Round two

This time, I made the size small (pattern sizing is crazy sometimes- Gwen is so far out of the weight and height ranges for that size) and combined it into a single cut of each fabric, instead of treating the fronts and backs of each separately.

And it fits MUCH better than the size M does (though I’m sure she’ll grow into the first one). She is absolutely fascinated by the big buttons, though- so, if I make this again, I might just stitch the shoulders together- it slips over her head, anyway. Those are the bloomers included in the pattern, by the way- I like the pattern for them a lot.

Bubblegum pink floof in action.

Making a break for the closet- probably hoping for a shirt. This thing is so full that she can actually crawl in it without it tripping her up- and you can’t even see her bootie, there’s so many ruffles.

Now there’s need for a shirt AND some pants! Good thing her brother knows how to open closet doors.

Uh- oh. Shirts and shorts are in the dressers, not Gwen’s closet! (Note the THREE GARBAGE BAGS FULL of outgrown clothes from Aunt Kelly and Sophie- and there’s more!!!) And yes, Gabe has been in underpants for several months now- I haven’t bragged about that yet!

And here’s a little peasant dress I made from Portabello Pixie’s Claire pattern a while back. Finally got around to photographing it! The pettiskirt actually looks really fun under it- it makes it poof out and the pink ruffles peak out of the bottom! I’ll have to get a shot of that one day!

If you suffer from self-loathing.

Punish yourself. Make a pettiskirt.

That’s roughly 75 yards/225 feet/2700 inches of ruffle along the bottom here. Ruffler foot, I love you. So, so much. And I love my newest buddy, too- I was able to pick up this Janome/Kenmore machine for $20.95 shipped last week! Crazy. It’s been a nice basic machine so far- definitely not my Brother, but, it works the ruffler fine. For that ridiculous price, I’m just going to leave it set up for ruffling or shirring- I haven’t decided which I use more yet- but, then I don’t have to mess with my main sewing machine when I need to do that.

I wish the pink satin I had was closer to the bubblegum pink of the chiffon, but, it looked awful- so I just used white for the waist. I think her top will cover that most of the time, anyway, so no biggie.

These instructions are really great- you know, if you want an alternative to pulling your toenails off with pliers. I kind of winged it, though (she doesn’t use a ruffler foot- crazy woman!)- I’ve had chiffon sitting around forever, been meaning to get around to this. And I have more chiffon in other colors, so I’ll be testing my ruffler again soon. I think I’ve worked out the kinks and know what I’m doing now, so it should be a lot less painful!

Really, it’s a very simple project- just very, very time consuming. I really just can’t convey HOW MUCH GATHERING this project involves!

Preschool?!

Yep, our THREE YEAR OLD (Happy birthday, Gabe!) starts preschool next month! We found an absolutely amazing school for him, and we’re all so excited about it. I decided to try to make him a little backpack to celebrate the occasion- and WOW! It worked! I made one!

I’ll be honest- this was a challenging project for me- my first zipper, my first quilting (on the bottom panel), my first time sewing with interfacing, my first time sewing piping- a lot of firsts! I used a tutorial/pattern from Made By Rae- it made it all possible. There were still parts that were over my head for a minute, and I had a few panic attacks during the process, but, I can definitely recommend it if you are an intermediate or even advanced beginner with a sewing machine.

And I’m pretty sure he likes it- that’s the important part! He’s had a lot of fun zipping it up and stuffing it with toys and books. And he was a willing model- that, alone, speaks volumes!

Apron Dress

This is such a fun style- so quick to put together, too. I used Butterick 5439. It was an okay pattern. I was a little annoyed that it took three pieces for this view- it could’ve been done in one (and avoided the pattern matching issues) with the yardage it recommended. I didn’t think of that until too late- but, I’ll definitely remember for next time (and I will do this one again). It also didn’t include top stitching in the directions, which seemed pretty important- it would have been so floppy without it! Other than that, though- it was okay! It’s on sale at Joann’s this week for 99c- and includes some other cute views- so, not a bad deal at all. It DOES seem to run really big, though- Gwen is at the upper weight and over the height range for this size, but, it is pretty giant on her right now. Not horrible, but, it will definitely fit for awhile.

The back is sweet- it’s cut just high enough that you can get a view of the bloomers.

A new outfit for Gwen

She is so much fun to sew for! I hope she never outgrows it. Here’s a top I put together- I used a tank top that fits her to whip together the pattern for it. Bias tape is cool stuff.

I made a diaper cover to go under it- Prudent Baby’s tutorial- and added some ruffles.

And a little flower clip to go in her hair.

First she blew me some raspberries…

Then, she gave me a thumbs up.

I think it will be perfect for crawling through a HOT summer.

This one just made me laugh! She can look so serious.

But, yeah. She’s not.

Day 98

More baby bloomers- these came out pretty huge. Seam allowances still get me sometimes.

Day 92

The squishy hat- love it! I’m going to add an i-cord flower, and call it done! Just in time for her 6m birthday in 2 days.

Day 91

I love this yarn. Almost too much to actually do anything with it. I had a shipment come in today, pink and green for a hat I want to make for Gwen’s 6m pictures. This one will likely be a hat, too- I just have to find the perfect pattern to show off all the colors!

Half a year

Six months old! Only six months to go before our baby isn’t a baby anymore- slooooow down!!!