A couple of knock-offs. . .

I really like long weekends!  Even though this one was very busy with the holiday and out-of-town family in visiting, I still managed to get a couple of projects done. 

A friend asked if I would make an apron for her little girl for a Christmas present.  She sent me a picture of an apron she liked and asked if I could make something similar.   Here is my version.  I think it turned out super cute!

And, I came across this skirt on Pinterest and thought it would be perfect for Allie for pictures.  I love everything about it. . .the color. . .the ruched waistband. . .the bow. . .the fact that it is made out of simple cotton fabric.  I bought 3 yards of gray quilting cotton and pulled out my Sew What Skirts book to draft the top part of the pattern.  Here it is, modelled by Allie's duct tape dress form from a few years ago, which is a few sizes too small.

I've never used a narrow hem foot since I don't have one, but as I hemmed the skirt and the bow, I found myself wishing for one.

I'm going to do the girls' pictures in gray, teal, and black outfits.  I can't wait!

The finished slipcover!

I finished this last night and love it.  My couch looks so much better!

And a pillow with the leftovers!

How hard can it be, right?

When it comes to all things crafty or diy, my general philosophy is "How hard can it be?"  If I can't find instructions or a tutorial for how to do it, I tend to think that I can figure it out.  So, I jumped into this project with both feet. . .as usual.

I've been seeing slipcovers made out of painter's canvas drop cloths all over the internet, and I was intrigued by the idea.  Our couch and one of the chairs in our living room was handed down to us by one of Bubba's aunts before we got married.  That was almost 10 years ago, and she had had them for awhile before then, so they have seen better days!  Structurally, they are actually in very good shape (no sagging or anything), but their upholstery has taken a beating over the years. 

So, I decided to go for it.  I bought 2 9'X15' drop cloths and ran them through the washer and dryer before getting started.  I haven't finished yet because I ran out of piping cording, so I will have to do the cushions when I get more.  But here are some pictures of the work in progress (without the cushions)!

My sister came over last night to help.  We pinned the drop cloth directly to the couch, smoothing it out as we went and adding an approximate (because I didn't measure) 5/8" SA to all edges that would be sewn to another piece. 



I took advantage of the existing hems and added piping.  It isn't perfect, but it is good for our first attempt!

With a pleat in the center front of the skirt.  (The looser fitting part that you see here is completely covered by the seat cushions.)

I will post finished pictures once I get the cushions done! 

Do you Pin?

Nah, I'm not wondering if you use pins when you sew (I rarely do, by the way); I'm asking about my newest online obsession. . .Pinterest!  Oh my goodness.  I'm the person who used to tear pictures out of magazines of things that I liked, and those scraps of paper would end up in piles until I got tired of the piles and dumped them in the trash with the projects never seeing the light of day again. 

But how do you keep up with all of the great things you see online?  You can add them to your favorites, but since that isn't visual, it is hard to get back to the project if it ever crosses your mind again. 

So, what is Pinterest?  A virtual pinboard. . .how great is that?!  Since it is visual, it is easy to remember all of the projects you want to do.  Unfortunately, it is quite addictive as well.

I haven't done much sewing lately, but I do have some jersey sheets in the dryer getting ready for my latest Pinterest-inspired project.  It may take forever, but I promise I will show it to you when I'm finished.

Strawberry Shortcake

Jenna is going to be Strawberry Shortcake for Halloween. . .the new and updated version, not the version I grew up with. 

Here she is.  I started with a t-shirt pattern and added the contrast skirt.  I digitized the embroidery for the bodice.    (Sorry, the pictures are just a bit out of focus.  I have no idea why--obviously operator-error.)

The hat was a bit of a conundrum.  I couldn't figure out how to do the brim of the hat without it flopping or covering her eyes.  After making the top part of the hat, which is basically a circle gathered to a ribbing band, I realized that she could wear a visor under the hat, and only the brim would show.  The visor started out white, so I painted it green.

I'm not completely done with the hat.  It is a bit floppy.  I'm going to add some stuffing and the green leaf that goes on top, but I think it is pretty darn cute already!

Let's talk zipper flies. . .in pictures!

Zipper flies are scary, right?  Well, not so much if you ignore the instructions that come with most patterns and use Sandra Betzina's method.   You can watch a video here and another one slightly modified to include the fly shield there.  In all of my googling though, I have yet to find a good still picture tutorial showing how to do this method.  My method is a combination of the two, and I took pictures as I went, so I could share with you.

Here we go.  You have your leg inseams sewn and top-stitched on both legs, and your crotch seam allowances finished (serged or zig-zagged).  Sew the crotch seam from back to front with a normal stitch length, stopping at the bottom of the fly panel (where the bottom of the zipper goes).  Backstitch there.  Lengthen your stitch length to a basting stitch and finish sewing along the lines marked on the pattern to the waist edge.  Like so.  If you can't see it, the red pin marks where I lengthened my stitch. 

Now, press open along the stitching line.  (I've said it before, and I'll say it again. . .it is impossible to press too often, so when in doubt, press!)

Then, attach your zipper to your prepared fly shield with a row of stitches.  The stitching line doesn't need to be close to the zipper teeth.  (On a side note, I suggest you always use a zipper longer than what you need.)

Next, place the zipper (with fly shield attached) face down on your pants front with the edge of zipper tape lined up along the basted seam line.  Pin it in place, pinning only through the fly shield and not through the front of the pants.

Flip the front of the pants out of the way and stitch it in place, stitching closer to the zipper teeth this time.



It will look like this. 

Now to attach the other side of the zipper tape to the other fly extension.  Flip your zipper, fly shield and fly extension combo to the other side, letting it fall where it wants to.  Pin the other side of your zipper tape only to the fly extension.  Your zipper will be face up. 

Stitch it in place close to the zipper teeth.

Now, you are basically done!  Flip everything where it is supposed to be. . .it will be obvious. . .and top-stitch.  You may want to do bar tacks as well.



Using your seam ripper, remove the basting stitches that hold the fly shut.

You're done!  But this part is key.  When you sew your waistband on, make sure your zipper is down, and only after sewing the waistband on, cut off the top tails of your zipper. 

Voila!

Honest-to-Goodness Pants. . .Part 1

My favorite part of pants making, other than the ta-da moment when you finish and get to be so proud of yourself, is the details.  On jeans, one of those details is the back pocket design. 

Recently, someone approached me with a brilliant idea that was quite the eye-opener for me!  Bobolots, her sewingmama user name, wanted someone to digitize a pocket design for her, and since I want practice digitizing, I volunteered to try it out for her.  Her idea was AMAZING!

As it turns out, she had drawn a pocket design, including cutting and seam allowance lines.  I decided to steal her idea for Allie's pants pockets.  Perfect pockets!

Last night I browsed online and found a back pocket design that I thought would be perfect for Allie.  So, I copied it.  (Are you sensing a theme here? . . .LOL!)  You may recognize it.

See the light blue lines?  The outer line is the cutting line, and the inner line is the fold line.  After folding and pressing the seam allowances to the back, this is what the pocket will look like.  Love it!