Ladies' Hip Hop Tank test/review

I am so excited to share today what I worked on for myself. Ever since I found out that the USA had ready made patterns for people to sew up on their own I could not stop thinking about making myself my own clothes, but more on that at different time.  I have tried several paper patterns thorough out the years and since discovering the world of PDF patterns my life has changed.  I still use paper patterns but some times it is really hard to find one that will have the right fit.
I was brave enough to be a tester for a lovely designer from Love Notions Sewing Patterns and it was very fun to do so, I don't regret trying it.
She came up with a little girl's version of it a while back and it was a big hit so she came up with the ladies version of it.  When I tested for her she had the ruffled option as View D and it was really easy to do.  I am a little sad that the option is not there anymore but the new pattern will come with a simple color block option and that is OK too.
This was a super top secret pattern since it is going to be part of the new Bundleup Sale coming out this Friday, you can check out some details on their link.
We were told today that we could share our pictures from the test so here are mine.  I wanted to do a top for my 14 year old daughter but she is so picky about clothes and she said no.... but that's OK.
Her patterns are awesome and I know that I mentioned it before but I truly love the fact that you can print the one size you are going to work on... it is a great ink saver and less confusing to cut and put together.  I love wearing modest clothing and with this pattern although it's called the Ladies' Hip Hop Tank, it comes with the options of adding cap sleeves.  The possibility are endless with the pattern, the fit is simply amazing and as soon as I was done sewing it up I tried it on and was ready to go.  My daughter took pictures of me wearing it, I was so excited but am also very awkward when it comes to pictures so excuse the weird faces.
Thank you again Tami for letting me test for you!!

 Years ago I found this necklace at a craft fair, it's from my country of Guatemala and I never felt I could wear it, that it until now.  It is the perfect match for this top.

 Yeah I need a lesson on how to model lol.

 The back of it looks awesome. I got some nice light weight material and it feels so good with the breeze.

 Close up of the neckline and my necklace again.  Below you can appreciate the  color block  effect, I simply love it!!!

Love Notions Tuxedo Dress

So it has been a while since I posted anything on my crafty blog.... you know life, school, kids. The never ending story and seriously I don't know how other fellow bloggers do it, hands down ladies.
Lets get right down to business and talk about what I was up to last week.
I was so lucky to be picked as a tester by Tami from  Love Notions Sewing Patterns . Needless to say it is always exciting to place your bid and wait to hear back from the awesome designers I test for, especially since the other contenders are simply super talented.

This was a super quick sew for me.  The entire process of printing, taping the pattern and cutting down the pattern which is honestly my least favorite part was done in minutes.  I had already decided I was going to up cycle one of my most favorite old tops that had seen better days and an old T-shirt from my husband's donation pile.... yes I am thrifty so I make do with what I have at hand.  The front of this dress was done with some left over fabric from another project a while back.
I just love the end result, doesn't she look super adorable?  She is learning that after I make a dress for her she needs to go outside for pictures... she loves the attention.
My favorite thing about this pattern is how when you go and print it Tami gives you the option of ONLY picking your size, yes you read right, you can pick the one size you want to cut and it is done.  It is an awesome feature that I had not seen before, I only test for a few designers but I really had not heard of anything like this before.  This is the second time I test for her and it is truly my favorite thing in the world.

The dress comes with lots of different options for sleeves and the neck line, you can also choose to have a ruffled hem. I picked vie B with the little bib on the front and added a little button just for fun and cap sleeves.

It is a great pattern for everyone who loves knits and you can come up with lots of different looks.  I was gong to try my luck at making a top for my little one before I wrote my post today but between dentist appointments and other crazy summer things happenings it just did not get done.  But please come back and visit soon I might find time next week to get it done and post pictures on here.
The pattern is out today so you can go and grab it with a special 15% discount, just use the promo code 'tuxedo' .
I am attaching some links to the other ladies who did an awesome job on their test, some are just so cute and I can't get enough of them.  Great inspiration every where you look!! 

Happy sewing!! 
 

 
You can visit these other blogs to get more ideas.
 Stitch and bake
 Sprouting Julie Julie
Conversad de Hermanas
 
 

 

 

Knight Hoodie Pattern Review

So back in December I had another chance to test for Charming Doodle, she came up with this awesome pattern perfect for my boys.
Of course I signed up right away since I knew it would be a hit around here, you probably didn't know this yet but we are pretty Renaissance Fair crazy around here and love all things related to knights, swords, dragons... you get the idea.
Here is a pic of what I did for our last year's Halloween/Renaissance Fair costumes.
And yes people I did all the outfits you see in this picture, my family was pretty happy with every single outfit and I was... well a tired mom by the end.



So as you can see this hoodie had to be done no matter what.
I just want to say that I love easy to follow patterns and testing is a great way to help the designer figure out the little details or we get to suggest improvement which by the way is not that much, she is great and her pattern was just out of this world for me.  I ma not saying this just because, I mean it.
I had done a hoodie for my oldest previously and I had some left over sweatshirt material, it was great because I am all about saving money. I could not find the right color to match the gray sweatshirt material so I decided to use one of my husband's old sweatshirts and it was plenty to cover the main parts.

Over all I was happy with the results, this was my third attempt at up-cycling something and it turned out great and it was also funny to see the leftover piece of clothing after it had been cut into pieces.  My son who is 7 was over the moon excited to try it on and take to school so his friends could see it.

The buttons are what gives the special details to this hoodie, I wanted it to look fancy without looking too girly and  the contrast of the black and gray definitely helped me accomplish that. I am not an expert seamstress, I have been sewing for a long time but I still have lots to learn. I would say this pattern would be great for a beginner/medium sewer and will be able to follow the instructions with no problems. Plus the pattern comes with lots of picture to guide through the entire process.

 

 I had no time to print out some kind of pattern for the dragon so this was done freehand on the spot... not too bad for a last minute embellishment.  Hurry over to her page and get a special discount of $2.00 off with this special code  CraftyCorner.
Thanks for stopping by.

 







 

Comfy Shorts Review

 A while back.... a very while back I was chosen to test another pattern for one of my favorite pattern designers out there The Sewing Geek.  Time has not been so kind to me hence the late post on this review.
I usually sew clothes for girls and every once in a while I till try something for my boys like ties, pajamas  or things like that.  When I saw that The Sewing Geek was going to come out with this pattern and I was super excited and got right to work looking through my stash of fabrics for something boy-ish enough to use. 

 The best thing about this pattern is that you have up to size 18 which is great because not many parents have that many options for sizes. Also it is a quick sew, it took me about 2 hours but if you are like me once you have done them you get quicker and better. 

My son absolutely loves them and said they were super comfy to wear. Now that I look at this particular picture I can notice my lovely flower pot in the corner.... way to go me!! 
Go check out her website it is brand new and it has lots of post about sewing and great tips for everyone but specially for beginner sewers!!

Happy sewing!!