tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3214629362940267272024-02-06T22:25:22.112-05:00to carry in the handUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger17125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-321462936294026727.post-8604055639863388432012-06-15T16:34:00.000-04:002012-06-25T12:25:50.802-04:00Free Pattern: Cutie Patootie Baby Skirt!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8rhrVrm-smE4kznniwR48E-Cthxu6n3Bng0A1Eiwmly61OnJIWo2FKTNJHM4prp7-kPoypN0kYxfEIgvg9dnD43nolVbiROonyS16bO-A4ZPa3gVJ_81lKzM0Jlg-hMOIsDS4XwkuYI6P/s1600/cute.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8rhrVrm-smE4kznniwR48E-Cthxu6n3Bng0A1Eiwmly61OnJIWo2FKTNJHM4prp7-kPoypN0kYxfEIgvg9dnD43nolVbiROonyS16bO-A4ZPa3gVJ_81lKzM0Jlg-hMOIsDS4XwkuYI6P/s400/cute.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Howdy Ho! I'm pleased to present to you the super-adorable and totally free Cutie Patootie Baby Skirt pattern! Oh I do hope you love it as much as I do. It comes in two main versions - pleated and gathered, and you can make yours either with or without pockets. Plus, the pockets can be finished in any creative way you might like! If you make one, please pretty please send me a picture or link so I might see it too! I'd love to see what you come up with.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Okay, so <a href="https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B-o7xVuE9I0TWGlVTjZFMzk1VkU" target="_blank">Here's the Link</a> to a two page printable version of the pattern (without pics). Or you can just scroll down and read as you go. If you'd like more information on the fabrics you see or how I came around to making the pattern, check out <a href="http://tocarryinthehand.blogspot.com/2012/06/baby-skirts.html" target="_blank">this blog post.</a> If you're looking for a good starter tutorial on the various many ways you can choose to finish your seams, go to<a href="http://sewmamasew.com/blog2/2008/05/seam-finishes-simplified/" target="_blank"> this post</a> from Sew Mama Sew!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Happy Sewing! -Teresa</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Curlz MT'; font-size: 20pt;">Cutie Patootie Baby Skirt<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Ingredients:</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">1/4 yard of 45’’ wide fabric
<b>or</b> 1/2 yard of any fabric 44’’ or
less in width<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Four 3.5” squares of
coordinating fabric for pockets (optional)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Six inches of 3/4"
elastic (or five and a half inches for the 12-18M skirt)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Matching thread<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Fabric marking pen
(washable), chalk, or a graphite pencil (for pleated skirt only)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Basic sewing equipment <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Fit:
<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">I’ve sized this pattern
so baby gets the maximum use from your handmade garment. For the most accurate fit, please measure the
child’s waist when possible. The skirt’s
waist measures 18”, and this should fit sizes 18M to 2T or more, depending on baby. For the 12-18M skirt, use 5.5” of elastic
rather than 6 (make sure it will stretch out to 11.5” before using). This will give a final skirt measurement of 17.5". <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Skill
Level</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">: <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">This is an advanced
beginner/intermediate pattern. It
assumes you have a basic knowledge of sewing terms and techniques, and that you’ve
successfully completed several projects in the past. This pattern should take approximately two to
four hours to complete depending on skill level, seam finish chosen, and
whether you include pockets.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Notes</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">: All seams are 1/2" unless
otherwise specified. This pattern uses
three main pieces – the front, back, and bottom. The front and back are combined in step 4 to
become the top, and in the final step the top and bottom are joined to become
the completed skirt.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">On to the Instructions!<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">1.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><i style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Cut your fabric pieces</span></i><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">You’ll need two 12’’ x 7’’ pieces, plus </span><b style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">either</b><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;"> one 45’’ x 5’’ piece </span><b style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">or</b><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">
two 23” x 5” pieces (if your fabric width is less than 45”). </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">For the pockets (optional), cut four 3.5" squares. Take one of your
four squares and cut into a U shape by pressing in half and, using a cup
or other small round object, trace along one corner of the fabric to make a rounded
shape, then cut. Open, press, and use as
a template for the other three pieces. (You may leave pockets square if desired,
or cut into hearts, etc.).</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">If
your fabric is less than 45” wide, complete the following step before moving on. With right sides facing, sew your two 23”
pieces together along one of the short sides with a 1/2" seam allowance, and
finish seam as desired. This should make
one 45” wide piece.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgObqo__W9z1iayRsDDS-nB7tpOb7PwnE6byYNsWrLCx7mJmZbjhW8Y2bvYFkqibeeEtnQdk7NzSNGHSri1RN09v6udNUjI17wpY9B2Q1cFyZDbgGAMSoCW6MHNi1YomPlAwk1l1WPG1IT/s1600/patt3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgObqo__W9z1iayRsDDS-nB7tpOb7PwnE6byYNsWrLCx7mJmZbjhW8Y2bvYFkqibeeEtnQdk7NzSNGHSri1RN09v6udNUjI17wpY9B2Q1cFyZDbgGAMSoCW6MHNi1YomPlAwk1l1WPG1IT/s400/patt3.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I went with an inside-out flat-felled seam for a clean look - and because it's so easy. You can choose to finish your seams as you wish.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">2.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><i style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Press casings</span></i><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">.
Take one of your 12”x7” pieces and fold the top (long) side over 1”, press,
fold again and press. Repeat with other 12” x 7” piece. </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu6zgngcrKGsQXlgwIu88mZUD2OebehCIZlpf3-_KOn8xBhrMWSQKX5q4M-H5n0G1wpJjqNe7WmwNnXMs0x9ZnNaxtrOtuCjoZ6Z-46QqTo7wi0nXJYbr1eTmJ_c53CIcUE3YFDPYHe1ot/s1600/patt4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu6zgngcrKGsQXlgwIu88mZUD2OebehCIZlpf3-_KOn8xBhrMWSQKX5q4M-H5n0G1wpJjqNe7WmwNnXMs0x9ZnNaxtrOtuCjoZ6Z-46QqTo7wi0nXJYbr1eTmJ_c53CIcUE3YFDPYHe1ot/s400/patt4.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">There are two folds there, I promise.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">3.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><i style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Sew pockets </span></i><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">(optional). With right sides facing, sew two of the
pocket pieces together along the “U”, leaving top open. Trim seam to 1/4”, clip curves, turn inside
out, and press. Tuck top inside by 1/2",
press, and topstitch to secure. (Alternately, fold top to outside 1/4", press, fold another 1/4", and topstich a narrow rectangle to get the look you see in the pockets below. Or finish normally, then add lace, ribbon, buttons, etc.) Repeat
for other pocket.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Pin
pockets onto one of your 12” x 7” pieces, centering two inches from each other,
and one inch above the raw (unpressed) edge.
Using a 1/4” seam allowance, topstitch around the “U”, backstitching at
beginning and end to reinforce. This is
now your “front”. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQqiTWAp7Odd4PRuWOsJnvdWTK437puv7txkC_69Kzg75-05wQYPeCH56f_NUApmC1Wxhe4cq85xatqJk0fveHrtq8yM1MkIQw9O-3So5ZKl1153VNobyQmPaslpstrvqYYwRWm8n3qeQe/s1600/patt8.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQqiTWAp7Odd4PRuWOsJnvdWTK437puv7txkC_69Kzg75-05wQYPeCH56f_NUApmC1Wxhe4cq85xatqJk0fveHrtq8yM1MkIQw9O-3So5ZKl1153VNobyQmPaslpstrvqYYwRWm8n3qeQe/s400/patt8.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The completed front piece. Why do my pictures always look so wonky? It's like I live in a funhouse or something....</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">4.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><i style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Combine front and back</span></i><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">.
On both front and back pieces, open the folds you pressed in, and with right
sides facing, match the front and back together, aligning the creases of the
folds. Sew together along both of the
short sides, creating a tube of fabric.
Finish seams as desired. This is
now your “top”. </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2Ct4QlRho4SN2m5jxEVrzgTp1UQRjpECFvNedBvot6SoqQmrV3x_e-ArCZ1vyBjh_Us97xQCJHrjj5zs5xw3Wnwhq2JJXzZkK0feZshOndRTs7B_V12OCbzwhMCXh3UBSba18cERVo6wc/s1600/patt9.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2Ct4QlRho4SN2m5jxEVrzgTp1UQRjpECFvNedBvot6SoqQmrV3x_e-ArCZ1vyBjh_Us97xQCJHrjj5zs5xw3Wnwhq2JJXzZkK0feZshOndRTs7B_V12OCbzwhMCXh3UBSba18cERVo6wc/s400/patt9.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The completed top piece.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">5.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><i style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Sew elastic</span></i><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">.
Orient the top so that the wrong side of the back is facing you. Take one end of the elastic and place it
between the two casing folds you pressed in earlier, aligning it against the seam to
your left. Pin in place. Stitch along the end of
elastic close to the seam, backstitching at beginning and end. </span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;"><br /></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeGWmuo3pxWH1QRDWePNvm4PfQhaX4ECiTHvLPcxNTTVO0HZRnoHGwbMroKM3-B3VIS7aiy_ytAPnwElXEEMHQaBbRYnAdrApbmQxkMqF25dPEPUN24G91cyzzTJUD4P-JnwJ1qoxDVp2Z/s1600/patt10.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeGWmuo3pxWH1QRDWePNvm4PfQhaX4ECiTHvLPcxNTTVO0HZRnoHGwbMroKM3-B3VIS7aiy_ytAPnwElXEEMHQaBbRYnAdrApbmQxkMqF25dPEPUN24G91cyzzTJUD4P-JnwJ1qoxDVp2Z/s400/patt10.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hard to see those casing folds, but they're there.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">Repeat with the other end of elastic, so that
it’s secured just inside the other seam.
Your fabric should be bunched up behind the elastic at this point. </span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTuYru_2v0nOsmS9gpi6MgLbXaxi_PGXTxWx-xkjGhZpFo0f05u2s-a0BCDqn6h9JWBzA4p-eOlx0Y9fu7RY8WiPEq5LAcS5RiHhF8ucSC0F2cYcdQB4ShJpzrzOm76sFhWjSUw7K-59oV/s1600/patt11.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTuYru_2v0nOsmS9gpi6MgLbXaxi_PGXTxWx-xkjGhZpFo0f05u2s-a0BCDqn6h9JWBzA4p-eOlx0Y9fu7RY8WiPEq5LAcS5RiHhF8ucSC0F2cYcdQB4ShJpzrzOm76sFhWjSUw7K-59oV/s400/patt11.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">6.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><i style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Finish top edge of skirt</span></i><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">.
Fold top crease over along entire waist, pulling elastic taut as you
fold (use presser foot to assist in holding one end). Pin elastic in several places. </span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;"><br /></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMe3Zff_BHpEIq3P1xOlzJR7FcFBkjSmnnQlP06lfJwR8FFCw6Nq684gfGQR36v-EjoVg6Tz6BUyRc78kY0aWnI11RsStgNcg_4A7z3BWxr_YWXknfV562a6TP4j0phJ7hgr4dGJ3dLS9b/s1600/aa1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMe3Zff_BHpEIq3P1xOlzJR7FcFBkjSmnnQlP06lfJwR8FFCw6Nq684gfGQR36v-EjoVg6Tz6BUyRc78kY0aWnI11RsStgNcg_4A7z3BWxr_YWXknfV562a6TP4j0phJ7hgr4dGJ3dLS9b/s400/aa1.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">If you hate pins, as I do, you can use barrettes for this step. Also, notice I'm using the presser foot to assist me.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">Pull elastic taut and fold again. (Is it just me or does the word "taut" sound naughty?)</span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiADOIflsw65-kAvDF6_KZY4vJEHLoGzOUrbjaiElCcGLDvS3AIJDE-YTrl2Ro-8_GJHt0CWuCG9KQPBPSQOf7ES_uaEFmt39E53H8aSstTj3zKIRrLSzDga4iTiZZhkiK_wxfhWjnDe4EA/s1600/aa2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiADOIflsw65-kAvDF6_KZY4vJEHLoGzOUrbjaiElCcGLDvS3AIJDE-YTrl2Ro-8_GJHt0CWuCG9KQPBPSQOf7ES_uaEFmt39E53H8aSstTj3zKIRrLSzDga4iTiZZhkiK_wxfhWjnDe4EA/s400/aa2.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-align: center; text-indent: -0.25in;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-align: center; text-indent: -0.25in;">Starting first along the elasticized back</span><b style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-align: center; text-indent: -0.25in;">,</b><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-align: center; text-indent: -0.25in;"> sew down the casing 1/8” in from the bottom of the fold, making sure
fabric is smooth and flat as you go. Stretch
the elastic taut (he he) a few inches ahead of your needle (while holding from behind
to secure), adjusting as you go. Try not to sew into the elastic. </span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-align: center; text-indent: -0.25in;"><br /></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHVKFqVY6zrpe2wqzLW-WHkyh5-TjoCQGkS2B_cHB3IZyFaE7pxKIn9Td_aO4AQZjs0cuJT2ZoalRz15NeQSvOWyPE5-UUE0F165_j7Yca0n9m0JkwNaib9ApDiF1SKHbXEvzNTepWdI21/s1600/aa3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHVKFqVY6zrpe2wqzLW-WHkyh5-TjoCQGkS2B_cHB3IZyFaE7pxKIn9Td_aO4AQZjs0cuJT2ZoalRz15NeQSvOWyPE5-UUE0F165_j7Yca0n9m0JkwNaib9ApDiF1SKHbXEvzNTepWdI21/s400/aa3.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hold your fabric from behind the presser foot to stabilize as you sew - I wanted to show this in the pic, but I don't have three hands. </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: center; text-indent: -24px;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-align: center; text-indent: -0.25in;">The top of your skirt is now complete.</span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-align: center; text-indent: -0.25in;"><br /></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMXN8ZEt6FuBQbLSOw-3hu0Sld2lnxYGRSg5FcnaiSsrL6sWchaUGuXCdjIVmfILy8nfTStXfMp4JaBdEcEydSZngboH2cqxL-1oP79WN0cNEDu52zeUwEQ8p_WRKIcKbtw-cZ8sC0290v/s1600/aa4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMXN8ZEt6FuBQbLSOw-3hu0Sld2lnxYGRSg5FcnaiSsrL6sWchaUGuXCdjIVmfILy8nfTStXfMp4JaBdEcEydSZngboH2cqxL-1oP79WN0cNEDu52zeUwEQ8p_WRKIcKbtw-cZ8sC0290v/s400/aa4.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">All that finagling with elastic means you have a lovely clean seam inside. </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjP1k1kAFVJsRCYHf2ioKN9Dwug7WGCz8jqGTC3JLp7pmYx00ob4BhwH4eO07ngN-GG1bZPPVgf-BqJIfwU6YfBLfx1boPnoxsijOJIY0XZDMEBP3E-ctC811KfaE7csRzvj7E9SEswtVqM/s1600/aa5.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjP1k1kAFVJsRCYHf2ioKN9Dwug7WGCz8jqGTC3JLp7pmYx00ob4BhwH4eO07ngN-GG1bZPPVgf-BqJIfwU6YfBLfx1boPnoxsijOJIY0XZDMEBP3E-ctC811KfaE7csRzvj7E9SEswtVqM/s400/aa5.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">And a smooth flat front outside.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">7.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><i style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Make your marks</span></i><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">.
(Skip this step if you are making the gathered version). Take your bottom
skirt piece (45” x 5”) and with the wrong side facing you, mark your folds
along the top, or long end, of your fabric.
Make your first mark 1/2" in, then every 2 inches to the end. Your last mark should be 1/2” from the end of
your fabric, with a total of 23 marks.
(The 1/2" ends are reserved for your seam allowance). </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;"><br /></span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCcMJuGbrrLe9KjbNP46iUM_I-9OKRl80kMYOLKwXkkypL6hO2mk9KrwzoHjZyqc8naY5sm9FwnoC3fIclcV999Hzf_PK8H5UjiSg7dpfYGpW7KAdj1meljWoTQrt4ocjQMGrRlTrLDVN9/s1600/aa6.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCcMJuGbrrLe9KjbNP46iUM_I-9OKRl80kMYOLKwXkkypL6hO2mk9KrwzoHjZyqc8naY5sm9FwnoC3fIclcV999Hzf_PK8H5UjiSg7dpfYGpW7KAdj1meljWoTQrt4ocjQMGrRlTrLDVN9/s400/aa6.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It's hard to see my marks. I added pink squares to guide your eyes. You're welcome. If you're thinking that I just couldn't figure out how to get the pointy finger or cool arrow onto my picture, well, um, you're right. Sigh. </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">8.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><i style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Make your pleats/gathers</span></i><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">.
For pleats: using your marks as a guide, fold your pleats, and secure
with pins. Begin with your second mark;
lift and pull the fabric so that it meets the third mark, tucking the excess
fabric under and to the left, and smoothing flat. Pin to secure. Repeat to the end. </span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaLo2SCGQAvjwCMq4L1Dfw6-lwRFIIMzO6RxhoWAVppFB64hos8ubsj9iy0qcJs1MXAJ26bqnDcVapPg4EvSMfaqJD-hjY7TNbp2Ju9lIdKLAbRmHzabI9htARe4Nnzi0fpF0-e1GTEFsS/s1600/aa8.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaLo2SCGQAvjwCMq4L1Dfw6-lwRFIIMzO6RxhoWAVppFB64hos8ubsj9iy0qcJs1MXAJ26bqnDcVapPg4EvSMfaqJD-hjY7TNbp2Ju9lIdKLAbRmHzabI9htARe4Nnzi0fpF0-e1GTEFsS/s400/aa8.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-align: left; text-indent: -0.25in;">With a 3/8” seam allowance, sew along the top
edge to secure the pleats in place, being sure to keep fabric flat and smooth
as you go. </span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmi63YJShMVpHBAQIvhwseDCv_WAWluMoD4CyNNo5o_oPnWm0kNShHl0zgDkmoomRcSqv2-7qroyp1PwzR9j3BoZRPcFVDJeprnOO8hbeihN1JV1i4CMrUw-11gxmNNcHXee7GfxwgwY68/s1600/aa9.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmi63YJShMVpHBAQIvhwseDCv_WAWluMoD4CyNNo5o_oPnWm0kNShHl0zgDkmoomRcSqv2-7qroyp1PwzR9j3BoZRPcFVDJeprnOO8hbeihN1JV1i4CMrUw-11gxmNNcHXee7GfxwgwY68/s400/aa9.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">For
gathers: baste along the top edge of fabric, 1/4" from edge, and leave
several inches of thread hanging from both ends of stitching. Repeat 3/8” from edge. Pull both of the bobbin (bottom) threads
gently to gather fabric, pushing fabric along threads to even out. Leave 1/2” smooth on either end for the seam
allowance. When the gathered length,
including seam allowances, measures 24”, tie off and knot your threads several
times.</span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><i>This is where a picture should be. I totally dropped the ball, because I didn't think to get a picture of this when I sewed the orange skirt. I'm still a learnin' how to do this tutorial thing. Hopefully the written directions are clear enough. If not, let me know in the comments, and I'll see if I can clear things up.</i></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">9.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span><i style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Finish bottom piece</span></i><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">.
Match short ends (sides) of the bottom piece together, right sides
facing, and sew together, creating a tube.
Finish seam as desired. </span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYsGqgM4FQsiSjMjUR8pAbflmjpooiFl4erU-6Btj4_7u_EO4lAkhmJFV4CMQJpIhdfD4FCMPGcKnZMnMxIwZDrFH40XZebThk6xKQQvOQVh6HkZ0hDz1RPp9BfQANTF2fQTBTJQCoPqEx/s1600/aa10.JPG" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYsGqgM4FQsiSjMjUR8pAbflmjpooiFl4erU-6Btj4_7u_EO4lAkhmJFV4CMQJpIhdfD4FCMPGcKnZMnMxIwZDrFH40XZebThk6xKQQvOQVh6HkZ0hDz1RPp9BfQANTF2fQTBTJQCoPqEx/s400/aa10.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">Take the
raw (unpleated/ungathered) edge of the bottom piece and fold under 1/2”, press,
fold another 1/2" and press again.
Stitch 1/8” inside fold to secure hem.</span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="text-align: left;">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-align: left; text-indent: -0.25in;">10.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-align: left; text-indent: -0.25in;"> <i>Join top
and bottom</i>. Turn bottom piece inside
out, and place top inside it with right sides facing and raw edges and side
seams aligned. (One tube should now be
inside the other, the one with pleats/gathers on the outside and visible to you). </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmf6pMxGy8a1NcNnbW0RsyHC0M73ZBWO0yEUHcjDt6qbsjaIT4ewPH6FtOKk3nhjW61NHYSbThyphenhyphen5H7ZE68p3aWA4fPbZZxD0yJ5Ms4xyU3drDEUS9xvsUPMglIs8FcN6IPfWk6-3FQk_3k/s1600/aa12.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmf6pMxGy8a1NcNnbW0RsyHC0M73ZBWO0yEUHcjDt6qbsjaIT4ewPH6FtOKk3nhjW61NHYSbThyphenhyphen5H7ZE68p3aWA4fPbZZxD0yJ5Ms4xyU3drDEUS9xvsUPMglIs8FcN6IPfWk6-3FQk_3k/s400/aa12.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">Sew together, being sure to keep previous
line of stitching inside the seam allowance.
