And Again....Another Apron

 Here's another one! I have so (sew) much fun picking out fabrics and trims and embellishments. I think that might be one of my favorite parts of the whole sewing process. Aprons are fun because you can get away with using a lot of fun/bright/funky stuff.

 Isn't this fabric the cutest? Snowmen, gingerbread and candy canes! It's so fun and cheerful.

 This one got a little wool felt gingerbread man on the pocket.

...And a little flair at the top! I have been using D-rings because they seem so much more manageable than tying and untying knots on wiggly kids.

Kids' Christmas Apron!

 I've had a spurt of random sewing projects lately, including Halloween costumes, birthday gifts and Etsy stuff. Perhaps one day I shall blog about it all, but no promises! :) I have about half a dozen kids aprons in progress right now. This one was my prototype and I love it! Basically, I want one for myself in grown-up size, but I have yet to find the justification to add yet another apron to my collection.

 I am working on a basic apron pattern with various 'customizations' so that each one can have its own personality. For this apron, I used this funky Christmas print as an accent with red bows and rick rack.

 I love that each apron can be unique and adapt to the style of the fabric, etc. Wait til you see the others I am working on! I have some fun ideas that will hopefully come to fruition. In the meantime, this cutie is up in the shop and ready to find itself a good home!

Rick rack and all....

Clothespin Bags

 A friend recently asked if I could come up with a large sized clothespin bag. She needed one to fit on a regular sized hanger since she does a lot of laundry. Something about having four kids does that. :)

 I have this strange? helpful? efficient? weird? philosophy that says 'If you're going to make one, might as well make 6!' or something like that. Which would explain how I suckered myself into buying three bushels of apples yesterday. I decided since I was making one clothespin bag, I should make two so she can pick which she likes best.

 

I ended up making 3, but that's beside the point. This one...I'm in love. When I sewed the bag up, it needed a little extra something, and that is what it got! Pompoms and rick rack on the same project. I'm out of control.

Fortunately she saw the vision and liked it too! Now I am inspired to use up the rest of this trim. Technically, I am always inspired by something(s) and it gets kind of annoying sometimes because there are only so many hours in the day in which to do all these things. And speaking of inspiration... I just inherited a stack of vintage-y shirts from my friend Belinda who is my yarn enabler and now fabric enabler. I have lots of ideas for them flying around in my head. I'll keep you posted!

Gingerbread House Ornaments: Embroidery + Felt

Here are a few ornaments I made recently. I love embroidering on felt and it was great fun to work on all the little details of each house. The pattern is by Gingermelon , and I tweaked it a bit to size them up. The original pattern is adorable, but TINY. Like possibly too tedious even for me. Cute, but tedious.

 I used wool blend felt which is easy to cut and comes in all sorts of colors. That makes ordering felt a dilemma of 'should I choose the concord grape or wisteria or lilac or ????' All of the above should be considered a suitable answer.

 I had fun adding candy details to this one, and a little glass beaded door knob. On each of the ornaments, I added glitter to the snowy roof. I love how it looks, but unfortunately it doesn't show up in the pictures very well.

 And what could be more festive than a wreath and candy canes? This one has tiny red seed beads decorating the wreath. I had fun making these and am happy to report that I have already sold 2 out of 3, so I suppose there will be more in my future!

Vintage Yellow Floral Dress

I love to go thrifting and I am always on patrol for nice vintage fabric. When I saw this sheet set I squealed (quietly) and threw it in my cart. The sheets are in perfect condition, as if they sat in some sweet grandmother's linen closet for the last 40-50 years. Vintage sheets are great sources of fabric. If the sheet isn't the most beautiful design, you can use it to line dresses, or as fabric for making a muslin. If the print is fantastic, like this, the world is your oyster! I will be able to get 3-4 more dresses out of this fabric.

I embellished it with little yellow flowers and vintage buttons because we all know by now how obsessed I am with vintage notions. Seriously. Wait til you see the next project I made.....you'll laugh, and hopefully love it as much as I do.

I love using a contrasting lining in this style of dress as it adds a fun pop of color to the ties and some personality to the dress overall.

I also think this would make adorable bias tape or a great bag lining! Oh, now I'm full of ideas. Now who wants to come over and clean my house so I can sew? ;)

Gingermelon Angel Ornament

 This project was part Etsy research, part sewing one of those projects I've wanted to do forever. I spotted this pattern from a shop called Gingermelon last year and loved it! I collected angel ornaments as a kid so I have a soft spot for them. I made one up to see how it worked out, and possibly put them in the shop. This one gave me an idea of what tweaks I want to make before they are 'shop worthy'. In the meantime, I haven't decided whether I will keep this one or give it to my daughter. Or make a bunch more so we can all have one! :)

Did you spot the rick rack yet? Oh, yeah. I haven't used it in a while and it was about time! I also added a little holly leaf to the song book just for fun!

