Wow.

It's been a long stinkin' time since I have posted anything that I have made on my blog.  It is certainly not cuz I haven't been working on anything!  I have made a TON of things!  Want a list?  Okay!
1.  Maternity dress
2.  Maternity skirt
3. two maternity shirts
4.  three pairs of baby booties
5.  high waisted skirt
6.  Knit maternity skirt
And that brings me to number 7, which is a card table playhouse!  I got the pattern from pink chalk fabrics.  It turned out so cute!  It was especially perfect for us because this spring has been full of nothing but snow, rain and cold weather, so we have been playing our butts off in the playhouse!  Here is the final product!

When I got the pattern in the mail, I thought I would put it away until after we move and get settled in Arizona.  Unfortunately, Konrad found the pattern and harassed me until I broke down and said I would make it.  It was a rather long and arduous project.  You not only have to cut the fabric, but also the adhesive.  THEN, you have to iron it on THEN appliquéd all the pieces.  Not all that fun.  The final product is great, but I have never been so sick of a project as I neared the end of it!  In fact, I broke down and bought some fabric paint and painted leaves and all the lettering on the house instead of then being appliquéd.  The boys love it and that is all that matters to me!  My favorite part is the mailbox, complete with mail that I made them!

The Big Game

As I mentioned in my previous post, I have disappeared off the planet.  I realize the Big Game was more than a month ago.  Anyhow, I made all three boyz and a college of Brian's Packer's ties for the Big Day.  Now, in here in WI, the Packers is kind of like a religion.  They are zealots here.  Everybody wears green and yellow not just on game day.  Go Pack Go! is a phrase I hear (annoyingly) daily.  My neighbor was freaking out when the Packers got in to the Super Bowl.  FREAKING OUT.  Me?  I really could not care less.  I don't get the whole sports team craziness thing.  I have hobbies and I like things, but I really don't get how people care so much.  College teams, pro teams, I DON'T GET IT!  I also really don't care. At all.  In fact, I think it is hysterical how some people get really pissed when their team loses.  Brian and I especially like to egg people on and talk crap about "their team", whatever team that is, whatever sport it is they play.  We will root for the opposing team just cuz.  Again, neither of us care, AT ALL.  But we enjoy getting people who DO CARE to get all fired up.  It is surprisingly easy to do.  Especially family members.  And my Dad.


Because ties are easy to make and I happened to be the first one at JoAnn when the Packer's fabric rolled off the truck, I made some ties for the big day.


SIDENOTE:  It was reported the Friday before the Super Bowl that not only were churches cancelling their afternoon services, they were also expecting record numbers to go to their morning services for parishioners to pray for their team to win.  WHA???


So, tongue-in-cheek,  my boys wore Packers ties on Super Bowl Sunday. Roo Roo was sick so he didn't wear his.  Rad was the only one I could get to pose for me.


Why do I love pissing people off so much?

Catching Up

Well, we are expecting our third little yahoo here come October, so I have been really sick.  In fact, I have kind of disappeared off the face of the planet.  I don't plan on making my return any time soon, but I am hoping the sick will be gone in about three weeks.  One can hope, right?


That being said, I have been busy sewing.  Not as much as usual but I have been working on a few things.  There was a two week period that I did not get my sewing machine out once, which is crazy for me.  I usually have it out once a day.  Here is my latest afternoon project.  It is a pillow for my bed, as an accessory to my hexagon quilt that I finished in November.  

The pillow I made is the one on the right.  I got the other one at Target, as did everybody else on the planet.  Here is a close up of my beauty.  

It was actually pretty easy to make.  I got the greatest ruler in the world.  You can find it here.  It is the greatest little hexagon ruler.  It uses jelly roll's.  No paper piecing, no sewing in thirds.  AMAZING.


I guess I have been on a pillow kick cuz I made some pillows for my couch as well.  I bought Anna Maria Horner's book Handmade Beginnings .  It is a great book!  I have already made the booties, the Mariposa maternity dress and these pillows!  I am not sure if we will be keeping this couch when we move but I will work the pillows in somehow.  Note to self:  read the directions for seam allowances.  ALWAYS.