Backstitch to secure. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">Finish seam
as desired. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjdjXxMOyapm8sUb400qK8dshQmAkqNVmaNWRBVQOs5fXbOKGPrIufMWmMRbYP8gk4yih97Z42zT17bAWcF7KKIACOzi3Ci1hSHHxvX_pFUUJ3-tkXnkSSkEB4Pc8oJYNuJMlsPO2tRIfJ/s1600/aa14.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjdjXxMOyapm8sUb400qK8dshQmAkqNVmaNWRBVQOs5fXbOKGPrIufMWmMRbYP8gk4yih97Z42zT17bAWcF7KKIACOzi3Ci1hSHHxvX_pFUUJ3-tkXnkSSkEB4Pc8oJYNuJMlsPO2tRIfJ/s400/aa14.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Congratulations - you’ve completed your
Cutie Patootie Baby Skirt! Time to crow/complain
about it in the comments section!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-321462936294026727.post-82742626878092114302012-06-09T13:36:00.003-04:002012-06-09T13:36:50.227-04:00baby skirts!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxXna7uFjHbm3TdEzIyIZnFIjXPtn0wXwM3oL6kFF9DOekRHxrCPRZLbrR4cpiI7Ud3VIA0Vg2awQGIi-jCrHD8GUDEPgdZ33EYqY7Csn0W31rR-qstfcBCoCeLUoRkyThhjwwWf0NRWSr/s1600/skirt1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxXna7uFjHbm3TdEzIyIZnFIjXPtn0wXwM3oL6kFF9DOekRHxrCPRZLbrR4cpiI7Ud3VIA0Vg2awQGIi-jCrHD8GUDEPgdZ33EYqY7Csn0W31rR-qstfcBCoCeLUoRkyThhjwwWf0NRWSr/s400/skirt1.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMXK1KgC6JroXEb1lGe_91rqTFW4DV2_Yve3d8qu8ItqESYuU2LonEvhwZrvNakIHsUao9XCrP9sKdhvj2IyZtBOxfjctaQXXXBg5wiyTknVm3VmygO3TBPjWu6yT9s5sj4tor7-DucZBD/s1600/skirt2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMXK1KgC6JroXEb1lGe_91rqTFW4DV2_Yve3d8qu8ItqESYuU2LonEvhwZrvNakIHsUao9XCrP9sKdhvj2IyZtBOxfjctaQXXXBg5wiyTknVm3VmygO3TBPjWu6yT9s5sj4tor7-DucZBD/s400/skirt2.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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I have a confession to make. Um, I live in my pajamas. Seriously. I'm in them right now, and it's after noon. After I shower, I just put on another clean pair of pj's, unless I'm going out. And by <i>out </i>I don't mean to the yard or the mailbox, or the neighbor's house to let the dogs outside during the day. I mean I'm getting in the car and heading somewhere. There's no exception to this, except major holidays like Christmas and Easter, and not even always then. I've been living this way for years now. <i>It's awesome</i>. </div>
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I pretty much don't dress Lila in "street clothes" either, unless we're going out. But now that I've made a few of these skirts, I find myself actually wanting to put daytime clothing on the child. During the day. Even if we're not going out. Yes! That's how infatuated I am with these cuties. My original "inspiration" skirt was a sweet find at a thrift store, before she was even born. You can see her wearing it below - and OMG, I'm wearing street clothes, and I'm not in town! It must be Easter. Yes, that's from my <a href="http://tocarryinthehand.blogspot.com/2012/04/easter-fail-or.html" target="_blank">Easter post</a>. Okay then.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj37UXpuhDpik6aNo3wgV5Eh_4vHO-zUPioOcAnB1MZYBaZBO6G05RtcvZZ95FztgAkzoIL9n-IJ-KFn6XCxaEqSYeK3qZlivWBdCwVj5n5DtgkaRn_l-1N9qNer3tz6w9sjVb2kl4HgjAE/s1600/lila+tongue.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="376" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj37UXpuhDpik6aNo3wgV5Eh_4vHO-zUPioOcAnB1MZYBaZBO6G05RtcvZZ95FztgAkzoIL9n-IJ-KFn6XCxaEqSYeK3qZlivWBdCwVj5n5DtgkaRn_l-1N9qNer3tz6w9sjVb2kl4HgjAE/s400/lila+tongue.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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So I liked that skirt so much that I made a sort of copycat, which you can see (not very well) in the photo below. It's the only, and therefore the best, pic I have of her in it. Sewing that skirt was a learning process for me, and it didn't turn out quite like I'd wanted. But it's still cute on the girl.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhy_qIH7VKJ4mPQWTyQneZzfjJXk-x5j5E15fSsKtKalSHN27KZNctp6InA-f3bOHajUiWJo5ZpytASCK8dBWwwZIObeUZLcR9AZtex6dGWASoyEyOj2_3srgW9Ggc0wkAUzFbqU9QIzlz7/s1600/skirt11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhy_qIH7VKJ4mPQWTyQneZzfjJXk-x5j5E15fSsKtKalSHN27KZNctp6InA-f3bOHajUiWJo5ZpytASCK8dBWwwZIObeUZLcR9AZtex6dGWASoyEyOj2_3srgW9Ggc0wkAUzFbqU9QIzlz7/s400/skirt11.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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And I've since made the two skirts you saw at the beginning of this post, one with gathers (which I adore) and one with pleats. And just how cute is that mushroom fabric? Too, that's how. It's called "willow shroom" and it's by the Alexander Henry Fabrics Collection, 2009. I think I picked it up at the Atlanta Sewing and Quilt Expo this spring. As long as we're on the subject, the orange skirt is shot cotton by Kaffe Fassett. Pictures cannot do it justice. It's just so beautiful, soft, lightweight, and the colors! Oh my. You've seen me <a href="http://tocarryinthehand.blogspot.com/2012/04/sweet-little-dress-pattern-review.html" target="_blank">feature his shot cottons</a> before, and you'll see them again, I'm sure. <br />
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Since my good friend Melissa requested that I make a tutorial for this skirt, well, I up and did! Originally I was going to just do the pleated version, but then I made a gathered one for giggles, and liked it even more. So you get both. But you're gonna have to wait. Not too long. I've completed most of the tutorial, and I just need to find the time to put it all together with pictures and whatnot. I expect to have it up sometime next week, with plenty of warm summer weather left. Though I'm totally using the shroom skirt this fall and winter. I'll just pair it with leggings.<br />
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The skirt will also come in two sizes - 12-18M and 2-3T, and can be made with or without pockets. Plus the pockets can be square, U shaped, or whatever your heart desires. So lot's of possibilities. Okay, on to the action shots:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihGEYG9DHKFF2lIVXVMAlO_IukiU0MlJcuniG0h1z70wpw903ZyTbqA2nwih8jc5pphhQIf4ZgiWTpqUdZTJZ1LSj18wu-a_apuRfrtqZPPOJVrVjysXcttWrzgkBCNZiNVmg_WjHCVLim/s1600/skirt4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihGEYG9DHKFF2lIVXVMAlO_IukiU0MlJcuniG0h1z70wpw903ZyTbqA2nwih8jc5pphhQIf4ZgiWTpqUdZTJZ1LSj18wu-a_apuRfrtqZPPOJVrVjysXcttWrzgkBCNZiNVmg_WjHCVLim/s400/skirt4.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU-BqIXOu9LBbsB_Cz7m0_Nx39parRVQr7BFv96P7VAxgRDz4L_klLfNi-3WZq7-n9sAPy9VBWf3IjfIXJEurC8IuR8uGN6nMhq7UeUarJNAgWG28jzFlKYBfkceCe_c2B72WPWsSuirft/s1600/skirt5.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU-BqIXOu9LBbsB_Cz7m0_Nx39parRVQr7BFv96P7VAxgRDz4L_klLfNi-3WZq7-n9sAPy9VBWf3IjfIXJEurC8IuR8uGN6nMhq7UeUarJNAgWG28jzFlKYBfkceCe_c2B72WPWsSuirft/s400/skirt5.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXrrndDdt1EQvWuSXqRtR48CVqoyitKHuiPCe132hKFrSQ1VQflFBnhT3qnJTruocSPGLf_BaBvm5_m4_-nVg5t9qX1-W0h44PoVZBOOHTqmpV6C5ahc0NvvPQMSQ4Uyo2ZjIfZFMF-8s6/s1600/skirt6.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXrrndDdt1EQvWuSXqRtR48CVqoyitKHuiPCe132hKFrSQ1VQflFBnhT3qnJTruocSPGLf_BaBvm5_m4_-nVg5t9qX1-W0h44PoVZBOOHTqmpV6C5ahc0NvvPQMSQ4Uyo2ZjIfZFMF-8s6/s400/skirt6.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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It was so hard to get pictures with the pockets showing. So hard. I mean this child just WILL NOT take direction. Can you believe it? It's like she has her own agenda or something. Play, play play, all day long. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpncvZ40gqwdSi-ll4nOwRoacYeAU9N-UO-bZrxjwo2hHu9tZlytd4uqz-tiuhfLArBHw3WTG46ja1IrzRysWA1mABmW61cmdh6q-M7Gvp9RBRkjxDEgAXYl1Hz5MuCLrwqWCKF3d1uniW/s1600/skirt7.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpncvZ40gqwdSi-ll4nOwRoacYeAU9N-UO-bZrxjwo2hHu9tZlytd4uqz-tiuhfLArBHw3WTG46ja1IrzRysWA1mABmW61cmdh6q-M7Gvp9RBRkjxDEgAXYl1Hz5MuCLrwqWCKF3d1uniW/s400/skirt7.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl58w6vN4FxLbeO-3jReWKFUm7HwUv9wmkpxrdNYwohtfiNZsbic1Ay-TZH9jxBNdw-JOpT6FdK3gnGCC-wSJC2MmBGlDkrA0Dn5GKjBAAngDx6iweadYusU0zmFjLVKDZfOs3BTyiiZBS/s1600/skirt8.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl58w6vN4FxLbeO-3jReWKFUm7HwUv9wmkpxrdNYwohtfiNZsbic1Ay-TZH9jxBNdw-JOpT6FdK3gnGCC-wSJC2MmBGlDkrA0Dn5GKjBAAngDx6iweadYusU0zmFjLVKDZfOs3BTyiiZBS/s400/skirt8.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUzfH2wesQjExvw3Rns_PpbH7QSxgHK_nU8THNE1cYzMPAC3TA2CWm5tfL7N4hYKtTs4gBTSOJakQLLUjKaKxAwsUeX39BAnCpdsrlggnkoWfNf_tJGGQJDj0RLFN4uvWAI5sZIQiRZSvu/s1600/skirt10.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUzfH2wesQjExvw3Rns_PpbH7QSxgHK_nU8THNE1cYzMPAC3TA2CWm5tfL7N4hYKtTs4gBTSOJakQLLUjKaKxAwsUeX39BAnCpdsrlggnkoWfNf_tJGGQJDj0RLFN4uvWAI5sZIQiRZSvu/s400/skirt10.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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Girl's looking a little wild in these pics. I think because she needs her bangs trimmed. I've done that once already, and she's not even a year old yet. Do you know what I used? Dog hair trimmers from Petsmart. Bought them just for her. They're perfect for the job. What does that have to do with skirts? Nothing. </div>
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So be on the lookout for the tutorial! I'm kinda excited about it, because I really am in love with the look of these skirts, and so wish to see them populate the Earth.</div>
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Best Wishes,</div>
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Teresa</div>
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-321462936294026727.post-88892848613776536902012-05-31T11:44:00.000-04:002012-05-31T11:44:46.268-04:00baby pajamas: take 2<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqLP_BkHnoxqWv4sqentgE7qVQPcUU04WaeVdoQ93vzh_pP_trgsUAHlrQf7HtI2lsNHIf23canEPvHSyaN8JjQJbWGVg1mym31L68dHN23tyMPHG-Vty3aXWXpe1Ts7CDuG4PMUZyDlX6/s1600/jammies2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="317" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqLP_BkHnoxqWv4sqentgE7qVQPcUU04WaeVdoQ93vzh_pP_trgsUAHlrQf7HtI2lsNHIf23canEPvHSyaN8JjQJbWGVg1mym31L68dHN23tyMPHG-Vty3aXWXpe1Ts7CDuG4PMUZyDlX6/s320/jammies2.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9eQ5qdbkBQ_nhLIokCuzeCpH66r-LKfZFzDQ8noH3nhyphenhyphen_FUOM0NMB2g3pxH6r7UXaNXfGgSzI3-28JWJDfO5513cDtYGKxJmPLOTWNnToy-qaWzleEWrpmyMrCBR0Ty7x4gMMiemLA0j9/s1600/jammies3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9eQ5qdbkBQ_nhLIokCuzeCpH66r-LKfZFzDQ8noH3nhyphenhyphen_FUOM0NMB2g3pxH6r7UXaNXfGgSzI3-28JWJDfO5513cDtYGKxJmPLOTWNnToy-qaWzleEWrpmyMrCBR0Ty7x4gMMiemLA0j9/s400/jammies3.JPG" width="330" /></a></div>
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So this is my second rendition of the "discarded top becomes baby jammies" thing I've been doing lately. As I mentioned <a href="http://tocarryinthehand.blogspot.com/2012/05/lila-pjs-take-1.html" target="_blank">in the last post,</a> this is my way of learning to sew with knits. And I'm definitely learning as I go. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJat-HOn2bJ1feUcMCdLjFm162XT8lOHAExpxsHG60-cCLwnbDKecOV9TrJ9NGjtTNel3xmDYDzFNkfwrKh1Z5D6rBzcI-wvSF9Ez2w0pVZDQWdmiGuEwWm-6niFpZKnXxNyoGlC89b5XN/s1600/jammies1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJat-HOn2bJ1feUcMCdLjFm162XT8lOHAExpxsHG60-cCLwnbDKecOV9TrJ9NGjtTNel3xmDYDzFNkfwrKh1Z5D6rBzcI-wvSF9Ez2w0pVZDQWdmiGuEwWm-6niFpZKnXxNyoGlC89b5XN/s400/jammies1.JPG" width="343" /></a></div>
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For instance: I got lucky with this pair of tops - they were both from Old Navy, and matched quite well. Except that the striped shirt is a good deal thinner than the solid gray one. I thought this wouldn't be an issue, but it became one. Looking at the first pictures again, you'll notice the cuffs at the bottom of the pants. (Apologies for the dirt all over them - it's a long story. I have a kid. That's the short story). Those cuffs are made from the same material as the pajama top, you know, to be cute and matchy. Well, they're so heavy they weigh down the rest of the pants, and end up sliding under Lila's feet when she walks and crawls. Also, I should have made them smaller than I did, so they would fit snugly around her leg instead of drooping there. It would have looked better too. </div>
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I considered removing the cuffs altogether and doing another lettuce hem, but decided to wait and see if she grows into them instead. Because, and this just proves how overly critical we are of our own sewing, I put the original store-bought pants on her, and guess what? Same thing. Not quite as bad with the drooping, but still, the pants are long on her and slide under her feet, something that never bothered me until I made her a pair myself. So they'll be a little long for a while. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYd1wtH4-wKMUdWGwqyRU13Dc6LbOVWQTlsRpR1NuVKhlHIehdcgYNCN0W5glXyzsHRDlp8Y0mpjEoE9WFyv7btQGriXxRyKflQWr6EiOMiPQe5xHVTcYPb4UHVr38EZJ0uEjYdx4Qd58V/s1600/jammies4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYd1wtH4-wKMUdWGwqyRU13Dc6LbOVWQTlsRpR1NuVKhlHIehdcgYNCN0W5glXyzsHRDlp8Y0mpjEoE9WFyv7btQGriXxRyKflQWr6EiOMiPQe5xHVTcYPb4UHVr38EZJ0uEjYdx4Qd58V/s400/jammies4.JPG" width="352" /></a></div>
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Allow me to dissect the shirt next. I once again used <a href="http://www.made-by-rae.com/2012/02/flashback-skinny-tee-sewing-pattern-is-here/" target="_blank">Rae's Flashback Skinny Tee pattern</a>, with great results. I spoke about this in the last post, gushing about how much I like the pattern. However, I had a sort of problem with the neck. I initially was going to finish the neck with ribbing to match the bottoms, but it just didn't work for me. When I measured around the neck and subtracted an inch, as the pattern says, I came up with a crazy big number. I remembered reading <a href="http://probablyactually.wordpress.com/2012/05/09/a-flashback-skinny-tee-in-the-wrong-size-like-not-even-close/" target="_blank">Gail's skinny tee post</a> over on <a href="http://probablyactually.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">probably actually</a> that mentioned a similar issue, so I headed over there to reread it. Gail's recommendation? Follow the suggested length included in the pattern, rather than using your own measurement. Which I did. When I held up the finished neck ribbing (before sewing it on the shirt, smart me!) it looked suspiciously small. Tiny even. I tracked down baby and tried to squish it over her great bobble head to no avail. Lila was not amused.</div>
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Here's the thing. Knits are stretchy. Some just aren't as stretchy as you need them to be to finish the neck. Now I don't actually know anything at all about knit fabrics - what's a jersey, anyway? This is why I'm learning with old shirts, and why I picked out fabrics that had matchy colors without thinking about whether their weight and stretch would pair well together. But now I know! Knits are like cheese and wine people! Cheese and wine. Except your cheese probably isn't stretchy. Or maybe it is. Um, I don't actually know anything about pairing wines either. Shoot.</div>
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My point is, even with the neck issues, I still love this pattern and happily recommend it. Here's what I did - I hemmed the neck to match the bottom of the shirt. Just flipped it under, pressed, and sewed in place. It made for a very nice, roomy, breathable neck that's easy to pull over Lila's enormous noggin. Oh I do love how the Flashback tee can be personalized in so many ways. As another example, I cut the seam allowance on the sides of the shirt in half, giving the finished garment more width and room. I'm wishing I'd given it a little extra length to match the extra long legs on the pajama bottoms so she could grow into both equally. Next time. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKF6o-0PGWNAS6KDrClCQYa_2Dpjf8ZMmx8J1OQnMHDvGIm7dagR9RAzeepAu6vjzI-xMtYHc2roVhE_RteGzaiD8MkdhCNqMRKV6g2P38cyjGFA7u3XSjUhS7Po0gn44_CQLCMrVZoH9M/s1600/jammies5.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKF6o-0PGWNAS6KDrClCQYa_2Dpjf8ZMmx8J1OQnMHDvGIm7dagR9RAzeepAu6vjzI-xMtYHc2roVhE_RteGzaiD8MkdhCNqMRKV6g2P38cyjGFA7u3XSjUhS7Po0gn44_CQLCMrVZoH9M/s400/jammies5.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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See the cuffs sliding under her feet? </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHOgMCjAJ9irYlONP7tUMaBwTehTmaHLwuWF5Zj6mHX4dygSwBMzBNZhOSBSIIwf6y9slukhiS2_TPFpLeAJjtrVOmHOtYVf62o5LvTXcZ9D9GQWKyRSnXlfetlIieRoNk9-jwFeiu1uqP/s1600/jammies6.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHOgMCjAJ9irYlONP7tUMaBwTehTmaHLwuWF5Zj6mHX4dygSwBMzBNZhOSBSIIwf6y9slukhiS2_TPFpLeAJjtrVOmHOtYVf62o5LvTXcZ9D9GQWKyRSnXlfetlIieRoNk9-jwFeiu1uqP/s400/jammies6.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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And you can see how perturbed she is by that, right? </div>
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I do believe I shall be making more jammies in the future, so be on the lookout. First though, I have a long overdue baby skirt tutorial to put up, and Lila's first birthday is coming, so you can expect good things related to that. </div>
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Best Wishes!</div>
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Teresa</div>
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-321462936294026727.post-6585994820737236522012-05-30T13:21:00.000-04:002012-05-30T14:32:24.900-04:00baby pajamas: take 1<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAEEo0-VhcdUNqK9Xd5_UqpQRZ4oGtTv2K8MINpQCRpMKh4MKtxtt7JAMwxae1oxdUZDLDyokejQ96QNAu7mPQgVAb501Np-o85jAzh3Ou8mc-7emm43HNM1z-tlM7j1dOA4W6r6nQjiSh/s1600/pj16.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAEEo0-VhcdUNqK9Xd5_UqpQRZ4oGtTv2K8MINpQCRpMKh4MKtxtt7JAMwxae1oxdUZDLDyokejQ96QNAu7mPQgVAb501Np-o85jAzh3Ou8mc-7emm43HNM1z-tlM7j1dOA4W6r6nQjiSh/s320/pj16.JPG" width="284" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3q166saDejyE3m0ZH7h31NR2WNf5tIY5Q6HHTmrYRDi1wRQsRxjGngI_BEqu8w7j8tVG7AnfMfVFxQuVauGVLfUB464IcERLN4ji9sEO0EW9jsj07rfmqqwbzAR-KorYrShwuO2ZyRrrw/s1600/pj14.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3q166saDejyE3m0ZH7h31NR2WNf5tIY5Q6HHTmrYRDi1wRQsRxjGngI_BEqu8w7j8tVG7AnfMfVFxQuVauGVLfUB464IcERLN4ji9sEO0EW9jsj07rfmqqwbzAR-KorYrShwuO2ZyRrrw/s320/pj14.JPG" width="293" /></a></div>
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Sometimes I sew just for fun. Sometimes I sew because I see something that inspires me, and I have no choice but to watch it come to life in my craft room. And then sometimes I sew because Lila is running out of pajamas that fit her, especially short sleeved roomy ones for the six months of heat that are coming up, and somehow the easily procured big-box store brands aren't going to be good enough. Mm hmm. As an added bonus excuse, I've been wanting to learn to sew with knits, and starting with baby pajamas seems like a low-stakes way to jump in. </div>
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So, here's my first take. There are more on the way. I'm pretty happy with the results. (Uhm, that weird discoloration all over the pants? That's what happens when you let your kid play in the wet grass <i>before</i> starting your photo shoot. They're not that way all the time. They look nice from the time I pull them from the dryer until 3 milliseconds after putting them on Lila.) However, I think they could have been a little more matchy. Maybe it's good that they're not though. I could always use them as actual clothing pieces in a pinch, right? </div>
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Because I'm just starting to learn knits, and because I'm too lazy to try and source good-looking knit fabric, which I hear is no easy thing to do, I used discarded tops I no longer wear. Here are pics of what I started with: </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhn7zIa2Kw6W7bz2i2CqbvjO9DXEw9JaOeKS6kk8EtoxtZkthgVmsD3OjdohyphenhyphenCn0b5aaKkSqpMa7RoEj8ZSKRB8jltOJ78Kwy0Zs5wCV6PffJ6Jlq2suShrvc4ygbkzSwFiu_shy5xXEU4T/s1600/pj9.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhn7zIa2Kw6W7bz2i2CqbvjO9DXEw9JaOeKS6kk8EtoxtZkthgVmsD3OjdohyphenhyphenCn0b5aaKkSqpMa7RoEj8ZSKRB8jltOJ78Kwy0Zs5wCV6PffJ6Jlq2suShrvc4ygbkzSwFiu_shy5xXEU4T/s200/pj9.JPG" width="169" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZZ6ZL9JLuCBRHA09EzqrhlJ0B5w0A0xzEx0-6-6EVnqBPVuJI96e2U4ZZCfDxlzTBJH9bA0M_PmkO_3yBurlHgcwrRQmw110i9tfqjpoh6utwdRccjrsyUmQDcJDKDKZ6icofOSVU9Vh4/s1600/pj8.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZZ6ZL9JLuCBRHA09EzqrhlJ0B5w0A0xzEx0-6-6EVnqBPVuJI96e2U4ZZCfDxlzTBJH9bA0M_PmkO_3yBurlHgcwrRQmw110i9tfqjpoh6utwdRccjrsyUmQDcJDKDKZ6icofOSVU9Vh4/s200/pj8.JPG" width="177" /></a></div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhn7zIa2Kw6W7bz2i2CqbvjO9DXEw9JaOeKS6kk8EtoxtZkthgVmsD3OjdohyphenhyphenCn0b5aaKkSqpMa7RoEj8ZSKRB8jltOJ78Kwy0Zs5wCV6PffJ6Jlq2suShrvc4ygbkzSwFiu_shy5xXEU4T/s1600/pj9.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhn7zIa2Kw6W7bz2i2CqbvjO9DXEw9JaOeKS6kk8EtoxtZkthgVmsD3OjdohyphenhyphenCn0b5aaKkSqpMa7RoEj8ZSKRB8jltOJ78Kwy0Zs5wCV6PffJ6Jlq2suShrvc4ygbkzSwFiu_shy5xXEU4T/s1600/pj9.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a><br />
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So I was initially going to do different pairings as you can see, but I realized at the last minute that I'd lost my maternity weight and still fit into the cute pink top which I loved before it got WAY too tight on me. So it was a happy reunion, and Lila was outta luck. Would have been cute with the orange, but instead the orange and white are now mated for life. Anyway, the white top was a real challenge to work with because of the (if you look really close you can see it) little vent lines running up the sides, which I had to work around. But I think the buttons turned out cute, and hey, I didn't have to sew them! <br />
