One Thimble 22 Tour Wrap Up

It’s time to wrap up another One Thimble blog tour! Issue 22 is really on trend, you’re going to love all the patterns included and the makers interpretations. I’m so blessed to have the support of so many awesome bloggers in this project each quarter. I was finally able to squeeze in some pictures of my makes so far from Issue 22! As you read in my previous post, I wrote a hack for inseam pockets in the Jolie skirt (originally from One Thimble Issue 10). This is the version I used to test my pattern & photograph the steps. Look at that! It has pockets! Where would she have put those hands before now? How great is it in a simple tencel denim? My girls are loving more classic colours at the moment. This is the same fabric we used for a Camden dress from last issue! Isn’t that sweet? Are you a fan of the contrast pockets or do you prefer something a little more subtle? I love the peekaboo pockets! Next up are the Oceaan Shorts by The Eli Monster. Aren’t they adorable? I found the instructions a little tricky on this pattern, but they weren’t too difficult to sew. I used this cute printed drill I’d had in my stash for quite a while. I wouldn’t get away with too much pink in my girls wardrobes, but this definitely gets the tick of approval. I teamed both the skirt and shorts with the new Xanadu bodysuit also from Issue 22. I really love how the patterns from this issue all go together so well. I plan on making a Piper Pinny (by Bubby & Me Creations) and that will be 3 outfits with the one top. I made the crop version of the Xanadu from a heavy knit shirt of my own that was too small.  I love to upcycle, it’s like free fabric! I made my crop band a little wider than the pattern, just to give it more visual balance. I also managed to cut it so the stripes continued and the band is almost invisible. I would have loved some navy buttons to finish the shorts, but I only had 4 of those of course, so pink it was! All my buttons come from thrift stores, I really can’t justify the price of them otherwise! I buy ALL the buttons when I see them and I sew from my stash whenever possible! It’s too far to drive to a fabric store just for buttons. I love the scoop back of the Xanadu. It’s a great feature. I have to say these shorts fit like a glove too. If your customer is in between sizes, I would definitely size up and add elastic to the back waistband.

Now you’ve seen enough of this cheeky grin, let’s go and catch up on the week that was on the One Thimble Issue 22 Blog Tour! Let me show you how amazing our bloggers are and be sure to catch their blog posts for all the details!

The Wrap Up!

November 13

Idle Sunshine

Rebel & Malice

Sew Cucio

November 14

Curtiepie

Make it Sew with the Bear and Pea Atelier

November 15

The Graham Crafter

Marvelous Auntie

The Accidental Sewist

November 16

Beri Bee Designs

{Spools+Oodles} of Fun

November 17

SewSophieLynn

That’s-Sew-Kari

Max-California

 

November 18

The Crafting Fiend

It’s Liesel

November 19

Lulu & Celeste

Idle Sunshine Tour Wrap Up!

  Be sure to enter the giveaway below for a chance to win a copy!

For your chance to win a copy of the new One Thimble Issue 22 – Summer 2019 please enter the rafflecopter prize draw here.Open until 12am Wednesday November 20th AEST

a Rafflecopter giveaway

  Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I believe will add value to my readers.        

My Favourite Things

So the theme this month on the Sewing With Ti Blog Tour is “My Favourite Things”! This category is so hard for someone like me that just loves EVERYTHING! So I decided to make myself one of my favourite patterns and get my bum moving on my kids favourites, for their summer sewing too!

This is the Little Kiwis Closet Women’s Cuffed Dolman! It is a great relaxed dolman tee in a longer tunic length with a curved hem. It also comes in a dress length option which I chose to make here. I was sent this gorgeous Pink Aztec Rayon Spandex by Orinoco Designs to showcase for a current fabric pre-order and I knew it would be a perfect match!

The drape is perfect for this pattern and it is a great print for young and old. My girls loved it, but I had to (very unselfishly) show you all how great it was made up as a grown up piece!

