I’m in love with stripes!!  They are all over the place right now!  I decided to make my own black and white striped top using the very popular pattern, New Look 6648.  Pattern Reviews “Best Of 2009-2011″ haven’t done me wrong yet. . .and this is now one of my new favorites!  The pattern for view A consists of 4 pieces (front, back, middle band and neck band).  I had the whole thing put together in about 2 hours. . .talk about instant gratification!!  It’s a nice loose fitting stretch knit top that is perfect for summer.  The only thing I’m a little disappointed in is that I didn’t have my head on straight when I cut the middle band piece.  My stripes are going horizontal on the shirt until you get to the mid band. . .then they go vertically. . .oops!!  I hope this grows on me, because I love the top otherwise.

B&W Striped Top

I’m sure I will be making more versions of this top in the near future.  I am also pretty confident that more striped pieces will be making their way into my wardrobe this summer. . .I just picked up a soft yellow/white striped jersey knit today!!

Last week I made a trip to Denver Fabrics.  I limited myself to 4 cuts of fabric. . .it was tough, but having my boyfriend there kept me in line.  I found a 3-yard precut of this beautiful stretch knit fabric for $12 and couldn’t pass it up:

Gorgeous Knit

I’ve been dying to make a maxi for a while now, and this 3-yard piece of beauty will be my first one!  I made Simplicity 3503 earlier this year in view D (the knee length halter).  I love the way it fits and the fact that it has pockets, so I decided to make it again in the maxi halter version of view C.

Neon Garden Maxi

I’m 5’9, and the length of the skirt falls perfectly for me!!  I got super lucky. . .probably should have made sure it was long enough before I cut!  In order to keep the length, I hemmed the dress by surging the end, folding it up and stitching it again.

With 75 degree weather outside, I took my new maxi for a stroll downtown with Matt.  We stopped at a new little taco cafe for lunch. . .it was delicious!   We wanted to spend some more time out in this beautiful weather, so we decided to go visit some animals at the zoo.  Just as we were walking in to the first exhibit, we stumbled upon. . .

Lion Lovin

I love the zoo!!  Happy Spring!

My once nearly topless handmade wardrobe is now getting a healthy dose of shirts!!  I found another fun knit top pattern!!  Don’t worry McCalls 6288. . .you’re still my fav, I’m just giving you a little break for now. . .I do mean little. . .seriously, it could be over tomorrow.  Butterick 5609 can also make up a cute little top, and for a mere 7/8 yard of fabric at that.  The top features a cute keyhole cutout and a lined upper half.  With the tight fit, and the lined upper half, I can get away with wearing this baby without a bra woohoo!!  Hey, I have to enjoy the few upsides that come with having little ladies.  With this perk, I may attempt the one shoulder version in view C.

Blue Keyhole Top

Also. . .

How fun huh!!  PatternReview.com is running two super fun contests at the same time!!  It’s amazing what you can make out of just one yard of fabric.  I may try a couple more patterns for this contest.  Most one-yarders make for quick and easy projects. . .I love the make-this-morning, wear-by-lunch projects!!

For the last year, this red and blue dot material has been hanging out in my stash anxiously awaiting to be given a shape.  It’s a super soft – fabric.com – clearance find. . .one of my very first.  I made Vogue 1250 in a solid a few weeks ago and loved the fit, so now I’m doing it in a print that makes me think of candy!!  Coincidentally, PatternReview.com is running a “Best Patterns Contest”, and Vogue 1250 happens to be on the list.

Gumdrop Dress

Such a cute pattern. . .I just want to eat it up!  I would like to do one more of these dresses in black for a little cocktail dress – then maybe I’ll lay off of it for a while.  Hey, at least I didn’t make McCalls 6288 again, right?

The Colorado Rockies have designated every Monday this season as Purple Monday.  A few weeks ago, my boss got me and my work buddies tickets to the Monday, April 30th game vs the Dodgers . . .we all know what this means!!!  Time to make my purple shirt!  I used what I consider to be a flawless equation to create what will be a staple in my wardrobe this season.  McCall’s 6288 + purple stretch knit from my stash = Purple Monday Top

Melissa, Me and Lindsay. . .Go Rockies!!

The picture doesn’t exactly feature my finished product, but it was the only one I got of myself wearing it. . .oops.  You can really get a good idea of the look of the top by reading my 2 previous postings. (I may be stuck on a pattern. . .hard to tell right now, but if this keeps going on I will have this top in every color!!)  We all had a super fun night, the top was a success, and the Rockies won!! Yay!

I don’t know what it is about slightly sheer fabric right now, but I’m all over it!!  This one I can get away with just wearing a nude colored bra under.  I’ve had this summer yellow knit in my stash for almost a year now. . .one of my cheap fabric.com finds.  Knits are finally comfortable for me to work with, so I’m kind of binging right now!!  I put together McCall’s 6288 view A yesterday afternoon.  Another quick project with a great fit – I’m sure I’ll be making many more of these!!

See-Thru Sunshine Top

I’m going to mess around with multiple colors on my next one. . .maybe black and purple for Rockies season.

I don’t know if it was the connotation of the name, or the slightly higher price, but something was intimidating me to the point that it took over a year of sewing for me to attempt a Vogue pattern!  After the success of my last project, I decided to follow suit and choose a pattern with 1 million+ reviews on patternreview.com (ok, maybe not a million, but there were a ton!).  Vogue 1250 was the perfect choice. . .3 pattern pieces total!!!  I used a cobalt blue stretch knit that I snagged from fabric.com for $1.95 a yard.  It’s a beautiful color, but slightly sheer, so I’ll be wearing a slip with this one.  This dress took only a couple of hours from start to finish.

Cobalt Cowl Neck Dress

Looks like I need to straighten out the top a bit, but I’m too lazy to take another photo.  You get the idea

I want to try this one again soon!

After posting this pattern/fabric combo in my “November Line-up”, I figured I’d procrastinated long enough.  It’s not like I would have been able to wear in until  now anyway.  Before diving into the project, I decided to check out what others had to say about Simplicity 3503 on PatternReview.com. . .79 reviews later. . .it’s time I make this dress!!

Blushing Marigold Dress

I’m not usually comfortable in halter tops, but I love the way this bodice fits.  Just in time for summer!!