Showing posts with label Sew Straight and Gather. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sew Straight and Gather. Show all posts

Crystal's Kinda Crappy

Haha!  Made ya read!  But seriously, I'm crappy at having time to do fun stuff and blog about it.  I'm still fabulous in every other way and don't you forget it.  I haven't blogged at all since December and I wanted to just do a little roundup of what I've been up to creatively.  Mostly small projects here and there.  We had some issues with a "light" kitchen/living room remodel and 14 months later, we're not done yet.  We could be, but the heat came before we could finish and 110+ degree temperatures are not worth working in.  Needless to say, I've been preoccupied trying to get that done and not cry every time I have to reach into a cupboard with no door.



So here's the stuff I never got around to blogging in 2015 and so far in 2016:

I made myself a few fun things:



A star wars top made from an altered version of the Uptown/Downtown Women's pattern from Sew Straight and Gather.  This just happens to be my new favorite shirt. I wear it ALL THE TIME.



A LBD from the Lady Skater Pattern by Kitschy Coo




A Patterns for Pirates Grandpa Cardi that I can't wait to use again!




A Coraline hoddie from the Patterns for Pirates Women's Relaxed Raglan pattern   
 

A cute polkadot Pumpkin Spice Dolman from Patterns for Pirates. Another shirt I wear a ton.  In fact I'm wearing it as I type this.





And finally, a pretty Desert Breeze dress from Striped Swallow Designs that was inspired by Pocahontas's "Colors of the Wind".  It was my first official Disneybound! I modified it to have an elastic casing underneath the bust for a more flattering fit.  I also made it a maxi because I LOVE maxis.


Yep!  I spoiled myself a wee bit....ain't sad about it!


Here's the stuff for my girl!



A bit of Scotland in an Uptown Downtown Girl's dress from Sew Straight and Gather



A Very hipster modified Saffron Twirl from Paisley Roots



A Modkid Arianne dress





A few Hourglass dresses by Rabbit Rabbit for the holidays





And most recently I made her a little princess's dream come true with a modified Town Square top from New Horizon's patterns and some Bonny legs from Made for Mermaids.

She made out pretty well, too!

Now for my son!



A TIE! ...in December...and nothing else.  Poor kid.  But if he wouldn't ruin clothes so fast, he'd have more!  He's a maniac, people.  Oh well, he rocked that tie!  Before he puked on it.  No seriously, he did.

I hope to be more productive these last 6 months of 2016, but promises like that just can't be made.  I can promise Halloween costumes, though.  I kill it with Halloween costumes.  They are my happy place.

Thanks for reading y'all!!!

-Crystal-

Sew the Show: Six Degrees of Separation- The Witches

Welcome to my turn!  Woo hoo!  I like having turns!  "Turn for WHAT?", you ask... I'm part of Sew the Show's "Six Degrees of Separation" starting and ending with the world's best thing- bacon-.Kevin Bacon, that is.  So what is this awesome series?  Well, its exactly how it sounds.  We started with Kevin Bacon and will work our way around Hollywood and it's films linking them to one another by an actress or actor.  For each movie there are bloggers creating a look.  It can be a costume or underpants for Grown up or child, no one's picky.  The goal is to end up back where everything begins- Bacon.



My movie is "The Witches" brought to us by Angelica Huston.  But how did we get here from Bacon?  Well, Here are the links to the other stops leading up to now.  Go read...



Stop 1: FreeNotion

Stop 2 : Creative Counselor and Wining Wife

Stop 3: A Jennuine Life and Rebel and Malice

Stop 4: Climbing the Willow and Cindy Parrett

Stop 5:  Lauren via Sew the Show and ME!!





Ok,  Awesome!  Now, Onto the show!  When I signed up, I saw "The Witches" and knew straight away that I hit the jackpot.  I absolutely ADORE Ms. Huston and this movie.  It's pretty dark for a kids movie, but I thought it was awesome when I was like 8.  Its better than my baby sister loving the Poltergeist series at 4 (no, seriously), but I digress.  The thing I remembered most about the movie was that children smelled like dog droppings to witches.  YOU GUYS!  That is seriously the grossest smell on the planet.  Their poo is the exact reason I won't own a dog.  If I had to walk around and smell that all the time, I'd start hiding children in paintings and turning them into mice, too.  So, you see, I sympathize with the witches.  And so I based my look on two flat-toed ladies that really couldn't be more different: The Grand High Witch and her secretary, Miss Irvine.






