be the thread

blue floral - yep, i did it again

2011-08-12T06:00:00.002-05:00

This is the "Lauren" dress by Olabelhe Designs. I made it up in a blue floral from Heidi Grace, with a coordinating green for the underskirt, tie, and pockets.

The pockets are HUGE and perfect for sticking your hands in while you swirl and twirl!!!

See... look how big they are!!!

The tie is so long, I was able to wrap it back around front to tie it. I'm not sure I like it that way, I was just experimenting.

Here's a close-up of the fabric and buttons on the back. It's mostly a blue check with blue flowers on top. Most of the flowers had green centers, a few had white centers. It just felt right :)

blue floral, yes indeed

2011-08-11T06:00:00.007-05:00

Yes, I have actually been doing a little "fun" sewing this summer. Between being a mom, custom orders, and random outings, my sewing time has been significantly less this summer! Today and tomorrow though I'm doing a little showing off. This is an "Amelia" dress (with bubble skirt) by Olabelhe Designs.

I have no idea what she was doing with her hand. Silly pose, right? I love the simple silhouette of the dress, but the scoop neckline seemed a little deep for her, and when she sat down I was wishing the skirt was a little longer.

She loved running around in it, her play shoes matched nicely, and I figured out how to get a pretty bow in back!!!! It went together very quickly too, because I just made two for a customer, and I'm pretty comfortable with Dawn's designs at this point.

i love patty young

2011-08-10T06:00:00.004-05:00

I'm sure you've all heard of Patty Young, right? Patty Young of ModKid? Well, it just so happens that she and her studio are about 2 hours from me and my studio (basement workspace, whatever). What better way to spend a Friday afternoon with my mom and kids than to take a little roadtrip?!!! After a quick stop at Dairy Queen & a local park, we were off to her Sample Sale and Open House. We met her, her husband Jon, and two girls. {Bad blogger, no pictures. I didn't want to be too celebrity-crazed or whatever. Probably should have just taken the camera, right?} I just was so happy that my kids behaved and that I got to have a (short) chat with her. She loved seeing my Abby in her Abigail dress, and I loved showing off, who am I kidding. The dress had gotten a little short on her, but still fit in the bodice/shoulders. Woohoo! Then my mom and I did a little shopping. I bought a sample ribbon box and some patterns, and my mom got Abby a Frida dress.

The bodice on this one is a light jean fabric. My mom and I loved the cute buttons and the neckline.

You can't really see in these pictures, but there's ties on each side. I'm looking forward to making her one or two more! I might try it sleeveless with corduroy and see how it works.

purplicious

2011-06-13T06:00:00.010-05:00

My niece loves purple. She loves to read. Her birthday's coming up. Must mean there's a new dress on the way!

Using "Purplicious" by Victoria & Elizabeth Kann as inspiration, I knew I had to include an art palette. She loves to paint! Each color patch has been free motion appliqued onto the skirt with a small heart in the middle. Her name was stitched inbetween the colors.

The dress itself is a dark purple with sparkles all over it that just didn't show up in the picture. It has gathered sleeves, elastic at the arm band, and a zipper in the back.

Can't wait to celebrate your birthday with you, G! It will be purplicious!

cheesehead

2011-05-19T06:00:00.001-05:00

My college roommate is having a baby! Her first baby shower was this past weekend, and I put together a bag of lots of goodies for her - onesies, fleece hat, fuzzy cube, etc. They are all cute things, but the onesie I love the most is this one! I used my yellow heat transfer material for the first time on my Silhouette. It cut so cleanly and easily, ironed on with no complaints, and was generally a breeze. It even gave me the reminder to mirror my words if I hadn't already (which I had).
Oh, and yeah, she married a guy from Wisconsin. This just seemed appropriate.
Congrats A&B! Can't wait to meet the little guy!

peter pan collar, attempted

2011-05-18T06:00:00.000-05:00

Her nails were recently painted pink, and that was quite possibly more exciting than the new dress & "pearls"! The pearl necklace is actually fake pearls strung on elastic stretchy cord and tied to be an easy on-easy off for her.
The pinafore on top has ties at the shoulder and a lined bodice. The fabric is a very light white cotton with pink flocked dots.
The dress has a Peter Pan collar - woo hoo for new skills! and elastic on a short gathered sleeve.

The back of the pinafore has two buttons with a loop closure. I am not happy with how the zipper lined up at the top on the dress so I made sure not to really show it. I'm not sure if it just wasn't lined up to start with (I thought it was!) or if I messed it up when I was putting the collar on. Either way, I'm happy with how the collar lays, so that is a big deal!

The kids decided to take her dolly for a little walk before church one morning. So cute :)

twirly skirt, take 2

2011-05-17T06:00:00.000-05:00

I love Hobby Lobby coordinating and fabrics and ribbons - so I've been busy playing with them! The bow was made using this tutorial. Mine doesn't quite look like hers, but it was a good place to start from and I'm excited to keep practicing.

I made a flower and put it on a tank to match. The center is a sparkly button.

The skirt is Little Lizard King's peek-a-boo skirt, more commonly known in our house as the Twirly Skirt. It is really full and SO much fun to twirl in! (First time sewing it was here.)

Happy Birthday, T! Thanks for letting Abby model it first. She's tried it out, and it's totally twirl-worthy for you!

activity book

2011-05-16T06:00:00.000-05:00

Have you seen Crayola's dry erase crayons? I think they'll be fun for a car activity book, don't you? I bought a 5-1/2x8-1/2 binder and filler pages.

I added a little embellishment to the "mitt" that came with the crayons. That way she can cinch it shut and it can be kept in the binder.

I filled the pages with downloaded coloring pages of some of her favorite characters. (Also included - Minnie, Cinderella, Ariel)

I sketched a butterfly, a face, and a house for her to color in.

I also used Picnik's pencil sketch feature and made a few family pictures for her to color.

Other pages included:
-a page with her full name and address so she can practice writing it.
-alphabet
-numbers
-cupcake to decorate for her birthday, and the birthday date next to it
-flowers
-a blank "paper doll" to dress

When she's done coloring on the plastic page protector, she can erase it and draw again another time! Her father is quite an artist too, so he can add more pictures any time. As her favorite characters change, they can always add new characters too.
Have fun, T!

bunny cards

2011-04-29T06:00:00.002-05:00

I realized I never shared the invites and thank yous from the bunny party. I cut out the bunnies with my Silhouette. You can tell I used the same bunny outline for both, but with the thank you cards I cut the words out of the middle too.

The styles are pretty simple, I just used some pinks and greens I had in my stash. Don't you love the little bunny brads on the inside of the invites?
I used a little green rhinestone on the thank you bunny eyes.

hemp & purple

2011-04-19T06:00:00.000-05:00

I really love trying out new to me crafts. I got some hemp, some big beads, and got busy.

I followed the directions here and due to some measuring and counting issues ended up with an anklet for myself instead of a bracelet. Abby liked it too, and lucky for her it's a perfect necklace/choker (not too tight) size. I did decide that if I make another one, I will not use beads that are that round because the strings around the side keep slipping. It was also pretty important to pay attention to which side I knotted on so I didn't start a spiral. All in all, I'm happy with the result!

rainbow vanity

2011-04-18T06:00:00.001-05:00

We haven't transitioned Abby to a big girl room (yet) but when we do it is (probably) going to have a lot of rainbow in it. We ordered a chair and vanity from Total Class Creative.

Shawn set up a spray paint area in the garage for me.

Then I got busy and painted a rainbow on the table and a rainbow on the chair. I did a clear coat and put the pieces together. The "mirror" is white like a cloud... right? The base of the table is white too.

I hung some 3M hooks on the wall to hold her necklaces and gave her a small box to hold a couple hair clips and bracelets. She loves dressing up now even more than before!

birthday cake

2011-04-14T04:00:00.000-05:00

I actually made this for my mom's birthday a few weeks ago.

The cherry blossoms on the side were probably a bit much, but it was fun to make and delicious to eat!

bunny birthday beauty

2011-04-12T06:00:00.013-05:00

This is the bunny birthday dress. I patched the skirt with a bunch of fabrics to match the bunnies.

The pattern is Jillian's Jumper from Olabelhe.

Just a few more pictures of the birthday girl with her fancy hair clip swirling about in her special party dress...

bunny party

2011-04-11T06:00:00.000-05:00

Abby's 3rd birthday party was all about bunnies! The treats were on a bookshelf in our kitchen. There are some mossy bunnies from Pier One, a couple white wooden bunnies from Total Class Creative, the bunny cookies, some bunny-shaped SweetTarts, and pink bunnies I made from Wilton molds & chocolate melts.

I love tulips! They opened up even more throughout the party. We had some on the table too.

The kids hunted for an orange carrot outside, then came inside and opened it to find beads to make a bunny necklace.

A little rabbit food for our guests - a salad bar, a couple muffins to choose from, and a couple pre-made salads on the other side of the lettuce.

The birthday bunny and her brother and cousins!

bunny cookies

2011-04-07T06:00:00.039-05:00

I have been wanting to do some fancy royal icing style cookies for a while now. I found a stacking Bunny cookie set and got to work. I tried a new cookie recipe (as in from scratch, not from the tube). It was a little dry but I got it to work.

I mixed up some royal icing and piped the edges. After (painfully) making it around one bunny, I watered it down some more and piped everything else. Much easier with the right consistency!!

I let the icing dry for an hour. Then I watered it down some more and flooded the cookies.

Then my new photographer took over the photography responsibilities.

Always interesting to see things from his perspective!

taken on my iPhone

He staged these next few shots:

The bunny whiskers were drawn on with FoodWriter markers.

Then we found a Peter Rabbit plate for this picture.

Abby was feeling left out so I took a picture of her, and he had to jump in too. :)

Lessons learned:
Wilton recipe books aren't always all they're cracked up to be - sometimes the internet IS more reliable. (the internet recipe called for more water, which ended up being the right choice)
Trust my instincts - more water IS ok, despite all warnings to the contrary.
My son may have a future in food blogging, photography, or cookie eating/drooling.