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Okay, here they are on my model baby:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiythWXpXUvu5yPfPkRvBlK7Lsz247dmVr3AVXpyunLz4my2CPsgEpRuhDu1vtntBz0qPyp6WLGiQR8aUOkMTA3_qr3nJ6Xywb-Z1ILhlLN0sYtb4wy2X6R9EWMUBFjws3-M4E21j3gN68o/s1600/pj2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiythWXpXUvu5yPfPkRvBlK7Lsz247dmVr3AVXpyunLz4my2CPsgEpRuhDu1vtntBz0qPyp6WLGiQR8aUOkMTA3_qr3nJ6Xywb-Z1ILhlLN0sYtb4wy2X6R9EWMUBFjws3-M4E21j3gN68o/s400/pj2.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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My, what a life-like baby mannequin I have! She stands, she sits, she even goes poo! Yes folks, she was a limited edition - only one ever made. Can you believe my luck to have gotten her?? :)</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiimheuh9S0L-DTLRY4G-u-Ulwb-igImCW5cj1WNcCw5wJshBdU_0TVxvcK03srynWcqym2SqqDSziiUWEAExmcNt3WmZym-ObLyqZMhwQZFD-ONr70DwMQUyCvIenjOS2gB3IZg07T3H8G/s1600/pj1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiimheuh9S0L-DTLRY4G-u-Ulwb-igImCW5cj1WNcCw5wJshBdU_0TVxvcK03srynWcqym2SqqDSziiUWEAExmcNt3WmZym-ObLyqZMhwQZFD-ONr70DwMQUyCvIenjOS2gB3IZg07T3H8G/s400/pj1.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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Here's a closeup of the lettuce hem on the 3/4 length capris, so nice for Lila now that the hotter weather has arrived:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqyleT_KHSc6X_lfkxnHpwmSOYlIfsn6Q_Co2RYXo44WRlIbp7SaU0DRfDPs1xZD2xgLkPm3STikRMPTZcAD4yGEY-FnQXpZgFFYSU2gOlii2F8JBC4sk_5cAYVEEeIoxEDwm5Lu9h3SKY/s1600/pj4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqyleT_KHSc6X_lfkxnHpwmSOYlIfsn6Q_Co2RYXo44WRlIbp7SaU0DRfDPs1xZD2xgLkPm3STikRMPTZcAD4yGEY-FnQXpZgFFYSU2gOlii2F8JBC4sk_5cAYVEEeIoxEDwm5Lu9h3SKY/s400/pj4.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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If you'd like to learn how to do a lettuce hem with your knits, there's a <a href="http://oliverands.com/blog/2010/10/lettuce-hem-by-sewing-machine.html" target="_blank">wonderful simple tutorial</a> over at the Oliver and S blog you should check out. It's how I learned, and it's soo easy to do. I love the look, and it's great for pajamas. </div>
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For the pajama pants, I felt confident enough to make my own pattern from a pair of pajama bottoms Lila already had that fit her well. By fit her well I mean that they are still large enough that she'll be able to wear them right through the hot weather and into fall before she outgrows them. Here's the sketch I did using those pants:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_dEk_QcA2Y1Slf5Z7BlbWRG8WUnWwJ3Xxf-Hm3NX6WBoeXKfr6Y4hn_9jQbMOAPiKpflzdv2Bk_NxtK0py9MO6d5lhHtwjBdN4oqBWJGprjzbg36B3drHFH3ha7bxBlqevnbUpRuc6ZSF/s1600/pj6.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_dEk_QcA2Y1Slf5Z7BlbWRG8WUnWwJ3Xxf-Hm3NX6WBoeXKfr6Y4hn_9jQbMOAPiKpflzdv2Bk_NxtK0py9MO6d5lhHtwjBdN4oqBWJGprjzbg36B3drHFH3ha7bxBlqevnbUpRuc6ZSF/s320/pj6.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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Notice I turned them inside out to get the most accurate copy. You could easily do this with any simple pattern. There were no side seams on these pants, and the front and back were mirror images except for the higher rise in back to make room for baby butts. That made this super easy, since I could cut two of the pattern on the fold (the fold being the right side of the pattern in the pic above), and then just cut the front lower for a proper fit. So I drew out the general shape on tracing paper. Then I added extra length for the elastic casing and cut the bottoms slightly shorter to make them capris. I cut out my fabric. Finally, I cut the front at an angle to give the pants their shape and rise. If you're wondering what I'm talking about here, hold up any pair of pants by the top of the sides, and notice the front is lower than the back. This is to make room for your butt. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkIiNRj15sYDltMWMfYz7pxgKe3Gz1LnhVlMnhW0KU4z2ystst2HHDMFvTQqoljGmKY9BUCxLNhW6ODL_a7OBn6rSZX-Mr79ibUP_MG457znLRtDInxCfwZMeYY0pgkgkbCEefo4tj85B3/s1600/pj3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkIiNRj15sYDltMWMfYz7pxgKe3Gz1LnhVlMnhW0KU4z2ystst2HHDMFvTQqoljGmKY9BUCxLNhW6ODL_a7OBn6rSZX-Mr79ibUP_MG457znLRtDInxCfwZMeYY0pgkgkbCEefo4tj85B3/s400/pj3.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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However, I was not willing to try and manufacture a pattern for the top. No sir. Not that crazy. Since the world expert in sewing with knits is, in my ravaged mind anyway, Rae, I went straight there. Actually it's Rae's Kniterview Series that finally goaded me into trying out knits, so we have her to blame for all of this. </div>
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Anyway, I happily purchased her <a href="http://www.made-by-rae.com/2012/02/flashback-skinny-tee-sewing-pattern-is-here/" target="_blank">$10 Flashback Skinny Tee</a>, and I'm just tickled that I did. Not only did I get a nice basic t-shirt pattern, but she also includes several different finishes for the neck and arm cuffs. Since it's a long-sleeve pattern, you can cut the length of the arm anywhere you like, for any weather. I was able to use the pattern easily to transform an adult woman's shirt with holes all down the sides and buttons down the front into a baby pajama top. I mean seriously, that's a VERSATILE pattern right there. Will be using it lots in the future. Like I've already sewn another top with that pattern, which you shall see shortly. Plus she includes lots of "hints" for success when sewing with knits during each step, so you can't go wrong. She says the pattern is for someone who already has a little experience with knits, but I did just fine with basically no experience other than having sewn one pair of little knit pants. But, I've read a lot of her tips elsewhere on sewing with knits. However, I don't have any fancy equipment to work with - no serger, not even a walking foot. And the top still turned out well, so I'd say it would work for any person who possesses other sewing experience and some preliminary information about sewing with knits.</div>
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Okay, here's some cuteness for you:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSrWyzp8jcZoMODX-BKWrzupxX5_tgBDtH8I8eVy_-2cvGSIoQ2UtDM6OpUOmM-CcwAtheXAQX6usaO7ehLeUit57mlZQzEMEXbf7V7PSAEwCxHkMuNKvWcK-FmWiLp7-sNcK5UkdUf_aC/s1600/pj5.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSrWyzp8jcZoMODX-BKWrzupxX5_tgBDtH8I8eVy_-2cvGSIoQ2UtDM6OpUOmM-CcwAtheXAQX6usaO7ehLeUit57mlZQzEMEXbf7V7PSAEwCxHkMuNKvWcK-FmWiLp7-sNcK5UkdUf_aC/s320/pj5.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Ridiculous yet adorable, no? I'm sort of <a href="http://probablyactually.wordpress.com/2012/02/23/label-making-101/" target="_blank">in love with these labels</a> a lady named Gail has been known to make. I've stolen her idea. I'm sure she wouldn't mind if you did too. </div>
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Best Wishes,</div>
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Teresa</div>
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<br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-321462936294026727.post-34851419770705038862012-05-18T13:03:00.000-04:002012-05-31T13:28:16.023-04:00Baby Bows Baby Doll: Pattern Review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1C1QLonqur_uZIH2-sxgbnxB3laGK5blVvA46tLB-3WwDtJslMj2n5LXsAoVJlX5E0MzeXNY3ElBWc0D9WSgg2Ur-HVZr6iTUshoD4mlDYo1CDwUxD145fyYCNA2J_792rAQEKfaawhDy/s1600/pic3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1C1QLonqur_uZIH2-sxgbnxB3laGK5blVvA46tLB-3WwDtJslMj2n5LXsAoVJlX5E0MzeXNY3ElBWc0D9WSgg2Ur-HVZr6iTUshoD4mlDYo1CDwUxD145fyYCNA2J_792rAQEKfaawhDy/s400/pic3.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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You know what's great about this doll? When your baby almost instantly outgrows those infant clothes and hats and shoes you so tediously and lovingly made for her, you'll have an excuse to put them on display. You can dress up a baby doll that won't puke or pee on those lovely garments. And you won't look like a weirdo keeping infant clothes out long after baby's outgrown them, since they'll be on her doll. Don't you love that? </div>
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Oh, and you get a very cute doll too! Or like five, if you can't stop making them like me. (I gave the rest away to nieces and nephews). Okay, so <a href="http://judisdolls.com/babybows/babybows.html" target="_blank">here's the link to the page</a> with the FREE pattern and instructions on how to make the "Baby Bows" doll. Free is good! The website, Judi's dolls, is geared toward serious doll makers more than general crafty types, but has a few free and simple patterns that anyone could make. And I believe this pattern comes in a teddy bear version too, which looked cute but I've never tried making. I originally stumbled upon this doll on Skip to My Lou, though it's almost impossible to find it there anymore, even using the search bar (which is also hard to find...). However, Cindy has a cute little <a href="http://www.skiptomylou.org/2008/09/19/how-to-make-a-diaper-for-a-childs-doll/" target="_blank">cloth diaper pattern</a> that works perfectly with this doll, and I've made several of them.</div>
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When I made my collection of dolls (it was a couple years ago, before I had Lila), I made several changes to the pattern. The original has ears, and I made the first doll that way but then decided it was more work than it was worth, so I left them out when making the others. I also used a light tan soft flannel for the body, since that's what I had a lot of on hand at the time, though the instructions called for using craft velour or another knitted fabric with stretch. I think the dolls turned out fine with the flannel - still nice and soft and squishy - but the craft velour might hold up better over the long run, since it has more give. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWjMml32hMqN9DlAC-igK2yxSUlIQRIN38VtTkGWKbnK3P5MXlpD_xWHRN5B4pgEGVJQwpYtySGYGmz4SBlM9tkT-odkHnLjm3kNZIXSNkZNF8IT1kMbUzfExpFSgq7v1feHXrknbVzGH-/s1600/pic6.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWjMml32hMqN9DlAC-igK2yxSUlIQRIN38VtTkGWKbnK3P5MXlpD_xWHRN5B4pgEGVJQwpYtySGYGmz4SBlM9tkT-odkHnLjm3kNZIXSNkZNF8IT1kMbUzfExpFSgq7v1feHXrknbVzGH-/s400/pic6.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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Another change I made was to sew the arm and leg seams, rather than tie them up with a string into bows. I guess this invalidates the point and the name of the pattern, but I liked the look better, as well as the way they functioned. Also no bows to get lost, or ingested. You can see from above that the pattern is basically two body shapes sewn together around the outside seams, so it's pretty simple and fast to make. I also used BIC mark-it markers with ultra-fine tips to draw the facial features and eyes, as opposed to using gel ink and felt circles as the pattern instructed. I just free-handed them on after completing the doll, which was a little nerve-wracking, but they all turned out fine. <br />
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Here's my favorite thing about this pattern:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTUF0HE69nj2MwX-rkJ2_v0RRXpeZcH4HpkWVrJxXt0wDhwuDt_MjlcubxBy3XqvKGRj1WQ1CD3Wsr2K6TzG8TcpKUgK20bJNL2WcLo1EjN5dlgKgUaYYeYIZAX3OdvqNS7ybENIyLj0xP/s1600/pic4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTUF0HE69nj2MwX-rkJ2_v0RRXpeZcH4HpkWVrJxXt0wDhwuDt_MjlcubxBy3XqvKGRj1WQ1CD3Wsr2K6TzG8TcpKUgK20bJNL2WcLo1EjN5dlgKgUaYYeYIZAX3OdvqNS7ybENIyLj0xP/s400/pic4.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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It's reversible! How awesome is that? The front side is the "awake" side, and the back side is the "asleep" side. All you have to do is take off the hat, flip the hair to the other side, and put the hat back on to secure. If you wanted to get creative, I suppose you could do a happy/sad doll, or a boy/girl doll, or whatever. I really love patterns that you can easily customize, don't you? I've made these dolls with red hair, as boy dolls, with different colored eyes, etc.</div>
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Here she is in all her glory:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgC5DOQlMp3ZJK4fyDH2s912kKNXkbzhETiVBG57GUCVMEmSizvcl_rZRaLRd6rA60xrNN_JxwmgauA8PrxwFOJAj1dr2qidEt-LQLQLK5EeM1-YWb1L7TZOQinuuPKg9Rg7_CmjWF4-uO2/s1600/pic2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgC5DOQlMp3ZJK4fyDH2s912kKNXkbzhETiVBG57GUCVMEmSizvcl_rZRaLRd6rA60xrNN_JxwmgauA8PrxwFOJAj1dr2qidEt-LQLQLK5EeM1-YWb1L7TZOQinuuPKg9Rg7_CmjWF4-uO2/s400/pic2.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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And she's sporting the infant sun hat I made for Lila (from the <a href="http://www.purlbee.com/forth-of-july-baby-sun-hat/#" target="_blank">Purl Bee</a> - more on that in a future post), as well as Rae's <a href="http://www.made-by-rae.com/2008/04/free-itty-bitty-baby-dress-pattern/" target="_blank">Itty Bitty Baby Dress</a>, also made initially for Lila. (Again, you'll see more on that in a future post. By the way, I met Rae in person a few months ago, and she's SO friendly and funny. Just thought you'd like to know :) I've also put various pairs of Lila's baby shoes on her, though she's barefoot in these pictures. And I've made little diapers for these dolls too, though they were all sent to nieces and nephews. I do believe you could use preemie disposables and they would probably fit. </div>
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Here are pictures of the original from the pattern: </div>
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<a href="http://media-cache2.pinterest.com/upload/103160647684566645_sHVZ1dNv_c.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://media-cache2.pinterest.com/upload/103160647684566645_sHVZ1dNv_c.jpg" width="212" /></a><a href="http://judisdolls.com/babybowstn.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://judisdolls.com/babybowstn.jpg" width="218" /></a></div>
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So you can see how different you could make your own doll with just a few changes. I obviously really like this pattern, or I wouldn't have made so many of them. But I have to admit that Lila's a bit young, or maybe just too much of a tomboy, to care about dolls. Her main goal when handed it is to find out how best to break it down into as many small pieces as possible - the hat, clothes, and shoes come off, and she ends up getting swung around by her hair. (The doll, not Lila. What were you thinking?). I blame this on her father, who is an engineering type that took stuff apart as a child. Bad genes, I tell you. (I jest. We try not to be overly princessey around here). </div>
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Perhaps in another year or so she'll be more interested in dolls. However, the nieces and nephews that I've sent this doll to were older, and they played with them in a much kinder fashion. They had a little bin they kept them in, all nice and tidy, along with their clothing and diaper changes and other accessories. How sweet is that? Nothing makes an Auntie prouder than to see her handmade toys being loved and cared for. </div>
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So go ahead and make one! Even if it's for a future child that doesn't exist yet. :)</div>
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Best Wishes,</div>
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Teresa</div>
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</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-321462936294026727.post-21437762295928772492012-05-10T23:02:00.000-04:002012-05-10T23:17:22.326-04:00Mother's Day<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKmLCgZpZB5rxehyphenhyphenIJyp_cjq-qzHz-dNaC8NYNilkQS9QdkYJ_vK5MYkzN3jY_xtpkClYsRPCjZaag5g2eKnrEo4SOu0LsL96ZDd65jmb1kVQo4UZeXw4HjRySPpf4IPwYbzfrb1RWlLlr/s1600/mother1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKmLCgZpZB5rxehyphenhyphenIJyp_cjq-qzHz-dNaC8NYNilkQS9QdkYJ_vK5MYkzN3jY_xtpkClYsRPCjZaag5g2eKnrEo4SOu0LsL96ZDd65jmb1kVQo4UZeXw4HjRySPpf4IPwYbzfrb1RWlLlr/s400/mother1.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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So in case you didn't know, because you live under a rock or something, Mother's Day is this Sunday! Are you excited? I know I am, because it's my first as a mom! Well, actually since I was <i>quite</i> pregnant at this time last year, this is really my second, but you know. </div>
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Anyway, enough about me. Let's talk about <i>my</i> mom! Specifically, how awesome she is. She's the kind of mom that, when you're feeling down, sends you bars of dark chocolate and a box of chamomile lavender tea. Yeah, she's the best. She's always calling me just to chat, and no matter what's going on in my life, she's ready to listen. And sometimes I think about how she raised all four of us kids and somehow managed to not kill us all. Actually she didn't kill any of us, not even one. :) </div>
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So I wanted to do something nice for her on Mother's Day. She totally deserves it. I wasn't sure I could pull off everything I wanted to do and mail it in time, but I did! So let's go over my Momma's gifts this year. (No worries, she doesn't have internet so she won't see this and spoil the surprise. I know! No internet! I could get away with anything on here with no parental supervision....)</div>
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Because I have Lila now, I wanted it to involve her in a cute sort of way. So I decided to pretend that everything was from her to her grandma. That way the three separate elements sort of make sense together. Like the three of us. So, first, the framed picture of Lila. That was obvious and easy, and didn't require any work on my part other than to pick out the frame I thought my mom would like best. However, I want to tell a story about the photo itself, if you'll indulge me. </div>
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It goes like this: my <a href="http://www.ohhowsweet.com/" target="_blank">very good friend Melissa</a> entered me into a contest at the beginning of the year, which I won. (Yay! I've never been entered into a contest by a friend like that before, much less won!) What I received was a free photo session with <a href="http://www.digitalmemoriesdk.com/" target="_blank">Debbie Koehler</a> here in the metro Atlanta area, as well as a ton of free prints. Allow me to brag about Debbie. She is Wonderful. I'm serious. She's not only friendly and personable, but she's awesome at what she does. Lila's photos turned out fantastic. I'm not even being paid to say that! I was just so pleased with the session, the storyboard Debbie created for me, and the quality of the prints. You can <a href="http://www.digitalmemoriesdk.com/index2.php?v=v1" target="_blank">check out her work here</a>. So that is how I came to have the incredibly sweet picture of Lila in a tutu, which I knew would be perfect for my mom for Mother's Day. End of story. (But not end of blog post - read on...)</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtYO69ACFvWf6zs3Li_DqaXyAsGLRcNu8tcu8FeGpWVNThBGX9K6XTR4kqS5UNABcUnB3SK5aVYh9K-A3wY93GI4wZk1sydQ4_Bjr-AspOknZw2wXmFbstKrsOrHPIuBjFS3GM1w2FSh5z/s1600/mother2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtYO69ACFvWf6zs3Li_DqaXyAsGLRcNu8tcu8FeGpWVNThBGX9K6XTR4kqS5UNABcUnB3SK5aVYh9K-A3wY93GI4wZk1sydQ4_Bjr-AspOknZw2wXmFbstKrsOrHPIuBjFS3GM1w2FSh5z/s400/mother2.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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So that was the easy part of Mom's gift. Next I needed to work on a card. I had this idea to make an accordion card and include several little wallets from the photo session. I did just that. For the front of the card, I used an alphabet stamp set and simple black ink on lavender card stock. Lila's name means purple in German, so it was a play on that, and of course, it's signed from Lila to her grandma. I thought about stamping out "Love Teresa and Lila", but I figured my mom is savvy enough to know I had a hand in all this. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNx2OxO8kb2P7rM2HIikEwhtHn39kxOiYItr40Z5VpNIEte5ByOHeD57OfymTriGCEaTiNg74L67ZbFisDyQVEyWPZ4fXM62P57xvFjpnoANUUkMbIW9AyuJEZq372ODzetYPylRkLk0Ns/s1600/mother5.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNx2OxO8kb2P7rM2HIikEwhtHn39kxOiYItr40Z5VpNIEte5ByOHeD57OfymTriGCEaTiNg74L67ZbFisDyQVEyWPZ4fXM62P57xvFjpnoANUUkMbIW9AyuJEZq372ODzetYPylRkLk0Ns/s400/mother5.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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Here's the inside, featuring those wallets. I attached them using those clear sticky-backed photo corners you can get from the scrapbooking section at JoAnns. Since there's no adhesive actually touching the photos, if my mom wants to remove them for long-term storage in an album, she can. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLL8NAq6DdmOZUJcfGW_A0taZV_cYVPAl0ZNTyLH9tI4wldn8pEZ3LtSu9wqmrGmbgkpaP2zUrMAcIUt-zRthbgoBy3BBbBjr-yCrQoWaizT3VvMeO97js_ikWyyQ2_jGNFsDLO29UhrAp/s1600/mother3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLL8NAq6DdmOZUJcfGW_A0taZV_cYVPAl0ZNTyLH9tI4wldn8pEZ3LtSu9wqmrGmbgkpaP2zUrMAcIUt-zRthbgoBy3BBbBjr-yCrQoWaizT3VvMeO97js_ikWyyQ2_jGNFsDLO29UhrAp/s400/mother3.JPG" width="242" /></a></div>
