First of all, I’m sorry for disappearing the last couple of weeks, there was just too much stuff going on and still is, so I probably won’t be posting a lot in the next couple of weeks either. I even haven’t gotten around reading all of your blogs lately and haven’t checked my Bloglines in ages but I promise I will! 

So I guess this is just a quick post to let you all know that I’m still around and sewing, even though not as much as I would like to :( 

As I mentioned in my last post, I made bag for my friend Ela and I used the awesome owl fat quarter I got from Staci. It was the perfect match, because Ela just loves everything baby blue and cute. I’m still in love with the Lots of Pockets Tote pattern and eventually I just have to make one for myself.

Now let me introduce you to Luan, he’s the cutest little guy ever and I just had to make some pants to fit his cuteness. Luan is the son of my friend Claudine, you isn’t only probably the most funniest, loving, big hearted but also the most stressed resistant person I know. If you scroll down you’ll know why. 

I used the Huck Finn pattern from Weekend Sewing and they’re really easy to whip up. I think the sizing is kind of off because I used the size for a 12 month old and Luan is 7 month and the pants fit perfectly. I still have some awesome Alexander Henry print laying around that I’m planing to use on another pair but next time I’ll definitely make them in a larger size.

Luan, who is also called Mausen, not only got some new pants but 10 new little friends to play with, because Uma gave birth to her 10 puppies on the weekend. So in addition to Luan, Uma and the two cats, Claudine now has to handle ten, soon very active, puppies. But aren’t they cute?! 

Ok, that was my little update and I really hope I’ll get around posting some Sunday Stash this weekend too. But even if I don’t, I got my Saturday morning blocked for catching up with all of your posts!

Last Saturday I made another shirt using my first commercial pattern. It’s Simplicity 7018 and even though the shirt is easy to sew, I had such a hard time understanding the instructions. Why? Because the instructions are in German. I know this is weird because I am German, but when I started sewing last year in September, all I did was reading blogs in English and buying English patterns, so I never made anything that was written in German. And let me tell you this: German sewing terms make no sense at all!! I had such a hard time understanding what I should do that I translated the German terms back to English. Weird. For the German readers: why is “gather” called “einreihen” and not “raffen”?! 

Enough of the rambling and on to the shirt. You might remember the fabric from this bag, this pouch or this pincushion. It’s amazing how many projects you can get out of a duvet cover, and I still have enough left to try out a skirt and at least one other blouse.

You can’t really see the details in the picture, but I promise to take a better one of the new shirt I’m planing to make with the fabric I bought at the dutch fabric market. I’ll also add some elastic to the hem and the sleeves so it it will look like a mixture of version 3 and 6.

But for now, I’m off to my sewing machine to finish the bag for a friend I’m going to visit over the weekend. I really hope it will be sunny in Cologne, I’m so spoiled here in the south with good weather that I just don’t want to wear socks ever again :)

Can’t. Stop. Sewing. Shirts. Help!! I made this little beauty on Sunday and I’m sure I’ll be wearing this a lot if the weather stops being so un-springish. I guess making shirts is my new addiction, because I already have three new ones in the making. Okay, not in real life, but in my head I’m already sewing :)

Note to self: smile more

This is another version of the Trapeze Sundress from Weekend Sewing. I cut off 23 cm (9 inch) and made the straps a tad wider. On Heathers blog, she suggests making one big box pleat instead of two smaller ones in the front if you are busty. Baaad idea. It looked totally puckery and not really flattering, so out came the seam ripper and back to two small ones. The great thing about this shirt is that it uses exactly 1 yard of focus fabric and a fat quarter for the bodice. If you make the small version, and not the large as I did, you may get away with a yard for the whole thing. 

As much as I want to sew some more I’m not sure if I’ll find the time this week, so why don’t you check out the great submissions to the Spring Top Week and get some inspiration - maybe it’ll be your new addiction too!

