Easy Sewing Pattern For Tops

One of my favorite sewing pattern brands are Kwik Sew patterns. I realize they are a bit more expensive than some other pattern companies but I don’t mind paying extra for a stylish pattern that fits well and has excellent directions.

The other nice thing about their patterns is they are often classic styles. They also come printed on nice heavy paper, not that thin tissue paper that tears easily. All sizes are included in the pattern and I have found that if you want to sew something for yourself and then use the same pattern for someone that is a different size you can easily use this thin, see through, pattern tracing fabric – its kind of like interfacing and is usually sold near the interfacing – to trace multiple sizes. I have also used quilters grid before to trace patterns since you can see through it.

One of my favorite Kwik Sew patterns that I bought years ago and have made many times in various fabrics and prints is pattern number 3632. This pattern is for a top or dress that has an elastic casing at the neckline and sleeve cap to gather those areas in and create and cute and flattering top.

This white knit top above is one I made in the past month. It was super quick and easy to sew. There are only 2 pattern pieces and then you have to sew the casing for your elastic at the neck and arm area, hem the bottom and its finished.

The blue, yellow and white chevron print top above is also made using the same pattern but with a cotton fabric. The pattern is very versatile and I have used various types of fabrics for it. I love how easy it is to make one of these tops – like in a couple hours or less. I have also used stitches other than a straight stitch to sew the topstitched area – on these two tops I used a narrow zigzag stitch for the casings and the hems.

This particular pattern would be a great project for someone learning to sew. The pattern is really easy to read and to sew. I also noticed that Hobby Lobby is now carrying some of the Kwik Sew patterns as well as Joann and Hancocks. In the past in my area I could only buy them at Hancocks.

What types of sewing projects do you like to do?

Have a great day!

Kimberlee

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Working Out Week 29 of 2014

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This past week seemed to go by so fast! I can not believe we are more than halfway through the month of July! It has also cooled down here in Texas quite a bit the last couple of days and we got some much needed rain all day on Thursday. July is normally really hot so it is strange to be in the low 80′s for the high temperature of the day.

This week my workouts were as follows:

Sunday – Walk + Swimming – 45 minutes
Monday – Cathe Xtrain; All Out Low Impact Hiit, Step & Disc Cardio – 25 minutes
Tuesday – Ride Bike + Yoga outdoors on patio – 32 minutes
Wednesday – Cathe LIS; Turbo Barre, Upper-Lower Muscle Endurance, Legs with Band, Planks & Abs segments – 50 minutes
Thursday - ~~Walking~~ + Yoga – 20 minutes
Friday – Cathe Xtrain; Supercuts – 46 minutes
Saturday – Ride Bike + Yoga outdoors on patio – 32 minutes

Normally I take Sunday’s off but this past Sunday I decided to go for a late morning walk and in the afternoon I swam some laps in our pool. It was really hot that day and a great day to go swimming.

I decided to do some Cathe Friedrich Xtrain dvd’s this week. This dvd series is a couple of years old. There are some great cardio and weight routines in this series.

All Out Low Impact Hiit workout

Monday I did All Out Low Impact Hiit. I only did a 25 minute premix of the step and disc cardio that day as I was having some issues with a pesky sinus headache that came on Sunday evening and carried over into Monday. I was determined not to let it interfere with my workout schedule though. My cat showed up at the end for the stretch – apparently he wasn’t into working out that day either.

Wednesday I did the Low Impact Series from Cathe Friedrich – the Turbo Barre workout again. I am going to try and keep including this in my schedule once a week as I really like this workout even though its kind of long. It really seems to lengthen your whole body and strengthen and tone everything. This week I did a couple of the segments of the workout that I didn’t do last week. As you see the cat really likes this workout – he began it by standing on the floor behind the chair and jumping up over the back to get to the seat. Then he continued to jump around and chase his tail for a while. I guess that was his workout for the day.

I am also continuing to enjoy the warmer weather and ride my bike or walk in the mornings. This past week on Thursday I was going to walk again but it rained – thankfully as we really needed it. So, I decided to get out an old workout that I bought years ago. It is the Caribbean Workout Yoga For the Core. The show used to be on Fit TV and they also put out dvd’s. I think I got this on sale at Walmart. The dvd has three 20 minute segments on it. Both of my cats joined me that day for some yoga.