Fork and Spoon Earrings

Last year, I made myself a pair of Fork and Spoon earrings. I love them! They are fun and kind of hilarious and unexpected. People always comment on them. Today, the little boy I babysit said 'Why you have a spoon on your head? And a fork on your head?' :) I have sold a few pairs in the shop, and just added some silver ones too! In a moment of inspiration I made fried egg display cards for them because...just because!

Latest Sewing Ventures

 Things have been quite busy around here and I haven't had nearly enough time to sew! Technically, I have been sewing but it is boring stuff like armrest covers for my neighbor's antique car, and alterations to a friend's bridesmaid dress.

 In the meantime, I have had a stack of buntings sitting around waiting to be photographed. I haven't yet come up with a great way to photograph them, but sometimes getting started is the hardest part.

 My favorite part of making these is picking out the fabrics! I spend too much time agonizing over the prints and placement, but it a fun kind of agonizing. :)

Like putting pickles and polka dots together, with a little bacon thrown in! 

Today a friend came over and together we reorganized my art room and made it more efficient! This involved going through each piece of my fabric stash. Now? I have more ideas than I have time to make which is the story of my life!

Vintage Sheet to Adorable Dress

 Last month I found a lovely vintage sheet and knew I had to make something out of it. This one was in fabulous condition and I imagine it to have lived on some adorable old lady's guest bed. The colors are fun and cheery: pink and orange, tempered with white flowers and green leaves. It was such soft fabric with a fluid drape, and I knew it would make a great circle skirt.

 I lined it with some coral pink/red fabric I got at the same sale. It came to me as the most horribly sewn curtains I have ever seen. Seriously. I couldn't even figure out what they were trying to accomplish, but the fabric was in great shape.

 Instead of a fabric flower, I switched this one up a little and added a bow. I am so happy with how it turned out! I kind of wish I had made it in my size. Think there's enough fabric left? ;)

Of course, I added the heart cut-out in the back and finished it off with a vintage pink button. Hopefully this dress will find its way to a little girl who likes to twirl!

Lastest Projects: Buntings, Buntings and More Buntings!

Phew! We have really been lax about posting this summer, but I am happy to say I have been able to squeeze in some sewing time. Also, all three of my kids are in school this year (yikes!) which means I will be able to have more time to devote to sewing and adding things to the shop. I have been working on a stack of buntings which have been so much fun! I love coming up with fun and funky color combinations and seeing them all come together.

So far I have over a dozen finished and waiting to be photographed. They range from shabby chic prints to polka dots and pickles! 

This one is the first one up in the shop. I think it would be a great addition to a playroom or a kids' bedroom. Six or seven years ago, I made a bunting for our family. I have used it at every birthday and party and it is such a fun tradition!

Sew-A-Thon

Last week I got the sewing bug. It's been too long! I cut out 4 baby dresses for Etsy, sewed them up, and finished two other dresses that needed finishing touches. Here are a few sneak peeks:

Yes, this one looks mighty familiar doesn't it? I liked the custom one I made so much I made another one!

Latest Etsy Addition: Itty Bitty Baby Dress

I just finished this custom order dress! I was asked to make a dress like this, but in yellow and a size up. I had no idea if the same fabric was available in yellow, and after a little searching I found that it was on back order everywhere. Drat! Then, I lucked out and found a yard on Ebay of all places. Yay!

I lined it with the same print as the original dress. It will be worn for family pictures, and the colors are navy and yellow. I love the color combo here. I have just enough fabric left I may be able to squeeze out one more dress. Or an apron. Like I need another apron.

The flowers are yo-yo's with vintage shell buttons I had in my stash. See! This is justification for having a large button stash...you just never know what you will need! :)

Branching Out: Texas eReader Sleeve

Recently I was pondering different ideas for my journal covers, and decided to branch out into Kindle/eReader sleeves. At the same time, Rachel is breathing down my neck about all manner of Texas flair. (OK, not really breathing down my neck...she's just very passionate about her newfound state!) Despite never having been there, I decided to add a little Texas flair to this project.

 

 For this, and all my journal designs, I begin by sketching the design in my sketchbook. When I get it how I want it, I trace off each of the sections and cut them out for templates. Very scientific.

I have realized I work very spontaneously in that I don't plan ahead. I don't pick all the colors, or decide on the beads beforehand. I just go with it and make it up as I go along. For this project, I wasn't planning on the beads but it just seemed to be what needed to happen.

That, and I seem to have the knack for adding tedious details to everything I do. My latest project involves a few dozen french knots. That should tell you something right there!

Skeleton Leaf Necklaces

This week I played in my bead box!

I came up with a few necklaces to add to our Etsy shop.

 

Check them out here