Scrappy Circles Pillow

At work this year, we decided to have a little "Secret Santa" gift exchange. It turned into a more of New Year thing rather than Christmas, which was fine with me! The nice things about exchanging gifts with a bunch of sewers is that everyone understands how busy sewing for Christmas can get.

I drew my friend Pat's name to make a gift for. She is so fun to work with and always so encouraging of anything I make, so I felt like I wanted to wow her a little. Plus, I had been wanting to try Jen's signature quarter circles ever since I saw one of her gorgeous quilts in a show last year.

I used her pattern from the Winter 2013 Modern Patchwork magazine. The pattern is for making an apron, but it would be easy to use for anything. I've done improv curved piecing before, but nothing like these precise circles. It was surprisingly easy! You have to take a little more time, pin extra, and be careful. They aren't perfect perfect circles, but I never screwed up too badly or had a problem with puckers.

I used all small scraps I had and Robert Kaufman chambray from Sewn for the background. It ended up being a large 20" pillow, and she loved it!

What's even more fun, is that Pat was my secret maker! She actually knitted me this amazing purple cowl. I was over the moon about it. I've never had a gift knitted just for me, and she really chose the perfect color and everything. It's super cozy and I wear it every day. Yay for friends who make!

Zebra Ice Cream Dress

Last week we were fortunate enough to escape the frozen tundra of the Midwest to spend some time with family in Florida. And we even got to visit Disney World for a couple of days! Elsie wore her favorite dress there, (complete with new pirate sword) so I was reminded that I had never shared it here. I only shared it on my Instagram- @alittlegressica

I had actually cut out this Oliver & S Ice Cream Dress during the fall KCW, but then it sat for a few weeks unfinished. I had been wanting to make this dress for her for so long, since I had already made a blouse version and a couple dresses for Sewn samples. It's definitely high on my list of all-time favorite patterns. I finally got motivated to finish it so she could wear a new dress to our family Thanksgiving gathering in Tennessee. Zebras are totally all American Thanksgiving-y, right?

Elsie's so fun to sew for at this age, so I have to remind myself not to put these kind of projects off. She tends to be tom-boyish, but she doesn't object to wearing dresses yet, so it makes for some fun combos on clothes. Her favorite color is green, so I used a sea foam Kaffe Fassett shot cotton for the contrast. The Zebra fabric is Alexander Henry and I got it at Mill End in Portland last summer. (It think?) She calls them "Zebees, " and I think she likes the black because that's her brother's favorite color. Whatever he does is pretty cool. 

I made a size 2, even though she is wearing mostly 3 these days. This dress is a little loose fitting by design and will easily transition into a tunic this spring. 

 Besides it being a hit with Elsie, I was most chuffed about the pockets! Totally camo on that big print. I love when details like that work out, even if no one appreciates it but me. And you guys :)

By the way, this week I was featured over at Rae's on her Kniterviews series. Check it out here!

Film Petit #11: Princess Bride

You'd be hard pressed to find someone who doesn't like this movie. Even if you don't remember how much you like this movie, watch it again... you will love it. 

Buttercup and Westley, the unstoppable love. They beat everything to be together. Pirates, princes, ROUS, even partial death. And every character and twist in the story along the way adds the hilariousity. 

For clothing, I wanted to sew useful wardrobe items for this one and still make for a fun photo shoot. Of course, I was inspired by Inigo Montoya- the Spanish fencer with a very overdeveloped sense of revenge, and Fezzick the giant. They aren't exact costumes, but I think what I came up with is a little cuter than head to toe brown and dingy pirate shirts!

I showed the kids a few silly sword fighting clips from the movie and they had no trouble getting into character. That's pretty much every day in our house- Elsie is crafty and vindictive while Hendrix remains the gentle and happy big brother. Plus swords and chasing. 

It was REALLY fun to get to take these photos in a friend's incredible home that is basically a castle built in the 19th century. Thanks so much Sara! It was perfect for this movie, especially that ornate dining room. Reminds me of where Inigo finally kills his 6 fingered enemy. The only problem was my conflicted mom instructions that day: "Ok, fight each other, put your swords up! You're pirates!"  "Whoa, stop running! Come back! You are going to destroy lots of very old expensive things!" Poor kids. 

 They were most excited about the eyeliner I scribbled all over their faces. They've been asking for facial hair every day since. I do like the chops on Hendrix.

