Bonnie
A Little Green Reconstruction for Earth Day
It’s Earth Day, and I couldn’t resist using that as an excuse to recycle a few things that aren’t being loved anymore into things that we’ll use! Charlie’s little romper above started out as this men’s xlarge t-shirt:
I happened on that tee in the clearance section of our local thrift store and couldn’t pass it up. I loved the “Tree Hugger” print on it, and I’d been wanting to try out recycling a tee into a romper.
Charlie really seems to be enjoying exploring our backyard greenery in his new “green” romper.
Jamie got new “green” clothing, too! Green in more ways than one . . .
Jamie’s top started out as this Green Lantern shirt that his big brother didn’t wear because he didn’t care for the sleeves.
My Charlie Tee pattern, a little cutting and a little sewing later, and Jamie gets to enjoy a green green Green Lantern shirt . . . get it? It’s green colored . . . it’s green because it’s recycled . . . and it’s Green Lantern.
And, because it is Earth Day, here’s a picture of Jamie in his new t-shirt hugging on our favorite backyard tree. This walnut tree is a prop in a lot of our pictures, and it provides a beautiful view from our kitchen window all year long. (It’s also the kids’ favorite climbing tree!)
Two more items checked off of the lists:
Honey, I Shrunk the Jammies
Charlie had several Comfy Sleep Sets that I sewed up for him toward the end of winter, and I hated seeing them get packed away with plenty of good wearing time in them. Sooooo . . . . I reclaimed them for summer use by cutting off the arms and legs and serging on new bands. So quick. So easy. So frugal!
Jamie had one Toddler CSS that still fit him well, so I was able to mark one PJ set off of his Summer Wardrobe list with my quick re-do, too!
This set is the Wee Tot Collection (formerly the Little One Jammies) laptee and pants that I sewed for Charlie to model on the new pattern cover. Since he only wore it one time for our little photo shoot, I definitely could not let this one go to waste! A little cutting and a little sewing, and it’s ready for those toasty summer nights, too.
I’m still moving forward on the boys’ Summer Wardrobe Lists. I didn’t set an actual deadline for myself, but the weather is heating up fast here in Dallas, so I’m feeling like I need to work towards finishing before too much longer!
Did you hear?
My two newest patterns are now available! (I really meant to blog when I released them last Friday, but our little guy has had an icky cold which he so kindly shared with his momma . . . )
Introducing Rockin’ the Raglan Tee . . .
. . . and the Lazy Days Lounge Set.
I can’t wait to see what you sew with them!
It’s a bird . . . it’s a plane . . .
It’s Super Jamie . . .
and his sidekick, Super Charlie!
They’re on a mission . . .
. . . to keep playgrounds safe . . .
. . . for fun and adventure . . .
. . . in their neighborhood . . .
. . . and around the world!
Meanwhile, behind the scenes, Super Mom has marked two more items off of her little super heroes’ summer wardrobe lists!
2011 Summer Wardrobes–5 Tops for Jamie
Moving on to Jamie’s Summer Wardrobe list . . . here’s the first half of the tops that I have planned for him.
First up is a Hooded Colorblocked Charlie Tee in Michael Miller Dino Dudes and stripes. You might recognize this one although it looked a little different the last time I blogged about it.
It started its life as the long-sleeve tee that is displayed on the new cover for the Charlie Tee. This is actually a great way to keep your little one’s wardrobe going from winter into summer. As long as the top still fits, just cut the sleeve off and hem.
Next is a simple two-color Charlie Ringer Tee, also in MM interlocks.
The last three tops were sewn as testers for the Rockin’ the Raglan Tee which I promise is coming up soon! It’s ready to go–I just need to coordinate a few things before I can release it.
Jamie chose this football fabric . . .
. . . and this snake fabric.
And the last top in this post is actually the one that you’ll see on the cover of the Rockin’ the Raglan when it’s released. (In a much nicer photo, though.)
