shelf has [from bottom to top] a basket where I keep my vintage patterns, another basket with random crafty goodies, cottons for Emmylou, voiles and other lightweight fabrics, and finally flannel and corduroy chillin' up top until the fall. And some yarn? Ok...

The bottom part of the wooden shelf holds my large cuts of fleece, and other big, unruly items.

Close up of the notion drawers, and an antique sewing box to the right, gifted by my Aunt. :)

This here green metal shelf has really impressed me. I totally didn't want to use it in here - it's hideous. However, it's a workhorse and it holds SO much! So, from bottom to top - knits and bottom-weights, various apparel fabrics, a basket with trims, another basket with all of my printed patterns - BurdaStyle and the like, a woven basket with the squares for this quilt, a box with my regular envelope-type patterns, and up on the tipy-top (not in this picture) are bolts of quilting cotton from my momma! They're great for testing things out, and they're cute. Win.

Now here's where we get really fancy! I used to keep all my silky fabrics folded like the other fabrics, but they never stayed put. So, I got some tiny bungee cords and attached them to said workhorse shelf, and that's how I keep my silkies cooperative! And they're so pretty to look at like this, not all slumped over one another.

Close up of the bungee action. Excellent.

So that's the grand tour! Whaddya think?! I am madly in love with it, and wish I could spend every waking moment here. Ahhh... :)

I have to thank my step-father and my uncle again for creating this space for me. THANK YOU BOBBY AND KEVIN! I'm so lucky to have you guys [and your disturbing willingness to tear walls down at any given chance].

:)

Love to all,

They're giving Roc-Lon away [almost]

2011-04-28T10:47:00.001-04:00

Heads up yall!

That stuff I used to make Mr. Foxy Pillow, Roc-Lon, is on crazybananas sale this Saturday at Jo-Ann! 2 Yards for 3 bucks! Holla!

I'm telling you my peeps, get this stuff home, wash it, nuzzle up with it for a bit because it's that soft and yummy, then make yourself a pillow! Like so:

Also, I got that screen capture image from joann.com using a program called Jing. It's pretty awesome! I've been looking for something like it for ages, and I think it's perfect! If you're looking for a screen capture program, I recommend Jing for sure - and they're not even paying me! ;)

Anyone have any fun sewing or crafting plans for the weekend? I'm thinking it's high time to sew myself something. I don't think I've made a garment for a grown person since I started this blog! Maybe a Pendrell finally??

[Beth, I'll get your towels done first, pinky promise :]

Ok, happy day everyone!

Love to all,

*Edited to Add*
I'm not so sure now that the Roc-Lon on sale [above] is the same I used for my pillow. Mine is really thick and I don't think it's technically 'muslin'. I think this stuff on sale is the thin, actual muslin material. Just wanted to clarify that. The fabric I used was not with the muslin, it was with the canvas, duck, and home decor fabrics. kbai :)

!!!1!!!11!

2011-04-27T08:30:00.000-04:00

So... I've been keeping a little secret! For the past few weeks I've been busy folding and organizing and refolding and reorganizing. And I am so excited to tell you why!!!

Today my sewing room is being featured on Craftaholics Anonymous!!!

Like, THEE Craftoholics Anonymous!

I'm so excited and proud, but mostly honored! Thank you Linda!

Ahhhh! :D

So, come on over and check it out! I think you'll enjoy it!

Love to all!

Foxy Pillow is Foxy

2011-04-24T16:45:00.005-04:00

Happy Easter everyone! Hope your all having a beautiful weekend. :)

Meantime, may I introduce you to Foxy Pillow:

Oh hai!

Like I said in my last post, pillows are WICKED easy! For this cute little guy I [loosely] followed From an Igloos' Easy 4-Step Cushion Cover. I sort of just winged the measurements, but I LOVE how it came out!

Envelope style! No zipper!

The fabric I used was [I think] this stuff called Roc-Lon. Don't quote me on that though, I just barely glanced at the bolt label. It's like a thick, textured, super soft natural looking fabric. It was in the back of JoAnns with the duck cloth and home decor fabrics. I heart it big time. :)

I also got the iron-on fox at JoAnns. I've had it fo-eva. I wanted to put it on a shirt for Emmy, but now that we're redoing her room, I thought little fox friend would make a really cute accent. Isn't he precious?! Good choice, methinks. :)

hellloooOOOooo!

