Handmade Gifts for Knitters

So my mom taught me how to knit when I was six. I'm not a great knitter, but one of the reasons that I enjoy knitting is that it is something that I can do alongside my mom. We can fill hours pouring over patterns on Ravelry, or searching for yarn sales on the internet together. No matter what else is going on in our worlds, we can sit and chat about whatever project is on the needles at the moment. That's why this Mother's Day I went with a knitting theme for my Mom. 

When deciding what to make I snooped around the internet for ideas, and then I closed my eyes and pictured my mom knitting. What kind of knitter is she? Well, she knits to relax, so I made her a herbal heating pad with flax seed to drape over her shoulders while her needles click away. And she travels quite a bit with her knitting, so I made her a knitting needle roll. Both projects use small amounts of fabric (you can use scraps!), and can be completed by a beginning sewist.

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KCWC Day 5 - Knickers!

So this is my last project for the Kids Clothing Week Challenge over at Elsie Marley this year. We are headed off for a weekend adventure with great friends, and there will be no time for cutting and sewing where I'm going. 

I have wanted to make knickers for my kids forever. I like the old fashioned look, the practicality of covered knees, and the comfort of a wider leg. I've never actually attempted them before because my girl thinks they look "wierd", and I hate to sew items that I know will never be worn. Lucky for me, our 4 year old boy thinks they are "so cute" and volunteered to try a pair out. Green Light!

These knickers are not the knickers of my dreams, but the first garment of a made-up sewing pattern never is now is it? They turned out a little too large for my skinny 4 year old, and the johdpur-style patches may not be perfectly placed, but now I know what to do for next time. The important thing is: I have a kid who may want to go in to the world wearing handmade knickers. How cool is that? 

 

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KCWC Day 4 - Modern Smocked Dress

So I had big plans yesterday for day four of the Kids Clothing Week Challenge at Elsie Marley. Unfortunately the boy's knickers (yes, I said knickers) that I had set out to sew ended up in a heap under my sewing table after my third do-over. I threw them way back behind my huge bin of scraps in a moment of frustration, and when I went to fish them out for a fourth try I found the leftover Drop Cloth fabric from my spring top project a couple of weeks ago. Determined to make at least one more finished garment for KCWC, I incorporated the Drop Cloth leftovers into this little number for my girl. It's picture day at school today and she insisted on wearing it with a bun perched high atop her head to reveal the smocking. She's such a smartie pants that one.

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KCWC Day 3 - Quick Change Trousers

So here we are on day 3 of the Kids Clothing Week Challenge, and I need a little break from sewing. Sleep sounds so very appealing this evening... But before I go, I'm sharing the two pairs of reversible shorts that I finished today for my littlest man, Mr. B. 

Pattern: Quick Change Trousers from Anna Maria Horner's book, Handmade Beginnings.

I modified the pattern by shortening it, adding piping down the sides of the legs, and adding vintage buttons and twill tape loops to hold up the fold and reveal the lining fabric. 

Fabric: Bears in Woods in sea from the Get Together collection by David Walker for Free Spirit, and So Sophie in brown by My Mind's Eye for Riley Blake Designs.

Pattern: Also the Quick Change Trousers from Anna Maria Horner's book, Handmade Beginnings modified by shortening, and adding vintage buttons and handmade loops to hold up the fold and reveal the lining fabric. 

Fabric: Cotton woven checks in red, blue and purple. Designer unknown, but recently purchased at Joann's.

So Mr. B seems to prefer the check numbers at the moment, but I think I like the bears best. Which do you prefer?

KCWC Day 2 (sewing with knits)

So it's day 2 of the Kids Clothing Week Challenge (KCWC) over at Elsie Marley. After my last blog post, I checked out all of the great stuff that other participants have made on the KCWC Flikr board. That was a bad idea, because it made me want to sew. So that's what I did. I stayed up WAY past my bedtime and made these two outfits for my girl. 

Outfit #1:

Pattern: Tee for Two Dress by Figgy's Patterns. Leggings from Izzy and Ivy's Sweet Polly's Playclothes pattern pack.

Fabric: Black cotton interlock knit, and multicolored knit jersey (no longer available, but originally from Fabric Fairy).

Vintage accessories added by my girl S - these pics were taken after she wore the outfit to school today, so please excuse the white goo on the bottom of the dress. Glue? Yogurt? Who knows...

Outfit #2:

Pattern: Tee For Two Dress by Figgy's Patterns. Leggings from Izzy and Ivy's Sweet Polly's Playclothes pattern pack.

