Sew All 26: Wrap Up!

It was so interesting to round up all these photos.  I definitely have my favorites, but I didn't realize how much I really stick to a color palate until I rounded all these photos up from the beginning of the school year.  

I'm deciding whether or not I need to branch out and so more blues and perhaps a bit more yellow and red,

Or if this is just a good representation of my aesthetic. Thoughts?

Either way, I loved doing this series through the whole alphabet.  Well.  Minus R.  (Remember? That was my get-out-of-jail-free card.)  Recently, when Divine and I were in Utah, I was explaining to someone what Sew All 26 was.  She said, "so, it's like a is for apple, b is for bear..." I had to interrupt her and felt slightly defensive.

I wanted her to know that this was more like an art project than a cutesy...whatever.  Divine happened to be wearing her M outfit, including her bow tie, so I had a visual.  Even though I'm wrapping this up (we will see if there will be subsequent seasons!), I find myself continually thinking of letters that would work for Sew All 26.

It's a bit addictive.  An addiction that I don't want to break.  I DO want a bit of a break from the stress of sewing something every single week with a deadline, but I have some other things that I'd like so help see to fruition in this space, but I think Sew All 26 will always be in the back (or middle, or front!) of my mind.

I've loved all those who participated, both the guest bloggers and those of you who have linked to your projects.

I feel like I need to have virtual fireworks to end this! Kaboom! Pow!

Sew All 26: Z

Did you think I dropped off the face of the earth? ;) I had the incredible opportunity to teach my women's Coastal Curtsy Skirt tutorial at SNAP! conference and I look forward to sharing my experience, but I've been informed that my blog has been disappointingly stagnant of late. I'm here to remedy that and share my final Sew All 26 post which has already been enjoyed several times by the sweet recipient.  

My sweet Pearl.  My large-hearted, red-headed girl of 11 years.  I sat down after my Y project (which might be one of my all time favorites) and jotted down how many times I made something for each one of my kids.  Pearl came up short and she was thrilled when I told her she was next.

The thing about Pearl is she wants something that is non fussy.  She doesn't want bows and ruffles and multiple pieces.  She can't worry about wrinkles when we ride our bikes.  And, she's gotta have a quick exit for post-church change.

I drafted the dress from one of her t-shirts and the neck was eyeballed and turned out too low for comfort (whoops!), so I added a little inset.

But, it's easy on, easy off, no ironing needed.  All right up Pearl's alley.

Pearl has been told from day one that her hair color is covetable, that women pay hundreds to try to get that color.  

She decided that she wanted to grow her hair long enough so she could still pull it back into a ponytail, but also long enough to be able to donate to Locks of Love.  She researched what we needed to do, and how we needed to do it and had me cut close to a foot of her lovely locks.

Then she said she just wanted to keep growing her hair out and cutting it and donating it over and over again to help other children. Heart of gold, this one.

So, this concludes the first Sew All 26!  If you have a Z inspired project, leave a link in the comments (since my inlinkz subscription has expired, oops!)  I will do a recap and round-up of your projects to wrap it up.  I've been so impressed by so many of your alphabet projects as you've followed along. 

Sew All 26: Z ||Craftiness is Not Optional||

Final week! Final week! Yes, we are on Z. How many letters were you able to sew?  I got 25 out of 26 ;)  I might go back and do my favorite letters again. 

Today is a special treat.  We have Jess of Craftiness is Not Optional. She squeezed 4 Zs out of this.  Zowie! So very impressive.  You'll want to see the rest of her incredible creation. Hop on over!

Sew All 26: Y

We took a quick trip to New York last week to celebrate my dad's 60th birthday with 5 of the 6 kids able to show up.  It was pure heaven.  We got home to a bunch of sick kids, including strep, which then was passed on to me.  Thus, the tardiness of this post.  

But!  I found this linen in New York at theeeee best linen store.  Gray Line Linen.  My mom, my sister Ann, and I spent much of our precious NY time there, and even more of our precious dollars.  

This particular linen was only $5/yard because it was on clearance. (insert shocked-face emoticon)  

Yarn was an obvious choice for Y, but then I sat down with our dictionary (does anyone even use a dictionary anymore, or do we just use our phones to look up words?) and read the entire Y section.  I came across yolk and this dress idea was immediately hatched.

The chickens are stamped using fabric ink and then I hand-stitching the circle appliqué and added a tiny pinch of wool stuffing to make it 3 dimensional.

Then I thought it'd be fun to repeat the motif around the neckline, with a bit of scalloping in the same color.  The yarn is something I've had for years, just waiting for the perfect project to be used.  It's a Martha Stewart 

It's a self-drafted pattern, which works well for Azure because she's such a little toothpick.  A spicy toothpick, though.  Make no mistake about her size, for she can hold her own and make herself heard when need be. Which is all the time. ;)  

Everyone needs a bit of spice in their family dynamics, right?

An InLinkz Link-up

Sew All 26: X ||Falafel and the Bee||

When I made the call for X entries I was so pleased when Michelle of Falafel and the Bee responded with this amazing creation!

 She said it was kind of stretching the theme, but stretching is always a good thing, right?  Makes us more limber ;)  Hop on over to her blog to see where her X is!

Sew All 26: X ||Ann Jones||

A sister is someone you can text and ask if she happens to have a sewing project that has to do with the letter X because nobody signed up for that week, and when you have a sister like I do, she will say that she happens to almost have her quilt finished that has an eXoskeleton on it.

