Who doesn't love thumbholes??

I'm I'll admit it, when they first started popping up on tops I thought it was silly.  Now that I have a few things myself, I have a new outlook... what better way to keep your hands warm on a steering wheel in the winter?  Cause lets be real, who can always find matching gloves when your running out in the morning?

Somewhere along the way my daughter decided she needed something with thumbholes and we bought a jacket that had them.  Now she's obsessed!

Luckily for me, this is a simple addition to any pattern you might already be using :)

First cut your cuff pieces out.  I would suggest making them a bit longer than what your normal pattern may call for.  This one here will make a 4" cuff after its finished and it was perfect.

Fold your fabric right side together and find the middle, in my picture here its at the 4" mark.  Then I made a small mark 1" from the middle in each direction, then another 1.5" from that.  These are your starting and stopping points when you stitch.

Starting at one end, stitch to first dot (being sure to backstitch when you get there) then start stitching at the 2nd dot and stitch until you get to the 3rd (again, backstitching at the start and stop).  Leave the next space open and starting at the 4th dot, stitch to the end of your fabric.  Should look like this when your finished.

Press the seam open and fold the cuff in half, wrong sides together.   This part I will admit is just a bit tricky since we're working with a small piece but its completely do-able.  You will want to just hold the fabric back out of the way as you are stitching.  We're going to stitch box around the open hole, staying nice and close to the edge.

It should look just like this when you are finished

Now just insert it into your sleeve and attach as you would normally.  Just be sure to match up the seam on the cuff with the seam on the sleeve.  

Voila!! Happy girl!! 

This is a free hoodie pattern from Brindille and Twig (you can get it here- 

http://blog.brindilletwig.com/2014/10/free-hoodie-pattern/).  Such a quick sew, definitely check it out! 

U Can't touch this....

Break it down! Stop, Hammer time!

Those of you 80's babies (yes I'll admit it) know exactly what I mean when I say Hammer pants.  Well that was the first thing my husband said when he saw what the baby was wearing.  I had to correct him, even though a sliver of me agrees.  

"No, these are Harem pants.  It's what all the cool kids are wearing these days." (Insert his eyeroll here...)

All kidding aside these are some pretty awesome pants.  They're loose enough for him to wiggle around (and I've heard to fit nicely over cloth diapers) yet have a great wide ribbed waist to stay up on my little peanut.   

These are the Cuff Waist Harem Pants from Brindille & Twig (www.brindilletwig.com).  Easy to follow directions and a super fast sew!  The pattern does call for knit but since they are a baggy fit I took a chance on corduroy and LOVE the result! 

Oh, and speaking of this dreamy fabric.  It's a fine wale corduroy made by Verhees.  The description I was given was "super baby-butt soft" and man she wasn't kidding! 

Verhees is European brand and I'll admit  I have fallen hard for Euro fabrics in my search for awesome boy prints. I am SO excited to have found Mabel Madison.  A fabric store dedicated to bringing fabulous boy options. 

If you've never taken the euro plunge now is a great time to try!  If you go to www.msbelmadison.com now through October 28th you can get 15% off all in-stock inventory, ALL US shipping is free and even free shipping to Australia with orders over $200!!  (No code needed for the 15% or US shipping, Aussie friends use SHIPFREEAU200)

Happy sewing!!!

Rounding out our Cinderella costume - a quick tutorial

I am so excited to be sharing our halloween costumes as part of the Pattern Revolution Halloween Extravaganza!

If you haven't had a chance to check that out yet be sure to head over so you can see all the amazing creations our team has in store for this year!  You can also learn about how to win some awesome prizes just by sharing the costumes you've made, how sweet is that?!?

I know i'm terrible at keeping up here but I really wanted to give you all a quick tutorial on creating the apron and headscarf that I used to complete Ry's costume.  I used the Peek-A-Boo Perfect Peasant pattern for the dress and the sash measurements I refer to are listed in the directions.

First you will need to cut a rectangle for the apron and hem the edges.  I did this by pressing under 1/4" all the way around, then pressing that up another 1/4" and stitching.  You could also use an overlock first and only press one time and hem.

I used the sash measurements from the pattern but instead of leaving just a small section to turn it right side out, I left a gap in the middle of the sash large enough to fit our rectangle.  I laid out the rectangle and marked with pins prior to sewing.

Turn the sash right side out and press.  Be sure to press the open section under to match the seam allowance.

Next fold the rectangle in half and mark the middle, then fold the sash in half and mark the middle.  Line the middles up and insert the unfinished edge of your rectangle into the open section of the sash.  

Topstitch around all edges of the sash which will secure the apron and transform the sash into ties.

To make the headscarf I just used scraps left from the apron fabric - 

Start with a 12x12 square.  

Fold into a triangle with right sides together and stitch around the 2 open sides leaving a 2" opening.

Turn right side out and top stitch around all 3 sides.  

Cut a piece of elastic (I used fold over elastic) approx 5" long.  (this size may vary for a younger/older child)

Attach elastic to each point as shown below.  I use a zig zag stitch around the outline of the elastic.

I'm back!!