I can’t stop making clothes from Weekend Sewing, seriously, it’s like an addiction! I never, ever thought I would even start with garment sewing, all I ever wanted was sewing bags. Thank you Heather, not only did you design my favorite fabric ever (everything from Mendocino) you also created my favorite sewing book so far. I could sing praises about Mrs. Ross for the next 3 pages but I guess you all know by now how much I adore her work, so on to the Trapeze Sundress.

Remember my first try on the Summer Blouse? I still had plenty left over from that sheet and after seeing Starr’s pretty  Sundress I just had to try it.

Well what can I say, it’s a nice little dress and I would definitely wear it on the beach, but since the next beach is about 1000 km away, I’ll probably never get to wear it. It looks ok from the front, but since my “girls” and bottom are kind of, uhm, big, it’s not really flattering from the side. So what to do? Cut the whole thing off and make a shirt!

Ah, much better now:

(I really have to find another way to take pictures of myself, my green corridor is starting to annoy me and I just can’t get a clear shot)

As far as the pattern goes: it’s a breeze to sew! Heather explains it very well and I wasn’t lost anywhere in the process. I can’t remember how long it took to finished it, but it felt rather quick. I used the large version and even though the upper bodice band is a tad too wide, it fit’s perfectly around my bust. I already have a new one in the making and some ideas about alterations for future shirts: front pockets, buttons on the straps, elastic on the hem….

I’ll add this to the Spring Top Week over at Made by Rae and if you have some time on your hand, why don’t you make a shirt this weekend and join the fun?

If you’re too lazy to make one yourself, you can always stop by at Karen’s brand new home (former Craftermath) and buy one. She makes a very similar version out of her beautiful pashminas! 

It’s nearly midnight here, so I’m off to bed soon because tomorrow I’m going to the dutch fabric market. I didn’t even know we had something like this in our town, but Melina over from HomeMadeStuff gave me a call today, so tomorrow it’s all about two girls with coffee in their hands, sun over their heads and and probably empty wallets :)

Remember my Spring Quilt I started way back in Febuary?  Well, I actually managed to finish all the blocks and sew them together! Please excuse the washed out pictures, it’s impossible to take a good shot in my apartment, the lighting is so off :(

The layout is inspired my Denyse Schmidts’s “What a bunch of Squares” quilt, I just didn’t use her design for the blocks but came up with my own and then just went improv crazy with the different prints. I used some brown linen for the sashing and cut each square slightly different like Denyse suggested. As much as I like the look and feel of the linen, it’s a bitch to work with because its fraying like nobodies business. The quilt is kind of busy and I did a bad job of mixing the different blocks, but so far I really do like the outcome. 

Now I only have to come up with some kind of design for the back and then I’ll have to quilt this beast. I would love to do some free motion quilting but I think this ones too huge to try out my skills. With 165cm x 200 cm I’m lucky if I don’t mess up straight lines. 

Some Heather Ross

Some Joel Dewberry

And lots of Amy Butler

Enough with the garment sewing, I’m back with a bag! It felt really good to make something I actually know how to make and with this tote, I don’t even have to feel guilty about having too many bags because it’s actually a present for one of my best friends who is turning 30 tomorrow. I really had a hard time picking the fabric for the bag, because her style is a lot more girly than mine, so I let her choose the main fabric from Etsy and went with her request for some lace.

I used Keyka Lou’s Lots of Pockets Tote and mixed the Kokka print with some brown corduroy, a pink cotton for the lining and some lace. I think the flap could use a pretty button, but I hadn’t a pretty one lying around so I’ll just buy one next week and sew it on in the office, lucky for me we’re working together :) I’m still not 100 % sure if she’ll like it but it was as girly as I could get.

As far as the pattern goes: I absolutely love it!! I enlarged it by 120%, because her pattern tend to run small, and made the handles a bit wider and longer. It’s a great, great bag with an awesome shape and I really like the front pockets. I may even go so far and say it’s my favorite bag pattern so far. Which leads me to the conclusion: I have to make one for myself to. But you knew that already, didn’t you :)