whole cloth floral vintage sheet quilt

March 9, 2012March 19, 201231 Comments

i’d been jonesing to make a quilt and was seeing some really cool whole cloth quilts pop up lately (like this and this and this), which made it seem even more attainable in the short term! then our friends had a new baby girl, H, causing my “i wanna make a quilt” feeling to quickly bubble over. also, i just really, really wanted to sew with this lovely vintage sheet i thrifted months ago. it’s so soft.

the backing is denyse schmidt scallop stripe in rose.

i did the ol’ machine stitch the front side, handstitch the back side method for the binding, which is a mustard-y kona cotton but i’m not sure which. the finished size is 36″ x 45″ (i just used a package of craft size batting). perfect size to wrap a small person in.

i actually thought up, started, and finished this quilt the same day, working during naptimes and finishing the binding after bedtime. it’s that quick! this is only my fourth quilt and only my second with batting, so i’d say whole cloth is the way to go for a beginner. so easy, but you learn all the steps. i loved the scallop shape of the back, so i mimicked it in my quilting. i used a dinner plate to create the shape, and laid a big measuring stick across the quilt to keep them straight. (PHONE PHOTO ALERT!)

i made little marks on each side of the plate with my water soluble pen once i knew how big i wanted the scallops, then traced around the plate, repeating until i had my quilting pattern. the scallop rows are about 6″ apart.

i quilted it with a walking foot, pivoting at the corners. i also added a pink appliqued H, so she knows it’s hers. 🙂

once the quilt photo sesh was done, Em wanted to take some pictures with my camera, too. she was very interested in capturing the flowers and grass and our shadows. i think she did a pretty great job, wanna see? the shadow is me holding onto the camera strap for dear life in case she dropped it…

not too shabby for a 3.5 year old, in this humble mother’s opinion! have a wonderful weekend!

a new flickr group

March 5, 2012March 19, 20126 Comments

oh wow! the response to my sweet tartan tutorial has been so nice and such a surprise! made all of the work worth it, for sure. the thing i was realizing as i was seeing your comments and pins is that if anybody out there ends up using my tutorial to make a dress for your little gal, i would really love to see it! seeing everyone’s creative designs would just be the coolest thing ever to me. so to facilitate that, i went ahead and started a skirt as top flickr group! when i started sewing, i relied on free tutorials to inspire me and help me learn, and flickr is where i posted photos of my projects for 1.5 years before i started this blog. that’s where i started building that sense of community that i love so much about sewing, so hey, i might as well give back!

and i suppose i should probably link to a few of my prior tutorials just in case you missed them…if you’ve ever sewn something using one of these tutorials, please throw them in there too! or even if you’ve just gotten some inspiration from this little blog! 🙂

superhero cape tutorial

adding elbow patches to a homesewn garment tutorial (for elsie marley)

bib template and boyish applique tutorial (for sparkle power)

won’t you please head on over and join the new skirt as top flickr group and share what you’re making (or have made – older projects are welcome, too!)? thanks again for all of your wonderful support – you know how to make a gal feel all warm and fuzzy and wanting to do more tutorials in the future… 🙂

oh and i changed the flickr link on my sidebar to go straight to the group as well, so it’ll always be easy to find.

have a great day!

PR&P week 4: little red

January 27, 2012September 27, 201245 Comments

oh wow, i am so grateful that i’m still alive and kickin’ in project run and play! you guys are really the best. i’m having a fun time thinking as creatively as possible and gaining experience in actually designing out of my own brain rather than following patterns. this is all so new to me, and it’s changing how i will sew from here on out. it was really uncomfortable and hard at first, but is becoming normal now and that’s pretty cool. thank you for giving me the opportunity to continue on!

this week’s challenge is “Outerwear” and i was glad for my outerwear experience lately (here and here) but also stumped on what to make! i sketched so many different designs for this one – it gave me the most trouble because i had lots of ideas, but none of them really sang to me. i sketched capes, trench coats, jackets, but everything felt like something i’d seen before. i tentatively decided on a simple raincoat that i’d make in a cool laminated cotton, and headed to bolt on my lunch break with a friend to look for fabric. what i found actually surprised me – a bright red canvas that was actually very soft, and i had a lightning bolt inspiration – what about a red riding hood COAT? hmmmm, i’ve never seen that before! my friend suggested an oversized “guillermo del toro hood,” whatever that means, and i agreed that a giant pointy hood would be a definite must (thanks buddy!).

i looked for mushroom or some other woodsy japanese import fabric for lining but none was to be found, so i grabbed a great amy butler lark print instead. on my drive back to work, i had a brainstorm – i’ll print my own fabric on linen! back to bolt for this lovely natural cotton-linen blend, and then i started printing in a three-phase stamp process. perfect.