Fabric: Marled purple bamboo/cotton knit (from Santa Fe Fabrics), paired with Cobalt Blue Mini Ruffle polyester/spandex from Ruffle Fabric. 

Notes:

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KCWC Day 1

So this week I will be participating in the Kids Clothing Week Challenge (KCWC) over at Elsie Marley. What the heck does that mean? It means that I will be sewing for my kids (at least) one hour each day of the week, taking photos of what I make and sharing them on the KCWC Flikr page. It's a sew along folks!

This is what I have to show for Day 1: 

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Kokka Custom Quilt

So all handmade quilts are special in my opinion, but there is something extra special about custom quilts. I think this "something extra special" comes from sharing the process of quilting with someone else. 

This quilt was commissioned by a family member who is an interior designer and has an incredible sense of style. Over a series of phone conversations, shared Pinterest boards, and a sewing studio visit, she and I discussed fabric, design, and finish together. We took her fabric and design choices, added my sewing and quilting skills, and this is what we came up with!

The design for the quilt top was inspired by a Denyse Schmidt Kimono scrap table runner. It is pieced with a variety of cotton batik prints, creamy linen and cotton solids, and slices of Kokka solid and printed cotton/linen blends.

The back of the quilt is a nice solid piece of fabric called Quiet Ground from Etsuko Furuya's Enchino collection for Kokka. I was nervous about quilting with Kokka's cotton/linen blend, but now that I have, I'm in love. It puckers perfectly and becomes softer and more elastic after frequent washing. 

And then there is the pillow. I couldn't leave that cutting of the giraffe on the sewing room floor, so I made it into a place for a little baby head instead. I like to think that the little girl who snuggles and dreams with this custom combo will feel the love and collaboration that went into it...

2012 Spring Top Sew Along with Made by Rae

I've been planning to pack all week (I promise), but then on Monday I caught up on my blog reading and realized it was time for Made by Rae's Spring Top Sew Along.  One click over to the sew along Flikr page, and I fell a little bit in love with the tops made using Wiksten's Tova Shirt Pattern. After about five minutes of indecision, I purchased and downloaded the pattern, reading it through as a I fell asleep that night. 

It's Friday, and after a few stolen hours of sewing, this is my entry to the Spring Top Sew Along. The blue fabric is a cotton linen blend that I picked up at Purl Soho a year ago, with Jay McCarroll's Drop Cloth fabric in blue as accent. The earring and bracelets that I am wearing are all made my mom, Lynn Rudnick. Perhaps my love of turquoise is genetic...

 

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Tees for Two

So I warned you it was coming. I told you I was going to make some t-shirts, and now I'm hooked. I mean it. I'm in way over my head here. 

This little number was my gateway shirt. I made it using Figgy's Patterns uber-simple Tee for Two pattern, and some amazing European cotton knit that I've been hiding away. Initially this shirt was a bit long on my girl, so I added a length of elastic ribbon to the side seam, and voila, instant ruching. After all, who doesn't want a little ruffle from their waist all the way to their armpit? But seriously, this little baby had me at hello.

And then there is the ninja monkey knit. With some of his old baby t's cut and repurposed into sleeves, my four year old believes that this shirt has special powers. Could be his current obsession with Lego Ninjagos speaking, but who knows... these ninja monkey chopping, slicing, and squishing their way to victory are allright.

The guitars came a day later, and if you look, you'll see that I went all out with this shirt. I used my serger for the inside seams and for the first time ever I used a double needle for the big finish. Who knows, perhaps I'm ready for the harder stuff soon. Adult T's anyone?

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Jump In to Spring

So it's officially Spring. Has been for over a week now. March 20 was the first official day in case you missed it, which is not likely if you have school aged children around reminding you of every single holiday known to man like I do. 

How did I celebrate Spring? By taking the corduroys off my boys, and making them some cotton/linen pants of course. Here are my little man's new favorites. Next up...t-shirts.

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The Two Summer Sundress

So I stumbled upon Natalie Larson's Two Summer Sundress pattern on Ravelry ages ago and bookmarked it to make for my girl when the weather turned warm. Then I went about knitting myself a sweater all wrong, and last week, when I was good and fed up with it, the weather changed (82 degrees in March!!), so I printed out the sundress pattern (it's free), and got to work.  These dresses made up so quickly, that by the weekend my 6 year old had two hanging in her closet. As a little XO for my little girl I reinforced the straps on the black dress with special "magic" ribbon, and added a ruffle to the bottom of the Princess and the Pea dress. Otherwise, I stuck to the pattern, and I'm glad I did. I think the knit+sew combo is sweet. What do you think?

