It’s the new Liverpool Dress from Amy Butler! Elizabeth did a lovely job stitching this up in a new Brandon Mably print. Fortunately for me, our shop mannequin just happens to wear a size Medium as well! I love a shirt dress, and I have to say I think this one is pretty close to perfect. A dress is the easiest thing to wear. It makes you look well put together, and all you have to think about is accessories. I can see myself wearing this to work (would everyday be too much?) or running errands. Pair it with boots and a pretty scarf and I’d be ready for a party!

As usual, Ms. Butler, gives us many options for this dress. It can be a shirt, a tunic, a short dress, or a long dress. Set-in sleeves can be short, elbow length, 3/4 length, or long. Ours is a long dress with elbow length sleeves. Each version has a tab collar and button placket with double dart shaping in the front and back, and a self tie belt stitched into the side seams. These options will easily take you through the seasons. If you made it in a home dec weight fabric, it would be a handsome jacket!

We are having a class in the Liverpool Dress in January. This will be a fun, workshop style class, in which we will demonstrate the crucial parts of the pattern, while you sew at your own pace. Here’s the details:

Liverpool Dress Class- $80 plus materials
Saturday, January 23 & 30: 10AM- 2PM

We recommend that you have previously made garments using a pattern, and that you come to class with all of your fabric pieces cut out and ready to sew.

Materials: Pattern, thread, 2.25- 4.75 yards fabric depending on size and style chosen. 4-7 buttons. 1/4 yard fusible interfacing.

Please call the shop to reserve your space. See you there!

With everything that’s going on this time of year, it’s fun to have a quick project that can give you a little crafting time and make your holiday table look lovely all at once. Placemats are just the thing! We just got a shipment of Shot Cottons and new prints from Kaffe Fassett. These soft hues are so autumnal, all I wanted to do was see them them all next to each other, arranging and rearranging the perfect color combinations. There was only one thing to do- make up some design rolls STAT!

A Design Roll is collection of fabrics each precut into 2.5″ strips by the width of fabric, and rolled up into a neat little package. Don’t worry, I use a fabric die cutter to ensure accuracy! Ours contain 30 strips of fabric, 5 of each print. Once the cutting is taken care of, the sewing can commence. I put together these placements in the blink of an eye. One Design Roll will make 8 placemat tops!

Here’s what I did:

1. Using a 1/4 ” seam allowance, I sewed together 9 strips- making an 18.5″ x 44″ strip set for each.

2. Then, I cut each set into 14″ blocks along the long edge, creating the perfect 18.5″ x 14″ placemat size. I got 3 mats from each strip set.

3. I cut a backing & heavy weight fusible interfacing to 18.5 ” x 14″ for each placemat, and fused the interfacing to the backings. To make 8 placemats, you’ll need 1.5 yards of each.

4. I layered and pinned the fronts and backs, then machine quilted through all the layers. I did a different random design for each and used a few different thread colors.

5. I bound each placemat with premade bias binding. You will need 2 yards for each mat. We have a slightly iridescent one at the shop that gives a little holiday shine.

Done and done! I love how pretty they are, but love how fast they were to make even more. My Kaffe Design Rolls are available in the shop and online. Now, which one to play with next?!

We had an amazing Saturday in our Jump Rope Dress workshop with Oliver + S designer, Liesl Gibson. Look at all those cuties and their dresses! The students had a wonderful time with Liesl, who is so knowledgeable and so sweet. Her stitching expertise got our eager seamstresses well on their way to creating truly beautiful garments.

Liesl did demonstrations throughout the day, to illustrate the crucial points in making this adorable dress. She covered button plackets, collars, set in sleeves, and gathered pockets. Whew! The ladies in class got to work!

Everyone had amazing focus and it really paid off. Here’s Eve working on the dress placket. She is using one of my favorite new Kaffe Fassett prints. I can’t wait to see a photo of her niece wearing this beauty.

Even though we all worked hard, there were plenty of laughs, as shown by Julie with her Lady Gaga-style ironing!

It was really fun for me to see everyone have their own “Eureka!” moments with their sewing after having Liesl’s careful instruction. Seeing Liesl is always a pleasure for me, and I feel as though I could talk to her forever about sewing, business, and life in general. If you missed this weekend’s workshop, never fear! We are already talking about having her back in 2010. Thanks so much to Liesl and everyone who came and made her feel welcome!

There’s not much that’s better than a shiny new sewing machine! We recently got 6 new machines for our classroom at Steve’s Sewing, Vacuum & Quilting. For our beginner machine, we have the Baby Lock Natalie. She is a real workhorse and with such a pretty logo! We got 2 fancier machines as well – a Baby Lock Crafter’s Choice, and a Bernina Activa. These machines practically do all the work for you!

One of the questions I am most asked is the best place to purchase a machine. I always recommend that people buy from a sewing machine dealership. It’s important to try out various machines and speak with an expert about which one works best for your style of crafting. They will be able to help you learn to use your new machine, and repair it if need be.

For those of you who live locally, you know there isn’t a sewing machine dealer in Center City, and you may be thinking of a new machine for the holidays. A quick 30 minute ride to King of Prussia will land you at Steve’s. They deal in Bernina & Baby Lock machines, provide product support, and can repair any brand of home sewing machine. With a friendly and knowledgeable staff, they will help find the right machine for you. Jenny, the store manager, told me that they will even ship to Philadelphia for Spool customers if you can’t make it to them.

