freehand embroidery

Recently I was given a huge stack of pre-cut vintage quilt squares. I know, right! So awesome. I immediately thought of how fun it would be to embroider some of them to make some personalized soft baby blocks. So I just went for it (the embroidery, that is... I have yet to sew anything. Ahem). I knew I didn't want to find letter patterns, because I just wanted to be able to sit and not really think about what I was going to do and just feel free to go with the flow... whatever that means. 

Turns out, I love it. What a fun way to just relax and enjoy the process without the pressure of getting a "perfect" result. If you're thinking about embroidery, or even if you've previously enjoyed embroidering patterns, I would encourage you to give freehand embroidery a try. 

Such a great way to experiment with new stitches and play around with different thicknesses of floss without the commitment of a large piece. I'm thinking about how fun it might be to do a patchwork pillow with some of these squares, too. Maybe a wedding or house warming gift for some friends?

This one reminds me of sprinkles on a cupcake. And now I'm hungry. 

I am super thrilled with this latest sew, mostly because I finished it. This is a dress I started way back when I was barely pregnant, but didn't account for things like a growing bosom and a gianormous baby condo, so I just kinda scrapped it. Lately I've been too flakey to follow a sewing pattern, but am not patient enough to try and learn how to actually make a pattern, so my sewing strategy has been to cut fabric sew some seams and pray it works... it's definitely not a frustration-free approach. But I finally had the gumption the other night after the kiddos were in bed to revisit this dress and see if it was something I could make work so my post baby body would have something to fit into for church.

I still have a lot to learn about fabric drape and such, and this probably wasn't the best fabric to use for this dress, as it wants to kind of poof out more than I had envisioned for the skirt. It's a light weight cotton that I picked up a few years ago on the cheap at JoAnn, and I love the subtle navy/purplish print. AND since I had to redo the side seams about 17 times, by the last time I did them I got a wild hair and decided to try adding pockets. They are SO easy, you guys!

I thought it was fun to pair with my favorite scarf and belt, and think it will go pretty well into fall if I layer on a cardi and some tights. 

Here's the pocket detail. I'm sure I didn't do it right, but I did my best to figure it out based on a plethora of tutorials I've read along the way. I was happy to find a fat quarter of a gold geometric print I had forgotten about in my stash, and love the fun of having contrasting pockets!

And finally here's the sweet baby who inspired the dress in the first place. He was just chillin' while daddy snapped the photos of my dress and I LOVE that Karl snuck in a couple shots of Nash. Cheeks! 

recycled t-shirt baby quilt

you have no idea how happy this makes me, guys (because, sewing!). i started this quilt about three years ago and had completely given up on it until last week. i decided i'd better buy myself a walking foot and finally finish this quilt even though i was convinced it wasn't worth it. i had sewn the sweet zig-zag front, and even quilted it, but just couldn't bring myself to bind it. but now i wish i'd have been more careful with it, because i LOVE the way it turned out.

the quilt top is made of thrifted t-shirts i cut up and patched together (unfortunately i didn't know about quilting with a walking foot three years ago). you can also see here if you look closely that i did a little bit of hand quilting which looks kind of cool in real life, especially on the back. 

the backing is a soft, lovely flannel, and in the middle is natural cotton batting, making this a lovely little quilt that a baby can play on outside or on hardwood floors. i used just a regular quilting cotton for the binding, and i adore the way it pulls it all together.

man my front porch needs to meet a pressure washer. can we just call it "rustic"?  ;)

i'm feeling like i need to hit the thrift store and revive my etsy shop!

I'm usually not that great at matching different fabrics, but I think I've finally matched up enough of my stash fabric to finally make my girlie a couple Bo Peep Skirts from Anna Maria Horner's Seams To Me. I've made a few things from this book so far (though I've been wanting to make everything if only my time and fabric budget would allow!), and I love it. The patterns are well written and I feel like I have learned something new with each project. 

I'll let you know how they turn out.

:)

easiest dress ever!