The other Xtrain workout I did was called Supercuts. I did the entire dvd which is 46 minutes long. It is a fun, fast paced and challenging workout that has cardio, weights and lots of core exercises. There are also several exercise that use the band with handles that are really great for the upper body and the core.

I made more granola this week since my one son ate most of the first batch I made last week. You can look at my workout post from week 28 to get the link to the granola recipe.

I also read a post last week on another blog I follow called the 100lb Countdown. The post was on smoothies and it gave me an idea to create this smoothie with carrots, orange juice and a nectarine.

I guess this smoothie came out more like a drink but I thought it had an interesting and pleasant taste. To make this you will need the following ingredients:

handful baby carrots
1 nectarine, cut up, pit removed, skin left on
2 spoonfuls plain greek yogurt
1/2 cup orange juice
1/2 cup water – more if needed
1/2 cup crushed ice

Place all of the above ingredients in a high powered blender like a ninja blender and pulse a few times then blend for about 1 to 2 min. on speed 8. You could also add a little honey if you wanted it a bit sweeter.

I have found that I like nectarines in my smoothies and have used them in a couple of my green smoothies as well. I recently read in a book I got from the library called The Juicing Diet that nectarines are good for detoxing, heart and bone health and for your skin.

I hope everyone is having a good weekend!

Kimberlee

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Garter Lace Knit Shawl

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I have finally finished my Noro Garter Lace Shawl. I started this project last summer and had set it aside. I got it out a couple of months ago and decided I needed to finish it since I was already a fourth of the way done. The shawl is very pretty and I love how it turned out.

The shawl pattern was from the summer 2013 issue of Noro Knitting magazine. The pattern is available on Ravelry for $5.00. It was a fairly simple pattern to follow but in my magazine there was an error on the one row of the lace pattern. I had figured this out on my own around the third repeat row of the lace pattern and I now notice that there is a errata statement on the Ravelry page – I guess I should have looked there sooner. So, if you decide to knit this look at the end of the pattern page and the row correction is there – save yourself a headache.

The yarn I used for this was not the yarn the pattern recommended. I used Noro Sekku yarn because I had 3 skeins of it and knew it would be enough to make this shawl. The Sekku yarn is a blend of mainly cotton, wool, nylon and silk. The yarn was okay to work with – not one of my favorites in the Noro yarns. It is a really fine yarn that was like knitting with floss. I really like the colors of the yarn though and how they look with the lace pattern. The colorway I used was number 8 – and it only took 2 of my 3 skeins so now I will have to figure out something to make with that leftover skein.

The reason I think this shawl took me forever to finish was that it is knit on very small size 4 needles. That needle size combined with the thin yarn I just felt like I was not getting much done. The end part of the shawl took forever to complete a row too because you had over 300+ stitches on the needles. I think it was taking me about 10 or 15 minutes to complete a row.

This shawl is a great summer project though as the yarn is thin and mostly cotton so it is not hot or too heavy to work with when it is hot outside. I do not like to work with heavy wool type of yarns in the summer time.

Overall I am pleased with the way this shawl turned out and look forward to being able to wear it. It will be a great shawl to keep with me for those chilly air conditioned places. There are also a lot of great colors in this shawl that will go with many things in my wardrobe.

What projects have you recently finished? Click on Leave a Reply and tell me about them.

Have a great day!

Kimberlee

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Working Out Week 28 of 2014

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Another week has gone by and I was able to get back into my normal routine of working out each morning now that the ceiling renovations are done and I am feeling better.

Monday – Cathe – LIS (Low Impact Series) Cardio Supersets – 41 min
Tuesday – Ride Bike + Yoga – 32 min
Wednesday – Cathe LIS Turbo Barre – 52 min
Thursday - ~~Ride Bike~~ Walk + Yoga – 35 min
Friday – Cathe LIS Afterburn – 54 min
Saturday – Ride Bike + Yoga – 35 min

I decided to do my Cathe Friedrich Low Impact Series workouts since I was still only about 70% better at the beginning of the week. The LIS workouts are still challenging but not as hard or intense as some of her other workouts.

After completion of Cardio Supersets

As you can see by the workout photos above and the post workout photo of all the sweat that the low impact workout does not mean easy. These workouts are still challenging but less intense and not so hard on the joints – a lot less jumping but it still gets your heart rate up.

