spoonflower

Favorite Books 2022

| brendazapotosky

Mixing things up a little bit today with a (hopefully) fun post. A leisure activity that I really enjoy is reading. I have pretty eclectic tastes and I enjoy discovering new books to read. So I am sharing some favorites from the past year that might help someone else discover a new title! And because this is mainly a design and sewing blog, I decided to pair each book with a pattern design of mine that I think matches the book in some way. I am choosing to share my Top 3 favorite books I read this year (along with 2 honorable mentions) Why Top 3? I completed 27 books this year (number 28 will overlap into 2023) which is a decent number especially considering that a few were thick tomes (Including The Portrait of a Lady by Henry James which does NOT get a top spot). But as I reviewed the list a lot of them were just mediocre and I only wanted to share the best of the best. I hoping to have a better mix in 2023! I am also sharing 2 honorable mentions to help round out the list. So here they are in no particular order and spoiler FREE!

THE TOP 3

MIDDLEMARCH by George Elliot

I actually started this book in December 2021 but didn’t finish it until well into 2022 so I am counting it for this year’s list. This book is definitely a long and slow read, but it also took me a bit to finish because I chose to take breaks along the way and read a few other faster books. The novel is broken up into “books” which are not not stand alone stories but do provide good points to take a break if you need one. Obviously this book made my Top 3 so I think it is WORTH the time investment!

I had it in my mind to read something by George Elliot. After looking through the options, Middlemarch stood out as her “best”. I definitely think it deserves the “masterpiece” designation. This sweeping novel has a huge cast of characters and, if you can look beyond the sometimes heavy prose, the story is really good! This book is definitely hard to read. I read ebooks and sometimes I would have to look up several words PER PAGE! (Love that I can do that). And there is a lot of superfluous rambling that I think could have been streamlined. But I do think it is worth the effort!

THE DESIGN: Little Cabins (Summer)

It is hard with a long book that covers so much to sum it up with a single design. I decided to go with my Little Cabins design in honor of my favorite character, Dorothea Brooke, who loved to draw “cottages” for the people who lived on the estate lands. These are pretty basic little dwellings in my design. Dorothea’s heart was so generous I am sure her designs were much more complex than these simple structures.

JAMAICA INN by Daphne Du Maurier

In total I have read 3 books by Du Maurier (not all this year), plus some but not all of the short story The Birds). 2 have been fantastic, 1 kind of disappointing. This year’s selection was Jamaica Inn and it definitely falls in the fantastic column! As I don’t want to give too much away I am not going to dive much into this one beyond saying that even I, who am very hard to surprise, did not expect all the twists! (Even though I did guess one of the big ones early on). I will say that if you want to go into this one completely blind DO NOT read the book blurb provided most places! It gives away a big plot point.

THE DESIGN: Landscape (Siesta)

I chose my Landscape design in the Siesta colorway for this book since so much of the novel takes place on the moors of England it is almost a character of its own! This design was created for my Canyon Collection which is dessert themed, but I think the abstract jagged lines fit the feel of the moors as well! And this colorway with taupe as the predominant color feels a bit more muted and misty.

A GENTLEMAN IN MOSCOW by Amor Towles

If I had to pick just one favorite book this would be it based on its perfect combination of wonderful story and readability. I love that this book feels like classic fiction without all the weighty prose of something like Middlemarch. This book tells the story of a (former) Count Rostov who is sentenced to live the rest of his days as a “prisoner” at the Metropol Hotel. If you like books with lots of action this is not the book for you. I would estimate that probably the first 25% of the book is merely setting up the life and “landscape” of Count Rostov. A fast paced plot is not what this book needs. That is not the reality of the main character’s fate. What this book does, and does well, is give you a look into the life of a truly likable character and by proximity a very colorful supporting cast. The book jumps along in time so you get a lot of (light) history on the way. And there is some excitement too! I loved this book so much, after I finished it I could have flipped to page one and started rereading it immediately! I am not sure I have ever felt that way about a book before.

THE DESIGN: Playtime Tea Party (Dreamy)

It was difficult to decide on a pattern for this book, especially when restricted to my current library of designs. Since food plays an important role throughout the book I chose a food themed design. And I picked Playtime Tea Party because it is “fancy food” in a sense and that DEFINITELY would appeal to the Count. Also, there is an almost tea party in the book. (No spoilers beyond that). Plus I like the playtime theme because the Count, while a charming, refined aristocrat, also reveals a playful side on more than one occasion!

