Alice’s Tea Party Princess Dress

Here it is my third round entry for SYTYCS hosted by Ashley from MommyByDayCrafterByNight. This contest has been so much fun and really pushed me to do things I’ve had in my head for a while. I hope you will all vote for me so that I can make it into the TOP 3; the last round of the competition. Voting for this round starts on Wednesday January 18, 2012 at 8:00 am EST and ends on Thursday at 8:00 pm EST.This is Alice’s Tea Party Princess Dress. I originally wanted to make this for her 3rd birthday, but my previous attempts ended in a mass of shredded muslin and frustration. A while back I described the dress I wanted to make for Alice to my friend Mercy and asked her to sketch it out. She is an amazingly talented artist. She whipped up a couple of sketches in no time and they were all beautiful.
I combined Mercy’s vision with my own evolving view point, which was inspired by Alice’s dress from Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland. If you know me at all, you know I’m a sucker for Tim Burton films and the always appealing Johnny Depp.
I’ve also been aching to try my hand at an eyelet corset because I love the look so much more than the easy peasy loop method. I spent a ton of time trying to decide what fabric I should use, but had no doubts when I saw Shabby Chic Treasures in purple. I mean, I can’t tell you how much I love this collection of fabric. I stalked all the online sites waiting for someone to restock.
Now, I wish I had some sort of tutorial to post for all of those reading, but this competition moves very quickly and there just isn’t time for that at the moment. I spent all of my spare time last week sewing, gathering, ripping seams, sewing, running to the store for trim and more needles, ripping seams, sewing, taking photos, editing photos and writing up the dreaded blog post. I fair much better with a needle and thread than I do with html, even in its simplest form.

So, hang in there and I will do my very best to come up with some tips and tricks on setting eyelets. In the mean time, I will also get to work on perfecting and writing the next princess dress pattern and tutorial.
Love it? Please vist my Facebook and Etsy shop for more or contact me at TenderfeetStitches@gmail.com

Lady Pepperell Re Purpose

I made it into roud 3!!!! Thank you to everyone who voted for me! This is my round two entry for So You Think You Can Sew hosted by Ashley from MommyByDay CrafterByNight Voting begins Wednesday January 11, 2012 at 8:00 am EST and ends Thursday at 8:00pm EST. I hope you will vote for me as the competition is seriously talented! The three contestants with the lowest number of votes will be cut and the top six will move to round three!

This week our challenge was to re purpose something. I was in a bit of a panic as I've found it difficult to find interesting things out here in the wild west. When I lived back east there always seemed to be something interesting lying around.

A while back, I purchased a vintage Lady Pepperell flat sheet from an Etsy seller. I fell in love with it but I was waiting for inspiration to hit me before I went to hacking away. Through my panic and a few bad attempts at re purposing some old dresses, I started imagining a bustle skirt and thought the sheet would be perfect. So, I set to creating with my fingers crossed.

When I was halfway through with the skirt I saw an old bed skirt and thought I should make an appropriate top to go with the skirt. It was a fun pink satin bed skirt with a tulle overlay.

I spent the better part of a day messing with the straps trying to create something fun and unique. When it came time to add the ruffles to the top and the butt bustle, I pulled out an old blue pillowcase to add a bit more color. I tossed in some older stock lace I had sitting around and made up one of those little roses from my last round project and voila I was content. I had to move the furniture around in my son's room, so that I could use the walls as a back drop for the photography. I got really lucky too, with the setting sun coming in through the window at a decent angle. I did have to edit the top of Garrett's precious, fuzzy head out of one of the pictures, but I'm just glad he got to help me out. Eventually, I will find the time and energy to put this dress on my daughter, Alice and get a few timeless photographs. In the mean time, I hope you all enjoy it and that it may inspire you to rummage for old fibers and create something original.

If you like what you see and love to sew or want to learn be sure you swing by my shop and take a look around!

A Walk in the Clouds

First off go vote for your favorite round one contestant for SYTYCS (me I hope)
I love the outdoors. I grew up taking adventure hikes through the woods with my sister, riding my horse and helping my dad build things in the yard. I loved mowing the lawn because it smelled so sweet and the sun felt great on my face, though it helped a great deal that we had a riding lawn mower. We use to boat on the Gulf of Mexico, putt down the river in search of manatee and swim the day away in fresh springs. Before I had my children, I covered the state of Arizona, by car and by boat. From desert valley floors to alpine peaks, canyon lakes and party coves it’s an amazing and diverse state.
Now that I have two small children it is hard to get out into nature and even harder getting out into nature and relaxing. As a result I spend a bit more time inside or in a more comfortable environment for both me and my kids. I’ve found that when it comes to decorating my home I want nothing more than to bring the outdoors indoors. I cling to earth tones and natural woods, oaks, greens, blues, creams and on occasion a little golden yellow, red and orange. For the master bedroom I wanted to recreate the Arizona sky. We have a large set of windows that let in a ton of light, which is wonderful when I’m not trying to sleep. I have always wanted fluffy white curtains with a lovely shade to block out the light but keep the sky alive.
After 25 yards of fabric and a lot of time on a step ladder I’m really happy to share what I was able to create. This project was larger than I expected it to be and it took a lot of “sleeping on it” to obtain the end results. This is really my first serious endeavor into curtains, drapes and the like. I used my experience designing clothing for my shop to help me along the way. This is also my first round entry for the So You Think You Can Sew contest hosted by MommyByDayCrafterByNight. I’m flattered to be a part of this contest and can only hope, cross my fingers and make a few wishes that I can get past round one. If you love what you see, please take a moment to check out her blog and vote for me! Voting will be open for round one on January 4th & 5th 2012.
Continue reading for a quick and easy rose flower tutorial, just like the roses seen on my curtains.

