SEWmuchKNITting

My daughter (& her fiance!) was the guest of honor last weekend at a wedding shower hosted by the Groom-to-Be's family in Chicago. Of course I wanted to sew a new dress! Color-blocking has been so popular on the fashion scene for awhile now, and I really wanted to give it a try. I used  Simplicity 2648 :  which I made  last year : This time, I used a Fabric Mart  black ponte , along with a cobalt blue/black plaid print also from Fabric Mart but no longer listed on their website. Since the alterations were already done, I was able to cut, pin fit to be safe, and then go right to the serger. I did make a design change, when I pinned together both the front and the center back pattern pieces at the waist seam to make one pattern piece. That way I didn't have to worry about matching the plaid. This was one of those dream projects, where everything went as planned. So much more fun for me to sew a great fitting dress, rather ...

I took advantage of one of those one-day sales at Mood and purchased a lovely bright green Ikat jersey knit, which I knew would be perfect for McCall"s 6966 : I sewed up View C, which is the black print on the pattern envelope, but without the ruched waistband.  And the waistband? So clever! I've been sewing many years now, but I've never applied an elastic waistband in this way, and I must say I plan to use this technique again! The elastic encased in the wider band keeps it unseen, yet gives the support necessary.   This skirt is so flowey, which I tried to show in the less-than-flattering picture below:                                                                                               ...

I spent a little time with my sewing machine last week, working on the  HotPatterns Fast and Fabulous Blouse-Back T : I watched Trudy's tutorial , and was intrigued by the quick and easy construction. And thought I don't purchase RTW very often, choosing to sew my clothes more and more, I do "snoop shop" once in a while. Tops like the Blouse-back T can be see in many retailers at the moment. After a quick delivery of the pattern via snail mail, I was off to raid my stash for suitable fabric. I found this animal print in a drapey rayon, and a thin black knit for the back piece. The important thing to note here is that the key word is "drapey".   I was a bit concerned that my finished project looked a little like a PJ top, but I think it works okay with the right accessories. I didn't make any alterations to the pattern, outside of narrowing the neckband a bit. And I didn't use the pattern piece for the neckband, instead I just to...

Hard to believe that today is August 21....the summer is flying by. Here at Casa Pozolo it is Wedding Planning Central with 3 of our 4 children engaged to be married:                                            Libby & Terry to be married on 11/15/2014:                                           Kenny & Cassie to be married on 6/6/2015: Kristen & Brett to be married on 8/22/2015:                                                               The 3 Brides-to-be!: I haven't had much sewing or knitting to blog about as some of it is Top Secret, tho I have managed to make a garment or kni...

   

Realizing that the maxi dress continues to be a summer staple, I decided to jump on the bandwagon, using McCall's 6308. I had this very drapery black & cream rayon in my stash, and it was a perfect pairing of pattern + fabric. I now understand the popularity of the maxi dress....seriously, wearing this is like wearing pajamas, it's that comfortable! I made a few adjustments to the pattern: a smaller than usual FBA since the top has a lot of gathering, I raised the neckline by 1 inch, and also added 1 inch to the length. A quick and easy project yielding great results! The back neckline vee is cute, but was a little "fiddley" to get to lay right. Redrafting to a more rounded/scooped back neckline would be easier. Fun dress to wear on the perfect Father's Day Sunday in Michigan!  

I picked up this pattern a couple of years ago at a quilt shop near my home, after seeing the shop sample. The Rupert playmat is made with the quilt-as-you-go technique, using fleece as the top layer, cotton batting in the center, and quilting cotton for the backing.                               I think the detail in the face and paws (felt appliqued with a satin stitch),                                                               makes this so darn cute! (baby Thomas: 10 days old!) Cute little playmats like Rupert, and this one  and this one  are fun gifts for the new baby/parents, and have been well-received by the new families. I see more of them in my sewing future!