Choose My YELLOW Fabric

Continuing down the rainbow, we're going with yellow fabric this time! Isn't yellow such a happy color? It makes me smile. :-)

So, you know the drill, tell me which fabric you like best. Whichever fabric you help me pick (I'll choose whichever gets the most votes), I'm going to have to use it ALL up...that means NO leftover scraps like I usually have. Most of what I make will likely end up for sale in my Etsy shop.

Once I've used it all up, I'll choose something I made with the chosen fabric to give away! Here are this week's fabric choices:


Click on the image for a closer look! I've included a quarter to give you some sense of scale.

The first is a mustardy yellow scroll, the second reminds me of sunshine, like little suns peeking out over each other, and the third is a kind of icy lemon-lime damask. There's about a yard of each.

All you need to do to enter the giveaway is:
*Leave a comment with your VOTE on which fabric I should use up this week or which one is your favorite, and

*Include an EMAIL ADDRESS where I can contact you should you win, (US residents only, sorry!). You can do this either by

1. Making sure your email is available through your blogger profile. (See here for help with that)


2. Leaving your email address in your comment.


3. Emailing me at mllevaleur (at) hotmail (dot) com with your email address, subject line "Giveaway email"

If I can't find a way to contact you, I'll just have to pick someone else, so make sure to do one of the above! :-)

I'll choose the winner randomly from among those who voted for the winning fabric, since I'd hate to send someone an item made from a fabric they don't love!

Please submit your vote before Saturday evening at midnight (central time). I'll update this post with the winner on Sunday, and then get to work! Check back at the latest on Friday to see what I've made, and of course to see who has won the giveaway and what they won!

Choose my fabric! :-)

UPDATE: Looks like #1 is our winner! I'll use it up by Friday, and announce the winner of the giveaway when I post what I've made.

Thanks for your votes, everyone!

Orange Fabric Creations and Giveaway Winner

Running a little behind this week, it's been crazy! But I finally managed to use up all the orange damask fabric. First, the giveaway item...


A plastic grocery bag dispenser!


I love the idea of taking things that usually aren't so pretty, and making them pretty. :-) What better excuse to hang some bright and happy fabric in your kitchen than a grocery bag dispenser? Lovely AND functional, my favorite combination!


Don't have plastic grocery bags around? This can be used for many other things as well: towels, tissue paper, even diapars.


I made another one with some orange poppy fabric, which is up for sale in my Etsy shop.



This fabric was just so happy and cheery, combined with the yellow polkadot fabric it reminded me of citrus and sunshine...which reminded me of a kitchen...



Which, of course, meant I had to make an apron. ;-)


It's up for sale in my Etsy shop here.


Finally, while the leftover scraps were mostly too small for tissue holders, I still didn't want to throw them away and so I made some fabric covered cards!


They are also for sale in my Etsy shop!



Now for the giveaway winner....

Regina!! Congrats on the win, I'll be emailing you shortly to get your shipping info. :-)

Thanks everyone, I'll be posting the next round of fabrics in just a little while!

SMS Giveaway Winner!!

Are your fingers as exhausted as mine are from clicking and clicking and clicking through all the giveaways? WOW!! First I just want to say THANK YOU so much to everyone who visited my blog, and all your lovely comments! It was like Christmas opening my email and seeing my inbox flooded. Thanks as well to all those who are new followers, whether of the blog, on facebook, or on Etsy! I have loved browsing all of your own blogs and Etsy shops, I'm just amazed at the talent out there. :-)

Ok, down to business! I compiled a list in a spreadsheet with all of your names listed chronologically. I had a few people I needed to incorporate who wanted to enter but couldn't comment here, so added them in as well, and then I put random.org to work...and it gave me the magic number 235!