HONORABLE MENTIONS

I decided to add a few other books to the list to round out the selections a bit. I enjoyed both of these. I wouldn’t rank them in the top favorites, but I would recommend them. And I chose them because they offer a different type of read for those who might not be interested in any of the books above!

THE MAGICIAN’S NEPHEW by C.S. Lewis

This was a reread for me as I have both read the book and listened to the audio book before (I am never sure if I should call that reading). The Magician’s Nephew is the (now) first book in The Chronicles of Narnia series. (I say now because I had a boxed set as a kid where this book was the last one. I think it was because that was the order in which they were written. But in terms of storytelling this tale is first chronologically.) I recommended the series to a family member and it motivated me to return to it myself. I only ended up reading this one book. It was fun to see what I remembered and what I didn’t. And of course it is great no matter how many times you read it! And for those of you unfamiliar with the series they are “kids” books. Younger than YA but I don’t know the technical term. I think at the library they are labelled J. So it is a fast and easy read!

THE DESIGN: Heart Trees (Sugar)

If I were to create a design from scratch inspired by this book I would come up with something very different. But when choosing from my existing library of designs I decided upon Heart Trees because a tree does play an important in the story and these heart shaped trees fit the fantasy theme of the novel!

HER ONE MISTAKE by Heidi Perks

This book was pretty good. Not a top favorite but I wanted to include it because it is from a popular genre: the modern thriller/celebrity book club pick/beach read type novel. I am not knocking this genre AT ALL! I love a good intense thriller that draws you in. A fast, fun read is a great type for the book rotation. And maybe I am just ultra picky. But so often I see a person share a book photo on social media and rave about it and I decide to pick it up and end up not liking it at all! One reason may be that I like PG-PG-13 books and too many of these would get a R rating if made into a movie. (Seriously why can’t book have ratings! I would love that!) But also maybe I just have weird tastes? So since I FINALLY read one of “these type” books that I enjoyed without any major objectionable content (that I can recall) so I thought it deserved a spot on the list!

THE DESIGN: Knock Down (Circus)

Not wanting even the design I pick to be any type of spoiler I chose my Knock Down design since the first main event of the book occurs at a school fair (which is mentioned right at the beginning of the book description).

THE END

I thought THE END was fitting way to wrap up this book themed post! I hope you enjoyed it and maybe found a new book to read. And if you DO read (or have already read) one of my suggestions I would love for you to leave a comment and let me know what you thought!

Until next time…

Thanks for reading,

Brenda

TUTORIAL: CUT AND SEW ORNAMENTS

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Today I am sharing some basic steps to go along with the cut and sew ornament fat quarter design I have in my Spoonflower shop. While this post is intended to be a simple instruction set for anyone who purchases my design this process can really be applied to any sewn ornament you might want to make! (Simply cut some hexagons from some fabric in your stash and follow the steps!).

NOTE: The design you can purchase is only for FABRIC all additional materials you will need to obtain separately. This is not a kit.

THE FAT QUARTER

Here is a look at the design: ALPINE ORNAMENTS CUT AND SEW in the Classic colorway. The design is 21″ wide which will work on ALL fabric types, including Petal Cotton. If you purchase a wider fabric you may get a few extra ornaments from your cut! There are duplicates of every design giving you two options. You can buy just this fat quarter and make 10 two-sided ornaments OR you can pair this fat quarter with an additional fabric and get 20 ornaments. I have many coordinating patterns in my Alpine Classic Collection or you can use something from elsewhere. I used the STRIPE on the top left of the image below to back mine.

ADDITIONAL MATERIALS

OPTIONAL: 1/8″ Fusible Batting/Fleece: This will give your ornaments some structure and depth. You need enough to apply to ONE side of the ornaments. If you choose a heavier fabric you could skip it but with one of the quilting cottons you will want it.

Ribbon: I made my hanging loops with 1/8″ satin ribbon you can buy by the spool from a craft store. The instructions will be based on this ribbon. You could choose a different size ribbon or even something more decorative or even do a short loop of thick thread and use a hook to hang them instead.

PREPARATIONS

Pre-wash your fabric.

Cut out all the hexagons from the fat quarter. If you are backing with coordinating fabric use those hexagons as your pattern pieces for the backings.

Cut 1 fusible fleece hexagon for each ornament 3/8″+ smaller on every side.

Fuse the fleece to each front piece of your ornament.

LEFT to RIGHT: Right sides sewn together leaving the top open. Trimmed seam allowances. Ornament turned right side out and pressed.

