Beach Glass Margo Blouse

I made a Margo Blouse this week I’d like to quickly share with you.  I’m in desperate need of some solids in my wardrobe and because I like pretty much all shades of blue (you probably guessed that since my pattern line is called Blue Dot), I thought this “beach glass” colored linen would make a perfect wardrobe addition.

I made View B with no alterations and added etched shell buttons from my stash.  I’ve made quite a few Margos, as you can imagine, and next I’d like to make a sleeveless white one for the summer.

On a completely different note...guess what I just found out?  My 16 year old son can take pictures.  I talked him into taking these pics for me and it turns out he’s pretty good.  It was a different experience than my usual photo shoot when I typically take 10+ pics in the same pose and come back with a ridiculous amount of photos that take forever to sort through.  My son took one pic of each pose and said “I got it, do something else.”  Guys can really make things a whole lot simpler.  He’s going to wish he wasn’t so good because I’m going to ask him again.  For sure I’ll have to bribe him with a milkshake next time.

Wrap Skirt - McCall's 5430

I’m throwing back to a skirt pattern I haven’t used in years.  I’ve been channelling the 70’s lately I’m sure because I was inspired by ThatBlackChic’s 70’s projects last month. As I was going through my pattern stash, this wrap skirt looked perfect.   It’s McCalls 5430 and I made it about 5 years ago and happily it’s still in their current catalog.

Most of my projects start with fabric as inspiration and this one is no different.  This print is a classic Kaffe Fasset print and every time I walk by it at Fabricland, it calls my name.  There are so many amazing quilting fabrics out there but sometimes I find it’s tricky to use them in clothing.  Summer skirts, however, seem to be a great place to get them into my wardrobe.

I was about half way through making the skirt when I realized in order for the print to work it needed a trim.  The fabric has yellow, orange, pumpkin and green and I purchased this pretty yellow linen to add 1/2” trim on the waist and side.  I did some unsewing but it was well worth it.

On a side note, a couple of summers ago my family and I drove through Big Sur. As I was making  this, I remembered something from the trip.  It was way passed lunch time and we were looking for a place to get something to eat before everyone got crabby.  The first restaurant we came to was Nepanthe.  It looked like Shangri-la.

It’s set high on a cliff overlooking the water with beautiful umbrellas.  As I was eating I saw what looked like Kaffe Fasset paintings on the walls.  I took a closer look and found the restaurant was started by his family.  How did I not know this?  It was serendipitous!

Have you been there?

Are you summer sewing?

Diane 

We Are Looking For Pattern Testers

Would you like to be in our database of pattern testers? We are looking for beginning/intermediate to advanced sewists in a range of sizes to test Blue Dot women's sewing patterns.

If this sounds interesting to you, here's what we are looking for:

1. Beginning/Intermediate to Advanced sewing knowledge.
2. Access to a printer (since you will be testing a PDF patterns you will need to print the patterns).
3. Interest in testing women's patterns (no prior testing experience is needed).

Here's what you'll do:

1. Receive a "working copy" of a Blue Dot PDF Pattern to make according to the instructions.
2. Provide at least 2 well lit photos of your finished project.
3. Keep the new pattern a "secret" (shhhhh) until the pattern is officially released.
4. Give feedback on the pattern and instructions on the provided form.

Here's the other stuff you may be wondering:

1. Pattern testers will receive a "working copy" and a copy of the final finished pattern.  There is no compensation for being a tester.
2. You don't need to have a blog to be a pattern tester.
3. We will be choosing a few testers for every size of the pattern.  These testers will be chosen at random.
4. The turnaround time for pattern testing is typically between 2-3 weeks.  This means, once you agree to test a particular pattern, you will need to turn in the photos and feedback before the deadline.
5. If you don't have time to test a pattern during a call that's no problem, you can let us know and we will still keep you in the database for next time.

If this sounds good to you, email us here with the following info and we will contact you about being a tester:

1. Level of sewing experience: beginning/intermediate, intermediate or advanced.
2. Blog URL, Instagram or Facebook if you have one (this is not required).
3. Bust, Waist and Hip measurement.

Don't be shy!  We are looking for all sizes and levels of sewing experience.

Thank you!  Diane