Pattern Review - It's all the heart eyes for the new Bellevue Dress from Little Lizard King

Did you hear Little Lizard King has a new pattern designer join their team? Natasha from Ellie’s Handmade has released her first two patterns, The Bellevue Dress and Romper, and they are totally amazing!

If you knew how awesome Tash is, you'd totally get my gushing, beaming, pride while writing this post! We met about 3.5 years ago after I bought one of her makes in a showcase. We discovered she was only 10 min away from me so she suggested I come pick the parcel up. When I got there I discovered she had a daughter the same age as mine and a son the same age as my littlest. The rest as they say, is history!

Over the last few years we have become good friends and she has become an important and incredibly supportive part of my life. So you can forgive me for being so cheesy and absolutely bursting with love for her very first pattern release.

I’ve always loved her style. A touch of vintage mixed with sass and Bellevue doesn't disappoint! It's practical and cute with a little bit of a vintage feel. I love the side panels for the dress, which takes it from a pinafore style to an actual dress style as you don't need to pop a t-shirt or blouse under for older kids.

My 5 yo loves her twirly dress with a "fluffle" at the bottom. It's such a perfect dress for showing off an embroidery panel or a small piece of your favourite fabric  - I used a vintage embroidered table cloth for this one and paired it with some lovely "linen look" fabric from Dizzy Daisy Fabrics

I'm sure your girls will love twirling in their Bellevue Dresses <3 and if you've got a bubba or a girl who still loves rompers, there is a baby version of this pattern that has a romper bottom which includes a snap panel - perfect for a quick nappy change or toilet stop!

The low down on sizes:  12m-14 for the dress and NB to 4 for the romper, this pattern covers everyone!

You're enjoy this sew, I promise <3

T xx

One Thimble Issue 7 Blog Tour

Issue 7 of One Thimble was released yesterday, Friday 15th May and today is my big day on the Blog Tour! Issue 7 is JAM PACKED with some awesome PDF Patterns as well as loads of tricks and tips and tutorials (warning: shameless self promo coming up) including one by yours truly! 

I'm just a little excited to be joining in on my very first blog tour!! I was lucky enough to roadtest 3 of the 10 (yes, 10!!!) awesome PDF patterns

But let me just take a moment to *swoon* over this cover photo.... I could totally get lost in this!

Which is really quite fitting for my first road test of the 'Down the Rabbit Hole' appliqué from Ric-Rac and Retro
























I've always been a huge fan of Sarah's work, and this appliqué pattern is by far my favourite to date. When I first read through the tutorial I was a little overwhelmed at the thought of using a darning foot. From all the YouTube videos I'd seen they looked scary!! 

So I practised on a few pieces of scrap and got comfortable...Oh! who am I kidding.... I didn't practice... I dove straight in head first with crazed excitement and had a go... and OMG I can see this being addictive!! #freemotionallthethings 

To sum it up - everything you know about sewing? throw it OUT THE DOOR!! There's no stopping to pivot or turn the fabric!! You just keep going, like you're drawing on the fabric with your needle!!

The appliqué pattern pieces, template and tutorial are all in the latest  Issue 7 of One Thimble

Next up was the cutest little hoodie from TigerLily Patterns. 

If, like me you have a little princess fan in the house, who is also part gypsy  and LOVES to be outdoors, then this hoodie should have her covered (pun intended!) With winter is on its way, even princesses need to stay warm!

I made the straight sleeve version in polar fleece for Miss L and I could not get her to stand still and stop singing 'let it goooooooooooo here I STAMP!!!' At the top of her lungs for all the cheese bribes in France!! 

Yes, it's a zip front... but a super simple, well explained zip insertion, so don't be put off by that at all! This was my first time sewing a zip - ever... 
The pattern, size 3-12 is available in Issue 7 of One Thimble. And YES, there is a Prince option too!! 

The last pattern I road-tested was the Jukebox Duet from FLOSStyle  for One Thimble. The pattern has a large size range from 1 right through to 16 and 2 different style options - The Rhythm and The Tempo.

The Rhythm option is apparently the big winner in this household as it's comfortable enough for Miss L to play in (I won't show you the photos of her hanging off the monkey bars wearing it!) and the cowl neck makes me feel like I've done my mummy bit to keep the kiddo warm - win/win really!!

The Tempo is the cotton style with cute little button loop detailing on the shoulders (which incidentally I forgot to add) I can see this looking super cute layered up for winter with some boots, however my model was not willing to partake in dress ups!

These three and so many other awesome patterns are available now in Issue 7. I have a hectic few days ahead with my baby turning 1 on Sunday, but as soon as I have some time Miss L has demanded a Bedtime Buddy that looks like Merida from Brave, so I'll be making her one of those! The Bedtime Buddy pattern from Threading Rainbows is also available in Issue 7.

Don't forget to join the One Thimble Sewing Enthusiasts Facebook group for offers and support.

There are so many more talented bloggers joining in the blog tour to review the entire range of patterns from One Thimble's Issue 7. You can follow the blog tour using the links below. 

• Wednesday 13th May 2015 - Molly and Mama and pen, seb & rox and From a Box
• Thursday 14th May 2015 - Handmade Boy
• Friday 15th May 2015 - The Toffee Tree and Horris and Deedle
• Saturday 16th may 2015 - Sewvolution and FABulous Home Sewn
• Sunday 17th May 2015 - Sew Today, Clean Tomorrow and Sprouting JubeJube
• Monday 18th May 2015 - Sew Happily Ever After and Big Stitches, little stitches and Made By Sara
• Tuesday 19th May 2015 - Phat Quarters Blog and Hibbadoray
• Wednesday 20th May 2015 - Mabey She Made It and Blue Wren Handmade

Much love and sew happiness 

T xx

It's never as hard as you think it's going to be

I've had the Tadah Patterns Peg Pants pattern since its release, it's one of the few patterns I wasn't a tester for! So, with winter coming I thought it would be time to make some... That, and I was playing swapsies with another handmade friend and the pegs were on her wanted list! 

To be perfectly honest, I hadn't tried them as they scared the crap out of me! They look super complex and very professional. 

For the first time ever I actually read though the pattern (OMG, I know!!) If you know me, you know I never read the pattern - just kinda dive in and check the pictures to make sure I'm on the right track. 

It's safe to say My first pair sucked!! My welt pockets are wonky and blergh, but I persevered and I've now made 4 in the last 5 days!!

These were the first

And to compare... My fourth pair's pocket 

My favourite part? Making the back fully adjustable!! And oddly enough I grew to love the welt pockets -- once I got them right haha

I made a pair for my little miss as well and she LOVES her 'plus pants' so much she wanted to wear them to bed last night ... So she did... Who's to argue with a 2.5 yo! 

And really, they're pretty darn cute! 

This super funky Cloud9 fabric, designed by the ever talented Rashida Coleman-Hale is totally my style! 

Next time it's kids clothing week I may even get organised enough to to participate!! 

T xx

PS: If you like the pattern, check out the Tadah Facebook Group (called Fresh Pattern Party) for great support and inspiration