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HI DARLINGS! I just gotta tell you that I am utterly in love with this leather DIY dress. I am going to make it again in red because it is HOT!!! I used MCCALL #8139 VIEW A. This is a really simple pattern to sew and if you have made a button-up shirt then this is a breeze. If you want to learn to sew visit SEWITACADEMY.COM I picked up some stretch faux leather which we will be stocking soon at MELANATEDFABRICS.COM It wasnt hard to sew with if you know some basics. FAUX LEATHER TIPS Use a rotary cutter Don’t pin it, use wonder clips instead because you will leave marks in your leather. Make sure you go slow if you need to because you can’t remove stitched without leaving holes in the fabric. In some cases you may need a Teflon foot or a roller foot so that your presser foot doesn’t stick to the leather, This faux leather did not stick so I was able to use my regular foot. Always test your thread and needle on scrap leather. I used a topstitching needle instead of a leather needle because this was rather thin. THE LOOK

HI DARLINGS! Well I am just going to warn you now that ya girl is gonna be rocking this jacket every single day lol. I have decided this is going to be my signature jacket and will be making in many, many, many different fabrics. This fabric was from OAK FABRICS, it is sold out but isn’t it dreamy?? It has such a great weight to it and the colors are beautiful. It is such an easy sew and although it is designed for silky lightweight fabrics, I wanted the style of the kimono but in a heavy jacket weight. THE LOOK I wore an oversized sweater, wide-leg cropped jeans, and chunky heels. I also have on my favorite wig ever!! lol, this is going to be around for a while.

HI DARLINGS! I partnered with Walmart for today’s post. This Christmas is unlike any other one before, we have had so many things happen this year that all I want to do is bake and fill our home with joy as we celebrate Christmas and say hello to 2021. I also decided thanks to WALMART that I was going to gift myself something I have wanted for so long, a KitchenAid® Deluxe 4.5 Quart Tilt-Head Stand Mixer! It made baking our favorite lemon cake a breeze. Imani and I love to bake and decorate so we enjoy heading to WALMART to get all of our Christmas decor, including our tree this year. I love using my favorite glass bowls by Pioneer Woman, they are stunning! We decided to shop in-store because Imani wanted to see the décor in person but most times we are able to shop online and pick up which is one of the many ways WALMART makes it easy and convenient to shop. The holidays can be stressful so having one place to shop with so many options at great prices makes it much more manageable. I almost couldn’t wait for the cake to finish baking because it smelled so good! I used my new WALMART Tasty Carbon Steel Non-Stick Fluted Cake Pan and it came out beautiful. Once we were done baking the cake we decorated the tree, made some hot chocolate, and ate cookies because what else do you do while waiting for a cake to cool down lol! You have no idea how much time we spent deciding who’s stocking belonged to who, I wanted the snowman. These adorable stockings were part of the many decorations WALMART had in store. I fell in love with the Christmas tree platter and Santa cups! The last thing for us to was to hang the wreath on the door. This year has been tough, to say the least, but there is so much joy and laughter that you can create in your own home with your family. Head to WALMART and make your space a joyful one!

HI DARLINGS! I couldn’t wait to make these pants in this WINDOW PANE fabric. had this look in my head for a while and I knew I wanted to make a turtleneck to wear with them. The PANTS are actually from my MIMI G #8426 jumpsuit pattern, I simply made the pants and not the bodice, lol. It is a great flowing pants pattern. I made the TURTLENECK from SIMPLICITY #9014 which I hacked a bit. I shortened the sleeves, the body, and made the turtleneck a bit narrower. THE FABRIC The fabric is a beautiful RAYON that we have in BLACK and in OLIVE at MELANATED FABRICS. It flows and presses like a dream, and makes great pants, dresses, or skirts. THE LOOK sewitacademy.comhttp://sewitacademy.com

HI DARLINGS! I am off to a great start this week and I actually have some sewing time scheduled. This top was from the last batch of sewing I was able to make with my MIMI G FABRICS before I had to get back to work and put sewing on hold for a few weeks. This is my COQUI PRINT which is one of my favorites from all the prints. You can find all my prints at MELANATEDFABRICS.COM and you can use code MFTHANKS to get 10% off. THE LOOK

HI DARLINGS! Today’s wrap dress is a favorite, I would say a definite TNT pattern for a wrap dress. It’s NEW LOOK 6581 which I also have a SEW-ALONG video for. I have made this dress three times now and I expect to make it again, lol. I have a beautiful rib knit I want to use for this dress with matching pants. The FABRIC is a knit leopard print from MY FABRIC COLLECTION which is available now on MELANATED FABRICS. This knit print comes in several colors. THE LOOK

