It's in the Genes

My dear mother taught me how to sew. She taught me how to use my resources. How to not sacrifice quality. And, how to be content dressing up like Dorothy and parading around town.

My mom is a cyclist and tomorrow they are going for a ride- costumes optional. Isn't she rad?
I mean... check out those shoe covers.

The dress she made for me when I was in 8th grade.


what a babe.

Face paint option

If you are trying to find face paint for your halloween costume, consider this alternative discovered by my 2-year-old while I was busy blogging.

Crayola Watercolors. Just mix and apply. For more artistic coverage, leave the room and let your toddler do it themselves.

When you go back to check on them, try really hard not to get upset that they also decorated the apartment exterior wall and the table, and their hands. Also, try not to laugh really hard when you see their handiwork... or their hands.

Just so you know, it comes off easily in the tub.

Happy Halloween Eve.

A Quilt Top and a Binder Clip

I put my scrap quilt top together. I really like it. It is simple, yet includes lots of cute and exciting fabric. My husband likes it a lot too. That is a plus!

Here is the whole top. I had it folded all night, so you get to see a lovely crease down the middle.

The other day the munchkin and I decided to cover some binder clips. I found them on clearance at Wal-Mart, so for $1, we mod podged scrapbook paper pieces to 16 binder clips. My favorites are the music notation ones. I love music and am the Choir Director at my church. I may put these to immediate use!

My girl thought we still had to dry them, so she was picking them up one by one and blowing on them. The ones she did took forever to dry because she practically DIPPED them in the Mod Podge. They are also glued shut as a result. But we had fun.

And, because she's compulsive in that way, she had to line them all up in a row to get a good look at them. For $1, that was some cute, good fun.

Keep a look out tommorow on Make It And Love It for my girls and their costumes. I can't wait to see their cute outfits amongst so many others in a digital costume parade!

On another note... I am waiting to get my hands on the next book in the Wheel of Time series.

My best friend got me into them a year or two ago, and I have been through it twice now. I totally used to make fun of people who read these fantasy-type books, and now I'm hooked. Sad. The morning after the release date I was talking to my husband and suddenly started laughing because I pictured all the people standing in line waiting to get the book... all had renaissance clothing, knew archery, and talked in old English. But really, the books are great.

Oh, and have you read the Mortal Instruments series?

I loved 'em. It is kind of Twilight-meets-Harry Potter and is good fun. I recommend them for a fast read.

In the still of the night

...I'm humming away at the sewing machine. It is so relaxing. I've been quilting a bunch, getting the babe's costume ready, and practicing with my free-motion foot. I snapped this photo before calling it a night. I am almost out of white thread... it is literally hanging off the cone there.


I had just enough thread to get through this stack of quilt blocks. Remember that fabric stash? I am happy to report this is just about the end of it.

I think this is an ultra-cute way to finish up a collection, dont' you think? Just wait until it is all done!

Later today: Hanging drapes, taking pictures of the girls in their costumes, and cleaning lint out of my sewing machine. :) I can't wait to show you those drapery panels.

Disguising the Evidence

So... what do you do when you spend more than intended at the fabric store? You quickly whip something up so it isn't just fabric, it is new pajamas!!

This is an ultra-soft, not too stretchy knit ($3/yd) that said "flame retardant" so I knew it was for sleepwear. Or whatever you want, but definitely sleepwear. I've got a tiny matching one for the baby girl too, but I think I cut it out wrong (I just eye-balled it) so I still haven't put elastic in.


THe munchkin loved it and called it her "princess dress." Whatever I can do to get her in her jammies! I had a hard time getting a picture, since she was more interested in dancing around in it. And yes... I finished it RIGHT before bedtime. Whew! Sorry about the lighting in the pictures, but now you know why they are dark! :)

It is so so so nice to have your kids LOVE something you made. AWESOME!

