Jocole Crossover Tunic/Dress Pattern Review

This is getting to be a scary habit, I am yet again blogging about an awesome sewing pattern I have just made up.

This pattern is another one designed to be used with knit fabric and it looks so much more difficult than it actually is.

The designer is Jocole Sewing Patterns and she has a great range of patterns for Ladies and Girls.  There are some for woven and some for knit fabric also.

I have a large number of her patterns already but this is the first that I have actually cut and sewn up.

The Crossover Tunic/Dress caught my eye as it looked to be flattering and also has a number of lengths you can choose from.  It comes in a Girls or a Ladies option. There was mention of a Sew-a-long so I thought I would take part and see how I go.

There is also a number of free modification tutorials you can download from her store.... yes I said FREE.
This designer is very generous with her tutorials both on her blog and with free modifications for her patterns from the Store.  Blog

The original pattern comes with a cap style sleeve but I chose to modify the pattern to put sleeves on it as I do try to cover my arms up even in Summer due to my large number of Moles on my skin.  

The pattern also comes with great instructions, lots of pictures and many options/instructions on finishing your edges and neckline, these are also free tutorials on her blog.

Here is my finished tunic, it's quite flattering I think, I can wear it with pants, shorts or skirts and I only used 1 meter of fabric for this whole thing.

I mostly used my overlocker but for some parts I did some test sewing on scrap pieces of fabric before doing things like the neckline, hem and sleeve ends.

I am sure you an see the ripples at the front bust, that's my sewing, not the pattern, I rushed a little but it's still VERY wearable and next time (there will definately be a next time) I will be more careful when make a dress length.

It's very versatile, I also want to try mixing up the fabric on top and bottom and using binding around the neckline.

I suggest anyone that has wanted to try sewing with knits go and take a look at some of Jocoles tutorials and instructions on her blog, it has a huge amount of free information and her patterns are wonderful to follow and sew up.

The store has some great Bundle Pack Pricing options too so you can buy multiple patterns for a fraction of the price. Along with some great Mix and Match options you could be set for anything in one visit.

Again I stress I have not been paid or bribed in any way to write this review, I just throught i would share another adventure in my sewing world......

Seafarer Top Sewing Pattern Review

I am fairly new and still a a little scared of sewing with Knit fabric so when I saw this pattern being talked about a month or so ago I thought it looked easy enough to have a go.

The Seafarer Top Pattern by Sew Much Ado

I printed the pattern out, taped it together then it sat around for the next 6 weeks until I had a clean up on the weekend and found a nice piece of fabric I thought would be perfect to try out.

So I cut it out, decided on my options, yes there are a number of options you can choose from, you can have bands on the arms or not, a band around the bottom/hip area, and one around the neckline if you choose.... OR you can choose to do all of those without bands or a combination as I have done.
I nearly forgot there is a pocket option and instructions on adding a lace or ribbon detail down the front

I wanted to experiment too so I cut it out 1 size smaller than I measured to see if it would fit a little closer like a regular t-shirt.

The instructions are VERY good.  Lots of great explanations and pictures to follow, some good suggestions for working with knits for newbies like me and also for handling them a little better to stop it getting out of shape and stretching while sewing.

I think it took me less than 1 hour to put together, that includes cutting fabric and sewing it to completion and it was soooooo easy to do.  I have to admit, I do have an overlocker so that made it super easy, I just had to make sure I did a test run on some scrap and adjust the feed so it didn't stretch the fabri cout.

I didn't feel hesitant or confused at any point and it just worked.  Here are my photo's, I have put bands on the arms and the neck but done the longer bottom hem.

View of the Arm and Neck band.

Please excuse the thread hanging down on my arm, I totally missed that and it's too cold to strip off and do it again.

Just for the record I have not been paid or bribed in any way to write this review, I just throught i would share......

Also I know some of you may hate my fabric but it was an odd end and I will wear it for Netball training and working out, it's super comfy and I quite like it.

Washi Dress pattern review.

I have not done a review of a sewing pattern before but this dress has got me so excited that I had to do a review.
Just so you know I am in no way affiliated with this designer or getting any profits from this review, it's merely my joy in a great pattern.

