DMK Best Maker Sewing Contest, Finalist

I made this Lovely Ribbon Blouse for the little miss and entered it in the DMK Best Maker Sewing Contest, hosted by Christine over at From An Igloo.

I am so happy to be selected as one of the Top 8 finalists. Looking at the extremely gorgeous creations of the others I'm not sure if I stand a chance of winning, but being a finalist is an honor to me. The voting is ON till 31st August, please cast your vote here.

I used Karen's beautiful pattern Lovely Ribbon Dress/Blouse and the fabric is from my current favourite collection, Spa by Rosemarie Lavin. I love the sophisticated soft colors this collection features and the teal and brown print is very elegant to me.

Karen, the designer, was very friendly and really helpful when I emailed her to get some help about sewing the blouse. I love the fact that this beautiful design helped me learn many new sewing techniques as I really want to progress as a sewer. The design features front pleating, fully lined and reversible. I omitted the elastic on the sleeves as I like it simply this way. I used a soft polka dot lawn cotton for the lining. DMK has so many cute patterns in her shop, check it out if you haven't, you will not be disappointed!

The little miss was of course very happy with her new top, smiling non stop when I put it on, I am one happy momma :)

If you voted for me, THANK YOU friends! *hugs*

I'm Still Here!

Yup, still alive...only extremely busy...just a quick update to keep this blog alive. I think I can only be back to my old craft blogger self after the Eid celebration.

Here are a few items I finished in between sewing custom order dresses. These were ordered way before the dresses, thank God I managed.

I love this Curvy Clutch ordered by Yana. Just the right size for all the girly necessities. Pattern by Keykalou.

And more Camera Straps Slipcovers, absolute eye candy :)

That's all for now, I will soon post some dress pictures, they are all so darling.

Thank you for dropping by friends, take care! :)

Experiments, Experiments - Garden Dress & Top

I just LOVE shirring! It's like an instant design booster technique, giving an ordinary looking garment a new facelift. These are made from a basic peasant dress pattern ( I used Leila & Ben's), shirred on the sleeves and neck and an inch below the arms for a romantic look.

They are actually for Raya (Eid festival) this September, but both my girls pleaded to wear them for an Iftar (breaking of fast) at my parents' few days back. Of course I had to take photos when they are fresh out of the shower with wet hair and all LOL

Aisha does not want to wear dresses anymore, so a Victorian inspired top for her. I lengthen the sleeves to make it 3/4 length. She loves it with her leggings. 

I, on the other hand, am constantly worried that Aisha is so thin though. She's the picky eater and just don't have a big appetite. Perhaps its genetic (the women on hubby's family side are all slim and slender, I envy them :P), but I wish she's not so skinny....

The little miss of course had to have her Pinchess dress, and she calls this one Baju Itam (Black Dress) lol.

I also experimented with rolled hem on the sleeves and neck. Perfect.

I am currently super duper busy getting orders ready before Raya and Mid Term Exam is coming up too.

Buckle up Zura, wooosh, sewing away!

The Most Peculiar Solid White Fabric I Love!

Now that I no longer buy ready made, woven cotton clothing for my girls (I still buy t-shirts and leggings for them coz I'm not sewing using knit fabric, yet), hubby asked me to sew some solid colored basics for them to wear with skirts and leggings or jeans. 

So I made this simple peasant top for little miss Hanan from this very unique plain white cotton I found in Nagoya. It is, well, not plain at all to me! The fabric is very light weight and airy and there are ruffles and pin tucks sewn all over it in diagonals. I just LOVE it! See for yourself, what do you think? Have you encountered this kind of fabric before?

The fabric is very thin and dreamy to work with, not difficult to handle even with all those ruffles and tucks.I could not remember the price, but there are a few varieties of this fabric in the store. I have one more with not just ruffles but also strips of lace on it. Am gonna sew one for Aisha soon and let you know. 

Till then, have a wonderful week ahead! :)

The Crown Princess - Soft & Sweet

A soft and sweet dress for my little Crown Princess....

I rarely buys softer shade fabrics but from now on I'll be on the hunt for more. I think they look more sophisticated in their own muted ways....

 

Made from a soft Amy Butler print and this really cute MM Crown print

Perfect for the little Crown Princess Hanan! :)

Old and New

An entry to record our move and the changes around my real life.

Hanan is right now too little to remember that she once spent 2 years of her early life in this link house. So I'm posting these pics for my girls :)

We have now moved to a better house just 2 kilometres away from the previous home. Inside, its very bare as we are still living in government quarters. I refrain from buying good furniture until we move to our own permanent home. This is our 5^th move ever since I joined the public service believe it or not. This picture was taken when we were in the middle of moving. The MPV is not mine, I borrowed my dad's to move the smaller stuff :)

This is the old sewing nook of mine. I blogged about it here.

The new sewing room is bigger, better with ceiling fan and very brightly lit. I converted the guest room downstairs into a small studio.

I found the perfect L-shaped solid wood workstation from a thrift store in Sungai Manggis and I am just loving the space. But as you can see, the room still sorely need to be organised. You notice how I just simply shoved everything under the table? Told you I hate cleaning and am really not an organised person. Want more proof?

LOL! Look at those WIP! These pictures were taken immediately after I came back from class (see the bags strewn everywhere?) and I just feel completely at home in this ME space lol

One wall is turned into mini show area. I love walking into the room and be rewarded with the pleasant view of my work. Most of these dresses are sold now. What you don’t see here is another corner of the room where my magic closet and drawer chests are. Yup, the ones where I hide all my precious fabric stash.

And last but not least, while we are under this Old vs New topic, I cut Hanan’s hair today.

This is her getting prepped for the cut.

