Radiant Home Studio

Handmade Potholders from the Flower City Pattern Testers

Posted by Sara
October 12, 2018
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October 12, 2018

As always, pattern testers are amazing! They really help clarify instructions and perfect the pattern. The Flower City Potholders pattern is better because of their hard work and ideas.

They have some great creative twists, with patchwork and paper pieced sections. I hope they inspire you to try the potholders and add your own creative ideas!

Here are a few Flower City Potholders made by my testers:

This beautiful set was made by Colleen. Her quilting lines are perfect! You can see her other sewing projects @skootchover on Instagram.

Flower City Potholder Set | Kitchen Gifts | Radiant Home Studio

Margareth made her square potholders with some beautiful paper pieced designs from Lori Holt’s Farm Girl Vintage quilt book. (that’s an affiliate link) And then she used some hexie flowers from her unfinished project pile to embellish the double-pocket potholder, which you can see @maggiemadebags on Instagram.

Flower City Potholder Set | Kitchen Gifts | Farm Girl Vintage Quilt Blocks | Paper Pieced | Radiant Home Studio

Kristin made a lovely set of coordinating potholders and oven mitt. I love the autumn tones and contrast binding she chose. She also took a great side photo of the oven mitt so you can see the thumb joint. You can see more of her pretty sewing projects @watersidehearth on Instagram.

Daryl is always quick to finish her sewing projects. I love how she matched the fabric to her bowls perfectly! This is the best part about making your own kitchen linens…you can always find the perfect match! See more of Daryl’s sewing @patchoulimoonstudio on Instagram.

Julie used this “eye-catching” fabric for a fun take on potholders. I like the contrasting white binding on the dark fabric. You can see more of Julie’s makes (clothes and kids stuff too!) @isewdoncjesuis on Instagram.

Margaret used a solid blue linen with some pink and orange accents. You can see her lovely quilting and sewing projects @mcglen on Instagram.

Laura made these pretty potholders that will add some fun color to her kitchen. Laura shares her sewing projects @stitchesbylaura on Instagram.

Flower City Potholders | Radiant Home Studio

Susi sewed her potholders using some fun scraps she had left! Maybe the soccer mom in your life would enjoy a themed oven mitt like this one. Susi shares more projects @junglepearls on Instagram.

Danette tried out the extra patchwork directions and was able to use up some coordinating scraps to make these happy potholders! She shares more projects at Nettie Sews.

Embroidery, Sewing, Tutorials

Sew a Sunglasses Case with Scraps & Kantha Stitching

Posted by Sara
July 28, 2018
3 comments
July 31, 2018

Summertime means sunglasses! I usually have mine on my head, but sometimes I want to throw them in my bag with a layer of protection. This sunglasses case is a great way to use up scraps and practice some kantha stitching. (Kantha is just a fancy word for Indian style running stitches and they don’t even have to be perfect!)

Here’s a quick tutorial so you can sew a sunglasses case that will use up scraps and help protect your lenses. I made the pattern big enough for oversized sunglasses. If you have a slim pair or want to use it for reading glasses, you can adjust the size by trimming it down when you get partway through.

Remember that kantha stitching is meant to be quick and easy. You can thread the needle through 4-8 stitches before pulling the thread. Don’t worry about perfect spacing or alignment. The imperfections are what give it a beautiful handmade look.

This type of pouch is useful for other little items too, so be creative! If you change the size slightly, it makes a great little protective phone cover. Or you could make it bigger and use it to cover an iPad.

(This post contains affiliate links which means I make a small commission when you make a purchase. Thanks!)

How to Sew a Sunglasses Case with Scraps & Kantha Stitching

Finished size: approximately 4″ x 7″

Materials & Tools:

fabric scraps in coordinating colors (about ten 12″ x 1.5″ strips)
one larger piece of fabric about 10″ square for the lining
fusible fleece (about 10″ square)
coordinating embroidery floss (I like pearl embroidery floss for this project.)
embroidery needle (I like these Sashiko needles. They are long so you can make multiple stitches at a time.)
rotary cutter & mat (You can do without, but measuring and cutting are much faster and easier!)

Sewing Instructions:

1. Cut out several strips of fabric about 12″ long and 1-2″ wide. They can be variable widths and do not need to be perfect! If you like making improv quilt blocks, that’s exactly what you need to do here. In fact, you can be more creative and sew other shapes and designs if you like.

2. Lay out your strips in the order you want to sew them together. Place the first 2 strips right sides together and stitch with a 1/4″ seam allowance along the long edge. Press and continue to add the rest of the strips in the same manner.

3. Trim the sewn-together strips to about 10″ x 9″. Cut a piece of fusible fleece the same size and fuse it to the wrong side of the fabric. (Note: If you think the fusible fleece will be too thick to hand stitch, you can use a lightweight interfacing on this layer and add fusible fleece to the lining layer instead.)

4. Begin stitching across the vertical stripes, slightly off center with close rows of running stitches. Again, these aren’t supposed to be perfect. They are supposed to be quick! Fill in a section with about 1.5″ of stitching. Finish filling in the other sections with close rows of running stitches perpendicular to the first section.

5. Once you finish stitching, your fabric will be slightly smaller and probably not square again. Wrap it around your glasses and figure out if you need to trim the rectangle. To make it the same size as mine, it should be about 9″ x 8″ at this point. Be sure to leave about 1/2″ of seam allowance on all sides. (Below, I had already trimmed the corners…this is in the next step.)

6. Cut a solid piece of fabric to match the size of the quilted rectangle. (If you prefer a more sturdy case, you can add some medium-weight interfacing to this layer as well.)

