Sweet Chevron Shift Dress

dress: self made, vest: kohls, chevron necklace: shoprarebird, shoes: Marshalls, watch: Target, bracelet: self made

Are you tired of the chevron trend? yea me neither. It only took 2 years for the fabric stores in good old NE to finally stock some. This pattern is a simple shift dress from my May issue of Burdastyle. They go for a more tropical island vibe but as you may guess from my pasty white legs that's not really my thing; enter black & white polyester blend. This is such a comfortable outfit to wear to work and I'm amazed at how versatile this little black vest has become.

Easy Tee Finished X2

I am completely in love with how my "mock" turned out. This was the encouragement I needed to spark a little creativity. I love the contrast of the structured stripes with the ease or the Swiss dot. The garment fits well, and is comfortable, no buttons or zippers; just simple. 

  

shirt: made by me, watch: Target, Pants: Vera Wang; Kohls, Shoes: Target

I apparently have a thing about the way things look from behind, it must be the fact that I wear an apron when I work. If you are interested in this pattern it is McCalls M6604. Even with me taking my time on both of these I had them done in less than 2 days! I used chiffon for both of them and a striped cotton and one of my favorite techniques to hem. I love love love these and I'm looking forward to working with the pattern again. Maybe next time without the cowl?

Project A Week: Easy Draped Tee

 I have been struggling with inspiration as of late, even with all the great blogs and pinteresting I just can't shake this block and it's to the point of frustration. I don't know if its a matter of too many ideas, an attention shift towards the house or not enough time to really think, but it's time for me to close the Pinterest window and work. Even though this pattern is labeled easy I want to take my time and improve my technique.
I'm using the swiss dot for my mock up because it's scrap fabric so I have less of an attachment to it. The kitschy floral chiffon has been starring at me begging me to make something for almost a year but I'll admit I've never worked with a fabric that wasn't a continual pattern so I've already been telling myself to take my time to align the pattern pieces correctly. For the first time in a while I'm looking forward to spending time with my sewing machine rather than plopping on the couch and watching more Dexter episodes.

To Market We Go...

The house market that is! We are in the process of purchasing our very first home! We couldn't be more excited about the house that we chose, literally a block & a half away from where we live now, but what can we say we're content in our little town. Adelle will be able to go to the same school that she started in, which happens to be the same elementary school Brett went to, and to the same middle school that Brett's parents even went to! I'm a sucker for nostalgia. Brett will also have his own office, the kids will have their own rooms and I will have my very own sewing room!
Not only have we been in the buying process but we just finished up with a friends wedding, Brett has been working overtime, Adelle finished her first year of pre-school, Adrian is on his way to walking soon & I've been working to grow my business as a hair-stylist. You know, living the American Dream!
I hope that you will permit me to share some inspiration boards & transitioning posts along with house pictures while everything is in disarray. We're so excited to make this house our own!

My World View Tee

 

 This little guy was in dire need of some new shirts, I am picky when it comes to what is on my kids shirts probably borderline overbearing but I found this great globe print on Pinterest and knew it would make this shirt awesome.

I recycled an old grey t-shirt that I've had in my stash for a while. I made a pattern using one of his shirts and took advantage of the already hemmed bottom for the sleeves & hem line. after getting it cut out this shirt probably took me a total of 20 minutes and I still have left over fabric to make a second shirt. Thanks Old Navy for your clearance men's shirts.

Sign your Art: Handmade Labels

 Labels are always an after thought when it comes to creating, you use it to tell which way is which or the size but after stumbling upon a homemade dress at the thrift store and noticing no tag I realized that a tag can be used as a signature, years from now when I'm out of my black and white chevron phase hopefully someone will know that whoever this Tangible Artiste is, they put a lot of work and thought into this specific item and will take better care of it because it's handmade.
Want to make your own labels, here is the easiest way EVER!

• Make your labels in office or open office (which is what I use) by using a business card template (this guarantees proper spacing for folding
• Iron freezer paper onto your cotton fabric (any color works, but white is always the best contrast) 
• Cut your fabric to the size of a regular piece of paper, make sure that there are no strings, wrinkles, and that every corner is securely attached to the freezer paper
• Print
• Let the Ink dry then peel off your freezer paper

•  Pour white vinegar into a baking pan and soak your labels for 5 minutes (this will make it color fast)
• Let dry since it was a nice day out I just hung it outside to dry, but since there is now snow on the ground in May you could always use a blow dryer or hang it up to dry inside.

• cut your labels out so that you can fold the bottom part up, and right sides facing together stitch the sides, trim seams, turn right side out, and iron flat. when you stitch your binding for the neckline just insert the tag and stitch into place. 
• ALL DONE!

Finding Inspiration

To me there is nothing better than flipping through a good sewing book or magazine. Don't get me wrong I pinterest like the rest of you, maybe even more than; but when you can get away from the screen and get inspired by a vintage book or a well thought out magazine I think that's magical.
Here is why I prefer vintage sewing books, there are no short cuts! If I want a well tailored garment I have to, well, tailor it. It's a reminder to take my time, think through my process and detail before I jump in. The diagrams are simple looking, it doesn't hinder my creative process by getting stuck on a certain fabric pattern, or design. 

My other learning source is BurdaStyle Magazine. I've belonged to the website for a couple years now, but only as of last year did I start sharing my stuff. I just found out they have a magazine (how daft, right?) but it is seriously the best purchase I have ever made. for $7.50 an issue you get an average of 54 patterns. That is 54 patterns a month! you couldn't even buy a sewing book with that many patterns! If you are looking for a good sewing magazine, get this one!