My daughter took this picture of me after church on Sunday.  You can see some of the details.  Can you believe that Kelly was right?  It really only took a couple of hours (with her help--and awesome serging skills).  All I did was cut out the fabric--and even then, I didn't do such a great job at that!

We used the wrong side of the fabric as the contrast.  That was Kelly's idea.  She was very much in "Project Runway" mode.  We also screwed up the back but it ended up being a blessing in disguise.  The contrast around the middle was supposed to go all the way around.  But, we like it without.

We also didn't have time to finish the sleeves or do the hem.  I like it without the hem so I'm going to leave it.  I like the way the bottom rolls up and matches the contrast on top.  I'll eventually finish the sleeves but I wore it all weekend with them undone and it wasn't any big deal.

I had enough fabric left over to make my daughter a matching skirt.  She loves it!  It is just an elastic waist a-line skirt.  It took me about 5 minutes.  I used my regular sewing machine.  I have a serger now (I got it for Christmas!) but I didn't take it out of the box until Saturday night.  I also didn't have thread for it until Monday night.  Now, I'm ready to rock and roll.

Good thing, too.  I bought some more fabric last night for another last minute dress.  I'm making one to wear to the Mom 2.0 Summit and I leave Thursday morning.  I think Kelly taught me well enough that I can do this one on my own.  Time will tell.

Do you want to know what pattern we used?  I took a class from Judy Kessinger at the Original Quilt and Sewing Expo last fall and I got her FitNice System.  She took my measurements and drew the patterns to fit my body.  I have the whole system and I can't wait to try some of the other projects.

Soutache has an amazing supply of ribbons, trims, buttons, and embellishments.  I was so impressed with what they had available at the booth and then I saw some of the pictures on their website.  A whole wall full of ribbons?  Sign me up.   If you are in the Chicago area, go and check them out!

The chief (that's seriously what it says on her business card--love it!), Maili, took a moment to film a little video with me to tell us a little more about her store.

If you could have a wall full of some type of craft supply in your house, what would it be?

Pilloz.com offers complete photo pillows or just the fabric with your images printed in high quality.  I wish my little point and shoot camera could to it justice.

If you've ever tried using the printable fabric you find in craft stores, you know how amazing this is to find such a high quality product.  Can you tell I was impressed?

I took a short video of Arnold, the general manager, and had him explain what he has to offer.

The prices are very reasonable (they include shipping & handling!). Compared to what I was using before and the amount of printer ink I was using, this is so worth it! Also, the photo fabric feels like REAL FABRIC. If you've used the printer fabric from the craft store, you know what I'm talking about! I'm pretty sure my next memory quilt is going to be a-mazing.

While at the sewing expo, I went by two vendor booths that were promoting irons.  They were the smartest irons I've ever seen.  They were also some of the most expensive.  But, the features were top notch and when you're ironing a lot (sewing, quilting, etc...), it is worth having a great iron.

Here are a few videos I took at their booths.  The first one is for the Oliso Pro Iron.  I love the cool lifters and the automatic sensors.

The other iron is called the Euro Steam. They sell primarily at trade shows and expos like the one in Kansas City so they aren't as easy to find online. You'll have to check out the video to see the demonstrator iron a balloon.

What kind of iron do you use? Would you recommend it? I could really use a new iron but I don't know that I'm ready to plunk down a hefty chunk of change for one. Know what I mean?

I was surprised by how light and versatile these were.  I put Linda on the spot and asked her if she'd do a little video on some of the ways you can wear her shawl top.  She did great!

I'm back from the Sewing and Quilt Expo in Kansas City.  Over the next couple of weeks I'll be blogging about classes I took and all the great vendors I met and their products.  I took two classes from Peggy Sagers, the woman behind Silhouette Patterns.  One of the classes was called Sew With a Plan (SWAP).  She is actually taking this class into some Hancock Fabric stores so you might want to check out the schedule to see if one is coming to a city near you.

This class was all about adding to your wardrobe seasonally, but really planning out what will work with what you have, what fabrics will work, and what type of clothing you should focus on.  It was full of great ideas and I'm looking forward to using all the great advice to help me add to my own wardrobe.

One thing she focused on in the class was the fabric stash.  She suggested that having a fabric stash can really take away from the creative process.  Also, how many of us actually sew from our stash?  She brought up some great points but I began to justify my stash (smallish, but growing) because I am a craft sewer as well and having little bits and bobs serve me well.

What do all of you think about the concept of a stash.  Do you have one?  Do you work one project to the next and don't need one?  Let's chat about this in the comments.

Step 1:  get measured.  This wasn't as bad as I make it appear in the picture.

See?  No big deal.

Step 2:  Place the stickers in the, um, spot.  You know.

Step 3: Is this one big enough?  Believe it or not, that one was too big!  Oh, the poor woman that can fill that one up.  I went into a little cabana and tried on two bras.

Step 4:  Where are the stickers now?  Oooh.  Much better.  Can you tell I was "lifted" a couple of inches?  Success.

These ladies have a great concept going on here.  They described the company as Tupperware for Boobs.  Basically, they are a direct sales company and have "bra parties".  A representative comes to your home and helps you choose properly fitting undergarments.

I couldn't stop looking in the mirror and I didn't want to take it off.  It felt great.  Apparently, the design is such that it takes the load off of the shoulders and distributes it along the back.  I bought two.

There aren't too many Essential Bodywear reps out there so if you don't have one near you, maybe you might want to become one yourself?  You can find all the information on that at their site.

Having a good fitting bra makes a big difference in how your clothes fit.  I may just have to re-do my duct tape dress form once I get them!  Anyone care to share their bra habits?  How many do you own?  Are they all the same style?  Does it fit properly or could you use a little professional help?

via flickr, copyright Vintage Fairytale

I'm looking forward to this event for a couple of reasons.

1. I'm going with Kelly from Refibered.

2. It will be a few days of pure crafting goodness.

3. I could really use some sewing instruction.

I'm taking three classes while I'm there.  The first one is Photoshop Elements for Creative Printmakers.  I'm really excited with this one as it combines computers and crafting!  I've had Photoshop Elements for six months and still don't really know how to use it to its potential.  I'd love to be able to design my own fabric for Spoonflower or my own craft paper at Craft Sassy.

I'm also taking Core Sewing Skills.  I could really use some instruction on the basics so I can avoid some of the crazy mistakes I make.  Plus, I'm a self-taught sewer so it would be nice to know how I'm "supposed" to be doing things.

The third class I'll be registering for when we arrive so I won't know what is still available.  We took advantage of the bring a friend deal being offered so we each get an extra class.  I'm hoping to get in on a slipcover class.

Do you like to attend expos or events like these?

If you could take a class from any of your crafty "heroes", who would it be?