A few weeks ago, I got an email from Joe at Fabric Wholesale Direct (FWD) asking if I'd like to partner with them. I could pick out $100 worth of fabric from the site, and get it for free. And in exchange, I would write up a blog post tutorial about the project I choose to make from it and link back to their website. I eagerly agreed, and spent the next few hours pouring over all the fabrics they offer. And here's what I found: $100 of fabric at FWD is WAY more fabric than I realized. 
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I started out with just one project in mind, to recover several outdoor cushions I picked up for free. And I was pleasantly surprised to find some waterproof fabric options for my project, with a wide selection of colors. I decided on Ottertex waterproof canvas in silver, and added my yardage to my cart. But even with 7 yards, it was nowhere near the $100 limit, so I took another look around the site to see what else I might like. I decided to add several more fabrics to my cart, and make this a blog series instead of just one post. This first post is just a rundown of all the fabrics I picked out, and future posts will be about what I make from each fabric. I can't wait!
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This post has very little to do with sewing, but I've gotten a few questions about my chalkboard wall, so I figured I'd put this post out there in case anyone is interested!
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The house we've been renting since August came to us with a chalkboard painted on one of the dining room walls. I was super excited about it, and I've been having a lot of fun creating chalk murals that coordinate with the seasons.
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I've now made 3 different drawings, one for Halloween, one for Christmas, and one for the new year. I love scrolling through pinterest to get ideas and I will often combine elements from several different pins to come up with what I want to draw. I should post photos of my inspiration pics to give them their credit, but honestly it's been so long ago now that I don't remember if I even saved them on pinterest. I'll try to remember for next time.
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With fashion revolution week upon us, I want to draw attention to something that everyone can do to help with this cause: mending. The number one thing we can do to help stop the fast fashion cycle is to actually love the things we already own. Or as FashionRevolution.org says: #lovedclotheslast
This means cleaning them in a way that preserves the garments and this means mending! And although mending usually brings to mind sewing, that's not always the case. I want to share with you 9 ideas for fixing a variety of wardrobe issues. Even if you have never sewn in your life.

Fashion Revolution Week is an annual remembrance of the Rana Plaza collapse on April 24th 2013, which killed 1,138 workers. All year round, and especially this week, FashionRevolution.org campaigns for a clean, safe, fair, transparent and accountable fashion industry. 

I love fashion, and I love sewing. But I don’t want our clothes or our fabric to exploit people or destroy our planet.

This week is a time for each of us to stop, reflect and ask #whomademyclothes? and #whatsinmyclothes? We can take this opportunity to think about how we (as individuals and as a whole) produce, consume, and dispose of clothes. 

I love my Huxley bag pattern as is, but I also love how versatile it can be. After lusting after a few roll top bags on instagram, I realized that my Huxley pattern could easily be converted to create one of my own! So, I decided one of my #MakeNine projects was going to be a hacked Huxley, with a roll top, using waterproof material. And because I can't go simple, I added in quite a few other hacks too. Here is a breakdown:

One of my Make Nine goals for 2020 was to try out the My Body Model app, which is a way to create a customized croqui for creating fashion illustrations and flats that are specific to your own body.

​I absolutely love the idea behind this business. Going through an apparel design program in college means that I was taught to use a traditional croqui, which, as some of you may know, is very unrealistic. The traditional croquis are intentionally altered to be more of a stylized representation of the female body, with extra height, and extra long legs. The formula for drawing a croqui involves using nine heads as a base for getting the proportions correct. Take a look at this photo to see what I mean.

Let me preface this post by saying that this is a classic example of how I work on my projects. And it gives you a little insight as to why I take so long to get anything done.
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If you've been following me for any length of time, you know that every January my ASDP chapter rents out a cabin and has a sewing retreat. And this year was no exception! We each bring a machine, and a few (or a bunch) of our sewing projects to work on, and we all share some of the bigger sewing tools, like irons and cutting mats. Then, we each take a the responsibility for one of the meals for the weekend, so that you only have to stop to make food once the entire time. The only "rule" is that you can't sew for any clients! (since most of us are professional sewists)
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I had such success with my #makenine challenge in 2019 that I decided to go for it again in 2020! You can read all about my 2019 goals and my 2019 reality in my past blog posts. I didn't finish everything on the list, but I did at least make progress!
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So let's take a look at what I have planned for this year!

I love all things Halloween, and all things sewing, so when I saw this photo on pinterest of a stitched jack-o'-lantern I knew I had to give it a try this year.

I started out by just gutting and carving the pumpkin like normal, with slanted eyes and a wide mouth. Then I used some twine I had and a large needle and got to work.