Looks like Santa has noticed I sew. This is what was under my tree this year.
I was lucky enough to get a big stack of patterns. There are some for the kids and some for me too. What should I make first?
I also got a nice tripod. Nothing fancy, but hopefully it will help me get some nicer photos of the things I sew for myself. Can’t wait to try it out.
Thanks Santa (and his helpers too!).
Last week I got my latest Warp & Weft Sewing Society package. Exciting. They always come wrapped in brown paper and tied up in string. It’s such a nice touch.
Anyway, here are some “before” shots of some upcoming projects. Of course, I had two kids who refused to nap photobomb my photo session. Just one of those days…
Kid No 3 loves ladybugs and walked around with this fabric for two days. No idea where she gets it. 😉
When I made my very first quilt I had the toughest time finding fabric for the backing. So I scoured the web and found something perfect.
I chose the Spade in Charcoal from the Grand Bazaar collection by Patty Young for Michael Miller. I bought it at Tonic Living , a Canadian fabric shop, and it was also the very first time I bought fabric online.
So it’s a little bit sad for me that Tonic Living has decided to stop selling quilting cottons and focus on home decor. On the other hand, it means that quilting cottons are on sale (while quantities last). You can find them all here. They even have some Spade left, though not in charcoal.
Janine from Tonic Living has generously offered a discount for my readers. If you use the coupon code FINISHEDGARMENT you will get an additional 10% anything in the store (on top of clearance prices.) but hurry, the coupon code will expire at the end of Friday October 11.
Just a little reminder that Google Reeder goes offline this weekend.
What Is Google Reader?
Google Reader is an online RSS reader. It lets you add blogs and websites to a list that you manage. Whenever those sites add new content, it shows up in Google Reader.
If you want to continue to follow my blog please try one of the following. Or you can see some other solutions in my Google Reeder replacement round up.
Prefer to Use a Social Network?
You can also find The Finished Garment on the following social networks.
I have some big news! As you know, I’m a big fan of Canadian fabric shops, so I am super excited to announce an ongoing collaboration with Warp & Weft Exquisite Textiles.
Warp & Weft is a Canadian online fabric and sewing store specializing in designer and imported cotton fabric, embroidery supplies and notions for creative sewing. The shop is run by Esmari Taylor out of Toronto.
She has some fabulous products (go check them out!), and I’ll be doing some sewing with her fabrics on a regular basis and possibly doing some embroidery (so excited!).
My late grandmother taught me to embroider as a little girl, but I haven’t done very much of it lately, and I’m looking forward to the trip down memory lane. I miss her!
I just got my first package, and there was some great fabric inside. I have some really fun projects in mind and I can’t wait to share.
The kids love the Seven Seas fabrics. So cute! I may need to get some more.
There were also some pretty florals, which are great for summer.
I have been adding this fabric to my online shopping carts for months and then not buying it because I had no specific project for it. But now I do!
And finally, linen! I think linen is my favourite fabric of all time. I always just buy black and white, so I thought I’d try some colour this time.
So consider these the “before” photos, and expect to see the completed projects in the coming weeks.
Honestly, the fabric is pretty exciting! But a couple of other nice things happened lately. We’ve always wanted to plant trees for each of our kids, and we’ve just been given four baby oak trees. Now we just have to choose where to plant them.
We also had a very special visitor drop in unexpectedly. We live outside of the city, so wildlife sightings aren’t rare, but the kids always seem to miss them. This time our friendly visitor stayed still long enough for us all to get a good look and for me to take some photos. Wonder if he or she will be back?
I am very happy to announce the winner of the Fabric Giveaway from Double Decker Fabric.
Dorienne of Double Decker Fabric generously provided a collection of 5 fat quarters from the new Safari Soirée collection by Birch Fabrics.
I chose a winner at random using http://www.randomizer.org, and the winner is (drumroll please) comment #11 (not including replies and such).
The winner was Jen and here is the comment she left.
Great fabrics! I’m always on the lookout for cute boy fabrics! This would make a great baby quilt! Yay for Canadian retailers!
I couldn’t agree more about Canadian retailers.
Congratulations Jen! I hope you enjoy making a baby quilt with these great fabrics.
I was reading all about the recent Toronto Sewing Blogger Meetup and I thought, we should do that in Montreal! Who’s in?
I was thinking it would be nice to meet on a Saturday afternoon, grab coffee around 1 p.m and hit the fabric shops on Saint-Hubert: Effiloché, Couture-Elle, Rubans, Boutons and more (or less, if everyone finds what they need right away). Montreal has some great fabric shops, but there is so much to choose from that it can be overwhelming, at least for me. I need a second opinion. That could be you!
