Blog Posts

2018 Finish-A-Long - Q3 Tutorial Week

10/2/2018

Today kicks off "Tutorial Week," which has been part of the Finish-A-Long since it's inception. While the link up for Finishes is open, we share some tutorials for you all to enjoy. They are varied, interesting, and usually helpful, so take some time to investigate and visit the blogs below on their scheduled day!

October 3, 2018 - Leanne of She Can Quilt - Christmas Pillow Cases

October 4, 2018 - Izzy of Dizzy Quilts - Fall/Halloween Themed Mug Rug
October 5, 2018 - Karen of Capitola Quilter - Power Prepping Quarter Circles

The Quarter 3 Finishes link up opened yesterday, you can find the link up HERE or on any of the hosting blogs. There is still plenty of time to link up or finish those projects as the link up does not close until October 9, 2018, 11 pm EST.

And whether you had a lot of finishes, or none at all this quarter, or you missed Finish-A-Long Q3 altogether, you can always join in for Quarter 4 which is taking off on October 10th, with the link up opening for your List of Proposed Finishes. We hope you will join us!

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2018 Finish-A-Long Q3 Finishes Link Up

10/1/2018

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Can you believe it, we have made it to the end of the third quarter of the 2018 Finish-A-Long and it's time to link up your Q3 finishes. We hope you have used the past three months to complete a bunch of those UFOs on your lists!

The 2018 FAL has a community of bloggers across the world jointly hosting and this year's hosts are:

Marci - Marci Girl Designs - USA

Sandra (also Social Media Director) - Studio Sew of Course - Ireland

Leanne - She Can Quilt - Canada

Ella - Throw a Wench in the Works - USA

Felicity - Felicity Quilts - Canada

Karen - Capitola Quilter - USA

Izzy - Dizzy Quilts - Canada

Lynne - Tinking Along - USA

Before the link up, let's give a huge thank you to our fantastic sponsors:

$50 Gift Certificate

3 PDF Patterns

$25 Gift Certificate

2 PDF Patterns

$20 Gift Certificate

3 PDF Patterns

2 PDF Patterns

3 Six Month Subscr.

$25 Gift Certificate

A Minikins Bundle

$50 Gift Certificate

2 PDF Patterns

$30 Gift Certificate

$40 Gift Certificate

For this quarter of the 2018 FAL, we continue tutorial week. Here is the schedule for this quarter so you can visit them all:

October 3 - Leanne of She Can Quilt

October 4 - Izzy of Dizzy Quilts
October 5 - Karen of Capitola Quilter

The 2018 Quarter 3 link for your finishes is now open below on my blog and on each of the hosting blogs - you only need to link on one blog for your finish to appear on all host blogs.

Link-up "Rules":

Add one link for each finish. If you want to link a round up post of all your finishes, use that link to enter one of your finishes and then link the rest of your finishes separately. Please, only one link per finish, as your link is an entry into the randomly drawn prize draws.

Please ensure that the photo (Instagram or Flickr) or blog post you link up contains a link or reference back to your original list so that we can verify your entry (make sure it is from the appropriate quarter, too). On Instagram, tag your photos with #2018FALQ3yourname (where yourname is unique to you), this makes it easier for us to match your finishes with your list, which also should have this tag.

Please become part of the FAL community. Check out the links of others and leave a comment. We all need encouragement so let's applaud each other. The 2018 FAL Facebook page is HERE and you can follow us on Instagram @finishalong.

Our hosts will also link up their finishes to share in the community but they are not eligible for any of the prizes.

The Q3 Finishes link will stay open from now thru 11 pm, EST, Tuesday, October 9, 2018 - as we are global, you might want to check your time zone to determine your last possible time to link (you can also see how much time is left below the linked up images on the right). It is best to link up your finishes early and if you have a last minute one, add that one later so you don't miss out. The prizes will be awarded as soon as we can verify all the entries and do the drawings. We will post the winners on each host's blog.

Lastly, don't forget to start making your Q4 list as the Q4 list link opens on October 10, 2018.

2018 Q3 Finishes Link Up:

An InLinkz Link-up

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2018 Quarter 2 Finish-A-Long Winners!