For Elsie's outfit I made a Charlie Tunic from Made by Rae and simple Oliver & S Playtime leggings.    I had never made the Charlie, and I was so happy with how simple it was and how well it fits. I made the size 3 out of some really nice blue Robert Kaufman chambray and used a fat quarter from my stash for the contrast. She will be able to wear this top a lot without looking like a Spanish fencer. And it's a perfect transition to spring garment. The leggings are a nice soft brown jersey that will get a lot of mileage too. Nothing beats super-quick, one pattern piece leggings!

For Hendrix I got to try a new to me Oliver & S pattern, the Nature Walk Pullover. This garment is so fun to make! I used some woven brushed cotton I had leftover from this old Film Petit and just cut it with the stripes going in different directions for the contrast. The lining pieces are flannel inside so it's extra cozy, and Hendrix loved the pockets in front. I'd love to try another one in bright fleece or something. 

 The pants are my all-time favorite boy pants, the After School pattern. These are size 6, in a super soft but sturdy Shetland flannel by Robert Kaukman. Perfect stylish fit makes me happy, and easy elastic waist makes Hendrix happy. All my fabrics this time came from Sewn Studio!


This time we are really excited to have Jessica of Craftiness is not Optional as our guest! Her Princess and Dread Pirate are just about the cutest thing you've ever seen. She really nailed it.


And my partner in crime Kristin made the most gorgeous dress from Buttercup's wedding. It's so beautiful and such a precious dress-up piece for her daughter. See the MAWWAIGE scene right here.


Thanks for always loving Film Petit, it makes everything so much fun for us! And remember, you can always add your movie-inspired kid looks to the Flickr group here. We love to see them!

A Holiday Playtime Tunic

I hadn't planned on making any sort of Christmas-y apparel for the kids this year. But I wanted to share my method for making the Oliver & S Playtime dress and tunic with facings on the outside, and I had this yard of deep red snowflake fabric that wasn't going to get used for it's original intention. So a little holiday dress happened! And I'm really glad it did. She wore this everywhere in December and it ended up being the perfect little garment to dress up or down. And I feel like she can still get away with wearing it throughout the winter. I may be sold on holiday dresses for Elsie for years to come.

This version of the pattern also has the sleeves left off and bound in bias tape. I love the way the bodice looks with the little cap sleeves. If you are interested in putting the facings on the outside as a contrasting collar, my tutorial is here on the Oliver & S blog. The first time I tried this, I made it look like a little faux Peter Pan collar in black, which you can see here.

The back with these facings is such a pretty surprise. It really adds interest to this simple and versatile pattern. I love a pattern like this that has so much room for fun and creative options. 

We hope you had as great a Christmas as we did. Elsie is happy as can be playing with her one and only wish this year- a Jake and the Neverland Pirates Boat. Except when she is stealing her brother's Transformers!

We got to take these pictures at my workplace, Sewn Studio, with a beautiful backdrop made of Megan Frock's work. Definitely check out her stuff and her gorgeous new embroidery book. 

You probably noticed that I also got fancy on the hem with some fun pom-pom trim! It totally takes this tunic up a notch on the festive scale. Would you be interested in a mini-tutorial of how I did this? It's one of those things that isn't super complicated, but a little trickier than you think it will be... I'll work on it for you. 

Remember, you can keep up with me and see a lot more of my sewing over on Instagram. Follow along @alittlegressica. 

Have a happy New Year everyone!

Anchor's Quilt

I made this quilt for my good friends' baby who was born just a couple weeks ago. It was her third baby and second boy. Their other son received this quilt, (which I just realized has a kind of similar HST design) but I wasn't quilting back when their first kid was born, so I guess I owe her something! To me, there's no better satisfaction than giving a baby quilt. I just love being able to make something that can literally wrap them up in homemade love. And also be rolled around on and spit on and drooled on a lot. 

These fabrics all came from my stash. The color scheme started out with me trying to use up some of my orange. I've found that I like the idea of orange sometimes, if it's a good print I like, but then I have a hard time using it. All but two of the orange prints I started with ended up being edited out, but I love the resulting orange/yellow/gray/teal/navy scheme here. Each of the 9 blocks only used (2) 10" squares. I put them together using this method to get (8) 4.5" HST's. It was the fastest way to do it I've discovered yet, and we all know there are about 79 different ways to make them. And the little size chart is so helpful! My original plan was to make a 9th of each set to go in the middle of the block, but I took the lazy route and decided on white in the middle. So the "window" design was kind of accidental, but I really like it. Add 2" strips of white sashing, and the quilt is about a 44" square.