More bunny party goodies coming up soon!

fancy hair

2011-04-06T14:36:00.000-05:00

A couple weeks ago my sister-in-law and I got together for a crafty girls night. It ends up we did a lot more talking than crafting. In fact, Conner was pretty disappointed in our lack of product. It was funny.

We tried our hand at "boutique bows" and an Easter bunny clippie. Guess what Abby's getting for her birthday?

The Easter bunny directions are here.

sew...give!

2011-03-13T06:00:00.009-05:00

I haven't exactly been a loyal blogger this year. I haven't exactly been a crazy busy seamstress this year. I have been thinking a lot about what I'm doing with this life of mine, and how to make my time here matter. I've eluded to my Love-Believe-Give-Live mentality before, and I decided to work harder to live what I believe. That is playing out in a lot of ways in my personal life, but I wanted to bring that to my sewing/ blogging life as well.

Let me introduce you to my new blog Sew..Give!

My plan for this new blog is to feature ways for hand-sewn items to be placed in the hands of people who need them. I encourage you to check in every so often, find a place that is of interest to you, and join in. I think people who craft from the heart are always looking for the right place to send their special blanket, quilt or garment - and I am hoping to be a resource for all the generous crafters out there who like to SEW... and then GIVE!

If you have an organization that you would like featured, leave me a comment here or there, or email me at sewgive@gmail.com.

baking ingredients

2011-03-09T06:00:00.017-06:00

Homemade vanilla... yum! I used my Silhouette & vinyl to fancy up this bottle from the Crate&Barrel Outlet store.

What are the ingredients? Well, I bought Mexican vanilla beans a few months ago at a specialty cooking store. They fit pretty well in a (very well-cleaned out) Prego jar. I then poured in the Vodka. After letting it sit for a couple months, it was ready to use. This is a shot of my second batch I just started.

I think the original "recipe" said leave it sit for 6-8 weeks, and since I started it in February, my next batch should be ready by mid April.

We're also trying the same "experiment" with some mint leaves from our garden, harvested last fall. We're hoping to get some yummy mint flavoring! Anybody else have special ingredients they make in non-traditional ways?

peek-a-boo skirt

2011-03-08T06:00:00.008-06:00

Little Lizard King is another one of my favorite pattern shops. Her patterns are cute, easy to sew, and well written and photographed.
I bought this pattern before Christmas, and finally got around to doing it. She just released a couple more patterns - Ruffle Skirt & Georgia Dress. They're on my list too!!

Don't you love the bright florals? Bring on spring!!!

The pictures were taken at Garfield Park Conservatory in Chicago. oh my gorgeous. I can't wait to go back!

little bits & bags

2011-03-07T06:00:00.006-06:00

After I rearranged the house and put the craft room downstairs, we did a little rearranging of the playroom as well. We happily found a new place for the puppet tree. There were a few sets of little bits and pieces that needed a home - so they found one there too.

One bag holds the Toy Story set, one bag holds the Beauty & the Beast set, and one bag holds all our little Finger Puppets.

I serged the edges of the bag, folded over the top, and added a ribbon for a drawstring. Yay for organization!!!

a different kind of creation

2011-03-06T06:00:00.001-06:00

At the end of February, I took a trip with my husband, brother, and two other people from our church. We visited the mountains of western Virginia.

I love a foggy mountain morning.

I love a sunny mountain morning.

I pretty much love any kind of mountain morning.

We worked with Appalachia Service Project - a mission that is near and dear to my heart. I worked with them on week-long trips in high school, and spent two summers in college working for them. I also helped lead a couple of high school trips after I graduated. Then I got married, had kids, and found myself a little too stuck in suburbia!!! Time to change all that. My heart was calling me back to the mountains.

ASP's goal is to make homes in Appalachia warmer, safer, and drier. That took on a whole new meaning after it rained ALL DAY on Thursday. We were pouring a foundation for an addition onto his house - for a bathroom. And we had the luxury of going back to the center for a warm shower. {gulp}

I won't go into depth about all the things that concern me about life in Appalachia - substandard housing, Wal-Mart's effect on small towns, mountaintop removal, prescription drug abuse, and lack of quality health care. I will tell you about the amazing beauty of nature, resourcefulness in times of need, strength of families, the good that can be done when people care about each other, the honesty and openness that can be experienced when you choose to share a little bit of yourself.

At the beginning of the year I hinted at my new phrase... Love-Believe-Give-Live. This was part of my plan to put that into action. I don't know how the rest of the year will play out and where I will be led to give next. I am constantly trying to find ways that I can share what I believe and give what I can. What are some ways that you give?

animal matching

2011-03-04T06:00:00.001-06:00

I wanted to make a little fun something for an animal loving kid. Can you guess what's inside the bag?

30 pieces in the game - all cut at 4", sewn with a 1/4" seam. There is a thin layer of batting inside.

Yep - you guessed it! It's an animal matching game. I went through my stash, picked out a bunch of my favorites, and used the blue bag fabric for the backing.

Can you find a pair?

Enjoy the game L!

little mermaid

2011-03-03T13:55:00.003-06:00

One of my nieces happens to LOVE Little Mermaid. I put together this spring top for her.

I added some watery shimmery ric rac along the bottom edge. I love the sparkle!

It has an elastic back for a comfortable fit.

It needed a little something else - so I whipped up a pair of turquoise knit pants to match.

Happy Birthday, L!

pizza party

2011-02-13T20:10:00.039-06:00

We celebrated Conner's 6th birthday by having a few friends over to make pizzas. They each had their own choice of crust, and any toppings they wanted. It was a feast!

For dessert, they each decorated their own section of a cookie pizza. Sprinkles, marshmallows, and chocolate chips were delicious!!!

Each child got their own apron, paper hat, placemat, and napkin. They decorated their placemats & hats when they first got to the party. Each apron had their first initial embroidered on it with a tomato fabric.

We did it all again the next day with cousins & family. It was an exciting birthday weekend!!!
As many of you have heard, there was a little snow here in Illinois on February 1st-2nd. Conner figured it was the perfect birthday present!!

change of latitude

2011-01-21T06:00:00.074-06:00

SO - 5 days before Christmas I started moving my studio downstairs. {YES, I realize I'm crazy.} I finally have things {mostly} organized and picture worthy. I don't have nearly as much natural light because it is our basement, and there is only one small window. I'm working on lighting and how to take good pictures in the dark.
The books have been down there since we moved in - most of them are from my teaching days and from my childhood. However, I will own it. I LOVE children's books. I have a LOT of books. We have a good library in our town, but we rarely visit it because we hardly have time to read the books we do have! Anyway, back to the studio.
When we moved in we had some flooding issues and replaced the carpet with the foam squares. I love it, and think it will be nice bright fun flooring for the craft room.

The green chair is my "dreaming chair" - perfect for reading a book, reading a magazine, sketching, or working with the kids at their craft table. The quilt is one made by my grandma - it is poofy and warm and I LOVE it!!!

The kids craft table is in perfect view of my work space, but all their supplies are on their side. There are two plastic drawer storage units holding their supplies, and a cardboard box full of boxes, toilet paper tubes, and other fun recyclable bits perfect for random creations. I have two task lights by my cutting table and drawing table, and my sewing machine is at a right angle to the wall. Behind my tables is a shorter bookshelf to hold sewing books, business paperwork, and information for my sewing machine. Lots of other supplies are mixed in with the bookshelves on the far wall.

Behind my work table there is a ledge. On it sits different projects and works-in-progress. Above it is my shelf of ribbon. Underneath the ribbon shelf is a cork strip holding the order forms. Looks like I better get busy!!

My stash. Yeah. I better get busy sewing!!! There are more empty tubes, rolls of freezer paper and contact paper. There's also a few electronic components and speakers from when this used to be shelving for our TV room. Not everything is in its perfect spot yet... but electronic components are my husband's arena.

The last shot is just for fun - my collection of Sharpie markers sitting on my drawing table. I love Sharpies. Bright. Bold. So versatile. LOVE them.

I'm really happy with the set-up, and I feel like I'm on the brink of really getting going again. It's not necessarily the perfect set-up, I wish the walls weren't that weird textured stuff so I could paint them, storage isn't perfect, but it's MY space and I'll keep adding little touches to make it more creative and inspiring.
Color & inspiration - where do you find it?

silhouette & pizza parts

2011-01-12T06:00:00.001-06:00

I got a new toy for Christmas! I've seen them all over blog land and decided (after MUCH deliberation) that I would rather have a Silhouette than a Cricut. The selling point for me was the ability to make your own designs instead of buying the design cartridges.
I have used other people's Cricut machines, and have to say - I'm glad I made the decision I did.

I downloaded a few outlines of pizza ingredients, and let it do its thing!! {mushrooms, pepperoni, peppers, olives}

I set the kids loose with a glue stick and all the pieces. {cheese is just little strips of white paper I cut by hand} Then I added the YUM on top after.

Inside the card is a recipe that we're hoping some of friends will want to try! {phone number has been erased}

I'm looking forward to celebrating his 6th birthday with him! We'll be making our own pizzas & cookies - should be a messy, fun time!

how charming

2011-01-10T06:00:00.011-06:00

sing your favorite song - because what is life without music?

peace on earth. amen.

rock the boat - I wish I could have found a kayak, but this boat will have to do

sew what - it doesn't matter what you quilt, as long as you're sewing, right?

get dirty - out in the garden or in the tool shed!

bloom - always growing something

A few interchangeable charms for my aunt. I had fun picking out charms that related to something in her life, and trying to find funny sayings she'd appreciate.

teacher gifts

2011-01-09T06:00:00.008-06:00

Conner happily picked out the fabrics and beads for these different projects.
A red scarf and matching clutch for his teacher.
He also made her a red bracelet that he put in the clutch.

