Continuing with the apron theme, I thought I would share this cupcake and polka dot one with you today. There's a story to tell about this apron. It's a bit of a blast from the past. This unique apron was originally featured in a Brother Foot of the Month post back in 2016. It's a fun apron to make with wipe clean fabric. We'll talk more about fabric options later in this post. If you'd like to make one like this, you'll find the full instruction file I created for this project on the www.brothersews website, inside the Brother Foot of the Month archives. Just click on the apron image to read or download the file.

If you're not familiar with Brother Foot of the Month projects, I contribute these tutorials on a regular basis. FOM as I call it, is now posted on the official Brother blog called Stitching Sewcial. Recently, FOM had a title change to Accessory Spotlight. Hope I haven't confused you with titles and websites! Suffice it to say that I've been creating these foot of the month projects, monthly of course, since 2010. Within the various links and archives, you'll find lots of techniques for using various presser feet!

At the time the apron was published, Brother was celebrating a relationship with the Laura Ashley Company and I was commissioned to create a few special items with their fabric. I received a roll of pink with white polka dots and a roll of pretty pink cupcakes along with free rein to come up with samples to showcase the material.

I checked the fabric section of the Laura Ashley site today and believe it or not these two fabric coordinates are still listed there. CLICK HERE if you'd like to take a look at them. In the photo above you can see how cute these two fabrics look together. While I had sewed with some similar fabric before, I never thought about what it was called. Laura Ashley had it listed as PVC and I went with the term. Now I see that their category listing for the fabric says Oil Cloth. I think there's some confusion with these two terms, along with another similar wipe clean fabric called laminated cotton. I'll try to sort out these fabric terms in the next couple paragraphs so stick with me.

I have worked with cotton coated with clear vinyl, also known as Laminated Cotton. In fact, I've even made my own version by adding therm-o-web iron-on vinyl to the front side of cotton fabrics. In my experience, this is a great way to make your own version of a wipe clean fabric that has a smooth backing. If you haven't done this yourself, I highly suggest you give it a try! It's perfect for items like cosmetic cases, travel bags, pouches, wallets, and more! Curious about laundering this unique combination? I have washed small items treated with the afore-mentioned vinyl, it may be a little trickier with larger items because you don't want them to be wrinkled up. Keep the fabric piece as flat as you can and you should be okay. Obviously, since the top side wipes clean, laundering can be kept to a minimum and  depending on the project may be totally unnecessary. CLICK HERE and you'll find instructions for laundering coated fabric directly from therm-o-web, the manufacturer of the clear iron on vinyl.

I'm sharing this apron with you today to give you both inspiration and instructions. I think once you see how easy it is to make your own coated fabric you won't have to hunt for pretty prints in the Oil Cloth aisle of the fabric store. Yes, I switched my terminology from PVC to Oil cloth. Seems they are sometimes used together or as interchangeable terms. Technically, PVC, or polyvinyl chloride is a vinyl fabric that comes in a variety of different forms. Herculite.com is a site that provides more technical information if that interests you.  As a laminated fabric, you may think of diaper covers when you hear someone talk about PVC material.

Oil cloth material is different. It is rather stiff and has a mesh like backing. It is readily available if you do some searching online and comes in some pretty prints.

Whatever fabric you choose, this apron is easy and fun to make! Purchase wipe clean fabric or make it yourself by fusing iron-on vinyl to the front side of a cotton fabric. ​

So, at the beginning of this post I told you the apron was a Foot of the Month project. A focal point for the project was the use of the non-stick rolling foot.  It's really essential for smooth stitching on this sticky fabric. This foot is also perfect for sewing on leather and suede. You'll also find the non-stick foot in a flat, non-rolling version.

I hope you're inspired by the apron photo and the instructions linked at the beginning of this post. If you'd like to take a peek at a coordinating project, hop on over to the official Laura Ashley blog post archives. I see that they still have the napkin, napkin rings, and placemat project I submitted in September of 2016. Although you won't see my name, you will see the cupcake and polka dot fabric used in some unique ways. CLICK HERE to view the project and instructions. I think this set is just as endearing today as it was back then.

I'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments below!

By popular request, I'm sharing details and free downloads for my version of this Molly Made special apron pattern featured on a recent Brother sponsored live stream. 

Originally, this apron was published in Designs in Machine Embroidery magazine. In collaboration with Brother, the Sewing Lady design on the bib pocket, and one other design featured on the lower pocket were linked as free downloads. In addition to that, I digitized an  In-the-Hoop pocket design to help you make the perfect patch pocket for the apron bib. You'll find all the details for creating the pocket HERE.

Follow along as I outline all the detials and share the links you'll need to create a similar apron for yourself.