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And this is the back. When I developed this project in my imagination, I knew I wanted it to have some sort of ribbon closure. Since Lila's learned to push shopping carts around stores as a means of walking (she can't walk by herself yet, only with some wheels) I was indulging her in JoAnns. And rather serendipitously Lila pushed the cart down the aisle which contained these little metal tags with adhesive backs. They were perfect! I just knotted the ribbons to keep them from slipping through the holes, and mounted it on a lavender square to match the front. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOjgDdZ-YPGV_ap6vYEQG_fY9CWCNx6iq2tFGOb_DWzSsaMtc8nxnmE_OgdvZRLRtnT2fqMwrXce2-lEVaG-LPCtTv7LTQxUeb977Kxi0iNTqZItXZrIRQohDpzCt4AnJYwwTHC6dKeF0P/s1600/mother4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOjgDdZ-YPGV_ap6vYEQG_fY9CWCNx6iq2tFGOb_DWzSsaMtc8nxnmE_OgdvZRLRtnT2fqMwrXce2-lEVaG-LPCtTv7LTQxUeb977Kxi0iNTqZItXZrIRQohDpzCt4AnJYwwTHC6dKeF0P/s400/mother4.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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This is what the back looks like with the ribbon tied up.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqokQu9tmlVBHR5o4WoIvRezcML8eYKgQXjSyYFaUIy7Khu0QHgTJDF3nF7kmkYaahxWXVl6_FOAiVzFg5u8emr04kCU_0jBGOGxKG5JPs27Ihzz8UMnJAAId5Vng4kYnAIEdkgH6ldJ5c/s1600/mother6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqokQu9tmlVBHR5o4WoIvRezcML8eYKgQXjSyYFaUIy7Khu0QHgTJDF3nF7kmkYaahxWXVl6_FOAiVzFg5u8emr04kCU_0jBGOGxKG5JPs27Ihzz8UMnJAAId5Vng4kYnAIEdkgH6ldJ5c/s400/mother6.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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And finally, the butterfly painting! A couple months ago, I came across <a href="http://pinterest.com/pin/103160647684325587/" target="_blank">this pin</a> on Pinterest, and I knew I would be making one myself. This is everything I love - colorful, simple, beautiful, personalized, and handmade (or footmade, he he). What grandma wouldn't love to get this from their grandbaby? </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJHatsszifQzfdkc6Nm2eoT9sjRxWSP8oVcVkPe0fKycOJ3B7yj-LYr6mieXX9rU9zkdoh91T89HLSaFZF26YdHt9AfK-d-VyJJimIebISoHrP4AnUHSkE_mDGa9HOyBq3weFH90vDITgz/s1600/mother7.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJHatsszifQzfdkc6Nm2eoT9sjRxWSP8oVcVkPe0fKycOJ3B7yj-LYr6mieXX9rU9zkdoh91T89HLSaFZF26YdHt9AfK-d-VyJJimIebISoHrP4AnUHSkE_mDGa9HOyBq3weFH90vDITgz/s400/mother7.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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If you decide to make some of these footprints of your little ones (and you should!) then I have some advice for you. Four pieces of advice:</div>
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1) Buy extra canvases. See the top two prints in the above photo? Not so great. They will probably get painted over and reused for some other project. (The bottom one is for us to keep). </div>
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2) Be prepared. If your baby is too little to take instruction (and aren't they all) then you'll want to have everything ready and lined up just as they are waking up from their nap. Lila was still in her sleepy and relatively tame mode when I made these. I put her up in the highchair with snacks and sippy cup and toys, and she let me have my way with her feet for five minutes. (I swirled the paints around on a dish with a paintbrush and then pressed her foot onto the plate to get it on her foot easily.) Have the soap and water and paper towels lined up too.</div>
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3) Paper plates. The two prints above would have turned out more like the bottom one if I'd used a paper plate to get off the extra paint before using her as a stamp.</div>
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4) Roll with it. Use the outside edge of the foot as the starting point and roll the foot onto the canvas, being sure to press the toes down too. Just like when they take your fingerprints in jail. Calm down. I'm kidding, I've never been to jail. Just the Army. They take your prints in the Army, and they do that roll thing.</div>
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If you'll notice, in the bottom print I didn't paint in a butterfly body, just the antennae. I like that look best, and wish I'd done it with the others. But I see more of these in my future, in other color schemes. I originally had the paints lined up to do some prints in aqua and light green, but quickly realized that would be impossible. By the time I was finished with these and then cleaned up her feet, the golden window of opportunity was gone, and she was in Rocket mode. She's a handful, that girl, but I love her that way.</div>
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So what are you giving to your mom for Mother's Day? If you're a mom, what's the most memorable gift you've received? I'd love to hear about it! </div>
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Best Wishes,</div>
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Teresa</div>
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<br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-321462936294026727.post-56148881644336839212012-05-09T11:55:00.000-04:002012-05-09T11:55:54.230-04:00Free Pattern: Chunky Monkey Baby Bib<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqr3DICyVjPErih2aPhKrYLMkwZDXeCqLW36IlSN629QyaMagBJcFqJZT03RrZaf70SEBI5eF_lDcRJLIiKwuXVviXIrVG78zpkuneBk3o9mxHitiEyPciApaJ4jzmAhnGLVxFh2qNykZm/s1600/1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /><img border="0" height="340" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqr3DICyVjPErih2aPhKrYLMkwZDXeCqLW36IlSN629QyaMagBJcFqJZT03RrZaf70SEBI5eF_lDcRJLIiKwuXVviXIrVG78zpkuneBk3o9mxHitiEyPciApaJ4jzmAhnGLVxFh2qNykZm/s400/1.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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At long last! The free pattern and instructions for making your very own Chunky Monkey Baby Bibs have arrived! These cuties are fun to look at and quick to sew up, and would make a great handmade gift for a baby shower. What's different about the Chunky Monkey Baby Bib is the WIDE shoulder coverage to protect those cute baby outfits, and the STRONG Velcro closure so your little monster can't tear it off in the middle of a meal. (What - doesn't your baby do that? No? It's just my sweet Lila? Sigh.) All you have to do is click on <a href="https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B-o7xVuE9I0TaFVqckltdjlvNGs" target="_blank">this link to get your free pattern and instructions.</a> (The link will take you to a printable copy of the pattern in Google Docs, so no need for PDF software. Yay for that!) </div>
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In the pattern you'll find several variations for the bib - the Chunky Monkey size, as seen above and in <a href="http://tocarryinthehand.blogspot.com/2012/04/ta-da-it-is-chunky-monkey-baby-bib-you.html" target="_blank">this post</a>, and the Less Chunky size, for smaller babies just starting to eat solids. You'll also find instructions for sewing them with or without bias tape. Plus, as a special TV bonus, I've included the applique shapes I used so you can try them out too if you like! </div>
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A few notes: when printing, please set margins to zero, or as close to zero as you can get. Also make sure you aren't scaling the image size at all - it should be at 100% when you print. If it's smaller, so will be your bibs. If you need a refresher on how to sew with bias tape, or want to learn, <a href="http://tocarryinthehand.blogspot.com/2012/04/bias-tape-tutorial.html" target="_blank">go here</a>. </div>
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If you'd like to sew the hot air balloon applique, you can use the circle shape I've included for the balloon. Then use a zigzag stitch to create the basket shape underneath, and connect the basket to the balloon with a straight stitch, as you see below:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoS2t5fcN3D3stLuj_YmZ_7q9OG5945x8T4is0IsNrFMk5XzZWev5TIUnMLYORzi9ff6IwaeC1cjDwkMoZHq2pH8qO_B25fWqWCQXKOOHHHUFNR4ugqxrEpPJocNbEeX3TIgwN5FBd1iRo/s1600/6.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoS2t5fcN3D3stLuj_YmZ_7q9OG5945x8T4is0IsNrFMk5XzZWev5TIUnMLYORzi9ff6IwaeC1cjDwkMoZHq2pH8qO_B25fWqWCQXKOOHHHUFNR4ugqxrEpPJocNbEeX3TIgwN5FBd1iRo/s400/6.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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Try to do a better job than I did! See that wonky basket? Not well engineered. By the way, this was the first Chunky Monkey Bib I made, and I thought I'd just speed things along. I decided to sew the bias tape all in one step by placing it around the bib and sewing close to the edge, catching the back at the same time all in one step. It turned out okay, but I didn't like the look. So on the others I did it the "right" way. But if you were wanting to knock out five or ten bibs quickly, you could go ahead and cheat like that. They wouldn't probably be gift-worthy, but for your own little rugrat, why not? That's how they sew the store-bought ones. Just sayin'. </div>
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Okay, I'm totally excited for you to try out the pattern, so let me know when you do!! If you have any issues with your printer or other questions, email me at teresamarie1979 (at) gmail (dot) com, or ask in the comments. And when you finish your bib, leave a comment below and let me know how they turned out!</div>
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Best Wishes,</div>
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Teresa</div>
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<br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-321462936294026727.post-70026199387369310652012-05-03T16:35:00.000-04:002012-05-03T21:40:32.152-04:00cRazY ugly crochet ball<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC2jj3xqxe4xQOhdTCI0BzODjEz1Dr69DXPEHNtLQSv20KLve9FndpQWbtyydAJIhMwoMKWCSZSFe_4-pd4_AUeLSH3cQnhID4495-gGVDZ0fCBH2ShSEXDeFh7iLjcK2m4kDn1d4fOqfY/s1600/1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC2jj3xqxe4xQOhdTCI0BzODjEz1Dr69DXPEHNtLQSv20KLve9FndpQWbtyydAJIhMwoMKWCSZSFe_4-pd4_AUeLSH3cQnhID4495-gGVDZ0fCBH2ShSEXDeFh7iLjcK2m4kDn1d4fOqfY/s640/1.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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"Hmm," you're thinking. "What's up with the title? This doesn't seem so ugly". </div>
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And that's sweet of you. Yes, it's not so bad. In fact, I went ahead and made three of these balls from a pattern I found on <a href="http://www.marthastewart.com/" target="_blank">Martha's website</a>. You know, THE Martha, no need for a last name there, am I right? <i>(Sadly the internal link on her website leading to the pattern is broken. So no link for you! You can search "crochet baby blanket and ball" to find it, and ignore the blanket part as I did if you like. Perhaps it'll work for you. The website that is. If not, <a href="http://www.craftdesigns4you.com/freecrochetball.htm" target="_blank">here's a link</a> to another, different pattern that should give similar results, though I can't speak for it, not having tried it out.)</i> I even went ahead and put a jingly bell inside the ball above. To make it more attractive to Lila. Takes a lot to catch and hold that girl's attention, you know. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg72vfBerTzxtwGwkMuAqHa9Bcb50dFIdiTXdnKUNi_y75OFeONrMzTUmW9hdna3DvBJsxB-cTGFVYJJ7zjn0NkYZpxKE7HNWC3eC5yDm67ibQkv6uth5_u1ufafCPRvRsQ53SxeFsmhgPq/s1600/2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg72vfBerTzxtwGwkMuAqHa9Bcb50dFIdiTXdnKUNi_y75OFeONrMzTUmW9hdna3DvBJsxB-cTGFVYJJ7zjn0NkYZpxKE7HNWC3eC5yDm67ibQkv6uth5_u1ufafCPRvRsQ53SxeFsmhgPq/s400/2.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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"Oh, this one's not so bad either," I can hear you say. But, what you don't know is:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuqaibkBu1GPhD5khJ4iDH8FT0WTrbfp300N288Iptg201IhMcBGVL_TUnw53N0borsHb6_lsPBN5TVeeTKGJhMM5FV4cYNv9Gp1rJOs1fQn_RaTkH9vwo_bIfrg82LdQZ37XhCjN_1PLE/s1600/3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="297" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuqaibkBu1GPhD5khJ4iDH8FT0WTrbfp300N288Iptg201IhMcBGVL_TUnw53N0borsHb6_lsPBN5TVeeTKGJhMM5FV4cYNv9Gp1rJOs1fQn_RaTkH9vwo_bIfrg82LdQZ37XhCjN_1PLE/s400/3.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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AGGHHH! Those two are one!? Yes, one lumpy, dumpy, frumpy, frankensteinian mishmash trying to pass as a ball. And it's huge. In my defense: 1) I was trying to use up leftover yarns and had no idea the finished product would end up so big, requiring three different yarns to finish it 2) I have no idea what I'm doing 3) I didn't read through the instructions thoroughly before starting, or do a test swatch to check my sizing. Nope. Just plowed right on ahead with this one. Wasn't going to let some silly instructions get in my way. So I can't blame Martha for this. This was all me. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhya7GSnTFbjPwThAlidDmCM5v2QtH97EciqbGScuJxoUo-KgFgXRP10H6xceNXfOuDqKDvU9lUPDSLA-L-HyDfQlRlyC1e9LG57b2HEzSxOlhHU2na9KLvq8cJj83_SVaJD0iXDWqoiX6t/s1600/4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhya7GSnTFbjPwThAlidDmCM5v2QtH97EciqbGScuJxoUo-KgFgXRP10H6xceNXfOuDqKDvU9lUPDSLA-L-HyDfQlRlyC1e9LG57b2HEzSxOlhHU2na9KLvq8cJj83_SVaJD0iXDWqoiX6t/s400/4.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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But behold! The child is not frightened by the ball. She plays with it, even. She likes the jingly sound. She doesn't care that it's not really round shaped. Children. So accepting. </div>
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Of course, now you are wondering, "where are the other two"? Well, I'm not one to let defeat stop me from trying again, as you already know from <a href="http://tocarryinthehand.blogspot.com/2012/04/easter-fail-or.html" target="_blank">this post</a>. I decided I wanted to make this ball right, and now that I knew I needed to size it down a good deal, and had actually finally read through the instructions, I felt ready. I mean c'mon. It's supposed to be a tennis-ball-sized baby ball. How hard can that really be?</div>
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So here's ball #2:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQfahdg5rKpK9_S2opoU4x4lcWW2f_FSajyV1qVW1ENsnXl0GwjEkihuexOBWgr0zsfHO-PsOt2Glz5wgrsBZBEo2iG_D5fxEu2jCEScJprprZXKtm1VUBDBC75iGhbfV3HOH-mO6rYiHq/s1600/5.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQfahdg5rKpK9_S2opoU4x4lcWW2f_FSajyV1qVW1ENsnXl0GwjEkihuexOBWgr0zsfHO-PsOt2Glz5wgrsBZBEo2iG_D5fxEu2jCEScJprprZXKtm1VUBDBC75iGhbfV3HOH-mO6rYiHq/s400/5.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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And you can see how much closer to the actual ball shape I managed to get. I'm choking on my own sarcasm. In my defense: 1) I have no idea what I'm doing. </div>
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Rereading the instructions, I realized I missed the all-important step of increasing the ball size by stitching two single crochets into each stitch from the initial round. Such a simple mistake. Well, I decided to again just plow ahead and finish the monstrosity I'd started. Again, I didn't have quite enough of either yarn to finish, so it ended up a stripey egg football mess. Oh well, I put a squeaker in it, and baby likes it. </div>
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Because I have an iron will, upon giving it some thought, I decided once again that I would see the completed, correctly crocheted ball if it killed me. It didn't kill me, but I did have to go grab a new skein of yarn, having run out of the ones I wanted to use up. So, here we have attempt #3:</div>
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Hey! We have a winner! It's a ball, folks, a recognizable round ball. This time, I sat quietly alone and closely followed the directions, unlike the first time when I was sitting in a coffee shop chatting with the other ladies of the knitting and crochet group, or the second time, when I was trying to watch Lila and crochet at the same time. On this ball I took my time, and had lots of experience to build from. I mean I'd already made every possible mistake, so this time I was golden. And this little ball received the disemboweled innards of a cat toy that the dogs tore apart. Which is why we don't keep cat toys in the house anymore. But it makes a lovely rattley sound thanks to those innards. </div>
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And here are the Three Stooges together. Lila has three new squishy squeaky jingly toys to play with. </div>
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I have to mention that the instructions suggest these would make a nice cat toy, as an alternative to the baby toy. Nuh-uh. As the dogs did not immediately try to shred them, they are in fact not cat toys. Proof? Look at Mr. Tom Tom. He has no interest. And I have to say that even the "normal" ball is too large for a cat. Just what type of cats is Martha keeping? Tigers?</div>
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Sweet sleepy baby. Just woke up, and mommy puts her to work. It's a sweatshop life being the daughter of a crafting mom. Endless photo shoots, hours spent trudging through the fabric store, clothing changes every time a new outfit is sewn.... But, every now and then, she gets a new toy out of the deal. Wuv you Lila. </div>
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Best Wishes!</div>
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Teresa</div>
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<br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-321462936294026727.post-90150988281307715502012-04-29T15:15:00.004-04:002012-04-29T15:15:49.892-04:00baby jumper shrinks into a shirt<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhavRm0dI1dxDY7PzyAvT8dKIeEoWSL580Lze8JWYqsOqIV8MI0ejD9N7H0p2akBqOBFWvhy8cKczmWZSodiF66VmkaGP3x0se0Ef6lJENC4VjNm0lAn5NriIf3_wVpmLs9ElwrV4qDQgls/s1600/1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhavRm0dI1dxDY7PzyAvT8dKIeEoWSL580Lze8JWYqsOqIV8MI0ejD9N7H0p2akBqOBFWvhy8cKczmWZSodiF66VmkaGP3x0se0Ef6lJENC4VjNm0lAn5NriIf3_wVpmLs9ElwrV4qDQgls/s640/1.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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I made this little jumper with pockets for Lila last fall. This is one of those projects where you have a very clear picture of what you want the final result to be, and you know you're going to have to either wing it completely or alter an existing pattern to get what you want. I knew I wanted a burgundy corduroy jumper to dress Lila in for Thanksgiving, but I wanted it have some cute girly accents so it wasn't so "heavy" on the eyes. So I went trudging through the internet to find a pattern to alter. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpx9YH4b_kyucI_k2QHtt800JMexNNRzi8ArsGCfxztrMENgNagZgJeeQfayVFqocQ5r8CTCiUa-Cn6olWmrv7Dwn389AkHKsWr8RX6HDzMfXmTV7Y6A-AaEXYfwRFhlgjso28c-oMbZkG/s1600/760349688_RJ3P6-XL.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpx9YH4b_kyucI_k2QHtt800JMexNNRzi8ArsGCfxztrMENgNagZgJeeQfayVFqocQ5r8CTCiUa-Cn6olWmrv7Dwn389AkHKsWr8RX6HDzMfXmTV7Y6A-AaEXYfwRFhlgjso28c-oMbZkG/s200/760349688_RJ3P6-XL.jpg" style="cursor: move;" title="http://www.ikatbag.com/2010/01/dress-for-winter-iii-very-simple-jumper.html" width="160" /></a>What I found to work with was <a href="http://www.ikatbag.com/2010/01/dress-for-winter-iii-very-simple-jumper.html" target="_blank">this free pattern and tutorial</a> from LiEr over at <a href="http://www.ikatbag.com/" target="_blank">Ikat Bag </a>(her version to the left). Because I was born with no memory (probably not my only birth defect...) I totally lied to <a href="http://www.ohhowsweet.com/" target="_blank">my friend Melissa</a> and told her that I made this with no pattern. Whoops. Sorry LiEr<span style="background-color: white; font-family: 'lucida grande'; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;">!! </span>At the time all I could remember was making the pattern for the pockets, and making homemade bias tape for the trims, and deciding at the last minute to add the little ribbon bows. And I knew I used some of Lila's existing clothing to set the length, and to modify the width. So somehow that all just swirled around in my head until it solidified into the thought "I made this from scratch". Well thank goodness I've since remembered. Now you can head on over to Ikat Bag and grab the pattern for yourself! </div>
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Here's a closeup. My lovely vintage (we're talking avocado green) sewing machine decided to go into semi-retirement during this project, and quit sewing any stitch other than a straight. As a result, I hand-stitched those buttons and buttonholes. A labor of love, and a good reminder of how easy and quick it is to do on the machine. (I've since purchased a new sewing machine, which is<i> loooveleeey</i>, but I do miss my old Kenmore). </div>
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The fabrics are all from JoAnn's, and except for the corduroy they're leftover scraps from other projects, so I have no idea who made them, or whether they're still available. At the time I sewed this I wasn't thinking about blogging, and as I've mentioned, I have no memory. But you can probably still find the corduroy there. </div>
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As you may have guessed from the title of this post, she outgrew this jumper in an instant. It then became a shirt, as you can see above. And if you look closely you can also see evidence she's a messy little eater. This thing's been through the washer over and over again. But now that the weather is approaching the 90's around here, she probably won't wear it again, unless it somehow still fits her this fall (which I doubt). </div>
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The pattern comes in two sizes: 2T and 3-4T. As she was less than six months old when I first made the jumper, I cut the size down considerably. I also changed the angle at which the sides flare out, so that the jumper turned out narrower at the bottom than the original pattern, since that's the look I was going for. </div>
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Can you see the way it fits rather straight and snug, as opposed to flaring out? </div>
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One of the nice things about this pattern is that it's simple, and calls out to be embellished. The pattern doesn't include a piece for the pockets, so I just drew up a size and shape I liked, and added bias tape to the top. Hey, if you're looking for a tutorial on sewing with bias tape, I just happen to <a href="http://tocarryinthehand.blogspot.com/2012/04/bias-tape-tutorial.html" target="_blank">have one here</a> (flashes big smile). I also added the bias tape trim to the bottom hem for a more finished and matchy look.</div>
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I don't remember what type of seam the pattern called for, or if it did, but I went with flat-felled seams along the sides. I'm liking the look, and I think I'll start using it more often, especially since it's not that hard to do. Also, if you're like me and don't want to invest in a serger, it makes for a nice fray-less finish. It's also flat on the inside unlike french seams, which stick out a little. I don't know why, but I'm always thinking about whether the clothes I make Lila will scratch or annoy her when she wears them. She could probably care less, but still, isn't that one of the points of handmade? All the nice details.</div>
