Here’s a printable for you. Kind of silly, but I suppose you could hang it by your desk. Click it. Right click the larger one and save picture as. Enjoy. 
Amen
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New pattern and give away!!!
Hey all, just wanted to introduce you to the newest addition to the Pattern Patti sewing pattern line.
The Ruffled Wristlet is a zippered pouch that boasts a detachable wrist strap.
Perfect for grabbing as you run out the door for a quick trip to the store. I use mine as a wallet and throw it in the big bag when I’m going to need my hands free.
Make the key fob (free pattern, look to your left), add another lobster clasp, and you will always know where your keys are.
This pattern is available for shops in print and PDF format. But for you sewists, the pattern is available in PDF format in my Etsy shop.
I haven’t sold any of these yet and I’d really like to. So, if you run over to the shop and buy the Ruffled Wristlet sewing pattern, like me on facebook and let me know that you read about it on my blog, I’ll give you another PDF pattern from the shop for FREE! Yay! The first 5 buyers will recieve the free pattern.
See ya later!
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Stuff It! for Christmas – an upcycled doll skirt
Stuff It! For Christmas continues with another tutorial for the 18” doll. I have girls. We have dolls. This is what we do.
I love hand-me-downs. We have gotten them from my niece who is 3 years older than my oldest. After she wears them, they get passed down the line, through all of her sisters. After we’re finished with them, we pass them on to a little friend, although not all clothes make it that far down the line. You know how jeans look after a while. Holey knees stop the handing down dead. I always hated to throw those jeans away. Here’s a way to keep them alive. Turn your holey jeans into a skirt for your dollys. This is an upcycle tutorial.
This is so simple. You are going to cut the end of a jeans leg and turn it into a skirt. Decide how long you want your skirt to be. I cut this one 8” long. Since my girls are getting bigger and their jeans are getting bigger, this skirt turned out a little wider than I would like. It will look much better with smaller jeans.
What you need:
1 pair of jeans
A 9” long piece of ¼” wide elastic per skirt.
Get going:
So, cut your leg off.
Turn the leg inside out.
Turn the raw edge of the leg down ¼”. Press.
Turn that edge down another ½”. Press. We’re making casing for elastic.
Stitch around the folded edge of the leg, 3/8” from the edge, leaving a 2” opening.
Place a safety pin on the end of the elastic.
Pin the other end to the skirt so it won’t get pulled into the casing.
Push the safety pin through the casing until it comes out the other side.
Stitch the 2 ends of the elastic together.
Let them slide into the casing and stitch the opening closed.
That’s it! You’re finished.
Now, you can customize this skirt in many ways.
- Use some khakis instead.
- Applique on the leg, or better yet, use legs that are already appliqued.
- Sew a ruffle on the bottom.
- Sew a bias binding around the bottom edge.
- Use a shirt sleeve like the banded t-shirt sleeve.
I’d love to see what you come up with. Join the Pattern Patti flickr group and show off your creations.
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My guest post on Fat Quarterly
Hello all. Just wanted to be sure to send you all over to Fat Quarterly’s blog today. I had the wonderful opportunity to participate in the 12 Days of Ruby Star, show casing Melody Miller’s fantastic fabric lines, Ruby Star Rising and Ruby Star Shining. Each day, since the 12th of December and running until the 24th of December, Fat Quarterly has arranged designers to bring free patterns and tutorials to you, all using Ruby Star. Today, my All-Star Stocking sewing pattern in posted. The stocking is a tube sock inspired stocking in two sizes.
The smaller stocking is the perfect size for an iPod, gift card or candy. The candy in the picture was for my nephew who affectionately calls them ‘yim-a-yims’. Love it! The larger stocking will hold a paperback or other lovely stuffers.
The pattern sheet and instructions are over at Fat Quarterly for you! I love Melody’s fabrics and had a blast working with them.
Have fun!
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Stuff It! for Christmas – Snake Charming
I don’t know if you noticed, but all of my Stuff It! posts have been patterns for girls. I guess the Flag on the Fly could be for a boy’s room, but he’s not going to be too crazy about that. I’ve been tyring and trying to think of stocking stuffers for boys, but it’s just not in me. I have girls.
So, what do boys like? The boys I see at play the most are the little brothers of my girls’ ballet class mates. In the studio, there is this very large stuffed snake that’s been there for at least 9 years, (that’s how long we’ve been dancing there) probably longer. The little boys love that snake. Duh, snakes!
So, here ya go. A cutesy snake for your little boys. His name is Snake Charming.
Materials for this one:
small pieces of fabric, fiber-fil and a little embroidery floss
You’ll also need to print the pattern sheet, found here.
Let’s get to it! Print the pattern sheet. Cut out the pattern pieces. Cut 2 pieces of fabric for each pattern piece. Here’s a thought. If you would like to make a really long snake, cut more body pieces. You’ll need two fabric pieces for each length of body you want to add.
Take one tail piece and sew it to one body piece, right sides together, using a 1/4″ seam allowance.
Next, take a head piece and sew it to the other end of the body piece. Repeat with other head, body and tail piece. Go ahead and trace the face onto one of the snake heads. Use the black embroidery floss and use a simple backstitch on the eyes and nostrils. I did it at the end, but if I had thought ahead, I would have done it now.
