Heart Cutout Top!

Hello everyone! Hope this weekend is going great for all of ya'll wonderful people. I have been sewing each and every day and I have been loving it! Last night I stayed up until midnight finishing up hubby's mint button up shirt so that he could wear it today for church. He was impressed (as was I) and he loved the shirt:) Here's a little sneak peek for ya'll. 

Anyways, as I mentioned in THIS post, I have been so in love with tops & dresses that have heart cutouts on the front & back, so I was inspired to make one for myself. I drafted a pattern on Aubrey and voila! I made it and it came out great! I used a floral calico print cotton fabric for the main side that I found at a garage sale for I think, either a quarter or 50 cents. I didn't have enough fabric for the lining so I made the lining out of a vintage dress I had in my stash and that I bought for only a quarter at a thrift store. 

At first I wanted to make it reversible, and I tried, but my Kenmore sewing machine and my brother machine are both home sewing machines and will not sew over 4 layers of fabric without breaking a needle. Trust me, I tried, and yes, I did break a needle. Talk about scary! It went right by my eye! So here is the top. What do you think? Do you love?

 lining print

You can barely tell in this pic, but on the right and left side about 2" from the top, (white horizontal stitching line) there is a pocket sewn in! The pocket is about 6" long so I can put my credit cards, I.D.'s or sunglasses if I don't have a purse with me, or I'm too lazy to carry one! lol :)

So what do you think? Do you love it? If you do will you do me a big favor and share my blog or this blog post with friends? FB it, Tweet it, Pin it, whatever you want! Thanks!

Btw: I posted  a video on my YT Channel of a HUGE haul of sewing stuff I got at an estate sale yesterday. Go check it out! :)

Swirl Dress

Lovin' this swirl patterned dress and the way it fits me. I draped the pattern on Audrey, so the pattern is my very own creation. The fabric was chosen by my gorgeous hubby. My favorite part of this dress is the neckline. I think next time I will wear it without a necklace or with a very thin necklace.

  I got the necklace from Hancock Fabrics and the bracelet was purchased in the Philippines when my hubby went last October. The purse is also from Hancock fabrics, the belt from Target, and the heels from Shoe Carnival. 

I lined the top with the same fabric but didn't have enough for the bottom, so lined it with pink cotton.

I picked a zipper that could stand out against the swirl pattern and I really loved how this blue zipper stands out. 

 What do you think?

Heart Cutout Dress

Hi guys, I have been so inspired to make a dress with a heart cutout. I have been seeing them everywhere and I just love them, but of course, there are really no patterns for it and the dresses that are for sale are pretty expensive. So I decided to make a pattern for it. After many trials and a few tweaks here & there on Audrey, I finally got a pattern for the back. It looks so cute! I am working on the muslin right now and hopefully it will come out perfectly! I'm thinking of making a top with the cutout and a dress. We'll see! :)

Here are my inspiration pictures

 Rubias Collection

Selective Potential

 Indie Fashion

 Social Bliss

 Ruche

Ruche

I also really loved the neckline on the following dresses, which was my inspiration for the last dress I made (also the last post) and on my next one. 

Neiman Marcus

TOPSHOP

Funky Diva

I will be making my version of these dresses in the next week or so. I hope to add it to my collection soon since I would like to take it with me on our vacation to TX. So stay tuned and check on my Facebook page for progress:) I already posted a pic on the first part of the heart already:) So far so good!

Pressing Ham and A New Dress

I decided to make a new pressing ham since I haven't been able to find one here in town anywhere. At least not one that is big enough for adult pleats. The one they sell at Jo-Ann's is small and for $15, it's just not worth it. So I cut a pattern out of an 8x11 paper and used some extra fabric that I had from the dress that I was making (I love the print) and voila! It was done and I really didn't have to spend any money! I filled it with cotton scraps that I had left over. A lot of scraps by the way, a lot. 

Here is my ham:

 As I stuffed I pressed one side flat (the bottom) and one side I made sure was slanted for the pleats that really need to have a bit more curve such as the bust area.

 I do wish I had made more room around the middle to make it curvier, but it's ok the way it is now.

 Also, I bought this whole tub of zippers for only 50 cents at a garage sale. The lady said I was just an hour too late. She had tons of fabric and sewing patterns for really cheap and another lady bought them before I got there. Bummer!

 By the way, I found this fabric at Walmart, it's called Color Blast Scribble in blue, they had one in red but the blue was just so pretty I had to have it. Plus, it was only $2.00/yd and they only had 2 yards left so I thought, "What the heck, why not?" I will probably make a shirt out of it. 

 And here is the dress! I will do a full OOTD on Sunday because that is when I plan on wearing it. I still have to hem the dress, but that is all. It is the first dress made out of the first pattern drafted from draping on Audrey. I love the dress, especially the neckline:)

 I used an all purpose zipper in blue because 1. my hair is so long it covers it anyway, 2. I didn't feel like running to Jo-Ann's to buy an invisible zipper, 3. I had all those zippers from the garage sale to use, and 4. I really liked the thought of being able to see the zipper. It's something very different from what I always do:)

I just need a bit of pressing on this dress and hemming, then it is done. I love it. It fits my body like a glove! What do you think? Do you like it so far? 

Do you have a ham or have you made one? I don't know how I ever lived without one, it's been a lifesaver!

In the Process...

As I told ya'll yesterday, I am in the process of making a dress with my first actual pattern drafted on Audrey. I had enough fabric to line the top but not the bottom, so I cut up a pink cotton fabric that I bought at a garage sale. I wish it would've been enough of the main fabric but sometimes you have to just improvise and sew with what you've got. I do have enough left over on this fabric to make my son a shirt (I think) but not much else. Anyways, here is a sneak peek of the top so far. I made the top a bit oval with a definite point in the middle. So kind of V-neck, kind of oval. Hubby picked the fabric. I've added pleats on the princess line at the front from waist to bust and then on the back from waist to mid back. I should have this dress done in the next day or so. Hope you like it so far:) 

How are your crafty/sewing adventures going so far?

 close up of the fabric. ( I might have to add pleats on the side of the bust where I folded the fabric over. But we'll see after I try it on.