All the advice you’ll ever need to find The One.
How to Organize and Keep Track of Your PDF Patterns
PDFs can be pesky things. Here’s how I organize my patterns from other pattern makers I love to make sure I don’t lose any and I can find them easily.
I notice for me personally, staying organized is much easier if I put the pattern in my filing system right away after buying it instead of leaving it in my messy downloads folder.
Most patterns come as .zip files. Once the files are extracted, you can delete the .zip file.
So here’s one good option of how to organize patterns
1) Have a folder just for sewing patterns.
2) In that folder, have a file for each pattern maker.
3) In each pattern maker’s file, have a file for each pattern you have from them.
4) In each pattern file, have all the PDFs that go with the pattern.
Again, once you have the PDFs, you don’t need to keep the .zip file. Declutter and toss it in the digital trashcan.
Pocket Placement Really Does Make a Difference on How Your Bum Looks
I glued pockets in different spots to experiment with the way they can effect the look of your bum. It turns out, it really does make a difference!
1) Small pockets make your bum look bigger.
3) Low pockets make your bum look saggy.
2) Big pockets make your bum look smaller.
4) High pockets can possibly make your bum look lifted (although I don’t think this really works with my bum shape).
5) Narrow pockets can make your bum look narrow and not plump.
6) Wide pockets make your bum look wide, but not necessarily in a good way.
The best placement is different for every bum (and how that we can decide where to put our pockets when we sew). For me, I think I like medium sized pockets right in the center (photo 1).
I hope this is helpful for deciding where to place your pockets. Gotta get that bum looking its best!
Dyeing my Denim Jacket
When you’re dying to do some dyeing….
Both jeans are the wonderful Dawn Jeans by Megan Nielsen. The jacket was on super clearance at a RTW store.
I left the jacket in the dye bath for over 12 hours. And I learned it’s probably best not to put black dye in the washing machine because it’s permanently dyed purplish pink now. Live and learn!
Ultimately, very happy with how the jacket turned out.
We Are Ambassadors
Have you ever thought about how whatever you do, in the minds of other people, you automatically, subconsciously, become a representative of the whole community?
If you are a sewist, you are a representative of the sewing community to all the people who know you sew.
If you cycle, you are a representative of the cycling community to all the people who see you on the road.
If you have committed your life to a faith, you are a representative of that faith community to everyone who knows you belong to that faith.
People can form thoughts and feelings about entire communities based on a few seconds of interaction with a representative like you and I, even if we don’t realize we are having that much influence.
It seems there are two ways to respond to this. It can feel like a lot of weight to proceed through everyday life with that responsibility on your shoulders. But a better way to look at it is it’s inspiring and motivating to have that responsibility! You have the power to influence someone’s whole perception of the things you’re interested in, the communities you are apart of. What a big influence you have in the world!
Let’s be the best ambassadors we can be of our hobbies and passions. Sometimes we fail, and that’s okay. We can try again tomorrow.
How to Sew Mitered Corners
Here’s how to do it
1) Iron all sides of the fabric at your desired hem width.
2) Fold the hem over again with the same width and iron.
3) On the corner, unroll one fold of the hem.
4) Fold the corner in diagonally. Align it so the fold creases made from the iron in the previous step match up with the width of the first fold of the hem. Iron the corner down so it makes a diagonal crease in the fabric.
5) Mark along that diagonal crease with chalk or pencil or fabric pen.
6) Fold the fabric over and sew along the marked diagonal line.
7) Trim off the corner, leaving about 3/16” seam allowance.
8) Flip the corner right side out. Use a point turner or some other pointy object to press out the corner.
9) Edge stitch along the inside edge of the hem.
10) Enjoy the beautiful corners with all the extra care and love you put into creating them.
This lovely lightweight linen fabric is from Fabrics-Store.com. I enjoy sewing with their fabric. They have a wonderful selection of linens in various weights and colors. Not to mention they are a family company, and their blog is amazing.
Rainbow Arch - How to do it
Before I bought my new house, I was dreaming of how I would decorate. There is this wide beautiful archway, and I knew I wanted to do something with a rainbow. The ideas kept morphing into other ideas, and then this idea hit. It was pretty clear it was the one. (As in, the one you are going to marry, the rainbow you are going to paint.)
