Christmas Clothing

I normally don't like sewing clothing for the kids. Neither really seems to appreciate it (my daughter is NOT a girly girl) and it's not my favorite type of sewing. However, I got bit by the bug when I saw this cute London pattern by Mod Kid Boutique. We don't do a super dressy Christmas so when I saw the styling ideas in corduroy, I was sold! I made this cute little dress out of snowman and black corduroy with red accent fabric.

Then, as I was making this dress, I had the snowmen laid out and my son came in and announces, "I want one!". I'm sure he had no idea what he was asking for, but I had enough fabric to make something else. So back to ModKid's website and I found the Keagan pattern. I mean how cool is that for a little boy. I love all the different styles. I decided on the bowling shirt for Evan and it came out so sweet!

And here are my little munchkins in action. (Of course they don't like posing together so this was the best I could do!)

The outfits were perfect! The short sleeves were great for how warm it is at grandmas and the snowmen were a hit! And I would highly recommend ModKid's patterns. I don't do a lot of sewing, but they were easily understood by me so I'd say most with a basic garment sewing knowledge could do them!




And I have to give a shout out to my mom who used to make matching dresses for me and my sister.

Check out those pinafores!! I'm the little one - you know the one who looks exactly like my son! haha! The clothing tradition continues.

A Tova Top

I finally jumped on the Tova bandwagon and got the digital pattern. One thing I wasn't prepared for was the work involved prepping a digital pattern. I should have taken a photo, but I didn't get a chance. Just to put the pattern together is 26 pages printed out and taped together. It's a bit of a process. Just the paper taping took me one Umi Zoomi Episode. For those of you without little ones, that is 24 minutes. But sometimes you gotta do it - you know, since the paper pattern is sold out.

I decided to make mine out of Kona cotton instead of muslin since I had a coupon that made it basically as cheap as muslin. And I recommend checking out this sew along at Very Kerry Berry. She's got lots of great tips to help make the process easier. And she talks about different modifications. I wanted to do the long sleeves she mentioned, but forgot when I cut the pattern. Slick right?

Anyway, here is my final shirt (ignore the faces, I haven't gotten the hang of self portraits!).

It's pretty good. I definitely want to make another one in voile. The 100% cotton is a little stiff for my liking and feels a bit like a maternity shirt. Maybe that's just me?  Anyway, I think the voile would be a lot more flattering. And maybe this will soften after a few washes?

The one thing I did have issues with is the neckline. Remember when I posted about my needle breaking? I was working on this top at the time and it turns out that I had a pin in my way. When you pin the tow plackets together in one direction, then you sew the other direction and you can't see the pins beneath it. Yeah, that's when I sewed over my pin. I didn't realize when I pulled out the pins that the placket shifted. You can see the result in this close up. It's the part at the bottom of the open neckline.

Totally not worth fixing, but worth noting for the next one!

Success with knits! A t-shirt finish

I just finished this cute little shirt and I couldn't be prouder or more excited! I finally mastered knits! And I did it because of the book, Sewing Modkid Style.

I have struggled with knits before and managed some okay stuff. But this was super easy and went together SO FAST! I just needed the right supplies and information. And Patty Young covers all of that in this book. (I've not been asked or paid to say any of this)

And look what I learned. Most machines have an overlock stitch and it works like a serging stitch (not as great, but definitely works). Here's what it looks like. On my Bernina 240 it's stitch number 3. Looks like a wide zigzag and essentially it takes several stitches on the fabric, then one stitch on the outside.

Here's what the foot looks like for this stitch. Apparently a lot of the machines come with this foot. It has a little bar in the center that hooks the thread and makes it loop over nicely.

And, because everything was working so nicely. My model actually cooperated and let me take her picture! Yup, that's the cheezy grin you get when you ask a 3 yr old to smile.

The knit I used was from Patty Young's Sanctuary line and I got it at QuiltHome.com. Have you ever sewn with knits? Do you have a good source to buy them?

Pinterest Report #2

I tried a bunch of different things this week from Pinterest. First off was actually a sewing project.