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Blank Walls and Colorful Seats

So our two oldest kids like to fly solo a lot lately.  Their heads are filled with Legos and comics book adventures, bookmarked Roald Dahl and mathematical puzzles. I have tried to create simple spaces for them to populate with their own thoughts and imaginings, leaving the walls above their desks bare for staring, the drawers empty but for items that they deem treasure.

Sometimes though, fabric speaks to me. It yells out, "I will remind her to write as well as read.", or "I will make him smile on a rainy day." And sometimes I listen. And I purchase. And I sew. I can't help myself. I just can't let it be so simple, so uncluttered. The next thing you know they have little chair pads, and an afternoon of my life is gone. How do these things happen? I'm really not sure. All I know is that they do...

Both sides of my son's seat cushion were sewn with fabric from Kokka's amazing Hello My Friend! fabric line. They say, "Hello, my friend! I sometimes want to have a time when I can laugh." Great, right?

And this is little cushion was made with Melody Miller's Typewriter fabric from Kokka as well. How could I resist a typewriter with a heart on a desk chair? It's just too much.

(Both cushions have buttonholes sewn into them and twill tape threaded through to secure them to the chairs. I thought that was kind of crafty of me.) 

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Crochet Hair Ties and Headbands

 

So I went shopping with my daughter this Saturday. We got up, ate pancakes, and arrived at the largest mall in our area a few moments after opening.  After purchasing shoes (her feet grew 2.5 sizes!!), we wandered around for more than two hours together. This is what I learned in that time: my daughter loves accessories, and she loves that I can make things. In store after store she tried out hair ties, headbands, pins, necklaces, hats, and belts, all the while declaring, "Mom, you could make that."  She gathered clothes she liked and I drew them in my little notebook, scribbling madly as she jabbered on about her fabric and color preferences. More than one salesperson rolled their eyes. 

Then we headed home, our head full of ideas, and started small. It seems that crocheted clothing and accessories are very "big" this year, so we took out my bin of crocheted flowers, hair ties, felt scraps, and the glue gun and got to work. The results are above. If you want to see how I made them, then check out my Crochet Hair Tie Tutorial. 

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Little Apples Quilt

So I've been hard at work at many different projects since I last visited this space, but the one I want to share today is this eco-friendly baby/toddler quilt that I've sewn up **just because**. I had no particular babe in mind while sewing this quilt. No particular design. No plan really. I wanted to make this quilt just because...

• I found myself visiting Rita's quilts over at Red Pepper Quilts and thinking, "I want to make at least one of those. Right now."

• I ordered a selection of Aneela Hooey's Little Apple prints, and a selection of Michael Miller's Ta Dot prints online from 2 separate fabric shops on the same day, only to realize once they were in my hands that they were meant to be married in a little modern girl's quilt. Don't you agree?

• I like slashes of color in a solid background.

  

 And,

• I've been wanting to make a mostly white quilt which would be sheer enough to see through when the sun slants in through a window. I imagine it to be a most satisfying experience for a toddler to see all those shapes and patterns in different ways at different moments. After all, so much goes on beneath a quilt doesn't it?

So there. I've told you what I was thinking when I made this quilt. If you want more details regarding size, materials, etc...then check it out on Etsy. 

If you're in a sharing mood like me, then leave a comment. Everyone loves a good comment! 

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Easy Felt Applique

So January is almost over, and I'm due to make a new batch of baby blankets. I always have grand ideas of making dozens and dozens of blankets to fill my Etsy shop, and The Craft Lounge both, but alas, there are only so many hours in a day. For this next batch I plan to use some felt applique, and I thought I'd share.

Felt applique looks like a lot of extra work, and it can be when I get carried away, but even just a little applique goes a long way. For the adults receiving my handmade items as gifts it adds a unique and personal touch that distinguishes them from more mainstream manufactured products, and for the babe who will ultimately peer at and handle the finished item it adds dimension and texture. Plus, it's just cute, right?

I use felt applique in a bunch of different ways. I make felt animals and felt initials to personalize blankets and bibs, and I have fun creating simple baby faces for blankets and rattles. If you want to check out just how easy felt applique really is, than go to my quick tutorial here. 

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Little Handwarmers

So after months of unseasonably warm weather (and NO snow), it finally turned cold here in the New York area. Cold enough, at least, for the school to send home a strongly worded 'reminder' to send our children with hats and gloves for recess. Groan. 

