FITF: Film in the Fridge | modern quilts, clothing, fabric, and photos

Martha Stewart Market Bags

Posted on July 23, 2008

This is actually the project that got me started on my sewing kick.

I had seen quite a few tutorials using dishtowels to create a simple little bag. I especially liked this tutorial, which has great step by step instructions and pictures. She used Martha Stewart towels to create a nice lined bag.

I had also seen a few projects online using these Martha Stewart Say Fruit International dish towels. They came in a pack of 7 or 8, each with a different fruit pictured, as well as the fruit name written in several different languages.

Around the same time, I had been looking for market bags to use for groceries – I seem to end up at the store at least once a day, and I wanted to have a bag I could reuse.

I decided I wanted to sew my own, using these dish towels. Only problem… I didn’t know how to sew at the time. The solution: my mom!

When she came up to Vermont for a visit this past winter, I convinced her to bring over her sewing machine so we could have a lesson. With her help, I managed to make a bag similar to the one shown in the tutorial above. It worked out well, but really wasn’t very useful as a market bag since it didn’t have a flat bottom and consequently didn’t hold too much. Cute, but not very practical.

Mom to the rescue again – she came up with this new design, which allowed us to sew in a flat bottom and sides, greatly expanding the size of the bag.

I made several of these bags – using the various fruit towels and corresponding patterned fabric for the lining.

I must say, they make grocery shopping a little more pleasant!

Posted in Household Goods | Tagged bag, dishtowel, market bag, Martha Stewart, tote | 8 Comments

My love-hate (mostly hate) relationship with patterns (or, sometimes things don’t go the way you plan)

Posted on July 22, 2008

I know I’ve posted before about my lack of experience using patterns. So far, I’ve managed to create quite a few items without needing to turn to a pattern. However, I did feel it might be time to learn. I like the idea that the pieces are cut so that they fit together perfectly – no guessing at measurements or the pieces needed to complete a garment… or at least, I like that in theory. The reality was quite a bit different.

JoAnn’s was having a sale on Butterick patterns, so I picked up a few to try ($.99 each – if I totally screwed up, at least I wouldn’t be out too much!). I also found some Alexander Henry fabric, also on sale, and thought that I’d make myself a dress using one of these patterns.

The pattern itself claimed to be easy, and said that the average person should be able to whip up this dress in little more than an hour. (ha! I spent the good portion of the day simply cutting out the pattern and then cutting the fabric…)

They didn’t have the size I thought I should get, so I had grabbed one size larger for this pattern. Although, then I took a look at their measurements and corresponding sizes and saw that from their description, I should be about 6 sizes larger than I thought. I wasn’t totally buying that, so I compromised and cut out a size somewhere in between.

All was going well until I started sewing some of the pieces together. Not only did they not line up correctly (and I really don’t think it was due to my cutting), but what I ended up with appeared large enough to fit three of me.

So now I sit here with a bunch of already cut fabric pieces and the start to a dress that’s much too large for me, and all I can think is that it’s the pattern’s fault.

(don’t be deceived by these pictures – these make it appear somewhat decent, and normal-sized, actually, when in reality, it really is bad, very bad.)

I guess I’ll have to come up with some way to salvage some of this fabric. Another skirt, anyone?

Posted in Household Sewing - bags, napkins, pillows | 2 Comments

An Amy Butler summer tie top

Posted on July 21, 2008

I made this shirt over the weekend as part of my “use up all my fabric” kick. I had this piece of Amy Butler fabric – Wallflower in Cherry – set aside for a tablecloth, but then thought I’d try my hand at a shirt. Actually, that’s a bit of a lie, as this was supposed to be a dress. I cut the front side, then realized that there was definitely not enough fabric for the second side- oops! (So, planning and visualizing – also not my strong suits!)

I’ve seen this type of dress often, sometimes referred to as a pillowcase dress. In most cases, it’s made for a 3 year old. Perhaps there’s reason for that. Does the fact that it’s designed for a child mean that it’s not appropriate for a 30 year old?

My answer.. obviously a resounding no!

I decided to go ahead with it, and luckily was able to eek out enough fabric for the back side of the shirt. Using the remaining scraps, I made a long ribbon which I threaded through the top of the shirt. I have it so it ties on one side, though you could also change it a bit so it would tie on both shoulders.

At the bottom, I used the remaining white rick rack from the green skirt I posted about here.

I think it’s quite cute, and even received a couple (unsolicited) compliments when I wore it over the weekend.

Although I should also tell you that when I wore it and showed it to my sister, her reaction was simply to laugh. She claims she was laughing because it was really cute, but I kept wondering if it really wasn’t because she thought I looked like an adult wearing a shirt made for a child… hmm…