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Thursday, January 31, 2013

Love-ly Jumper

Valentine's day is one of my favorite holidays.  I'm not that into the get-your-partner-gifts-to-show-your-love aspect of it (I know it's become cliché but I really do think that should be an every day thing), but the hearts and frills and all the excuses for pink is the best.  I love seeing everyone's Valentine's decor and all the warm fuzzies it brings to a home.  And having a little girl is the perfect excuse to go over the top. 

Love is in the air over at Project Run and Play this week and I actually have two outfits that I made with Valentine's day in mind.  The one I'll share in the linky is the jumper I've been planning for a while. 


When I shared the polka stripes jumper I mentioned that it was designed after an idea for a skirt jumper I'd been planning.  This is the skirt version.


I took the middle bodice shape of the Maggie Mae Tunic from Shwin Designs and added a lining, ruffley straps, and buttons to the front to make a jumper.


The fabric is this soft and very stretchy corduroy looking fabric that I fell in love with in the bargain bin.  I like that it looks very old-uptight-british-man-ish, but is secretly soft and cozy and the perfect weight for a little girl.


Of course I used fabric covered buttons with the same fabric I used for the pockets as well as the top.


Adding a few girly details makes me love the drab-ish color even more. The chain stitch embroidery adds just enough pink.


I bought this fabric this summer and couldn't decide what to use it for.  It's a knit, but not very stretchy.  The overall pattern is a little exaggerated for me (what was I thinking here?), but I couldn't resist the off-color rainbows and hearts.  And I really liked that the rainbow shapes are sort of the opposite direction from the hearts.


For the top I made another Go To Signature Dress (shirt) with a snap closure at the neck (like I did here) since the fabric doesn't stretch enough to make it over Bean's head.  I also made the collar stick up a little higher by stitching it at 3/8ths of an inch instead of the 5/8 seam allowance.


To make this outfit over the top, I decided to make a pair of leggings with hearts on the knees.  It seems like EVERYONE is doing it this year so I thought I'd join in.  Actually the guest judge for this week's theme (Mandy from Sugar Bee Crafts) just posted a similar legging here which made me laugh cause seriously everyone is doing it, hehe.  It's too cute and I couldn't resist.


The outfit came together well. 


Taking pictures of Bean was once again difficult.


She will not stand still facing me.  If she is facing me she is running toward me to give me a hug or try to look at the camera.  Or both, hehe.


Here she was distracted by trying to accessorize the way SHE saw fit. 


She'll always pose in front of the mirror so the back shots work much better (she's all about putting on headbands and admiring how stylish she is, hehe)

Just to prove that she was happy and does like the outfit I'll leave you with a blurry shot of Bean smiling with her panda.

 
As usual, linking up to:
I Heart Nap Time The Chicken Chick Photobucket Happy Hour Projects Photobucket

Monday, January 28, 2013

Kitty Chevron Stripes

(yes, I realize chevron technically are stripes all on their own, hehe)

I wanted to make Bean a Varsity Cowl Neck Pullover similar to the Mixed Knits one I did for a friend for boy's week.  I'm not a huge fan of excess.  Normally I stick to simple patterns paired with some solids.  I have no problem using bright colors, but as far as patterned fabric goes it's usually something pretty subdued.

Then I had a little girl who LOVES kitties.  I saw this kitty print and knew she'd fall for it.  Anything that my family has bought her that has an animal on it is sure to get a smile from her.  And then she needs to run over to the mirrored door on her armoire, stick out her toddler belly, rub said belly, and say "oooh." 


I bought the fabric earlier in the fall and didn't want it to just go into the pajama fabric pile, but I also couldn't figure out what I would make that would have that. many. kitties. on it.

Then I was mixing fabrics over the weekend to pair some ribs and plain knits to make a few pullovers for Valentine's day for friends and I saw these two fabrics together.


Totally crazy.  But perfect for a little girl.  I knew there would be enough of crazy color and kitty to keep her at the mirror for days hehe.  Plus, she's obsessed with the letter 'M' lately and I knew she'd think the chevron was a bunch of 'M's.  She's 20 months.  Every zigzag is an 'M' hehe.