SEWING THE ORNAMENTS TOGETHER

For each ornament take one front piece fused with fleece and one backing and sew right sides together with a 3/8″ SA around 5 sides leaving the TOP side of the hexagon unsewn.

Trim those same 5 seams down to 1/8″. DO NOT trim the top. Clip corner points a little extra.

Turn your ornament right side out pushing out corners and sides to get a crisp shape. Press well.

Turn in the top edges 3/8″ and press seam

BEFORE and AFTER adding the ribbon.
Right photo shows the coordinating fabric I used which is sold separately.

ADD RIBBON LOOP AND FINISH

Cut a 8″ length of ribbon for each ornament.

Turn the ribbon into a loop with the ends overlapping approximately 1/2″

Insert the overlapped portion into the top of the ornament opening until the overlap is concealed. Be sure that your loop is centered and secure in place. I work one ornament at a time and hold it in place with my fingers and move it over to the machine to sew immediately.

Top stitch around the entire outline of the ornament starting and stopping on the top center where the ribbon is. This step will close the top opening, secure the loop and create a nice finished edge for your ornament!

DONE

That’s it! Your ornaments are complete! You can hang them as decorations or use them in another fun way! Here is a look at few that I completed.

ADDITIONAL “HELPS” and “HINTS”

Having made these ornaments many times I like to sew each step for all the ornaments until I get to the loop insertion. At that point I like to do one ornament at a time so that I don’t have to have them all held in place.

If you choose an alternate fabric to back the ornaments and are using the minimum fat quarter size you need I highly recommend first cutting the three horizontal strips (The ornaments are in three rows, each row is a different height). Next lay out ALL the ornaments for each strip and mark your cutting lines to ensure you don’t accidentally cut a little too wide and run out of fabric.

Happy Sewing!

Brenda

New Collection, New Collaboration

| brendazapotosky

Happy February! Spring is around the corner and spring is in the air with a new collection that I am excited to share with you today that is actually a collection WITHIN a collection! Intrigued? Read on to learn all about this new collaboration!

Many months ago a group of us Spoonflower designers joined together to create a color cohesive collection for a Spring release. This is not the first time this group of designers has a created a group collection in this way but it IS my first time joining in the fun! We began by choosing a colorway. Designers were allowed to submit color palettes that we as a group then voted on. The winning colorway is very bright and bold (and a little out of my usual comfort zone to be honest). I do think it is quite lovely for spring!

Once we finalized the colors we moved on to the design phase! While technically this is our Spring Release Collection we did not have to create solely spring themed designs. Since these colors were so bold and playful (and slightly girly) I drew inspiration from my 6 year old niece and designs I thought she would love.. Some brand new and some a new color version of older designs (from several different collections). My collection is called PLAYTIME TEA PARTY!

Playtime Tea Party features whimsical prints inspired by imaginary tea parties and dress up fun! All my designs can be found together in one COLLECTION in my shop. I already have a second colorway in the works and an additional design which will be added to it over time. The designs can also be found in various collections elsewhere on Spoonflower where they are grouped with all the other designer’s patterns.

To keep the group collection to a manageable size and aide shoppers in finding great prints and coordinates there are actually 6 separate collections featuring our spring colors. The main collection features a wide range of design styles, basically we could submit up to 5 designs of anything we liked as long as they met the color guidelines. Here are the 5 designs of mine that you can find it the MAIN COLLECTION:

In addition to the main collection there are 5 sub-collections featuring popular coordinate categories: Basics, Blenders, Florals, Plaid, Checks

I have 3 designs in two of those categories. Two in BASICS

And then one in CHECKS

While not all styles will compliment each other, by designing in a color cohesive collection like this the number of options buyers have to mix and match greatly increases! I did not add any designs to the other collections (some of my designs could fit but I chose to put them in the main collection) but they are definitely worth checking out as they are filled with lovely designs! Here are the links:

BLENDERS

PLAID

FLORALS

I am very excited to be a part of these collections! There are a lot of really great designs. One thing I find very interesting, similar to when I have participated in a Spoonflower limited palette challenge, is how very different the colors can look when applied in different combos and ratios from different designers. For a collection that was limited in color… the spectrum of design differences is big! And really quite fun! Between the 6 sub-collections there are more than 1000 designs from 59 different designers… there should be a little something for everyone!

