Siestas and Sewing

It's such a little thing...

2012-02-02T11:29:00.000-05:00

But it makes you feel like you're not talking to yourself!

Tara over at True, Pure, Lovely emailed me a few days ago to let me know that she had passed on the Liebster Award to me. What is it, you ask? The Liebster Award is given to recognize and spread the word about blogs with under 200 followers. I think it's a fun way to expose people to blogs that don't necessarily have as high a profile as some of the others out there. I'm a sucker for finding new sources of inspiration as the # of blogs in my reader can attest. :)

Tara has some interesting happenings on her blog for 2012. She's doing a:

Every month she'll be highlighting a new book. February is Girl's World by Jennifer Paganelli and there's also a giveaway so go check it out.

The rules of the Liebster Award are:

*choose five up and coming blogs with less than 200 followers

*mention them on your blog

*let them know by sending them a message that

they have been nominated

Pretty Simple! Most of the blogs I follow are smaller. I like to think that they are a lot like me...busy moms who like to create and have a blog in order to have a record of those creations plus interact with other like minded people. On to my nominees (Drum Roll, Please!)...

Uta at little el: I'm quite impressed with Uta's Me-Made and Self-Stitched posts as sewing for myself isn't something I've done much of. She also sews clothes for her children. I love this pair of jeans that she sewed. The reverse applique flower is adorable! Uta is getting ready to do a Fabric Embellishment-along soon which sounds like a lot of fun.

Nicole at Five & Counting: If you've seen Nicole's work, it speaks for itself. She has the most amazing eye for detail. She generously shares how she sews together patterns so you can get the same wonderful results. Lately, Nicole's been showing how she constructs the Clever Charlotte Chickadee blouse.

Sandra at Sugar Cubes & Spice Cakes: Another lady with a great sense of style. She has a knack for putting the right pieces together to create outfits that are pleasing to the eye. And she recently slipcovered her couch!!

I wish I had the time to give a little shout out to every blog I read. There truly are some hidden gems out there. But due to being without our computer for the past several days while it was being repaired (using my iPhone just isn't the same!), I have a ton of catch up emails and such that are part of my regular life to deal with. Plus I have some sewing to get to!

70 degrees and BK

2012-02-01T14:13:00.000-05:00

Yes, it is February 1st but it feels more like April 1st! BK wanted to go to the beach but instead I made her pose for pictures of the Little Things to Sew Bear Carrier that is destined to be one of MG's birthday presents in March.

I had plans to sew this up eventually but wasn't planning on tackling it in January even though it was the project of the month in A Little Gray's LTTS Sewalong. But then I looked at the fabric requirements and realized I could use up some of my larger scraps. The stripe fabric is a home decor weight that I used for my everything tote and the dots are left over from MG's Family Reunion dress.

Buttercup the Webkinz Chihuahua fits in the carrier. Though I do think one of his companions with longer legs might fit a little better.

The straps criss cross nicely in the back so that the carrier stays secure.

A larger doll (or animal) fits even better. This baby is 18" tall. There are two sets of buttons to adjust the height depending on who is riding in the carrier. On this one, I put 3 different patches of velcro so that the width could be adjusted.

I think I'll be sewing another one of these for BK's birthday in May.

And one last gratuitous photo of my little grumpy girl wearing the Amanda blouse and jumper on Sunday...

My Last PR&P Sewalong At Home Entry

2012-01-26T16:21:00.002-05:00

It's been fun playing along at home with Project Run and Play. I pushed myself with the design and details of the Daisy Mae dress. And I enjoyed being able to sew an entire outfit for my oft neglected son during Boys Week. I skipped last week's challenge and will not be doing the final week's Special Occasion clothing challenge either. I'm staying true to my promise of only sewing what my kids' need. And they definitely don't need any more fancy clothing!

This week is Outerwear week. The little girls needed another windbreaker type jacket and I just so happened to have a specific pattern in mind. Plus, I had suitable fabric aging in my stash.

Without further ado...

Lil' Red Riding Jacket

I used an Ottobre Design Pattern (01/05 #10). The pattern only goes up to a size 98 so I added 2 inches to the sleeves and to the overall length. Otherwise, I followed the pattern exactly.

The jacket has a hood and is fully lined thus reversible. There are 2 front pockets on each side and a cute little belt detail on the back of the red side.

The jacket closes with buttons down the front.

The outer fabric is red 2 Ply Taslan which I purchased from The Rain Shed while in Oregon.

The lining fabric is from Hilco and is a water resistant poplin. I purchased this from Dots N Stripes and it was a remnant. I didn't have quite enough fabric to do 2 full sleeves out of it so I improvised and used the Taslan for the upper sleeves. I wouldn't choose to wear the jacket this side out but my girls might.:)

BK does in fact prefer this side out.

But Miss M is all about the red!

Linked up at: Sew Country Chick's Sew & Tell Saturday

Knit Sailboat Pants

2012-01-26T13:30:00.000-05:00

I bought the top BK is wearing at a consignment store Monday and just had to make a pair of pink pants to go with it.

I used a heavy cotton interlock from Chez Ami that has hardly any stretch. And grey buttons to break up the overwhelming pink.

I referenced this handy dandy tutorial while adding length to the cropped pants. 8 inches later (!), BK has a new pair of comfy yet stylish pants.

Clever Charlotte Raven Pants

2012-01-24T20:52:00.001-05:00

Mending is not my favorite thing to do.

Most clothes that need to be mended end up outgrown before they are fixed. I dearly love the Nightingale Tunic I sewed in 2010 but the zipper broke at some point and the top was tucked into my mending basket. There it languished until my early January sewing room clean out.

Luckily, the tunic still fits!

The original matching pants were outgrown by both girls in early 2011. But I did have just enough leftover dark blue corduroy in my stash to make a new pair of pants.

Raven Pants from Clever Charlotte

This pair is the same size (4 with 5 length) as the khaki pair I shared previously. I did do 1/4" seams to allow BK's rounder body a little more room. She doesn't need the extra length like MG so these pants have a 2" hem.

I placed the pockets (view 2, I believe) on the back and did them with a lining similar to the Oliver + S Sandbox pants' back pockets.

Recognize the lining fabric?

Plenty of room to play in these pants!

Linking up to: Shwin & Shwin Link Party

Last Week's Sewing

2012-01-22T16:38:00.000-05:00

I didn't participate in last week's Project Run & Play challenge of Sewing through the Decades. I'm really trying to sew clothes that the kids will wear every day and the only ideas I could come up with were more costume-y. I do have something up my sleeve for this week though.

On to last week's sewing...

I added a ruffle to a pair of Neat Beat pants (Ottobre Design 06/09 #17) so that they fit M. I sewed these a few months ago (my mom did the embroidery) but with M's growth spurt they were starting to get a little high water on her. And they don't look right on B's rounder figure. I sacrificed a pair of shorts made from the same denim since I had no scraps left.

I was never really happy with this particular pair of shorts anyways.

Next up, is a simple alteration to a wool coat I bought from Target for next to nothing. Thank you clearance racks! The sleeves were just a little too short for my liking. I ripped out the stitching holding the lining to the sleeve and dropped the sleeve 1 1/2" and then hand stitched the sleeve and lining back together. Since this not-so-flattering photo of me, I have fixed the other sleeve.

Amanda Blouse, Ottobre Design 06/07 #15, size 104

The little girls needed a white blouse to wear under a hand-me-down sweater jumper of K's. I asked my mom to use her fancy embroidery machine once again to add flowers to the peter pan collar in the colors of the jumper.

Miss M wore the outfit to church today

Lastly, a pair of Clever Charlotte Raven pants for M.

I made a size 4 with a size 5 length as I'm tired of having MG outgrow her pants within weeks of me making them. Hopefully, this pair will make it until summer! I used leftover twill from P's Sandbox Pants and didn't have quite enough left over to make the waistband facing and pocket linings. A scrap from M's Swingset Tunic from a couple of years ago came in handy for that.

I'm happy with my first pattern from Clever Charlotte. I have 2 more pairs in queue, one in a dark blue cord and another in a teal cord. We'll see if I get to them this week!

Kick Flip

2012-01-12T20:18:00.002-05:00

This week is Boys Week at Project Run & Play. I didn't have to think long and hard to come up with an outfit for P. This one has been on the list to do since early fall!

Top: I used an Ottobre Design pattern (04/05 #34) for the Hoodie. I made a size 140 but comparing it to other shirts that P wears I ended up adding 2 inches to the overall length. The light colored fabric is a french terry and the darker brown is a merino wool jersey. The pattern does not have a lined hood but I personally prefer having one so I used the merino wool jersey to line it. I also used a fun stitch called the flatlock for the hems and to topstitch where the hood is attached to the shirt. The skater doing a flip kick is from Ottobre Design 01/08. I made it into a freezer paper stencil and used the same paint that I used for M's horse shirt.

Nitty Gritty Details

Pants: I used the Oliver + S Sandbox Pants pattern in a size 8 (the biggest size). I added lots of length and did 1/4" seams instead of 1/2". They are made from a cotton twill. I used the leftover red sailboat print from the Explorer Vest I made for my nephew for the waistband and pocket linings. Knees always wear out in pants (that is if they're not outgrown first) so I reinforced them with another layer of fabric. I had planned on doing a flat fell seam on the outside of the pants but since I was doing 1/4" seams my seams were too narrow. Instead, I did a faux flat fell.

The pants should hold up to P riding his Ripstick...

and playing basketball!

Linked up to the following Linky Parties:

Shwin & Shwin Link Party

Hello Horsey!

2012-01-10T09:30:00.001-05:00

I usually don't have much luck finding really nice fabric at the 2 local chain fabric stores. But for some reason, this fall Hancock Fabrics value aisle was very good to me.

Not only did I find the knit print that I used for myself but I got some cream colored baby rib knit that's super soft. The bolt said it was 100% cotton but it's so soft and drapes so nice that I think there's a bit of rayon in it.

The shirt is Ottobre Design 01/03 #16 in a size 98 with 2 inches add to the bottom and sleeve hems for my fast growing girl. Those pants are from 6 weeks ago. You heard me right, 6 weeks ago those pants were brand new and fit fine, even a little on the long side. Now they, along with almost all of MG's other pants are becoming too short. Seriously kid, stop growing so fast!

The horse head is from this pin. I used the freezer paper to make the stencil. 2 coats of fabric paint later and a little felt and ribbon, I ended up with a winner:

I'll leave you with a bit of horse show ribbon trivia for you...

First place in the US and Australia is a blue ribbon but in Canada and Britain it's a red ribbon which is traditionally 2nd place in the US and AUS.

eta: Uta over at little el is doing a Fabric Embellishment-Along if you're interested in participating. I'll be joining in as I have a stencil planned for a top for P.

Knit Top for Me

2012-01-08T19:27:00.001-05:00

One of my goals for 2012 is to sew for myself more. Ideally, I'd like to sew at least one item a month. My first project (check off January!) is a knit top.

I used the basic tee pattern from Sew U: Home Stretch by Wendy Mullin. I was trying to make it similar to a favorite knit Roxy top I have but I think I was a little off on my proportions. The yellow knit band could be a little higher and the bottom panel needs to be more of an A line and longer.

Note: I haven't hemmed the sleeves yet.:)

I made a medium but ended up taking in the sides quite a bit in the bodice. Next time I use this pattern, I'll trace the small and see how that fits.

The print is a good quality interlock that I got at Hancock Fabric's in their "value" aisle. I think I paid a $1.99 a yard so it was definitely a bargain. I'd intended to make K another tunic like this one from 2008:

But she hadn't seemed too enthralled with the busy print. The fabric has been draped over a chair in my sewing room for at least a month and as I was cleaning up recently, I realized that it would look nice as a shirt under a turquoise cardigan I had. Sorry K, no more tunic for you.

