Author: Niczorek

I’m so glad that you found your way to my blog. If you are new here from the Love Notions sale and giveaway, I reside in the midwest United States and live with a profound hearing loss. If you came from my Instagram, I shared a bit about the criteria to enter to win the sewing machine or serger. I’ve asked friends to tag someone that has helped include them or others and/or exposed them to a new perspective. One of the reasons I love Love Notions and its community is because it is so inclusive. Love Notions also captions all the content they create, which enables me to engage fully.

You see a lot of my daughter, Elise. She is learning to sew herself and enjoys the Love Notions community through my social media. She helps me so much. She does a lot of listening and speaking for me, especially because I communicate by lip reading. We also have more recently been partnering to take our own photos with a tripod, which has been a fun learning experience for us both. She is a treasure.

The two makes above are one of our favorite patterns, La Bella Donna Top and Tunic. If you hear the lingo in the Facebook group, it is often called the LBD. We love the cowl in the winter. Elise got a different look for hers in double brushed poly than mine in jersey knit, but we love it in both. All the makes here except the pants are available at Raspberry Creek Fabrics, which is our favorite place to buy fabric.

If I had to pick a favorite pattern, this is it. The Rockford Raglan has such a great fit. I have made many and most enjoy the ones with striped fabric for the bands. There is also a wide variety of views with the pattern that are all very unique.

If Elise had to pick a favorite pattern, it would be the Sloane Sweater. I used a panel for this and it is perfect. She usually requests a hood. It has an optional yoke that adds a really fun pop of color.

There several great pants patterns. The Resolution Bottoms and Duet Trousers are favorites that I’ve made quite a few pairs. I wanted another pair of Sabrina Slims with this stashed stretch corduroy. I added back pockets and they are the perfect alternative to jeans. I am wearing it with my favorite Classic Tee. This gets so much wear!

The final pattern I’m sharing is one that I have never made before. It’s the Presto Tunic. I wasn’t sure if this was exactly my style, but it looked challenging. So, I decided to make it when Raspberry Creek Fabrics got in a new assortment of flannel. It was really fun to make and it was my first experience with back darts. I love that being a Love Notions fan has filled my closet with so many garments I might not ordinarily make.

Thanks for stopping by. If you are shopping and so inclined, I’d be so appreciative if you use my affiliate link: http://www.lovenotions.com/?affiliates=850. It won’t cost you anything extra, but will contribute to our sewing supply fund. The sale runs from Monday, October 18th through Friday, October 22nd.

Also, if you haven’t entered. Please go to any post on my Instagram Monday through Friday to enter yourself and a sewing friend that has included you or others and/or helped you understand a new perspective for a chance to with a sewing machine or serger. I’ll pick one name at random as an entry. You and your friend will also get a Love Notions sewing pattern each. You can also comment below on your favorite Love Notions pattern to make or one you’d like to make for an extra chance to win. Please note that I have to approve your comments before you see them. So, please don’t fret if it does not show up immediately.

I am so excited about this Arlington Sweater by Love Notions. I was hoping that Tami would come out with a classy turtleneck pattern and she did not disappoint. I made so many of these in testing.

There are several great sleeve options, but I was enamored with this long puff sleeve. It has a short sleeve puff option, too. I’m going to try that for sure soon.

I did try the elbow sleeves and I am definitely in love. Most of the versions that I made were the turtleneck. But there is also a mock turtleneck option.

The pattern also looks just as good in the back as it does from the front.

The only fabric that I used that wasn’t stashed was this Mini Cable Stripes Rib Knit from Boho Fabrics. This color is really beautiful and this arrived just a few days after ordering. I made all my sweaters in banded, but there is a shirt length and dress. I have some fabric that I’d like to use for a dress while it is still warm outside.

This was an earlier tester version, so it looks a bit shorter than the final. But I really loved it in the dark blue ribbed knit with my khaki colored Glissando. This was leftover fabric also from Boho Fabrics. I had used it for some Boyfriend Cardigans that I made me and Elise last year. But I love how this turned out.