Halloween bag

Last year we used my niece's Elmo bucket to collect candy. The year before, a plastic grocery sack. This year, we're going to use our library book bag. I know, we're lame. But I'm going for fast and easy and cheap, here...

So I began with a cloth bag Mike picked up at work awhile back.


Then I cut up some felt in the shape of a punpkin using orange and black felt (black for behind the face) and sewed the two together to give that pumpkin look. I stuck a little green stem in between too.

I just blanket-stitched the pumpkin to the bag. It was super fast, and I can just take the pumpkin off after Halloween and continue using the bag for library books. Maybe next year I'll actually make a trick-or-treat bag using cute halloween fabric or something. This was just easy-peasy, and I had everything already.

All the preparation left for Halloween is figuring out what Mike and I will be, and finishing up a fairy wand for the munchkin. Are you all ready?

My First Quilt

Okay, I promise this is the last post about this quilt. I am just so proud of it! I was nervous about doing the binding but found lots of helpful tutorials online. It turned out perfect! My aunt did the quilting, and it really makes the quilt come alive. Simple pattern, simple stipple quilting, but perfect for a little baby!


Here is a close-up of the layers. I had to take Picasa off of my computer (my computer is too ancient to handle the program) and I don't have any other way to lighten my pictures, so, forgive the quality. I am so excited for some little one to snuggle up in this. I'll be sad to see it go, but hey, I've got two other quilts in the works. It's addicting, people!

It feels so good to get a project finished! And my husband is proud of me too. I overheard him telling a friend about it :)

Oh, yeah, decorations.

So, truth be told, I don't really decorate for holidays except for Christmas. But when I knew a few girl friends were coming over to my apartment to visit and eat sweets, I decided I ought to have something that resembled Halloween or Fall or something.

So I impromptu'd a banner. I have been admiring Candace's flag banners for a while, loving their vintage fabrics and creative use of doilies and hankies. But doilies and Halloween aren't really soul mates, if you know what I mean. I made a quick (yes, an hour and a half is quick) stop at Jo Ann's for some candy-corn colored fabric to make the banner. I learned a few things along the way.

1) Don't try and eye-ball a triangle. Just print one off for goodness' sake.

2) Sew the letters to the flag BEFORE doing the whole sew-right-sides-together-flip-iron thing. Otherwise people can REALLY tell you are practicing with your free-motion sewing foot. :)

3) Don't sew the lettered flags onto the bias tape in the wrong order. You don't want to hang a sign that says "OOB." And unpicking will probably end in a torn piece of bias tape. Ugh.

4) Use something other than thumbtacks on the back of cabinets to hang the banner. It *might* fall down 15,042 times before you get it to stay.

5) Trace your letters straight from your computer screen, if you use pre-existing font. Otherwise, you waste ink/toner. And if you decide to print... you only need one "O." Dar be dar.

So this was my Halloween decoration. And a pumpkin I had on the table. I'm really into this Halloween spirit thing! If I were really good, I'd have stuff like THIS around- wowzas. In fact, I may still do spider-web goblets and ghost pillows. Maybe.

What happens when you don't follow directions

I had to share this with you. So you can have a good laugh at me today.

When I brought my rotary mat home from the store, I had to leave it in the car for a while in order to transport two sleeping children into the apartment. And then I forgot to go get it. I asked my husband to get it out of the car that night and I think he misunderstood me. I didn't realize it, but he transferred it from my van to his car. And he just tossed it onto a golf bag in his trunk. We live in Arizona. This was September. Any questions?

My rotary mat is a challenge to work with :)

How-To: Coloring Caddy

Coloring Caddy

I've been working on this for a few days now. Tutorials are no easy task with a toddler, 4-month-old, and a messy apartment. This tutorial has a few extra steps for a high-quality end product. If I may say so myself.

LET'S BEGIN!