The ancient Hebrew texts describe the rainbow as a sign of the Lord’s faithfulness and promises. I love that! Besides rainbows being beautiful in and of themselves, I want to walk under a reminder of the Lord’s faithfulness every day.
Here’s how to do it
1) Paint the arch white.
2) Figure out how wide each rainbow strip is going to be.
3) Mark the lines of each strip in several places along the archway.
4) Following your markings, use 1/4” painters tape to delineate the strips.
5) Paint the wall white again over the tape. This seals the cracks and gives a really clean edge when you peel off the tape. This step feels a bit extra, but seriously, do it. It makes a big difference and you’ll be glad you did it.
6) Spend a long time picking out the perfect colors.
7) Paint the rainbow. (Somewhat difficult to decide if you want the red on the right or the left….)
8) Carefully peel up the tape.
9) Enjoy rainbow.
This superior painting method for obtaining crisp lines was taught to me by my friend Nate. Thank you, Nate!
Behind the Scenes - How I Made My Parents House Video
I recently posted this video, and I wanted to show you the more messy parts of how I made it.
One principle I see over and over again is that anytime something is birthed, it’s messy. I grew up on a farm and have seen many, many, many births. It’s always messy and painful. But the result is beautiful.
The same goes for creation of our projects.
Here’s my messy creation process
1) The best thinking happens while driving for me. I go on long drives just to come up with ideas. The idea for this video came on a drive, so I recorded the basic structure of how I wanted the story to go into my phone while rolling along the river.
2) Sitting on my bed a few days later, I re-recorded the story into my phone (much quieter in my house than in my car) in sections. At first I tried to record the whole thing straight through, but that was hard to not mess up, so I recorded it in 14 parts.
3) I went through hundreds of photos at my parents house (on multiple occasions). I was looking for:
Photos of construction work on the house
Photos of the family
Photos of the new farm location
Photos of Grammie and Papa
Photos of my parents
My original idea was to tell the story through props. I was going to use popsicle sticks to build the house and a little toy truck to haul the house down the road. I went to the store and bought supples, and then went back to get even more supplies. But I couldn’t quite get it the way I wanted. So I scraped that idea and realized photos were a good option.
4) It was a task to sort them out and decide which photos were best to use, and to decide the order. This took a long time.
5) There were lots of gaps in the story that couldn’t be told through photographs, so I had to come up with ideas of other things to illustrate the story. This part was hard because I also had to figure out how to make the props visually engaging for the duration of time they were being talked about. That’s how I came up with the idea of writing, so there would be movement on the screen for a longer period of time to keep interest.
6) After putting photos and props in the chosen order and running through several practices, I set up the camera and recorded it. I hit record, then sat under the tripod and slowly piled on the story pieces.
7) I imported the audio files and video file into Adobe Premier Pro and edited them together. It took some time to get each part to line up. Lots of the video parts are sped up or slowed down dramatically from their original state.
8) After seeing about how long the video was, I knew how long the piano part had to be. I recorded the piano and made the song roughly as long as the video.
9) After final edits, I hit publish. This step is simple but isn’t to be overlooked in any birth process. Without hitting send, your creations are not birthed into the world. It’s the scariest part, but one of the most important steps.
All in all, it took me several weeks of thinking, rethinking, collecting more photos, re-working ideas. The final product is very different than my original imaginings. Very different but better. It’s finally done, birthed into the world. The mess is cleaned up, the photos are back at my parents’ house where they belong, and my camera is waiting for its next story.
Good Things Come From Bad Things - My Parents House
When things get rough, or when you are exercising faith for a breakthrough, it’s important to remind yourself of past situations where bad things worked out for a much better situation.
I’d like to share the story of my parents’ house with you. After almost a decade of saving, planning, building, they were just about to move in. But then a devastating disaster hit.
I put together this video to tell you the story.
I encourage you to make mementos of times things have worked out for your good in your life. Reminded yourself of them when you need a jolt of faith.
The Easiest Way to Sew In-Seam Pockets
Did you know it’s super easy to add in-seam pockets to almost any skirt or dress sewing pattern? It’s just takes a few extra steps.
Here is a simple step-by-step tutorial of how to do it!
1) Cut 4 pocket pieces. Serge all the way around each piece.
2) Serge the sides and bottom of the front and back skirt pieces.
*Serging not shown in following illustrations.
