Bonnie
Sleeping Comfy with Dino Dudes – Stitch Giveaway #2
Woo-hoo! The Comfy Sleep Set download is all fixed and back up on the Stitch website! If you downloaded it before, please try this one out instead. I think you’ll really like it. At least, I hope you’ll really like it!
Remember this post: Carnival Bloom Skirt? I was so excited about Michael Miller and Moda and their cotton interlocks. I actually mentioned how much I’d love to see some Michael Miller boy prints on interlock, and MM fulfilled my wish with this amazing Dino Dudes interlock! Do you think the folks at MM read my blog? (I want more! Little boys need a selection of adorable designer cotton knits.)
Moving on . . . there’s a giveaway here, I promise! Here’s the latest Comfy Sleep Set that I sewed up for my little guy:
I used my Serger Detailing tutorial to give some extra color to the neck binding in this one:
This cotton/spandex waistband is really awesome. (As a side note, the waistband is cut quite a bit shorter than the opening in the pants where it attaches. You really have to give it a good stretch while you’re sewing it on. The spandex in it will make it bounce right back.) Here are a few pictures of the fit over a cloth diaper. (This is an AI2 that I wouldn’t call super trim or bulky.)
And, here a few pictures of the fit over a disposable diaper:
Ah, the giveaway–that’s what you came here for, right? This week, I’m giving away everything you need to make your own Dino Dudes Comfy Sleep Set: 3/4 yard of Dino Dudes cotton interlock, 1/4 yard of cotton/spandex ribbing and a copy of the Spring 2011 Stitch magazine.
I didn’t forget you moms of little girls, though. If you win and you’d prefer something more feminine than dinosaurs, I’ll let you choose this Mod Blooms cotton interlock, instead.
How to enter:
Entry option #1: Leave a comment here telling me if you were a fabric designer, what would you put on cotton interlock? What subjects, colors, etc. You can link to a favorite fabric, if you’d like, but it’ll take a bit for your comment to post because I’ll have to approve it.
Entry option #2: Like Fishsticks Designs on Facebook: Fishsticks Designs Facebook Fan Page. Yes, I finally put up a FD Fan page. There’s not much there yet. Well, there’s really nothing there yet, but I’m planning to use it for announcements, contests, special discounts, etc.
Entry Option #3: Post something that you’ve made with a Fishsticks Designs pattern on the FD fan page. I can’t wait to see what you have to share!
Giveaway entries will be closed at 10 p.m. central on Tuesday, February 8, 2011.
The Winner of Stitch Giveaway #1
I know you want to know who the winner is. There were 96 comments and 13 blog posts & Facebook links making 109 total entries. Random.org chose entry number 91. Entry number 91 is Sheila! Sheila is an online friend of mine and the owner of the incredibly innovative cloth diaper: Hiney Lineys.
Congratulations, Sheila! I can’t wait to see what you sew up with the Stitch magazine and the bacon and eggs cotton interlock.
Stitch Magazine Giveaway #2 is coming tomorrow morning, and if all goes well, the Comfy Sleep Set pattern download will be back up by then, too!
The Undercover Bottoms Boxer Briefs
The Undercover Bottoms Boxer Briefs pattern is all finished and stocked in my store! I hope you and your little ones like it as much as we do! Undercover Bottoms Boxer Briefs
The Comfy Sleep Set on a Newbie
A few corrections needed to be made to the Comfy Sleep Set pattern download, so it’s unavailable for a little bit. I’ll let you know as soon as it’s back up. In the meantime, there are still a few days to enter my drawing for a copy of the Spring 2011 Stitch Magazine and all the fabric you need to make your own Comfy Sleep Set: Bacon & Eggs Comfy Sleep Set Giveaway.
Today, I thought I’d share a newborn set that I sewed up with the pattern. It’s a great set for a baby shower gift! In fact, this one was a gift for my friend, Jenna, for her new baby boy. Jenna let me steal him away for a few pictures so you can see the fit on a new baby.
This “little” guy weighed in at about 9 pounds, and he’s got plenty of growing room in this outfit. The combination of the stretchy knit fabric and the fold-up cuffs make this a set that you’ll get a long life out of!
Jamie is Four!
My sweet Jamie is four years old! We had a great time celebrating his birthday with family and few of his friends on Saturday. We started the decorations with the birthday banner that I finally sewed up.
This was one of those projects that was on my to-sew list for . . . um . . . years. It really is such an easy project, though, and I love that it’s one we can use over and over again. Why did I wait so long to make it?
I used the tutorial at Pickup Some Creativity. I did modify the size of the triangles so that the whole thing would fit on a standard three-yard piece of double fold bias tape which fits perfectly across our huge kitchen window. I also used my handy-dandy pinking rotary cutter to trim off the edges. Have I mentioned before how much I love that thing?
Back to the party . . . I love this picture of Jamie peeking over the gifts in anticipation. He picked out the ninja fabric for his birthday Charlie Tee Hoodie. I made him a Charlie Tee last summer with a similar fabric, and he wore it everyday that it was clean. I’m guessing this one is going to be worn just as much since I did laundry yesterday, and it was his chosen top this morning!
From the Lego-covered cake and the Lego-themed games to the Lego goodies that his friends took home, it was a crazy Lego filled day! We held Legos by our noses and tried to drop them into Mason jars. (The little ones had a clear advantage in this game.)
And, we tried to guess how many Legos were in the jar. Can you guess how many?
