Christmas Gifts

I've tried to cram as much crafting and sewing into this month before I have to start school again, but in between work, shopping, and cards it's been difficult to find time. Here are some gifts that were made...

= Co-workers Gifts & Other Jewelry =
I love fusionbeads.com. This is where I get most, if not all, my beading/jewelry-making supplies. They have great inspiration and wonderful quality supplies. I made lots of earrings and bookmarks. The bookmarks have sterling silver letter charms for each of my teammates at work. =)



= Husband's co-workers gifts: paper, Modge Podge, and tiles go a looooooong way =



= Amy Butler's Snow Mum Pillow =
We did Secret Santa amongst our team. This is what I made for my person. =) I really really love it and had a difficult time letting it go. It was also a lot more labor intensive then I expected...



Full Review Here

= WIP: NL6557 - V-neck Cotton Dress =
This dress for my sister-in-law's Christmas gift. I did this in a hurry since I had to have it done by Christmas. She's very happy with the dress, but I feel like I did a sloppy job. =( Oh well... as long as she's happy! I absolutely love the fabric and the easiness of making the dress.



Full Review Here

Rest of the Fall Semester

A little bit of sewing... lots of studying and working... good eating for Thanksgiving and our 3rd wedding anniversary!

= V1062 Cropped Jacket =
This was my first jacket and my first time using fleece. (This month was a lot of firsts!) It was super easy and it was unlined. I tried to add pockets, but it was too short to fit them in anywhere.



Full Review Here

= B5247 Cowl-neck Knit Dress =
I made these dress and wore it out to our 3rd wedding anniversary dinner. I love the way the belt is tied, which was an idea stolen from the envelope cover. (It is the middle one in the picture below.) I realized that all my recent dresses are hot pink. I need to stay away from that color for awhile... Here is the final product...



Full Review Here

September Catchup

Wow... I'm sooo behind in blogging! Well my semester has finally come to a close. It was a long, tiring, hard semester and I'm so glad that it's over. I have about a month before it all starts up again. Here's some things I made in September...
= NL6828 Knit Dress =
This was my very first knit and was very intimidated by it. It came out better than expected and now I LoVE sewing knits! It's so easy and so fast.

Here's a pic of it on the hanger:


It needed a belt because it was very unflattering without it. Here's a pic with a belt.


I love this dress! It was very easy and I wore it out to a wedding and to church and to work. =) Full Review Here

= Shirred Dress =
I used Sandi Henderson's tutorial to make a long shirred dress. The tutorial was easy enough to follow along, but I think the fabric I used made it difficult to work with. I just used 100% polyester satin. This was the first time I've sewn with satin or any slippery fabric. Overall it was a nice easy long dress. I wore it to a wedding rehearsal dinner.


PDF Tutorial

= Wedding Gifts =
This was for my husband's cousin. I only finished half of it... I'm notorious for UFOs! I made the short pleated apron and potholders from Amy Butler's InStitches book. I forgot to take a picture of the potholders.


Full Review Here

Madison & Dresses & Gifts

This past summer was a lot of studying, (but it still was NOT enough!) which left me with not much sewing and crafty things and especially blogging. I did manage to make Amy Butler's Madison bag, a boatneck dress (Butterick 5210), a summer dress (Simplicity 2925), and some gifts... and there are a few WIPs. I cutout Amy Butler's Sophia bag in Ginger Blossom fabric, started an apron in Midwest Modern fabric, and bought more fabric for other gifts and projects. So much to do so little time...

::Madison Bag:: Amy Butler's Lotus Wallflowers in Cherry and ivory broadcloth



I love this purse! It's bigger than it looks and fits a lot of things. Some mods are adding a patch pocket and zippered pocket to the lining, which are awesome! The patch pocket is on the front lining and the zippered one is on the back lining.



For the zippered pocket, I used a tutorial from U-handbag here. The pattern review is found here.

::Boatneck dress (B5210):: Amy Butler's Belle Coriander in pink and ivory broadcloth. Overall, it was an easy dress to make. I absolutely love the pockets!



Click here for a review.

::Yellow Dress (S2925):: Pale yellow rayon challis and white rayon challis for the lining. This also was an easy dress to make but the fabric was little to difficult to work with because it was so fluid... just need more practice.



Click here for a review.

Here are some gifts I made for a co-worker. It was for her birthday, baby shower, and just because.
::Tile coasters made from ceramic tile, scrapbooking paper, and Mod Podge::


::Burp cloths and baby blanket::


::Potted Daisy from Anapaulaoli pattern::

Contest & Gifts

Summer seems to be quite busy.  I should be studying for my MCATs but there are so many birthdays, and I just LoVE making stuff.  I also entered the beginner contest on sewing.patternreview.com.  I made McCalls 5430 for my entry.  Here's a picture of it...

This was also the first time I made buttonholes. The buttons are slightly different colors. =P  Here's a closeup:

The review for this skirt can be found here.  

The last week I've been making a few gifts.  I made some tile coasters, a hat, and a backpack.  The hat is from "Simple Sewing with a French Twist" by Celine Depuy.  The book is a great inspiration book, but the instructions aren't totally clear.  I still love it though!  The drawstring backpack was something I just made up along the way.  Here the pictures respectively.

Coming soon, more birthday cards, baby booties for a co-worker, and more gifts!  Next month, I'll be making the InStitches apron with Amy Butler Midwest Modern fabric.  The fabric is gorgeous and I can't wait to use it!