Romance Raglan Release and a Coupon Code!

With 3 sleeve options this pattern is so versatile. This is a raglan with a new lovely romantic twist. It is also one of the first pdf patterns designed so it can be worn off the shoulder. A flattering silhouette and a waist with room to breath. It comes in a wide range of sizes (XXS-4X). You'll be wanting to make these all year long.

So many of you have been anxiously waiting for this pattern and I'm so excited to say it is officially release day today! The Romance Raglan is now available on both Craftsy and Etsy. In celebration of the release I created a 20% off coupon code for Etsy. Just type: ROMANCE in at check out. It is good for anything purchased in my shop. The price is already adjusted to the sale price on Craftsy since they do not have a coupon option. It will be on sale until Sept 16, 2015.

 

I hope you don't mind hearing "I love your shirt! Where did you get it?". ;-)

I'm having trouble narrowing down tester pics. I would use them all if I could. I just love them all!

         

Call for Pattern Testers Romance Raglan

I'm looking for testers again!

This is for a women's shirt pattern that comes in sizes XXS through size 4X. That is 10 sizes!!!! I need testers for ALL of them. So please be honest and tell me the size you need. Below is a chart of finished garment sizes. For an ideal fit the waist should be a little loose.

This pattern is a flirty swooped v-neck raglan that can be worn as an off the shoulder. I introduce to you......

As a tester you obviously get a free copy of the final pattern in all it's sizes (does not include seller's license). You also might have a picture of your finished work featured in the pdf pattern itself.

I believe this pattern would be good for a confident beginner. However I would like to know how you would classify it's difficulty level.

What is required of a tester?

1.) I need you to tell me about any issues you have with the pattern or any typos you may find.
2.) If the fit seems off I need to know what you are having an issue with.

3.) I need to know how much fabric you had to use to make this project.
4.) Did the sizing seem correct?
5.) Were the instructions easy to follow?
6.) I also would like you to provide a picture or pictures of your finished garment. Preferable you wearing your new shirt. 

I will need you to complete at least one shirt and report back to me within 1 week. It goes together quickly. You can do it.

How do you get to be a tester you ask? First be sure you can do what is required of a tester. Next follow my blog so even if you don't get picked to test this time you will still know when I'm calling for testers next time. Next send me an email at wildblumes @ gmail.com with the answers to the following questions. Please be sure to put "Pattern Tester Call" and the letter size you'd like to test in the subject line. I will ONLY be selecting testers from applicant emails. Last time I had people trying to apply via blog post, email, and facebook. It's just to difficult to try and choose testers from 3 or more different media platforms. This also helps ensure that everyone has a fair opportunity. 

1.) What is your sewing experience? (aka years/months sewing, experience working with patterns, ect.)
2.) What is you skill level?
3.) What size can you test?
4.) Do you plan to blog about it?
5.) Can you get good pictures of the shirt being worn?

Please be as honest as possible. Being a beginner doesn't mean you will be disqualified from testing. I would like to have feedback from all different skill levels.

If you aren't selected to test don't worry. The final pattern will be available soon. Hooray! Join our facebook group and you'll know as soon as it's made available for purchase. https://www.facebook.com/groups/wildblumespatterns/

As always feel free to ask questions below if you have any. 

RELEASE DAY! Felicity Flutter Top is available!

It's GO TIME!!!! The moment you have all been waiting for! The Felicity is LIVE and ready to SEW! Head on over to either Craftsy or Etsy to purchase your copy. Remember that it is on sale for $8 this week only! I've also set up a facebook group here where everyone can connect with others and share their Felicity tops.

A few things about the Felicity Flutter top. This lovely shirt is sure to become a staple in your closet with it's light airy sleeves it offers versatile comfortable wearability while also providing the comfort of a tank top. Dress it up for special occasions or down for everyday wear with your fabric choices. This is "the little black dress" of fabric patterns. BONUS! This shirt also includes a nursing option that is super simple and doesn't change the finished look.

This shirt is meant for knit fabric and designed to be fitted yet comfortable.

Flat construction makes this pattern very easy for sewers of all skill levels. This shirt goes together very fast and will quickly help you build confidence even if you've never sewn "big girl clothes".

Indie sellers you will be thrilled to know that you can purchase a selling license for the Felicity for a small one time fee of $15. For details click here for craftsy or click here for etsy.

The Felicity Flutter Top Countdown!

Let the countdown begin! The Felicity has been in testing and thanks to the enthusiastic efforts of some truly lovely testers is almost ready for release.

