This morning I decided to go to the quilt and sewing show at the Fairgrounds. It was inside of one of the airport hangers. I am not a quilter but found that it was inspiring to see some of the creative things that people are doing with fabric. At times I sew at a quilting shop down the street from my house  and the ladies there have been encouraging me to try quilting. I'm still on the fence.

 The one thing I love about sewing at the quilting shop is the company and support you get from the ladies there. They have advice that ranges from what sewing machines to buy to how to survive your teenager. But of course anytime women get together we always have opinions to share. I have to give a shout out to Ginger's Quilt Shoppe in Upland, CA. They allow you to sew in their space free of charge. You only need to bring your machine.  I found them after looking in the VOGUEpatterns Feb/March 2011 issue. The article "sew social" got me thinking that I wanted to sew with others. So I went into the quilt shop and asked if I could sew there. I ended up taking a sewing class there and met some great ladies.

But back to the Fair. Although, I was not interested in most of the quilting "stuff" they had there I ran across  a company that sold cutting mats. I was able to get a fairly large 36X60 cutting mat which included a olfa cutter(I had one but could use another) a clear ruler (also had one but you know it was a "special".  and two blocks of acrylic one with sticky stuff on the back and you use it to stabilize the ruler while you are cutting and the other is called a mat eraser, it sorta kinda erases the marks left by the cutter. (really it just smooths them back down). I paid under $100 for the set. I think the mat itself was $70.00. All in all it was a very good trip.

I just finished sewing up Simplicity 2261, Skirt pattern. I actually started it sometime in January but got frustrated with it not being as easy as I thought it would be.

 Pattern Description:  Skirt, Pant and blouse. I made the skirt

Pattern Sizing:  14-22, I cut a 22 and added 1 1/2 inches to back pattern piece

Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it? yes.

Were the instructions easy to follow?  yes

What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern?  The piecing together the pattern was confusing. I had to take the skirt apart a couple of times because I did not sew the correct piece onto the correct side. My fabric did not have a clear right and wrong side so I should have marked it first. Just be very cognizant of what you are doing.

Fabric Used:  Mystery fabric from Downtown LA. I think it may be a linen blend.

Pattern alterations or any design changes you made:  sewed as is except for the size and length adjustment. also, the skirt required darts which were not mentioned in the pattern. When I sewed it the first time easing in the waist band the skirt was awful. Instead I added three darts one on each of the side back panels and one on the back panel. I really like the fit and the length of the skirt.  Also pay attention to the pockets and how you press the edges. Any mistakes will be very evident on the skirt.

Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others?  I would recommend it. And I may sew it again, although it was frustrating at times.

Conclusion:   Love the look of the skirt; it is great for summer wear. I really like the details of the skirt, the quilting gives it character. I was just frustrated by the piecing. I thought this would be super simple to put together, but it caused a bit of frustration. But it was more than likely user error and not the pattern.

My daughter was nice enough to take some photos of me in the skirt. After taking the pictures and seeing them, I have two observations. 1. You never realize how nerve wrecking it is to see yourself on camera (I’m usually behind it) and 2. I really like this skirt. But I am not in love with the pictures of me. I will have to put on some makeup and spruce my hair up a little. ;0