From my studio this week: July 19, 2011

So last week I said my goal was to make a princess seamed t-shirt, with the idea that one day I’d use that pattern to make a bathing suit. Well, I skipped all of the middle steps and went straight to the bathing suit. The original was a tankini top two sizes too big. I made a muslin out of some ugly knit fabric and kept resewing all of the seams until I had a perfect fit. Then I cut it apart and made a pattern.

And here’s the suit top I made. It’s decidedly shorter than a tankini, but that’s what I wanted. I was going for a sporty sports bra kind of look. The black and white gingham was a bit boring so I added a big ole flower applique. The flower is from some 1970s polyester with a 10,000-year half-life so I’m confident the chlorinated water won’t affect it at all.

I haven’t gotten brave enough to try to make a shelf bra and sewn in cups. In theory it shouldn’t be too hard – just have to buckle down and make myself do it. Happily, though, the princess seams in this little top give enough shape that I don’t need the extra support. How awesome is that!

And also a shirt for the little girl. The price increase on the long-sleeved Gymboree shirts was enough motivation for me to break out the knits and make them myself.

The sleeves are made from knit yardage (Hobby Lobby) and the body of the shirt from a repurposed tee. The original tee had a hole in it so I added a funky little applique to cover it up. The moon shape is actually the bit of fabric I cut from the top to make the deeper neck in the front.

As I was ironing down the applique I realized that there was an awful smell coming from the iron. Turns out there was some icky black gunk on it, which was now transferred down to the shirt – directly underneath the applique I had just placed to cover up the hole. DOH! The old lady who swallowed a fly came to mind. You’ll notice the slightly darker spot in the photo? That’s the wet spot where I scrubbed out the fresh stain.

Little girl loves her new tee. I have a few more planned and I’ll be putting them together this coming week. I also have plans to create a bottom for my swimsuit so that I can actually wear my handmade bathing suit before summer is over.

September is National Sewing Month, which means we finally have an official excuse for buying fabric for all those projects we are absolutely, definitely going to finish.

National Sewing Month has been celebrated every September since 1982, when President Ronald Reagan proclaimed it in recognition of the importance of home sewing. Today, it is a month for starting projects, learning new techniques, tackling unfinished quilts and appreciating just how useful a well-stocked sewing room can be.

Connecting Threads is celebrating throughout September with sales on quilting fabric, thread, precuts, kits and sewing supplies.

You can shop the National Sewing Month offers at Connecting Threads here.

Connecting Threads September 2026 Sale Calendar

August 27 to September 7: 20% Off Sitewide

Use code 8SALE26 to receive 20% off sitewide during the Labor Day Sale.

This is the best all-round offer if you need a mixture of fabric, thread, rulers, cutting tools, batting and notions. I would use this sale for the less exciting supplies we all need but tend to put off buying until the spool is empty or the rotary blade starts chewing rather than cutting.

Shop the Connecting Threads sale here.

September 8 to 11: Buy Two, Get One Free Thread

Use code 9THREAD26 to buy two eligible threads and receive a third free.

This is a good opportunity to stock up on everyday piecing colours such as cream, white, grey and beige. If you regularly quilt with the same neutral thread, buying three matching spools makes far more sense than collecting exciting colours that sit untouched because they match precisely one fabric in your stash.

September 12 to 15: 50% Off 50 Items

Fifty selected products will be reduced by 50%, with no code required.

Because this promotion applies to selected items, it is worth checking early. This could be a good time to pick up discounted patterns, fabric collections, notions or supplies for handmade Christmas gifts.

September 16 to 17: Free Shipping Days

Use code 9FREESHIPPING26 for free standard shipping within the contiguous United States.

Free shipping is particularly useful when you only need a few smaller supplies and do not want delivery costs to turn a perfectly sensible packet of needles into an unexpectedly extravagant purchase.

September 18 to 23: 25% Off Fabric by the Yard

All fabric by the yard will be reduced by 25%, including wide quilt backing. No code is required.

This is the promotion I would wait for if you need backing fabric. Wide backing can save an enormous amount of time because you do not have to piece multiple lengths together before basting your quilt.

It is also a good time to buy borders, binding or extra yardage from a favourite collection before individual prints sell out.

September 24 to 30: 30% Off Precuts and Quilt Kits

Precuts and quilt kits will be reduced by 30% during the final week of National Sewing Month.

This is probably the most tempting promotion of the month. Precuts remove much of the colour-matching guesswork, while quilt kits give you the pattern and coordinated fabric in one package.

If terms such as charm packs, layer cakes and strip rolls still become muddled somewhere between the computer and the cutting table, our guide to the five main types of precut quilting fabrics explains what each pack contains and which projects suit it best.

Shop Connecting Threads precuts and quilt kits here.

What Should You Buy During National Sewing Month?

The best bargain is not necessarily the biggest discount. It is the supply you were already planning to use.

Before shopping, check your sewing room for:

Everyday piecing thread
Rotary cutter blades
Sewing machine needles
Fabric needed to finish an existing quilt
Batting and wide quilt backing
Precuts for quick beginner quilt projects
Quilt kits you will genuinely start
Supplies for Christmas sewing and handmade gifts

I would also look at your unfinished projects before ordering more fabric. Sometimes a spool of matching thread and three yards of backing are all that stand between a quilt top and an actual finished quilt.

National Sewing Month is a lovely time to begin something new, but it is also a good opportunity to return to a forgotten project, clean your machine, replace that blunt needle and enjoy sewing simply because you can.

Check the latest Connecting Threads promotion here.

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