Let's start with the Sewing Lady Redwork design I used as a decoration for the patch pocket on the bib. Follow the path outlined below to access this design from the archives of the Brother website. 

Go to www.brothersews.com and click on the drop down arrow for Inspirations & Events. 

Next, click on the Crafting Projects tab. 

Click on the image to explore the Free pattern archives.

Fill out the form to access free downloads.

Select the Special designs tab. Click on Redwork Sewing Lady to download to your computer.

Take another look at the apron and you'll see that I used a string of redwork designs to decorate lower pocket "M" from Molly's Apron pattern. This pocket features more beautiful Brother Redwork designs! To create this pocket I cut an oversized piece of fabric and marked off lines for the pattern piece and the pocket stitching lines. I embroidered the designs, cut the pocket using the pattern piece with a modified top foldline, and finished construction of the pocket on the apron.

To access the free Brother pincushion design follow the same path as you did for the Sewing Lady but this time select from the archives of the Free Design of the Month menu shown below:

Last but not least, here is a link to instructions and free downloads for the perfect patch pocket used on the apron bib.

Click on the above image and you'll find everything you need, including an option for converting this pocket design to other machine formats. Enjoy!

By the way, you can learn more about Molly, the designer of this apron pattern HERE in an archived blog post.

Need a mid-week pick me up? Here's a new video for you to watch on my YouTube channel. This video highlights differential feed, one of my favorite features on a serger! You'll see how I serged and sewed a three tiered "broomstick" skirt.

I've scheduled this video as a Premiere event on YouTube. I thought it would be fun to have you watch it along with me at 7:00PM on Thursday May 13th. I'll be there to answer your questions and comments.

Click on the image below to watch Triple Tiered Boho Skirt  as seen on It's Sew Easy TV show 1012-1, starting on May 14 at 7:00 PM Eastern Standard time.

I would call this skirt a classic. It actually is quite historic. Along with a unique pullover blouse, this skirt style was part of the Navajo woman's wardrobe as described in Folkwear pattern 120. It was influenced by similar styles popular in the post Civil war days. They say the three tiers on the Navajo skirt represent three periods of a woman's lifetime, infancy/childhood, adulthood, and senior years.
 
​I've made several of these over the years. When selecting fabrics, you want to choose a fabric that will wrinkle. My show sample is made from a lightweight chambray, but I've used quilt cotton, and even lightweight denim in the past. Soft cottons are the best choice for a skirt that wrinkles yet falls softly on the body. I like wearing this skirt with sandals in the summer and boots in cooler months!

Look around and you'll see the "prairie look" showing up in a variety of spring and summer clothing collections. In both prairie and "boho" style garments, gathers continue to be in fashion on both bottoms and tops.

If you look closely at the strips for the skirt, you'll see how neat and even the gathers are.

​Watching this video will give you some great tips for getting nice full gathers on your serger. With differential feed and the right settings on your serger you can quickly gather fabric for a wide variety of sewing situations.

Coordinating instructions are found HERE on the It's Sew Easy TV website. 

Looking for more serger info? CLICK HERE to download a new free Let's Go Sew tip sheet titled Serging Versus Sewing.

You can CLICK HERE to watch the video. I'd love to hear from you with any comments or questions you might have. Enjoy!

Many moons ago I was interviewed by Eileen Roche for a special blog post. You can read it HERE if you like. I'm mentioning it today because the final, wrap up question she asked me was this:

​Finish the sentence:
My mother taught me . . .

My answer: 
Enough to write a book, but above all she taught me to be thankful and to stick to your core beliefs and values.

Every day, but today especially, I'm missing Mom as she has been gone for quite some time now. Being the "baby" of the family, Mother’s Day brings many cherished memories to mind. I look back and think of gifts both hand-crafted and purchased that I gave to my appreciative mom.

Sometimes it can be difficult to come up with appropriate gifts. One year I was looking to present her with something totally unique. I had already been using my embroidery machine for lots of things, so I embroidered a card with a calico cat design. My mom was a big cat lover and I have a sentimental story about a calico kitten my sister found on the playground that later came to live with us for a full 18 years. I knew she would love a three dimensional image of a cat resembling the one we adopted into the family many years before. Wanting to make the card even more special, I wrote a letter inside thanking my mom for giving me my own birthday. As you may well guess, she kept that card forever!

​If you’re looking for a last-minute card idea or a package decoration, I have one here that you may want to try. 

Click on the photo of the vase and it will take you directly to the project instructions archived on the Brother Stitching Sewcial site. You'll find a link to the free design courtesy of Brother International within the instructions.

If you're looking for a way to make greeting cards with embroidery designs I have a full, free tutorial for you HERE.

​Happy Mother's Day to all the moms out there!

I hope you'll take the time to leave a comment here and finish the sentence below:

My Mother taught me . . .