Red Cords

I haven't sewn something just for fun in ages, so today I decided it was time. I had bought some navy blue cord fabric to make into pants for Justin a while back but hadn't gotten around to it yet. Yesterday I went out to the fabric store and picked up some red and brown cords and some fun striped fabrics as well. I used my stand by pants pattern "Bloomers and Britches" and whipped these up in a few hours. I like how the cargo pockets turned out and can't wait to make the next two pairs!

Linen Skirt

I hosted a shower for a friend of mine who just had a baby girl. It is her first girl, so I decided to make her a little skirt. This is the first time I've sewn with linen and I'm pretty happy with the result. I did French seams so the skirt ended up being a bit less full than I had expected. It's a 19" waist which should fit 6-12 months. I think it will look really cute with leggings since it's a bit on the shorter side. I had a happy accident when making it. My seams didn't line up exactly in the back so I added these cute buttons to camaflogue it. I think they look cute!

Back with buttons

Front

Everything in its Place

Watch out world - I finally got my fabrics organized and visible! Ron brought home this awesome shelf from work, so it was free! I've had it for about a month now and was seriously lacking motivation to get everything put away, but today I had success. The smaller fabric bits are even arranged according to color. I'm hoping that having most of my fabric out will inspire me to get more made. I'm working on something today, so there is hope!

Vintage Linens and Fabrics

I'm constantly searching for vintage fabrics and linens for my sewing projects. So far my luck hasn't been great and I can't seem to find any at the thrift stores. But yesterday my luck turned and I hit the mother lode! I found two floral vintage sheets, a floral vintage pillow case, some awesome tapestry vintage 60's fabric, and a quilt made from vintage fabrics - score! The cost for all of these? $10. Now, what to make out of them, hmm...

Floral vintage sheets and pillow case. I'm thinking these might make cute little girl skirts.

The retro 60's tapestry fabric. This fabric would be cute made into a bag or purse.

I LOVE the colors in this quilt, and it's in perfect condition. Lately the kids have been making "beds" outside on the grass on sunny days. This quilt is the perfect size for them. It will make a great 4th of July quilt too.

Introducing Sergette!

I've wanted a serger for the longest time, and now, finally here she is! I got a great deal on a Brother serger with lay in threading. Now I can finish my seams and sell my goods on Etsy and locally as well. I haven't taken her for a test drive yet, but will soon! Welcome to the family Sergette!

Crafting for Haiti

Since the news of the earthquake in Haiti I've been searching the net for a way to donate crafts to help the victims of the quake there. For those of you who don't know, locally we had a 6.5 quake last weekend. It shook us up, but fortunately there were few injuries although many buildings had structural damage. Our house fared well, thank God. Anyway, in my searching I found this amazing craft site called Craft Hope: http://www.crafthope.com/ The site is dedicated to making and donating hand made items for charity. They feature one item per month you can craft and send to various charities.

Since the quake in Haiti they have opened up an Etsy shop:

http://www.etsy.com/shop/crafthope You can list items there through them and all of the proceeds go directly to Doctors Without Borders. They also have a children's area for crafts made by children. You don't have to have an Etsy site going to donate an item, just e-mail them at the address provided with pics and a description of your item and you're good to go. What an amazing way to use our talents to help the people of Haiti! Let's get crafting for charity!

Birthday Gift for a Girl Turning Two

One of my friend's little girl turned two not long ago and I decided to make her an apron that matched the apron I made her mom. I had just enough left over to throw together this little number. The fabric is Amy Butler that I bought at Scottie Dog Quilts. The pom poms were from JoAnne's. I agonized on whether or not to add a button to the pocket and found this vintage grey one that is the exact same shade of grey as the grey in the "Martini" fabric! I designed the pattern which is just three strips of fabric, a waistband and the apron strings and a small front pocket.

The apron I made her mom for her birthday this year.

Last Chance To Enter The Give Away!

Just a reminder to all you moms of little girls or those who know a little girl! Sarah is drawing the winning number out of a hat tonight at 9 p.m.! Last chance to enter to win a cute red and green vintage style Christmas apron! Thanks to all who have participated!

Give Away!!!

I've never done a give away, but lately I've been thinking it's time! I'm giving away a hankie apron, made by yours truly, size 2-4 T. It has a cute vintage button on the pocket and would be the perfect accessory for any little girl who wants to help mom out in the kitchen! With Christmas coming up it would get lots of use, or it would be a great gift. I will draw a number randomly from a hat, (I won't peek, promise!), and the winner will be announced on my blog October 31st!! Good luck everyone! (I will ship anywhere in the U.S.)

Purses for Chiang Mai

After months of planning, my trip to Chiang Mai Thailand is almost here! I leave in only three days and I have tons to do between now and then. One of the things I had to make before I left were these potato chip bag purses. I got the pattern at Scottie Dog Quilts, as well as the Wonderland fabric which I love!! They are the perfect size for passports, cameras, etc. and small and easy to travel with. I made myself one and made one for our fearless team leader, Deanna.

Deanna's purse - fun fabric with a vintage button closure.

Front of purse. I had a time of it getting all of the flowers to go the right direction! The inside of the flap is the same material.

Back pocket

My purse, made from batik fabrics.

This was a fun project! Now off to pack....

30th B-Day Apron Present

My friend Bethany had her 30th birthday recently and I made her this apron from the Bend the Rules sewing book. Bethany is a wonderful cook and is in the kitchen lots, so I figured an apron would be the perfect gift for her. The fabric is from Scottie Dog Quilts. I love the "Martini" fabric I used for the skirt part. She looks fab in it!

Doesn't she look great, not a day over 20 in my opinion!

