Outdoor treasures

Last year, when I was trying to make one project-a-month from a different craft book, I made M a little treasure bag, like the one in SouleMama's book, Handmade Home. While he definitely liked having his own little bag, he preferred to tote around his little cars and trucks rather than using it to collect outdoor treasures.

This year, things are different. He's rediscovered his Treasure Bag (and calls it by that name, too!), and requests it every time we are headed outdoors. We've had a bit of a soggy, cold, windy winter in our neck of the woods, so there are constantly pine cones, branches, twigs, and more to be collected. It's really so very cool watching him enjoy being outside, discovering nature. And it's even cooler to see him do it with a mama-made bag in tow.

Project Home Decor Continues

I am still slowly working down my "to do" list as I try to decorate our home, and it's going way slower than I'd imagined. One of the big items on my list is turning the Monkey's room from a baby's sweet nursery to a toddler's cool transportation themed room.

First up: cool new bedding for his crib.

Did you know you can make your own crib sheets? Yep, you can! Dana's tutorial makes it so so so easy.

I've been eyeing the adorable sets of transportation-themed crib sheets over at Pottery Barn Kids, but they're just a bit too pricey for me. So instead, I cut into some fun cars, trucks, and motorcycle fabric I got at Ikea months ago. And just like that, the Monkey has some cool new fitted sheets for his crib.

Paired with his new Toybox quilt, and I think we're off to a good start in his room. There's still a million other things I want to change up in there, but for now, he's happy with crib bedding that reflects his interests (wait, I meant obsession). And that makes this Mama very happy.

Oh, and don't think I've completely given up on the monthly projects. I'll be back later this week to share!

New Pillow

For the last year, we've been planning to move back East to be closer to family, but of course the economy didn't cooperate and so here we are for another year. Not the worst place to be, if you ask me.

Still, the last year I haven't bothered much with decorating our home, thinking this was just temporary and I could focus on decorating our new home wherever we ended up. Well, if this year has taught me anything, it's not to put life on hold because you never know what's going to happen. And so, I've decided it's about time I put some effort into making our home look the way I've been envisioning it.

My first project: new pillows for the couch. We've got this brown (amazingly comfy) couch in a dark-ish room, and it just needed something to brighten it up. After buying a red chair for the room, I figured why not cover the pillows and use red and aqua as the colors?

Here's my first pillow, using the string quilt technique I'm suing for my WIP. I used 9.5" squares, with a variety of fabrics in my stash. I challenged myself to do this with what I already owned, and am pretty happy with how it turned out. I have one more pillow to cover, and am wondering: should I make the two pillows the same? Or try a new layout using the same fabrics?

I have time to think about it, since we've got visitors staying in my sewing room. In the meantime, I would love to hear your opinions!

Baby Monkeys

A couple of weeks ago, I was invited to a baby shower for a friend who was expecting her second child, a boy. I never know what to get when it's a shower for second (or third or fourth or...) babies. Something for the Mom? Clothes? Toys? Diapers? When I look around our home and our basement at the piles of outgrown stuff and clothes we have from our son, I always opt for something different. Maybe not quite a necessity, but certainly something special.

I settled on making her a quilt, which I figured could be the perfect first playmat or tummy time spot for the new baby. I used 2 charm packs (and few more squares) of the flannel Silly Monkeys line I had purchased initially intending to make a toddler quilt for my own little guy. I knew that it would be put to much better use as part of this gift.

I used the Disappearing Nine Patch pattern for the quilt, and it came together very quickly. I used some adorable alphabet flannel for the backing, and used an all over meandering/loops for the quilting. It definitely takes some practice, and I think I'm finally getting the hang of it! I used this neat red star fabric for the binding, and I know I'll be using it again, because I love it (sorry there's no close ups... these photos were taken exactly 90 seconds before I had to get in the car and drive to the shower, and about 3 minutes after the quilt came out of the dryer. Nothing like cutting it close...).

Last minute, I decided to make some burpies and bibs with some sock monkey fabric I had in my stash. I simply traced one of the Monkey's bibs on freezer paper, adding 1/4" seam allowance, and used that as a pattern. I backed both the bibs and burpies with the same flannel I used to back the quilt, to make them absorbent. I really love how they turned out, but I think next time I make these, I'll add a layer of batting or maybe an extra layer of flannel in the middle. You know, to make them even more absorbent.

It's too bad the Monkey now refuses to wear a bib 90% of the time... because wouldn't these be the cutest in truck and car fabric? Too bad I waited til he was nearly 2 to finally try my hand at making these!

May Project: Treasure Bag

Thank you so much for the sweet words regarding my entry for Blogger's Quilt Festival. There were so many wonderful entries, and I haven't had the chance to check them all out yet (or reply to all of your comments). I'm planning on making some time this weekend to sit and enjoy the wonderful entries.

