Scirocco Dress - KCW Days 4 and 5

Pattern: Scirocco by Figgy's

Fabric: Main - Mormor Collection by Lotta Jansdotter

            Lining - Cotton from stash

This is the first thing I've made for my biggest girl in ages. She's at that age (10) where the cute little girl patterns are too cute and she's still too young for the true tween stuff so I just haven't been sewing for her. Enter Scirocco, I think it's the perfect blend of cute and sophisticated. Figgy's patterns are great like that. This pattern only goes up to an 8/9 size but I was able to add 1/2" all over to get it to fit and it fits perfectly. I love when projects turn out like that! This is for an outdoor family wedding we're going to in September, the bride's colors being mint and peach. I loved the really simple pattern of the fabric, I think it really helps the details of the dress stand out and is modern and fun. And the details of this pattern are great, the twist in the back is my favorite part! My pre-tween loves how "sassy" it is which makes the whole thing a huge success in my book since she's so picky about dresses. 

There were a few tricky parts in the sewing, mostly finishing the bodice lining but nothing too overwhelming and the construction is very clever. For the most part it was easy and quick. I even used my rolled hem foot for the ruffles! It was the first time I've been able to use it without cursing and wanting to chuck it. 

Up next is the Fairy Tale Dress by Oliver + S for my little girl who's the flower girl in the wedding! 

Sewing for Baby - KCW Days 2 and 3

It's kind of sad how long it's been since I did a Kid's Clothes Week or even blogged for that matter. When I saw the KCW posts popping up on Monday I jumped at the chance to get some baby sewing done. I'm on reduced hours at work right now so finding the time has been a lot easier and it's honesty been nice even though the reduce pay is hard. We're expecting surprise baby number 3 in October and since I had absolutely no baby stuff left I've been sewing a ton. It's been fun and a great way to use up all the fabric I've stashed over the years. Here's the details on what I made for Days 2 and 3:

DAY 2
Pattern: Baby Sleep Sack from "Growing Up Sew Liberated"
Fabric: Knits from my stash
Cut out and sewed up within an hour, I adore this pattern and will be making more! It's super easy and a great canvas for customizing. I'm thinking some freezer paper stenciled ones would be really fun. I remember loving these sleep sacks when the girls were tiny babies, they're perfect for middle of the night diaper changes. I made the 0-6 months size so we should be able to get a lot of wear out of it.

DAY 3
Pattern: Envelope Tee from "Growing Up Sew Liberated"
Just Hatched Leggings from MadebyRae
Fabric: Knits from stash and Monaluna Woodland Knits Collection
These outfits I've had cut out and half done for a month or so, so it was pretty quick to finish them up this morning. The envelope tee is just like the Baby Sleep Sack in construction, again really easy and fun to customize. I've made probably six of these total so far. I'll share the rest I've made soon. The tees I made the 0-6 month size so they'll probably get worn a little longer than the leggings but I think both will last awhile. I love that the leggings have a little extra room for big cloth diapered butts. Most commercially made stuff is just too slim.

I'm also working on a dress for one of my big girls today that I'll hopefully be able to finish tomorrow. I forget how long it takes to sew bigger things, I've been flying through the baby stuff so fast!

New Work - Mountain of the Dragon

I've got so much to tell you about I don't even know where to start! It's been a busy, busy month with lots of fun things going on. Today I wanted to share another custom project I just finished up.

This is for the very sweet Monica who owns Mountain of the Dragon Fabric Boutique, an adorable Etsy fabric shop. She's got the best taste in fabric and her shop is just gorgeous.  That little dragon was so much fun to work on and I love that he's the logo she went with. I was able to do the logo, Etsy banner, business cards and some labels for her packaging. Such a fun project! I realize that lately this little blog has become a portfolio of sorts but I like that it reflects what's going on in my life at the moment. Right now I'm doing a lot of custom work which I love, love, love! Don't worry though, I haven't given up on sewing or knitting. I actually have a bunch of projects I want to share soon. I hope everyone is enjoying their summer so far!

In the meantime here's a teeny sneak peek at a super special project I've been involved in and will be able to totally reveal soon!

A New Look for The Craft Junky

This was such a fun custom project to work on, I mean, who doesn't want to draw cute little narwhals!? Amanda over at The Craft Junky is one seriously crafty mama who makes the cutest geek inspired goodies. She even sells some of her goodies in her Etsy shop here.  I'm LOVING doing these banners so shoot me an email if you're interested in a quote!

30 Before Thirty Update

Since the past 8 months have literally flown out the door since I first posted this list I only have about 30 more days of my twenties left! ACK! I really don't know if I'm going to celebrate or mourn, I still haven't decided how I feel about being 30. Since I only have about 30 days left I really need to bust a move and thought I'd do a little update and see how I'm doing...

