Modern Handmade Child Feature

One of my onesies was featured in the Spring 2010 issue of the EtsyKids online magazine, modern handmade child. See pages 10 - 11, "Turquoise: the Color of 2010."

It is, by far, one of the worst photos I have ever taken of something I've made.

Project: Buttons or Snaps?

This weekend I was able to all but finish the Oliver + S playsuit I was working on. It's adorable. We put it on the poor kid even though our house was a bit chilly. Now when she sees it she says, "Cold." Yet another parent-of-the-year award...

It will be warm enough for her to wear this about the same time she turns 2. So what do you think: buttons or snaps? She is getting good and snapping and unsnapping but not so good with buttons yet. I like setting snaps (er, having my husband set them) and I've never made a buttonhole. Hmmmm....

For more on Project:Project, read this post.

Project: On the desk

I thought it would be interesting to show the world my current crafty/computer/sewing space. Check out my flickr page for a million notes.

I keep my Huskystar 224 on the desk at all times. To the right of it is a little plate/candle holder where I keep all my cut threads and dull needles to deal with later and a pile of mail to read. Shoved in next to the desk is the Ikea Lack table that we bought for Zadie to go with her chairs. My chair is something I got from salvage at work. It used to be in the library before the remodel and I love it. To the left is the printer and on top of it is a stack of quilt blocks from the Mod Sampler Quilt-along project. My bookshelf is a little messy so it's time for a purge or a relocation of something.

I love looking at people's spaces so just thought I'd share. My desk is actually pretty neat today. What's a mess is the wire basket rack just off to the right and a bin piled high next to that. Anyone wanna hem a bunch of pants and help me out with it?

For more on Project: Project, read this post.

Project: Quilt Top Finished!

I finally pieced together the entire top to my Mod Sampler quilt from the Oh Fransson! Quilt-along. I didn't have any problems adding the sashing between the rows or along the sides. One of the reasons I may have been having problems with the freezer paper was that my pressure was set very low because I usually do a lot of applique. Instead of good control, I was slipping all over the place. You need straight lines for quilting so I moved it up a notch and got much better results.

The fabrics I was choosing from. I got rid of the teal waves and added a light solid in aqua.

After I finished the front, I measured out the larger cuts of fabric I had left over. I have a nice wide panel of the teal linen I used for the sashing, over a yard of the bird fabric (I can't find a link but it's in the "Sweet" collection from Moda), and that awesome embroidered bird that we bought during a trip to Mexico. I plan to map out the back using graph paper so it will have the right proportions. For the binding, I think I'm going to use the fabric with the little red stars. What do you think?

I'm going to take out the finished edges of the bird panel and piece it in to the teal. I'm not really sure how to do that to get the right dimensions so I'll have to do some research.

For more on Project: Project, read this post.

Project: Spring Jacket

When I was pregnant I bought a bunch of patterns and books to make stuff for Zadie. Because our lives were such a mess, however, I didn't get much done. Finally I got the chance to use Baby Couture, something I picked up at Amazon for a couple bucks plus shipping.

The title is certainly deceiving as a pillowcase dress is hardly couture; the book also features pretty much the same couple of patterns but in different fabrics (weird, I know). In all, it was worth the $2.23 I paid for it (it's even less now). There is a cute jumper that I plan to make and an easy pants pattern.

For this jacket I used Alexander Henry's Starlings for one side and an organic cotton fleece that I bought for making cloth diapers (see "didn't get much done" above for why I still have yards of it) for the inside. It's technically reversible but I don't think we'll bother. For the cuffs I picked up that cute little Spring green woven from the quilting section of JoAnn's. And instead of adding buttons, I used some grosgrain ribbon to make a tie.

The pattern looked really boxy from the start so I went ahead and added about an inch to the sleeve length and lengthened the jacket over 2 inches because Z has a long torso like her Auntie. I tried the jacket on her before I hemmed it to make sure that worked. If I use the pattern again, I would probably add a bit more to the cuff so it would fold up higher. The fleece took up a bit more space than I realized. I also used a 3/8" seam allowance for the fleece layer and a 1/2" s.a. for the cotton so it would snuggle together better (note to self: learn sewing terms).

For more on Project: Project, read this post.

Project: A Mention

Remember the Storybook Cape that I made for Zadie? Kathleen over on the Grosgrain blog finds it "adorable." I'm so glad she likes it. I've always wondered how the designers of the fabric I use or the patterns I sew from like the stuff I make using their tools. I always share this information with a bit of trepidation just in case someone would hate my work.

Kathleen had a baby on Tuesday so head over there and check out the pictures of the new cutie.

For more information on Project: Project, read this post.

Project: Jane

Damn you, Jane Austen, for keeping me up all night. Don't you know I have to teach an 8:30 class?

I may have confessed before that I'm a bookaholic. Once I get started on something good, I can't put it down. I've been known to stay up until morning to finish a really good book. This does not make the next day easy.

So anyway, I'm joining a book club at the local library. This is something I've wanted to do forever. What I miss most about being in graduate school for American literature is talking about books. But what I'm most afraid of in book club is acting like I have a degree in American literature. So I'm jumping in to the first meeting with Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice. It's one of my favorite books and I find her writing just delicious. I love the movies and the scholarship and the outfits and Austen's wit. I love it all. And it's British so that should help.

I actually haven't read the book in so long that part of me thinks that I may never have actually read Pride and Prejudice and part of me thinks that's just not possible.

Last night I stopped right after Darcy confessed his love to Lizzy in Charlotte Lucas-Collins's parlor. Yum.

Any tips for the first meeting? I'll probably just keep my mouth shut.

For more on Project: Project read this post.