The weather is finally cooling here in Atlanta and I’m reminded that I don’t actually have a lot of cool weather running gear. Obviously, as someone who sews, this was something I knew I could, and should, rectify immediately. So, I pulled out my go-to sweatshirt pattern, Hey June’s Tallinn Sweater and set to work designing what I think may be a new favorite sweatshirt. You may notice that I’ve already ...
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You need rainbow arms and I'm here to help you get them! Here's a step-by-step tutorial for making some awesome armwarmers with knit fabric. OK, you don't actually have to use rainbow fabric but it's really cool if you do and Cali has the fabric pictured in this tutorial available here: Rainbow Stripe Jersey Knit. You really just need any knit fabric with at least 25% stretch and some measurements. To create ...
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The evolution of the sewing blogging community has been an interesting thing to witness. I myself have been blogging about sewing (off and on) since 2011(!). In those early days, the phrase TnT, which stands for tried-and-true, was used quite a bit. Many of us made it a habit to use the same patterns over and again in a variety of colors or fabrics. Why fix what isn’t broken, right? ...
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I've been gravitating towards all the beautiful woven fabrics in the Cali Fabrics shop lately, but I just couldn't resist a comfy knit jumpsuit for this project. I used some of the lovely brushed modal jersey knit for this jumpsuit. It has a beautiful drape and weight and completely opaque -- definitely a plus! This jumpsuit is a piece that percolated in my head for quite a while before I finally got ...
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I love Califabric's Double Brushed Polyester! It is an unbelievably soft fabric, and has a lovely drape for a maxi dress. Califabrics has so many lovely prints which would all be suitable for a this type of dress. My best friend and I live in different cities, so we try to get together each year for some girl time. This year we choose New Orleans as our meet up, and what ...
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I am a beach vacation kind of girl. I love sun, sand and ocean, and a drink with a little umbrella. I don't love hauling around a lot of luggage, and I refuse to iron any of my clothes. (I don't do it at home, why would I do it on vacation?) So effortless is my favorite word when it comes to vacation wear. My first-packed item is always a knit ...
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Or, as my fiance likes to call it, the "magic eye" coatigan haha You know one of the things I love most about sewing? I've all but completely stopped paying attention to fashion "guidelines" and trends! I've canceled my fashion magazine subscriptions and now, I get most of my inspiration from fabric, pattern releases, other sewists, and the odd fashion blogger. I make and wear only what I really want, regardless ...
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So, for my last post, I made a trapeze garment for summer. Apparently, I thought I needed one for Fall too haha. I knew when I picked this fabric, I didn't want to default to a boyfriend cardigan (especially since I made a grey one of those earlier this year). What I did want was something cozy, layerable, up-to-date, and a design that would work with the drape I knew the fabric ...
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Let me tell you, there is nothing that makes you feel like a million bucks more than a great bodycon dress! I've used the heavyweight 4-way stretch knit before and it is still one of my favorite fabrics from Cali Fabrics. This time I went with the black and tan colorway and I couldn't be happier with my dress! This fabric is pretty much perfect for a form-fitting knit dress. It's nice ...
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I'm a bit of a rebel when it comes to seasons and fabric. I probably should start sewing with all the heavier-weight fabrics that keep us warm as the weather cools down, but right now I find myself gravitating towards gorgeous, breezy cotton lawns and bright, candy colored spandex knits. Cali & Co. does not disappoint with their selection either! I had some pretty tough choices to make, but I'm ...
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I have good news and bad news about the makes in this post. And since I've always been an "eat your vegetables first" sort of person, we'll just get the bad news out of the way. And that bad news would be this tank. I think that it's just as important to share projects that flop as it is to share those that are successes, so when this tank flopped, I decided ...
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My fellow office dwellers all know that the holy grail of office attire is a combination of comfort and professionalism. I think a great ponte dress is the perfect fit! For this dress I chose Cali Fabric's Seafoam Green Ponte de Roma and paired it with Pauline Alice's Aldaia Dress. This fabric has a beautiful rich color, which I love for spring and summer. The seafoam green is new for me, but is a color ...
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When I was shopping for my next round of Cali & Co posts, I came across this lovely textured double knit and just kept coming back to it again and again. That was a sure sign it needed to be in my cart! It's a dramatic fabric, so I decided to pair it with a correspondingly simple pattern -- the new True Bias Lodo Dress. This is a simple knit sheath with a slight ...
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Hello, friends! I told you I’d be back with another knit item! And I’m rather in love with this one too :) Now, if I had to guess, I would assume that many of you are familiar with the wonders of French terry. Am I right? It has been popping up so often in the sewing community over the last year or two, but being the wovens-loving girl that I ...
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Hello Califabrics blog readers (and anyone else who's stumbled upon this blog)! How are you doing today? I'm back with a post about underthings. Woo hoo! I have a lot of me-made items in my closet, in fact, I pretty much wear exclusively me-mades now, but one thing I am lacking in, is underthings. I've made a few bras here and there, and I have a couple of pairs of undies, but ...
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Well, hello there again! I’ve missed you! You may have noticed (or not, ha!) I’ve been absent for a while. Long story short, I injured my right leg and it is taking far too long to recover, which has kept me out of my sewing room. So frustrating! It’s also meant far too much time stuck on the couch. Well, if you’ve followed along with what I tend to make, ...
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Hot cocoa. Twinkling lights. Thick fuzzy socks. Cozy cardigans. Winter is a wonderful time to hunker down with a good movie or book and get all snuggled up on the couch. It's also a wonderful time to make and show off those cold-weather sewing projects! I have a couple of RTW (ready-to-wear) cardigans I use at work, but they're so thin and boring. Sigh. I have always been on the hunt for ...
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Well hello there! We received our first small snowfall of the season the day I decided to take photos. It is awfully chilly here in Indiana right now. My neighbor saw me out and actually told me it was too cold to be out taking pictures. But I braved the cold just so I could share two new tops with you all. I have a probably some what unhealthy obsession with ...
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Halloween is just around the corner and if you're anything like me your costumes are still just a thought in the back of your mind. I'm usually a last minute girl and I rarely, rarely sew my kids costumes. If it can be done in under an hour- then I'll jump right on it! This year my daughter wanted to be a leopard and Cali Fabrics was our first stop. ...
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