And the icing on the cake...I have matching flats too!

Linked up to The Train To Crazy: Make It Wear It Thursdays

"Daisy Mae" Dress

2012-01-05T14:57:00.004-05:00

Since the first season of Project Run & Play, I've been reading along with interest. It's been fun to see how each contestant interprets the weekly theme. There have been many beautiful designs showcased.

This time around, PR&P has an At Home Sew Along contest. Week 1 is a pattern remix challenge using the Junebug Dress pattern/tutorial. I'm playing along this week since I've had the Junebug Dress on my to-sew list since the tutorial was first shared last summer.

Here's my pattern remix:

The Details:

Scalloped Bodice with golden yellow piping and daisy buttons

Petal Sleeves

Scalloped Hem accented with Daisy Buttons

Puff sleeves and a FULL skirt

The dress is a midnight blue cotton/lycra poplin. I made the piping from a yellow floral quilting cotton and narrow cord. The bodice has been resized from a 2T/3T to approximately a 5. I used Ottobre Design 01/10 #15 (Vaahtokarkki blouse) to resize the bodice and for the basis of my sleeves. I redrew the sleeve shape so that the front and back were the same and added length. For the petal detail on the sleeve hems, I used a tutorial from No Big Dill. I drew the scallops along the angled part of the bodice flap pattern.

For the dress skirt I used the full width of my fabric...all 50" of it. That means the circumference of the hem minus seam allowances is 98". Perfect for dancing!

BK is wearing a petticoat under the skirt to help accent the fullness.

Here's a picture of what the dress looks like minus the petticoat...

I much prefer the full look. Of course, that's coming from a girl who wore a hoop skirt under her wedding dress.:)

I used a tutorial from the Coletterie for the scalloped hem.

Wonders of Wonders, the Green Bay Packer Cheesehead coordinates perfectly!

Go Pack, Go!

All kidding aside, BK loves the dress. This morning she begged to wear her blue dress and was quite put out when I made her wait until after breakfast. After posing for pictures earlier in the day, she's still wearing it. Gotta love that!

My First Coat

2012-01-02T05:35:00.003-05:00

Hello 2012!

The Details:

Ottobre Design 06/07 #36 "Donny" Duffle Coat
size 134 with a length of 152
Marine Blue Wool Melton from Fabric Mart
Toggles from M&J Trimming
Quilted lining made from Thinsulate and off white lining fabric

I started this coat back in November after several emails to Millie who is a coat making guru! Last year, she made some awesome coats for her children and herself. The coat she made for her son was the Dennis Duffle which is the exact same coat except it's the smaller size range.

My questions ranged from what size to make, how to add a zipper, and were the pockets interlined? She also gave me a very important piece of advice...the hood is too small. She recommended that I bring the front of the hood forward 2 inches so that it would cover K's entire head. Thank you Millie for all your help!

The other change I did was to cut the back lining in one piece instead of piecing it together like the outside of the coat.

After I got over my initial fear, the coat went together pretty smoothly. The most difficult part was quilting the thinsulate and lining fabric. That was some seriously tedious sewing!

The coat was finished just in time. Today was a balmy 65F but it looks like winter will be arriving in the next few days. I hope the coat is warm enough!

2011 Sewing in Pictures

2012-01-01T12:05:00.000-05:00

Wishing you nothing but the best in 2012!

I Won!

2011-12-29T14:27:00.000-05:00

Earlier in December, I'd done a little blog hopping hoping to win one of the many giveaways in the fabulous Giveaway Day {Week} hosted by Sew, Mama, Sew. Much to my delight, I actually won a wonderful assortment of goodies from Sew Mental Mama.

I've been reading Angela's blog for quite some time. She is so creative and sews the most beautiful clothing. Not only that, she finishes her garments impeccably. They are as gorgeous inside as they are on the outside. Take a look here and you'll see what I mean.:)

What did I win?

Angela is also very generous. She stuck some extra goodies in the package, like the Liberty binding & Farbenmix ribbons. There were also some candies but the kids got to those as soon as I opened the package. Little stinkers.

Thank you, Angela, for such a wonderful package!

The Rest of the Christmas Sewing

2011-12-27T17:14:00.000-05:00

I realized Friday night that the 2 zipper pouches were going to have to be removed from the list if I wanted to get any sleep. But that's okay 'cause birthday season is starting in three months.

Here's what did get done:

Pajamas for the kids

Specifically...

Kwik Sew 3105, view A

I lengthened the sleeves an inch since the sleeves on last year's nightgowns are getting a little short. And I ~~cheated~~ chose to do a rolled hem again on the sleeve edges and the ruffles. The nightgowns are flannel. I ran out of the horse fabric while cutting it out and of course, the fabric store no longer had that print. But I found a good match...the ruffles and the back yokes are cut from it.

Ottobre Design 06/11 #37

I lengthened the Boxer Shorts into pants. They are a size 140 and fit great. I love the little button fly that closes with 2 orange buttons. P wears boxer briefs right now (and I'm sure he's delighted that I'm sharing his underwear preferences here) but if he decides to wear "real" boxers this will be a great pattern to use.

Oliver + S Class Picnic Blouse and Ottobre Design 06/09 #39

K's pants are the "Darla" pajama patterns in a size 134. They have a pretty low rise so I added an inch to the top of the front and back pattern pieces. I wasn't going to make a top originally. K has lots of novelty knit shirts that she wears to sleep in. But there was plenty of the polka dot flannel so I went for it. I used the Class Picnic Blouse pattern in a size 10.

And the rest...

top to bottom: K's star inspired by this, M's Gingerbread girl from here, P's Green Bay Packer ornament, and B's candy cane was inspired by these.

I hope you all had a joyous and happy holiday!

A Christmas Dress & Peek-a-Boo

2011-12-20T21:33:00.001-05:00

Version 2 of the Winter Cosy Dress from Ottobre Design:

Miss M took part in her school's Winter Holiday Celebration tonight and needed a red top or dress. Since she had been wanting a top like BK's purple tunic, I chose to use the same pattern.

Small changes:

-I skipped using the clear elastic tape except for inside the cowl neck.

-I lengthened the pattern to make it a dress.

-I added length to the sleeves so that the dress would be good for at least 2 years.

Once again, I upcycled. The red velour was a no longer worn top from my mom. As with the purple tunic, I used the existing hems.

And for the present...

Using the Peek-a-Boo Bag Tutorial from Make It Perfect, I made a bag to house building blocks that I picked up at a thrift store for BK.

The fabrics used were all from my stash. The stripe is a home decor weight that was originally used to recover the seat of K's desk chair 5 years ago. The heart fabric was used for Valentine tops for the little girls last year. And the plastic for the window came from packaging on a pair of soccer shin guards.

It's a great bag and a really quick sew. I had this one made in less than hour.

It's all ready to be wrapped up and placed under the Christmas tree!

Now the question is, Will BK put the blocks away in the bag when she's done playing with them?

Probably not!

Explorer Vests x 2

2011-12-16T19:44:00.002-05:00

I seem to do a lot of sewing times 2 for my little girls. This time, it's for my two favorite little boys...my nephews S (6 years old) and A (3 years old).

Red is currently S's favorite color. I lucked out in finding this great print at Jo-ann's. I love the sailboat drawings!

Especially the blueprint-esque one.

Matching reds can be difficult. The only red buttons I had were a very primary shade. They just didn't look right against the deeper tones of the sailboat print and the binding.

I decided to go with these metal buttons that are from the grouping my mother-in-law gave me over the summer.

The bellows pocket were a little time consuming but well worth the effort. Think of all the treasures it can hold!

My B modeling her cousin's vest. Notice how short the sleeves of her shirt have become? Good thing I lengthened them last year, now they are 3/4 sleeves like the original pattern.

On to #2....

Mr. A loves the color purple. Finding a purple print that is boyish is not an easy task. I really wanted A's vest to have a fun lining like his big brother's but the only purple prints I could find at first screamed "girl". If I'd had more time, I'm sure there are some lovely, more masculine purple prints out in the fabric world. But on my quick trip to Jo-ann's I despaired of finding a fabric that would work.

Thinking outside of the box, I found a black print that had different colored bicycles on it. And there is a purple bike!

I used a purple batik fat quarter to make bias binding for this vest. The purple buttons are also from my mother-in-law.

Both Explorer Vests are made from tan twill from Jo-ann's. And both are a size medium.

M is modeling A's vest and just happened to be wearing a purple shirt!

The vest pockets are the perfect hiding place for the small toys that I've purchased for the boys. I wish I could be there to see their reaction when they put on the Explorer Vests and discover that there's toys in the pockets!

Another winning pattern from Little Things to Sew.

Linked up to Project Run and Play's Sewing Kid's Clothes Linky Party

and

Sew Country Chick: Sew & Tell Saturday

Bring On the Gift Sewing!

2011-12-15T15:38:00.000-05:00

My original list has dwindled down to only a few items.

You're thinking, "Wow! She really has it together and has finished almost all her Christmas sewing."

Um, no.

I've come to the realization that if I want to sleep at all over the next 10 nights that the list is going to have to be culled down.

What's on the list now?

-2 Explorer Vests for my nephews (which are about half way completed and need to be done by Saturday so they can be shipped). The pockets will be stuffed with some little toys that I hope they'll enjoy.

-Ornaments for my kids. Each year they get an ornament in their stocking. I haven't picked who's going to get what but I have several ideas on my Christmas Ornament Ideas pinboard.

-Zip-Itself Coin purse for MG. I came across the tutorial several months ago and think it will be perfect for her to use for her school lunch money. Plus, I have plenty of cute ribbons that are crying to be made into something.

-Circle Zip Earbud Pouch for someone in our family who is going to be getting an Ipod Nano for Christmas. That person will remain nameless in case he/she reads my blog.:)

-Peek-A-Boo Toy Sack for the wooden blocks that Miss BK will be getting.

-PJs for all 4 kids. I'll use the same pattern I used last Christmas for the little girls' nightgowns (Kwik Sew 3105). P will get 2 new flannel pajama bottoms. I'm going to try Ottobre Design 06/11 #37 which are boxer shorts and lengthen them to pants. Target had knit shirts for $5 each so I bought 2 that will coordinate with the flannel. I feel like I'm cheating but for $5 I can't buy enough fabric to make a long sleeve knit shirt for him. K will get new pajama pants too.

-I'm also hoping to finish K's duffle coat. It won't be a gift but it would be nice to have it finished by Christmas. The hood is sewn on and the zipper is in so the finish line is in sight!

What's on your Holiday Sewing List? And how much of it is done?

2+2 for Chorus

2011-12-06T21:29:00.000-05:00

This is K's second year of participating in chorus at her school. For the winter concert, the kids are to dress in black bottoms and a white button down shirt. K's shirt from last year (a Burda magazine pattern that Grandma sewed) still fit but her skirt did not. Time for a new skirt!

Inspired by Nicole's black 2+2 skirt for her Miss Z (okay, totally copied!)

Miss K's chorus skirt is made from black cotton sateen that I picked up from the The Rain Shed when we were in Oregon specifically for a chorus skirt. It's the 2+2 skirt from Oliver + S in a size 8.

The skirt closes at the side with 2 snaps hidden in a placket and a loop and button. The button is vintage and from my mother-in-law.

The pleats are stitched down the front the first 5 inches below the waistband. I also put a black velvet ribbon around the waist like Nicole's.

The kids put on a great show. And bonus, they finished early enough for me to get to P's first basketball practice of the season.:)

Now it's time to begin the Christmas present sewing...

Sprout for 2

2011-12-05T10:37:00.002-05:00

Once upon a time, I had a little girl who would only wear dresses. How I wish I had had the Make It Perfect Sprout dress pattern back then!

