An Everyday Skirt for Everyday

Liesl Gibson wasn't messing around when she named this sewing pattern the "Everyday Skirt." I've made two already, and let me tell you, these babies have been in heavy rotation this summer. 

Jaime's Nani Iro Everyday Skirt

Pattern: Everyday Skirt by Liesl + Co.
Fabric: Nani Iro canvas, 1 3/4 yds
Size Made: small
Alterations: none

Welcome to what is likely to be just the beginning of my new Nani Iro wardrobe. I just can't resist. She puts out just a few canvas prints each collection and they are perfect for skirts and bags or anything that needs more structure. This painterly ombre print was just calling my name in its gorgeous neutral palette.

The Everyday skirt features an elastic waistband on the back and some light gathering in the front. The sides are left un-gathered for a flattering fit on the hips. This is an easy pattern to fit - I found it ran just a touch big and sized down to a small from my waist measurement which put me in the medium size. The combination of an elastic waist and full hips makes it easy to adjust for size. 

Pockets! You all know that pockets are the winning key to any wearable skirt. You're not going to be wearing a skirt Everyday without pockets. These ones are easy to put in and sit just off the side seam which incorporate them into the skirt design more. Nice one, Liesl.

Jaime's Brussels Washer Everyday Skirt

Pattern: Everyday Skirt by Liesl + Co.
Fabric: Brussels washer in gray, 1 3/4 yds
Size Made: small
Alterations: none

Oh hey, Brussels Washer. I haven't sewn anything with you in at least a month and boy did I miss you. I love how light and drapey you are. You are so comfortable to wear it feels like I'm getting away with wearing pjs in public. I love that about you.

You're perfect blend of linen with rayon means you are light and summery like linen, but without getting so wrinkly thanks to the addition of silky rayon. You are so nice to sew with and your pale gray color goes with almost everything. Is it too much if I wear you a few times a week?

Oh, excuse me. You can pick up your own digital copy of the Everyday Skirt pattern here. If you need help, we are offering this as a class this summer. Check out the dates here and call us to sign up! 

Jaime's Nani Iro Quilt

On a recent trip to Pittsburgh for Quilt Market, Amber and I each came home with a 1/2 meter bundle of the newest Nani Iro double gauze collection. We had been coveting these types of bundles for years and finally took the plunge to owning them ourselves. There was only one thing to do with this: a Nani Iro double gauze quilt. 

Jaime's Nani Iro Quilt

Pattern: Self-designed Half Square Triangles
Fabric: one 1/2 meter bundle of Nani Iro double gauze, 1 each of 20 prints
Size Made: queen - 90" x 96"

OMG these prints! Super subtle creams and whites, pops of neon and then saturated blues and teals! All with hints of metallic ink on yummy double gauze base fabric. Swoon! You really can't go wrong with this collection. Any way you dice it, a double gauze Nani Iro quilt is going to look stunning. I didn't want to break up the beautiful prints too much so I cut 10 1/2" squares as the base of my half-square triangles. Once I pieced these together, I laid them out in a random pattern - working to break up the saturated colors with the delicate creams. I think the result is amazing, I love this quilt.

I made up this pattern, which is really just a random assortment of half square triangles (HST). I used the easy HST method of layering fabric squares, stitching them on the diagonal and then cutting them in half, creating two blocks each time I did this. This brilliant method means you don't have to stitch cut bias edges which could stretch. 

For the back I simply pieced together my leftover strips from cutting my squares and combined these strips with a chambray voile. I used our thinnest weight cotton batting so this is the lightest, airiest, summery quilt of all time.  Like all my queen-sized quilts, I had this one quilted professionally by Jason of Secret Stash Quilting. We just did a basic panto-gram design in a geometric triangles grid. The quilting echos the front of the quilt, but the light thread makes it disappear on most of the quilt top. I finished it with a bright teal shot cotton binding to frame the quilt and bring out the teals and bright blues of the Nani Iro.

Looper-approved! 

We still have a few half-meter bundles left if you're dreaming of a Nani Iro quilt of your own. Trust me, you won't be disappointed!

Nani Iro has arrived!

Its happening again! Our sewing line up consists of the latest Nani Iro fabrics. Not only has Naomi Ito brought us a plethora of our favorite hand painted designs but this collection has such a range in fabric types. Offering high quality fabric in cotton sheeting, double gauze, canvas, and sateen! Think of all the magical things that can be made with such a variety! Many of these fabrics have silver copper and gold metallic tones...swoon... 

