thelongthread – Page 101 – the long thread

June 17, 2011June 17, 2011

Girl’s World

I’m happy to be part of the Girl’s World blog tour today! Jennifer Paganelli of Sis Boom, along with Dolin O’Shea and photographer Tim Geaney have created a charming and delightful book for fancy girls everywhere.

Published by my favorite publisher, Chronicle Books (I’m a bit biased here), the well-crafted book is as beautiful in its design as it is in content. I love the use of Jennifer’s fabric designs throughout the book, as well as the fancy lettering, silhouette artwork and the special details like the pink satin ribbon that ties the book together.

I had the opportunity to meet Jennifer and buy an autographed copy of the book from her a few weeks ago at Intown Quilters here in Atlanta. There are 21 projects in all including dresses, accessories and home décor. One of my favorites is a cute puppy dog named George that looks so easy to make, you could probably whip up a bunch of them as party favors. The dog, as well as some other crafty projects in the book, could easily be made with your child.

The clothing patterns in the book include four dresses, two aprons, and a ballet skirt. I decided to make the most simple of the dresses, the Tallulah Halter Dress (see photos below).

Since I started at 8pm last night, it’s a good thing that it was an easy one. The dress came together in just over an hour and has an easy-wear style perfect for hot summer days. This time I stuck to the pattern pretty closely, which is a pretty amazing feat for me. I used a size small pattern (4-5) for my petite six-year-old and it worked out really well with no adjustments needed. The instructions were clear and well-illustrated.

I used a vintage-inspired floral from Urban Chik’s Dream On collection for Moda.

If you have a girly-girl in your life who loves frilly, sparkly things, you’ll love this book! Here’s the full blog tour schedule, so you can check out some of the previous posts and keep up with those coming up.

Monday, June 13: Easy Crafts

Tuesday, June 14: Li’l Magoolie

Wednesday, June 15: Whip Up

Thursday, June 16: Patterns by Figgys

Friday, June 17: The Long Thread

Sunday, June 19: Mod Podge Rocks!

Monday, June 20: Babble.com

Tuesday, June 21: Bolt Neighborhood

Wednesday, June 22: West Coast Crafty

Thursday, June 23: Everything Etsy

Friday, June 24: Hodge Podge Farm

Monday, June 27: CraftSanity

June 16, 2011June 16, 2011

Book Signing Saturday

Just a reminder about the 1, 2, 3 Sew book signing this Saturday, June 18 at 6pm at Whipstitch Fabrics. The event is free if you’d like to stop by and check out the book. If you’re in Atlanta, I’d love to see you there. I’ve just ordered some yummy cupcakes for the occasion from Frosted & Sprinkled, so don’t miss out!

Also, there is still space available in the Pintuck Clutch workshop which will be held from 4-6 pm. I’ve picked out a selection of fabrics for you to choose from — prints from my favorite designers including Anna Maria Horner, Anna Griffin, Jay McCarroll, Lizzy House and Amy Butler (excuse the photo quality, this was taken from my phone). Then we’ll have some cotton sateen and twill solids to be used as lining — or you can make a solid bag with a patterned lining. Choices! The workshop fee is $55 and includes everything you’ll need to make the bag. The bag is one of the step 1 projects from the book, so it’s fairly simple with pintucks and a magnetic fastener.

Just call the store at 404-897-1114 to make a reservation for the workshop.

June 16, 2011

Tiny Vinyl Tutorial

More miniature stuff! This is a completely non-functional, somewhat strange craft, but here goes. My husband is an avid record collector and we’re getting him a record store gift certificate for Father’s Day, so I thought it might be fun to make some tiny vinyl records to go with the gift!

I made the version above after the Pet Sounds album from the Beach Boys. The goat photo was borrowed from the internet, but I wish I’d had time to get to the girls to the petting zoo to get a photo. Then I just changed the names of some songs by bands he likes (“December Gurls” references the Big Star song, but December because our daughters were both born in that month). Once you start substituting the word “Daddy” for other words in song titles, things can get pretty strange.

You can see the cute version made by my younger daughter in my post on Alpha Mom, along with the instructions and template. My older daughter is busy thinking up all kinds of funny song titles for hers that we’ll finish up in the next few days (like the soon-to-be hit “Daddy is Not Stinky”).

June 13, 2011

A Book and a Craft

Cassi from The Crafty Crow invited me over to post a book-themed craft for her A Book and a Craft series. I chose this beautifully illustrated version of Twelve Dancing Princesses, retold and illustrated by Brigette Barrager and published by Chronicle Books.

I made a fabric dancing wand and crown for my six-year-old. To see the full instructions, check out the post here.

June 12, 2011

Back at home.

We’re settling back in at home after a week at the beach in Florida. Now, this was a nice place to drink your morning coffee. Hope you’re enjoying some relaxation during your summer break.