Then for the teacher aide he chose these purple fabrics & beads. I did the sewing, he strung the bracelet.

fashion design

2011-01-08T06:00:00.003-06:00

I made 5 kits for Christmas presents this year. Using my Sizzix BigKick dies I cut a bunch of foam and felt bodies, felt and paper outfits, foam hair and shoes. I added a small bottle of craft glue, a big handful of sequins, a few googly eyes, ribbon and tulle scraps, stickers, and a few pearls.
Hopefully the girls enjoy their time making some fun dolls for themselves!

roses are red (and pink and white)

2011-01-07T06:00:00.005-06:00

and lined with minkee! This coat is an embroidered corduroy and specially covered buttons.

My third niece got this coat for Christmas.

seeing spots

2011-01-06T06:00:00.005-06:00

Another niece got this ruffly polka dot jumper. I covered the buttons in minkee and used a bright ribbon on the shoulder strap.

velveteen

2011-01-05T06:00:00.007-06:00

My niece needed a special dress for Christmas and this is what her mom and I dreamed up.
The bodice is velveteen (nearly impossible to sew with!) and lined with muslin.
I don't know the name for the skirt fabric, but it's a fancy cream fabric, kind of stiff, and covered with flocked flowers.
The bow at the back is black satin.

2011

2011-01-04T22:05:00.000-06:00

It's been a crazy two months. Let's recap:
-craft show
-You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown (played keyboard in the pit, the show was two weekends)
-week long trip to North Carolina (Thanksgiving with my brother!)
-Christmas presents (some still in progress)
-Christmas orders
-rearranging my living room, play room, and craft room (pics to come, I promise)
-trip to Michigan (Christmas with aunts, uncles, cousins)
-lots of overtime for my husband

So - here I am. I made it to January, and I've been doing a lot of thinking about what I want 2011 to look like. Last year I picked a word and this year, I've done that too. But more than just a word, I have a phrase that hopefully signifies my new outlook on life.

In my kid's playroom, I have three words painted on the wall - Live Laugh Love. Next to them are three picture frames, each with a picture signifying it. As much as those three words are important to me, I believe there is so much more to life... so my new phrase is "Love-Believe-Give-Live". Not that I don't want to laugh a little along the way too, but I just think that it is important to believe in something and to give what you can when you can.
I'm not sure how much I'll be sharing here in this space, but my life is definitely headed down another path.

So, my word for the year is: contentment.
Not everything was fulfilled last year as I may have wanted it to be. So my goal this year is to understand that the control freak inside of me needs to chill out and be content!!! I have so much to be thankful for, and happiness and contentment is waiting for me. I'm not trying to just maintain or be complacent, but find contentment in my life.

What does the new year hold for you?

fall coat

2010-11-04T06:00:00.001-05:00

This is my newest creation - "Brooke's Coat" from Olabelhe Designs.

A couple details - flannel button loops, covered buttons (my son thought that was the coolest project!), and flannel lined bodice. The outside of the coat is cream chenille.

Check out more at Olabelhe!

pleated skirts

2010-11-03T14:11:00.000-05:00

I tried out a new (to me) pattern for a pleated skirt.

It was a lot of fun to play with my fabric stash!!!

Check out Little Lizard King for this skirt and some of her other cute patterns!

70 Miles West

2010-11-01T06:00:00.003-05:00

You don't need to pull out a map, just check out my sister-in-law's blog here.

She is a kindred spirit and full of creativity!!! Her "what's in a name" post says it all. She is starting an adventure of jewelry, hair clips, and card making and I hope you'll join me in wishing her luck.

Check out her Flickr photostream too - she has some really great decorating ideas. Her playroom is so much fun! (for some reason I can't get the picture to link here)

{hope your first craft show went well, E!}

boo!!!! {don't be scared!}

2010-10-31T06:00:00.020-05:00

Introducing Sully & Boo {from Monsters Inc.}

The pictures of both kids were taken on Friday before the school party.
The pictures of Conner alone were taken a little earlier in the week before I shortened the horns and added the claws on the hands and feet.

Her outfit is just a large tee & pants from Old Navy. I knew she wouldn't put up with the whole expanded Boo costume (when she is being smuggled around the factory) so we just went with the Boo pajamas, put her hair in pigtails & called her Boo. It's her favorite word to say right now!

Conner's costume was a little more work. I took turquoise fuzzy fleece and appliqued purple fuzzy fleece spots all over it. I used the wrong side of the fabric for the contrast tummy panel. It was a "simple" monster pattern that I adapted for our purposes (added the horns, changed the tail shape, added extra scales on the back).

His gray felt scales went down the hood, down the back seam, and tail. I also added some claws on the feet and hands (which you can see better in the last picture). The pattern didn't call for it, but I added elastic straps to go under his feet as well.

The sweetest Monster I know...

Happy Halloween to everyone!

indian corn

2010-10-13T06:00:00.024-05:00

I have a couple beaded Indian corns in my fall box (craft project from when I taught), and Conner wanted to try making his own. We grabbed some beads, pipe cleaners, and corn husks from the uncle's farm. When I taught I used raffia instead of corn husks and they turn out just as cute!

Thread the beads on the pipe cleaner. Make sure to twist a little extra around the first one so they don't all slide off.

Take a few pieces of corn husk and twist them on top. Then enjoy being a scarecrow or making silly faces at your mom!

sorting apples

2010-10-12T06:00:00.001-05:00

We got busy with some Sculpey clay and made ourselves a bunch of mini-apples. The red and yellow clay blocks were a lot harder than the green. Not having had a lot of experience with Sculpey, I was a little disappointed! It made it much more difficult to make the apples - that's why there's less yellow and red ones. I mixed together red, yellow and green bits until I got a brown I liked for the stem.

We baked them. I love the swirl one!!!

Then we sorted, counted, arranged, improved our math skills and played!

{Thanks Roots & Wings for the idea.}

tool quilt

2010-10-05T06:00:00.000-05:00

I realized I never showed off my mom's handiwork! She made this fun quilt for Conner using a kit she bought while on vacation. Each square is a different tool. She even embroidered his name on the toolbox square.

Isn't it fun and bright and colorful?

Just a little close-up of the borders.

Thanks again, Mom! You know Conner loves it!!! He rotates between the tool quilt and the rock star quilt, sometimes even uses both at the same time.

caramel apple cupcakes

2010-10-04T06:00:00.044-05:00

Have you ever had Caramel Apple Hershey's Kisses? Have you ever tried Duncan Hines Caramel Cake? They're the special ingredients for my latest experiment!
Grab some of your own and make something delicious...

There are so many reasons I'm not a food blogger. Here's one.
If I was a fancy baker or food blogger, I would know you should put your batter in first before you put something in your cupcake. Even if unwrapping the kisses and putting them in their spots keeps the kids occupied while you mix the batter.

I would know not to cut the tip quite so large, and that way I would make skinnier, more realistic looking trees that didn't fall over two seconds after I took the picture. (got the tree idea from here)
I did find a great Caramel Buttercream Icing though - and was pretty happy with how it turned out!

Even if I still have a lot to learn, I do know that the kitchen smelled wonderful, the cupcakes tasted delicious, and the kids and I had fun baking together!
What are you making this fall for a special treat?

go team!!!!

2010-09-27T10:15:00.000-05:00

Conner is on a soccer team this fall. It means one or two nights a week at a practice and a Saturday morning game. It gives the little siblings and parents lots of time to chat on the sidelines!
Abby made a new friend - and they played together happily for a while.

I was using my husband's camera which I'm not used to yet. Sorry it's a little out of focus.

Her little friend E was just the right size for the GO TEAM soccer dress. She's concentrating so hard in this picture - too cute!

Nevermind that the game was behind her, she was still cheering for her big brother - I'm sure.

Here's mom's picture taken at home. What a doll.

Thanks A for sharing your adorable daughter! Thanks E for modeling!

my new purse

2010-09-23T14:23:00.001-05:00

Check out my new purse - guess what? It's blue! If it looks familiar, I made a smaller version for my mom here. It's fully lined with white dotted fabric & the darker blue floral.

It has lots of pockets. The pattern calls for two large pockets on the inside. I chose to sew one pocket into three sections and the other pocket into two sections. They're perfect for pens, chocolate bars, sunglasses, notepads, Matchbox cars and numerous other goodies.

I put two key fobs on one side, and two circular key rings on the other side. You can never have too many ways to organize!

Because I'm dorky like that, I made myself a little cell phone cozy. I just wanted to something to keep it from getting scratched in the big cavern. I suppose I could have just used one of the side pockets, but I wanted to keep those open for something else!

The top has a zipper - it's kind of a pain to attach it to the lining, but I'm glad it's there. If I get sick of it, I can always rip it out and put in magnetic snaps.

There are two outside pockets as well (one on each side).

One more shot against my bedroom wall. {Have I mentioned I like blue?}

{edited to add.... the original pattern is McCalls 5822}

{entered in Lemon Squeezy Home's Purse Week Contest - go check out all the great entries, get inspired, and vote if you would like!}

three sisters

2010-09-22T06:00:00.012-05:00

Three sisters enjoying their sibling shirts (originally blogged about here).

I made the older sisters matching pinafores, and the baby got a matching onesie dress.

Aren't they adorable?

so sweet.

Thanks to Megan for her photography skills, and to Lisa for sharing her kids! (Lisa also makes bows so check her out!)

pouches and bags

2010-09-21T15:04:00.000-05:00

I know I've been missing for a little while here in blog land. There are lots of reasons, none of them blog-worthy. So let's just see if I can become more regular again!!!

Here are a couple little things I've been working on....

This little ruffled clutch from a Noodlehead tutorial came together so quickly and easily... even though there was a zipper involved!!! It's a birthday present for a friend. I think a few more may be in the works.

I also made a couple more pencil cases from Lier's Sew Mama Sew tutorial.

Do I dare say I'm getting comfortable with zippers? Yikes! I'm not sure what I'm going to do with this one yet, but Christmas is coming...I'm sure it will find a good home!