Washi Dress - Made by Rae



There is also a long sleeve tutorial which is free:  Free Long Sleeve tutorial for Washi dress.

This pattern comes in both Paper and PDF format and is multi-sized.

I purchased the PDF so that I could get it right away. It was easy to print the pattern pieces and they are very well marked for sticking together and cutting out.
These days I tend to not cut out a particular size, I use a wheely marker thing (yes very technical I know) and some tracing paper to mark my fabric by rolling along the appropriate size lines and marks, then I cut out the fabric.

There are only a few pieces to the pattern.
The back of the dress is 1 complete piece and shirring across the middle back adds a lovely fit to the body without needing to add zipper.
The front, comes as a bodice and skirt that need to be attached after the skirt has small tucks folded.
The bodice has side darts which are very flattering and you can choose to do a keyhole in the front or leave it straight.
The dress has pocket option, with length options of tunic or knee length and again on her blog there are free tutorials for maxi length.
There are so many great options to this dress. The pockets can be sewn in separately if your fabric is not wide enough to cut them in one piece with the skirt.
Short capped sleeves are included in the purchase but as I said above there is a free pattern and tutorial for adding lovely sleeves (this is the option I put together).

I made my dress using 100% quilting weight cotton by Riley Blake, part of the Alphabet Soup range.

I have to say I was worried, it can be very hard to find a tunic style dress that does not make my tummy look pudgy (or even pregnant) and the pockets had me worried that I would look wide around the hips.

However, upon finishing and putting it on I was so very pleasantly surprised and so very happy that I made this dress.

The tucks at the front skirt are small and not over done and do not add weight to my tummy. The pockets sit beautifully and you would not even know they are there.  The shirring across the back brings the dress around the body in a very flattering way and eliminates the need for a zipper so it can pull on and off with ease.
I used the 3/4 sleeve option as I try to stay covered up even in summer and often am self-consious of my upper arms. The sleeves have a slight gather at the shoulder and are flattering.

Overall as you can probably tell, I am in love with this pattern and the many options open to it.
I will be sewing up another one very soon and I am going to mix up the fabric and maybe even add some lace or trim.
I am going to try it in a slightly heavier weight fabric for winter too and wear it over some long sleeves.  For this option I will probably make it one size bigger too for layering purposes.
Here is a pic of me, see what you think.....

Sewing & Reading some more

I have been sewing for my niece Adelaide.  My one and only brother moved home to Australia in August this year.  He had been living in the USA for 5 1/2 years.  While he was there he met a lovely lady and got married and they now have this little cutie on their hands.  

Adelaide is 18 months old, which is really handy as she is almost 1 year exactly behind my Jess so I can send her any lovely clothes that don't fit Jess anymore.

It also means I can quite easily make her cute outfits to wear in a snap.

Not sure why this photo turned itself around when I loaded it up.
It's just a little A-line pinafore with snapped tabs on the shoulders.
Fabric: It's a Hoot

This one is the Same dress but with Buttons on the shoulder tabs.
Fabric: Amy Butler Soul Blossom.
It may be a tad big right now.

An a 3rd dress.
A cute tie neck halter with ruffle around the bottom.
It has elastic around the chest with a slight frill at the top.
Fabric: Amy Butler Soul Blossom.
I think I accidentally made this in Jessie's size so it will go away for next year.

Then there is all the books that I have been reading.
I have been terribly hooked lately and have been going to bed early with the intention of reading for half an hour and going to sleep.
Well 2 hours later I look up at the clock and realise this is not what has happened and the next day I suffer for it.
I just can't seem to help myself when I start reading I can't stop.
To see how busy I've been check out my reading lists on the page tabs up the top.  I am up to 98 books all up for the year, I may even have forgotten to put a couple of the list too.

Books and more books

So what have I been doing?

Not blogging that's for sure.

Trying to keep up with the fabric orders...Bec Clarke Creations

Trying to keep up with the soap orders...Bec's Soap

Sewing...

A flimsy using Amy Butler Love
Pattern from the Book "Modern Basics"

Not quite a flimsy
using a "Spirit" Layer Cake
also from the book "Modern Basics".

Foundation Paper Piecing
I joined a Yahoo Group run by
the most fabulous Carol Doak
We are doing a Mystery at the moment
and it's so much fun.