1. Get more tattoos

2. Grow my hair  TOTALLY NOT HAPPENING, CHOPPED IT!

3. Learn to spin yarn

4. Overcome my fear of flying (I'm TERRIFIED of flying) 

5. Print the millions of photos on the computer and make my kids photo books - THEY'RE ORGANIZED, 

JUST NEED TO START DESIGNING PHOTO BOOKS AND PRINTING THEM! 

6. Design a line of fabric

7. Finish sewing something for ME!  I MADE MYSELF A TOVA! 

8. Eat better (Less Processed) I'M EATING 95% VEGGIE AND I LOVE IT! 

9. Talk a walk at least twice a week I'M WORKING OUT AT LEAST 4 TIMES A WEEK, I HATE IT 

BUT IT MAKES ME FEEL GOOD LATER.

10. Design a sewing pattern DOES AN EMBROIDERY PATTERN COUNT? 

11. Refurbish the bathroom

12. Knit a sweater for myself

13. Pay off our two credits cards - ONE DOWN! ONE TO GO! 

14. Bake a pie from entirely from scratch

15. Have a date night with my husband (more than once would be great)

16. Have a family portrait taken

17. Finish decorating the master bedroom

18. Finish reading the Harry Potter series ( I have this thing about not wanting things to end...)

19. Watch Man Men (people keep telling me I'll love it)

20. Take better care of my skin (actually buy some good products)

21. Redesign blog

22. Knit one pair of socks each month for the next year - SINCE I HAVEN'T BEEN BLOGGING THEM YOU'LL JUST HAVE TO TAKE MY WORD, I'VE MADE TONS OF SOCKS!

23. Print and frame my wedding pictures (I got married 9 years ago, seriously, it's about time)

24. Pay my library fines and use the library. YOU GUYS. THE LIBRARY IS AWESOME. I GO EVERY WEEK. THIS HAS REALLY HELP ON #30. I'VE BEEN READING MORE THAN A BOOK A MONTH AND I'VE HAD ZERO LATE FEES. GO ME!

25. Write more thank you notes

26. Ride a roller coaster (I'm TERRIFIED of roller coasters) - THIS WILL BE HAPPENING IN JUST A FEW WEEKS. WE'RE GOING ON A ROAD TRIP TO DOLLYWOOD!

27. Go on a vacation

28. Learn to make a martini

29. Make pasta from scratch

30. Read at least one book a month - SEE #24, I'M ALMOST THERE! 

Kids Clothes Week Days 3 and 4

So not much happened on Day 3. My full-time job has been ridiculously busy this week and I've been working a ton of overtime. I did manage to eek this shirt out last night. I needed a sewing break away from the computer! This is another Ayashe top from Figgy's for the oldest girl in a size 8. I love how "boho" this one looks compared to the retro cuteness of my other one. Again, I'm loving how versatile this pattern is! I just used bias for the neck strings and for the bottom and it made such a huge difference.

 It's really funny to me how my children both have their own "colors" that really define them. Mabel (my wee redhead) is all browns, oranges, yellows and greens and Brodi who has very dark hair is my sunshine girl with bright pinks and purples and blues. I'm not a huge fan of pink but I love this madras plaid that I bought at Joann last year. So much I wish I had more to make a top for myself!

And the girl LOVES her new top, so much so she changed her clothes so she could wear it to school. You'll have to take my word for it since it was too dark in the house to get her picture but she looked adorable it it. It's just a nice forgiving fit, comfy with lots of ease for playing. And she loved the way she could tighten the bottom because she hates "poofy" shirts that fly up when hanging upside down on the monkey bars.

(P.S. Sorry for the not so stellar pics. I REALLY need to save up to get a nicer new camera, urgh! I'm taking recommendations for good ones that aren't ridiculously expensive!)

Kid's Clothes Week - Day 2

It's no secret that in the past knits and I didn't quite jive. There have been a whole lot of sewing disasters revolving around that tricky fabric but when I saw Rae's new retro t-shirt pattern I knew I had to try again.   There are a TON of people making this pattern this week and there's a really good reason why. It's just about as close to instant gratification as you can get! I made these two shirts in under an hour and I'm addicted. I can't wait to make more. I figured out how to use the stretch stitch on my machine and that combined with using a ballpoint needle my past frustrations were just that, a thing of the past. There is still a little wavyness especially on the brown shirt but I was able to press most of it out. The fit is perfect and there are tons of ways you could customize these. I did short sleeve versions on both of mine. The brown one I used contrasting avacado colored fabric from an old t-shirt and I love that look. I also top-stitched in a contrast thread. Miss Mabel actually squealed when she saw that one and went on to say how "boot-tiful" the "polky dots" were. It was awesome.

The polka dots and the orange and gray stripe I purchased from this Etsy shop. The striped fabric is super "slinky" and I was a little terrified to sew with it but it was actually really easy and it's SO soft. I'm sure it's got way more synthetic content than I'd normally be into but it's ok. Because these require so little fabric they'd be a perfect way to repurpose old adult t-shirts. I'm definitely going to be doing more of that! In fact, I predict you'll see more of these this week yet!