I’m so excited to see what everyone else is making. I have some fabric to make one for Elise. She doesn’t usually like turtlenecks, but she is excited to get her own. I have my heart set on a light pink colored one in sweater knit next. So, I’m going to keep an eye out for the perfect fabric.

These Arlingtons are really quite addictive, because they are such a quick sew. I just made another dress version. I wanted to use this rib knit, but was not sure about it. It’s perfect especially in this Raspberry Creek Fabrics Butterfly Rib Knit.

The back is different than the top patterns in that it has two pieces you sew together. Not only does that help with shaping, but also lets you potentially eek more from a smaller cut.

This may be my longest post ever, if I keep adding all the Arlingtons that I make. But I’m off to make a Love Notions pattern for Elise that she’s been waiting a long time to have.

I’m so proud of this girl! Oliver + S patterns is featuring her on their blog today and her process of making her dad their Metro Tee. https://oliverands.com/community/

If you aren’t familiar with Oliver + S, they make very great quality patterns. Many are suitable for beginners but all have beautiful details and professional finishing. They were actually the first garments I made. Here is their Roller Skate and Ice Cream dress that I made Elise back in 2015.

This is Elise and her dad wearing the finished Metro Tee. I’d be very appreciative, if you’d like to head over and read more about Elise’s work: https://oliverands.com/community/

Elise and I are so excited to share some selections from the Raspberry Creek Fabrics Fall 2021 Collection. We picked out the beautiful Hello Peach collection by Kim Henrie. Elise really is loving peach lately, which was my favorite color when I was her age. I favor teal now and this collection has them both! I was hoping she’d pick these prints, because I adore the floral and stripe.

Last Spring, Elise had her eye on my Love Notions Constellation Pullovers. She requested one, but I never got around to making it before the weather turned warm. So, that was her first request with these fall fabrics. When completed, I thought it was a tad long, but she decided I shouldn’t shorten it. With the way she is growing, I thought that wasn’t a bad decision.

This is my third Love Notions Constellation and I am so happy with the fit. They are so comfortable, but I definitely feel more pulled together in them. I also like that they are a bit longer than my Sloane Sweaters just to have something different.

When I was making these, I full intended to make knit binding. I used pre-packaged bias binding on my other two. And I ended up doing a lot of hand sewing and it didn’t seem worth the effort. Well, I was really lazy and just serged the edge of my fabric and stitched into place.

I actually was really happy with the results. I’d like to say that I’ll try knit binding with my next one, but I’d bet I’ll just serge and stitch, again.

I’ll leave you with a few close up photos of these beautiful fabrics.

Sewing can be like a good friend that sits quietly with you to bring you comfort in trying times if you let it. The Love Notions redesigned Sybil Illusion Skirt is a pattern that brought me comfort during a difficult time. 

In 2016, one of my best friends from college was killed. I was fairly new to sewing. So much so, that it took all my attention. My friend that passed away was a rare breed of devoted friend. He always asked about and shared with me articles and news relevant to Elise and my interests. He was so complimentary and interested in my sewing and knitting. I decided to sew a gored version of the Sybil Skirt for the visitation. The front and back of the skirt are each made of three pieces sewn together. I can almost guarantee those pieces ended up as a mixed up mess, because I was in such a state. I don’t think I told anyone I made my skirt, not even my very best friend of almost 30 years that accompanied me. However, it brought me such great comfort.

Now, I’d love to share with you a bit about the redesigned Sybil Illusion Skirt. When I offered to test any version of the Sybil Skirt, it certainly felt like kismet when the gored version was selected for me. It felt uplifting to see how my skills have improved and I even managed to get the pieces in the right places. I often direct good thoughts toward a person or situation when I sew, almost like a silent prayer. I thought about my friend and my friendship with his brother and other friends that have strengthened since we lost him.

I’m also thankful to my husband who took these photos for me. There was a downpour once we got started, but he stuck with it. He is a great support to me. I used the Raspberry Creek Fabrics Sea Blue Modal Spandex Jersey Knit Fabric for this knee length version of the skirt. I made a matching Ballad Blouse with Raspberry Creek Fabrics Tonal Teal Blue Coral and Yellow Abstract Square Print Stretch Crepe. I used some beautiful antique buttons that I had stashed.