Happy Birthday my big boy! I pray that the year ahead is full of joy and wonder and grand four-year-old achievements!
Bacon & Eggs for Comfy Sleeping – Stitch Giveaway #1
Here’s the first of the collection of Comfy Sleep Sets that I have to show off. This cotton interlock is perfect for pajamas . . . even if the little guy wearing them is a bit away from eating eggs and bacon for breakfast!
The top in this set is so easy to pull on because of the criss-crossed top pieces, and the elastic-free waistband on the pants is great for comfortable snoozing.
This is the size 12 months on Charlie who wears between a 12 and 18 months in ready-to-wear clothes. You’ll have to excuse his poor little red nose. It seems that he’s been fighting a cold since winter settled in here.
Charlie’s wearing the pants over a medium AI2 cloth diaper in this picture, and the rise has enough room to cover the diaper well. (It does peek out a little when he squats down, but not enough that it would bother me at all.) The pattern fits perfectly over a disposable diaper, too.
On to my first Stitch Giveaway . . . everything you need to make your own Bacon & Eggs Comfy Sleep Set: one copy of the Spring 2011 Stitch Magazine with the pattern (and whole lot of other great projects), 3/4 yard of bacon & eggs cotton interlock and 1/4 yard of chocolate brown cotton/spandex rib knit for the trim pieces. To enter, just leave a comment here sharing your favorite thing about baby clothes. You can earn extra entries by posting on your blog or your facebook page about the giveaway, too. Just click on the Contact Me button right above my picture and send me the link to your post. This giveaway will end on Friday, 1/28/2011 at 10 p. m. central. The winner will be chosen by random drawing. Enjoy!
Stitch Magazine & The Comfy Sleep Set
SQUEEEEEE! I might be a little excited. The new Stitch magazine is on the shelves! How do I know this? I know because I bought two copies at our local Hobby Lobby last night.
I have three more copies coming in the mail, too! Why would I want five copies of one magazine? Well . . . there’s this Comfy Sleep Set pattern in there. Isn’t it cute?
And that Comfy Sleep Set pattern? It has MY name next to it! SQUEEEEEEE!
Whew, I’m all good now. I promise to stop squealing at you. I am really excited about having a pattern in Stitch magazine, though. It’s such a fun and exciting new sewing magazine. If you haven’t checked it out, you really have to. There’s this really cute Comfy Sleep Set pattern in this issue . . . but there are lots of other great patterns in there, too. I’m already making a list of the ones that I want to sew.
I have some other Comfy Sleep Sets that I’ve sewn up ready to show off to you tomorrow, and I’ll have a giveaway, too . . . because, really, I don’t need five copies of the magazine. I’ll share!
Celtic Crafting
It’s been a little while since I blogged about homeschooling. We just started a new study of the middle ages, and my amazing hubby found some great craft projects to go along with last week’s study of the Celts. Allen had a blast putting together the Celtic roundhouse village above.
On Tuesday, Samantha and Allen pulled out our box of polymer clay and created their own Celtic beads. Samantha turned hers into earrings . . .
. . . and Allen strung his beads together into a necklace.
My children often surprise me with their choices on things. Ray gave them a list of the projects that they could choose from for the week on Monday and let them decide which two to complete. Allen, my all-boy boy, choose the paper and glue craft at the top of this post, and, Samantha, my sweet little girl, built this working K’Nex ballista.
All of this week’s craft ideas came from the Tyne and Wear Museums site.
One More New Pattern Coming Up – Boxer Briefs!
This pattern is one that I’ve had quite a few requests for. I’m always happy to put together a pattern that you want, especially when it’s something that we can use at our house, too! I made these two pair of boxers, along with a few others, for Jamie, and he doesn’t want to wear any of his storebought undies anymore! The two above show the front fly options–with and without the opening.
Here’s a view of the back. The final pattern will run from sizes 12-18 months up to size 12. These are perfect for using up small scraps of cotton knits that you have leftover from other projects.
These last four pair are on their way to my friend, Mika, of Froggy Girl Designs and her four boys. They very kindly offered to test out the fit for me and report back. As soon as I hear from them, this pattern will be ready for testing. The romper and coveralls pattern is coming along, but I’m setting aside business sewing for a few days to work on some birthday fun for Jamie. Today he turns four!
Adding a Little Detail with Your Serger
I was working on this laptee for a t-shirt and cloth diaper set that I’m sewing for a swap and thought I’d try out this idea that’s been running around in my head for awhile. A lot of ready-to-wear clothing has detailing like this around the neckline and sleeves. They use a special machine to do it, but I was sure that you could do something similar just using a run-of-the-mill serger. As it turns out, it’s really simple. I did take some pictures as I went along, though, so I could share with you how I did it.
I loved the result when the laptee was finished so I just had to try it out on a Charlie Tee. The pattern’s namesake is growing so fast, and he needed a couple of new longsleeve tees added to his wardrobe anyway. Aren’t they cool?
Just so you know, this serging method does leave a visible overlap at the back of the neck. If that little bit of messiness bugs you, you might want to just stick to using it for laptees or other patterns that don’t use a full loop of trim.
Honestly, though, once you put the tee on someone as cute as this? Would anyone even notice that tiny little imperfection? (And, just in case you wondered, I went hunting through my kids’ drawers and discovered that the clothing that has detailing similar to this almost always has an overlap at the back or on the bottom . . . and I’d never noticed it until I went hunting for it.)
Ready to try it out? Here’s my quick tutorial: Serger Detailing. Let me know if you have any questions!