We are using the hashtag: #designerspr22 on all our social posts and designerspr22 as a search tag on Spoonflower in case you would like to follow along with everyone’s posts or see all the designs not divided by collection.

I will end this post with one final look at all of my designs in a collage together.

And as always… Thanks for reading!

Brenda

Autumn Artwork Showcase

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Hello All! It has been quite a long time since I have written a new blog post. I never intended to take such a big break. Oops! We are long past welcoming in Autumn, but since it is my FAVORITE season I thought that before it exits I could dedicate a post to some of my Autumn Art!

My Spoonflower Shop has so many designs tagged Autumn and/or Fall I decided to dedicate an entire COLLECTION to the theme. These designs are gathered from many other Collections and do not all necessarily color coordinate with one another, their common bond is that they evoke the colors or images of Autumn.

One of the designs in that Collection and actually one of the very first patterns I ever uploaded to Spoonflower is my Pumpkins and Squash Design. This one I adapted from a note card I designed.

I also have a design that features only Pumpkins. I created this from an Illustration I did for the Alphabet Fruit and Veggie Challenge from a few years back. As you can see Geometric Pumpkins is VERY different in style. This is interesting to me. I think my signature style is definitely more refined now and while I don’t feel the need to make everything geometric I do tend to gravitate to that stylistic choice a lot. If I was going to choose a pattern that felt more “me” I would choose the geometric pumpkins…

I didn’t do a regular Art Challenge in 2021 (which is of course just one of the many reasons for the lack of blog posts) but I have done a few different ones in the past. You might recall the monthly architecture/house illustrations I did where I followed along with the seasons. I ended up with two fun Autumn themed illustrations in that batch:

I also had a year long Alphabet Animal Art Challenge. I did NOT have a turkey included in that Collection. But I eventually created one in the same style. I am not sure if an animal can really qualify as a seasonal species but if there was an autumn specific animal I think it would definitely have to be a turkey! I did two versions of this cute guy. The second time giving him more detail and some Thanksgiving garb!

I’ll end this post with a look at a few more patterns from the autumn colorway of my Kiku Garden Collection:

I hope you have enjoyed this little Autumn design tour! Do you have a favorite from this mix? Are you an Autumn lover too? As always feel free to drop a comment! And enjoy the season!

Brenda

Alphabet City Art Challenge: Year End Recap

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Alphabet City Art Challenge Final Review by Brenda Zapotosky

It is time for the Year End Recap for the Alphabet CITY Art Challenge!  I’ll share my overall thoughts at the end.  But first let’s start by looking at the illustrations!

26 Alphabet City Illustrations by Brenda Zapotosky

What a great mix!  I love the variety in the group as a whole.  It is a great collection overall!

It is interesting seeing the variating and color distribution of the title stripes since I just sort of picked colors randomly as I went (Trying to use the three color options evening but not really paying attention to how the final mix would look).  When I created the Clock Tower I loved how title stripe was layered behind the clock tower (out of neccessity).  I hoped to have more boards like this but if never really worked out again.

One thing I love about the this group that wasn’t true with the previous two challenges is the consistancy of color!  I began with a set color palette already in place from my CITY Collection.  It was this Collection that also inspired the overall look and scale of the illustrations and I love that I now have many more buildings to add to all the existing ones I originally created for my Around the Town design:

Around the Town Promo by Brenda Zapotosky

There a large number of illustrations that do not incorporate with these because of scale, or view, or “levels” (like the subway).  But there are many that do.  When it worked, I was consistant with door height etc so that all the “regular” scale ones CAN work together.  In the course of the Challenge I did create a few street view illustrations here is a reminder of what they look like:

2 CITY Street Views by Brenda Zapotosky

It is impossible for me to pick a favorite out of the group or even a top 3.  Instead you can read about more about my thoughts on the groupings of illustrations in the 3 previous Recaps (linked at the end of this post).

Also part of the Challenge were the CITY Blocks I created for each letter.  Here is a look at them all together:

26 CITY Letter Blocks by Brenda Zapotosky

The look of these were inspried by the original CITY Collection Logo.  All letters are my own original font:

CITY Original Lettering by Brenda Zapotosky Online

I love this font overall and definitely plan on using it in the future.  I will probably need to do a few tweaks.  I did not like the “B” when I created it… and I still don’t!  But I never got around to editing it.

Unlike the previous challenges I have not created any new patterns or cards featuring these illustrations.  I do have a project planned for them AND the font!  A very exciting one in fact.  But it is something I am keeping secret for the moment.