Treehouse Fabric Designed by Me(!) Charlie Tee
A few weeks ago I posted a picture of the treehouse fabric that I’d designed on Spoonflower. Now you get to see the actual fabric! It’s been here for a little while, but I’ve been too busy to do anything with it.
I had the design printed on Spoonflower’s organic cotton interlock, and it is incredibly soft! Here’s the Charlie Tee that I sewed up for Charlie with it.
The colors were a bit more muted than my original design, but I expected that since Spoonflower says up front that their color range is limited. The colors faded a bit in the wash, too, but I actually really like the look of it now. It has some character. (Hopefully, it won’t continue to fade, though.)
I ordered two fat quarters–one of the print and one of the stripe. That was plenty to create a size 18-month tee with a bit of leftover. I did supplement with a solid interlock on the neckline. If you used a coordinating solid for the sleeves, too, you could get a size 18-month or smaller tee out of just one fat quarter.
I love that the colors and the design are different than anything else that’s readily available. No cars, trucks, sports, puppies or primary colors, yet it’s still very boy. (Not that I’m against any of those things! It’s just nice to have something a little out of the ordinary sometimes.)
I don’t know how often I’ll design my own fabric at Spoonflower because it could get very expensive, but I can definitely see me doing this every once in a while!
This tee wraps up Charlie’s Summer Wardrobe Top list. On to bottoms, pjs and rompers now . . .
2011 Summer Wardrobes–Charlie’s Tops
Finally! A post about Charlie’s and Jamie’s summer wardrobes! In case you haven’t been following my blog, one of the resolutions that I made at the beginning of the year is to sew at least one of my children a whole wardrobe for one season. Not only did I make the resolution, but it was printed in the Spring 2011 edition of Stitch magazine! (Now there’s a way to make sure that you follow through with a resolution–print it in a national publication!) I’m actually working on sewing summer wardrobes for my two youngest boys, Jamie and Charlie.
First up on my list is Charlie’s summer tops. I had originally planned to do six, but he ended up with seven. I’m going to show you six tonight and save number seven for tomorrow since I think it deserves a post of its own.
Top #1 is a Basic Charlie Tee in Michael Miller Dino Dudes with coordinating MM stripes. (This is the picture from the new cover for The Charlie Tee & Hoodie.)
Top #2 you’ve seen before, too. This is the Ringer Charlie Tee that I used for my Easy Applique Tutorial last month.
Tops #3, 4, 5 and 6 are all done in my newest tee pattern which will be released later this week. This is just a quiet sneak peek!
Here’s Top #3 in MM Dino Dudes with a different color stripe.
Top #4 has the optional color-blocked sleeve and MOM Robots.
Top #5 features the once enormously popular Mint Chocolate Zoo.
Top #6 rounds out the group in Zoo Animals on Red matched up with a Chez Ami stripe.
I Spy an Adoption Shower . . .
A wonderful young couple that serves with us at GFA is in the process of adopting a very sweet little boy who is about 2 years old. A couple of weekends ago, some friends threw them an adoption shower, and I sewed up this fabric I-Spy/Memory game for their new little guy.
I used the Memory Game Tutorial over at Kindershop Online for the pieces, and then added this drawstring bag to store them in. (I made one of these for Jamie for Christmas two years ago, and it’s the one sewn toy that he has played with the most!)
A Few More Pattern Cover Updates
Just a few more new pattern covers to show off. I’ve really been having fun with these!
New Cover for the Charlie Tee & Hoodie
I mentioned in my last post that I’m working on sewing up new samples of each of my patterns to update my covers. I’m using Michael Miller fabrics for the ones that I’m working on right now. (You already know how much I love Dino Dudes!) It’s spring here and perfect for getting outside to take pictures. I’m thrilled with the new cover photo for the Infant & Toddler Charlie Tee. What do you think?
I have lots more to do. Summer is going to be here soon, so I’m taking advantage of all this sewing to work on my two youngests’ summer wardrobes. No, I haven’t forgotten my resolution to sew everything they’ll need for summer–its coming along nicely. I just haven’t had time to post! I’ll do my best to post my checklist along with pictures of what I have done so far later this week.