And these are the after shots!

Sorry for the pic overload but I just love her smiles here and how she happily swishing her new hair style left and right lol.

Yes I cut my girls’ hair myself. Since they have wavy/semi-curly hair it easily hide imperfections. Save me some $$ from going to the barber/hair salon too J
Thank you for reading lovely peeps, have a great day!

Salam Ramadhan & Another Special Bella Dress

This Bella dress is a custom order for a darling little baby Serena....she will turn 1 this 28th of August and I hope it will arrive on time. Yes, this dress is now well on its way to find its owner all the way in Chicago, IL! My first International custom order, I'm happy with the result. 

I LOVE sewing this Bella dress, I can't say enough. At a bigger size, it was easier to maneuver compared to the smaller size. Check out the sash and believe it or not, that ruffle is hand pleated. It took me a relaxing 20 minutes just to hand pleat the ruffle and the result is so worth it. Oh, and I added a cute little detail too! Check out that peaking little bird :)

I'm hoping this dress will fit the little princess I sewed it for, and I'd love to see a picture of her in it. To Mikhaila, thank you for your order and trust in me, I really appreciate it *hugs*

Lastly, to all Muslim friends, I'd like to wish all of you Salam  Ramadhan and Happy Fasting! May this holy month brings us much love and prosperity and that our ibadah is accepted by Him. Ameen.

I Met A Blog Friend

Hye! I'm feeling all better today. I think the worst is over with my vertigo and I'm almost my old self again, alhamdulillah...

This is an overdue entry of me meeting a blog friend who came for a holiday in Malaysia, all the way from Oman. Yes, that is Preeta from Inspirational Art with me and a very camera shy little Hanan. I'm so happy we managed to meet and I love Preeta and her beautiful family. Very memorable!

I've been meaning to post this entry since June, but waiting for the photo from Preeta as I did not bring my camera. Isn't is amazing how blogging connects people from all over the world? Hope to meetup more blog friends especially the many Malaysians I have yet get the honor to meet. Perhaps one day ya? :)

I've sewn quite a few during my sick leave (not really a leave ain't it? lol). I'll blog about them soon. Have a great Tuesday folks! :)

Featured on Sew Mama Sew Blog!

I am honored to find that this Nina top I sewed for Aisha is featured on Sew Mama Sew blog for their August Back to School Sewing features.

I blogged about this top here.

Head on over to Sew Mama Sew for your chance to win free patterns! I love their website, my daily go-to reading. Thank you SMS for featuring my sewing and of course to Modkid for designing such pretty, easy to sew patterns! :)

Sharing Some Family Photos

I'm sick....since yesterday. Very bad vertigo and it makes me vomit non-stop. The room is spinning and I can't have sudden movement of the head. The doc said its something to do with my inner ear, where the fluid that balance us stays, within some very complex looking tubes etc. So I can't sew, I can't drive at least till the weekend is over.

I think I have OCD or AADD or something coz I can't stand this not-doing-anything-ness!! I hate just lying in bed coz in my head I am VERY active and this proneness just bores me to death...So I prop myself up on the bed and asked hubby to hand me my laptop and here I am, wising to share with you some family photos. Bear  with me will ya? No sewing post till maybe Monday :)

Here's hubby with the kids i.e my girls, my nephews and Aina my cousin :)

Here's my little sister Lin (the youngest) with her nieces and nephews. She's in college doing TESL now.

This is my darling brother Iwan (Pak Wan to the kids). He's with Fedex now taking care of Australia & New Zealand accounts. Fyi, he's single AND looking ;) ;)

Another brother of mine, Fadzli (Ayah Li to the kids). The fourth of my siblings.

Here's my beloved dad, enjoying his grandchildren's company.

Here's the five of us. The fourth from left (in black n white) is my lovely sister Masni aka Angah to us. She's also doing her postgraduate studies now, under the PSD scholarship. Yep, you guessed it right, I'm the first of 5, the big sister :)

These two are BEST FRIENDS! Aisha and her cousin Nazrin aka Yayin. Love them to bits!

These are all photos from a small family gathering at my parents early this year. Okay, that's all for today. Feeling woozy again. Have a great weekend people, love ya! :)

Fitted Bedsheet and Pillowcase Dress

Hi everyone, how was (or is) the weekend? Mine was hectic as usual but I was able to squeeze a movie date with hubby and it was sweet! J *blush*

First, I’d like to say THANK YOU on behalf of little miss Hanan for all the birthday wishes. She’s lucky to have so many adoring aunties, thank you so much friends! J

So, its another new week and I just have to blog about what I managed to finish last week. Here is the custom fitted bedsheet and pillowcase for a darling, very patient customer Lyn J 

It took me so long to finish sewing even if you think it doesn’t make sense since these are just straight stitching. I believe the lack of motivation comes from fear coz this is the first time ever me cutting and sewing 6 yards of fabrics! I was really scared of botching it up, I procrastinate lol

But just look at the result. The print is just so, so cute! This set id for Lyn’s little boy room and look at just how much he is loved…

Next is the simple pillowcase dress I sewed for Kak Farhana’s daughter and niece. 2 identical 6yo and 9yo size. It is so darling, I love making these coz they are simple yet cute result everytime.  Kak Fana actually came over to my house to place her order and I have a few more dresses for her girls. Thank you Kak for your trust in me :)

Now that Ramadhan is looming, I know many of us are busy with the prep and all. It also means exam time and assignment due dates for me, so I might not be blogging as often. Please also view the shop where I made an announcement about fabrics preorder. There are some changes there.

Lastly, thank you all for reading and commenting on this blog. I really, truly appreciate your friendship. *hugs*