Craftside

Indygo Junction Pattern Giveaway and how to mark a button location before stitching

First I want to say Happy Valentine's Day all of you beloved Craftside readers!

Yesterday I shared with you about the Vintage-Inspired, Modern Style Design Challenge and today I have a super special giveaway to share with you!

Indygo Junction has offered you Craftside readers the chance to win your choice of any Indygo Junction pattern!

Here is just a few. They have patterns for everything from cute dresses to fun accessories and ornaments!

Answer the question:

What sewing technique have you either recently mastered or is next on your list to try?

Leave your answer in today's comments by Midnight ET on Tuesday, February 21, 2012 and you will be in the running.

2 commenters will get to choose 1 each of the Indygo Junction patterns.

ANd for two more chances to win a free Indygo Junction pattern pop on over to this post at Recycled Crafts at Craft Gossip and leave a comment there!

And speaking of sewing techniques here is a great tutorial on how to mark the perfect placement of a button to a buttonhole from the book Singer® The Complete Photo Guide to Sewing - Revised and Updated Edition.

Click on this page from Singer® The Complete Photo Guide to Sewing - Revised and Updated Edition to enlarge and read how to mark the placement for a button so it lines up perfectly with a button hole.

Want more great sewing tips and techniques? Then grab yourself a copy of:

Singer® The Complete Photo Guide to Sewing - Revised and Updated Edition

This is the one reference every sewer needs. Its 352 pages and 1,200 photographs cover every aspect of fashion and décor sewing. Sewers from beginners to the skilled will turn to this book again and again!

 

Amy Barickman's Vintage Inspired Modern Style Design Challenge

I have a big cool Design Challenge to tell you about today!


Amy Barickman has partnered with SINGER® and Coats & Clark to bring you the Vintage-Inspired, Modern Style Design Challenge.

BurdaStyle will be hosting the challenge on their website (www.burdastyle.com/vintagemodern).

This challenge was created to celebrate the history of sewing by recognizing both SINGER® and Coats & Clark, who are both celebrating significant anniversaries this year (160th and 200th, respectively), as well as to educate and inspire through the life and work of Mary Brooks Picken, the authority on fashion and dressmaking in the early and mid-1900s.

See Mary’s connection to both SINGER® and Coats & Clark in this video that explains the whole challenge and the fabulousness you can win!

Mary’s work is the basis for Amy's book Vintage Notions. Be sure to view the new Vintage Notions video on AmyBarickman.com. It shares Mary’s history and dives deeper into the projects, departments and materials you will find within its pages.

This challenge is an opportunity to encourage fashion enthusiasts to use their sewing skills and creativity to make a wearable fashion project.

The deadline for submissions is Monday, March 12th, 2012 at 11:59 pm (EST). The winners will be announced Monday, March 26th.

Amy also asked me to share with you Craftside readers the code VMCB for 20% off a one-time order on her website. Just add items to your cart, enter the promo code VMCB and click update cart!!

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And if all that design contest news wasn't enough here is what my fellow crafty bloggers are up to:

Mixed Media Artist
Learn how easy it is to create some great textured fabrics by adding simple hand-sewn tucks!

Lindsay Sews
Have you ever wondered what goes into writing a quilting pattern?

Eileen - The Artful Crafter
Eileen made a hybrid Valentine's Day card inspired by a book she just read, I Heart Stationery by Charlotte Rivers.

Crafty Princess Diaries
The yarn shortage is over, and the Crafty Princess can show off a baby afghan she made for a donation drive she is running for Healthy Start.

Craft Buds
Are you interested in writing and selling your sewing, quilting, knitting, crochet, or other craft patterns? Check out these tips and share any of your own.

Carmi's Art/Life World
Carmi had a whole week of CHA posts starting with this one about Basic Grey!

Aileen's Musings
Check out the Blog Giveaway Aileen is sharing and find out how you can win a felt love banner kit!

About Family Crafts
Want to participate in a fun craft challenge? Check out Sherri's current pirate make-it-over crafts challenge!

 

Win a Singer Sewing Machine and a copy of the fabulous new book PatternReview.com 1,000 Clever Sewing Shortcuts and Tips

Yup! You read the title right. As the last days of National Sewing Month draw to a close we have a super fabulous giveaway: a shiny new Singer Confidence Sewing Machine and the perfect companion to making your sewing adventure a success a copy of  PatternReview.com 1,000 Clever Sewing Shortcuts and Tips.

 
Want to win these two great items?

Answer the following question in the comments section of this post:

Where do you turn for sewing advice and techniques (whether it's a book, blog, website, magazine, or something else)?

Leave a comment with your answer by midnight ET on Thursday October 7, 2010 and you could be the proud new owner of a Singer Confidence Sewing Machine and the book PatternReview.com 1,000 Clever Sewing Shortcuts and Tips.

And just because we're doing this great giveaway doesn't mean we don't have an inside peek for you.

