ANNOUNCING THE BONNIE SEW-ALONG

Announcing the official Bonnie sew-along! 

The Bonnie sew-along will start on 26th of November and finish up on the 3rd of December. 

It  will be jam packed with tips on sewing with knits, a whole heap of  really awesome pattern hacks as well as a heaps of other tutorials so you can  sew up an army of Bonnie's for yourself.

If you plan to join in then you can follow the sew-along on the Bluegingerdoll Facebook sew-along page where you can feel free to pop up your progress photos, ask questions or find answers to your questions. 
You can also check out the sew-along happenings on the usual places such as Instagram, Twitter  or the Flickr group. Simply use the hashtag #Bonnie to join in all the sew-along fun.

There may also possibly be some really rad prizes to giveaway, so keep stay tuned for that announcement in the coming days.

Good times ahead, hope you can join in.

 Abby x 

The Winfred sew-along and Contest and a new start date..

Hello fine people! I've been missing that last few days because I've been working with some ace sponsors organizing some collaborations with them for a competition giveaway prizes  for the upcoming Winifred sew-along and today i can announce it all, woo! 

But first i have another announcement to make. 

Due to a lot of questions and a tad bit of worry amongst y'all whether or not your patterns will be arriving in time to join in the sew-along and there are a lot of you wanting to join in ( ace!) I have decided to push back the start date of the sew-along until the 24th of March. Now all your patterns are on their way, but as we all know Mister post man doesn't always play nice and some of your patterns have  LONG way to go from me here in Oz.  So to allow for your paper patterns to arrive and give you enough time to find the perfect fabric and get sorted we will start the Winifred sew-along on the 24th of March. I hope this eases everyone's minds a little, because i won't you all to join in! 

Now let's get to the good part.. prizes and how to go about getting your mitts on them!


Below are the prizes up for grabs  to be given away to 3 lucky winners:

INDIE STITCHES - $50 online shop voucher

This indie pattern shop  caters for you, the lovers of Indie patterns as well as  supports all of us indie pattern designers!

SEWBOX - £40 pound online shop voucher

Check out the  beautiful range of fabrics they have in stock, this voucher will get you some pretty cool fabric for your stash.

A FASHIONABLE STITCH - PRIZE PACK

The lovely Sunni, has together and amazing prize pack from here shop, A Fashionable Stitch  which lots of sewing goodies. 

OK now the nitty gritty of it all. Don't worry its easy peasy :)

Can i enter?

Of course you can silly! Everyone can! This sew-along & contest is open to all everyone who lives in this damn fine world, oh and that sews.

What must one do to enter?

You  must upload  your completed Winifred dress photos onto the Bluegingerdoll  Flickr group  and also use the  tag Winifred on your photos to officially enter into the contest and go in the running to win the  prizes. Don't tag, not entered - Easy. You can join up now to make it easier later on to enter.

The sew-along finishing date will be announced in due course as well the final date you can upload your Winifred photos. So stay tuned for that. And don't worry you'll have plenty of time to finish up and upload your photos.

How does the voting work?

Myself and some other very helpful elves will be choosing several favorites ( depending on how many entries roughly between 5-10)  from the Flickr group that will then be voted on by the sewing  public, that means you fine folk  out there,  for the chance to win the cool  prizes. 

Again voting times etc will be announced in due course.

Then after all the votes are tallied up,  the  winners  will then be  announced in the following days thereafter, here on the blog :)

GRAB A BUTTON

Grab the blog button below and share the love.

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In the meantime get social with me! I have heard some of your sewing plans for the Winifred pattern and it has me super excited, but i want to hear more! So come and tell me more on the below social sites and use the hashtag #winifred so i don't miss anything :)

Facebook/Bluegingerdoll

Instagram/bluegingerdoll -  #bluegingerdoll or #winifred

Twitter/bluegingerdoll  - #bluegingerdoll or #winifred

Flickr.com/bluegingerdoll  - #Winifred

It's also a great way to keep in touch with other sew-along participants,  post your progress, ask any questions, chat about fabric etc.

Tomorrow i'll be posting the sew-along schedule that we will be following. So watch out for that one!


Abby
x

MAE SEW-ALONG # 6 ARMHOLE FACINGS & SIDE SEAMS

Do a little dance y'all cause we are heading towards the finishing line!!!!