8/20/2018

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Today we are celebrating 401 (!!) finished projects in Quarter 2 of the 2018 Finish-A-Long. So many of you are joining in and getting their UFOs or WIPs out of that dark corner, and into the limelight to be shown off as a finish. If you are in need of inspiration go on over and have a look, there were so many great makes. And of course, thanks to our many generous sponsors, we are finishing off the quarter by announcing the lucky winners!!

Without further ado, the winners picked by the Random Number Generator of the 2018 Q2 FAL prizes are:

The Q2 Winner of the $50 Gift Certificate from Fat Quarter Shop is Mary who blogs at Quilting is in my Blood. She finished three projects in the second quarter of the year, one being this adorable baby quilt:

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The Q2 Winner of the 3 PDF Patterns from During Quiet Time is Helen who blogs at Midget Gem Quilts. She finished a quilt she had started back in 2016, her circles quilt, which is just lovely:

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The Q2 prize of the $25 Gift Certificate from Sew Sisters Quilt Shop goes to Cheryl on Flickr as Paisley Crazy. She finished this cute charm quilt which was her first finish of the quarter:

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The Q2 Winner of the 2 PDF Patterns from Quilting Jet Girl is Dianne on IG @quiltova. She finished this charming baby quilt, which was her third and final finish of the quarter:

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The Q2 Winner of the $20 Gift Certificate from Sew Me a Song is Lisa who blogs at Lisa in Port Hope. She finished a beautifully free motion quilted quilt started in 2015:

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The Q2 Winner of the 3 PDF Patterns from Happy Quilting is Jenny on IG @silverbellsandcockleshells. She finished these cute snugly slippers:

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The Q2 Winner of the 2 PDF Patterns from Charm About You is Donna who blogs at Faerydae Stitches. She finished a great Double Zip Gear Bag for a retreat swap:

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The Q2 Winners (3) of the 6 Month Subscription to Make Modern Magazine are:

1. Teresa on IG @misdosbichillos. She finished this double zipper pouch, which was her sixth finish this quarter:

2. Helene on IG @30hela. She finished this gorgeous sashiko pillow:

3. Donna on IG @donnalyn18. She finished this super cute spring bunny cushion:

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The Q2 prize of the $25 Gift Certificate from Studio 39 Fabrics goes to Kayde on IG @sewdexter. She finished this pretty tiny flying geese lanyard, which was her 13th finish for the year (and they say 13 is unlucky, ha!):

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The Q2 Winner of the $25 Gift Certificate from Tartan Kiwi is Gretchen who blogs at 120 Blocks. She finished this pretty felt hand stitched Christmas holly mat:

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The Q2 Winner of the Minikins bundle from Sew Sweetness is Cheryl on IG @1strongcheryl. She finished this gorgeous quilt that is minky backed (I bet it is snugly!):

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The Q2 prize of the $50 Gift Certificate from Mad About Patchwork goes to Danda who blogs at Northern Deb Quilts. She finished this lovely scrap quilt which was a leader and ender project:

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The Q2 Winner of the 2 PDF Patterns from Blossom Heart Quilts is Celine who blogs at Espritpatch. She finished this fantastic Blanche Barrel Bag for her daughter:

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The Q2 Winner of the $30 Gift Certificate from Clover & Violet is Mary who blogs at Musings of a Sometime Quilter. She finished this lovely quilt and this is her first year participating in the FAL (yay!):

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The Q2 Winner of the $40 Gift Certificate from Bunny's Designs is Cathy who blogs at Cathy's Crazy by Design. She finished this super sweet ABC quilt for her granddaughter:

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Congratulations to all the winners! Thank you for playing along with us in the second quarter, and we hope you continue joining in for the rest of the year. We love to encourage you to finish up all those WIPs and UFOs, and to see what great makes will be finished next time.

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My Q3 Finish-A-Long List

7/18/2018

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I've decided to be nice and boring this quarter and basically just have a list of all the same projects I've been carrying over all year long. Without further ado...

1. Bonnie and Camille Log Cabin - I still want to work on this, or maybe I want it on my bed more. LOL we will see, I have all the blocks finished and that is it.

