Winner, winner, time for dinner!

Thanks so much to everyone for entering the "Blue Ribbon Twirl Skirt" giveaway. I thoroughly enjoyed reading all of the interesting (and often quirky) facts about states here in the U.S. and lands abroad. I just went through them again and noticed that many mention food - now I'm hungry! I used random.org to generate the winning post #...44!

The winning poster is Mickey, mama to NINE!!! I actually had the pleasure of meeting this very talented (and patient) gal at Jennifer's Sis Boom workshop last spring (there is another one coming up, by the way)! Her post sounded particularly delicious!

You KNOW I love your skirt! (and the fabric choice ;) I live in Oklahoma. You might not know this, but the Sooner State actually has an official meal. Whether it's popular or not I have no idea, but the State Legislature gave legal status to the dish in 1988. So here goes: Fried okra, squash, cornbread, barbecue pork, biscuits, sausage and gravy, grits, corn, strawberries, chicken-fried steak, pecan pie and black-eyed peas. I have no idea in what order one should eat this meal, but it certainly sounds like a lot of food. One reason the meal is so big is that Oklahoma grows/raises all of the items on the menu. I am so inspired by your ribbons and post that I am planning to enter next year, to our county & State fair! Even better, is that my 10 yr. old twins saw your post and are planning to enter the projects they are working on as well. I think it's awesome to be such a great mentor!

And now for the three winners of the Embellished Patchwork Twirl Skirt eBook, all with funny food and beverage related comments...

TheFancyFritter
Louisiana is probably the only state where you will find people that get so excited and even salivate over eating the yummy red, clawed, curled tailed bugs! CRAWFISH!! Yum! You're missing out if you've never tried them! :) I would love to win your giveaway! The skirt is BEAUTIFUL & I just love Sis Boom fabrics! Thanks so much! :)

badlandsquilts
I grew up in North Dakota...while I'm not sure if it is still a law (it was while I was putting myself thru college as a waitress)... when polls were open for elections bars were always closed - so voters would surely have a clear head! I grew up in the least populous county (Slope)where the county seat has a population of 29 (Amidon)... there is only 640K people in the whole state! Life in the VAST lane!

Benita
Our Texas State Fair is just gearing up to start and the food item that just took first place is.....deep fried butter. Seriously! How fast can you clog an artery with that!

If you are one of the owners of the delectable comments above, please email me at info(at)scientificseamstress.com so I can get your prize to you!

I've got another great giveaway to tell you about today! Boutique Cafe is celebrating its 5th Birthday, and they are offering up an INCREDIBLE prize pack (and there is a little something from me in there ;) )!

Go over to the Boutique Cafe blog to listen to the latest podcast, wish them a happy birthday, and get in the running for all of the goodies!

Blue Ribbon Twirl Skirt (Giveaway)!

Last year, we attended the Maryland State Fair for the first time. We had only been in town a few weeks, so it was really great to go and learn about all the animals, vegetables, and fruits that are grown right here in the state. What I found most exciting was the Home Arts building, which was full of cakes, photography, woodworking and SEWING! This year, I decided to get in on the fun and it was an absolute blast! I met some really great people, got very useful feedback on my sewing, and won some ribbons!!! The creation I am most proud of is this blue-ribbon winning Embellished Patchwork Skirt, and I'm giving it away to one lucky reader!

Now, I haven't gotten a ribbon for anything since 11th grade Science Fair (and I think that was 4th place), so my hopes weren't too high going into the competition. I'm happy to say I got ribbons on everything I entered, and I got a special award for Best Applique (pics to come)!

I would highly recommend participating in your own State Fair. It is so nice to be a part of such a wonderful tradition and have your work displayed among other fantastic creations. And I'm not sure how it works in other states, but here in MD there is prize money involved - woo-hoo! My winnings were more than enough to cover a day full of rides, games, and yummy junk food!

OK, so here is more info on the Twirl Skirt that is up for grabs...it is made entirely from wonderful Sis Boom fabrics (no two patches are alike)! I used my Embellished Patchwork Twirl Skirt eBook and included all of the trimmings - rick rack, euro ruffles, and inset ruffles.

I was inspired by a skirt that my friend Mindy made for her adorable little daughter. You can see her creation here in our Flickr group. This skirt is 13" long, and would best fit sizes 2-6 (I'll adjust the waistband elastic to the winner's specifications).

So how do you win this for your little twirler? Easy...just leave me a comment with an interesting fact about your home state. I'll pick a number at random for the skirt giveaway. In the spirit of the state fair, I'm going to throw a little friendly competition into the mix. The posters of the top 3 most amusing comments (as judged by me, myself, and I) will each win a copy of the Embellished Patchwork Twirl Skirt eBook. The winners will be announced on 9/15.

