Category Archives: Judy Day’s creations

Kids Sew Jumpers

6 year-old Kennedy hard at work in her Mimi's sweat shop

Few activities delight a sewing Nana more than sewing with a grandchild.  Of course, we encourage this interest in all of our grandchildren, but some take to it like the proverbial duck to water.

Six year old Kennedy is one of those ducks.  Not only does her mother sew fabulous things for  her, but her grandmother, Judy Day, is an extremely accomplished “sewist” who sews almost around the clock for her three grandchildren.  Kennedy has reaped the benefits of matriarchal stitchers and observed that it is fun.

The little Snow Princess with her doll--doesn't she look proud?

This summer, she and her cousin Courtney spent time with their grandparents and loved working  in the sewing room.  The girls made matching sundresses and were thrilled with the results.   ( The proud six-year old cousins will be featured with their sundresses in a later post.)

Recently, Kennedy spent a week with  “Mimi” and “Papa” and was more than eager to tackle another project or two.

Careful planning and extensive preparations are critical when sewing with children.  Having years of experience teaching sewing classes,  Judy knew how to guarantee her little granddaughter’s success.

Her choice of materials and pattern were suitable for Kennedy’s sewing skills. Polar fleece is a forgiving fabric and the jumper pattern was the quick and easy Lucy from Children’s Corner.

For American Girls doll Rebecca Judy drafted a similar style using a bodice pattern from Martha’s Doll Dressing book.  It features patterns for dolls 13″ -19″.  Continue reading

Perfectly Pink Christmas X 4

 

four pink beauties

Judy Day never ceases to amaze me with her breathtaking creations and the vast number of projects she designs and completes.  Her grandchildren are so incredibly fortunate.  And it sounds like at the tender ages of 6 and 7,  they have begun to recognize the beauty of the garments Judy makes for them.

Here is Judy’s story about her perfectly pink Christmas: 

These dresses were in my mind years before I ever put needle to fabric.  I saw this dress in the Sept./Oct. 2000 issue of Creative Needle…now that I look at the date, it was before the girls were born!  
 
When I see a magazine article I really like, it goes on the corner of my cutting table for future ideas.  Continue reading

Model Bedroom

 

Home dec projects appeal to everyone.  Whether or not we have little ones to sew for, each of us has a bedroom where we seek a calm and quiet atmosphere, away from the demands of our busy days.

This model bedroom was done for the Springfield, MO,  Babylock dealer, BSewInn, by my friend Judy Day.  Her unfailing good taste, skillful color coordination and attention to detail make this model bedroom a soothing refuge.  It is both classic and contemporary.

There are several other items in this grouping, but they will be posted at a later date.  There is so much meat in the pieces shown that any more items would make for a very lengthy post. Continue reading

Ladybug Garment Bag

Freckles wants Judy to stay home!

We arrived home last night about 10 p.m. after the 12 hour drive from the mountains.  I am still exhausted.  There is no joy greater than spending quality time with my three grandchildren, but there is no greater Nana energy drain than my three grandchildren.  So once again, I am relying on the beautiful projects of my dear friend, Judy, for a post.

 This is a really neat project, done with Judy’s universal good taste and excellent workmanship.

I love the way she took two totally unrelated items and brought them into the same family.  This surely looks like an expensive matched set to me.

I’ll let her tell you about it.

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Ladybug garment bag–I purchased a plain black garment bag to embroider to match my ladybug luggage.  I did the monogram in Masterworks II.  The ladybug on the leaf is a BabyLock design which  I sized it larger in Designer’s Gallery SizeWorks.

The design was stitched on my BabyLock BMP8 with adhesive stabilizer in the hoop.  The bag was  floated over the hoop and basted to the stabilizer instead of actually hooping the bag.

Under the Sea

This dress is just breathtaking.  Judy Day has been working on it for more than six months–well, on and off for six months, as she dealt with other must-do’s that popped up.  This is her granddaughter’s 6th birthday dress and Kennedy is just as lovely as the dress!

I’ll let Judy tell you about it.

“I made this dress for Kennedy’s birthday.  She has been crazy about fish from day one.  When I saw a picture of a similar dress on Martha Pullen’s weekly e-letter last year, after her event in Arlington, I just knew Kennedy would love it.

