Cabin Fever! Making the Indoors Fun

Hello!

To point out the obvious, I have been absent for months. One explanation: winter. Especially where we live where the snow just seems to love us here and doesn't quite get the hint it has overstayed its welcome. And although it is more than halfway through February, my four year old asked me the other day if we were in Santa's snow globe! Except we are a bit low on our candy cane supply...

With winter comes sickness and everything gets put on hold for a few weeks while me and the kids cuddle on the couch under blankets, a tissue box nearby with a Veggie Tales and Winnie the Pooh movie marathon. Winter also has too many grey days and can you guess what that does for my motivation levels? ;)

Once in a while, on those sunny days, I get a burst of energy and inspiration! 

A few things we have done: 

A Den!

This was a super quick sewing project. I cut out the muslin, made two holes for windows, and with scraps, either sewed or glued on some pictures.

I made a snip and just hung it over the chair like this:

My boys love playing under the dining room table and they have been having some extra fun with this. Who doesn't love to pretend they're eating spiders?

A Shadow Box!

Okay this actually involved no sewing but I wanted to add it because my preschooler loves it! Found the idea on Pinterest of course. 

I took a diaper box, cut off the flaps and let the kids first paint it. Then I taped the "stage" with a house. Glued some muslin over the front and DONE! Easy!

We then used cookie cutters on construction paper, then glued our characters to popsicle sticks. Here, the train is about to be eaten by a small snowman.... I caught it on video :)

A Teepee!

This is something that I have had my eye on since my four year old was a baby! I am so glad we were finally able to make it happen! My husband was a huge help making this. It is made from PVC pipes and I sewed the cover, not too shabby for a first timer but I have definitely learned how I can make it better next time! The pipes are seven feet tall and yes I know the front flap doesn't match the sides, I really don't think my preschooler and toddler care about that ;)

Next on the list is teepee accessories! A dreamcatcher? Some more pillows?

Thanks for stopping by!

xx

Elf Hats for Santa's Workshop

A while ago I was talking to a friend and she told me how she and her kids had gone to a Santa's workshop. They had elves and the kids could help the elves "make" toys and brought one home with them.

I thought that was the cutest idea ever and decided to surprise my kids by turning our dining room into a Santa's workshop!

I measured my four year old's head....

and with scraps I made these hats for them:

1. Cut 2 pieces of 5x4 inches of the cream/white knit fabric. Be sure the stretch of the knit is sideways. Alternatively you could also make one long band but I did 2 pieces.

2. Fold into triangle, 5x12inches, so the base is 10 inches. Again check the stretch of the knit.

3. Just another view.

4. With right sides together, sew the two side seams. Leave the bottom one open.

5. Take the 2 pieces of cream, right sides together and sew the edges together to make one long band.
6. Fold over.
7. Place inside the hat, match the raw edges and pin.
8. Sew.

Some easy tassels for the top point of the hat:

Just cut 8 strips of the same cream/white knit fabric and hand sew on the tip of the hat!

In Santa's workshop they were to paint some toys ($1 at Wal-Mart and the Dollar store), and then after they went to bed, Santa picked up those toys and left a thank you note for helping!

Axel wouldn't keep his hat on so Daddy, the Head Elf, wore it instead :)
The kids favourite part was actually the hot chocolate with marshmallows (which was actually cold!). 

Hope you are enjoying Christmas activities with your kids!

Thanks for stopping by!

xx

Christmas Decorations Box: Advent Calendar Bags

I have been wanting to make an Advent calendar for years and I finally got around to getting it done!

For several weeks I worked on making 25 different drawstring bags.

Note: I did not want to buy new fabrics for this project. I knew I had plenty of fabric to complete the project but I would have to get creative and perhaps even repetitive. Feels good to be frugal and resourceful :)

For the drawstrings I used different ribbons, cotton lace, and also made my own drawstrings using the same fabric as the bag.

Once I started making several bags I began pegging them on the curtain in my sewing room so I could see if I needed more white, more red or more green.

After I sewn and sequenced them, then I was able to number them. I just painted the numbers freehand, but of course you could stencil or stamp.

I did make some extra small bags for a reusable form of gift wrap.

Inside each bag has a treat, but it is not chocolate or candy. I don't think I want them having that everyday! So I put a fun cereal that they rarely get (fruit loops) in small baggies and put them in there.

Hope you are enjoying the beginnings of Christmas!

Thanks for stopping by!

xx

Turquoise Necklace

I came across this Cherokee proverb and loved the message:

There Is A Battle Of Two Wolves Inside Us All

An old Cherokee chief was teaching his grandson about life...

"A fight is going on inside me," he said to the boy.

"It is a terrible fight and it is between two wolves.

"One is evil- he is anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, resentment, lies, and ego.

"The other is good- he is joy, peace, love, hope, truth, humility, kindness, compassion and faith.

"This same fight is going on inside you- and inside every other person, too."

The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather, 

"Which wolf will win?"

The old chief simply replied, 

"The one you feed."

I combined this with my love for turquoise and decided on a necklace. All beads from Joann Fabrics, wolf pendant from Etsy. All strung on white elastic thread.

Thanks for stopping by!

xx

Little Red Riding Hood Cape Costume

Earlier this year I had bought this lovely red fabric for several different projects and ended up with some large chunks of random scraps. 

Setting it all aside, I knew inspiration would eventually hit me.

And it did. 

Maybe it all happened at the same time, I don't remember. But there was a poem about a wolf, a cute DIY wolf hoodie for boys on Pinterest, my own obsession with turquoise, living around the corner from Grandma's house, and just planning this year's sewing projects, including Halloween, it was just meant to be. 