I wasn’t a complete monster though… I saved the girls a few scraps and I used some straight away to run up this cute top! It’s the Little Kiwis Closet Choose Your Adventure Tee & Dress. I created this cute cap sleeve and pocket and added it to this royal blue cotton lycra I had in my stash. I think this is perfect for the theme – as one of my favourite things to do is mash and tweak patterns!

I used the flutter sleeve pattern piece from the Poppet Peplum pattern and added an inch or 2 to the centre so that it would fit the armscye perfectly. I lined the “flutter/cap” with some white cotton lycra to give it some body before attaching it. I absolutely love how this turned out and it just covers the shoulders nicely to protect them from our harsh summer sun!

Then we of course had to have some pics together, because – matching!

It was so cold! You have to remember it’s winter here at the moment and it was 7:30am before school! We are so lucky to have such mild winters, but boy was it fresh and frosty this morning!

I have a few more scraps left, so I used a tiny bit to jazz up this plain tank as well, but I will not waste a bit – it’s too cute!

Next up I want to show you a sneak peek of the girls version of the Cuffed Dolman! It’s in testing right now and is looking just as awesome as the women’s version!!!

This one I upcycled from a women’s large tshirt we found (stripes are her favourite) and I made the regular cuffed sleeves.

There is a long sleeve version too that I’ll share with you soon and you can also opt to leave the cuffs off altogether and just hem!

You can see from my upcycle that the back of the shirt has a centre seam. I hope this means that the manufacturer is being frugal with fabric! I love to upcycle as a way to reduce landfill and to get awesome cheap fabric.

This length is perfect with tights and I will make her some dolman dresses for summer as well. I know I live in them, so I am betting my girls will too!

Here’s an essential shot of my stripe matching – I’m sorry but if you are sewing stripes, they just have to match 😉 ! It also shows the cool curved hem.

Next up are some more great basics! I love to make pretty dresses, but my girls just want to wear shorts and tees! So while I never thought I’d make basics when you can get them cheap from Kmart, I love that they get something amazing and unique from me, with great quality fabrics and no exploited labour. Except for me of course… They fully exploit me!

This is the Pearlie Peplum and Scuttle Shorts from One Thimble Issue 16! This issue has only recently released and I am sewing my way through it! These patterns will be on high rotation! I used another Orinoco Designs print from a previous round for the bodice and the front panel of a tshirt I upcycled did the peplum skirt front and back.

The Pearlie Dress & Peplum is by Peach Patterns and I have lengthened the bodice here by 2 inches to bring the peplum down closer to her natural waist. This is just a personal preference. When I made the dress previously I used the size 7 length skirt, but because I added length to the bodice here, I used the size 5 peplum skirt length.

I teamed it with the Scuttle Shorts by Ainslee Fox Boutique Patterns. I made the basic version here without any pockets or colour blocking and they were soooo fast! This girl looooves her knit shorts so I am going to make a full rainbow of these! This was a knit my Mum grabbed from Spotlight for me. As a bonus, they don’t take very much fabric at all!

Check ’em out – they’re adorable!

 

Ok so let’s recap a few of my favourite things…

• The LKC Cuffed Dolman
• Awesome custom print fabric
• Pattern hacking
• Matching my minis
• Upcycling
• Stripe matching
• Little Kiwis Closet
• One Thimble
• Sewing things my kids will actually wear

Did I miss anything? I’m sure my girls have their own list to add!

 

If you’d like to see what everyone else on board has chosen to share this month, you can view their posts here! Each post will go live on it’s date in August.

 

Tuesday, August 1st: Intro ***You are here. 😀, Tenille’s Thread

2nd: Stitching At Night

3rd: Sewing By Ti

4th: Needles To Say

5th: Very Blissful

Sunday, August 6th: The Fairy Dust Bin

7th: Anne-Mari Sews

8th: Sewing With Sarah

9th: Thats Sew Lily

10th: Stitching at Night

11th: EYMM

12th: Sew Sew Ilse

Sunday, August 13th: Lulu & Celeste

14th: Seams Sew Lo

15th: Tales From a Southern Stitching Mom

16th: Stitching and Making

17th: Creative Counselor

18th: Ma Moose

19th: Kainara Stitches

Sunday, August 20th: Embrace Everyday

21st: She Who Sews

22nd: Idle Sunshine

23rd: My Heart Will Sew On

24th: Lovely For Life

25th: Margarita On the Ross

26th: Anne-Mari Sews

Sunday, August 27th: Made By Melli

28th: Adventures with Bubba and Bug

29th: Auschick Sews

30th: Me Made

31st: Living in Twinado Alley

 