My son's already claimed this for some of his treasures, but then he saw some guitar fabric so that may be next in line!

I've got a bunch of fabrics picked out and in the wings waiting to be sewn together. They'll be making an appearance (hopefully) in the next week or two as clutches or cases. I've got to stock up on more zippers now!!!

featured and FALL!

2010-09-03T14:41:00.000-05:00

Quick note - check out my feature on Little Lizard King. She featured my pink & purple pinafore amidst some of her other customer creations. I am in the midst of some great company - there's some other really cute outfits there. She has a lot of patterns that I'm excited to try out!

I told you I would get busy with some fall clothes - so here we go!
We did a little photo shoot outside because the weather was finally cooperating with fall clothing!!! It's been so hot, humid and rainy that we haven't been able to get anything good outside!

This first one is an upcycled knit project using the Little Blue Boo Sienna Dress, long sleeved version. I don't really love it like I thought I would, so I'm trying to figure out what to do. I am pretty sure the big sleeves have to go - I like skinnier sleeves better. The whole top just looks so bulky and the bottom so skinny. I think I need to tighten up the top a little. (Not every dress is a success!) Maybe I'll try some freezer paper stencil pumpkin face on the orange and a ruffle on the bottom?

This is another "Annikka's Dress" by Olabelhe designs. The first time I sewed this pattern it was (surprisingly) blue. However, I am actually kind of enjoying the fall colors on this one!

I chose a dark brown with black swirls for the arms & underskirt, a printed orange on orange for the bodice & cuffs, and a leafy print for the overskirt.

She had been looking at the pumpkins in our garden/weed patch and was ready to go back inside! It was windy this morning!

As she was walking up the steps I realized I'm going to have to teach her long dress on steps etiquette - she stepped on it a couple times! I also realized I'm going to have to find her some more tights that fit!!!

Another dress I finished up this week was a long-sleeved version of Patty Young's "Abigail" dress. I've gotten a lot of compliments on the short-sleeved version, and wanted her to have one for fall/winter too.

Her knits are a little pricey (worth it, but still pricey) so for this long-sleeved dress I used her dots & a black floral knit from Joann's. I'm really happy with how they went together.

Abby's getting quite good at posing by the tree in the front yard. Today she was a less somber model - she happily spun around numerous times and grinned her cheesy little had off.

Hope you all have a relaxing Labor Day weekend! I've got a couple not-as-exciting things to finish up, but hopefully will have a little time for fun sewing too in the midst of family time! What are you doing with your weekend?

one last summer fling

2010-08-31T06:00:00.002-05:00

Before I get into all the fall sewing that will (hopefully) be happening now that I have my afternoons back, I wanted to make one last summer outfit.

I got a Little Lizard King pattern in July. I thought it was so ruffly and cute. I got a cute pink floral seersucker and a matching purple seersucker with white butterflies on it. Since it's late in the summer I decided to line it so she can wear it with a tee and jeans this fall. Don't you love how my model *had* to have her green lizard sunglasses on her head? What a superstar. (Oh, and by the way - I am so excited that she sat still long enough to have two french braids put in!)

I found this pattern to be so easy to use - well written and full of helpful photographs. The size I used was 2T/3T - and I think my 2Twidth and 3Tlength model will be able to wear it next spring as well. She's so skinny that it's tied pretty tight in the back and is still a little baggy.
I'm excited to give another one of her patterns a try!

why is it I can never get a nice bow on the back of her dresses?!

truck cards

2010-08-27T06:00:00.016-05:00

I took the stamps and finally made them into cards. They're not anything fancy, but I'm just glad I did something with the stamps.

This is my favorite one.

parkinson's quilt project

2010-08-26T14:30:00.001-05:00

My Aunt Nancy {of beautiful ocean quilt fame} and I have been collaborating on something special. This is my portion. I actually made two - one to send away to be showcased, and one for my Aunt Marge to keep.

Her photo was printed on fabric you can run through the printer, and then mounted on purple fabric and edged in yellow thread because those are the colors of the university she taught at. The fabric used for parts of the brain are symbolic of things important to her.

My Aunt Nancy took the square that I made and added a border of prints and signature squares. She gathered signatures from family & friends, as well as a paw print from her dog. She then resized and combined the names as needed, printed them on fabric, and added print fabrics in between the names. When she could she tried to pick special print fabrics that matched up with interests of the people who signed the squares.
Here is the finished quilt square:

{if you're paying close attention you may notice a few little differences. The one on top was sent to her to keep, the one in the bottom is the one already sent off to the Quilt Project people. I didn't photograph it myself because I was in such a hurry to get it sent on to my aunt for her to add her part. Deadlines...ugh.}

My Aunt Nancy wrote this up about her when she submitted it to the PDF Quilt project:
"This quilt square is submitted to honor Marjorie E. Anderson, Ph.D., for her research on the basal ganglia, the portion of the brain which affects movement and is associated with Parkinson’s disease. Dr. Anderson was a professor of neurophysiology from 1971-2007 at the University of Washington in Seattle, and her research contributed to the deep brain stimulation procedures now being used to control the tremors often associated with Parkinson’s disease. Ironically, in 2003, Dr. Anderson was also diagnosed with this disease. The signatures of Dr. Anderson’s family, friends, and colleagues surround the center square to pay tribute to her research which benefits all those diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, and to show their support as she now lives with this disease. The fabrics chosen to represent the brain not only illustrate Dr. Anderson’s history and personal interests, but also are located in the portion of the brain associated with that activity."

If you'd like to learn more about the Parkinson's Quilt Project go to Facebook or their web site.

a kindergartener's desk

2010-08-25T20:57:00.000-05:00

The next big milestone has reached our house - Conner started kindergarten today!!!! I don't remember who had this idea, but they had their kids write what they wanted to be when they grew up (in their own handwriting) and then write their names. When he got home, I had him put his nametag on the back, and we wrote down a couple special memories (the name of the book his teacher read, the name of his friend he met at his table, and the snack he ate). I also traced his hand and measured how tall he was and wrote it down. It will go in his memory box, and if I'm lucky I'll remember to do this every year.

When he came home, he found something new in his room - his very own desk!!!! He's been asking for one for a while, and this just seemed like the right time. After Abby & I got home from dropping him off, I put the desk and chair in his room (that had been hiding in the crawlspace waiting). I added some of his favorite supplies in the little cubbies - a glue stick, tape, pencil sharpener, eraser, and scissors. In some plastic jars inside I put pencils, markers, and colored pencils. I also included a couple different note pads and a "sketch diary" for his creations. He has been so artistic lately, and I am happy to encourage that as much as I can.

The best part is the story behind the desk - it used to be my Grama's when she was little. My grandfather refinished it and my mom played at it as a kid. I also used it as a child after the hinge was fixed. I am now beyond excited for the desk to get its fourth generation of use!!!

sunflowers

2010-08-24T06:00:00.002-05:00

I planted some sunflower seeds this spring and hoped for the best. I'd say it worked out pretty well! We've enjoyed watching the goldfinches and chipmunks play in them!

Conner has been loving the sunflowers so much, that he decided to make some of his own using his new markers. He added the sticks on the bottom himself. Some of them were supposed to go to his cousins for their gardens, and some of them have a hole cut in them and they are now sunflower masks.

Next on our list is harvesting the seeds and roasting them!!!!

pencil case

2010-08-23T06:00:00.001-05:00

Using LiEr's Sew Mama Sew tutorial, I made a pencil case for my preschool-bound niece. I didn't make my own piping, I just used store-bought white piping. I also didn't use the interfacing like she suggested, but I think it turned out just right for my niece!

I filled the case up with Crayola twistables, got her a pad of paper, and put it all in her newly personalized backpack. She's ready for preschool now! Best wishes, G.

playhouse - park

2010-08-13T06:00:00.002-05:00

Welcome to the park!

There are animals hiding in the tree - a hand-embroidered squirrel and owl.

They've been stocking up on acorns!

There are lots of leaves for every season, apple blossoms, and apples that have already fallen from the tree.

Be sure to pick a couple flowers while you're there! They are felt flowers with pipe cleaner stems. They have felt or bead embellishments on each of them.

playhouse - grocery store

2010-08-12T06:00:00.000-05:00

The grocery store is next.

The great part is you could include all sorts of other fun felt foods from a play kitchen. I realized as I was downloading the pictures that there was a stray orange that is not on the shelf. Oops :) The yummy chocolate donut is covered in vanilla frosting and lots of sprinkles (seed beads).

We made a box of mac & cheese and kept it in the grocery cart!

We included a lot of fruit to be weighed in the scale - bananas, apples, oranges, and grapes.

We also made sure to include some refrigerated goods - Orange Juice, Milk and butter.

My only problem is I keep on seeing more great felt food tutorials and I just want to keep filling up the grocery basket!

playhouse - library

2010-08-11T06:00:00.000-05:00

On to the library!!

Take a peek in or out the window! Then use the letters to write a message on the white book under the window.

The bookshelves are full of good books. A couple of them were made using glued on felt pieces, and a couple of the books were printed on fabric and sewed on felt. They each have cardboard insides to help them stay sturdy through lots of useage, and velcro squares on back to stay on the bookshelf.

What book would you like to check out today? I'm sure they could be returned in the mail slot!

The fanciest book of all got a little extra special trim.

playhouse - post office

2010-08-10T06:00:00.001-05:00

Next stop - the post office.

This is the side of the playhouse with the entrance. It is a dark blue felt with a white roll-up door. There are red ribbons to tie it up. To the right is a streetlight over a mailbox. The mailbox opens and closes with a button and elastic closure on top.