1. Meet The Cast:

Rotary blade and/or scissors

Cutting mat

Ruler

4 different fabrics- fat quarters will get the job done

Fusible interfacing

Fusible fleece

Fabric marking pen

Immunization Record-- WHAT? How did THAT get in the picture??? Uh, just kidding.

Necessary sewing items (pins, machine, matching thread, etc.)

**Every measurement is in inches.

2. Cut out your main body pieces. You will need:

• Two (2) 10 1/2 x 10 1/2 pieces of outside fabric
• Two (2) 10 1/2 x 10 1/2 pieces of lining fabric
• Two (2) 10 x 10 pieces of fusible fleece

3. Cut your pocket pieces. You will need:

• Eight (8) 3 x 10 1/2 pieces of fabric (or four 6 x 10 1/2 pieces ironed in half)
• Four (4) 3 x 10 1/2 pieces of fusible interfacing

4. Cut out your straps. Cut two (2) pieces at 4 x 22 or the length of your fat quarter.

5. Make your pocket banding. Cut four (4) pieces 2 x 10 1/2.

6. Iron the pieces in half, and then fold the sides to meet the crease in the middle. Iron. You can make it easier on yourself and use 1/2 inch double-fold bias tape if you prefer.

7. Make pockets. Create a pocket sandwich (pita pocket? hee hee) by placing the fusible interfacing between the wrong sides of two fabric layers. Iron the interfacing on per manufacturer's instructions. The fabric piece that adheres to the interfacing is the FRONT of the pocket.

8. Sew the banding to the top of your pockets. I just stuck the main pocket piece inside the banding and pinned it on. Sew a scant 1/8 from the edge, making sure to catch the banding fabric on the underside. If you cut a piece 6 x 10 1/2 you can do this or just use your fold as the top edge.

9. Mark a line 1/4 from the bottom (long side) on the BACK of the pockets. It is for reference later.

10. Mark your main fabric 1 inch from the bottom and 6 inches from the bottom.

11. Center the fusible fleece on the WRONG sides of your main fabric pieces. There should be 1/4 inch on all sides. Iron on per manufacturer instructions.

12. Line up your pocket lines with the main fabric lines with right sides (Front of the pocket and right side of main fabric) together and the pockets facing the BOTTOM of the bag. Sew along the line. I took the first picture after double-checking my lines, that is why it doesn't have banding on it yet. Sorry.

I flipped over the pockets to see the front and tacked down the tops of the pockets while I was at it.

13. Lay pieces flat and start marking sewing lines.

First, mark your center at 5 1/4". Then mark every inch from that point on both sides. The outside spaces will naturally be 1 1/4".

14. Sew along the lines from the bottom up to make sure you don't mess up the pockets.

15. Sew main pieces right sides together with a 1/4" seam allowance. You should be sewing right against the fusible fleece.

16. Sew lining pieces right sides together. Leave a 6" opening at the bottom for turning later.

17. Prepare straps the same way you prepared the pocket banding. The resulting four layers of fabric make for some sturdy straps. Sew 1/8" down both sides. This will close the strap and just look good with two lines of stitching. In fact, have a blast... sew all over the thing. I just didn't want to use the thread :).

18. Turn main fabric piece right side out and slip lining piece over it so you have right sides together. Pin straps in between the layers 2" from each edge. Stitch around the edge using a 1/4" seam allowance. I shortened my stitch length to make it more secure.

19. Pull the main fabric out of the hole in the bottom of the lining. Stitch the hole in the lining closed.

20. Top stitch around the top of the bag. I stitched at 1/8" again.

Trim any loose threads and stock that baby with crayons and paper. This sweet caddy is headed to the etsy shop as soon as I clean this apartment...

Other options:

* You can also make pockets for skinny markers by sizing your pockets to be 5" x 10 1/2" and do one pocket per side. Make them 4"x 10 1/2" if you are worried about losing pen caps.

* If you don't mind going slightly smaller, you can use a layer cake instead for everything but the straps. A layer cake is 10"x10".