HI DARLINGS! It has been almost a year since I started working with Riley Blake on designing my very first fabric collection and I am so excited to finally be announcing it! If you know me, you know I love color, floral, and animal prints so there is no way that my first collection would not include all of those things. I wanted this collection to express my love of the above mentioned but also my culture. All my fabric prints will be available on MELANANTED FABRICS on Dec 1st! Below are just a few of the prints. The flower you see in my floral print is called “Flor de Maga” and it is the national flower of Puerto Rico which is where I am from. I wanted to honor the island I love so much and beyond that, I wanted to honor the people who have kept our island full of love and joy even in the face of disasters, like hurricane Maria. If you have ever visited Puerto Rico you may have heard a small frog that sings us to sleep every night called “El Coqui” pronounce Co-kee!” The island was once filled with millions of these frogs from a number of different species, but today only 17 species remain, and a few of them are endangered or threatened as a result of deforestation. This is why our little frog the perfect national symbol. The Coqui for me is very special because as a little girl I remember mimicking the sound as I fell asleep. This small print of the coqui is definitely a favorite in my collection. I choose Rayons and Knits for my first collection because they are two of my favorite substrates to work with. There are so many possibilities when sewing with rayons because it is flowing and lightweight, can be made into so many garments, and I love the feel against my skin. I have made skirts, tops, buttons ups, flowing pants, dresses, you can see where I am going here, lol. I did think about coordinating some of the prints because I love to mix prints and create interest. Many of the florals work well with the animal prints and many of the woven animal prints work well with their coordinating animal print in knits. I am thrilled to be sharing these colorful and fun prints and hope to have another collection soon! Head over to Melanated Fabrics and sign up for our newsletter to make sure you get notified soon as they are on the site!

HI DARLINGS! I hope everyone is having a great week. I am headed back out of town to San Diego to get a ton of inventory that just came in for MELANATED FABRICS and we are thrilled! So many good things being added. I am rocking my recently made MADISON CARDIGAN from STYLE SEW ME patterns. I love this pattern! It is fast and easy to make. I made it before and posted it HERE if you want more info on the pattern. The fabric is from MELANATED FABRICS and it is delicious!! It is the softest and drapiest organic fleece I have ever worked with. I think there are a few yards left of the Ivory but we also have a few other colors. THE LOOK I paired it with my leather joggers and camel sweater top and of course my favorite leopard heels. This monochromatic look is always a favorite of mine too.

HI DARLINGS! I hope you are having a great week so far. I have been so busy! Since launching Melanated Fabrics things have been even crazier than usual. This is a modified version of McCall #8001 which I have made before, you can see that look HERE. This time I extended the length and I love it even more. I had some fabric leftover so I made a matching cami. This is the Ogden Cami from True Bias. THE LOOK I wore my favorite jeans from Zara and my red heels from Steve Madden.

HI DARLINGS! I can’t believe BRITTANY I did it. It has been a crazy four months since we decided we were going to partner and open our very own ONLINE FABRIC STORE! If you are not already following on Instagram please follow @MELANATEDFABRICSCO and head over to MELANATEDFABRICS.COM today!! use code MFTHANKS for 10% OFF opening day, THE FABRIC One of my favorite fabrics we have in stock is our RAYON SLUB in this gorgeous HENNA color. It is perfect for a shirtdress, pants, button-ups, men’s slacks, and even lightweight jackets. You can find it HERE. We also have it in TABACCO, MUSTARD, NAVY, OLIVE & PURPLE THE LOOK