2. Bee Sewcial Flower Quilt - Yep want to work on this one too, school will be starting back soon so I need to get this one ready to work on in the car, I plan to add more embroidery.

3. Boys Pajamas - I will finish these this quarter, if I say it enough will it make it true?

4. Bee Sewcial Triangle Quilt - Ugh, I just need to work on the backing and then figure out quilting, you know the hard part.

5. Bee Sewcial Kilim Quilt - Wait, what is this? A new addition but no photo, I can't win prizes so I don't really have to follow the rules. This quilt is just blocks that I haven't even laid out but the thought of laying them out excites me so maybe I should play with it. We shall see...

You still have time to join us, but get your list ready quick as the link up closes tonight. You can find the Quarter 3 link up HERE.

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My Q2 Finish-A-Long List, How Did I Do?

7/11/2018

2 Comments

At the end of each quarter I like to reflect on what I accomplished (or didn't accomplish) that quarter and usually it inspires me to action and get serious about my WIPs again, because honestly we all get distracted don't we? So how did I do for the second quarter of the year? Ok, I did just Ok, I finished three small projects but didn't touch any of my quilts. I'm going to be brutally honest here but I've definitely lost my quilty mojo recently. I'm sewing all the time and love sewing so I've concentrated on clothing and small projects but just can't seem to get excited to work on any of my quilts. I think a large part of it is that the quilts always end up taking so long and it's hard for me to see the finish line so I lose track. Sewing clothes is fast and instant reward so I've been really digging that. All that being said, I really want to work on my quilts, so maybe I just need to force myself back into it? I'm not sure but if you have suggestions, feel free to leave them here. Ok enough rambling, here is how my quarter turned out:

Two projects totally completed and blogged about HERE and HERE.

I totally finished this project too, the Ladies Waterfall Raglan. Didn't get a chance to photograph or blog about it because I'm thinking of taking it apart. The fabric doesn't have as much drape as called for in the pattern and ended up being at least one size too large. I've worn it twice now and am just not in love with it, but think I would like it if I make it smaller. So I'm thinking about cutting out the seams and just sewing it together again. I'll also redo the neckline as it was a little wonky too. So now that I've put that in writing that is what I will do!

The final four projects, you guessed it, didn't touch them. Didn't even think about the quilts and just ran out of time for the pajamas. So now I just need to decide if I'm carrying them all over to the third quarter or what. Hmm...

So there you have it, 3 finished, 4 wips, so I'll call that semi-successful. Though I will say I am thrilled that I had some great finishes this time and there is always next quarter.

Speaking of the 3rd quarter of the year, the link up is open, can be found HERE and will remain open until Wednesday, July 18. Please join us, even if you didn't participate in the 1st or 2nd quarter you can join in now. Make that list, post it and link up, it's that easy and you can win prizes too. What is better motivation than that?

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2018 Finish-A-Long - Quarter 3 Link Up!

7/10/2018

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Its time to link up your list of unfinished projects that you propose to finish in Q3 of the Finish-A-Long. We are hoping that the FAL community will inspire you to work on your unfinished projects this quarter (and throughout the remainder of the year) and to get them finished!

The 2018 FAL is hosted by a community of bloggers across the world. Our hosts are:

Marci - Marci Girl Designs - USA

Sandra (also Social Media Director) - Studio Sew of Course - Ireland

Leanne - She Can Quilt - Canada

Ella - Throw a Wench in the Works - USA

Felicity - Felicity Quilts - Canada

Karen - Capitola Quilter - USA

Izzy - Dizzy Quilts - Canada

Lynne - Tinking Along - USA

For those of you who are new to the FAL, it is a place to find motivation and encouragement to complete those unfinished projects that are hanging around. At the start of the quarter you post and link up a list of projects you hope to finish in the next three months, and then at the end of the quarter you link up each successful finish from your original list.

Each linked up finish is an entry into the draw for wonderful prizes from our sponsors. There is no penalty for not finishing a listed project, so feel free to make your list as long or short as you wish. The 2018 Schedule and Rules for the FAL are on my permanent 2018 FAL page, let me know if you have any questions.

