The 'Boardwalk' Dress

I was so excited to receive Christine Haynes new pattern in the mail! I signed up for her Sassy Librarian Craftsy class and was pretty into her style, so I instantly preordered one of her two new patterns when she announced them.  It arrived early last week, bundled up in the cutest retro designed tissue paper, calling to me to make it up.  I just happened to have picked up this red, white and blue floral print fabric for this week's Sew Weekly challenge... in 3 1/2 yards, just under what the pattern called for. But with my creative pattern placement, I actually had just enough fabric.  I think her yardage allowances were pretty generous and I can be pretty frugal with my pattern placements - making sure to get every last inch of fabric covered so that I 1) have leftovers, and 2) can use 3 1/2 yards of fabric when almost 4 are called for.  Genius. (Or cheap... whatever).

The Facts

Fabric: 3.5 yards floral printed cotton, $22, on sale

Pattern: Christine Haynes Derby Dress pattern, $18

Year: Contemporary

Notions: None!

Time to complete: 4 hours

First worn: This last Friday, to the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk

Wear again? Yup

Total cost: $40

When it actually came time to cut out the fabric, I almost got cold feet.  I started to worry that the dress shape just wouldn't be flattering on me.  Ultimately, I bit the bullet.  I had spent the money on the pattern, the dress looked really cute... I should just do it.

The pattern was a breeze to assemble.  While there were quite a few pieces, they were no-fuss, no zippers, no notions... just me, my machine, and my serger.  I didn't make the belt that comes with the dress... yet.  I will, I just wanted to be done and I was happy with the look with my own little brown belt.  The only aspect that I wasn't a fan of was the way the notches were done on the pattern.  Instead of being inside the pattern lines, they were out... which would seem easy enough to fix but I was too lazy to draw the notches into the patterns.  I know some people prefer to notch their patterns on the outside but I figure that with a standard 5/8" seam allowance, there's no real need.  Anyways, not a deal breaker by any means but just something I had on my mind.

We've had some out of town family members staying with us so we're showing them the California sites.  We took them to Santa Cruz. It's a somewhat nearby coastal town famous for it's hippie vibe, surfer culture, and Boardwalk (which you may recognize from the movie Lost Boys).  It was actually a gorgeous summer early-evening.  We rode a few rides, enjoyed some funnel cake, took pictures on the beach and had Marianne's ice cream.  The dress held up really well though keeping the front slouchy can be a challenge when you constantly stuff your hands in your pockets.



Here are some more pictures from our trip to the Boardwalk:

I did not go on the ride in the last picture. Ok, well, I went on the roller coast, but not the crazy spider arm.  I left that one to my hubby and our house guests.  My excuse was that I was wearing a dress. In reality, I thought I'd pee my pants (which would be pretty impressive considering I was wearing a dress).

What I Watched: Trainspotting (1996). Love. Ewan. McGregor. Oh and Kelly MacDonald was so young! The Shawshank Redemption (1994).  I feel like I watched this recently but I just love this movie.

The 'Summer Paisley' Dress

I think I’ve made a new record in my sewing times, in being able to whip this dress up in just under 3 hours.  Having a serger has made all the difference, but it also helps that I had just recently made this dress, so the pieces were all cut and ready to go.

This dress is on the brighter side of my Spring/Summer sewing palette, but fit perfectly with the colors that I was seeing in summer trends. In particular, Pantone’s spring and summer colors.  And I love the modern paisley print.

The Facts

Fabric: 2.5 yards floral printed cotton, $20, on sale
Pattern: Colette Hazel, $0, second time making
Year: Contemporary
Notions: Invisible zipper, $3
Time to complete: 3 hours!
First worn: This past week, in Las Vegas.
Wear again? Yes!
Total cost: $23 

I considered extending the bodice for this dress, as that seems to be my new trend, but I remember reading in the Sew Colette 2 sewalong that Sarai specifically made this dress to have a higher waist.  One change that I did make since first making this dress, was to extend the width of the arm straps by 2” each.  While I really like the arm straps as they are, I have to wear my other version with a strapless bra because the straps and where they connected to the front of the dress made a section of my regular bras constantly visible.  This change definitely solved the problem, though in the future I might just give the arm straps a little more shape, similar to the Cambie dress.

