Sewing: Ruffled, Short Sleeve, Dress Shirt - Renfrew Pattern

So I made another Renfrew top , you can see my first one here, and I'm sad to say I'm not in love with how this one turned out. It's mainly my fault and all things I did wrong which is why I don't like it as much as my first version. Firstly, this pattern calls for stretchy knit fabric, the fabric for this shirt is more of a chiffon/dress shirt material. Now that would've been fine to use still, but I should've cut out my pieces one size up in order to make up for the lack of stretch. Knit fabrics have a lot of stretch and are more accepting of things like chests, and round arms, whereas the chiffon material is not. So this is a little tight over the chest area which then pulls on the neckline and arms when I have it on. Additionally because it was too tight in the arms I opened them up at the armpit area so they're more like cap sleeves instead of full short sleeves. One thing I am pleased with is the fact that I chose to add a pleated neckline instead of just a plain neckline. It's hard to see from the picture in the right, but I think you can make it out a little bit. It made the shirt seem more dressy to me and I wanted to see if I could do it, and I like that I did it that way. I'm not sure how much wear I'll give this shirt, unless I lose a boob or two it's not that comfortable to wear. I might see if a friend wants it instead. I still have two more pieces of (knit!) fabric and two more shirts to make: a 3/4 length v-neck and a long sleeve cowl neck. You sew, you learn.

So I made another Renfrew top , you can see my first one here, and I'm sad to say I'm not in love with how this one turned out. It's mainly my fault and all things I did wrong which is why I don't like it as much as my first version. Firstly, this pattern calls for stretchy knit fabric, the fabric for this shirt is more of a chiffon/dress shirt material. Now that would've been fine to use still, but I should've cut out my pieces one size up in order to make up for the lack of stretch. Knit fabrics have a lot of stretch and are more accepting of things like chests, and round arms, whereas the chiffon material is not. So this is a little tight over the chest area which then pulls on the neckline and arms when I have it on. Additionally because it was too tight in the arms I opened them up at the armpit area so they're more like cap sleeves instead of full short sleeves. One thing I am pleased with is the fact that I chose to add a pleated neckline instead of just a plain neckline. It's hard to see from the picture in the right, but I think you can make it out a little bit. It made the shirt seem more dressy to me and I wanted to see if I could do it, and I like that I did it that way. I'm not sure how much wear I'll give this shirt, unless I lose a boob or two it's not that comfortable to wear. I might see if a friend wants it instead. I still have two more pieces of (knit!) fabric and two more shirts to make: a 3/4 length v-neck and a long sleeve cowl neck. You sew, you learn.

Crochet Away: Fuzzy Braided Headband

  I love these braided headbands, they're so simple to make & they look super cute
I decided to make another crocheted braided headband, seeing as how I wasn't that pleased with the way the first one came out (way too bulky, and you couldn't see the individual crocheted strands). I used this white fuzzy yarn that was a bit less bulky and this thing came out perfectly. I think I'd love it even more if I used a yarn that didn't have any fuzz, but overall I'm pleased. This took me less than an hour to make, all it is a couple rows of single crochet stitches about 70 inches in length. The hardest part is the weaving of your strand when you're finished crocheting the length and width you want. Check out the original pattern here at Love City Blog.

  I love these braided headbands, they're so simple to make & they look super cute
I decided to make another crocheted braided headband, seeing as how I wasn't that pleased with the way the first one came out (way too bulky, and you couldn't see the individual crocheted strands). I used this white fuzzy yarn that was a bit less bulky and this thing came out perfectly. I think I'd love it even more if I used a yarn that didn't have any fuzz, but overall I'm pleased. This took me less than an hour to make, all it is a couple rows of single crochet stitches about 70 inches in length. The hardest part is the weaving of your strand when you're finished crocheting the length and width you want. Check out the original pattern here at Love City Blog.

Sewing: Long Sleeved, Scoop Neck Renfrew Top

The Sewaholic Renfrew Pattern - $15.98                          My first me made shirt!