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I chose these matching buttons by default, since they were really the only pair I had that would work on this jumper. But I'm glad I did, since I think brightly colored ones would detract somehow from the pockets and trims and make the finished product too busy.</div>
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Do you think I should be feeding her more? Well, she did go and outgrow that jumper, so I guess we're okay. :) </div>
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Best Wishes,</div>
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Teresa</div>
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<br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-321462936294026727.post-26380224862241940992012-04-27T22:21:00.000-04:002012-04-28T11:39:49.214-04:00bias tape: a tutorial<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Hi there! You're here because you want to learn how to sew bias tape without making a giant mess of things. And I'm here to show you how, using 4 simple steps and lots of photos so you don't get lost, and sharing all my little tips for success. In this tutorial you'll learn how to enclose the raw edge of your project with bias tape, how to start and finish sewing your bias tape, and how to get it to go around curves smoothly, even hairpin curves.</div>
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I've noticed there aren't many tutorials out there for doing curves, so I'm focusing on that here, and not corners. If you'd like to learn to sew bias tape around a corner, check out<a href="http://smashedpeasandcarrots.blogspot.com/2011/01/how-to-sew-bias-tape-part-ii-corner.html" target="_blank"> this tutorial</a> from Maggie over at <a href="http://smashedpeasandcarrots.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Smashed Peas and Carrots</a>. And, if you're feeling like going all out and want to make your own bias tape, you'll want to<a href="http://www.danamadeit.com/2008/07/technique-understanding-bias-and-making-bias-tape.html" target="_blank"> visit this tutorial</a> from Dana at <a href="http://www.danamadeit.com/" target="_blank">Made</a>. It's the absolute most thorough bias-tape making tutorial out there - she covers everything from what it is, to why it is, how to make it, how to use it, different types, oh my! </div>
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When I first started sewing with bias tape, I wanted to do it Right. I went looking all over the internet for the best method, and here's what I can tell you: there is no best method. There's only what works best for you. There are as many different ways to sew on bias tape as there are craft blogs on the internet. So this is not the one and only way to do it, it's just the method I've worked out for myself over the years. </div>
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Oh, by the way, I hate pins (because they hate me, which can be the only explanation for why they are always driving themselves up into my nail bed) so I avoid them whenever possible. Sometimes I'll use those little flexible metal barrettes (you can get them from the jewelry section in JoAnn's) to secure layers together while sewing, but that's it. So this is a pins-free bias tape tutorial. Yay for that! And, because I just happen to have magical color-changing bias tape, you'll see the tape in this tutorial change from red to pink and back again. Certainly it's not because I didn't take enough photos the first time around, and had to take more of the next bib I sewed in order to make a complete tutorial. </div>
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Here's a quick list of the 4 steps used in sewing on bias tape: 1) Orient your tape properly 2) Sew on 3) Trim and flip 4) Secure with final stitching</div>
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Before we get started, a note about bias tape - it's meant to be a little stretchy, so that you can tug and pull and get it to fit around curves. That's the whole point. It's what makes bias tape cool. However, you don't want to start a tug-of-war with your machine. Your machine will lose. Or your project will. So just be aware of the amount of force you're using, and relax a little if need be. Once you've done this a time or two, it will become natural and you won't have to think about it anymore. Another note - you'll want to use thread that matches the color of your bias tape as closely as possible. Trust me on that one.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4Khcg3yEG7LampqTn1TqjEFXOTBUc9CVa3mzAreV-CQ4jGctyutQn5WNaKBb2llfGTc2G7HxC0R6EPGPjv_KdktI8iDAobYjV2JsJ3DuFZVniBb-tLJncpx1uO8J3tRhHkHqb1ezZ08e7/s1600/bias1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="316" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4Khcg3yEG7LampqTn1TqjEFXOTBUc9CVa3mzAreV-CQ4jGctyutQn5WNaKBb2llfGTc2G7HxC0R6EPGPjv_KdktI8iDAobYjV2JsJ3DuFZVniBb-tLJncpx1uO8J3tRhHkHqb1ezZ08e7/s400/bias1.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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Okay, so here we have what's called double-fold bias tape. Be careful to not accidentally buy single-fold bias tape - they look similar in their packaging at the store. Mine is 1/2 inch, though you can find it or make it in other widths if you wish. You'll want to pre-wash it if it's going onto something that will be laundered, like <a href="http://tocarryinthehand.blogspot.com/2012/04/ta-da-it-is-chunky-monkey-baby-bib-you.html" target="_blank">the baby bibs I'll be making</a> in this tutorial. And if you wash it be sure to iron it afterwards so that your creases are nice and crisp just like when they first came out of the packaging. Now you're ready to go!</div>
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<b>Step #1: Orient Properly</b></div>
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So looking closely at the photo above you'll see that one side is narrower than the other. The narrower side is the top side, and the wider side is the bottom. You want the bottom to be wider so you can be sure to catch it when you are sewing through from the top - this will make sense in a minute.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRYTD2q6U27UhCEoqQK7TdFRDkCjc0wtPOUVN5EoCdguk87AXq1aZBGKfcFYih3iyBvQhOM-j2kNDV6AN2Spl0pMvjX2NZgzZYlfKsmBib8RSO6Bq4-DufplE2jPpHlQNQGwaYnDnTkiSL/s1600/bias2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRYTD2q6U27UhCEoqQK7TdFRDkCjc0wtPOUVN5EoCdguk87AXq1aZBGKfcFYih3iyBvQhOM-j2kNDV6AN2Spl0pMvjX2NZgzZYlfKsmBib8RSO6Bq4-DufplE2jPpHlQNQGwaYnDnTkiSL/s400/bias2.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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When you are first learning to work with bias tape it's helpful to get started by orienting it correctly onto your project, as you see in the photo above. Start with your project face up. See the narrower side of the bias tape laying over the top of the bib, and the wider underneath? If you start this way, when you unfold it in the next step you can't go wrong. (The terrycloth is the front of my project in all the photos below). </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ3nKtofOzoCAVZ9Ckd7D5_-wA8UMGw2rzv0lRdX3ls3-nFcuu2j12IwEEVbXefB2kWwAe3bcxK1NYrv3MkXxKWodgQJJ-8CNvQtUgcdnc_k9FgTADwhEdP_i0yHjc3tzOfMpCJ4tMr6kC/s1600/bias3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ3nKtofOzoCAVZ9Ckd7D5_-wA8UMGw2rzv0lRdX3ls3-nFcuu2j12IwEEVbXefB2kWwAe3bcxK1NYrv3MkXxKWodgQJJ-8CNvQtUgcdnc_k9FgTADwhEdP_i0yHjc3tzOfMpCJ4tMr6kC/s400/bias3.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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So the next step is to place your finger onto the start of your bias tape, and then pull out the wider side from underneath your project. </div>
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And then open up the bias tape the rest of the way, so that when you're done unfolding it, it's upside down. What was the outer side of the bias tape should be laying against the front of your project. It should also be aligned against the edge of your project. So, at this point you have your bias tape upside down with the narrow end against the edge of your project. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht47FFle3uVvC4Sja6AqGhhHeJt3QQ5Mv3sIHk2V_4tCYyUr6kdBtA-wwhMO5ODVDuUoFCxcR2lF4mblfh5JPiFLXk9l0AApsBLfVjeVWxBqjHxJXS_htW0di6cGFy_54pEFlKqpB2BhKY/s1600/bias5.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht47FFle3uVvC4Sja6AqGhhHeJt3QQ5Mv3sIHk2V_4tCYyUr6kdBtA-wwhMO5ODVDuUoFCxcR2lF4mblfh5JPiFLXk9l0AApsBLfVjeVWxBqjHxJXS_htW0di6cGFy_54pEFlKqpB2BhKY/s400/bias5.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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Okay, now flip over the end of your tape, about a 1/4 inch or so, as in the photo above. And you're all ready to sew! </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9ny9Nb5gsz_a0RO_nCqTzt9In-ZV5ffgPFcDN14N7q85YDAiAFAWaKLxqC-pdSfV9bcmMcp2z4EfiZxHkzVzSG_Gao_KQnIPpWmPAtsBJ5Ze9NSd8JSGHxVKLBrodIElco8wg0KLSw4yF/s1600/bias6.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9ny9Nb5gsz_a0RO_nCqTzt9In-ZV5ffgPFcDN14N7q85YDAiAFAWaKLxqC-pdSfV9bcmMcp2z4EfiZxHkzVzSG_Gao_KQnIPpWmPAtsBJ5Ze9NSd8JSGHxVKLBrodIElco8wg0KLSw4yF/s400/bias6.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<b>Step #2: Sew!</b></div>
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You want to sew right inside that first crease, starting from the beginning of your bias tape, as shown above. And just follow along that crease, using your fingers to adjust your bias tape, and keep it lined up on the edge of your project as you sew along. See how I'm not using pins? I'm a rule breaker. And I find that using my hands to align the tape is easier and faster. I've found that the end results look better too. But if you and pins work well together, than by all means, do so. Whatever works best for you.</div>
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Here you are, approaching your first curve and beginning to panic inside. No need. Just fold your bias tape along the inside edge so that you have a couple small creases, like you see above. This will cause the outer edge of your bias tape to curve nicely along the outer edge of your project. But, and this is important, DO NOT let those folds intrude past the first crease, the one you are sewing along. Doing so will mean that you are sewing creases permanently into your project. If it doesn't make sense now, it will later. For now just do your best to not sew over any folds. Readjust your bias tape once or twice as you are sewing along the curve if needed.</div>
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In the picture above, I'm sewing the tape around one of those hairpin bends in my baby bib. And not only that, but there's a piece of velcro layered in there as well. Here's how you can get decent results under these circumstances: Take Your Time. Sew three stitches, leave your needle in the down position, lift presser foot, turn project slightly, adjust bias tape slightly, lower presser foot, sew another three stitches. If you try to go too quickly, you will inevitably sew creases into your project. This is because on a very tight curve you can't help but have those little folds protrude past your sewing line as you are adjusting your bias tape (see above). As long as you go slowly, you should be able to keep the area <b>just in front</b> of your presser foot free of folds, as you see in the picture above. And as long as you can do that, you should be okay. </div>
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I find that around tight curves, it really is best to forgo pins. You'll drive yourself nuts trying to get it all pinned down correctly, and the truth is that you need to be able to tug and pull and readjust here and there, and pins will get in your way. As a final reminder, remember to keep the outer edge of your bias tape aligned with the outer edge of your project as best you can. You probably won't be able to keep it perfect all the way around, but as long as the area <b>just in front </b>of your presser foot is correctly aligned, all will be well. And here in a bit, I'll show you a couple of techniques for minimizing any errors you do make. And you will make them (everyone does, even the best among us) so don't be hyper-critical of yourself.</div>
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Okay, I wanted to show a picture of what will happen when you sew around an inner curve, like along the neckline of a bib. The project will want to rise up into the air on you. Go ahead and let it. It's the bias tape curling to meet the curve ahead, and it won't affect the look or flatness of the end result.</div>
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So you've made it around all those curves and you're nearing the starting point. Leaving the needle and presser foot in the down position to secure your project, grab a pair of scissors and cut your bias tape to about a 1/4 to 1/2 inch past the original fold, as you see in the picture above. You want to do this so that your layers are staggered, to help reduce bulk. And then finish sewing down your bias tape to the end. Backstitch to secure.</div>
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<b>Step #3: Trim and Flip</b><br />
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Now flip around to the backside of your project. See the back of my bib above? See how the seam allowance ended up wider along one side? We want to fix that. </div>
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Measure out how wide you want your allowance to be (3/8 inch in my case), and trim to that width all the way around, being careful not to cut into the bias tape you've just sewn down. What you are trying to do here is make sure that when you wrap your bias tape around to the back of your project, it won't end up wider in some areas and narrower in others. If some parts of your bias tape are too narrow, you won't catch them when you do the final sewing. If this isn't clear, hang on, it will be soon. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJjap_jSvdzlRU0_AFNzNB_kKH1F8peCHWl641LodSano833KbTuz9UD5uzvn6tnHTH7CXmGEWdmXtWQMIsh7IjQtx_X3TPwG1YT6fKMlNDXHJyQw2WFNdPHp6Vk_hkjMRozfi8MM6Fi9G/s1600/bias13.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJjap_jSvdzlRU0_AFNzNB_kKH1F8peCHWl641LodSano833KbTuz9UD5uzvn6tnHTH7CXmGEWdmXtWQMIsh7IjQtx_X3TPwG1YT6fKMlNDXHJyQw2WFNdPHp6Vk_hkjMRozfi8MM6Fi9G/s400/bias13.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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Okay, now that your allowance is evenly trimmed all the way around, go ahead and flip your tape to the backside, so that it wraps around the raw edge of your project. Above you can see me doing this at the start point of the tape, and you can see how the tape is staggered at the seam. When you are done, you want to make sure that the raw edge of your bias tape on the backside is folded in. In essence, it should look just like it did when you were orienting it properly in the beginning, only now you've sewn it down on the inside of the front. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh284A0LY2RC1d64t81yp9FXkljukkKECGovOp5bCzb9F4fyhoedNyU8MokXSQNJrVpZshVv9cUfkRuPHCdfYbgkviXUndvM8YnacxzM3azThZXecGRfN2Fu5V5BhyngnY7M7lwQy69-PUf/s1600/13.1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh284A0LY2RC1d64t81yp9FXkljukkKECGovOp5bCzb9F4fyhoedNyU8MokXSQNJrVpZshVv9cUfkRuPHCdfYbgkviXUndvM8YnacxzM3azThZXecGRfN2Fu5V5BhyngnY7M7lwQy69-PUf/s400/13.1.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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This is what the back may look like where your layers overlap. We want to fix that. Tuck those raw edges under if they are sticking up. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq2yUN78Sy-3g9Bjsk5lSWxHB0JkMZoe95e4T5anIL-hd0Y_zMCRILtIws95mHEk90PQ6UpFaBy2YkfjpNdMMIqu97p78zrAKAqigbmod-UCy-aUkf4zjZYC2C_eApoqZRdHaVQag8IHE6/s1600/13.2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="display: inline !important; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq2yUN78Sy-3g9Bjsk5lSWxHB0JkMZoe95e4T5anIL-hd0Y_zMCRILtIws95mHEk90PQ6UpFaBy2YkfjpNdMMIqu97p78zrAKAqigbmod-UCy-aUkf4zjZYC2C_eApoqZRdHaVQag8IHE6/s400/13.2.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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Like so. And now go ahead and bust out a barrette, or a pin if you wish, to keep this seam secure until the next step. Or press it flat. Or just hold it tight. Whatever works for you. (As a side note, there's a way to sew this seam so that it ends up at a 45 degree angle, rather than vertical like you see above. The ladies at <a href="http://prudentbaby.com/" target="_blank">Prudent Baby</a> will <a href="http://prudentbaby.com/2010/11/hot-mess/tips/how-to-sew-with-bias-tape-2/" target="_blank">teach you how</a> if you like. I like the vertical seam just fine, so that's what I do).</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjP8t0uFZTF8zIcqZ7knhXY9tV3MN8Nb-B9DiZAaz-Mm9nV7whNkYsqWlR_P9Wu3lrD1zo6ZOz_7yt_tqkBibvdjXQVoxtuh6NlC0bD2GmUy-fuzaQzBwAlqk3WvaZg886H94vLAATxsqBg/s1600/bias14.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjP8t0uFZTF8zIcqZ7knhXY9tV3MN8Nb-B9DiZAaz-Mm9nV7whNkYsqWlR_P9Wu3lrD1zo6ZOz_7yt_tqkBibvdjXQVoxtuh6NlC0bD2GmUy-fuzaQzBwAlqk3WvaZg886H94vLAATxsqBg/s400/bias14.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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Ready for the final step?</div>
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<b>Step #4: Stitch to Secure</b></div>
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Starting at the seam you just flipped over (which you can't see because it's under my presser foot), stitch in the ditch all around your project, backstitching at the beginning and end to secure. If you feel like it, and before you get started sewing, pin the bias tape all along the backside. Otherwise, just use your hands to snug up the bias tape as you go along. The point of all this snugging is to make sure you have a nice wide swath of bias tape on the backside to catch with your needle. Take your time and snug often, since your stitching will show on the backside when you're done.</div>
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Stitching in the ditch, in case you don't know, means to sew right inside the groove, or ditch, where two fabrics meet, in this case terrycloth and bias tape. Do you see where the needle is going in the picture above? If you're unfamiliar with this, it may seem impossible to follow that line all around your project, but I assure you it can be done. Take your time if you're feeling nervous. </div>
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Remember from Step #1 how the back side of your bias tape is wider than the front side? </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqHRdgg-FkpuUEpswYwXIdfDl8Cp7mvhyphenhyphenoQ856Ktknnut9rmyg4esnO_awYG-jaD_yar9Drb8_OpZ2b2_uXM0ZpiAnUWa4I990va_hA_iOw3IEtKdwU_qfi6rD4F5y4GtTMLT2c3dV3ITW/s1600/bias15.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="343" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqHRdgg-FkpuUEpswYwXIdfDl8Cp7mvhyphenhyphenoQ856Ktknnut9rmyg4esnO_awYG-jaD_yar9Drb8_OpZ2b2_uXM0ZpiAnUWa4I990va_hA_iOw3IEtKdwU_qfi6rD4F5y4GtTMLT2c3dV3ITW/s400/bias15.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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That's so that you can catch it when you stitch in the ditch. See? Even though you stitched an invisible line on the front of your project, you still caught the bias tape on the back. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimLVG75s8otyI0RVXhbifyntsDWvyg51rj8VDGlOEI1_8oODU-ByiXlMTjeiKz7gy3sAEVtcnkKQWJsc4tDg4ZqPfjJdcYGZ2ISerukuRQWCMW_Ksk9rTVgt8o6y11J0NbstI41ZHlm_sr/s1600/bias16.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimLVG75s8otyI0RVXhbifyntsDWvyg51rj8VDGlOEI1_8oODU-ByiXlMTjeiKz7gy3sAEVtcnkKQWJsc4tDg4ZqPfjJdcYGZ2ISerukuRQWCMW_Ksk9rTVgt8o6y11J0NbstI41ZHlm_sr/s400/bias16.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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And here's a view of the back of my bib. Can you see that the stitching is not quite evenly spaced from the edge all the way around the entire bib? That's perfectly acceptable to me. The main thing is that the bias tape is lying flat all the way around, and I caught the tape when I stitched in the ditch. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpRbOoavbk1m93Hpag5fGKlQ6dxQRGr7N-5vvYHO9yXh3H3SgLN3pHX-Hkqp6jDaJy5uZLtO8Qwnb82K8pmW1jMOgSkgFvoIhIaSEAVdd8T0tf4TK8MHTc-qORda8sctpL8i5a5w6TUp-7/s1600/bias15.1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpRbOoavbk1m93Hpag5fGKlQ6dxQRGr7N-5vvYHO9yXh3H3SgLN3pHX-Hkqp6jDaJy5uZLtO8Qwnb82K8pmW1jMOgSkgFvoIhIaSEAVdd8T0tf4TK8MHTc-qORda8sctpL8i5a5w6TUp-7/s400/bias15.1.JPG" title="" width="400" /></a></div>
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And here's the front. Nice flat bias tape, smooth all the way around.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqLS-9bqMe7W5jJl9Isf5sjyouoNKxaajs36zPgogeiS-3LCfqEMNiRl73qnbqiUPiZBLHODF578OlneGJblKaE9aUVpP4DQ931En3ZQbF-kupXDqPq5K4aOoTnEasz6ibViFSOSVOoLVO/s1600/bias18.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqLS-9bqMe7W5jJl9Isf5sjyouoNKxaajs36zPgogeiS-3LCfqEMNiRl73qnbqiUPiZBLHODF578OlneGJblKaE9aUVpP4DQ931En3ZQbF-kupXDqPq5K4aOoTnEasz6ibViFSOSVOoLVO/s400/bias18.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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Wow. You can't ask for more than that from bias tape. That's a pretty sharp bend my friends, and the bias tape streched up to the job. Te he. Silly word play. Oh how I do amuse myself. Ahem. Anyways, bringing the bib under the microscope you will see that when I stitched in the ditch I overshot slightly when coming around the curve, and so you can see a few of my stitches in the bias tape. If that happens to you, don't worry, it really isn't going to be noticeable. That's why we use matching thread people.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUM1KvYVmJ9zlU-eDQZsDgrBtTgwmGCWFf5gFcyfBKMn7NAdUIb4IIPlXn_cJTF_kzczQaTUk9bJ6bi8hos9Dvwic5OhJRpYwuL5XUObBVr-KWn1FxKiDHd0Cl4SBWU29m8B0GYllevsKO/s1600/bias19.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUM1KvYVmJ9zlU-eDQZsDgrBtTgwmGCWFf5gFcyfBKMn7NAdUIb4IIPlXn_cJTF_kzczQaTUk9bJ6bi8hos9Dvwic5OhJRpYwuL5XUObBVr-KWn1FxKiDHd0Cl4SBWU29m8B0GYllevsKO/s400/bias19.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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The other flap of my bib. Not quite as flat as the first, but still pretty nice looking. Perfectly acceptable I say. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicW5IkaaWuTgt5nqavjpshZZqzT7MgbDvFphMmcznaDTB2HewTc0hBcDD6pdF4NGNGBuneV40QuNV05K3ZoYx4BjXS5VC__LlF7cuTLUuXTHLKmlo-OQFDNfUIRESrCIYjJuypdfeh6iPE/s1600/bias20.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicW5IkaaWuTgt5nqavjpshZZqzT7MgbDvFphMmcznaDTB2HewTc0hBcDD6pdF4NGNGBuneV40QuNV05K3ZoYx4BjXS5VC__LlF7cuTLUuXTHLKmlo-OQFDNfUIRESrCIYjJuypdfeh6iPE/s400/bias20.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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If you find that there are places along the back of your project where you didn't quite catch the bias tape (and it does happen), then go ahead and go back over that section again. Be sure to snug the tape around the backside nice and tight, and then flip back to the front of your project. Beginning before your missed section, stitch slightly into the bias tape, like you see above. Continue slightly past the missed section to be sure it's good and secure. Chances are no one will ever know. Unless you tell them in your online tutorial. </div>