I love wearing this dress.  It’s so comfortable and instantly makes me think of summer.  The colors are so bright and the design is perfect for hot weather.

And with that, my trip to Vegas is over!  

What I Watched:  Part of Black Sheep (1996) and listened to the hubby watch Batman Begins (2005) in the other room. 

The ‘Pinwheels Holiday’ Dress

This challenge coincided perfectly with part of my summer vacation plans. I’m currently in Las Vegas enjoying the sweltering hot, 106 degree F weather. This called for packing a lot of summer dresses. Luckily I was finally able to get a decent amount of sewing time in over the last few days.

I purchased this pinwheel fabric as it fit my summer sewing palette and was a simple, whimsical print. One of my local independent sewing stores was having a massive sale in May and I was able to buy myself a few treats, this being one. However, when it came time to make it into something, I was so indecisive. My Simplicity pattern collection exploded recently due to their big sale, so I had a few new patterns to choose from. I spent about an hour going through all of my patterns – new, old, and already made – trying to find the right pattern for the fabric. In the end, my decision was made when I realized that I had two buttons that would be perfect with this fabric, and thus, this pattern was selected.

The Facts

Fabric: ~3 yards cotton fabric with pinwheel print $15, on sale
Pattern: Simplicity 1873, Version C, $1, on sale
Notions: Blue invisible zipper, $3, 2 pink buttons from stash
Time to make: 4 hours
First worn: This week, June, 2012.
Wear it again? Yup, I think.
Total cost: $20

Last summer, I lived in my sleeveless dresses and realized that I wanted to add a few more to my collection this year. I didn’t make any changes to this pattern, though I did debate lining it fully – the pattern only calls for a lined bodice. The only thing that stopped me was the pleats in the skirt. They were actually very easy to put together, but I did have to consult one of my sewing books for a reminder in how to do them. But I was wary of having to repeat the process with the lining, and if it would create unnecessary bulk. Ultimately, I’m happy with the unlined dress, though for as hot as it was in Vegas, it was also incredibly windy so there were some moments that could have been construed as scandalous… though maybe not by much in Vegas standards.

Oh, and I went with the longer skirt length from version A & B, but it was the same pattern piece so I don’t consider that a modification.

Overall, I’m happy with the dress. I don’t know if it’s the most flattering shape on me, but the dress is so comfortable. I might try one of the other variations like the sleeve version… and I love the little cape jacket that's part of the pattern.

What I Watched: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1990) and Notting Hill (1999). Was TMNT really out that long ago? I loved the ninja turtles when I was a kid, and my college roommate and I went to the premier of the last animated movie. Or wait, have there been more since? I don't know, the last I heard was that they were going to make a movie with the turtles being from space. Blasphemy!  And to make up for the fact that I watched the ninja turtles, I watched Notting Hill.  Eh, it's alright. I think I liked the concept of it more when I first saw it, but sometimes it's just nice to revisit movies like that.

The 'City Lights' Reversible Dress

Oh if only this week's challenge would be taking place in a few weeks when I would be in the city of the inspiration! But it's ok, I was still ready to take on the task of being inspired by Las Vegas.

Vegas is just a short plane ride from the Bay Area so I've had many a trips there. A lot when I was a kid (I know, not exactly a family destination, but they did try for a while), more in my 20's, and now we try to make it out there at least once a year or so.  Our annual trip is coming up, so we can hopefully see some Cirque du Soleil shows, enjoy some ice cream from Serendipity, and of course, people watching.

I purchased the fabric used in this challenge back during my first visit to Britex, the uber (expensive) fabric store in San Francisco.  This fabric was on sale in their remnants section, and for as much as I liked the busy print, I haven't been able to find the right inspiration for it.  But it was the first idea that popped into my mind when I heard Vegas.  It's a pink and green print on a black background.  Busy and bright, like the Las Vegas strip at night.