On the days in between doing LIS I rode my bike and came home from riding to do a little outdoor yoga on the back patio. I went out on Tuesday to a very flat tire on my bike so I pumped it up, rode anyhow and kept checking behind me to make sure it was holding air. When I went out to ride on Thursday the tire was completely flat again so I decided to walk instead and not risk riding on the bad tire. I discovered we had another tube to replace it so my husband fixed it for me Friday night and I was able to ride again on Saturday. I did enjoy walking for a change though on Thursday. It is nice to have variety – keeps me from getting bored of exercising.

On Wednesday the LIS workout I chose to do was the Turbo Barre workout. I have not done this workout is quite a while and really like it. The workout is done in bare feet and uses minimal equipment – just a chair, or a barre if you have one, some light dumbbells and a loop band – and your cat on your chair! My cat loves to sit on the chair during this workout. It is over 50 minutes so I think he left for a few to go eat his food – then he was back. This workout offers total body conditioning with a primary focus on the legs, hips and butt. I have decided to try and incorporate this in my weekly routine at least once a week for the next month to see the results. I like how it lengthens and defines the lower body.

Afterburn was the other Cathe LIS workout I used this week. It is a total body cardio and conditioning workout that offers a lot of variety using the slide and glide discs (that my cat loves), some dumbbells and dixie cups as markers or props for the workout. Again it is low impact but not easy and you will sweat a lot.

I also made a new granola recipe this week. It is one I found on another blog a couple of months ago and had pinned it to one of my pinterest boards. It is a white chocolate cranberry granola. I changed the recipe a bit to have a little less brown sugar and used oil in place of the butter. One of my son’s loves it and he is usually kind of picky. He saw me putting in the coconut and didn’t think he would like it but he said it smelled really good so he tried it and had two small bowls when it was still warm from the oven.

The photo above of the granola is with some fresh blueberries added to it and some soy milk. That was my breakfast this morning. My son didn’t want the dried cranberries in his so I am just storing the granola and adding in what I want as I eat it. This is really good if you warm the granola a little bit and then add a few of the white chocolate chips and they sort of melt onto the granola. It would also be good with dark chocolate chips, I think. I will probably try that out next.

I hope everyone has had a great week. Tell me about your workouts or any new recipes you have tried by clicking on Leave a Reply. Also, for future post and updates you can follow my blog via bloglovin, email or RSS – all icon are in the right sidebar.

Have a great day!

Kimberlee

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Sewing Simple Chevron Top

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This simple blue chevron top is a sewing project I finished a couple of months ago. I had intended to share it sooner but things have gotten in the way of my plans which is I guess how life goes for everyone at times. I have wore the top several times already and love how simple it was to sew and how comfortable it is to wear. Also, it looks good with skirts, shorts or jeans.

The pattern I used for this top was from the Bernina My Label software – which is pattern drafting software I have that drafts patterns by your measurements. I have mentioned it before and use it quite a bit. This top is actually not one of the patterns in the software – I used the tunic pattern to design this simple cap sleeve top. It is only two pattern pieces – a front and back – and I make a bias neckband facing which I am going to share with you below on how to do this.

The fabric I used was a 100% cotton fabric that I think I ordered from fabric.com. The one thing about making clothing with the chevron prints is that you want to have a little extra fabric to match the chevron pattern as close a possible to look uniform. Also, you want to make a top that does not have a lot of complicated darts or seams that will make the print look strange.

The neckline of this top is sewn with a bias strip of fabric for the facing. A lot of patterns come with a facing that is curved but I often find they are kind of wide and do not always lay well. I have found that using the bias facing technique works much better – especially with this style of top. Below is a little tutorial on how to make a bias neckline facing.

Step 1 – cut a fabric strip on the bias that is 1 1/4 inch or 1 1/2 inch wide and a little longer than the length around your neckline. For this top I did 1 1/4 inch wide. Note: the bias is the 45 degree diagonal grain of the fabric – most quilting rulers have the angles marked and you can use that as a cutting guide.
Step 2 – after you have your strip cut finish off one of the long raw edges with a serger or a zigzag stitch
Step 3 – then pin the other raw edge with right sides together to your neckline starting at the center back of neck- overlap the ends a little (what I usually do is just have an extra long strip and after I am done pinning it to the neckline I cut it where I need to)
Step 4 – sew the strip to the neckline edge using a 1/2 in seam allowance