This past summer I had asked for the Renfrew Pattern for my birthday, and I was very happy when I received it from my grandma! This pattern is made buy the same lady who makes the Minoru Jacket Pattern.  When I was home over Christmas we took a trip over to this awesome fabric store in Chicago, Textile Discount Outlet, and got some fabric for me to finally sew some tops. I was having a hard time finding fabric that I liked at my JoAnn's, and I haven't really gotten on board with buying fabric online yet. I like seeing and feeling the fabric first, but I know plenty of people who buy online or off of Etsy. One of the fabrics I bought was this grey sweatshirt cotton that I thought would be as comfy as a sweatshirt but more fitted than a normal sweatshirt is. To see more pictures and find out about how easy this pattern was click the link below.

The Sewaholic Renfrew Pattern - $15.98                          My first me made shirt!

This past summer I had asked for the Renfrew Pattern for my birthday, and I was very happy when I received it from my grandma! This pattern is made buy the same lady who makes the Minoru Jacket Pattern.  When I was home over Christmas we took a trip over to this awesome fabric store in Chicago, Textile Discount Outlet, and got some fabric for me to finally sew some tops. I was having a hard time finding fabric that I liked at my JoAnn's, and I haven't really gotten on board with buying fabric online yet. I like seeing and feeling the fabric first, but I know plenty of people who buy online or off of Etsy. One of the fabrics I bought was this grey sweatshirt cotton that I thought would be as comfy as a sweatshirt but more fitted than a normal sweatshirt is. To see more pictures and find out about how easy this pattern was click the link below.

Peek into: My New Desk

My brand spanking new Galant Desk from Ikea - $210.00

I went down to Ikea the other day with the purpose of getting this desk with a glass black top. I was also planning on getting a swivel chair, but they only had the chair in white and since I was getting the glass black top desk I wanted the chair in black mainly to match and also because I would get it filthy in a heartbeat. I didn't end up getting the chair. Fast forward to me setting up the desk and flipping it over to find out I had somehow grabbed the white glass top instead of the black glass top. Luckily I like the white glass top enough to not venture down for an exchange, the white underneath really makes it seem like the desk is illuminated from below. Not to mention the thing is huge, 63 1/2 inches x 31 1/2 inches, so not only is it long but you have a lot of depth to work with as well. I like that I can have a space for my work related things and also a space for my crafting. Click the link to see more pictures, hear more about the desk, and some future craft plans I have to tie in the filing cabinet and my side shelving unit to the appearance of the desk.

My brand spanking new Galant Desk from Ikea - $210.00

I went down to Ikea the other day with the purpose of getting this desk with a glass black top. I was also planning on getting a swivel chair, but they only had the chair in white and since I was getting the glass black top desk I wanted the chair in black mainly to match and also because I would get it filthy in a heartbeat. I didn't end up getting the chair. Fast forward to me setting up the desk and flipping it over to find out I had somehow grabbed the white glass top instead of the black glass top. Luckily I like the white glass top enough to not venture down for an exchange, the white underneath really makes it seem like the desk is illuminated from below. Not to mention the thing is huge, 63 1/2 inches x 31 1/2 inches, so not only is it long but you have a lot of depth to work with as well. I like that I can have a space for my work related things and also a space for my crafting. Click the link to see more pictures, hear more about the desk, and some future craft plans I have to tie in the filing cabinet and my side shelving unit to the appearance of the desk.

Crochet Away: Calm Cowl and Braided Headband

Calm Cowl - pattern from IndigoDOT Designs

Braided Headband - pattern from Lindsay Haynie

I made this scarf and headband for my mom, to match her Minoru jacket back in December, and now I'm sharing them with you guys. I found the patterns on Ravelry, and if you're on Ravelry feel free to find and add me - kurlyque88. Ravelry is a website dedicated to knitting and crocheting. Not only can you find patterns, some free/some not free, but you can queue your projects, mark favorites, record yarn information, buy/sell/trade yarn, and get help on the forums if something isn't going right. Both the cowl and the headband were really simple projects. If I were to make them again I'd make the cowl out of a thicker or bulkier fabric just to have it be more cozy. I'd do the opposite to the headband and make it out of a less chunky yarn. The chunkniess seems to take away some of the chicness that I liked about the original version I had seen where the braiding really stands out.