Now we’re going to sew the two halves of the snake together. Match them up, right sides together and pin if you like.
Sew the two layers together using a 1/4″ seam allowance. You need to leave a 2″ opening on one side of the snake in the body section.
Clip the inside corner right below the head and trim the seams around the head and tail to about 1/8″. This will make the points and curves much neater when you turn the snake right side out.
Turn your snake right side out by pushing it through the opening. I use a large artists paint brush for this. The end is blunt enough, but still slightly pointy. I cut off the bristles. This is good for stuffing! Push your tail and head points out nicely.
Time to stuff Mr. Charming. Use your finger to get it started into the opening, then use your brush or the eraser end of a pencil to push it to the ends of the snake.
Once you’ve stuffed it the way you want it, stitch the opening closed. I did this by hand, using a ladder stitch. Pull it nice and tight and tie it off.
So, now you have a snake.
Yay! A project for boys. Hope you enjoy the making. I was planning to give these two fellas to my two little nephews, but my two younger girls swiped them. I guess girls like them too.
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Stuff It! for Christmas – A Flag on the Fly
Our next installment in the Stuff It! For Christmas series is a home décor gift. The Flag on the Fly is a penant style banner in two sizes. Make the smaller size to decorate a shelf (put it in your own stocking!) or the larger size would look great on a bedroom wall. Customize it beyond what I’m going to show you by using some applique.
What you need:
The Flag on the Fly pattern sheet
Scraps of fabric
A needle and some thicker twine
Getting started:
- Print the Flag on the Fly pattern sheet, found here.
- Cut out the size flag you want to use. I used the smaller flag for this tutorial.
- Cut 2 pieces of fabric for each flag that you make. My pennant banner included 7 flags so I cut 14 flag pieces. One for each front and one for each back.
- Make sure all of your pieces are pressed neatly. If you are going to applique on the flags, do it now.
- Place 2 flag pieces together, wrong sides together.
- Stitch the pieces together using a ¼” seam allowance.
- Fold the top edge of the flag down on the back side of the flag, revealing a nice clean point on the upper edge.
- Stitch the folded top down using a 3/8” seam allowance.
Repeat steps 5-8 with the rest of your flag pieces.
Once all of your flag pieces are stitched together, thread your needle with the twine and slide it through the folds on the flags. 
That’s it. Decide where to hang it. Use tape, nails, thumb tacks or whatever works for you.
Happy sewing! See you again soon.
Cindy
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Stuff It! for Christmas – Headbands for your Honeys
Today’s Stuff It! For Christmas is another for the girls. We have four girls and inevitably, the stockings are filled with candy and hair accessories. Making candy is not on my to-do list, but making hair accessories is. I have an easy, reversible headband tutorial for you. Use up some of your larger scraps and make a stocking stuffer in less than an hour.
What you’ll need:
Larger scraps
¾” to 1” wide elastic
Cutting:
For each headband, you’ll need to cut 2 pieces of fabric and 1 piece of elastic according to the sizes below.
Adult: cut 2 pieces of fabric – 4”x20”, one piece of elastic – 3” long
Tween: cut 2 pieces of fabric – 4”x18”, one piece of elastic – 3” long
Child: cut 2 pieces of fabric – 4”x15”, one piece of elastic – 3” long
Doll: cut 2 pieces of fabric – 4”x11”, one piece of elastic – 3” long
For the tutorial, I’ll be making the doll sized headband.
Cut your fabric and elastic.
Turn both short ends of both fabric pieces down ¼” and press.
With right sides together, sew the two pieces together, stitching down the long sides of the fabric. Leave your ends open and make sure the ends stay turned down.
You’ve made a tube and now you need to turn it right side out. I like to stick a safety pin on the end, on one piece of fabric. Push the pin into the tube and just scoot it to the other end. Pull the tube all the way, right side out. Press the tube.
Now we’re going to stitch the elastic in place. Slide the elastic into one end of the tube about 3/8”. Stitch the elastic in place, closing the end of the tube at the same time. Repeat with the other end of the elastic and the other end of the headband tube.
Well, that’s about it. Make more. Stuff those stockings.
Stay tuned for more additions to the Stuff It! family.
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Stuff It! for Christmas – a ruffled tank for 18″ doll
We’ll start our Stuff It! for Christmas series with a treat for the little girls.
I’m bringing a new pattern to ya, it’s the Ruffled Tank for 18″ dolls. The young lady above is sporting this shirt along with her PJ capris made from the 18″ Doll Sleepover Set sewing pattern. The fabric used in the outfit is from Aneela Hoey’s Little Apples line.
As I was about to display the Doll Sleepover Set at a trunk show, I realized that my dolly did not have a shirt to match her PJ capris. I didn’t want to put an AG shirt on her or a shirt made from someone else’s pattern. I was showing off Pattern Patti’s patterns for Pete’s sake. The following pattern was the solution.