I am so pleased to be able to share with you this piece of art.  Ann has been working on and off for 2 years...ALL BY HAND!   Go over and see it.  Now!

Sew All 26: X & Pattern Anthology

We've had a whole bunch of rain here lately.  Last night was especially stormy.  There was just enough lightening to light up the room, but not close enough to bring the baby dills running from their slumber.  About 11 Mississippi's away.  And the whole garden is vibrant and sprouting.  Rain is good.

Except when you're trying to take photos for a post, in which case a few cloudy days makes a simple task difficult.  It finally stopped this morning so I could get some photos of my new Parisian top from the new women's collection Pattern Anthology just released!  They've got 4 women's tops "Just add jeans" (or sequined stretch pants, as the case may be ;)

It sewed up like a dream.  I wondered if there would be an issue using a woven collar with the knit shirt, but it not only works, it fits like a glove.

The only changes I made were to make it a high-low hemline instead of a band and I cinched up the arm bands with a bit of the woven fabric.

Nice job, ladies on a great collection release!  Pattern Anthology.  Go.  You'll want to check out all the designs.  And then sew up half a dozen of each.  SO comfy.

Earrings-Jacaranda Designs; Pants-La Cité from Zulily; Bracelets-made by me; Boots from New York.

An InLinkz Link-up

Sew All 26: W

Happy St. Patrick's Day!  Have you been pinched yet?  I have a bunch of little munchkins around here with a bunch of little pinchers, so I rolled out of bed to find anything green to adorn. ;)

I have lots of mottos.  Like, When all else fails, sneak into the closet and eat the rest of the girl scout cookies before anyone catches you.  Or, If worse comes to worse, just sprinkle cheese or glitter on it, depending on the appropriateness of the situation.  I should write a book. A book of mottos by Katy Dill.

My latest motto is, When in doubt, make a circle skirt. Obviously there was no doubt here.  Pencil all the way. Actually, I bought this fabric with the intent to make a circle skirt, but as I began the beading (before I cut it out) I realized that it's just really heavy fabric.  I'd be sweating and weighted down trying to manage the whole 2 yards of it.

I bought it at an upholstery shop that was changing locations for a nice discount.  I kind of get giddy with home dec fabrics.  Just ask...well, you could ask Drummer, because he's usually the one with me, but I'm sure my mom and my sister could vouch for such giddiness. 

I had planned to bead every single moth (butterfly?), but after several hours on one, I figured I probably just ought to sew it up and maybe work on it a bug at a time, here and there (read: probably never).  But I do like those googley eyes staring up at me.

I have very few pencil skirts in my wardrobe because they take so much more fitting than a circle skirt.  I am not symmetrical, so it's not a case of taking my measurements and sewing something up.  In fact, my waist and hip measurements are 2 sizes apart, so it's always a guess as to how a pattern is going to fit.  More information that you probably wanted to know. ;)

Oh, and there's a backside, too.  This is my did you get a picture yet? look.  I didn't match the side seams because the repeat in the pattern was about every yard, but I did match the back seam.  You know.  In case anyone looks. ;)

An InLinkz Link-up

Sew All 26: X ||Mad Mim||

If you've been sewing along and happen to be ahead, I've got a space open next week for X week.  Email me (nobigdillblog@gmail.com) with your submission for a chance to have your project featured on my blog!

Meanwhile, we have Mim of Mad Mim!  And apparently great minds think alike ;), because we both had the same idea for W is for....  Go take a look!

Sew All 26: W ||La Inglesita||

So excited to share my first W week guest.  Her details are wonderful.

María from La Inglesita is sharing her project that you won't want to miss over on her delightful blog today (she rainbowtizes, too).  She has subtle cleverness from top to bottom, inside to out on what she's created.  I'd like a set for Drummer.  Go check it out!

Sew All 26: U & V

Hey!  Lookee here!  I'm all caught up!  The brilliance of doing U is for upholstery and V is for velvet came to me in the shower this morning, when I got the two weeks mixed up, and also where many of my great ideas come. The shower and while I'm trying to go to sleep at night.  My quiet moments, I guess, is the common denominator.  

I don't know what it is, but I love to put ruffles around the neckline.  Maybe it's my signature?  Or maybe it's because I love to use my ruffling foot because it looks so hard core and it sounds like something is breaking, but really, it's just putting these perfectly placed pleats in the fabric with little effort on my part.  Yes.  That's probably it.  Have you ever used one?  If not, I think a tutorial is in order.

The fabric is a curtain panel that my sister-in-law gave me when they were getting ready to move, practically giving away their entire earthly possessions.  I lucked out with a few bits of fabric, two of which were these curtain panels: one in green and one in red.  Fortunately they are big enough to make a whole dress for a little person! (Thanks, Olivia!)

Originally, I wanted to add a matching green collar but didn't have fabric that was the same color, so that's when I decided to add another color to the scheme.  Yellow, which happens to be Olive's favorite color. And when I didn't have the proper color in the proper weight, I decided to just do ruffles.  Also, I made the tiny piping, but ran out of it for the bodice in the back and was too lazy to make more.  So it's just in the front. I didn't think Olive would really care. ;)

(Olive loved the fuzzy velvet.)

Sometimes my creative process lends more to the convenience of what I have on hand than the design I have in my head.  And apparently I tend to have a lot of light-weight fabric on hand.  So, perhaps it's not so much my signature as my fall-back?  ;)

I used the edge of the curtain panel with the sewn-in plastic stabilizer for the hem of the skirt so it would flare out a bit. We girls like a bit of flare.

An InLinkz Link-up