Summer Crush (Sewaholic Lonsdale/Sewaholic 1102)

August 28, 2015August 28, 2015 by Ashley ♥ 11 Comments

I hope you’re all enjoying the Sew Long Summer sewalong!! I know I’ve been having a blast with it. All summer long, I’ve been crushing on and dreaming about this Cotton & Steel fabric. Originally, I had intended to sew up a Burda sunsuit with it, but I’m just not convinced I’ll ever wear it. Enter the Sewaholic Lonsdale dress, which just kinda screamed summer to me.

If you’ve never sewn an indie pattern, I highly suggest you do. The instructions are so much clearer, and fitting issues are minimal. Tasia also has a VERY easy to follow step by step sewalong posted online, so if the instructions ever do trip you up, shes got your back! You can’t go wrong, I’m tellin’ ya.

For this dress, I cut a straight 12, and it’s a pretty good fit. I could stand to take the bodice in a bit, but I fear that would make it too tight. The fabric is a cotton lawn, so there’s absolutely no stretch here. I will warn you, the Lonsdale is a fabric hog. I used a full 4 yards on this one, and that’s with some creative pattern placement. Those cute tie straps connect to the bodice, and they are LONG. Also, the bodice is fully lined, so you need 4 of those suckers. It’s part of what makes the dress so lovely, just make sure you plan for it! A non-sewing related qualm, it’s either a strapless bra or no bra for this one. I hate a strapless bra with a passion usually reserved for telemarketers, so…I felt you deserved a warning.

To sing Tasia’s praises one more time, she understands not wanting to hand stitch. Hand stitching is the worst. It takes forever. My man-sized hands are not made for it. DOWN WITH HAND STITCHING. For the waistband, you have the option of hand sewing it to the skirt, or stitching it “in the ditch”. I, of course, opted to stitch in the ditch, and it looks just fine. It’s also worth noting, this entire dress was sewn with grey thread. The base of this fabric is kind of an odd green color, and I just didn’t have a color to match. Grey thread is a bit magical, it just somehow manages to blend in with everything. It’s a beautiful thing.

I’m really looking forward to seeing what you’re all making!! Happy sewing 🙂

Summer Crush Begins!

August 24, 2015 by Ashley ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

Hello! I hope you all had a fantastic weekend, I spent mine sewing up some garments for the Sew Long Summer Sewalong. Our Summer Crush week begins today, and I’ve already seen some posts on Instagram! I’m stoked to see what you all make. In case you forgot, our Summer Crush week is about those projects all have those patterns we’ve been crushing on but have just not taken a chance on yet. Time to make that move. Will it be true love? Or maybe hot days and cold drinks zapped your passion for a project? Well, lets get it back. This week we’re focusing on making that special item we wish we had made or knocking out those summer UFO’s (to quote our leader, Melissa).

I also wanted to point out that we’re having a linkup party, which you can find here. Be sure to join, there are fun prizes 🙂

The Dog Dress (Colette Lily/Colette 1020)

August 18, 2015August 18, 2015 by Ashley ♥ 11 Comments

Before I launch into anything about the sewing, I need to talk about my love for Colette. Originally, I ordered this pattern because it was on sale, and it was called the Lily, just like my main bitch, Lily Rose. Now, as many of you don’t at all know, I am bit old school and set in my ways. I prefer books to ebooks (down with ebooks!), and paper patterns to PDF. Yeah, I know PDF patterns are better and yada yada yada, I get it. But…I love a physical copy in all it’s beautiful packaging glory. Colette has the best, prettiest paper patterns. Period. Ever. The instructions are bound like a book (instead of an unwieldy giant sheet), there’s a section for notes, and the actual pattern just slips into a little section in the back. It’s like they were designed just for me! Did you also know that Colette donates part of their proceeds to animal rescue? BECAUSE THEY TOTALLY DO! If you’re not following me on Instagram, you may not realize I foster doggies. Anyone who helps dogs is automatically a winner in my book. Also, Colette posted something of their Instagram about leadership as an introvert. I THINK MY SOUL MATE IS A PATTERN COMPANY!

Okay, love fest over. This is the Lily dress, which I had intended to finish last month, as it was the pattern of the month. But…best intentions of mice and men…

I know, I'm the best at posing. — I know, I’m the best at posing.

I really liked this pattern (obviously), the instructions were very easy to follow, and the construction was straight forward. I was a little unsure of myself when it came to sewing the bodice facing around the invisible zip. But I just read the instructions through a few times, it came together just fine. There’s also a tutorial online of how to install an invisible zip, if you’ve not done it before 😉 I made this in polyester satin, with the cherry pieces actually being bits of a polyester scarf. I’ve really been trying to sew through my stash, so I’ve been just kind of making materials work with any given project. The recommended materials are a bit sturdier than what I used, so I added extra interfacing in the straps, pockets, and bodice flap thing, just to make sure it wasn’t too floppy. I cut a straight 14, but after fitting, I took the bodice in 1 & 1/4 inches, because I like a snug bodice fit. I probably could have done the same for the skirt, but I didn’t mind the extra room there. The hem is finished with self made cherry bias binding. Although I like the way the dress is to be hemmed according to the pattern, I don’t think a machine stitched hem looks great in satin. I fucking hate hand stitching, so bias binding it is. The extra cherry accent seems to work, so it’s a win!