That little girl is now 12 years old and doesn't wear dresses very often. But she has 2 little sisters who were in need of new finery for every day wear.

MIP Little Sprout x 2

First up is Miss BK's dress...

Her dress is a pink floral print fine wale corduroy from Hancock Fabrics that is lined in white flannel, courtesy of a generous lady from church who no longer sews and passed on all her supplies to me.

The dress has a hood and is fully lined.

The front has a keyhole opening that is fastened with an elastic loop and a button.

And there are pockets! Perfect for keeping chilly hands warm or for stashing treasures.

Daddy's pick up truck makes the perfect place to stand!

Miss M was being a little cheeky for picture taking. Usually, she's my tried and true model. Not so, this time!

Perhaps that was because she lost another front tooth!

MG's dress was made from a purple, butterfly print fine wale corduroy and lined with an aqua polka dot flannel. Both were purchased at Jo-Ann Fabric's Black Friday sale.

Both dresses are a size 5. According to the measurement chart here, MG could have worn a 3 and BK a 4. However, I'm lazy and only wanted to trace one size off and didn't want to worry about sleeve and hem lengths. These dresses will definitely last the winter and might just fit next year too!

As far as construction, I did not finish or neaten my seams as directed since the dress is fully lined. I chose to press them open instead. Also, I understitched the pocket openings to keep the pocket bags from rolling out.

The girls approve of their new dresses. This morning, MG told me at breakfast that she loved her new dress and that it is so warm. "I must be pretty special to get a beautiful dress like that." Yes dear, you are!

linked up to: The Train To Crazy: Make It, Wear It Thursdays

Project Run & Play: Sewing Kids Clothes Linky Party

November's LTTS Challenge

2011-12-01T10:25:00.001-05:00

One thing the little girls' have asked for is new clothes for their Webkinz. They constantly raid the doll clothes box and put outfits on their various animals. So, when it came time to choose a project for November's sewalong challenge I had to try my hand at the doll dress.

A few scraps of fabric and a little sewing time =

The dress fits so nicely on K's almost forgotten American Girl doll.

And it works for Jewel, BK's weimaraner...

Though the dress could be a little shorter on Jewel.

The dress is adorable with it's little details. It has a fully lined bodice and a hem facing. Another great project from The Little Things to Sew book!

The Clothes Sewing Continues

2011-11-30T14:06:00.003-05:00

New tops for the little girls was last week's sewing project.

The shirt that B is wearing is Ottobre Design 01/11 #19, Ice Cream button band. I used a thin jersey purchased years ago at Hobby Lobby.

Can I share how much I despise lining stripes up? Seriously, I wasted hours trying to line them up when I was cutting the pattern out and sewing it together. And still ended up with the stripes being a tad bit off when it came time to do the hem!

I skipped doing the button bands on the sleeve edges. And used lots of spray starch whilst sewing the button band on the front of the shirt. Spray starch is your friend when working with cheap, thin jersey!

The top M is wearing is the Oliver + S Hopscotch. I love that pattern! The size 5 I made up earlier in the year has become too short so I added 2 inches to the sleeves and hem of this one.

The Hopscotch is made from a luscious bamboo french terry. The fabric is so soft!

Miss M also needed some new pants. I love the look of the Clever Charlotte Raven pants but don't have the pattern. So, I turned to Ottobre Design to find a basic pair of pants to alter.

Ottobre Design 01/10 #13, "Puolukkapuuro" pants

Last fall I made B a pair of these pants and knew I liked the overall fit/shape. The original pattern has an elastic waistband but I wanted a flat front. I read through Dana's flat front tutorial to get it clear in my mind what alteration I would need to do. For these pants, I took out a little width from the front by cutting a wedge of fabric out of the top outseam. I started about an inch in at the waist and tapered back out to the pattern piece's outseam opposite of the end of the crotch seam. Does that make sense? Here's a picture...

The dotted pencil line shows where I cut the wedge of fabric from.

Excuse the overexposed photo, it was the only way to get those pintucks to pop this morning!

To add the pintucks, I folded the front pattern piece in half, pressed with the iron, and then stitched along the fold.

The little details don't stop at the front! There are heart pockets on the back.

I traced the hearts from OD 01/09 #19, a skirt that has heart pockets on it. My original plan, before deciding to do the pintucks, was to use the hearts as knee patches like the pants seen here.

But those pintucks didn't want to be covered up so back pockets they became.

The pants were made from a brown, uncut cord that I purchased at Jo-Ann Fabrics. I used a size 104 for width and a 110 for length. M's legs are super long even though she isn't very tall so I went ahead and added 1 1/2 inches to the length. And I'm glad I did!

linked up to The Train to Crazy: Make It Wear It Thursday and Project Run and Play: Sewing Kids Clothes linky party

Sunday Brunch with a Cherry on Top

2011-11-20T15:10:00.000-05:00

I've really, really been trying to sew from my stash and not purchase any new fabric. And so far, I've been mostly successful. My most recent creation was made entirely from my stash...

Cherry Jersey Blouse ottobre design 04/11 #13 and Oliver+S Sunday Brunch skirt

The polka dot was a purchase from within the last 2 years. I really don't know why I bought it...I have a feeling it was probably on sale! The rust is an uncut corduroy from Jo-ann Fabric's. I used it last year to make fall pants for BK. There wasn't much left over but the color really embodies fall to me so I wanted to use it for something. I kept pulling patterns I had traced off and laying them on the remaining yardage until I found a skirt that would fit.

I was unsure what would match but after a look through my stash, I saw that the polka dot jersey with dots of rust, purple, and charcoal would work perfectly. Bonus: The purple matches a pair of cords that BK has!

I had traced the Cherry Jersey Blouse off a few weeks back with no particular project in mind (that's how I roll!). I like it because it's a little dressier than a typical t-shirt with the frill/ruffle around the neck. The details get a little lost because of the busy print but it's a cute top.

I used a button from the jar that my mother-in-law gave me over the summer. BK likes that it's BIG.

I like the keyhole closure in the back.

The best smile I've had from BK in ages!

This is my third time sewing the Sunday Brunch Skirt. I love the classic look plus it has pockets! But my favorite part of the pattern is the little kick pleat in the back.

The kick pleat allows little girls to run freely in their skirts.

This new outfit will be what BK wears for Thanksgiving.:)

And is also my other entry for Celebrate Color.

Upcycle, Upsize Cosy Winter Dress (Tunic)

2011-11-18T15:44:00.003-05:00

I've been seeing many lovely versions of the Cosy Winter Dress (06/11 #3) from the the latest issue of Ottobre Design on sewingmamas.com. I instantly wanted to sew the pattern up for one of my girls. But the dress only goes up to size 92.

B and M are firmly in the 104 size. Therefore, I needed to up size the pattern. A great resource for resizing OD: http://mermaids103.blogspot.com/2008/07/resizing-ottobre.html#!/2008/07/resizing-ottobre.html

I basically did what Teri suggests but didn't stumble across the post until it was brought up in discussion on the Ottobre English Yahoo Group after I had already sewn the dress. Go figure!

Pulling from my stash of clothes that would be suitable for upcycling, I grabbed a discarded velour dress of K's. I had purple ribbing left over from my Billy Cardi. Combined together we have...

A sweet tunic top!

The pattern uses clear elastic to gather the sleeve edges but BK has been complaining about the elastic bothering her. Next time, I'll use regular elastic as the clear kind I have does have rather rigid, sharp edges. eta: The pattern has a lining but I chose not to line the dress/tunic. If I had, it would have sandwiched the elastic between the outer dress and inner lining. eta2: Yesterday, while I had BK try on another top I'm sewing for her, I topstitched above the ribbing cuffs so that the clear elastic would lay flat and not bother her. The topstitching did the trick!

The purple ribbing coordinates nicely with her pair of hand-me-down Gymboree corduroy pants.

BK trying to follow my direction of "smile pretty and open your eyes up wide"

M has asked for a similar top and I believe Grandma has some velour sets tucked away for me to use.;)

Linked up to The Train To Crazy: Make It, Wear It Thursday

Celebrate Color with a Fall Apple Top

2011-11-17T11:15:00.003-05:00

Have you all heard about Celebrate Color?

It's a 3 month long celebration celebrating color and a contest too! There are 4 categories: Fabric (Home Decor), Fabric (Wearables), Yarn, and Needlepoint that you can enter with some great prizes offered to the 1st and 2nd place winners.

I was too wrapped up in wedding sewing in September. And October felt like it was over before it started. But November...I've been doing fall sewing and some of it is quite colorful. So, I'm giving it a whirl.

I mentioned in the post about BK's Chez Ami outfit that I'm trying to use up my stash of knit prints while the little girls' will still wear them. The girls' newest top uses an apple print and a brown & green stripe, both from Chez Ami.

Once again, I used the "Anemone Stripes" pattern from Ottobre Design (04/09 #21). It's a fun pattern to use when mixing and matching fabrics. In the magazine it's dubbed a tunic but I found the top to be a regular length.

M was so excited this morning that the temperature had dropped (upper 70's yesterday to low 50's overnight and still dropping) so that she could wear the new top to school. Me, not so much, I'll take the warm weather every day!

Using My Pins on Pinterest

2011-11-13T09:27:00.000-05:00

I've been on Pinterest for a while now "pinning" like mad. However, putting said pins into action hasn't happened as much as I'd like. I'm definitely more a dreamer than a doer!

K's Jump Rope Dress with a full placket was inspired partially by one of my pins.

Land's End dress

K, in fact, has been "pinning" all sorts of clothing and wants to my Preteen and Teen Clothing Inspiration board. I'm able to see what style of clothes she's leaning towards and can hopefully replicate a similar look when I sew her clothes.

Last night, I put another pinned idea to use.

It started with a jumper that used to be K's.

It's a velveteen jumper from Gap that's too nice to toss even though K had marked the bodice with a permanent marker. I'd tried repeatedly over the years (6!) to remove the stain but all I succeeded in doing was lightening it.

The jumper has been sitting in a basket in my sewing room that's filled with clothes that need mending. I'd thought to perhaps put an applique of some sort over the stain but inspiration hadn't struck...until last night.

a button caterpillar inspired by Diddle Dumpling

Now, M and B will be able to wear the jumper!

Chez Ami (fabric) Set

2011-11-10T20:38:00.000-05:00

I've had a stash of Chez Ami fabric for oh, about 2 years. One of my favs is a cute doggy print. I've been waiting for the perfect sewing project but none have came along. As time marches on, my little girls have grown bigger and aren't as fond of cute prints as they once were. I figure I have this year and maybe next before they decide that those cute prints are only acceptable for sleep wear.

So, my mission this fall has been to sew up much needed clothes for M and B using those hoarded fabrics. I hit the Ottobre Design magazines and picked some patterns to make mix-n-match outfits.

The first set that's finished...

Top: "Anemone Stripes" 04/09 #21

Pants: "Relaxed Velour" 04/11 #16

All the fabrics with the exception of the brown ribbing on the top are from Chez Ami.

The pants are relaxed through the hips. I liked the overall shape but didn't want them to be too "relaxed" so I traced a size 98 for the width instead of a 104. B would have been fine with a 104 but M will also be wearing these pants so I had to take her slight frame into consideration.

With her hands in the pockets, the jodphur shape of these pants is more pronounced.

Speaking of pockets...

I didn't get a picture of it but the pocket bag is the striped fabric from the shirt.

The top is a size 104 and a good fit. For the next set, I'll cut the ribbing for the sleeves a little shorter. Speaking of the next set, it's already cut out. Chez Ami apple print paired with a brown and green stripe for the top. The velour for the pants is a panne velvet in hot pink that I picked up (no clue why!) from the remnant bin at Jo-ann Fabrics a few years ago. I'm hoping to add another few pieces to each set that can be mixed and matched to make several outfits!