Which led me to Cass, who said:
I love the look of the Victorian style apron, but the fabric of the Flouncy Full Apron is so gorgeous that it is the one that gets my vote. :)
You do beautiful work. I'll be having a browse of the rest of your blog soon.
Have a wonderful day!
Cass

Thank you so much, and CONGRATS!!!! I'll be emailing you shortly to get your address so I can ship the Full Flouncy apron to you. :-)

What will happen to the other 2 aprons, you ask? The good news is, if you can't live without one of them they are listed in my Etsy shop, so they could still be yours!

Here's the Regency Inspired Apron, and here is the Milkmaid Apron, which I've named Victorian Rose.

I got so much wonderful feedback from y'all, I will definitely be making more of both of these in the future.

I had a few questions in the comments that I wanted to answer.

A couple people wondered about sizing.
One thing I love about my Regency Inspired apron design is that it is completely, totally adjustable. The ties cross in the back, and then run through D-rings that can be tightened or loosened right under the bust at the empire waist, which means it will perfectly comform to your bust size whatever it is. I'm quite large-chested myself so I'm very aware of the need for such adjustments, especially with empire waists!

As for my other aprons, in general I tend to make them a little larger in the waist than a lot of other aprons I've seen out there (usually between 24-28 inches rather than 20), partly because I'm a little larger in the waist and I tend to make what fits me! I also always try to make sure my ties are nice and long. But I have also made plus sized aprons upon request in the past, for even more extra coverage.

GlendaJune33 wanted to know, "Do you ever make matching aprons for mother and daughter?"
And the answer to that is YES, I have made several matching aprons for Moms and daughters in the past. These are usually made upon request, here are a few examples:

This fun and playful flouncy apron set was for a plus sized mama and her daughter.

This was another mother/daughter flouncy set, with cupcakes!

I've even made matching aprons for a whole family!

Finally, Katie asked, "Do you offer patterns?"
...which made me chuckle considering my strange phobia of patterns! ;-) I'm slowly working on it, though!

Since I'm not really a regular user of patterns, I've yet to really make my own. I kind of just work it out organically as I go. I do have a general idea of the shapes I need, and how they'll hang, but often I grab some fabric and start pinning it on my dress form trying to figure out what I want. I usually just kind of remember if I want to recreate it.

The truth is, I'm terribly lazy!! I just want to grab some fabric and pleat it or cut it and be done with it, for some reason the idea of using patterns seems much more complicated to me, so that's why it doesn't even really occur to me to make a pattern for my own designs!

But, who knows, maybe some day in the future I'll pick one of my designs and put together a tutorial of sorts. :-)

Again, thank you all so much, I had a blast this week! Don't forget I'm doing a weekly giveaway series right now called the Great Fabric Destash Challenge. I should be posting my ORANGE creations later today, along with the winner of that giveaway, and I'll be posting the new set of fabrics you can help me choose from tomorrow, so stay tuned!

May Giveaway Day

Bienvenue! Welcome to all my visitors today, new and old! I'm so excited to participate in my first Sew, Mama, Sew giveaway day.

My name is Stephanie, and I'm fairly obsessed with gorgeous fabrics which inspire me and give me the itch to make something pretty. My most common use of fabric is to make aprons, and so that is what I decided to give away today.

Then I had to decide which style apron to give away...and I couldn't! So, I decided to let you choose.

My aprons are a little bit different than most, in that I often use the fashion of specific time periods as inspiration for them. The truth is, I never outgrew wanting to play dress-up! So, I see an apron as both a functional, practical aid, but also a quick and easy way to play dress up for a while, even if you're wearing jeans underneath. ;-)

The first apron I ever designed was inspired by the empire waists of the Regency era. If I had a signature apron, this would likely be it! Here I am modeling one of the very first ones I made, so you can see the criss cross back and how it looks on:


And this navy striped Regency Inspired apron is one of the three the giveaway winner can choose from!




Another time period I absolutely adore is the Victorian era, all that fabric so stunningly draped and pleated. LOVE! I played around with some Victorian aprons, but a while back I designed what I called the Milkmaid apron which I think also fits in the victorian category with the overskirt and all. I modified it a bit this time, adding a drop waist, but the cool thing about this one is it has two totally different looks.