FINAL THOUGHTS:

Overall I think this challenge was easier to execute than the others since architecture is already a strength of mine.  And I really enjoy drawing buildings and built spaces so it was mostly fun.  But having to stick to the alphabet was not always enjoyable. And of course there is the deadline of the 2 week time frame…

So for 2020 I have decided that there will not be an alphabet challenge.  While it is a great way to motivate me to create new art pieces on a regular basis, the alphabet component is too constraining.  Also… this has been an Instagram centered challenge and with all the algorythym changes the posts just aren’t getting much engagement.  This wouldn’t be such an issue if these posts were spread across multiple platforms.  But if the main place I am sharing the art isn’t showing the art to many people, then I am mostly just creating for myself.  With that in mind… I think my design time will be better spent elsewhere.

To those have been following along and liking etc for the past year (or longer) BIG THANKS!  To those just reading about this challenge here are the previous posts so you can catch up!

And that’s a wrap!  After 3 straight years of Alphabet Challenges I look forward to a change!  I hope you will follow along with me on Instagram as I share more new work this year (including a NEW, non-alphabet challenge I will be doing monthly).

THANKS for Reading!  And feel free to comment below.  I love hearing your thoughts!

Brenda

Sewing: Handmade Ornaments

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Checkered Christmas by Brenda Zapotosky Tree Ornaments

Today I am sharing with you an easy handmade Christmas gift idea that you can make with SCRAPS!  Yay!  Scrap busting ideas are always welcome to me!  Hopefully they are for you too!  And since you can use scraps, you could sew up a few of these in time for Christmas. (You could change up the batting if you don’t have it on hand).

This is sort of a simplified tutorial (my first ever!)  I’ll describe how I made these in a few short steps but no photos of the process.

But first:  The fabric!  The main fabric I used for these ornaments was one of my own designs:  Checkered Christmas, in both the Merry (top) and Festive (bottom) colorways.

Checkered Christmas Promo By Brenda Zapotosky
Checkered Christmas is part of my Classic Christmas Collection

I originally purchased this fabric for another Christmas gift project which you can read about in this POST.  The fabric type was Spoonflower’s Lightweight Cotton Twill (but you could used any woven type of fabric you’d like).  I paired it with some Forest Green Canvas in my stash.  I cut the main fabric at an angle to add a little visual interest and fused it with a layer of batting to give it some extra thickness.  The ribbon for the loops was also in my stash.  You could also use embroidery thread, yarn, or even a tiny loop of thread for an ornament hook to attach.

Checkered Christmas by Brenda Zapotosky Tree Ornaments 3

HOW TO:

Before diving in I want to say that these instructions are for a medium weight fabric like the Canvas Twill.  If you choose something lighter, like quilting cotton, you may want to interface pieces, add fusible batting to the trunk, or even have the batting on both pieces of the triangle.  You want to make sure there is a enough stability that they can hang nicely.

Step 1:  For each ornament CUT:  (2) Tree Top Triangles, (2) Tree Trunk Rectangles, and  (1) Fusible batting triangle approx 3/8″ smaller all around than the tree triangle. (See Diagram at the end of post for dimensions).

Step 2:  Fuse 1 side only of the tree top triangle with the batting. (You could skip this step or interface with non-batting instead.)

Step 3:  Sew tree trunk rectangles right sides together on 3 sides with a 1/4″ SA, leaving the top unsewn.  Clip corners, turn right side out and press well.

Step 4:  Sew tree top triangles right sides together with a 1/4″ SA, leaving an opening in the bottom center slightly wider than the finished outside dimensions of the tree trunk rectangle.  Clip corners, turn right side out and press well.

Step 5:  Insert the trunk into the bottom of the tree, unsewn side up approx. 1/4″  Secure with a pin, washable tape etc.

Step 6:  Add top attachment piece of your choosing.  For my trees I secured the ribbon loops to the top of the trees with a few hand sewn loops of thread.  I THINK I did this before sewing the tree opening closed so I could hide the knotted ends INSIDE the tree.

Step 7:  Top-stitch around entire tree outline with a 1/8″ SA (which will attach the trunk to the tree top).

And Voila!  Your simple ornament is finished!  Repeat steps 1-7 for as many as you’d like.  As you can see below I made A LOT of these!

Checkered Christmas by Brenda Zapotosky Tree Ornaments 2

I hope this tutorial was helpful.  If a step is unclear please let me know so I can clarify!

