bear/doll carriers

**Just so you don't think I'm some sort of Supermom, most of the projects I'm posting in the next few weeks were made before I had Ava. Just wanted to clear that up. We have lots of junk all over our floors and laundry to be folded over here. (and a baby to be snuggled so it's not all bad!) Not much sewing going on! ;)

I got my hands on a copy of the Oliver + S Little Things to Sew book book last month, and since I mainly bought it to make the doll/bear carrier, I had one whipped up within 24 hours of it arriving.

Excited much? I just knew that Miss C would LOVE this. (I was right...more on that later) Flipping through the book, I found many more projects that I can't wait to try!

It was a really quick sew, and so fun to make! I'll admit, I like having more pictures than the book has (I'm very visual, hence my millions of pics in my tutorials),  but reading through the instructions twice was plenty.

The sizing is perfect for my little gal, and she absolutely FLIPPED out when I put it on her. Then proceeded to wear it the rest of the day and threw a mini fit when we had to take it off for lunch. She loves her babies (especially "baby 'Rora") so she's in love with being little miss mommy.

Plus that pocket is the perfect size for Squinkies! The pocket fabric is leftover from the nursery, strap fabric is from LOoong ago (aka no clue where from or what line), and those adorable handmade yellow buttons are from my sponsor Button Mad!

Now onto Sadie's, cause you know she requested one about 1 second after seeing Charlotte's!

She pretty much breathed down my neck until I finished it, lol. She really enjoys being a part of picking out the fabric (with minimal guidance from me, of course), and I love how it coordinates with Charlotte's.

Safe to say she also loves it! The pocket fabric is also leftover from the nursery, and the strap fabric is from my sponsor, Lily Bella Fabrics.

Oh look! Bonus blurry iphone shot of the two of them together. Awww!
 

simple doily cardstock ornament tutorial

I just adore making ornaments! I have so many ideas that I may or may not have gotten overwhelmed, curled up into a ball, and listened to Christmas music instead of making them.

Just kidding....not that that sounds like a bad idea or anything....

So! Here's my short little how to! These would be adorable in felt, and plain circles would be really cute too!

I used this awesome QuicKutz die from Lifestyle Crafts to cut these doily shapes out of cardstock. (the set comes with all pictured below-so cute!)

Use the code CRAFTINESS to get 20% off your purchase on their site!

 I cut five for each ornament, then fold them in half, matching up the....doiles...haha. What are those called? Anywho....the bumpy edges. Then open them back up and using spray adhesive or a glue stick, apply your adhesive to the backs of the doilies.

Next press the backs together like so, lining up the edges so that they match. Keep adding your pieces until you have one left and then slip in a 6-8 inch piece of skinny ribbon or baker's twine to hang the ornament with. Add the last piece and press all the sides firmly together.

Tada! This is one of the easiest ornaments I've ever made, and Sadie loved helping me cut out the doily shapes on my Epic die cutter/embosser! 

P.S. See the winner of the Nativity Advent Calendar here! They also lowered the price for this holiday season, so check it out! There's still time to order one and get it in time!

basic bodice design series guest post

 I'm so excited to be posting over on iCandy Handmade for their Basic Bodice Design series! What a great idea, right? Most everyone has a basic bodice pattern in their sewing arsenal, which is what makes this such a brilliant idea for a series? (Why can I never have these great ideas? lol!)

It's a simple dress, but the way the bodice is cut on the bias adds some fun interest!

Hop over there to see the tutorial!

stained glass advent calendar giveaway!

***This giveaway is now closed. See the winner below!***

You may remember I did a giveaway last year for this super cool nativity advent calendar that my mom made out of felt! She made one when I was a kid and we all loved taking turns each night adding one piece to the nativity scene. Of course, with 8 kids we only got 3 turns, but still was exciting! It is one of my favorite memories, and a new tradition that I've started with Sadie and Charlotte. (and Ava when she gets big enough!)



My mom and dad started a new website called http://www.stainedglassadventcalendar.com/ for these advent calendars. They also sell kits to make this faux stained glass felt nativity advent-and also sell assembled advents-but they really don't take much time to put together!

I love that each piece has it's own little spot on the window! They stick to the backing felt piece which makes it easy and fun to re-arrange the scene.

 The kit includes a brief verse of scripture and a carol verse to be sung each night, assembly instructions, a wood dowel, ribbon for hanging, a black backing panel with sewn casing for the dowel to fit in, blue window shapes, blue and green center panels and all the pre cut parts and pieces to make each figure:

Cave style stable
Mary and Joseph
Three shepherds
Three sheep
Three kings
Donkey and Cow
Manger with or without hay
Angel
Angel choir
Bright Star
6 smaller stars
The baby Jesus

This Nativity Calendar is handcrafted in your choice of recycled acrylic felt or wool felt for quality and durability.

They also sell the pattern only if you want to cut out your own felt pieces!

So how would you like to win a kit to make your very own nativity advent?

How to enter:

1. Head over to their website and check out my cute mom's film debut! They have some informative videos you can watch (look for Sadie and Charlotte too!) Then leave a comment on this post with your favorite Christmas tradition! Leave an email address please so I can contact you if you win.


This giveaway open to US residents only.

This giveaway will end Wednesday the 28th. Good luck! 

The winner is....Megan!

strawberry and robot cookies

I love making cookies for parties! woohoo! It's like my own personal party in my kitchen. Wow, dork alert.  But seriously......