Step 5 – Clip the curved neckline edges close to stitching line, with a steam iron press bias strip out with seam pressed toward the bias strip

Step 6 – Understitch the facing just inside the neckline seam on the bias strip – you can use the inner toe of your presser foot as a guide
Step 7 – Press the facing to the inside of the top and topstitch the facing down from the right side of the top – I usually use a 3/8 inch seam or the outer edge of my presser foot as a guide while stitching around the neckline – press again after you complete your topstitching

I hope you enjoyed this tutorial and are getting lots of sewing projects done this summer. I would love to hear about what you are working on – click on Leave a Reply to tell me about your current projects and crafts. Also, to receive future blog updates and tutorials follow my blog via email subscription, RSS feed or bloglovin. All icons are in the right sidebar.

Have a great week!

Kimberlee

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Working Out Week 27 of 2014

Patriotic Projects

Working Out Week 26 of 2014

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This week marks that we are halfway through the year – can you believe it? I was able to workout for a few days this week but not the entire week like usual due to our ceilings being redone. Our house was built in the early 1980′s and we have those horrid popcorn ceilings in most of the house. We decided to hire a company to remove them from the lower level and that meant my workout room, also our living room, would not be able to be used for several days – which looks like now it will be five or six days.

The photo above is what my workout room aka living room looks like the past few days – the objects in the middle are our furniture covered in two layers of plastic. This is a really messy process and I will be glad when it is all done.

The photo above here shows the ceilings scraped of the popcorn – its hard to get a good photo as the windows are covered in plastic and they have removed all the light bulbs.

I was able to workout the beginning of this week since they started working on Thursday morning. I did a couple of my Cathe Friedrich dvd’s and rode my bike one day.

Monday – Cathe X10 premix X41 – 41 minutes
Tuesday – Ride Bike + exercise ball routine for abs – 33 minutes
Wednesday – Cathe Lean Legs and Abs premix compound legs+bonus barre+core – 50 minutes

I love the Cathe X10 workout – tons of variety and lots of sweat with this dvd. It is a combination of cardio and weights and lots of creative and fun moves. The cat is supervising my moves, as usual.

Today, Saturday, I am hoping to ride my bike this afternoon or evening if it doesn’t rain. The ceiling workers were here until about 1pm – they get here early like at 8:30am so I am not able to get up and get in a workout before they come unless I want to get up before 6 and I don’t. I like to at least have a cup of coffee and breakfast and do my daily scripture reading before the workers get here. They are also working in our kitchen so I have to be out of there by the time they show up.

It looks like the ceilings will not be finished until Tuesday of next week so I will only be working out half of next week as well, unless I can do some outdoor activity in the evening. I will be really glad when we get this project finished and our house back together.

I hope you had a great week and got in some exercise. Have a good weekend!

Kimberlee

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Working Out Week 25 of 2014

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This past week my workouts were a mixture of biking, cardio and yoga. It seems like every summer I tend to do more outdoor activities like biking and swimming as it gets warmer and I also like to alternate with some yoga.

Schedule this past week:

Monday – Ride Bike + exercise ball routine – 33 minutes
Tuesday – Yoga – Yoga Life Magazine Core Curriculum routine – 20 minutes
Wednesday – Cathe To The Max dvd, Less Impact Premix – 39 minutes
Thursday – P90X3 – Isometrix – 30 minutes
Friday – Ride Bike + exercise ball routine – 33 minutes
Saturday – Yoga Life + Yoga Journal Magazine routines – 25 minutes

Every other day was yoga this past week. The yoga routines were a mixture of magazine routines and my P90X3 Isometrix dvd, which is one of my favorite dvd’s in the X3 series. I had not used this dvd in about three months and forgot how challenging it is – you hold each pose for 45 seconds.

The other yoga routines I did were from a Prevention magazine called Yoga Life that I bought back in 2010 from Sams, I believe. There are some really good yoga routines in this magazine so I have kept it and pull it out from time to time to use it. I also used a Yoga Journal magazine this past week that I checked out from the library. I took my kids there earlier in the week to check out books for their summer reading and I also checked out a couple of Yoga Journal magazines.

My cardio dvd this week was Cathe Friedrich’s To The Max. I did a 39 minute premix that was a little less impact but still very challenging and gave me a great workout. This workout uses the step for parts of the workout and it seems my cat loves to hang out on the step when I am not using it as seen in the photo below. The core with upper body weights session of this workout is tough and one of my favorite parts of this dvd.

