~Flip Vest Pattern~ Review and Giveaway-CLOSED

A few weeks back Dana from Made asked me to test out her newest pattern.  I was so excited to just be asked and then even more excited when I found out it was for a vest.  Not only a vest, but a reversible vest!  I am a lover of vests and I've got 2 kids that love being cozy, how perfect.

Dana gives great tips and fabric suggestions in the pattern and in typcial fashion I decided to push the envelope. I upcycled a sweater for one side and used microfleece for the other.  The vest and pattern are great, but I wasn't thrilled with my initial fabric choices. 

 For my second attempt I used flannel and blizzard fleece.  Much better choices in my opinion. 

 The blizzard fleece and flannel are a little less floppy and gave the vest little more structure.

I cut a 3T/4T for the skinny 4 year old boy, and the sizing is just right.  He's on the taller side too, so I think next time I might make it longer.

 I cut a 4T/5T for the 6 year old, who is also a tall and skinny.  I added a few inches to the length and made the armholes bigger before adding the binding.

 She's all about the pink and was in love with this flannel.  I convinced her the green buttons would be a nice touch rather than pink.  And the fit is great too.

So overall, the pattern is great!  There's one pattern piece, awesome, and the instructions are really easy and clear.  I sewed both of my second attempt vests in under 2 hours!  Including cutting time!  It doesn't get much better than that.

Checkout some other great Flip Vests here and here.  You can read more about the pattern (and purchase a copy) HERE.

So, are you ready to win a copy of your own?  

Leave a comment with your email address to enter to win a printable copy of The Flip Vest pattern (pattern will be emailed).

Giveaway ends FRIDAY, MARCH 1, at midnight Eastern Time.

3 winners will be chosen at random!!

1 entry per person please. 

And, a huge thank you to Dana for including me in this recent pattern launch.  So fun!

DIY St. Patrick's Day Garland

I'm not typically big on decorating for holidays.  It feels like by the time I get something out, it's time to put it away and get out another set of decorations.  We missed the boat on Valentine's Day.  But, since we're home for February break, I thought it might be time we made a St. Patrick's Day garland.

 I grabbed my big bag of felt scraps and pulled out all the green shades and some white.  I punched out a cardboard circle and my daughter and I got to work tracing and cutting.  We cut 47 circles, then laid them out in a random pattern.

 I stacked them up in order, which was really helpful when it came time to sew.  I didn't have to worry about the pattern.  Just grab the circle on top and sew.

 I left just a tiny bit of space in between each circle.  I've seen these kinds of garlands done many times, but never actually done it myself. So easy.

So pretty.

Reminds me of Spring.

Guess I can keep it up for a while beyond St. Patty's Day.  Definitely my kind of decorating.

WOW....I'm in a Magazine!

I have some exciting news to share.  A few months back the editors at Sew-It Today contacted me and asked if they could feature my fold-up tote tutorial in their Spring Issue.  I can't even tell you how excited I was to get this opportunity, and now to see it in print...

 Sew-It Today is a new sewing magazine featuring lots of approachable and fun projects.  Check out this cute coloring book holder.  Will definitely be making one of these for each of my kids.

Eliza the Chicky might be making an appearance in our Easter baskets this year.  Too cute!

They also published my washcloth tutorial, which I got to photograph myself!  That's my tub and rubber ducky.  Well, not my personal rubber ducky...

And, wow, I get to be featured next to Jessica of Running With Scissors! 

Thanks for letting me share my few minutes of fame with you.  I really enjoy sharing sewing projects and connecting with other sewists out there through this blog.  It's really rewarding and helps me keep some balance in my life.  And every once in while, I get to feel famous.  Then it's back to rushing off to work or the bus stop.  

Oh, and remember that giveaway I mentioned?  Sometime next week I'll be giving away 3, oh yes 3, copies of Dana's new Flip Vest pattern.  

Have a great weekend!

Happy Valentine's Day

Boy, the time does fly these days!  I can't believe it's already half way through February.  I've got some great posts planned, including a really fabulous giveaway for a new pattern from a well-known blog friend....are you dying with curiosity?  Stay tuned...

 In the meantime, I thought I'd share our Valentine's day so far.

 This little girl wanted to make something special for her brother and sewed a cute heart shaped pillow all by herself!  The focus she has is amazing.

I got some beautiful handmade cards from the little ones.

And the kids headed off to school to celebrate in their new Valentine's Day shirts.  I've never made one of these tie applique shirts, but I see more in our future.  So adorable!

Hope you have a wonderful Valentine's Day!

Refashioning

I've been trying to be better lately about not buying clothing that I won't or don't wear.  I love clothes and I'm often swayed by a good deal.  So, in an effort to be more economical, I went through my closet and tried to come up with ways to refashion things I have.  

I have a wonderful and expensive down coat that I bought years ago when I worked at an outdoor clothing store.  It's really great quality, but there are things about it I no longer love.  

 I found some cheap faux fur and decided to add some fur trim to the hood.  I also wanted to get rid of the snaps that I never use and don't really like.

 I cute a strip 4 inches wide, pinned it to the right side of the hood an sewed it in place with the ends folded up.

