Month: July 2021

Back to School with Project Run and Play and Raspberry Creek Fabrics

Can you believe it’s almost time for our kids to head back to school?! We head back mid-August and I can’t get over how fast this summer flew by. The good thing about heading back to class is that it gives me the perfect excuse to sew up cute new school clothes! I joined in the Project Run and Play Back to School Tour sponsored by our favorite shop Raspberry Creek Fabrics.

If you’ve been around these parts very long you know my kids are all about comfy (what kid isn’t?). These knits from RCF were just perfect for them! Paired with simple knit patterns, these makes were so much fun to sew up. These patterns fit my kids fantastic and sew up in no time.

My little guy got a classic jogger and tee outfit. I used the Lemon Tee paired with the Joseph Joggers, two patterns that we absolutely love and use over and over again!

For his tee, I used the diagonal body colorblock front piece and the solid back piece in a size 9. It was fun to play with prints and solids and this pattern is just perfect for it. I started with the Puzzle Cube print on jersey then used Deep Rust and Charcoal jerseys to coordinate. The neckband is bamboo cotton ribbing that matches the sweatshirting of his joggers perfectly.

He recently found a scrap of this incredible bamboo cotton sweatshirt fleece in my stash and carried it around as a blanket for his newest stuffed animal. He declared it the softest fabric ever so you can imagine how delighted he was to get pants made out of this magical stuff! This jogger pattern is a favorite because of it’s classic fit- not too slim but not too baggy either. This is a size 9 with added length.

When looking through the new back to school prints this girl fell hard for this paint splatter print. Just look at those colors!!

She’s still been loving casual dresses so the Story Dress was a great choice for her. Those sleeves are too cute and sewn up in cozy french terry, this dress is beyond cozy! We sewed up a size 10 with added length.

Payton asked to head back to this cool bridge for this shoot and it was so much fun! Charlie really hates the thought of photo shoots but gets into them once we get his music going. These two continue to get closer and closer and summer has been the best for them. They just have too much fun together (with plenty of arguing thrown in too!).

Make sure you follow along all week for some incredible inspiration from past PRP participants. Art Bella Creates nailed her makes yesterday and got me even more excited to see what’s to come the rest of this week.

Love Notions Tempo Dress in The Carnaby Collection by Liberty Fabrics

I love working with Riley Blake fabrics and the opportunity that I have to pick fabric from their upcoming collections. Sometimes there’s prints that I let my daughters pick out and sometimes there’s some that I just fall in love with myself. The Carnaby Collection from Liberty Fabrics is FULL of prints that I just adore!

The retro style of this collection is just dreamy! Look at all of those florals! This collection reminded me so much of my first childhood home. The colorful wallpaper that matched the bedspreads, the bright shag carpet, and the fun vibrant kitchen. Born in the late 70’s, these prints take me back to being young and carefree!

I used Daydream Sunny Afternoon-B because I just loved the colors. I tend to gravitate to blues and I love the pop of yellow in this print. It is just such a whimsical fabric.

I couldn’t help but feel like my own mom when I was thinking about what to sew up with this fabric. The trends of the 90’s are so hot right now (thanks to my teens for keeping me up on things) and it’s fun to see my own kids wearing similar things to what I wore in high school. Just how my own mom would laugh about how those 90’s trends were just like the clothes she wore when she was a teen too! I knew this print needed to be a killer sundress and had planned on making it for Sophie. But, I really wanted this fun print for ME- it’s just so happy!

The Tempo Dress just released from Love Notions and as I watched testers sew up their versions, I just knew it was perfect for this fabric. It’s a classic style that works easily with a tee underneath for that cute 90’s throwback.

I sewed up a size small with the elasticated back. I took in the bust area from the underarm to the waist but otherwise got a great fit from the start (my full bust measures into the XS).

My bottom tier is slightly shorter and more full than the pattern calls for to accommodate the yardage I had (I used three shorter pieces instead of the two pieces per the pattern). I love the midi length!

The pattern sews up quickly and works for so many different fabrics. As always, Love Notions patterns offer a wide range of sizes, XS-5X, and a full bust option too!

As the hot summer days continue, I’m excited to have a cute sundress added to my wardrobe!

Raspberry Creek Fabrics Favorite Things Blog Tour 2021

As part of my job at Raspberry Creek Fabrics, I get to work with the incredible promo teams. As we end our promo year we’re celebrating with a Favorite Things Blog Tour- our chance to thank our awesome team and your chance to be totally inspired. You’ve got to head over to the RCF blog for some exciting news too!

For my look, I chose a few of my favorite things. I used a couple of my favorite pattern designers, Hey June Handmade and Love Notion Patterns as well as some of my favorite fabric bases, linen and triblend jersey.