3) Mark 5” (13 cm) down from the top of the skirt pieces. Depending on what you are making, you may want to move the pockets up or down. 5” is a suggestion if the skirt is going to sit on or near your waistline.
4) With right sides together, line up the top of the pockets with the the mark made in step 3.
Sew the pockets with 1/2” (1.3 cm) seam allowance.
With a steamy iron, press the seam allowance toward the pocket.
5) Place the skirt pieces with right sides together. Pin or clip in place.
6) Sew along the entire length of both seams and around the pockets. When you come to the top and bottom of the pockets, make a sharp pivot into and out of the pocket. Be sure not to sew straight down and sew the pockets shut!
Sew with a 5/8” (1.6 cm) seam allowance.
That’s it! Turn the skirt inside out and it’s fully pocketed!
Proceed with the rest of the sewing instructions for whatever pattern you are making.
Chamomile Crop Dress
Introducing the Chamomile Dress — a flowy pattern addition to the Chamomile Crop.
It is flowy like a wildflower in the field and it has pockets to hold all the essentials of life — lip balm, keys, little rocks you fall in love with on walks along streams, money for buying little chocolates and paying parking meters, tampons, and other necessities. They are big pockets.
The skirt can be made long or short — you should probably make at least one in each length to cover all the options :)
Billowing gathers, confident lines. It’s a perfect summer dress.
Interviewed by Fabrics-Store.com
I had the big honor of being interviewed by Fabrics-Store.com to start of 2020 with a bang! They sent me a few yards of this beautiful, bright, heavyweight softened linen Marigold fabric along with some brilliant interview questions.
I tell the story about my unconventional upbringing, why not living around a lot of people is good for me, and why I’m so passionate about sewing.
Here’s an excerpt:
Somehow when we are disconnected from the process of creating clothes, we receive the message that the clothes we buy are the “right” version of how a body should be, and our bodies are the “wrong” version. It feels like it’s something we need to fix in order to be beautiful, to have worth even. When you start sewing, you recognize that clothes are mere shapes of fabric cut and sewn together. There is no “right” and “wrong” shape. It starts to dawn on you deep within. It wells up in an indomitable force of confidence, the realization that your body is perfect. Right and wrong simply doesn’t exist.
Rosemary Wrap Sew Along
Oh the elegance of wrapping yourself up in fabric. The Rosemary Wrap pattern is meant to be among the simplest forms of clothing, the form of wrapping yourself up in fabric, but in a way that hugs your beautiful curves.
Let’s dive in.
Sew the waist ties with right sides together and sew along the short end. 3/8” (1 cm) seam allowance. Press the seam open, then set aside the waist tie for now.
Sew all four darts. Press the outside darts out and the inside darts in.
Serge or zigzag stitch all the way around the sides and bottom of the skirt. Fold it toward the right side 1/4” (6 mm) and press. The curved hem version of this skit has the hem visible on the outside as a design detail. If you are using fabric that you would rather not show the wrong side, you can press the hem toward the wrong side.
Fold the hem again 1/4” (6 mm) toward the right side and press. Edge stitch along the entire length of the hem.
For the square hem version, fold up the bottom edge 1/2” (1.3 cm) toward the wrong side and press. Fold up again 1/2” (1.3 cm) and press again.
Edge stitch along the folded edge. Repeat steps to hem both sides of the skirt.
Place the center of the waist tie in the center of the skit with right sides together. Sew along the entire length of the top of the skirt. 3/8” (1 cm) seam allowance.
Fold the tails of the waist ties with right sides together so the edges meet. Sew the entire length of the tails with 3/8 (1 cm) seam allowance. Leave the ends of the tails open.
Turn the tails right side out using a bodkin or safety pin. It will be easier to turn if you grade the seam allowance before turning. Press the tails.
Once the tails are right side out, press the waist tie up, and the seam allowance up toward the waist tie.
Fold the top edge of the waist tie down so it meets the seam allowance. Then fold it over again so the bottom folded edge just covers the seam.
From the front of the skirt, stitch right along the seam (stitch in the ditch) and make sure it’s just catching the folded edge of the waist tie on the back side.
Fold in the ends of the waist tie tails and sew shut.
The last step is, of course, to wrap yourself up in handmade love and tie a bow in the back. To be worn proudly and confidently in all your feminine glory.