In the meantime, I wanted to post my completed May project: the Treasure Bag from Amanda Soule's Handmade Home. Although I really want to make nearly every project featured in the book, I finally settled on this one for two reasons. First, my little guy LOVES a good bag to tote around his stuff. And secondly, he seems to collect an awful lot of stuff on our walks. So I figured this would be a great addition to his bag collection, one that we could bring with us as we explored outdoors.

I did not use window screening mesh as she did in her book. Instead, I used some black tule fabric that I got from the remant section at JoAnn's. Though it works great, I must confess I did not at all enjoy working with it. It's too slippery and hard to line up, for my taste. I'm glad I made 3 at once, assembly line style, because I don't think I'm in any rush to go back to working with tule.

I was planning on using a fun nature-inspired print for the front decorative panel of the bag, but the Monkey selected this truck fabric instead. I used some double fold bias tape I had left over from another project, and the handles are made of this nice, soft, cotton twill tape that was part of the packaging of some paper flowers I bought a few years back.

It turns out the Monkey is not so interested in using this bag for collecting his nature treasures, and instead wants it to tote around his cars and trucks and books (about cars and trucks, of course). I'm hoping that as the weather warms (and dries!) up around here, and we start spending more time in our garden and by the water, that will change. But even if it doesn't, it's still being used and loved all over town. And since his favorite things in the world right now are his cars and trucks and books (about cars and trucks, of course), I guess the "treasures" label is right on.

Kids Sewing Week

Last week, Meg issued a challenge: to sew one hour a day for 7 days, and to focus on getting kid's clothes made. I guess I never publicly joined in on the challenge (that's not entirely true. I do recall saying to Mikey that that was my plan...), but I took the challenge, quite literally. I spent 1 hour each day for the last week doing something sewing related: tracing patterns, ironing fabric, cutting it out, and finally, sewing a garment.

I made this lovely ruffled halter by Oliver + S (from the latest issue of Stitch) for a very special little girl in our lives. This little girl celebrated her 2nd birthday this past weekend, and I desperately wanted to give her something special and handmade. Thank goodness it's an incredibly easy sew and totally adorable.

I was surprised that I could make the halter entirely from stuff in my stash, which I admit is getting a little out of hand. I've had the gingham for at least 6 years (no idea what it was intended for), and the trim I got from my Mom's sewing stash at least 8 years ago. No kidding. It makes me so happy to see that it was all (finally!) put to good use.

And now, I'm off to celebrate. Today's my birthday!

(a little bit late) April Project: I made a shirt!

I'm sorry this is coming a bit late, but somehow April slipped away without me realizing it. Seriously, how is it possible that Mother's Day is right around the corner?

Anyway, I had planned to make the Treasure Bag from Amanda Blake Soule's Handmade Home in April, as a fun and useful treat for the Monkey (so that I would no longer have to hold the many rocks and pine cones he seems to drag home after our walks). I was all set to start working on the bag, too, with the pieces cut out and ready to go. And then I went Spring clothes shopping for my little guy, only to come home disappointed that stuff was either a) too adult-themed, b) too expensive, or c) too generic looking.

So I decided that this was the right time to dive in to try to achieve one of my goals for this year: learn to sew clothes. I had a yard of this really cute squirrel fabric, which the Monkey loves to drag around the house. It occurred to me that the little shirt from Heather Ross' Weekend Sewing would be just the place to start.

The pattern is incredibly easy to follow, even for a newbie at sewing clothes, like myself. I was scared that attaching the collar would be a horrible, tedious task, and though it was the one part of the process that took the longest, it was not bad at all. The buttonholes were a little intimidating and they turned out less than perfect, but overall, I'm very happy with how the shirt turned out.

Since I don't have a serger (yet), I used french seams throughout, to make the inside as neat looking and comfortable as possible. The only place I didn't use french seams was at the arm holes, mostly because I couldn't figure out how to do it without getting puckers or stretching the fabric out. There, I simply zigzagged the edges. It hasn't been washed since I finished it, so I'll let you know how those edges hold up.

Like I said, I'm really happy with how the shirt came together, but I think the fabric choice was a total miss. The Monkey loves it, and I guess that's all that matters (he's calling it his "digging shirt", which I think means it's his "gardening shirt"... either that or he thinks this is a construction worker's uniform). I'm hoping that paired with the right color shorts and worn outdoors on a sunny day, it will look better. Right now I think it looks more like the uniform at a cheesy restaurant or a pajama top than the whimsical, cool toddler shirt I was going for.

Still, I'm hoping to make a couple more of these little shirts for the Monkey's summer wardrobe. I'm thinking maybe some linen, maybe a gingham, or even some stripes; just have to make sure to really think through my fabric selection before cutting and diving in the next time. The sky's the limit on this one: it's so easy to make and fun to wear.