 I scored a couple of great thrifted pillow cases a few shopping trips ago for a buck each and recently decided it was time to try some pillowcase dresses for Mad. There are some great tutorials out there, but nothing that was quite what I envisioned. So, I simply cut about 4 inches off each pillowcase on the closed side, made a rolled hem, and used elastic thread to do about 8 rows of shirring a little over a quarter inch apart. The 4 inches I cut off the top left me with the perfect amount of fabric to make ties for the straps. Easy peasy! I didn't have quite enough elastic thread to finish the striped one, but that I'm hoping that that king size pillow case will be like a maxi dress on my girl.

Wanna give it a try? Just go find a pillowcase that will be long enough for your girlie and get to work. Here is a tutorial specifically for shirring with elastic thread, and here is a tutorial for an entirely different project (which I must make soon!) that also has some helpful tips for shirring. 

Have fun!

:)

tough boys wear pink!

 I used the tutorial found over at Zaaberry to finally make a boy's muscle shirt for Maximus! I have been wanting to make one since last summer, but just finally got up the courage to give it a try. 

 It is no coincidence that the courage came shortly after I found this Godzilla shirt a on a trip to the Goodwill. I knew at once it had to be turned into something for Max.

Godzilla on pink?! It completely cracks me up!

This photo is included for proof to my husband that it was in fact, a men's shirt. :)

The shirt turned out a little slimmer than I meant for it to, because I used a pajama shirt to trace for the pattern. (Note to self: pajamas are meant to fit more snugly than regular clothes.) But speaking of pattern making, I also found out that paper grocery bags are the perfect size to use for little kid/baby patterns.

 He loves his new "monster" shirt and given that it took about 30 minutes to make, there will definitely be more of these in his summer wardrobe!!

:)

I made a purse!

Way back in November, my Aunt sent me one of her husband's ACU shirts from Germany and a link to this website for inspiration. I'm still not sure why I told her I could make her a purse from his uniform. I had never made a handbag before and didn't have a pattern for one that seemed fitting for this material. Also, do you know how hard it is to cut into ACU? I went through rotary blade just on this project, even though the shirt was worn thin in spots. I couldn't imagine trying to cut up a new one! But all that aside, this probably has be the project I'm most proud of to date.

I finished it in December, after procrastinating when I realized how much this would challenge my sewing skills. But I didn't blog about it back then, because I wanted to make sure a) she really liked it first and b) that it wouldn't fall apart the first time she used it. I'm glad I waited to show you all, because it looks WAY better now that she's used it and put all his patches on it.

I just made up my own pattern for the bag based on the size she wanted, and the size that would be most logical. I used the front of the shirt for the front of the purse, which put some great pockets and the name tapes right on the front. I wish I'd have been brave enough to put a zipper into the purse, but I think I would have needed a stronger machine, or at least way bigger needle. The fabric is seriously so tough! But I found some large snaps that match the look of the bag, and work just fine.

I used the shoulder pockets for the sides of the purse, which worked perfectly for the dimensions of the bag, and just sewed a single strap. Which I love! I was so happy to see that she came over using it, as I was a little worried at first that my maybe I was way over my head with ambition that didn't match my actual skill level. Yay! that it hasn't fallen apart. :)

I'm definitely not itching to make more of these anytime soon, but I am so glad I made this one. It really makes you stop and think when you're holding a shirt in your hands that has been to places you can't imagine going. 

 I have so. much. sewing I'd love to get done so I could start checking some items off my list, but how am I supposed to sit behind my sewing machine when it looks like this outside?! The sun is finally showing itself to us... and it's warm enough to enjoy it to boot!

This would have been a good idea if the frisbee wouldn't have
smacked her in the face shortly after this photo was taken. :(

I did, however, find time to knit while soaking up some rays.
This pair of booties will be going to my little number 3.

:)

Here's a little preview of a project I've been working on this week for the bazaar this weekend. I screen printed these fabric panels by hand way back when I learned to screen print last Spring. These were just little drawings I made and thought there were funny for baby things because they all have nocturnal animals on them. If you're not busy Friday night, I hope you can make it downtown for the Olympia Arts Walk. That's where I'll be.