Today is the second last sew-along post, Yay!  I hope everyone is enjoying themselves and creating some gorgeous Mae blouses!? I am starting a see a flurry of Mae blouse hysteria around the blogosphere and i soooo  can't to see them all when they are finished, they look amazing.

So today's post we will be attaching our armhole facings and stitching up the bodice side seams.

Quick recap, yesterday's post was all about stitching on the neckline facing and creating that perfect signature scalloped neckline on the Mae blouse. If you have finished all of those steps, than read on...

Attach the armhole facings 

Before we attach the armhole facings to the bodice , we need to finish the raw edges of the armhole facings, in the same way we did on the neckline facing. 
Once you have tidied up the raw edges we can attached the armhole facings to the bodice.

Step 1. Right sides together, pin the armhole facing to the bodice armhole. Stitch armhole facing to the bodice. Trim and finish the seams.

**Tip: If you aren't a fan of the finishing your armhole with the facings that are  included with the Mae  pattern, you could simply finish them with some cute matching or contrast bias binding and achieve the same clean edge finish.

BODICE SIDE SEAMS

1. Open the armhole facings away from the bodice. 
2.Right sides together, stitch the bodice side seams together .
3.Finish the seams and press.

FINAL STEPS

Now that you have stitched up the bodice side seams, you can now turn the armhole facings to the inside of the blouse and give them a good press. Just like we previously did with the neckline facing, we will also tack the armhole facing to the shoulder seam, to keep them in place and nice and secure.

When you have finished the above steps, your Mae blouse should now be looking pretty much well done, except for the hem and the buttonholes and buttons on the back, which we will cover in tomorrow's final sew-along post.

Until then, refresh your sewing mind with  what you can win once the Mae sew-along is all done and dusted:

1 x $50 fabric voucher from Sewbox.
Check out the  beautiful range of fabrics they have in stock, this voucher will get you some pretty cool fabric for your stash.

1 x $35 voucher from A Fashionable Stitch,  for you to spend on anything in this fabulous shop which stocks lovely,  hard to find and unique sewing notions. 

1 x Pattern voucher, for you  to pick out any  pattern of your choice from the  Indie Stitches shop. This indie pattern shop  caters for you, the lovers of Indie patterns as well as  supports all of us indie pattern designers!

Ahh how exciting, i hope  these prizes have inspired you to sew up a most f***king gorgeous Mae blouse EVER!!!


Reminder, if you haven't already done so, you need to join up to the  Flickr group, so you can upload your final Mae blouse to go into the running to win these awesome giveaway prizes... Go on quickly now ;)

OK lovely folks see ya tomorrow for the final Mae sew-along post! Woo hoo! 

Abby
x

MAE SEW-ALONG # 1 - GETTING STARTED

Buying the right fabric:

 I have  just recently posted about the best fabric for the Mae blouse and  its radness for stash busting,  so check out the post, here . Also check out the  suggested fabrics listed on the back of your pattern envelope, which you will see the preferred fabrics are: Light weight cotton and cotton blends.

For a little more inspiration you can also see some recent  examples of the Mae blouse all sewn  up  in a couple of  different fabrics and ways:

Left::Meg 

Right:  Jen 

Making a muslin:

I kind of think this is the norm these days in the sewing world, but i am going to say it anyway! I highly recommend making a muslin for the Mae blouse... Why? A myriad of reasons but the main reason being, the final fit of the blouse. The blouse is designed to be very form fitting  around the waistline, and has very little ease. Also if you are new to Bluegingerdoll patterns, they are drafted based on a D cup. Completing a muslin before you cut into your fabulous fabric you have picked out, is also  a great test run before you sew up your final blouse.. trust me  it will also save you a bucket load of tears and swearing down the track, by dealing with any glaring fit issues that may occur.

So below is just a quick run -down on the basics of making a muslin:

* Pick out some calico or cheap fabric that is a similar weight and drape to your main fabric you have selected. If you have managed  to  find some cheap fabric that isn't fluro,1980s inspired and completely gross, you will also score your self another blouse, also called a 'wearable muslin'.  A simple muslin you can simply just be basted together and don't bother stitching the buttonholes, buttons or facings. If  you are going to make a wearable muslin stitch together as normal as you would your final blouse.

Choose your size:

If you need a refresher on how exactly to measure yourself properly, then welcome back my  lovely measuring lady... . i am yet to name her!  Use her as a visual guide,to make sure you have the right measurements. Grab a a measuring tape, and note down your bust, waist and hip  measurements( there a slight peplum to the Mae  blouse, so the hip is relatively open so not as important, but measure anyway.) 

