New Princess Dress DIY Fabric Kits!

In preparation for my daughter's 7th birthday party I decided to make her a Snow White dress to go with the princess theme.  I decided to use the Everyday Snow White Pattern from Made For Mermaids and chose to make it with Michael Miller's Fairy Frost.  I fell in love with this fabric and thought it makes a perfect princess dress suitable for everyday use.  The dress turned out so awesome that I had an idea to put together dress kits with everything you need to recreate princess dresses with the Fairy Frost fabric.  I approached Megan from Made for Mermaids and she liked my idea as well so for the last few months I have been working hard on creating the perfect princess dresses and turning them into kits.

What is so great about Fairy Frost fabric you might ask?  Well to start it is 100% cotton making it washable and dryable.  Also, not only is it easy to work with but comfortable to wear too!  However, it doesn't just look like boring solid color cotton.  The fabric has subtitle tones to it and shimmer (sometimes glitter).  So it looks fancy while being practical at the same time.

Made for Mermaids patterns are also awesome as well.  Most are peasant dresses but what makes hers different is they are shaped (i.e the front and back are not the same cut with the back higher than the front).  I think this makes a more comfortable and better looking dress.  Her directions are excellent too, even for a beginner.  Let me tell you, I am far from a beginner but I suck at putting in zippers.  When I made the Anna dress I put the zipper in right the first time and didn't even have to use my seam ripper!

Now to get back to the kits....  They all contain everything you need (minus the sewing machine and notions like thread and scissors) to recreate the princess dresses shown in the photos for each listing.  I have taken the guess work out of which fabric colors go best for each dress.  It is hard when looking at a computer screen to know which color will be the best choice (especially since there are over 100 fairy frost colors).  I also provide the exact amount of trim and elastic you need.  What that means is you don't have to buy a whole spool of ribbon just to get the small amount you need!  Each listing lists what is included in that particular kit.  They are all made using patterns from Made for Mermaids.  So, the pattern is needed in addition to the fabric.  There are two options to buy.  If you already have the pattern needed or would rather buy it directly from Made for Mermaids then you can choose just to buy the fabric.  If you do not own the pattern you can choose to buy the fabric and the pattern together at the same time.  Then I will email you the pattern within 24 hours.

As of this date I have 5 kits.  Anna, Snow White, Cinderella, Belle and Rapunzel.  Sleeping Beauty is coming soon.  They can be found on my Etsy or website.  Right now they are on sale on the website only through this coming weekend.

Now for some pretty photos.  The following photos were taken by a photographer local to me in Orange County California.  So, if you live near me check her out.  Here is her info: Kristina Kazarian Photography www.kristinakphotography.com and www.facebook.com/kristinakazarianphotography

Wedding Pillow Cover Tutorial

I came up with this pillow cover last year when I needed to make a wedding gift for my husband's co-worker. Recently I had a request to make another one to give as a gift to an upcoming wedding. I didn't write down my math the first time so I had to figure it out all over again. So I decided this time to write a blog post on how to make it so I could refer back to it later and also share with others in case they want to make a unique wedding gift. The embroidery design can also be changed to make a pillow for any occasion.

Materials needed: Makes a cover for a 16" pillow form

~ 1/2 yard of a non-directional print or 3/4 yard of a directional print. I used Black Damask from Riley Blake in the pillow cover shown

~ White or other solid color fabric for the middle panel at least 10.5" x 8.5"

~ Embroidery or applique design of your choice. The embroidery designs I used was from Embroitique. I used the Ryan font frame and the font is the Jacob font.  I used the font frame with the finished size of  8.49" x 5.61".  I did have to add the period with my embird software because this font does not come with one.   I used the 1" size and slightly shrank the est. 2014

Step 1: Embroider your design on the solid fabric. Your finished size will be 10.5" wide by 8.5" tall. You can either cut it to size before you embroider or after. I like to hoop a larger piece so that I can hoop the fabric instead of floating it on the top of the hoop and cut it to size when I am done.

Step 2: Cut your pieces. You will need the following:

~ (1) 10.5" wide by 8.5" tall of the solid color fabric you embroidered on

~ (2) 11.5" wide by 17" tall pieces of your patterned fabric for the back of the pillow

~ (2) 4.25" wide by 8.5" tall pieces of your patterned fabric

~ (2) 17" wide by 5.25" tall pieces of your patterned fabric

If you want to change the size of the piece in the middle you just have to redo the math so that your final size will end up to be 17" x 17".  Don't forget to account for seam allowances.  I am using 1/2" seam allowances.

Step 3: USE 1/2" SEAM ALLOWANCES

With right sides together sew the 4.25" x 8.5" pieces to each side of your embroidered piece. Finish your seam (serge or zig zig)and press the seam away from the center towards your patterned fabric.

Step 4: With right sides together sew the 17" x 5.25" pieces to the top and the bottom of your embroidered piece now with sides. Finish your seam and press away from the center.

