I did quite a bit of selfless sewing in April, so I thought I would lump it all into one post for those who are interested. There was a little bit of variety, but I stuck to the things I’ve been making lately (i.e. knit things and bags).
First up, I made my mom a new dress! She and my sisters are big fans of the Panama Tee Dress. I haven’t made one for my mom in a long time, but she wears them a lot, and when I asked if she wanted me to make anything for her while she was visiting, this is what she requested.
So, before she came to visit for Spring Break, I sent this fabric to her from Style Maker Fabrics, and she brought it with her. It just so happened that after my kids were finished with their easter egg hunt, I had motivation strike and whipped her dress up that morning. So, without really intending to, I did make an “Easter Dress,” just not one for me.
I think it turned out really beautiful and I had enough fabric to make the sleeves a little bit longer like she wanted me to. Style Maker always has the best selection of printed cotton jerseys, if you’re ever on the hunt.
Next up is a black Tether Pouch that my friend had asked me to make back in October/November. I was on a sewing break, so I didn’t know when I would get around to making it for her. But her birthday was at the end of April, and luckily, I had just finished making my Freya Tote, so I felt confident I could finally make her bag and that it would turn out nice.
I love this pattern, even though it gives me quite a bit of grief when I’m sewing the side tabs that have the hardware and when I’m sewing past the zippers at the end. It inevitably makes me curse a few times, but it always turns out just fine, and I think this is the best one that I’ve made so far.
I scaled up the large size by adding 1″ to the width and .5″ to the height to accommodate longer zippers, and it worked out well. I filled it up with treats for her birthday, and she loves it and uses it all the time now.
The last thing I made that I know is getting worn a lot is a new t-shirt for Dallas. I made another one for him in March, and he was doing his laundry more often just so that he could wear his new shirt again. So, since I had the pattern just about perfected for him, I ordered more cotton jersey and whipped up another one.
This is the Sage Tee by Elbe Textiles. The first time that I made it for him (probably like 5 years ago?) it was too big, and the neckband was too long. Now that I understand ease and how to recalculate the neckband length, it turned out much better!
I tried the pattern pieces up to some RTW t-shirts that he likes and realized that I could go down 2 whole sizes, and it would fit him the way that he likes. I also fixed the neckband length, and I think I ended up making it and inch shorter.
I also found a great place in Germany to order cotton jersey in solid colors. The store is Stoffebox, and the shipping to Portugal only took 6 days. So, I told Dallas that now that I have the pattern perfect for him and a new place to order cotton jersey, he can have one in any color he wants! He’ll just be doing his laundry very frequently until then.
Sharing Joy: It’s been really rainy and windy here the past few days, and I’ve noticed that the clouds have looked really cool. Social media and the news can be so overwhelming, but I have to remind myself to find things that I am in awe of to help ground myself again. The clouds are one of those things. We have a really good view of the sky from our living room, and pretty often, I make my kids look at the sky at sunset to see all of the colors. And it’s not just the sky in Lisbon! The clouds are cool everywhere. When was the last time you took some time to be in awe of the clouds and sky?
Thanks for being here and reading. I hope you have a great week and happy sewing! xoxo