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And that's it! Now you have all the steps and tips you need to sew like a bias tape pro. Although it might seem like a lot of work, it really isn't after you've done it once or twice. You're going to love the look, and you'll find yourself making any excuse to add bias tape to a project. </div>
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I really would love to hear if this helped you out. If you have any questions about the tutorial, chances are others do too, so go ahead and ask right in the comments section. I'd also love to hear if you have tips of your own that you'd like to share. </div>
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Happy Sewing!</div>
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Teresa</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-321462936294026727.post-73735890876167319482012-04-25T13:03:00.000-04:002012-05-17T22:40:45.814-04:00Chunky Monkey Baby Bib<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqr3DICyVjPErih2aPhKrYLMkwZDXeCqLW36IlSN629QyaMagBJcFqJZT03RrZaf70SEBI5eF_lDcRJLIiKwuXVviXIrVG78zpkuneBk3o9mxHitiEyPciApaJ4jzmAhnGLVxFh2qNykZm/s1600/1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="340" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqr3DICyVjPErih2aPhKrYLMkwZDXeCqLW36IlSN629QyaMagBJcFqJZT03RrZaf70SEBI5eF_lDcRJLIiKwuXVviXIrVG78zpkuneBk3o9mxHitiEyPciApaJ4jzmAhnGLVxFh2qNykZm/s400/1.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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Ta da! Here it is, the Chunky Monkey Baby Bib! If you read my <a href="http://tocarryinthehand.blogspot.com/2012/04/can-you-guess-what-im-sewing-from-this.html" target="_blank">last post</a>, then you've been gleefully sitting on the edge of your chair, biting the tips of your curled fingers with anticipation, knowing this was coming. Yes? No? I've been working on this for what seems like forever, because I kept getting interrupted. In fact, I've been done with the bibs themselves for almost a week now, but just haven't found time to post about them. I'm currently working on creating the instructions and pattern in PDF form to share with you. No telling how long that'll take. You might not want to wait on the edge of your seat for it, is what I'm saying. (Update! I've completed the free pattern and instructions - <a href="http://tocarryinthehand.blogspot.com/2012/05/free-pattern-chunky-monkey-baby-bib.html" target="_blank">here's the post!</a>)</div>
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So anyways, this bib was born out of necessity, as so many craft projects are. I was very fortunate to have been given lots of bibs for Lila by my mom and friends, so I didn't have to think about them for the longest time. But then, she started growing, as babies are wont to do, and she basically outgrew a lot of them. Let me tell you, what you want in a bib is c<i>overage</i>, and if you don't have that, you're in trouble. Especially if you dress your baby in <a href="http://tocarryinthehand.blogspot.com/2012/04/sweet-little-dress-pattern-review.html" target="_blank">pretty handmade dresses and shirts</a>. So it was time to either go buy some bigger bibs, or make some of my own. As it happens, my awesome crafting friend out in California, Pele, sent me some sweet little bibs for Lila a few months ago (you can see them below), and that inspired me to hit the sewing machine and make some of my own. </div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWZOdzzss6TFeXOJB0uXRJSMbgdCRSud0-H11EeWLlXKHpvgSn4jsFBVDMnd7UyNN3ynaFXitTbbAzECfSbJVWw2Z0ut5M_vBIz5fd7FzswRzASdTvNuX6OfGv4hRfHlDjeLYBmRXghuhZ/s1600/2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWZOdzzss6TFeXOJB0uXRJSMbgdCRSud0-H11EeWLlXKHpvgSn4jsFBVDMnd7UyNN3ynaFXitTbbAzECfSbJVWw2Z0ut5M_vBIz5fd7FzswRzASdTvNuX6OfGv4hRfHlDjeLYBmRXghuhZ/s400/2.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">These babies have seen a lot of use. </td></tr>
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Here you can see the size difference. Pele's bibs are a good size, I'd say a nice medium fit, not for newborns, not for two year-olds. Do two-year-olds use bibs? Funny that I don't know. Anyways, I went BIG on these bibs, especially around the shoulders. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvUsQo7rzK31K2yFwgZyVen6mouWtyTbM9gwjonueveKXempK1pGxOlZ_wxgBgUtlZcNGWAH739I2_Dd_s304wapVlYZtcOtyPV8oYFheRhOyQUzP9pXWHSeo00ieAPAOCDKqsQS4gr1r8/s1600/22.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="293" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvUsQo7rzK31K2yFwgZyVen6mouWtyTbM9gwjonueveKXempK1pGxOlZ_wxgBgUtlZcNGWAH739I2_Dd_s304wapVlYZtcOtyPV8oYFheRhOyQUzP9pXWHSeo00ieAPAOCDKqsQS4gr1r8/s400/22.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="text-align: left;">And I'm completely crazy, so I took the time to applique designer fabrics on each one. Yes. A product whose sole function is to be spat up on. A product that will be thrown in a crumpled heap into the dirty laundry pile, and washed in hot water repeatedly. </span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_kkcv5ekCvCcS8oXZNTCJknnpmNYjJ4N9KRrW_SHdUUMzA0Yp0wK7Dj6PL_QwfINe0plvY3rOUIpkTIcai925fsSBl1_ZCc0GCR3DqgSFPa8jrUcNV0k0QLwecf7oKIDuvTIyUKwfPR0F/s1600/3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_kkcv5ekCvCcS8oXZNTCJknnpmNYjJ4N9KRrW_SHdUUMzA0Yp0wK7Dj6PL_QwfINe0plvY3rOUIpkTIcai925fsSBl1_ZCc0GCR3DqgSFPa8jrUcNV0k0QLwecf7oKIDuvTIyUKwfPR0F/s400/3.JPG" width="381" /></a></div>
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And I even took the time to apply bias tape, even all the way around those hairpin curves. But I do so very much like the look of these bibs. By the way, the terry cloth fronts came from a hooded baby towel. I was also given lots of those, and had like ten on hand. Lila doesn't need ten towels. I don't even need ten towels. So a couple of the hand-me-down's from cousins have found a new life. </div>
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It was a lot of fun to pick out the shapes and fabrics for the applique. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyELNJ8G-TOVyZmgZYr0V6lGChW1UvEP3l2nKBjRQRKYb1EEDYwu8Bt1HWYFhNkmOLhYMvOtCAiPWvwNTzroz65nCsQ19eq4xnaXT1LijyiQXd04t1W-njEcKMBKXsYk3RJ_45DQwPo0Nb/s1600/4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="392" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyELNJ8G-TOVyZmgZYr0V6lGChW1UvEP3l2nKBjRQRKYb1EEDYwu8Bt1HWYFhNkmOLhYMvOtCAiPWvwNTzroz65nCsQ19eq4xnaXT1LijyiQXd04t1W-njEcKMBKXsYk3RJ_45DQwPo0Nb/s400/4.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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You have your happy star, your green apple, your musical note, your hot air balloon, your teddy bear. That teddy bear turned out electric. He's like a disco teddy bear from the 70's or something. He's clearly dancing, which is why he's at a funny angle. It's not because I wasn't paying attention while appliqueing him, and he ended up tilted to one side. No. He's <i>dancing</i>.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXB-_ZBRdyrRCJqZD4Ao5lEi5dx3SvrEjirU0gPNRWgl0E3ZBZvSUa6UpWKXiG0pS7nuahxczEmKyRBgUpVYIw11Px01lraXo0ZHmyyzHlqMHOgO47Wj7e9QdUENP_BkK930gTaYhZoryO/s1600/8.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXB-_ZBRdyrRCJqZD4Ao5lEi5dx3SvrEjirU0gPNRWgl0E3ZBZvSUa6UpWKXiG0pS7nuahxczEmKyRBgUpVYIw11Px01lraXo0ZHmyyzHlqMHOgO47Wj7e9QdUENP_BkK930gTaYhZoryO/s200/8.JPG" width="150" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3uChbeET3bcEktSi-RjioWoc8wlWQRqgGsomb3DNJjtTXzbtfQdvdySzExSxOQfQ7EOa2Zu91hUOn-e9shZgSxAGFN-r6gU2KgeC2RfQSv4n6LIAL0rS90DiC4sWY9N82d1JO7uGiGSji/s1600/5.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3uChbeET3bcEktSi-RjioWoc8wlWQRqgGsomb3DNJjtTXzbtfQdvdySzExSxOQfQ7EOa2Zu91hUOn-e9shZgSxAGFN-r6gU2KgeC2RfQSv4n6LIAL0rS90DiC4sWY9N82d1JO7uGiGSji/s200/5.JPG" width="150" /></a></div>
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And here are the back sides. I just used whatever sturdy, somewhat coordinating fabric I could find in my stash. I suppose these are reversible, so if one side gets all stained up you could then switch to using the other side. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1_KkHxzeepvje-W_akZRy5yi3QuukqmlWJ55YliMTXFzhbjy-tAOEGStNTAkcjrAxhzJbrpLEG7In3dNG8EpYmGNPIKzU-TvSMNqX68vX8pZ9hSBpCVA_CaTINN6RCeB9g3-WUh5W514-/s1600/9.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1_KkHxzeepvje-W_akZRy5yi3QuukqmlWJ55YliMTXFzhbjy-tAOEGStNTAkcjrAxhzJbrpLEG7In3dNG8EpYmGNPIKzU-TvSMNqX68vX8pZ9hSBpCVA_CaTINN6RCeB9g3-WUh5W514-/s400/9.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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And here we see the bib in its native environment, under the head and around the shoulders of a human child. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh58IVyk3P55W5kXy9kW8Vbgb2TuP0yoHG25elYDTOae1mJCHajwhdP4n78oQdLdXoLapT6y82falMkmFd3nb9jdiAwiSy0ZDz-buj7Fp3j5wq0N9EKAA6-ksyqeScqQrbaem_SIHv0Zhp_/s1600/99.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh58IVyk3P55W5kXy9kW8Vbgb2TuP0yoHG25elYDTOae1mJCHajwhdP4n78oQdLdXoLapT6y82falMkmFd3nb9jdiAwiSy0ZDz-buj7Fp3j5wq0N9EKAA6-ksyqeScqQrbaem_SIHv0Zhp_/s400/99.JPG" width="287" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It looks good on you Lila. Real good.</td></tr>
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Notice the lovely shoulder coverage, and the elegant draping down the front. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_H1YhkG_DgRebVwxbPLqniE3RMcFlq-oKBCNinUFYR9Ne8pA_XV_M3wAp3-s7u8TmiqvxEj6u8SbMFsZ1qR8w4HAYI3Wfq-JP2qINxJyH172RrbQoazGZ1lYuQAQy5UFrx2TUCwAKqc5H/s1600/999.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_H1YhkG_DgRebVwxbPLqniE3RMcFlq-oKBCNinUFYR9Ne8pA_XV_M3wAp3-s7u8TmiqvxEj6u8SbMFsZ1qR8w4HAYI3Wfq-JP2qINxJyH172RrbQoazGZ1lYuQAQy5UFrx2TUCwAKqc5H/s320/999.JPG" width="269" /></a></div>
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Mmmm, gobble gobble gobble. Let the feeding frenzy begin...</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghvGbhyphenhyphenNnxmHY3jxEefWmC6viOzMDXtThr163RiFMRlkLXmmGPHmGjiJemIHHjT_NYUfx_oW3ZXsogNcbE2J-7NPGk-eA_glDo_THWAcRb9n2kZVT-j2h_g1gp-pXBjJkqQdfSfvs5uoSs/s1600/99999.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghvGbhyphenhyphenNnxmHY3jxEefWmC6viOzMDXtThr163RiFMRlkLXmmGPHmGjiJemIHHjT_NYUfx_oW3ZXsogNcbE2J-7NPGk-eA_glDo_THWAcRb9n2kZVT-j2h_g1gp-pXBjJkqQdfSfvs5uoSs/s1600/99999.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghvGbhyphenhyphenNnxmHY3jxEefWmC6viOzMDXtThr163RiFMRlkLXmmGPHmGjiJemIHHjT_NYUfx_oW3ZXsogNcbE2J-7NPGk-eA_glDo_THWAcRb9n2kZVT-j2h_g1gp-pXBjJkqQdfSfvs5uoSs/s400/99999.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="text-align: left;">Success! Dirty bib, clean shirt. Happy baby, happy mommy. :) </span></div>
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Best Wishes,</div>
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Teresa</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-321462936294026727.post-88831275988584317662012-04-19T12:19:00.006-04:002012-04-20T11:36:27.356-04:00can you guess what i'm sewing from this pic?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8RrnxhVwpAMuHzPNa7GvYw-0K6_wU1GzEDwSMxHVX0T9EHCZveFMUYiXpmJzFWVF61vgkVZDGZ0BkUjq6xmRHKjJIeji6FryBU6tyF_24JTKTwVz4VwUEV8dskKHzVuoJElKc0X6FlOk3/s1600/P1040932.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="292" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8RrnxhVwpAMuHzPNa7GvYw-0K6_wU1GzEDwSMxHVX0T9EHCZveFMUYiXpmJzFWVF61vgkVZDGZ0BkUjq6xmRHKjJIeji6FryBU6tyF_24JTKTwVz4VwUEV8dskKHzVuoJElKc0X6FlOk3/s400/P1040932.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Well you people are pretty smart, so you probably can. It's going to be my next post. Maybe my next two or three posts actually, since I'm thinking of including a bias tape tutorial. There's always room on the internet for another tutorial, isn't there? The internet's pretty roomy, I hear. Anyways, here's a hint: the next project is related to this stuff:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">In case you can't tell, that's baby food, of the homemade variety. Score points for this tired mommy! Now it's one of the laws of nature that Teresa Can't Cook. I mean I can put together some spaghetti or a casserole, and I can whip up a yummy breakfast if I have the time and energy. But I'm talking about real cooking, the kind my husband does. The kind that requires intuition, patience, a true love of the ingredients that go into the final dish. I have those qualities, but only for my daughter and my crafting. Food is just annoying to me. My stomach is annoying. Always crying out for more. It feels as though I spend half my life slumped against the open fridge or pantry door, looking at the shelves stuffed full of ingredients, and thinking "there's nothing to eat in this house". Sigh. And I never can seem to plan ahead for a meal, so suddenly, in the middle of something important, my stomach is screaming at me for food. <i>So annoying</i>. Are you like that? Am I the only one?</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Anyways, baby food. So I can't cook, but I <i>can</i> operate a blender. And steam veggies. And that's all you need to do to make your own baby food. Because I'm a bad mommy, I skipped doing this for the longest time and just fed her pre-packaged stuff, or sat for 20 mins chopping up into tiny tiny bits whatever I was eating that meal. But eventually I realized that having a ton of food already on hand means at least I don't have to go through the slumping sighing routine with Lila's meals. And let me tell you, that girl is what I call a "good communicator," which is my nice way of saying that she will shatter mirrors with her screaming if left sitting hungry in a highchair. So voila! A huge array of healthy wholesome food, ready to fill up her belly. </div><br />
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<span style="text-align: left;">I spent all day, from early morning to late at night, steaming and blending and mixing and freezing. A whole day people. Didn't stop to clean, to craft, to relax, didn't even get a shower. And I used every available container around here. Those heart shaped things are ice cube trays from Ikea. And just look at that yummy grape, strawberry and plum mix. Oh yeah, I break baby food rules left and right. But she's allergic to dairy and soy, so the kid's gotta eat something. Strawberries, oranges, chocolate, cinnamon, corn, pork, rye, tomatoes, egg whites, shellfish, mango, melon, wheat, she's had 'em all. </span><span style="text-align: left;"><b>Bad</b> mommy. At least I haven't given her honey or peanuts yet. </span><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: -webkit-auto;"><span style="text-align: left;">Mr. Sippy Cup is okay with my parenting. Look at him, beaming smiles of approval at me. And I filled him with an orange mango mix. Lila loves it. :)</span></div><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Stay tuned to find out what I've been sewing, and for the free pattern and tutorial to follow!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Best Wishes,</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Teresa</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-321462936294026727.post-37160298471089656412012-04-13T18:07:00.005-04:002012-04-15T09:39:41.833-04:00i heart embroidery<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXAMTrnw6GS60ZvlqjH6kp7U9GN3dmR3DlZslVASztmBF2T0STbAYhtNaOYb7E7uBEDGhFJaFt3OhuVQyFGlFrkBax65c47cWjYZ4DaRWvj3pbAW8tsjaZRswtl0cA1cgLCeZFhG-RwDtf/s1600/P1040786.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXAMTrnw6GS60ZvlqjH6kp7U9GN3dmR3DlZslVASztmBF2T0STbAYhtNaOYb7E7uBEDGhFJaFt3OhuVQyFGlFrkBax65c47cWjYZ4DaRWvj3pbAW8tsjaZRswtl0cA1cgLCeZFhG-RwDtf/s400/P1040786.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Do you love it too? I'm no expert in embroidery, but one doesn't have to be. It's a very accessible craft, don't you think? Just you, a needle and floss, a quiet evening, and some medium into which to sew. In this case, felt. Because I love felt too. It's also accessible, and it's affordable, colorful, and useful. I love the texturality of it (I think I just made up a word there), and that it doesn't fray when cut. There's no right or wrong side, no bias, no need to iron, and it's easy to stash away in a drawer. Don't be jealous, fabric. I love you too, and you know it. But felt will always have a place in my <3. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgD3yPZvAiXWsBLquRGQrL1XwCyQly7C9NSSiRoduvJaOrFH6fyFbaPvoLK2u6l_H0F6HdrfAgNzjDE45eQ84aY1e0kAsLPdJcIxw-yHbu3mtIzM2izrF7pZak42Xo7-J9GBrWzYiVEGyw1/s1600/toys1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="305" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgD3yPZvAiXWsBLquRGQrL1XwCyQly7C9NSSiRoduvJaOrFH6fyFbaPvoLK2u6l_H0F6HdrfAgNzjDE45eQ84aY1e0kAsLPdJcIxw-yHbu3mtIzM2izrF7pZak42Xo7-J9GBrWzYiVEGyw1/s400/toys1.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">So just what is this mess, you're wondering? Well in my mind, these are wonderful teaching tools for Lila, so she can learn her colors and shapes. In Lila's mind, they're squishy little toys for her to spread out, throw around, and give to the dogs to slobber on. Fair enough. I'm actually pretty happy that she plays with them. Notice how she spread them out into an arc? That wasn't me setting them up for a photo shoot, that was all her. Girl likes to have her tools at hand.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj63ayFm22OPCFqhk5MRk1j4smRR_AbUTy1xSdcTENRbup3cdTxNpHQ5FBwWhl8LUdLYvIU7FxYdUoTRn3jQKL8EJoBOpIjHZsz9ugYa0MlIHaIOKhClcmvcJSOTECjW3ZO5-vp9Ugol9ws/s1600/toys3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="342" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj63ayFm22OPCFqhk5MRk1j4smRR_AbUTy1xSdcTENRbup3cdTxNpHQ5FBwWhl8LUdLYvIU7FxYdUoTRn3jQKL8EJoBOpIjHZsz9ugYa0MlIHaIOKhClcmvcJSOTECjW3ZO5-vp9Ugol9ws/s400/toys3.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Looking closely, you'll see that I used two colors for each toy - a main color, and an accent color for the back and embroidery. I did that to stop myself from making twenty of these things. I have enough felt on hand to make hundreds, and of course I wanted to use as many colors as possible, and I know how my mind works. I needed a limit, and as it is, I barely kept myself down to ten. There's no <i>dark</i> blue in the set after all....</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhF5BcauQWBS2TfqH-nTQzTEqZcXu0Te3HoVs31OfozPQOy6SSQ8Ikeno7o9oC9SdogBaj96yanWnMRYhekMWo0wFLpWgI_F6yDihqdJKqdFvwEYE3b588SYmHkZkRK5Pvvl-mVFgH11UOA/s1600/P1040800.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhF5BcauQWBS2TfqH-nTQzTEqZcXu0Te3HoVs31OfozPQOy6SSQ8Ikeno7o9oC9SdogBaj96yanWnMRYhekMWo0wFLpWgI_F6yDihqdJKqdFvwEYE3b588SYmHkZkRK5Pvvl-mVFgH11UOA/s400/P1040800.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">To make these little squishies I first sketched out shapes onto paper. (If I'd thought about it, I could have saved myself some time and gone online to find printable shapes (like <a href="http://www.fisher-price.com/us/ms7/shapes-coloring-pages.asp" target="_blank">this website</a>), which I could then manipulate to the size I wanted using my printer settings). Next I cut out the front piece from one sheet of felt, and used it as a template to cut out another, slightly larger shape, from the alternate color of felt. Felt sort of sticks to itself, so it wasn't hard to do. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh87LunHazjnl3JH0W7Di24890GBvdx4djnDT-JHAscEoZOPf6ZAajo8hoihA48n3U38P4mMjGjpzowOiY5mdD44gdbZ3MDqXwnnZVaQN_nJhnW7h2vbfwY1Vrp7bSwDCMOXS8_DPD7S_6T/s1600/P1040803.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh87LunHazjnl3JH0W7Di24890GBvdx4djnDT-JHAscEoZOPf6ZAajo8hoihA48n3U38P4mMjGjpzowOiY5mdD44gdbZ3MDqXwnnZVaQN_nJhnW7h2vbfwY1Vrp7bSwDCMOXS8_DPD7S_6T/s400/P1040803.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Next, I had fun with embroidery, stitching whatever shapes or patterns came to mind. I made sure to leave space all around the edge for the blanket, or buttonhole stitching that you see, which was the next step. Here's a picture of what the back of my completed oval squishy looks like:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1JfNXP7e4G1DSZkXBOaExhb2Adj-M7LCwiiUv8hWhWkVipSi2OO1SJy5hth4nZ38n8xw-qfz9L-_68N7ifOOHVWy7nuuKohhjhGhyphenhyphenH_CiWk0ph0CBJKF_yKkqrfHWsHu-l2EyHGz6JMMG/s1600/P1040792.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1JfNXP7e4G1DSZkXBOaExhb2Adj-M7LCwiiUv8hWhWkVipSi2OO1SJy5hth4nZ38n8xw-qfz9L-_68N7ifOOHVWy7nuuKohhjhGhyphenhyphenH_CiWk0ph0CBJKF_yKkqrfHWsHu-l2EyHGz6JMMG/s400/P1040792.JPG" width="400" /></a><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">You can see the stitching well on this one because I had a hard time finding coordinating floss for that royal purple. After I had only an inch or so left to stitch around the outside of my shape, I grabbed some polyfil and stuffed until it was nice and squishy - not too hard or soft. Goldilocks. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Then I finished off my stitching and secured with a knot. To keep it looking clean, I pushed the needle into the middle of the toy, starting right next to the knot. Holding onto the end of the needle, I ran it through the polyfil, and out the middle of the back side. I tugged a little (the toy gets squished a bit here), cut off the floss right at the felt, and then massaged the back until the floss receded into the toy. The polyfil will hold the floss in place quite nicely that way, the exit hole will never show, and you won't easily notice where you tied off. This may not be the "professional" way to do it, but it's good enough for a felt toy. Reference the above photo for confirmation. </div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">And that's it! Pretty simple, really, and each time I finished another it was its own little reward. The part I enjoyed most was having fun with the patterns in the middle, like the diamond below:</div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzGjlSEIGxjFGcym45n_Hpgp598SerTjog1WKoBrMmNVQLBIEJqbvAqEKdrqYXlWRX-KkyOzX7qTBam2GAQOP9ckpnoMpUClJKmKgetNHUxki3bnuz5EqoiLD4BH5yzjUXKdhUA2WvI4de/s1600/P1040809.