New Shirt!

by Liz

In my quest to get through my fabric stash I finished this shirt last night:

It is a free pattern I found over on Burdastyle, a really great place for patterns and project inspiration. This one was the Port Elizabeth cap sleeve top. You can download the pattern for yourself here. The shirt was super quick to make, however the fabric I picked was really fussy so the hem and neckline were a bit annoying. I plan on making a bunch of these in varying lengths. For better or worse, crop tops are starting to surface again and somewhat back in style but I've been seeing them worn with long layers underneath (thank god) so this is my attempt at something like that. I don't know if you can tell in the picture, but the shirt ends at my natural waist.

Sarah, who designed the pattern, has a blog and etsy shop with more patterns for sale. So cute! I also emailed her a couple questions about my pattern downloads and she was so friendly and responsive. I highly recommend trying them for yourself. Can't wait to see what else she comes up with. Here are pictures of two more of her patterns.

Betty's Bay Tunic

Camp's Bay Smock Top

(Photos by Goldfinch and Eagle)

Weekend Sewing

by Liz

This weekend I was lucky enough to get a spot in the Schoolhouse Tunic class at The Needle Shop. The Needle Shop is a sewing school and fabric shop in Chicago. It is probably one of my favorite places to go in the city, I could easily spend hours there looking at all the pretty fabric, books, and patterns.

The classes are phenomenal and where I've learned most of my sewing skills. Classes are limited to 4 people so you get lots of one on one instruction and leave with a complete project. There was one time I went way over the allotted time for class and my instructor stayed with me to make sure I finished and didn't have any questions. I accidentally sewed an entire tote bag using a basting stitch. If they hadn't let me fix it, I probably never would have on my own and wouldn't be able to carry anything heavy!

The Schoolhouse Tunic class was the most advanced class I've taken there. It actually spanned over two days, most classes are just 4 hours. The pattern was by Sew Liberated and was the first one of theirs that I've done before. Whenever I make shirts on my own, the sleeves always come out all wonky so I was excited to pick Rachel's (shop owner/teacher) brain.

I used a really pretty cotton voile from Anna Maria Horner's line of fabric (bought at The Needle Shop of course). It is soooo soft and buttery feeling. Its the type of fabric that is just so comfortable to wear, I'm going to have to go back and get more to make a couple more tops.

(available for purchase from The Needle Shop here)

The class went really well. We munched on snacks, talked about Modern Family and Barefoot Running Shoes, and managed to get some sewing done too! The pattern was pretty straight forward but Rachel taught us some tips for constructing clothes from commercial patterns. It has definitely given me the confidence to do some more sewing from patterns on my own.

Oh, and my shirt turned out pretty cute too!

(I promise the collar is even, I just didn't adjust my shirt before the picture. Silly me.)

After class I asked her about my Anthropologie DIY and ended up buying a pattern and fabric after class. I'm going to try to make a muslin soon so I get the real skirt right the first time. Can't wait!

(Photos by The Needle Shop and Sew Liberated)

Line I'm Loving

by Liz

A few months ago I discovered Nadinoo and I'm officially smitten. Here is the description from their website:

Welcome to the enchanted world of Nadinoo. A unique London based clothing label, where each style is carefully designed and handmade by British designer Nadia Izruna. Celebrating the lady from era’s gone by, Nadinoo invites timeless silhouettes and detailing to create it’s vintage felt collections. Designs include boastful bows, flirtatious frills and beautiful bell shapes in sumptuous silks and cottons from Liberty of London prints.

I love all the liberty prints and vintage-y silhouettes of each of the looks. Don't you? Nadinoo is available for purchase here and here.

(All photos by Nadinoo)

Project Updates

by Liz

Unfortunately last weekend I got sick which foiled my plans to work on the top I posted about last week. But while I was hanging around my apartment, I found some great inspiration on Beklina's website. I've never actually bought anything from their site, but its definitely worth checking out and they have some really great sales. While perusing their latest additions, I came across this Lina Rennell hat.

My mom is always telling me I should wear a floppy hat to help protect myself from the sun and this one was out of my price range, so I thought this would be a really great DIY!

I headed over to Etsy in search of a pattern and found a great downloadable option from Betz White's shop.

(pattern available for purchase here.)

I think if I can find the right fabric and maybe alter the brim a bit, it would be a pretty good interpretation. What do you guys think? Any fabric suggestions for me? My first instinct is to check out what PurlSoho has to offer. Fingers crossed I find something that works!

(Images from Beklina and BetzWhite)