OK so I am too lazy to go and fix this pic.
the dress Jess is wearing is just an a-line
shift made from an old mens shirt.
It was very easy and she loves
wearing it around the farm.

There is more sewing but I can't find my photo's

And READING!!!!

Go and check out my reading challenge pages
E-Book Challenge
100 Book Challenge

I also just bought these 2 cool books:

My Step-mum had this book when we were kids
She made alot of the cakes out of it for us
when we had our birthday's at Dad's place.
I just hope I can do some of them for my kids.

Everyone is talking about Macarons so I saw this
book and thought I would give them a try.
I have a husband with a sweet tooth so they
should go down alright.

Halloween Quilt

I just realised that i had not blogged this quilt.

I whipped it up from a layer cake early this year so I could have a sample for a market stall i was doing.

I then ended up selling it at our Football/Netball Club promise auction in August.

I was a bit sad to see it go as I was quite pleased with my first effort at stack and slash that I made up all on my own (well I got the idea from a book but did it my way)

Before quilting

Finished quilt with binding.

I got some Layer Cake squares, piled up 5 at a time and then made a 3" strip in the centre of each of them then I took the strip and cut a 3" square out of each one. 

I did this with all 42 squares and that way I could swap every single square around and mix up all the centre squares. 

I made the first strip really random so that they are off centre and out of kilter and I think it turned out alright.

One Layer Cake really makes a decent size quilt.

I straight line quilted beside each seam going up and also across.  Then I also straight line quilted down the lenght of the centre of each column to give a longer illusion.

BLOGGERS QUILT FESTIVAL

I know I have been a very irregular blogger lately but I always try to have an entry for the Bloggers Quilt Festival over at Amy's Creative Side.

I have made a few quilts this year so far but I am going to blog one that I made late last year for a lovely and very talented quilter in a swap.  I was terrified when I found out my swap partner as she is AMAZING at both piecing and quilting but I settled on an idea, a theme, some fabric and went for it.

I used the basic pattern from Ricky Timms Convergance quilts book and it was so much fun.
My Theme was snow as every year Emma and her famliy take trips to the Snowy Mountains and I love to look at the photo's.  I machine embroidered some snowflakes and did a Free Motion swirly all over quilting.
On the back was a butterfly fabric that I used in honour of her son who loves having his face painted with butterflies.

See what I made

I have been busy making some thankyou/Christmas gifts for 2 very special girls.

They helped their mum look after my 2 rascals during our local football season this year and I am ever eternally grateful.

I would trust my children with these 2 girls more than I would trust them with some adults. I know some parents wouldn't be too fussed about a 3 and 1yo but I am. There are too many wierdo's out there and just too many things that can happen if you do not watch them.

So after 15 rounds of football where I umpired 2 games per week and even managed to play about 7 or 8 games in between I will be forever grateful that I had a bit of normality to my season and that my children were well cared for.

This is the quilt for Bridget, she is off to Boarding School next year and I hope she will love it enough to take it with her. It ended up about 50" wide x 68" long. I used 12 fat quarters and just a simple stack, slash and shuffle method.

The fabric is "Santorini" by Lila Tueller and was so lovely to work with, I like that the big pieces let the fabrics do their thing.

I quilted it very simply using "organic straight line quilting" as I have seen it names. Simply started in the middle and went straight down without marking a line and just eyeballed it. I was amazed at how straight I can sew when I try hard!!!

CLICK ON ANY PICTURES TO MAKE THEM BIGGER!!!

The dress is for Emily. It's a pattern from Ottobre Magazine 6/2009, #32 Jolie. It's actually a winter pattern but I jazzed it up by making it in the lovely "Summer Song" fabric range. I made the yoke in a different fabric and you can't see it very well but there is a small ruffle at the top of the yoke in a yellow version of the mail bodice fabric, the ruffle goes all the way around.

I must have mis-read the instructions somewhere along the way as I got to the neckline and just couldn't figure out what they wanted me to do. I ended up making some binding using the same fabric as the yoke and the neckline worked beautifully.


I cut it out in 152cm height but it will be too big for her this summer unfortunately as she is a petite little thing.

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO EVERYONE AND A SAFE NEW YEAR.