To make this rose you will need:

*A strip of lining fabric 5" x 44"

*Your sewing machine

*Thread

*Hot glue and glue gun


Step 1: Cut your strip of fabric. I like lining fabric because it is light weight, has a nice sheen and is inexpensive.

Step 2: Fold your strip in half by bringing the two long edges together, right side out. Offset the short end by about 1" and sew a continuous gathering stitch down the long side where the raw edges meet.


Step 3: Gather your piece to 22" or half the original length. Secure and evenly distribute your gather.

Step 4: Start at one short end and roll you fabric tightly about 10 times. Be sure you glue occasionally to hold the flower together.

Step 5: Begin loosely wrapping the rest of your strip around the center. Pay attention to the shape as you go and glue to secure.

Step six: Finish off at the end of your strip by tucking the exposed part out of sight. You may want to add a little glue to the bottom of the rose to help secure its shape.



Please let me know if you have any questions! Thanks for stopping by my blog.
~Amanda~
TenderfeetStitches@gmail.com

It's a Cinch again...

Here’s a quick tutorial. This may be very handy for those of you who have my Twirl Skirt pattern and you’re looking for an easy way to cinch up the side. As I said in my last post about skirt cinching, I prefer to just fold it up by hand and add a bow or other embellishment. This method is pretty simple though, so give it a go!

What you’ll need
A finished skirt or other project that needs a little cinching
1/8” elastic: white for light fabrics, black for dark fabrics
Thread that coordinates with your skirt
Your sewing machine

I am using a mock skirt in the photographs. The Yellow is the skirt and the blue along the top is the waistband. You will need a length of 1/8” elastic that is at least a few inches longer than the drop length of your skirt, or a few inches longer than the length you would like to cinch up. An excessively long piece is fine, there’s no reason to cut it yet. Begin by attaching the elastic to the underside or, the wrong side, of your skit in the spot you want to create a cinch. Tack the end of the elastic at the hem line with a straight stitch. Be sure you back stitch.

Now, change your machine to a zigzag stitch and set it to full wide and about a medium stitch length. Zigzag over your elastic, taking care not to stitch into it, until you are within 1” of your waistband or where ever you would like to stop.

Hold the hem of your skirt in one hand and the long end of your elastic in the other hand. Pull the long end of your elastic until you achieved your desired amount of cinch. Finish by tacking down the long end of your elastic with a straight stitch and trimming off the extra. Add a bow or add nothing at all. Hit the elastic with some steam for a little extra bounce and stretch.

Machine Shirring Tenderfeet Style

This is such a fun and easy technique that too many people find initially intimidating. Take heart, the web is full of how-to tips, free, affordable and adorable tutorials, videos and information. I have read a great deal on the subject and applied it time and time again. So, I decided to compiled the included information for my followers, in particular Pamela ;). Enjoy, and feel free to add your own tips and information in the comments section.

It’s as simple as this...


What you need:
Your sewing machine
Regular machine sewing thread
Elastic thread (you can usually find this in the elastic section of your craft store)
An empty bobbin
Fabric


A few things to consider:
Every machine and every person sews differently. You will likely need to spend some time practicing on scrap fabric until you find that sweet spot. Different weaves and weights of fabric gather differently. A satin fabric will gather more readily than a denim. When considering how wide your fabric should be, a simple rule to follow is 1.5 to 2 times wider than the desired width of your completed project.

So here we go and remember, it’s easy!

1) Begin by loosely hand spooling the elastic thread onto your bobbin. Be sure you go in the same direction that your machine does when it spools the bobbin automatically. Also, take care not to stretch the thread.
Some have had better success letting the machine spool the thread, possibly because it adds just a little bit of tension. I have tried this and seen little difference. To do this, I began by spinning a little bit of elastic thread onto the bobbin. Then, I placed it onto my machine, just as I would when spooling regular thread. I held the elastic in my hand and began spooling; taking care not to put too much tension on the elastic.

2) Load the bobbin into your machine as you normally would when you’re about to sew.

3) Set your straight stitch length to its longest setting.
Some have had success with a normal stitch length and still others, somewhere in between. This is where you have to play around with your machine a bit to find that sweet spot. Adjust your stitch length and tension until you gain the desired results.
For me, I set my machine to a standard straight stitch and adjust my length to a 6.0.