Step 5: Take your back pieces and fold in and press one long side of each back piece to the wrong side 1/2", then 1/2" again. (If you’re using a directional fabric, fold and press the left side of one back piece and the right side of the other.) Hem.

Step 6: With right sides together pin your back pieces onto your front piece, overlapping them in the middle. Sew with 1/2" seam allowance all around the square. Finish your seam, turn right side out and you are done!

Fall and Christmas Photos

A few weeks ago I got my kids pictures taken by a professional photographer in my area (Fitz Photography). I decided to make all of their outfits of course. First we did a more casual look and they all wore their cowboy/cowgirl boots. For the girls tops I used the Brownie Goose Hattie pattern and Art Gallery fabrics from the reminisce line. Art gallery fabrics are located here. My son's shirt was made with the Fishsticks camp shirt and Joel Dewberry Herringbone in Lake (now sold out)

Next I got my son's 2nd birthday photos taken. I appliqued him this Mickey Mouse shirt because I took him to Disneyland on his birthday. Isn't he just the cutest thing?

Finally, we did more formal outfits. These are actually their Christmas outfits. For the girls I used Sewing Mama Reanna's bumblebee dress pattern. This dress is this designers first pattern for sale and let me tell you it is fantastic. The directions were easy to follow and the fit was spot on. I used Riley Blake's Andrea Victoria Black Damask for the fabric. The fabric can be found here. I embroidered their monograms with a deep red thread so it would be sort of Christmasy. I also made my son a tie using this free tutorial I found through pinterest. I also embroidered his monogram in red.

Celebrating 5000 Etsy sales

Back in 2010 when I started this business with just a handful of Michael Miller fabric to sell I never dreamed that I would be where I am today. Today (October 26th) I have just hit 5000 sales on Etsy. I now also sell on my own website and carry fabrics from 10 different companies. To celebrate this milestone I am hosting a giveaway and SALE! From now until next Saturday (November 2nd) at midnight enjoy 10% off on BOTH Etsy and the website! Just simply use the coupon code Etsy5000 at checkout. And now for the giveaway. Enter below to win one of 2 prizes. The first is a $25 gift certificate to the website. The second is a 1/2 yard bundle of Riley Blake's Andrea Victoria fabric as seen in the photo.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

500 Facebook Fans Giveaway

I woke up this morning and saw that I now have 500 fans on my facebook page! To celebrate, enter the giveaway to win a blanket kit of your choice! a Rafflecopter giveaway

Minky Burp Cloth Tutorial

Today I am going to share with you how I make minky backed burp cloths. When I use one of my blanket kits (non patchwork) I always have a little bit of leftover cotton fabric. I have just enough fabric to make a burp cloth and infant bib using my bib pattern. Extra minky and a scrap piece of warm and natural batting is all I need to make a cute gift set to go with the blanket.

Step 1: Cut out a rectangle from your cotton fabric in the measurement that you want the finished burp cloth to be plus 1/2". I cut mine 17 1/2" long by 9 1/2" wide. Place the cotton fabric on a scrap of warm and natural batting (or other similar cotton batting) with the right side facing up and pin all around.

Step 2: With a long machine stitch and using 1/8" seam allowance baste all the way around removing pins as you go. Trim the batting even with the cotton fabric. It is easiest to use a rotary cutter/ruler.

Step 3: Place a piece of minky right side up on a flat surface. Place your fabric/batting down on the minky with the right sides together. Pin all the way around leaving a gap on one side for turning about 5" long.

Step 4: Switch back to a regular machine stitch and sew all the way around using a 1/4" seam allowance. Make sure that you leave a gap on one side for turning. Trim the minky even with the cotton fabric/batting EXCEPT where the gap is.

Step 5: Trim corners and turn right side out. Using a pointy object (I use a plastic chopstick) poke out the corners carefully.

Step 6: Tuck in the minky at the gap and iron all the way around on the cotton side ONLY. Do not iron on the minky side. Pin the opening closed and topstitch all the way around.

Congrats! You are done

I used Safari Soiree Cheater fabric from Birch Organics and Charcoal minky from Shannon Fabrics to make the burp cloth shown in this tutorial.

Happy Ever After Apron Dress

I have finally decided to do another blog post. I just had to share this cute dress I just finished. It is going to be a birthday gift for my friend's daughter next weekend for her 5th birthday. I used 4 prints from the new Happy Ever After line from Riley Blake. I used Main for the skirt, Dresses for the bodice, Gingham for the straps and apron ruffle, and Carriage for the apron detail. The fabrics can be found here. The pattern I used is the Charlotte Apron Dress from The Cottage Mama. It comes in sizes 6 months-8. The apron is the perfect backdrop for applique. The cute Sleeping Beauty applique is from Lynnie Pinnie. She has many more princesses in this same style and go really well with this fabric line.