LTTS Mittens

2011-11-01T21:00:00.000-04:00

I hemmed and hawed about whether to make the apron for October's challenge in the Little Things to Sew-along hosted by A Little Gray. I like the looks of it but couldn't really think of a use for it. Perhaps if it was made out of a laminated cotton but I don't have any of that in my stash. And with our heating system on the fritz (can't wait to get the bill for that repair *rolling my eyes*) and our eldest daughter's mouth of metal (braces and other orthodontia miscellany) waiting to be paid off, fabric shopping for a non-necessary sewing project isn't really justifiable at the moment.

But with colder weather than expected in October, I discovered that we had a lack of hand coverings for the kiddos. And there happens to be a pattern for mittens in the book. And even better, I have tons of fleece left over from other projects!

I used a microfleece purchased approximately 6 years ago. It was originally purchased when I was sewing cloth pocket diapers for M. It's super soft and doesn't pill much even after taking a beating as the inner of a pocket diaper. The elastic casing is from the scraps of an Ikea sheet that I just about used up making pants a couple of summers ago for the little girls.

I decided to make a size Medium for the little girls as BK has pretty big hands. FYI, the medium fits my 10 year old perfectly but is a little roomy for M and B. I'm going to trace off the small for them.

size medium on a 10 year old

The mittens are a quick sew and a great way to use up scraps of fabric. I will be making several pairs as a family with four kids can never have too many mittens!

My hand model

*I'll be sewing to a slightly different schedule as the sew-along progresses. I'm planning on sewing the Bear Carrier and Explorer Vests for Christmas presents so I'll be working on those for November and December's challenges instead of the Puppet Theater and Cozy Hood.

Happy Halloween!

2011-10-31T20:44:00.000-04:00

It's our oldest's last year of trick-or-treating so she picked the "theme" for this year's costumes....Gilligan's Island.

For those not in the know, Gilligan's Island was a tv show that aired in the 1960's that featured a group of castaways stuck on a deserted island. There was the Skipper (captain of the S.S. Minnow), Gilligan (the first mate), Ginger Grant (the movie star), Mary Ann (girl next door), The Professor, and Thurston and Lovey Howell (the millionare and his wife). We own the DVD's of the shows three seasons and often watch them on long trips. The kids love the show!

K chose to be Ginger, of course. I'm not sure how it was decided who the rest were to be but I was told that P would be Gilligan, M the Professor, and B Mary Ann. I really thought that M would want to be Mary Ann and was a bit perplexed as to why she insisted on being the Professor. That is until she informed me that she wanted to be the Professor because and I quote, "He's the smartest one!".

P had a costume party to attend on Friday so he was the first to get dressed up.

Little Things to Sew Bucket Hat and thrifted red turtleneck turned into a collar shirt using Ottobre Design 01/10 #36 for the collar and placket

Ginger, I mean K, had a costume/birthday party to attend on Saturday...

For her costume, my mom altered a formal dress that I wore 17 years ago and she also loaned her a pair of fancy high heels. The red wig was from Jo-ann Fabrics.

The 2 little girls had to wait until tonight to dress up...

The Professor's white shirt and tan pants are from the thrift store while Mary Ann's red gingham shirt is Ottobre Design 01/10 #15. Mary Ann's wig is from Jo-ann Fabric also.

The kids had great fun trick-or-treating as did us adults!

My Mary Ann, you've grown up!

Yikes, Zombies!

Playing Hooky

2011-10-24T15:18:00.000-04:00

Monday mornings are usually my catch up day. Meaning, I restore the house to a semblance of order after having everyone home on the weekends.

Today was too nice of a day to stay inside cleaning. So, BK and I packed a picnic lunch and went to the zoo!

waiting for the train ride to begin

posing by the elephant sculpture by the entrance

I'm also playing hooky by not tracing patterns off for the next round of sewing...

But sometimes you just have to play!

It's all in the Details

2011-10-21T15:47:00.000-04:00

K's Sarita Jeans

pockets, back yoke, and belt loops

inner waistband

button and pink zipper

Little Girls' Sandbox Pants

peek-a-boo pocket from Jessica's tutorial

a bit of pocket lining rolled out for interest

coordinating ribbon for ties with buttons sewn on the ends

close up of button detail

sandbox pants with my inset pocket remix

play tested and approved!

The End

Jeggings and Jeans

2011-10-20T11:25:00.000-04:00

The weather cooled down some last night (boo!) so M was able to wear her new jeggings to school today.

Ottobre Design 04/11, #20, size 98 with 110 for length

It's been hard getting decent pictures of the kids' new clothes lately. Not to say that I ever took great pictures to begin with, but finding a place to take pictures with good lighting has become harder as the seasons change. In the sunny spots outside, it's too bright and with all the trees we have the other spots are either dappled sunshine or too dark. And because of those trees, inside the house is a bit gloomy too. My kids grudgingly pose for me so finding another location besides our house is not going to happen!

I took these in my bedroom with the overhead light on and the blinds pulled open as far as they go not long after sunrise. More views:

back view of the jeggings

all dressed and ready for school

K had been complaining that her store bought skinny jeans were too hard to take off when she dressed out for PE at school. She begged for some jeans that were boot cut so that she could take them off easily. I admit, I looked in the stores first, but as I've complained before she's difficult to fit (skinny and tall). The store bought jeans that she likes (except for the difficulty in taking them off due to the tight ankles) are a 12 slim super skinny jean from Old Navy. I looked there and at a few other stores but the boot cut jeans in the same size are not long enough. So, I pulled the Sarita Jeans pattern out that I used 2 years ago...

Sarita Jeans, Ottobre Design 01/09, #36, size 140

I used a black, slightly stretchy denim that was in my stash. The fit was pretty good, much better than it was 2 years ago when I took the jeans in 3 inches around the hips. I did make a couple of small alterations to ensure that they would fit...an inch out of the back center seam to prevent gaping and I added 4 inches to the length.

I didn't use contrasting thread for my topstitching as I was in a hurry to get these made so K could wear them to school this morning. And I also didn't do the rear pockets like the pattern calls for.

rear view

side view

almost ready for school

Next project(s) for the sewing machine will be Halloween costumes. I'm keeping it pretty simple this year and only need to alter a thrift store find shirt for P and make B a blouse. Check out some of these costumes that others have been sewing: Rapunzel Dress by Katie, Hedwig and an Undersea Fairy and Dinosaurs by Julia,. I love fancy costumes and both Katie an Julia have done a great job making theirs.

And It's Done

2011-10-17T08:36:00.000-04:00

KCWC, that is. I didn't do much sewing on Friday and Saturday. Kids' needs and sports took up most of those 2 days. I did cut out two new projects though and was back in my sewing room for a couple of hours on Sunday to wrap the week up.

Sunday's project was jeggings for my skinny jeans obsessed girl.

The jeggings are from Ottobre Design 04/11, #20 in size 98 for width and 110 in length. I've felt like I was cheating on OD since I haven't been sewing anything from the magazine lately. I truly do love their patterns and the fact that they have a big range in sizes in each magazine.

The fabric is a denim look knit from Jo-ann's. The fabric was a steal since it was in the red tag aisle and 50% off the red tag price. I did all the topstitching with a yellow thread using a triple straight stretch on the machine. I should have praticed a bit as my inital stitches weren't all that great. Whoops! I improved by the end but there will still be no close up pictures of the stitching.:)

The fit is great and Miss M loves the pants. She ran around last night proclaiming that they were her "super, super, super, super skinny mini jeans". M would have loved to wear them today but it's going to be a beautiful, sunny day with temps in the 80's. Good thing I hadn't packed all the shorts away yet!

KCWC: Day 4: Still Making Progress

2011-10-13T19:44:00.000-04:00

Usually by now, I'm getting worn out from sewing. Probably because during KCWC, I sew more than an hour a day. But not this go around...I'm pushing through!

Today's project(s) was to finish P's pajama pants and trace off/sew the largest size Imke from Sewing Clothes Kids Love. I had P try on K's Cali Girl Imke last night and it was too snug for my taste. RTW boy clothes are rarely form fitting unless you're talking skinny skater jeans which thankfully, P is not into!

My fabric stash is full of girly colors so I had to scrounge around to find something to coordinate with the flannel pajama pants. And since this shirt is big enough to fit me (more on that later), I didn't have enough yardage to make the shirt out of 1 (or 2) color(s). The orange sleeves are a cotton jersey, the white front is cotton interlock, and the back is a black cotton lycra jersey. Plus there's a black ribknit neckband. But that's okay...it's my muslin for fitting and the top is not going to be seen outside of our house.

The 11/12 Imke is really too big for P. But there's lots of grow room! Before he came home from school and could try it on, I slipped the shirt on and took a picture.

If you look closely you'll see B in her Dortje pants and Mr. Penguin

P fresh from the shower wearing his new pajamas!

I hemmed the sleeves and shirt while he was taking a shower and see now that I could have made the sleeves a little shorter. The pajama pants were made using the book Weekend Sewing by Heather Ross. I sewed the children's L/XL but I feel like the thighs are a little snug and the length is almost too short. Otherwise, I like the pattern. Maybe the adult small might fit my 10 year old defensive lineman's body better.

I also sewed up the children's S/M pajama pants for M. That was part of day 2-3's sewing.

The fit on these was right on! I put in a deep hem that can be let down as she grows taller. I was proud of myself on this pair as the cupcake flannel has been sitting in my stash for at least 2 years. It took some creative cutting but I squeezed the pants out of 1 yard.

KCWC Days 2, 3: I'm on FIRE

2011-10-12T17:27:00.000-04:00

I had a fruitful day yesterday sewing. Of course, it helped that I was at my parents' house for part of the day and had around 5 hours to sew while my mom kept BK occupied.

Those 5 hours were spent sewing the buttonholes on K's dress, sewing Dortje pants for M (or B if they're too short for M), fixing K's top from kcwc day one, and sewing pj pants for P and M.

Today was spent hemming the Dortje pants and K's top, sewing buttons on K's dress, and working on the pajama pants.

K's dress, size 8

lining

K's dress is the Oliver + S Jump Rope Dress with a few changes: Length, Full Placket, Lining, and 3/4 length sleeves.

The biggest change is the full length button placket. When I cut the dress out, I cut right down the front fold. I then cut 2 strips of my main fabric 3 inches wide. I applied it the same way as you would the original placket except (obviously!) it continues down the entire front of the dress. When it came time to mark the buttonholes, I took the advice of my mom...make sure there's a button at K's bust line so that the dress front doesn't gap. The buttonholes are approximately 4 inches apart.

Dortje pants

I wanted to use the Heather Ross Equestrian print from M's Ice Cream Dress for the knee panels but it didn't look right against the tan stretch corduroy. I didn't have enough of the corduroy to make the pants with out knee panels so I grabbed the black/white pin dot fabric that I used in her dress instead. Even then, I ran out of the pin dot fabric and the cord and had to pull a cotton/lycra knit out to use for the waistband. It should be nice and comfy to wear!

And lastly....

I wasn't happy with the job I did on the sleeve additions on K's top for Day 1. It was really hodge podge and I can't blame K for not liking the shirt. I went online and looked at shirt styles from K's favorite surfer brand, Roxy. There was a shirt that had 3/4 length double sleeves.

wave wisher 2-fer tee from roxy

I cut off the ~~crap~~ fabric I added and redid the sleeves.

Imke shirt from Sewing Clothes Kids Love all fixed!

It's much better. I used a double needle and did the hems for the sleeves and the top.