First, there's a fun super-full skirted half apron.


But just for kicks, look closely and you'll see some buttons and loops...


to create a kind of bustly, drapey front!


Peek-a-boo! Yes, this is a double layered apron with its own sort of ruffled petticoat underneath.



Isn't it fun? And I just love these fabrics. There's also a pocket...


This is the second of the three choices the lucky winner could choose.

Finally, because I know not everyone is as into antique fashions as I am, I'm offering as the third of the choices one of my more modern designs, what I call the flouncy full apron. Simple and chic!





So if you'd like to enter to win one of these aprons, please leave a comment with:

1. Which apron you like best (1. Regency Inspired Apron 2. Milkmaid Apron 3. Flouncy Full Apron)
2. Your email address (Either in your profile or in the comment, as long as I can find it! If I can't I'm going to have to pick another winner so make sure it's somewhere!)

Entries will be accepted through Wednesday, and on Thursday I'll announce the winner and contact them by email. I will ship to you wherever you are in the world, so everyone is welcome to enter.

Just FYI, I'm currently doing a weekly giveaway series, asking people to help me choose fabrics to use up and then I give away an item made with the chosen fabric. :-) It's a GREAT way to use up my stash! Check it out if you're interested, and if you're on facebook you can follow my facebook page where I post reminders about the weekly giveaway contest so you can enter.

And if you should fall in love with any of my designs and don't end up winning, I do sell them in my Etsy shop! Custom orders are always welcome. Also, whichever 2 aprons don't get chosen by the winner will be up for sale in my shop once the giveaway is over!

Well I think that about does it. I'm so thrilled you stopped by, and I can't wait to check out the other amazing blogs doing giveaways today! Bonne chance!!

Update: Thank you SO MUCH for the wonderful comments and feedback, I'm just blown away by the overwhelming response. Please check back tomorrow morning to find out who the lucky winner is! :-)

Choose My ORANGE Fabric

Ok, we're going down the rainbow now! I have to admit, I had to cheat a little this time because I really don't have that much orange fabric, it's just not a color I usually gravitate towards. So one of my fabrics has orange in it, but is not necessarily primarily orange.

That being said, tell me which fabric you like best. Whichever fabric you help me pick (I'll choose whichever gets the most votes), I'm going to have to use it ALL up...that means NO leftover scraps like I usually have. Most of what I make will likely end up for sale in my Etsy shop.

Once I've used it all up, I'll choose something I made with the chosen fabric to give away! Here are this week's fabric choices:


Click on the image for a closer look! I've included a quarter to give you some sense of scale (thanks to Cynthia for the suggestion!)

The first is my "cheat," a coppery orange damask on a teal background. This combo reminds me a bit of oxidized copper! I think I have about a yard, maybe a bit less, of this one. The second is a smaller print, maroon curly cues on an orange background, of which I have about 2 yards. The third is a true orange damask, the lighter part is creamy, almost yellow (which is hard to see in the pics.) I have one yard of this one.

All you need to do to enter the giveaway is:
*Leave a comment with your VOTE on which fabric I should use up this week or which one is your favorite, and

*Include an EMAIL ADDRESS where I can contact you should you win, (US residents only, sorry!). You can do this either by

1. Making sure your email is available through your blogger profile. (See here for help with that)


2. Leaving your email address in your comment.


3. Emailing me at mllevaleur (at) hotmail (dot) com with your email address, subject line "Giveaway email"

If I can't find a way to contact you, I'll just have to pick someone else, so make sure to do one of the above! :-)

I'll choose the winner randomly from among those who voted for the winning fabric, since I'd hate to send someone an item made from a fabric they don't love!

