Easter Outfits!

I had in my mind that I wanted Madeline to have a very old-fashioned Easter dress with a vintage feel to it. A little embroidered collar with hand-made lace, complete with pearl buttons and pintucks.

Uh, yeah. Totally crashed and burned, ya'll.

I made a very poor fabric choice that was way too thin and delicate (read: difficult to work with) and my hand crocheted lace started unraveling after it was sewn into the collar.

So, I started all over with a new plan. I had purchased the "Marissa" dress from The Scientific Seamstress right after it came out and decided it would be a good choice. And yes, more Amy Butler "water bouquet" fabric. Can't get away from it.

Recognize that basket? The tutorial is here. The hat was thrifted for $1...love that!

I'm so pleased with how it came out! And Carla has done it again with another fantastic pattern. If you recall, I used her "Precious Dress" pattern for Maddie's dress last year (it kills me how much she's grown in just a year!).

I bought Will an outfit to wear Easter Sunday, but it was really, really bugging me that he didn't coordinate at all with his sister. So I made a tie to pair with a white shirt and pants that he already had. I know he's mine and that makes me totally biased, but seriously...how cute is he? The tie is from this pattern. I highly recommend it - you'll be seeing plenty more of these on my little guy!

And together?





I can't believe these kids are mine. Am I blessed or what?

Molly

Bonnets!

I just made seven of these bonnets for a customer. She is using them as Easter gifts for all the little girls in her life. I thought that was an adorable idea! Traditionally, I think an Easter bonnet is a hat, but these work too! I searched the web high and low for the perfect tutorial - but in the end, I just ended up working up my own pattern and method.

Madeline wasn't too happy that she didn't get to keep one - her bonnet from plow days isn't quite as special as this one. So now I guess I have to make another one.

I tried several different ways of gathering the back of the bonnet, but in the end - shirring won out! It's fast and easy and looks really nice too. Win-win-win!

Yes, the tutorial is coming. I thought it would be a waste to make 7 of these and not take some pictures. :)

Molly

p.s. If you are reading this, can you comment and let me know if my pictures look ginormous? They look fine on my screen, but I recently looked at my blog from my mom's computer and I had to scroll over to the right to see my pictures and I'm hoping it's not like that for the rest of you. (You know, the three people that still read this blog.) ;)

p.p.s. I really should dedicate this post to my absolutely angelic baby boy. I fully expected to be out of commission in the sewing department for awhile after his birth, but he's an angel, I tell you. Tomorrow I'm tackling my first "boy" sewing project, so I'll have an excuse soon to show his sweet little face.

p.p.p.s. Remember when you were a kid and you would try to add as many pppppps's to a letter as you could because you thought it was cool? What? That was just me? Never mind, then. Over and out.

It's all in the details...

My new obsession is browsing flickr and checking out the amazing things that people are making. The one thing that really struck me was the attention to detail that is demonstrated in so many of these items.

So I've been inspired to start taking time to think about how I can add special little details into each of the things I make. It's been fun to just stop and focus on the little things instead of just cranking out another project.

I've tried my hand at embroidery, which is something I've always wanted to try. I'm working it into a really fun mini-quilt that I can't *wait* to share. It's awesome. Just sayin'.

If you have a chance, check out this website. Amazing tutorials on just about every embroidery stitch under the sun.

Another new skill tackled: pintucks! I used this tutorial. I'll admit, these sort of look like pleats - the smaller pintucks were a little more difficult than they look! Still working on it. This is front of Madeline's Easter dress. I plan to sew pearl buttons down the center, I'm really hoping it translates the way I see it in my head!

I also dug out the crochet thread I purchased forever ago and played around with making homemade lace trim. I think this would be darling on a collar or pocket of a little girls dress. I'll share the tutorial (easy, peasy) if anyone is interested and I ever get around to taking pictures.

I'm amazed at how much just a little extra thought and time can add to an item. A little lace on a pocket, a strategically placed button or tiny applique...it's all in the details.

Molly

Cloth baby wipes : Tutorial

Okay, so this is probably the easiest project ever. Like, for real.

I cloth diaper, so using cloth wipes just makes sense. But I'm not okay with paying out the nose for something I'm going to wipe my baby's butt with. You know? I made up a batch of these when I was pregnant with Madeline and we still use them all.the.time. In fact, I just used the leftover flannel and terrycloth I had from her wipes to whip up some more for Will.

Okay, here we go!

Materials

Cotton flannel
Cotton terrycloth
matching thread

Cut your flannel and terrycloth into 9 inch squares. I find this size works the best, because they fit perfectly in a standard wipe container, but you might want a different size for whatever reason.

The loopy side of the terry cloth is what I use as the "right" side of the fabric.

So, right sides together! Stitch together, leaving a gap for turning. I usually leave my gap in the middle of a side as opposed to a corner. It's easier to hide.

Trim corners, turn and press.

Now you can top stitch anyway you like. I've used both a zig-zag and a straight stitch and they both look fine. Again, just wiping a baby's butt here.

I also made a matching bath towel in the same manner. I just added two lines of stitching down the center of the towel for added durability.

Done!

This would make an awesome baby shower gift!

Oh, I forgot the last step... go wrap your adorable baby in their snugly new towel! (Okay, I'll admit that was just my lame-o way of sneaking another picture of my baby in. He's just so darn cute!)

Molly

Plow Days...and a pretty pinny

I know I haven't posted in awhile - but that doesn't mean I haven't been crafting. In fact, I've been giving my sewing machine quite a work out lately.

First up - An old-fashioned dress for Madeline for "Plow Days". You can read about the event and see pictures of last year's dress here.

Of course, the day ended up being quite chilly, so we had to cover it up with a sweater for the actual event. Her cousin is just a day younger (and a foot taller!) than her, so they were partners in crime for the day.

The next day just happened to be "old-fashioned day" at church, so we got some more mileage out of her outfit.

Photo-op with the horse and carriage. She was quite pleased with herself!

Will giving us his unimpressed face...

I have a few other projects that are currently a work-in-progress, so when I can find time between changing diapers and working on the red lipstick stain currently on my carpet (yes, that actually happened. sigh.), I'll share those too.

Molly

Notes:
The dress and pinafore is from this pattern. Definitely not just for old-fashioned days! I plan to make another one of these for every day play!