Amelia shirt and a thank you!

First off, thanks so much to those of you who have offered advice in my rant about measuring and cutting accurately. It's nice to know that other, more advanced sewists also struggle with that. And to hear all of your tips and tricks! If you missed that post, go read it and the comments especially. There are a lot of ideas about how to make cutting large pieces of fabric easier, from enlisting your husband to help you hold it, to folding, to ripping and to holding that dang ruler down with your knee. I'm excited to try some of those tactics next time I need to cut a large piece. Which might be pretty soon, because after making myself this shirt, I'm itching to try it again!

Crocheted flower clip from Etsy shop Curstay Designs. Thanks Lindsay!

My first completed shirt! Very exciting, don't you think? I got the itch to try making myself a shirt when the blog Made by Rae (another Michigander!) hosted a Spring Top Sewalong. I didn't get myself together in time to enter, but was inspired anyway. A post in conjunction with that blog event on Fashioned by Meg introduced me to several beginner top patterns, and I decided on this one, the Amelia shirt by Frog Legs and Ponytails. I ordered it a couple of weeks ago with my recently purchased purple Joel Dewberry fabric in mind. Then came the first wrench in my plan... The pattern called for a yard and a half of fabric for the body. I had only a yard. D'oh!

I stupidly only bought one yard of these pretty Joel Dewberry fabrics.

I decided to consider it a blessing. Probably smart to try it first on non-designer fabric, right? Although really, this shirt is so simple to make, I don't think it would have been too big of a problem. It's very straight-forward. The hardest thing was turning my tie inside out because I still don't have a tie turner. For all the trouble I had cutting accurately, my band and the main body of the shirt matched up perfectly when it came time to sew them together.

I found this yellow poppy cotton at Jo-Anns, on sale. My friend and I were in a big hurry because she had to pick up her parents at the airport, so I rushed to find a coordinating color for the band. I don't know if I made the best choice, but I wound up with this brown print. Too busy? What do you think?

 I'm happy enough with the top, but for a few things. I think I made it too big. I feel a little shapeless in it, like I'm wearing a pillow case. I made the large because of my bust size, but I think a medium would have been fine. As it is, I might take the sides in a bit. Should be easy, right? Just move the seam in a half inch on each side?

I also don't know what I was thinking picking a shirt that I won't be able to wear a normal bra under. I'm nursing right now. My girls need some support. Strapless bras are a pain. Ug. The good news is that it looks really cute under my favorite white cardigan. And that way I can still wear my supportive bra.

 

I plan on making a few more of these shirts. They are cute for summer and simple. I'm excited to try one on a nicer fabric that might have a little bit more drape to it. And to go for the medium.

What do you think? Worth another wear?

Linking up to these fine parties...

Tutorial: The Going-On-a-Walk Bag

Love this bag. 

It's colorful. Don't you think it screams spring? Or even summer. 

It hangs comfortably across my body thanks to a long, thick strap. 

It cost me hardly anything to make. Three cheers for upcycling!

It allowed me to hone my patchwork skills.

It's the perfect size to hold items you need on a walk or a trip to the park, when taking along the entire diaper bag is cumbersome. 

Awesome. 

So let's get to the tutorial, eh? So you can make one, too!

You will need:

-- 18 rectangles of coordinating fabrics. My rectangles were 7 inches by 4.5 inches each.

. (If you don't want to do patches, the finished rectangles before sewing the bag together were 19 by 13.)

-- Two 19 inches by 13 inches rectangles of lining fabric. I used a stiffer home dec weight cotton.

-- Interfacing if you so choose. I did not use interfacing, but I might if I did it again. If you choose to, you'll need two 19 by 13 inch rectangles of interfacing.

-- A 10 inches by 50 inch piece of heavy cotton or canvas for the strap. I used leftover scraps from a pair of IKEA curtains I hemmed.  If you want to make it a little shorter and use 44-45 inch fabric, that's fine. Your strap will then hit a little higher, like more at the hip.

