Tasha Sews

Pattern Review: SonofaCrossStitch - Pride Tattoo PDF Pattern I am back with some instant gratification cross stitch. This simple pattern is from SonofaCrossStitch  and is the PDF Pride pattern .  This is a really simple pattern that I bought as a stash buster. I had some 16 count aida purchased during a clearance sale and I used up some of my leftover threads from previous projects. The pattern does have suggested fabric and thread suggestions, should you wish to follow them. It is also available as a kit, which would make nice present.  I have tried various finishing methods for my cross stitch, and decided on trying the felt backing method for a hoop, found in my Cross Stitcher Magazine. It is a neat method and prevents anything showing through from the back of the cross stitch project.  The was a really fun quick project and the PDF pattern is very affordable. I am planning on buying a couple more as they will be excellent travel pr...

Pattern Review: Kwik Sew 3844 I had a remnant from my recent make  and decided to go with a bit of instant gratification. The pattern is Kwik Sew 3844 . For anyone that hasn't seen my previous versions of this pattern , I cut out size medium and made no changes. This ITY knit, picked up from a previous work trip to Boston, is a really stable knit which made this a delight to sew.  I cut out the top one evening and then sewed it up one morning whilst watching the men's wheelchair Wimbledon finals.  I am not  fan of Kwik Sew patterns in general. I don't have anything against them, I am just not drawn to the designs. That said, this is potentially my most sewn TNT pattern ever!  Seeing as I have everything possible about this pattern, this is a short and sweet blog post. You can see my pattern review here .  Next up is another TNT pattern. One that comes in second place in the TNT most sewn! Happy Sewing

Pattern Review: Tree of Life by Textile Heritage I have been busy in my sewing room these past couple of weeks, but here is a simple cross stitch project. I picked up this Textile Heritage cross stitch kit for a mere £1 from a Cancer Research UK charity shop.  I have to admit that I stitched this in December 2017...! Once the stitching was finished it sat in a drawer waiting to be backed and finished. It was a bit of a faff as the ribbon that they supplied to back the bookmark was slightly too small. Whilst clearing out my cross stitch drawer this weekend I saw that I had collected all of the items (including some scrap card) to go inside the backing and decided to finish it!  This is a very easy pattern and was a perfect project for travel. It's not the most exciting pattern to sew and personally I find Textile Heritage designs a bit traditional for my liking...but it was super quick and I ended up donating a small amount of money to charity in the process :-) ...

Pattern Review: In the Folds Jumpsuit from Peppermint Magazine My sewing group recently hosted a sew-a-long for the jumpsuit from Peppermint Magazine.  I have never made a jumpsuit and the only one that I have in my closet is stretch playsuit that I only wear on the beach as a cover-up.  I decided to go out of my comfort zone and try this FREE pattern! The fabric used is an African wax print that I purchased last November whilst on holiday in Uganda. It was very easy to work with and I loved the pattern. I was worried it might be a bit much in a jumpsuit, but I think that it is pretty fun! This is a really easy sew and I would definitely recommend it for beginners. The printing and cutting took almost as long as sewing up the actual pattern! It's worth noting that I treated this as a wearable muslin (so pleased as I did encounter fit issues) and finished the armholes and neckline with pre-purchased black bias binding.  My measurements put ...

Pattern Review: Simplicity 1059 I am out the other side of my huge work event that happened in May and have really been enjoying spending time with my sewing machine :-) I wanted some instant gratification and went with Simplicity 1059  which also happens to be on my 2019MakeNine list.  I went for View B without sleeves (obviously). I cut a size 16 and made minimal changes except to take 3 inches off the hem and bring up the centre front of the bodice. The pattern indicates a very deep hem (2.5") but for instant gratification sake I overlocked the raw edge of the hem, turned it up and zig-zagged to finish. The fabric was bought years ago in during a work trip to Boston. It is an ITY print that is super comfy to wear. The fabric hides all the small details of the dress such as the shoulder pleats, As it is a stretch fabric I omitted the the centre back zip.  This is a really simple pattern that took not time to sew up. The only thing that made me scr...

