Menagerie + La Maison Victor Dolores Skirt

Posted in Books + Podcasts, Fabric Finds by The Sara Project

Is anyone else drooling over the new Cotton + Steel Rifle Paper Co. Menagerie Collection!? It’s so good! My favorite print of the whole collection has to be this gorgeous monstera leaf print though. I was instantly drawn to it. This fabric is a cotton rayon lawn blend, and really just the perfect weight. It’s not as shifty as a 100% rayon, but not as thick as a 100% cotton. It has really lovely drape too.

I chose this print for my Dolores Skirt, a pattern out of La Maison Victor’s magazine now translated into an English version! Let me tell you, this magazine is stunning! It’s filled with 8 sewing patterns, instructions and beautiful images of the finished patterns. It’s hard to pick just one! I also like that they included patterns for everyone: babies, kids, women and even men. I’m thrilled to be part of their worldwide tour celebrating the new English Version. If you’re from the United States, you can pick this up at your nearest Barnes and Noble store.

All of the patterns in the magazine can be found in a center fold out. Everything is very clear and easy to understand. There’s two patterns per page overlapping one another marked in black and red. I used a green marker to outline the size and pattern I needed, and then traced it onto pattern paper. There are two pieces for each skirt piece that need to be taped to together to make the completed skirt front and back.

The instructions were very clear and the skirt came together in one night. I did take off about 1 1/2″ off of my hemline. No other adjustments were made. I really love the look of this skirt and the length is amazing. Midi skirts are having a major moment.

I find that because I don’t have a lot of shape to my figure (no hips), skirts without a lot of volume aren’t very flattering on me. I love the bit of gathering along the waistline of this pattern to help add a little bit of volume for me. I really love the button front, I chose some wooden buttons from my local Joann Fabric store. I’m excited to wear this skirt into the beginning of fall. I love that I can dress it up for church, or wear it casual for an outing with my kids. It’s super versatile! Go grab a copy of La Maison Victor’s newest issue and sew up a Dolores Skirt for yourself! Happy sewing friends!

La Maison Victor provided the magazine for this post, and Cotton + Steel provided me the fabric.

1Aug2017

Spoonflower Gauze + McCall’s 7544

Posted in Fabric Finds, Pattern Reviews by The Sara Project

Hey friends! I recently did a really fun collaboration with Spoonflower to help launch their gauze fabric! This fabric is typically used to make baby blankets, but it works great for garments too! I love the soft texture of gauze after it’s washed, and the laid back vibe it gives to any garment. I picked the French Linen Sedona print, and I love the boho vibe it gives paired with this pattern. It’s a great match! Plus anything in white is perfect for summer.

I sewed up this top using McCall’s 7544, with a few adjustments! I lengthened the front and back yokes, and added a bell sleeve to my version. Check out my post over on Spoonflower’s blog for a full sew-along and pattern adjustment tutorial!

I really love the loose shape of this top. It’s so comfy to wear and dresses up really nicely.

Thanks for reading along and as always, happy sewing!

Shop my look:

-necklace

-shoes (on sale!)

-pants (with a few inches cut off).

Spoonflower provided me the fabric for this post.

31Jul2017

Fabric.com Pleated Sleeve Tutorial

Posted in Sewing Tutorials by The Sara Project

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I shared a recent post on Fabric.com’s blog all about how to make this pleated bell sleeve. A sister-in -law of mine was wearing a shirt with knife pleats all around the sleeve that stopped mid-sleeve creating a bell shape along the bottom edge. I was instantly intrigued and set out to make my own.

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I used this gorgeous french designer aztec collage rayon challis for my fabric, and paired it with the Key Largo top by Hey June Patterns. I used the Key Largo sleeve and altered it into my pleated sleeve.

I love the feminine touch the sleeve adds to this top. I also like that it’s different from a typical bell sleeve. I love re-creating inspiration found in ready to wear stores and making into my own. There’s so much satisfaction that comes with making your own clothes! Head on over to fabric.com’s blog for the full sew-along and tutorial!

I’m wearing my Safran Jeans by Deer and Doe Patterns in these photos.

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This post contains affiliate links.

26Jul2017

Sewing with Cricut!

Posted in Pattern Reviews by The Sara Project

This post is sponsored by Cricut. The opinions expressed in this post are my own. Affiliate links are included.