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzGjlSEIGxjFGcym45n_Hpgp598SerTjog1WKoBrMmNVQLBIEJqbvAqEKdrqYXlWRX-KkyOzX7qTBam2GAQOP9ckpnoMpUClJKmKgetNHUxki3bnuz5EqoiLD4BH5yzjUXKdhUA2WvI4de/s400/P1040809.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">These squishy toys also upped my embroidery skills a notch. I feel pretty good about my french knot these days. If you're looking for some tutorials on different stitches, you'll find plenty online. Here's an <a href="http://stitchschool.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">excellent one</a>, with tutorials for all the stitches you'll ever need listed along the left side of the blog.</div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Wondering which is my favorite? You know a mother never chooses from among her children. But it's the moon. I like the embroidery I chose for it, and also I like it because that's Lila's middle name. No, not Embroidery. That would be silly. I mean I love it and all, but c'mon. Moon. Lila Moon. </div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSC8W4qKhyphenhyphenizPXFjtUTs2ofW9iGIX6JVdYH3_vbEEb0ZlzoyM6-hpiNRO2bte6v0Grw4TLKJ58qSikFy8a_soWYOWRTbuiH0EWysGXnyAfe8r8b72a9iEBPTuLgSqmFfvCu4Qb7OOrPqtd/s1600/P1040817.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSC8W4qKhyphenhyphenizPXFjtUTs2ofW9iGIX6JVdYH3_vbEEb0ZlzoyM6-hpiNRO2bte6v0Grw4TLKJ58qSikFy8a_soWYOWRTbuiH0EWysGXnyAfe8r8b72a9iEBPTuLgSqmFfvCu4Qb7OOrPqtd/s400/P1040817.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqeEbAruijxMuodeu6-3j1KyiIHf5mhpmYp3AM95b6jrIcPj9KRqRGopMmg3zQA295VNIKBA8W_VQf3VhXXuWtfm-I2UJzA5PlnN5JaQCM4is6fhTRhyphenhyphenvWU4zpBcH7AONroVCuUxu434UD/s1600/toys4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="287" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqeEbAruijxMuodeu6-3j1KyiIHf5mhpmYp3AM95b6jrIcPj9KRqRGopMmg3zQA295VNIKBA8W_VQf3VhXXuWtfm-I2UJzA5PlnN5JaQCM4is6fhTRhyphenhyphenvWU4zpBcH7AONroVCuUxu434UD/s400/toys4.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="" style="clear: both;">And can I just say that it was smart of me to finish these <i>before</i> the arrival of baby Lila? I'm not sure I'd have the mental capacity to complete a project like this with a little one on hand. You probably could, but me, no. Though, taken one at a time, this is actually a reasonable project if you're not in a rush. And embroidery is sort of relaxing in a way, isn't it? So if you decide to try this out, let me know - I'd love to hear how it goes for you. </div><div class="" style="clear: both;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUY7Set6Sg3qXaaMu_WlNFkl7WwhYjnV9j3sV3JnK0qmQJvb_bvJW5JuvjXfMtoiuJUP5YtIrxwEWNMQIJ0raJblI1AJuV0EGZe7hlNduj0j9y0IrZUshyphenhyphenPZKPiX5wgHkwOWJdyVBLUP5w/s1600/P1040815.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUY7Set6Sg3qXaaMu_WlNFkl7WwhYjnV9j3sV3JnK0qmQJvb_bvJW5JuvjXfMtoiuJUP5YtIrxwEWNMQIJ0raJblI1AJuV0EGZe7hlNduj0j9y0IrZUshyphenhyphenPZKPiX5wgHkwOWJdyVBLUP5w/s200/P1040815.JPG" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpepnDXEnwo2SCCgs3Hvs3ZNve41eEBCv5dBBS8ER-zBU7oG8JXcys5aLVFqsVkRYhq3xzVCD6M5tSadvf2qVgtTSmidfIplblH8qdgLNpv9XS06cU9y0vjVFPWUZ_5udoMeoj5xnAP5-q/s1600/P1040805.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpepnDXEnwo2SCCgs3Hvs3ZNve41eEBCv5dBBS8ER-zBU7oG8JXcys5aLVFqsVkRYhq3xzVCD6M5tSadvf2qVgtTSmidfIplblH8qdgLNpv9XS06cU9y0vjVFPWUZ_5udoMeoj5xnAP5-q/s200/P1040805.JPG" width="200" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjYAH6ixvyFPGfcBQYHKkoYvzLERO2fdFmbI3eRdxH50LIHFb4U_XRo9qhtdQ7nQbMyxVb_SPPiwG1RZtPnKgQyX-5-iM0hSFoXtHFgpcfz1Xujdp0FotlT3skBBwDNcTf-iHY0Y6xlYNU/s1600/P1040814.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjYAH6ixvyFPGfcBQYHKkoYvzLERO2fdFmbI3eRdxH50LIHFb4U_XRo9qhtdQ7nQbMyxVb_SPPiwG1RZtPnKgQyX-5-iM0hSFoXtHFgpcfz1Xujdp0FotlT3skBBwDNcTf-iHY0Y6xlYNU/s200/P1040814.JPG" width="200" /></a></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjLbegqDODcSQaPbYJU2pLOMpRhc8n__Tnncotk1NsMcqNDoeb2QleotvpjexS1HVDRLtKmhbYcN4rkrnbZJkti4LrW0ZhO572dZC78s9Z1uPXkpqm4EhXcKurREvEC1FGnodWgkxuxqqn/s1600/P1040807.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjLbegqDODcSQaPbYJU2pLOMpRhc8n__Tnncotk1NsMcqNDoeb2QleotvpjexS1HVDRLtKmhbYcN4rkrnbZJkti4LrW0ZhO572dZC78s9Z1uPXkpqm4EhXcKurREvEC1FGnodWgkxuxqqn/s200/P1040807.JPG" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXAdMSX5bmZrPR3lTXRckwz1Y4BKRpDSEEU4RV_wh_reU2g6Vg71Hsko12OJaTxdxB85b9lygC_mY6XYdU3mJZ0evCkbTrbSpCyrlZ4nxEqx2smVbgdooIwUr2nv68IgtsiBzSgLmBmMj4/s1600/P1040801.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXAdMSX5bmZrPR3lTXRckwz1Y4BKRpDSEEU4RV_wh_reU2g6Vg71Hsko12OJaTxdxB85b9lygC_mY6XYdU3mJZ0evCkbTrbSpCyrlZ4nxEqx2smVbgdooIwUr2nv68IgtsiBzSgLmBmMj4/s200/P1040801.JPG" width="200" /></a><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">(Is "flower" a shape? Hmmm...)<br />
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<div style="text-align: left;">Best Wishes,</div><div style="text-align: left;">Teresa</div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-321462936294026727.post-66057870477712408812012-04-08T15:37:00.006-04:002012-04-19T16:08:03.243-04:00easter FAIL - sort of...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSOU5SjguMKYDqQk6-9rHcDore1hpZZ7FjBCQCivSFMVOsIF-7CHriQtLN2W5mMjqXTAfE06If4J-yRtILsn1H3ra-5r0Be85QZKgGgXpqxtl_Kd9I7_BR9RqUNP9AA9Ek3iv-XHPqTT8o/s1600/P1040699.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSOU5SjguMKYDqQk6-9rHcDore1hpZZ7FjBCQCivSFMVOsIF-7CHriQtLN2W5mMjqXTAfE06If4J-yRtILsn1H3ra-5r0Be85QZKgGgXpqxtl_Kd9I7_BR9RqUNP9AA9Ek3iv-XHPqTT8o/s640/P1040699.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><br />
This is what failure looks like. Or at least what it feels like if you're 32 years old and spent all your spare time for an entire week before Easter in your craft room, churning out one no-go after another. If you've chanced upon my "about" page then you know I'm willing to share my failures as well as successes. Get ready for some fail. <br />
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Like this gem - what was going to be a fun tutorial on how to make an extra big papier mache easter egg. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpKurkibGxXMwPxb1PhHoTSFS4F9H_qXRO8lTkQP4ZddUQYec6Pzykad_ZYM_HcRvgk4qxCpTm3pss6hSVUAACRdJsQkjDUhgMY6ma02zaMJdh1JbDCCVjq5mrJQ7T0JjaEXImu0b7xJMa/s1600/P1040635.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpKurkibGxXMwPxb1PhHoTSFS4F9H_qXRO8lTkQP4ZddUQYec6Pzykad_ZYM_HcRvgk4qxCpTm3pss6hSVUAACRdJsQkjDUhgMY6ma02zaMJdh1JbDCCVjq5mrJQ7T0JjaEXImu0b7xJMa/s200/P1040635.JPG" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5vc6vNNRfkowix62G0GfD0yHcPE6Q2r1oe6y2g2XD7ELbwfOAzXoHA4w94OcHfDRYQM0Znrobo70Q_50V6u5oAR9O_Zst0fQdqX_j5P-OEHK-TkJ2vHNHhFIZ7J59_TUnPDjAcVgi_cN4/s1600/P1040633.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5vc6vNNRfkowix62G0GfD0yHcPE6Q2r1oe6y2g2XD7ELbwfOAzXoHA4w94OcHfDRYQM0Znrobo70Q_50V6u5oAR9O_Zst0fQdqX_j5P-OEHK-TkJ2vHNHhFIZ7J59_TUnPDjAcVgi_cN4/s200/P1040633.JPG" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLPZC0OPtB-Zqon0jQvZL1vuzYCI7Q6KjKgisUxPhbHwavYqBwBi092cUygNJMcQrB9WgSeIsiTgIjelt0JcDsCUyKbNetFWNQeNhnhuu6n3EEeOl-_ByV-SOPI-MJslOCMwFJx-UjidlN/s1600/P1040638.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLPZC0OPtB-Zqon0jQvZL1vuzYCI7Q6KjKgisUxPhbHwavYqBwBi092cUygNJMcQrB9WgSeIsiTgIjelt0JcDsCUyKbNetFWNQeNhnhuu6n3EEeOl-_ByV-SOPI-MJslOCMwFJx-UjidlN/s200/P1040638.JPG" width="150" /></a></div><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOy195dPOXffsLebK56nkjixYF6YVRfZPskDLRKsjrQ7hp4m3ijoGmIVAOuOTARdJmeGquhRyK5GTQTH65JN40PN2W-9Z2tqa-wA6KFxwgv9SYoHGQe5bH122ZThaY8N_7cHCvPapLB7F6/s1600/P1040640.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOy195dPOXffsLebK56nkjixYF6YVRfZPskDLRKsjrQ7hp4m3ijoGmIVAOuOTARdJmeGquhRyK5GTQTH65JN40PN2W-9Z2tqa-wA6KFxwgv9SYoHGQe5bH122ZThaY8N_7cHCvPapLB7F6/s200/P1040640.JPG" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAgQxpEEpdnLfum1xA2evdWU8RG9cCR3nD9UarDwSl2IHrc52HAbFNJeViVvZr2iSthhKWk9zq4gh_Diq2g_qvjIVKScMY8kgeqNvbporF5CrR3mS0VYOyShDgWjjYq6F8_w_LtnP8SyZ2/s1600/P1040641.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAgQxpEEpdnLfum1xA2evdWU8RG9cCR3nD9UarDwSl2IHrc52HAbFNJeViVvZr2iSthhKWk9zq4gh_Diq2g_qvjIVKScMY8kgeqNvbporF5CrR3mS0VYOyShDgWjjYq6F8_w_LtnP8SyZ2/s200/P1040641.JPG" width="150" /></a></div><br />
I envisioned a pretty, painted, almost as large as Lila Easter egg, maybe even stuffed with Easter goodies, pinata style. It was going to be such a cute photo prop, her peeking out from behind, happy smiles and all. But the weather just wasn't cooperating. Left out to dry overnight, it was still tacky in the morning. I thought, "Oh, okay, it's because the flour and salt recipe I'm using can't handle the high humidity, so I'll just switch to the old reliable glue and water mix". Well I didn't even bother photographing <i>that</i> fail. Thirty minutes of the blow-dryer on high wasn't enough to dry it, so I gave up on the egg altogether. On to the bunny ears.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVrLrQTal7s_UPFWSm69pmZKxX9YZ3f4ijWjwnxWdVScG6c17YmAXOLJ8yl4r1Fie8JQquFO6TmEz0KO6akrBZeIfehn-zkleNO540DIAyqocMSpIwWl2qdMqjATqyIUd_cMxPehK6xxQv/s1600/P1040651.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVrLrQTal7s_UPFWSm69pmZKxX9YZ3f4ijWjwnxWdVScG6c17YmAXOLJ8yl4r1Fie8JQquFO6TmEz0KO6akrBZeIfehn-zkleNO540DIAyqocMSpIwWl2qdMqjATqyIUd_cMxPehK6xxQv/s400/P1040651.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
I grabbed these from the $1 section at Target, but didn't like the silky inner fabric, so switched it out for flannel. At this point I'm already running low on Easter craft time, and I'm rushing, and not even pre-ironing. So, yeah, fail. I'm too ashamed to even show the close-up of the after. I did end up using the bunny ears though, as you'll see. Just no close-ups. <br />
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Next? Easter basket. Must be handmade. Must not be store-bought. "What kind of mother would I be if I didn't make Lila's basket?" I heard myself saying to my husband in Target while looking at lots of perfectly cute baskets. "I can do better than that". You're familiar with this arrogance. It's how we get ourselves in trouble. <br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvWb7tDUodoZDUAerWri49yj0zj1u7jz3_tmexmqmYdQzeDd2qqOWP6f96cE9q7xQhTNIrAHNvX4VmYRMzKuD0U2ysdZ9EAroXEVltx3rRDwR2fTEAHj268dgspSEmbp7TFmdpNRFJNYsA/s1600/P1040655.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvWb7tDUodoZDUAerWri49yj0zj1u7jz3_tmexmqmYdQzeDd2qqOWP6f96cE9q7xQhTNIrAHNvX4VmYRMzKuD0U2ysdZ9EAroXEVltx3rRDwR2fTEAHj268dgspSEmbp7TFmdpNRFJNYsA/s400/P1040655.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The makings of a cute hand-made basket? I think not.</td></tr>
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</div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHntmdZU0aq4-gmUFg0vcA-9cz1LvLTDSRz6yhV1vAtYIgqrHZLSfoae9Zf4q-FOtkDbdCJPlTdAfxl-ojsst2y3IznEtaPExLqpcFKFLm5n1oX8YPaYUOZCWb8Ji_hJgGOl8lTOm8Pqcz/s1600/P1040659.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHntmdZU0aq4-gmUFg0vcA-9cz1LvLTDSRz6yhV1vAtYIgqrHZLSfoae9Zf4q-FOtkDbdCJPlTdAfxl-ojsst2y3IznEtaPExLqpcFKFLm5n1oX8YPaYUOZCWb8Ji_hJgGOl8lTOm8Pqcz/s200/P1040659.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">What fail looks like close-up.</td></tr>
</tbody></table><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiW4CDDkjKWmusZjyi1TfbxqdYUalq8HR3Lur68izqwmOcTF80mxa3qybpZGwuJJcJM24iC8kz3_uxRZ3Ioa-E183TR_wrojj4-uehwgrfZsAJAggvCokjBZWsYzq1I0EuOjimnqE7gVb3/s1600/P1040658.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiW4CDDkjKWmusZjyi1TfbxqdYUalq8HR3Lur68izqwmOcTF80mxa3qybpZGwuJJcJM24iC8kz3_uxRZ3Ioa-E183TR_wrojj4-uehwgrfZsAJAggvCokjBZWsYzq1I0EuOjimnqE7gVb3/s200/P1040658.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Try, try again.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>But no, as it turns out, I cannot do better than that. Not this year. Two separate failed attempts later, I gave up on the basket idea, and on any hope for a handmade Easter. Total Easter Fail. I probably ruin about one in five or six projects on average. I try lots of new things, I often don't work with patterns, and I'm generally ambitious. So it happens. But when it happens that many times in a row, well, maybe there's a message being sent. Like STOP. Like Get Out Of The Craft Room NOW. Go GARDEN, or, God-forbid, cook. Take a walk, take a breath, do something, anything else. <br />
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Okay then. How about dyeing some Easter eggs? Too bad I forgot to purchase white ones, but had a ton of brown ones on hand. Oh well, at this point I just need to get out of the craft room, so brown Easter eggs it is. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFykg2y4cWRjRTXZ6KdtvuiAQ_M0VrSqN3XMs-v9beF5MpQSUx8HT9Q_2w6PhXNv-Yp0LKvDO3iVT3wi1LEDJ_Idbga4NsgG2L9Fpwp31vjAY0o3e9y-GxrGiqZ23bxjIOFKGDczjqt6yW/s1600/P1040663.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFykg2y4cWRjRTXZ6KdtvuiAQ_M0VrSqN3XMs-v9beF5MpQSUx8HT9Q_2w6PhXNv-Yp0LKvDO3iVT3wi1LEDJ_Idbga4NsgG2L9Fpwp31vjAY0o3e9y-GxrGiqZ23bxjIOFKGDczjqt6yW/s400/P1040663.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>Could be worse, right? I kinda like 'em. Just a cheap $1.50 Paas kit. Next year I'll be doing white though. And my papier mache egg will be a success too, I'm sure of it. But as for this year? <br />
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I awoke to a quiet house and dawn breaking, and looking out the kitchen window, I saw a lone doe gracefully walking the edge of the woods. After a minute or so of feeding, she lifted her head for a moment, then bounded out of sight into the woods, her white tail held high.<br />
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Later, Daddy made a delicious breakfast for us to eat outdoors in the sunshine and fresh air, with birds singing and a soft breeze blowing, light music playing from the deck....<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF8U_dxkhB28_kFNe_-kETmIn2BeBnvbC-ZBHwKowAF_vFFTteTG6zWVyNmg23i7gXkCSv_g9Ru_1lSTdYK-vw2XzVKEbvT5eAXEfnPMIr8qJNn3RkZnkIoAr4cxtgnxIaqhuqHKRNThOH/s1600/P1040706.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF8U_dxkhB28_kFNe_-kETmIn2BeBnvbC-ZBHwKowAF_vFFTteTG6zWVyNmg23i7gXkCSv_g9Ru_1lSTdYK-vw2XzVKEbvT5eAXEfnPMIr8qJNn3RkZnkIoAr4cxtgnxIaqhuqHKRNThOH/s400/P1040706.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">That's fresh-squeezed orange juice, folks. Real maple syrup.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Fresh smashed strawberries and raspberries. </div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVDpyykuswRFmwxBlh7_qIZ2gY7lWpkYfHiuQ_uDHFWel-0xpJEl-phjrDLq9l-avyQMpY_KsYJ_m3gTpOEzB2SCxVxCMl5WBx4nAF0-wtcSyLJlq0TXZ5IJ6H98MjBau2XexZT70IaiFU/s1600/P1040704.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVDpyykuswRFmwxBlh7_qIZ2gY7lWpkYfHiuQ_uDHFWel-0xpJEl-phjrDLq9l-avyQMpY_KsYJ_m3gTpOEzB2SCxVxCMl5WBx4nAF0-wtcSyLJlq0TXZ5IJ6H98MjBau2XexZT70IaiFU/s400/P1040704.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">Yummy cappuccino. </div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuhRsiMPjP6vP2uK16KHnwGHioqppGJS8uEKZFOPPJ5H5fGno3PtqKEBreDick4Icf8cuuzo3OMneaEwVlo38uG3V5mbU5braiWxONNK9f8sux1VkXji7QWH3T4ERTdRpR3f06I3WES-QE/s1600/P1040711.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuhRsiMPjP6vP2uK16KHnwGHioqppGJS8uEKZFOPPJ5H5fGno3PtqKEBreDick4Icf8cuuzo3OMneaEwVlo38uG3V5mbU5braiWxONNK9f8sux1VkXji7QWH3T4ERTdRpR3f06I3WES-QE/s400/P1040711.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">Perfectly personalized eggs. </div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVqJ6XWI_8frW0glwVsYE2I4p6x_D8LvhcxrDcC3K5czNIKlJmh-LAW8qGgQnAtvndfnmSw8x2JfAVpmozKqlaaacipIvbgjJ3d7lyJJq8ZyKacGdtA7GSSDDMrFy7mfBESc4HNjDVWtwS/s1600/P1040707.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVqJ6XWI_8frW0glwVsYE2I4p6x_D8LvhcxrDcC3K5czNIKlJmh-LAW8qGgQnAtvndfnmSw8x2JfAVpmozKqlaaacipIvbgjJ3d7lyJJq8ZyKacGdtA7GSSDDMrFy7mfBESc4HNjDVWtwS/s400/P1040707.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
And bunny toppers for the pancake stacks. Which may or may not have been harvested from the cupcakes, which I may or may not have eaten the majority of before the holiday even arrived. They're chocolate, okay? Or were...<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwcaBeAW_17_Is321oVRnur8gzgi_7qUaNvk28lENTaNzAHu_sM6El40D4lyKb-QxizwMFB00GqusRT-lorK-b2zOUFDM3GVSE2-1WD55xrILlZz_FyA2eMx2ptmsoqv3AUrC34hszRheL/s1600/bunny.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwcaBeAW_17_Is321oVRnur8gzgi_7qUaNvk28lENTaNzAHu_sM6El40D4lyKb-QxizwMFB00GqusRT-lorK-b2zOUFDM3GVSE2-1WD55xrILlZz_FyA2eMx2ptmsoqv3AUrC34hszRheL/s640/bunny.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><br />
And Lila. My little bunny. She was born in the Year of the Rabbit you know. And apparently rabbits like eggs?<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">Gather those eggs together...</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUv7_7e8sMQ3QwBl4rG13IrNV3dLdO8LsMnXsB0qpBZMcvBTRuP22UbSVyX5G8TjNud1H5-adZZk6Bv6WjX45NaA7Uq7WoN1RqErvZPjC6UKP4EPGuxFvdyRr4ctgtFbg5y_DHhwOYJyqJ/s1600/P1040667.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUv7_7e8sMQ3QwBl4rG13IrNV3dLdO8LsMnXsB0qpBZMcvBTRuP22UbSVyX5G8TjNud1H5-adZZk6Bv6WjX45NaA7Uq7WoN1RqErvZPjC6UKP4EPGuxFvdyRr4ctgtFbg5y_DHhwOYJyqJ/s640/P1040667.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">Fill that basket... Why the sad face?</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHtl9toXsTpHQKqj5-t5DoisuNrAA0c5yIww6IoVG5toOxOXGDjR9J4kUwE4H5VBUKzU0DU-YL2TRBheZkOCnC4f2vOkbzR-1ys5vFXW7Y3OxURU6ILDpCCEya5FIu1EuBbugop6uQe29u/s1600/P1040686.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHtl9toXsTpHQKqj5-t5DoisuNrAA0c5yIww6IoVG5toOxOXGDjR9J4kUwE4H5VBUKzU0DU-YL2TRBheZkOCnC4f2vOkbzR-1ys5vFXW7Y3OxURU6ILDpCCEya5FIu1EuBbugop6uQe29u/s640/P1040686.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">Tip it over... Wait, is that part of this?</div><br />
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Tear off bunny ears, and abandon basket for much more interesting chair, which can be climbed.<br />
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And a few more pics of what, after all, turned out to be a perfectly nice Easter. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO9FVDBeEhQux6EgC_9p2vZZ7qdHs6airXxSVUlAyy1PDKVQQ93loQOPpJk41LwUtYnojpnzhM5UcXjmOqVT7iGRNjommPKqRyU3a-8ztA9VeXiQM9VUWGDtXFmJk_hZ0xvlOyHOA719gu/s1600/P1040740.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO9FVDBeEhQux6EgC_9p2vZZ7qdHs6airXxSVUlAyy1PDKVQQ93loQOPpJk41LwUtYnojpnzhM5UcXjmOqVT7iGRNjommPKqRyU3a-8ztA9VeXiQM9VUWGDtXFmJk_hZ0xvlOyHOA719gu/s400/P1040740.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">And those eggs were yummy.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIcO8mRANS1OASlPF5hXaNreGWnxp0X397zCmY4WZUCiwSO4kLuYLRC7DHpa9w-k_wBZG_lVY5TOuHGUNt2f29AEwM0J-2NkVPhZVr0MMz5nsMs0XPKQERToRR3CUBpnNkUA01K35x9qtE/s1600/P1040748.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIcO8mRANS1OASlPF5hXaNreGWnxp0X397zCmY4WZUCiwSO4kLuYLRC7DHpa9w-k_wBZG_lVY5TOuHGUNt2f29AEwM0J-2NkVPhZVr0MMz5nsMs0XPKQERToRR3CUBpnNkUA01K35x9qtE/s400/P1040748.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>Happy Easter!<br />
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Best Wishes,<br />
TeresaUnknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-321462936294026727.post-56309079404887914342012-04-03T17:12:00.008-04:002012-04-13T12:02:36.824-04:00sweet little dress: pattern review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibJBWUDgn8Yd4H1bb6pir2O16yNjIqPk1UeEn9DNRsSPHoN7RTbEH00R3F1m3hstsZLK1IIjmUPIG0yQW4kgJPfRkU70eHwheMw-rJCGQ3bsYL4YvlvhYVw2QZmKU_h8SePweeHWJgnssx/s1600/dress2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibJBWUDgn8Yd4H1bb6pir2O16yNjIqPk1UeEn9DNRsSPHoN7RTbEH00R3F1m3hstsZLK1IIjmUPIG0yQW4kgJPfRkU70eHwheMw-rJCGQ3bsYL4YvlvhYVw2QZmKU_h8SePweeHWJgnssx/s640/dress2.JPG" width="480" /></a></div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Sweet little dress, and sweet little pattern as well! This is the "sweet little dress" pattern by<a href="http://leilaandben.com/" target="_blank"> Leila & Ben</a>, priced at $6. (You can purchase the 12M to 5T pattern <a href="http://leilaandben.com/sweetdress.htm" target="_blank">here</a>. They also have a pattern for babies under 12M and another for kids age 6 to 10 on their website, all of them downloadable PDF's). </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">First let me say that I actually had fun making these. Yes. Fun. Otherwise I wouldn't have hauled off and made three of 'em. Once I'd finished the first one, the rest came together extremely fast - less than two hours apiece. And for that investment of time, I'm very happy with the results. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgorsNKxLGinLsN_rNRgKaalgCd59mrpDF0K5d8stU44uIXpI6dYuH1NYSz9dTw-GHerjTx2j2_-eM2NhrmSRs8QfU-7VEPL9F_eoP0iNj9Fl3W_mV9Cude6bYp8tQVDLvH3Bl0bcCRyvup/s1600/dress11.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgorsNKxLGinLsN_rNRgKaalgCd59mrpDF0K5d8stU44uIXpI6dYuH1NYSz9dTw-GHerjTx2j2_-eM2NhrmSRs8QfU-7VEPL9F_eoP0iNj9Fl3W_mV9Cude6bYp8tQVDLvH3Bl0bcCRyvup/s400/dress11.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One day I will rule this Earth...</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I think the simplicity of the solid fabric, shot cottons by <a href="http://www.kaffefassett.com/Home.html" target="_blank">Kaffe Fassett</a>, pairs beautifully with the understated details of the pattern. My sister, who has a baby girl the same age as my Lila, saw the picture above and immediately requested one for her Kira. She actually told me she'd pay money for one. Which of course I would never take, but I tell you, she was enthusiastic. Well, I can't have poor Kira going all nakey, can I? So I made her one too - the pink one. It's in the mail and on the way as I'm writing this. (Don't tell!)</span><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH3_T9ox2a7eTx8H_P-e9O63OTz29IUK6JmlGcViQbIcjtKyTt96ViumjoQ0fJ0XmtNCraVu6Hm4v56GqltY7hIO1BxziMlXIRLd4rwbmfl6e0ltS2KEGxZM_l5mKm84v0uxktooUdwPOj/s1600/dress1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="287" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH3_T9ox2a7eTx8H_P-e9O63OTz29IUK6JmlGcViQbIcjtKyTt96ViumjoQ0fJ0XmtNCraVu6Hm4v56GqltY7hIO1BxziMlXIRLd4rwbmfl6e0ltS2KEGxZM_l5mKm84v0uxktooUdwPOj/s400/dress1.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">These are sized for a 12 month old, larger than our nine month old babies, so there's room to grow. I modified the pattern on all three to make them more of a short dress, which will later function as a regular shirt. I thought the shorter length, cut above the knee, was cuter for a baby, and easier for them to crawl, scoot, and pull themselves up in. The purple one is hemmed very short, so that it fits as a shirt for now. However, if you look closely, you'll see the hem is set higher, and that's because I have another, hidden hem rolled up and pressed inside there. So all I have to do when I want more length is undo the outer hem, wash, dry, and press the bottom, and it'll be all ready to go - no more sewing required. Yay!</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBwetjBhyuDITkvov_Kg2gLHilfOahdNL6SB3JD6vpLsIfiOe4QB2Lji0A975b2I-tcgZEJKbtmanrxrviHMUBVmephQYZp5um-NZlKl4Ygh1YPH0iNdGwd-Lv8thFpcbEggK4m_HMroai/s1600/dress3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBwetjBhyuDITkvov_Kg2gLHilfOahdNL6SB3JD6vpLsIfiOe4QB2Lji0A975b2I-tcgZEJKbtmanrxrviHMUBVmephQYZp5um-NZlKl4Ygh1YPH0iNdGwd-Lv8thFpcbEggK4m_HMroai/s400/dress3.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">see the different hems?</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And looking closely at the hem on the blue dress, you'll see that I've added embroidery along the bottom, just for an extra little something (and because I've been searching for an excuse to try that stitch on my sewing machine, truth be told). </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What I Learned:</span></div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkTW_HF4eWuUDKPABY8WdnCOVxjNMtNPWPbDQ3b0KzDFd95bpfn1WKP8RS-xmzSU2ZNS6T3wUKXr6t0DD9dFAQCc0-Sr7hU_YKnVGz4F4k8NwD2ECjdze1q0BrBEwmWes0x6siI1mYpVbe/s1600/dress8.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="289" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkTW_HF4eWuUDKPABY8WdnCOVxjNMtNPWPbDQ3b0KzDFd95bpfn1WKP8RS-xmzSU2ZNS6T3wUKXr6t0DD9dFAQCc0-Sr7hU_YKnVGz4F4k8NwD2ECjdze1q0BrBEwmWes0x6siI1mYpVbe/s320/dress8.JPG" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">First, the pattern cut-out. I had to pay a lot of attention while cutting out the pattern, and do a lot of cutting and taping of different pieces which had printed across multiple pages to form the body pattern. It was a little confusing there for a second, and took a bit of time. Looking closely at the pattern, I think it may be more of an issue for the 12M size than the others. But with a bit of patience it came together correctly in the end - no big deal. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">To modify the length, I traced the bottom hem onto a sheet of paper, cut it out to use as a template, and then placed it over the original pattern, moving it up and down until I was happy with the length. Then I traced it onto the original, and cut. This left me a shorter pattern, but the same slight curve along the bottom the original version had. Make sense? </span><br />
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</span></div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYM-pF7uRcNJcYvFaowofrU8QFKFPwyu0EFgQSlKhdsa47PIDrX8cXvOO1m15YiprIlYFOQLGY1vxFgpqjH0gNLKmcMvpwdFyqg_nbd_gSmEV9LHSLUeoGCopT9oHxS-kQ4icnMC29aqGS/s1600/dress6.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYM-pF7uRcNJcYvFaowofrU8QFKFPwyu0EFgQSlKhdsa47PIDrX8cXvOO1m15YiprIlYFOQLGY1vxFgpqjH0gNLKmcMvpwdFyqg_nbd_gSmEV9LHSLUeoGCopT9oHxS-kQ4icnMC29aqGS/s320/dress6.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: left;">When cutting out the fabric, I realized the sleeve pattern was a mirror image just like the body piece, and could be folded in half and placed along the fold of the fabric for cutting, just like you do for the body piece. Since there are two sleeves per dress this saved me a bit of time, and after making three of these, it added up. If you have a baby you know what I'm talking about here. Craft time = nap time - (cleaning+laundry+errand+cooking time) = not a lot of time. Along the same lines, I discovered that sewing all four of the sleeve seams first, and then going back and zigzag stitching to finish them, saved some time. (Rather than sewing one, switching over to zigzag, adjusting settings, trimming, and switching back again as the pattern instructs). </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-p7HskYhFVFc3SHXeIjKMROZkSD8gjcIOlht-sSWkY2trVlowlBw5IrmkblgCr2izXu1N0HKyOECxF43PhqmhT3rsKF7oC6pZW2GhkmD9bxPJ0p-vKb6HEniYSVTCNDMru1cxEap2kgiP/s1600/dress5.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-p7HskYhFVFc3SHXeIjKMROZkSD8gjcIOlht-sSWkY2trVlowlBw5IrmkblgCr2izXu1N0HKyOECxF43PhqmhT3rsKF7oC6pZW2GhkmD9bxPJ0p-vKb6HEniYSVTCNDMru1cxEap2kgiP/s320/dress5.JPG" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And a final tip: be careful when sewing around that neck hem - if your fabric is anything like mine, it will want to unroll itself as you sew that curve, and chaos will ensue. The seam<i> </i>ripper will pay you a visit. And you know you don't want that. So take your time, and make sure those seam allowances are <b>well</b> pressed before you start. Luckily, the neck is all elasticized in the end, so minor mistakes won't show. And you know your little darling is just going to puke up all over it anyway, right?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In the end, this was a simple, easy to follow, guaranteed success kind of a pattern. And because it's basic, I could envision all kinds of sweet ways to make it your own - embroidery, applique, coordinating sleeve fabric, bias tape or rickrack for trim along the bottom, pockets, buttons, golly gee. I'm starting to want to make another, just so I can try out something from that list. If you'd like to see some very cute variations of this dress using patterned fabrics, corduroy, and in full length, check out<a href="http://smashedpeasandcarrots.blogspot.com/2010/08/sewing-binge-and-labels.html" target="_blank"> this post </a>from Maggie over at <a href="http://smashedpeasandcarrots.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Smashed Peas and Carrots</a>. Since I have the basic pattern through 5T, I know I'm going to get a ton of use from it. So, final review: I'm </span><i style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">really</i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> happy with this pattern. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkTW_HF4eWuUDKPABY8WdnCOVxjNMtNPWPbDQ3b0KzDFd95bpfn1WKP8RS-xmzSU2ZNS6T3wUKXr6t0DD9dFAQCc0-Sr7hU_YKnVGz4F4k8NwD2ECjdze1q0BrBEwmWes0x6siI1mYpVbe/s1600/dress8.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9QSQcuhBlrvD1A1mshQdJ4wxlWFR-SEcvjl4Eo8IWO95Z1TqHoDwxQb9HdrnKOimhR_WGym_Wv-r7axLRRpL-tJOFY0zgEKcidrDn2OjONRd1GiDc3zEBKR9n1cGwLWqHtlHN-bzvIF8F/s1600/dress9.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="272" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9QSQcuhBlrvD1A1mshQdJ4wxlWFR-SEcvjl4Eo8IWO95Z1TqHoDwxQb9HdrnKOimhR_WGym_Wv-r7axLRRpL-tJOFY0zgEKcidrDn2OjONRd1GiDc3zEBKR9n1cGwLWqHtlHN-bzvIF8F/s400/dress9.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhoq1kOsxv2CEEa3DWbV7Gm_yflsNT5Aua0zyw1ZNRXEJxUfxyI7jft6s8SGbMlPMw5t3HwQ4h-CsDzJCzHKPzM55RG9K7vx8KmoGVSOjvHVIgZqomqQGtBhgBCnwAy8tzkBPM6rdhzM2j/s1600/dress12.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhoq1kOsxv2CEEa3DWbV7Gm_yflsNT5Aua0zyw1ZNRXEJxUfxyI7jft6s8SGbMlPMw5t3HwQ4h-CsDzJCzHKPzM55RG9K7vx8KmoGVSOjvHVIgZqomqQGtBhgBCnwAy8tzkBPM6rdhzM2j/s400/dress12.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">my cutie patootie, with Sukie on guard</td></tr>
</tbody></table>See the above photo? That's Lila, pointing to the end of my blog post. As in, finish up Mom, and come play with me! Yes ma'am. <br />
<br />
Best wishes,<br />
TeresaUnknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-321462936294026727.post-43148682823137368842012-04-03T12:03:00.004-04:002012-04-28T11:36:09.034-04:00seen in bloom<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1GWxN2YgdqDSPJ0xW_0BGS97yAUvTRNNBbdtHzLhnJhzwL_Qs9W1ATUB9umeUSz1AydbKhXR0FqVUGPb5qt7vaLvWPJeZwR5g9YtLU58fLPOk_pY-1TrnMDi-Xjv9bsWiE0AD8POsviI6/s1600/flowers6.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1GWxN2YgdqDSPJ0xW_0BGS97yAUvTRNNBbdtHzLhnJhzwL_Qs9W1ATUB9umeUSz1AydbKhXR0FqVUGPb5qt7vaLvWPJeZwR5g9YtLU58fLPOk_pY-1TrnMDi-Xjv9bsWiE0AD8POsviI6/s400/flowers6.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'm in love with spring in the South. Where I grew up, in northern Wisconsin, spring is a mushy, muddy, wet, cold, season with the occasional teaser day of warmth, followed by by record-breaking blizzards. I love my home state, and my hometown, and miss it most of the time. With maybe one exception - I almost never go to visit in spring. Funny story. First time I took my husband (then boyfriend) home to see my family, we drove up from North Carolina. It was spring, and by the time we got close to home, there was a monster snow-storm raging across the Northwoods, semi-trucks flipped into snow-banks, almost everything closed down. It took a loooong time to finish the last two hours of the drive - or what should have been two hours. I'm pretty sure my husband thought I'd grown up in the wild wastelands of the north. It took several </span><i style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">years</i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> for me to talk him into visiting again. The next visit was during summer, and I believe his opinion of the "Big Woods" was greatly improved.</span><br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9stD-916PXWUQ0lYGTQ3RIeHHfRxP-C1G5i6-lizaWNDg44F8CdhM7axOPohnT_AvPHfCDrjhva1RYXz5GQf_r3-yMlepSmGnut0b84YPeTgh1Tq8g0B0ohNpLPkMh5-tOqzuY-dQxNN-/s1600/flowers9.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9stD-916PXWUQ0lYGTQ3RIeHHfRxP-C1G5i6-lizaWNDg44F8CdhM7axOPohnT_AvPHfCDrjhva1RYXz5GQf_r3-yMlepSmGnut0b84YPeTgh1Tq8g0B0ohNpLPkMh5-tOqzuY-dQxNN-/s400/flowers9.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">(wildflower, more widely known as a weed)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So, I have a healthy and well-rounded appreciation of springtime in the South, with the smell of honeysuckle wafting through the air, birds flitting and singing and visiting the feeder, and everything in bloom under the warm rays of the sun. Which brings me to the post today, in which I share pictures of plants seen in bloom around the yard. If you live up north, then you may be experiencing feelings of hostility toward me right now. Yes, I can feel it through the internet. I'm sensitive like that. But wait, keep reading....</span></div>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirkCjnhcx9ES2v9w2kvBvVW8v3Iddn-NumxcWHQ79UmtKPJXTeaInFCecaiaipBe_R9HwbJ0ev7YBBPoH9PmQOIBYQJIt_kLqwYNJKRttEae65_8jZJqrWHjlNsBRGH5FeFSZDh7bPmDyi/s1600/flowers1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirkCjnhcx9ES2v9w2kvBvVW8v3Iddn-NumxcWHQ79UmtKPJXTeaInFCecaiaipBe_R9HwbJ0ev7YBBPoH9PmQOIBYQJIt_kLqwYNJKRttEae65_8jZJqrWHjlNsBRGH5FeFSZDh7bPmDyi/s400/flowers1.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">(dianthus - looks like someone took pinking shears to them, doesn't it?)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I can still remember my first spring in the South, and the sudden realization that all the pretty blooming pictures you always see in calendars aren't a story-book fantasy. They're REAL. That's what spring is like, if you don't live up north. But, then, spring is followed by summer, and a southern summer is sort of equivalent to a northern spring, isn't it? Sliding into the seat of your parked car is like entering the core of a nuclear reactor. So, if you live up north, our roles will be reversed in three months. Yes, it's summer that I most miss Wisconsin, and swimming in lakes of pure fresh water, and small-town fairs and festivals, and cool starry nights. But wait... I'm wandering.... </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Are you still with me? Good. Here's your reward for making it to the end:</span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQ7PSmzrkP-2Yl2HSQkrU6O1xSelcO4PvVZ-3Tqs6eK3J3-Dx65w3usGbRjaH3qE18lGVvBF15vv6YTvoQcOgPC40FTIa4oQjDUZGsM7ujaOyVVOAfNyffGiloXcBwuKhdWGcEP_F-LZLD/s1600/flowers3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="306" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQ7PSmzrkP-2Yl2HSQkrU6O1xSelcO4PvVZ-3Tqs6eK3J3-Dx65w3usGbRjaH3qE18lGVvBF15vv6YTvoQcOgPC40FTIa4oQjDUZGsM7ujaOyVVOAfNyffGiloXcBwuKhdWGcEP_F-LZLD/s400/flowers3.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">(wild violet)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbRHaDTWYbmp4VTytm3f_FDSQkPEx9AC3MijR7fl5sS3KKCuuokXC1c5J29j41j3wHmc6svuuCTN8AOjic7N_ZY9lN1Y1o-ja7-pIyBOfVJ8zdDHVIzM4tHekukpcU565QjeO7zXzK7lXb/s1600/flowers7.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbRHaDTWYbmp4VTytm3f_FDSQkPEx9AC3MijR7fl5sS3KKCuuokXC1c5J29j41j3wHmc6svuuCTN8AOjic7N_ZY9lN1Y1o-ja7-pIyBOfVJ8zdDHVIzM4tHekukpcU565QjeO7zXzK7lXb/s400/flowers7.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">(azaleas)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwhaOLOOdDLXx7N3sR6cNtrd1H_LTCRfcFQfw-kyOv1fXCVxpmRxGExstVw4MS_R62L9KbLuBmsEtM0thkF_2z97VxN8g8OEZULnBflmz904BFWbnuDohiNNp98rMCa7_QF1Jk-Sr2QZew/s1600/flowers4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="292" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwhaOLOOdDLXx7N3sR6cNtrd1H_LTCRfcFQfw-kyOv1fXCVxpmRxGExstVw4MS_R62L9KbLuBmsEtM0thkF_2z97VxN8g8OEZULnBflmz904BFWbnuDohiNNp98rMCa7_QF1Jk-Sr2QZew/s400/flowers4.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">(wish I knew - another from the "wildflower" category)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjT4m1ufpSkvxqOt_TuoXps_5RxdoMRKxM0lBFsmTzHXRuSLwKmU0-5mWz2_ixq_DZAOzo3dmUi4lVEXaEOY0UeelAfcvhN92CT36GQOhZ0S1bbhdbSGf5c-QjxnW2Sf6Ars2uU8lOT993V/s1600/flowers8.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjT4m1ufpSkvxqOt_TuoXps_5RxdoMRKxM0lBFsmTzHXRuSLwKmU0-5mWz2_ixq_DZAOzo3dmUi4lVEXaEOY0UeelAfcvhN92CT36GQOhZ0S1bbhdbSGf5c-QjxnW2Sf6Ars2uU8lOT993V/s400/flowers8.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">(and more azaleas, or perhaps rhododendron?)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQF4Dh09MnZUTQXjxex6wGprnWRi0qtRaET3nTO-PfKD8_pZjIhYjwKIuzw84jAGv_6IPdrRrs75sD57_V92-FzZzwKhuMknwkG4FHv23mHcDW_jnOOuh62TKO7qspwxnS_pSBDBelBxKg/s1600/flowers11.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="310" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQF4Dh09MnZUTQXjxex6wGprnWRi0qtRaET3nTO-PfKD8_pZjIhYjwKIuzw84jAGv_6IPdrRrs75sD57_V92-FzZzwKhuMknwkG4FHv23mHcDW_jnOOuh62TKO7qspwxnS_pSBDBelBxKg/s400/flowers11.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">(wild blackberry)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And that's all for now. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Best wishes,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Teresa</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-321462936294026727.post-83087655117072437972012-03-30T22:15:00.003-04:002012-03-30T22:52:31.501-04:00a simple problem<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrsFaLaDjYGqZwI7ShB9yc-KNJnytBZL8wasxsJpIEbyyxrHilmss7N8Am4JgyuMaU-2aLnDa7p3G1Wk2MYbZ7vZU0DaT-VRH5S5pbq3Ld5TegYPRySNL_CyvU5mA-8wUl9uBuo9VWWhyphenhyphenf/s1600/P1040063.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrsFaLaDjYGqZwI7ShB9yc-KNJnytBZL8wasxsJpIEbyyxrHilmss7N8Am4JgyuMaU-2aLnDa7p3G1Wk2MYbZ7vZU0DaT-VRH5S5pbq3Ld5TegYPRySNL_CyvU5mA-8wUl9uBuo9VWWhyphenhyphenf/s400/P1040063.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
There I was, nine months pregnant, and needing a diaper bag. A simple problem, with a simple solution. Happily head to (insert favorite maternity/big box/super/mega/boutique or thrift store here) and pick one up - right? Oh, but that would require sanity. And, generously assuming I ever had any to begin with, I certainly had none left at nine months pregnant. No, no, those brand-name {{shudder}} non-customized diaper bags were just<i> too large</i>, too bulky, had too many pockets, not enough pockets, the straps weren't padded enough, or adjustable enough, they were all too black, too stiff, too ugly, too busy,<i> too easily procured</i>. And after all, making my own diaper bag validates my keeping of a craft room, in a way that makes me feel all warm inside. It's how I get drunk, okay? And so I found myself wandering the fabric aisles of <a href="http://www.joann.com/" target="_blank">Jo-Ann's</a>, trying not to pass out from a combination of tiredness, iron-deficiency, and mild dehydration, while attempting to chose that <i>perfect </i>fabric. Mmm hmm. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiWp7E2j84iN1Lla0eILtucixW6EIUPzg88JuDnUnTf2eM8gtN5h8yzu8H_uy-2YduCqKp3O468fH0_SN5Aon6r1pNSSQOcIfQUmA5TbhZWETnJxrQ8T5hHTlAeffyJJBh6N6obmshuwZK/s1600/diaperbag1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiWp7E2j84iN1Lla0eILtucixW6EIUPzg88JuDnUnTf2eM8gtN5h8yzu8H_uy-2YduCqKp3O468fH0_SN5Aon6r1pNSSQOcIfQUmA5TbhZWETnJxrQ8T5hHTlAeffyJJBh6N6obmshuwZK/s400/diaperbag1.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
So I settled for what you see above, which is not nearly as outgoing as I might have liked, but which I consider satisfactory. The main and accent fabrics are both upholstery weight, to handle the wear and tear of daily use. Now that Lila is nine months old, I can say that it's held up quite well. And it IS nice to have a more petite diaper bag that 1) doesn't dwarf me 2) is in the messenger bag style I like and 3) I can't go overboard stuffing with every single item the child owns. As a new mom will want to do. Although you'd be amazed at just how much I can fit in that bag - comes of having once packed a rucksack in the military I suppose. Also nice is that I got exactly the features I wanted in a diaper bag. Not nice is that I had no pattern whatsoever, had never sewn a diaper bag before, and was basically winging it the whole way through. Which made for a lot of stopping, thinking, proceeding, just to stop and think about the next step, and again. But I'm mildly proud of the results, and I got the bag I wanted, but couldn't find anywhere. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSGJzCW0MCL_ZXKp8cGW6jhkKJivvRw1kr_O9C7ihBbKkW-UoQLjt9RO5azvNZHTEbr0BAgc6wFR0LuMAaO79Tz_940Cm5SNaRDQje_ark_1HRcx6ZztxJBxBYvvEOckj-NDYAKOXRFoYB/s1600/P1040065.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSGJzCW0MCL_ZXKp8cGW6jhkKJivvRw1kr_O9C7ihBbKkW-UoQLjt9RO5azvNZHTEbr0BAgc6wFR0LuMAaO79Tz_940Cm5SNaRDQje_ark_1HRcx6ZztxJBxBYvvEOckj-NDYAKOXRFoYB/s400/P1040065.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: -webkit-auto;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">S</span><span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">ome details: I used white piping to add a simple contrast between the gray and aqua fabrics, and white bias tape made for an easy matching accent on the interior pockets. Elastic on the inside pockets has helped to keep all the little stuff in place (I was inspired by </span><a href="http://www.sew-much-ado.com/2008/12/free-diaper-bag-tutorial.html" style="text-align: -webkit-auto;" target="_blank">this tutorial</a><span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;"> from Sew Much Ado), and the lack of elastic on the outer pockets lends to the neat appearance. Since there's no elastic on those pockets, though, they aren't good for bulky objects (no water bottles). I use one for my phone, and the other for slips of paper, receipts, shopping lists, and a pen. All the pockets are fully lined, because it takes so little time to do, and, I think, makes the whole project much more professional and finished. </span> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3UEt4ZXiyxJWnusgDSGeY1Lg5xZdZ-lKzfcObeckeb8ta0vGvFObHt9ghd1YboGj6mYaA6WpxuhfMahWBrA9EfyK8OQ0hmXQJ4s1bgswsnTclY4Bs8qBZLtHNbahQO_TzpQcojQPvKSaH/s1600/P1040066.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3UEt4ZXiyxJWnusgDSGeY1Lg5xZdZ-lKzfcObeckeb8ta0vGvFObHt9ghd1YboGj6mYaA6WpxuhfMahWBrA9EfyK8OQ0hmXQJ4s1bgswsnTclY4Bs8qBZLtHNbahQO_TzpQcojQPvKSaH/s400/P1040066.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
The keychain thingey never gets used. Too complicated to be trying to attach my keys to it when I'm heading out of the car with hands full and baby on hip. Instead I just throw my keys randomly into the bag and hope for the best. But it looks nice. And if you peer closely, you'll see that it lies inside one of the handles, which helps to keep it from flipping outside of the bag.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAnRl-Do2YlP2KyNNEu8j80YNyuuW3XD7OV8VexfdmhTkAH8j-iaF5XYjNZDJj4tUxCPxpo5Z18ZFGtTk5V0NwE8jwoMh5qps7fW-QlZdqIcMZBTlzwQcGEmR9JD8TXcD57aAh-GAwrPOY/s1600/strap.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAnRl-Do2YlP2KyNNEu8j80YNyuuW3XD7OV8VexfdmhTkAH8j-iaF5XYjNZDJj4tUxCPxpo5Z18ZFGtTk5V0NwE8jwoMh5qps7fW-QlZdqIcMZBTlzwQcGEmR9JD8TXcD57aAh-GAwrPOY/s400/strap.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
See the strap hardware above? I was searching for round links, not half-circle, but couldn't find any to match. If I was super-smart, I would have stitched along the flat edge (see complicated illustration below), to keep it from flipping out and around, as it tends to do. Still could, I suppose, but "remedy" sewing seems like work. And that's a thing I never do.<br />
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Initially I considered putting those little hardware feet made for purses on the bottom, but decided against it, because the bag was a little too slouchy for them to be effective. I went with a simple magnetic closure, which I encased in fabric in both the flap and bag front, to keep that neat appearance I wanted. And I love it! I can just flip the top over, and it finds its own way shut. Simple.<br />
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And every good diaper bag needs a coordinating wet bag, of course. Ta da! <br />
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Matching wet bag, perfectly sized for two cloth diapers. Notice the PUL fabric on the inside, and that handy handle. <br />
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I do like the gray fabric. Wanna know something about that gray fabric? It shrinks. Yeah, when you wash it, it shrinks. And it's for dirty diapers, so it gets washed often. And the PUL fabric, being coated in poly-something or other, does not shrink. Of course I knew that when I chose to make the wet bag without pre-washing that nice gray fabric. But I'd lost my sanity. Remember?<br />
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Best wishes,<br />
TeresaUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0