Last Day of May 2022

While there's been no posts here to the blog, I have been slowly sewing.  I spent two weekends cutting out projects to make my summer cut pile. 

A view of my cutting table at the start of the weekend...

I know everyone doesn't sew this way but it really works for me.  I love being able to pick up a project and just start sewing.  It has also allowed me to start the process of getting things off my Summer Sewing List which lets me dream of new things to make.  All of this unclogs my creative mind and lessens my sewing frustrations.

So I had a 1/2 day off on Friday for Memorial Day weekend, Monday for the holiday and today as a bonus day...and I sewed.

I finished Simplicity 8658...

I finished McCalls 7969 - the dress that it seems everyone has made...

...and I'm currently working on the StyleArc Nova Dress

It will probably be mid-June before individual blog posts arrive on the blog with pattern & construction information, as well as pictures of me in the garments.  

The one thing I've learned using new to me patterns is that I like searching Instagram for photos of sewists wearing their finished garments. I can see how they fit, fabric choices, some even write some information about their process or link to their blogs.  I do this check more than Patternreview because I think I get better photos and I'm definitely a visual person.

While I have no finished garments to share this month, I have been sewing and fabric shopping! *LOL*  Speaking of fabric shopping, I've taken a "90 Day No More Fabric" pledge. Quite a bit of yardage has arrived this month and I need to get it stored away and/or used, so no new fabric for 90 days.

Yesterday was my 63rd birthday and I had a lowkey birthday lunch with my daughters and the grandkids...

The best way to notice time is flying, watch your children and grandchildren grow up. There are no babies here anymore!

...as always more later!

A Check In

It's the middle of May and I've completed NOTHING from my "to-sew" list.  Some of it's due to the weather. It's been rainy, dreary and cold off and on here for a couple of weeks. No sun in sight and not feeling much like spring AT ALL.  Some of it is the stress of commuting with loads of unmasked people. Yes, I'm that person still wearing a mask everywhere there are people around in enclosed spaces. Some of it is that while I've been inspired, I'm NOT inspired enough to grab my scissors and cut!

However, I HAVE been fabric shopping. Lots and lots of fabric has arrived in the Sewing Room these past few weeks. The first batch arrived because I got hung up on wanting a Cashmerette Gilmore Skirt. I kept choosing pieces from the fabric collection that were just a tad to small.  

Since I couldn't give up my original plans for some longer pieces in the collection, I fabric shopped to try and solve the problem.

These came from fabric dot com:

I purchased 5 yards of these are rayon/linen blends 

When these didn't work for the skirt, I worked on my Janome project (last post) but nothing else since.  Like who am I? 

I have a theory though. I believe the failure to make a Gilmore Skirt clogged my creative sewing stream.  That until I get that piece made nothing is coming out of my sewing machine...and in the meantime I continued to fabric shop.

These came from StyleMaker Fabrics. But first a disclaimer...StyleMaker offers a birthday discount when it's your birthday month as it is mine. I plot and plan for this month every year. I'm stalking the site from the middle of April until the beginning of May when I get my birthday email. So this is usually one of my largest fabric purchases of the year...

I did a photographic unboxing in my stories on IG so 

I started with how the box looked when I opened it.

4 yds of this digital linen print - Watercolor Butterfly Floral

5 yds of this linen blend - Weather Report Abstract Watercolor

5 yards of Fresh as a Daisy Watercolor Spatter Cotton

4 yards of Eglantine & Zoe Solis Landscape Rayon Twill 

and it has the most amazing hand!

4 yards of Garden Floral Cotton Poplin in Green/Yellow

Lastly, these came from Fabric Mart's $6 a yard cotton sale and I think I may have FINALLY purchased enough yardage to cut out a Gilmore Skirt. 

A cotton polka dot and floral print - 5 yards

There's only 17.5 yards left so if you want it, hop on it!

A 100% cotton from Fabric Mart - 7 yards

There's even less of this & it may be 

gone by the time you read this!

I've already washed, dried and cut this out. It's been added to my cut pile for my Memorial Day sew-in.

Of course all of this drama has been recorded in a post for the Gilmore Skirt and as soon as it's sewn and photographed, I will share all.  In the meantime, I have a few days off at the end of May for Memorial Day weekend, so I'm trying to cut as much from my list as possible. That way I can just sew, sew, sew straight into June. So this is what I'm doing this weekend and next...cutting out new garments that have already stimulated me to sew!

That's my update...

...as always more later!

A Sofa Lap Quilt for Mother's Day

My latest Janome project is all about sustainability, reusing textiles, and remaking older quilts into new projects. I found several hand-quilted pieces when my Mom moved out of her townhouse to senior living.  I held onto them because we do NOT throw out handmade goods.

My Mom took up quilting as a hobby when she retired and she only hand stitched the pieces. I probably should say she took up piecing because while I found several of these, none of them were finished. After starting a few of these she stopped because this really wasn't for her.

So she was throwing out the panels because she saw no value in them. I saw their beauty and knew they could become something worthwhile. I knew I needed to update it to become a sofa lap quilt. That journey is documented below.

First though, let me say that I'm not a quilter.  I didn't use a walking foot or engage in any real quilting techniques. I used my dressmaking knowledge to put this together.  So any quilting inaccuracies are solely based upon user error. 

How to Change the Panel into a Lap Quilt

Materials ~

Found quilted top

2.5 yards of 59" wide fleece

8 yards double fold bias binding

Construction ~

Using a "found" or "passed down" patchwork piece, this should take a weekend to finish.

I re-stitched all of the hand stitching on the panel. My Mom used quarter inch seams so it was really easy to just sew over the hand stitching to reinforce the seams.

After the piece was reinforced, I laid the panel and the fleece out, wrong sides together making sure to leave 2-3" of extra fleece around the panel.

Then I pinned the panel and the fleece together. I stitched around the entire outside of the panel to secure it to the fleece using a 4.0 straight stitch.

I stitched the lines down on either side of the main sashing pieces, also. After all those lines were stitched down, I cut off the extra fleece around the piece to prepare it for binding.

I added bias binding to the edges of the lap quilt. Special care was taken to fold the bias binding in at the corners.

This was a quick project so I didn't do a normal miter at the edges. I folded the fabric over the edges using the steps above. It was quick, easy and served its purpose.

I'm giving this to my Mom for Mother's Day. It's a sentimental gift that I know she'll love. We see these unfinished pieces/panels at thrift stores, garage sales and flea markets. I'm encouraging you to pick one up, finish it and add it to your home decor or give as a gift.

I do have two more panels of hers so sooner or later they will show up here reimagined as something else. BTW, a version of this post has already appeared on the Janome blog.

...as always more later!