7. Place the quilted rectangle and the lining right sides together. Fold in half. Trim off one outer corner about 1″ from each edge.

8. Stitch around the outside edge, pivoting at the corners, using a 3/8″ seam allowance, leaving a 2″ opening on one side. Trim the bulk from the corners and turn inside out. Press.

9. Fold the lining sides together. Whipstitch across the bottom and side near the edge, pulling tight as you stitch. Finish just below the angled corner with a small knot. (You can also machine topstitch, but the thickness of the fabric may be too much for some basic sewing machines.)

That’s it! Make beautiful gifts for your friends, use up scraps, and enjoy the sunshine!

Also, linking up with: Sew Can She, Saturday Sharefest, & Craftastic Monday

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Sewing

Chambray Ogden Cami

Posted by Sara
June 28, 2018
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June 20, 2018

Another Ogden Cami…this time in scraps of chambray from my Marigold Dress. I think I only had about a yard left, but I was able to cut out a size 4 with no problems. (You may have noticed it in my previous post about the wide-leg rayon pants…)

I already reviewed the pattern in my Rayon Ogden Dress Post, but it’s obviously a good pattern when you make it twice in one week!

One thing I learned from making the dress is that it is essential for moms to reinforce their straps. The first time I wore my cami dress, my 9-month-old managed to rip the strap out while struggling to get out of my arms. That and the stress of holding her on my hip all day was too much. Thankfully, I had a second layer underneath!

I went back and repaired the strap, plus I reinforced all of the strap ends with some medium weight interfacing and another row of stitching. On the second chambray cami, I just went ahead and reinforced everything the first time!

The second Ogden went together faster than the first. I don’t think I even needed to look at the instructions.

This pattern is the perfect scrap buster. I think I have a few more small pieces that will become Ogden Camis when I get a chance!

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Sewing

How to Make Wide-Leg Rayon Pants with the Parkside Shorts Pattern

Posted by Sara
June 25, 2018
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July 9, 2018

A couple of weeks ago, I tried on some black and white wide-leg rayon pants in the store and loved them. I couldn’t bring myself to pay $40 for thin, cheap fabric and less than perfect pattern matching and construction though. Don’t we all do that? How many times do we leave things behind because we can “make it better ourselves”?

This time I actually did it. I ordered this black and white rayon crepe from Style Maker Fabrics. I know many bloggers regularly shop there and always highly recommend the shop. I actually emailed the owner to make sure this fabric would be heavy enough for pants before ordering. She emailed back a couple of options that would work well, including the one I had my eye on.

I looked at several patterns but in the end, I decided to hack a pattern I already own. I just needed a simple elastic waist pant pattern with a wide leg. I was wearing a pair of my linen Parkside Shorts earlier this week and realized that I could definitely hack the Parkside Shorts pattern. I already knew it fit and I could easily extend the length!

I did some quick calculations and ordered 2 1/2 yds. of fabric. If you are considering ordering rayon crepe, be aware that it shrinks a lot! I lost 12″ in length and 8″ in width. I expected some shrinkage. I always wash rayon, even though it’s prone to shrinking. I don’t have time to hand wash all of my clothes, so I just wash them on delicate and tumble dry on low. This material really crinkles up a lot though.

After washing, I wasn’t sure how I was going to fit my pattern pieces on the fabric anymore. I had planned to place the pant legs side by side, but losing the width made that impossible. I bought enough extra to stagger the legs, placing the wide part next to a narrower part but that wasn’t working either. And I didn’t have enough to place them end to end.

Then I remembered a top I made earlier this year with rayon crepe. I left it crinkled and cut the pattern pieces like that. The top ended up being much too big.

So I decided to try ironing the fabric to see if I could stretch it back out. I gained 4″ in width, which was almost enough to squeeze my pieces across. To save a little more fabric, I taped the front and back pant leg pieces together overlapping the seam allowances to create one seamless pant leg piece. That gave me the last inch I needed to make it fit on the fabric! (I made a medium, so if you are a small or x-small you should be able to get away with 2 yds. of fabric.) – See the end of the post for an update about what happened after washing…

I definitely appreciated not having to match stripes on the outer leg seams, but I did lose the pockets I was planning to add. I think pockets may have been too heavy anyway, so the trade-off worked out. Plus, ironing out the crinkles was a good call for a better fit.

Other than creating one pattern piece and eliminating the side seam and pocket, the other change I made was to add length. I measured a 34″ inseam and cut straight down from the existing side seams on the shorts. That’s it! I had more than enough length to create a 2″ hem at the end.

I constructed the pants with french seams to keep the rayon from fraying everywhere. Without pockets, it’s really just sewing the crotch seams, the inside leg seams, and the waistband. It didn’t take very long to sew these together.

The only thing I would do differently is straighten out the back waist seam. It’s drafted at an angle, which is fine for solid fabric. On the striped fabric, it creates little chevrons across the backside instead of straight horizontal stripes like the rest of the pants. I don’t think it’s too noticeable now, but I did alter the back seam slightly after sewing it to make the effect more subtle.

The pants are super comfortable, but taking photos made me feel like they might not be that flattering. I’m used to wearing more fitted clothes. These make me feel very conspicuous….like I’m wearing pajamas. I’m sure I’ll still wear them. I just need to work out the best way to style them…

UPDATE: So…ironing the fabric was not the right call. One wash and the pants are at least two sizes smaller. The waist still fits, but the pants are a few inches too short and way too clingy now. I think I will save them for my preteen daughter. They should fit her next year, so it’s not a total loss!

Tips for rayon crepe anyone? The time I didn’t iron, the garment was too big. When I did iron, it was too small. How do you prep your fabric?

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