So I sewed strips of the two fabrics together the same way I did for the Mixed Knits pullover.  Three inch strips for the body and two inch strips for the arms. 


Since the colors were already over the top, I figured a nice teal light-weight rib would be perfect to tie the madness together. 


She was so excited to see the kitties in the mirror. (I made those pants too, but they are getting WAY too small/high water)


Here she is doing some of her favorite things. Reading and pretending to write with pointed objects. And since I don't give her pointed objects she uses torn pieces of paper. And every pine needle she can find brought in by our shoes from the yard. 


This is a terrible picture, but it shows the front a little better.  Doesn't it look cozy?


It's a little big, but it's more light-weight that the Mixed Knits one so I know she'll be able to wear it this spring. 


If I decide to let the madness out of the house, hehe.

**Update: Yay this was featured on the USS Crafty!


And on Shaffer Sisters!

Shaffer Sisters encourage. inspire. uplift. create.

As usual, linking up to:

I Heart Nap Time The Chicken Chick Photobucket Happy Hour Projects Photobucket

Thursday, January 24, 2013

Mixed Knits Cowl Neck - Boy's Week

Even though it's boy's week at Project Run & Play and I don't have a boy, I decided to make something for the sew along.  Good friends have a little boy just a few days older than Bean so I had him in mind when putting the outfit together. 

Since I normally don't sew boy's clothes I thought I had better use a pattern instead of self drafting.  I was lucky enough last summer to test sew the Clean Slate Pants from Blank Slate Patterns by making a pair of shorts for Bean.  I have been wanting to make the pants so this was a great excuse. 


It's a great pattern and my favorite part is that Melissa walks you through adding a functional zipper and button closure to a pair of pants.  This was a first for me so I was surprised how simple it was once broken down. 


The pants were made with welt pockets (again: functional!) in back and contrasting fabric for the inside of the front pockets.  The pattern gives options for no pockets, but I think for a pair of boys pants you need all the little details you can in order to make them special.


For the hem I decided to use the same fabric from the pockets to make a cuff.  These are size 2T, but the way I made the cuff there's a little extra length to play with for a growing boy versus hemming.  The cuff can be made bigger or eventually no cuff if the pants still fit at the waist.


Now on to the top.  I've been looking at the Varsity Cowl Neck Pullover from Peek-A-Boo Pattern Shop for awhile now and I thought that'd be perfect for this week.  I am definitely making at least one more of these for Bean this weekend.  It is a super easy pattern and can be made in very little time with a serger, which makes for a great nap time project.


Of course, using the pattern as is would have been too easy, hehe.  I decided to take two favorite knits from my sweaters that I don't wear any more pile and sew them together in stripes to "make" a new patterned knit.  The blue/navy stripes look great in contrast to the solid green. 


I serged three inch rows of the two knits together until I had a big enough section to cut out the back and front from the pattern.  Then I serged two inch rows for the sleeves.  I like how the smaller stripes in the sleeves mixes it up a little bit.  A greenish blue ribbed knit for the cowl, sleeves, and bottom band tied the look together.  I'm so pleased with how it turned out. 


Here you can see the inside of the pullover.  So many seams! Hehe.

Since I didn't have a boy to model the finished look, Bean did her best boy impression.  She seriously looks so much like a little boy in these pictures.  So cute.  Below you can see the back of the pants has a little elastic band to keep them on an active toddler.  Very smart.


Doesn't this outfit look so boyish?  The oversized pullover with slouchy leg pants.  From the back she is totally a boy here, hehe.


Who am I kidding?  She looks like a boy from the FRONT in these pics too, hehe.


Maybe that's why she got this worried look on her face.


Here's a half smile:


The pullover looked so comfortable on her that I almost didn't want to take it off.  I can't wait to see one in girl colors.  From the looks of it, neither can Bean, hehe.


As usual, linking up to:

I Heart Nap Time The Chicken Chick Photobucket Happy Hour Projects Photobucket