Please submit your vote before Saturday evening at midnight (central time). I'll update this post with the winner on Sunday, and then get to work! Check back at the latest on Friday to see what I've made, and of course to see who has won the giveaway and what they won!

Go!

UPDATE: And with a good 3/4 of the vote, #3 is our winner! I'll use it up by Friday, and announce the winner of the giveaway when I post what I've made.

Also keep a look out for a bonus giveaway this week, as I'm participating in Sew, Mama, Sew's May Giveaway Day. This one will be open to international readers as well! How exciting! :-)

Thanks for your votes, everyone!

Pink Fabric Creations & Giveaway Winner!

Alright, this week's pink fabric is all used up. :-)

First, the giveaway item I've chosen...voila!


This is an inspiration board, a place where you can stick photos of friends and family, pictures of things that inspire you, pieces of lace, ribbon, fabric, dried flowers, perhaps some antique brooches you have lying around for a bit of bling? ;-)

I have one in my sewing room and I love having a place to stick whatever is on my mind lately, whatever is calling my name.



Hopefully the winner enjoys it, I know it's a bit of a gamble as things like this aren't always for everyone...but it can always be given as a gift if nothing else!

Of course, before announcing the winner we'll take a look at everything else I made with this lovely pink fabric.

With summer coming up people may be making travel plans, and so with most of the fabric I made a set of two shoe bags!


These are great to keep your clothes protected in your suitcase. I lined it with a great black and white floral from my stash which kind of gave me a Liberty of London vibe. LOVED the combination of these fabrics together!


They can also be used as on-the-go laundry bags while travelling. Or a lingerie bag...or if you aren't travelling anywhere, they make great reusable gift bags as well!


These are available in my Etsy shop here.

Next I made some tissue holders.


I used the same fabric for the inside of these as well, love that combo.


These are up for sale in my Etsy shop here.

Finally, I made some fabric flower clips with the last remnants of the fabric.


These can be worn in your hair, or on your purse or bag...anywhere you can clip it works!


These are also available in my Etsy shop.

And now for the giveaway winner...

Kristi!! Congrats on the win, I'll be emailing you shortly to get your shipping info. :-)

Thanks everyone, I'll be posting the next round of fabrics at midnight tonight so keep an eye out.

Choose My PINK Fabric

Sorry for the delay, Blogger was having issues there for a while! :-) Here is the next installment of Choose My Fabric, we're going PINK this time! I could have gone straight to orange (following rainbow colors), but I have so much pink fabric I definitely needed to include it.

So tell me which fabric you like best. Whichever fabric you help me pick (I'll choose whichever gets the most votes), I'm going to have to use it ALL up...that means NO leftover scraps like I usually have. Most of what I make will likely end up for sale in my Etsy shop.

Once I've used it all up, I'll choose something I made with the chosen fabric to give away! Here are this week's fabric choices:


Click on the image for a closer look!

The first is a black and pink floral on a baby pink background, the second is a large pink and cream check, and the third is a pink and red floral on a deep pink background, the fabric is very light, almost sheer. I have about 1 yard of each of these.

All you need to do to enter the giveaway is:
*Leave a comment with your VOTE on which fabric I should use up this week or which one is your favorite, and

*Include an EMAIL ADDRESS where I can contact you should you win, (US residents only, sorry!). You can do this either by

1. Making sure your email is available through your blogger profile. (See here for help with that)


2. Leaving your email address in your comment.


3. Emailing me at mllevaleur (at) hotmail (dot) com with your email address, subject line "Giveaway email"

If I can't find a way to contact you, I'll just have to pick someone else, so make sure to do one of the above! :-)

I'll choose the winner randomly from among those who voted for the winning fabric, since I'd hate to send someone an item made from a fabric they don't love!

Please submit your vote before Saturday evening at midnight (central time). I'll update this post with the winner on Sunday, and then get to work! Check back at the latest on Friday to see what I've made, and of course to see who has won the giveaway and what they won!

Alright, have at it!