If you decide to purchase a machine at Steve’s, be sure to ask for Jenny and tell her we sent you. Then bring your receipt to Spool for 10% off your next purchase. You know you’ll want to stock up on supplies for your new baby!

Amy Butlers new line, Love, has new fabric components – one of them being flannel. Ours arrived yesterday and it’s ridiculously soft, pretty and bright. At 44″ wide and $10/yard, these would make luxe quilt backings or linings for jackets and scarves. When I saw it, I immediately thought pajama pants!

Growing up, my grandparents always sent us new flannel jammies for Christmas. It was the one present my brother and I were allowed to open on Christmas Eve. We would put on our soft, new PJs, get into our beds and try to listen for reindeer hooves on the roof. Seeing these new flannels made me want to make myself some Pajama Pants

• Reindeer Games video

for the holiday season- and maybe some for my brother too!

If you’d like to make your holiday season more cozy, we have a PJ Pants class on November 29 & December 6. This project comes together quickly, and is a great place to start if you haven’t yet used a pattern. Once you make your first pair, you’ll be able to begin checking everyone off your gift list!

Rush Hour ipod

New laminated cotton fabrics have started to arrive in the shop, and we are just crazy for them! The first three are bold and bright

The Nines film

prints from Kaffe Fassett. The fabric has a thin laminated layer that doesn’t make the fabric as stiff as traditional oilcloths. Fantastic! Everyone at the shop started dreaming up projects immediately.

One of our sewing instructors, Heather, just knew this fabric wanted to be a Domestic Goddess Apron. She stitched this up in one night (!!!) and brought it to Stitch Party on Friday. I put it on and didn’t want to take it off, I loved it so much! Heather thought the fabric was easy to work with, although she does recommend a walking foot or teflon foot for topstitching. She did an amazing job, and is planning on making several more for gifts. This apron just shouts, “FUN!”, don’t you think?

Heather thought that you would like to make this apron too, so we quickly scheduled a new class. Here are the details:

Domestic Goddess Apron- $40 plus materials
Sundays, November 8 & 15: 12:30-2:30PM

We will be making the half apron in class. The apron has pockets, pleats, and a tie back. We recommend that you purchase your pattern and cut out the paper pieces prior to the first class. You don’t have to use laminated fabric, but this apron is so much fun, you know you want to!

Materials: pattern, thread, .75 -1 yard main fabric, depending on chosen length. 1-1.5 yards coordinating fabric for ties, depending on length.

Please call the shop to reserve your space. See you there!

Jay McCarroll’s new line Germania is here! These fabrics are colorful, funny and a little wild- just like Jay! I love the contrast of the sophisticated Pucci style colors and damask print with little pointy teeth and googly eyes. These prints have been incredibly popular with all the children that have come in the shop. They immediately gravitate towards it, and say “Mom, look!” I would say that’s a solid indication that these would be perfect for a child’s quilt, pillowcases, or backpack.

You can check out Jay’s new prints at Stitch Party this Friday from 5-7PM. For this month’s free craft project, we will be making tissue covers with Germania fabrics. It’s sniffles season, but you can beat the bug by stitching up a cozy for your essential travel tissues. As always, there will be snacks, drinks and all manner of crafty goodness. See you there!

The new issue of our favorite sewing magazine, Stitch, has arrived at the shop. The magazine looks beautiful, as always, and includes 30 patterns perfect for holiday gift giving ideas. Try your hand at simple zakka style projects for the home, stitch scarves and totes for everyone on your gift list, or make yourself a sweet ruffled top for that upcoming holiday party. With articles on working with sheer fabrics and wools, this issue will help expand your sewing repetoire. There’s even a lovely mention of our shop – thanks, Stitch!

Stitch is now available in our online & Philly shops, and as if that wasn’t enough to keep you busy, we have restocked the back issues as well. Get those machines humming, and happy sewing!

We are pleased to welcome Liesl Gibson, owner and designer of Oliver + S patterns, to Spool! She will be teaching an all day workshop on her newest pattern, the Jump Rope Dress. Liesl is so much fun, with a great sense of style and design. As a mom, she knows what works for kids, and as a seamstress she knows what we want to sew and how to help us sew it!

This adorable shirt dress is sized for girls 6 months to 8 years. It comes in 2 sleeve lengths, with a rounded collar, front placket and bias trimmed patch pockets. It’s these dressmaking details that make the garments so special. Liesl will walk you through the pattern, demonstrating the various techniques she uses, while you sew. This is wonderful opportunity to learn from the Oliver + S expert!

Saturday, November 14: 10AM- 4:30PM. $80 plus materials
Please visit our class page for all the details. Be sure to call the shop to reserve your space, as class size is limited.

See you there!

A new shipment of trims and bias tapes has arrived! My favorite of the bunch is this fantastic ric rac. This 100% cotton tape is perfect for all manner of trimming- from aprons to tablerunners to purses. I love how it looks sewn onto a quilt, creating a lovely scallop all the way around the edge.

This ric rac is about 1″ wide, making it easy to stitch right down the center. We have 12 vibrant colors for coordinating with our bright, cheerful fabrics. What would you make?

Striptease full Rats – Notte di terrore trailer