Click on the image from PatternReview.com 1,000 Clever Sewing Shortcuts and Tips to enlarge and read tips 387 and 388. They are for labeling your garments; one is if the fabric requires dry cleaning and the other is a set of symbols to put on your newly-sewn duds. Like these and want more? Grab a copy of:

PatternReview.com 1,000 Clever Sewing Shortcuts and Tips

Top-Rated Favorites from Sewing Fans and Master Teachers

by

Deepika Prakash

This book contains the best hands-on insider sewing tips from PatternReview.com, a sewing community of more than 170,000 members. The entries are collected from the website’s enormous database of members’ shared comments and advice, rated by hits and reviews. Also included are five special how-to features by PatternReview.com's master teachers and pattern designers, who regularly conduct online chats and workshops (including Kenneth King, Susan Khalje, Sarah Veblen, Shannon Gifford, and Anna Mazur).

Deepika Prakash founded PatternReview.com in 2001. She travels extensively to meet PatternReview.com members and support small sewing businesses. She participates in sewing conferences throughout the United States and has hosted PatternReview.com workshops in New York City, Portland (Oregon), and Los Angeles and also in Germany and Australia. The author’s royalties will be donated to charity.

Craftside Books, Sew L.A. Fabric and Singer Sewing Machine Winners and Craft Links

At the Summer CHA Craft SuperShow, Singer provided two Singer Confidence sewing machines as prizes. I had the pleasure of presenting one of the machines to the winner Maureen B. from Joliet at the show in our booth!

And congratulations to the winners of copies of the book  Sew Retro and Sew L.A. Fabric:

Sandie R.

and

Heather L.

The winner of 1,000 Poses in Fashion is Nellie.

Congrats to all of you!

Now for some fun crafts from around the blog world:

Mixed Media Artist
More metalcraft! Cyndi has a third book to give away this week. Hurry over and leave your comment!

Stefanie Girard's Sweater Surgery
See how to make a recycled deer pin necklace inspired by Margot Potter's new book Bead Chic.

About Family Crafts
Many kids are probably not ready for summer to end, but these back-to-school activities and crafts might help make them a little more excited for school to start.

Aileen's Musings
Aileen shares the cumulative of the Erosion Bundle Project she participated in way back in the fall. Peruse the art piece she created from her bundles along with the collaborative piece she participated in. 

Carmi's Art/Life World
Carmi finds a stack of British "Men Only" magazines and makes "great for women" magnets!

Cathie Filian
Cool down this summer with a batch of Cathie's homemade peach ice cream. Peaches are in season, so they are cheap and a tasty treat!

Crafty Princess Diaries
Social networks are everywhere, but is that a good thing for professional crafters?

Eileen - The Artful Crafter
Just look at all the darling altered tin boxes created by reader Sharon. She was kind enough to share some photos to inspire us all.

Margot Potter The Impatient Crafter
Check out this FREE project from Madge's new book Bead Chic and leave a comment for a chance to win a signed copy!

How to sew gathers in fabric from the book Singer Simple Sewing and how to recycle 2 Boy Scout shirts into a fun little dress with ruffles

Ruffles and gathers are really hot in fashion right now, not to mention very useful to know how to do for lots of Halloween costumes. Click on the image to enlarge and read these really great instructions on how to sew gathers.

This page is from the book:

Singer Simple Sewing
The Complete Illustrated Machine-side Reference of Tips and Techniques

By

Beth Baumgartel

This comprehensive “at your fingertips” reference is an essential for any sewer's library. With more than 1,000 detailed illustrations and an instructional DVD from SINGER®, this book covers all the basic sewing techniques for garment construction and home décor. An entire section on mending and repair helps sewers recycle and reuse their favorite items with quick and reliable fixes. This useful volume will help sewers of all levels find reliable shortcuts and better solutions to ensure success with all their sewing projects.

Beth Baumgartel (Madison, CT) has written for Vogue, Butterick, the Home Sewing Association, Family Craft Circle, and others. She is also the author of SINGER® Simple Decorative Machine Stitching.

I LOVE ruffles and I gather fabric a bunch (yup that was a pun!), so I use this technique all the time. Here is my latest recycled/upcycled little dress made from 2 Boy Scout shirts:

I used wider bias strips along the bottom and trimmed the front top edge with a tiny ruffle.

Here is how to sew a little dress from 2 men's shirts; in this case I used 2 Boy Scout shirts.

 

I cut one shirt into the dress shape and sewed two ties. They get placed into the dress when the side seams are stitched.

The final step after the dress is all sewn together is to stitch a bit of elastic along the back top edge.

The other shirt gets cut open so that the bias strips can be cut as long as possible -- as you can see I had to use 2 grid rulers for the first cut.

 

Then I could fold the shirt in half along the true bias and cut the bias strips out with one long grid ruler for the ruffles. I should point out that you really do need to cut the ruffles on the bias because they will shred apart if you are using a woven shirt.

I followed the directions for sewing a gather in Singer Simple Sewing. The only thing that I did differently was I sewed a single row of stitching down the center of each strip.

Then I top stitched 2 rows of ruffles along the bottom edge of the dress and one tiny one along the top front edge.

I removed the patches from the shirt and restitched them on in new places.

 

Here is the dress from the back. My dress form is a bit wider than me so when I wear the dress the elastic on the top back edge looks cute gathered not all stretched out like it is here on the dress form.

If you aren't up for making a whole dress, why not jazz up one you already have with some ruffles or lengthen one with a gathered section?