There are three hand-embroidered envelopes ready to be mailed. Although the Velcro on back isn't as important on this item as others, we Velcroed each envelope to be consistent.

playhouse - roads

2010-08-09T06:00:00.003-05:00

I am declaring this Playhouse Week!!!
My church craft group has been working for a LONG time on a special project for our craft show in November. Now that it's all done, I'm ready to share it with you.
Because there are so many special parts to share, I'm going to share a different side each day.
There are a few other fabulous, creative women who worked hard to make it what it is - so thank you Patti, Kristina, Nancy, Dagny, Julie and Mary!

The top of the house is the perfect place to begin!
We tried to use parts of our town for inspiration - so we started with the downtown area. It has a parking garage, river, sidewalk and covered bridge. We made sure to measure parking spots to fit Matchbox cars perfectly. I could definitely see lots of other little toy animals & people making appearances along the riverfront and in the grassy green park area nearby!

growing with eric carle

2010-08-06T06:00:00.001-05:00

My kids have spent a lot of time in the church nursery. One of the nursery workers just had a little baby girl a couple weeks ago. One of the other nursery workers wanted me to make something special for her using some Very Hungry Caterpillar fabric. So I got to work brainstorming what to do.

The growth chart was a perfect starting point. I used a solid yellow for the back & hanging tabs, and used the solid yellow to make the numbers. Since her daughter's name starts with V, as does her older son, I made two V's with pins on the back to move up as the kids grow.

I used the other panels to make pillows for her. I used the same yellow backing, and then red piping around the edge of caterpillar. I used bright yellow piping around the sun panel.

Congrats F on the new baby! Can't wait to meet her!

featured

2010-08-05T14:01:00.000-05:00

I was featured in two different ArtFire collections recently!

My tie covered with playing cards made it into the "Poker Face" collection. Although I am not really a poker gal - I can appreciate the workmanship in some of the items! (I'm more of a cribbage player).

My bodysuit with a sock monkey made it into the "Monkey Business" collection. How cute is the little kid in the monkey hat?!

Thanks for the support. I feel honored to be amongst such great stuff!

turquoise trucks

2010-08-03T06:00:00.002-05:00

I have a thing for turquoise vintage trucks. I love them. Not at all practical for a non-mechanic, suburban mother of two. But in my dream world, I would live on a farm and drive a turquoise truck into town. Everybody might be thinking "here comes the crazy crafty lady from the farm just out of town" but I don't care - it's my dream and it seems just right.
Like for example...

{photo from Flickr}

Or this one...

{photo credit}

This one's pretty much my favorite with the rack on back too!!!

{photo from Flickr}

Ford - Chevy - Dodge - I'm not picky. I suppose I should say Dodge because that's where my Grandfather worked for many years. But if someone's planning on fixing up a turquoise truck for me - I'm not picky about what kind it is! I want one of those big white skinny steering wheels, and I'll even re-learn how to drive stick if I have to. Just pretty please, let's add in some AC and an iPod hookup?

My sister-in-law had a Stampin' Up party, and when I saw the truck set, I just had to get it! It comes with all sorts of things to put in the back of the truck, and different sayings to use when making a card. You can see I was playing around with what I should haul. I did make a purple truck for my Halloween pumpkin truck. I think turquoise trucks are more fun, I just knew that I had a bunch of purple and orange Halloween papers to use with it.

I stamped it with the "seaglass" Color Box ink, embossed it with clear powder, added some "cerulean" Color Box ink flowers, and then used my Crayola twistables to color it in. I need to pay a little better attention to spacing - I wish the flowers and hearts were a little closer to the truck bed. In my defense, they were the first two I did.

These apples were actually from another Stampin' Up set and are made to go in a basket. I love apples though, and in my dream farm I'm sure there would be apple trees!
One of the stamps is a girl and one is a boy so you can make drivers for your truck. Now that I'm typing this up, I kind of think it'd be funny to do one with me driving and the kids in the back. Ha.

Other options (in my stamp sets) for the truck - balls of yarn, Easter eggs, presents, puppies, ornaments, and furniture for moving. I think this will be tons of fun!

What's your favorite color for a pick-up truck? What would you haul into town? (and do you think I'll ever actually make these into cards?)

happy birthday - and a deck re-vamp

2010-08-01T21:35:00.003-05:00

Happy Birthday to my HOT husband. {No, seriously - it gets above 72 and he's sweating. So, basically all summer in Illinois!}

He's been busy this past week working on re-vamping our deck. It's been just a pretty useless skinny weird deck. We kept the hammock on it, but I never felt like I could sit on the hammock while the kids played because there are bushes around the edge of the deck, and it's up kind of high.
We also had a birthday/get-the-friends-and-family-together party planned for Saturday night, so we decided it was time to make some changes. We started by expanding the top railing from being a 5/4x6 decking board into a double wide 2x6 "bar". We (and I really do mean we - I helped!) shimmed, screwed, leveled and maneuvered those boards into submission. It's a beautiful serving counter for a party, and when we get some stools (eventually) it will be a perfect place to sit and eat.

Then we cut down one of the bushes and cut out part of the railing and added a second set of stairs.
Just so you get a little better understanding - our house is a split level, and the deck is off an "extra" room that was added to the back of the split level before we bought it. The doors from the back room are on the left side, and there are steps to a concrete patio. However, now you can turn left when you exit the house, go around the corner and down the brand new stairs!
{Once again, I do mean we. I trimmed the bush, he got out the chainsaw. That's when the first picture was taken. Then I measured the stringers, he screwed and bolted parts of it. We even got Conner in on the fun of using the air ratchet a couple times, and he used a mallet to get some of the bolts in. So, it really was a family effort. Shawn did most of the heavy duty stuff though and worked some late nights covered in bug spray. He was working his tail off for his birthday!}
We made sure to include a lower railing for the kids, and we hung some rope light all the way around the deck under the bar and down the stairs.

On party day I hung the bunting & the star. The star will stay outside, the bunting's getting saved for our next picnic. I used denim & novelty fabrics, my wavy rotary cutter, and yellow ribbon. Quick and easy! {some of the novelty fabrics - watermelon, cherries, fried chicken, fruit punch, and strawberries - all stuff from my stash}

We had a great party - 40+ people grilled out, ate each other's potluck dishes, made Smores, and had fun pushing each other's kids on the swings. We can't wait to do it again next year!!!

hungry?

2010-07-28T15:22:00.001-05:00

Just 3 basic colors of Model Magic, 1 hour, and we've got a meal fit for a pig!! (We did use a little black here and there.) the pig's eyes are google eyes - we don't have any white anyway.

You will see bananas, oranges, apples, corn on the cob, grapes, watermelon, and broccoli. There's also a "bale of hay" to the side. It's the same light tan color as the pig. It's been fun mixing colors to get what we want! Although I did most of them first, the broccoli is all Conner's inspiration.

Another naptime well-spent with the big kid! I'm looking forward to when it dries and we can really play with it.
(And as I've been writing this he's decided to make a bowl & plate for him to eat out of. Time to explain about slop buckets and troughs....)

What are you hungry for?

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

vogue knit put to good use

2010-07-22T06:00:00.000-05:00

I've been trying to get more practice with knits, so I got Dana's Warhol dress pattern and got busy. You could easily use an adult tshirt, I wanted to use some more of my new knit fabric.

Once again, it was a new pattern and I just dug in rather than measuring my darling model. So, lesson learned (for now at least). Dana's pattern has a size 3/4 and a size 6-12 months, neither of which would fit Abby. So I tried to just aim for somewhere in the middle. I'm happy with the length and sizing overall, I just wish I had tried it on her before I sewed the yoke into place. It's a little looser & lower cut than I would have liked.

She may not get much wear out of it this summer, however, it will transition easily to fall/winter with a tee or turtleneck underneath and to next summer as a tunic. It would be easy enough to just cut it shorter for a tunic or shirt length if I was to make another one. (which I probably will because I have a green striped knit and some other stuff to work with!)
As I'm looking at these pictures, I realized I need to do a better shoulder bow... next time.

I've been wanting to try some fabric paint, and Dana includes tips on how to do that, so we'll see what I can come up with! Since it's such a simple pattern it's also easy to do an applique or something on it.

my growing girl & her latest photo shoot

2010-07-21T06:00:00.001-05:00

We took some more pictures of her in her dresses now that they're finally fitting her!
Here she is in her "Peyton's Pinafore" from Olabelhe Designs. It was the first pattern I tested for her about a year ago.

It's a size 3 and has a little wiggle room, but not much. Time to get her into some more of Dawn's dresses!!!!

Here she is in her Rodeo dress - it was one of my first serging attempts. I'm happy with how it turned out.

It's such a great playdress - comfy knits from Daddy's old tshirts, and I don't care how dirty it gets!!!

patty young knits

2010-07-20T06:00:00.002-05:00

I splurged and bought some knits from Patty Young's latest collection. I went for turquoises of course! They are a nice sturdy knit in bright beautiful colors and designs. And I got her Abigail dress/shirt pattern.
This is a 3T - a little big on Abby maybe, but I'm sure the dress will last into the fall & maybe even early next spring.

I love how easily it came together with my serger. Because of the numerous gores, I had to be organized when I laid it out and put it together. It lends itself to so many different looks too because it comes in short and long sleeve, and dress and shirt length.

The neckband and sleeve bands didn't lay totally flat but that's more of my serger issues and still figuring it out.
I had fun rolling the bottom hem - the lettuce look makes it so twirly! It was a pretty windy day, so the dress was doing its own twirling. (I think she looks so serious in these pictures - kind of funny. It was about 90 degrees and 80% humidity though, so the breeze made it barely bearable. She's probably thinking - seriously mommy, can't I just go sit in the shade and drink my water and eat M&Ms???)

I did get some pinks too so I might be making her a long-sleeved shirt for fall. We'll see. Right now the pile of knits is sitting on the shelf looking pretty.

towers up!