Since this is a fabric tour, let’s talk fabric first. This black medium weight rayon linen is the perfect drapey but stable fabric. I love the feel that the rayon gives it and you can never go wrong with linen in summer. I’ve been so anxious to try the new tri-blend jerseys in the shop and just had to get a print from designed by the great Emily Ferguson. This Peace and Love print is just the cutest and I just adore the art on this print.

When it comes to favorite patterns, the Love Notions Classic Tee is WAY up there for me. This fabric was meant for a cool summer tee so it really was a no-brainer! I love the relaxed fit of this pattern and I can never have enough of them.

I think I’ve gotten fabric for the Hey June Greer Jumpsuit at least three times and ended up using it to test other patterns (because deadlines always win!). This tour was just what I needed to finally sew them up and I’m sooooo thrilled to have my own pair at last!

I made a simple alteration and doubled the width of the straps and just cut two of them. I added buttons and buttonholes to the bib front and that’s it. Welcome to another easy hack courtesy of yours truly!

As part of the tour, Raspberry Creek is giving away our favorite notions in their Facebook Group each day. I know I’ve shared about this amazing thread before but I still use it ALL THE TIME. Eloflex Thread by Coats and Clark is now widely available (I pick mine up at Hobby Lobby but Amazon also carries it). I use it primarily in my bobbin when I’m sewing with my double needle on my sewing machine. It gives hems that extra bit of stretch to make them hold up and give just a little more. I also use it with a single stitch in the bobbin of my machine when I top stitch my knit neckbands. And let’s not forget sewing swimsuits. This stuff is perfect for that too! I use it in my bobbin then as well to top stitch elastic down or for binding too.

Not part of the giveaway but I have to share my new favorite tags from Intensely Distracted. Simone was a member of the RCF promo team and I love, love this new adventure of hers.

Make sure you’re following along this week and check out the rest of the team. It has been such a privilege to work with this incredible group of sewists:

Made By Kates, Kainara Stitches, I Sew Best After Midnight

Sew Mary Mac, Tessa Does for Love Notions, Sew Love You

All My Spare Time, Pins and Pinot, Crafty Professor

Sew Hard of Hearing, Replicate then Deviate, Sew Sophie Lynn

Genwin Design Co., Shwin Designs, That’s Sew Kari

Thread Faction Zero Waste Collection

When Liz of Thread Faction reached out to see if I wanted to be part of the release of her newest Zero Waste collection, I was intrigued. The concept behind her Zero Waste patterns is genius and so cool! I don’t know about you but I’ve got so many odd size scraps and these patterns are made to eliminate those.

Liz takes an approach to pattern making to eliminate those odd scraps that inevitably end up in our garbage. By creating garments out of rectangles and patterns that don’t use excess fabric to create similar looks of a traditional pattern, she’s come up with a unique collection that is just as adorable as it is functional.

When I showed Miss Payton the patterns in the newest collection, she immediately wanted the jumpsuit. She loves the hip, cool vibe!

I headed into Raspberry Creek Fabrics to pick fabric and have to admit I was a little stumped. In the wrong fabric, she could end up looking more industrial and way less modern and trendy. I settled on this dreamy milk chocolate brown double gauze that is both soft and easy to work with. This fabric is a new favorite of mine and I’m trying my best to fill all of our closets with it! It’s so squishy and cozy and I can imagine wearing it head to toe in a jumpsuit would be the best thing EVER.

I sewed up a size 10 with a 14 length according to her measurements. I sewed it up per the pattern instructions but when she tried it on she wanted a little definition in the waist. The pattern features elastic in the back waistband and I chose to add it throughout the whole waistband to cinch in the waist. I also added a tiny faux button tab to the front chest pocket for a little added detail. I left off the back pockets but only because she didn’t want them (gotta keep them happy!).

I can’t get over this pattern! The construction really is genius and the finished garment is so cool! According to my darling model, it’s super comfy and super cute too. She’s got a list of places she can’t wait to wear it to: as a pool coverup, to dance competitions as a coverup, and any time we travel, not to mention just every.single.day!

We tried out a new location for this shoot and it was absolutely perfect! The evening light was magical and brought out my little supermodel. I love that these pics show ALL her personalities from sweet big kid to sassy almost teenager. We had so much fun and had to follow it up with milkshakes just to cement it as the best night out!

Make sure you check out all of the other stops on the tour and take advantage of the sitewide 30% off sale during the tour too! Head over to my IG for a giveaway for all of the patterns in this newest Zero Waste collection too!

04/06 – Thread Faction Studio Blog, Wattle & Slate on Instagram,