I'm hoping to finish the pjs pants tonight as well. But then again, maybe I should stay away from my sewing machine at night!

KCWC: Day 1

2011-10-10T22:00:00.003-04:00

*sigh* It's a little after 9 pm and I'm exhausted!

Most of today was spent away from the sewing machine dealing with family related business. Trip to the orthodontist for K, lunch with M at her school, and then back up to K's school to take her some meds to counter act the mouth pain from the spacers she had put in that morning. Then once everyone was home, there was dinner to cook and Algebra homework to check/help with. All in a day's work!

I did cut out a pair of Dortje pants and an Imke shirt before the 3 older kids came home.

And I stitched the turquoise buttons to a scrap with different color thread (per the suggestions I received, here and on flickr) so K could pick a fave.

She chose....blue.

The plan for tomorrow is to finish K's shirt dress, buttons and all, hem K's Imke top and to start sewing K's Sarita jeans and M's Dortje pants. That's all I'm committing to for now.

Here's K's Imke shirt from Sewing Clothes Kids Love that I cranked out once the little girls were tucked into bed...

The main print is a cabbage from Hurley. After adding considerable length to the sleeves and hem line, I didn't have enough fabric for the entire shirt. I discovered that the City Weekend cafe dots knit in aqua matches so I added a "design element" to the sleeves. K's arms must have grown since this weekend (sarcasm, anyone?) because even the aqua addition wasn't quite enough. Hence the yellow cafe dots.

The "design elements" were a little much for K. After putting it on and only saying that it was soft, I let her off the hook and told her it could be a pj top. She was relieved.

Kids Clothes Week Challenge Plans + Opinions Needed

2011-10-09T17:06:00.000-04:00

Monday kicks off Kids Clothes Week Challenge at elsie marley. The premise for the week is to commit to sewing kids' clothing for at least an hour each day. Meg hosts one in the spring and in the fall. This past spring I made nightgowns for the little girls, a Seashore dress for B, and Class Picnic tops for M and B.

My plans for this year are once again ambitious. Dream Big I say!

-long sleeve shirts for k,p,m,b
-pj pants for p,m,b
-dress for k
-jeans for k
-long pants for m,b
-dresses for m,b

I have the pajama pants (Weekend Sewing, Pajama Pants for Everyone) for P and M/B already cut out and also K's jeans (Sarita, Ottobre Design 01/09).

I've been working here and there on K's dress (Oliver + S Jump Rope Dress) and hope to finish it this week during KCWC. K liked her red JRD but it was way too short for this year. After seeing this Lisette Traveler Dress and purchasing some black and white seersucker, I knew I wanted to slightly alter the JRD pattern and duplicate that look for K.

My alterations were to make the placket run the full length of the dress and to add length to the sleeves and hem. I'm also lining the body of the dress as the seersucker is a little sheer.

I really wanted yellow buttons down the front but figured I'd best check with K. I turned her loose in my button stash and she chose turquoise.

Here's where I need to hear y'all's opinions....What color thread should I use for sewing the buttons on?

Fall Sewing

2011-10-03T19:03:00.000-04:00

September is usually filled with sunshine and warm temps with out the usual summer humidity. What happened this year??? Since we've been home from the Oregon trip there has been rain almost every day. And this weekend it got cold! I had to break out the jeans and long sleeve shirts for school today.

The most used piece of clothing for all of my kids is a zip front hoodie. It's an essential part of their wardrobes. K and P's are store bought...Roxy for her and Tony Hawk for him. The little girls though have Kitschy Coo hoodies that I sewed for them.

BK, Fall 2010

MG, Fall 2010

The girls at the Oregon Coast, Sept. 2011

BK left hers behind somewhere in Oregon. It was starting to get a bit small on her so it wasn't that tragic of a loss.

I took BK shopping for fleece at Jo-ann's last Thursday. We were both underwhelmed with the selection. She really wanted a rainbow stripe like MG's but there wasn't any to be had. We settled for a blue "fireworks" print.

I made the size 4 but added 2 inches in length to the body of the hoodie and its sleeves because I'm too lazy to print out and tape the next size pattern together.   The hoodie is lined in a yellow jersey from fabric.com that I purchased a year and a half ago. The ribbing is from Jo-ann's and was picked from the clearance aisle a while back. I would have liked a yellow or aqua zipper but options from the local fabric store are few and far between and BK needed her hoodie straight away.

Once again, Amanda's  pattern produced a warm, snuggly hoodie that fits perfectly. I can't say enough good things about the pattern!

BK wore her fireworks hoodie this morning while we waited at the bus stop for MG and P's bus to come with temps in the mid-50's.   It was chilly but BK (and her sister) stayed warm!

MG and BK in their Kitschy Coo Hoodies!

Equestrian Ice Cream Dress

2011-10-02T14:22:00.000-04:00

A year (two?) ago, I purchased some Heather Ross fabric from her West Hill collection. I liked it for it's equestrian theme. Pre-marriage and kids, I owned a thoroughbred named Classy Jay and competed in horse shows. So, this particular fabric really spoke to me.

But like a lot of impulse fabric purchases, I didn't have a specific plan for the fabric. It was only 1 yard and as my children grow (faster and faster it seems!), a yard of fabric does not go very far.

One day recently, I pulled the print out and a light bulb went on....combined with a black/white pin dot fabric, the Heather Ross fabric would make a great Oliver + S Ice Cream dress.

I thought it would look perfect styled with black leggings and black boots.

Oliver + S Ice Cream Dress size 5 paired with Riviera leggings from Sewing Clothes Kids Love

I happened to have a pony button to use for the back.

The Ice Cream Dress is perfect for layering in cooler weather. All I need now is to pick a fabric for a long sleeved shirt and the dress will make it through winter. Any suggestions on what color shirt I should sew?

Fabric shopping while on vacation

2011-09-29T13:25:00.000-04:00

I've been spending the almost 2 weeks since we've been back catching up on all the day to day stuff that accumulates when your focus is off your household for weeks at a time. I haven't had a chance to share about the fabric shopping adventures I enjoyed while in Oregon. So here goes...

I had a small list of shops that I wanted to visit while in Oregon: Fabric Depot, Mill End Store, and The Rain Shed.

Wednesday morning before we headed to the coast, my husband promised that we could visit Fabric Depot in Portland. We entered the address into the GPS and headed out.

Much to John's amusement, across the street there was an adult bookstore/strip club. He wondered out loud if that was where the husbands hung out while their wives bought fabric.

Needless to say, John and the little girls accompanied me into the fabric store.

Fabric Depot is huge! There are aisles upon aisles of fabric. It was great to see all the popular fabric lines and be able to touch them. I saw tons of prints that appealed to me but what I really need are some good basic solids. It was a bit overwhelming being amidst all that fabric and I ended up leaving the store with only a pattern (Oliver + S School Photo Dress) in hand.

Next up, we headed to the Mill End Store which was a little bit out of our way. The girls wanted to wander around outside so I went in by myself. Once again, there was quite a bit of fabric! Lots of adult clothing yardage and a good selection of woolens. I lingered over some of the melton wool but decided that there really wasn't enough room in our luggage to buy any significant yardage. I also was taken by some of the children's knit prints but there again, I really need more solids in my stash. So, I left there empty handed.

My last fabric hunting outing, took place on the Saturday of the wedding. A few weeks before we left town, I had been researching companies that sold outerwear fabric. I came across The Rain Shed and as I was looking at their information, realized that they were located in Corvallis which is where we would be staying Friday and Saturday night.

First thing Saturday morning, I headed out with my mother-in-law and arrived just as The Rain Shed was opening. After a good 30 minutes looking at what was available and picking the brain of the nice woman who worked there, I made my "big" purchase.

best picture I could get of my haul, it's been raining every day since we arrived home

2 yards of Thinsulate, 3 yards of a woven quick dry fabric in "rattan", 2 yards of black sateen, 1 1/2 yards each of 2 ply Taslan in red and charcoal, and a zipper. The Oliver + S pattern was my Fabric Depot purchase.

The Thinsulate will be for winter coats, the quick dry fabric will be for shorts next summer, black sateen is for K (she needs a black skirt for choral performances), and the Taslan+zipper is for a windbreaker jacket for P.

I'm quite pleased with my purchases and can't wait to sew some of it up!

Museum Tunic in Berry

2011-09-25T21:26:00.001-04:00

I didn't have any full length shots of me in my AMH Museum Dress at the wedding. So, I chose to wear it to church on Sunday and have my husband take some pictures before heading out into the dreary, rainy morning.

front

back

While cutting and sewing the dress, I referenced 2 sites: the original tutorial and The Southern Institute's tutorial which includes instructions on how to line it. My dress is made from Little Folk's Square Dance Voile in Berry.

Due to time constraints and lack of fabric to line the dress with, I skipped the lining. Next time, I will line the dress. Full slips aren't the easiest items of lingerie to find. And in the case of my slip, it slides around a bit and shows in the front v if I'm not careful.

It's an easy dress to wear and is quite comfortable...too bad the same can't be said about my heels!

Here comes the Flower Girl

2011-09-22T13:02:00.000-04:00

The Bride and BK

BK did a fabulous job being a flower girl. She walked nicely down the aisle carrying her flowers and stood by the maid of honor patiently during the ceremony. Her dress (Ottobre Design 02/02 #18 "Festkleid") fit perfectly. The petticoat and white roses that were my mom's contribution made the dress that much more special. The head piece was from our dress up box. I made it over using white satin ribbon and some sheer blue fabric that was left over from a niece's wedding 2 years ago.

MG and BK ready to blow bubbles on the newly married couple

MG's dress (Ottobre Design 03/08 #19 "Tafetta Princess") was unfortunately, a little too big across the chest. I didn't start sewing the dresses until school had started and BK had been my fitting model while MG attended school. While the girls' are pretty much the same size, MG has a slighter build.

The wedding party

back of dress

Daddy with his 2 little princesses

2/3 of our family

As you can see above, I did finish my AMH Museum dress.

The skirts were nice and full on both dresses. Perfect for leaping high with Daddy...

...chasing goats at the reception...

...and for dancing the evening away!

Mr. Penguin is Ready....

2011-09-12T16:43:00.001-04:00

...for his trip to Oregon! After some painful, should have thought this through better, that's what I get for working in the evening when I'm already tired moments, the Little Things to Sew Penguin Backpack is finished.

All ready for our airplane trip

Mr. Penguin (as he is referred to around here) is made from black duck cloth and various quilting cottons for his beak, feet, tummy, and lining. He is also big enough to carry a pocket folder in.

My original intention for the backpack was for BK to use it to carry her folders for speech. Laying a folder on top of the lining panel, it was obviously not going to work.

Disclaimer: I came up with these measurements after a looooong day of working on other projects and my brain doesn't function well at night. So, use them at your own risk!

I added 1 1/2 inches to the bottom of the top front and back panel. I also added an additional seam allowance of 1/2 inches to the curves on those pieces.

On the bottom front and back panels, I added 1 1/2 inches to the top, straight edge. Then 1/2 inches around the rest of those pattern pieces.

The pattern piece that forms the sides and bottom got an additional 2 1/2 inches of length on both of the short ends. On the long sides, I added 1/2".

For the zipper panels, I added 1/2" on one of the long sides and on both ends.

When it comes to the lining, I cut my pattern piece for the front and back panels (so it kind of looks like the outside pattern pieces) and slid a piece of paper in and taped it so that it got an additional 2 inches in length. The pattern piece is then still one solid panel.

I did add an extra inch of length to the long straps but it would have been fine without.

The beak, wings, belly pocket, feet, and inside pocket all got an extra 1/2" all around.

Mr. Penguin now holds the speech folder with ease!