Warmest Wishes,

Brooke x

Idlesunshine

 

One Thimble Issue 16 – Under The Sea

Oh my gosh! Where do I even start? One thimble Issue 16 is here and it is bigger, brighter and more beautiful than ever!

Included in this issue are 11 awesome PDF patterns for the ridiculous price of AUS$25:

High Tide Trousers (NB-12)

Triton Tank (1-12)

Scuttle Shorts (3-12)

Hally Dress (1-12)

Miss Olivia Dress (Ladies AU 6-20)

Pearlie Dress (1-12)

Makana Mermaid Skirt (2-4, 5-7, 8-10)

Melody Mermaid Tail (3-8)

Mermaid Pocket Doll & Shell (handsewn)

Murray is a Merman (Free Motion Applique)

Meg is a Mermaid (Free Motion Applique)

What a steal! It’s a gorgeous collection that will fill your wardrobes full of practical warmer weather staples! The Under The Sea theme is designed with comfort and fun in mind for our upcoming Australian Spring. Don’t think that if you are headed into Fall that this magazine is not for you though, One Thimble is very versatile and has something for everyone.

I have absolutely jumped on the One Thimble Fan-wagon this year and with each Issue I have sewn more and more! So far in testing this issue I have made 2 Triton tanks, 2 pairs of Scuttle shorts, 2 Hally dresses, a Pearlie dress and 2 Makana Mermaid skirts! I am proud to say that I have contributed another article to this issue as well, looking at mashing sizes in PDF patterns for the right fit! So grab your coffee and vanilla slice, we could be here for a while with all the pics I have taken!

First let’s take a look at the Hally Casual Dress! These dresses were such a fun project! They were designed by Jen of Ainslee Fox Boutique Patterns in sizes 1-12, who also happens to be the Editor and Creator of One Thimble.

I love the loose comfortable fit and the combinations are endless with fabric mixing here!

Magic Method 1

I made one using the magical first binding method and then we also decided to try a traditional bias method, so you can see both versions here.

Traditional Method 2

It has a simple elastic back with no buttons and zips!

If I’d had enough 1 inch gingham, that would have been my pick for this dress, so don’t be suprised if you see that version pop up soon!

I’m putting a little grid of pics in here, because you’ll be scrolling for days if I add all our pictures individually 😉

Next up is the Pearlie Dress & Peplum in sizes 1-12 by Peach Patterns.

It is a dolman style tshirt dress with a gathered skirt. There are 2 fit options to choose from and we chose the slim fit. It includes 3 pocket styles, but we chose to leave the pocket off for this version.

It is a super comfortable dress and a nice fast sew. This is my girls’ favourite style, they are into simple design and it lets you mix fabrics to change up the look. I can see a million combinations for this dress.

I love the high-low hem which curves up to the side seams. I also love her styling, and she loves her new tie dye socks with a cause from Help Astrid!

Every outfit needs matching bows, so I fussy cut these from the same gorgeous pastel rainbow leopard cotton lycra I used for the bodice!

Next up is the Triton Tank! It’s a casual knit pattern also by Ainslee Fox Boutique Patterns. It works best with fabrics that have a fluid drape (which you can actually read all about in the article on page 64)!

It can be made in sizes 1-12 and I love the roomy fit. This outfit made my kids so happy, they are all about the t-shirts and shorts! It doesn’t matter how many pretty dresses I make, they will always go straight for the basics! Can you blame them – look how comfortable they look!

That is definitely my new mission… Sew all the basics!

