sewtakeahike

Making Faces with Melissa Averinos

 

 

I fell hard for Melissa's pieced face quilt as I watched her progress on it on Instagram. Then when she posted that it was going to be on display at QuiltCon and she was going to be there as well, I had high hopes of meeting her!

Although our paths didn't cross at QuiltCon, fast forward a couple of months, and after a bit of back and forth, Melissa agreed to come to my house in Colorado for a weekend of teaching and a slumber party with a wonderful group of women I had in mind (she wrote a bit about that process here).

Melissa (and her teaching methods) are brilliantly mindful and thoughtful. I really had no idea what to expect, although I had a few preconceived ideas based on the supply sheet.

The class started with a lesson on face drawing. If you take a look at my before the lesson drawing compared to my after lesson drawing, you will see that her methods are very effective.

 

 

By the time we had practiced our face drawings for a bit, we were all restless to get to work with some fabric. Melissa encouraged us to work on a couple of faces at a time and not get too attached as we worked. I love how this method kept my personal need for perfection in check.

Here is a partial of the progression of one of my faces

 

 

   

I'm still working on redhead, and I'm fortunate that Fozzy hasn't discovered all those pieces on my designboard are not yet tacked down!

 

Here's the other face I started. I've started grid stitching her and will keep you updated as I get further along. 

 

 

I love this photo, it's really uncanny how much everyone's faces resemble the maker in features or personality. And then the proud (as she should be) teacher in the front.

 

Thank you so much Melissa for investing in us, we are so grateful to you and I'm so excited to see where the Making Faces journey takes you! You're an absolute treasure!

xo, Penny

 

Noodlehead style giveaway!

 

Well hello there!

I hope you're all having an active and fun summer like we have been! So far it's been all about being outdoors, family, and a few home improvements. Now that the end of July is rolling around, I'm starting to feel ok about being indoors a bit and doing some sewing.

I have quite a few projects I want and need to work on, and I'm always happy to check something fabulous off my list

 

and this pencil case from Anna's book Handmade Style has been just the ticket.

Have you seen the projects in her book yet? So many fun things to make. I love Anna's asthetic and construction techniques!

And then, she has also recently come out with a fabulous fabric line called Rain Walk. Oh Anna....

These are a few of the prints I asked for and they are so lovely!

 

 

I used the top three prints for the pencil case

 

 

And the bottom print, Sprinkle in gray, I'm going to make a shirt with. Stay tuned for that!

Now, for a giveaway!

Anna has graciously offered up a signed copy of her book as well as a hard copy of her Runaround bag pattern up to one of you!

 

 

Leave one comment telling me your favorite print from Anna's line to enter the giveaway. I'll choose a winner this Friday the 25th.

Good luck!

 

 

Scrap Happy Sewing book review and ebook giveaway

 

I absolutely love sewing with scraps! So I am happy to be participating in Kim's blog hop for her book Scrap Happy Sewing.

Here's the complete blog hop participant list for you:

 

APRIL:

Thu 2nd  - Retro Mama

Tue 7th  - SCC

Wed 8th  - S.O.T.A.K Handmade

Thu 9th  - Fabricworm

Fri 10th  - Clover & Violet

Mon 13th  - Robot Mom Sews

Tue 14th  - Vivid Felicity

Wed 15th  - Cut To Pieces

Thu 16th  - Straight Grain

Fri 17th  - Sew Take A Hike

Mon 20th  - Vintage Grey

Tue 21st  - Miss Print

Wed 22nd  - Pink Penguin

Thu 23rd  - Sew Creative Blog

Fri 24th  - Follow the White Bunny

Mon 27th  - A Bright Corner

Tue 28th  - Sew Justine Sew

Wed 29th  - LRstitched

Thu 30th  - Pieced Brain

 

This book has 18 fantastic projects, and it was pretty easy to pick a project since I've been doing a bit more hand sewing lately. I needed a new needlebook , because we all need a needlebook in every single project pouch we have, right?!

 

 

 

 

 

 

This little guy was a snap to put together thanks to the clear and easy to follow instructions Kim gives. I took a few minor liberties with the pattern, but kept it the same as the instructions for the most part.

This is a book worth having!

And now for the exciting news! F&W has graciously offered to give away one eBook copy of Scrap Happy Sewing to one of you! Just leave a comment on this post and you'll be entered! I'll choose a winner on Monday April 20.

Also, F&W is giving away a hard copy of the book and some fabric, so you might want to click over and enter here!

Good luck!

xo,Penny

Simply Sewn and Stitch Wear Play reviews

  

Simply Sewn: Clothes for Every Season

By Michiyo Ito

Interweave/F+W; $24.99

I love the look of simple, easy clothing and when I opened up Simply Sewn by Michiyo Ito, I was immediately connected to her easy going style. The book contains 31 patterns ranging from shirts to dresses to outerwear, skirts and pants. (At the time I wrote this, the link above has the book on sale for $19.07, bonus!)

 

The book begins with beautiful photography of each piece of clothing and then moves on to the basics for sewing clothing, including how to prewash your fabric, prep your pattern and cut your fabric.

I have yet to make any of the pieces from the book, however, the gingham button down on the cover is at the top of my list. Each pattern has individual instruction for laying out the pattern and sewing instruction, complete with either detail photos or beautifully clear diagrams.

Three pattern sheets are included in an envelope in the back of the book, with all the patterns ready for tracing. Amidst the many pros of this book, the only con I found is tucked inside the book on page 45, which is that the seam allowances are not included in the pattern pieces. So although the patterns seem simple, there is a bit of fussiness added on the front end by having to add your own seam allowances. That's not a deal breaker for me though, especially when I look at pieces like this.

 

 

 

 

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Stitch, Wear, Play

By Michiyo Ito

Interweave/F+W; $24.99

 

If I had children, Stitch, Wear, Play would be dog-eared and worn out. This book contains 20 simple and oh so charming patterns for boys and girls.

 

 

The book is divided into Spring-Summer and Fall-Winter collections with instruction for each pattern then moves on to sewing techniques you will need to know for the patterns in the book such as binding an armhole, making box pleats and how to make a patch pocket.

The instructions are well illustrated and seem simple enough and I love that any special sewing techniques needed for a pattern are referenced in the instructions along with the page number to find illustrations and text with step by step instructions for each technique. The pattern instruction is logical and seems very easy to use.

The pattern sheets are located in a pocket in the front of the book, which you will need to trace.

 

 

 

 

The patterns are sized by measurements, not age, which I think is very helpful. The patterns include seam allowances and each pattern instruction advises the seam allowance that needs to be used.

 

 

This looks like a great book!

 

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One last thing! You won't want to miss this sale that FabricCadabra is having on all Cotton+Steel fabric! I think a lot of the patterns in Simply Sewn and Stitch, Wear, Play would look great in these fabrics!

 

 

 

Spring Fever

 

We keep getting glimpses of spring here in the Fort Collins area and it's a welcome change. In a short few weeks, the hummingbirds will be back at my house whizzing around looking for their feeders. In fact, last year they came back mid-April, which is their normal time to return, and a week later we had a huge snowstorm. I have no idea how they survived the 20 degree nightly temps for a few days and the feet of snow we got, but they did! They are hearty little guys!

In anticipation of spring, Kerry and I have just released a new Sew-Ichigo pattern set called "Spring Fever".

 

 

In the set you will find a chaffinch, a hummingbird, a swan, a tall and short tulip, and a spring chick. You can buy the patterns as singles, or as a set. Kerry has done a nice pattern background post on her blog here if you are interested! 

Happy Spring to you!

xo, Penny