leo lionni

Leo Lionni is a legend in my book. He wrote more than 40 books (including four Caldecott Honor books) and was an inspiration and friend to Eric Carle.

Here's a few of my favorites:

Swimmy

A Color of His Own

Fish is Fish

The Biggest House in the World

Whether you're a little small black fish who wants to be bigger and better, a chameleon with identity issues, a fish with dreams too big to understand, or a snail without a grip on what's too much - be who you are. It's a beautiful thing. Be proud of yourself and what you can do.

marking and making

You thought it was time to sew, right? Sorry, one more little step first. Time to check your markings. Trust me, it's easier now!

First - Check and make sure you've snipped all the triangle spots.
Second - Check for buttonholes. Use a pencil, pen, or special marking pencil. Put the dots where they tell you to.
Third - are there any fold lines, hem lines, or any other special points to match up? Best to check now. Trust me, I've tried to go back later and it's easier now!!!

Just a couple more tips before we start sewing...
* Read through the directions. Even if you're confused, read through it all.
* Look through all your notions again... won't it be pretty once it's all put together?

We'll be starting our sewing in a couple of days. Don't be afraid. It'll be fun!

some more new stuff

Just wanted to share a couple new things I've been up to...

A hooded towel for a little boy named Zach. He's a sporty one - and a little ribbon on the side just helps make the design a little more interesting.
This shirt is for a dear Grammy. All 6 grandchildren's handprints have been traced, stitched, and their names embroidered.
A perfect summer road trip bag - ready for a few new toys, games, coloring books, and activities for that long car or plane ride. There is enough room at the top for a name to be embroidered, or a name can be appliqued in the middle of the car fabric.

A nursing cover - a little bit of boning at the top makes for a little "window" to peek at your little one.
The strap that holds it around your neck is made from matching ribbon and 2 D rings.

This shirt has a bright yellow lightning bolt on the front - and has been stitched about 1/4" from the edge so the edges will fray a little with additional wear and washings.
Head on over to my shop if you're interested in any of these items!!!

finishing up from the party, round 1

I've finished up a couple items from the party, and wanted to share. More coming soon!

This is the before. Cute enough with the ruffle and hearts. But not enough for my dear pal, Jenn. Gotta go EXTRA girly. So we added a little something.

Tutu skirt, pink satin ribbon at waistline with bow - is that girly enough now?!
This onesie was just plain hearts before - she added the buttons. A little something extra cute.

This is my favorite thing of the whole evening I think. The tank top and shorts were plain purple and turquoise. She cut out the girl's name, the hearts for the tank, and two hearts for the shorts - a big one on front, a little one on the backside.

Aren't the overlapped hearts adorable?Kylie is one lucky birthday girl!

fondant free-for-all

I spent about two hours making 10 different colors of fondant. I'm making some cupcakes for my niece's birthday (Saturday) and my dad's cake (Sunday). I can't wait to show you all what I'm going to do with it! (How's that for a teaser?!)

I use Peggy Weaver's recipe - marshmallows, water, food coloring, and LOTS of confectioner's sugar. (It's the same one my friend taught me at "sugarfest 09"). I got each color done in about 10 minutes. It's so easy, and so yummy. I made some of them while Conner was at preschool, but he helped with a couple colors. It's fun for him to watch the color mix in, and he loves being helpful with the saran wrap and baggie at the end.

Here's a couple of the colors before I bagged them... they're sitting with the invite to my niece's party. Can you guess my idea?

For those of you non-Chicagoans, I just want to let you know I LIVE NEAR WILTON!!!! Yep, it's only about 20 minutes away. Even more exciting - the Wilton Tent Sale is coming up soon - May 29th through June 16th. We'll see what kind of deals I find. Maybe I'll even share with you all! Gotta make up a wish list. A couple more food colors I think, and some fondant cut-outs for sure. I'm thinking I might splurge on the fondant mat too (the one that tells you how big a circle to roll for covering cakes). Probably some candy melting molds. What would you wish for?

layout and cutout

Now you're home and you have your pattern, your fabric, your notions, and the overwhelming urge to go eat chocolate. (go ahead, I'll still be here.)

