From the Blog

• November 07, 2019 Holiday Ornament Contest

  

  We are excited to announce our 2019 holiday contest. This year will be an ornament contest. Adults and Kids can enter.

   

  The Official Contest Rules:

   

  1. Your ornament must be completely handmade (sewn, knitted, crocheted, felted, etc) by you. It can be a combination of sewing, knitting, felting, etc. It can have other embellishments such as embroidery, buttons, ribbon, etc. 
  2. Ornaments must be made from Sew To Speak fabric, felt or yarn.
  3. They can be as small as you like but no bigger than 9 x 9 inches.
  4. You can use a pattern, book, or create your own.
  5. Ornaments must stay at the shoppe until December 23th and then they are yours to take home.
  6. Please label the ornament with your name and phone number. If you are under 18 please include your age.
  7. All entries must be in by close (8pm) Saturday, December 8th. One entry per person.

   

  THERE WILL BE PRIZES!!

  
  At our holiday party, we will give one Team Choice Award of a $50 gift card, one Customer Choice Award for a $25 gift card and one Honorable Mention a $25 gift card. We will have special prizes for the kids who enter.

  
  
  

• October 28, 2019 Sienna Maker's Jacket with Jessica Waldegar

  Fall Sienna Makers Jacket by Closet Case Patterns

   

  

  I’ve been on a roll with jacket making lately. Having tried several patterns and styles, it really helped me to pinpoint what I like and what I don’t really care for on a jacket. When the Sienna Makers jacket was released, I had ALL the heart eyes for it! Nice classic lines, several variations with unique closure details, comfortable looking fit and easy to sew. The best news is the pattern itself held up to all my excited expectations. 

  

  I’ve found Closet Case patterns in general, to be well drafted with clear instructions and lots of user friendly illustrations. I’ve been incorporating more and more of them into my collection lately, as they’ve been releasing some wonderful patterns. The Sienna will be a fun challenge for newer sewists and a wonderful workhorse piece that comes together pretty quickly (as far as jackets go) for those more advanced. In Ohio this is a great outwear garment for Fall and Spring weather, and a nice layering piece to wear when the temperatures drop more. 

  

  For my jacket here, I chose version A. This is the longer length version with the belt. This style lends itself well to the corduroy fabric, which holds the lines and shape nicely. I’ve been thrilled to see corduroy making a comeback lately. It’s a wonderful substrate that’s easy to wear, and easy to care for. 

  

  The Robert Kaufman corduroy, dare I say, is a perfect fabric for the Sienna! It’s crisp with a bit of structure without ever being bulky or cumbersome to sew or wear. There was no fighting with the fabric at any portion of sewing, which when making a jacket, is sometimes the case. The beautiful rust shade is pretty much the color I imagine when I think of the Fall here with the leaf colors shifting to lovely oranges, yellows and browns. Warm and beautiful, it will compliment many outfits and color combinations as well as skin tones. There are a few other colors available, each just as pretty as the last, that would look fabulous also. The fabric is sturdy and I think it will hold up well to wear over time. This is definitely something important be considered when choosing fabrics for outerwear. 

  

  I  cautiously decided to skip the interfacing on this one. Fusible interfacing was out because of the ironing required and the corduroy. I debated sew in vs. skipping it for about a day and think it worked out well with my decision. My fear with the sew in interfacing was it would be too stiff in the area I added it and stand away from the rest of the garment because the fabric already had quite a bit of body. The other thing I chose to not add was the interior pocket. I didn’t want the stitching to show through on the front of the fabric and knew the other large pockets would be plenty of space for my needs. 

  

  My favorite features of the pattern is the belt closure. It’s a fun detail that you’re not seeing everywhere on other patterns. I love how it’s constructed and it’s very comfortable to wear  once finished. I do like that it can be tied closed in the front or left open by back tying and looks just as good either way.

  

  Fantastic pattern that you can get lots of different looks out of just by switching fabrics substrates and versions. I have my eye on version C next... yes there will be several more of these beauties in the future, for me! 

   

• July 04, 2019 The Sparkle Skirt (Christmas 2016)
  I love simple, quick sewing projects that produce a big effect. This season I have been playing with gathered skirts using elastic that is exposed. Pictured below is Aelyn, my granddaughter in one that took about an hour to sew.
• May 28, 2019 Emerald Dress with Jessica Waldegar