the ticking stripe binding is what i had picked to join in this sewalong which i never got around to, but it got poached for this because i had another brainstorm to add 1/4″ flat piping around the whole coat and it was the perfect fabric! it was a fun, easy way to add a whole lot of style and break up all that red. i also added a little “e” label to the back – mine is machine-stitched, but i would have loved to embroider it like this beauty.

the coat pattern is actually based on the oliver + s sunday brunch jacket, which i altered heavily (those are the rules!). i took the top bodice pieces and extended them out at a diagonal from the armpits to create the swing coat shape. i shortened the sleeves and flared them out a bit, too. those are the only pattern pieces i used! i drew the hood pattern freehand and the canvas is so sturdy, it didn’t even need interfacing. the sunday brunch pattern isn’t lined, but i lined mine except for the facings under the buttonholes, where i used the canvas for stability. i piped the whole coat, sleeves, and pockets with the flat piping, and hand-stitched in the sleeve lining and opening that i used to turn the coat closed. the only visible topstitching is on the pockets, so it has a very clean and finished look.

the dress that i made to go underneath is the leila and bed sweet little dress in a 3T, which i lengthened and slanted out at the side seams to create fullness. i made it in the amy butler lark print that i’d originally pegged for the coat lining.

the apron is a simple muslin rectangle, gathered and sewn to a waistband that ties. it has a little toadstool patch on it which i don’t think you can really see in my PR&P post, but it makes me happy and that’s what matters (secret: all toadstools remind me of super mario bros!!).

this coat is the first garment that i’ve sewn for project run & play that really evolved as i made it – the prior three looks were fully formed in my head before i even started sewing. the piping was a later addition. because of that, my sketch is super boring this week!

Em really does love this coat, though, and i’m so happy with it too! it’s already getting a lot of use, which is fantastic!

alright – once again, it’s time to vote! won’t you please skip on over to project run and play to vote HERE? voting closes on sunday evening. i thank you, the ducks thank you, and my little red riding hood girl thanks you! 🙂

**Voting is now closed**

a wintry first birthday party

December 29, 20119 Comments

well, hello! i hope everyone had a wonderful christmas. both of our families live in town, so we were bouncing back and forth a lot from party to party. luckily, we had a few days off of work this week, so there was plenty of relaxation too!

back at the beginning of the month, we celebrated O’s first birthday. i cannot BELIEVE he is one already. i feel like he was just born, and frankly am still trying to wrap my head around his amazing birth – it was a 5 hour, deliberately all-natural whirlwind that was the greatest experience of my life, and i’m so grateful to him for cooperating with my plans (i had an epidural with Em but was determined to go natural with him). he was a little butterball, too – 8lb 13 oz! i’ll share the full birth story someday, but i need to edit it down for public consumption. for a short labor, it’s a very long story. i wanted to remember every detail. 😉

this little guy never ceases to surprise me with how fast he’s growing up. he still doesn’t quite walk yet (just a few steps), though i’m sure he could if he wanted to. he IS trying to say lots of new words, signs “all done” and “more,” points to body parts (on command he finds his ears, head, nose), plays peekaboo, and throws a ball overhand. he gives high fives, hugs, blows kisses, waves goodbye and says “daaaaah!” (which means “bye!”). he likes to brush his hair and teeth, and to sweep the floor (a toy broom was his santa gift this year, and he loves it). he likes most foods, all baths, and he adores his big sis. he’s a super sweetie pie, and we love him a lot.

unfortunately, the poor guy was born in december. being a mid-november baby myself, i know that the closer it gets to christmas, the harder it is for your birthday to feel separate. this year, we did go get our tree and put up some of our christmas decorations before his party (which we probably won’t do once he’s old enough to realize it…unless he wants us to), but i also tried to stick with a more general “wintry” theme of aqua blue, white, and silver. party ideas had been collected for months on my pinterest board.

i had the idea to hang snowball ornaments from our ceiling in the dining room with invisible thread. the birthday boy giggled at them!

i made him a birthday banner, in blue and white wintry fabrics from my stash, and painted a letter O from hobby lobby with coordinating blue and silver.

for a couple birthday parties we’ve had, i’ve almost completely copped out on cooking and ordered pizza! i’m the type that doesn’t want to stress out about food the day of a party. i gladly accept offers to bring salad and chips with dip, i always bake a cake, but as for the main dish? DELIVERY! so worth it. we held the party at lunchtime (translation: after morning nap and before afternoon nap).

i plotted months in advance to receive this bundt pan for my birthday after seeing it here. it’s so pretty! i made chocolate cake with cherry pie filling and mini chocolate chips mixed in, and topped each slice with whipped cream frosting.

the cake was well-received…

…as were some cupcakes topped with the perfect blue frosting that my sister-in-law made. the bigger kids liked those, while O looked on (sorry buddy – i can’t resist feeding one year olds chocolate cake. the mess is a must!).

