a new dress

little girl got a beautiful new dress from my very talented cousin. i love the whimsical fabric -- forest animals roaming flower patches and woodlands.

i love the details that ms. j added -- a peter pan collar with hand embroidery, orange gingham lining, orange buttons, and cuffed sleeves.

thank you, ms. j. it is perfect!

ps-baby boy loves his little romper.

where or where is purple?

when we bought our couch, there was a beautiful purple velvet pillow on the showroom version of our couch. the pillow was also $100. a little too much to spend for someone who can sew.

but, first i looked at every home store to find a less expensive purple pillow. and i had the hardest time finding a large purple pillow selection. it's not the color of the year. (so, i'm either ahead of some great trend or way behind.)

i was determined to have a purple pillow -- i thought it'd be a nice accent color to our couch and gray rug. i found some purple velvet for the front and some creamy cotton/linen for the back. and i made us a pillow.

i prayed my way through, since i hadn't made a pillow before and was nervous about the piping. but i was very pleased with the way it turned out. it was so nice to have my prayers answered!

little red

five months ago i had the best of intentions. i saw a version of this little red jacket online and thought little girl should have one, as well as four of her cousins. five little jackets didn't seem too difficult, especially because i was heading into my second trimester about then and was about to have this burst of energy.

well, the burst of energy never came. most days i still nap when little girl does -- and needless to say, this project just kept getting pushed off.

but this past week, i finally finished the last of the five jackets -- little girl's. (thanks to my mom's help!) just in time for one or two wears before spring hits the midwest. (great timing, huh?!)

i always wonder where those crafty bloggers find time for making all their cute stuff. and many of them with more kids then me running under toe. i have far too many ideas and ambitions for the hours i have in the day and just hope one day i do get that awesome super power to freeze time.

(i told little girl that we needed to take pictures of her new jacket, which ended up with her just wanting to look at pictures of herself that we had yet to take. to get her in a spot where i could photograph her, i told her that she could jump on our bed -- hence the crazy shots.)

thanksgiving in california

we spent a lovely, sunny thanksgiving in southern california. what a treat for little girl to play outside without shoes on!

i love this kimono top little girl is wearing. i made it for her to wear to a mulan-themed birthday party. the sad part is that she only got to wear it a few times before fall ended, since the party was around halloween. once i find a cute little black cardi, i'm sure the shirt will be back in rotation. (you can request the pattern from habitual. it's very easy to make.)

i had initially bought the fabric at michael levine (i think it's may favorite fabric store of all) to make a pillow for our couch. that project never happened, but i was sure happy to see this fabric waiting for me in my inventory when i started looking for an asian-inspired print. (this is why we have inventory, mr. pike. for such occasions as these.)

more to come on thanksgiving soon . . . .

my very first real quilt

i've made a few quilts in my day -- the kind you buy two flat sheets and tie it, or sew a bunch of squares together and tie it. but now i've actually made a real quilt -- one with a pattern, borders, the whole nine-yards.

a friend of mine at church asked me to put together a quilt top for a service day our congregation had on September 11. i said sure, thinking maybe a baby quilt or something similar. she needed a twin-sized quilt that would hang to the floor. i had never made anything that big. and she gave me a bag of fabric with four started blocks. and i soon realized i might have said "sure" too soon.

i came home and let the bag of fabric sit for a while. maybe too long, because before i knew it, i had two weeks to put together this quilt and i had four blocks. my first thought, "i could sew these four blocks together and sew it on a sheet."

but, i knew that was more of a easy-way out. so, i turned to the internet for inspiration. what does a finished quilt look like? and what pattern were these four blocks? maybe a variation on log cabin?

after searching through countless images, i had a few ideas and started cutting and sewing rectangles to squares. i made 31 squares to add to the four i already had and then set them off with a border of black.

and in less than two weeks, i had one quilt top. a real quilt. and i realized why i like sewing clothes more -- i am not a super precise sewer, and trying to keep those squares square was a lot more work!