I would have taken pictures of this pillow on my bed if I ~~ever~~ made it this morning, but alas, the ironing board it is. :)

Again, happy Easter everyone!

And omg you guys, check back here Wednesday! - MAJOR NEWS! :D

Love to all,

[Foxy Pillow is attending THESE foxy parties!] and

Wicked Easy Pillow Roundup

2011-04-22T13:15:00.000-04:00

Happy Good Friday all! And a happy Easter, too! :D

I have a super cute pillow to show yall later this weekend, but before that, I thought I'd share a few easy pillow how-tos with you! I know that a lot of you sew, but many of you don't! Gasp! What gives?!

If the only thing keeping you from sewing is sheer intimidation, let me lead you to the ideal jumping off point: Pillows! They are bananas-easy and will have you feeling confident in no time! Plus, if you sew a pillow with a zipper (easy!), you will have conquered one of the scarier steps in garment construction. Pillows use a scant amount of fabric (wallet friendly!), but are a super way to showcase a fabric that you love! WIN!

So, come sew pillows with me!

EASY 4-STEP CUSHION COVERS - FROM AN IGLOO

This ^^ is the method I used to make my forthcoming pillow! It's so flippin' easy you won't even be able to stand it. You'll be a one-woman pillow factory until someone intervenes and stops you.

HOW TO SEW A ZIPPER PILLOW - PRUDENT BABY

This tutorial ^^ will END any fear you may have of the zipper. Seriously. It's fantastic, and the result is soooo classy and professional looking! Go you!

VINTAGE HANKIE PILLOW COVERS - NOODLEHEAD

This tutorial ^^ is similar in construction to the first one - easy peasy, except they're embellished with vintage hankies! Gah! Don't have any vintage hankies? Now you have an excuse to go thrifting. As if you needed one. ;) Aren't they beautiful?! You could even use pocket squares, small silk scarves, or doilies!

BUTTONED UP THROW PILLOW - THE MOTHER HUDDLE

This one ^^ may not look 'wicked easy', but I assure you, with just a few additional steps, YOU can do this! The beauty of this one is the endless fabric combination possibilities... You could make a shabby chic one like the one pictured, you could make one for your boys' room with trucks and aliens and... boy stuff, or make a gorgeous neutral one with fancy buttons for your sofa! Plus you'll learn many new skills along the way!

SUNBURST PILLOW TUTORIAL - NOODLEHEAD

This one ^^, also similar in construction to the other envelope-style pillows, uses pintucks to embellish the fabric itself! You could do this for any size pillow, and you could play around with the pintucks... So simple, beautiful, and EASY!

♥

So whaddya say? Is a sewing machine going on your Mothers Day wishlist?? I hope so!

Love to all!

Wee Linen Blouse in Action

2011-04-15T20:46:00.000-04:00

So here's the Wee Linen Blouse in all it's glory!

I'd say it's a wicked success!!! Emmy wore it all day today and it's all sorts of filthy and loved and broken-in and that's for sure a good sign! She looked so cute and comfortable in it! Yay!

Check it out!

She was barking (yeah) at the dogs across the street and looking at me like, "Why aren't you barking at them?!?!1??!"

On a pattern tweaking note, I think it needs lengthening by about an inch. I may actually make the pattern larger altogether... it doesn't look like she'll fit into this top for too too long.

Gahh, so cute.

The back looks great! And there're those flutter sleeves that I will eat once she outgrows this because they are too cute to go to waste.

Also, for the next one I make, I'm going to use snap-tape in lieu of buttons so that the top is completely reversible! Hollerrr! That'll work right? I can't wrap my head around these things until they're right in front of me. :P

Fluffhead :)

Neckline looks good!

Smizing

Smirky McTurkey.

So folks, I think the PDF pattern is a GO! I just need to tweak a few things, and then get all the uploading business figured out. FUN!!!

