Indygo Junction just released the video “Indygo Junction’s Practical Style: A Look Book” to showcase a few patterns that are fun, functional, and fashionable:

• The One-Yard Overlap Apron
• The Quick Clothesline Carry-All
• Tech Pocket & Portfolio
• Koozie Kouture
• Lunch Bunch

Whether you’re an expert seamstress or just learning beginner basics, these patterns offer something for everyone. I also love that there’s ample opportunity to simply reach into your fabric stash or used recycled materials in these supply-saving patterns.

But just in case you do need some extra fabric to get you started, you’ll want to jump in on this giveaway! For a chance to win each of the patterns in the Practical Style video as well as yardage from Moda and Windham Fabrics(pictured above), just watch the video and leave a comment on this blog telling me which pattern you’d most like to make! Leave your comment before midnight on Wednesday, May 9, and I’ll select a winner the next day.

Some other fabrics included in the giveaway come from my “Amy’s Kitchen” collection. To see more of my own fabric lines from Red Rooster, click here!

This giveaway is closed. Thank you for participating!

I loved all of Tim’s fashion wisdom and advice during the show. My favorite Tim tip was to make a simple outfit “wink” by adding a funky, flourescent accessory. And at this show, there were plenty of funky accessories!

Astroturf bag by Kate Spade:

Straw hat with convenient built-in sunglasses:

Make a simple outfit “wink” by adding a fun accessory!    -Tim

Everywhere I turned there was another photo opp, so of course I snapped quite a few pictures. Here are some of my favorites from the show:

I loved the great show of color in so many of the new designs!

Here’s a fantastic jacket from Kate Spade that can be dressed up or dressed down. I love the oversized buckle on the cuffs — Indygo Junction’s Trench Topper would be a perfect garment to try with this embellishment!

Some of my other favorite fashions included this Lucky Brand maxi dress (love the pattern!) and these amazing calf-length gladiator sandals that I spotted in the crowd:

As if being at this amazing show wasn’t enough, I actually got to meet with Tim after the show and gave him a copy of my book Vintage Notions! I learned that he is publishing a book called Tim Gunn’s Fashion Bible: The Fascinating History of Everything in Your Closet coming out in the Fall. My first thought was of Mary Brooks Picken and her Fashion Dictionary, which could very well have been used in Tim’s research, as he was familiar with Mary’s name! I’m planning to follow up with Tim and his co-author, Ada Calhoun (who also helped him write the New York Times Bestseller Gunn’s Golden Rules: Life’s Little Lessons for Making It Work)to share more of my discoveries about Mary’s contributions to fashion history and the Woman’s Institute story. Maybe I could chat with Tim about the “Pajama Mode”, and this excerpt of Vintage Notions!

“Slide fasteners have done more than any other dress item to make clothes smart, easier to get into and out of, and easier to make,” wrote Mary Brooks Picken in her 1916 book Modern Dressmaking Made Easy. “Since slide fasteners have become the accepted fastener, they are used for every type of apparel – for formal and informal, for daytime, for business, and for sports.”

A 1937 package for a Talon slide fastener includes ideas for both decorative and functional uses for this fashion accent. Various patterns of the day are pictured from companies like Butterick, Simplicity, Vogue and McCall’s. Talon is credited as the first manufacturer of zippers and continues to produce them today. The actual term “zipper”, however, was coined by B.F. Goodrich in 1923, because he liked the “zipping” sound slide fasteners made. (Click on the image below to see it larger)

Some of our patterns at Indygo Junction highlight both vintage-inspired and fashion-forward uses of zippers. The Day To Night Dress showcases an exposed front zipper, inspired by a beautiful antique dress I found. Our Zipper Critters, a playful collection of plush creatures, feature zippers as sweet smiles. We even have patterns for flowers and jewelry made from zipper trim, a trend that’s popping up a lot in boutiques lately.

With so many applications in today’s fashion, zipper trims are available in a host of hues. Years ago, this wasn’t so. That vintage package I mentioned suggested dyeing white fasteners to a desired color. Back then, slide fasteners were used for a number of accessories and garments, from children’s rompers to ladies’ beach slacks to men’s overalls, all listed on the package. And judging by its prevalence today, the humble zipper still has a lot of “pull” in the fashion world.

Below is a video “look book” featuring some of Indygo Junction’s zipper patterns to give you more zipper inspiration:

First of all, congratulations to Sew Country Chick, who won Sponsor’s Choice for her “A Patchy Bias Dress” design! The dress was made using Indygo Junction patterns Best Bias Skirt and Garden Party Pullover. Well done, Sew Country Chick! SINGER, Coats & Clark, and Indygo Junction sew loved your design!

The winner of the BurdaStyle community choice was member Yearling with her “Slip-On Dress”. The crowd loves you, Yearling! Way to go!

The runner up BurdaStyle community winner was nancy2001 with her “Stop the Presses Jacket”. In addition to using Indygo Junction’s Trench Topper as her starting point, nancy2001’s design is also a direct reference to a piece of pop culture! Click through to her design to find out which fictional character served as her inspiration. You inspired us too, nancy2001!

Thanks to all who entered, voted, or helped spread the word about the Challenge. It was an exciting endeavor on all accounts, and the reinvention of patterns new and old was truly inspirational. Find your own fashion design and sewing inspiration in my book Vintage Notions or on IndygoJunction.com.

Chances are, it was a parent or grandparent.  When I was a child, my mother and grandmother shared with me their love for handcrafting.  I enjoyed that special bonding time and learned many tricks and techniques that I use today.  Sharing the joy of creative crafting with your youngsters is a wonderful gift.

A few years ago, I happened upon the 1929 original volume of The Sew-It Book by Rachel Taft Dixon. This educational and engaging guide for children includes 17 different basic beginner projects for sewing and embroidery, such as a child’s apron, smock, sun bonnet, rag doll and Kimono-type jacket. It even includes directions to help kids design a pattern and create a dress for a favorite doll. Inspired by my own childhood experiences, I republished the book, preserving its vintage charm so children today can experience the same timeless instruction of yesteryear.

Included in the book’s projects are some fun samplers that are easy enough for kids, but good instruction for a budding sewing enthusiast! And I love this little rhyme from the book that could be used in a sampler design:

When I was young and in my Prime

You see how well I spent my Time.

And by my Sampler you may see

What care my Parents took of me.

Although kids have no problem finding entertainment in modern-day technology, I think the pride felt in stitching a first set of doll clothes will be remembered forever. If you like the whimsical vintage artwork from this book, check out my collection of sewing ephemera on The Vintage Workshop.

What was your first memory of learning to sew, and what did you create?