birthday gift

My Mother's birthday was this past month. She makes those fancy crochet wash cloths (her's are simple and square, but I thought these apple ones were cute).

I've been meaning to try this.

I even bought crochet hooks and yarn.

I'm not sure where they are at the moment.

Oh well.

I (loosely) used a tutorial I found on Sew mama Sew. There are enough pockets for a small notebook and pen (or pattern I guess), a small pair of scissors, and 5 hooks.

It fit nicely in a 8 x 11 manila envelope with a small ball of yarn.

Happy Birthday mom!

quick gift idea

I know you don't know this... but I'm pregnant. And being pregnant has created an aversion to crafting/sewing. Tragic, I know, but I'm hoping to get over it soon. I'm nearing 12 weeks and need to make Christmas PJs, and a couple other things and I need the energy to do it! I've done all I can to avoid making things for anyone this year. I realize how un-crafty, not handmade revolution blah blah blah that is.... but whatever... I feel like barfing all day and just want to go to sleep.

On a less barfy note...

At church I am essentially the party planner for the women. We had a nice dinner the other night and then did a simple craft that I know you've all seen before. Mostly I wanted to just give you the link to where you can buy the supplies and see the tutorial I originally got the idea from. I realize my picture isn't really a great representation of how cute these actually are, but... it's just the one I made. The women at the party made darling ones though! The necklaces only cost $2 each to make (that was tile, bail, and chain) and were easy peasy. If you can glue one thing to another, you can do this. I'm all about the thoughtfulness of giving gifts, but I also don't have a lot of money to spend on them. The great thing is that the necklaces span all age ranges... so I'd like to think my 5 year old will love this necklace with the pic of her and her cousin, but a teacher would love it too with cute scrapbook paper behind it or something.

Here's the tutorial for the necklaces.

Here's the etsy shop I bought all of the supplies from.

simplicity 2628

I vowed earlier to never sew patterns by Simplicity/Mccalls/Butterrick ever again. They just never turn out right. Well... I lied. I thought this shirt looked like it had potential. And after realistically choosing the right size for my 5 year old (size 3), it turned out alright. I chose fabric that I wouldn't mourn the loss of if the shirt didn't turn out right. I have a thing for corduroy and found this print at Joann's Farics a few years ago (bottom floral). It's all a little 70's prairie looking, but the actual shirt turned out cute, and I think I'll make it again with fabric I love.
Once again, the pattern calls for a zipper up the back. I think that zippers in shirts are weird, so I sewed up to the back leaving an opening. The neck is finished off with bias tape, so I just extended that for a tie. Gotta have a matching head band. BTW - this tutorial for headbands is SO easy! It literally only takes 10 minutes to make start to finish. It would be a great project if you're teaching your child to sew and makes awesome gifts! Add a little flower some buttons, ribbon, rick rack - the possibilities are endless. Plus - the way it's made even I could wear this headband it will stretch out that far.

The verdict: easy pattern. Great for beginners. If I would have made her "size" it would have been huge - so watch that. I'll be making it again I think...

I always wish there were more pictures when people review patterns, so here's some just in case you feel the same way.

patriotic

Hope all you locals had a fun 4th of July. It doesn't seem like a true holiday without a celebratory outfit does it? Here our ours:
With the leftover fabric from this shirt, I figured I try making a Pillowcase dress for Anna using the free tutorial/pattern by Habitual. It was easy to make, but I have to admit to not following any of the directions, so maybe that's not a fair assessment of the pattern.

For the boy

It's reverse applique Alabama Chanin style (thread ends on the outside). Once I finished it I thought I should have done a tutorial, but here's another one if you really are interested. I TAPE my fabric to the inside with masking tape instead of pinning though.

speaking of skirts

This past weekend we went to a birthday party - petting zoo and pony rides - totally fun. I made this little shirt and hair clip for the birthday girl.I originally was going to put two sea horses on the shirt, but decided on one. I had already cut the second one out, so went to Anna's closet and found a white tank top.It's always fun having a matching skirt, so I made a skirt yesterday from the Lazy Days Skirt pattern (free!) from Oliver +S. If you are a beginning sewer this is the skirt for you! It's the easiest thing I've ever sewn. Really. The ribbon hem was so fun to do that I'm tempted to hem everything I ever have to hem again that way (but reverse so the ribbon is on the inside). Seriously.