I will have a few more things to post later.  Like I said, I made myself a maternity dress but I am not quite done altering it.  It is difficult to make maternity things and guess what your measurements will be when you are huge.  I am not huge...yet.  

My New Baby

My 30920 Singer Sewing Machine that I got for my 18th birthday has left this world.  I would like to say a few words in remembrance, if you will.

I would like to apologize for using you to sew miles of canvas.  I think that was the beginning of the problem that lead to your ultimate demise.  I will say, however, that the canvas projects (Christmas of 2008) turned out excellent.

Thank you for sew many years of love.  You helped me make many a masterpiece- as defined by yours truly.  I think my greatest masterpiece thus far was Hexy McQueen.

Thank you for my introduction to sewing.  I will always remember you!  I will never forget that you were a slant footed Singer and your final screech that made me put you to your final rest.  We have spent many hours together and, although you really did suck, I love you!

That being said, meet my newest darling, my Bernina 380 sewing computer! I am spoiled.  Brian let me get the BIG BOY, as he called HER.   Now that I think of it, I don't really miss my singer that much.  Why would I?

Can you say dual spool and bobbin winder, 87 specialty stitches, automatic buttonhole, 4 alphabets, automatic needle threader (which you have to be a registered rocket surgeon-you're welcome- to figure out...or search YOUTUBE for instructions), and that does not even begin to describe the beauty of my little darling.

Too many words, must go sew.  Later.

Baby Shower Get Up

I threw a baby shower for my friend, Kayla.  She is having a baby girl in a month or so.  I love the table!  It turned out so stinkin' cute!  I wish I would have gotten close ups of some of the things. I made cake plates with bunting around the bottom and the cutest baby shoes filled with candy.  I must say, my Silhouette is the ballz.  I am still getting the hang of it, but I am getting it little by little.  And the bunting on the window turned out so sweet!  I still don't know how we fit 20 people into my dinky living room, but we did!  The apple pie was TO DIE FOR!

I also made the sweetest baby booties for the baby girl.  I forgot to post pix so I will post them at a later time.

mad men.

I made this dress this weekend.  I used New Look pattern 6869.  I have been watching Mad Men (a little Jon Hamm, anyone, anyone) and was inspired to make this dress.  I cut it out on Thursday sewed most of it together on Friday and finished on Saturday during nap time.  loving how it turned out.
the fabric is just a $4.00/yd cotton twill that i found at Hancock's.  I was gonna go with a wool/cotton mix but figured that i could go back and make this dress again with the expensive crap.  
I, as always, learned a few thingies.
1.  Line the bodice with a light material.  seriously.  I lined it with the same fabric I used on the rest and it made for a very, very VERY thick collar.
2.  Follow the directions.
3.  Read the directions.
4.  Invisible zipper foot.  Holy crap, the greatest invention ever.  EVER!  I did not even know this thing existed till yesterday.  Life changing.  It only cost $2.40 at Joann.  
5.  Put in my first vent.
6.  I need a dress form.
7.  UNDERSTITCHING.  
8.  I am pretty sure that the directions were translated from Mandarin Chinese.   
9.  Dang, my calves look good in this dress:)
10.  Zippers- I kill 'em.


My confidence in dress making is definitely getting better.  I am a pro at darts (16 for this dress) and sleeves.  I ended up putting in four sleeves (two for each copy- the outside that you see and the lined bodice).  I am pretty pro at collars, but my confidence is not quite there, you know?

It's My Birthday Too, Yah!

Instead of singing the generic and boring birthday song, we sing The Beatles version of the Birthday song, complete with dancing and booty shakin'.  Rad's Bday is Jan. 3 and mine is the 8th so we get to do it twice in one week! 

For Rad's Bday I made him a Birthday hat.  It was super easy.  In fact, I used a cardboard Bday hat as a pattern to make this fabric hat.  I used my silhouette machine to make the appliquéd 3 on the hat and on his rosette pin.  I also made the pompom!  He wore his little Bday outfit all day and it was so stinking sweet.  I am gonna make him one every year until he tells me that he is too cool for it.  He was pretty pumped for the firetrucks, dump trucks, space ships, race cars and trains!

Hopefully soon I will have a Bday hat tutorial ready to go for all yuz!