CUTTING DIAGRAM:

Tree Ornaments Cutting Information by Brenda Zapotosky

These are the approximate dimensions for my trees.  I made these for Christmas 2018 and the trunk might have been sized slightly differently.  I had hoped to have a pdf download of the “pattern” as part of this post.  (and may add it in the future).  For now, if you would like a printable copy of the pieces let me know and I can send them too you.

Thanks for much for reading!  If you make this and share online please be sure to tag me so I can see your creation!  On Instagram: @brendazapotosky

Merry Christmas!

Brenda

 

 

Me-Made-May 2019

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MMMay Title Photo Mint Modal Chai Tee Brenda Zapotosky

Hi folks!  It is time for my Me Made May 2019 recap!  If you follow me on Instagram you have seen some of the looks already, but this is the only place I am posting ALL of the outfits.  As in past years I am grouping them by week and numbering them by DATE.  Also as in past years, I only took photos on the days I was out and about in “real” clothes.  Honestly I have TONS of lounge and pajama bottoms that I wear almost daily, so I was probably wearing something handmade most days, but I did not document those.

This May was a lot cooler than in past years!  (No complaints there, I LOVE cooler weather, anything over 80 degrees Fahrenheit is too hot for me!) So you’ll be seeing lots of layers.  Most of what I wore were older garments.  I thought I was going to weave in some of my newest makes (including a brand new pair of cropped pants) but the warm enough days did not coincide with the opportunity to wear them.  Since most of these makes are older, I will only be linking to my own fabric designs, since those are still available. I will link to all the patterns I used the FIRST time they are shown.  So if you don’t see a link, scroll back up to the first time I mentioned the pattern.  Also, I apologize in advance for the grainy selfies.  We don’t have a great place to take photos inside our house and the ipod I used to take them doesn’t have the greatest resolution.  Ok.  Let’s dive in!

WEEK 1:

No documented outfits

WEEK 2:

MMMay 2019 Week 2

May 5:  Oslo Cardigan by Seamwork, Lane Raglan by Hey June Handmade, Infinity scarf featuring my Spines (Siesta) design printed on Cotton Spandex Jersey.  The Lane and Oslo patterns, in my many variations, are both on heavy repeat this month.  They are wardrobe staples… as are scarves!

May 7:  Almost a repeat of May 5!!!  Ha Ha.  Oslo Cardigan, in fleece this time, Lane Raglan, Infinity Scarf featuring my SW Triangles Haze design printed on Modern Jersey, and thumbhole wrist warmers made from the same fabric as the Lane.

May 10:  Another Lane!  Another Infinity Scarf!  But a different cardigan this time!  This is the Blackwood Cardigan by Helen’s Closet.

WEEK 3:

MMMay 2019 Week 3

May 12:  RTW inspired french terry pull-over that was a mash-up of the Halifax Hoodie by Hey June Handmade and the Tabor V-Neck (hem detail) by Sew House Seven with some custom detailing (like the yoke and top-stitching) to mimic the RTW look.  I posted more photos of this make and more details in THIS post.

May 14:  Julia Cardigan by Mouse House Creations and a Lane Raglan.  This lane is made out of Robert Kaufman Laguna Knit, it is one of my absolute favorite CL.  Lighter and drapier than most, but still a nice weight.  A lot of my me-mades in this post were made from it (Including the May 10th Lane and the May 17th Lane).  You can find it in a lot of online stores.

May 17:  ANOTHER Lane Raglan (custom sleeve length).

May 18:  Another Julia Cardigan, this time paired with a custom tee pattern I have been developing from the Renfrew Top by Sewaholic.  It is my “fancy” tee version.  Actually, since taking this photo, I have modified the neck finish one this one so it dips down more.  Bag is also me-made.

WEEK 4:

MMMay 2019 Week 4

May 19:  Chambray Cheyenne Tunic by Hey June Handmade with custom short sleeves.  This was a newly “made over” garment and I was super excited to bring back into rotation.  I shared about my modifications in THIS post.  I was most likely wearing a handmade cardigan over top but I honestly can’t remember which one and I don’t have a photo with it.

May 24: Oslo Cardigan, Knit Skirt (self-drafted starting from a RTW skirt) and Infinity scarf featuring my Petal Potpourri (Bold) and Sprigs and Leaves (Bold) designs printed on Modern Jersey.

WEEK 5:

MMMay 2019 Week 5

May 26:  Another Oslo Cardigan over a brand new make, the Chai Tee by Liesl & Co.  View of just the top is the first photo of this blog post so you can have a closer look.  I shared the details in THIS post.  Headband is also me-made.

