The Cottage Revolution

Tag: sewing

  • Quilt No. 2

    My friend had her first baby! He is a precious child, and I don’t throw baby compliments around. Apparently tiny humans are my only excuse to sew (see: here, here and here). The quilt I made for her new baby evolved from something totally flat and lifeless into a piece I ended up really digging. It…

  • The Alphabet Shoppe

    During the summer of 1998 I worked at a summer camp — not as a counselor or any of those  roles one might someday remember fondly. I was the Dining Hall Steward. What’s that, you ask? It’s the person who makes meals run smoothly by calming hundreds of screaming kids and introducing each menu item.…

  • The Princess and the Pea

    My sewing machine has been on a shelf since I made the McCall’s 6442 jacket in January, and my blog has basically been on the shelf since then too. But when the temperature fell below 50 degrees earlier this month I got out some yarn and knitting needles (my crafting gateway drug), and the sewing…

  • McCall’s 6442

    Models and sketches on the front of patterns from conventional pattern makers (McCall’s, Butterick, Simplicity, etc.) are notoriously comical. Seldom have I found a pattern and thought, “That’s something I must make!” Take McCall’s 6442, for instance.Take it all in, but focus especially on those boots. And the steely gaze from the girl on the…

  • A Fox, a Lamb and an Owl, Oh My!

    Normally Christmas brings with it a flurry of crafting. I usually can be found huddled over my sewing machine for weeks leading up to the day as I try to perfect something for each family member. This year that didn’t happen, and I have a feeling no one minded but me. While making gifts for…

  • Simple Quilted Coasters

    Lately I have been awful about working on projects. I started a jacket a month ago. It has been sitting on our dining room table in a stack of pieces all that time. I’ll put  a sleeve on, and then take a sleeve off. I’ll top-stitch a hem, and then rip it all out. It’s…

  • New Look Skirt 6899

    I have entirely too many skirts, but I didn’t come to this realization before I cut into my most recent project: New Look Skirt 6899. I used Anna Maria Horner’s Little Folks collection in Village Path, Berry. It has such a great, light weight to it and the hand is so silky. It’s a big step…

  • Box Bag Tutorial

    One of my best friends just had baby number two. Baby number one is no longer a baby, but is still young enough to be a bit confused by all the change going on around her and so I wanted to make something special for her. She is into organizing, stacking and carrying things with…

  • Amy Butler Cosmo Bag

    February is a busy time. It’s full of grant deadlines and collection deadlines. And the flu. February is also filled with the flu. So I’ve been quiet here, but wanted to pop in to post the bag I made for Indianapolis International Film Festival’s silent auction and Oscar viewing party this Sunday, February 24th at…

  • Do Scary Stuff

    I am not an adventurous type, but I really wish I were. I see the (made up) repercussions of things well before I attempt anything, harmless or otherwise. It’s always been that way. Get a tattoo, get disowned by my parents. Have fun like most high school students, get my father fired because someone he…