Cutting is probably my least favorite part. So let's buzz through it fast and get to the rest of the fun stuff!!! (Cutting quilts is fun for me, cutting patterns for clothes - not so much.)

Get out all your supplies - fabric, pins, pattern pieces, and a good pair of scissors. I've heard that some people use a rotary cutter. I'll explain later why I still use scissors.

How do you know which pattern pieces to use? Well - you open up the pattern of course. There should be a place that shows all the different pattern pieces included in the envelope. Remember how you picked a "view" that you're going to sew? ("dress A") Find that listing, and notice all the pieces that go with it.
Then sort through all the flimsy pattern papers and get the pieces you need. In this particular pattern, some of the pieces are for all sizes, some pieces are for specific sizes. So READ carefully! I then cut out the pieces I'll need and try to fold the rest of the pattern papers back up and shove them in the envelope. That way I don't get (as) confused about which pieces I'll need for my garment.

Once you have all your pieces, move on down to the fabric layout part of the pattern. It will tell you how to put the pieces for 45" or 60" fabric. Usually you will have the fabric folded in half lengthwise as you start laying out the pieces. However, sometimes you have to refold to accomodate pieces that are too big, or need to be on a fold. The pattern writers also usually put a different design on the drawing if you're supposed to put the pattern piece upside down. They get paid to do this. Pay attention to what they say - it will be worth it in the long run. Other pieces you might need to cut 2 or 4 of. Once again, read carefully. It should be listed in the fabric layout picture, and written on the actual pattern paper piece.


OK - so for example, this is piece #2 - the Back of Dress A. I am going to cut 1, and I am going to make sure it is on a fold line. See the arrow at the top? I've got to line it up with the fold. This particular piece is for all the sizes included in the pattern. So this is why I use scissors. If I was just making one size, or planned to never use this pattern again, it would be a LOT easier to use a rotary cutter. However I love this pattern and plan to use it often, so I know that I want to use scissors and not cut away some of the other size lines. I suppose if I was bored, I could trace each size onto another piece of pattern paper, and have my own sets - but I don't have time for that.

So - I just pin where they say to pin. See at the corner where I put the pin? Sometimes I get distracted while I'm cutting. I'm sure that never happens to you. haha. To help myself along, I try and pin close to the cutting line for the size I'm making.


As for the cutting - just follow the line! Lift up or fold back the paper where you can if you're trying to save the pattern to use again - or just cut it all off. Either way, cut as precisely as you can. Those little triangles are going to be helpful later on, so make sure when you see triangles pointing in, you make similar snips pointing out. See how I did the double triangle thing? You don't have to be exact about that, just be consistent. My mom sometimes doesn't do the triangles, she just snips a perpendicular line or two about 1/4" long. It's just a way to mark the fabric and to help you line up the pieces later - use whatever way works for you!

Once you think you're done cutting, just do a quick double check that you've cut all the pieces (including interfacing if needed!) and then you'll be good to go for our next step.

Ready to sew yet???!!!

(click here for the rest of the pattern tutorial)

smore cupcakes

My church women's group (United Methodist Women) hosts a Mother/Child Dessert every year on the Monday evening after Mother's Day. Everybody puts together their best dessert (or just an old favorite) and lines them up on a few long tables.
The feast begins, and after the kids are chock full of sugar :) the two kid's choirs sing. It's just a nice way to end our Choir year, and a fun gathering for families. You're invited as "long as you have a mother" they say - even though it's officially called a "Mother/Child Dessert".

Here's what I'm taking. A gooey mess that I'm calling Smore Cupcakes. Devil's Food chocolate cupcakes, topped with some marshmallow goodness, and then sprinkled with crushed graham crackers & mini chocolate chips. I'm not really sure how to stop the marshmallow from oozing over the side, other than to make them smaller next time so the marshmallow stays in the cupcake liner. But then again, maybe a little oozing marshmallow isn't so bad after all...