Run, don't walk....

...to your local fabric store (or where ever else you buy your patterns)

Last year, I got the chance to do some sewing for a Simplicity pattern designer to make some extra cash (for my trip to Vienna of course). Well, if you you have been perusing the costume section of the Simplicity pattern books, you will have seen my fine work!!!!

Being the dork that I am, I took pictures of the pattern books with my cell phone to document my handy work (which of course i never photographed last year because i forgot):

You can also view the professional pictures here and here

re-purposing stock

There are just WAY too many tshirts in our costume stock. An insane amount, really. I can only donate so many to Goodwill or Salvation Army, so i felt the need to re-purpose a few of them for grocery bags. The idea came to me when I saw the check-out clerk at the grocery store emptying the box of bags, which said "Tshirt Bags" on the box. And i thought..aha!! I know what to do with all those tshirts that do not fit into storage!



Now I am sure that this is written about somewhere in the blog-o-sphere, but i have decided to not google it, and post my own mini tutorial:

Starting from the top left corner, working across Left to right:

row 1:
1. You need one t-shirt. Children's small or medium is perfect for your aversage grocery store size bag (not to mention, these things S-T-R-E-T-C-H!)
2. Hack off the sleeves (but save later, for they will be pockets!)
3. and 4. You will need to cut out the neckline for handles. Draw it out to see how deep you want them, or just be brave and cut away.

row 2:
5. Turn inside out and fold sideways. The center fronts and the center backs are now the side seams.
skip middle pic
6. Creat bottom of back: Sew a seam approx. 1" -2" from original hem. (Seam depth determines width of bottom of bag)

just below, right to left (oops)
7. and 8. Snip open at sides so bottom of bag can lay flat. Measure approx. 1.5" in and stitch.

next row
9. and 10. Finish edges of handles (old neck and armhole seams) with stich of choice. Since this is a stretch fabic I just zig-zag around.
11. For pockets, open up sleeve seam, lay flat wrong side to wrong side 2" below armhole/handle with hem up. Stitch around sides and across bottom and then down middle to create 2 pockets (i need to play with photo shop more to learn how to draw arrows and other directional things).
12. On side opposite from pocket, add decoration of choice! (Tigerente, of course)

I use the smaller bags with pockets inside to transport bottles and what-nots to daycare for Maxim. But the red bag with the Tigerente is MY bag - lunch bag or knitting or general grocery shopping. The larger bags (what are now too small for me or Fritz) are perfect for larger grocery trips and are much more comfortable to carry from the parking lot to our apartment while pushing a stroller :)

mmmm, cake

Happy Birthday! To my lovely assistant, Katherine. Well, last week anyway. She is in search of her frog prince so i felt the need to make cupcakes and arrange them like this. Get it? Frog prince? yeah - i know i lose me too sometimes :)
I like to believe that it is practice for my future - little boy birthday parties and all that. Katherine is a willing victim participant in my reindeer games.

She is also a fan of aprons - so i made her a knitted apron:

Can't tell you what the yarn is other than it is Gedifra (dandy? and something that starts with a V? possibly?) It came out of my stash and i was just messing around with one of those dishcloth patterns you can find on the web. The fabric ruffle is a double-shot chiffon from stock. There is an inset of a close-up in the picture with the idea of running a lime-green ribbon through the eyelets. Maybe...well most likely.

Still playing with photo shop...and still forgetting what i did to get cool things to happen to pictures. Less beer and more sleep might be involved....

lemmings

okay - i am not jumping off a cliff or anything.

but i was feeling left out so i signed up.

you know? where all the cool kids are:

You are #29157 on the list.
17723 people are ahead of you in line.
1779 people are behind you in line.
36% of the list has been invited so far

something tells me, Max will be walking before i get in :)

Happy Labor Day!

With such a long break from the blog world – there has been a lot going on. So much that I should be able to blog on a regular basis for awhile. Well at least until we go into tech rehearsal for the JUNGLE BOOK at the end of the month. I have been trying to work through both knitting and sewing stashes; which means there should be plenty to share in the near future (there is even an attempt at working on holiday knitting and sewing…. Yeah, well I‘ll believe it, when I see it too)

First – of course, the gratuitous baby pics:



He is so damn cute don’t you think? Especially with Fritz.


And now to the knitting. The lovely Alice of Future Girl recently emailed and asked if I wanted to partake in a mini swap with her. Perfect timing! My sister was visiting and had asked where did I get *this* purse. When I told her about Alice and her amazing purses for sale, she asked if Alice would do custom and could she have one with a daisy? (btw - check out Alice's tutorial here).I told her I would see what I could do…like I said, perfect timing. So Alice has made this gorgeous purse for my sister and I knit this hat (as modeled by Fritz and his lovely assistant, Maximilian).






Yarn: Rowan Cashsoft DK in Thunder
Needles: US size 5 (3.75mm)
Pattern: Design K, Smallest size, Sirdar’s “Arans for Living” Book #276
Changes to Pattern: I had made this hat before, at gauge, in the yarn called for and the largest size, approx. 24” – and it was WAY to effing big! I mean HUGE So I made the smallest size (20”) in the yarn called for – still, it was HUGE!!! So this time I used a smaller yarn and am sooooooooo much happier!

The requirement was TIGHT – and since Fritz likes his hats ridiculously tight – he was the perfect model and point of reference. He liked it so much that he didn’t want to take it off after I took the pics. So Alice, if it is not liked, he will gladly take it back. I pointed out that I could make him yet another hat this year….I mean, I do have the mad skills and all.

As for the sewing: there has been a lot of cuteness happening for the baby. I have been on an appliqué and machine embroidery kick. I think a lot of inspiration is coming from all the adorable things that I see on other blogs. So I felt (get it? Felt?...yeah i kill me) the need to try some on my own:




The onesies were purchased and then embellished (what a great word) with felt appliqués and machine embroidery. The Lion bib was a kid’s t-shirt that we were going to toss from stock; I repurposed it and made a bib for the wee one. While still on the bib kick, I crocheted a bib with King Tut Cotton and a size G hook. The shaping was created with short rows – and of course, an adorable Tigerente appliquéd sewn on by hand.

Side note: As you can see, I have discovered fd’s flickr toys (thank you SewMad) and there has also been PhotoShop activity as well. I now need to figure out that layer thing so I can create a copyright/label for my renderings and photos)