Fabric Mart Fabricistas

I hope your summer is warm and sunny!  In my neck of the woods, it seems to be struggling to stay in tune with the date on the calendar....warm then cool, blazing hot one day and then a cold front from Canada sets in and bam, it feels like fall! This little jacket from Kwik Sew  to the rescue! I choose a rayon suiting fabric that I just love! It was heavenly to work with. I love how the checks/plaid is woven into the fabric, not just stamped on. Fabric Mart has some lovely suiting fabrics out there and I haven't been disappointed in any of them! A photo bomber!   Now, off to find a pattern for summer as a layering piece that coordinated with many pieces in my closet and Kwik Sew 3334 was the winning choice. I just love the bracelet-length sleeves and the notched collar. I thought it would be perfect. This little jacket took less than two yards of fabric so it was very economical to sew. I was very concerned about trying to match the pattern but since it...

Have you ever heard of a convertible skirt? It's a skirt that doubles as a strapless dress. The waistband is like a yoga pants waistband that folds over as a skirt, and then you unfold it and pull it up higher if you want to wear it as a strapless dress! I've been wanting to try one for a while, and when I saw this gorgeous rayon knit at Fabric Mart last month, I decided it would be perfect for this project.  Here is it is as the dress on my dress form: And here it is as a skirt on me! The pattern is New Look 6379 . It is a super easy pattern with just two pieces for the skirt- the waistband and the skirt itself. You can make the skirt straight or with the handkerchief hem, and I decided to try the handkerchief hem to have fun with the stripe of the knit. The rayon knit is very stretchy, so I did need to cut a couple sizes smaller than normal.   There is elastic in the waist, near the bottom where the skirt attaches to the waistband. This helps to se...

It was my 25th anniversary last week and every year I buy my husband at least one card for our anniversary and this year was no different. I looked at typical anniversary cards, "I'm Sorry" cards (for all of those times I said something I shouldn't have, uh-hem), "I Love You" cards and "You're My Best Friend" cards. I settled on an "I Love You" anniversary card but I knew I wanted to give him something more....it is our silver anniversary after all. I decided to make him a shirt. I realize it's a bit "Little House on the Prairie" for Ma to make Pa a shirt but he loved the last shirt I made him so much I knew it was the perfect gift. I found a beautiful quality Japanese shirting from Fabric Mart that he would like. It's a  100% cotton blue/gray fabric  with tiny red & cream colored stripes and a really soft face. He's an artist so he's usually in a crew neck t-shirt and Levi's (with a litt...

I have been making so many items for myself lately, I really felt pulled to finally make something for my husband for Father's Day.  I have only ever made him one item, a Star Wars bag that he brings with him to baseball games so he can have something to hold waters and any giveaways they might have.  I have wanted to make him a Hawaiian/camp shirt for years, but I always find something else to occupy me instead.  So when I was presented with my June post AND Fabric Mart had both this adorable Japanese quilting cotton in a black volcano print and Colette's Negroni pattern for sale, I told them I had my June project!  I knew my husband would love his shirt since he currently has ten of these kind of shirts in his closet and is the closest he gets to dressing up.  ( Well barring the two or three times a year he wears a suit. ) Colette Negroni. Size M ( at shoulders and upper chest ) graded to a L ( at the waist and hips ).  I chose this size based on a...

Days before I depart on vacation, I had several yards of this beautiful fabric from Fabric Mart ( HERE ) and no ideas of what to make. The fabric literally spoke to me! I searched and searched through my pattern stash and came across Vogue 1394 . I opted to use this pattern as a challenge to my patience. I've had this pattern for quite some time, but as you may know if you follow me, I don't wear dresses that often. I tend to choose those easy and time friendly projects that I can whip up in one day and move on to the next. I made the following adjustments to the pattern: 1) I shortened the shirt by 2 inches. 2) I lined the bodice of the dress only. 3) I extended the buttons in the back to the bottom of the dress, The pleats on this dress alone took me an hour.  In all, there are a total of 21 pleats! The remainder of the dress was constructed as per the pattern instructions. I must say, I admired the 6 pieces that constructed the skirt, I might ...

Have you ever sewn for the men in your life? Do you have many of them? I have a husband, father, two sons, two son-in-laws and an adorable grandson. That is a lot of men! I decided to create a shirt for them all, except for my father who is probably one of the pickiest people on the planet when it comes to clothing....but that is another story! I chose the Strathcona Henley from Thread Theory Designs as my pattern base. I I like the slim fit of the top--do you call it a top for a man? Maybe I'll refer to these as a tee shirt with variations. The pattern is described as a modern fitting, or slim fitting tee with neckline variations, sleeve length options, and the opportunity to create a Henley placket if you desire! I briefly asked several of the guys what color shirt they would like/possibly wear if I made them one and they came up with gray or blue. Funny in a weird sort of way! So, I made things easy on myself and ordered 4 yards of gray and 4 yards of navy blue. ...