Now I love me a snuggly handknit hat, but I am not fond of gloves. Glove put bulky layers of fabric or yarn between my fingers and buttons, zipper pulls, and my phone. So two years ago I made myself a pair of multicolored handwarmers without a pattern. I fudged it, and they turned out well enough for me to wear them almost every day for 2 consecutive winters (see the multicolored cuties in the picture below). Well it's hard to resist cute handwarmers when you are 6 years old, so after many requests I promised S that I would make her a pair. And I did. I started some last September, and finished them...last week. Now I don't necessarily believe that just because I make one of my children something, that I must make all of my children something. However, given that handwarmers look and feel a lot like knight and superhero cuffs, I made a pair for my just about 4 year old boy as well.

This time around I didn't wing it. Instead, I followed the super simple pattern for wristwarmers found in Easy Knits for Little Kids by Catherine Tough. The yarn is all Blue Skye Cotton chosen by the kids at Purl Soho. 

Now once I had finished the handwarmers, I went through our front hall closet and made some of the donate and trash piles I discussed in my last post. When I was done I headed to my sewing room and used leftover fabric from these pillows to make more fabric buckets to hold hats and gloves. Now the kids' winter gear is all accessible in buckets on the floor for easy access as we head out the door for school. 

 

January Nesting

So it's January (obviously) and therefore, it's time to organize. This January I feel like I'm nesting. I'm cleaning and cooking and reorganizing all the time. Things are being tossed into bags for donation and garbage on every level of our house, and Mr. T is painting everything white. 

A huge percentage of our shake-it-up and clean-it-out new year mojo has been spent on our daughter's "new" room, and by "new" room I mean her baby brother's room with the largest of our tiny closets which she was clever enough to claim before he's old enough to realize it, poor boy. Mr. T and his paintbrush made so much white everywhere in this "new" room that I couldn't help myself, I had to add a little color in the form of....wait for it...fabric buckets. After reading of Maya Made's nesting buckets on SouleMamma last November, I knew I needed the pattern for someday. Then, this weekend someday turned in to Sunday, and our very own 'nesting' buckets were made.

First, I tried the pattern with some scrap fabric, and my mini sample turned into an instantly adored pencil holder.

Then I changed the dimensions called for and made a jumbo basket for the dolls and other friends that escaped the donate bag. 

Finally, my girl chose some fabric at IKEA (we were there for other "new" room essentials), and while she slept I made her these large baskets. Filling them with socks, tights (a whole buckets worth for my no-pant-no-way girl), and underwear (I didn't give you a close up of that one - that would be creepy), I decided that organizing has never been so fun. 

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Anna Maria Horner's Figure 8 scarf

So one of my resolutions for 2012 is to be nicer to ME, so I made myself a New Year's present this year. And why not? I like me, and I know what I want. 

My gift to myself is a Figure 8 scarf.  I wanted to make one of these ingeniuos scarves the moment I saw them on Anna Maria Horner's blog, so make one I did.  Though Anna Maria uses velveteen and cotton voile for this project (kits are available in her shop), I used one yard of Zap Zig Loulouthi flannel in eggplant, and one yard of Buoyancy Loulouthi cotton in deep. I love the way the flannel and cotton combine for a crushable, machine washable, yet warm and comfy scarf. 

What have you done for yourself lately?

Sticker Robot S.A.S.E. Shindig

So I was getting the mail yesterday, and there it was: our second envelope from Sticker Robot. I gingerly put it on the dining room table and sent a telepathic message to my husband (he was at work) letting him know it had arrived. You see, my husband has been waiting for envelopes of stickers the way a teenager waits for college admissions letters.

What the heck am I taking about? Why the S.A.S.E. Shindig Part II by Sticker Robot of course. The rules were simple: send a decorated self addressed stamped envelope to Sticker Robot by December 4 and receive some free stickers in exchange. 

I think the back of the large sticker on the left of the photo above says it all. These are not stickers people, these are ART by a group of artists including Obey and clever Zoltron (check out occupy Sesame Street). 

I must admit that I had absolutely nothing to do with this particular arty shindig. The kids (ages 6 and 3) decorated the envelopes together back in October.

We cannot wait to see their envelopes in the gallery of submisisons... Thanks Sticker Robot! 

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Last Minute Gift Idea

If you are at all like me then you have a couple of last minute gifts to finish up (or start) AFTER you finish cooking, baking, and feeding the various children that ended up in your home this morning, and BEFORE the official holiday festivities start tonight. If a child just wispered in your ear that he will be "furious" if you don't get off the computer and make more art with him, then our lives are amazingly parallel and I really want to hear from you.

So let's get going and sew, wrap, write, bake, clean and make some joy together. I'll be finishing a set of the cotton laminate coasters pictured above this afternoon, pairing it with the pink and red laminate apron for my mom. I just posted a tutorial for the reversible coasters here. Enjoy and HAPPY HOLIDAYS!