I also rode my bike again a couple of mornings this past week on my neighborhood route. I really like being out early and riding in the fresh morning air. After my riding I usually come in and do some light stretching and some core work with my stability ball.

This coming week I will only be working out for a few days of the week and not my usual six days. We are having some work done to our house and will have people here working for a few days. There is also a possibility that I will not be able to do my post next week if they are still here finishing the work on Saturday – we’ll see.

I hope everyone had a great week and you are enjoying warmer weather and some outdoor activities and workouts.

Have a great weekend!

Kimberlee

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WIP for June

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WIP stands for work in progress and I have quite a few of those for this month. I typically have at least one crochet and one or two knitting projects going at all times but I got involved in a few extra this month and wanted to show what I have been working on lately.

I continue to work on my Noro garter and lace shawl that I started last summer and put aside. I really like this yarn and the project but it is like knitting with toothpicks on these tiny size 4 needles. I have a goal to get it done this summer though. I am a little more than halfway through with it now.

Below is a close up of the lace and garter rows. I now have over 250 stitches on my circular needles so it takes me at least 10 minutes to complete one row. I believe I will end up with over 375 stitches by the time it is finished.

My friend Karen and I decided to knit this advanced lace shawl called My Cat Stole My Heart. It is a pattern from Knit Picks. We usually meet and knit together at Starbucks twice a month and decided to do a KAL – Knit Along – together. She was planning to knit this for a friend and give it to her by September but the pattern is so long and very complex that she has changed her mind and will be knitting something a little easier for her friend.

The yarn I choose to knit this Cat Stole My Heart shawl is from Knit Picks – called Chroma fingering weight yarn. The color is called prism and I love it! The pattern called for lace weight yarn but I just couldn’t find one I really liked and decided to try it with this fingering weight. So far I am pleased with how it looks – this is my progress after about 10 days. I do not work on this every day because it is the type of knitting project that you have to really focus on and pay attention so you can not be talking to anyone or watching TV. I usually sit outside in the morning on my patio with my coffee after my workout and knit a few rows.

The below photo is a close up of the shawl – it is altering rows of a cat paw print and a lace heart design – the hearts go one way the paw print the other.

Around the same time I started the cat shawl I began a baby blanket for a gift for my neighbor who I just found out was pregnant and due any day. They are new neighbors and I had not seen them much the past few months and didn’t know she was having a baby. This is their first child and a little girl so of course I had to go through my stash and find a pretty pink yarn to knit a baby blanket. I never get to make pink things – other than for myself – since I have three sons. I am about halfway done with this little blanket. I am just using a simple diagonal knitting pattern (like for the dishcloths) that has a little openwork edge.

The dishcloths are a new obsession of mine lately since I participated in the May KAL with my facebook knitting group. I started another star pattern dishcloth in this red, white and blue stripe cotton yarn that I found at Joann last week. I like working on this for something simple that I can do while watching TV or talking to someone. Also, these dishcloths are very portable projects and easy to work on anywhere.

One of the other things I have started in the past few weeks is a crochet project using the Patons Glam stripe yarn I got on sale at Michaels back in May. I really like this yarn and I am designing a wrap and a shrug pattern with it. I have already knit a scarf with the yarn and I like how it looks and it is a nice yarn to work with.

I have also continued to watch some of my craftsy knitting class Lace Knitting Basics and Beyond with Eunny Jang. I am already familiar with knitting lace but I wanted to take this class to learn more about knitting lace patterns and reading charts. So far I am really pleased with the class and I like the instructor. She is easy to listen to and understand. You can click on the highlighted link to learn more about the class or click on the craftsy link in the right sidebar to learn more about their other knitting classes.

I would love to hear about your WIP – (work in progress) or any finished projects as well. Click on Leave a Reply to tell me about them.

Have a great day!

Kimberlee

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Kimberlees Korner

A blog about creativity, cooking, fitness and inspiration

Easy Sewing Pattern For Tops

Working Out Week 29 of 2014

Garter Lace Knit Shawl

Working Out Week 28 of 2014

Sewing Simple Chevron Top

Working Out Week 27 of 2014

Patriotic Projects

Working Out Week 26 of 2014

Working Out Week 25 of 2014

WIP for June