Treat Yourself Sales and Pretty Pictures To Inspire

While gift giving is fun, it's also nice to treat ourselves to a little something that we might enjoy! 

This morning I received a message from Burda Style that everything in their store is 30% off with coupon code TREAT30. It's a 3 day sale, so if there's something you would like, be sure to hurry over.

I picked up this fun top. 

I love the shape of the shoulders, the funnel neck, and the shaped hem. I have my fingers crossed that I'll be able to ink out a little time to get it done in the next few days. HERE'S a link to the pattern 
   

IThinkSew has tons of their patterns on sale. You can see their sale page HERE.  You may remember the Emily Bag that I did for a Sew News sew along. The pattern is on sale for 50% off and you can find it HERE.

During the month of December, IThinkSew is also offering free patterns to those who are newsletter subscribers and have purchased patterns in the past. This cute little coin purse pattern just arrived in my inbox this morning. You can find the pattern HERE.

A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to see the Mainbocher exhibit at the Chicago History Museum. If by chance you find yourself in Chicago, the exhibit runs through September of 2017, so by all means, add it to what you might like to see in Chicago!

This video gives you a great glimpse into the exhibit.

As I began the tour, I saw this quote and thought that this is how all of us who sew feel about our creations.

We had a tour guide who pointed out the jewelry that matches the gown. Mainbocher was VERY particular about what was worn with his creations.

This jacket was designed in the 1930's and is as much in style now as it was then.

I absolutely loved this piece.

I found this gown particularly interesting.

Look closely and you'll see the subtle change in colors that were used for each panel.

There are much better pictures of this gown on the website.

The dress below was designed to be worn by a mother of the bride.

If my memory serves me, I believe that this cape in today's money would have been $40,000. 

Both of the dresses below were done in the 1960's. I especially like the dress on the right. Underneath the overlay is a strapless, knee length dress.  

In the video they talk about that the exhibit also offers some interactive opportunities. I am such a kid at heart, so I just couldn't help myself :) Below is one where you can create your own label.

As I said, the exhibit is well worth a visit especially is you find yourself in Chicago, or not too far away.

As the days of this week tick away, be sure to take a few minutes for yourself and nourish your soul :) 

A Pencil Case and So Much More!

Last week I showed you this adorable little pencil case from Ithinksew Patterns. 

Well, I made one up and I am in love!

I wanted a bag for my watercolor brushes and this one is perfect. My brushes are longer than the original pattern, so I simply added 4" to the length.  

The bag is fully lined and when open, lays nicely on the table.

I included this picture just to give you an idea of the new length of the bag. Reminds me of a giant tube of toothpaste!!!

The bag is billed as a perfect project for a teenager. Hey, I'm no teenager, but I loved it too. The bag is so fast and easy to put together. If you are teaching someone how to sew, this is a great project. The  zipper is very easy to install and the bag offers just the right amount of sewing time for the beginner. The bag would make great gifts that are quick and easy to make. They would also be great party favors for children. Just lots of possibilities.
Ithinksew did not provide me with the pattern, it's just one that I thought might be fun and since it was on sale, I decided to give it a try. And as it turns out, it was a lot of fun to make and I will be making more. The pattern is on sale until February 27th and you can find it HERE.

The I Think Sew Emily Bag Week 3 and The Winner Announcement

Well, huge apologies are in order. I said last week that I would announce the winner of my extra copy of Sew News last Friday and it completely slipped my mind!!! I think it's called having too much fun while being away ;), and just not paying attention. Hopefully late is better than never. So the winner is.....

Congratulations Kathy!!! Please email your address to me so I can get the magazine out to you, sewbussted@yahoo.com. Kathy has a lovely blog, http://runningwithrocket.blogspot.com/. She's a very gifted quilter. I actually had the pleasure of meeting her at the Puyallup Sewing Expo 2 years ago. Check out her blog, I think you'll enjoy it!

So...the new video is up for the IThinkSew Emily Bag. It's a longer video this week as I show you how to insert a zipper in the bag. Here's the video if you would like to take a look.



The blog post can be found here on the Sew News blog.
A little note on crazy me. As I watched the video, I thought, "oh no, you didn't say that!!!" Near the end of the video, I mark the seam allowance of the pocket with a pen, yes an ink pen and I do say that I'm using an ink pen. Then I add, "who cares." Oh my goodness!!!! Yes, it's inside the bag, but I really do care and I can't believe I said that. Live and learn I guess :) Anyway....all I had with me was a marking pencil and that would not show up, so I used the pen. Please don't think that I really don't care, as I really do. There are a number of good marking pens on the market that won't bleed through your fabric. And in all honesty, the pen marking won't bleed through my bag, not with the interfacing on the back side of the lining.
If you would like to take a look at my finished vegetable bag, I've posted it on the Flickr page and you can see it here.

A quick note on the pant drafting post. I am working on my project and I will be posting it tomorrow afternoon. So check back if you would like to follow along.
In the meantime...
Have a Wonderful Day!!!
Rhonda

The Emily Bag Sew Along/Week 2

Me Made Monday is going to be postponed until tomorrow, Tuesday morning, as it's raining like crazy and I didn't get my pictures taken earlier in the week. So hold tight and I will have the Me Made Monday post up first thing tomorrow morning.
Rather than wait, I thought I would go ahead and let you know that the post for week 2 of the Emily Bag sew along is up on the Sew News blog. You can find it here.
I have actually gone and made another bag!!! I really do like this pattern, obviously :)  Look closely and you will get a glimpse of my VERY messy studio!!

I decided to try something a little different with this bag and interface it with a fusible fleece. I really like the end result. In the video I show you the fabrics that I used and I talk about stitching the handle.



The blog post contains a list of all the fabrics and notions that you will need to duplicate the bag that I made. So over the next week you can gather all of your supplies and download the pattern if you have not done so already.
Be sure to join the Flickr group and upload your pictures. It's always fun to see what everyone is doing.
Before the sew along is over, I plan to make 1 more bag. The first 2 that I made have been spoken for and I have a feeling that the third will not be in my possession for long. So when you are thinking about your fabrics for the bag, you may want to think in mulitples!!!

The Emily Bag Sew Along Begins and Magazine Winners

I had promised to post the winners of the Sew News magazines yesterday.Sadly, there was a bit of a technical issue on the Sew News blog, so the post didn't get up as soon as they would have liked. But it's up now and here's a link, http://www.sewnews.com/blogs/sewing/2014/10/06/sew-the-emily-bag-form-ithinksew-join-the-first-week-of-the-sew-along-today/

So without further delay....
The winners of the Sew News magazines are
Anne Wambui!!!!

 And Nanc who is listed as Buck Orser!!!

Congratulations ladies!!! Please email me at sewbussted@yahoo.com with your address so I can get the magazines out to you.

I have decided to make 2 new bags during the sew along. I would like to have a really nice shopping bag for my groceries, so I'm going to use these fun prints along with the leather for the handle.

 The second bag will be made with this print and the faux leather.

If you would like to take a look at the video, here it is,


And if you are joining the sew along, be sure to check out the Flickr page, you can find it here, https://www.flickr.com/groups/sn_sewalong5/ We would love to see your fabric choices as well as your progress. I think you are really going to enjoy the sew along and especially the bag!
Happy Sewing!!