Also, a sewing machine, thread, cutting board, scissors or rotary cutter, iron, ironing board, pins, etc.

I used 1/4 inch seam allowances throughout. 

Although let it be noted: I am not the most accurate sewer in the world. 

So this project got started because I had this stash of upholstery scraps laying around for more than a year.I got them at Arts and Scraps in Detroit. They were so pretty but I didn't know what to do with them. And so they sat in my stash. For a year!

Step. 1 First thing I did was cut my rectangles off of this strip of fabric. For you, you'll want to cut all your rectangles, as well as the lining and strap pieces. And the interfacing if you are going to use it. Interfacing gives your final bag a little more weight and stiffness, which is nice. Since I was using heavier-weight fabrics I thought I didn't need it. But I think it is probably a good idea.

Here's my pile of rectangles.

Step 2: Lay your rectangles out into a grid, figuring out which arrangement you like best for each side of the bag.

Step 3: Once you have an arrangement you like, take three rectangles that form a row from top to bottom. (Like the left row in this picture with the yellow, blue and white squares.) You're going to piece these together. Begin by pinning two rectangles wrong sides together. (If you have a directional print, meaning the fabric has a right-side-up, make sure you have accounted for that!) Now sew together with a 1/4 inch seam down only one long side. Then open and repeat with the third rectangle, pinning it right sides together with your first piece and then sewing down the long side. Now you have one row of three rectangles

Do this with each row, of each side, top to bottom. You'll have six sets of three.

Step. 4: Iron open all of your seams.

Step 5: Take two rows of rectangles that will be adjoined and place right sides together and pin. Make sure you align the seams the best you can. (Since I started without accurately measured rectangles, at this point, I had to trim some of my rows to make sure my seams would align. If you're not super accurate, you might need to do this, too!) Sew together along one side. This is where you're at now.

Open and pin the last row of rectangles, right sides together, to your piece with six rectangles. Sew along the long side. Open. You now have one finished side! Repeat with the other side of your outer layer.

Step 6. Iron open all of your seams.

Step 7: Now you're going to make your curved corners. Decide which part is the bottom of your outer layers. On the wrong side, use a rounded object like a cup or bowl -- I used a coffee canister -- to trace a curve in one corner. Mark with a water soluble pen or a pencil. Or if you're like me and don't really care, a faint pen mark. This is on the wrong side of the fabric. Cut along the curve. Then fold in half right sides together to trace and cut the other side. This was they'll match!

Step 8: Do the same with your lining fabric.

Step 9: Pin your outside pieces together right sides together. Starting at one top corner, sew around the outside bottom of the bag. Leave the top open. Repeat with the lining pieces.

Step 10: Now, let's make the strap. Take the long piece of strap fabric. Fold it in half wrong sides together lengthwise and iron. Open and fold each side in, wrong sides together, toward the middle fold. Iron. It should look like this.

Eegads, please ignore my ugly and stained ironing board cover!

Step 10: Now fold it back in half, enclosing the unfinished ends inside. Iron again. Add some pins if you need to!

Step. 11: Sew the strap together along the open side with a quarter-inch seam allowance.

Step 12: This one is a little bit optional, but because I used a blue thread, I wanted to top stitch down the other side as well. I think this makes the strap look a little more finished. It's up to you. If you're going to, go ahead and stitch down the opposite side, also with a quarter inch seam allowance.

Step 13: Time to assemble the bag! *Two quick notes. If you want to use interfacing, iron it onto the wrong side of the outer bag rectangles now, following the instructions on the package. Also, if you'd like to add a Velcro closure, you could sew those onto the middle of the right side of each lining piece now. When I made mine, I opted to skip these steps. But if you want to, now is the time!

Turn your outside piece so the wrong side is facing out. Place the strap inside the bag, pining each end in place at the top where the front and back meet. Make sure the strap isn't twisted. Then slip in lining piece with right-side out into the outer piece, sandwiching the strap in the middle. Make sure the strap is sticking out about an inch or so. Like this....

