Bathrobe

After trying for some time to convince my son that bathrobes are meant to have three-quarter length sleeves and come down mid-thigh, I realized I'd better make him a new one. Seriously, his old one was way too small as I made it two years ago. This one is made of flannel that I got at Joann's famous black Friday sale last year for CHEAP! Have I ever mentioned that I have a thing about nicely finished seams? Since I don't have a Serger, I always zig-zag everything, but this time....drumroll, please....I did everything with French seams. Ha! I realize it may be a bit excessive but it sure looks nice to not have any raw edges showing.

Salt Dough Landscape

My son and I made this landscape for him to use with his growing collection of animals, pioneers, Indians, cowboys and pirates. The base is plywood, and no, it is not square. We just raided my husband's scrap pile and used what we found. We made armatures out of foil for the cave and the mountains, and hot glued them to the base. Then, we mixed up a large batch of salt dough and went to work. After the dough dried, my son painted the whole thing with acrylic paints. The pond was made by first coating the adhesive side of sticker paper with glitter, then using spray glue to adhere it to the base. On top of the glitter, I used some sort of glaze stuff that is supposed to be for scrapbooking I think. It creates a nice, raised water-like texture. After we did all that, I sprayed on a generous coat of varnish. The hardest part was waiting for the various stages to dry. That seems like an eternity for a five year old!

Amy Butler - Cabo Halter

Yup....I made another Amy Butler pattern and once again I love it! This is a super easy halter top pattern with a lined bodice and invisible zipper. I really like how it fits long torso people like myself and that it could easily be converted into a tank top or sundress. I've made 3 already (one was a prototype) and I've had the pattern for less than a week. The materials for both halters cost me less than $10 too so that is an added bonus. It doesn't take a lot of fabric so it's a great way to use up small yardage long lost in the back of your stash. My only problem is that I ran out of zippers!

Vintage Hankie Makeover

I may have just a wee bit of an obsession with vintage linens, primarily hankies. I love the colors, designs and handwork that has gone into making them. When I found this tutorial, I was thrilled to find a way to use at least one hankie from my collection. It is very simple to make, and I am quite impressed that it is possible to make a bonnet out of a 15" square handkerchief. I will be sending it to my friend from high school who had a baby girl recently.

Shirt to Dress

Remember the shirt skirt? Here is what I did with the rest of Dad's shirt. I used a commercial pattern, and just treated the front button panel as one piece. The bottom band is the same gray suiting I used for the skirt. To add a little flair, I used lavender piping around the top and between the dress and the bottom band.

Apron

One can never have enough aprons, especially ones with red ruffles. There is also a ruffle around the sides/bottom of the apron. I love it!!

Cloth Napkins

Having three kids means the potential for going through mountains of paper napkins in short order. I made these cloth napkins with odds and ends from my stash. So far I have made about 18, and I am looking for a total of about 3 dozen. The construction is very simple: 2 18" squares, right sides together, sew together leaving an opening, turn, press and top stitch.

Dopp Kit #2

I had some leftover scraps from my Blossom bag project and decided to use them for another Dopp Kit (see the first one and the tutorial from The Purl Bee here). This one is a little different though because the inside is trimmed with bias tape (still from the .70 cent pillowcases!) and has some pink top stitching. If you haven't noticed yet...I am a houndstooth fanatic :)
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P.S. The bag looks lumpy but it's actually not. I just take bad pictures and had to stuff it to stand it up!

Amy Butler - Blossom Bag and Pleated Coin Purse

Have I mentioned before that I love Amy Butler? I just bought her new book, "Style Stitches" and it is awesome. I've been saving this houndstooth fabric for a long time just waiting for the right project and the Blossom bag and matching coin purse was the natural choice :) This is a semi-soft bag with lots of room and even comes complete with a zipper pocket and a magnetic closure. For the lining I used a vintage .70 cent pillowcase I found at the Salvation A. that has funky flowers on it in bright colors.

As with all Butler patterns, there was a laborious amount of cutting, fusing, needle breaking and hand stitching but since I've come to expect that, it doesn't bother me anymore especially knowing that the finished product reflects the amount of time that went into it. I must say that I love, LOVE, L O V E how this bag turned out and the coin purse with the vintage daisy brooch is just an added bonus. There are a few minor cosmetic imperfections that I'm going to call "individualistic nuances" but I can live with them :)

Kid Sized Baby Carrier

My daughter decided that she wanted a carrier for her baby, and stat! It just so happened that I wasn't in the middle of a load of dishes or anything, and I was able to start work on it immediately. As you can see, its not the most well-designed carrier in the world but she could care less. The neck strap is elasticized and the waist ties in the back.

I Feel Like A Bootlegger

I made some Habanero Vodka for my brother for his birthday. Really, who needs such a thing? And will he drink it? I'm not sure. I do know that when I saw the recipe in one of my canning books, I had the idea to make this label for it just for kicks. After making it, I tasted only a single drop, and let me tell you, it burns! I would not drink it if you paid me.

The Lil' Cutie Pouch, Again

Here is my version of the Lil' Cutie Pouch. My son has been asking for a wallet. Since he is 5 and deals primarily in whatever change he can scrounge from the couch cushions, he really needed something that would more securely hold his loot. I bought a carabiner to go through the loop so he can hook it to his belt loop. He promptly filled it with his money and a few small toy horses to 'entertain him on long trips.' The best part? When I asked him if he wanted a bigger pouch for his toy horses, he said 'Why would you do that? This one is just perfect!'

PS. The outer fabric is leftover from the denim skirt I made the pants from! That skirt is going a long way.