This bed size denim Church window quilt by Lo & Behold Stitchery is the biggest quilt I've made so far!

The story behind this quilt is that for years, every time a pair of jeans got worn out (mostly my husband's, and to a lesser extent, my son's), we'd add it to a pile, and my husband's ask was for a denim quilt. He was envisioning a more simple quilt, and yet, I'm extra. So I chose a more involved (and in my opinion, dramatic) pattern. Although it took me probably 4 or 5 years of working on the quilt on and off, I finally finished and we used the quilt on our bed this past winter.

I started making this quilt when we had a queen size bed and we've since changed to a king size. Had I known that when I started the quilt, I might have added another column to the quilt, since right now, it is the exact width of a king size bed. Regardless, I'm pleased with how it turned out!

Size:

Bed (83" x 86")

Fabric:

• Blue denim from old jeans that we saved over the years
• White bull denim from Online Fabric Store
• Wideback flannel from Joann

Notes:

• I had the long-arm quilting done at Mad B's Quilt and Sew, and went with a woodgrain pattern that they recommended, as well as bamboo batting.
• Since some of the denim was stretch denim, I starched every piece of denim before cutting out the pieces for the top. It was a lot of work, but I think it helped the long-arm quilting process because the lady who did the quilting came out when I picked up the quilt and commented that it quilted nicely though stretch denim was involved.

Cars Quilt

Some years ago, I bought a Cars panel and coordinating fabric at a local quilt shop (which has since closed, sad face) to make a themed quilt for my son. I also got some additional coordinating Cars fabric on Etsy to have enough for a quilt. 

When I finally finished making it about five years ago, I was a little afraid that since it took me so long, he outgrew the theme, but he still seemed to like it and used the quilt regularly for a time. He's 10 now and his tastes have changed, but I still wanted to post this for documenting my finished makes!

Size:

Roughly throw size

Fabric:

Top and binding - quilting cotton

Batting - anti-pill fleece

Backing - minky

Notes:

• I went for a pretty simple design - all squares around the panel.
• I did somehow miscalculate the space around the panel, so I had to fill in some gaps with a solid cotton.
• I also did stitch-in-the-ditch quilting and did machine binding.

Orla Dress by French Navy

As a Ruby Star Maker, I recently received fabric from the new Verbena line by Jen Hewett for Ruby Star Society, which I decided to make into an Orla dress by French Navy (free pattern!).

(See more photos at the end of the post.)

Size / View:

XS at the neck graded to S at the bust graded to M at the waist.

For reference, my measurements are:

• Bust: 34.5"
• High Bust: 32.5"
• Waist: 29"
• Hip: 37.5"
• Height: 5' 0"

Fabric:

Ruby Star Society fabric from the Verbena line by Jen Hewett.

Adjustments / Construction:

• Instead of doing a bodice muslin straight away, I tried to make adjustments based off my traced pattern, then made a muslin. This didn't actually work as well as I thought, and I ended up doing 2 bodice muslins with incremental adjustments and several re-traced patterns after adjustments (5 versions in all). So next time, I'd probably start with a muslin right off the bat like I have in the past.
• After all the adjustments I tried, I ended up keeping the same darts as before, except on the front darts, lowering the point by 1-5/8".
• Since the instructions were not illustrated step-by-step, I went looking for a sew-along to help me visually follow each step, and found this YouTube video helpful: How to Sew a Zipper Back Dress (using French Navy - Orla dress)
• I wanted to take off the sleeves, but I didn't want to necessarily end up with a sleeveless dress, so I landed on a ruffle sleeve and found this free ruffle sleeve hack and pattern: Gaïa – Ruffled shoulders.
• I also researched hacks that others made to the Orla dress, and referenced this blog post to remove the sleeves from the pattern: Another Sleeveless Orla - Drafting Tutorial.
• Shortened straps 0.75", and also lowered the bottom of the arm hole by 0.75" as well to keep the size of the arm hole the same.
• Took out 0.25" from the center back at the neckline (basically cut away a wedge).
• Used S for the gathered skirt pieces and shortened 2" since the pattern was drafted for a height of 5' 7".
• Added in-seam pockets anchored at the waist, and followed a tutorial from Megan Nielsen Patterns (Olive Sewalong // Pockets and Skirt) using a pocket pattern from Cashmerette (Pocket Time! Add Pockets to the Cashmerette Turner Dress).

Likes:

• Semi-fitted bodice (after I got the right dart adjustments figured out, to the best of my knowledge).
• I could see this being one of those tried-and-true basic dresses that is very hackable.

Next Time:

• Take out 0.25" from the center front at the neckline.
• Try a rayon, which has more drape than cotton.
• Add more ease to the arm hole in the back. It's a little tight, though still wearable. Possibly a softer fabric (like rayon) would help with this too.

Holmen Top by Uncut Project

I tested the Holmen top by The Uncut Project before it was released last year, and here is my finished version! 

(See more photos at the end of the post.)

Size / View:

Due to the fitted bodice, I went off my bust measurement of 34.5" and sewed a straight size 38/M top version.

For reference, my measurements are:

• Bust: 34.5"
• Waist: 29"
• Hip: 37.5"
• Height: 5' 0"

Fabric:

I used a crinkly rayon from LA Finch Fabrics.

Adjustments / Construction:

• Shortened the shoulder straps by 6".
• For the back, instead of a 13" gather between the notches, I did 9.5" so that the back didn't scoop so low. For the top, I didn't want the scoop so low that the waist of my jeans could show. For a dress, I'd consider keeping the original length of gathering.
• I did a minor adjustment to the hem, but this was more a matter of preference than fit. For the main fabric, I only did 0.25" folded over twice, and for the lining, I did 0.5" folded over twice.

Likes:

• This is a cute top all around!

Next Time:

• Since the back ties are adjustable, it makes the sizing a little flexible - I might try to size down to a 36/S.
• Try the dress version!
• This pattern is fully lined, so it could be made into a reversible top or dress. The changes I would make in this case would be to top stitch (instead of understitch) through both the main and lining fabrics of the fitted bodice and possibly sew both the main and lining fabrics together at the hem so that they are the same length
• Figure out a sewn-in bra situation (although I plan to wear the tester version without a bra . . . how old is too old to keep doing that?!)

Rainbow Gauze Ogden Cami by True Bias

This was my second Ogden cami by True Bias, made with leftover black and rainbow double gauze from Joann.

(See more photos at the end of the post.)

Size / View:

Size 2.

For reference, my measurements are:

• Bust: 34.5"
• High Bust: 32.5"
• Waist: 29"
• Hip: 37.5"
• Height: 5' 0"

Fabric:

Double gauze from Joann.

Adjustments / Construction:

• See details from my first Ogden cami here: Ogden Cami by True Bias
• Only change was to shorten the straps by about an inch.

Likes:

See details from my first Ogden cami here: Ogden Cami by True Bias

Next Time:

After sizing down amd shortening the straps, there's still some extra ease such that I think I could size down again, or potentially try a small bust adjustment on size 2.