I added the rick rack and velvet ribbon just for fun. Maybe I'll add some to the shirt too...

mothers day

Ok, so I'm not quite as charitable as Tracy. I made my own Mothers Day present. Finally, the purse. For me, this is a "mom bag". I like it. I think it's cute. It's messanger style so my hands are free to hold littler hands that want to run out into the street without my shoulder bag slipping off my arm. I have nicer, smaller bags for date night.

The Margaret Sling Bag

I like the length of the bag and it was easy to sew. I made the following changes:
-Used magnetic snaps on the inside.
-Used Pellon 40 and basted it instead of all of the interfacing she suggested.
-Added 1 large pocket to the other side of the lining.
-Added the flower applique

I wish I would have made the two small pockets deeper - my iPhone won't fit all of the way inside. The strap might have to be longer if you have a longer torso too.
I like the size a lot. I went and picked up my mail the other day and was able to fit it all inside.

"balentines" gifts

My 4 1/2 year old used to say "balentines day". She doesn't anymore, but I miss the way she used to mispronounce certain words. Oh well... part of getting older.

If you haven't tried applique on a shirt - you gotta do it. It's seriously addictive.I just used a shirt that was all ready in her closet. I cut the arms and the bottom of the shirt to make the edge roll a little. If you're looking for cheap t-shirts to applique on Walmart (I know, boo... hiss...) has them for only $3.50, and they're pretty cute actually. I like to use the Steam-A-Steam to appllique with on most things so the edges don't fray as much. I embroidered A+D on the trunk of the tree (Anna + Daddy). Fun.
I may still make a shirt for Carson, but am not sure... boys are tricky for Valentines Day. I thought this (hearts cars) was a cute idea - not so obviously Valentines. I bought the tie pattern here, although you can get it free for bigger sizes here (you have to scroll through all their free patterns to find it). I probably could have figured out how to make it smaller, but sometimes, it's nice to have someone else think for you. The ties are so easy and fun to make and only take 30 minutes or so. This may become our new birthday gift for all our little boyfriends at church.

handbag tutorials

I've been wanting a new bag lately. It's hard to find just the right one. I'm in that mommy stage where the most practicle bag is probably a messanger-style bag, but what I really want is - well, I couldn't pick just one. Maybe I should just make one...

Here are some tutorials if anyone is in need of a new bag. Do you know of a good tutorial?

Hobo bag: very cute!
Margaret Sling bag
Backpack: maybe not for me - but my daughter would love it!
Reversible patchwork bag

I just bought this pattern. Do you think it's too big? It is sorta big... Hopefully I'll have one done soon to show you.

for the boy

If you've discovered our blog from Sew Mama Sew, then you've probably seen these PJ before here. They are pretty much the only thing I've ever made for Carson! There is nothing exciting about pajamas, but I wanted to share where you can get the pattern for the top as a free tutorial. I put them on him last night and he was SO excited. Who knew - he's only (almost) 2 and I figured he was never really paying attention to all of the stuff I was making for his sister. He had so much to say about the aliens and circles. Very cute.

BTW - thanks to those who took some of my stash off my hands. Now I have some money to go and buy more fabric ; ) There are still 3 yards left if any one is interested.

ideas of gifts to make for christmas

I have to admit, I am not much of a procrastinator. I think my husband feels left out every year at Christmas because I have most of the shopping done by November. This year, I will save time for him, but I have to admit - I know what I'm making for pretty much everyone. I've even got it all cut out and in bags so that it's ready to sew whenever I'm ready to sew. . .

Here's a few ideas in case you're thinking about Christmas in October.

Beanbags: I'm thinking of making these for Carson. He likes throwing things so I might as well make him something that won't break.

Ponytail holders: great for little friends.

A list of 54 Free apron patterns.

If you're not going to make your grandma fabric grocery bags, maybe you could help her tame all of her plastic bags with a nifty grocery bag dispenser.

A belt for your stylish sister or friend.

Dish towels - always a great idea. Plus, cute and easy.

more to come. . .

fun tutorials i'd like to try (or have tried)

I am convinced that almost anything you want to make you can find a free tutorial online for. Here are a few things I've found recently that I'd love to try:

Fabric flowers - these would be really cute hair clips!

Baby Sling - SO easy! Even if you're not a "sewist" I promise you can make it too!

Heather Ross Mendicino Sundress - limited time download! It would be fun to put a little cute shrug over the top.

Lazy Days Skirt -from the Oliver +S blog. (It's under "free pattens" as a PDF download)

Disappearing 9 Patch quilt top - totally want to try this!