The Grand High Witch played by Angelica Huston, had a very strong and powerful look.  Her black dress with a commanding shape really made her striking.  She also had that dark hair, red lipstick and, well, wore an awesome hat at her entrance...I love hats. It was very indicative of her personality- dark, domineering, and strong.  At the opposite end of the witchy spectrum is her secretary in a floral peplum dress with blonde floofy hair and a stupid grin.  She was dainty, submissive and weak. (or so we are made to believe)




When making my look, I wanted to include the strong but had to also keep it a bit dainty because I'm dressing a little girl.  I took some elements from Eva Ernst (Grand High): Black background, tighter fit, and tighter long sleeves to mimic her gloves.  Then, I added a bit of Miss Irvine: the floral and the peplum.  The result is a look suitable for a child, that captures the feel of the characters.





I got the fabric from Purple Seamstress on Facebook (LOVE her!).  I used a modified mixture of the Uptown/Downtown dress by Sew Straight and Gather and the Peggy's by Create Kids Couture to make the dress.  I'm always combining and changing stuff until I get EXACTLY what I want because life just can't be easy...especially when everything smells like dog droppings; so gross. Its just so gross.





Even though I made a practical dress that my girl will wear 100 times, I had to (of course) add a little whimsy and theatrics with the hat and tights.  Besides, the Grand High Witch was VERY theatrical.  Both witches needed to be represented in an accessory, too.  You wouldn't have forgiven me otherwise.  They were both store bought because...no excuses...I just wanted to buy them.  BAM!  Truth hammer dropped!



Now, by the end of the movie these clothing stereotypes throw the tables a little bit (I'm not gonna spoil it).  Luckily, my girl had the best of both- she will not be vermin.




Make sure you check out our other contributors coming up!  It's all in good fun and maybe you'll find yourself inspired the next time you turn on your favorite flick =) Click on the picture below to see what Michele over at Falafel and the Bee sewed up!



http://www.falafelandthebee.com/


-Crystal-




Uptown/Downtown Expansion Pack Tour by Sew Straight and Gather



Hey everyone!  It’s been minute since we’ve posted- we’ve all been dealing with life stuff. Stupid life stuff!  We're back today as part of a pattern tour!  WOO HOO!  But not just ANY tour, this one's a little special; it's for an expansion pack for an existing pattern.  WOAH.  I just blew your mind, I know it.




I was feeling a little blog neglectful, so when I saw my chance to sign up for the Uptown/ Downtown Dress Expansion Pack Tour by Sew Straight and Gather, I was like “YES!”  It’s such an unbelievably cute dress- just the thing to get me out of my funk.  I’m so happy to be a part of this tour because of how cool the designer was about releasing her expansions.  Instead of charging for them, she offered them to her customers for FREE just because she felt like it.  How cool is that?!?!?  About a billion cool- that’s how much.  So here it is!



If you’ve been following the tour, you probably know what’s included in the expansion, but here’s the list: cowl neck, long sleeves, pockets, tank top, and maxi length.  With that many added options, you can get a plethora of looks from ONE PATTERN.  Value- yes!  I’m all over that like Miley on a wrecking ball...but less gross, not naked and I won’t be licking things.  Ok...bad imagery.  Changing the subject.  Changing the subject.  Oh!  There’s also an added BONUS tutorial for a color-blocked waist panel.  SAWEET.



For my girl’s dress, I chose to utilize the cowl, longsleeves and pockets.  The cowl is super warm and my girl loves pulling it over her head like a crazy person.  The long sleeves obviously also aid in the avoidance of bodily freezing, plus, they’re très chic.  Paired with boots this combo is super cute, but it also works with sneakers and leggings for the crazy superhero kapow kid who also loves wearing dresses.




The pockets are awesome because all kids love pockets.  I chose to do them in a yellow knit so they’d stand out and add a little more color.  I love color!



My girl is IN LOVE with this dress.  She’s in heaven when I sew with knit, because it makes for easy movement and let’s face it- it’s super comfy.  This dress is a truly fun sew and just what I needed to get me back into the sewing groove.  I can’t wait to try some of the other options when the weather warms up again, but I’m in no hurry for that to happen.  I’ll just sew a few more winter versions- oh darn.



-Crystal-


Don’t forget to check out the other awesome bloggers on the tour.  You can see the list on the image below.



Also, here’s a giveaway because free expansions pair well with a free pattern!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

If you choose not to wait to win it, buy it with the coupon code UPTOWNEXPANSION25 for 25% off!  This coupon also works on the Etage dress in the shop or Etsy, so stock up while the gettin’s good.   The discount is good through Saturday the 22nd.