Calm Cowl - pattern from IndigoDOT Designs

Braided Headband - pattern from Lindsay Haynie

I made this scarf and headband for my mom, to match her Minoru jacket back in December, and now I'm sharing them with you guys. I found the patterns on Ravelry, and if you're on Ravelry feel free to find and add me - kurlyque88. Ravelry is a website dedicated to knitting and crocheting. Not only can you find patterns, some free/some not free, but you can queue your projects, mark favorites, record yarn information, buy/sell/trade yarn, and get help on the forums if something isn't going right. Both the cowl and the headband were really simple projects. If I were to make them again I'd make the cowl out of a thicker or bulkier fabric just to have it be more cozy. I'd do the opposite to the headband and make it out of a less chunky yarn. The chunkniess seems to take away some of the chicness that I liked about the original version I had seen where the braiding really stands out.

Cooking: New York Style Bagels courtesy of Peter Reinhart

There are few things more glorious than a freshly baked bagel to start your day

I made bagels this Friday/Saturday and I wrote it like that because it is a two day process. Thursday night I had been thinking about making bagels and I looked up some recipes early Friday morning. At first I was thinking I could whip some dough together, let it rise while I went out for a run, and then finish them up and be on my merry way. Wrong. After looking through recipes and finding out that the gold standard recipe for NY style bagels, via Peter Reinhart, has an overnight step I decided to wait until Friday evening to start them and then finish them up on Saturday. It was completely worth it. Everyone exclaimed over them and gave me more credit than I was due considering I, or rather my KitchenAid, just followed the recipe and stirred some things together. It really was an easy recipe, and you can find it after the link.

There are few things more glorious than a freshly baked bagel to start your day

I made bagels this Friday/Saturday and I wrote it like that because it is a two day process. Thursday night I had been thinking about making bagels and I looked up some recipes early Friday morning. At first I was thinking I could whip some dough together, let it rise while I went out for a run, and then finish them up and be on my merry way. Wrong. After looking through recipes and finding out that the gold standard recipe for NY style bagels, via Peter Reinhart, has an overnight step I decided to wait until Friday evening to start them and then finish them up on Saturday. It was completely worth it. Everyone exclaimed over them and gave me more credit than I was due considering I, or rather my KitchenAid, just followed the recipe and stirred some things together. It really was an easy recipe, and you can find it after the link.

The Finished Jacket: Minoru Round Two

My mom excitedly modeling her new Minoru Jacket

Now that the Christmas rush is over I have a lot of updating to do. I was so busy traveling and crocheting and sewing non-stop to finish up presents, these last two weeks before school starts up again for the semester have been really relaxing. I've done almost nothing craft wise, except make a shirt (the Sewaholic Renfrew Top ) , and upload all of the pictures of my projects to share with you guys. As you can see from the above picture I finished up the second Minoru I was planning on making. It came out perfectly, I really like the additions and changes I made to it compared to my first one, and it was very hard to part with it.

My mom excitedly modeling her new Minoru Jacket

Now that the Christmas rush is over I have a lot of updating to do. I was so busy traveling and crocheting and sewing non-stop to finish up presents, these last two weeks before school starts up again for the semester have been really relaxing. I've done almost nothing craft wise, except make a shirt (the Sewaholic Renfrew Top ) , and upload all of the pictures of my projects to share with you guys. As you can see from the above picture I finished up the second Minoru I was planning on making. It came out perfectly, I really like the additions and changes I made to it compared to my first one, and it was very hard to part with it.