ask and you shall receive

Hooray for cool vintage fabric!

You may remember I was wishing for some fabric. Karen from Mackey Blue came over this week and brought a ton of fabric with her.
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I carefully chose these 5 fabrics for $15. There were others I liked but I didn't want to spend a lot.

Clockwise from L-R :

This cute dutch print in red, blue, black and white has a very wintery feeling to it. It reminds a little me of some of the dutch prints like this I've seen on Superbuzzy and Karen and I thought it would look amazing as a skirt with a red or black top and tights. A little over 2 yards.

The pink bird print is adorable. I love the retro look. There is a little over 2 yards.

This green print has Denyse Schmidt written all over it. I mean isn't it exactly like this but, this one is vintage. A small piece.

This aqua & gold print is very pretty. Another small piece.

Navy blue wool suiting fabric. Oh, I could just see this as a pleated mini skirt with suspenders on my little girl one day. Something like this one. A yard should be enough, no?

As you can see, I still need to launder and iron.

On another note, Karen's (Mackey Blue) new window display includes my vintage smocks, appliqued onesies and baby booties. She has a lot of my new pieces so go take a look if you are in the area.

working on inventory

I've got a lot of sewing projects in the beginning stages. Some girl clothes, a skirt for me, patchwork etc. but, I am also always making to sell as well and don't really show these projects much.

Here is a smock in progress that I just finished running through the sewing machine. Sometimes it is hard to make the same item over and over but, using different fabrics and really believing in the product helps. And, I really do think the smocks are wonderful items as they can be worn in so many ways.

Oh, and the magnetic pin cushion/holder is one of my favorite things and always at my side when sewing. So easy to place your pins there as you remove them. If you don't have one I highly recommend it. Oh, and yes I did finally get a self healing cutting mat a few months back. How in the world did I live without one so long?

corduroy jumper

Yes, another jumper. This is Simplicity 6360 again. I had thrifted this corduroy a long time ago. In fact, all of the corduroy clothes I made this month have been from thrifted fabrics that were in amazing clean condition. Sadly, I haven't had any good experiences buying fabric on the cheap lately. Perhaps I am due for a bout of luck.

Anyway, this pattern is very easy to follow and I was quite happy with my interfacing and facing job this time. I think it's the best I've done. Perhaps, it was the ladybug that was crawling around while I was working on it that gave me good luck. I hand sewed the hem although in retrospect I should have pulled out my blind stitch presser foot and used this as I was going for the invisible look which it turns out is an almost invisible invisible hem. I think if I had the exact color thread to match the dress it would have been perfect.

Now, it's just tap my foot until the day my little one fits into it.

Something tells me I will be doing more then tapping my foot.
As I type Ms. S is teething on the dining room table. Yikes!

Oh, and sorry for the lack of blog posts lately. I have been busy making as usual and like I said have lots to say and show but, haven't found the time in my day to blog as much as I want on top of the usual stuff.
I am hoping to be better and by saying so intend to.
Thanks for the comments and sorry that I don't get to reach out to each of you to say so. I appreciate you stopping by.

vintage mittens

I have been busy and I have lots to show and tell but, I am too tired today. I have written several posts in my head this week while working up in my craft room but, have not managed to actually write them.

I leave you with this pretty pair of vintage mittens embroidered with ice skaters. These are so inspiring to me. I almost can't wait for winter to wear them. Almost. But, for now I am enjoying the last bits of summer.

We are planning on Central Park on Sunday for a get together/goodbye gathering for our dear friends Srini and Anna who are moving to London. Although, it will be bittersweet, I am really looking forward to it.

lazy daisy barrettes

These are not hard to make but, require some time- tracing, sewing (by machine and hand), cutting, wet felting. I just like the sound of that word....lazy and the way it sounds with daisy.

He loves me




He loves me not



He loves me a lot!





I couldn't resist.

they don't fit

These shoes were for they baby but, they don't fit. They are way too small so now they will be for one of her dollies.
I'm going to try and give this another go after I figure out how to resize them.
Also, they were hard to turn out so I think next time I'll try another spot of the shoe. As you can see they have some boo boo's that need to be mended

pants for baby

I prefer my baby in skirts and dresses but, as she is 6 months and bound to crawl soon, I figure I've got to dress her in leggings and tights and yes, pants once in a while. I found this tutorial when looking for a free trousers pattern for Little M and decided to try them out for baby first since the pattern only when up to the 12 months size. Now that I've made them I think I could use one of his pants to figure out a pattern myself.

So, these are yellow corduroy and lined in a off white flannel. There is a bit of room in the hem so I can take them down a bit if needed. I wanted the elastic waist to lie flat in front and gathered in the back which I pretty much accomplished. This is the back view. I added the pockets because I thought they would be a cute addition. Overall, I liked this pattern which is very basic and from Burda Style. I need to fix that little pucker down there and then they will be good to go.

into the woods bag

Ah, the days of leaving the house with a small bag. Just a few items and off and away.
My Mom's bermuda bag which I inherited/stole from her years ago.
Two tiny mushrooms embroidered while my two little ones slept one day last week.
One a little bigger then the other.
Turn your back and they just might grow.



-Yesterday, as we came home from a dinner out with the kids there was a rabbit hopping around in the grass. It was the first time Little M saw a rabbit 'in the wild' and he turned to me and said:

Is that Peter?

My heart just about melted with joy and I told him:


Maybe... it just might be him

urchin

I finished knitting Ysolda's Urchin hat yesterday. I used the same dusty pink yarn as called for in the pattern and it was so dreamy. It is Knit Global's Shetland Flame. The thick pieces are so soft and the thin strands in it were like silk thought they are actually rayon. I felt like I was on Cloud 9 using this yarn. I never knit a hat sideways before and it was good to do something different. I liked the rhythmic counting of the short rows and it was just perfect for a little project for myself- I like to do something for myself now and again. Cloud Bolero might be my next Ysolda knit. I am also fond of the new sweater, Leisl. Matilda Jane and Snow White are also stunning. Go have a look.
A little dark chocolate added in while knitting and you have perfection.

tiny skirts= love + a rainbow

Last week I also made this tiny red corduroy skirt for little Ms. S. I've fallen hard for tiny skirts on my baby. It started with a Tea Collection skirt I bought and hasn't stopped. They are simple to make. I might even do a tutorial if anyone is interested. Speaking of tea, has anyone seen this tea set.I can not stop looking at it and dreaming it is mine.

Yesterday as we were driving home from the kids cousin Brandon's birthday party we saw a double rainbow. It was incredible. There is nothing like seeing a rainbow. Here is what I managed to capture of it.



Thanks for all the lovely compliments on the swing swing smock.
Okay, I got to run, more projects and baby food making are beckoning me while the little ones sleep. My little girl starts solids on Wednesday, crazy.

swing swing smock

I made the swing swing smock from Bend the Rules Sewing for Scarlet this week.
I enlarged the pattern to 150% as someone suggested in the discussion group on Flickr and it worked out well for my almost 6 month old. It came together quick and painlessly. I love it!

Enjoy your weekend.