Here are the fantastic and generous sponsors for Q3 of the Finish-A-Long. you can see each of their prizes listed under their logo. Please think about visiting them and saying thank you for their support of the FAL.

$50 Gift Certificate

3 PDF Patterns

$25 Gift Certificate

2 PDF Patterns

$20 Gift Certificate

3 PDF Patterns

2 PDF Patterns

3 Six Month Subscr.

$25 Gift Certificate

A Minikins Bundle

$50 Gift Certificate

2 PDF Patterns

$30 Gift Certificate

$40 Gift Certificate

So now it is time to round up those projects that you want to finish over the next three months! Take a photo of each one and make your list. Please ensure that you have at least started your projects - pulled fabric with a pattern is considered a UFO - and remember it is only finished projects that will get you an entry toward the above listed prizes. So while we love to see your bee blocks, the "finish" is when they are a completed, usable project.

If posting on social media (Flickr & Instagram), it will be very helpful if you tag your list with #2018FALQ3yourname (where yourname is unique to you). Using the same hashtag over the quarter when sharing project progress or finishes helps the host to make the connection to your original list quickly and easily.
IMPORTANT: Don't forget to link up your finishes when the quarter closes!

The 2018 Q3 list for your list of proposed finishes is now open, below, on my blog and each of the hosting blogs. You need only link your list once, on one host blog and the link will show up on all the host blogs. If you are using Flickr or Instagram, post a photo mosaic of your projects and put your list in the description. Don't forget to include your unique hashtag. Katy of The Littlest Thistle has a great tutorial on how to link up if you need it, or Marci of Marci Girl Designs has a tutorial to link up an Instagram post specifically.

We also ask that you become part of the FAL community. Please check out the links of others - visit and comment on their lists. We all need encouragement to get those finishes done, so please share some of your own too.

If you want you can follow us on Facebook, Finish-A-Long and/or on Instagram, @finishalong, too. We'll post encouragement during the quarter and reminders when the finishes link up opens at the end of the quarter.

When creating your list there is one thing to remember - No deductions for not completing something so - Aim High! Nothing to lose!! Well now, get your list together and get linked up.

Feel free to use and share the FAL button above and this one too:

The Q3 proposed finish linky party will stay open until 11 pm EST, Wednesday, July 18, 2018 - as we are global, you might want to check your time zone to determine your last possible time to link (you can also see how much time is left below the linked up images on the right.)

Remember: you only need to link up at ONE hosting blog and it will automatically show up on all hosting blogs.

An InLinkz Link-up

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2018 Finish-A-Long - Reminder! Link Up Your Finishes!

7/6/2018

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Popping in today for a quick reminder that the Quarter 2 Link Up for all your finishes closes on Monday, July 9, 2018, 11 pm EST. So you still have a few more days to finish a project or two and link them up to be eligible for prizes. The link up can be found HERE or on the blog of any of our current hosts.

A few reminders for linking up:

Please only one finished project for each post that you link up, so that each finish can be an entry in the (random) prize draw.
Please include a link to your original list in each post of your finishes (on Instagram the link is the unique tag #2018FALQ2yourname to be used in the Q2 list post, and in any Q2 finish post).
Please visit some of the other participants and leave a friendly comment, we all love to get those!

If you didn't have a chance to visit the tutorials that were posted as part of Finish-A-Long Tutorials Week, here is the schedule once more:

July 3, 2018 - Sandra of Studio Sew of Course - The Finish-A-Long Project List - keeping track of your FAL projects

July 4, 2018 - Ella of Throw A Wench in the Works

July 5, 2018 - Felicity of Felicity Quilts - Mini Charm Pack Zip Pouch

They are well worth a visit!

Finally, we hope you will be joining us for Quarter 3 to do it all over again!! So get your List ready, the link up for Q3 Lists will open on July 10, 2018.