The Scuttle Shorts are also by Ainslee Fox Boutique Patterns and team perfectly with the tank. They can be made in sizes 3-12 in knit fabric. As you can see here, they are a unisex pattern in 2 lengths (Shorty & Jamaica lengths). I made both of mine with the panels and pockets, because they are so cute for colour blocking, but there is a simple plain option too, that would be a super fast sew.

My guy loves both this tank and shorts, I had to keep hiding them until we got a chance to take photos or he would have worn them out!

I’m sure you can spot sand and bark all over them from their little adventures this afternoon! This spot on the bay is just gorgeous and full of old trees to climb on.

We happened to hit this spot right on low tide on the most beautiful winters day! It was 4:30pm and it was so warm (25C)!

If you happen to visit us in the near future, you may find us back at that spot, with some deck chairs and drinks next time I think!

I have to show you our Makana Mermaid Skirts from testing too! They totally deserved their own blog post, because I  took so many cute pics of them in testing! This particular weekend we happened to experience some horrendous weather associated with an event known as an East Coast Low. Think Winter on steroids – RAIN, WIND, COLD! I also happened to be sick as a dog to match the weather! I dragged myself out to get the pics and we jagged a tiny bit of sunshine! My husband couldn’t believe we were going to the beach, but I knew we would sneak them in.

 

Now I know you’ve seen a lot, but every Issue I have said that Free Motion Applique is on my to-do list, so if we roll around to the Issue 17 tour and it hasn’t happened, give me a virtual tap on the shoulder and maybe a bit of a glare or something… I’m saying it – I will be FMA-ing that damn gorgeous Meg the Mermaid come hell or high water! So keep me honest and make sure it happens!

We are very lucky (and SUPER EXCITED as you can see below…) to be giving away a copy of Issue 16! So click the Raffle copter link below for your chance to win!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

I hope you like the fun things I’ve made to celebrate this issue!

Make sure to stop by the other bloggers to see what they have made!

Blog Tour Kickoff

Pattern Revolution

8/11/2017

Sewing with Sarah

GAAF Machine

8/12/2017

Call Ajaire

Happy Okapi

Idle Sunshine

8/13/2017

Pear Berry Lane

Candice Ayala

Needles to Say

8/14/2017

House of Estrela

That’s-Sew-Kari

Made by Sara

8/15/2017

Little Cumquat

Beri Bee Designs

Once Upon a Sewing Machine

8/16/2017

Sprouting JubeJube

Sew Haute Blog

Lily Shine Creates

8/17/2017

Lulu & Celeste

Adventures with Bubba and Bug

Curtiepie

Striped Swallow Designs – Highlander Dolman and Rhapsody Joggers

Hi everyone! It’s been a little quiet around here while I settle back into working and studying hasn’t it?

I’ve been keeping very busy behind the scenes in my spare time. Alright, let’s be honest, I’ve been sewing instead of doing my house work, because there is no longer any such thing as “spare time”!

I’ve been busy putting together my first reviews as part of my new role on the Pattern Revolution team (you will hear more about that soon!!) and I’ve also been doing some pattern testing too!

Speaking of pattern testing… I have been bursting to show you this new outfit from Striped Swallow Designs! They recently released the Mainland Collection which includes the Highlander Dolman and Rhapsody Joggers for Women and now the girls bundle and patterns are ready in their store too!

I absolutely love this outfit! The Highlander Dolman has a t-bar back option as well as ties but as you can see in my version I chose a single back strap.

I used a grey marle and a red and off-white stripe tshirt jersey for the front and back (both sourced from Spotlight). These fabrics don’t have a lot of stretch, which is fine for a dolman, but I made sure to use my floral rayon spandex as the binding, as it has the stretch and recovery needed for the job.

I made my daughter the size 5 width and used the size 6 length per her measurements and the fit and shape are both great. You can choose from sizes 2-14 and I really love how the colour blocking worked in this outfit.

Ok let’s tuck the top in so we can see these pants!

For the Rhapsody Joggers, I used this awesome rayon spandex I had in my stash from Lincraft. It feels sooooo beautiful and I am very jealous that I dont have enough to make myself a pair!

I decided to use the same stripe from the back of the Dolman as contrast pockets, which along with the floral binding on the dolman, really helps link the outfit together without it being too matchy matchy!

