I’m not going to lie. Mod Podge’s Dimensional Magic has become my new favorite crafty ‘notion’. After several months as hit & miss resin projects, this product has allowed me to easily make some of the simpler items I may have struggled with in the past. Last week I made a Wonder Woman pendant for a friend’s daughter who is also a fan and a pretty embellishment to a water bottle key fob holder. I also whipped out the embroidery machine and personalized a can wrap for the teaching assistant in Easton’s pre-school class (an end-of year ‘thank you’ gift) – it was a busy week!

What has everyone else been working on?

This week I have been working on a new project for WeAllSew. While I can’t give you all the details (yet), I discovered a new love for fold-over elastic (FOE). You see, a lot of times I rely on bias binding to finish raw edges, but if the project has too curved of edges, I can’t get it neat enough to suit me. That’s where FOE comes in! I wouldn’t suggest it for finishing a project with lots of layers\thick, but if the item is thin enough, it’s a great bias binding substitution.

This project also has an interesting fabric selection, a bit of Velcro, and a spot of embroidery (or you can substitute it with fun trims\embellishments)… it’s a quick and easy project to whip up and is fun for everyone to use! I can’t wait to show you the finished tutorial!

If you’ve been to a Barnes & Noble recently, chances are you’ve noticed a (relatively) new pattern magazine on the stands, My Image. While I’ve seen this title on the internet, I resisted until recently and wound up purchasing my first copy last month (and then won a contest so I could purchase a back issue and a subscription for a year)… so I thought it was time for a little review!

PROS: My Image appears to be readily available in the United States (either through the website directly or at local booksellers for immediate gratification) and is reasonably priced (right at $10). Best of all, several languages are included within the magazine (English, Dutch, German and French) so you never have to search out a magazine specific to your native tongue. Each My Image has a little over 15 different looks with many of the patterns being ‘separates’ so you can mix and match your style. The sizing on these patterns are different than BurdaStyle or Ottobre (chances are you will need to use a size smaller than what you do with either of those magazines) so be sure to check before you trace.

CONS: Since I haven’t had the opportunity to sew one of these patterns up yet, I can’t speak as to how they fit (although they do run larger than others), yet. My chief complaint about My Image is the pattern tracing – there is no line delineation for different sizes which makes tracing very difficult! While the style\pattern is color coded, all sizes are exactly the same bold line.

With that said, I’m very excited to have the opportunity to finally sew up something from my magazine(s) this summer…. now which one to pick first?!?

My daughter came home last night from school and requested that I make her a simple, black maxi skirt – how could I refuse (plus I knew I could whip this up in under an hour)? For this skirt, I used a cotton jersey and my tutorial from WeAllSew – I think she was pleased with the result! Now she’s requesting an ombre design…. I think I see some fabric dying in my future!

Now it’s time to focus in on some sewing for me. I have a strong desire to shake up my closet and make some tops that are much different than what I currently have. I recently purchased the Rock & Roll from Pattern Review and am very excited to see how this turns out… Now if it would just stay warm enough for me to wear it!

As I was putting my sister-in-law’s baby shower present together (bibs, burp rags, blanket, and onesie), I decided something was missing… so I whipped up a hat! I just adore seeing newborn babies in those top knot style hats and since I had fabric on hand that worked very well with my ‘theme’ (it’s a Guns ‘n Roses Sweet Child ‘O Mine baby package since this little guy’s middle name will be Axl) I went for it. Best of all, I was able to whip this item up in about 15 minutes! I think I need to sew baby goods more often!