If you’ve never worked with faux fur before, have no fear! I have some helpful tips and tricks for working with this material as well as how to successfully embroider onto it included within the tutorial. Let me know if you have any questions along the way, but most of all, I want to see your finished Monster Bags!

Everyone needs a great simple t-pattern to sew. This one has some great reviews, plus it’s free!

These mini-clutches look so easy to make, you can sew one up for every day of the week!

This bleached lip shirt may very well be my next tee recon!

Mother’s Day may have passed, but it’s not too late to make a great make-up roll for summer travels.

Believe it or not, I still have yet to try a purse frame (although I have a feeling once I do, I won’t be able to stop). This cute pleated coin purse might be a good project to start with!

Have a child who loves the Lorax? Make them their own plushie! (No instructions are included, but it looks simple enough to ‘wing’).

I’m a sucker for a beach bag, especially when it uses nautical elements like rope and striped fabric. This version is big enough for the whole family, too!

A super-simple, no pattern needed boho style maxi dress.

Don’t toss those pretty fabric scraps. Turn them into cord keepers!

Keep the hot summer sun off your little one’s head with this adorable bucket hat.

It’s never too late to start planning for a Father’s Day tie. This one has to be the most popular tutorial out there.

These grumpy bunnies are way beyond my knitting ability, but they’re so darn cute that I’m hoping someday I’ll get there!

Next time, I’m just breaking down and buying and buying yardage\charm pack from a coordinating fabric line and making the Junk Bag as written. I’m going to have to put this on my to-do list for summer.

School is coming to a close and Easton’s pre-school teacher has been a blessing – he loved going every day and learned so much during that time. Last year I had made her a tote and she used it religiously (until her daughter borrowed it and hadn’t returned it) so I thought that it was time for a new one. I had visions of making a really awesome Junk bag for her, but since I didn’t have enough material on hand to make Jackie’s pattern, I thought I would try to make my own version.

What a disaster. You see as much as I like the ‘shabby’ look, I can’t pull it off myself without a lot of help. The photo on the left is supposed to be the ‘scrappy’ front of the bag (it’s so wrinkled because I wadded it up and threw it away and then later decided I would go ahead and take a photo to show everyone what I mean). The biggest issue is that it’s too scrappy. There’s way too much going on and some of the material is too bold so you’d never be able to read any wording that’s ironed onto the bag. I’m going to give it one more try – using less fabrics for the ‘patchwork’ and a much lighter material on the area where the wording will sit. Wish me luck!

What has everyone else been working on?

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!

Everyone needs a twirlable skirt for the summer. Learn how to make an embroidered version for your little girl.

This bag may be called ‘Granny’, but it’s far from old looking in my opinion!

Forget dad, I want this Safari Duffel to carry around!

Now your baby can match your table… transform a placemat into a bib!

Well, darn it! I just bought a pattern that looks exactly like this free Bowled Over Bag tutorial.

Have an owl lover in your house? They might be thrilled if you make this jumper.

Big Blooms perfect for your hair, embellishing clothing, or just wearing as a brooch.

Win a bundle of Bari J’s new fabrics, Bijoux.

A little bit ombre, a little bit tulle, a lot cute: The Shoreline Dress.

Have a summer road trip in your future? These vehicle storage bags are ideal for kids and grownups alike!

Everyone loves a good bag, this messenger may fit the bill. Of course, if you’re into recycling this Billboard Messenger is even better (shameless plug).

A cute take on a little girl’s A-Line dress, just by adding some ‘knit loops’!

Even the littlest guy can rock out when you make one of these guitar plushies.

Keep your sunnies safe with this Funky Sunglass carrier.

My daughter has requested a Pleated Maxi Skirt. This may very well be the next tutorial I give a try.

Overall, I love this top, but I would suggest it only to very advanced beginners because of the care you have to take in cutting the jersey and trimming\sewing the ruffles. The fit is great and I’m pretty sure that the ruffles are what gives you a slimming silhouette (they’re also great at hiding any body ‘imperfections’ too!)… I definitely recommend this pattern! For those of you wanting to see this top in action, here’s a photo I had my young photographer (Easton) snap yesterday.

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?!?

I will admit, cutting, took an extraordinarily long time on this top. Because the ruffled edges of this tank are left raw, I was afraid that when I cut them, that I would leave burrs and uneven places – so I was very careful and took my time. Instead of pinning the pattern to the fabric, I wound up tracing the shape onto the material and used very sharp scissors which I think helped immensely.

Here’s the details of this project – I’m hoping if all goes well, I’ll have a new look by Linky Thursday!

Project Details:

Pattern: Pattern Review’s Rock and Roll Top

Fabric: Turquoise jersey knit from Fabric.com

Materials & Cost:
Pattern……..$8.95
Fabric………$11.87
Notions……..stash
Total……….$20.82

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