Fabric Mart Fabricistas

Hey, all!  I love summer, and I love sundresses.  Many of you have "known" me for a few years, and this will come as no surprise to you.  LOL.  When asked what I wanted to do for July, I knew EXACTLY what I desired to make, this Burda dress (August 2014, style 116) with this gloriously soft Amy Butler yellow/green/blue peacock feather printed cotton voile .  I envisioned walking in a field of wildflowers with a slight wind blowing my wide skirt.  Now, in reality, I'll likely just wear it out to dinner or to a party here in town, but if I ever do get a chance to walk in a field of wildflowers with the wind gently blowing, I absolutely will wear this dress. The dress pattern features a lovely open back, but because of the elastic (it also features a tie, but I omitted that for a cleaner finish), it is still fairly conservative, as the elastic cinches it up to a demure sized hole.  I may increase the length of elastic by an inch for my next make of ...

I hope that you are having a great summer!  Here in the northern hemisphere, our summers can get really hot and humid, so everyday clothing that is lightweight and loose fitting is ideal.  I really needed some new tops and shorts that I could wear while doing housework, running errands, and just day to day stuff.  After picking out fabrics from Fabric Mart's awesome cotton selection, the first thing I did was to search for the perfect shorts pattern.  For me, pockets are a dealbreaker-  they have to be big enough to hold my cellphone without worrying that it will fall out! I decided to go with Butterick 5504 , a Connie Crawford pattern.  It's no longer available from Butterick, but you can get it directly from Connie's website.  Here's the line drawing: I made mine about 4" shorter.  This pair was made with a cotton/tencel denim which was heavenly soft after washing.  The pattern only calls for drawstrings, but I found that I need...

The past few months have not been filled with very much notable garment sewing, but before becoming pregnant I was sewing like crazy! Just after becoming pregnant I took photos of a lot of the things I made in the winter so that I could share them with you before I couldn't fit into them for awhile! I love Pamela's Patterns and the simple patterns she creates. They may be simple but they have so many possibilities. I am fortunate to live close to Steve's Sewing and Vacuum in King of Prussia, PA, where she teaches periodically. Many of her classes focus on using her patterns but modifying them with design details.  I made three different garments using Pamela's patterns and thought it would be fun to share them with you! 1) Pamela's Patterns Magic Pencil Skirt I shared this skirt on Instagram with you all during the Skirt Challenge back in May. The Magic Pencil Skirt pattern is super easy and looks great! It has an elastic waistband so you have to use a str...

For July's blog post, I knew I needed some more work clothes for the summer months and that is exactly what I wanted to make!  I am going to be starting a more professional job at the end of the summer and need some additional clothes that are appropriate for my new position that I can wear now and in the future.  I love maxi dresses, and have several for one of my daughters, but noticed I didn't have any maxi skirts.  What? I've made view A for her and now one for me!  I hoped to make a coordinating top and a little jacket, just in case it gets chilly in an air-conditioned office. The skirt pattern is a New Look TNT pattern for me.   It is super simple with two side seams and a waistband. It literally takes me an hour to make!  I don't like to string elastic through a casing so I ended up sewing the two elastic ends together, stuffing them into the waistband, and then stitching the waistband to the skirt. Super simple and no opening to fiddle...

[This dress was made for and modeled my daughter Mori] When Fabric Mart put this Floral Print Shantung - Maggy London fabric on the website I grabbed it up quick! [And it's all gone, sorry peeps] I do have some alternatives and remember that Fabric Mart is always adding new fabrics to their collections on a daily basis. The Challis prints they have are great options for this pattern. Can we talk about this pattern? I'm not really a Vogue Pattern type of gal but this   Vogue 9253 was "WOW" I have seen several versions of this dress and those who are not open to the barely there front cover-up can modify the front for more coverage. Both lengths are fabulous and the maxi length just hit the right place for Mori to wear flat sandals. Mori is 5.7" and if she had to wear heels with this dress that would be a deal breaker because she likes her maxi to hit the ground with heels on. So remember to make sure the maxi is the correct length for yo...