Grey, Yellow, Green

Every now and then I get an order--usually it's a pretty general order as in 'I need some burp cloths' or, 'I need a rag blanket' or, 'Can you make me some bibs?'

This time, there was a color request included--grey, yellow, and green.  

I really didn't want to order from a US site right now as the CAN $ is rather poor, so I scoured the web for Canadian fabric shops that carried grey, yellow, and green flannelette.

This was the final choice and I ordered the fabric from Funky Monkey Fabrics. 

The backing of the burp cloth is from a towel I bought specifically to cut up for burp cloths as I've had an other order for burp cloths recently.  

The burp cloth pattern is from So Sew Easy.
I love the color scheme, and the fabrics are super soft--they'll be perfect for the baby they're meant for!

Black Friday Sale!!!

I don't often hold a sale, and here's the biggest sale I've had yet, so make sure you take advantage of it.

Hop over to my Etsy shop for 25% off the entire shop! 

No coupon code needed. 

November 26 Midnight to November 28 Midnight MST. 

Aspiring Designer's Challenge--the Release of the Buckle Me Up Beauty Pattern!

I'm super excited to join in on another Aspiring Designer's Challenge!
The group of designers that join in on this are a great group of ladies--very supportive, encouraging, and friendly.
If you haven't followed along, you definitely should take a look at all the other designers' new releases!

 

 

And, I'm even more excited to present you with my newest pattern--the Buckle Me Up Beauty.

 

 With its unique shape and decorative buckles, this versatile purse pattern is perfect for your next project. Sew the small size either for a child or if you prefer a smaller purse. The big size is perfect to carry all the necessities. With two zippered pockets inside--one being a divider that separates the main bag into two separate pockets, plus a zippered pocket on the outside, the Buckle Me Up Beauty is a great way to have an organized bag!

 

A huge thank-you to the ladies who tested this pattern:

Jess, Shannon, Ana, Essence, Carmen, Jennifer, Lore, and Linda.

 

The following versions are their lovely tester versions!



 

 

 

You can find this pattern on sale on Craftsy and Etsy!
This weekend it is $2 off, at $5.50 US!*  **

I am also giving away a copy of this pattern!
Enter using the Rafflecopter below!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

*Ends Tuesday, September 15th at 9AM MST.
**Etsy prices vary depending on the US/CAN conversion rate--I can only list them in CAN, and have tried to list them at a rate that was equivalent on the day of writing the listing. However, the conversion rate changes daily.


 

Labor Day Sale!

If you've been eyeing a pattern in my shop, now is the time to get one!

They are 20% off (prices reduced to reflect the price) from the 1st to the 5th of September!

(only in the Craftsy Shop)

 

Pirate's Treasure Wallet Pattern

 

Perfect Petal Purse Pattern

 

Castle Applique Pattern

 

Hop on over to pick one up!

Stitch Swap--Pirate's Treasure Wallet Pattern

Stephanie from Swoodson Says organized a Stitch Swap for a group of us sewing bloggers.

I received a lovely package in the mail from Amy from Friends Stitched Together!

 

 

Amy sent me a package for my boys--pirate fabric.

But, instead of just sending one yard as the plan was, she sent a piece of coordinating fabric and a spool of yellow thread as well.

Now, the hard part was thinking of what to make for my boys so that at least the older two could have something made out of the fabric since they both *loved* the pirate ships!

 

I had recently made my daughter a purse which she carries to Church.

The boys decided that they needed a wallet so they could take money to Church. 

After searching for a wallet pattern and not finding anything that I (they) liked, I decided I'd just make a pattern.

Enter the Pirate's Treasure Wallet Pattern:

 

 

I made two right away.

It's a trifold wallet with a good number of pockets!

 

 

There is a pocket for bills, a pleated zipper pocket for coins, a vinyl pocket for ID, and three card pockets!

 

 

The boys love them, and have started helping my husband work on the farm to earn some more money to put into them!

 

You can buy a copy of the pattern here!

 

Make sure to check out all the other stops on the Stitch Swap!

Stephanie from Swoodson Says received a package in the mail from me...