I have a such a fun post planned for you today in collaboration with Cricut! I’ve been eyeing all the fun graphic tees in ready to wear stores right now. I love the minimalist fonts, and hilarious sayings. So when I was thinking of what I would like to make with my new Cricut Explore Air 2, I instantly pictured a cool t-shirt or sweatshirt with a creative saying on it.

I chose to sew up the Linden Sweatshirt for this project, paired with a the saying “I’m sew busy.”. I chose this phrase because it rings pretty true for my life right now, and it’s something I would totally throw on with jeans and wear out. I picked up my grey knit fabric from my local Joann Fabrics shop.

Keep reading below to enter a giveaway to win your very own Cricut Explore Air 2!

The Linden Sweatshirt is a pattern stash MUST HAVE. It’s your classic raglan sleeve sweatshirt pattern. It’s an easy 1 hour project, and a necessary wardrobe staple. This happens to be my first ever Linden, and I’m seriously questioning why I waited so long to sew one up. I just love it. This pattern does tend to run a size bigger, so keep that in mind when deciding on which size to sew! I made the size small that matched my measurements, but I probably should have made the xs.

This is also my first time working with a Cricut machine, so I wanted to start out with something simple and easy to figure out. Now my mind is spinning with the endless possibilities this little machine holds within!

Creating a vinyl iron-on is very easy to figure out, and I’m excited to walk you through the process today! You can also watch this video for everything you need to know about ironing on a vinyl iron-on image to a garment.

First of all, sew up your t-shirt or sweatshirt (or use an already sewn top) and set it aside.

Next, decide on what color vinyl iron-on(s) you want to use for your project. You can layer different colors on top of each other for a really cool look. I decided to go with one color for my sweatshirt, and I chose white.

Next, you’ll need to go into the “Cricut Design Space” and click on “New Project”. Select the text button, and type out your saying. Here’s a direct link to this project if you choose the same saying and font that I used.

Now we get to choose a font. Cricut has tons of font options, but I opted to download a free font from the internet. To add an outside font to your cricut design space, you need to first download the font onto your computer and save it within your font files. Then open or reopen Cricut Design Space, and look under the systems tab within the font option, and you can find all the fonts saved to your computer. It’s super easy to figure out. I used this font called Bebas Neue Bold; it’s free! I did move the letters slightly closer together too.

Now we need to prep the mat so our vinyl is ready to be cut. My phrase was only two inches tall so I cut a small strip about 4″ tall of my white vinyl, and then smoothly placed it along the top of my mat.

Next you will click on “make it” on the top right corner, and remember to mirror the image before you send it to your machine to be cut. Set the dial to “Iron-On”, load your mat, and press the blinking button on your machine to begin the cutting process.

Once your phrase or image is finished being cut, unload the mat and pull it out of the machine. Slowly peel away the vinyl from the mat to reveal your image.

Next, using a Cricut Tool, remove the small pieces within the letters so the image is all cleaned up. This is called weeding.

You’ll notice there’s clear plastic behind your image, attached to the mat. Slowly pull it away from the mat. Decide on where you want to position the saying on your shirt. I used a ruler and water soluble marking pen to get just the right spot.

Now remove your image from the sweatshirt, and run a warm iron set to the hottest setting over the spot where you are going to place your image. Put the image back in place with a cloth over it, (I used some cotton fabric) and iron over each section for about 25 seconds.

Flip the sweatshirt over and iron the back side of the garment for another 25 seconds on the same area.

I went over the front with a cloth on top one more time after this step. Now wait for everything to cool off. Once cooled, slowly remove the plastic off of the phrase or image.

And just like that you have your very own, customized sweatshirt! (And I think this might be a fabulous idea for Christmas presents this year! Yes?). Happy Sewing friends! Keep reading below to enter a giveaway to win your very own Cricut Explore Air 2!

Enter to Win a Cricut Explore Air 2 HERE

Make sure to follow along with the rest of the tour for lots of Cricut inspiration!

Week One: July 19th

The Simple Life Company

Riva La Diva

My Sweet Sunshine Studio

SewSophieLyn

Week Two: July 26th

I was invited to participate in the Cricut Party Blogger Program Kickoff.

This experience is based strictly on my opinion. Others may have a different opinion or experience with the product listed above. I was provided the sample free of charge by the company or PR agency and I have given my honest opinion.

