Finchley Messenger Bag Testing for Heidi and Finn

If you haven't already figured it out, I love Heidi and Finn patterns.  Whenever she puts a call out for a new pattern to be tested I jump on it because they are always great and need very few modifications.  Each pattern can be made by someone new to sewing yet have a professional finish to them.

This is her first bag pattern but she's been sewing it for years before now releasing it to the public.  The beauty of this simple bag pattern is it comes with a few ways of appliqueing or you can customize it however you want.  It also comes with a bonus wallet.  The wallet is super cute and an easy sew.  Perfect for your younger friends who want to feel like an adult as well.

For testing this pattern Christine, the designer, told us we could applique in anyway we wanted.  I don't know if it's these warm temps in Florida, but I have spring and more importantly Easter on the brain.  I quickly decided to do bunny bags for the girls to use with their Easter dresses.  This was a quick easy sew and based on the girls' initial reaction there is no doubt in my mind that there will be many more of these in our future.  The longest part in this process was appliqueing the purse.  I used the fruit template that comes with the pattern to balance my face.  I folded it in half to find where the nose would go and then half again to make the eyes and length of the whiskers.  I used a washable sewing marker to mark this off and then hand stitched with embroidery floss.  I made a rough pattern for the ears (yes I did reuse a parent reminder from my daughters school...hehe) to mark off and cut the ears.  I then attached them a few inches down from where the flap would be attached to the main portion of the bag and to the sides of the eyes.  I made a wool pompom for the nose (there are a million tutorials on pinterest for this) and then followed the rest of the pattern tutorial exactly.

The only other change I made to this tutorial was I couldn't find the slider at my local fabric store to make an adjustable strap so I just made it stationary.  I measured the length of the strap on my daughter and then just shortened it to where I thought it should fall and stitched it on.   While the adjustable strap would likely last them longer its a quick sew and I can easily whip them up a new one. Let's be honest, white bags are not going to last forever!

The Finchley bag is set to release in the next few days.  You can find this great pattern and all the Heidi & Finn pattern here on etsy.

Heidi & Finn Cocoon Dress

 

It's been a long time since I've posted a sewing project but that doesn't mean I haven't been busy.  In fact, the opposite.  I'm often squeezing sewing in wherever I can and so there is not much time left to blog about it.  I've posted before about my love for Heidi & Finn and again I'm going to boast about how great these patterns are.  I recently pattern tested her latest release, the Cocoon Dress.  The great thing about testing is that you have a deadline....this little beauty couldn't be cut only to sit on my sewing table for months.  The fabric was bought, cut, sewn and modeled in about 4 days.  My model even have an ear infection and strep throat so we waited an extra day until she wasn't was less of a nightmare.

The Cocoon Dress is AMAZING.  It is a quick easy sew that can be made with or without pockets (my girl loves her some pockets).  And can we talk about the exposed zipper?  I love it!  Due to the shape it is best suited for heavier fabrics.  I used a thick tweed that was $49.99 a yard...I know you think I'm nuts right...well I'm not.  It was $49.99 on clearance for $24.99 and 50% off that.  Yes, $12 and since I was testing a 2T I only needed 3/4 of a yard, so this baby cost me $8.  Call me crazy but this dress looks like it could've come from a high end boutique right?  Or am I just bias?   Either way, I'm in love with it and anytime my girls can look fabulous for $8 I'm a happy woman!

I tested the 2T for my girl.  She is about 30lbs and tall for her age (36 ish inches).  This size fits her like a glove.  I currently have this same dress in a sweat shirt material dress cut for her it's just in line behind another pattern I'm testing and maybe even a project for Mommy!  I can't wait to sew one of these for my big girl.  I'm looking into adding sleeves to pair with tights or leggings in cooler weather.

 For the next two days this pattern from 12M-12yrs is on sale for $7.95 over on etsy.  If your looking for a little inspiration, head over to the Heidi & Finn Blog to check out the Cocoon Dress Tester Round up!  Let me know what you make!

Military Inspired Sleeveless Coat | DMK Pattern Flip

 When I was trying to decide on my final plan for Frances Suzanne pattern flip I stumbled upon a sleeveless coat and fell in love.  So much so I almost gave up my original plan.  So, you can imagine how happy I was when I realized I had enough material to do both.  My original plan for my big girl and the sleeveless jacket for my little.

I started with the Dear My Kids, Trendy Unisex Pea Coat, when cutting the body of the coat I simply did not cut our the arm wholes.

I followed the instructions fully but when it came to adding sleeves I left them off.  I added the pockets, the collar and a rectangular shoulder before sewing the liner in. When sewing the body shut, I left hole from the bottom of where the original sleeve would end down 3 inches.  To finish the arm holes I folded the outside fabric (wool) and inside liner in a 1/4 of an inch and top stitched all the way around.

The Collar
For the collar I used the 6T length but the 2T width.  I cut 4 individual pieces rather than 2 on the fold.  I ended up having to piece this together a little bit because I was using left over scraps.  I didn't mind this at though because it gave the more military look I was going for.    I also added 2 pieces that were 4 inches each giving me an approximate finished length of 18 inches.