The planning took more time than the actual embroidery.  I tried several different fabrics for the dress overlay.  Of course, Swiss batiste would have been perfect if it did not require a lot of starch and pressing.  So I decided on a sheer poly fabric for the easy care.  I ordered several different ones from www.fabric.com

I knew the underdress would be Imperial broadcloth.  I searched my stash and did not find a blue that would work.  When an overlay is put over a color fabric, the color must be a bright, clear color or it looks muddy.  I ordered 4 yds.of 4 different bue fabrics from Baltazor Fabric Boutique www.baltazor.com ….one can never have too many blues in their stash!

Baltazor’s has wonderful customer service.  They only had 3 of the blues, so they picked another and then included a 5th at no charge!  It was one of the fabrics they chose that was perfect.  The color was clear and bright even with the overlay.  The overlay gives the dress depth so that some of  the fish look as if they are swimming in the distance. Continue reading

Fishing Bag

Every grandparent strives to keep things even with the grandchildren but Judy Day manages it better than most.

Her first grandchild, Jackson, was being showered with smocked bubbles and Jon-Jon’s and button-ons when along came his sister, Courtney.  Just three months later, second  baby  girl  came into the family picture,  cousin Kennedy.

Judy scrambles to come up with cool boy things for Jackson and this bag is one of her best.  After embroidering luggage for the girls, Judy embroidered is bag for her little guy. Continue reading

Shower Curtain Monogram

The talents of one who sews are always in  great demand.  Judy Day writes, “ This was done for my niece, Alison.  She rented an apartment that was in much need of  ‘fixing up.’  The owner gave her permission to re-do some things.

She and her mom completely redid the bathroom, from painting to putting in new tile.  Staying with black, white and grays, Alison added the red flower picture to really make this bathroom pop.  Continue reading

Twin and Triple Needle Work

Judy Day made this intricately embroidered heirloom dress which showcases decorative stitches. By using a single color for both the stitches and  the satin ribbon sash, the frock exudes a quiet elegance, in spite of the complexity of the embroidery.   Adding more stitches to the skirt balances out all the stitches on the bodice.  The overall effect is just so pleasing.

The dress was a blank canvas for twin and triple needle work, the subject of a sewing club meeting that Judy taught for years at B-Sew Inn, a huge Babylock  dealership in Springfield, Missouri.

As you can see, the use of the twin and triple needle in combination with a sewing machine’s decorative stitches creates complex, perfect patterns. But if you have no experience with their use, you would be wise to read up on the topic.

It is important to note your machine’s maximum stitch width. The width of the twin or triple needle must be subtracted from that in order to determine the maximum width for your decorative stitch. Continue reading

Sunshine on My Shoulders

This spectacular sundress was made by my friend Judy for her granddaughter. The pattern, Sunshine on my Shoulders, is from Kari Mecca’s very popular book, Sewing with Whimsy. Judy, of course, varied the embellishments somewhat to suit her personal taste.

The little ladybug button, the pearls and beads she nestled into the rick rack flowers on the bodice as well as on those that hang from the rick rack bow, add to the charm of the rick rack flowers.

The pattern is unfamiliar to me, but whether or not it included an embellished back yoke, Judy’s trim and cluster of flowers make the dress almost as lovely from the rear as it is from the front.

. Continue reading

Day Grandchildren’s Easter Duds

 

Update:  In discussion with Judy, I was reminded that Jackson’s shorts were actually made from a man’s shirt.  After searching high and low for fabric to coordinate with the mint green dresses, Judy finally found a very pricey shirt that would do.  She whacked that shirt up for shorts which had to be lined, due to the light weight of the shirting.

I’ve always said that heirloom sewing is very expensive, either in terms of time or money.  Judy paid both ways for these beautifully coordinated Easter outfits!  She says she just did what a grandmother had to do.************************

A few years ago, Judy Day made these three beautiful, coordinated outfits for her grandchildren.  The girl cousins are the same age and Big Brother Jackson is the oldest of the three.

The mint Imperial batiste bishop dresses seem to project the essence of Spring. Ribbons woven through the smocking add shimmer, making the dresses even more classically elegant.  Tucks add another special detail to the skirts.

The sleeves are trimmed with tatting made by Judy’s grandmother–that would be the girls’ great-great grandmother.  What a special treasure for these girls!  Continue reading