The Valentine Dress That Is, and the Blog Post That Almost Was

Happy February, sewing friends!

This is McCall's 7186.

My intent was to blog a review of this one in late January.

My photographer has been traveling out of town extensively, so no pics.

*sigh*

Perhaps a photography session will take place near the end of the month

when we are both in town.

Until then, this is my only picture of this close-fitting knit beauty.

The fabric is Stretch Crushed Velvet English Floral Mauve on Black from Fabric.com

Sorry for the teaser, but there will be a full post toward the end of February.

For those of you who are machine embroiderers,

here is some cute inspiration:

This little ornithological creation is an in-the-hoop design from Pickle Pie Designs.

I used inexpensive felt from Hobby Lobby.

Clear vinyl was used for the cute little peek-a-boo-belly heart window.

I put the jelly beans in their own little clear bags and heat sealed them closed

before they became part of the owls' abdominal contents.

On the back there is a lapped closure in which to insert sweet treats.

It doesn't show up so great in these photos, but I used glitter felt for the eyes.

I appreciate the time you spend reading my blog.

Thank you so much for stopping by.

Have a l❤vely Valentine's Day.

Candy Corn Garland

Here's a papercrafting project that also uses a bit of sewing, or serging, as the case may be.

This garland is hanging from the side window of my cute, backyard potting shed.

The candy corn cut file is a free download from Hey Let's Make Stuff.

I cut the card stock on my Cricut Maker and for each candy corn,
I cut two of each of the yellow and orange components
( one for the front and one for the back)
because I knew the back side would show since it was going to hang in a window.
That way my candy corn is double sided.

I've seen a number of paper, felt, fabric, etc. garlands stitched together with the sewing machine.

That is an effective way to quickly make garland, but if you have a coverstitch serger,

the chain stitch gives you more flexibility in designing your garland.

When using a sewing machine, the candy corn would have to be right next

to each other because sewing machines are not meant to sew without something under the needle.

But a serger allows you to endlessly chain off without anything passing under the needle.

I spaced my candy corn pieces about 12-15 inches apart from one another.

That way I didn't have to spend a lot of time making numerous candy corn pieces,

but I could still make my garland the length I needed to drape in front of my window.

I used Coats and Clark polyester sewing thread in the needle,

and I used Sulky 12 weight thread in the chain looper.

And I set my stitch length to 1.

That combination gave me a nice, sturdy chain for my garland.

I will definitely be putting my Cricut Maker and

my Baby Lock Triumph to use making more

seasonal garland in the upcoming months.

Do you make your own garland?

Do you use papercrafting, quilting, sewing, or something else?

I would love to hear about your garland decorating endeavors.

Please leave a comment, I enjoy hearing from you all.

Going Batty

This girl.  Love her so much.

We have an extra close granddaughter/grandma bond.

That said, our taste in "stuffies" is night and day.

Her plush animal collection includes dragons, chickens, and viruses.

Yes, viruses!!!

Mine would include bears, puppies, and butterflies.

So when she found a pattern on Etsy and asked me to help her sew it

- of course I said yes -

and of course I wasn't surprised that it was a pattern for a stuffed bat.

Okay, I admit, it's pretty cute.

She picked out the fabrics.

The head is stuffed with polyester stuffing.

The body is stuffed with polyester stuffing and Polypellets.

The eyes are plastic safety eyes.

The bat's name is Nebula.

My granddaughter LOVES her little bat.

Treasure the sewing journey with your little ones, my friends.

Happy Sewing!

Free Pencil Case Pattern

Hello, sewing friends!

I found a free pattern for you.

It is called "A Pencil Case for Lola" and it is a free download on the byAnnie Website.

There are no pockets or any extra addition on this little case.

Just a nice simple open case to store any number of items.

It has an accent strip along one side,

a carry strap,

and it opens up wide with that extra-wide handbag zipper

The inside of the case is finished nicely with little binding strips at each end:

You could use this for so much more than just pencils:

Here's a video so you can get a better look at this easy pattern:

Have a terrific sewing weekend.

Train Case

Hi Sewing Friends!

Here's a peek at a Christmas gift

for one of my grandchildren

The pattern is by Sew Sweetness

there are three size train case patterns included

This is the medium size

The instructions are pretty straight forward

If you are an intermediate to advanced sewer,

you shouldn't have any difficulty with this one

I used straight-line quilting

to hold the foam between the fabric layers

on the body and top of the case

The back tab that joins the ends of the double pull zipper

allows the lid to be "hinged"

The double pull zippers are available in my Etsy Shop

The inside features a zipper pocket in the lid

and I chose to embroider my grandson's name as well

The embroidery font is from Willow Embroidery Etsy shop

Looking down inside the case,

you can see all the handy little pockets

that line the interior

They're great for those small objects

that might otherwise get lost

There's also plenty of open space to add larger objects

These train cases aren't just for children

In the right fabric, they would be

beautiful gifts for brides/bridesmaids, best friends, or yourself

What a perfect baby shower gift they would be

filled with baby-themed supplies such as

small-size lotion and powder, diapers, burp cloths, etc.

 If yo would like to chat,

I would welcome your comments

Are you sewing any gifts this year?

Have any excellent sewing week

and thanks so much for stopping by

Electronic Device Cases

Hello, hello, sewing friends!

Wow!  Is that sensory overload, or what?

Those big, bold, beautiful prints and colors are from #Tula Pink's collections:

Eden, Chipper, and Slow and Steady

I love how all her lines of fabric work so well together

This is the pattern I used for these beauties

It is a #byAnniepatterns and it is very well written and easy to follow

It also sews up rather quickly

All in all, a satisfying sew

The pattern includes tablet cases in two sizes

One to fit small readers and tablets

Such as #iPad mini, #Kindle Fire, #NookTablet, etc.

And one to fit the larger tablets

Such as iPad, #Samsung Galaxy Tab, and similar size devices 

My finished outside dimensions (with the flap closed as pictured above) are:

Small - 10" wide x 6.25" tall

Large - 11.75" wide x 8.5" tall

The back of the case has a nice, padded zipper pocket for all your personal items

 Hook and loop tape makes it easy to open and close

 Devices without another cover will fit inside,

 

but if you have an iPad with one of the iPad magnetic covers,

it will fit as well

So there ya' go,

A quick, easy, professional looking gift

for someone on your Christmas or Birthday list

Or just for you!

Have a productive, fun sewing week.

Thanks so much for stopping by,

I enjoy your company