HAPPY HALLOWEEN! 😂😂😂😂 Ok, this post is obviously wayyyyyy late for Halloween, but I want to share it anyways. I'm super into quilting right now and I feel like I better share this one before I jump into posting about my others.

Quilt Pattern: Orange Dot Quilts "Heat Wave."
Fabric: Cotton and Steel in last season's Halloween line, "Boo," because I am sooooo last season 😜 Fabric kit was purchased from Picking Daisies in San Luis Obispo, but then I saw some different prints at Birch Fabrics and I swapped them. I'm a sucker for anything Cotton and Steel, especially Halloween fabric, so it was hard to choose the fabrics.
Thread: Black. If I'm going to use black thread to quilt, it should be for a Halloween quilt, yeah?


Dora, the designer behind Orange Dot Quilts, is a friend of mine and I feel kind of fangirlish when I see her. I LOVE her patterns and she is genuinely the nicest person ever, which makes buying her stuff even more satisfying. Heat Wave, designed by her during a heatwave and sewn by me during melting temperatures that I am still annoyed about if you couldn't tell, was a simple one to piece together. I dedicated one night to cutting the fabrics, one day to sewing the top, and a few days to getting the whole thing quilted together.


Time wise this thing ended up taking a few months from start to finish due to my quilting indecision. I wasn't sure if I wanted to stitch in the ditch or sew on the diagonal, which would make my stitches very visible in the black thread. Then I figured I'd just go hard with the black thread and quilt on the diagonal being that it would go with the theme of Halloween/my life. I first quilted about 3/8 inch on either side of the seam, realized that it looked too shaky, and then measured the rest of my stitching from the side of the presser foot. The stitches look more confident if that even makes sense.

I'm happy with this, Halloween rules, and no, I'm not sharing it with anyone in my house mwahaha!

As I was sitting here thinking about what to type I realized that I like giving myself little mini themes or goals that no one knows about (until now). This post and my next blog post are going to have a Halloween theme, even though it is currently November as I write this. Not to be that "Halloween is everyday" girl, but, hey, Halloween is everyday 😂 By that I mean I'm going to wear this outfit 12 months a year, not 1 month a year. I don't discriminate when it comes to skull fabric, especially when it's Cotton and Steel skull fabric 💀.

For me, the Grainline Driftless Cardigan is the perfect Fall piece. The weather is so up and down right now (rained one morning a couple of weeks ago, was in the 90s and 100s, and now its 75 degrees, wtf), but for the days that might have a slight chill, Driftless is my go to, my ride or die, my Fall soulmate. K, I'm being kinda dramatic since this is only my second time sewing the pattern, but I really love it. I never blogged the orange red version I made last year, but I assure you that it has gotten a lot of use. It's a little dressier than a hoodie, so I feel more pulled together when I pass on my worn out American Nightmare and Bane sweatshirts and put on a nice cardigan instead.


This is version 2 of Driftless, the version with the split hem. Didn't add buttons because I'm not going to waste four buttons on something that is never going to be buttoned up (how many more time can I use "buttons" in a sentence, jeeze). Construction is super interesting due to how the pockets are sewn. The first time I cut out the pattern pieces I was scratching my head and wondering how it was going to work, but in the end it did. Jen, the designer behind Grainline, never disappoints. And honestly, I really really like that this is a different take (construction wise) on an oversize cardigan. The only change I made was omitting the sleeve cuffs for my shorty arms.


Oh, this leopard print sweater knit is from Michael Levine and it was on saleeeeee for $4.80 a yard! 👏 I love when I lurk a fabric, don't buy it, and then go lurk again and realize that it's 20% off. Actually, the whole website was (is?) 20% off, so I should stop feeling like such a genius haha. And in no way am I affiliated with Michael Levine, just wanted to give you a heads up that they have good sales.


The shirt is from one of my favorite pattern companies, SBCC Patterns. They specialize in patterns for petites, and since I'm petite this is right up my alley. You've seen this pattern before on my blog and also on my Instagram, but it's the Paloma Blouse in version 2. No changes/adjustments made other than lowering the pockets and adding a couple of inches in length. This pattern holds a special place in my life because it's perfect for crazy quilting cottons, uses a little under 2 yards of fabric, and it's a great shirt style for my work. It's not a basic t-shirt and it's not a full on ballgown, the best compromise 😂


Thanks for reading, friends! xoxox