My testers let me know that two sizes needed some adjustments and those have already been made and final tests of the adjustments are well underway. Initially I was planning to release sometime this week but of course it's best to test again before release to make sure the adjustments work up properly. So far it looks like they are spot on this time.

I know you guys have all been very patient for the release and I want to thank you and all of my testers. Good testers are an invaluable part of the process!

The release is day will be Monday May 11th 2015! So mark your calendars and set your alarms! It will be on sale for $10 for the first week! After the initial release it will go to a standard $12. Don't forget this top also has a nursing option!

Pattern Testers Follow-Up

First I want to say thank you to everyone who applied to be a tester. You guys provided we me a great response and I am so happy so many people are excited for the release of this pattern. There were some really fantastic ladies that I would have loved to pick as testers and had to turn down simply because there were so many of you and I had to make decisions. My husband laughed at me last night because as I opened each email from those who were not picked I said "Oh no why didn't I pick her to test? She would have been great!". So truly I do hope you each reapply when I do another tester call for my next pattern release. I believe there will be many more to come and I can't wait to work with so many of you.

I was really thrilled to see that the Felicity Flutter top appealed to so many ladies of all different backgrounds, sizes, and ages. What a beautiful happy thing that was to realize.

Each one of you who sent an email should have received a reply whether you were picked or not. I do know however that I missed replying to one person. I want to apologize to her here as I do not have another way to contact her. My email sent that one message to the spam folder and when I clicked the "not spam" button it glitched and deleted the email. Thankfully that was the only email that went to spam though.

The Felicity will be released soon. I'm very excited and happy about this and I know many of you are too. Be sure to watch for the release announcement because it will be on sale for the first week before it goes to it's normal price. Happy sewing everyone!

Pattern Testers CALL

That's right you read that right. I finally did it. After many requests I decided to turn one of my self drafted patterns into a pdf for everyone to enjoy. I picked a pattern that is super flattering toward any woman's figure and as a special bonus it can also be made into a nursing top. It is all flat constructed so it's a great pattern for beginner or advanced sewers. You can easily whip one up in an afternoon. Yet it has a lovely sophisticated look. Now I need pattern testers who would like a chance to try it out. It comes in 5 sizes (XS, S, M, L, and XL). I'm looking for around 3 testers for each size.

As a tester you obviously get a free copy of the final pattern in all it's sizes (does not include seller's license). You also might have a picture of your finished work featured in the pdf pattern itself. 

What is required of a tester?

1.) I need you to tell me about any issues you have with the pattern or any typos you may find.
2.) If the fit seems off I need to know what you are having an issue with.
3.) I also need bust, waist, and hip measurements of your finished garment.
4.) I need to know how much fabric you had to use to make this project.
5.) Did the sizing seem correct?
6.) Were the instructions easy to follow?
7.) I also would like you to provide a picture or pictures of your finished garment. 

I will need you to complete at least one shirt and report back to me within 1 week. As I said this pattern goes together quickly. I have 5 kids and found a way to draft the pattern and make myself 4 shirts from it in 1 week.

How do you get to be a tester you ask? First be sure you can do what is required of a tester. Next follow my blog so even if you don't get picked to test this time you will still know when I'm calling for testers next time. Next send me an email at wildblumes @ gmail.com with the answers to the following questions. Please be sure to put "Pattern Tester Call" and the letter size you'd like to test in the subject line. 

1.) What is your sewing experience? (aka years/months sewing, experience working with patterns, ect.)
2.) What is you skill level?
3.) What size can you test?
4.) Do you plan to blog about it?

Please be as honest as possible. Being a beginner doesn't mean you will be disqualified from testing. I would like to have feedback from all different skill levels.

If you aren't selected to test don't worry. The final pattern will be available soon. Hooray!

As always feel free to ask questions below if you have any. 

My Favorite Fabric Sites

Recently my favorite fabric site closed up shop. It was extremely sad and I felt like I was losing a friend. What does that say about my fabric addiction, lol. I was worried I wouldn't find another site I like as much but honestly it has been helpful in teaching me that there are other great online fabric sources. This is a list of some of my favorites so far and the reasons why I love them and their drawbacks.

Fabric.com - This is an obvious one. I think everyone probably already knows about. It's great because they have a very large selection and they offer a 30 day 100% money back return policy. They even pay return shipping. They cut their yards 1" larger to account for fabric shift and if your order is the end of a bolt then you can also end up getting an extra few inches of fabric.