I had enough fabric to make the new Sewaholic Cambie dress, which would be the perfect dress for a day of shopping and people watching in Vegas.  Oh but the nightlife in Vegas is what it's all about!  Early on in the assembly of this dress I realized that the black fabric I was using for the full lining, would be the perfect LBD.  And wouldn't it be great if this dress could translate from day to night?  Now, I don't know if I would actually wear it all day and then turn it around for the evening (especially in Vegas humidity), but I do like having options.



The Facts

Fabric: 3.5 yards of cotton print on sale at Britex $20, black Kona cotton on sale $10
Pattern: Sewaholic Cambie $18
Year: Contemporary
Notions: Invisible zipper $2
Time to complete: 5 hours
First worn: Out and about after a day at the beach
Wear again? Oh yes!
Total cost: $50

Aside from the fact that you essentially make two dresses, this was about my usual 5 hours of sewing time.  I had to be a bit more careful when it came to attaching the lining and hemming the dress, to make sure that it could be worn inside and out.



What I Watched: More Scrubs (yay, Netflix!) and Season 2 of Flight of the Concords

The 'Primrose Polka Dot' Dress

I wasn't sure if I was going to be participating in the Sew Weekly challenge this week until about Wednesday.  I'd been trying to get caught up on some random sewing projects that I've had calling to me for a while now and felt like I'd lost my sewing mojo.  I hadn't gone into my sewing room and have had the same blouse laying on the cutting table for two weeks.  I don't know what it is... the idea of spending 4-6 hours on finished a garment? Maybe. Work has also been really crazy which has made me want to just veg when the day is done.  I do have some plans to improve my sewing time (more on that soon), but what ended up inspiring me was just a good old-fashioned sale.



My local yarn and fabric store had recently converted to online only, and now the owner is moving elsewhere in California.  This meant a massive sale.  Well, it first started out at 30%, but while I was tempted, the missing sewing mojo wouldn't let me be phased. Until she announced 50%. Let the web shopping begin!  I picked up a couple of prints, and some Kona solids, but it was just enough to inspire me to get me back into the sewing room.  I had a different garment planned, but then Mena posted some 40's inspiration pictures for this week's theme.  I loved all of the fun prints, and while I'm not crazy about some of the 40's dress features, I started thinking about how Colette's Ceylon dress definitely has a 40's vibe about it.  And I just happened to order some grey and pink polka dot fabric that could totally fit into the theme.  And there you have it! I practically ran to the sewing room to get started.

Even more exciting, my good friend Jess from Tartan Hearts Jewelry sent me a necklace that would go perfectly with this dress (and a few of my other upcoming projects).  The piece is one of my favorites that she carries - the Primrose necklace on a silver chain.  I love the color of the pink and the Hunger Games inspiration.  And the best part? She's going to be doing a giveaway for my lovely readers! So stay tuned for that announcement, coming this Friday!

The Facts

Fabric: 3.5 yards Michael Miller Dumb Dot cotton in dark grey with pink polka dots $20
Pattern: Colette Ceylon, previously made $0
Year: Contemporary
Notions: 16 buttons $4, bias tape $2
Time to complete: Approx. 6 hours
First worn: To my nephew's baptism
Wear again? Yes! Love it!
Total cost: $26

I've already made this dress before, but it was one of my earlier creations.  It's pretty easy to put together but even having made it before, I had to read over some steps a few times.  I even went back to my original dress to see how I did it and realized I had made a few mistakes back then.  It still fits great, but it's interesting to see how your skills (and hairstyles) change over the course of a year.



There was one slight mishap in making the dress, but it had a happy ending:

So, once the fabric came in the mail, I had the majority of the supplies for the dress.  On Saturday morning, I ran out to my local JoAnn's to pick up some buttons, knowing I needed 16. For some reason the 16 transformed itself into 14 in my head and I only picked up 3 packs of 5 buttons.  While completing my dress on Saturday evening, I broke one of the buttons on my machine. Oops. Good thing I only needed 14. But wait! I needed 16! And I'm wearing this dress tomorrow!  I looked at the clock and saw that it was 8:40.  Could I get to JoAnn's before they closed at 9?  Let's find out!  The hubby and I raced over there making it in record time.  At 8:50 I ran into the store and picked up on $1 pack of buttons.  Mission accomplished!  I was able to finish my dress in time for the baptism, without showing too much skin in Church from lack of buttons.



And there you have it!  My 40's inspired dress.  I seem to have a thing with polka dots, but I love the dark grey fabric and the fact that the dots themselves are such a light pink that it's a nice surprise when you realize the hint of color.  And I love that I have the perfect necklace to go with it!  Check in later this week for the Tartan Hearts Jewelry giveaway!

What I Watched: Finished off the last of the Scrubs that we own (I think Season 7?) and started rewatching Flight of the Concords, Season 1.

The 'Rose Garden' Dress

Oh, a feature on Sew Weekly for this dress!  Some of the information is a repeat (if you read it over on the site) but I'm including a few more photos of the gorgeous rose garden and other tidbits for my faithful readers.  As always, thank you for your support in my sewing endeavors!

I was so excited to see an upcoming pink challenge in the queue over at the Sew Weekly, as I knew exactly which fabric I was going to use.  I've had this fabric in my stash for as long as I can remember.  I can't recall if I picked it up over 5 years ago when I thought I would take up sewing, or if I grabbed it from my mom's stash.  It wasn't a print I was necessarily drawn to, but knew that I could cut it up without being worried about the outcome of the final garment.  But now that I actually know what I'm doing, I wanted to see if I could make it into something that I would wear.  Not only that, but I wanted to be excited about it.

The Facts

Fabric: cotton from my stash $0

Pattern: Megan Nielsen's Darling Ranges $18

Year: Contemporary

Notions: Buttons and bias tape! $6

Time to complete: 5 hours

First worn: This past weekend on a trip to the San Jose Heritage Rose Garden

Wear again? Yes!

Total cost: $24

So, time to mix things up! I had to get out of my Colette/Simplicity comfort zone and try something new.  I switched on over to Megan Nielsen mode.  Please, bear with me as I become obsessed.  This dress was so fun to make. There were just a few pattern pieces and they didn't have a lot of markings that I had to deal with.  As I can be pretty lazy when it comes time to cut out my patterns and fabric, I loved this.  The instructions were really clear and I loved the methods for installing bias tape into the neckline and the front packet for the buttons.

The only challenge that I had is the bust is a bit tight.  This could have been avoided if I made a muslin, especially as I hadn't worked with her patterns before, but when I immediately made up her Banksia pattern, I had zero issues with the fit.  So, note to self...  I may need to bind the girls up, or just lose a few pounds, but I do know that when I make this dress again, I'll have to double check the bust fit.

I omitted the back ties when I made the dress as I didn't need to pull the waist in for shaping, and because I intend to mainly pair this with a belt.  Of course, I forgot this when I put it on for the photo-shoot, but I still love the way the dress looks.

I ventured out of the backyard again for this photo shoot, and headed on over to the San Jose Heritage Rose Garden.  I drive by this beautiful garden whenever I go into the office, but had never stopped to check it out.  It's over four acres of land that contained about 3,200 varieties of roses.

All are planted and maintained by volunteers. It was pretty amazing and a beautiful treasure trove in the middle of San Jose.  It also made for the perfect backdrop for this pink challenge.  Roses everywhere in every color imaginable! And I braved the bees for you all!

This garment also falls nicely into my Spring/Summer palette and is proving perfect for California spring weather.  I could wear it into the fall (and quite honestly, winter here) by just pairing it with some tights and boots.

What I Watched: Mooore Scrubs! I know, I've forgotten this section for the last couple of posts, but I haven't watching anything new.  Just working through seasons 5 & 6 now.  Almost done and then I have to pick out a new series or movies to re-watch.

Featured Friend: Oona Balloona

Hold on to your seats dear readers, because this week we're hanging out with the glamorous Oona from oonaballoona!  How I managed anything in the blogging world before discovering Oona over at the Sew Weekly (in her feature section Oona Does It), I'll never know, but from her fun posts and gorgeous creations, I feel like I know the girl.  Seriously, just try to read her blog without imagining her speaking to you right there.  I love her writing style - she's so much fun, and she didn't dissapoint in this interview either.  Enjoy!

What inspires you?

the sewing blogisphere, most definitely.  the rage and jealousy i experience when seeing other people's glorious creations (like my lovely host's very own oilcloth raincoat) can only be assuaged by ripping off the garment completely and unashamedly.  well, there's a little shame... but mostly there's bratty happy dancing.  i love to go down the pinterest rabbit hole; following my favorite sewists there and seeing what inspires them is hugely entertaining.  i used to spend the inspiration hour over at burdastyle, but i feel it's become so huge it's hard to navigate.  i love to troll and drool at the sew weekly!

What is your craft space like?

ever changing, apparently (but never without a beverage).  i'm 3,000 miles away from my actual space, and i've set up a little sewing studio here in my temporary digs.  though i'm only equipped with a straight stitch (featherweight 221) there's much more square footage here!  i've taken over the dining room and half of the living room.  my ironing board follows the sun as the day goes on, and i've been known to haul every bit of my arsenal out to sew by the pool.  BECAUSE IT'S THERE.

if my space isn't properly organized, i can't do a thing.  a little voice inside me says: NOW, and when it pipes up i have to stop what i'm doing, take three minutes to whirlwind re-organize and clean, then i'm off and running with scissors again.  i also like to keep arrangements of colorful happy things around that are always in danger of being knocked off the table by yards of fabric.  

  

Let us in on your stash... what's coming, what's in progress, what are you stumped with?

well, my stash just grew to a dizzying weight after a wonderful expedition with cation designs.  i'm at that point of looking at the goods and deciding what's next, which is my favorite moment, like being on the edge of the high dive board.  i don't really plan what's coming, something just pops into my head, or a color or print appeals, and i grab it.  i do usually have several things in progress, because i've learned that i get mad at a garment when i've looked at it too long.  so i juggle my creations to keep it fresh.  i'll also hold off on finishing something if i don't know which way to go... there's a pretty blue flowered sundress that's been hanging on my "garment rack" (side of a door) for three weeks now because i don't know how i want to finish the neckline.  and i'm absolutely stumped with a mod mini dress made out of a turquoise and gold print with burnout black chiffon side panels.    

What is your favorite craft to work with?

sewing, absolutely!  i've always been crafty, i've gone through jewelry, knitting, painting, making cards... while i love all of those past obsessions nothing has stuck like sewing.  i dreamt the other night i was offered a free ride to FIDM on the basis of 25 garments, and i woke up blissed out.  just think of the school supplies.

What is your favorite thing you've created so far?

that's hard, because i am Oh So Very Talented.  no, really, i am.  WHAT.

actually, i tend to think whatever i'm working on is my most favorite thing i've ever made, usually proclaiming this in ear piercing tones to ruggy and the surrounding vicinity... and then i do something along the way to F it up.  it's a toss up between my tiki tiki tavi bomshell dress, and my teal lace campbell apartment dress.  illuminating... lately i'm making full gathered skirts, but my two faves are more hip hugging.  must look into that.  thank you, dr. cupcake.

Where can i read more?

i'm always drinking-- erm, excuse me, chilling over at my blog: oonaballoona, and i just love me some pinterest.  i'm still over at the sew weekly doing it oona style, but i've pared it back to monthly challenges in favor of having a bit of my life back!  you ladies that take on weekly challenges: i tip my martini glass to you.  after that, i'm over at burdastyle, craftsy, and twitter (@KalkatroonaOona), in that particular order of appearance.  i'll be honest, i'm still figuring out le tweets...

thanks for having me over, miss cupcake!  

The 'You've Got Me Collared' Blouse

This week's Sew Weekly challenge was of the childhood theme - mainly based off of a childhood photo.  Not only that, but it's the first garment from my Spring/Summer palette sewing.  Luckily, I grew up in a warm weather area so I was able to combine the two. Multitasking at it's finest, right?


Finding a childhood photo to represent the fashion decisions of my parents was a bit of a challenge.  The hubby and I have moved so many times and my collection of childhood photos is pretty scarce already.  Locating them can be a bit of a scavenger hunt.  On top of that, sometimes I'm surprised that my parents owned a camera... much less that I take so many pictures myself.  One day I'd love to go through my mom's basement and see if somewhere in there, there is a huge collection of photos that I never knew existed.  Alas, I don't think that's the case.  So in flipping through my baby photos - that majority of the childhood photos that I own, I found one common theme - the peter pan collar.  

I was rockin' the peter pan collar when I was a kid.  90% of my baby photos had one and my future school uniforms all ended up with the option.  Which is strange because along with tights, button up blouses were on my childhood axis of evil.  I swear my mom found the itchiest, frilliest tights possible to dress me up in, and I hated every one of them.  But, I digress.

For this week's challenge, I wanted a girly blouse reminiscent of my youth.  I decided to try out a new pattern - first, because I had just ordered it, and second because it only required a small amount of yardage, which was just enough for the two yards of floral cotton that I picked up in the recent Bay Area fabric/pattern swap hosted by Mena.  I combined it with some cream cotton for the collar.

The Facts

Fabric: 2 yards cotton floral print (I believe it's a feedsack cloth), free from swap, 1/2 yard cream cotton $3

Pattern: Megan Nielsen Banksia $13 on sale

Year: Contemporary

Notions: 3 pink buttons $1.00

Time to Complete: 3 hours

First worn: This week on a beautiful, sunny day!

Wear again: Oh yes, this will be going into constant rotation

Total Price: $17

The pattern was so simple to put together and a fast sew - total satisfaction project.  I whipped this out from cut, instructions dissection, and full assembly, in just 3 hours.  I inserted the placket using the second method that she described, which was apparently the harder of the two versions but still very easy to figure out.  The instructions were crystal clear and the illustrations were great.  As soon as I finished this blouse I started working on another one just because I had the fabric handy it was so easy to put together.

Placket installed with method 2

Aside from the installation of the placket, I really liked Megan Nielsen's directions for installing the peter pan collar.  It looks really tidy and nicely closes up the seams - and you don't have to worry about any edges flipping upwards.

A closeup of the collar installation

I will definitely be wearing this again. It's extremely comfortable and lightweight; perfect for Bay Area spring and summer weather.  It's casual, but not t-shirt casual, so I don't feel super lazy wearing it.  I've been really into floral prints recently and needing more separates so this is the perfect addition to my wardrobe.

Spring and Summer 2012: Moodboard

I finally found some time to put together my Spring and Summer moodboard, inspired by Colette's Palette Challenge.

My board reflects most of the colors and some inspirational designs that I'd like to be a framework for my Spring and Summer sewing.

Based on some of the other boards I've seen, it seems pretty standard - a sprinkling of pastels and I'm throwing in some light grey.  What do you think?  I mainly want to make some blouses as my wardrobe has been majorly lacking in that area, and more casual and work appropriate dresses.  I also want to make some items that are in line with the upcoming Sew Weekly themes, That's Sew Cinematic sew along, and some of the other sew-alongs that I've had on the books.  What about you? What are your warm weather sewing plans?

The ‘Flowers in Paradise’ Dress

Aloha!  This week’s creation was lucky enough to be first worn on the island of Oahu while I’m on vacation visiting friends in Hawaii.  It was the perfect summer dress for the gorgeous Hawaii weather.  But what else makes this dress special?  Well, it’s my VIP fabric and pattern. I’ve had Sewaholic’s Lonsdale dress pattern in my stash for several months now but hadn’t found the right fabric to make it.  And I’ve only made one other Sewaholic pattern before and I was a little chicken to bust out of my Simplicity, Colette and Vogue patterns world.  As I started planning for my trip, I decided that I wanted to make a couple of sun dresses so I dusted off the pattern.  I had recently actually looked at the contents and realized that it didn’t look that difficult.  Now I had to find the right fabric for it...