Before I go here is a picture of my kids on Tuesday. It has been the craziest weather lately. Today it's 30 deg and hot. The other day it was snowing on the mountains... go figure.

Oh and I nearly forgot about the "Knights" costume that Sam wanted me to make him the other day. I did a google search and got a pillowcase and was going to do a fancy hem and applique on the front but he was happy with head and arm holes, who am I to complain that I don't have to do more work.

Then there is Jess. I cut this outfit out for her last Christmas but didn't get around to putting it together, thank goodness I cut it out so big as it fits her this year.

The pattern is from Ottobre Mag 3/2009. The dress is #5 Alicia & the pants #2 Cassia. I didn't put elastic in the arms as I thought it was going to be our usual hot christmas. I also omitted the elastic in the shorts lets and opted for the red ruffle instead. This was her modelling the other night before bed, she screamed when I had to take it off. She has had a hair trim since then too and is nice and curly again, not fuzzy.

Then last but definately not least is my gorgeous niece whom I still haven't met because she lives in Baltimore. Isn't she cute. The spitting image of my brother and I don't usuallay say things like that. That's the quilt I made them for their wedding, I am so happy that they seem to use it so much, it's in nearly every photo I see.

BLOGGERS QUILT FESTIVAL

Hello and welcome to my not so regular blog posting.

This is my 3rd year of entering a quilt in Amy's Bloggers Quilt festival.

Every year there is some wonderful quilts to be seen, and often lovely stories to go with them.

It also means that every year my blog reading list gets a bit longer.

So... here is my entry for this year.

I only finished this quilt last night, it is a gift for my cousin who is turning 21 next week but his party is tonight and I wanted to have it done.

He is a Carlton Football Club Fan (Australian Rules football) so I made it all in Navy & White.

The pattern is a free one that i got from Anina at Twiddletails she ran a Quilt-a-long a while back and i saved all the information and then made the quilt just now.

The instructions were very easy to follow but I didn't want to just cut out 1 square at a time and do it in a week by week format so I put all the information in a spreadsheet and added them all up and cut it all out at once. Thank goodness for spreadsheet, the maths nearly did my head in even with the help.

I am quite happy with the result. Some of my pinwheels are a bit wonky but the majority of them are just great. I did rush a little as I had a tight deadline.

As for quilting I was quite stuck but then I stuck with simple and did a straight line down the middle of each sashing strip. Then I had an idea that I wasn't sure would work. My lovely Janome MC11000SE has a stippling feature so I simply did one spot of stippling in the centre of each block. I was worried it would look strange and to some it may but I think it's a different way to use a stipple, kind of making a feature out it and it adds a strange depth to the pinwheels.

The label is also done on my machine using the letters from the Monograming function.

All up the quilt finished up at about 48" x 62", it is 100% cotton front, batting and backing. The front is simple homespun and the backing is a Michael Miller called Western Bandana in Denim, that is also used for the Binding.

Thank you to anyone who has visited I am doing my best to go and see some lovely quilts also.

September Catch Up

OMG as they say, I can't believe that it has been 6 weeks since I did a blog post.

I don't know where time has gone either, that's scary.

I have been super busy though. We had to go to Sydney for DH to have another operation on his eye, hopefully this is the last one though. It's very frustrating for him.


I have been doing some sewing and this is my finished projects for the month.


This is a little cushion that I made for my cousin's baby who was born in January.






This is the other side of the cushion. The stitchery reads "I don't mind being sweet and small, one day I'll wake up big and tall". It's so appropriate as my cousin is 6'4" tall and very big and strong. I got the stitchery from this wonderful blog: Mrs Moen
she has lots of lovely free patterns and stuff.

This is a little "Mug Rug" that I have made to send away for a swap. I made a different one first but I can't find the picture.




Now to make matters worse I have signed up for 4 more swaps, something I said I wouldn't do this year after overloading at the start of the year.

I have also been getting plenty of new fabric so have a look here, I should have it all loaded up by tomorrow.

3 July Finishes

Here are just a couple of things that I managed to get finished this month.

I have plenty more in the works but time is not my friend right now unfortunately.


This one is a winner all round.
"Pleated Pouch" from a wonderful tutorial here
It's so cute and ends up about 7" x 5".

