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!

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!

Kid's Clothes Week - Day 1

My goal this week is to complete one piece of clothing per day. It's a little ambitious but I haven't picked out any patterns that are super complex. I also spend last week cutting things out so this week I could just sew. Here's what I made last night. It's the Ayashe blouse pattern from Figgy's.  The top would have come together in about an hour except I kept making really silly mistakes so it took me twice that. The instructions are very concise and without previous experience sewing something like this I think it would be very difficult. There were several parts I had to keep re-reading just to make sure I understood how to assemble a section. Don't let that scare you though, it really is an easy pattern I just wouldn't recommend it for total beginners because it doesn't "teach" like an Oliver + S pattern would. Also, the double gauze, while absolutely gorgeous is a bit difficult to sew because of it's tendency to fray so badly.

I've been saving this half yard of Far Far Away II for ages and I thought this would be the perfect way to use it. I used a contrasting yellow stripe for the shoulder panels and I absolutely love how retro that made it look! One thing I absolutely love about this pattern is the endless ways you could customize it. I have another one cut from a madras plaid for the bigger girl that I think will look totally different. This is a size 3 and is a bit big which is great, it'll get a lot of wear. This is definitely a pattern that will get a ton of use making it a really great value. And have you seen Figgy's new patterns available for presale!? Oh. My. Goodness. I'll be adding those to my pattern library for sure. What I love even more is that I only have to buy one pattern for both girls. They're such different sizes a lot of other patterns I have to buy two just to get the right sizes which can get expensive.

This weeks sewing got off to a bit of a slow start for me but I'm excited to sew tonight and hopefully it'll go a bit smoother!

Kids Clothes Week Challenge Spring 2012

I'm so excited because next week the Spring 2012 Kids Clothes Week Challenge starts! Meg of Elsie Marley has created this awesome project to challenge people to just dedicate one hour a night to sew something for their kids. (Or knit something!) This is my third year participating and every year I really enjoy my weeklong sewing frenzy because it's SO productive and I get stuff done that I normally would put off until it's too late. I've got my patterns all picked out and this week I've been tracing and getting fabric ready so that next week I can just focus on the fun part, SEWING! It's been SO long since I've sewn anything for the girls so this will be such a fun week. Check out the Challenge details here and join me!

In Progress

I've fallen into the habit of thinking that I can only blog about projects that are done. Since I've been on Instagram I'm taking more and more snapshots of everyday and I've realized that I enjoy seeing what others are working on too, not just what they've finished. So, I thought I'd try to share more of what I'm working on at the moment...

Tulip Cardigan in gorgeous retro colors for my littlest kiddo. I'm planning on using the leftovers on a striped blanket.

Honey Cowl. I gave in to the hype and knitted this beauty with some Madelinetosh DK. It's actually done, just waiting to be blocked and gifted. Then I think I'll have to have one for myself! 

Quilting this bad boy. It's going to take FOREVER. Wrestling a queen size quilt through my itty bitty machine is a chore but I know it'll be worth it! 

 Two at a time socks from this book. These are a gift as well. That super adorable bag? It's from the super adorable Mrs. McPorkChop and it matches my house perfectly. This is actually my second pair from this book, I'll make sure to blog about the first pair this week! 

I'm sure there's other in-progress things that I've completely forgotten about but that's the life of a crafter! I'm always jumping around from project to project, it's amazing anything gets done! :)

Sew Happy!

Sorry for the cheesy pun but I'm sew happy that this week is over! This week was just plain silly and to try to recoup I'm instating a "NO COMPUTER" policy for this weekend. I don't know if I'll be able to do it but I'm sure going to try my damndest. What am I going to DO without the computer this weekend you ask? Well, first I'm going to tackle the mountains of dirty diapers that need to be washed, then I'm going to do some cooking and some eating, perhaps do some knitting, plan a Valentine's party for my daughter's class, I'm definitely going to read and I may try out one or both of these new patterns I just downloaded. (KwikSew 3669 and KwikSew 3659)

I'm in desperate need of some new clothes. Even though I've lost almost all of my pregnancy weight, almost none of my pre-pregnancy clothes fit. My body has changed you guys. I've always been a plus size, curvy gal but there are new curves where I didn't think one could have curves. My husband and I are on a major money diet right now so I've decided I need to put some of this fabric I've got to good use. I haven't had the best success with sewing clothes for myself in the past (again because of the curviness) but I'm really ready to give it another shot...I'm seriously tired of my baggy sweatpants. Does anyone have good suggestions for learning to sew clothes that fit?

