I am having so much fun sewing for this challenge! In three weeks I have used 36 yards of fabric!! I think I might just be able to get rid of one of the boxes cluttering up my sewing room – hooray!
This week for Puddle Jumping I went beyond the traditional jumping in puddles definition and imagined that I would be flying on a “puddle jumper” (a very small plane that flies over bodies of water, often in remote areas). Here is what I created:
A new skirt and blouse! This New Look blouse pattern is one of the first I ever used when I was just learning to sew. I always thought it didn’t fit quite right, but chalked it up to lack of experience. Now that I have made a second one I realize that this pattern just wasn’t made for me. Anyone with a bigger bust than mine looking for a cool summer blouse? 🙂
The skirt I created from guidelines for the fitted A-line skirt in Sew What Skirts. I really enjoy this book but overall I find they recommend way too much ease in their patterns. I have had much more success with making skirts from this book once I moved to adding the bare minimum. This skirt has a zipper and lining! I have never lined a skirt before but this fabric really needed it and I am so proud of the way it turned out! The flapped patch pockets will be included in my pocket tutorial on Wednesday as part of the Summer of No Pants.
I also created a poncho-style wrap for chilly spring days using this tutorial.
I then decided that if I was travelling, I was going to need a bag for all of my things. I was a little unsure of how to make a duffle-type bag, and without a pattern I went to bed dreaming about bag construction for a couple of nights before creating this one. (I didn’t name my business “Dreams in Seams” arbitrarily!)
The bag I came up with is based on this tutorial but I made the whole thing smaller to accommodate the zipper I had on hand, then added a front pocket, a large clip-on strap with shoulder padding, and I used fusible fleece in between the decorator fabric and lining for stability. I am really proud of this one!
Then Sew, Mama, Sew posted a tutorial for a mini tent this week! It seemed perfect for the idea of camping in remote areas the puddle jumper might take me to so I whipped one up in an evening. This is a great tutorial and a really fun project.
Finally, I decided to make some much-needed spring PJs, because after a day of adventure you’re going to need a good sleep, right? I have made several pairs of PJ pants for myself in the past but this is the first pair that I am 100 percent happy with. They are made with Simplicity 5338 and the secret for me was to make the youth size (only longer), which took out a lot of the width and fullness at the hips which I don’t need. Notice the ducks with umbrellas on the fabric, perfect for “puddle jumping” right? The top was made from the Spring Ruffle Top tutorial on Sew, Mama, Sew.
Phew! 13 yards this week! Plus a pocket tutorial (coming up on Wednesday)and one giant failed project. I am hoping I might be able to resurrect it for next week but I’m not sure if it’s save-able. We’ll see…. I once again used the most fabric this week so automatically move on to week 4. This week’s theme: “Let’s Fly a Kite.” Somehow that final scene from Mary Poppins has become permanently stuck in my head! 🙂
oh – thats why I couldn’t vote for you lol 😉 Loved the little tent and the skirt!
Andrea
Everything is so cute and pretty!!! Especially love the PJ set!
Hello again, Andrea! Congratulations on creating lovely sewing projects, again! Your baby tent is so cute. You should bring it to school and put it in your reading/library centre and let your students read in it. I got that idea from several primary teachers at a favourite school here in London, and I think it helps to make independent reading more enjoyable and special!
I love the idea of a tent for the reading corner – this one is only big enough for a stuffed animal to reside in, but I saw a pattern for an A-Frame tent I liked the look of only a few days ago that would be perfect for this! Thanks for the suggestion!