the autumn breeze

the autumn breeze by lunatepetal featuring a tea dress

LOVE this dress from Alexa Chung for Madewell!

so simple, so sweet.

old T-shirt cushion covers

my husband loves T-shirt from Granif, a Japanese T-shirt company.

every time we go back there to visit my family, he brings back a couple of their T-shirts with him.

they have a lot of cool designs, and it's perfect for my husband who doesn't like words/writing on clothes. 

over a few years of being well loved/worn by him, and being washed and dried in the machines,

they are no longer the right size/shape for this very picky man.

so he passed these down to me to give them a new life.

 I decided to make our little cushions covers.

they have been naked for a long time, well as long as I've know them.

that is kind of gross...

it was about the time and a perfect opportunity :)

How-To 

[[Turn your old T-shirt in to a cushion cover]]

 

you'd want to use as much material out of the T-shirt as possible.  

cut the sides as closest as the sleeve seams. and it is okay to go over the seams as long as it is going to be the seam allowance (it will be hidden!)

also, cut off the neck/shoulder part.  you can get more out of the back, because the neckline is higher.

cut the front part into a square, the back into halves.

I sewn a piece of twill tape on the back edges, which make the opening where cushion goes in and out.  this way the opening won't be stretched out and look sloppy...

put all three pieces facing the right side together and sew/serge all four seams.  make sure the outer side of the two back pieces lays in the middle of the three when inside out.  

turn it right side out and put cushion in from the back opening!

taddaaa!

    these even had a nice designs on the back of the shirt, 

which I collaborated into the back opening. 

back to basics

back to basics by lunatepetal featuring high heel shoes

kids clothes inspiration

I have these books checked out from my friend Tiffany's craft/sewing library.

above all, this one is my favorite!

Carefree Clothes for Girls by Junko Okawa

the dresses in the book are absolutely adorable 

and I love the nostalgic styling!

oh how much I love the Japanese kids clothes books!

and I wish I could be in those dresses!!

all the pattern are in size 4~7, which my daughter has still a few more years to grow into.

but I may copy some/all patterns anyway, so I have them for later.

another great thing about this book is it is all in English.

so if you're Japanese sewing book lover, but intimidated by Japanese sewing instructions,

this might be a good one to start with :)

(not to mention that most of Japanese sewing instructions come with some diagrams and easy to figure out!)

finally updating...

sorry for not posting anything for almost the entire month!

I just noticed this month is over,,,

september is here!!

my husband came back from Canada a little over a week ago,

and we've been pretty busy ever since.

we went down to Bend for Timber Framers Guild workshop, 

and then Southern Oregon to visit friends for a few days.

in short, it was awesome!!

(sorry not to mention any details... maybe I'll upload some pics later...?)

I've been dying to upload what I had been making while my husband was away.

I was pretty motivated and occupied with sewing!

I made two pairs of scalloped shorts.

I really liked how simple and clean looking these were,
so I based this pair on ruby pattern from Burdastyle.

the scallop part was a little trickier than I imagined...
I found it harder if they are too close together(smaller scallops),
and looked very irregular(because of my sewing skills?).

instead of the side buttons for closure,

these have an invisible zipper on the one of the sides.

and I added the front pockets because they are very handy!! 

I was so excited to find this decorative stitch on my machine!

goes perfectly with the theme -SCALLOP!

these ones are alternation of tonia from Burdastyle.

you notice I went crazy with the scallop stitch!

this pair has the stitch on the front pockets as well.

this one also has a side closure with an invisible zipper.

I could not decide if I wanted the pleated shorts or not.

So I made them both :)

and I love them both!!

last, but not least,,,

in fact, this creation is possibly the most practical thing ever!!

pouch for my stroller.

this stroller didn't come with a cup/key holder when we bought it on Craigslist.

but I was very happy to make it anyway,

and one less plastic thing to contain in the household!

I basically designed it based on my own needs.

cup holder and little pocket for a wallet, cell phone and what not.

so useful and makes things easier!

everything I need is right below the handles.

now having had a little break from sewing,

I am ready to get back at it!

what is the next project??

no computer, less distraction

sorry for the lack of posting...

my husband left last Monday to work in Vancouver BC, and took our only computer with him.

so, I am going to be computer-less for THREE weeks!

it is both good and bad.

I have been getting a lot more other things done, including some sewing projects,

other than spend hours on computer, which I tend to do when it is around.

so, that's nice.

but it's really hard on my eyes and fingers to websurf on the cell with a small screen and small keys.

I can use my housemate's computer, but I can't(don't want to) use it for a long time...

I'm sort of out of the Internet world.

but not really...

you can find me here more often during the three weeks.

I never thought I'd be a Twitter'er,,,

but I guess I am now!

I will post about things I sewed when I get a chance, or when he comes home.

by then, see you all on twitter!