This is the midi length. I again used the Modal Jersey Knit in charcoal gray, but it no longer seems available. I used the Raspberry Creek Fabrics Tonal Grey and Off White Tossed Small Floral Print Stretch Crepe for my Ballad Blouse.

In conclusion, you can reliably count on me to be the last person to pass judgement on how others deal with adversity or distract themselves. I just hear through sewing groups some people feel like they lose their will to sew in tough times. An approach to try to help you through might be to sew something easy or small to see if it soothes your soul as it has mine. Always feel free to reach out to me via Instagram and Facebook if this resonates with you or you’d like to talk. Connecting is my favorite part of sewing.

Here is a link, if you’d like to read more about my dear friend: https://wvcf.org/funds/blessed-for-another-day/

My very favorite thing is sewing with and for my daughter with Raspberry Creek Fabrics. My second favorite thing is exploring nature in our county and state parks with her. I am so excited to marry all of that in my blog post!

I was so excited to join this blog tour. I told Elise that she could pick any of her favorite prints in a huge selection of substrates (materials). I’ve been sewing for five or six years with these prints, so that’s a lot to choose from. She easily picked the avocados from last summer in jersey knit. Brittany Laidlaw has said she designed these for her daughter, but Elise has always thought they were designed for her. Avocados are absolutely her very favorite food.

Now that she has her favorite fabric of all time, I asked her to pick her favorite pattern. She picked both of our favorite outfits for adventuring. We are both wearing the Love Notions Classic Tee. There is a Girls Classic Tee that goes up to size 16, but this girl doesn’t fit into it anymore! She is wearing the Girls Luna Loungewear shorts and I’m wearing the Ladies version. This is our favorite shorts pattern, because it has a lot of ease and elastic in the waistband to stay up when we are exploring the outdoors. She chose our stash of Solid Olive Green 4 Way Stretch French Terry Knit Fabric With Spandex for the shorts. She picked jersey knit for a new pair last week and that also works great, because Raspberry Creek Fabrics jersey knit is a very nice weight.

Another important element of favorite things is that we love to go to parks and explore. So, my husband took us to one of our favorite parks for photos. We are at Cool Creek Park which is part of the wonderful Hamilton County Parks where we reside. I cannot tell you how much solace these parks brought us in the thick of the pandemic. I post a lot of our park adventures in my Instagram stories.

And finally, you rarely get a photo, but the photographer is our favorite guy. Not only does he not accept any form of payment for his off-site photography, but he took us out for ice cream afterward.

And now for our favorite sewing tool. Our lives have been made so much easier by Frixon markers. You can iron the marks off, because they disappear with heat. We ensure that we stain treat them before washing just to be safe. Since we usually mark on the wrong side of the fabric, it’s not an issue, though. Elise is a new sewist and she thinks these are so great to use to trace her patterns on fabric. I wish I’d used them early on in my sewing process to identify the cut pieces like front and back. As you can imagine, I also use them a lot to put E’s and N’s on things like these shirts, because we are now very close in sizes in some garments and I’m making them together.

Thanks for stopping by! Elise and I really hope you enjoyed learning about our favorite things. Also featured today is my kind friend Emily and her blog, Replicate Then Deviate. Also, Tami Tanner Peterson’s blog, Sew Sophie Lynn, is featured. She makes the most amazing garments then photographs them with such artistry.

Some pretty big news was announced today for us. I was named a brand ambassador for Love Notions Sewing Patterns. Elise and I are huge fans! Not only of the patterns but of the wonderful women that own and manage the company and the inclusive culture they have built. I can participate in every single one of their sew alongs, classes, meet ups, because they go the extra mile to make them accessible.  I can honestly tell you that I ask every time and never once were they not very willing to implement a solution so I could participate.  And I attend nearly everything they offer.  I’m proud beyond words to represent this amazing organization. I also love the support and encouragement of the Facebook group. It is a place you can always go and be assured that other members will lift you up.