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Cricut. The opinions and text are all mine.

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20Jul2017

The Patricia Dress with Stylish Fabric

Posted in Fabric Finds, Pattern Reviews by The Sara Project

This post is a very special one! I made matching dresses for my (almost) 4 year old daughter and I using the Girls Patricia Pattern by Simple Life Pattern Co. and the Women’s Patricia Dress pattern by Sew Caroline paired with some really gorgeous crepe chiffon from Stylish Fabric. I collaborated with Kim of Sweet Red Poppy and her daughter by sewing matching dresses (hers are made in a different colorway of the same fabric print).

First of all, this fabric! It’s simply stunning. I chose to work with the off-white version of this crepe chiffon fabric, one of four different color options. While I was excited about the crepe part I was a little nervous about the chiffon. Typically chiffon is super light weight and sheer, so I didn’t know what to expect. When it arrived I instantly thought it was even prettier in person. It’s light, and partly sheer with really great crepe texture. (The colored versions are not as sheer as the white, Kim didn’t need to line hers). It has a little bit of stretch to it too. I would compare it to working with a rayon. I didn’t have much trouble with it. I washed and dried this fabric on a delicate setting in my washing machine and dryer and it came out great. I also used a really soft off-white rayon crepe to line my whole dress (more on that coming up later in this post). It made a really great lining for this dress.

Now on to the patterns I used! For my daughters dress, I used the girls Patricia Pattern by Simple Life Pattern Co. It comes in a dress and top option, both equally darling! It has a boho vibe with bell sleeves and a ruffle along the hem. I made a size 3 for my almost 4 year old girl and it fits perfect with a little room for growth; she’s pretty average in size. I made the more moderate skirt option for her dress, and slightly raised the back neckline by a few inches. I also cut her sleeves to be a short sleeve length with the added bell sleeve ruffle, per her request! She loves it and asks to wear it all the time. It’s so cute on her too!

The Women’s Patricia pattern is still currently in testing, but will be available on SewCaroline.com next week! I made the size small according to my measurements, but probably needed to make a size XS. The top is a little wider than it probably should be for me. (But I still love it!!!). I used the more moderate skirt option and added 6″ in length to make it a midi style. I also just used a single layer of fabric for my bell sleeves and dress hem ruffle. The pattern calls for two layers (one big piece folded in half to automatically finish off the hem edge). I also made the short sleeve option for my bell sleeve, I cut off a little more past the actual short sleeve marking to make it a little shorter. The sleeves are also a little too wide so next time I would narrow them down a bit too.

For the neckline of the bodice and bodice lining, after sewing them right sides together, I under-stitched the seam allowance to the lining, and skipped the top stitching step.

Let’s talk about lining this dress! (This is the same for both mine and my daughter’s dress). It’s super easy! The pattern calls for the bodice to be lined, so that’s simple and explained in the instructions. For the skirt, I cut out two skirts, one out of my floral fabric and one out of my lining. I sewed them up the same way, but hemmed the bottom of my lining skirt. (So it ends right where the ruffle starts on the bottom of my dress). To attach the skirt to the bodice, I pinned both skirts together and basted them together while I was putting in my basting stitches to gather the skirt to the bodice. Then I created my gathers at the same time for both the lining and skirt, and pinned them to the bodice, then sew, and finish. It was super easy and looks great.

It was so fun to do a mommy and me photo shoot and with some great friends too. We absolutely love our new dresses!

Now for the best part, there’s a giveaway! Head over to my Instagram post featuring these dresses to see what you need to do to enter! Good luck!

Photos by the talented Rachel of Little Fish. Fabric was provided by Stylish Fabric, but all opinions are my own.

19Jul2017

Ojos Flame + Highlands Wrap Dress

Posted in Fabric Finds, Pattern Reviews by The Sara Project

I’m back with my last post for April Rhodes Heritage + Arizona After Blog Tour! This post is all about Arizona After’s Ojo’s Flame print in Rayon. It’s a stunner! (And there’s a giveaway!).

The Arizona After fabric collection contains some really cool aztec prints that would work really well for several different kinds of projects that include cotton, canvas, knits and one rayon print. I fell in love the the Ojos Flame print in rayon. It has a really cool vibe and I lovvvee the burnt orange color.