Pattern Review: Simplicity 1872 & Butterick 5744 I have finally got my sewjo back! It was the beginning of January when I posted my last garment. I started this dress back in 2018, but have only just finished it.  This dress is a frankenpattern of  the bodice of Simplicity 1872 and the skirt from Butterick 5744, both are patterns that I have made previously. I wanted a simple silhouette and dress for this lovely floral printed chiffon.  I initially decided to wear this dress with no elastic in the waist but it felt way too sack like for me, so I decided to pop in some elastic and it worked really well. A good amount of waist definition and yet the skirt is still floaty.  The chiffon fabric was a gift from Alex during her first visit to New York around three years ago, and not long after we met! It was pretty difficult to work with as it frayed like crazy but was worth it! I overlocked all of the edges and underlined it with a mustard orange lin...

Pattern Review: Summer in a Jar by Polka and Bloom For my birthday this year my parents bought be an introduction to embroidery course. It was a 3 hour introductory course at the  Village Haberdashery  in West Hampstead.  It was a small course of 6 people and the course was 3 hours in total. All of the materials including the pattern were included in addition to tea, coffee and biscuits :-) The pattern that we worked on was a good sampler to try a variety of stitches.  I really enjoyed how quickly this project grew compared to cross stitch. It was a great portable project as you don't have to carry around a copy of the pattern as we drew it on the fabric with a water soluble pen. I ended up completing this on a work trip to Dubai. The class was taught by Carina Envoldsen-Harris. She was a great teacher who explained everything clearly. I purchased her book Mandalas to embroider as there are some great stash busting patterns for left over embroi...

I know it is almost March, but better late than never with my 2019 Make Nine Plans.  I thought that I should start with a recap on my 2018 Make Nine plans first. I completed 6 1/2 of my planned makes. It's currently at six and a half as I am currently midway through number 7! I am really pleased with my progress. One of my two uncompleted makes was The Papercut Coppelia pattern, I just wasn't sure if the style was for me anymore. The other pattern was a TNT miniskirt, Simplicity 1370, for which I simply ran out of time in 2018.  The reason I really liked the Make Nine challenge is that it made me focus my sewing for the year. all of these makes above are in frequent rotation in my wardrobe which is fab. Because of this, I decided to do the same for 2019! 1. Cashmerette Patterns - Webster Dress & Top I have yet to try the Cashmerette Patterns. I love that this comes with a dress and top option. My plan is to make both! And for the dress to include a...

Pattern Review: Rose Cuttings by Dimensions Two years after making my first stitch I have finished this cross stitch project! This was a lovely Christmas present the family. It is the Rose Cuttings cross stitch kit by Dimensions, currently available on Amazon here .  This is a relatively large design ( 14" x 9"), but small enough for me to take it to my stitching group. The set comes with 14 count Aida which is a relatively large count for projects that I have been working on recently. The pattern was relatively easy to follow and there are no complex stitches, only full cross, half cross and backstitch are included. The kit came with plenty of thread and I think that the shading adds some lovely depth. The only thing that is annoying with so much shading in a project is that at times it feels like you are constantly changing colours.  I enjoyed stitching this and would recommend it for anyone past beginner stage that would like to take their stitching to...

Pattern Review: McCalls 7058 Long time no see! I started this coat back in August and have been chipping away at it for several months. I am finally finished and very pleased with the result! Initially  Butterick 6292  featured as part of my #2018MakeNine goals, but I wanted some more sleeve shaping an opted for  McCalls 7058 . I went for the short coat length as I already have a long ready to wear coat that still has some wear it in yet! This length is perfect for when it is too cold for a light jacket but not cold enough for a full winter coat.  I was drawn to a princess seam coat as I find princess seams easy to fit and grade between sizes. Speaking of, I cut a 16 on the bust and waist and graded out to an 18 on the hips. I took in an inch on the middle of the back seams to take out some of the excess roominess. I also took in the shoulder seams around one and half inches as the sleeves sat too wide for me. The wool was purchased around ...