Half my pictures are of me trying to show the hem.

I really dig the vintage feel of this dress. I had a lot of fun sewing it, and I truly think I’ll get a lot of wear out of it. Have you sewn the Lily? Did you love it too?

Sew Long Summer Giveaway

August 14, 2015 by Ashley ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

Hello all! I know I haven’t posted any new garments lately, I’ve got a backlog of things to be photographed and am busily sewing up new things for the Sew Long Summer sew along!! However, I wanted to take amount to tell you about the Sew Long Summer Giveaway!

We’ve gathered up a few things for you, like Fiskar’s scissor sharpeners, a My Pad needle keeper, a $20 Joann Fabric gift card, and other little surprises 😉 To enter please use the Rafflecopter link below, and don’t forget to check in with all the cohosts for new content!! Happy sewing 🙂

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Maxi Sewalong Wrap Up

August 8, 2015August 8, 2015 by Ashley ♥ 1 Comment

My very first sewalong with That’s Sew Amy has come to a conclusion! We really want to say a big thank you to everyone who participated, this was so much fun. I hope you all enjoyed it, your garments are beautiful. Below is a little showcase of everyone who participated, I hope we didn’t forget anyone!

http://www.musingsofaseamstress.com/ — www.musingsofaseamstress.com

And then of course, Amy and I! Isn’t her dress GORGEOUS???

Minerva Crafts Q&A!!!

August 7, 2015 by Ashley ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

Hey guys, exciting news!!! I was recently asked to do a guest Q&A for Minerva Crafts, and it’s gone live today! It still seems so foreign to me that anyone wants to hear my opinion, but I’m immensely appreciative, anyway.

Minerva Crafts is a really cool site, based across the pond, with some of the most gorgeous fabrics I’ve seen around. The Cincinnati area is full of quilting stores, but if you’re looking for something other than quilting cotton, and Joann’s doesn’t float your boat, you’re basically shit out of luck :/ So a new online resource is always a plus for me. Also…I can’t help but think of Minerva McGonagall, no? The more Harry Potter references I have, the happier I am! So go check them out and show my Q&A some love, pretty pretty please.

Sew Long Summer Sewalong!

August 2, 2015 by Ashley ♥ 2 Comments

Since my maxi dress sew along wrapped up yesterday (thanks to everyone who participated, photos coming soon!!), I’m stoked to announce the Sew Long Summer Sewalong!

Each week we will have a new sew-a-long theme to help us wrap up summer and begin our slide into cooler weather.

Please be sure you’re following the co-hosts so you don’t miss a beat.

mahlicadesigns
musingsofaseamstress
elizabethmadethis
cindyparrett

Follow Sew Long Summer on Pinterest and Instagram

Join Sew Long Summer Facebook and Flickr groups.

Use #sewlongsummer15 across social media.

Each week watch for posts from us with our creations, encouragement, ideas, and link up parties for you to participate.

Our weekly themes

Summer Crush is Monday August 24th – Sunday August 30th.

We all have those patterns we’ve been crushing on but have just not taken a chance on yet. Time to make that move. Will it be true love? Or maybe hot days and cold drinks zapped your passion for a project? Well, lets get it back. This week we’re focusing on making that special item we wish we had made or knocking out those summer UFO’s (Un Finished Objects).

Learn about the Summer Crush contest and Link Up party here.(coming soon)

Never Ending Summer is Monday August 31st – Sunday September 6th.

Love summer? Me too. This week’s focus is making items that keep you thinking sunny thoughts all year round.

Join the Link Up party here.(coming soon)

Holi-Daze is Monday September 7th – Sunday September 13th

Labor Day is September 7th, time to show off your holiday wear (summer or upcoming holidays) and those special things you make with some extra time the holiday weekends provide.

Join the Link Up party here. (coming soon)

Fabulous Fall is Monday September 14th – Tuesday September 22 (last day of summer)

Time to look ahead to fall with sewing up some transitional clothing.

Learn about the Fabulous Fall contest and Link Up party here. (coming soon)

Our Guidelines:

The sew-a-long is for adult and kid garment sewing. With the exception of the Summer Crush week where we’re allowing your summer UFOS, please only submit items you made for that week’s theme in the Link Up.

We’d really like it if you include our blog button in your posts or sidebar if you have one.

Insert this HTML into your post: