Merry Christmas 2021!

A very Merry Christmas to you! This will be a quick post since I’ve been battling a pretty bad cold the past week or so. Luckily the covid test was negative. I’ve been offline resting, reading and recovering. Finally feeling well enough to jump on here so the worst of it is over! (Thank goodness!) I’ll be back soon with […]

Santa’s Workshop 2021: By Annie Easy Does It Bag

Y’all. I’m so impressed with this bag. It stands up on its own, the raw edges are bound and the directions were easy to follow. This could be the be all end all for me as far as bag/pouches go! I’ve been intimidated by ByAnnie bags since the directions have a lot of steps and it can be overwhelming. But […]

2021 Santa’s Workshop: Simplicity 8035 Ornaments

Can’t believe December is already here. Santa’s Workshop is open! Time for holiday sewing!  Combing through my pattern hoard I came across Simplicity 8035:  various ornaments with options for stuffed animals- star, gingerbread man and yeti. They all look so smiley and cute; I couldn’t resist sewing them. They are made of felt, embroidery thread and stuffing. That’s it! Pretty […]

Celebration Dress: That’s a Wrap!

Continuing with our contest tradition, The Viking and I had quality bonding time while taking pictures of the Celebration Dress. We shot “on location” in rural PA during our Thanksgiving weekend visit to my in-laws. It was about 34 degrees with a blustery frigid wind but that didn’t stop us from having a fun time. The Celebration Dress is so […]

Anniversary Contest Celebration Dress: A Long Tale

My inspiration for the Anniversary Contest comes from the Dolce & Gabanna Summer 2021 Runway, first seen in the Inspiring Fashion Forum on PatternReview. I wrote about this back in December and since I’ve been into quilting lately I knew this designer dress would be perfect for a Barginista Fashionista challenge. My Celebration Dress is my favorite thing I’ve made […]

Quick Update

Hi everyone! Just popping in to give a quick update on all my projects so far. Halloween quilt: I was finally able to take home the Halloween quilt top from my (former) workplace where it was on display.  I had hoped it would be put on the longarm at work but I will need to finish this one at home. […]

Anniversary Contest

This month of November Pattern Review is hosting a Anniversary Contest to celebrate the website turning 20 this year. Wow, 20 years of helping other sewists make better decisions in pattern purchases, fabrics, sewing machines etc. I have said this before, but this website (Sewing Pattern Review Online Sewing Community) has been such an amazing and helpful resource in my […]

(Jelly) Roll…into my cart!

With my newfound quilting kick I went down the rabbit hole of YouTube, books etc.  It’s pretty much the next step in becoming an addict, along with chatting on Pattern Review with other fellow quilters. And I’m sure it doesn’t help I am surrounded by the latest and greatest fabrics and sewing machines at work. A few weeks ago the […]

Quilting Thoughts

Now that I’ve sewn an actual quilt, what are my thoughts? 1. Quilting can get pricy. Ok, so technically my quilt materials were covered by my employer but high quality quilting cotton costs over $11/yard. There is a “3 yard quilt” movement out there where you can squeeze one out in little yardage, aka “economy quilt” but that doesn’t include […]

Halloween Quilt Top: Part 1

After 16.5 hours, the Halloween quilt is FINALLY done! Well, the quilt top at least.  The entire thing took about 9 days total, with me tinkering with it about 2 hours a day. I find that I cannot sew anymore than that, otherwise I go cross-eyed and the lines become wonky. But wowza! This quilt was quite a JOB but […]