Fabric Mart Fabricistas

When was the last time you did something for the first time?  Back in February I went to hot yoga for the very first time.  I remember finding it super challenging and I am pretty sure I looked completely crazy trying to execute the poses for the first time.  Somehow I stuck with it and have absolutely fell in love with the practice.   Nowadays I go into my classes confident, I am able to keep up and get into poses more easily and have seen my strength build.  This has been a catalyst for an overall change in my personal life.  I am back to working out regularly, enjoying yoga and I have even joined a run club! To keep up in my fitness journey I found myself needing more activewear clothing.  Of course I found it to be way cooler to try and make myself new pieces. When I saw Fabric Mart started to offer Beyond Yoga knit fabrics I was really excited.  The quality of fabrics is absolutely amazing, probably some of the best knits I’ve used....

I recently discovered a new thing: Pickleball. And I’ve become a little obsessed with it! Naturally, I needed new clothes to wear when playing, and when I saw the collection of Beyond Yoga performance fabric arrive at Fabric Mart, I knew I needed it!  After getting some inspiration from the Beyond Yoga website, I selected three fabrics from Fabric Mart with my $50 budget – two Nylon/Lycra “Sportflex” fabrics (purple and olive), and a polyester/Lycra featherweight Jersey knit (blue).  I’m a big fan of Jalie patterns for all things sportswear, so once again I turned to their collection for each of these creations (disclosure: Jalie gifted me the patterns for this project). I decided to use the same top for each of my outfits, and then use various patterns for the bottoms. I struggled to find a simple dress in their collection, so in the end, decided to use the same top pattern, but self-draft a quarter-circle skirt for it. There are a couple of things I’d do differently next tim...

Hi everyone! I am back with my last summer blog of 2024. One of my favorite things about sewing is the ability to create higher end pieces for a fraction of the cost. I find that we are now in a place where we are creating more of these duplicate pieces. When making these “dupe” pieces that I find on Pinterest, I change some factor in them, so they will not be an exact replica but close to. When I saw this jumpsuit I immediately fell in love with it & I knew I had to recreate it.  Fabric Mart had the most beautiful red linen fabric & I just knew it was the perfect time to create it. I have such a love for linen! It is extremely easy to work with; it sews really well & I love natural fiber clothing. The hardest part about working with linen is the wrinkles. Linen is so easy to wrinkle & I find that even when it is pressed a lot it will still wrinkle of the course of time. I put a little bit of starch on it to keep it from creasing as easy. I had to search high & ...

Activewear is a must for me and I love it when I find bright and fun fabrics to create unique activewear pieces with. For this month's Fabricista feature I snagged a cool activewear fabric in a bright and fun print that I just could not resist. Whether its, yoga, workout or swimming I found this fabric to work well for the pieces I created.  When shopping for activewear I’m usually looking for something that is strong and opaque.While this fabric did not disappoint when it came to creating workout wear, I still felt the need to add some powermesh for a little compression in areas. The back of the print is white and sometimes when stretched can show through the underside or appear to be a bit see-through. I was a little skeptical of that at first but don’t believe that was an issue after actually creating the piece.  For my workout pants I used Knowme pattern ME2051. This pattern was pretty easy to bring together and I love the wide band at the waist. I omitted the pockets for ...

For as long as I can remember, I have worn jeans almost daily, in and out of the office. But recently, the Miami HEAT – the real summer hot burning sweaty heat, not the basketball team – has me considering other options. Now that I have tried light, breezy, and wide linen pants, I cannot go back to skinny jeans. I must add that I love dresses, but I work in a freezing office and need my long trousers and closed shoes. So, I basically dress every day for two opposed climates: the scorching desert outdoors and the North Pole indoors. This pattern, the Emerson Pants by True Bias , checks all the boxes. In the realm of woven pants, there is nothing more comfortable than wide legs and elasticized waistbands. These pants have that, but also feature a flat front waistband and pleats that turn it into a casual yet elegant outfit. The pattern was originally made for shorts or cropped pants, but I opted to add 5 inches to the bottom and make them long. It is more my style, and it reminds me of t...

Maxi Skirts are everywhere this year! The last time maxi skirts were this popular was in the early 2000s so it's not a wonder that after an almost 20-year rest, maxi skirts of all shapes, styles, and fabrics have become popular again. What I appreciate about a maxi skirt is that it isn't just for dressy occasions. When paired with canvas sneakers and a classic t-shirt, a maxi skirt is just as casual as wearing jeans.  My appreciation of maxi-length skirts has grown since becoming the mom of a little boy. With shorter skirts, I can't crawl around on the floor during playtime or pick things up off the floor without worrying about accidentally showing my undergarments. I often end up wearing a pair of shorts underneath my skirts and dresses for peace of mind. But a maxi skirt is a stand-alone garment with no need for anything extra making it perfect for a hot summer day. With these benefits in mind, I knew it was time to add a new maxi skirt outfit to my wardrobe.  The True Bi...