If I were to make this again with the adjustments, I'd tweak the outer front and back panels by only adding 1/2" to the bottom of the upper curved ones and 2 1/2" to the bottom pattern pieces. Mr. Penguin tips off the back a little (see above) because where the straps are attached is a little low for the additional height. The tweak should compensate for that.

The boss is happy with her new backpack. It will carry yellow (her beloved blanket), sticker books, snacks, crayons, coloring books, and Jewel (her webkinz weimaraner) out west to Oregon and then be all ready for speech when we come home.

eta 9/29/11: Mr. Penguin gets a slight improvement

Usually, when projects need a bit of an alteration or improvement I plan on making the fix but never get around to doing it. I'll have you know, I have made the fix for Mr. Penguin!

I went back and moved the straps up to the top of the backpack. That takes care of the unwanted tilting caused by my size adjustments. Now, Mr. Penguin fits The Boss perfectly!

The Penguin and the Flower Girl

2011-09-10T15:36:00.000-04:00

It's been all about the flower girl dress this week. Every morning after the older kids have left for school, I've been packing BK and my supplies up and heading to my parents' for some uninterrupted sewing. It's been real helpful not only to have my youngest occupied playing with Grandma but to have expert help right there. And I can say that they are now done. Whew!

Here's a sneak peek...

Ottobre Design 02/02 #18 "Festkleid"

Ottobre Design 03/08 #19 "Taffeta Princess"

BK (who is the flower girl) will be wearing the top dress next Saturday in Oregon. MG (backup flower girl) will be wearing the bottom. MG has been in 2 weddings and knows the ins and outs. BK....well, she's a tad bit unpredictable. I think she'll be fine but if she isn't MG will walk with her. The bride is very laid back and doesn't mind.

The fabric for both dresses was a polyester shantung that I picked up on clearance. I would have loved to have splurged on some silk but for practicality this will work best. The "Festkleid" dress was from a German issue of OD. Other than referencing the diagram for the sleeve hem, I left the magazine closed. My mom is making petticoats to go under the dresses. She also made the white satin roses that are on BK's dress.

Since we will be flying cross country to attend our nephew's wedding, I'm going to try and sew up the Penguin Backpack from Little Things to Sew this weekend. BK requested one for speech and it's September's challenge for A Little Gray's sew-along. If I finish it in time, she can use it on the plane to carry some toys and books to keep her occupied. I'm going to try and modify the size of the backpack so that it will fit a pocket folder. We'll see how that goes...

Apple for Teacher

2011-09-06T12:20:00.000-04:00

With flower girl dress(es) needing to be sewn by next Monday, I was not going to do any first day of school sewing. It's not like there was a need for it. But while putting fabric away in my sewing room, I came across 2 of my favorite prints...Sandi Henderson Farmer's Market Apple Dot in pink and SH Meadowsweet Happy Buttferfly in Pumpkin. The prints were begging to be made into short sleeved 2+2 tops (Oliver + S).

MG all ready for her first day of 1st grade

I'd intended to give BK this top and let the butterfly one be MG's since she has capris with butterflies embroidered on the pockets (see above). But while sewing on the tops, BK walked in and was taken by the butterfly print.

I sewed up a size 4 (what I already had traced off) and added an inch to the hem. I also used a fabric loop and button for the front closure instead of ties. The buttons on the apple dot were from the buttons my mother-in-law gave me.

BK won't be starting her "school" until the 21st of September but she wanted to wear her new top today too.

I did the same exact modifications on this one. The buttons were from my existing supplies.

my little helper

Today marks the end of our summer. The kids did great getting ready this morning. The only hiccup was that K's bus did not arrive when it was supposed to (8:29am). At around 9 am, she called me asking if I would take her to school. So with K and 3 of her friends on board, BK and I made a quick run to the middle school. Hopefully, tomorrow morning will not have any bus woes.

Kids, How do you feel about school starting tomorrow?

Our last beach day before school starts

S & S way of sewing swimsuits

2011-08-24T17:07:00.002-04:00

School will be starting in 2 weeks and yes, I am still sewing swimsuits!

There's a need since we still have at least another month of beach going weather and plans for swim lessons through the winter. I've got the sewing process down pat and can whip out a swimsuit in about 1 1/2 hours or less depending on how much elastic needs to be applied. My current favorite patterns are Kwik Sew 3785 and Ottobre Design 03/09 #38.

I wasn't so sure about the center seam along the back of Kwik Sew 3785 but my girls really wanted a racer back style swimsuit. I've been impressed with how well they fit and no one has complained about the seam bothering them.

KS 3785, size Large

KS 3785, size XS

For K's suit, I added an extra inch to the front and back pattern pieces since her width measurements fit the Large best but her height would put her in an XL. With MG's striped swimsuit, I added an inch but only to the front pattern piece as I wanted the neckline to sit a little higher up than it did on the initial XS swimsuit I sewed:

Kwik Sew 3785, XS no adjustments

Kwik Sew nicely provides you with lines if you need to shorten/lengthen the pattern. I used the top line for my adjustments since it's the overall length that I wanted longer.

Fabrics: I've mainly used Chez Ami Knit Tactel fabric. I like the way that it feels though I've run into some fading issues with the pink/white polka dot fabric that was my initial order. The other prints I have seem to be doing okay.

My lining fabric is from Jo-Ann's. I ended up with 2 types. One is almost like a heavy pantyhose and the other is similar to swimsuit fabric. I prefer the latter as it seems more durable. I usually line the fronts on the suits. If I'm making a 2 piece, I completely line the bottoms and line the front of the bikini/tankini top. That's my preference. You don't have to line swimsuits but I've found that in our case, they hold up better if they're lined. You also don't have to buy separate lining fabric, you could use the fabric that you chose for the swimsuit.

Notions: I use polyester thread. I also buy the swimwear elastic. I've used clear elastic (Lastin) before but the girls complained that the edges were sharp.

Sewing tips: Make sure you use a needle for knits, either a ball point or stretch. I like to lighten the pressure of my presser foot from a 6 to around a 3 so that the fabric isn't being over stretched while I'm sewing. I typically baste the lining to my main fabric so it stays together when sewing the seams. I double stitch my seams for peace of mind with a Tricot/Lightning stitch and a Seam/Overedge stitch.

#6 Tricot/Lightning stitch

#22 Seam/Overedge stitch

When applying elastic, I use a 3 step zigzag stitch. I place the elastic close to the edge of the fabric on the wrong side and sew.

I keep the fabric/elastic on the inside of my presser foot when initially applying the elastic

I then fold my elastic to the inside and sew using the 3 step zig zag again, stretching the fabric/elastic slightly. I place the outer edge just to the outside of my presser foot so that the stitches are more to the inside. This keeps the elastic from rolling out. You can also use a double needle which is what I did with the tankinis. Keep in mind if you use a double needle, you'll have to sew with the right side up.

And here's what it looks like after the elastic is applied...

Ta Da! The finished swimsuit!

KS 3785, XS with an extra inch in front panel

More Swimsuits from the past 2 years...

2009: MG on the right in Ottobre Design 03/09 #38 size 98

2009: My first ever attempt at sewing a swimsuit Ottobre Design 02/04 #20, size 92

2011: K in KS 3785 and MG in Ottobre Design 03/09 #38 and #39

2010: Ottobre Design 02/04 #20 size 98

2010: Ottobre Design 03/09 Gilda Bikini size 134

2011: BK on left in Ottobre Design 03/09 #38 size 104

Are you ready for some (Packer) Football?

2011-08-19T16:26:00.000-04:00

I'd forgotten what a quick project the Bucket Hat from Little Things to Sew is. I sewed the sides and top together on Wednesday when I had a few moments to spare and finished the hat Thursday night in about 1/2 an hour!

While I was hand sewing the last little bit, P asked with a voice full of hope if the hat was for him. It was with great pleasure that I told him yes. He was even keen to have his picture taken which is not a common situation! Of course, he had to put on his Aaron Rodgers jersey and leave his pj shorts on to get the total Packer's look.

I used white denim for the main fabric and the left over GB Packer fabric from his pj shorts for the reverse side. I'm not even sure when I made those...a year ago? The white side out will be for our Gilligan Halloween costume. I made the largest size hat and did 1/4 inch seams instead of 1/2 inch to make sure it would be big enough for P.

And of course, every post needs a slightly goofy picture. He was having fun!

Seahorse Seahorse

2011-08-17T15:58:00.000-04:00

We started summer with a drawer full of swimsuits for the little girls. As you saw here, we were running low on wearable suits! I let the littles look through my swimsuit fabric stash and pick what they wanted for their next swimsuits.

BK chose a new addition to my stash courtesy of an order from The Fabric Fairy. I used Ottobre Design 03/09 #38 and cut it into a tankini top and bikini bottoms. She really wanted a one piece but 2 pieces are easier on me when BK needs to use the potty. I sandwiched clear elastic in the straps because I noticed that the straps on the other tankini tops I made were starting to get stretched out.

BK is all ready to hit the beach again!

I'm also finally getting started on August's Little Things to Sew sewalong project...another bucket hat.

I dithered about doing the hat. No one really needed one and I was about ready to skip August's project and start in on September's when I overheard the kids discussing Halloween costumes. Turns out a white bucket hat just might be needed! Any guesses as to what the kids would like to dress up as? I'll give you a hint...they would be 4 different cast members from a tv show that aired for only 3 years in the sixties.

I'm using the Green Bay Packer's fabric leftover from pj shorts for the lining or reverse side. The hat will be the perfect accessory with P's #12 jersey on gamedays!

Surfer Girl(s)

2011-08-13T17:41:00.001-04:00

Little surfer, little one

Made my heart come all undone

Do you love me, do you surfer girl?

Surfer girl, my little surfer girl

I have watched you on the shore

Standing by the oceans roar

Do you love me, do you surfer girl?

Surfer girl, surfer girl

We could ride the surf together

*Photos from our trip to the beach this morning interspersed with lyrics from "Surfer Girl" by the Beach Boys

3 Swimsuits Down for the Count

2011-08-08T17:04:00.004-04:00

The kids have been having a blast going from lake to waterpark to beach but the girls' swimsuits are barely hanging on!

They have each managed to render a swimsuit unwearable. However, only one was a suit I made.

First up, K's one piece from Old Navy.

The swimsuit fabric is all stretched out and faded...especially in the rear. See how the fabric is not pulled up tight like it should be? I'm saving this swimsuit to cut up and use as a pattern base.

Next, the bottoms to one of the Ottobre Tankinis.

The dimples in the fabric are where the spandex has all but disappeared. Not only is it not stretchy anymore, it's becoming see through.

Lastly, another Old Navy swimsuit.

It was already faded from a mellow orange to this yellowy-organgey shade. Then BK wore it to the beach and rolled around in the shorebreak and sand. The dark specks are sand that has worked it's way into the fabric. Trust me...it's not coming out no matter whatcha do.

Plus, there was a ton of sand that worked it's way between the front lining and the swimsuit fabric. I knew we were in trouble when we got ready to go and the crotch of BK's suit was drooping awfully low.

Yucky!

I guess new swimsuits need to go back onto the to-sew list.

In actual sewing news, I finished a pair of Oliver + S shorts that have been cut out since early July.

I used Carolina Chambray in black (even though it looks blue in the picture). MG was mucho happy with the shorts and wanted to keep wearing them last night after I had her try them on to adjust the elastic in the waist. This morning the first thing out of her mouth was, "Where are the new shorts? I want to wear them!" It always feels good to hear that.:)

4 more weeks of summer vacation and then it's back to school and time to think about fall/winter sewing.

