Halloween Clementines

Hello! 
Our sweet boy will be one tomorrow.  Our Halloween baby.  The best treat I could have ever gotten!

We had a little party for him.  I'd like to share one of our decorations. 

Those are clementines!  It was so much fun transforming them into little pumpkins.

I simply bought a bag of clementines, and drew pumpkin faces on with a black sharpie!  They were super cute and tasty too.

Happy Halloween!

Janimal

Union Jack Liberty Popover

Well, it sure has been a while.  

Life with two children sure is busy!  There's not as much time these days for creativity.  But there is time for hugs, kisses, snuggling with my two little ones and sweet husband.  Lucky me!

I do have one sewn item I am rather proud of.  I took a couple pics to share.  It would have been wise to try and take a picture with natural light.  But you know, I took the pic when I could! 

Here it is:

It's a Popover Dress (free pattern by Oliver & S).  I pieced together Liberty of London prints in a soft tana lawn to make a union jack front.  Usually I make this dress unlined, but this one I lined with a soft cotton voile. 

It's too big for Delilah right now.  Honestly, I had every intention of making this for her to wear during the London Olympics.  But once pieced together, I just didn't want to waste any part of it so made the largest dress I could! 

Thanks for stopping by.  I don't know when I'll be back - those snuggles and kisses are hard to resist.

Janimal

Oliver & S Featured My Dress!

Today I am SO HONORED to have my Snow White dress featured on the Oliver & S blog!

Go check it out HERE.

Cheers!

Janimal

Fresh Beat Band Tour & Dress

Delilah is a big fan of the show "Fresh Beat Band". So when they announced a tour, we bought tickets right away.

And of course, D needed a new dress for the occasion.

The Fresh Beat Band has four characters, Kiki, Marina, Twist and Shout. Delilah decided to be Marina. So....here's a pic of the character Marina.

And here is Delilah as little Marina!

Delilah had such a wonderful time. Heck, we all did. The show was high energy and fun. And since we had great seats upfront, Delilah got lots of waves and attention from the band as she moved and grooved and danced along.

Despite being SO excited, when Delilah got her chance to meet the Fresh Beats and get her picture taken with them, she got a little shy.

But this gave Marina a great opportunity to play peek-a-boo with Delilah and make her giggle. I don't have a picture of that but we have the memory, and that was pretty cool.

Hanging from Delilah's neck are a glowing stick and her afterparty pass. She had SUCH a good time that even after the party, way past bedtime, she was in a silly, happy, mood.

Oh, the dress! I made a peasant dress from this free pattern on fabric.com, and made up the little tab fronts. I sewed the buttons right on the dress and made the belt buckle from wool felt.

And...the Fresh Beats announced ANOTHER tour date back in Atlanta. So come August maybe we'll have more success with that photo op!

 

Cheers,

Janimal

Musicbox Dress

Once upon a time I made Delilah a Musicbox dress - a pattern by Oliver & S - in a classic Liberty of London print.

It was too big to wear at the time, not that it stopped me from putting it on her. Check it out here.

NOW IT FITS PERFECTLY!

My little girl is growing up. Sigh.

Love when she makes funny faces.

Janimal

Wee Wonderfuls Kitty

Some time ago I got the book Wee Wonderfuls.

I recently gave Delilah the book and asked her to choose something for Mommy to make her. Check out her kitty!

D asked that she be purple. Good choice I think. LOVE the shoes.

Purrrrrrrr. This was a fun project. My next project from this book will be the BOY doll. Delilah has requested a Prince Eric to go with her Ariel Little Mermaid doll. Mommy must oblige!

Take care,

Janimal

Delilah's Ballet Dress

Recently, Fabric.com posted a link to a free peasant dress pattern. I made one in almost no time at all! Check it out here.

I think the Minnie Mouse slippers really make the outfit, don't you?!?

VERY simple to put together. Given Delilah's new obsession with only wearing red, pink, or purple, I've been sewing accordingly. I found this pretty pink fabric with red and pink ballerinas that I just had to get for her -- I think it was from Hancock Fabrics. Sorry I can't recall. Darnit. I'll update with the name of the fabric later.

A lovely dress to pick flowers in.

And make funny faces in.

The instructions include putting elastic in the sleeves so they are cute little poufs. I tried the dress on D and just left the elastic out. This is a 3T and just fits her and I didn't want the sleeves too tight and turn her off wearing it. The next version I'll make a 4T and include the elastic. SO quick to make this simple dress. And if I say so myself -- SO CUTE!

I have SO many pretty fabrics in my stash, but since D is just interested in her favorite colors, there's no point in me sewing with them. I want to make things she WANTS to wear. So its red and pink and purple all over my sewing room for a while. I bought some fabric to make MYSELF things when I need to rebel and sew something blue or green!

Coming up, I have cute toy from the Wee Wonderfuls book to show off - and am in the midst of making a very special dress to enter my local ASG contest. I hope it looks as dreamy in real life as it does in my head.

Later skaters,

Janimal

McCalls m4815

Over a year ago, I bought a McCall's pattern to make Delilah a dress. M4815.


It was a simple dress with a cute little tie at the neck for detail.



I decided to use a checkered bias tape for the sleeves, and after sewing one on, didn't like it. So it has sat in my sewing room, unfinished for over a year!

I finally got around to finishing it before Delilah got too big for it. But used a solid bias tape at the neckline.


To me, it looks a bit home-made with the bias tape I used, rather than hand-made. Know what I mean? Friends who know I sew, look at Delilah's outfits, and ask if I made them, and they mean it as a compliment. With this dress, it looks obviously home-made, which isn't as much a compliment.

But when worn by my sweet girl, I like it much better! She makes this dress look gooood!

I sure do love my model.

Later skaters,
Janimal

Sleepover Pajama Pants - Hooo Hooo!

Finally getting around to showing these pajama pants I made for Delilah.

They are the Sleepover Pajamas from Oliver & S. The top is cut and I started to sew it but haven't finished. Hopefully I'll get the top done before she's too big to wear these jammies!

What is brilliant about these pj pants is the hem. It's made to be folded up and tacked, and then the tacks can be let down later as the child grows. The finish of the bottom of the pants is lovely.

What really makes me happy about these PJs is that my sweet husband bought the fabric as a Hannukah gift. Cute, right? He went to Whipstitch Fabrics, because he knows whatever he buys there I'm gonna like. Seriously I love everything in that place. This is Urban Zoologie from Kaufman Fabrics. Love. I've got to get that top sewn!

Now to find the time to make that top...

Janimal

Happy St Patricks Day!

Sweet Delilah doesn't like getting her picture taken too often these days.

But my little man is just 4 months old and doesn't mind! So...

Happy St Patricks Day!

Wishing everyone a fun green weekend!

Janimal

March Madness BasketBall Taggy

Hello! Long time no blog! Life is just crazy with two wonderful kids and a fulltime job. Although there is less time for creative pursuits, I don't want to abandon blogging altogether.

I'd like to share a little toy I made for Shane. At 4 months old, it is a big hit with him! It's the right size for him to hold and chew!

In honor of March Madness....

This was made using an embroidery machine download from The Purple Hat HERE.
Loopyloo toys.

It stitched out so well - I must make more!
I added his name to the back. I've had it in his carseat at daycare dropoff and have had several requests to make them for other babies. Ahh, if only I had the time. My list of projects I want to sew for my OWN children is LONG.

I hope to be back soon and share other projects.

Be well!

Janimal