One of my fabric.com hauls

Free shipping for orders $35 and over.

Drawbacks - They are a huge site and sometimes that means they sell out of popular items quickly. Usually they can reorder them but if you see something that is labeled "last chance" then it is not coming back. Shipping time can also vary widely. 

Hancocks-paducah.com - Lots of great quilting cottons and batiks. Their selection is smaller but they have amazing deals and some very beautiful fabrics you can't find elsewhere. They seem to always cut their yards 2" larger and they also appear to give you end of bolt remnants free.

These all came from Hancocks of Paducah

Shipping is $5.95 for orders under $100.

Drawbacks - They aren't super fast at processing an order. Once it ships it ships super fast but it might be 1 or 2 weeks before it gets shipped. If you're like me and you are ordering while in the middle of something else then this probably isn't an issue. However if you are working on a deadline then check elsewhere.

Girlcharlee.com - I thought I checked them in the past and they were pricey but I must have been confused or their prices have come down. They have a big selection of affordable knit fabric. The quality is hit or miss though. I like that in the description of each fabric they tell you the amount of stretch is has.

Some of the lovely soft knits I found on Girl Charlee

 Free shipping on orders $99 and over.

Drawbacks -You have to inspect and measure your fabric immediately because they short often and many of my fabrics have arrived with defects. Also they're customer service is very poor. If you have an issue expect that you will have to jump through hoops before they will even consider doing anything. Also I've heard there are some compliance issues if you are trying to sell children's clothes made with their fabrics.

Bandg_corp - This is actually an ebay shop. However they offer such a good selection for a small shop and such great discounts they I feel they deserve to be mentioned. They sell a lot of quilting cotton and fleece. They normally have between 200 and 300 fabrics for sale at any given time and they sell them in 2yd increments (although you can buy more then one lot for a longer cut). If you happen to find the print you are looking for with them then it will more then likely be much less then anywhere else you can find it.

These Michael Miller fabrics came from Bandg_corp's ebay store

Drawbacks - They work through ebay and they do not offer free shipping at any purchase price but they will combine shipping for you. They also auction off most of their end of bolt remnants instead of including them as a free surprise bonus.

Hawthornethreads.com - I haven't ordered from hear yet but they do have some good prices. I'll update this when I make a purchase from them. I like that they prominently feature pictures of projects that a fabric has been used for. It helps sometimes to see it from different angles and in different lighting.

It appears that they don't have free shipping but that they do have a $5.50 flat rate when you buy 2+ yards.

Drawbacks - You have to click on each fabric in order to see the price. This is very tiring, time consuming, and annoying.

I can't wait to find some other great sites. Have you used any of these? Do you have any other great fabric sources? I still need a good site for cotton webbing and all those little findings like fabric buttons, thread, and d rings. Any good suggestions? 

Pretty Fabric and Ebates

I've been swooning over this lovely Michael Miller fabric by Sarah Jane. It is called Wee Wander. I can't tell you how adorable it is. It's even prettier in person then in any of the pics. Children with horses, deer, and fireflies. The colors are also beautiful!

I was unable to decide which color way to go with so I picked my favorite prints and bought them in both color ways they came in. I turned 4 of the prints into two blankets with soft luxurious minky backs. I have them listed in my etsy shop but I'm not sure if they will stay there long. My husband and the kids both thought they were the coolest things when they seen them and if they don't sell soon they may never leave my house, lol.

Right before I bought these fabrics I decided to give this whole ebates thing a try. You know those crazy commercials you see all the time where the lady says she earned $900 from shopping online? Obviously I never expected to earn that much because you would have to spend an insane amount of money for that. Maybe if you wanted to buy a car online you could earn that kind of money. Anyway I digress. I signed up and did most of my Christmas shopping online and I actually did earn $40. At first I thought I would never earn more then may $5 or $10 at a time because I thought most everything only offered 1% cash back. However those percentages are in constant flux. I could have earned more if I would have remembered to go to each site from ebates before I made a purchase. Even those tiny amounts can add up fast. They do have a tool bar or something you can use so you don't have to go to their site before a purchase but I hate extra tool bars with a passion. Over all I would say it is totally worth it to join if you do any shopping online.

Oh and they do offer incentive for referrals so if you decide to try them out then I hope you'll consider using my referral link by clicking here.

Have you ever considered trying a site like ebates before? Are you already a member of one? What do you think of those crazy adorable fabrics? Have you ever used any Michael Miller fabrics before?