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Make It Perfect

Basic Tees, Make It Perfect, Spy Tops

.Basic Tees: a FREE download and PDF pattern.

It was a year ago when I started using my Basic Tees pattern as the basis to make these cowl neck tops.
Do you remember them? And do you remember that I promised to offer the instructions as a free download to use in conjunction with your Basic Tees pattern? Well, I didn’t forget my promise and am happy to let you know that for anyone who already has a Basic Tees paper pattern, you can now download the free instructions to make your Basic Tees into a super chic SPY TOP!
Spy Top?! I know it’s an odd name…but I can’t get it out of my head ever since Lil started calling her cowl neck Basic Tees her Spy Top because she can pull the cowl up over her face and spy on people without them knowing who she is! So, Spy Top it is!!!
 
If you weren’t around last year, or missed these tops somehow then here’s the overview…
I was short on time (after a new baby) and had an itching to sew something. It was the middle of Winter and Lil was lacking long-sleeved tops but I wanted to pretty them up somehow. After a bit of playing around I took my Basic Tees pattern and added a cosy cowl neck, long skinny arm cuffs and a hem cuff and have been addicted to them ever since! I’ve made lots for Lil and the cousins (photos to come) and am dying to have a go at making one for myself – I think it would rock!
Also, I have revised the original Basic Tees pattern and included the Spy Top variation as part of the whole pattern now. So any Basic Tees patterns which stores purchase from now on will have the Spy Top variation included in it.
AND I have just finished changing the Basic Tees pattern into PDF format so it is now avaliable as an instant PDF download – and yes, the PDF download includes the Spy Top variation as well!

Phew! I think that is everything! So, in a nutshell…
* Anyone who owns a copy of Basic Tees – go here to download your free Spy Top variation.
* Any Basic Tees paper patterns shops order from now on will include the Spy Top variation, and
* Basic Tees is now avaliable as an instant download PDF pattern (with the Spy Top variation included.)

Oh, and to celebrate…the Basic Tees PDF pattern is on sale for 1 week at the reduced price of $10 so purchase it now and add this classic, everyday piece to your collection! (Sale ends Friday 15th June.)

Stay tuned…I wasn’t lying when I said I am addicted to making these tops, I’ll be flooding the blog with them very soon! 
June 6, 2014
Make It Perfect, Poppy Tunic

.Poppy Tunic in Perfect Pattern Parcel #3.

If you are a lover of sewing patterns, you have probably noticed the trend of buying pattern bundles for a discounted price. Perfect Pattern Parcel supports independent pattern designers by selecting a group of PDF sewing patterns and bundling them together to create a coordinated parcel of patterns – the theme for Pattern Parcel #3 is “women’s Summer wardrobe essentials.” And although it isn’t Summer in my part of the world, it’s always good to plan ahead! Actually, a few of these patterns can easily be layered for cold-weather wearing anyway. 

Pattern Parcel #3

Included in this parcel is my Poppy Tunic pattern. This is one of my very favourite me-made items of clothing to wear. It’s especially comfortable and flattering with a pair of leggings and boots for winter.

Perfect Pattern Parcel is unique in that it allows customers to choose how much they want to pay for their parcel! If you choose to pay $28 or more (which is a bargain for 6 patterns!) you will receive a bonus pattern in your parcel. The best part about PPP is that a generous chunk of what you pay is donated to a great charity (donorschoose.org) which helps schools and teachers buy educational supplies! You can see what was donated from the last parcel here.

Pattern Parcel #3 is only avaliable for 2 weeks so don’t miss out on your purchase now!

Buy Pattern Parcel #3

Parcel #3 Inspiration Tour Schedule:

Friday, May 30
Sew Busy Lizzy ||
Pienkel ||
SeamstressErin

Saturday, May 31
Design By Lindsay ||
the Brodrick design studio ||
Cookin’ and Craftin’

Sunday, June 1
Diary of a Chainstitcher ||
a happy stitch ||
Disaster in a Dress ||
sew Amy sew

Monday, June 2
Idle Fancy ||
Casa Crafty ||
Kadiddlehopper ||
Dandelion Drift

Tuesday, June 3
Our Family Four ||
Casa Crafty ||
Cookin’ and Craftin’ ||
a happy stitch

Wednesday, June 4
Lexi Made ||
The Quirky Peach ||
Stitched ||
a happy stitch ||
Casa Crafty ||

Thursday, June 5
verypurpleperson ||
Casa Crafty ||
sew a straight line ||
Sewbon

Friday, June 6
Shawnta Sews ||
Mama says sew ||
a happy stitch ||
Cookin’ and Craftin’

Saturday, June 7
Casa Crafty ||
sewninestitches ||
‘So, Zo… What do you know?’

Sunday, June 8
oonaballoona ||
A Stitching Odyssey ||
Sew Charleston

Monday, June 9
Sew Sweetness ||
True Bias ||
Ozzy Blackbeard

Tuesday, June 10
Welcome to the Mouse House ||
Sew Caroline ||
Adventures in Dressmaking

Wednesday, June 11
Peneloping ||
YoSaMi ||
sewVery

Thursday, June 12
la inglesita ||
La Pantigana ||
Sanae Ishida

Friday, June 13
Seamster Sewing Patterns ||
Paunnet

June 2, 2014
Baby Dream Bag, Make It Perfect

.Baby Dream Bag: Dogs.