2010-07-19T06:00:00.000-05:00

This is a fun math game that I used to play with my kids all the time when I taught 1st and 2nd grade. I've been wanting to do a few more math-related things with Conner this summer, and when I saw foam cubes & dice at Target in the dollar section, I knew just what to do!
(If you want to play along - you'll need a piece of graph paper, 2 dot die, and 88 little cubes)

I glued some of the cubes together into stacks of 2-3-4 and 5. I left some of the blocks single. For my version, I used a total of 88 cubes. I suppose if you just want to play with regular blocks that's fine, it's just easier if the blocks are stuck together.
Then I got out the graph paper and made a bunch of squares. I then labeled the squares with 1-2-3-4-5.

You will also need 2 dice. I just play it with one game board, and we take turns rolling the die. Whatever number you get is how many blocks you take away. So - say you roll a 3 and a 5. You can take away a tower with 5 blocks and another one with 3 blocks. OR you can take away two towers that are 4 blocks high. Just whatever you do, you can't take the towers apart. The goal is to not end up with a single cube left on the board! When you have cleared the board, you can play it in reverse by rolling the dice to get all the pieces set back up.

He was playing with a friend the other day, and it evolved into a stacking/building game when they were done counting and playing. They came up with some interesting towers and buildings! When they were all done, it all stores easily in a shoebox! (I can't really explain the napkin bandana. It's his thing lately. He's 5. whatever.)

If you have any questions about how to play, let me know - otherwise - happy counting and building!

sewing for a growing girl!

2010-07-16T06:00:00.000-05:00

I sewed this outfit a LONG time ago - it's the outfit I photographed for my header. She finally fits in it! Yay! (ignore the weeds)

The top's straps were a little long, so I just folded them up with a button at the shoulder. Other than that, a perfect fit! There's a little ricrac at the hem of the skirt too.

i am sewing... honest!

2010-07-15T08:00:00.026-05:00

I've been definitely going into withdrawal this summer... my crafting time has significantly changed without my son being in school! I did take a small altering job too - so time has been taken with that, but it's not exactly blogworthy.
However - a girl's gotta sew!!! So I figured where better to start than another Olabelhe dress. This is Sabrina - a short sleeved dress with a two-layer skirt.

I just thought this was such a beautiful bright floral fabric so I went for it. I'm not sure it's totally working with this style dress - but I had fun with it. It also has ties at the waist, but with this busy fabric the green and blue almost blends in. The bodice lining, waist ties, armbands, and bottom skirt are all a green and blue swirly leafy fabric.

Also - my hard-to-photograph 3 year old niece finally let herself get photographed (thanks E!). Isn't she cute?

vogue

2010-07-14T21:14:00.000-05:00

The kids and I went on a field trip of sorts on Tuesday. You may remember our summer list - pretty much full of stuff that is perfect for the kids. Well, I might have just had to sneak in one activity for Mommy on the list. hee hee.... a trip to a *special* fabric store. It's about an hour away from us so we packed our lunches, a bag of books and toys, and hit the road.

Vogue Fabrics is HUGE. This is just part of one of their 4 aisles in the cotton/ voile/ knit room. They have a bridal/fancy fabric (menswear, taffeta, etc) room, a home dec room, a sewing machine room, a notions room - and one other small room that I don't even remember what exactly was in there. I was like a kid in a candy store, except I had two kids who WEREN'T in a candy store, and technically weren't supposed to eat or drink anything in there. Hadn't thought of that when I packed water bottles and pretzels to occupy them in the store. ahem. I think it's obvious I would have enjoyed a more leisurely stroll through the store.

Check out a few of their beautiful trims! (sorry - these are iPhone pics so they're not the greatest. Go to their website if you want a better tour.)
I ended up with a piece of oilcloth, a few cute canvas pieces for bags, and a couple striped knits that I have plans for... now if only I had time to actually get busy! OH, best of all - that was the store in a suburb on the north side of Chicago. I guess there's another one on the south side, sort of near where my dad works. Hmmm..... I think I've got plans for another day! They'll have different knits and goodies, right?

What's your dream summer field trip for YOU?

science experiment

2010-07-08T22:30:00.001-05:00

Conner got a Totally Funky Science kit for Christmas, and it's been sitting on the shelf waiting for the right opportunity. This summer has been the time! Since we all know I haven't been sewing much in the afternoons (with him not being at school) that leaves some great one-on-one time for us.
ok... maybe not always great. But we're trying!
The kit is full of a lot of basic stuff (flour, baking soda, cornstarch, salt) and a few fun things like red cabbage juice powder, citric acid and polyacrylamide crystals. It also has some little measuring spoons, mixing cups, and a dropper.
We've been playing with it according to their directions and made some beautiful crystals in a test tube. Today he had a friend over and we adapted their directions a little so as not to use the special supplies all up.

It's baking soda, lemon juice, and a bunch of different food coloring. Conner calls it "Fireworks" because it's fizzy and has so many colors. It was a lot of fun!!! All we did was pour a pile of baking soda on the plate, put drops of food coloring around the pile, and then dropped lemon juice on it.

baseball... a family tradition

2010-07-07T22:28:00.000-05:00

We don't spend a lot of our time watching TV. That means the kids haven't really watched many baseball, soccer or football games. However, my brother- that's a different story! He LOVES baseball above all others, but will watch anything he can. Even better if it's in person. In fact, he loves baseball so much that he spends some of his vacation time each year road-tripping it to as many different minor and major league games as he can. Earlier this year he traveled around the southern US - and this week he's traveling around Michigan. We spent the weekend with him (and numerous other family members) and had the opportunity to go to a baseball game in Kalamazoo. It was the kid's first baseball game and they loved it for a little while! Conner took his baseball glove, hoping for a foul ball of course (and because Uncle Matt had his). He got his glove signed by the mascot, and I think that was the highlight of the game for him. There was a home run, but he was in the bathroom then. The game was on the 4th, so we enjoyed music & fireworks after the game too!

If you want to check out his blog it's kind of an interesting tour of the baseball fields and some of the little slices of Americana he's found along the way. He gets a baseball hat at every park too - his collection is getting pretty impressive!

Since my brother lives so far away, we don't get to see him as often as I would like - and we were talking a lot about how we were going to see him on this trip and go to the baseball game. We've been following his blog of course, and talking about all the places my brother goes. Conner decided he wanted to write a book for Uncle Matt. We took some computer paper, folded it in half, stapled it, and he started dictating. I only changed one or two little phrases so they would make sense to my brother. Otherwise, it's all his language. I'm sure he could have written some of it, but I knew we had a short amount of time to get it done before we were leaving, and I was more concerned about him enjoying the process and putting his effort into pictures. Writing isn't quite relaxing for him yet.

The book is titled "Cubs Fans" and talks about how the two of them are Cubs fans, how they talk about baseball, and have Cubs hats. I just love how hard he was concentrating as he was illustrating it!

Do you have any special baseball memories?

deacon ordination

2010-07-01T14:37:00.000-05:00

The Minister of Christian Education at our church recently became ordained as a Deacon in the United Methodist Church. I was commissioned to make her a Deacon stole.

She is *a bit* on the petite side, so a store-bought stole doesn't fit her. (Like so petite I'm probably going to end up taking 10 inches off the one she bought!) She wanted a green "everyday" stole for the longest season of the Christian year, but loved the idea of having the whole rainbow showing. So we decided on a patchwork style, with a majority of it being green. It was also important to her that the Deacon symbol - the black cross with red flame - was included. You can see it just below the hip.

She was ok with a little "bling" so I included some shimmery fabrics and cottons with a little sparkle on them. I included numerous textured fabrics (home dec weight, velveteens, polyesters, whatever I could find!) to add even more to this beautiful rainbow patchwork. She didn't want anything dangling off because she was worried kids would be grabbing at it during Children's Time. Unfortunately for her my son was pretty interested in touching all the fabrics as I was making it! ;)

You can see a little green strap at her hip that holds the front and back pieces together. There are many ways to do that part (snaps, clips, buttons, ropes/tassels) but we decided that just a permanent fabric piece would do the job. It can even hold her microphone clip if necessary!
Each square started off at 1-1/2" so the finished stole is approximately 4" across. I used a light suede-y feeling fabric for the back, interfacing to help it keep its shape, and piping at the edges. The back is an exact replica of the front except for the way the angle was cut at the hip. Ha...ask me how I know that. ahem. The deacon cross is appliqued on the front and the back.

Congratulations, B! May the stole serve you well for many years of ministry!

birthday dress part 4

2010-06-24T07:00:00.003-05:00

Conner's birthday is in February, and in each of the following months we celebrate one girl's birthday a month. You may remember dresses for March's Tinkerbell, April's ladybug, and May's Minnie. (They each got matching purses too.

This June we finished the cousin birthday celebrations with a Princess. Being the typical little 3-year old that she is, she wasn't really in the mood to model during the party - she was more interested in running around with her cousins. So, for now - this is the picture of the dress. Hopefully I'll have a cute picture of her in it soon.

Belle is my favorite princess so I picked some yellows for her special dress.

It's the Olivia Paige dress designed by Samantha of The Handmade Dress.

I also made her a matching purse and included some hair clips, hair ties, and a Belle necklace.
Happy 3rd Birthday, G!

just keep swimming...

2010-06-21T07:00:00.003-05:00

I've been spending some of my crafting time this past week on a different project - but I promise I do have a dress to show off tomorrow too. May I introduce you to our very own aquarium?

The kid's bathroom was originally painted all white, and had a blue and white striped bathroom curtain. It had duck deco and although cute at one time, I was getting a little tired of it. Curious George & the ducks had to go!!!! I didn't even do a before picture. I'm sure you can envision an all white bathroom. This is definitely a darker bathroom now, and since it's all interior the pictures are a bit dark too. We're discussing ways to change the lighting a little. We will probably end up changing out the fan to a light/fan combo and will leave the fixture above the mirror.

We were definitely inspired by Nemo - he and his friends are swimming all around us. The cabinet above the toilet was from the previously all-white bathroom, and we decided to leave it as is. Check out the awesome tie-dye swirly shower curtain!

