now that's one cool tool

my silhouette has only been up and running for four days now...but i have managed to become quickly enamored by this thing! i am such a sucker for monograms, so of course when my heat transfer materials arrived in the mail, sticking little initials and monograms on every piece of my girls' clothing was my first thought...i've reigned that in and only transformed two things into cuteness for them--a tank for r and a onesie for m. 

couldn't stop there though, here is another onesie i worked on yesterday with the heat transfer for a baby gift. yesterday my materials for using the silhouette to cut fabric arrived and i was so ready to get my hands on some appliques that i tore into the packaging at lightening speed! i have had requests for lots of birthday tees lately and the silhouette was such a fantastic sidekick to have around last night as i was working on these two special orders.

and no, in case you're wondering about all this gushing i am doing over my new toy, silhouette has not paid me to say all this--i am just so excited about all its possibilities!! so tell me, would you be interested in monogrammed tees that match ruffle capris, pants, or skirts?
and p.s. how long can a baby legally wear onesies, because after putting this one on her last night, i don't think i can stop anytime soon...

sewing for sharing

I of course love to sew for the girls.

And definitely for all of you. But I especially love to sew for special children in special circumstances who need a smile and a little handmade love. This weekend I had the privilege of sewing for a sweet little five-year old recently diagnosed with brain cancer. I heard of her story through the prayer emails generated by the school where I used to teach. I read of her journey at her family's blog and knew I wanted to cheer Lucy up in whatever way I could. Little Lucy's favorite color is green and she loves frogs...so immediately my head started spinning and this is what my machines turned out this weekend in between sewing rompers and dresses and ruffles...

I couldn't leave out big sister or little brother!

 I got to experiment with my newest crafting tool and I have to say I am smitten for the silhouette that other half generously gave me for our birthday (isn't she the best???)! It is awesome and seems to be able to do almost anything!! I used it to cut the heat transfer material for the tee and onesie and for the little froggies I wanted to be sure found a spot on each item since Lucy just adores them! I love sharing my sewing projects with others and I hope to make it more of a habit and to use my interests in sewing to benefit others and to glorify my great God, who is also THE Healer and the Great Physician and the one whom we ask for Lucy's cancer to flee and quickly! Work a miracle, dear Lord! This world is a fallen place, where suffering and hardships happen to many people everyday. I never want to take my situation for granted or to get too comfortable in my surroundings--how quickly they may change too. We have been blessed beyond measure and most certainly beyond what we deserve; and I want to hear stories like Lucy's and really hear and really help while I can because it keeps me on my knees praying for the salvation of the nations and the return of Christ the King. It keeps me humble and reminds me of my need for God's saving grace and presence every day. I hope to very soon invite you to send me the names and stories of people that you know who could use a touch of handmade to brighten their spirits. I am working on the details so I will announce those soon! In the meantime, pray for Lucy and her family and pray for those in your path who are hurting and I will do the same.

a sucker for seersucker

i made these little smocked seersucker outfits with my girlies in mind...but after re-ogranizing their closets this weekend i know that they really don't need one more thing for the spring or summer! so i had the girls try on the outfits this afternoon so you could see the cuteness modeled and decide if they might be perfect for your little girl! i will offer them on facebook tonight!

 

the romper is size 18-24 m--$28 shipped!

 

the halter dress is size 3T (it will fit 4T as well if you want the dress to hit higher--as a 3T, dress it will hit mid-calf)--$28 shipped!

{for the record, if no one claims them, i am happy to hang them up in my kiddos' closets because they are almost to precious to part with in my little opinion!}

a little crazy

today i created something a little bit more funky than usual. my sister loves upcycling clothing and she is great at it (just check out her etsy shop!!) and when she was over yesterday she looked through some of my old t-shirts with me. this one shirt i used to wear back in college just screamed to be re-made into something new. i think it was from anthropology back in the day. i liked it a lot way back when. then gradually it found its way to the bottom of the stacks of clothing on my shirt shelf and finally found its sad self a new home the "scrap and re-craft bin" in my sewing nook. today the shirt morphed into something altogether different. two somethings different to be exact. on a whim, i pulled it out of that bin, hastily (maybe too hastily?) selected two fabrics to go with it, and headed over to my cutting table to get to work. i cut out two tank pieces from the front side of the tee using one of reece's tops as a guide and then i chopped off some fabric to form the skirt of the dress. i couldn't leave the other side of the tee just laying there til the next time inspiration took me back to the scrap bin, so i decided to make a dress for little macy too. i guessed entirely on her dimensions for the tank (and have a little tailoring to do now) and cut some more of the cotton fabric for the skirt for hers. then it was off to the serger and the sewing machines for my happy little scraps. surprisingly, both dresses came together really quickly--guess that is a perk of upcycling (part of the work is already done for you!)--which was great because as i sat down to sew i conveniently heard reece waking up. it wasn't too long before macy followed suit, but by then i had already finished one dress and was on the second one and couldn't stop! they are quite crazy in my opinion, but reece liked her dress a lot and that means they will be keepers. we had some fun walking around the neighborhood tonight in the new frocks! what do you think? too funky? or will they work?

y'all ready to ruffle?

hello, chickadee chickadee friends! tonight i will be offering ruffle pants--they were highly requested in last week's poll, so here's your chance! when you comment to claim your favorite style on its facebook photo post tonight, be sure to include the following information:

-size (0-3m, 3-6m, 6-12m, 12-18m, 18-24m, 2T, 3T, 4T) larger sizes are $5 more and i can accommodate up to size 6.

-capri (3" shorter than full length), full, or custom (please include the length in inches that you would like)
-paypal address


-capri ruffles are $22 and shipping is $3
-full-length ruffles are $24 and shipping is $3.25


these are the styles i will be offering! lots to choose from! i can take on about 2-3 pairs per style. i will have more photos of these styles tonight!


aqua/red flowers
pineapple brocade
pink/aqua tiles
navy/pink paisley
pink/white polka dots

multi-colored polka dots on cream
trees on grass
aqua/lime brocade (pictured above on the right)

pink/pink polka dots
lime/brown floral


 
size chart is as follows:
length=top of waistband to hem of ruffle, waist=unstretched elastic waistband:
6-12 months-Waist 15" Length from waist 14"
12/18 months- Waist 16" Length from waist 15"
18-24 months- Waist 17" Length from waist 16"
2T Waist 17” Length from waist 17”
3T Waist 18” Length from waist 18”
4T Waist 19" Length from waist 19"
capri ruffles are three inches shorter in length than the full-length dimensions.