I made the size 6 width with the 6x length per her measurements. WHAAAAAAAT??? My girl must be growing finally! The fit and length are perfect and with sizes 2-14 to choose from, and size blending instructions included in the pattern, you’ll get the perfect fit too.

I really don’t have much else to say about this outfit, other than – I love it, she loves it,  it’s ridiculously comfy and it looks ridiculously awesome!! I’d love to hear what you think of my crazy fabric combinations though! Knits are really expensive in Australia and we don’t have anything like the range my friends in the USA have! I often fill online carts with fabric from US stores because they are so cheap and beautiful. Then you click checkout, you add your address and then you just about faint from the postage cost! So if someone can find me a fabric sponsor I’d be super grateful 😉

Make sure you keep in touch on instagram and facebook!
Warmest wishes,

Brooke xx

idlesunshine

Sew Pony – Tic Tac Toe Dress

Hello everyone, It’s my turn to share a Tic Tac Toe Dress by Sew Pony! I was heartbroken that I wasn’t able to squeeze testing into my schedule for this pattern, but I was thrilled when Suz asked me to join the blog tour!

I was a lucky tester of another Sew Pony pattern earlier this year – the gorgeous Miss Polly! I adored these dresses I made and I knew that the Tic Tac Toe would be the same!

The Tic Tac Toe has a similar gorgeous vintage feel to it. I absolutely love the Sew Pony design aesthetic! It’s classic, timeless and European inspired 💘. Suz has a great european following and offers some of her patterns translated in Dutch! You can grab the Dutch version here.

I originally had a beautiful navy blue fabric with clouds picked for my version, but I began to see a lot of blue and white popping up and so I decided to get a little crazy instead!

I had this amazing multicolour floral in my stash that I had picked up from Spotlight. It’s a quilting cotton by American Traditions. With so many colours in there, I then just had to decide on an accent colour and piping.

I chose the yellow and initially had a solid yellow sitting along side it, but then I thought – come on Brooke, you said you were going to go a bit crazy?!!! The polka dots were perfect! I only had about a half a metre of them, but that was plenty for the version I chose.

I have been trying to give my designs a slightly more grown up look to keep my “grown up” girls happy, so instead of predictable pink I chose black for the piping. I love the contrast and my girls loved it too.

I made this version big enough for both girls to be able to wear, and also big enough to wear with a long sleeve shirt under it when the weather turns cold again next year.

We took some pictures at the park and my girls were loving watching the Willy Wagtails flitting about nearby! While her back was turned watching the birds dance I got a shot of the back with the invisible zipper. I bought myself an invisible zipper foot for my birthday and it makes a big difference on using the regular zipper foot!

There are so many different options in this dress to make it your own! The combinations are amazing! We chose the sleeveless version for summer here in Australia, with a pieced bodice, piping and pockets in the skirt, BUT there are 4 different sleeves you can pick from, 2 collars, epaulettes, a sash, more bodice piecing options,  along with the piping and pockets!

Little Miss loves her pockets – can you tell?! There’s barely a picture without her hands in them haha! I cannot blame her, I am a big pocket fan too!

Miss 5 has already decided this “special dress” will be her Christmas dress! I love that my girls love what I make for them, but did someone say Christmas? Eeeeek – I have not even started the shopping… HELP!

To see all the beautiful versions on the Tic Tac Toe Tour, please visit the bloggers below!

Thank you Suz for having me join, I am honoured to be included!

The pattern is 10% off on sale for the release (until the end of the blog tour) sale with the code TICTACTOE10 in the Sewpony web shop

14 Nov: Metoezie//Bravefabrics//Amore

16 Nov: thirtynine//Inspinration//Amelie+Atticus

18 Nov: MaaiDesign//naadjesendraadjes//gaafmachine

21 Nov: littlecumquat//Petrol&Mint//Idlesunshine

23 Nov: NeedlestoSay//Liivi&Liivi//Soulfedonthread

25 Nov: KaatjeNaaisels//StraightGrain//MadebySara