Ok, trying this again.... I didn't realize it had been over a year since I'd shared.   There's been lots of changes since then which is partly why I haven't been back sooner.  I'm going to try and take a new approach in hopes that I can stick with you guys a bit longer this time :)  We'll still talk sewing, but since life around here is a lot more than just that, I'll share some other aspects of us as well.

Our biggest change since last summer??  

There's a kindergartner residing in my house, eek!! Hard to believe my baby is so old!

Another exciting first- Not only did Ry head back to school but so did I... Well sort of.  I organized and taught my own sewing class!!  I met some wonderful ladies, everyone hopefully learned a bit more about their machines and walked away with a brand new skirt.  It was such a great time, I'm really looking forward to getting the next one together soon, a tote bag maybe???

Well in effort to have something to talk about later this week, i'll leave you with another new obsession - euro knits!! Thanks to my good friend Kristi at The Burlap Button, I'm well stocked (for now at least ;) )

Aren't these the most adorable frogs?!?! (Or smurf houses according to Ryleigh, hehe)

This was a new shirt pattern Kristi is working on that I was able to help test, I love it! 

More importantly, Miss Picky loves it :)

Ok, I need to get tomorrow's breakfast out of the oven.... Curious what we're having?? Check back for a yummy pancake and sausage recipe perfect for busy mornings!

How to: The perfect summer dress...

I think this is probably my favorite style to do for summer. It's super fast, easy to fit almost any child and looks adorable!

Your going to start with a favorite style of tank in a coordinating color to the fabric you plan on using for the skirt. You want to use a tank in your child's size (no need to size up or down) and. It the bottom of the tank off where you would want the waist of the skirt to be. I usually a measure from shoulder to belly button but you could go lower too to make a drop waist style or higher for an empire waist.

Next using 1/4" elastic cut a piece that is 1.75 times the width of the tank. Using the elastic here helps keep shape at the bottom of the tank so you won't see any stretching or pulling especially when it's a ribbed style as most tanks are.

Then stitch the cut ends together to make a circle and mark the 4 quarters (think 12, 3, 6, 9 on a clock. Do the same thing with your tank using the side seams as 2 of your marks. This helps ensure that you are evenly stretching the elastic as you go.

Using a stretch stitch (#3 on the my machine pictured) or a zig zag stitch if you don't have the other, attach the elastic to the very edge of the inside of the tank. You will want to stretch the elastic so that the quarter markings on the elastic match up to the pins on the tank. Be careful NOT to stretch the tank at the same time, that will defeat the purpose.

This is how it should look after the elastic is attached. 

Don't worry if it looks a little gathered like this, after the skirt is attached you will never notice.

I didn't take pictures of the next few but here is where you will cute the skirt of the dress, I use 2 rectangles, about 30-36" x the desired length. I prefer a full skirt, but you wouldn't have to use as much if you didn't want to. It's easiest to hem your skirt here before you gather, so go ahead and hem and add any trim if desired.

Now, gather the skirt and pin right sides together (or clip... I love these little guys, Wonder Clips by Clover) and then either serge or use a zig zag stitch if you don't have a serger to attach the gathered skirt to the tank.

It's ok if you catch the edge of the elastic by accident since its really just there as a reinforcement and to stabilize the ribbed tank.  The width of the elastic should just fit within the serged section and look like this...

Lastly, pull out the gathering stitches you used so that the tank and skirt can easily stretch.

That's it!! Now you can just sit back and enjoy (or make another one, be careful, they are addicting!)

Welcome!!!!

Hi, and welcome!! This is going to be a work in progress for a little while so bear with me. I've been wanting to start a blog for quite some time but honestly I always thought to myself "what in the world do I have to say that anyone would want to read??". Well, I actually still haven't figured that piece out yet, but I figure why not, right? This month has been a month of firsts so I thought this would be as good a time as any to get started.

I'm hoping to share my love of sewing (and fabrics... Ohhh I love fabric!!!) some tutorials and lots about the world of Miss Ryleigh, my independent, diva in the making, 4 year old. Most of my inspiration comes from her, and sewing for her is what dug up a passion that I had pushed aside since high school.

Oh boy, high school, makes me feel a little dated, hehe! Good old Mrs G, that was my Fashion and Design teacher starting in 9th grade. I loved her class (and her!), she was the sweetest, most patient instructor for a class like this. I stopped in once or twice not long after graduating but it's been awhile (let's just say a few years ago, cause I don't really want to admit show long ago it was). Really, she was a big part of why I enjoyed learning to sew. I need to see if she is still there, would be neat to see her again or at least share where my sewing is taking me now :)

Which brings us to today... Or at least the month of July. I've always just enjoyed making things for myself or family but I've finally decided to branch out and share what I love doing with others. I had a little push from some close friends and the 2nd sewing mentor in my life (who I'll save for another post since this one is already way too long) and I'm so glad they are here cheering me on cause it's been a roller coaster and I've needed them along the way, that's for sure! I hope they know how much I appreciate them all...and if not, they do now :)

Hopefully I've not bored anyone too much and you can come back tomorrow for our first tutorial - how to stabilize a ribbed tank with elastic and make the cutest tank dress!