Vote for Rochelle!

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Can I ask a favor of you guys? My good friend Rochelle was nominated for a Craftsy award for her blog photography and I truly believe that she deserves to win. It is very rare that Rochelle and I go for longer than a day without texting. We share our hopes, dreams, sewing projects, and animal photos (of course!). I know how hard she works on her photography and how much winning this award means to her. Would you mind taking one minute out of your day to vote for Rochelle? If you scroll to the bottom of this post she explains how to do it. Please, please, please vote! She is currently tied at 36% and needs some votes to push her into first place.

To say "thank you" for voting I have included this glamor shot of Rochelle and I having an Emoji face off last year via Instagram.

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A knit Saltspring from a wannabe Kardashian

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Back in August I made the Saltspring dress by Sewaholic and knew that I would make another one, it was just a matter of finding the right fabric. When Mood Fabrics did an online sale I scored with this Hawaiian jersey fabric at $5 a yard! I knew that I had to use it for a Saltspring, it was fate.

I finished the dress the day before my husband, some friends, and I went down to Los Angeles for a work thing. The convention was near Disneyland, so Luke was nice enough to take some photos for me in the Disneyland Hotel. Do you notice my weird ticked off face in the photo above? That face is because we were so close to the theme park, yet we didn't get to go :( I know, it's bull!

Back to the dress, the Saltspring isn't really intended for knits unless you want to make some modifications. The back piece and the back lining are cut on the fold, which means there isn't a need for a zipper (I'm all for modifications that omit a zipper :)). The jersey doesn't unravel, so I didn't need to finish the raw edges and it made my sewing time so much quicker. Total time at the machine was only a few hours, which is fast for me!

I was concerned with how heavy the dress would be seeing as the fabric weighs a lot more than the lawn I used in my first version. The straps could easily stretch out and I didn't want that, so I e-mailed Caroline at Sewaholic because she had just made a knit version of the dress. Within a day Caroline e-mailed me a bunch of awesome suggestions for stabilizing the straps and I ended up using her idea of using twill tape in the seam. Thank you for helping me again, Caroline!

The jersey makes the front and back necklines a little droopy, but I kind of like the effect!

On to the "wannabe Kardashian" part of the blog title. Ok, you guys, don't laugh at me, but I kind of wanted my hair to look like Kim Kardashian's new blonde color. Yes, I'm serious! My talented friend, Amy, cut and dyed my hair a few weeks ago and I'm happy with the new look. I'm not as blonde as Kim, but I think the light brown color is more flattering. I love the cut, but I'm still trying to figure out how to style it. The weird part is shampooing my hair and then forgetting for a split second that my head feels ten pounds lighter and I don't need as much hair product haha.

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My friend Melissa

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I know that I've said it a million times, but I love having a friend nearby that sews. Melissa from Scavenger Hunt lives fifteen minutes away from me and we have met up quite a few times to sew and hangout. We aren't total besties (yet. I am working on forcing her into it and she doesn't know it muahaha), so I was super surprised and excited when she gave me a birthday gift. Check out all those awesome treasures! My favorite gift was the magnetic pin tray that she MADE me. She just posted a tutorial, so you guys can make one too.

It's my first magnetic pin tray and I am officially a fan! What about you guys, pincushions or magnetic plates? Which do you prefer?

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(Lady) sk8er gurl

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When I was making the Lady Skater dress  I just knew that I needed to take photos on my husband's skateboard. As soon as he saw me on the skateboard he asked if he needed to record me on his iPhone to send in to the TV show Ridiculousness. Basically, he was saying that he thought I was going to fall and eat shit haha. I am very proud to say that I did not come close to falling, thanks!

 I first saw this pattern on Lauren's blog and loved it so much that I had to buy it. I thought it was the perfect knit dress and I needed it in my life. After sewing it up my original thoughts proved to be true, it's pretty awesome! I am going to make a leopard/floral print version and a 3/4 sleeve length LBD.

Because I'd never sewn any of Amanda's patterns before I wanted to make a wearable muslin. This glittery orange and white fabric was on sale at Mood, so I snapped it up and got to work sewing. The pattern is extremely straightforward and has two sets of instructions. The first set of instructions are illustrated with lots of photos, almost like a sew along inside the pattern! The second set of instructions are for "bad asses"(sounds like something I would say, but those are her words!) and do not use any pictures, just text. Those directions are also really clear and easy to follow. Apparently I am an official "bad ass" because I followed the second instructions :p

The only thing I will change for my next version is the waistline. I'd like it to be a little higher, so I will shorten the pieces by an inch or so.

 FYI the pattern is a downloadable pdf and you have to tape all the pieces together. I hateeeeeeeee HATE doing that, but it wasn't so bad! There aren't a ton of pattern pieces and the dress is so cute that I had to make an exception.

See, no falling from me!

Do any of you have plans to make this dress?

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Polka dot Zinnia

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 Technically it's "fall" here on the Central Coast of California. What does fall mean to Pismo Beach? It means temperatures of over eighty degrees, margaritas with dinner, bike rides, and Zinnia skirts! Our summer weather is finally here! To celebrate the sunshine my husband, his cousin, and I went to brunch at Ventana Grill where we stuffed ourselves with crab legs, baked brie, and Bloody Marys. While we were there (post crab feast) I convinced Scott (the cousin) to take some photos of my latest make, the Zinnia skirt by Colette Patterns. My husband was happy to be off the hook and let Scott take the photos haha

To be honest, I was kind of hesitant to buy this pattern. It's super cute, but I don't think that high waisted skirts are very flattering on me. Luckily, Zinnia looks good without tucking in your blouse, or at least I think it does! :)


 I know this is a terrible photo of me, but how awesome is that view?!?! I know I have said it 289472304 times, but I love living by the ocean!



 It doesn't show up well in photos, but if you squint, then yes, those are polka dots. The print is so busy that I decided not to include pockets, which is funny because I think the pockets are the cutest part! My next version will have pockets.

Somehow this fabric got in my stash and I'm not entirely sure how. It's most likely from my buddy Kacey and if it's not from her then I don't know who it is from. I think it's a lightweight polyester that feels nice on the skin during this "heat wave."

My sewing machine was being a little "B" and was messing up my buttonholes, so no closeups of those. Other than that, this skirt was straightforward to make and could easily be done in just a couple of days. Coming from a slow sewer that means something!

Sorry for my boringgggg post. I guess I need some margaritas for my writing to get a little more exciting!

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