This fabric is so soft and drapey. It was really great to work with, but has the basic characteristics of a rayon: the hardest part is getting the pattern cut out without letting your fabric shift too much. I like to turn the pattern piece over after cutting, unpin the front and move the pins to the back to help re-lay the fabric smoothly, then trimming off any fabric that might have not been cut out perfectly.

I instantly pictured the Highlands Wrap dress by Allie Olsen of Indiesew paired with this fabric. This is my second Highlands Wrap dress; you can read about my first one here where I talk about all the adjustments I made to make it a little more modest. It’s pretty rare for me to sew something up twice, so you know this pattern is a good one!!! I think this version will wear really nicely into the fall as well.

I originally made this dress to help showcase this gorgeous fabric in April Rhodes booth at Quilt Market this past Spring. April is one of my most favorite fabric designers and it was soooo cool to be able to work with her in this way. How gorgeous is her booth!?

Okay, now for the giveaway! Head on over to my Instagram account (look for this dress in the post) to read all the rules about how to enter April’s mini loop contest. Good luck!

Fabric was provided to me for this post, but all opinions are my own.

10Jul2017

Briar Tee + Ninni Culottes

Posted in Fabric Finds, Pattern Reviews by The Sara Project

Hey guys! I’m back with another fun post for April Rhodes Heritage + Arizona After blog tour. For this post I chose to put together an outfit that is a little out of my comfort zone, turned closet staple! I’m so excited to share it with you.

For the top I used Megan Nielsen’s Briar Tee (part of the Project Sew My Style line up for the month of June) using a knit from the Heritage Collection called Father Totem. I love how soft Art Gallery Fabric knits are! This print has a really cool vibe; it’s neutral but still has a slight pattern to it. I quickly and easily pictured it as an easy t-shirt paired with jeans (or culottes in this case!).

The Briar Tee is quick to sew up, I shortened mine slightly. It does have the high low hem but you can’t see it because it’s tucked in. (See photo above for hemline). I really like the look of this hemline because it adds a little bit of drama to an otherwise basic tee. I omitted the pocket on my version, but technically sewed version 3 of this pattern. I really love it!

Okay, now for these culottes! This is one of the new Named Clothing patterns: the Ninni Culottes. This is the part of my outfit that is a little outside of my fashion comfort zone, but there was something about them that drew me right in. I love the easy elastic waist, and the chicness of culottes in general. I decided to give them a go, and was pleasantly surprised.

I used a super soft rayon chambray I picked up at a local Joann’s store, and I think it’s a perfect match. I love that these pants pair well with most tops in my wardrobe too. Just make sure you don’t ask my husband what his opinion is of these culottes! For the most part, my rule of thumb goes like this: if my husband is not a fan of an item I’ve made, it means I did something right. (He’s my toughest critic).

They too are a quick sew, and easy to put together. I love how cool they are to wear in the heat of summer, plus the elastic waist band for optimal comfort. (Secret pajamas!).

Thanks for reading along! Stay tuned for one more project coming at you next week for this tour. Meanwhile, make sure to keep up with the rest of the tour:

June 28th – The Sara Project

June 30th – I Love You Sew!

July 5th – A mini Instagram loop all about Arizona After, with 5 surprise makers! Head to my IG feed around 5pm EST on this day to find the kick off post and follow all 5 makers for a chance to win fabric!!!!

July 7th – TBA – Surprise blog! 😉

July 10th – The Sara Project

July 12th – Sew To Speak

July 13th – A mini Instagram loop, this time all about Heritage, with 5 surprise makers! Head to my IG feed around 5pm EST for another chance to win fabric!!!!

July 17th – Threadbear Garments

July 19th – A second mini Instagram loop featuring Arizona After. Head to my IG feed around 5pm EST on this date for a chance to win fabric!

July 21st – Bad Nana’s Bandanas

July 24th – Willow And Stitch

July 26th – Mister Domestic

July 28th – Last mini Instagram loop featuring Heritage, with 5 surprise makers! Head to my IG feed, 5pm EST and follow all 5 makers for the last chance to win fabric!

July 31st – Recap of all the amazingness!

La Maison Victor provided the magazine for this post, and Cotton + Steel provided me the fabric.

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Enter to Win a Cricut Explore Air 2 HERE

Week One: July 19th

Week Two: July 26th

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Fabric was provided to me for this post, but all opinions are my own.

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