4) Starting at one end of your fabric, run a stitch down the width to the other end. Make certain you backstitch several times at the beginning and end of your shirring stitches. Also, do not pull your fabric through the feed. You don’t want to stretch the elastic thread. I will admit that I do, at times, encourage my fabric through the feed. The important thing to consider is if you put too much tension on your elastic thread, it may break with use.
Some prefer to knot the thread tails by hand, instead of backstitching.

5) Add as many rows of shirring stitches as needed to achieve the desired results. The distance between each stitch row can vary, depending on your project. The closer your rows and the more you add, the more your fabric will be drawn in. If you have many rows close together, you may begin to lose your stretch. So, the size of your project is directly proportional to the distance between each row!

6) Place your project on the ironing board and hold your iron over the elastic, not touching, and let loose on the steam button. This will make it shrink up, giving you more ruffle and stretch. The same effect will be achieved in the dryer, the first time you launder. So, if your project doesn’t seem to have gathered quite enough, add a little heat and watch it retract a bit more.

For a simple project to hone your skills give my free sun hat tutorial a try. If you think you’re ready to move on to something a bit more entailed, search the web for free dress tutorials or check out my Etsy shop. I offer several adorable and easy to make patterns at affordable prices.

The Name Game

Well, in light of several current events, I am moving the name game for my upcoming tutorial onto this blog. I have selected many of my favorite suggestions and just ask that you comment below with your favorite(s). You may choose up to three names. If you are having trouble commenting, simply email your choices to Tenderfeetstitches@gmail.com. The winning name will become the name of the pictured dress and the contributor will receive the completed tutorial free of charge. Thanks so much for helping me decide and following me to my blog. Voting will close when I finish writing the tutorial, within the next week.






Please choose no more than three (3) names.


Mandy Carey Sweet Sassafras
Leah Curran Picnic in the Park
Courtney White Martin Sweetheart Dress/Top
Abbie Simpelo-Dyer Tallulah
Little Tickle Boutique Bella Rose
Pamela Bell The Meadow Brooke
MaukyJo Shoulder Tie Apron Dress/Top
Jheri Jordan Heart of Dixie
Jheri Jordan Shabumpkin Summer Dress/Top
Micheline Nadeau Fairbank Little House on the Prarie Summer Dress
Amber Wirth Mommy's Little Helper

Votes via email

Mommys little helper
Little house on the prairie
The Meadow Brooke

Children’s Cloth Book Tutorial

I like making all sorts of stuff with my fabric scraps. This morning I decided to put together a little tutorial on making a cloth sensory book for babies and toddlers. I’m sure this tutorial isn’t perfect and things could be done in better ways, but this is what I tossed together. There is always room for improvement. I hope you enjoy it!


What you will need
Your sewing machine
Thread
Scissors
Scrap fabrics different patterns and textures
Scrap ribbons
Non toxic, baby friendly embellishments
Tips
Use a zigzag or multiple stitches to secure embellishments and ribbons, they will be tugged on!
Avoid choking hazards and long pieces of ribbon.
Consider the patterns and textures of your fabric scrap as they can add to the sensory appeal of the book.
You want to avoid toxic materials. I recommend stitching ribbon edges that may fray and avoiding fray check and other chemicals.
Have fun and be creative!


First I cut 8 pieces of fabric about 5.5” x 6” for the inner pages, 2 pieces of fabric 6" x 6.5" for the first and last pages and one piece 12”x 6” for the cover. I also gathered pieces of scrap ribbon and other non toxic and baby safe embellishments I had on hand. Add as many pages and embellishments as you like but be cautious of bulk.


Next, I attached all of the ribbons and embellishments to the appropriate pages. Be certain to place things away from the edges. You will lose up to ½” seam allowance. If you are attaching ruffles and ties to the front cover, as I did, direct them inward and sew them at the edges of the pages.


Then, I attached the first and last pages to the cover. Right sides go together and you will stitch around thefour outer edges, leaving the middle unstitched. Make sure you don’t stitch any of your ribbons and embellishments into the seam, you may want to pin them out of the way.



Clip the corners, not the inner stitch, and flip the cover right sides out.


Now you will stitch all of your pages together along three edges, leaving the inner edges unstitched. Be cautious of page placement and direction; left to right and top to bottom. Also, be sure you don’t accidently stitch your embellishments into your seams, you may want to pin them out of the way.


Again, clip the corners and turn your pages right sides out. Iron and top stitches all of your pages and your cover.


Stack your pages in the correct order and directions, with the raw edges lined to your left. You will stitch them all together down the raw edge. Clip the two corners of this stitch.


Slide the pages into the cover of the book. I slid them under the first page and tucked in the raw edge. You can also tuck them into the last page, just be sure they are lined up at the center of the cover. Run a zigzag stitch down the center of the book.


You’re done!