Thank you all who've expressed interest in the pattern! If there are any of you who would be interested in testing the pattern before I pull the trigger, that'd be great! It's going to be a size 12-18 months, lest I wake up tomorrow knowing how to grade patterns. So let me know if you'd be interested in testing it out in the next month or two. I'd love the feedback, 'cause I have no idea what I'm doing. ;)

Seat of my pants, people. Seat. Of. My. Pants.

Love, love, love to all,

Wee Linen Blouse

2011-04-14T10:37:00.004-04:00

(((( *UPDATE! See the Wee Linen Blouse on a human baby HERE* ))))

A new blouse for Emmylou! Oh you guys, I am SO proud of this one!

So proud in fact, that I took all my pictures at night and then [poorly] doctored them up, just so I could share this with you asap! Let's say they're grainy and off-color because I wanted them that way because I'm a remarkable artist. K? :)

Oh hai little blouse!

I used this fabric, except in 'Baby Pink' which it looks like they're all out of now. The stuff is like melted butter. But still really easy to sew with! Hoorah!

I used a lot of new-to-me techniques for this blouse. One being a self lining! And wow - I love, love how easy it was! And the look of it - no bias tape, no little hems - gorgeous! I referred to this great tutorial for doing the lining, and I will use it again and again!

Another supercute element I added was ruffle/flutter cap sleeves! Could you just eat them?!?! For those little buddies, I referred to another great tutorial, found here. I had to do it a little differently though, since I was using the self lining. I'm wicked proud of myself for figuring how to insert those little sleeves on my own! :D

Button placket in the back! I was going to use wooden buttons for a rustic-y, natural vibe, but my mom had these perfectly pink ones that I couldn't resist. I'm loving the monochromaticness! :D

I also attempted my first blind-hem, but something was wonky - it kept only catching one layer of the linen, even after maxing out my stitch width. Frown. I'll have to try that again on something different - such a lovely look! So instead I just serged the bottom, folded up once and stitched! Voila!

Might I also mention that I made this pattern?! From scratch! I measured my little model, and drew up a basic bodice pattern that I'll be able to use again and again. I'm thinking about uploading it as a PDF... would yall be interested in it?! It's super simple, and can be jazzed up to your liking! Sleeves! Bow belts! Ribbon trim! Ruffles! It might take me a little while to get on that, but I'll certainly do it if there's interest! Holler atcha boo!

Alright yall, this blouse if off to party!

I'll try to get a shot of the missus wearing it this weekend!

Love to all,

It has begun...

2011-04-11T20:00:00.000-04:00

...she's started posing.

Her most favorite stance... One hand on the table, the other gracefully at her side.

Who, me? That mess back there? Nah... :)

I think this is "I'd like some blueberries, please" face

Oh so precious! And these were taken by the Hubs! Using auto-focus! Not too bad I say, I say!

Now perhaps I can start modeling things on her instead of on the wall. ;)

And that's good, because there are things forthcoming to be modeled...

Love to all!

Bright & Eclectic Baby Rooms

2011-04-06T14:21:00.000-04:00

Emmylou is moving into some saaweet new digs! We currently have her in the tiniest room in the house. Somehow, in my crazy pregnant nesting mentality, I thought that was the best room for her. I honestly can't remember why now! Jeebus!

So we're moving her and her effects into the next biggest bedroom we have, which is still the size of a shoebox, but more like a boot shoebox - as opposed to a Ked's shoebox. And it has a closet. Lucky girl. ;)

I want the room to be super ultra white with all sorts of bright accents and colorful playthings. Will I regret painting a one-year-olds' bedroom white? No doubt. But I'm going to humor myself in the name of creative vision. :)

Here are some inspirational rooms and yummy eye candy. Enjoy!

Source

Ahh, I love them all! So bright and airy!

Stay tuned for some actual productivity around here...

Love to all,

New Computer & a New Site!

2011-03-30T12:21:00.000-04:00

Hey all!

I dropped my laptop off at Staples yesterday, and should have my new one - complete with all of my pictures and music and whatnot - by Thursday or Friday! WOOT!

So in the meantime I thought I would just pop in [from my work computer... shh] to tell you about this new site that Tara from The Trendy Treehouse has started! It's called Make it Sew it Love it!

