What Are Quilters Blogging About Today?

I've been busy lately.  A few projects got borders on and are now at the LAer.  I'll be getting them back in a few weeks.

First up .... this "I Spy" top.  It was in strips for quite some time and after a few days of concentration, viola a completed top.

Then, my "Xmas Stars" finally got the last two borders on.  It is not really what I wanted, but I'm happy with my decision.  This top is also with the LAer as well.

It feels good to get a few more projects off the shelf.

So far ...

Itch-to-Stitch released a new pattern recently - the Carmo Top - which I found out via their newsletter. When I saw the tester versions, I knew I was going to purchase the pattern and make one for myself at some point before the end of the Winter. But then I saw Megan's video on YouTube (Megan was a tester and I'm a subscriber to her Channel - check her out!), the pattern jumped at the top of the list!

The Pattern Features

Most of the Itch-to-Stitch patterns that I've been interested in are what I would call "basics with a ...

I'm back to the blog today with a pattern review and my entry to the #BHMPatternDesigners challenge organized by Nateida from Sew Natural Dane. To participate in the challenge, you have to make something from a black pattern designer during the month of February and post your make to Instagram using the hashtag #BHMPatternDesigners. The entry doesn't need to be a garment - could be a knitted project, a quilt, a bag... anything! 

For my entry, I decided to make a sweater with the pattern Hug Hoodie by Made It Patterns.

This was my second time using the pattern ...

I'm always looking for cute and professional tops now that I'm working from home (there are currently no plans to send us back to the office) and I think I found a really good one in the True Romance Bishop Sleeve Top by Pattern Emporium.

This is a boatneck top with many different sleeve finishes - 5 in fact - and 4 different hems. You can make this top with a bottom band at the waist, at the hips, leave it unbanded or simply turn the hem up like you would a tee.

I made the dramatic cuffed sleeves with ...

Whew ..... I was striving for a year-end (more like a decade) goal and it got achieved yesterday!  Time to celebrate!

Before I started sewing my own garments, I was never a fan of button-up shirts on me. I've always been busty and in order for there to be no gaping at the bust, I always needed to size up and then the fit was all wrong at the shoulders. Of course, sewing my own clothes means I could remedy that and make myself a few nice shirts. 

For my second attempt at a shirt, I chose to use the Itch-to-Stitch Bonn shirt pattern.

Pattern Details:

The Bonn hasn't yet been updated in Itch-to-Stitch's full size range - it ...

I completed my second Spring/Summer capsule outfit over the weekend: the Itch-to-Stitch Tierras Joggers and Newport Top.

The Tierras Joggers pattern is very similar to the Arden Pants pattern I love so much - elastic waistband, side pockets and straight legs, but the rise on the Tierras is lower, which I personally find more comfortable. These hit me about 2 inches below the belly button and will be perfect to wear with the tops I've made that finish at my high hips.

They are a tiny bit long for me so I rolled them up to right above the ...

I've been wanting to try the Cashmerette patterns for a long time so I recently purchased their Cedar Dolman top. I've been planning a Spring/Summer capsule wardrobe and a new pink short sleeved top was first on the list. 

Before cutting into my pink fabric, I decided to make a muslin with some leftover fabric from the cowl top I made a few weeks go.

I made zero modifications to the pattern for this version except I decided not to use the hem facings and simply turn up the hem by 3/4" and topstitch. 

This is ...

I always find it a little bit difficult to figure out what to wear at this time of year because where I live, the temperature can change drastically from one day to the next or even during the same day! That is why I love cardigans so much. You can start the day with the cute top and a cardigan but around Noon, take off the cardigan and just wear the cute top. This time of year is also awesome for wearing lightweight sweaters with 3/4 length sleeves.

And that is why I decided to make the Itch-to-Stitch Bellavista ...

When Itch-to-Stitch came out with their new Seychelles top pattern recently, I pressed the Buy button almost immediately. I loved the V neck, the fun pleats on the short sleeves and the narrow shoulders. I have found lately that most of the patterns I make are a little too wide for me and I keep forgetting to make a narrow shoulder adjustment. Well - Seychelles has a narrow shoulder built-in!

The pattern itself is really straight-forward to sew, even the pleats and the V neck. However, the fabric I chose to make my version of the Seychelles was hard to work ...