Simply Sweet Storytime

Once upon a time, there was a humble little pattern named Simply Sweet. This pattern was very practical in that it didn't require much fabric and made for a comfortable, wearable style. It was very easy to put together, too - no pesky buttonholes or zippers. As the name suggested, it was just simple, sweet, and cute. One day, a group of creative elves called the Disboutiquers got a hold of this little pattern, and an amazing transformation happened...Simply Sweet became a PRINCESS!!!

I have had lots of requests for princess patterns, but I feel like I already have them out there. I have seen so many regal, yet comfortable and sturdy princess costumes made from my patterns. If you check out our Flickr group, you will find lots of examples of practical princesses (and perhaps even a prince or two). By using creative fabric choices, fun embellishments, and a few modifications here and there, you can create the ballgown of your princess' dreams (then she can wear it in the mud and you can throw it in the wash). Over the next few weeks, I'm going to give a few simple tutorials on "princessifying" some of my existing patterns. Since my son is not a very cooperative model for these types of styles, I'll make the dresses dolly-sized.

I'll start out with Simply Sweet Cinderella. There are lots of variations on the classic Cinderella dress, both in terms of color combo and design. The main element that makes the dress is a peplum (at least I think that is what it is called) that attaches to the bodice and drapes across the sides ofthe dress. I'm sure there are lots of ways to add this detail, but I'm going to describe one that has lots of "poof," but doesn't require any extra patterns, calculations, or fluffy stuff.

For this dress, I am using the jumper bodice (empire length option) with ruffled straps. Cut the pattern pieces as described. Using the charts provided, determine the dimensions necessary to make a skirt that is calf to ankle length. Cut the 2 skirt pieces as described. In addition, cut 2 pieces (same size as the first 2) from the peplum fabric.




Cindy's bodice is pretty simple...in most pictures it looks like there is a seam in the center. If you want to jazz it up a bit, you can add some pretty trim or ribbon to the center line. The bodice is also a great place to add machine embroidery. My friend HeatherSue has some designs that are absolutely perfect for this particular princess.




Assemble the bodice as described in the eBook. Make the hemmed skirt as described as on page 45.



The diagram above shows how to make the peplum pieces from the remaining rectangles. It is very easy - fold the pieces in half lengthwise, right sides facing outward. Run two rows of basting stitches along the raw edges. If you are new to sewing, don't worry - the basting process is described in detail in the eBook.




Pull the bobbin threads to gather.




Align the ends of the peplum piece with the midpoints of the front and back bodice pieces. Evenly distribute the gathers.




Zig-zag stitch over the edges to "set" the gathers in place.




Repeat with the other peplum piece.




Add the skirt as described on page 51.




Remove basting stitches, and turn right side out. The peplum pieces will naturally puff out to the sides of the dress. I usually topstitch at this point to help the skirt hang properly and add interest to the waistline. In this case, I omitted topstitching because the peplum adds a lot to the waistline (both in terms of interest and thickness). If you do decide to topstitch, make sure to use a heavy duty needle.

I had a "ball" dressing up dolly!
Please let me know if you have any requests for the next royal star :) !

Sis Boom Stitches

I've had a Brother PE-700II embroidery machine for about a year and a half, and I can't believe how much use I've gotten out of it! Just about every gift I give has embroidery and/or an applique on it. It gives the extra special touch to handmade creations, and really jazzes up simple purchased items like towels and onesies.

I just love love love the motifs on Jennifer Paganelli's Sis Boom fabrics. They are so rich and intricate, and are truly works of art dappled on fabric. I just want to put them all over everything that isn't nailed down! Soooooo, I talked to Jennifer about the possibility of having her artwork translated to embroidery designs. That gal is up for anything fun and crafty, so she told me to go for it. I knew just the digitizer for the job, in fact. HeatherSue is one of my testers (and a good friend), and she has a reputation for absolutely perfect work. At first, I emailed her scans of motifs, and she turned them in amazing dimensional designs. Then I just mailed her some pieces of fabric, and she used her digitizer's eye to choose motifs for the designs. The finished products are available for download on SWAK Embroidery, sister site of YouCanMakeThis.com and my absolute favorite source for machine embroidery designs.

I've been going to town stitching these gorgeous designs on things for my friends, my home, and myself :) . Here are some examples:

I have so many other projects in mind...pillows, jeans, t-shirts...my machine is going to be busy! I'm especially looking forward to making things that combine Sis Boom fabrics AND the embroidery designs - true Sis Boom Bliss!