Halloween

Halloween 2011

I added a few trims and details to an existing dress pattern I had, made sure the pink fabric was sparkly, and we had Pinkalicious!  I made the crown and wand from felt, the wings and shoes I bought.

My little burrito lover became a burrito - even had some guacamole on his shoulder.  We used a take-out bag for his treat bag.

Olivia the Pig birthday party

My daughter LOVES Olivia the pig.  We have read the books, watched the shows, played with the house & car & stuffed animals - it was only a matter of time before we celebrated with Olivia!

She definitely wanted to wear red for her birthday party to be "just like Olivia" - but I didn't want to go costume-y and have her be an exact replica.  So she got her own special Olivia jumper.

The fabric on the bottom is that ruffle fabric everyone is raving about.  I'm pretty sure I couldn't pull that off myself but I knew Abby would love it.  The dress came together very quickly - I did a tube of matching red knit for the bodice, a tube of red (a little wider) for the skirt, and two pieces of red knit for the straps.  The cutting and measuring probably took as long as the sewing - at most a total of 30 minutes to whip it together.  She calls it her "jiggly" red dress and LOVES it.
The bows are red with white polka dots.  Once again - not an exact replica of Olivia's bows, but perfect for her and for the party.  I found red and white polka dot paper goods & balloons, so it was thematic.

Her goodie bags included red and white twisty erasers, notebooks and notepads with Olivia on them from the Target dollar bins, red and white polka dot pencils, tiaras and red and white striped hair bows for the girls, pirate patches and telescopes, pig noses, and pig ears.  I made the hair bows, patches, pig noses, and ears.  If I can get the kids to dress up I'll add pictures later.  The patches were just black felt with skinny black elastic sewn on.  The pig noses were pink felt with a large pink button on top to make the nose holes.  For the ears, I sewed them up in felt and hot glued them to a pink headband.  I made the ears quite oversized to be like Olivia's.
For the craft, I bought pink circular metal tins and hot glued a pink button in the middle to be the nose.  The kids then added their own rhinestone stickers and glitter to make their very own piggy treasure boxes.  I considered piggy banks, but it was too late to get the right containers together from our recycling stash, and I wasn't going to pay for brand new piggy banks to decorate.  I think the boxes turned out cute, and it has been a great way for Abby to store the pig dress up parts (eye patch & nose).

playing catch up

For a variety of reasons I won't go into, I took a blogging break.  But I've decided I would like to get back in the swing of things.  It's nice to have a record of all my handmade goodies, and I like sharing them with you.

First of all - I made some new shirts using heat transfer.  The front of the shirts have an H5 on the pocket spot.  We are kind of geeky and like math problems around our house... can you solve this one?

Yep - baby #3 is due in late June.  It's a boy.  We've named him, but aren't telling.  And yes - I've already embroidered his name on a blanket.  I'm not superstitious in that way.

Conner turned 7 in February, and he really wanted a detective party.  The invitations have his fingerprints on the outside of the card (as well as the outside of the envelope) and vinyl magnifying glasses with a clear plastic lens over a paper "TOP SECRET" headline.
Goodie bags were a detective kit - ID tag, disguise glasses, magnifying glass, flashlight they could decorate, and a little notebook & pen - all kept in a black box.  They played a few games to "earn" the parts of their detective kit, and then ended with a scavenger hunt around the house to find the goodies for their ice cream sundaes.

"Kirstin's Skirt" - Olabelhe Designs - made last fall.  Abby's hands were covering up the big bow in front, but I'm just glad she stood still and smiled.

Abby's first day of school outfit.  Their are matching capri-length pants with a ruffle, you just can't quite see them under the skirt.  Her hair was braided and put into two loops - with matching bows.  I love Hobby Lobby fabrics with all their perfectly matching ribbons!

I love being in a good hand-me-down chain.  I made this top for a friend's daughter, and it got passed back to me when she outgrew it.  Yay for durable and handmade!

I know it's horribly out of order, but I'll post about Halloween costumes tomorrow and Abby's Olivia the Pig birthday party as well.  As for Easter - I have no handmade goodies to share because honestly I was rushing and didn't measure well and by the time I was done with the dress I realized the bodice was way too big for her.  I'm hoping she grows into it by her brother's baptism later this summer.

There were a few Christmas projects made for my nieces and a dress for my daughter that will go undocumented unless I can find those pictures somewhere.  I just need to move forward and show you all the goodies I'm working on now!  I have three quilts in progress, a purse for my mom, a couple spring dresses for Abby, and a couple baby things for our June firefly.
Thanks for sticking around - I'll see you again soon!

blue floral - yep, i did it again

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

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

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

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!