So after I already had the top of this quilt done, I found out that they were going to name this baby Anchor. ANCHOR! Not only is it a badass name, but one of those pesky orange fabrics I had kept in the line up has tiny anchors all over it! Now I couldn't wait to finish it up and send it. 

At that point, I knew I had to include a little nod to the two siblings' names with these scraps added to the back. I'll just let you guess what those might be  :)

I finished it up with my favorite straight line quilting, about a .5" apart all the way across. I took these pictures before washing, but after I did it crinkled up so softly.

The binding is a Lotta Jansdotter stripe that I got at Sewn Studio. At first I was disappointed that the wavy lines went in the same direction as the binding instead of across it, but the end effect is pretty cool. Stripes in either direction are a always a win for binding.


Now I have two quilt tops done that need quilting before Christmas. Totally seems doable, but then I remember all the other Christmas stuff I have to do! That's all part of the fun of it though, right? (That's what I keep telling myself.) Are any of you still trying to finish up gift quilts this close to C-day?

All My Christmas Tutorials!

Since I haven't updated the organization, or tutorials page, or anything really on my blog in probably 2 years, (yikes. slacker.) I figured I'd help direct you in the right direction for some last minute holiday crafting. 

Last year I made all of these because I was participating in Meredith's Holiday Craft Bash event, which was so much fun. And even though it seemed like a lot of work last year, this year my family was so excited to get out all these things. They've changed the whole feel of our Christmas around the house!

The most popular has definitely been these Peanuts ornaments. They are just too cute and nostalgic, everyone loves them! I'm actually selling sets of them right now in my Etsy shop. But I've kept my pattern and tutorial up as well. (Just please don't sell on Etsy? Ok, thanks.)

Bumble Stocking tutorial.

Grinch Placemats tutorial. 

Buddy the Elf Tree Skirt Tutorial.

Christmas Story Leg Lamp Pillow.

Frosty the Snowman Advent tutorial.

All of these have pattern pieces you can print for the felt shapes. So enjoy!

I guess I'm also late in picking a winner for the Gingercake Organizer pattern. 

So congrats to Anne!

"I have a bunch of gifts to make in the next 3 weeks. This would be perfect for my quilty friends"

I'll be emailing you Anne.

Gingercake's On the Go Organizer (Giveaway)

I hope your Thanksgiving was as great as mine. Last week was full of carefree family time and high-calorie meals. But when I woke up back at home Monday morning, I realized it was December 2nd, and I was completely unprepared for it. Damn you, late Thanksgiving! I'm not usually a person who lives my days in checklist form, but now it's time to get serious. 

At least now I have one gift checked off, thanks to Virginia of Gingercake (and a second cut out!) This is her On the Go Organizer, which might now become my go-to quick gift this year. It was so fun to pick out coordinating fabrics from my scrap pile and come up with a really polished finished product, thanks to a thorough and enjoyable pattern. I found this old piece from AMH's Innocent Crush line which is probably one of my favorite prints ever. I had just enough for the outside of my organizer.

The inside pocket is RK's Essex linen in black, same as the contrast on the outside. The lining and pockets are more little scraps. I love the way the pattern has you zig-zag stitch the pockets on. So much less bulky!

This will be a teacher gift that I'll probably fill with a couple of goodies like this. There are so many different uses for an organizer like this, and I think I'll eventually need my own since I might be the most unorganized person I know. 

It's nice and sturdy with layers of interfacing and batting in the middle, and I had to use my walking foot when it came time to put it all together. But even then, I broke my needle into three pieces while topstitching and I'm pretty unhappy with my stitch consistency. This is not because the pattern uses too many layers though... I think I'm finally realizing that it's time to upgrade my machine. I think saving up money for a Juki needs to be my big goal in the new year. It's exciting to think about purchasing my own machine, because I didn't get to pick out the two I've owned so far. They've been great to me, but I do A LOT of sewing and quilting. I need a real workhorse!

Anyway, another thing I really love about this pattern is the cute button closure. I didn't have any elastic cording, so I just used this aqua fold over elastic, which worked great. I think a long piece of leather cording wrapped around the button a few times would also be really cute.

Want to win your own copy of Gingercake's Organizer PDF pattern? Just leave a comment and your email. I'll pick a winner Friday, December 6. Also be sure to check out Gail's beautiful organizers, and look around the Gingercake pattern shop for more wonderful gift ideas.