Now that you have your measurements, refer to the size chart on the pattern packaging back to determine your size. As i mentioned above the Mae blouse has been designed to be form fitting, and without very little ease around the waistline, so keep this in mind when finding your size. If you prefer a bit more room, then choose a larger size.

Don't panic if you find that you are in between sizes here and there, it is a common occurrence  to overlap into different sizes. I will also show you quickly,  just  how to trace the pattern when you are in between sizes.

Trace your pattern:

Due to the fact that you may need  to make some pattern adjustments, tracing your Mae pattern is recommended. Even if you don't need to make any pattern adjustments, its a great way to keep your pattern a lot longer, in its original state, for future use or if you want to sew up a Mae for a friend who is a different size then you. So to start with trace off your chosen size, which  you noted down from the back of the pattern packaging. It is important to trace each pattern piece as accurately as you can, this is where,  if you have some curved rulers they will come in handy.

If you found you are in between sizes you will need to overlap into different sizes at the areas which differ i.e bust, waist hips.

** Above i have graded from a size 12 bust to a size 10 waist, then size 12 hip***

 Also make sure to copy down all the important info and pattern markings, and notches onto your traced pattern. It is also a good idea to label each pattern piece, and the size you are using, and any instructions they have i.e cut on the fold, grain lines etc

Cut out your pattern:

Now you can lay out your pattern  pieces as shown in the cutting layout diagrams on the instruction sheet, page 1 or as economically as you can with the fabric you have. 

Unless you’re making a wearable muslin, there is no need to cut out the facings. Just cut the bodice front and back. I did choose to cut out my facings in this case, because this will be my final blouse. Remember to transfer all markings (dart,  button, button holes, fold lines, etc) onto your fabric, then cut out the pattern  pieces.

Stitching up your muslin:

Once you have cut out your muslin fabric, depending on what type of muslin you are making simply just follow the below steps:

Simple Muslin, machine baste

* Sew the darts, front and back bodice

* Sew the shoulder and bodice side seams.

Wearable Muslin

* Stitch as the blouse normally  as per the instructions.

Determine any fit alterations & alter pattern if needed:

Now you can try on your Mae muslin! 
If you have stitched up a 'simple muslin' I would recommend just overlapping the back bodice pieces right over left and pinning them place where the buttons would be, during this test fit phase. 

OK now you need to ask yourself a few questions about the muslin's fit: 

Have I cut out  the right size? Is it comfortable?

Does the bodice fit correctly across the bust? No pulling or too loose?

 Is the bodice  waist nicely  fitted and  comfortable? Again no pulling or too loose?

Is the bodice the right length?

When i test a muslin i also like to move around in it, wear it around the house, do some chores etc just to confirm that it fits just as well moving, as well as standing still in front of the mirror.

If you have found some funny business going on with the bust fit, then  stay tuned I  have a detailed tutorials coming up next on how to complete a Full and Small Bust Adjustment on the Mae blouse. 

If you have found the waistline to be too tight or loose, then you need to adjust the size you have traced and cut out.

If you find the bodice is too short or long, you will need to  lengthen or shorten the bodice. These only require simple slash alterations on the lines indicated on the pattern pieces. There is also a quick explanation on the instruction sheet, page 1 on how to complete this step.If you do decide to lengthen or shorten the bodice you will also need to make adjustments to the button placement, as these will shift when you make the alterations.

 So tell me....I  would love to know what fabric you  have picked out your Mae blouse ? Cutest buttons ever for the back? Or Fabric covered buttons? Spill....

 Until the next sew-along i encourage everyone to post and  share your progress as the sew-along progresses.Also remember this is your sew-along so please let me know if i have missed anything, or if you want to know something in particular and ill try my bestest to help you out!

In case you haven't yet, you also need to join the  Flickr group to enter this contest at the end of the sew-along, cause we gonna be voting on em all! If you feel like socializing or want to keep tabs on the sew-along, here are the places to do so:

Facebook/Bluegingerdoll

Instagram/Bluegingerdoll

Twitter/Bluegingerdoll

Use the hashtag # Mae

Abby

x

ANNOUNCING:THE MAE SEW-ALONG & CONTEST

It's sew-along time again folks! 

This time round  we will be sewing up the Mae blouse together. I am very, very  excited about this sew-along, because this time round a couple of gracious and very  generous sponsors have jumped on board and donated some fabulous prize for you guys to win!