Sit down on the toilet and have a conversation with Nemo and his Dad... or make faces at the pufferfish in the corner by the tub. We decided not to redo the {ugly} brown linoleum floor, tan toilet, tan shower, and tan sink. Instead, I'm just pretending that it's sand in our aquarium. Can you pretend with me?

Above the kid's towels are pictures of them looking in the Caribbean Reef aquarium at the Shedd. We went this past weekend {they LOVED it} and Abby can't stop saying "fish, fish, fish" when we go in there.

Of course I had help painting. He was eager to help with the orange cabinet and he helped a little with the first coat on one of the blue walls too. He thought the roller was tons of fun!!! Most of the painting I did after the kids went to bed.

The front of the cabinets - do they look like they're missing something? Ha. Yeah, the cabinet doors aren't painted yet. But I just couldn't wait to reveal it all to you. So imagine blue cabinet doors with orange handles. I lined the inside of the {ugly} dark brown cabinet with white contact paper to lighten it up in there a little. Toys on the right, TP, bubble bath and Clorox wipes in the tub on the left. Drawer on the left - band aids and nail clippers. Drawer on the right - some of Abby's hair stuff.

The mirror used to be just dark wood around the edge - another orange accent now!
Silver towel rods and faucet were also leftovers from the previous bathroom design.

Dory (the forgetful fish) is full of reminders for the kids on the chalkboard speech bubble.

There's even a place for other fun notes to each other, reminders for the day, whatever inspires them! Just to the left above the white hand towel is a picture of Conner meeting Crush at Disney World ("Turtle Talk" at Epcot). I forgot to include that in the picture, but it's just another fun touch to the bathroom and a reminder of our trip. I wrote "just keep swimming" on the chalk board because that was a line from the "Finding Nemo: Musical" we saw at Animal Kingdom.
We did consider putting some kind of fishing net or fishing boat on the ceiling, but for now it's just blue like the walls.

Hope you enjoyed the tour!

{linked to this party}

happy father's day

2010-06-20T14:06:00.001-05:00

We love you!

chucks and tie-dye

2010-06-11T21:19:00.000-05:00

We've been busy flower shopping, weeding, playing outside, enjoying our small Farmer's Market, celebrating a friend's retirement, and pigging out on chocolate with friends.
Most importantly - we've been tying our new shoes!!!

Although I couldn't find my dreamy turquoise shoes... I am loving my new bright blue Chucks. The kids are so cute in theirs too. I'm just feeling so summery and funky and ready to go on an adventure!

Today the humidity was stifling, so I decided it was a good day to tie-dye. We put on our grungy clothes, got out the tubs, and got to work. We clothespinned, rubber banded, dipped, drowned, and colored.

Abby was quite nervous about it all and just wanted to peek in on what was going on. No touching on her part.

Conner really got into it and was concentrating so hard! He was definitely intent on getting every white spot covered after the first one opened up to a lot of white.

We had so much fun! The big piece of fabric is actually a shower curtain... there's a bathroom redo underway and once I get going on the painting I'll share more. I'm so excited about it and can't wait to see it all come together.

What have you been up to this week?

scalloped extension

2010-06-07T09:19:00.000-05:00

Remember the scallop top I did last year? And the "vintage" ones I posted here? Well... time to do a little something different. I extended the line and made it into a dress that's a little more the length I like. My mom and I have noticed that not only did women's skirts rise in the 70s - little girl's dresses were a lot shorter back then too!

Still the same cute shoulder ties! I used a red, yellow, brown and turquoise floral and it's completely reversible to a yellow dragonfly/floral design. I used the red color for topstitching so it's a nice contrast when it's flipped to the other side.

lil blue boo knit dress

2010-06-04T09:17:00.000-05:00

I've got to get going on more serger stuff so I decided to buy myself a knit dress pattern. It is the oh-so-popular Lil Blue Boo Recycled Tshirt Sienna Dress by Ashley of Lil Blue Boo. It was easy to follow and had lots of good ideas for ways to change it up. Her blog is chock full of other embellishments, stenciling and decorating tips. I got my husband to clean out a couple of old tshirts from his closet and I got to work. I did find the pattern a little short for my taste, but add a ruffle on the bottom and it was set to go!

One of the best parts is this dress was (basically) free! The discussion continues in our house whether I should have done the seams on the outside or inside. What's your vote?

On my next one I'll probably do them all on the inside and we'll see how it looks. I have a tshirt with dolphins on it ready to become a dress!
School's out for summer now though - so we'll see how my crafting life holds up as we attempt to do a lot of the activities on our list too!!!!

staying friends

2010-06-01T20:12:00.012-05:00

Conner has been going to preschool this year with a lot of kids from all around our town and the neighboring town. Most of them will not be at his elementary school, let alone his middle school or even high school. He's very concerned about not seeing them again, so we decided to make him his very own "business card". (It helps that mommy and daddy each have their own business card.) I just made them using a digital pic & a label template in Word. Then I printed them on cardstock and cut them. He's going to bring them to school and pass them out before the last day.

(obviously I blocked out his last name & the rest of our phone number in the screen capture, but you get the idea)

Making & keeping friends is such a tricky thing... I've made contact with a few of the moms already anyway - but I like him being proactive about maintaining friendships that are important to him.

summer's almost here!

2010-05-28T07:00:00.001-05:00

Have you ever "met" Meg of whatever? She is an amazing photographer and has a great sense of humor. She lives in Kansas with her kids & hubby and she is definitely a must-read for me.
She and her family made their summer list... and inspired me to make our list. Looks like the kids and I are going to be busy!!! Hopefully Daddy can join us for a couple of the outings.

Can you guess which one was my addition to the list? Uh yeah... fabric shopping extraordinaire at Vogue! Conner's excited about seeing how many parks we can get to on our list.

As much as we want to have fun, I know there will be times to be at home too. So here's the kids' home lists. Guess which one I added to Conner's list. ;) Abby's list says bike because we're hoping she'll be able to coordinate herself on her trike. I'm also hoping we can get in some water play without the screaming and drama of the other day - that's why sunscreen made it on the list.

What's on your summer list?

craft room redo

2010-05-27T14:50:00.000-05:00

I've updated a little, reorganized, moved furniture and I am loving it! Here's the new and improved studio! You may note a big pile of fabric on the far wall - it's supposed to be put away on the shelves underneath. But I wouldn't want you to think I could actually have it all organized at once?!!!! The piano is just to the right around the corner, and the display shelf is still on the wall there. The fabric shelves in the middle of the room have some of the small things like burp cloths, hairclips, etc. in tubs on top. The cutting table is against the far wall under the ribbons. I keep some of my paperwork stuff in a vertical file on the wall. Scrapbooking stuff is in tubs underneath that table. Kids' messy stuff is next to the cutting table. Their craft table is right in between my sewing table and the kitchen table in the next room.

Here's the other side of the fabric shelves - I got a new table to hold both machines. Woo-hoo!

This is now my dreaming table. It houses my tub of colored pencils, my tub of Sharpies, and a tub of index cards for little notes and sketches. It's also my music center - gotta have tunes to craft to! It's next to the shelves that hold some of my idea books, portfolio, patterns, etc.

Just a shot of some of the pretty stuff on top of the bookshelf. So many cute things to use on my next project!

set the table

2010-05-21T22:01:00.000-05:00

Time to try something new on my serger - a rolled hem! It took no time at all - setting it up and reading my booklet to make sure I had the settings right was the hardest part.

Each napkin is 18" square which made four from one yard of fabric. I used two different kinds of lighthouse fabrics, so I made a total of eight napkins. That left a few lighthouse scraps to use on a centerpiece for the table. Don't you love the salt and pepper shakers?!

My parents also get two placemats to match out of a simple red broadcloth. Enjoy, mom & dad!

Minnie Mouse birthday!

2010-05-17T06:00:00.001-05:00

A little something special for my niece's 2nd birthday. She's celebrating it Disney style!

I bought the pink knit dress, and appliqued a Minnie head on the front. I machine embroidered a 2 and her name. Then I hand sewed the bow together & onto the dress.

miss claire

2010-05-14T15:00:00.001-05:00

Sam from The Handmade Dress also has an adorable skirt pattern ready. The two-layered skirt is so easy to put together - mine was done in an hour and a half.

It has a yoke at the top and an elastic waist. The best part - Abby LOVED swirling and twirling around in it! And her belly looks so cute doesn't it. :)

It would also work beautifully with Miss Olivia Paige as a top instead of a dress. Check it out in her shop now! She has it from size 6mo to size 12 - I love it when a pattern is that versatile.

miss olivia paige

2010-05-14T08:00:00.001-05:00

I am LOVING Sam's latest creation - Miss Olivia Paige is so sweet & easy to sew in just a (slightly long) naptime!

See the bows on the sides? The bows on each side are from the sashes on this wrap-style dress. I used the same fabric to make little bows for her hair too!

The dress crosses in the back forming a V-back. I lined the inside with the same fabric I used for the sashes - a leafy fabric in Heidi Grace's line that matches the ladybug fabric on the bodice and the trees in the skirt.

The dress has tucks in the front for a sweet detail that was so easy to sew!

Hope on over to The Handmade Dress to meet Sam & get your very own pattern in her shop!

natalie's dress, version 2

2010-05-12T14:05:00.000-05:00

I had a request for another "Natalie's Dress" - she wanted it in blue, how could I say no?!

This time I did it without the crinoline layer - the customer wanted the beautiful silhouette of the dress without the poofy-ness.

I used pearl buttons on the back, and a straight-ended sash.

I've been busy with some other projects... statistical work, presents for a new baby, and presents for a baby on the way. It's also been raining a lot so not a lot of pictures to share. Coming up soon - hopefully some serged napkins, a Pez holder and a color/texture/I Spy book. I've also been testing a couple patterns, so when they are finished I'll be happy to share them with you. So cute!!!! I also dropped off my name onesies & hats at the store the other day - so they will hopefully be on display soon and I'll be receiving orders!!!

two sisters and a new baby!