The Red Cape.

My mother-in-law had an easy pattern for a cape, but I made it much shorter so the length would just cover my shoulders.

I mentioned scraps. The back piece is made up of 5 scraps first sewn together, then I put the pattern piece on top and cut.

Very easy to make and if I were making this for a little girl I might have added some ribbon edging, and a floral lining.

With little kids, I didn't get any selfies but luckily a friend of mine took this photo of me in costume:

And here's the kiddos after a long night of playing and trick or treating:

Happy Halloween!

Thanks for stopping by!

xx 

A Casual Kimono Sleeve Top

Inspiration can come from anything- and anyone. When I decided to make a top for a friend of mine, I knew this was what I wanted to make!

Gathered waist, teal colour, comfy tee and kimono sleeves.

Drape, pin, cut and sew.

Inside out view:

Love the colour. Love the soft fabric. 

Thanks for stopping by!

xx

Cream Cardigan

It is definitely the season for warm cozy cardigans! 

This was sewn with a soft, cream knit from Joann's using the same pattern as the red cardigan back in February. Next should be black!

And just for fun, my 4 year old picking out pumpkins! Love autumn! 

Thanks for stopping by!

xx

Halter Top Blouse with Pleats

I have had this chiffon laying around for months and I finally decided to make a loose blouse that would match my grey suit.

This grey suit is from the sale rack at Zara, and I bought it 7 years ago! I actually had bought 2 suits, one grey and one black for work. But moving to Ohio from England, I only kept the grey one. I put it on the mannequin and WOW! What a nice suit! Was I really that slim at one time in my life? If I ever fit into that suit again, I promise to never complain about my body! Anyhow, the blouse.

I knew I wanted a halter top, I knew it had to have pleats and a high neck, I knew I wanted it to be loose fitting, and here is the final outcome:

With the suit:

Unbuttoned jacket:

Note to self: serging does not look good with this fabric! Next time just fold and straight stitch!

And here is me being a proud mommy, my 4 year old has recently learned to write his name!

Thanks for stopping by!

xx

Chiffon Kimono Cardigan

With no patience for patterns, I had the afternoon to sew and was absolutely adamant in finishing this whole thing. I got it done in 3 1/2 hours!

Draped, cut, pinned and sewed. In this rush I took no photos of any steps. I will be making this again! Maybe in a cream chiffon? Or black knit? 

A few notes for myself: 

Need 1 1/2 yards fabric.

Cut two breast pieces, baste to gather the bust.

Neckline is one piece.

Add edges to sleeves before adding sleeves to body.

Add a few inches to the length.

Sleeves were about 20in x 10in.

Alternative design:

Instead of cardigan, replace waist sash with wide stretchy knit for a top instead. 

(sorry this is crooked, I am always rushing)

Thanks for stopping by! 

xx

A Teal Chinese Dress with Kimono Sleeves

Have you ever over ate your favourite food? Or listened to your favourite song 100 times too many? I feel like this is what happened with this dress.

I was so excited and worked and worked and worked on it and now I am just declaring it finished and hanging it in my closet glad to not look at it for a while!

I still like it, I just need a good long break :)

Obviously I need more patience. If I had a wish it would be to be able to complete a project a day! I want to be that fast. I remember in my younger years when my grandmother (a professional seamstress) came to visit us, she made my sister a Cinderella costume in less than 24 hours. Her dress was beautiful and I was so impressed! Speed baby, I need to learn efficient speed. Anyhow,

The moment I saw this fabric I fell in love with the colour. I NEEDED it.

After draping a few different ideas, I decided to stick to my obsession: the Chinese dress. 

I love this look with a kimono sleeve and slanted folds down the front.

I used the same pattern that I made for the Etro knock-off dress I made in April. 

The fabric itself might be too hot for summer (I prefer lightweight poly/cotton/lawn blends for summer dresses) so the sleeves will be nice to wear come autumn/winter.

The collar came out almost perfect.

The folds were tricky because I wanted the stitches to be hidden, but the fabric wasn't really letting me, which is fine, so they turned out more like this:

Bearing in mind this is only the second time I have ever tried to make a Chinese dress, I am still making mistakes and cutting wrong is so unforgiving. The shoulders ended up too tight so I tried to make an extra shoulder piece to make up the difference. All those extra serged seams on the inside made it bulky so I made a seam sewing them down.

Note to self: remember to make the sleeves the same on both sides! It turned out looking kind of cool and matched the diagonal seams going down the front.

I might just cut it all off and have it be sleeveless but I am still undecided.

Also, note to self: when making sleeves with trimmings-
1. serge your edge
2. fold and make your seam
3.  hand sew the piping
4. THEN close the sleeve and add onto your garment.

Trimmings: black piping and frog clips on collar, down the front and on the sleeves.
With that comes hand sewing and I really struggled with it!

(left) Piping up on the collar VS (right) Piping around the collar.

It looks better (to me) up on the collar because it seems to elongate the neck area but I couldn't get it to look right with my novice hand sewing so I did it around the neck instead.

First time putting in a zipper! I eyeballed the Chinese dress I bought in London years ago and tried to do the same thing.

Here is the finished piece:

It looks nothing like the one I draped up top huh? That's okay. I have a vision, I still have that vision, I am just trying to figure out how to get there.

Mistakes are okay. If I had someone showing me everything step by step, it might have turned out better but with mistakes comes an understanding of WHY things are done a certain way. It does take extra time to fix but that's life. Mistakes are quick to make but take time to fix. Live and learn has been my motto for a while now. There is so much we are still learning in our individual lives. No matter what happens, I just keep telling myself: IT'S OKAY!

Thanks for stopping by!

xx