we’re so happy to have this pleasant little fella in our lives. he got to eat his first cake and received some pretty sweet toys and shoes (“shhzzzzzz”), so i think he had a great time too. i especially feel good about avoiding “second kid syndrome,” because even though a lot of it was pulled together at the last minute (i appliqued his t-shirt at 11pm the night before), he ended up with a pret-ty coordinated-looking little party! phew! 🙂

PS – did you see that the themes for this season of project run & play were posted the other day? now you’re in the loop! i am back to sketching and sewing furiously now that christmas is over. so fun, and so nerve-wracking! i’ll be glad when it all gets rolling next week, because right now it’s just all bottled up inside! i can’t wait to share with you all.

superhero cape tutorial!

December 14, 2011July 13, 201433 Comments

back in august, i made a superhero cape for Em. i’ve made a few before – they’re kind of my go-to boy gift, because boys are generally harder to sew for. today i thought i’d share a little tutorial for you! these are a quick sew – definitely time to whip one up for christmas if you are stumped on what to give a little guy/gal. i’d say this cape fits ages 2-4, though you can easily adjust the sizing – use an existing shirt of theirs for general length/width, and add a few inches to the bottom.

MATERIALS:

3/4 to 1yd main fabric and lining
fusible web (i like steam-a-seam 2 lite)
two contrasting fabric scraps for the letter/symbol applique
velcro
point turner/knitting needle/pencil
light/medium weight interfacing (optional)

INSTRUCTIONS:

fold your main fabric in half, and cut the following shape out on the fold. make the place where the neckband meets the cape a sharp V, then draw out a few inches before rounding down for the shoulder to the bottom corner. you can use a straight edge to get the outer edge straight. i like to angle it out a bit so the bottom is wider than the top. the photo makes it look like the very bottom edge is angled too, but it should be perpendicular to the fold.

use this piece as a pattern to cut the same shape out of the lining fabric.

make your applique. i like to use gill sans bold font in about 500 pt for the recipient’s initial, but it could be fun to do a lightning bolt or an existing superhero logo too. cut a circle that your logo/letter will fit inside. don’t forget to trace your letter backwards! i trace my letter onto steam-a-seam paper first, peel off one side, stick to the fabric, then cut it out together using an older pair of sewing scissors.

place your applique on the main fabric, using the fold line of the cape to align the applique. fuse with your iron.

sew the letter/logo applique onto the cape. i like to use a blanket type stitch like number 11 on my machine. i change the length to 3.0 an the width to 4.0, but you can play around with it on a scrap to see what look you prefer. then sew around the edge of the circle with a wider, longer zigzag.

stitch it on…

you can actually see it better from the back…

fuse a strip of interfacing that’s about .5″ smaller than the length and width of the neckband to the wrong side of the main fabric (so about 1.5″ x 18.5″). interfacing helps the neckband stands up a bit like you see on a real superhero. 🙂

pin the main cape and the lining right sides together, allowing a 3″ section at the bottom for turning.

sew around the perimeter with a 1/2″ seam allowance, pivoting and sewing down a few stitches at the point where the neckband meets the shoulder area, then pivoting again to continue down the side of the cape.

clip outside corners, and clip into the inside corners of the neckband as shown below.

turn the cape rightside out through the opening, press out the corners using a point turner/pencil/chopstick, and press.

topstitch around the entire cape, closing the opening as you sew.

add velcro as shown. the “scratchy” part should be on the main (outer) fabric and the “soft” part should be on the lining. use 2″ inches of scratchy velcro, and 2.5″ of the soft velcro, so there’s less chance of the scratchy part touching skin.

sew into place around the edge of the velcro.

YOU’RE DONE!

this cape is actually a christmas present for my nephew S, the youngest of three boys. he’s 3.5 and loves to dance crazy hip hop moves to justin bieber music, so he gets purple lining in his cape. i’ve already made capes for his two older brothers (here and here), and he also has cape envy of Em’s. it was about time i made him one too!

since it’s a christmas present, he can’t model it. i was lucky enough to have lila, daughter of the very talented gail, model alongside Em in their awesome reading nook (it’s also famous – it was on ohdeedoh!) during a playdate. the girls play together, O makes messes, and gail and i talk sewing. it’s the best.

check out these two cuties in capes!

up, up, and away!

is lila a good guy or a bad guy? very mysterious… 😉

reaching for the clouds!

sweet buddies (they’re about 10 months apart in age – Em is older, but they’re the same size).

CAPES! i hope this all made sense. if you use this tutorial to make a superhero cape for a little one, please add it to my flickr group! i’d looooove to see them. feel free ask questions in the comments too, i’ll try my best to answer.

happy sewing!