This is my "Pleats" piece for the Monthly Challenge over here and it also is a "finish"





This is a bit wonky as I did it in a hurry, it's a camera case that I made for my new Camera. It is really a phone pouch and it's a bit roomy but I needed something quickly and had this cut out.

Next time I will try add a layer of stiff interfacing and some more layers of batting to keep my camera safe.





This next item is a small quilt about 50" square. I made it using 1 Honeybun. It was originally a pattern for a Jellly Roll but I just did it using the smaller strips instead.
I made this quilt for our Football Clubs annual Promise Auction. I was so pleased that this quilt made $90. My best yet.


This is the front and the back of the quilt, I am really pleased with how it turned out









This is a close up of the quilting from the back.
I did a free-motion continuous spiral that goes all over the quilt except for the borders.
Some are big and some are small. Some are not so even but I am getting much better at the free-motion quilting.

June finishes

I only just got my new camera in time. Will post more about that later.
Here is what I got finished this month.


I needed a new bag for my portable projects so I made a drawstring bag with 2 sections, it is pretty big it holds my medium stitchery thread box and lots of scrap fabric.








The pink thing is a swap item that I forgot to take a finished photo of before it went to the USA. It was sent about 3 weeks ago and is about 10" x 12".

Then there is 2 pairs of PJ pants for Sam








This is a lovely little bag that I made for myself with some lovely music FQ's that I got a couple of years ago, it's pretty big, about 18" wide and 12" high with 3 pockets inside and a padded shoulder strap.



And don't forget the Football Quilt

FINISHES FOR MAY

I have been very slack and forgot to post my finishes for the last few months.
But here is what I got done in May!!!
Just 2 small projects, I think there was a 3rd but I forgot to take a photo.

A place mat for the flickr placemat swap.









A little bag with some hadn stitching and some prarie points that I gave away on the recent giveaway day.









HUUUUUGE APOLOGIES to the monthly finish organisers for forgetting to write to them over the past few months about my non-attending, but I am back on track now and will not be that slack again.

BLOGGERS QUILT FESTIVAL

It is the 3rd Bloggers quilt festival
and I have chosen a quilt very dear to my heart to share with you.

This is a quilt that I made for my Dear little boy Sam.

This is Sam when he had just turned 2.






I specifically purchased a "Silly Safari" Jelly Roll to make him a quilt for when he went into a single bed.
I used a pattern from a Jelly Roll book and I was worried that it was too bright and wouldn't promote a restful sleep so I surrounded it with the medium blue sashing and the dark blue borders and backing.
Now some of you may be thinking that the borders are so big and it looks a little odd but it fits so perfectly on his bed. The coloured bit sits perfectly on the top of the bed and the dark blue provides a perfect amount of overhand so that it covers him totally even when he rolls around (which he tends to do alot).

I was quite heavily pregnant when I was making this quilt as Sam was 2 in April 09 and Jess was born March 09 and I wanted to get it done before I went to hospital.
The quilting is very simple. I quilted in the ditch around the log cabins and then some wavy FMQ on the large borders. It's not the best FMQ and I have learnt alot since then but he loved it and he moved into his "Big Bed" in February 2009 without a whimper.

This quilt also won 1st place in it's category at our local show, don't get too excited it's a very small show but it wasn't the only quilt in it's category so I was happy, I got the news in hospital after having Jess so it was a celebration all around.

So that's my quilt, thank you to anyone who stops by and I hope you enjoy the rest of the festival.

Anyone who is waiting to hear about my SMS Giveaway's please stay tuned, I am waiting for the kids to wake up so I can get all the goodies together and take a photo.

January Finishes

Only 2 this month but more to come next month.
This was for the Quilting Gallery Fall Quilt Swap, it went to france. It measures 16" square and is hand embroidered in a simple backstitch on Linen then 2 borders. The outer border is some really nice fabric with faint leaves on it, I have done some Free Motion leaves on top of this one and it looks really good.

This one was a Swap Till You Drop swap for January, the them..."Rainbow" of course. it's a small stitcher about 10" x 9" and is done in back stitch and daisy stitch on muslin and then I have quilted around the green border with one of the fancy stitches on my machine.