UPDATE: The winner is clearly #1 this week! I'll use it up by Friday, and announce the winner of the giveaway when I post what I've made. Thanks for your votes, everyone!

Berry Fabric Creations & Giveaway Winner!

I'm done, I've used it all up!!

First up, the item I've chosen as the giveaway...

TA DA!!


It's a pleated wristlet clutch adorned with a flower. Isn't it cute? I just love those pleats and how the flower, made with a cream colored toile, pops against the berry fabric. In the middle of the flower I've sewn on some pretty beads...


The inside is lined with the same cream toile as the flower.


Hope the winner likes it!


Before I announce the winner, though, I'm going to show what else I made. (I know I'm cruel!)

Care to guess what's next?


I had to make an apron, of course, but instead of using the berry fabric as the main fabric, I used it as the accent. I used the same red polkadot as on the clutch for the main body:




I decided to cut the berry fabric up into strips and sew on some fun ruffles, I love the result!


It's up for sale in my Etsy shop here!

And finally, with the last of the berry fabric (which wasn't much!) I made some tissue holders. This is the most common way I use up those small fabric scraps that I can't bear to toss.


I used the same red polkadot fabric for the inside (I just love a surprise fabric inside, don't you?)


These two are also up in my Etsy shop here!

And now to announce the winner of the giveaway! For the sake of fairness, I counted up the number of votes for the berry fabric, numbered the posts chronologically and then used random.org to pick the winning number. I have to tell you that the first 2 choices I couldn't find an email or way to contact, so I just went with the first one that I could contact! Sorry, be sure to leave your contact info next time if you didn't this time.

And the winner is...*drumroll*...T.L.!!

The very first poster, how crazy is that? Random.org gave me #1, though, so that's what I went with. :-) Congrats T.L.! Watch for a message from me if you haven't seen it already so I can get your US mailing address.

Thanks so much to everyone for participating, and keep an eye out for the next Choose My Fabric post coming up on Friday for another chance to win!

Choose My RED Fabric

Alright, here it is! The first Choose My Fabric post for my Great Fabric Destash Challenge.

As I explained here, I want to hear from you which of the fabrics below you think I should use up! Which one is your favorite? Whichever fabric you help me pick (I'll choose whichever gets the most votes), I'm going to have to use it ALL up...that means NO leftover scraps like I usually have. Most of what I make will likely end up for sale in my Etsy shop.

Once I've used it all up, I'll choose something I made with the chosen fabric to give away! Here are this week's fabric choices, all fabrics that are red and natural/cream colored.


Click on the image for a closer look!

The first is a deep red damask on a natural background, of which I have about 2 yards. The second is a berry fabric on a cream background, I have about 1/2 a yard of this. The third is a very large stripe made up of the print you see on a natural background, it's just asking to be made into some kind of border fabric! I have about 2 yards of this one.

All you need to do to enter the giveaway is leave a comment with your VOTE on which fabric I should use up this week or which one is your favorite, and an EMAIL ADDRESS where I can contact you. (US residents only, sorry!)

**Please make sure I can find your email through your blog profile (see here for instructions), otherwise please leave your email address in the comments along with your vote...you can use this format [mllevaleur at hotmail dot com] if you don't want to have it show up as a link. If you get chosen and I don't have a way to contact you, I may have to just pick again. Thanks!**

I'll choose the winner randomly from among those who voted for the winning fabric, since I'd hate to send someone an item made from a fabric they don't love!

Please submit your vote before Saturday evening at midnight (central time). I'll update this post with the winner on Sunday, and then get to work! Check back at the latest on Friday to see what I've made, and of course to see who has won the giveaway and what they won!

I'm so excited!! Ready? Set? Go!!

UPDATE: And the winning fabric IS #2, the berry fabric...by ONE vote, phew, that was close! :-) I'll use it up by Friday, and announce the winner of the giveaway when I post what I've made. Thanks for your votes, time for me to get to work!