Stripey Summer Romper

Cuteness overload, yes? Here is a new version of the first romper I made..this one with more room in the leg area for babies with chubby legs, such as mine :)

A little something for myself..

I spend most of my days sewing for other people, which is awesome and I love it -- but it's definitely important for me to carve a little time out for myself. Honestly, I don't necessarily enjoy making clothes for myself, like most people, I prefer to shop other people creations. However, I recently made this little spring top for myself. This was my take on no longer being patient for spring! Hurry on now.

A Spring Baby Dress

I finally had some free time recently to make little Glory something and had really been wanting to use this fabric from my mom's shop ...so voila, a simple, sweet spring dress. Adorned with a simple velvet ribbon and bow with gold buttons up the back.

Gloria Sews Etsy Shop

My mom has recently been giving her Etsy shop a makeover. In addition to fabrics, she has also started listing notions, such as zippers and buttons. I love the range of colors in zippers and the way she has decided to display the listings. She runs a small business that is invalubale to a small community. I look up to her dedication to her work and the creative support she provides for her customers, friends, and family.

You can read more about her fabric store beginings here and here.

Little lady

Glory is slowly making her way into a few of things I made for her before she was born. Here is the navy liberty print dress, originally posted here. Don't you love her spikey blonde hair?

I'm in the process of making her a striped spring number that I can't wait to share. So stay tuned..

And yes, I'm sporting my favorite..the Bellis with a black blazer.

Mary Janes + 2 Jumpers

Making clothes for pint-size little ones is pretty awesome. Two main reasons why...It doesn't take very much fabric and it doesn't take very much time. As you might have guessed, I've found myself with a new hobby.

These mary-janes are probably the tiniest thing I've ever sewn but so cute in this striped denim with wooden buttons!

Sewing Machines

One recurring question I've received pretty much since I started blogging has been the type of sewing machine I use and what I recommend. That can be a very loaded question and also very simple, so I'm going to try to guide you through my opinion and show you the equipment that I use. 

I used the same $200(ish) Singer machine from Walmart since I was in high school (probably similiar to this) for a long time. For home projects and during fashion school, it was an electric machine with limited bells and whistles, no fancy names, and had the ability to just sew. And that is my number one recommendation. If you are learning to sew and have limited experience, all you need is to do is just get a machine and sew. Don't spend tons of money and don't worry about tons of options because the fact is, at the end of the day, you're probably just going to be getting use to sewing backwards and forwards for quite awhile.

I finally retired my old machine and invested in the Bernina 330 (above photo) some time ago. As someone who sews nearly everyday, I needed a machine that could handle the amount of sewing I was going to be doing, had very nice buttonholes, and had the capabilites of producing high quality garments. I debated going to an industrial straight-stitch machine but ultimately opted for the Bernina with the intentions of adding an industrial machine within a year. I have been so pleased with this machine! It handles so well and I've really enjoyed it's computerized capabilities. So if you're at the place where you're ready to upgrade and invest in a machine, I'd definitely look into Bernina. 

I will say, I still opted for the machine with the least stitches because that's just something I don't use.

Now you may just sew enough that seam finishing is not a big deal to you -- but if you are looking for a faster way to finish seams, I do recommend looking into a serger. I have had this serger for about 3 years and it was a great place to get started. However, when we moved back to North Carolina I was finally able to move in an industrial serger that my grandmother no longer wanted. This Singer industrial machine is about 25 years old and stitches like butter. But again, I recommend starting small and afforable and then eventually building up your arsenal machines as you feel more confident with your own personal skills and needs.

Learning to sew is just like anything else -- you have to start with basics, take it slow, and practice. So while there are tons of sewing machine brands and styles out there, the most important thing is to keep a reasonal budget and not get distracted with all the "special" editions and add-ons. There is always room to grow and you'll find that the more you sew, the more you'll start to aquire you're own thoughts and opinions about your sewing preferences. Happy sewing :)