To celebrate the latest collection of Nani Iro a group of talented women have declared June Nani Iro month!  Check out all the amazing things that have been created by a number of bloggers, including Lizzy House! Thanks to Miss Matatabi for the inspiring idea!

 Don't worry we have half meter bundles too!

Check back in a few weeks to see the magic that Jaime and Amber have been crafting up with their Nani Iro bundles! 

Jaime's Camber Set Dress

I'm slowly making my way through the Merchant & Mills catalog of sewing patterns. My newest sew is the Camber Set dress.

Pattern: Camber Set Dress by Merchant and Mills
Fabric: 100% linen - 1.75 yds, Nani Iro brushed cotton - 1/2 yd
Size made: UK 10
Alterations: I switched up the neck finish so it has an exposed bias binding all the way around

This pattern is a gently shaped garment that can be either a dress or a shirt. It features set-in sleeves, bust darts and a slightly a-line shape. The garment is quick and simple to cut out and put together. I was worried about this color against my skin so I altered the pattern to add an exposed bias binding all the way around the neckline. This is an easy way to finish the neck and I had just enough Nani Iro brushed cotton leftover from another Merchant & Mills sew to make some bias tape for this. 

I'm currently obsessed with this color: any form of muted pink or rosy taupe. The types of colors that are not unlike the color of my skin and may or may not be a good choice for me, but I couldn't resist it in a 100% linen. I thought a small bias binding would break up the color and add a nice border at the neck.

I've already sewn up another Camber in a shirt version that you'll get to see later on the blog. This pattern is nice causal look and I think I'll be coming back to it again and again.

Quilt Market Report Spring 2014

-jaime

Amber and I just returned from 4 whirlwind days in Pittsburgh to attend the 2014 Quilt Market! This is a trade show where we get to see and order all the upcoming fabric lines, meet the designers and authors, get inspired by new quilts, and brainstorm ideas with other shop owners. We are always so inspired to sew after we go to Quilt Market! Here are our top picks for new and exciting fabrics coming up.

April Rhodes in her awesome booth!

Art Gallery Fabrics has a new Limited Edition division they have launched. April Rhodes, Sew Caroline, Sara Lawson are the three new designers for these collections, which we love! All of these limited releases include voile and knits in addition to quilting cottons. April Rhodes' Arizona fabrics will be here later this month. Her booth at quilt market was stunning, displaying her very cool collection.

Next at Art Gallery, we met the charming Caroline Hulse of Sew Caroline. Her bright, poppy collection Gleeful will be available in July, for cheery summertime sewing.

Sew Caroline in her sweet booth!

Thomas Knauer was at market to promote his new book, Modern Quilt Perspective. The "12 patterns for meaningful quilts" each have a really interesting story and concept behind their design. We were able to see the quilts from the book in person and chat with Thomas about the story behind each one. We are thrilled to host him in Denver this November for a book signing event so stay tuned to find out the details.

Mr. Knauer signing books in his awesome booth!

Speaking of new books...Tasia of Sewholic was there from Vancouver! Tasia was promoting her new book, Sewtionary. It was so great to meet her--look how cute her top is out of her newest pattern, the Belcarra Blouse! Sewtionary is an awesome resource book that every sewist will want to have in their library. We can't wait for it to get here in early July.

Tasia of Sewholic - isn't she cute?!

We recently featured the new American Made Brand fabrics on our Instagram (@fancytigercrafts), but we have to show you again because they are so exciting. These are new cotton solids from Clothworks that are entirely grown, spun, woven and dyed in the USA. Modern quilter, Heather Jones is the spokesperson for this new fabric and has made some beautiful quilts out of it already. The icing on top for this sustainable fabric is a very affordable price point. These should be here this June.

Heather Jones!

Violet Craft has a new collection for Michael Miller, Brambleberry Ridge. Oh man, did we love this. The mix of sweet florals, geometrics, and woodland creatures were all highlighted with metallic ink - so precious! Her upcoming quilt pattern features paper pieced animals and birds - I am going to make a hawk pillow stat. Brambleberry Ridge will be here this July.

A new Violet Craft quilt pattern on the left and a detail of a print from Brambleberry Ridge on the right.