See? The two right sides are facing each other with the strap sandwiched between them. Got it? Make sure the two side seams are aligned. Pin in place.

Step 14:  Sew around the top of the bag, leaving a 2-3 inch hole for turning. If you make it 2 like I did, be prepared for the struggle of pulling home dec-weight fabric through a small hole.

Step 15: Pull bag right-side out through the hole you left, and then push the lining fabric inside the outer piece of your bag. Success! If you struggled like me, your bag will be a hot wrinkle mess at this moment.

Step 16: Iron your bag into shape. The part you left open for turning will need to be folded down a quarter inch on each side and ironed. Pin if necessary to hold it down.

Step 17: Top stitch around the top of your bag, closing the hole.

And you are done! Wheeeeee!

This bag is such a nice size. I can fit my nursing cover, wipes case, a few diapers, my wallet, keys, cell phone, a sippy cup, a spare outfit... Pretty much everything I usually put in my diaper bag, if I need to. But it's especially nice if I don't really neeeeeed all that stuff, like if I'm just taking the boys on a walk and only want the essentials. Then, if we say stop at the market or something, there is even room for a few other things. And it sits right below my hip, out of my way for walking. It's very light-weight, too!

I'm in love!

I also think it looks pretty cute crumpled on my porch bench. 

Or hanging on a hook! Makes we want to grab it and go walk outside and smell the flowers. 

Ahhhh, spring.

I hope you like it and want to make your own. If you do, please email the photos! I'd love to feature your takes on the Going-On-a-Walk Bag! You can email me a tharshesews at gmail dot com. 

Happy sewing!

Tutorial: Appliqued Kiddie Kitchen Hand Towel

I found Luke this oven at a Mom2Mom sale a few weeks ago. I'd been looking for a kitchen that was a) not too girly and b) would not take up too much room in my small house. This one, I thought, was perfect. It's technically not a kitchen, of course. Just an oven. But good enough, right?

I have it on good authority that the Easter bunny is bringing some toy food to complete the fun. And that a certain set of grandparents are buying some pots and pans. That particular grandpa is a little weirded out by the idea of his grandson playing with a kitchen. Phhhssstt, I say to that. It's fine. But I thought it might be nice to add a homemade, boy-ish, touch.

This is what I came up with! A little hand-towel to fit on his oven-door handle, complete with his initials and a truck applique. It was fairly simple. I traced a dishtowel for my pattern, cutting just one square out of terry cloth. Then I added some homemade bias tape leftover from a Christmas table runner.

After it was bound, I decided to try to freehand draw a truck and applique it to the towel. I needed it to be bigger than the letters, so they would fit on the side of the truck. First, I ironed-on the Heat'N Bond to the wrong side of the fabric. Then I drew the truck right onto the iron-on paper, using my letters as a guide. Then I cut.

Once I had the truck cut, I ironed the letters on. (They came from Arts and Scraps more than a year ago!) I didn't have the letters to spell "Luke," but did have his initials. So that worked.

I'm not a very good drawer, so this was the best I could do. I think next time, I would cut the window out. Or Google for an image to copy. As it is, I'm not sure it reads "truck" or "train." I guess either way, right?

I appliqued it on using a "satin stitch" and white thread, so my mistakes would blend in. I'm still getting acquainted with appliqueing. So, yes, there were lots of mistakes. The sewing is a little funky and uneven. Suzanne from the blog Just Another Hang Up had a great post on how to applique this week. Very helpful advice.

So that's it! A quick and simple extra for the Easter basket. What do you think? Does it man it up a little bit? I think next I might make a little kid-sized pot-holder. Wouldn't that be sweet? And of course, you could easily make one of these for a girl by changing up the bias tape, color scheme and the applique (maybe a butterfly would be cute, eh?).