I’ve been wanting to do another giveaway for some time and was so tickled with the folks at You Can Make This offered up some prizes to share with y’all. Two winners will each win four YCMT ebooks: Personalized Name Pillows, Peasant Tops/Dresses, and Easy Fit Pants including both patterns sized for (6m – 12) and (Teen/Adult). Between all of those, items can be made for boys, girls, men and women.
All you have to do to win is comment on this post between now and 5 p.m. (Eastern time) on Christmas Eve. I’d love to know what you’ve made to give for Christmas this year or a favorite handmade gift you’ve received, but that’s optional. I’ll randomly select two winners (thanks to Random.org) and forward your information to the sweet folks at YCMT, who’ll send you your prizes.
Merry Christmas, y’all!
ETA: Congrats to the winners, commenters #6 (Stephanie) and #30 (Cristie)! I’ll be forwarding your email addresses to YCMT and they’ll send out your prizes soon.
I can’t even begin to tell you how much I love this dress. it is so pretty and girly and everything I love about sewing for Miss L.
I was at the shop one day when the FreeSpirit rep was showing off upcoming lines and fell in love with the header fabric as soon as I saw it. I can’t remember what it’s called but it’s the new line from Dena Designs. love love love love LOVE
I promised Sarah I’d make her a sample as soon as the yardage came in and picked out the Lily Top from Pink Fig Patterns. I wanted something that had a nice, big area to show off those sweet birds and the Lily worked out perfectly.
The accent fabric is by Jennifer Paganelli (Pretty Please) and was such a nice contrast. There’s a blue/green version of the same print that looks equally as awesome with the birds. I opted for the pink, though, because I really wanted a bit more contrast.
I’ve never sewn a Pink Fig pattern before but I’ve made tons of peasant tops and dresses, so I didn’t actually read the instructions. I did not do a rolled hem on the neckline, sleeves and hem because I wanted to show how easy it is to modify if someone doesn’t have a serger.
The dress is a size 5 and I think the sizing is right on for Miss L. I definitely like the fit and she is completely enamored with the finished product. I really can’t wait until Spring when it’s warm enough to wear it.
At Market in October, I picked up the Torii Tunic from Serendipity Studio. I loved the look of the top and thought it would actually make a nice Mom top to coordinate with the ModKid Kyoko, since both have a bit of an Asian flair. I told Sarah my idea and promised to make some samples for the shop.
We had so much fun picking out the fabrics! I wanted the tops to coordinate but not be matchy-matchy. Both have a pretty yellow geometric print from the Monaco line by Dena Designs. The Kyoko has the yellow on the sweet obi belt with two fabrics from Jennifer Paganelli’s Pretty Please (and some Michael Miller bias trim).The Torii Tunic uses a stripe from Pretty Please along with a beautiful floral from Paula Prass’s Summer Soiree line.
I’ve written about the Kyoko before and still love it just as much as I did before, so I’ll focus instead on the Torii Tunic. This is my first Serendipity Studio pattern to sew (but not buy — I own at least three others) and I’m quite happy with the results. If I’d had more time, I would have sewn a muslin. Instead, I just winged it and sewed the XL. I think the L would have fit just fine but it’s OK since it’s a shop sample and I can make exactly what I want for me another time.
I do recommend opening the pattern and reading it before buying fabric, since the way you lay out the pattern for cutting affects the yardage. I ended up running back up to the shop to pick up more fabric because of it.
I did run into a weird issue with matching up front and back sleeves, with one side being longer than the other. I’m not quite sure what happened, since I did trace off the pattern and used that for cutting out the fabric. I just trimmed off the excess and moved on.
Other than that, I think the top came together pretty easily (even with the zipper) and I look forward to sewing another. Maybe next time, I’ll try the dress!
It’s only appropriate that a blog titled “Confessions of a Craft Addict” have an actual confession every now and again, so here’s one for you:
Sometimes, sewing feels like a chore.
I hate admitting that but it’s true. The last thing I want to do is give the impression on my blog and in my life that everything is all shiny happy glossy because it’s not. Right now there’s a pile of socks on one living room chair, a basket full of laundry to fold, dishes piled up on the kitchen counter and so many domestic landmines on my side of the bed that I fear for my life every time I stumble into the bathroom in the middle of the night.
For me, sewing became my go-to hobby because it could be something different and exciting every time I started a project. The possibilities were endless. There’ve been times lately, though, when my work necessitated doing the same thing over and over again. And it makes my favorite hobby something tedious.
It’s such a unsettling feeling that it actually makes me want to clean my house instead of sewing. Seriously. Two days ago, I was on my hands and knees at 7 a.m., scrubbing the floor of my shower.
Fortunately, I’ve managed to clear off my to-do list enough that I can take a break from sewing the next day or two and recharge. Miss L and I are going to do a little holiday baking and I may even fold that laundry.
Or maybe bribe someone else to fold it so I can clean my studio, which looks like a fabric store exploded.
Intown Quilters, my friend Sarah’s store and where I teach classes, now has a blog! I’ll be occasionally contributing over there (because I just can’t get enough blogging fun), as will Sarah and a couple of other folks.
One of them — my beautiful friend Taffy — is blogging this week about a fun Dolly Dresses blog project she and some other folks did with Lakehouse Fabrics. I’m eagerly waiting for tomorrow so I can read all about it and see what Taffy and everyone else has been up to.
The shop just got in a bunch of new fabrics and to kick off the new blog, Sarah’s doing a giveaway for some fat quarters, so be sure to check it out and see if you can win some goodies.