May 28: Halifax Hoodie (An actual zip up hoodie version this time), Another version of my custom Renfrew hack fancy tee, and handmade tote.  I call this one my cool tones geometrics tote, made with all my original pattern designs.  You can see a close up look at it in THIS post and find the fabrics in this COLLECTION (a few have been modified in scale, color, etc before I listed them).

May 29:  Morris Blazer (with quite a few mods) by Grainline Studio and a Renfrew Top by Sewaholic (This time MOSTLY per the pattern, I did eliminate the short sleeve bands, which you can’t see anyways).  The blazer was made a while ago, I shared all the mods in THIS post.

May 31:  Last Day!  We actually took a road trip to IKEA that day and I was SUPER comfy in these #secretpajamas Oslo Cardigan (same one as on May 24) and my first ever Coastal Breeze Dress by Make it Perfect (also made in RK Laguna knit).  I have since made 3 more of this dress.  Another favorite pattern.

FINAL THOUGHTS:

Overall I would call Me Made May 2019 a success!  Sure, I had a lot of pattern repeats, but I am ok with that.  One of the things I love about sewing is getting to create garments that really work for me and my body.  And when I like a garment, I make a lot of them!  Especially since I often do a lot of mods to get them how I want them, might as well maximize that effort. And actually, I think it is quite fun to see all the variety and variations you can achieve with just ONE pattern!  I am a bit disappointed that three brand new makes never made it into the mix.  I was especially excited to show off the pants I made.  And I expected to wear my newest Coastal Breeze dress (finished MONTHS ago) to a night out… but it only works with bare legs and it has not been bare leg weather (for me anyways). (In fact 2 of those 3 makes are still unworn!) But as I said at the beginning, I LOVE this cooler spring we have been having, and I will get to show off those makes eventually!

I hope you enjoyed this recap!  If you have any specific questions about fit/modifications that I did not share or link.  Want to know about a fabric I used.  Or would simply like to share a comment I would love to hear from you!

Thanks for reading!

 

 

 

 

Announcing the 2019 Alphabet Art Challenge!

| brendazapotosky

It is that time of the year again friends.  Time to announce the theme for next year’s Alphabet Art Challenge.  I have to be honest… I seriously considered NOT doing a 2019 challenge.  They are a lot of work and sometimes the obligation to create something was more annoying than fun.  I am hoping with a little reworking of my task parameters it will be a bit easier this time around.  This will be the third year I am hosting this challenge.  You can read about the original 2017 Animal Challenge HERE and last year’s 2018 Fruit and Veggie Challenge HERE.

Ok.  Without further ado the 2019 theme is: CITY!!!

REVISED Alphabet City Art Challenge Title by Brenda Zapotosky

One of the reasons I decided to do a 2019 challenge is this theme.  I already have a CITY Collection in my Spoonflower Shop and I want to use this year of illustrations to grow that collection of patterns and expand into other coordinating works including greeting cards.  For those who may not know, my field of study was actually Architecture and I have found that designs of mine that incorporate buildings etc tend to do well.  I would like to play on this strength but also still challenge myself.  I think this challenge will do both.  For each letter of the alphabet I will create something CITY related.  This could be a building:  bank, library, skyscraper etc.  But I am not limiting it to only buildings.  ANYTHING that can be found in a city is fair game.  (And let’s face it, creativity will probably be required for some of the letters!).

One big change I will making for this year’s challenge is that I will NOT be posting a list of prompts for each letter.  My original reason for doing the lists was to give others ideas of what they could create for each letter.  And while these lists DO get a surprising amount of likes on Instagram, those likes do not translate into others actually participating in the challenge.  And since I don’t need the lists myself, eliminating them will take off one of the burdens from past challenges.  I do plan on posting a LETTER on each start day as a reminder of the start of the next 2-week period (more on that below).  For the 2018 challenge I decided to create a letter for each week.  I hope to do the same this year, although I haven’t decided exactly what I want the font collection to look like.

Stylistically I will be keeping with the already established look of the existing City Collection and only use the colors in its palette.  I actually enjoy working with a limited palette… I like having limitations!

This is my Around the Town design.  It is a good example of the style and colors you can expect to see from me this challenge!