Alison Glass was debuting her newest collection for Andover, Handcrafted. This collection was really different from anything we saw at market. Alison designed these prints using the traditional wax-resist method of making batik fabric, but they have a look that is all Alison Glass. All these fabrics will be hand-printed and therefore completely unique with no yardage exactly the same. This printing method also means the fabrics have a lovely hand that will lend itself well to both garment and quilt-making. Alison's booth was inspiring with her lovely quilts and embroidery.

Us and Alison Glass in her awesome booth

Some of Alison Glass' amazing quilts. Those are her new fabrics draped on the chair...

We loved this new quilt design by Alison Glass, Timber.

You know how we feel about Nani Iro around here. It's no surprise that we are in love with Naomi Ito's newest collection. These dreamy prints will be here in June, but Amber and I were able to come home with 1/2 meter bundles so we can sew up quilts before then. We can't wait to show you what we make...

Ok, the moment you've all been waiting for...Cotton and Steel! Yes, we saw it! Yes, it was amazing! Yes, we ordered it all! Yes, we love them! It is just as awesome as all the hype would suggest. This new division of RJR headed by none other than Melody Miller is so great and you are all going to be sewing with it this summer. Start planning, people. There are 123 bolts of delicious fabrics coming our way this July in quilting cottons, voiles, and linen/cotton canvas. Are you ready?

OMG!

The ladies of Cotton and Steel from left to right: Alexia Abegg, Melody Miller, Rashida Coleman Hale, Kim Kight, and Sarah Watts

Highlights from the Cotton and Steel booth

We will be implementing a new uniform policy where staff at FTC can only wear this print from Alexia Abegg.
Just kidding, but seriously you guys!! 

Amber's Muddy Works Tee

--amber

I've been coveting Jaime's cute Nani Iro Nuance Tee for a while. When we recently received Tomotake's Muddy Works fabrics I couldn't resist this soft double-gauze, hand drawn polka dot in a pale warm grey.

Pattern: Nani Iro Woman T-shirt
Fabric: Muddy Works Double Gauze 1 1/2 yd
Size Made: One Size
Alterations: None

Double gauze is perfect for this pattern, a loose, easy fitting tee, and it makes a garment that is oh-so-soft and comfortable.

I won't lie, wearing my new tee is kinda like wearing the comfiest pajamas in the world, but with a little bit of sophistication.

The Nani Iro Tee pattern is actually more of a diagram on drafting your pieces (in Japanese!) I lucked out--since Jaime already drafted the pattern, this top just took me an hour or so to make. The simplicity of the pattern, though, should make drafting it easy enough for intermediate or ambitious beginner sewists to tackle. Just remember to use centimeters, not inches, or your shirt will be very big!

Find the free Nani Iro Womens T-Shirt pattern here. There are lots more Nani Iro free patterns there as well!

Scout Tees for Spring!

I'll admit it, I'm kind of addicted to the Scout Tee pattern from Grainline Studio. The Scout Tee is a loose-fitting tee designed to be made in woven fabrics. Luckily we have no shortage of these here at Fancy Tiger Crafts. The Scout Tee has become my new go-to pattern for cute wovens. It's just so quick to sew up and so comfortable to wear. I can't resist!

Pattern: Scout Tee by Grainline Studio
Fabric: various, 1 7/8 yd
Size Made: 4
Alterations: None - its awesome!

First up is this one, out of my favorite print from the Lizzy House Catnap collection, Cattitude in Raspberry. I love this print and wanted to make something that I knew I would wear a lot - the Scout tee it is! The Scout tee is quick to sew with only three pattern pieces. The set in sleeves go quickly and the neck is finished with bias tape.

Another favorite of mine is Nani Iro's beautiful double gauze fabrics. This particular one was a remnant that I couldn't bear to see go, so I made a Scout tee. I arranged the pattern pieces on this border print fabric on the cross-grain to get the details on the bottom and sleeves. I love it!

We have recently received a lot of yarn-dyed woven fabrics, great staples for any wardrobe. I used a yarn dyed plaid in a soft purple and charcoal for this Scout Tee. I love wearing this simple top with a knit shawl for even more handmade action!

The Scout Tee pattern is currently available directly from Grainline in her webshop. If you decide to sew one up, we have countless fabrics that would make beautiful new tees. I'm sure there will be a lot more of these Scout Tees in my future...