:)  

a little thing to sew.

This weekend, while I was busy sewing away at some projects for next weekend, I was able to fit in a fun little project for my girlie. I made the bucket hat from the book Little Things to Sew. 

 I fell in love with this book the first time I saw it, based on the photos alone. The projects are great, too. This is the first one I've made from the book, and it went together in a snap. Madee had fun picking out the fabric for the lining and loves that the hat is reversible so she can change her look. ;)

 I ended up making the size large (sz 7-9), which fits my taller-than-average 4 year old pretty well. I always feel like hat sizing is on the small side with most patterns in general--knit and crochet ones included, but that's probably just because we all have grande cabezas in this house.

 You can see here that my sewing isn't perfect, which is why I love sewing for my kids--they hardly notice that I can't sew straight! This project was pretty technical for me, which means I learned a lot. I like books like this though because while some of the projects are just above my skill level, I'm not too scared to try them since botching them wouldn't be a huge fabric loss.

I hope you all enjoyed your weekend!

:)

handmade baby toys.

I am loving these sweet little soft baby blocks I made today for my niece who will be born in a few weeks. I used this tutorial over at Zaaberry and they couldn't have been easier. After reading the comments on the tutorial, I decided to try making one block "crinkle" by putting a piece of plastic from a grocery bag inside, along with the fiberfil stuffing. It worked like a charm! I also put a jingle bell inside one of the blocks, and then left the third plain, but with an extra couple ribbon "tags". I'm pretty sure my little niece-to-be will love them, and I'm going to make up some more for my little sweet little nephew who is now sitting up and playing toys.

Hope everyone is having a great weekend!!

:)

baby blanket.

I finally finished this super sweet baby blanket I had started when I first found out my sister is having a girl. I took my time on it partially because I like to bounce between projects, and partially because I have a secret fear of finishing things--what if it doesn't turn out?! Luckily, I'm beginning to learn that the amount I learn from each screw up greatly contributes to the success of my next project.

 Anyway, back to the blanket. I used the tutorial at MADE, as well as the one she links to. I LOVE the way it turned out.

One thing I love about this design is that I'm always a little nervous to throw my freshly sewn items into the washing machine. I have fears that they will just completely deteriorate and all my hard work will be completely ruined in one 30 minutes cycle. So, imagine my pleasant surprise to find out that not only did this blanket survive the wash, it actually improved as the cut edges frayed, making them softer and more chenille-like.

I decided to spend the time to hand sew the binding onto the back of the blanket. Even though it took a lot longer for me to do it this way, I love the thought of putting hand stitches into a project. It gives you some extra time to really hold the project in your hands and infuse it with all the love you want to give to the recipient. I think this is also why I am so drawn to knitting for people, and babes in particular.

You can sort of tell in this photo that I used multiple colors of contrasting thread, mostly because I ran out of my first color and decided to make it look like that was the plan. I actually like how the "stripes" turned out though. The horse fabric is an embroidered corduroy that I found at Joann, and I think it's perfect for a little baby girl who will be born and raised on a small farm, especially since there is already a pony in the family. :)

Overall, the tutorials are great, the blanket was fun to make, and I love the way it turned out. Success! Give it a try. 

:)

pillow!

 Here is the pillow I finished for Mad's room. I am entering it in the Blogger's Pillow Party. What fun!

 I ended up making a scrappy log cabin (of sorts) for the front panel, and experimented with quilting it to a small piece of batting.

 Here's a better look at what I did. I love the way the stitch lines formed squares at the corners, it really adds to the "quilty" look I was going for. The owl is a left over piece of fabric I had hand screen printed a while back.

I added some embroidered tree detail.

 And appliquéd some leaves.

And in case you're curious, I sewed my first ever envelope back (super easy!) out of an old sheet, which means I didn't even have to hem the envelope opening since I just cut my pieces from the edge.

Success! She approves. 

:)