No Sewing But A Lot of Thinking

This week has been hectic - I've been trying to recover from my trip, then had to finish a big grant project and along the way deal with a severe hit of stomach flu. So no sewing being done right now, no photos of finished things done - in short, survival mode.

However, before I left, on some website that I can't find the reference for right now, I found this photo of a white trench. I immediately thought about my pledge to refashion for March and April - and my cream colored trench. This looks like an interesting refashion. I could cut the length and use some of the material to re-fashion some cuffs on the sleeve. New buttons and buckles - hum, sounds interesting.

But I'm thinking my next project (after I finish off Zman's quilt) will be the Dana Marie X shirt. I might use that great pink and green japanese cotton I got in Victoria for the X, with a plain white or pink for the sides and short sleeves. It would make a great spring/summer top. What do you think??

Did you ask how much fabric did I get last week????

First, I got three patterns from Dana Marie Designs/Purrfection Patterns. The first is the sweatshirt show in the previous post. The others are shown above - the Exceptional Shirt and the Modern Poet. I am sure, once I crack the pattern making approach, these will be great additions to the wardrobe. In September, at the American Sewing Expo in Novi, Michigan, I bought the Classic Jacket and one of the coat patterns as well.

Then, I received an order from Hancocks of Paducah. The two fabrics on the left are lovely - the design is Fortuny Peony Damask in Flame and Blush, for the Flower Show II collection by Benartex. The green daisy (Michael Miller's Daisy Daze) I'm thinking about for the green trench coat I posted about before - it would make a great lining! I also picked up a few pieces that match fabrics I've purchased previously.

Oh, and the new IKEA in West Chester opened on Wednesday, I got three yards of FREDRICKA to make pillow shams for the dark blue couch in the family room. As I've looked at this fabric, I am wondering if I should get more and make curtains as well.

And, finally, an order from The Material Girls in Dearborn, Michigan! [http://www.materialgirlquilt.com]. The fabric at the top, shown in both photos, is a great cotton that has a variety of quotes, designs etc that will be a nice accent on bags or tops. [produced by www.artgalleryquilts.com - http://webstore.quiltropolis.net/stores_app/Browse_Item_Details.asp?Shopper_id=6799381226226799&Store_id=520&page_id=23&Item_ID=1984]

The umbrella pattern poly on the left may be the new lining of my cream colored trench [Deborah Parker, designer at http://webstore.quiltropolis.net/stores_app/Browse_Item_Details.asp?Shopper_id=6799381226226799&Store_id=520&page_id=23&Item_ID=2193].

And then the final four - a peachy pink and brown daisy design from City Girl by Kitty Yoshida will make a dynamite skirt and top [http://webstore.quiltropolis.net/stores_app/Browse_Item_Details.asp?Shopper_id=6799381226226799&Store_id=520&page_id=23&Item_ID=3530l.

The next is Cho-Cho Floral Sprigs Red by Kumiko Sudo for In The Beginning Fabrics. I haven't seen this particular fabric in any of the other quilt shops. [http://webstore.quiltropolis.net/stores_app/Browse_Item_Details.asp?Shopper_id=6799381226226799&Store_id=520&page_id=23&Item_ID=2872].

The final two are from the Three Sister's Flea Market collection from - - oh four or five years ago? I started a quilt in the glass colorway, and am still collecting bits and pieces as I come across them.

These should keep me busy for a bit, don't you think??

Two Sweatshirts Started & A Jacket Almost Ready

This weekend, I was busy playing Grandma, so not much sewing done. I did get two tops cut out using the Dana Marie/Purrfection Patterns "Pacific Northwest Sweatshirt". I cut it out in a plain white stretch 100% cotton, and in a hot pink jacaquard stretch cotton.

Earlier in the week, I started the Classic Jacket by Dana Marie/Purrfection in a hot pink fake suede. It is the fabric on the right in the photo above (I was considering lining it in the print, but haven't done so.) I've run into a small issue - the sleeves don't have enough ease, so they seem to be pulling the shoulder down. I hope in the next few days to have time to rip out the underarm seams and see if that is the problem.