This is the first Love Notions patterns I made. It is a Whistler Pull-Over from 2016, when I was very new to sewing knits. I had just started sewing woven garments the year before. And I think this was the second garment I made myself. Five year old Elise was so cute but still was learning to smile for pictures.

A super fun part of being an ambassador is that I get to sew up the pattern on sale for $5 Feature Fridays and share it with my sewing friends. This week it’s the Game Day Jersey. I am wearing it with my favorite knit shorts, the Luna Loungewear Shorts. For this Game Day Jersey, I used some Raspberry Creek Fabrics jersey knit print that I had left over with their solid black. I thought it was perfect, since I do wear my heart on my sleeve! And I certainly have a lot of love for the sewing community.

I made this version last July. This Game Day Jersey was such a bright spot for me in a challenging year. The Raspberry Creek Fabrics Sun Stripe jersey knit is a forever available print that you can still get. It was perfect with my Allegro Bottoms.

My sewing sidekick didn’t think she wanted a Kids’ Game Day Jersey. That is until she realized all the ambassadors were sharing theirs. Since it is her aspiration to be an ambassador-in-training, she needed one. It turned out that the color blocking just wasn’t for her. She actually really loves this with the one color and stripes on the sleeves. It is perfect for decals and I bet panels would be great, too. I noticed after planning it out that my friend Rachel made something very similar for her son that’s on the listing and pattern. It was ideal timing to celebrate my girl’s accomplishment on Wednesday of completing the school year.

Here are the links to the patterns that are $5 only today (Friday, May 28th if you are reading this later). I’ve shared my affiliate links in this post. That provides me commission, but doesn’t cost any extra for the purchaser. But if that makes you uncomfortable, please feel free to go straight and purchase from the Love Notions web site. It won’t hurt my feelings at all. And I’d be really glad for as many friends as possible to get these patterns for $5, so we can all sew together.

Ladies’ Game Day Jersey
Kids’ Game Day Jersey
Men’s Game Day Jersey

I am so excited to see all the great pattern purchases happening during the 40% off sale. I want to share a variety of the fabrics that I’ve tried. Some of my favorites like Sloane Sweater, Rockford/Wrigley Raglan, Resolution Bottoms, and some others aren’t featured, because I tend to use the same fabrics again and again. You can click on any of the photos below and make them larger if you’d like, too.

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Rhapsody Blouse

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You are seeing the Rhapsody Blouse first, because this is my favorite Love Notions pattern. It calls for wovens and I find the fit forgiving. The bias binding can be a bit tricky on the first one, but after you complete it once it’s very straight forward.

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Glissando Pants and Skirt

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The Glissando is my favorite woven pants and skirt pattern. The button front is my favorite part. Another version can be seen in the Rhapsody collage above. I used Rayon Linen for that one.

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Allegro Bottoms

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The Allegro Bottoms are a wonderful pattern that I really enjoy. It uses woven fabrics. It is very comfortable. I especially love the shorts version.

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Forte Top & Dress

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The Forte Top is so much fun to sew and wear! You use knits on this one. The one I made in the middle recently is just a simple, dressy top. There are many, many more options that I have yet to try, too.

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Luna Loungewear Shorts

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The Luna Loungewear Shorts are our favorite knit shorts. What makes them so great is the elastic waistband. We do a lot of hiking in the summer. These are so comfortable and stay put.

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Breckenridge Henley

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The Breckenridge Henley is simply the perfect knit top for fall. I collect antique buttons, so I am really wild over this pattern. It’s such a good excuse to use my button stash or shop for new buttons!

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Sunday Romper

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The Sunday Romper is one pattern that I think we may have sampled every variety. I even recently made the dress in Jersey Knit. It is just so great for keeping cool and comfortable. Elise’s cherry version is a favorite outfit for sure.

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Classic Tee

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I will end with the Classic Tee pattern, which perhaps should be called the perfect tee. It is so comfortable that I’ve made many in Jersey Knit to sleep in. As you can see, you can use many different knit fabrics. The top always seems to hold its shape.