2010-05-05T07:00:00.001-05:00

Two sisters are welcoming a new baby sister this July. Mom wanted them to have something special for in the hospital. The older girls get pink tees, the baby gets a onesie. Three flowers for each girl, with their specific flower enlarged & labeled on their specific shirt. Ric-rac stems complete the flower.

This is a little something special for a photo shoot after they get home.

"Peyton's Pinafores" for the two older girls, and a onesie dress for the baby. Each girl has a flower raw-edge-appliqued on the front. Best wishes to the whole family!!!!

jewels

2010-05-04T06:00:00.052-05:00

I thought it would be fun to try making some of my own mom-name tag jewelry and so now I've found a new hobby! I don't plan on ever being Lisa Leonard, but it's fun for now. (Check out her jewelry and her blog. wow.)

I tried a few names and designs with Shrinky Dinks. I'm a little worried that the Sharpie marker I used to draw on the Shrinky Dinks is going to rub off, but they're fun for now. If you look closely below, one of the tags has my word of the year on it, and the U is starting to disappear. I also have some colored Shrinky Dink material, so next time I am going to try cutting some shapes out of it (like maybe the kid's initials) that way I get color & shapes without the writing rubbing off.

I also bought a few charms and added beads to them for a little extra sparkle. Do you see my logo in Shrinky Dink form? I was impressed with how it turned out!!!

Then I just put beads together to put on a necklace with charms I already have.

Then I "splurged" at Harbor Freight (there's one about 20 min from my house!) and got myself some metal stamps. (The next set on my wish list is the 1/8" 40-pc set. Then I'll probably start shopping Etsy for fun stamps like this. More expensive, but lots of fun!) I've read that you're supposed to use a Sharpie to make the letters show up, but when I wipe them down, it wipes out some of the letter darkening too. I'll just have to keep trying! I got the blank shapes at Hobby Lobby.

It's going to take a little while to figure out how to get everything to stamp evenly and in a straight line, but for now let's call it "rustic"... "character"... "charming". This is for Conner's teacher. He picked out the beads for her. We've been bead shopping at Hobby Lobby and Joann's. I don't remember what came from where at this point.

If you look closely on some of them, you can see I've been experimenting with head pins and eye pins. I'm not really sure if there's some jewelry rule about what you're supposed to use - I just pick one and run with it. I also have most definitely not perfected the art of closing a jump ring, but practice makes perfect right?

overalls for a gal

2010-05-03T13:51:00.000-05:00

Have you ever heard of Whimsy Couture? Denise has all sorts of great tutorials, links and patterns. I tested her overalls - quick and easy and so adorable!

There are knots at the front, and you have the option of stitching up the inseam or using snap tape. I chose to stitch it up. The ruffles at the bottom add a little bit of "whimsy" as her name says! They were a little big for Abby, so they may be going to one of my nieces, or I'll wait for Abby to grow into them. Technically these were capri length! Now I know to do it shorter for her.

smocked birthday goodness

2010-04-30T09:00:00.001-05:00

My mother is an amazing seamstress. This was the birthday dress she made for Abby.
Check out the piping detail on the front!

And here's a closeup of the beautiful details. (and Abby's oh-so-straight hair. It's getting so long!)

Thanks mom for a gorgeous dress!!!! (And see - proof that she wore it again!) When I understand the hard work that goes into something like this, I have a hard time putting it on her to wear.

another birthday girl!

2010-04-29T22:09:00.000-05:00

First birthdays are always cause for celebration! I collaborated with Lisa of Cute-Z Ties to make this adorable outfit.

Lisa did the hairbow and tutu, I did the cupcake onesie.

The mom requested a special extra on the bottom of the onesie - "Miss April" with a crown.

Happy Birthday, V!

storks cradle here I come! (& the winner!)

2010-04-26T20:27:00.000-05:00

You may remember the onesies I made for my friend who had twins. Thank goodness I got over to get a picture of them because they were the hit at my meeting today!!!!

I'm going to start off by making some display models of personalized onesies, then they will take orders for the shirts and hats. Other items may be added at a later date, but this is a good place to start! My stuff will be in a "real" store. I'm pretty excited!

Thanks everyone for your ideas of what to take. I appreciate your help!!!
As for the winner - I gave the responsibility to my son, the reigning king of the "Random" Club. I said pick a number - 1-2-3-4-5 - and he said "3". Why? Because "my favorite numbers are 3... and 5! And my favorite colors are orange and blue." So - congratulations go to

Rebecca (who said...)
Some bucket hats for Summer with matching onesies. Modern, designer prints always go best, as well as cute boy prints like the little red car you had on one of your t's. Maybe even little shorts to match?

April 21, 2010 10:05 PM

Email me and we'll get a little something wrapped up and sent off to you!

let's hear it for the boys!

2010-04-22T21:13:00.000-05:00

A couple goodies for boys!!! I decided I needed a little something for boys besides just onesies. And I really wanted to try making a piece of clothing with my serger.

First up - a pair of chambray overalls with a pocket on front, pockets on the back, elastic at the armhole, patches on the knees, and snaps on the legs.

My second project was the one that has beautifully serged seams and facing! It's a sleeveless romper with snaps in the legs and buttons at the shoulder.

I only used my regular machine for the topstitching and buttons/ buttonholes.

Have you ever used snap tape? Ah.... so much better than sewing snaps on by hand!!! I would have used it on the overalls, but I didn't have a piece that was quite long enough.

Which one is your favorite???

{and have you entered the giveaway?}

new adventure... and a giveaway!!!

2010-04-21T14:37:00.001-05:00

I am so excited!!! I have a meeting next week with the owners of a store in the town I grew up in. It's a sweet little shop named The Stork's Cradle. It is filled with a few goodies for mommies (maternity wear, bags, etc.) and a ton of goodies for babies - nursery decor, books, quilts, blankets, clothing, toys and more.
Here's where I need your help! I am pulling together some of my baby goodies to share with them in the hopes that they will want to sell some of it in their shop. If you were going to walk into a store and buy my items off the shelf, what would you like to see? What should I show off at the meeting - clothing and/or other items? Hop on over to my Facebook galleries, click on categories ("threads") over on the right column, read old blog posts - whatever works best for you... just help me decide!!! (Their clothing only goes up to 12month size).

I have also hit 40 followers and 400 blog posts. So as a little thank you to you for sticking by me & helping me choose - a new giveaway & a coupon code!
GIVEAWAY - One of you will get one of your favorite things mentioned in the comments!!!! A name will be chosen at random after my meeting with the Stork's Cradle owners.
COUPON CODE - Order something from my ArtFire shop and include the code 4STORK and you'll get $4 off.

The coupon and giveaway will be closed next Monday at noon (after my meeting).

argyle

2010-04-19T20:54:00.011-05:00

A few new onesies... aren't they cute?! They were so simple - just three diamonds stitched in the middle, and two diamonds sewn in-between in a coordinating thread.

happy birthday to me!!!

2010-04-12T20:55:00.000-05:00

It was also my birthday this weekend. I was spoiled rotten by my husband, parents, and in-laws... a dozen red roses, necklace, gift card to Joann Fabrics, delicious meals cooked by my hubby, cinnamon rolls for breakfast, an adapter for my iPod in my car, and a new sewing machine!!!!!

Yep - I am now the proud owner of a serger! It's a Brother 1034D. I've been having fun playing around with the settings and trying to figure it all out. The next challenge - putting in new thread and moving away from the yellow-red-green-blue threads that came with the machine. One of my first projects is napkins with the rolled edge. What is your favorite project to do with your serger?

ladybug - lovebug - PARTY

2010-04-10T21:00:00.003-05:00

Our little lovebug turned two... which means it's time for a party!!! The weather was GORGEOUS here today - so we had time to play outside with cousins after a yummy lunch together & naps for the 3 little ones. Here she is in her ladybug top.

A couple more party details...

I wanted a little something to hang in our entryway. It's a ribbon garland - felt rectangles are just straight stitched onto the ribbon. I grabbed some brightly colored fabric, and put my machine in free motion mode. I free-handed the letters, and then trimmed them. Then I stitched some brightly colored buttons in between the letters.

The other garland is more party-specific, but I'll probably keep it up for a while just because it's springy, blue, and I LOVE the fabric! I used my rotary cutter with a pinking blade to cut the triangles, and then machine stitched them along a ladybug ribbon.

I also made lovebug cupcakes. The "lovebugs" are made from red melting chocolate in a heart shaped silicone mold. I popped them out, then dipped the heads in dark brown chocolate. Then I used a sparkly black gel to do 2 spots on each side (she is turning 2 after all!) and the stripe down the middle for the wings. Then I used a white gel for the eyes.

The cupcakes are just a plain yellow cake mix that I dyed pink, and then added mini chocolate chips to be ladybug spots. (It helps that I LOVE chocolate and thought this was a good reason to throw in some more chocolate!)

{for more ladybug party details click on the ladybug thread below}

ladybug top

2010-04-09T06:00:00.014-05:00

So - just a little something I made for the birthday girl. It's a seersucker green fabric with butterflies, ladybugs and dots all over. After I took the pictures, I decided to add some big red ladybug buttons where the straps meet the bodice. She's going to wear it with black leggings. I made pink knit capris, but I think it's going to be a little cool for her to wear them at the party. I'll probably put a white onesie on underneath too.
It matches her new purse too!

{edited to add... check her out at her birthday party! and I linked up at a couple parties!}

ladybug favors

2010-04-08T06:00:00.013-05:00

The ladybug party is coming up this weekend. Here's the favors for the little girl cousins.

Each girl gets their own "Love Bug" mask to decorate. They were in the Joann's Dollar section. It remains to be seen whether they'll be decorated at the party or later at home. Then there's a little glitter to sprinkle around on a ladybug picture, and tins with black and red M&Ms inside. The tins are also from the dollar section, and I added the glitter black dots around the top. Of course everybody gets to pick a ladybug magnet, too!