March Project: Birthday Banner

Like I said before, I didn't get to finish my 2nd version of March's project: the birthday banner in Alicia Paulson's book Stitched in Time. My first run at it was a cute little banner for the little guy I threw a baby shower for a couple of weeks back. I chose the fabrics below to make a name banner for him, and hung it over our mantle, right next to where gifts were placed as guests entered our home.

Of course, I didn't get a single picture of the shower, so I didn't get a picture of the banner hanging over all the baby gifts. Trust me, it looked so cute.

Luckily, the new Mom took a break from cuddling with her new little guy and playing with her adorable little girl to snap up this picture of the banner:

From the very first time I looked through this book, I knew that I wanted to make this project. For whatever reason, it wasn't an easy project for me to dive into... I think the thought of having to cut out all those letters just seemed daunting. However, once I got started, it went so quickly that it only took an hour or so of actual hands-on time to finish.

It's almost like the hardest part was getting motivated to get started.

Once I made one from start to finish, I knew it wouldn't take long to stitch one up for our own family... to take out every birthday and start a new tradition. I got as far as stenciling the letters to the cut pieces of fabric, but haven't actually assembled it and won't until Mom heads home next week.

It was nice to get to browse through this book again, and admire the beautiful pictures and the anecdotes peppered throughout it. It's so lovely, the kind of book that makes you want to curl up with a nice cup of coffee, browsing, making a list of supplies to get at the fabric store... Might just have to do that this week...

Art Roll-up

Don't you just love free online tutorials? I am always amazed by the generosity and creativity of folks out there who are happy to share patterns and ideas with the world. One such tutorial posted on one of my all-time favorite blogs, Mr. Monkeysuit (I'm so sad it's no more!), is that of the traveling art show. We call it the Art Roll-up around here.


I've seen similar art roll-ups for sale at craft fairs, but always thought to myself, "oh, I can make that!"... and yet I never did. I guess I just didn't want to go through the trouble of figuring out the dimensions necessary to fit in all the goodies inside the pockets. So when I came across this tutorial, I was thrilled.


I love that there's room for a new box of crayons or markers or pencils, stickers, and a little notebook; it's always a thrill to get new art supplies. This particular roll-up was made as a gift for a very special little girl who turned 4 last month. I used some really cute Japanese house fabric I was saving for some project that I now can't recall. And since our little friend loves pink and purple, I decided to use pink grosgrain to keep it secure.


Our little friend is a girl that loves her princesses and anything sparkly, so I thought I'd add some pretty beaded barrettes to the roll-up as a special treat. These are incredibly easy to make; the instructions are from an older Martha Stewart holiday special issue. Will have to dig it up to make some more... Wouldn't they make cute Easter basket treats?

Still Bending-the-Rules

Ok, so I know that I should be picking my February project, but I've been a little distracted. I haven't yet started on my second set of coasters, but I did make our little guy a few placemats from Bend-the-Rules Sewing in hopes that having a more attractive place at the table would lead to a more open mind regarding food. So far it hasn't worked so well. But isn't it cute?

I made 4 placemats, all different, using some super adorable flannel I had lying around. This is probably his favorite ("Boo Vroom!"), but I'm hoping he'll grow to love the chinese food boxes just as well. Maybe if I keep hinting there's noodles in the boxes? :)

I love how absorbent flannel is (didn't need a middle flannel layer), but it sure is stretchy. It's either that or I'm pulling at the fabric as I sew... not sure. See how the edge kind of curls? He doesn't seem to notice, though, so I guess it's ok.

January Project: Clever Coasters

I am happy to say that I completed my January project, the Clever Coasters from Bend the Rules Sewing (pg 77), a few days ago. I'd just been waiting for a sunny day to get some good shots. I chose to make a set of 9 personalized coasters for a friend whose birthday is coming up, and chose to use this gorgeous Kaffe Fassett fabric that I'd been hoarding. She's got these really pretty blue glasses that I think will look great with this fabric.

I loved how quick, fun, and easy these coasters were to make. I tend to like my coasters a little stiffer, so I might use batting instead of flannel for the next set I make (which will be for our own home). Also, instead of using binding (as suggested) for the word strips, I used some polyester twill tape I had around. I am less than thrilled by how the word strips turned out - they kind of puckered when I stitched them on. Maybe that was a result of my sewing machine settings, and not so much due to using the polyester twill tape... Still, next time I'll be using some cotton twill tape or binding for the word strips instead.

I am so happy I finally made these coasters, since they caught my eye the first time I read the book back in 2007. It's shameful it's taken me this long to make something out of it, but I guess that's the point of this self-imposed challenge: Stop looking at my books and start making!

Off to pick out fabric for the next set of coasters!