 

Monday July 21st

Stephanie -- Swoodson Says

Jamie -- Salutations Louisville

Ashley -- Sewing Sober

Kathy -- Handmade Dress Haven

Tuesday July 22nd

Tasha -- Friends Stitched Together

Janelle -- Emmaline Bags

Kim -- Sew & Tell with Mama Eggo

April-- Open Sky Creations

Wednesday July 23rd

Amy-- Friends Stitched Together

Danica -- The Sewing Sparrow

Bethany -- Two Novembers

Jessica -- The Berry Bunch

Thursday July 24th

Chrissy -- Muse of the Morning

Fenna -- Fabulous Home Sewn

Melissa -- Rebel and Malice

Irene -- Sugaridoo

Friday July 25th

Jess -- Gracious Threads

Emily -- Tangible Pursuits

Roxanne -- Pensebrox

Megan -- Upcycling? Refashion That Idea.

Rag Blankets Added to Shop!

Finally! I've finally added some more rag blankets to my Zibbet shop!

 

 

Click on the pictures to be taken to that listing!

 

I love myself a good rag blanket/quilt.

These are all baby size--29" x 34".

Perfect for a crib or car seat!

 

New Shop!

I've opened shop!

Hop on over to Zibbet to see my shop and to do some shopping!

 

I have a couple of rag blankets listed and some peasant tops in size 2/3T!

 

And, if you have any suggestions to add certain items to my shop, let me know--I'd love to hear from you!



More Neck-Tie Napkins

 

A friend of mine asked me to sew her up a bunch of Neck-Tie Napkins for some Christmas gifts.

I enjoy doing things within a deadline. It's a good motivation to get something done.

She provided the fabric for the neckties--I think it's from Walmart.  

The black fabric is from Fabricland, the brown from Walmart as well, and the red is the cayenne red from Bella Solids which I got from the Fat Quarter Shop.

 



 

One of my favourite parts is packaging it up--a little ribbon, a pretty price tag, everything pressed nicely.

 

Anyway, I think it's pretty safe to finally post this, I don't think any of the little people receiving these reads my blog.

 

 

 

Tutorial used with permission from Sweetie Pie Bakery for the purpose of selling small quantities.

Manly Cloth Napkin

I was recently asked to make a man bib.

I was picturing a man wearing a much enlarged baby bib and it just did not make for a pretty picture.

So, I found this: Cloth Necktie Napkin Tutorial by Sweetie Pie Bakery.  



Img from Sweetie Pie Bakery

 I made the actual napkin a little bigger since it was to be for a man, and I zig-zagged the tie onto the napkin to make a cleaner finish.

 

 

Now, I just wish my photography skills would improve...sigh...

 

The black (yes it is black, not grey) fabric is broadcloth left over from my sons' capes.

The red flannelette was also from my stash...I was surprised how many reds I actually have--not tons since I don't often use red, but enough to have some selection.  

 

 

But, this should work, and my customer seemed happy with it when she picked it up.

 

 

 

 



Bibs, Bibs, Bibs...

I had an order for some bibs.

So, 10 bibs later--2 of each color:

 

 

I got all the fabric from Fabricland--the quilting cottons on the front and the white flannelette on the back. I used Velcro for the closures this time. I usually do snaps, but I didn't have enough of the same size, and the person I was making these for didn't care if it was Velcro or snaps...so Velcro it was.

I like uniformity. 

 

It's not too often I make custom orders, but when they're pretty simple and I have some time, I really enjoy it. This way I don't have a bunch of unsold items laying around either...

 

Back At It

Well, I'm back from another Cuba trip.

I'm considering posting at least some pictures of that beautiful country, but that'll have to be another post on its own.

For now, I'll just post the sewing I've been up to since I got back home:

 

 

Before we left, I had an order of washcloths to fill after I got home.

 

I love packaging them up all pretty. Don't worry--it's not only a stack of boy washcloths--there's plenty of girl ones in there as well so I felt it'd be alright to use a bright pink ribbon. (Can you tell I really like pink?)

 

I left my PJs in Cuba. If you recall hurricane Sandy, before it ever reached the US, it had left a huge path of destruction in the Carribean? Well, we were able to help in a tiny way by leaving most of our clothes (other than what we were wearing and a pair of clothes to travel back home to the rather cold Albertan climate) with a Baptist Church in Cuba to bring to Santiago de Cuba.