This is the tutorial for that shirt. It's a simple tutorial and easy to follow. I of course screwed it up! I decided to use voile instead of knit. I'm still kinda scared of knit and I figured voile would be flowy enough. Wrong.  Listen to what the pattern designer tells you. There are reasons.  Here is my voile version.

It's hard to tell in the photo, but the shirt part of it sticks out like I've got crinoline in it! It's not heavy enough to hang nicely. Same with the sleeves. And as I've already got broad shoulders (see the Liverpool Shirt)  it's not a good look for me. Here's a blurry shot, but you can see the shoulders.

Again, the fabric isn't heavy enough to drape nicely. It was such a simple pattern that I might try it again in knit. But I need to find a good source for knits. My local Joann's only seems to have yucky colors. And I'm also feeling a little discouraged with all these shirts I have that I can't wear!

For the Home:

This pin has a bit of confusion with it. It was pinned with "Keep one in the shower filled with a mixture of half vinegar and half Dawn dishsoap. Use it to wipe down the shower while you are in there and your shower will always be clean. Must try this!" When I follow the link to give credit here, the guy who's blog it is talks nothing about this!

Well, it is an okay idea. First off, if you do it, make sure you put the Dawn in there first or all the vinegar will run out. Also make sure you have someplace to prop it upright in your shower or again, all the vinegar will run out. I haven't used this much, but it seems to work. I may just start using the dishsoap without the vinegar.

Along the same lines, I thought I would share my own pin that I added as a result of this. It goes to this link. It's for a daily shower spray and it reduces the frequency with which you have to clean your shower. this one totally works! I've been using it for almost a year now.

The other pin I tried I can't find anymore. That's probably a good thing because it was a dud. The pinner talked about using your wall air freshener (the outlet plug kind) to use with essential oils instead of the toxic stuff that comes with it. Good idea in theory.  She says all you have to do is pull out the "wick" dump the stuff and replace it.

 

Mine is a Yankee Candle brand as you can see. I had the toughest time pulling out the wick. I had to get pliers and wear rubber gloves (to keep my hands from smelling for days). Once the wick was out it kind of broke and puffed up like crazy. You can see it in the above photo. It's kind of orange. I had a hard time stuffing it back in the bottle. I used an Orange essential oil and I had a scent in there previously that smelled like laundry. Now it just smells like orange laundry. **eyeroll**  I would recommend just going to your local health store and getting the oil warmer that is with the essential oils.

Hope you've found this helpful. I've got a couple recipes that I'm trying this week. I'll be back with reviews on those soon!

Liverpool Top Finished

I don't even know how long ago I bought this pattern. But it's been in my stash quite a while. I finally bought the fabric to make it when I was out with some quilt friends a few weeks ago. I figured if someone actually knows I have the stuff to make this, then I have to do it!

Well, I made it. But I can't model it for you.

I thought since I was a medium in this AB top I would be a medium in the Liverpool. I should have done my measurements. The first top was a little tight around the chest, but was forgiving because of the way it hangs and the fact that it has no sleeves. This one is just too tight for me.

I've never done a top with this much detail/fit. I was nervous about it, but the directions are well written. If I can do it, anyone can!

Darting on the front (new to me!).

Darting on the back (is that what it's called??).

And a full on fancy collar and finished buttons!

So from what I understand, you can't sell things you make from Amy Butler patterns?? Does that count if you accidentally made it too small and now you have no use for it? sigh...

A little nautical dress

This little outfit is for my niece who is turning 1 soon. Her mother (aka my sister) is a huge fan of anchors so when I found anchor fabric (Dear Stella) I knew I had to make something for her. I had seen these cute little cross back dresses in the past so I went on the hunt for a pattern. I found McCalls M535 and it was perfect (and I think it was only $3).

However, as anyone who has made clothing knows, you should always order the fabric after finding your pattern. I didn't have enough anchor fabric to make the whole thing!!  First up I made the dress in anchors and used some leftover white lining fabric I had from my own top instead of lining it with Anchors.

The back is the best part....

Or maybe the adorable buttons??

