Quilted coat: nearly finished

This has been a complicated but educational and fun experience. I have made a coat before, but not a quilted one. The chance arose from the: Quilted Jacket SAL from Carole at From My Carolina Home. The pattern is Simplicity 9287 (now out of print). 'Still need to hem the sleeves, lining and coat hem. Then the fasteners will be attached. Stay tuned, as they are an unexpected surprise. Please keep reading to see the back of the coat.

Quilted coat: progress

Having so much fun making this quilted coat for the: Quilted Jacket SAL at From My Carolina Home. Not wanting to give-away too many details yet, here is a progress photo. So far, it is going well. I have made a coat before, just not a quilted one. It is wonderful to learn and try new sewing projects. It really has been a minute since I have sewn clothing, due to so many quilts. Gotta love all sewing and quilting though, right? Are you joing-in this stitch-along?

Quilted Jacket Sew Along- pattern and fabrics

Goodness, I am so far behind on the: Quilted Jacket Sew Along hosted by Carol at From My Carolina Home. 'Finally got the pattern, Simplicity 9287, that is now out of print. ('will rate the pattern once the coat is completed). 'Chose the version with a collar, hood and lining. So now it's make adjustments and cut out the pattern. Then get to quilting the coat pieces. Stay tuned to see more progress.

New quilting fabrics: come see!

Good morning to you all. In October, there was an Autumn Jubilee over at Carole's blog: From My Carolina Home. Several of us won gifts from the weekly giveaways, and I was a lucky winner of a $25.00 gift certificate from The Fat Quarter Shop. These fabrics are from a collection designed by Carrie Bloomston, called: Allegory Story. The bundle includes 11 fat quarters + one 1/2 yard cut of fabric. It was on sale, and what an awesome deal! Don't you just love the vivid, luscious colors and the eclectic theme? Yes, some traditional quilters might be rolling their eyes at a modern choice, lol. That is OK though. Many of us do love the traditional as well as the modern designs. 'Got plans for creating not one but two projects from these fabrics. Sending more thanks to Carole. 'Want to see the 2nd winning from that same week? Please continue reading.

~Godey's sun bonnet circa 1857~

Good morning friends. Pictured above is a homespun bonnet in burgundy and cream plaid. The pattern is modeled from Godey's Lady's Book, which was a popular magazine from 1830 through 1878. This pattern was drafted by Emily of: How To Dress Like A Pioneer. The front, or as we would say today, the bill, is stabilized with: buckram. The inside back neck has an adjustable drawstring. Two sash ties under the chin securely hold the bonnet on one's head. Around the circumference is a fully gathered curtain to protect one's neck from the hot sun and wind. That gathered curtain is functional plus quite pretty. The crown is also very full and gathered, allowing room for a lot of hair to be tucked inside. This would have been very useful during the pioneer days, as most women wore quite long hair and were outdoors often in all types of weather. Although other styles are pretty, this style seems to be one of the most historically accurate. Continue reading to leave a comment.

One for Mother

'Back with another item in celebration of National Sewing Month. This is a cute pattern that I used to sew mother a peasant top. It is very simple and quick to sew. Mother chose the fabric, 100% cotton in black with a bright lime green retro circles design. She did not want the under- bust elastic that the pattern calls for, so that has been omitted. We also substituted neckline elastic for ribbon. Mother will wear this with lime green capris, as she loves vivid colors. My BIL jokes that you can see mother a mile away [with the loud colors], lol! 'It is always such a pleasure to sew for her. The pattern is McCall's Easy Stitch 'n Save M5451, with our variations. 'Gotta love peasant tops. Isn't it a darling pattern? This pattern is super easy, with only two pattern pieces. It's rating is:

Beginner

~Why optimize images?~

Why optimize web images? There are several reasons. One is because larger size bytes take longer to load in the browser. We don't want people to leave our blog/site because it takes too long to load. Optimizing solves that problem by compressing images into smaller bytes. Here is a great method for getting the best images: First, use a system such as: Pixlr to edit the image. Selecting "auto color" or "auto contrast" can make the image brighter. Selecting a slight amount "sharpen" will sometimes help. Do this editing before optimizing, or the image may end up blurry. One great free and quick optimizer is here: EZGif. Their site also has an easy favicon generator. (That's the image in the browser. [This blog's is a little spool of thread]. The above photo is a comparison of two jumpers that I designed and made while an undergrad: one view is optimized and the other is not. 'See how much clearer and brighter the optimized image on the right side is?

*I receive no compensation or endorsement for these opinions. I am not a computer professional*