Sewing/Crafts
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!
Coveralls Under Construction
Whew! Getting this little boy to stay still for long enough to take a nice picture is nearly impossible. He’s not just walking at 10 months . . . he’s running!
I love these one-piece coveralls for the winter, as well as their summer cousin, the romper. They’re so easy to grab and go. Both the coverall and the romper will be included in my next Fishsticks Designs pattern release.
I’m designing the romper and coveralls in sizes newborn to 9 months with the overlapping neckline. It’s easy to pull on over those sweet newborn heads, and it’s a simple easy-to-sew design.
The larger sizes starting at 12 months will include patterns for both the overlapping neck and the basic t-shirt neckband. That will give you a little variation in how you sew these up. That’s always one of my big goals. I want you to get comfortable with a pattern and be able to sew up a wardrobe without everything looking the same!
I do have a question for you. You can usually only find these in ready-to-wear up to size 24 months. I think that there are a lot of mamas who would love to have them up to 4T, though, for bigger little ones who aren’t yet using the potty. Would you sew these in sizes 3T and 4T if you had a pattern available?
I’ll be working on the summer romper over the next few days. I’ll just have to make them a little big . . . there’s snow in the forecast here on Monday, so I don’t think we’ll be using them outside of the house anytime soon!
My Sister’s Apron
My sister asked me to sew her an apron for Christmas (well, okay, for sometime after Christmas). She manages a restaurant and shared with me that she is allowed to wear an apron that includes the colors black and red. (I did forget to ask if white was okay–I really hope it is!) I found this perfect fabric at Hobby Lobby last week. My dear husband when I said, “Look, I found the perfect fabric for Bobbie’s apron!” responded, “You mean because it has aprons on it?” (I might have rolled my eyes.) Well, yeah, sort of . . . but it’s also black and red–the perfect colors–and the aprons on it have this great retro feel to them. The whole fabric has a great feel to it. It was exactly what I wanted to give this simple apron a some excitement.
I used McCalls 2233 which went together perfectly according to the instructions included. (Yay! I didn’t have to modify anything!) I think it made for nice functional apron which should work very well for kitchen duties at home or on the job. I already have plans to make one for myself. I have the perfect fabric in my stash for it!
The Joy-Nicole Bag Tutorial
Each year, I sew new bags for my nieces and daughters for Christmas. Last year, with my Messenger Bag Tutorial, I started a tradition of designing a bag for them and sharing it in a tutorial here for all of you to use, too. I’m a little behind on Christmas sewing this year. (There was this wedding . . . and it took up just a tiny bit of my time . . . ) I wasn’t ready to give up on the bag or the tutorial, though, so I made some time for finishing up both over the last week.
The first two versions of this bag weren’t quite what I wanted, but I’m thrilled with this final version! I can’t wait to hear what you think of it, too. This one is Samantha’s–as soon as she saw it, she begged for it to be hers. I’m so happy with the piping around the flap. It gives the bag a great finished look. If you’ve never worked with piping before (or if you have without great results) don’t fret–I’ve included my suggestions for perfect piping in the tutorial.
My nieces were here for the wedding, so I had the opportunity to have them visit my sewing studio and share with me their fabric preferences. My oldest niece, Tristen, asked for a bag made with her school colors: green and orange. I had my doubts about how those two colors would work together, but I love the result. I can’t wait to hear what her friends at school have to say about it!
Allie loves polka dots. She showed me a fabric in my stash that she really liked, but there wasn’t enough of it to work with for a bag. These polka dotted fabrics jumped out at me at the fabric store, though, and then I found the button that looks like it was made just for this bag. (The button is just decorative–there’s a magnetic snap under the flap.)
Finally, this is Kristen’s bag. When Kristen walked into my sewing studio, she saw this Michael Miller Dino Dudes and immediately said, “I want the dinosaurs!” I can honestly say that it never would have occurred to me to sew up a handbag with this fabric, but I think it might be my favorite of the bunch. Seriously? How often do you see someone walking around with a dinosaur purse? It’s definitely one of a kind!
I really like how each of the bags that I made this year showcase so much personality. Ready to sew up one or two in your favorite fabrics? You can find the pdf tutorial complete with pattern pieces right here: Joy-Nicole Bag Tutorial. If you use the tutorial, I’d love to see your bag!
Fresh Comfort Quilting Bee Blocks — All Done!
I let myself get terribly behind on quilt blocks for the Fresh Comfort Quilting Bee, but I’m all caught up and all finished now! It was a wonderful year of piecing together blocks. I learned so much! The blocks above are Wonky Log Cabins for Heather. She’s planning to use them in a quilt for her husband.
The blocks below are going into a Zig-Zag Quilt that Joanna is sewing. You can find the tutorial for them on her blog: Zig-Zag Block Tutorial.
Finally, these last two blocks are for Debbie’s Christmas Quilt.
Sew Mama Sew Giveaway #1
Another Sew Mama Sew Giveaway Day has arrived, and it finds our household racing to finish up all the last minute details for our oldest daughter’s wedding in just five days! I couldn’t resist taking a few minutes away, though, to put together not only one giveaway, but two! You’ll find my Fishsticks Designs giveaway in this post, and be sure to scroll down to the next post to read about my latest project and check out the second giveaway, too.
I’m loving my new collection of Charlie Tee patterns, and because I hope you’ll love them, too, I’m giving away the winner’s choice of one Charlie Tee pattern. In sizes that stretch all the way from 6 months to Adult XLarge, you’re sure to find one that will work perfectly for you or your little ones!
My two youngest boys were having a blast dancing around the Christmas tree tonight, showing off their colorblocked Charlie Tees, and I couldn’t resist snapping some pictures to share. Each pattern includes instructions for a basic tee, two colorblocked versions, a ringer tee and a hoodie!
To enter to win, simply leave a comment telling me which version you’d most enjoy receiving–the infant/toddler sizes, the big kid sizes or the adult/teen sizes–and who you’d sew your first Charlie Tee for. The winner will be chosen at random on December 18th. (We’ll be a little busy with a wedding the night before, so it may take me until Sunday to post.)
Handmade Christmas – A Trio of Stockings
Just finished up these stockings for Morgan and her fiance, Chad, and his little guy, Austin. I used my own Stocking Tutorial which you can find here. I’m excited to give them these to enjoy on their first Christmas as a family!