The Pocket
To add detail I added a pocket to the front.  This was much easier than expected.  I decided where I wanted to place the pockets then cut a straight line through the outer layer of the jacket, in my case the wool. I cut out two pieces of the liner and placed them right sides facing on each side of the slit.  I then sewed a straight stitch to hold them in place.  I then pulled the two pocket pieces through the slit and sewed around the outside of the pocket with the right sides together.  The bottom left photo shows how it looked completed.  I then folded a piece of fabric together and to stitched it to create a small rectangle.  I then hand stitched it to the front of the pocket hiding my mess giving the military look I was going for.

 

This coat was a simple sew with a large impact.  The details gave it a fun boutique look.

Then my little model went to town.  Anyone ever try to photograph an 18 month old?  Yeah they don't pause, or ever stop moving!

 

 

Pattern Tester | Gardenia Dress By Cali Faye Collection

  I was recently selected to test the women’s Gardenia Dress by Cali Faye Collection.  I was so thrilled to get the email that I had been selected since I love her designs!  Knowing I would be on a serious time crunch, my husband was flying in for 4 days (He's moved for business, we will eventually join him), I set to work right away. 

  I was surprised at how easily the dress came together.  As I have said many times before, I am mainly self taught and I generally only sew for my kids, but the instructions were clear and easy to follow.  One of the things that impressed me the most was how not "homemade" it looked. This is my biggest fear sewing for myself and what has held me back from doing much of it in the past. Kids look cute in homemade, moms look frumpy.  This is not the case at all with the Gardenia Dress.  It is well crafted to look professionally finished and stylish.

  I used a sturdy jersey knit with lots of stretch and 100% recovery.  I was actually so impressed that my local fabric store had a great weight and colour in the fabric I was hoping for (this is not always the case for this store).  I selected a midnight blue colour with flecks of black with the hopes of styling this dress with boots and possibly a scarf here in Toronto for the colder weather or flats and a clutch when our family moves permanently to Florida.  

  Sarah was so gracious and sweet to work with, and responded so quickly to any questions I had during construction.  My only complaint with the pattern would be that the neck seemed rather large.  I am fairly flat chested so I have this problem a lot and felt as though I could have maybe gone down a size in  the top section.  The design is to be flowy but not too big.  Sarah took a look at the pattern and has reworked the scoop of the neck with her final release.  So, if you're worried it looks too low, it's been adjusted.

So now it's your turn!  Go ahead and grab this dress, a staple for anyone on the go wanting to look put together when really you only had 5 minutes!

Congrats Sarah on an great pattern, and thanks again for granting me the honour to help test!

The Gardenia Dress pattern can be purchased here and be sure check out her facebook page here to grab your 20% discount until Sunday, October 12th 11:59pm EST (Monday, October 13th 1:59pm AEDT).!

J Crew Knock Off Project

Flip this Pattern~ Heidi and Finn Colorblock Dress

I am self taught when it comes to sewing.  I learned the basics from my Nana when I was 7 or 8 when she taught me how to make an apron for my mom for Mother's day.  After not sewing for almost 20 years I picked it up again and have tried a few different projects.  I'm not perfect, but the more you sew the better you get right?

I am a huge fan of Heidi and Finn patterns, I've made them here, here, and here and I've had my eye on the Colorblock dress for a while now.  I found Frances Suzanne's linky party by chance, and decided it was the perfect opportunity to give it a try.  I bought the pattern and after making the Colorblock pattern for my nieces and spending sometime on Pinterest I decided I would "Flip this Pattern" for my oldest daughter.  I saw this J Crew Dress and fell in love with it, with two girls who are growing faster than weeds the $70 price tag was out of my budget.

 I took a look, got out my crayons (like any great sewer) and set to work.  Here's what I came up with.

 

Here's how I did it! 

Rather than using three colours or materials as suggested, I used white broad cloth and some chambray I had.  You could easily up-cycle an old pair of jeans for this as well if you wanted to.   Another change I made to the original pattern was that I did not continue the chambray stripe all the way to the back, I only did the stripes on the front section. To do this I just used the liner piece provided and cut 4 pieces for the back half of the dress instead of 2 as per the directions.  The final change I made was I used a size 5 pattern but used the size 4 length. Probably a terrible thing to say as a mother, but I prefer my girls dresses to be short, I think they seem more playful that way.

Before cutting the chambray for the centre section, I got out my daughters crayons and figured out my measurements.  The body length for the 4T was 11 inches long.  After measuring it out I decided I wanted my stripes to be 1 inch wide giving me 2 x 1 inch stripes at the top, 7 inches of chambray in the body, and 4 x 1 inch stripes at the bottom.    To accomplish this I needed to add 6/8 of an inch to each one inch stripe  as the pattern uses a 3/8 seam allowance. 