I folded the trim to the right side and topstitched.  It looks much better in real life that this picture shows, and now I love my coat again.

 This sweater refashion was really easy and I really love my "new" sweater.  The neck on the original was just too big and the fit overall was reminiscent of maternity clothing aka not very flattering.  All I did for this one was to move some hidden snaps from the turtle-neck to the neck center, fold the turtle-neck down and move the buttons to the other side of the newly created collar. I sewed up the sides a bit to make it a little more fitted.  So much more wearable.

Messenger Bags

It's time for some messenger bag show and tell!  My kids messenger bag tutorial has been so popular and it's so fun to see your creations.  

Here are some great ones from the Zaaberry Flickr pool.

from Bruise Mouse via Flickr

from Rice and Soup via Flickr

Don't want to make one yourself?  Here are some gorgeous bags from Zaaberry licensed sellers.

Nicole from Bobbin's Boutique has done really well with these super cute bags. 

A reversible bag from Little Frienz.

This fall I also released my first PDF e-pattern for the Mirabelle Messenger Bag.  It's been a goal of mine and was super exciting for me.  

You can buy the pattern and make your own, or just buy a bag!  Here are some wonderful bags for sale from Sew Sofia.

One I made for for a friend recently.

 A cute corduroy bag from Jane of All Trades.

Here's my newest creation that's a larger, upgraded version of the Mirabelle bag that makes a great diaper bag.  So excited to make a few more of these.

Are you feeling inspired yet? 

Easy Camera Strap TUTORIAL

We're going on vacation soon, and I thought it was about time I prettied up my camera strap.  I've seen a lot of different tutorials for straps, but really didn't want to make the sleeve type.  I didn't want it to slide around at all, and since I have more than 1 strap, I figured I would just go ahead and sew a cover on.  Here's what I did.

First, I measured my strap.  I wanted to cover up the little buttons on each end, so my strap measured 22 inches long by 1.5 inches wide.  Be sure to measure just the part you want to cover, not the whole strap, unless you really want to cover the whole strap.

Fabric dimensions = (strap length + 1 inch) by (strap width x 4) 

 I cut my fabric to be 23 inches long by 6 inches wide.

I learned in my first attempt that my machine was not happy trying to sew through the leather on the ends, so I decided to fold the ends to the wrong side 1/2 inch and sew in place, so the ends will already be finished.

Fold fabric in half and press.  Open it up and fold the edges to the center, so you've basically folded your fabric in quarters.

 Sandwich the camera strap inside.

 Then fold over and pin the fabric along the edge.  Sew along each long side.  Notice that the short end looks like it's already sewn down

 Pretty new camera strap!  Ready for vacation.

Did you know you can't take a photo of your camera strap unless you have another camera?  Or a mirror I guess.  I don't like taking mirror photos, I always look slightly deranged.  Thank goodness for camera phones.  

Enjoy your new strap!

DIY Message on a Bottle

I work in a research lab at a University.  Every so often when a lab is closing, they offer up what would otherwise get thrown away, to other labs.  So I wandered down looking for things I could use in the lab, and ended up with 2 boxes of these beautiful bottles.  The glass was so beautiful, I just couldn't stand to see them get thrown away.   

My first thought was to etch them.  I've seen some really great etched projects.  So I bought a bottle of the etching cream and gave it a try.

The instructions say "may not work on Pyrex", but I've seen it done on Pyrex.  I think people just increase the time they leave it on.

Well, even after 30 minutes (the instructions say 2 minutes), no luck.  The glass was just as beautiful and clear as before.  

So, new plan, chalkboard spray paint!

I used a punch to cut some contact paper and carefully smoothed it on the glass.  I learned that you really need to smooth it out well as the spray paint will find any tiny crack and run underneath.  The good news is that it scratches off fairly easily, so you can fix any imperfections later.

Spray on the chalkboard paint, let it dry for an hour, do a second coat and let it dry for 24hrs.  

Add some flowers and a message.
 You could do this on any kind of vase to add a little message.  Would make a nice little Valentine's gift.

Another Washi Dress

 We're headed to Florida soon and my thoughts are on warmer weather.  Perfect excuse to whip up another Washi Dress.  I like my first Washi Dress, it definitely needed some fit adjustments.

 This time around, I made some adjustments to the bust.  I moved the darts up a bit, shortened the bust, brought the shoulders in and widened the neck.  I also cut just about 2 inches out of the middle.  I also did a partial lining instead of the facings.  Rae has a series of videos to walk you through it.  I think it's actually easier than the facings.  I had my computer next to my machine and it felt like Rae and I were sewing together.  How fun!
 The result of my haphazard adjustments is a shockingly perfect fit!  This is my first attempt at fitting and makes me think that I might actually invest in a dress form.  I've got my eye on this one. 

I really like adding a tie to the Washi.  This time I made it wider and added some belt loops to the side.  

I'm sooo happy with this dress. I picked this fabric up on clearance for $2/yard and really didn't think it was that great. I figured for the price it would make a good muslin. 

I think my next venture is going to be figuring out how to add an invisible zipper to the back.