Project: kids clothes week day 1

I was thinking that this week would be Robot Week and that I would feature all the goodness that was Zadie's 2nd birthday party. But I am really stressed out. What I need right now is to just sew and not have to do anything that requires a great amount of effort. I hope that's okay.

A while back I signed up for kids clothes week over on Elsie Marley. It seemed like a big challenge at the time but now it seems like what I need: I just want to sew. And the deal with kids clothes week is that you just sew -- for one hour every day.

I'm starting today by finishing this cool crocogator dress. It's top secret for now but you'll hear about it soon enough. That seam on the bias tape right at the neckline is really bothering me. I'm going to do something about that.

So here's my plan:

this crocogator dress (fabric by boosterseat)

those yellow elephant pants (pattern by danslalune)

bubble romper (maybe)

a little zippered tote so zadie will have something for her doll accessories

maybe some doll clothes for her new baby

I might not even get to all this but I'm not going to worry about it. Oh, and I know that doll clothes and tote bags aren't kids clothes but that's okay. You should check out the Elsie Marley site. She has some amazing inspiration. I love the bunny rabbit pocket detail she features. Cuteness overload.

Project: 2

newborn baby

at one year

now

Someone just turned 2 today. Wow. I have no words. We are having a party with family this weekend. Robot Pinata, Robot Dance Party, and Robot Popcorn Machine. Next week will be Robot Week.

Project: Buttonhole! (and should I buy a new machine)

the mess of the tests

Today, I made a buttonhole. In fact, I made three of them: one to test and two for the show (the Oliver + S Playsuit show, that is). I have been afraid to try buttonholes because they seem so daunting. So I popped in the quilt shop with Senior Husky and we got to work. The setup for this particular model is different from all of the other Husqvarna machines that they carry so it was a bit of a challenge to figure out but it's so easy now that I know how.

But it's dangerous being in the quilt shop because of all the beautiful brand new fancypants sewing machines they have lined up ready to go at the front of the store. . .

I bought my Huskystar 224 used from my local quilt shop almost 10 years ago. It's been good to me. It's been a pain in the ass (mostly me not knowing what I'm doing). But lately I've been wanting to upgrade. Senior is a top-of-the-line beginner machine and I just need to move on. I need more control and I need a stitch that is shaped like little VW campervans. That's all there is to it. I think I'm going to buy an Emerald 183. It's an upgrade but it's not crazy. It's on sale. It's calling to me. It has fonts but it's not an embroidery machine. (I can use my mom's if she ever takes it out of the box). I am going Husqvarna because I want to support a local business plus they teach me stuff I don't know when I need to learn it and they do all well-child visits in house and most repairs. That means it won't get shipped around needlessly if something does go wrong.

So what do you think? Should I go for it?

Earth Week: Roundup

Project: Earth Week. An introduction.

Cloth Diaper Report. Part three. Follow the links to the older posts.

Cloth Wipes Tutorial and Recipe. Click here. Solution recipe at bottom.

Earth Week partner in crime: Sabra of Sew a Straight Line. All of her posts in one spot.

Real Food guest post by Amanda of the everyday palate.

Links to some excellent green resources, information, shops, and shopping tools.

Sponsor: Natural Home Essentials.

Sponsor: Monkey Travel Club.

Project: Plants in your yard

I’ve never had much of a green thumb. If I can get something to live, I can usually keep it alive for years and years. If something dies, I know never to buy it again (although that doesn't always stop me). That philosophy has pretty much worked for outside stuff as well. When we moved into our house we lucked into some pretty amazing bushes, and some pretty hideous bushes. We promptly got rid of what we didn’t like, a yew hedge full of dog hair and a rose bush in the middle of a very tiny herb garden (we kept the herb garden, just not the messy roses). That Fall I set to work planting some bulbs (muscari, or grape hyacinths, are my favorite flowers because elves must live among them). Every other Fall or so, I prune the bushes that we kept: a gorgeous azalea, this white bush (below) that I think is a spirea, a massive forsythia, and an even bigger lilac.

Later, we bought some blueberry bushes to go where the yew had been. We were excited that first summer to have buckets full of black raspberries from the vines left by the previous owners. We took a chance the next year and moved some of the little suckers from one part of the yard to the other and they have also done very well. Basically, we try it with just a little bit and if it works, we keep at it. The same thing worked for the peonies that were fighting for space among the black raspberries. One year I moved a few to against our neighbor’s fence. They came up so I tried it again. I'll do it again this year to clean out that bed and I’ll have the entire length of the fence full of peonies within two years.

People think some of these things are hard to grow but that is not the case. It’s just all about what’s meant to be there. My advice for growing pretty stuff is to take a look around your neighborhood. What do you like? What’s growing in the most places? And better yet, what’s growing around the poorly maintained rental properties? Because if it can grow where no one is tending to it, then you can grow it too (just as long as you don’t pay too much attention to it). But don’t let that stop you from trying new things too. Last year I bought this crazy plant from Lowe’s because I thought it looked like an alien plant that would grow on Mars. It has yet to return (it was a perennial) but I’ll try it again.

Project: Modern Handmade Child

There is a new issue of Modern Handmade Child up today. I wrote a story on tattoos for Father's Day (page 74 - 75). I don't know why I thought it was a Father's Day issue. I'll have to go back and check on that. The story was heavily edited so please ignore the typos. They are not mine.

Thanks to Eric, Pete, Aaron and their girls for letting me use these images.

Project: Top Week Shirt Finished

I have finally completed my shirt for Top Week. I didn't think I'd actually be able to do it even though I had it mostly done last weekend. There was something bothering me about the collar but I just tacked it down on each side of the back closure and I think it works.

But here's the deal: It's too big. Don't you think? I altered the pattern I used to make this shirt (so much so that I don't even think alter is the word for it). The original faux silky shirt fits well but this shirt is hanging off of me way more than I'd like. I think it's because the knit is so fine that it has absolutely no structure. It's just pulling itself down.

Having learned from my first encounter with said pattern, I made the belt a good bit longer and also a little wider. It looks cute from the front but because of all the fabric I added to the back for the gathers, it looks awful. Bunchy bunchy.

I love the Heather Ross fabric I used for the top panel. It was lovely to work with and I still have a little bit of it left to hoard. I also liked working with the knit. You will no longer hear me complain about it. I'm good. I used a hook and eye to close it up at the top. I thought there was enough going on in the back so I didn't want to add a button.

More photos on flickr. More about changing a vintage pattern to fit my design here. And more about the fabric and inspiration here. How hilarious is it that without thinking about it, I am kinda in the same pose as the model in the ad up there in my first picture.