SHIRT WITH BIAS TAPE TRIM

So here it is all finished. You can see in the second photo a clsoe up of the Bias Tape.

BIAS TAPE

I know I said I was done sewing clothes but I found some material that I just had to have. I also decided that the bias tape on this shirt needed to be a print that coordinates with the main fabric of the blouse. For a while now I’ve been searching on line for a good tutorial that shows in depth how to do this. I’ve mostly found just drawn diagrams from books that just aren’t very clear. This process can be a bit confusing and a drawing just doesn’t explain it very well. So I decided to photograph my process along the way and share it with you.

1. I bought a half a yard of this cute flower print that will become my bias. I cut it at 18” making it an 18” square.

2. Cut this in half diagonally.

3. You then need to turn your two pieces of fabric so that two 18” ends meet.

4. Place front sides together, pin and sew a 1/2” seam.

5. Press your seam flat. On the wrong side mark all the way across the width that you want your bias tape. I chose 2”.

6. This is just a close up of my drawn lines.

7. This is where things get a little confusing. You are now going to sew this into a tube again with a 1/2” seam. It looks really wrong while you’re trying to do this but it is right. You also need to make sure your lines match up when you do this. You also have to shift the fabric down one row so that you have an area to begin cutting your continuous bias. (Hopefully that makes sense. If not I think the photo does)

8. Iron your seam once you’re done sewing. You can then begin cutting along the line you drew. Just pick one end and continue cutting.

9. You should end up with one really long strip of bias. An 18” square will get you about 12ft. It’s crazy how just a little bit of fabric can give you so much.

10. I personally iron my bias tape by hand but you can use a Bias Tape Maker . You simply slide your bias tape you just finished cutting, into one end of this triangular object and then as you pull it out the other end it folds it all for you and then you iron it flat.

TATTOED MAN

I finally finished him! So instead of moving on to the next sideshow plush I'm working on the Strong Man again. I'm not actually reworking him but I'm creating a stand for him. The stand will allow him to stand in front of a poster of him with his name, painted like a circus poster. Hopefully it will turn out the way I have it pictured in my head.

PLUSH YOU SHOW

I just found out from the PlushYou folks that I'll be in their show this fall. How exciting! The show is Oct 12 2007 but work is due in September. I've still been playing around with the Sideshow plush idea. Maybe I'll stick with that, who knows, I have some time to think about it.

STAINING COMPLETE!

Check one more thing off my to do list!!! Staining is one of the most tedious jobs there is. I'm fortunate to have gotten it done in about 4 weekends. With the fence done and all my flowers and plants in the ground I can now just sit back and relax. All that is needed is a little watering and maintenance. The first photo shows the fence and my newly blooming roses. I have 10 rose bushes in all. The second pic shows a bit of the arbor we finished last fall, it has a bench. I finished the bed around it this spring and planted climbing roses, day lilies, and other flowers. Some day the arbor will be covered. We actually built 2 arbors. The other is part of the gate on the fence. It too has a climbing rose. And the last pic shows the bed closest to the house off the patio. I can finally see buds on my day lilies!

WEBSITE UPDATE

I finally finished updating my website www.robynfabsits.com. I've just added images to the portfolio section and updated my bio. Nothing big. I've just been slow to do so. I hope to add a links page soon as well. Enjoy!

I think this skater girl may need to become a plushy!

CASE OF THE MONDAYS

I thought this image was appropriate for a monday. Especially when I know it will be sunny and 85 today and I'm sitting in a cubicle at work. Luckily it's creative and I'm surrounded by funny people. I've posted an illustration because I'm currently working on updating my website www.robynfabsits.com and hope to have it finished this week. I'll be adding work to both the portfolio and plush pages as well as adding a bio. I'm currently having some technical difficulty with Dreamweaver but I think my image files were just corrupted and need to be resaved. I'll post when I've got it updated. Happy Monday : (

COOL & BREEZY

Well after 2 skirts, 2 blouses, and 4 dresses I think I've fulfilled my craving for new spring outfits. This is the first year I've made so much. I typically make 2 or 3 cotton dresses or skirts for the summer. I've been doing so since 2001. I just can't help myself. I'm drawn to a sale on fabric or patterns and can't resist. I need to just stop going to the fabric stores because I love material. These two baby doll style dresses are Butterick pattern 5038. Very simple and easy to make. They are very comfortable and will feel cool and breezy in the hot summer months. They are very similar to dresses and tunics I see in stores right now and I've payed about half the price and have a one of a kind item. The pattern on the black and red dress is of tiny little cherries. The photos aren't the greatest but I don't feel like reshooting them.
Well it's time to get back to the fence.

YELLOW DRESS

I actually finished this dress around the same time I finished the red and white dress. I had not worn it till this past friday and finally snapped a photo of it. Its Butterick pattern 4386 . It took about 2 1/2 hours. It's a really simple pattern. Of course I had to alter it to fit. I don't seem to have luck with Butterick patterns fitting well and I always have to alter them because they'll come out to big. I'm the same size in Simplicity but don't seem to have a problem. I wish patterns were all universal in their fitting. This time of year I make a lot of dresses and skirts for the summer. I have 2 more cotton babydoll style dresses I'm working on now plus the tattooed side show man plushy plus staining a fence and replanting rose bushes. I don't thrive without a ton of projects going on at once.

BUTTERICK RETRO PATTERNS

I was looking for a new dress pattern over the weekend and discovered that Butterick has the best (that's my opinion) selection of reproduction patterns to choose from. Simplicity and Vogue also carry reproduction patterns. The dress I finished a while ago was also a Butterick pattern and it turned out pretty good after a few tweaks. So I'm pretty confident that some of these other patterns would turn out just fine. I'm digging B4513. I'd even buy these patterns just for the illustrations on the envelope. Enjoy the pics!!

MORE HOP HOP HOP

I have yet to post any kind of illustration or design that I do. I've had people ask me why I don't have any of my illustration work on my website or blog. I've been kind of hesitant to and not sure if it is something I wanted to focus on. I keep thinking I need to keep work work seperate and focus my blog on stuff I do outside of work. Maybe I'll become more comfortable with the idea of showing that stuff. However I thought this image went nicely with the stuffed bunny I posted yesterday.

HOP HOP HOP

Thought I'd post the bunny I just finished for another commission. I think he turned out pretty cute. I hope to get back to some of my personal work now, specifically my sideshow plush series. I'm feeling a bit antsy. I'm trying to finish staining a fence and finish planting in my yard. I've got a a ton of rock in my driveway (literally) that needs to be moved as well. Luckily it looks like rain for a while so I can work on my own thing.