My first ever kangaroo pocket - easy and fun.

Coin Quilt Gone Wonky

I attempted to make my first mini coin quilt this past week from the book "Pretty Little Patchwork". I decided to make it from cute batik fabrics, some of which I had and some I went out and bought. Make a long story short, this project didn't get too far before I realized that the blocks were uneven and wonky! The strips are 1/ 1/2" wide so it's tough to get them cut evenly. They weren't lining up properly either which is a pet peve of mine! So, I decided to make lemonade from the lemon. I've been needing something to go on top of the down stair's bathroom's toilet. Now the loo is fancied up with my wonky creation! It actually looks pretty cute if I say so myself!! Glad I was able to salvage what I had done and use it for something.

It's a wonky creation...
but looks cool on the loo!

Sewing Machine Cover

I've been meaning to make a sewing machine cover for a long time now...well, today I finally did it! I found the cutest Moda fabric at Scottie Dog Quilts which incorporated blue and yellow - my sewing room wall and curtain colors. There is even a punch of orange in the fabric as well which goes well with my what not basket. I got the pattern from the sarisabee craft blog - thanks Sara!! I love how it came out! I took the pics in the late afternoon, but you get the idea. :)

Two Skirts for Two Sisters

I had such fun working on these two skirts for two sisters, both with June birthdays a few weeks apart! It was my first project done in my new sewing area - aaaahhhh! I was in sewing heaven - yes it does exist and I know 'cause I went there. I designed the patterns for the dresses with some advisement from Sarah on the pink and green girlie one. She insisted it should have a ruffle and that I add some brighter fabrics. I'm glad I went along with her suggestions since it turned out so cute!

The finished products side by side

Tatum's Skirt - Red, white and blue vintage style skirt with vintage button and pom poms made for the little one's first birthday. She was born a few weeks from the 4th of July.


Rowan's Skirt - A fun Humboldt girly style patchwork skirt. Sarah advised I add the brighter fabrics on the right and the ruffle, glad I did!

Wrapped up and ready to go. I used fabrics from the dresses for ribbons and matched the paper colors to that of the dresses.

Vintage Gown

Here is Abram Oak, my friend Tracy's adorbale baby at 6 weeks old. I made this gown for him for his ma ma's baby shower. I used a vintage gown I had been given for the pattern. I embroidered an R on it for his last name to add a special personalized touch. At the time I was just sure he would be a girl, but I made sure that in case he was a boy this would be gender neutral. I think he looks adorable in it!! Can't wait to meet this little fellow.

New Craft Goodies

A friend of mine gave me a gift certificate for Jo-Ann's and I finally had a chance to use it today. I felt like a kid in a candy shop! I found these cute fabrics I plan to make pillow cases out of for Sarah, and a really neat book called Pretty Little Patchwork. I can't wait to get some time to make something out of it! I wish I could spend all day crafting.....I think heaven must have a craft corner somewhere.

Justin's Socktopus

I finally finished Justin's socktopus! I love the little face and "hat" which is actually the footed part of the sock. Of course he doesn't like it. Usually the things I make for him that I think are really cool he dislikes. "Don't like it ma ma" he says. Well, you can't please all the people all the time I guess.

Now I'm working on a hanging system for his Niger batik. It's a cute dark blue batik with giraffes and elephants on it. I made a casing for it yesterday and I have a wooden dowel I plan to put into the casing. I have a plan to buy some hemp and beads to make a cute hanger for it. I'll be sure to post a pic of that when I'm done. Next, curtains for his new room!

I just might nab this and put it in my room!

Elephant in Felt Pillow

I decided to get adventurous and venture out into the world of felt. I'm pretty pleased with the result: A fun elephant pillow for Justin's new room, complete with a button eye. He loves it and said, "Pretty Mom!" when it was finished! I'm glad I have his seal of approval, since it will be in his room after all. I found this adorable elephant print and Batik fabric at Fabric Temptations. I drew a sketch of an elephant from the print and cut out my felt shapes from that pattern. I then hand stitched the felt onto the pillow cover. It turned out pretty well considering it was my fist felt attempt! I will be playing with felt more in the future, it's so easy and fun to work with.

Coat for Emmiley

I made this little coat yesterday for a baby shower gift for a friend of mine. It's the "Cute As A Button Baby Jacket" by Jackie Clark, (Scottie Dog Quilts.) It is so quick and easy to make! The pattern was a tad short, so I added 1 1/2 inches to the length. I chose corduroy for the exterior and lining, so it will be nice and warm for winter. I used some vintage buttons for the front and I love how they pop against the grey. Now, if I can just find this pattern in my size!!

Socktopus

The other night my mom's group did a craft/sewing night at the quilt shop. The socktopus was our project for the evening - isn't it cute?! It's very easy to make, you just need 2 pair of socks, (long or short), some stuffing and a ribbon to tie around the neck. You cut the socks in half down the middle (the middle of the sock if you had it on, not the sides - hope that makes sense!) Then you cut the tip of the toes off. You stitch one end, and stuff the socks, then stitch the other end closed. One sock you only cut 3/4 of the way down. The remaining end piece is the octopus head. You sew up both legs and leave an opening 1-2 inches below the head for stuffing. Then you put all of the leg ends into the hole below the head, hand stitch it closed, and tie a ribbon on the neck. I think it's better to embroider the face first before stuffing the head, so the knots don't show. I did it after it was all sewed up, and it still turned out ok, so either way is fine. You can also embroider a piece of felt for the face, add the cut off sock ends for a cap, and add leg warmers to the legs - the sky is the limit! I made this one for Sarah and she loves it! She drew a picture of the features and I copied it onto the face and embroidered them - fun!