I made these strawberry cookies for my best friend's daughter's strawberry shortcake party awhile ago. (who is Sadie's best friend, of course. We totally didn't pressure them into that...lol just kidding they love each other on their own, most days...girls are so dramatic!)



 I had to do a few special cookies just for the birthday girl, so I decorated some scalloped circles with her name spelled out. The kids loved the letter ones!

The strawberries were so easy, and it gave me a chance to work on my piping and filling techniques since there wasn't anything fancy goin' on. Those bright colors make me smile!

 (sorry for the iphone pics)

I was also able to do some cookies for my friend Jessie's baby shower the other month-the theme was obviously, robots! I took my inspiration from the fabulous Sweet Sugar Belle! These were super fun to make....quite a bit more involved than the strawberries but really cute! (notice the ninja turtle wannabee. lol!)
 

I was also in charge of the labels, and utensils...aka the tool box! lol. You know me and my naming of party items...it's kind of a sickness.

I got some super cute robot soaps from Etsy and packaged them up with some tags for the favors. So fun and easy! Sadie and Charlotte have loved using the leftover soaps we had.

I love helping out with parties since I can be creative but not in charge of a whole party...sah-weet.

pink ice cream dress

Since I have more Oliver and S patterns to try,  I dove right into the ice cream dress pattern, and made this little pink number for Charlotte. (a few weeks ago.... No, I'm not sewing much yet!)

I have one cut out for Sadie too, just need some pretty specific colored thread to make it work. (don't you hate when you don't have matching thread and have to wait? It's like the worst thing ever. In the history of bad sewing things that can happen....yep the worst. So dramatic.)

 I probably need to scootch that button over a bit. Will I ever? Nawh. The pink fabric is from Lily Bella Fabrics, and the solid is Bella Solid-Snow from Ribbon Retreat. Both gorgeous fabrics!

We started out this shoot with a grimace but ended up with the big smile you saw in the first picture. She does like the dress, whatever this photo may suggest. Surprisingly, Sadie did not throw a fit about Charlotte getting a pink dress...she is pretty possessive of the color pink.

I cut out a size 2T, and left off the pockets. It's a bit big, but as I always make the excuse say-it'll fit her longer! The only thing I had some problems with was the double hem-it didn't lay exactly right but it's good enough, so.....I called it good. The thing I'm really loving about Oliver and S patterns is that they are so well constructed! It's fun learning new techniques and tips too.

Have you sewn anything pink lately? Don't tell Sadie if you have....

newborn pictures

THANK YOU for all the lovely well wishes on Ava's birth here on the blog, FB, and Instagram!!! All the support and love is so fantastic and nice to read in the wee hours of the night while I'm up with her.

Soo....I took some newborn pics yesterday-I just couldn't help it-she is so photogenic! (she doesn't get it from me) Our little Ava is doing great! She's a champ at nursing and though sleeping is a WIP (of course), I'm recovering nicely and enjoying some downtime. Til next week! I have some sewing projects that I'm excited to share with you!

Ava Rachel is here!

 Just a quick post to pop in and let you know that I had my baby on Tuesday! Her name is Ava Rachel....did anyone guess that "A" name? I've only had one person guess it, my sister in law...and it was her first guess! lol. It was a long labor but she's healthy and strong and gorgeous! I'm in love!

So are big sisters and dad, of course!


 I'll be back soon with more posts that I've been stock-piling, and of course, more pics of Ava. (better ones too, sorry bout the iphone pics!)

bicycle class picnic blouse

Confession: I had never sewn with an Oliver and S pattern before this top.

I know, I know! And I called myself a sewing blogger! lol. I have copied their looks a few times, but after having used one of their patterns, I am a convert.

Another confession: Get ready for a slew of Oliver and S projects because I am now obsessed.

I made a class picnic blouse for Sadie, and love how it turned out! (partially because of that fabric! We both fell in love with it so I had to get some when it was on sale a little while ago. It's some organic cotton from Fabricworm!)

I cut out a size 3T, which was a little bit big on my teeny bean pole, but I was glad, since it'll fit her longer. The sleeves can always be shortened if needed in the spring, too! I had some vintage piping so I added that in below the back and front yokes. (I may or may not be addicted to piping lately)

I learned a few new things along the way and even with ripping out a seam twice (my bad), it only took about 2 hours or so. One tip, if you decide to put piping in the yoke seams, don't do it when you sew the wrong side of the shirt piece to the right side of the yoke facing. (ask me how I know lol) Slip it in when you top stitch the front yoke to the shirt piece.

Plus she loves it! Score.

Fabric Warehouse Direct fabric giveaway!

***This giveaway is now closed. See the winner below!***

I've got a fun fabric giveaway for you today, from my sponsor, Fabric Warehouse Direct! They have a ton of fabrics at great prices, lots of home dec stuff and some adorable cotton prints too! I must have been feeling the blue, because that's what I picked out as my fav prints, lol.

I love this print-it's almost like stained glass.

This one would make a super sweet skirt.

I love this mint gingham! The checks are 1 inch too so they are rather large, love that scale!


So onto the fun stuff: the giveaway!

They are giving away 3 yards of any print from their craft fabric section!
(sorry, giveaway is only open to be shipped in USA -lower 48 states)

 How to enter:

1. Visit their shop, take a look around, then come back and leave a comment on this post telling me your favorite fabric(s)!

Please leave your email address with your comment so I can contact you if you win!

The giveaway will run until Friday the 16th!

 Good luck!

The winner is....Cameron! (No linkable profile, so look for an email if your name is Cameron lol)