She's compiling all of the FREE patterns, tutorials and projects from around the CraftBlogosphere! Great idea, no?! Aaaand, she has kindly added my Pattern Weights tute, and my Lucky in Love Onesie tute! Yay!! Thank you Tara! Awesome site. :)
If any of you have anything to add, pop on over there & fill out the contact form! Easy peasy!

And just because it's adorable, here's a picture of my darling Emmylou eating her first grilled cheese sandwich.

G'day. :D

Winner Winner!

2011-03-28T09:48:00.000-04:00

Good morning all!

So I did the Random.org thing (how do people show the results box on their blogs? Is it like a screen capture thing?), and the winner of the Pillowcase Dress goodies is...

Kristen of Who's Watching the Baby?!

Woohoooo! Congrats Kristen, I'll be emailing you shortly!

And thank you everyone else for entering the Giftaway! :D

I hope everyone had a great weekend. Mine friggen' flew by. Hate when that happens! But in exciting geek news, I'm getting a new laptop this week! WOOT! My old one is self-destructing at an incredible rate of speed, so the time is now. I'm going to take advantage of the deal at Staples where they transfer all of your files (pics, music, everything!) to the new laptop for free! That deal goes until April 2nd, if anyone else is in the market.

Only bummer about that is the turn-over rate at my local Staples is 3 days! :O

So I'll be sans computer for the majority of the week. But, it'll sure be nice to have a computer that doesn't shut itself down with a scary "ZAP!" when you look at it funny.

Hooray!

Have a nice week everyone!

Love to all,

A Good Dress

2011-03-25T11:04:00.002-04:00

I finished my Dress a Girl Around the World dress!

Isn't she pretty!?

I printed out and was planning on using LBG Studios adorable Pillowcase Dress pattern and tutorial, but at the last minute I decided I wanted to make my own pattern. If I can't make a pillowcase dress from scratch, I don't have much promise as a future pattern designer now do I? I think it came out SO cute! Proudface!

It was an easy decision to hack into my precious one yard of Heather Bailey for this dress. I've been so reluctant to use it, but this was a no brainer. The best little piece of fabric for the best cause a little piece of fabric could go to. :)

French seams. Delish.

Oh, how I love it!

My original plan was to make two of these dresses, but life got in the way over the last couple of weeks - some good life things, like Emmylou turning ONE!, and having family in town, and some bad life things pertaining to the big green ribbon on my side bar :P

And since I have a bazillion new ideas swirling about my head that I want to get moving on, I thought maybe I could pay forward the good. Here are the bits and pieces of the second dress I was going to make:

This fabric is a lot brighter in person! Night time pictures didn't do it any favors...

I'm wondering, lovely readers, would one of yall want to make this dress? I have the pattern and tutorial all printed out and ready to go. New thread, new bias tape, pre-washed adorable fabric...

Even the address for where to send the dress when you're done...

The pattern just needs to be taped and cut/traced.

So, whadaya say?

Obviously, you don't have to make this dress... You can do whatever you please! I just feel the need to do a good thing in exchange for the good that I have in my life.

I'm not even going to call this a Giveaway. Just a gift between friends. :)

So if you want this little batch of goodies, just leave a comment on this post with a way to get in touch with you if you win! I'll do that random number thing on Sunday night and announce the winner on Monday!

*THE GIFT-AWAY IS NOW CLOSED*

If you want more info on the cause or to see more finished dresses, head on over to LBG Studios!

Love to all,

Oh, Hi!

2011-03-23T19:48:00.000-04:00

Hello friends!

I'm just popping in to let yall know I haven't fallen off the face of the Earth. I will tell you it's been weird not having anything to link up to the Parties this week! SADFACE!

Over the weekend we celebrated Emmy's FIRST Birthday! Crazy! Here is the princess in all her frilly glory:

No, didn't make her dress. :) Made her hair though.

I'll have things to share with you by the weekend. I've had my arse handed to me this week with non-fun, non-craft related business, so I didn't want to post about nothing (sort of like what I'm doing right now). Life happens, eh?