I’ve had this cotton print in my stash for a while too, and while it’s just a simple cotton print, I really liked it and kept putting it aside for the right pattern.  None were good enough for it or I kept thinking ‘I could do better.’  That’s when Lonsdale and the cotton print came together.  As soon as I held the two up side by side I declared ‘that’s it!’

My vacation was quickly approaching and I was worried I wouldn’t have time to put the dress together, but luckily it was one of the fastest projects I’ve made in a long time.  It only took about 4 hours from pattern cutting to finish.  The assembly was ridiculously easy.  The top of the dress is lined, but not the skirt.  I could easily have lined it, but it wasn’t necessary - the fabric is dark and I wanted a lightweight dress.  I love the neck tie and the way it loops around to the back.  

The Facts

Fabric: 4.5 yards Michael Miller floral print cotton, on sale ~$35

Pattern: Sewaholic’s Lonsdale Pattern, on sale ~$15

Year: Contemporary

Notions: 16” zipper, $1.50

Time to Complete: 4 hours

First worn: On vacation in Hawaii

Wear again: Yes!

Total Price: $51.50

The dress fits great and was just right for the Hawaiian weather.  I probably won’t be able to wear it for a few months back home so I just have to get my fill of it now.  

What I Watched: 

Some of Scrubs Season 3

Sew Weekly Swap Meetup

I apologize for the tardiness of this post - I've been busy since I've left for vacation (more on that later) and didn't get a chance to write about the awesome Sew Weekly meet up from two weekends ago.  I was flipping through my photos and realized I hadn't posted anything yet.  And honestly, my blog feed is overflowing at this point! I haven't had time to catch up on my reader and reply to my favorite bloggers posts.  But don't worry friends, I'll be back out in the blogging world soon enough!

On to the meet up.

So, two weekends ago, I went to Mena's (of Sew Weekly) house in San Francisco where she was hosting a little get-together for local Sew Weekly members/sewing enthusiasts.  People were asked to bring fabric and patterns for a good old fashioned swap.  Well, I've never been to a sewing swap before as I'm still fairly new to this and wasn't able to attend her last gathering.  I arrived in a cold, rainy San Francisco with a cluster of patterns and some chamomile tea and honey cupcakes... because arriving anywhere with cupcakes is always a good thing.  I soon realized that this was going to be a big deal.  People were arriving with bags of fabric and patterns.

Mena provided some delicious fresh-baked treats. My chamomile cupcakes are on the right.

Mena has a lovely place in San Francisco that was shortly filled with said oodles of fabric, vintage patterns and lovely sewing ladies.  Seriously, they came prepared!  Mena's dining room table was overflowing with vintage patterns that only seemed to multiply with time!  The connecting room had fabric covering a sofa and two tables.  We took turns introducing ourselves - I recognized a couple of ladies from the Sew Weekly there - and then drew numbers to venture into the fabric/pattern void.  I was lucky enough to get number 2 which meant I didn't have to wait long to pick out some fun finds.

Views of the different areas to peruse during the swap.

It was great to meet so many like-minded people and to see what fantastic patterns and fabrics they were able to find.  I also loved when the person who contributed the item talked about when/where they got it and what they originally planned to make with it.

I couldn't believe how much stuff everyone left with - and how much was still left behind! In the end we were huddled over Mena's dining room table picking out patterns and notions.  I got some great fabrics and left inspired by the many ladies that I met.  Here are some photos of what I left with:

By the way... I forgot my camera for the event (don't you hate it when you leave it on the table at home next to your pile of stuff to bring?) so everything was taken with my iPhone. Thus the lack of pictures and the low quality.