Thursday, May 23, 2013

Roly-poly blog tour + giveaway

Welcome to my stop on the Roly-poly-along Blog Tour!  If you're not already familiar with it, the roly-poly is a pinafore tunic pattern designed by the lovely, talented, and genuinely witty Rachael Gander of Imagine Gnats.  I started following Rachael's blog shortly before I met her in person last October and have to admit that I was a little intimidated to meet her.  I needn't have been, though.  She is warm, down-to-earth and perfectly friendly.  This is her first ever sewing pattern for a garment, and I am more than happy to help her promote it.  It really is a fabulous pattern.

Don't miss the roly-poly pattern giveaway at the end of this post!


I decided on an asterisk roly-poly for my second take on the pattern (my first version was done when I tested the pattern for Rachael).  I'm a little obsessed with asterisks, although I really like most typographical symbols (or glyphs); and I'm always happy to be able to use a semicolon in my writing.  Did you notice that, back there, how I slipped in a semicolon in the sentence about semicolons?!  Yes, I know I'm a nerd.


Anyway... the roly-poly.  The pattern is reversible, which is awesome for two reasons at least:  a) There are no visible seams or hems to worry about.  b) You can simply turn it the other way around if it gets dirty -- perfect for dealing with ice cream drips and other causalities of summer.  I used Essex linen in gray for the giant wonky asterisk on the outside front of the pinafore and a cotton print (Tent in rose by Brandon Mably for Rowan) for the negative space.


On the reverse side, I used the Essex linen again with a simple tiny little asterisk applique in the print fabric.  For the back of both sides, I used the same cotton print.  Don't you just love the criss-cross in the back?  And the cute little pleat in the front?  Plus, you can make the pinafore with or without pockets -- I chose to add pockets to the front side, but not the reverse.  These are the perfect little details that make this pattern unique.


And, although I could have constructed the big asterisk as a huge applique, I chose instead to piece it... partly because I was frugally trying to conserve fabric... but also, why not challenge myself with piecing curves and points when I had never done it before and it could easily end in an epic fail?!  Somehow, with a little seam ripping, lots and lots and lots of pins (!), much pressing with the iron, and shear luck, I managed to make it work.  Whew!


At the end of our photo shoot, my daughter took the roly-poly for a "roll" (sorry!) on her scooter.  It worked well -- I think the photos speak for themselves!


If you'd like to make your own version of the roly-poly, you can purchase the pattern here.  Or, even better, Rachael has allowed me to give one free pattern away here!

To win a copy of the roly-poly pinafore tunic pattern, simply leave a comment below before 6pm EST on Thursday, May 30.  Please make sure your email is included in your comment, especially if it's not connected to your blogger profile.

Here's the entire roly-poly blog tour schedule, so you can check out any posts you may have missed, as well as the ones coming up the rest of this week and next:

5.13 Jill Made with Moxie / Stephanie The Crafty Kitty
5.14 Stephanie NeurosesGalore / Cherie you & mie
5.15 Ari Max California / Caila Caila Made
5.16 Veronica SewVery / Tara Girl like the sea
5.17 Nancy owen's olivia / Adrianna Crafterhours

5.20 Ajaire Call ajaire / Sarah EmmylouBeeDoo
5.21 Laura Craftstorming / Jessica a little gray
5.22 Frances Miss Matatabi / Nicke kiss kiss quilt
5.23 Amy formwork design / Kat Sew Chibi
5.24 Joanne Rose & Dahlia / Amanda Kitschy Coo

5.27 Celina Petit a Petit and family / Delia Delia Creates
5.28 Christy a.Amelia handmade / Carolyn Fake It While You Make It
5.29 Bonnie Fishsticks Designs / Maria La Inglesita
5.30 Jane Buzzmills / Kate Things for Charlie
5.31 Polly Jack & GeeGee / Molly Rose & Odin



30 comments:

  1. seriously amazing!!! and i should tell you my semi-colon story someday. oh, and the ellipses one. that's a good one. wow, i have a lot of stories about punctuation. ;)

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  2. wow, this is so very awesome!

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  3. just the cutest little pattern! thanks for opp to win
    greacefaces@aol.com

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  4. This is SO cool! And your daughter is absolutely adorable!

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  5. I'm obsessed with mathematical symbols. Maybe I should make a roly-poly with an infinity sign.

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  6. So fantastic! Your model makes this so much better! I love your version!

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  7. love your version-i'm gaining confidence as i tour the ropy-poly along that i can actually make one. thanks!

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  8. I love the not wasting fabric thing but giving yourself an extra tricky task instead! It looks great, well done.

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  9. Gorgeous! I love the piecing you did - it really adds to the pattern. Thanks for the opportunity to win.

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  10. I love the large asterisk on one side and the tiny one on the other. Nice touch!
    Amandak@whatthebobbin

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  11. my fav side is the grey with the tiny asterick, what size did you make? hope to win andrayco@aol.com

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  12. I love it! That print is great!

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  13. Your asterisk piecing is outstanding!
    Rubberduckywon at gmail
    Thanks bunches!!!

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  14. What an adorable pattern. Love it!

    detroitgirl77 AT gmail DOT com

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  15. Amazing! So talented! I love that you did an asterick, a pieced one and the darling mini on the reverse. Your daughter looks so lovely in her pinafore. Thanks for sharing, awesome job!

    Thank you for a super giveaway and a chance to win.

    usairdoll(at)gmail(dot)com

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  16. Oooh! What great piecing.

    owlisheyes(at) gmail (dot) com

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  17. This is such a versatile pattern! Im having a blast checking all your ideas!

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  18. I LOVE your interpretation of this pattern! So fun! I think it might be my favourite, after the coyote pocket one Sarah did (http://emmyloubeedoo.blogspot.ca/2013/05/roly-poly-pinafore-blog-tour-giveaway.html)!

    Thanks for the chance. Pattern budget is currently non-existent! :)

    -Laura (www.CraftyHour.com)

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  19. The asterisks are awesome and it looks great on your daughter. I'm loving everyone's take on this pattern for the blog tours;) nlczerw(at)gmail(dot)com

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  20. I would love to win this pattern! Great job on yours! atabanana29(at)gmail(dot)com

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  21. I would love to win this pattern to make for my new granddaughter. I am glad to see you used that essex linen. I have just discovered it myself and wondered how it would look made up. Just gorgeous. Thanks for the chance.

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  22. I LOVE the pattern! You did an AMAZING job on the points & turns!! I also adore the print you used in the negative space, too cute!! Thank you for this opportunity for an awesome pattern when $$ is SEW tight!!

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  23. This pattern is so cute - I would love to use it to make some dresses for my little girl! I love the piecing that you did, it looks great - I doubt my sewing skills will ever be able to manage that, though.

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  24. maybe I'll be the last to leave a comment, but who knows... this could be a luck ^_^
    thank you so much for the chance
    kikkamella (at) hotmail (dot) com

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