HELLO DARLINGS! You guys loved seeing my studio re-do so I thought I would start showing other rooms in the house as I get them finished. Since buying our Georgia home I have had a great time remodeling, decorating, and making this beautiful house our home. I have said this before but if I had not become a sewing DIY queen lol I probably would have been an interior decorator, it is my second favorite thing to do next to sewing…or a chef, lol I love to cook too. When I came to see the house I knew the first thing I was going to do was remove all the carpeting. Our bedroom had a carpet and so did the living room, and my husband’s office on the first level. Some people prefer to have houses empty when they go to view them because for many it is hard to see beyond the current owner’s decor, it can throw off your ability to see the potential in the room. I can always look at a room the same way I look at a sewing pattern, I look at the lines. HOW THE ROOM LOOKED BEFORE BUYING Here a few pics of the bedroom when we came to view the house. The first thing I knew we would do was take up the carpet. The other thing I had to remember when looking at the space was how my style and decor would work in the space vs the style and decor I was looking at. There was nothing wrong with the room, it was just not our style so I needed to remind hubby of that as we were walking through the house so he could just focus not he size and lines of each room. AFTER WE MOVED IN! I love color! BUT in my bedroom, I prefer a neutral calming feel. I also like to change certain things several times a year, like my bedspreads or drapes so if the bulk of the room is in a neutral palette I can easily switch things out according to the seasons. I also love photos and plants! I have several plants in each room, most of them are real although I do mix faux plants in with my real ones to liven a space that I know is not going to get sufficient light for my live plants to live and flourish. It is a great mix and I will even place real soil in the planter of my faux plants to give them a more “real” feel. I hope you enjoy a look into our “sanctuary”, I put some quick notes in captions below some images. I use mirrors in my home a lot, it helps to expand your space. The pictures of our wedding above our bed make me smile. Changing the legs of a furniture piece you may already have can do wonders for elevating it and adding a bit more glam. MY CHANDELIER IS MY FAVORITE PIECE IN THE ROOM!! This mirror is from Home Goods and I love it! The plant stand is from Target Aside from plants and traditional artwork, I love to add texture to the walls. Big furniture is always a great idea for making a space feel comfy and cozy! Don’t be afraid to add some fun! this carpet is one of my favorite pieces. I got it at Wayfair. Find small ways to use prints and patterns that work within your pallette. The entryway to the room My show room 😉 Add shelving! I add alot of shelving to my rooms, it just gives you the ability to add decor without it juts being hung on the wall. My room needs to feel like a five start hotel, it needs to make me feel warm and relaxed when I walk in. Don’t be afraid to use color if that is your jam but be aware of colors that may work against you when you are trying to wind down and relax. I like to use prints and interest in things like my area rugs and planters and even in my wall art while still keeping the overall feel of the room neutral and calming. Fell free to leave me any questions in the comments, I am happy to share where I got my furniture or decor.