I finished a crazy snuggly sweater for myself this week and although it is far from perfect... I love it!

This is the Whistler Pull-over and Hoodie by Love Notions. When I first saw the pattern (which I think might have been on sale recently), I skipped over it. I didn't think the style would look nice on me and I have to say I really didn't need another winter sweater. 

But I had this amazingly soft THICC Stretch Fleece from The Fabric Snob in my stash that I really wanted to make something out of before the ...

I cleaned out my Fall/Winter closet a couple of weeks ago and discovered I need more tops to wear with pants and my many cardigans. And I've always loved cowl neck tops so went in search of a pattern for a sleeveless one.

I found this one from So Sew Easy. It was pretty much exactly what I was looking for.

This was meant as a Fall/Winter top so I used a sweater knit from Minerva. It drapes beautifully and isn't a heavy knit so I thought it would work perfectly for a cowl neck. It ...

I hadn't planned to make this just yet. When I took out my black sandwashed cotton, I meant to make a new Gilbert shirt. And I'm still not sure why I decided to make the Sabalito top instead. It is completely inappropriate for this time of year and now that I've sewn it up, I realize that the fabric was a terrible choice for this pattern.

This definitely isn't a success and the poor choice of fabric isn't the only reason. The proportions are all wrong and I dislike anything that sticks out at my ...

I get so much inspiration from bloggers and IG'ers I follow when it comes to garment making. Some of the people I follow have a completely different style and body than me, and I just enjoy the eye-candy. But some of them have a very similar style and body shape so that when something looks really good on them, I'm always tempted to try to make my own version.

Meg from Cookin' and Craftin' posted about her Devon top back in November. Devon is a dress pattern published by Seamwork, but Meg shortened it to a top and ...

I think I may have developed an addiction to the La Bella Donna pattern - this red tunic is my third make from this pattern. I made the short sleeved top last Summer (which I'm realizing now I never blogged about), I made a black version of the tunic with the scoop neck and now I've made the tunic with the cowl neck which I love!

There are so many things I like about this pattern and I'm thrilled I made the cowl version. The fabric is an ITY from Fabricville. It's really soft and lovely to ...

In my continuing goal to make myself work appropriate tops - which really means tops that look nice on video calls, I found the Itch to Stitch Busan Top. I immediately fell in love with the beautiful and interesting sleeves and some of the tester versions were so gorgeous, I just had to give it a try.

But as much as I loved those sleeves, I wasn't sure if the design would look good on me so instead of using a more precious fabric, I decided to cut the top out of leftover Ponte - a grey for the body and ...

I was never much a fan of leggings personally - when I wanted to be comfortable, I wore jeans or jogging pants. But with being home so much with minimal activity over the past 9 months or so, my waistline has expanded and I found myself reaching for my leggings more often when getting dressed in the morning. I do need new tops though that will be suitable to wear with leggings and look good on video calls during work days.

And so I made a La Bella Donna tunic from Love Notions in a gorgeous and crazy soft black modal ...

I made a shirt... with a collar... and buttons!! 

Well, I made a whole outfit which I had high hopes for, but the pants are a bit of a failure (not due to the pattern because it's amazing).

All right - let's start with the shirt. I used a gorgeous viscose linen slub from Blackbird Fabrics and it was an absolute dream to sew. It's also really comfortable. It's going to be amazing to wear next summer but over the next few months, I can easily wear it with a cardigan on top.

To say that I ...

At the beginner of this month, Meg, from Cookin' & Craftin', blogged about her new top - the Seamwork Oliver. The sweater looked so good on her, I immediately logged into my Seamwork account to have a closer look at the pattern.

I had a 1.5 meter cut leftover from my latest Blackwood Cardigan and figured that would be the perfect thing to try the Oliver top pattern with.

I made a size 16 with no adjustments. For my next one, I will size down to a 14 - the shoulders are a little wide on me and there is a lot ...

About a week ago, because the weather here really turned and it's now officially fall, I decided to take my Fall/Winter clothes out of storage. While I was doing it, I took an inventory of everything I have and everything that would be appropriate for working from home. Like a lot of people, the fact that I've been home all the time for months now means I've been eating more and moving less. As a result, I gained a few pounds and many of the pants I wore last Winter don't fit comfortably anymore.

So ...