On a less bummerific note, did yall see Angry Chickens post the other day about PatternFile?!?! Dude, it's awesome. I subscribed and got to filing right away! I was thisclose to starting an Excel Spreadsheet to keep track of my patterns... LAME! The only downside I've noticed so far is that vintage patterns aren't in the database. And at this point I'd say 40% of my patterns are vintage. But, no worries really, you can manually add the pattern if it doesn't come up automatically! Holler! I love it and I'm just getting started. Check it out!

Oh, I also added an 'About Me' page up top there finally.

Ok peeps, I'm out. I'll see you soon :)

Love to all,

Another-nother Reader Feature!

2011-03-17T15:37:00.000-04:00

See Misti's feaure HERE.

See Steph's feature HERE.

Get the Lucky in Love Tutorial HERE.

Another Lucky in Love insprired Reader project! Check out Ang's fantastic boy version:

Awesome!

Would believe me if I told you this her first 'real' craft project?! I know! Check out her full post here. You have to see the super cute detail she added to the back!

Thank all you gals for making me beam with pride on this Saint Patty's Day!

CHEERS!

Happy St. Pat's and Another Reader Feature!

2011-03-17T09:47:00.000-04:00

Lucky Emmy :)

Happy Saint Patrick's Day, everyone!

It's a gorgeous day up here in New England, and all the Irish eyes are smiling! :D

I have another Reader Feature to share with you... It comes from Steph at Crafting in the Rain! She made these super adorable Tees from my Lucky in Love tutorial! Check'm out!

Ahh! Look at the pink shamrock with the green heart! Love it! Check out her full post here, and tell her I said Hi! :)

And just one last thing... This:

Source

Drooool.

Have a beautiful day everyone!

Love,

Some Housekeeping

2011-03-14T22:31:00.000-04:00

I got no sewing done this past weekend! The horror!

We have family coming in this week for Emmys FIRST BIRTHDAY (!!?!) so we spent the weekend [talking about] cleaning. I couldn't justify sitting down at the sewing machine when I have so sososoo much else to do! Ugh! Damn you dust ~~kittens~~ lions!

But, I will certainly try to sew up at least 2 pillow case dresses by the end of the week for LBG Studios' cause. There's still time to participate, so if you're so inclined, check it out here:

In related news, I officially get a FAIL in sew-alongs. Dof! Let me sum it up: The Marie Skirt: I'm not totally sure what I did, but the waistband needs to be completely removed and redone. It's like 3 inches too short around (?). I would certainly redo it if I thought this skirt was going to be something I'd actually wear. I shimmied it on to see how it looks and it ain't pretty. It's not the skirt - I love the skirt - it's just not. ok. on me. So for now, it's a wadder. Sorry Regan! I loved your finished skirts - so inspiring! Maybe I can get my isht together for your next sew-along. :)And then oh dear lord, the Vintage sew-along. FAIL x 10. My progress? I've picked a pattern (below). The time line for that sew-along was January through February. It's now the Ides of March. So I'm just granting myself an open-ended extension on this one.Do yall think this polka dot stretch cotton would be too much for the long-sleeved version of this dress? I'm tending to think so... Maybe I'll go sleeveless for Spring. That way the polka dotness will be less overwhelming, yes? I just love this fabric - it's so soft & it wants to be a dress. This dress.

Thoughts?

Plus, what a simple pattern! If I just got to it, I could probably bump it out in a couple of evenings and get on with my life. Gah.

And last but certainly not least... The Pendrell! I think I'm putting this one off because I'm just so excited to make it! Makes total sense, right?! Plus, the sew-along is very, very over and my first fabric choice is a little too Wintery. Enter this spectacular firework-ish poly-charmeuse... Perfect for Summer!

Pardon the washed-out pic

Maybe it's the 80's kid in me, but I love love neon colors on a white background. Oh, and the real reason I haven't sewn the Pendrell? I'm still petrified of silky fabrics.

Anyone have tips? I'd love to hear them, 'cause I have sewing to do! Silk needle? Stabilizer?? Wash-away or tear-away?!?? I'm dying to hear your advice!

K, see yall later! I may be absent a lot this week and part of next due to my daughters impending ONEness, but I'll still be stalking all your sites. :D

Love to all,