Ruffled Tank – The Pattern
Materials needed:
1 fat quarter of fabric A (I like to use letters to identify fabrics. You’ll use 2, fabric A & fabric B)
2”x28” piece of fabric B
1” long piece of ¾” wide Velcro
Machine, thread, iron, computer & printer
Getting started
Before you can really get started, you need to print the pattern sheet for this shirt. You can find the pattern here. It’s a PDF. When you print, be sure that “auto rotate and center” is not checked and the scaling is set to “none”. This is important. It affects the size of the pattern.
Print the pattern, cut it out.
Using the pattern piece, cut 2 of fabric A on the fold.
Cut one 2” x 28” piece of fabric B for the ruffle.
Now, we’re going to make the ruffle.
Take your ruffle piece and place it on your ironing board.
Fold both short ends of your ruffle piece in 1/4″ and press. Stitch these ends down 1/8″ from edges. Fold the ruffle piece in 1/2 lengthwise, wrong sides together, and press.
Set your stitch length on your machine to 3.5 or 4 (a much longer stitch that you would normally use). Stitch along the length of the ruffle, 1/4″ from the raw edge. Don’t trim your threads, you’ll need them.
You are now going to gather your ruffle. Find the center of the ruffle piece. Place the ruffle piece along the bottom of the shirt, matching the raw edges and the center of the ruffle with the center of the shirt. Pin it in that center spot.
Now that your ruffle is pinned, pull one thread from the left end of the piece and push the fabric towards the center, causing it to gather. Switch to the other side. Pull one thread on the right end of the ruffle piece and push the fabric towards the center, causing it to gather. Gather each side until the length of the ruffle piece is the same as the shirt. Be careful not to pull too hard, if you break the thread, you’ll have to start over. Pin the ruffle in place.
Sew the ruffle to the shirt using a 1/4″ seam allowance.
Press the ruffle seam up.
Topstitch along ruffle seam, 1/8″ from seam.
Let’s work on the front neck and arm holes. Snip a few times on the curves. Make sure your snips are a little less than 1/4″ deep. Fold and press the edges of the neck and arm holes down 1/4″.
Sew these folds down by stitching 1/8″ from the edge.
Now for the back neck sections. Snip 3 times along the curves. Fold down 1/4″ and sew it in place using a 1/8″ seam allowance.
You’re nearly finished. Next we shall turn the 2 back edges down 1/4″. Press and stitch 1/8″ from edge.
Let’s add the velcro. Cut the velcro into 2 hook pieces and 2 loop pieces. Pin the hook pieces on the right side of the left back and the loop pieces on the wrong side of the right back. Stitch one on the top corner and one 2 inches below.
All that’s left to do is stitch the shoulder seams together. Match the 2 right shoulder pieces together, right sides together, raw edges matching and stitch using a 1/4″ seam allowance. Repeat with other side.
Now, that about does it! Try it on your dolly and see how she looks.
If your dolly needs some matching pants, check out the 18″ Doll Sleepover Set sewing pattern. Included are the patterns and instructions for the Capri PJs, a sleeping bag and a pillow & pillow case. You can buy the pattern here.
I’ve been debating whether or not to give you Stuff It! patterns as PDFs or as blog posts. I wrote this one as a blog post to see how it goes. Give me some feedback and let me know what you prefer.
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A Dotty Stocking for you
This year, Pattern Patti participated in the Stockings for Kids drive hosted by Purple Panda Quilts. Handmade stockings were collected for foster children in Virginia. Lyanna is having them stuffed full of goodies and distributed. What a huge undertaking, but such a blessing to so many. Kudos to you Lyanna.
The stocking that I sent was an original and I’d like to share the pattern with you. The Dotty Stocking. It’s a simple stocking with a cuff and some applique. I used dots, but of course you can applique anything you like. You could personalize the stocking for someone. That would be nice. Maybe you could fill it with goodies and give it to someone in need. That would be better.
The pattern for the stocking can be found here.
Enjoy! Be sure to check back with me every so often. More freebies in the works.
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Pattern Patti Cyber Monday Special
Ahhh! We’ve made it through one of ‘the holidays’. I’m not usually one to check things like that off of the list, but we’re trying to sell our house. We’ve made it through a few hurdles and are actually starting to pack a little. It’s a rotten time of year to move. But, it is what it is.
December is my favorite month of the year. I love Christmas and my birthday along with my dad’s and my sister’s birthdays are in December. It’s always been a festive month. Lots of parties, shopping and presents. I’m afraid that I’m going to miss it all while dealing with house stuff. So, in order to force myself to participate in this season and not be swallowed up in planning and packing and praying that this deal actually goes through, I’ve decided to offer some freebies on the Pattern Patti blog. I’d love to promise to you a post every day in December full of fantastic ideas and recipes, or even the 12 days of stocking stuffers for almost nothing. I know better than to promise that. So, I’ll just say, I’m going to show you a few things you can make for someone you love.
We’ll start with an idea for Advent. Here’s a tutorial for making advent stockings that can be hung on your tree. December is only 4 days away, so you better get crackin’.
By the way, it is Cyber Monday and all PDF patterns in my store are only $5. Price is only good for 24 hours. Actually, it’s down to 23 hours, so you better hurry. Lots of good gift ideas there.
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