So then I found some cute polka dot fabric that went with it and I made some bloomers. I must admit, I've never been good at bottoms of any kind. Even pajama bottoms baffle me. I don't know what it is. So I'm hoping these fit. At least she can put on solid white bloomers if these don't work.

Then I realized I had a ton of polka dot fabric left so I made another top!

Check it out, more adorable buttons. These are a coral color.

And I had just enough anchor fabric to make the little hat.

I think it's all totally adorable, I hope my sister likes it too. And more than anything, I hope it fits my niece! She's a Florida baby so I know she'll get a lot of use out of these little dresses.

I'm linking to Ellison Lane's Summer Sewing Contest.

An adult sized tunic

I have to start this post with my little "quilting hostage". I know he won't be napping in his swing for long so I had to capture this set up. After he is bound and gagged swaddled and binked, he hangs out with me in the afternoons while I sew. He's three months now so I'm going to start working on getting him in his crib for naps. Wish me luck!


At any rate, a while ago I posted this little tunic that I made for my daughter.

I finally finished the one for me. I used a voile for this and I'm so glad I did. It's super soft and drapes really nicely. The fabric is Joel Dewberry, Tile Flourish from the Heirloom collection. One word of warning with voile. Order extra because it's rather sheer. You will need to make a lining for the front of your shirt. Or wear a cami under it.

Again, Amy Butler's pattern went together very easily and quickly. I even managed to get the part around the zippers correct this time. oohh.. so professional.

There are four lengths in this pattern (shirt, long shirt, tunic and dress). Because I'm only 5'3" I went with the long shirt rather than the tunic and I'm glad I did because it came out long enough.

It's pulling around the chest a little, but that will go away once I'm not a nursing mama. I think the whole thing will lay better once that happens. One question for all you stylish people out there. I need something to cover my arms with when I wear this. What would you wear? A really long sweater?? (also, I will not be wearing it with those pants, I was too lazy to change.)

Some clothing sewing

I bought this Amy Butler pattern a while back with the idea of making a top for me.

 

When I got it home I realized it made girls sizes too! Wohoo! So I figured before I use a lot of fabric and possibly mess it up, I will try a girls size first for my daughter and get comfortable with the pattern (knowing that her patterns are sometimes hard). I love Patty Young fabrics so I got this Modern Lotus print from her Lush line for the dress.  I think it turned out adorable.

Of course my model is reluctant to wear it right now. Her response was, "I'll wear it when I get bigger". Sigh. She will wear it when it gets warmer. As long as I don't ask her directly, she will wear whatever I put out for her.

Here's the back view of it.

My prints didn't match up 100% but I don't mind. I didn't really try to match them up.

The pattern was one of the most well-written Amy Butler patterns I've ever done. It came together very quickly. I didn't have any problem following her directions aside from one little thing.

If you look at the inside here where the zipper is. The left side is all covered and the right side has the zipper exposed right?  I struggled with the directions a bit at this point and didn't realize I was supposed to leave the flap of fabric out on both sides and I only did it on the one side. It's a nice touch and leaves the dress looking very professional. But I don't think I'm going to rip the other side to fix it. All the edges are finished there so it shouldn't unravel. And it won't be visible when she's wearing it.

Besides, I already have to fix the eye and hook so they line up -whoops!


Next up, a top for me in voile. I've never worked with voile so if you have any experience or tips, I'd love to hear them.

The pink nightgown

I had this idea a few years ago to dress my daughter up like a certain Christmas character for our cards. It didn't work then because she was too young to cooperate. But I'm thinking of attempting it again this year. It requires a pink nightgown which around her they really don't make. Everything is footie pajamas. I found a Simplicity pattern and some pink flannel and here's what I've got...

When I started the pattern I realized it was actually a robe or housecoat which is fine. I don't know that she'll ever wear it again anyway. My husband calls it the 18th century nighty!

So who is she going to be? I'll give you a clue. She will also be holding this giant ornament and I'll be putting antennae in her hair.

Any ideas?  Am I a mean mother for dressing my kid up for christmas cards? If she won't cooperate (which is likely) I'll be doing the old standby. Putting her in front of the tree and taking her picture.