So, I needed new PJs.

 

I found a Simplicity pattern online for free: #0501.

It's pretty simple. And, I didn't feel like making anything to complicated for a pair of PJs.

In fact, I deviated from the patterns instructions a bit. Instead of measuring myself before making it and shortening it with the line, I just made it and whacked 4.5 inches off the bottom later plus folded the hem up 2 inches to make it short enough. Also, the instructions said to turn the drawstring right side out after sewing it. I did not feel like turning over a metre of super skinny tubing right side out, so I just trimmed the fabric almost up to the seam and threaded it into the pants. I know, not super professional, but they're PJs.

 

The fabric is some Hello Kitty flannel that I bought for $3 a metre. That and some pink heart fabric is the only flannel I had enough of to make these and I didn't really feel like wearing all hearts to bed.

I think I need to go fabric shopping for some grown-up fabric.

The t-shirt is an old t-shirt of mine that was actually in my 'weeded-out-of-my-closet' pile. It'll do for PJs.

So, that is what I've been up to since our return last week.

What have you been sewing in the last week?

Nursing Covers

 

I recently decided to add nursing covers to my shop on Facebook.

So, I had to get sewing and finished one. I'm quite excited about this and I'm hoping there'll be some interest!

 

 

This one is a 3-panel nursing cover made with Sunny Daze, from left to right, circle pink, stripes orange, and flowers orange. I bought them awhile ago from Fabric.com. I made a nursing cover for my SIL from the blue colorway here. 

 

They will all have an adjustable strap and boning so you can watch your little one nurse. No more blankets getting yanked off--that was always my biggest fear when nursing in public with just a receiving blanket.



 

And, to keep the back looking professional with the three panels, I did french seams.

 

So, if you're interested in one, hop over to the shop!

I may or may not do custom orders--I do after all have 4 kids under five!

It'll just depend how my week looks at the time, and how my experiences with custom orders go--I've only done a couple of custom orders and those were all for family!

Rag Blanket

So, I have done a bit of sewing the past week--not a ton, but I whipped this together to add to my stock of rag blankets for sale on my Facebook page. I realized I was a little low on the girly rag blankets, so I need to restock. Plus, fresh stock is always great!

A bit of a windy day, but I'm working on my photography skills, heh. It is amazing how the sunlight makes much nicer pictures than inside a darkish house.

 

And, a close-up to see the lovely fabric this is made of:

Purple checked flannel with some lovely white flannel that has variegated dots scattered on it. I believe it's from Fabricland--I bought it off a lady from our local Swap and Buy site. I love a good deal!

Now, to get behind my sewing machine again and whip up some more lovely projects!!!

Some Baby Sewing

My sister-in-law is expecting a baby soon and asked me to do some sewing for her. I couldn't say no to that! Some receiving blankets which were pretty straight forward and a nursing cover which took a bit more effort.

I love this fabric--I'm not sure where it's from (I got it as a gift from a friend) but they're flannel. I also used it here. I managed to squeeze two more washcloths out of this fabric, and that's it. Now, just to find out where this lovely stuff came from so I can go get myself some more.

I basically cut four 21"x 30" rectangles and then coverstitched (I think that's the name of the stitch?) the edges. Pretty simple.

The nursing cover, on the other hand was a little more work. Because I didn't have any large enough pieces, we decided to piece these three together. So, I did some French Seams to make the back look nice and tidy yet. That is my first attempt at French Seams and I'm pretty pleased how it turned out.

I basically took three 28" x 13" pieces and sewed those together. For the strap, I took two pieces--a piece approximately 30" x 3" and one shorter one--I think about 8" x 3" to attach the D-rings to the nursing cover. Inside the casing is a 15" piece of boning.

I referred a bit to this tutorial but adjusted it to use D-rings instead of a coverall clip plus, the hems and casing were done with different measurements just because I have some 'favorite' measurements to use for that.  

The fabric is Sunny Daze and I bought it at Fabric.com. It's a very cheery fabric--I bought it in both the blue and the pink colors.

Perfect for nursing!

And, all packaged up to be handed over to my Sister-in-law as she awaits the birth of their first born!!!