If you came here looking for an epic battle between Sweater Knit and French Terry to dominate the Love Notions Boyfriend Cardigan, I’m really sorry to disappoint you. Both make for a beautiful Boyfriend Cardigan. I’ve made eight of these cardigans and just wanted to share with you the differences.

I made this Boyfriend Cardigan out of Raspberry Creek Fabrics French Terry. I like the French Terry, because it’s really stable. It was easy to sew the pockets on. My shawl collar hangs just right. Also the pattern is constructed so beautifully that it doesn’t look stiff or boxy on.

But here you have a recent Boyfriend Cardigan that I made in Boho Fabrics Brushed Rib Knit fabric. I have used their Brushed Rib Knit fabric on many garments. The main draw is how incredibly soft this is. It’s also very forgiving to work with. If you match your thread pretty closely, you can’t see much of the stitch definition, so any mistakes don’t show.

So, what are some of the cons? The Sweater Knit can be delicate. I actually tore a hole near the seam of the ribbed knit one that I made this week. It also was a bit fiddly getting those pockets on. However, French Terry has a similar issue. There are loops on the wrong side. If you accidentally catch something on one of those loops, you could cause a fabric run or small hole.

In conclusion, I hope this blog post informed you a bit about sewing with Sweater Knit and French Terry, but mostly convinced you to sew all the Boyfriend Cardigans. The pattern is on sale for $5 Friday, March 26th and then at a reduced rate of $9 Saturday and Sunday. Here is my affiliate link if you’d like to purchase this pattern: https://www.lovenotions.com/product/boyfriend-cardigan-for-ladies/?affiliates=850

The Girls Boyfriend Cardigan is also $5 on Friday only. I have made my daughter several, but I didn’t do a good job of capturing them. Here is one of her favorites that she wore when her group that her dad coached won our state’s Math Pentathlon.

Girls Boyfriend Cardigan: https://www.lovenotions.com/product/boyfriend-cardigan-for-girls-2t-16/?affiliates=850

When I made my sweet girl the Made for Mermaids Women’s Reagan Rash Guard this year, she wasn’t comfortable not have any support in front. She wasn’t thrilled with adding cups to the lining. My solution was to add a shelf bra to the front piece. In this post, I share the instructions, because I couldn’t find any instructions out there for a raglan rash guard.

I don’t want to share the actual picture of the pattern piece, so I don’t have a picture of this part. However, the first thing I did was determine how long, I needed the bra piece to be. I took her favorite bra and matched it to the arm scythe of the pattern piece but started 3/8″ from the top of the piece to allow for the seam allowance. This got me pretty close but Elise still felt it was 1/2″ to high. So, you may need to adjust.

Then, I cut the entire front piece for the rash guard out of power mesh but shortened the length based on the measurement above. I read some posts that said make the power mesh larger due to the lack of stretch or smaller to make it have better support. So, I went with just the same size. You can definitely adjust this based on your experience, but this worked for us.

Next, I cut the swim elastic for the bottom of the power mesh. I used 1″ wide swim elastic. You’ll want to cut the length of swim elastic an 1″ or 1 1/2” shorter than the pattern piece/power mesh piece.  You may want to play around with the measurement a bit until it gathers just a tiny bit as illustrated in the picture below.

After I sewed the elastic in place, I basted the bra piece on the wrong side of the front piece of the rash guard. This pattern has a 3/8″ seam allowance, so I basted with a the 1/8″ – 1/4″ seam allowance.

After that, I added a lining, because I thought my girl would be fussy with the elastic and power mesh against her skin. I cut the entire front piece out of swim lining to make the lining. It might not be strictly necessarily and could be cooler if you didn’t use the additional lining piece. But our Indiana summers don’t get too hot and if they do it’s not for long.

I basted the lining again with a the 1/8″ – 1/4″ seam allowance.

After this, I just used the front as one piece and followed the directions. My daughter was so happy with this fix. She feels much more comfortable and supported. She loves going to water parks and being very active in the pool. So, this rash guard pattern has been perfect for her year after year.

Also, I made her rash guard and bottoms with the new 2021 Raspberry Creek swim prints. Here are so more pictures of her Made for Mermaids Reagan Rash Guard featuring the prints.