E-patterns!

That’s right. Patterns that you download instantly after payment. You purchase, download and print them yourself! Obviously some pieces that are larger will need to be taped together since you can only print what will fit on 8.5 x 11″ paper (unless you have a special printer…) BUT I think it’s worth it since the e-patterns are priced MUCH lower than the regular patterns. Besides, Mrs. Chancey’s regular patterns come printed on heavy paper and you have to trace them onto tissue anyway, which isn’t that different than taping pieces together.

This is a great option for someone who needs to make a last minute project and can’t wait for a printed pattern to ship. Almost all the regular patterns are available in the e-pattern format. Check it out!

For my last birthday, my sister gave me a friendship quilt, though it wasn’t all put together yet. It’s one of the best gifts I’ve ever been given - a quilt made up of squares that my friends embroidered for me! Tara (my sister) organized the whole thing, and my friends each handmade a square. It was very neat to open each one out and see how each reflected the personality of the giver!Anyway, I am writing this because yesterday my sister finished sewing it all together, and I thought I’d post a couple pictures of it. 

Here she is basting in the batting (that’s the back of the quilt)

The finished quilt (sorry the picture is a little dark)

And there was an unexpected benefit that came with this quilt as far as Tara is concerned - she’s found that she’s hooked on quilting!

Lately we’ve been doing a lot of sewing. And lately we’ve noticed something:

Every time you want to sew something, it costs money.

And some projects are more expensive than others. So, here are a few tips for pinching your pennies when it comes to sewing.

• Fabric: Don’t buy it. Now, don’t get me wrong here, I do realize it helps to have fabric when you are sewing. I just mean don’t buy fabric from the fabric stores. You can often find good fabric at very inexpensive prices at thrift shops. And here’s another thing - you can use sheets! Generally sheets can be found at thrift stores too, but even some brand new sheets are cheaper than new fabric. Of course, I’m not laying down the law and saying that it’s a sin to go and buy new fabric from the store! That’s fine too. But if you’re pinching pennies and/or don’t have any particular fabric in mind, the options already mentioned just might save you a little cash.

• Buttons: Buttons can really add up especially if you need them for the front of a skirt or dress. Next time you “purge” your closet, before throwing out clothing that is too worn to be given away, rip off any buttons that might be on them. Most button-up sweaters will have 5 or 6 buttons, while dresses and skirts could have 10 or more! If you save these, you will have a handy store of matching sets of buttons for use in your future sewing projects. Oh - and thrift stores come in handy here too. If you have a project where you need a large amount of buttons but don’t have any worn out button-up clothes, head to the thrift store and pick up a dress with buttons that you like (it can be the ugliest dress in the world - as long as the buttons are nice! :-). An average dress at a thrift store would cost between $4 to $10, and 10 brand new buttons would have easily cost you $20 or more.

• Boning: I’m not sure how often you would need boning, but if you’re like me you love making historical costumes - and those generally seem to call for boning. And boning is ex-pen-sive! Well, a friend of ours let us in on a great tip: go to the hardware store and pick up a bag of those plastic tie-wraps. They are about the perfect length for boning in a bodice (and could always be trimmed). You can get a bag of around 100 tie-wraps for less than $10 - and that sure is cheaper than boning!

I hope this is helpful and if I come across any more money-saving tips I’ll be sure to pass them on! Happy sewing!

I mentioned in my post, “Random Musings on Aprons,” that I was making myself a “frilly” apron. Well, true to my word, I did! One thing I learned - I do not enjoy sewing with stripes! But I am still happy with the way it turned out. And here are a couple of pictures:





If you like this apron, I made it with Butterick brand pattern #6816 (don’t laugh, it’s a Mrs. Santa pattern) out of calico fabric. If you would like to make it exactly as I did, I made my own ruffles instead of using eyelet trim as it calls for in the pattern (it includes a “guide for ruffle” for each of the different ruffles and I just used those as if they were regular pattern pieces, and then made very narrow hems along the bottoms). I also did two pockets instead of one, and did not put ruffles on the pockets, and I just cut my own instead of using the pattern piece provided (but you could use either).

I think the only thing I did differently as far as the actual sewing was that it said to leave one section open on the strap (by the ruffle) for turning it inside out but I didn’t and just sewed it and it worked fine (hope that made sense). By the way, for keeping the shoulder ruffles from getting caught in the stitching, it works well to sort of roll them away from where you will be sewing and pin them in place. I think that was all!

If you don’t know how or don’t want to sew one, there are some lovely feminine aprons here:www.AmeliasAprons.com and www.RosesAndTeacups.com