But when? My schedule is just crazy, but the following dates would work. Do you have a preference? Let me know in the comments, or contact me directly.
I know some would prefer a Sunday, but most of the shops are closed that day.
And of course, out-of-towners are welcome and having a blog is entirely optional. If you are worried about language, don’t. All the shop clerks will speak both English and French.
Si vous êtes francophone, soyez la bienvenue. Je serai heureuse de converser avec vous dans la langue de votre choix. Je blogue surtout en anglais (question de paresse), mais je suis complètement bilingue (à part quelques coquilles ici et là).
So who’s in?
Update: The Sewing Meetup will take place on May 25. Read more here.
Look what arrived in the mail! Double Decker Fabric is a new Canadian online fabric boutique and they just sent me this beautiful gift.
These fabrics are as follows:
At least I think the last one is Turks & Caicos. There are a couple solids in similar colours on the website.
It’s just in time for Easter and the colours just scream spring. It’s perfect timing as well. I bought some small toys for the kids for Easter – we don’t like giving too many treats. Now there is something for me from the Easter bunny too. Fun!
Now what to make… Zip bags? Something for the baby? The diamonds would make some pretty spectacular quilt binding. I’m going to have to think about this.
A big thank you to Dorienne at Double Decker Fabric!
And if you haven’t seen it yet, there is a fabric giveaway from Double Decker Fabric here on my blog. It’s not too late to enter!
Just recently, the very friendly Dorienne of Double Decker Fabric contacted me asking if I’d like to host a fabric giveaway for my readers. Would I ever!
Double Decker Fabric is a Canadian online business that Dorienne runs near the Rocky Mountains of Alberta. She has some very nice quilting cottons in gorgeous bright colours. These are great for modern quilting but would also work really well for craft projects and kids’ clothing. She has some fun prints but also solids and geometrics. Overall, a really nice, modern selection.
It’s so exciting to see some more modern quilting fabrics available in Canada! No?
The Give Away
The Prize
Dorienne has generously provided the following collection of 5 fat quarters. These are from the new Safari Soirée collection by Birch Fabrics and are all 100% organic! (I love organic fabrics.)
How to Enter
All you need to do, is leave a comment on this blog post letting me know what you would do with the fabric if you won.
The Rules
I’ll pick one winner at random, and Dorienne will send the winner the Safari Soirée fat quarters. Please make sure you leave a valid email address when you comment so that I can get in touch with you, if you win.
The contest closes on April 2nd, 2013 at 12pm (noon) EST.
I’ll announce the winner here on my blog.
So, what would you do with these fun fabrics? Let me know in the comments.
Note: I will be sharing the email address of the winner only with Double Decker Fabrics for the sole purpose of getting their prize delivered. No other email addresses will be shared.
The internet is abuzz with talk of Google Reader shutting down. If you’ve been using Google Reader to follow me on this blog, and are looking for a replacement, here are some alternatives.
What Is Google Reader?
Google Reader is an online RSS reader. It lets you add blogs and websites to a list that you manage. Whenever those sites add new content, it shows up in Google Reader. You can categorize the list of websites into groups. That way you can just read the types of articles you want to, when you want to. I use Google reader and have a “sewing” list, a “world news” list, a “silly news” list, etc.. It helps me prioritize my reading when I’m short on time. I often ignore the “silly news”, for example.
What Is an RSS Feed?
Most blogs, including those that use WordPress (like this one), Blogger and tumblr, produce an RSS feed automatically. These feeds contain either entire articles (blog posts) or article summaries – the website owner controls what shows up in the feed. You can subscribe to these feeds and be notified whenever your favourite blogs and websites add new content. In order to subscribe, you need an RSS feed reader (sometimes called a feed aggregator). This can be an online tool like Google Reader, or a software application on your computer or mobile device.
How Do I Subscribe to The Finished Garment?
You can get the RSS feed link for this blog here: http://finishedgarment.ca/feed/
Just copy this link and put it into the RSS reader of your choice.
Don’t have an RSS Reader?
Here are some options.
Anything I Need to Know Before Making the Switch?
Most of the above tools have a quick easy way to sync your Google Reader account with their app or service. Google Reader will be shutting down in July 2013. If you switch before then, you will be able to take your existing feed list with you quite easily. That means that you won’t have to enter each feed into a new application manually. So make your choice before July to save yourself some headaches.
Prefer to Use a Social Network?
You can also find The Finished Garment on the following social networks.
And on the following sewing networks:
And on the following French language sewing networks (pour les francophones et francophiles):
Am I missing something? Do you know of another social network I should be on? Let me know in the comments.
The Finished Garment 