 

Here’s another Baby Dream Bag I made for Harvey. 

This one has quilting cotton on the outside, knit jersey for the lining and the wadding was salvaged from one of the kids old polar fleece blankets! I held onto their old blankets when I made them all new ones this year for purposes just like this. Feels much better to re-use rather than throw them all out.

As much as Harvey loves his sleeping bags (he snuggles his head into it when he sees one!) he does NOT like putting one on when it is not sleeping time!

And here’s a close-up of the chin-guard over the end of the zipper to prevent any of the cold, hard zipper touching baby’s skin. Actually, the zipper guard goes right down inside the bag – I haven’t got a photo of it but take a look at my tester Peta’s Baby Dream Bag. It is just gorgeous and shows off the zipper guard really well.

If you want to purchase Baby Dream Bag PDF pattern at a discount price, make sure you are quick because the sale ends tomorrow night!

SUPPLIES:
Make It Perfect, Baby Dream Bag sewing pattern
Michael Miller, Yap Yap in turquoise
Brown jersey knit

May 23, 2014
Baby Dream Bag, Make It Perfect

.A New Pattern:: Baby Dream Bag.

Do you love sleeping bags for your baby? All of my babies have slept with them and they have become a part of their night-time routine, Harvey needed a couple more to go on rotation so instead of buying a new one I thought it would be best to design a pattern of one and have the freedom to choose my own fabrics and thicknesses!
 
Baby Dream Bag
 The Baby Dream Bag is essential to ensuring a good night’s sleep. You will sleep soundly knowing that your baby is covered all night long without kicking off blankets and waking themselves and everyone else up.  
Baby Dream Bag includes a full-length zipper guard with generous chin protection, ensuring that baby’s soft skin and inquisitive fingers aren’t able to access the zipper.
Night-time nappy changes are made easy by zipping the bag from the bottom up.
By sewing your own Baby Dream Bag, you have control over how warm you want the sleeping bag to be. Whether you leave out the wadding for a summer-weight bag or make it with the warmest layers you can find, you will easily be able to customise the sleeping bag to suit your needs and climate.

Making these Dream Bags is so rewarding, it’s always satisfying to sew something that is going to be used over and over and over again…and at the moment Harvey spends about 14 out of 24 hours sleeping in his sleeping bag so I think it’s well worth putting the effort into! For our winter climate at the moment, I’m making his Baby Dream Bag using quilting cotton for the exterior, polar fleece or wadding for the warm layer and knit jersey for the lining. They are cosy and warm, but still lightweight, allowing him to move around as he needs to in his cot.

The great thing about making your own Baby Dream Bag is that you have complete control over what your bag looks like, how warm it is and how it feels…choose from any woven fabric for the exterior. For the lining you can use quilt wadding, polar fleece, flannelette, or even repurpose an old blanket! And the lining can be made using a woven fabric, flannelette or a soft knit fabric. If you want your Baby Dream Bag to be for Summer weather, you can leave the warm layer out altogether! Have fun experimenting with your own unique fabric combos and creating a sleeping bag different from any other!

The Baby Dream Bag is like a wearable blanket, it can’t be pulled up over baby’s head or get tangled up like a regular blanket can and will keep baby at a comfortable temperature all night long. I love using sleeping bags with my babies because they can wake up during the night, have a cry and move around the cot then fall back to sleep without me having to sneak in and make sure they are tucked in. They also become a part of the bedtime routine, which makes traveling and sleeping away from home so much easier.

 

My babies have all used sleeping bags from around 6  months (when I stop swaddling them) until 18-24 months. I know that many people use baby sleeping bags from newborn age right up until 3 years so the Baby Dream Bag pattern includes sizes from 0-36 months!

The Baby Dream Bag is available as an Instant Download PDF pattern here. It is on sale for $10 (usually $12) for the rest of this week!
(Discount price offer ends on Sunday 25th May.)

Paper copies of the pattern will be heading to shops very soon if you prefer to purchase a hard copy of the pattern.

May 19, 2014
Make It Perfect, Skippy

.One Thimble – Issue 3.

Have you seen One Thimble yet? 

One Thimble is a beautifully presented and well thought out e-zine (magazine) that is all about sewing! The quarterly e-zine is made by sewing enthusiasts for sewing enthusiasts and each issue includes a generous amount of PDF sewing patterns as well as pages and pages of sewing-related articles, tips and tricks!

Issue 3 of One Thimble was released a couple of days ago and includes 10 fantastic PDF patterns, including one from Make It Perfect!

Meet the Daisy Chain Dress. I am in love with this dress and have a growing selection that I wear every second day! Seriously…so comfortable I never want to wear a pair of jeans again! 

These photos were taken and modeled by Mary-Anne of Missy Moo Ruffles & Frills.

And here is another version sewn by Kara of Leighlee. Cute fabric choice, huh?!

You can read more about the Daisy Chain Dress on the One Thimble website where it will be avaliable to purchase for 3 months and then it will become a part of my regular pattern range, I’ll share more about it soon!

One Thimble gives you the opportunity to purchase the entire e-zine full of patterns and articles, or you can choose to purchase individual PDF patterns on their own if you don’t want the whole magazine.

May 18, 2014