HI DARLINGS! As you can imagine my schedule I pretty hectic most weeks and although I love to cook and spend time in my kitchen I simply don’t have the time. There are times when I have time on my hands and I love figuring out what to make every night but over the last several months my schedule has ramped up even more than usual and I found myself ordering out a lot! Door Dash and Postmates were on frequent rotation, lol. As convenient as that can be sometimes it does get pricey and it’s just not the healthiest options, especially for me when I am trying to follow a low carb meal plan. I have been toying with the idea of meal prepping but most of what I kept seeing was ready-cooked meals that were being stored and reheated and I just am not a fan of reheating food unless it is leftovers from the night before. My family and I also enjoy eating something different for dinner every night so I am not going to make a batch of something to eat all week. Freezer meals seemed like the best option for me and doing the prep and storing uncooked and then simply grabbing the freezer meal the night before to defrost and cook it. It is so MUCH FASTER than spending time chopping, pulling ingredients, and having to figure out what you are feeding your family every day, that is stressful! HOW I DO IT I plan my dinners and lunches for the week and make a menu. KEEP IT SIMPLE! I only cook 5 days a week so we make 5 dinners. The other two days are a free for all. I go through each recipe and make a grocery list. This is great because I never buy more than I need because I know exactly what I am making. I mentioned I plan my lunches, for the family they can just grab whatever they want to eat but I am trying to stay on track with my fitness goals so I need to have my lunches prepped to eat or I will go rogue. I can eat the same thing for a day or two for lunch so I choose two salads or meals that I can put in mason jars and grab every day for lunch. I will show you those below. I take time on Sunday to prep all my meals. Because I am not cooking the meals only doing prep work and cooking sauces this only takes me 2 hours maybe three depending on my menu. Just turn on some music and enjoy the process knowing that these few hours on a Sunday are going to save you SO MUCH TIME during the week! I used freezer bags for a while but then I got the OLISO FRISPER and I fell in love. The vacuum seal bags and jar attachment is great! I chop, season, dump in the freezer vacuum bags, seal them and put away. The great thing about the FRISPER bags is that they can be reused up to 12 times! It’s pretty amazing, lol. Note that I completely defrost the meal overnight in my fridge before cooking it and never cook anything from frozen. MY MENU FOR THE WEEK & PREP I linked the recipes below and also noted any changes I make to each along with how and what I prepped. MONDAY: Basil Chicken w/ Broccoli ( I make a batch of white rice for the fam) I omit the rice from my dinner. We actually ate this yesterday (seeing as today is Tuesday) which is also why it is not in a freezer vacuum bag. I prepped Sunday and knew we would be eating this Monday so it just went in the fridge for the night. I cut my two huge breasts in half lengthwise since they were thick which gave me four pieces of chicken, plenty for my family. I lightly seasoned it with salt and pepper and bagged it, then I cut my broccoli into florets (I buy the big head) and bagged that in a separate bag because it was not being frozen. Then I make the sauce! This is the only thing I fully prepared for this meal. The sauce takes just a few minutes, I let cool completely and bag it. Yesterday when I had to make dinner, I pulled out the bag, cooked my chicken, removed it from the pan, warm my sauce, added back the chicken, and steamed my broccoli. It took me 15 minutes and we were eating. AMAZING! TUESDAY: Broccoli Beef This is a keto-friendly version so there is no sugar used and instead of Soy sauce the recipe calls for coconut aminos which I use anyway. This is fam favorite which is often in rotation. I ran out my vacuum bags so I just used a freezer one for the broccoli. I sliced my beef really thin, I use rib eyes instead of the flat iron steak they use in the recipe above. It’s just juicier. I mix together the marinade and dump it into the bag together and seal. I cut my broccoli according to how much I need and freeze it. This is a really fast meal to make because the thinner your beef is cut the faster it cooks and stays really tender. WEDNESDAY: Black Pepper Chicken w/ Cabbage (or rice for the kids) This is another really easy recipe. The only change to this recipe is that I omit the cornstarch. Instead, I cook it a bit longer to reduce and thicken the sauce if needed. I dice my chicken into 1″ cubes, season with salt and pepper, dump in the bag. I cut my veggies, we are not fans of celery so I just used red and green pepper and onions. Feel free to use any veggies you have, this a great way to use up veggies that might be on their last leg, lol. Dump veggies on top of the chicken and I seal the bag. I could have put my sauce bag in there too but I forgot and didn’t want to open and use a second seal, lol. I mix my sauce ingredients and pour it in a baggie. When I am ready to cook, I cook my chicken, add veggies, dump sauce, and mix. Serve with rice or cabbage. I like angel hair cabbage so I generally use that. THURSDAY: Meatballs and Cauliflower Mash This is another household favorite! These meatballs and gravy are so good. I don’t make any changes to this recipe. I dump all the ingredients for the meatballs in a bowl and make my meatballs, I set them in a freezer-safe container and layer them. I use plastic wrap in between the layers so they don’t stick. You can use the FRISPER BAGS here too and just stop the vacuum before they crush the meatballs but I just used the container. I make the gravy start to finish and let it cool completely, then bag it and set it inside the container. Freeze it and you’re done. When I am ready to cook I cook my meatballs in my cast iron, remove them, and warm my gravy back up in the same pan so I can pick up all he seared goodies at the bottom, then I put the meatballs back in a cook for a bit together. I usually just use the frozen CAULIFLOWER MASH. FRIDAY IS A NO COOK DAY! SATURDAY: Pesto Chicken with Roasted Potatoes I don’t actually follow this recipe exactly and kinda just wing it with whatever veggies I have in the fridge. I also use store-bought pesto sometimes instead of making it. There is a brand I really like that you can find HERE. I also don’t cook this in the oven and instead just use my stovetop. I cut and ice my chicken and lightly salt. Dump in the bag. Cut veggies. I used zucchini, mushrooms, onions, broccoli, and cherry tomatoes. When I am ready to cook I simply cook my chicken, add veggies and cook until fork-tender, add pesto and mix until its all nice and covered in the pesto. The potatoes I just cut and throw on a sheet pan and bake. SUNDAY IS A NO COOK DAY, ITS PREP DAY! HOW I PREP MY LUNCHES Like I said above, I choose two meals and then make enough for at least 5-6 days. Lunch is more for me to stay on track. The family is great about making their own lunches. I like to choose things I can stack in a mason jar and then dump and eat or dump and warm up, then eat. Lunches are fully cooked and stored. WHY MASON JARS? Mason jars just make my food look pretty vs a Tupperware container, lol. Just a visual thing for me. LUNCH #1 This week I decided on Chicken Lettuce Cups (minus the lettuce cups, lol) Instead I make the chicken filling and then top my jars with angel hair shredded cabbage, and when I am ready to eat I dump it in a pan and warm up together. It’s delicious! This recipe made me three jars. LUNCH #2 This is a personal favorite! Big Mac Salad makes me feels like I am eating a Big Mac without the bread, LOL! This is so easy, you don’t really need a recipe. Ground Beef or Turkey, season with whatever you want. I use salt, pepper, and paprika. Cut lettuce, tomatoes, pickles, and red onions. Now I have seen many people add the “Big Mac Sauce” to the bottom of the jar but I am not a fan of cold ground meat so I need to warm it, therefore I use sauce cups instead. I don’t make the sauce linked above, I just buy a low-calorie Thousand Islands dressing. HOW I LAYER MY SALAD: I layer my jar with the ground beef first, then onions and pickles, tomato, then cheese and lettuce on top so it stays crispy. Then I fill my sauce cups and set them on top. When I am ready to eat.I dump all the veggies and leave the ground beef at the bottom, I heat it up in the microwave and then dump over plate. THAT’S IT! It takes me 15-20 minutes to get dinner cooked and on the table and I don’t have to wonder what we are eating everyday. Do you prep? I would love to hear what you guys do and if you think this would work for you.