Simplicity 2245

Oh I can be such a doofus!  I've been sewing for months for the Sewing With a Plan contest (SWAP) at Stitcher's Guild, and I finished on time... but I totally spaced out and missed the deadline to get photos in yesterday.  So frustrated with myself.  Oh well, at least I have some great new things.

ANYWAY, moving on.  I have to catch up on showing my me-made photos, but trust I have still been participating.  For now, I'll show something brand new, finished up just yesterday - Simplicity 2245, which is apparently so out-of-print that it isn't on the Simplicity website anymore.

Now, I have mixed feelings about this.  I fear that it won't be very popular.  It has a distinct whiff of muumuu.  However, the fabric is so pretty, and it fits well, and the pockets are just so handy for toting around my iPod that I am in love.

The height of fashion?  No.  Not even with the cute little star buttons which probably push it into twee-town.

But goodness help me, I just like it.  Is it super "becky-home ec-y"?  Do I care?  I tried it with a couple different pairs of leggings, but I like it best with some white shorts just peeking out the bottom.  Hubs thinks it is super retro... like 1950s housewife housedress.  Not his least favorite thing I've made but not his most favorite either.

Do the pockets make it look like a nurse's smock?  I can't decide.  Again, though, I can't be bothered to get too worked up about it either way.  Maybe if I'd made the yoke and cuffs from the same fabric as the body, it would look more conventional?  I don't know.  Practicality wins me over either way.  I just am in love with these big pockets.

I know using a quilting cotton for a garment is the ultimate faux pas for some seamstresses, but I just can't get worked up about it.  I know this is not the latest thing from a catwalk, but I just don't care.  The fabric makes me happy.  I just hope I'm not a walking billboard for "why not to sew your own clothes."  :-)

Oh, the fabric is by Moda.

Gradations Bag followup

Oh my, such excitement over my Gradations Bag!  Thank you, thank you for all the kind comments about it.  I have still been proudly carrying it around. 

Lois, I don't think I'll be selling these.  1 - I didn't check the terms of use, but I'd probably have to buy some kind of license to use this pattern to sell, and 2 - With as much time went into this, I'd have to charge like $400 for one to make it worth my while.  :-)  That said, for friends and family who have voiced some interest, I'll see what I can do just cause I love yas!

Mom - sorry I misunderstood your glances.  Maybe I'll let you borrow it when I visit.  :-)

Baby Quilt

If it seems like I'm jumping from one project to another without actually finishing much, um, you're right.  What can I say?  Old habits die hard and I want to try out everything my new machine has to offer.  Wednesday was our one month anniversary together and we're getting along swimmingly.  I even had my first class about my new machine last night, and that was so much fun!  I pretty much never meet fellow seamstresses, so it was cool to meet some other ladies, too.  I can't wait to have the next one next week.

Here is a baby quilt top I made with a specific recipient in mind.  I pieced it together a couple of weekends ago, and it went really quickly.  It's about time to put on some borders and quilt it if I'm going to have it finished before someone's big arrival!  I'm going to dabble in a little free-motion quilting as well as copious amounts of stitch-in-the-ditch.  I always thought free-motion quilting sounded impossibly difficult, but we did just a smidge of it last night and it's not that bad.  Just takes practice, and I doubt the baby will mind if I use his blanket for that.

I used my embroidery module to do the applique embroidery parts, and I strip-pieced the 9 patch squares.  I used a pattern in a book, which I'll tell you about when I finish this sucker.