kids sewing week challenge :: day four

kids sewing week challenge :: day four, originally uploaded by threedancingmagpies.

Who says boy clothes can't be cute? Maybe I have been missing the boat only sewing clothes for Ellie . . . had fun the last two days making something for my two favorite guys. Being the youngest and having an older brother who I went a little wild shopping for, a lot of Sam's wardrobe is hand-me-downs from Max/friends or my favorite kids consignment sale. Every summer I had fun linen pants for Max to wear at this age and I have searched high and low and realized I must have passed them on to someone or sold them at the sale. Before going on vacation this spring, I looked for something just like this and was disappointed not to find them.

What was I thinking? This took less than an hour, about a yard of linen fabric and the results are so fun . . . this challenge really has me wondering why I never actually use the fabric I squirrel away? I can't wait to make more pants for Sam, he is a wonderful recipient of the fruits of my labor.

he sees Ellie modeling for me and he knew just what to do

Wondering why Sam is wearing colorful rubber bands on his wrist? This is the latest craze hitting our household and for that matter all the elementary schools in this neck of the woods. I am guessing we are not alone in this silly bandz mania . . . It cracks me up that a week ago Max didn't even know what they were and this week it is all I have heard about. All of the stores in our area are out of them. AC Moore had a shipment of 500 packages on Friday and they sold out that day. CRAZY. Am I missing something? Colorful rubber bands in shapes? Once you put them around something the shape is round . . . the packaging tagline reads FUNctional. Who thinks of these simple ideas and why isn't it me? Instead I am the crazy mom checking at various stores looking for these! I ended up adding a couple of packages to my Amazon book order and for this Max has proclaimed me "the very best mother ever" and told me "I used to love you, but now my love for you has just gone SILLY, thats how much I love you". Not sure if that was a good $10 spent or not . . .

the blurred band is actually a very cute hedgehog . . . it is Max's favorite. I asked why and loved his answer, "who doesn't love a good hedgie" Well said my boy!

kids sewing week challenge :: day three and day 1 one in action

The kids week sewing challenge has been tons of fun so far. It is great to feel a sense of accomplishment, especially as a mother of small children. Just feeding them and doing a load of laundry some days seems like a big success.

I have stayed on track and made something each day. (first two days) Today's item was started after bed-time last night and was done in just under an hour. Max had mentioned he wanted to be included in the fun and would love some lounge pants. So I took his favorite pair, made a quick pattern on freezer paper, raided my stash and a less than an hour later - a new pair of lounge pants!

day 3

Wednesday mornings are big around this house. It is the weekly dance class for Ellie and then both Ellie and Sam have gym class. The big dance performance is in about a month and Ellie is starting to get excited. The parents got to come into the class and watch today, so I managed to snap a few photos of our little tap dancing star in action!

As we were getting ready for class and I had her in her tights and leotard, she went and grabbed her new skirt. It actually was the perfect skirt for class, much more fun than any tutu! I must say it was a great feeling to see a skirt finished just this Monday in action on Wednesday am!

This sewing challenge has been just the thing to get me going each day and although it isn't much of a dent in the old stash, it has made me feel great to use fabrics that I love and feels even better to see the kids dancing around in them! Shot of Sam surrounded by all the girls at the start of the gym class portion of the class. He loves all the girls!

kids sewing week challenge :: day two

Participating in the kids clothes week challenge sponsored by elsie marley, you can read about it here. In a nutshell, spend an hour a day sewing clothes or accessories for kids. It is amazing what a little push can do to get you going on the to sew list I have had going forever! Also the ideas that are coming up in the flickr pool is amazing and it is only the second day!

I posted this yesterday and wanted to say that it wasn't an hour, but it wasn't as time consuming as it looks. I started on Friday and finished it Sunday night, working probably 4-5 hours on it. Sandi does a great job explaining the process and the skirt really came together nicely. I used the ruffler foot set on 6 for all the gathers of each layer and also the ruffles. I ended up cutting a bit off excess off of each of the ruffle pieces once I sewed them on. It would have gone a lot faster for me if I had a serger, which I really want to get and have had funds set aside for awhile. The problem is which one to purchase and finding someone local to help me learn to use it. For that reason I will probably go with a Bernina, any suggestions on models?

Day 1 Project - Ruffle Skirt

So for Day 2, I didn't have a head start or really plan. I couldn't sleep so after Leno, I went downstairs picked up a pattern I had yet to use, grabbed some fabric and started tracing the pattern onto freezer paper. That process took the most time. The rest just flew together. I was back in bed a little after 1 pm!

Day 2 Project - Owl Top

I took this photo right after getting her out of bed, I couldn't wait to see it on her. Both the boys liked it and asked when I would make them something. So I guess I will be making some boy items in the next week! Any ideas on quick and great boy projects would be welcomed!

After dropping Max at school, we played outside for a bit. They both wanted in on the photo shoot. I have been wanting to get a shot of Sam in the pants I picked up at my favorite consignment sale, so he can remember these silly whale pants. Max keeps telling him to take them off, they are "way not cool". Oh well Sam likes them. Ellie gave me a couple quick shots and then ran off to play with Sam! Details on Ellie's new top: Fabric - Saffron Craig from Fabricworm Pattern - To Tie ForView b from oliveanndesigns purchased pattern from my LQS KC Custom Fabrics

Sewing machine and Ellie - new duds!

I received the most amazing package from Lisa of lpinette on flickr, see her work here.

Doesn't she look pretty all dressed up? Who wouldn't love to be wrapped in Linen and Hope Valley, my heart stopped when I opened the package.

If that wasn't enough, she also made the ultimate pillow for me. I am crazy for house pillows and union jacks. She combined them into one pillow! She also figured out how much Sam loves the Heather Ross dog print and she incorporated a dog on the roof of the pillow, it is such a cool and fun pillow.

I love the {Urban} Home Goods swap and hope it is something that happens again. I loved both the giving and the receiving on this one!

Over the weekend I started a project from Sandi Henderson's new book, Sewing Bits and Pieces. It is a wonderful book and I am excited to try tons of the projects! Since it is kids sewing week, I wanted to participate in the kids clothes week challenge and knew for this skirt project I needed to get a jump start. I chose the Brick Road Skirt pattern and must say I love the results!

It was a very fun skirt to make, but I think Ellie is loving wearing it even more! It is super full and fun for her to twirl in. I of course love it because it has some of my favorite fabrics in it - fmf, kei dots, and two of my favorite Japanese prints.

Probably the best part of this skirt was using my RUFFLER Foot. It is a rock star tool to have in your sewing arsenal. It might look like a medieval torture device, but fear not . . . once you get the hang of it, it ROCKS.