I love knits!

I found a yard of this stripey colorful knit at a thrift store a few months back and knew it would make a great fall dress for my daughter. I haven't sewn sucessfully with knits in years (if ever), but the remnant was only a dollar so I decided to take a risk. I guess I never really learned how to sew with knits, or if I did then I forgot. But I studied up and whipped this baby out in less than a day. Honestly, 3 hours, maybe four at most. Cowl neck and everything!

Knits are really easy to work with and a super forgiving, which suits my slightly(understatement) imperfect style just fine. I'm hooked! Here's the secret - it's all about the zig-zag. Knits stretch, right, so you have to take that into account when aligning your pattern, and you also can't use an ordinary straight stitch. My sewing machine has a knit stitch - most should - but if in doubt, you can just sew with the zig-zag stitch, which allows the seam to stretch along with the fabric. I used zig-zag to hem this dress and the knit stitch for the other seams.

Last thing this dress needs is a belt. I'm torn between a double wrap belt in the same fabric, or a braided belt in a complimentary color, either blue, purple or orange... Please help me decide by commenting below :)

DIY Superhero Cape

I made this cape for a friend's 3rd birthday. It was pretty easy, only took a few hours and came out great. All I needed was a large piece of red felt and a smaller piece of both yellow and black felt, some fabric glue and a needle and thread. Best of all, he loves it! Who doesn't need a superhero cape?

I'll be making another one in a few months and will post a full tutorial then.

Sewing Tip -- Maximizing your Fabric

I sew quickly, because I have limited time and too many ideas; I don't always iron, pin, or prewash fabric. This can come back to haunt me though and often when I take a short cut I regret it. I'll happily share what I learn so you won't make the same mistakes!

When laying out your pattern remember to keep your pieces together so you can have as many large remnants as possible. Good fabric ain't cheap. This is sewing 101 though, you probably already know that - the real tip is to take a good look at your fabric before laying out your pieces. I recently cut and began sewing before realizing that the front panel of a cute dress for my toddler contained a thread imperfection. If I had scanned the fabric first I could have laid my pattern so the back or side contained that small mark. Or if possible, avoided it all together. And then it happened to me again just a week later! Lesson (eventually) learned -- better late then never.