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2018 Finish-A-Long - Q2 Tutorial Week

7/2/2018

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July 3, 2018 - Sandra of Studio Sew of Course - The Finish-A-Long Project List - keeping track of your FAL projects

July 4, 2018 - Ella of Throw a Wench in the Works

July 5, 2018 - Felicity of Felicity Quilts -Mini Charm Pack Zip Pouch

The Quarter 2 Finishes link up opened yesterday, you can find the link up HERE or on any of the hosting blogs. There is still plenty of time to link up or finish those projects as the link up does not close until July 9, 2018, 11 pm EST.

And whether you had a lot of finishes, or none at all this quarter, or you missed Finish-A-Long Q2 altogether, you can always join in for Quarter 3 which is taking off on July 10th, with the link up opening for your List of Proposed Finishes. We hope you will join us!

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2018 Finish-A-Long - Quarter 2 Finishes Link Up

7/1/2018

1 Comment

Can you believe it, we have made it to the end of the second quarter of the 2018 Finish-A-Long and it's time to link up your Q2 finishes. We hope you have used the past three months to complete a bunch of those UFOs on your lists!

The 2018 FAL has a community of bloggers across the world jointly hosting and this year's hosts are:

Marci - Marci Girl Designs - USA

Sandra (also Social Media Director) - Studio Sew of Course - Ireland

Leanne - She Can Quilt - Canada

Ella - Throw a Wench in the Works - USA

Felicity - Felicity Quilts - Canada

Karen - Capitola Quilter - USA

Izzy - Dizzy Quilts - Canada

Lynne - Tinking Along - USA

Before the link up, let's give a huge thank you to our fantastic sponsors:

$50 Gift Certificate

3 PDF Patterns

$25 Gift Certificate

2 PDF Patterns

$20 Gift Certificate

3 PDF Patterns

2 PDF Patterns

3 Six Month Subscr.

$25 Gift Certificate

A Minikins Bundle

$50 Gift Certificate

2 PDF Patterns

$30 Gift Certificate

$40 Gift Certificate

For this quarter of the 2018 FAL, we continue tutorial week. Here is the schedule for this quarter so you can visit them all:

July 3 - Sandra of Studio Sew of Course

July 4 - Ella of Throw a Wench in the Works

July 5 - Felicity of Felicity Quilts

The 2018 Quarter 2 link for your finishes is now open below on my blog and on each of the hosting blogs - you only need to link on one blog for your finish to appear on all host blogs.

Link-up "Rules":

Please ensure that the photo (Instagram or Flickr) or blog post you link up contains a link or reference back to your original list so that we can verify your entry (make sure it is from the appropriate quarter, too). On Instagram, tag your photos with #2018FALQ2yourname (where yourname is unique to you), this makes it easier for us to match your finishes with your list, which also should have this tag.

Our hosts will also link up their finishes to share in the community but they are not eligible for any of the prizes.

The Q2 Finishes link will stay open from now thru 11 pm, EST, Monday July 9, 2018 - as we are global, you might want to check your time zone to determine your last possible time to link (you can also see how much time is left below the linked up images on the right). It is best to link up your finishes early and if you have a last minute one, add that one later so you don't miss out. The prizes will be awarded as soon as we can verify all the entries and do the drawings. We will post the winners on each host's blog.

Lastly, don't forget to start making your Q3 list as the Q3 list link opens on July 10, 2018.

2018 Q2 Finishes Link Up:

An InLinkz Link-up

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I Made Shoes!

6/28/2018

2 Comments

It's a first for me, but I made real shoes. I've made baby shoes in the past, yes, but never anything with real soles and now I can check that off my sewing bucket list (I don't really have one of those in case you were wondering.) These espadrilles were made with Dritz Espadrille kits, which include the soles and pattern for the fabric top. I was browsing the clearance section of Hobby Lobby one day and they were getting rid of all their kits, so I scooped up several toddler sizes for the bargain $1.99 price tag. They didn't have my size, but they did have a kids size 5, which SOMETIMES I fit in, so I went ahead and picked up a pair, because why not?

I knew that I wanted to use some of my canvas Riffle Paper Company fabric for the uppers and I chose a coordinating Cotton + Steel fabric for the interior. I already had some large upholstery needles and I researched what type of "thread" to use for the blanket stitching and everything I found suggested a 100% cotton, so instead of ordering the overpriced Dritz Espadrille thread I just used some 100% cotton crochet thread that I already owned. I cut a long piece and pulled on it as hard as I could several times and it was super strong so I figured why not? See the theme here? Now I had all my supplies and was ready to sew, so I will talk about the Toddler pair first.

