Something has been holding me back!

But I am on my way to the studio 

to put a stop to all this nonsense.

Please stay tuned!

Less Than a Bonnet... More than a Bow: A How To for You

Well, I know you are all waiting to see what kind of 

Easter Headgear 

will be the fashion must have of the season.

And it going to be THIS:

  Yes. The Felt Daffodil -Low to No Sew - Spring HeadBand Deluxe
For this tutorial you will need:

Supplies:
Felt in daffodil colors
  fabric glue
cheap plastic headband

printed downloadable pattern

Tools:
Scissors and pinking shears
sewing machine (optional.) Start by cutting out the petals and leaf.Also cut out a stem piece that is not from the pattern but rather is long enough and wide enoughto wrap your headband. Now to make the no sew variety... ignore the pattern and cut centers that look like this:

 Glue the straight edges together  and you get this:

Pinch the petal piece together and put a few dabs of the fabric glue

in the center at the folds. My pinched petals look like this:

Add center to the front with another dab of glue:

Now glue and wrap the headband:

Seam up the center of the leaf if you are so inclined:

Glue the leaf across top of the head band:

Glue the two blossoms slightly off on one side of the headband:

Now Go On... Get Your Spring On..

And speaking of getting one's Spring On:Two Great A-Longs That would be great together:Made By Rae's Spring Top Sew Along   And Miss P.'s Top Draft A Long:   Put those Spring Sewing Super Powers to Good Use and learn something new doing it!!

Felt Daffodil: Free Pattern and Tutorial... Because I love You Guys.

 For this tutorial you will need:

Supplies:
Felt in daffodil colors
thread to match
or fabric glue
optional bamboo skewer for stalk

printed downloadable pattern

Tools:
Scissors and pinking shears
Needle
sewing machine (also optional.)

Cut out all the pattern pieces with regular scissors, except for the top of the center piece. Cut that with pinking shears.

Roll the center into a tube and glue or stitch the sides together. I used a contrasting thread to show you how.

Sew a running stitch along the bottom of the center piece.

Be sure and leave long tails on the thread. 

Use the tails like draw strings

to close up the bottom of the center, 

and tie with a hard knot. Trim.

Scrunch up the petal piece a little and stitch to the center piece around the bottom.

There is your finished blossom.


 Just stitch the felt leaf and stem for a soft embellishment  like on the easter basket above or...

Glue or stitch the felt around the bamboo skewer and seam the leaf up the center for a flower that stands up.

Viola!

Fashion Friday: This Is How It's Done!

Thank you, Better Homes and Gardens Sewing Book 1961.

Now we know how to do it, because clearly, This Is How It's Done.

I LOVE each and every one of these little outfits.

And the illustrations?

Absolutely Reek With Charm.

"Making an attractive costume is only one part of being smartly dressed.
Accessories -suitable belt, buttons, trimmings, a becoming hat,
correct handbags and shoes, attractive jewelry-
also contribute to the smart, fashionable ensemble.
.... Choose accessories that suit your personality."

What?
Not sure of your personality and how it relates to your wardrobe??
Click Here.

Here's to The Smartly Dressed.

Please... I just want to be one of them.

xxoo,
Betty
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Me Made March- The Finale

Me Designed Retro skirted blouse

The New Vintage Wardrobe windmill blouse.

Modified New Vintage Wardrobe Shirtwaist Dress

Amy Butler Modified Cabo Halter in Vintage Zodiac Fabric

I had so much fun doing Me Made March that it was hard for me to get to this recap. I'm proud of what I accomplished. Only one pj day, one un photographed day, and one repeat outfit. My friends at the art studios have already asked "What happened to all the great outfits?" as I came down for a couple of days in jeans and t's. So I guess that is really a big boost to my sewing ego.

I will spend some time this summer making some more versatile separates (probably largely from Japanese sewing books), and a few layering pieces and I want to spend some Fashion Fridays introducing some really amazing bloggers that I met doing this great Experiment!

Thanks for bearing with me through all the goofy pics!

a little Spring inspiration...

 

1. Felix again!, 2. Frida Barbie, 3. Crochet Mini Pink Mushroom House Sculpture, 4. Catstache, 5. felt bunny, 6. Two Face Doll in a Jar (#4), 7. "fly home now", 8. Just off Rose Street, 9. IMG_4766, 10. DSCN2817, 11. Untitled, 12. g is for green. Explore F.P. :), 13. 69 of 365, 14. face, 15. WP #027, 16. me as a peacock

I'm looking forward to my April. My Niece's Birthday. My Custom Easter Basket job. The blooming. The spring sewing to refresh my wardrobe.  The Gardening... even the spring cleaning. 

Okay, I'm looking a bit more forward to the clean house than I am the cleaning process itself.

But I think I love you, April.

Ps. The Chick 'N Carts are in my etsy shop. Free Shipping. Happy Spring.

Shir- Fire Success: The Shirred Top Tutorial (No Fooling!)

 

I made myself  a super comfy fairly easy new blouse using elastic thread shirring!

A few of my Me Made March buddies said they'd like a tutorial so...

Here We Go!! 

( A little late. My PDF creating skillz are lacking!!!)

 

For this project you'll need:

Supplies:

• Prewashed and ironed fabric. 1.5-2 yards
• Matching and contrasting thread
• Elastic thread

Tools :

• measuring tape
• scissors
• marking method (tracing wheel and paper or dressmaker's pencil or pen is best)
• straight edge
• sewing machine 
• downloaded PDF

1: 

Use the PDF to measure and cut the pieces for your shirt.

It's a few steps to get the measurements done.

The Math is easy!

2:

Mark your cut pieces on the 'right side' of the fabric.

use a straight edge and a more precise marking tool.

Straight lines to follow make all the difference!

More info on this step is in the PDF.

3: 

Hand wind your bobbin with the elastic thread.

Don't Pull It Tight.

4:

Join and hem pieces according to PDF instructions.

Use  matching thread to make these stitch lines less obvious.

( No pic, sorry, I just forgot to take one!!)

5:

Load elastic bobbin, thread machine with
contrasting thread for a more Faux smocked look

and set stitch length to the longest possible.

Start shirring.

Right side up, stitching carefully on the lines you marked.

Pull the fabric gently as you go, to make the few inches 

in front of the presser foot flat.

6:

Pull the cotton thread through to the back
and knot it to the elastic thread as you go. 

The stretchy nature of the elastic thread
will pull itself loose very quickly

7: 

When you are done your shirring should look like this!~

If it's looser, a little blast of steam from your iron will help it gather.

8:

Join final sleeve to back panel.

(Again no pic. I got too excited!)

(you could try and do this before you shir, 

but I like having the flatter garment to work on

what with all the bunching that is already involved!)

And then sew down the sides.

9:

Hem and Wear it!

I love these silly little blouses because they are perfect for warm weather. 

Comfy and breezy.

All the tiny knots take a little time, 

But I will probably wear this once a week all summer! 

And if you get the shirring principle down?

You can add shirred wasitbands,  or smaller rectangular panels, little plackets...

The imagination reels!

Sew On, My dearies!

Betty