Alright, so after 5 tonight I'm saying adios for the weekend and if you catch me online after that...Please scold me! Hopefully I'll be back Monday refreshed with lots accomplished! Wish me luck!

Oh yeah, the above illustration is available in the shop. I think it's going to become some project bags soon too...Wouldn't that be fun!?

A Colorful New Year

It's quiet right now... The baby is napping and the big girl is outside gleefully playing in the snow. The sun is out, the wind is blowing the snow from the trees and I'm finally enjoying my coffee. I live for peaceful times like this and lately they're few and far between. Soon the baby will need me and the big girl will come in and want lunch. The arguing and negotiating will commence (Have you ever tried to negotiate with a five year old? Holy cow, it's non-stop, keep you on your toes, mind-boggling fun! - Insert sarcasm) and my hair will stand on end from the stress of trying to juggle it all. But without the stressful times I don't think I would enjoy the peaceful times so much.

I'm so looking forward to January. It's one of the most peaceful and quiet times of the year. The holiday hustle is over, the big girl will go back to school and life will whipped back into order. Or at least as much order as ever. Chaos will still reign supreme in this house but at least it'll be chaos on a schedule and that I can handle. I'll be hunkering down for the rest of this long winter with my knitting, my kindle, my sewing machine and my babies. I'm not one for New Years resolutions, but I would like to try to be more patient in the coming year. I would like to realize that I can't always be super mom and sometimes the simple things are the best things. I would like to slow down and be able to really enjoy these quiet moments for myself and be thankful for all that I have. For I am amazingly blessed.

As for the above picture, I FINALLY started my color wheel quilt! Horray! The cutting is done and the piecing has begun. So far it's been much easier than I anticipated but don't most things happen that way? It's really brightened my mood to play with such beautiful and colorful fabrics and last night I lay in bed dreaming about where I'm going to hang it. So, here's wishing everyone a colorful and very very happy New Year!

Washed and Pressed

Two years ago for Christmas I received the fabric bundle set from Purl to make the gorgeous Color Wheel Quilt from Last-Minutes Patchwork + Quilted Gifts.

Ever since the fabric has sat on my office shelves looking beautiful with me too terrified to touch it. I've gotten a few quilts under my belt in the interim and I think I'm finally about ready to tackle this one. Last weekend I washed and pressed all of the fabric and I'm hoping this weekend I'll be able to make the leap of faith and start cutting. Wish me luck!

A YEAR in the Making

Seriously, yes, this quilt took me a YEAR to finish. I was debating for the longest time about whether or not I was going to divulge that little tidbit. It is pretty darn embarrassing. This was my first "real size" quilt and really not a difficult one. I seem to remember piecing the top in a weekend last winter and started on the quilting right away but for some odd reason or another just stalled. I'm really not sure what it was that forced this project to languish for so long. Every now and then I would feel guilty, pull it out and quilt a few lines. Then it would go back in the corner and be forgotten about for another few months. With a resolution of finishing everything I start this year this project was at the top of my list. And once picked up, it only took a few days to finish. The quilting was almost done and the binding was the biggest hurdle to completion. I think that's probably part of my inability to finish this darned thing... I was TERRIFIED of the binding. While it was the most difficult part of the whole thing for me, it really wasn't that bad. Yes, it was time consuming and tedious but a few movies later and it was done. And I'm so glad it's done. I absolutely love it, in all it's wonky, crooked, wrinkledness. It's so, so far from perfect but that's what I love about it. And to make it even better, the very moment I put the last stitch in the binding it was snatched away by a very happy 4 year old and put to immediate use. Seriously, the new "blankie" didn't leave her side all night. It was used as a play mat, a booster seat, a pillow and a cape. It really doesn't get any better than that and what excellent motivation for finishing the rest of those projects gathering dust. Okay, enough babbling, here's the details:

Stacked Coins Quilt from Last-Minute Patchwork and Quilted Gifts (supposedly a 8-12 hour project, FUNNY)

Size: Approx. 52in x 65in (Perfect for a little person)

I used an old sheet with a really cool circle pattern on it for the background (you can see the pattern the best in the second photo), and used a mix of new and vintage fabrics for the coins. The back is a super soft, fleecy fabric that was a little tricky to quilt and even trickier to bind because of it's thickness. I hand-quilted this beast and made my own binding from leftover fabric from the coins.

Now for the next quilt... The same year I started this quilt I received the kit for making the Color-Wheel Quilt from the same book. Maybe I'll wait a little while to tackle that one!

Thank you so much for all of the incredibly kind comments and well-wishes on the Giveaway post. You are all just awesome and each and every comment means so much to me! If you haven't already entered the giveaway you have until Thursday 6PM Central. I'll announce the winner this coming weekend.

New in the Shop!

It's been way too long since anything new has hit the shop and I'm so excited about these pillow covers! I'm a little late for calendar season but better late than never! See them in the shop here.

A "PJ Dress"

I've been so busy crafting for the shop that I've fallen behind on my regular mommy crafting. So, to make up for it I spent the afternoon making Brodi some new pjs. She requested not just any pjs but a "PJ Dress". I let her pick the fabric for it from my stash of flannel that I save for such occasions. She picked this cute mermaid print that I picked up at Joann probably two years ago for $1 a yard. They have some really great sales sometimes and I like to stock up when they do. (It drives my husband nuts!) But hey, when the kid wants new pjs I always have fabric on hand! I also had the pattern, ribbon and bias tape on hand so horray for using up the stash. The pattern is Simplicity 5118. Patterns are another thing I tend to stock up on. Joann and Hancock both have occasional $1 pattern sales and I get as many as they allow. The only thing I really changed about the pattern was the binding around the armholes. I used double-fold bias instead of single and instead of sewing the sleeves on before sewing on the binding I did it the other way around. I wanted to be able to see the contrasting binding all the way around the armhole instead of just under the pits. I also shortened the length so it would be a little cooler to wear in the summer. The pattern was super easy even for my very meager sewing skills and it only took about 2 and half hours from start to finish, not bad! The munchkin is pleased as punch, which is the most important thing.

Patchwork Strawberries

I've been working on some felt foods for Brodi's upcoming birthday and I had a brain burst whilst sewing some slices of bread. What about combining quilting and fabric food? Hence, these patchwork strawberries. I started with some random bits of coordinating fabrics (some vintage some new) and just started sewing them together. When I had them all sewn together I cute the whole piece into strips and re-sewed them back together, mixing up the orientation, then I repeated that process a few times to get a patchwork square. I then cut a circle from the square and cut the circle in half. Then, sewing the two flat sides of the semi-circle together formed a cone. A little stuffing and then some gathering created the strawberry shape. A little felt cap and a string stem topped them off. I think these would be super cute on a gift, tree decorations or even just lying about on a shelf. I'm now eyeing my yellow fabrics and thinking some summery lemons would be nice...

Meet Louise

Meet Louise. She's a marveously sweet kitty that I whipped up for Brodi June.
She's from the Wee Wonderfuls Put Together Book No.1. You can purchase the pattern here. The pattern is so wonderfully easy and so perfect for cutomizing your own kitty, bunny or bear. I sewed Louise in an afternoon... The most time consuming part was trying to decide what fabric to use! Also check out the Put Together Book No. 1 gallery. It's great for ideas and inspiration.