Burdastyle Magazine #101 06-2011

2011-08-03T14:41:00.003-04:00

I purchased the 06/2011 issue of Burdastyle Magazine for the hooded shirt which was the basis for MG's coverup . There were a few other patterns that interested me for the kids and a couple that I thought would be nice for me. My first attempt for myself the V-neck Blouse:

I'm guilty of closing my eyes just like K

I used cotton gauze fabric from fabric.com. As much as I've griped about sewing with cotton gauze, it's really comfortable to wear. And it's the perfect weight for hot, humid summer days.

The pattern went together pretty well. I used a size 38 even though my bust measurement puts me at a 40. I'm not too fond of billowy tops and I figured that there would be plenty of ease even if I cut a size smaller...there was.:) The instructions for the neckline threw me a bit so I ended up winging it. I did find clearer instructions here but I opted to skip the jersey strip. eta: I also didn't cut the top on the bias (which you're supposed to).

Some Things Old and A Couple New

2011-07-29T05:40:00.005-04:00

My mother so nicely took my sewing machine in to be serviced while we were on vacation. I couldn't just plop it back on the dusty table so I took a little time to clean it off. Since I had removed all the ~~crap~~ items off the top to properly clean, I decided to flip out the sewing machine that came with the table.

I became the owner if this beauty in 1999 after my husband's grandmother passed away. Looking at it today, there's some minor rewiring that needs to be done before it's plugged in again.

The original bill of sale from 1952!

While visiting my in-laws last week, my mother-in-law offered me any of her buttons I wanted. I picked through and here's what I came home with...

Some of the buttons are vintage, others were clipped off of clothing that was destined for the rubbish bin.

Buttons aren't the only thing we brought home from Wisconsin.

Joe Bob

Aaron

The Beta fish were used as centerpieces at the wedding rehearsal dinner. My mother-in-law brought them home for the kids. Of course, there was no way the kids would let us leave the fish behind. I was surprised but they endured the 17 hour car ride home. I've put the last set of pictures up from our trip over at Siestas and Travels if you're interested.

Free Patterns for me and Puppet Show for B

2011-07-27T17:43:00.000-04:00

I wasn't sure if I liked my swimsuit coverup until I wore it a few times. It was put into good use while on vacation when we went swimming at the hotel and in the lakes. Of course, I never got a picture of it being worn. Today, I made a point of having K take a few snaps before we headed to the water park.

Peachy Beachy Coverup free pattern download from fabric.com

I used a bubble gauze fabric...the same kind that I used for my Shearwater Caftan but in a different color. As much as I don't like sewing the stuff, I have to say it's really nice to wear on hot, summer days. And it keeps getting softer every time it's washed. I skimmed the directions then did my own thing. Changes I made: skipped the drawstring and shirred the back (3 rows) and rolled hems on the sleeves and bottom edge. It's been so long that I've forgot what size I sewed. I do know that I used a smaller size on top and eased into a larger size for the bottom.

My next bit of selfish sewing was the Colette Sorbetto top, another free pattern download. This top has been making the rounds since it was posted in May. I'm a little late to the party but better late than never!

My fabric choice was a Lisette Lawn that I had bought a while back but wasn't sure what to do with it. I used the leftover fabric from my Passport Dress (Lisette Sateen) and made bias binding to finish the neckline and armholes. I made the size 6 but used the length of the size 16 plus an extra inch. When I make this again, I'll probably add another inch to the length. The armhole is a little higher than I'm accustomed to. For version 2, I'll drop it down just a tad. I'm pleased with the top and am looking forward to making another. The possibilities for embellishing/changing up the style of this top are endless! If you check out the Colette Patterns Flickr group you'll see what I mean.

And last but not least, a pair of shorts for the little girls. Seen here on BK...

Oliver + S Puppet Show shorts

These were finished at least a month ago. I used stretch denim left over from MG's skinny jeans. My seam ripper and I became close friends while I worked on the shorts. It was purely lack of focus on my part...I really don't do a good job when I sew after the kids go to bed.

The clock's ticking...only 5 more weeks of summer vacation and it's back to school for the kids.:(

Back in Town

2011-07-25T11:08:00.002-04:00

Part of the reason, I dropped down to 1 post a week was I knew we would be travelling some this summer. Our most recent trip was to Wisconsin for a family member's wedding with a brief stop off in Kentucky to visit with friends.
In the midst of packing, I stopped to do a little sewing...

With 4 kids and 2 adults travelling over a thousand miles one way in a minivan, space is limited. The big kids take their regular pillows but it's too much to have the little girls bring theirs. Especially when they are in booster seats and can't really use a full sized pillow. Before we left, I purchased travel/camping pillows for them but balked at buying the pillowcases. After all, I have a ton of fabric sitting at home and pillow cases are not hard to make.

I also spent the day before we left, making K another swimsuit.

Kwik Sew 3785, size L with an extra inch added to front/back, Chez Ami fabric

And along the swimsuit theme, I made a cover up for MG and one for myself...

Burdastyle 6/2011, Hooded pullover

This was a bit of a pain in the butt to sew. First, the pattern is for a woven. Secondly, Burdastyle's instructions left me scratching my head. I ended up winging it. The cover up works, miss M likes it, but I'll do it completely different next time!

No pictures of mine since I'm always behind the camera...maybe later this week, I'll get one of the kids to snap a pic.

And here are a few pictures of clothes I've made that were worn while we were on vacation:

If you're interested in seeing more from our trip, I'll be posting photos and brief descriptions on what we did over at Siestas and Travels!

It's all about K

2011-07-14T17:54:00.001-04:00

My eldest daughter has been on the receiving end of my sewing here lately. There's the finished dress from my last post:

An Oliver + S UNruffled halter top:

And a racerback swimsuit that's under construction currently so no pictures.

My kids have been having fun with their cousins who were visiting from Idaho.

Uncle Chris (my brother) and P getting ready to paddle back to Grandma's house

Cousin S, BK, and MG along for the ride

MG, Cousin A, and Cousin S enjoying their Nutty Buddies

And I couldn't resist sharing this photo of BK making sure she didn't drown on the walk to the lake beach!

Summer Fun and Sewing

2011-07-05T21:01:00.002-04:00

In between excursions to the water park and zoo, I've been printing off pdf patterns (Colette Sorbetto & Hot Patterns Peachy Beachy Coverup) in anticipation of a little selfish sewing.

One of my recent sewing projects was a tote bag. I needed one large enough to fit beach towels for our entire family plus sunscreen, swim goggles, and any other day-outside-involving-water paraphernalia. After perusing flickr to look at the many versions of the Weekend Sewing Everything Tote and asking a few ?'s regarding the finished size, I made one for myself.

My modifications weren't much. I added 2 inches to the depth of the bag, lined the pocket, and ignored the written instructions for sewing the binding on. The end result is a roomy bag perfect for the beach and water park.

When it's time to sew a new bag, I'll add another pocket that's a little bigger and pad the handles.

My other sew-n-tell project is a dress for my oldest daughter. She kept changing her mind as to what she wanted and truth be told, most of the patterns I have are more suited for the little girls in style if not actual size. She liked a dress from Land's End but I didn't have any patterns with a surplice/faux wrap neckline that did not need heavy modifications done to it. As luck would have it, I found what I needed in an old Ottobre Design magazine in my mom's sewing room.

K's dress in Michael Miller's Plain Jane fabric

I took the front of OD #37 01/06 and left it as is and cut the back of the top to the same length as the front. I made my own pattern for the A-line skirt and gathered it so it would fit the bodice. I then sewed 4 rows of stitching with elastic thread in the bobbin to shir the top edge of the skirt. The bodice is lined and I added piping to the neckline and sleeve edges. It still needs to hemmed and the lining needs to be handstiched in place.

K and I chose this particular fabric so she would have another dress to wear with her red/white polka dot shoes. She's planning on wearing this dress to her cousin's wedding in July!

Guest Blogging over at Life on the (Clothes) Line

2011-06-28T10:00:00.001-04:00

I'm over at Life on the (Clothes) Line today sharing about my very own clothesline. Jeannie's blog "...is about the modern updates of the lessons learned 80 years ago in our own “Great Recession”." She has a really neat series going where she's taking recipes from her Great-Grandmother's cookbook and trying them out. Come on over and visit!

Family Reunion Dresses

2011-06-26T15:39:00.001-04:00

My little girls wore their new Oliver + S Family Reunion dresses to church this morning. After being washed, dried, and ironed the fit is pretty darn good. I think MG would have fit better into a 4 since she's slighter of frame but the larger size range pattern starts with a 5 and that's all I had.

Oliver + S Family Reunion Dresses, size 5

MG's dress is made from a polka dot quilting cotton that I picked up at Jo-Ann Fabrics. I used a turquoise linen for the neck facing, button tab, sleeve binding, and hem facing. There's also green ric-rac trim at the hem facing, sleeves, and button tab. I didn't have any concrete plan in place when choosing trims, contrast fabric, buttons. In fact my original choice for buttons was this:

As I worked on the dress, one thing led to another. I happened to have linen (supposed to be for me!) that matched the blue. I found green ric-rac and pink buttons in my notions stash. It all came together to make MG's dress.

Back of MG's dress

As for BK's dress, it's simpler than her big sister's. I used a blue floral print that she had picked out on one of our fabric store excursions.

There's trim around the button tab and at the sleeve edges that I liberated years ago from my mom's stash. The buttons on the front are also from there.

Close up of sleeve detail

Close up of hem topstitching detail

Back of BK's dress

It's another great Oliver + S pattern. I really enjoyed making these and participating in Above All Fabric's Sew-Along! Now back to our summer fun...

Summertime

2011-06-22T20:35:00.000-04:00

Summer is officially here! That means I'm unofficially going to be around a bit less. After all, there's only 75 days until school begins again for my crew.

We plan on taking advantage of every single nice day. Whether it's the beach or the water park, we're going to be outside soaking up the sun (with sunscreen on, of course!).

I'm aiming to post about once a week to show what I've been sewing. There's still plenty on my to-sew list! Here's a little peek at what I've recently finished...

Oliver + S Family Reunion Dresses, size 5

I'll post the details when I get some pictures of the little girls in their new dresses. :)

School's Out for Summer

2011-06-17T11:07:00.000-04:00

All morning Alice Cooper's rock anthem has been running through my mind. We put MG on the bus a little while ago for her last day as a kindergartner.

This past year has been full of big changes for my middle daughter. She's grown so much (metaphorically speaking since she's still one of the shorter kids in her grade!) as the school year progressed. MG has become quite independent and she's lost 2 teeth!

After having 2 older kids make the transition from Kindergarten to first grade, I've discovered that time seems to pick up speed from this point on. They need you less and less as they start to find their own way.

Whoa, wait a minute! This post is starting to turn sad when I meant it to be a happy one, filled with joy that we have the entire summer ahead of us to play.

That's more like it!

Here's to a not-long-enough summer filled with lazy days, lots of beach/water park expeditions, family trips, picnics, camping, and most of all....

FUN!

And hopefully, very few moments like these...

She was standing there repeatedly saying, "I won't be naughty anymore, I won't." after getting in trouble for messing in a hole in our neighbor's yard :)

Vote!

2011-06-14T07:03:00.001-04:00

I'm super excited!! My Hopscotch Meet Up v.2 is one of the top ten finalists in the Pattern Remix Contest. The voting starts today and closes Thursday night at midnight EST. Head on over to Me Sew Crazy to check out all the finalists and vote for your favorite (which would be nice if it's mine, but if not that's fine too)!

Camping Trip in Our Backyard (Almost)

2011-06-11T20:13:00.001-04:00

Friday night, we spent the night camping at a state park that's located 25 minutes from our house. Upon checking in the weather looked like this:

Torrential downpour, hail, thunder, lightning...you get the picture

Luckily, the weather did eventually clear. Right about the time the other 2 families who were camping with us showed up.