Once it was coloured it was time to cut.  I cut the centre section out of the chambray, then cut 2 inches off the top and 4 inches off the bottom.  I then trimmed the 2 inches down to 1 6/8 and the bottom 4 inches into 2 x 1 6/8 pieces.  I then cut three pieces of white cloth 8 ish inches by 1 6/8.  I sewed all my pieces together and ironed all the seams toward the chambray and top stitched.  This will ensure you can't see seams through your white.  Once all the pieces were together I  folded it in half, put the middle pattern piece back on, and trimmed it down to size (You will just be trimming as you started with the section mainly in tact.  From there I followed the Colorblock pattern exactly.

Belt

I wanted the belt to be 2 by 46 inches when I was all done.  I like working with 1/4 seam allowance (I think I'm the only one) so I kept this in mind while cutting my pieces.  Once all your pieces are cut, add the white and chambray to each end of your longest piece of chambray.  Fold your belt in half, sew all the way around leaving a small hole to flip it right side out.  Trim it up, flip it right side out, iron flat and then top stitch all the way around closing up your small hole. You could easy switch this around to make it longer or changer proportions but this is what I used:

• 2 white 5 by 4 1/2 inches
• 2 white 3 by 4 1/2 inches
• 2 chambray 3 by 4 1/2 inches
• 1 chambray 31 by 4 1/2 inches

It was super easy and super inexpensive!

Thanks so much to  Frances Suzanne and Heidi and Finn for the chance to sew along!  I had a great time and love my end result.  Check out what others did here.

 

Wedding DIY

The word DIY has nearly put wedding planners and wedding decorators out of business.  Why pay for something you can do yourself? I love all the creative ideas that are taking your average wedding to a creative and romantic expression of the bride and groom.  This weekend my cousin married his sweet bride and while I appreciated every single DIY they included there was one person who took this concept to a new level...my Mom!

Like every good Auntie she started shopping for and planning her outfit for their big day the moment she found out they were engaged.  She started with a cute dress but when it came to shoes and accessories she started wishing she just wore something she already had.  (Fashion Faux pas... don't be the Auntie recycling dresses at your nephew's wedding...just kidding!  New accessories can bring new life to any outfit).   Anyway, she finally secured shoes, nail polish and jewelry but she could not find a purse that would work...enter wedding DIY!

My Mom fashioned a new purse from one of her grandmother's old purses and a pillow case she no longer uses on a toss cushion.  She explained her plan to me as I drove home from work one day and my response was "I'll be there in 5".  Not sure which was the greatest draw, my extreme respect and excitement for her creative genius OR my extreme uncertainty of whether she would be able to pull it off.

She started with her old purse and her pillow case.   We planned her attach and she drew cutting lines about an inch from the purse to allow sewing room.

She cut along the lines then sent it home with her favourite daughter (me...) to sew the rounded edge, connecting the front and the back of the purse.

She then hand stitched gathers into the purse tucking her stitches under the gold clasp of the purse.  (Not my project so I don't have pictures of this)

Next thing I knew she is ready to go.  Look at this beauty?  To say I was impressed is an understatement.

 What a wonderful weekend as a family celebrating the extension and the growth of our family.  Speaking of DIY's one of our favourite parts of the wedding we were at was the photo area.  Even Granny (she's 87) got in on the fun!

Another fun "DIY" if you will,  was when my cousin and I showed up rocking matching sock buns.  Not a word of a lie, our hubby's had no idea until we told them, that we had socks in our hair.  For some reason they thought it was gross...we were hot until we told them!

Congrats Robyn and Joel!  Thanks for giving us a reason to get dressed up and spend time as a family!  We had lots of fun being part of your day!

Linking up here:

Sugar and Dots

This Weekend....

This weekend my older sister and I attended a Moms To Moms sale through our local momstown chapter.  I had never been to a sale like this but when I got the invite I was intrigue and grabbed my favourite experienced Mom.

I didn't really know what to expect, I have never really bought clothing second hand.  Since The Boss and her cousin are so close in age we have passed a few things back and forth but for the most part everything has been brand new.  I love to shop and keep up with the latest trends so this is not something I would probably do all the time, but this sale was great!

I picked up a dress and the cutest pair of sandals from Gymboree for The Boss among a few other cute things for play clothes.  If it wasn't totally creepy I would've asked the lady I bought most of my purchases from to be my new best friend.  I loved every single thing she had bought her girls, and I could tell from how much she had to sell that she loves shopping as much as I do. 

Since we are spending Easter in Florida, I thought this was perfect.  Bright, cheery and playful.  I bought another dress for The Boss from Children's Place and I didn't love it. It was $34 and although I purchased it on sale for $20 I still couldn't learn to love it.  Enter Mom to Mom...I picked up this sweet dress, that according to the seller was only worn once (It looks like it's never been worn) for $5.  That's right...I saved $15...just enough money to buy a cute matching purse right?

I have also already picked out her Daddy's suit and tie for Easter...they will co-ordinate perfectly,  and what's cuter than a Daddy and his baby matching on Easter.  Now what will Mommy wear?

These are the shoes I picked up as well.  Call me OCD but I took a Lysol wipe to them when I got home (they were immaculate when I bought them but it put my mind at ease).

 

I guess the moral of the story is that kids grow so fast, for every penny I save I can buy her that much...or buy Mommy something new.