Sew Thankful Blog Tour

Week of November 6th:

6: Sewing By Ti, 7: That's Sew Lily, 8: Elli and Nels, 9: Jot Designs

Week of November 11th:

11: The Sewing Scientist, 12: Sweet Mama Life, 13: Big Fly Notions, 14: Manning the Machine, 15: Stitched by Jennie, 16: My Heart Will Sew On, 17: Sew 4 Five

Week of November 18th:

18: The Fairy Dust Bin, 19: Kathys Kwilts and More, 20: Sewing with D, 21: My Sewing Roots, 23: Tenille's Thread, 24: The Bear and the Pea Atelier

Week of November 25th:

25: Sewing By Ti, 26: Vicky Myers' Creations, 27: MNW Sews, 29:Auschick

I love to do blog tours! They are always fun and usually get me to sew something new. Well, this blog tour did not go as intended, but that's okay! I have sew many thing to be Thankful for either way.

I made the Halla Patterns Stella Pullover.

This is one of my favorite patterns for fall and winter. I made a few when I tested the pattern earlier this year and they were in constant rotation in my wardrobe. You can read that first blog post HERE.

One thing I'm very thankful for has been the opportunity to do pattern testing for many wonderful designers. Samantha Lee of Halla is especially wonderful to work with. You can tell that she really cares about her testers and is thankful for our input and work.

It's not unusual for Samantha to give out a gift card to starbucks or offer you a free pattern code for your help with a pattern. She has even sent me fabric as a thank you - and it's so beautiful, I can't dare to cut into yet.

I'm also very thankful that I have tried my hand at designing fabric this year. I'm really enjoying taking photographs that I love and turning them into beautiful fabric. The fabric you see here is one of my designs.

This is a photograph of a Labradorite rock. I used a kaleidoscope style repeat to make the image seamless. I purchased this design through My Fabric Designs on their polyester french terry and absolutely love it! I want to buy more of this french terry - it feels so great!

This design is also available in my Spoonflower shop HERE. In my free time, I have been playing and learning more about pattern designs and hope to get get better and better.

Last year I made almost $63 from my designs on Spoonflower and so far this wear I have made two cents under $59. I'd love to see my pay go higher, but I see it as baby steps. I'm so thankful for each sale I make, no matter how small. I use my earnings to proof new designs every few months.

I'm thankful everyday for the support of my family. My husband understands my need to be able to sew my own clothes and gives me ample time to do so. He hasn't received any sewn items from me in many,  many years. I've been thinking that I will make him a few t-shirts soon.

I'm thankful to live where there is a fabric district. I love going to the shops in Dallas off of Harry Hines and Perth. I find so many bargains. I used a rib knit that I found there for the bands of my Stella. I'm a bit of a rib knit hoarder and was so happy with how well this one matched. It was a small remnant and I used just about every inch on this top.

My health isn't always great due to Rheumatoid Arthritis and the other autoimmune diseases that I battle on a daily basis. I'm thankful that I am able to sew my own clothes so that they can accommodate my ever changing shape and my short stature. Autoimmune gastritis flares up from time to time causing my belly to get extremely bloated. It's nice to be able to make my tops so they fit across my shoulders and bust, but leave plenty of room for my awkward belly.

As I said earlier, this blog tour did not go as I intended. Sharon and I had all kinds of plans. We both bought the same fabric at the fabric district recently and had talked about both of us making something with it and don't show each other what we made until we saw each other for photos. Then we also thought about making the same pattern, but using different fabrics. Time got away from us and I had to have surgery a few days before this blog post went live. As a matter of fact - I'm typing this blog about 10 hours after my surgery. 

All that to say that the final thing I'm Sew Thankful for is my friendship with Sharon (Sweet Mama Life). Sharon's blog will be up tomorrow, so be sure to catch hers too! Sharon and I met many years ago and I'm sew thankful we did. I love being around Sharon's cute kids. Sharon always helps me when I'm shopping by telling me what I should not buy and sometimes what I should. I love doing photos with her because she always lets me know when something doesn't look right and helps adjust my cloths to make sure I look my best. Here's one of my favorite photos of us together. 

I'm Thankful fo so many things and would probably bore you if I went on any further. Please take a look at the other blog on the tour and reflect on what you are thankful for this year. 

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