Around the Town Promo by Brenda Zapotosky

HOW THE CHALLENGE WORKS:

Now for the official “rules” for this Challenge.  There are 52 weeks and 26 letters, so that means 1 letter for every 2 weeks.  Even though 2019 starts on a Tuesday, I have decided to keep Monday as the starting day for each new letter.  And in order to not delay a full week, Monday Dec 31 will actually kick off the letter “A”. On each Monday when a new letter begins I will post a reminder on Instagram with the letter for that 2-week period.

As it was for past years, this is JUST FOR FUN!  There are not any prizes for participating.  You can use any type of medium you like to create your art.  And if you are late to join in or miss a letter or 2, that is totally fine!  Depending on participation I will try to share other artist’s work who are regular contributors to the hashtag.  So if you want to be included don’t forget to use the official tag:  #alphabetcityartchallenge on all the pieces you create!

That’s it!  I have one more creation left to finish for the 2018 Fruit and Veggie Challenge and then there will be recaps for both the last quarter and the entire year coming to the blog in January.

In the meantime you can check out the hashtag:  #2018fruitandveggieartchallenge to see all the that has been posted this year by myself and others! (There have been 3 of us posting to it regularly). And (if you are not already) I recommend following me on Instagram so you are sure to see all the posts that are to come!

If you have any questions feel free to ask!

Happy Almost New Year!

Brenda

Fruit and Veggie Art Challenge: N-S

| brendazapotosky

It is time for the 3rd “Quarter” Recap for the 2018 Fruit and Veggie Art Challenge!  Letters N thru S were an interesting group and I am beginning to see some of the limitations of my “geometric” design criteria. Before I jump into my thoughts on this group let me share my 6 fruit and veggie creations for this portion of the challenge:

N thru S Fruit and Veggies by Brenda Zapotosky

Overall I really like this group.

You may notice that the pear and quince are quite similar.  This was completely intentional.  I thought since their shapes are so similar AND they are in season around the same time that it would be nice to have them “go” together.  While I already have a Geometric Apple pattern in my shop, I think I would like to do a new apple that matches the style of the pear and quince and create a pattern using all of them.

Also, I had an interesting creative process with a few of these.  I recently created a new pattern, Geometric Taco Bar, that includes a variety of fruit/veg, including both the onion and the radish.  The letter “O” fell during the time that I was making the pattern so it was created for both at the same time.  As for the radish, that was created for the pattern first, but I did not feel compelled to do another “R” fruit/veg when it arrived, so I simply composed a board featuring the Radish.

Geometric Taco Bar was created for a Spoonflower Design Challenge and is available in my shop!

Geometric Taco Bar Pattern by Brenda Zapotosky
Geometric Taco Bar is available as gift wrap, wallpaper, and fabric.

I also included both the Jalapeno and Iceberg Lettuce which were created earlier in the Challenge (adding in slices of each).  I love this pattern.

It is hard to pick a favorite in this group.  I am actually more prone to pick a least favorite:  The nectarine!  It is difficult to differentiate between the specific varieties of round fruits especially in the geometric style I have chosen.  I like the cut view of the nectarine better and do think it captures the essence pretty well.  This difficulty is one of the limitations I was referring to at the start of this post.  I am also finding that even in the “non-circle” fruit/veg that there are a lot of similar looking shapes.  For example, radishes, beets and turnips, when drawn in the geometric style are also hard to differentiate.  The same would hold true with leafy greens.  Hopefully enough unique shapes will present themselves as I complete the challenge.

One fun aspect of this group is that half of them have been included in surface patterns! The onion and radish are both part of the Geometric Taco bar design.  Additionally, I love the strawberry so much I already created a pattern for it!  This pattern will be added to my shop very soon. So that is 3/6.  And, as I have already mentioned, I hope to create a pattern using both the pear and quince together. One of my favorite aspect of this challenge is a library of illustrations to use in other applications.

Speaking of the strawberries, I wanted to share a look at the pattern!  I have ordered the swatches, so it will be in my shop soon.  But I do want to say it COULD CHANGE.  I often tweak designs after seeing them printed, so this is how it will tentatively look.

Geometric Strawberries Classic Pattern by Brenda Zapotosky

This is the Classic colorway.  I also created a Pinky colorway too! I’ll update this post when they are available in my shop.

And that’s a wrap!  Looking forward, I expect this final batch of letters to be challenging.  For the most part I do not look at the options for a letter until I make the prompt list, so there is a chance that I will be surprised, but I think the options for everything but “T” to be very limited.  Follow me on Instagram if you want to see each letter (and the prompts as I create them).

As always, thanks for reading!

Brenda