Kiki’s Birthday Dress

So I am not a clothes sewer…I find most clothing directions tedious and I am especially not a big fan of sewing curves. It also has something to do with the fact that I don’t really follow patterns (or directions for that matter) so I have a hard time winging it, like I do for other more crafty projects.

The Simple Skirt that I made my little sister Kiki the other day was really the only true piece of clothing I have done but it was super easy and I totally don’t mind making one of those again. I have had some projects in mind for a few days now and I was eager to start one up but last night Kiki was looking through my fabric and then looking at me with puppy dog eyes asking me to sew her a dress…an actual dress. So I gave in…I figured that I would not get any peace until I did plus today is her birthday so I knew I was going to feel bad if I told her no.

So I looked on the internet and decided on something similar to the Jumper Dress with Spagetti Straps at To Sew With Love. I took Kiki’s measurements, constructed the pattern in my head, and then just whipped it up in about an hour and a half. And I made plenty of goofs…such as not adding seam allowances on the bodice part…duh! Luckily I was able to fudge it and hid my mistake a bit. But all in all, I think my first dress came out pretty well.

Kiki modeling her dress last night.

Family outing for Kiki’s 9th birthday.

Other than the mess up with the seam allowance, I don’t think I will make many changes to it for next time. This project was actually enjoyable because it didn’t take me too long and it was pretty simple. In the sewing world, simple is good!

Now she wants me to make another dress, but this time it is more complex…one with a halter top and a skirt that starts at her waist. I have toiled on it for about 3 hours now but I don’t think I am going to get an acceptable final product out of it. The top is a little tight, I am still figuring out how I want to attach the straps, and I sewed the skirt on inside out…UGH. The problem probably stems from the fact I have just been winging it by looking off her current halter top shirt and not acutally using a pattern as most (and smarter) people do. I’m giving up tonight and we’ll see what happens tomorrow…we may just stop by the mall instead and pick up something cute! :)

Until then, happy sewing!

Sewing machine school

So I have had my Brother Innovis 1200 (sewing/embroidery combo) for over 3 years now. I sew on it daily, but I never successfully figured out how to use the embroidery part, which is a complete shame because I know several people who would kill to have embroidery. I mean I have tried several times but I must have been doing a bunch of stuff wrong because every project looked like crap. And I am not talking about the crazy perfectionist version of “crap” that looks great to everyone else on the planet but you; these were truly sad. So I FINALLY enrolled in the sewing machine class you get to go to when you first buy your machine…luckily they don’t have time limits on those!

The first class of two was last night and I was super excited but also exhausted from work because the class was 5-9pm. At one point I was zoned out watching my image being stitched and the instructor commented, “Jamie, either you are concentrating really hard or you are really tired.” At about 8:30 I was about to crash. But, I made it through and I have to say the class was great and I learned some new random things in addition to working the embroidery part of my Brother. Though it was nice to already know how to work my machine and not be stressed at how to thread it or change needles or feet.

So here is my project…it was supposed to say Jamie Loves Sewing but I didn’t have time to finish it all, so it just says Loves…which is a little weird. I wish I could say I will just finish it later but I probably won’t…knowing me.

It sounds kind of lame to non-sewers but I am super excited to go to my class next week. Hopefully I will pick up some more tips.
Until then, happy sewing!

Kiki learns to sew

My (almost) 9 year old little sister, Kiki, is in town for her spring break this week. Yesterday as I was sewing her a Simple Skirt from Dana at MADE, Kiki said she wanted to try to sew something herself. We were looking through a sewing magazine and she kept suggesting these semi-complex projects, but I thought it was best to start off with a simple pillowcase.

So I helped her cut the fabric (she chose pink and purple skulls that I had randomly gotten on clearance), but I let her do all the sewing.

Halfway in the middle she said she didn’t want to sew anymore because she didn’t want to mess it up more than she had already. I assured her that she did a great job and could’t mess it up because we can always stiches! So she finally finished the pillowcase and felt so proud.

Then my little brother William wanted one too, so I let him pick out some fabric (he chose the space pattern) and I whipped him up a quick pillowcase. It is amazing how easy those are, considering how expensive pillowcases  are (especially King pillowcases) when you go to buy one.

William and his new pillow!

By the way, here is the skirt I made Kiki…

A super windy day!

This was our “trial version” so we will be making another one…next time we will be using a batik. She is kind of skinny (22.5″ waist) so I used a spandex band 23″ long and the whole width of fabric for the fluff factor. We also did a 18.5″ length because she wanted it to her knees. She also wants a dress so I guess I will be working on that one too.

Until later, happy sewing! And Happy Easter!

Holly’s Baby Shower Gift

I hate that it has been so long since I posted anything but I have been much more busy than normal so I haven’t gotten to sew much at all in the past month.

Anyway, my friend Holly from work had a baby shower yesterday and I really wanted to make her something cute (and quick of course because I had a million things going on!). I was really inspired by the colors she chose for the baby girl’s room - lavendar and chocolate (she hates pink!). Since I knew they had already chosen Layla for the name, so I whipped this up for her Friday night when I was supposed to be studying for a test. It was super easy and took me about an hour and a half, but I could definitely make another one much faster than that. I would really like to make a Happy Birthday banner eventually for my house since we seem to celebrate a lot of birthdays here.

I am so happy at how awesome it came out, and of course Holly and everyone at the shower loved it! I can’t wait to see it hung up in Layla’s room.

Thankfully, all the crap on my “I have to do this but don’t really want to do it” list is finished (for now), YAY! So now I can get back to sewing. And summer is coming soon and I will definitely have more time!
Until later, happy sewing! :)