These are a toddler size 7 soles, which my daughter is currently wearing, and I will start by saying the sizing seems pretty spot on compared to ready to wear shoes in the store. The pattern was very easy to follow, cut and stitch up the upper parts and if any point you are confused there are plenty of online resources as to how to sew these up. They are interfaced for extra durability and all of that is included with the instructions as well. The back and top portion that rest on the top and back of her foot have 1/8" elastic, which you can kind of see on the back of the shoe where it is gathered looking. This would be the only part I would change in the future as it wasn't gathered enough and these tend to fall off pretty easy. Next time I would cut the elastic shorter and insert it the same, thus it would be tighter fitting above the heel.

Once the upper fabric is sewn and complete it is time to pin them to the sole and then stitch the two parts together using a blanket stitch. This went surprising smooth and easy because I can honestly say I was pretty nervous as to how difficult this step would be. You start by pinning the center front and back onto the sole and then work your way around the sides, and once again, detailed instructions are included how to do this step. Once it is pinned you cut a long piece of thread and it is recommended that you wax it for durability and ease of sewing. I couldn't find my normal thread wax but my husband has some sex wax for surfboards and I just used that, which worked really well. I ran the thread through the wax around 5-6 times and got a nice smooth coating on the thread. You start by knotting the thread and burying it into the sole and then you start your blanket stitch. I was worried it would hurt my hand and be really difficult sewing into the sole and through the multiple layers of fabric, but it really wasn't. The wax made the thread glide right through and I took my time being careful to not let the thread become knotted. I worked hard at having nice evenly spaced stitches and sewed one per night, as I felt that if I had done more than that my hand may have started to hurt/cramp. Voila! They are finished.

This pair fit my daughter perfectly, with the exception of the back end being a little too loose, but she can still wear them. She really likes to wear them because she watched me make them and she knows that these are "special" for just her. I really liked these soles as they were wider and really accommodating for a toddler foot. The pattern was clear and easy to follow and I'm so glad I picked up some larger sizes because now I can make her a few more pair in the coming years.

Now let's talk about the shoes I made for myself, in the kids size 5 that SOMETIMES fit me. In the store I stood on the sole and my foot fit on it, but filled the whole narrow sole. Narrow being the key work here. I never took into account that once you stitch the upper fabric on the sole it "eats" into the sole all the way around and becomes even narrower. Once I had stitched the upper fabric part, I "tried" it on by placing the fabric over my foot and pushing it onto the floor and instantly could tell that my toes would be too tight (like way too tight.) I started to research what I could do to fix this and in the end found a pattern to make an open toe version, which i then used to modify what I had already made. Basically I cut the open toe part and then carefully folded under the raw edge 1/4" and then stitched it closed. I thought this would fix my problem and went ahead and sewed them onto the soles. I sewed one of them and then attempted to try it on. You guessed it, I couldn't even get my foot into the shoe, they were just too tight/small/narrow. It wasn't happening.

What to do? What to do? I had one shoe that didn't fit and one unfinished shoe. I researched options on how to make it bigger but in the end I knew the sole just wasn't designed for my adult kinda wide foot but rather for a child's size 5 foot. In the end I forced my self to finish the other shoe and here they are. Aren't they cute? I do love them and now I want to purchase my correct sole size and make another pair because honestly mother and daughter matching shoes is just too cute for words, or at least I think so.

At this point I just have to decide what to do with these? Sell them, maybe? Or maybe I should save them for my little girl because in 7-8 years she could possibly wear them. What do you think?

Overall this was a really fun and fairly fast project and if you have the chance and can find some soles then I recommend stitching up a pair and having your own handmade shoes.

This project was on my quarter 2 Finish-A-Long list, number 6, which can be found HERE. I'm happy to say that this one is now finished. On July 1st (Sunday) the Q2 link up opens and I hope you have some finished projects to link up.