So I hope you're  ready to join me in this sew-along?!

Lets get started and  cover the important business side of the sew-along first...

Start & Finish:

Write these down...

Sew-along starts: 11th September 2013 - Wednesday 

Sew-along finishes:  18th September - Wednesday 

Plenty of time to get sorted before we start, with choosing  your fabric and grabbing all the necessities to  join in. 

If you haven't yet already pick up a copy of the pattern, you can do that here.

The sew-along will run for a week and i will posting everyday throughout. It is quite a quick blouse to sew up so a week is more than enough time to get it done.

Can ya sew?

If you are a newbie on the sewing machine or have been sewing for yonks, then the Mae blouse suits you all. The Mae blouse is rated as a beginner pattern. And if you  are a little unsure of sewing up the Mae blouse and the possibility of tackling the  button holes in the back of the blouse and a scalloped neckline, don't fear I'm here too help!  We  will be covering these during the sew-along, and i  will be holding your hand the whole way through. Hopefully you will pick up a few new & neat sewing skills along the way as well.

How this sew-along will roll:

For the week that we shall sew the Mae blouse together, we will follow the below schedule:

September 11th:
* Getting started with the MAE sewing pattern, buying your fabric, sizing,  tracing your pattern etc

September 12th:
* SBA & FBA adjustments

September 13th ( Friday the 13th!)
*Cut your fabric, apply interfacing, stay stitching & darts

September 14th
* Shoulder seams, back bodice edge & neckline facings 

September 15th
*Attach the neckline facing and  sewing with scallop the front neckline

September 16th
*Armhole facings and  attaching and  bodice side seams

September 17th
* Hem

September 18th
 *Buttonholes & buttons and the final  finishing touches & finish!!

Win some prizes!

Let's get to the good bits of this post and check out the giveaway prizes.  Again, I have been extremely lucky to have  these sponsors on board supporting the Mae sew along, they're ace!

So listen up folks, there are  3 prizes to be given away to 3 lucky winners:

1 x $50 fabric voucher from Sewbox.
Check out the  beautiful range of fabrics they have in stock, this voucher will get you some pretty cool fabric for your stash.

1 x $35 voucher from A Fashionable Stitch,  for you to spend on anything in this fabulous shop which stocks lovely,  hard to find and unique sewing notions. 

1 x Pattern voucher, for you  to pick out any  pattern of your choice from the  Indie Stitches shop. This indie pattern shop  caters for you, the lovers of Indie patterns as well as  supports all of us indie pattern designers!

Can i enter?

Of course you can silly! Everyone can! This sew-along & contest is open to all everyone who lives in this damn fine world, oh and that sews.

What must one do to enter?

OK here's how to enter the contest:

One  must upload  your completed Mae blouse photos onto the Bluegingerdoll  Flickr group  and also use the  tag Mae  on your photos to officially enter into the contest and go in the running to win the  prizes. Don't tag, not entered - Easy.

The sew-along finishes up on the 18th of September, so  you will need to have your photos uploaded  to the Flickr group by  22nd Sunday (aest). 

Myself and some other very helpful elves will be choosing several favorites ( depending on how many entries roughly between 5-10)  from the Flickr group that will then be voted on by the sewing  public, that means you fine folk  out there,  for the chance to win the cool  prizes. 

Voting will opened up here on the blog  around the 23/24th September and close on the  27/28th September (aest). 

After all the votes are tallied up,  the  winners  will then be  announced in the following days thereafter, here on the blog.

Grab thyself a button:

If you care  join me... then grab a button for your blog and share the love.

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Wanna be social?

Keep in touch with other sew-along participants, post your progress, ask any questions or simply have a gawk on the below social media stuff:

Facebook/Bluegingerdoll

Instagram/bluegingerdoll -  #bluegingerdoll or #maesewalong 
(I post random photos of sewing, sneak peeks at things  but mostly of my dogs..)

Twitter/bluegingerdoll  - #bluegingerdoll or #maesewalong
 ( Where i sometimes rant)

Flickr.com/bluegingerdoll  - #Mae 
( Where YOU should upload your final Mae photos)

If you want to know more about the Mae sewing pattern, check out this post i recently i did on the reasons the Mae sewing pattern is on the awesome list.

Hope this Mae sew-along tickles ya fancy, cause it's going to be a good one!

Abby
xxx