If you don’t have the Rosemary Wrap pattern yet, you can get it here!
Comparing the Philippa Pants and the Dawn Jeans
What a privilege and joy it is to sew our own clothes! Our own pants!
I sewed the Philippa Pants by Anna Allen and the Dawn Jeans by Megan Nielsen in the same denim to compare the look and fit of each. Both are wonderful patterns! They each have good instructions and are an enjoyable sewing experience. It’s a delight to have each of these pants in my wardrobe.
Note that the Philippa Pants pattern has a side seam, but I joined the front and back pattern pieces on this pair and omitted that seam.
The Dawn Jeans pattern has 4 leg options. This is the tapered leg view.
The denim is 12 oz brushed bull denim from the lovely Cloth Story. She still has some in stock if you want to grab it for yourself!
Here are side by side photos of each.
Philippa Pants
Dawn Jeans
The simple lines and wide fly are what I love about the Philippas. The classic jean look and back yoke are what I love about the Dawns. This is my second pair of each pattern, and I hope to make more!
XOXO
14 Long Sleeve T-Shirt Sewing Patterns for Winter Sewing
3 Great Bodysuit Sewing Patterns
Belen Bodysuit by Masin
The Belen comes in long sleeve or sleeveless options.
Rowan by Megan Nielsen Patterns
The Rowan comes in turtleneck and V neck options, and as a long sleeve shirt, or as a bodysuit.
Nettie Dress and Bodysuit by Closet Case Patterns
The Nettie comes in short sleeves and long sleeves, and as a dress or a bodysuit.
Two-Toned Bleached Denim Dawn Jeans
I finally sewed my first pair real jeans - the Dawn Jeans by Megan Nielsen. Non stretch, high waist, classic tapered fit. Needless to say, they are fulfilling my handmade jean dreams.
I bought 2 yards of 12 oz., dark wash, non stretch denim. I cut it in half and soaked one half in bleach water for 3.5 hours.
The longer you leave the denim in the bleach, obviously the lighter it gets. I checked on it every 15-30 minutes and swished it around to make sure it was bleaching evenly. When the color looked about as light as I wanted, I took it out and washed it.
Once I washed and dried both the light and dark wash denim, I cut out the pieces and sewed them up.
The Dawn Jeans pattern instructions are a joy to follow and sew along with. I made a size 4 and tightened up the waist a bit by taking off some extra width from the center back and the side seams — a common adjustment I have to make with pants.
To see my favorite way to sew beautiful topstitching on a button fly, check out my photo tutorial here!
What a joy to have my very own jeans, handmade by me, fit perfectly to my own body. So thankful for this pattern!
3 Beautiful Wrap Skirt Sewing Patterns
The Ultimate Way to Sew Beautiful Button Fly Topstitching
The dreaded topstitching of the button fly…. It’s scary because it’s one of the most visible parts of the pants. The good news is there is an easy method to get the stitching looking good every time.
Topstitching the fly was the main thing that held be back from making jeans. I was fearful the fly stitching wouldn’t look good. Had I known how easy this was, I think I would have started my journey of making pants-with-button-flies earlier than I did.
So let me spare you some heartache. Here’s how to nail the topstitching…
1) Cut a fly pattern piece out of scrap paper.
2) Line up the curved edge of the pattern piece right where you want your topstitching to land on the button fly — I want mine to land right along the inside of the serger thread.
(I have an abundance of scrap paper from paper patterns, so I’m using some for this tutorial.)
3) Keeping the paper aligned, flip the paper and button fly over. Using a pen, mark the paper along the top and edge of the button fly.
4) Cut out the stitch guide along the line you just drew. Clip the paper piece in position on top of the pants, with the button fly in position underneath.
5) With everything lined up perfectly, stitch right along the edge of the stitching guide.
6) Unclip, pull off the paper, admire your work.
7) Once you have one line of stitching, you can easily use that line as a guide for sewing another line.
Rosemary Wrap Sewing Pattern Materials List
Ready to wrap yourself up in some handmade love? Here are the fabric requirements and fiber content recommendations you need for the Rosemary Wrap.
This pattern is meant to be light hearted and chill. Meaning, it’s easy to cut out, easy to sew, easy to wear, easy to fit (because it wraps!), and easy to adjust the length to your preference. Check the chart below to find your approximate size and the corresponding fabric yardage requirements.