BK in her nightgown at our campsite

We learned the 4 S's of campfires from two rangers (safety, singing, stories, and s'mores)...

BK in her top roasting marshmallows next to big brother

We all woke up early for a change...

P in his basketball pj shorts that I never got around to blogging about

Spent time swimming in the Bay and playing in the sand...

K "army crawling" in the shallows

BK's new swimsuit, details

MG's new swimsuit

Saw a lot of little critters...

hermit crab

frog

caterpillar

And one critter that wasn't so little...

iguana

All in all, we had a great time and can't wait to do this again!

Sandbox Pants Remix, Part 2

2011-06-10T01:00:00.002-04:00

I got the 2nd swimsuit finished so I was able to switch my machine over to the regular needle and brown thread to finish the little inset pocket tutorial.

Start off by stitching the pocket lining to the pants front panel along the curved edge.

Press your stitches and snip into the curve (but not your stitches!) so that the curve will lay flat. I also trimmed my seam allowance down to about 1/4". Press the seam allowance towards the lining and edgestitch the lining to the seam allowance. This helps the pocket lining from rolling out. Press flat.

Topstitch along the right side of your pocket's edge.

Take the pocket facing and place it right sides together along the pocket lining. Make sure the outer curves are lined up and that the top and side of the facings match up to the top and side of your pants front panel. Stitch together. Press. Finish the seam allowance which I haven't done quite yet.

This is what your front panel should look like now. I know it's a little hard to see with the polka dots.

Your next step will be to baste within your seam allowance along the top and side of where the pocket is. This helps prevent shifting when you go to sew the waistband and side seams.

Voila! An inset pocket!

My other change from the original pattern was to do a cuff hem. For that, I finished the hem's raw edge and turned the hem to the right side twice, 1" each time. Then I stitched in the ditch on the inseam and outseam so that the cuff won't come undone. I can't do it with this pair as it's printed and the wrong side is white. Wouldn't look quite as nice!

Sandbox Pants Remix, Part 1

2011-06-08T17:06:00.006-04:00

On Tuesday, I played around with the Oliver + S Sandbox Pants pattern and came up with this...
I'm sad to say it but I don't have a very cooperative model these days so bear with me for the less than stellar photos

My inspiration for these shorts was a pair of Sandbox Shorts from Mel. I love how she rounded the pockets. I've had her pair 'favorited' since last November with the plan to copy the pockets when I made either shorts or pants for the little girls.

The little girls started the warm weather season off with more shorts than short sleeved tops. Somehow, the situation has reversed itself. While folding laundry recently, I had 6 shirts left over! Enter the Sandbox Pants Remix.

I initially planned on doing them like Mel's but when I got ready to cut the shorts out, I realized that I don't particularly care for the patch pockets. I'm more of an inset pocket kind of girl!

The modifications are pretty simple to do and I've made a little tutorial to show how I did it:

First, I shortened the pant pattern pieces to shorts' length. I used the lower of the 2 notches located on the pattern's inseams as my guide.

Step 2 is to lay the pocket piece that comes with the pattern on the front panel. Line it up on the top and side edges. You can see that I already rounded the pocket pattern...I had done that when I was still planning on doing patch pockets. Draw a line along the inner edge of the pocket.

Which leaves you with this...

Cut along your line.

And that's what the front panel looks like now.

You now need a template to be the pocket's facing. Basically, it's the original pocket plus the piece you cut off of the front panel. You could tape the piece you cut onto the the pocket or trace a new pocket and extend the left side up and the top towards the left until they meet. Your new pattern piece looks like...

You will need to cut 2 of the pocket facings. Also, you'll need 2 pocket linings (use the original pocket pattern piece). The pocket linings are a good way to use up scraps. I'm using leftover fabric from my Jimmy Buffett cami.

pocket linings

I always like the surprise of putting a fun print in pockets. For my original pair, I used leftovers from the men's butterfly print shirt that I used for an Ice cream Top.

Sewing inset pockets isn't hard at all. I'd continue on with pictures/descriptions of how I do it but right now I have white thread and a stretch needle in my machine for swimsuit sewing. I need to finish MG's suit that's mostly done before starting the shorts. I'll post a little how-to for the rest of the shorts sometime in the next couple of days. Thanks for reading!

Hopscotch Meet Up v.2

2011-06-05T17:12:00.000-04:00

I'm running out of ~~bribes~~ models! Neither one of the little girls wanted to be my model for the newest top I made. What's the world coming to?

BK, after much cajoling, finally deigned to put the top on for a few quick pictures...

It's another Hopscotch Meet Up, this time with rolled hems for the sleeves and bottom edge. The knit is City Weekend Cafe Dots-Turquoise and the front panel is a voile that I purchased from Joann's a couple of years ago. The new top is also my entry to the Pattern Remix Flickr Contest over at Me Sew Crazy.

My model was much more enthusiastic climbing down the ladder to get away from me!

Bellbottoms!

2011-05-31T20:20:00.000-04:00

I finished, okay, mostly finished my Groovy Bellbottoms Challenge! Miss M is now the proud recipient of a white denim pair.

I used a pattern out of an old Burda Kids' Fashion. I'm not quite sure what issue it is but according to the copyright it's from 2003.

The pattern number is 605 and in the line drawing they have pockets on the front. I cut the pockets out but since I was working on a deadline (June 1) and still had to cook dinner for the gremlins I left them off for now. There are high slits at the side seam hems and there is a zipper in the side seam. I would have preferred to use an invisible zipper but had to work with I had on hand.

The flare is more pronounced on the front leg panels than on the back.

I tried to get M in a groovy mood by parting her hair in the middle but she kept tucking it behind her ears. Encouraging her to flash a peace sign didn't go over too well either. But I did get a hint of the flower child she could be...

Beach Day

2011-05-30T19:21:00.001-04:00

I have a few projects in the works (mostly in my head!heh) motivated by several sewalongs/challenges I've joined. I'm cutting it close for the first one...the Groovy Bellbottoms Challenge which ends on June 1. I have a pattern traced for one of the little girls but haven't worked any further on it. The second, I haven't formally committed to doing but think it would be fun...Pattern Remix @ me sew crazy. I frequently tweak patterns to get the look I want so it's only a matter of doing it and sharing before the June 10 deadline. The third is the Oliver + S Family Reunion Sew-along that starts June 14. I have the pattern but haven't decided who I'm sewing it for or what fabric I want to use.

All sewing projects were temporarily put on hold due to a waterbed leak amid the in-laws visit that left us with no bed to sleep on. While an air mattress works fine for camping, having it be your bed every night is quickly getting old. It's no big surprise that it's hard to find replacement waterbed mattresses locally. After all, who sleeps on a waterbed anymore? The waterbed is the last piece of furniture from my husband's pre-wife and kids days and he's not letting go of it. I have to admit, it's wonderful to sleep on while pregnant and when it's freezing cold out even if it is a little awkward to get in and out of. We ended up ordering a replacement online. In the meantime, since the bed is dismantled, we decided to paint our bedroom which necessitated the hold on sewing projects. Except for one...

A new swimsuit for BK!

Kwik Sew 3785, XS, Chez Ami swimsuit fabric

The kids have been begging to go to the beach ever since the weather warmed up but M and B only had one swimsuit between the 2 of them. It's been on my to-do list for months to sew them new suits but not until it was an absolute necessity did I get around to making one. This was my first time using this Kwik Sew pattern. I originally bought it because of the racer back. The girls really like their Speedo swimsuits that are in the same style. I wasn't sure about the back seam though and worried that BK would complain about it. She's not even noticed! I will lengthen the pattern an inch next go around so that the front sits a little higher. The pattern has 2 lines on it, one around the chest and the other the hips, so you can lengthen/shorten it as needed. I will definitely be using this pattern again for all of my girls.

And I have to share a picture of my husband from today...

He was a little dismayed at the picture I used of him on my blog header because the wave was so small. So here's proof that he can (and does!) ride bigger waves!

Margaritaville, Here I Come!

2011-05-26T12:56:00.000-04:00

One of my all time favorite performers is Jimmy Buffett. Ever since being indoctrinated into the Parrothead way of life in junior high by my long time friend Jenn, his music has been the soundtrack of my life. It can be a miserably cold and gloomy winter day where nothing seems to be going right but pop in some Buffett and all the tension drains away. Within seconds, I'm dreaming of hot summer days at the beach, hangin' in my flops with a cold margarita (on the rocks, of course!) in hand. Thankfully, my husband and ~~kids~~ parakeets are of the same frame of mind. We all enjoy an afternoon spent at the beach!

Tonight, we're headed out minus the 'keets to enjoy listening to Buffett live. John has plenty of Hawaiian shirts to wear but my wardrobe was lacking that tropical pop. What to do? Head to the sewing machine.

"Summer Nightie" from One Yard Wonders

No kids home sick today to take a picture of it on. I'll pair it with jeans, flip flops, a white cami, and a lei for tonight.

I sewed one other project from One Yard Wonders recently. The Scrunchie Bag. K had been thumbing through the book and wanted that bag. We went fabric shopping together and she was planning on sewing the bag herself. Well, one thing led to another and she didn't have much free time to work on it. So, for her birthday, I sewed it up and filled it with her other presents.

The only thing I changed was to cut off some of the height from the bag so it wouldn't be overwhelming on her.

My other latest and greatest sewing project has been the Class Picnic Shorts from Oliver+S. I don't have the best pictures to show them. I had every intention of having both of the little girls in their Class Picnic blouses and shorts but the elastic in M's blouse came undone. I had to scramble for a shirt with red on it as we almost missed the kindergarten bus! As you can see...the top I grabbed is awfully long and doesn't look so hot when I tucked it in to try and photograph the shorts. See...

The shorts are really too big on M. She's such a skinny little thing and has no bootie to speak of. In fact, the size 5 shorts almost fit K before I put the buttonhole elastic in.

B has a stockier build so the shorts fit better on her. But she wasn't too keen on having her picture taken.

Notice the pouty lower lip...

I'll leave you with a video of Jimmy B singing "We are the People". My senior quote in high school was from this song..."We are the people our parents warned us about." Enjoy the mid-80's video!

And the Winner is...

2011-05-26T09:51:00.000-04:00

danette who said...
"great fabric. I love it."

Congratulations Danette! Look for an email from me later today. I want to thank everyone who stopped by and said hello! It was fun participating in Sew, Mama, Sew's Giveaway Day. I wish I had a prize for everyone!:)

Giveaway Day!! Seriously!!

2011-05-23T13:19:00.003-04:00

Man, I've lost it. I was so sure that I wouldn't be on the master list since I completely forgot about the giveaway and didn't have a post up by 9 am today. But when I was checking out the master lists to see who all was participating lo and behold, there was a link to my blog. So....I'm doing this people! If you're not a regular reader...no, I'm not crazy though it may seem like it at times. I'm just a very busy mom of 4 who had her in-laws visiting until this morning!

Up for grabs is a bundle of 2 patterns and a yard of fabric.

The fabric is one yard of a flannel print. The first pattern is McCall's 2601 Infants Dress, Romper, Hat, Shoes, Panties Pattern. Dress or rompers have jewel neckline, contrast lined bodice with scallop detail, back button closure and optional purchased trims. Rompers have snap crotch and elastic at ankles. Short sleeves or sleeveless. Sizes Small (12-15 lbs), Medium (16-18 lbs) Large (19-21 lbs) and XLarge (22-24 lbs) are all included. The second pattern is Butterick 5095. Loose-fitting A-Line Pullover Jumper, Mid-knee, Neckline Variations, Low Armholes, Appliques sizes 1-2-3.

I'll close the giveaway at 7 pm EST on May 25. All you have to do is leave a comment and make sure I can contact you if you win. Good luck!