the dress

this is my beautiful sister. on her wonderful day.

this is her beautiful dress -- made by my talented mother.

while i thought little girl's dress was amazing, it was nothing compared to mrs. wright's dress.

my mom and mrs. wright scored a sweet deal on the organza in the fabric district in philly. mom wasn't sure she'd be up for the challenge, but i think she did a terrific job.

here are some pics of mrs. wright and her dress. i wish we had some better shots that show more of the detail -- you'll just have to imagine all the amazingness.

mrs. wright with little miss m.

a sisters shot

wedding attire

after the engagement of miss m. to mr. wright, the family bombarded the happy couple with questions and more questions about the wedding details. when are you getting married? where are you getting married? where will you have the reception? what are you serving? what are your colors?

but most importantly, what are you having us wear?

i mean -- this one decision could cause a costly fashion disaster or a pleasant excuse for a new dress. and we were all crossing our fingers for the best. (something we'd all actually wear again.)

fortunately, miss m. was so laid back. we could wear anything black, white, red, or gray -- or any combination of those colors. and she didn't want us to be matching.

i already had a black dress and mr. pike had his gray suit, but little girl was definitely going to need something. she didn't have anything in those colors fit for a wedding.

i looked at a few stores for a dress for little girl. i didn't look that hard, but have you tried shopping with a one-year-old? it's not the best of occasions. so, i got it in my head that i was going to make her a dress.

i love sewing. and i have wanted to make little girl a bunch of clothes. (you can ask mr. pike; he'll confirm that i've been stocking up on fabrics for her. but have yet to do anything with them.) so, it seemed like a good excuse to get the sewing machine out and being creative.

once i found the red and white striped seersucker, i knew exactly what i wanted to do with it for her. the hardest part was putting that on paper, since i didn't have a pattern. but i had gained a bit of confidence in putting together my own pattern after watching so many other sewing bloggers make their own designs up. if they can do it, surely i can too. right?

well, it took a few tweaks and two attempts, but i made little girl's wedding frock (sewing the last of the snaps on the dress the morning of the wedding!). and i was so proud of myself. it turned out darling.

little girl isn't the best of models. (she doesn't stay still for very long.) so, here are the best of the pics in her dress. (these pics are actually from the sunday after the wedding.)

little girl with tj

winter wonderland

it was a snowy day yesterday -- i wanted to stay inside, cozy and warm. baby girl was feeling a little antsy in the afternoon, wanting an outing of some sort. so, we compromised.



baby girl got a bit of snow time.



and i got some sew time. valentines dresses for baby girl and cousin TJ. i followed the onesie dress tutorial on barefoot in the kitchen just like the dress i made for baby e.

a new dress

now that i'm at home with baby girl, i thought i'd have lots of extra time to do projects. don't babies sleep a lot?

well, i don't know what happens to my day, but the time runs away from me. i've had this fabric since september! and over the past four months, i've been slowly working on this onesie dress for baby girl's cousin, baby e. (i've also had to buy a larger sized onesie since baby e's growing faster than i'm sewing!)

i was so inspired when i saw my friend's baby wearing such a cute dress. (this was back in september, remember.) my friend shared the awesome link to her friend's blog -- barefoot in the kitchen, where you get the perfect tutorial on how to make your own onesie dress.

i happened to be heading home for a week, and while i was there my mom took me to this great little fabric store in the amish country. i ended up buying fabric to make eight of these dresses. so far, i've made two. they really are quite easy to do -- and super cute. i've just been moving ultra slow on this idea.

i'm hoping to finally get one done for cousin TJ and baby girl -- before they both grow out of the onesies i have for them! and i just found the cutest red and cream dog fabric -- maybe mrs. t would like one for her baby on the way?

almost paradise

i've been dreaming of this moment for years -- the chance to return to michael levine. aisle after aisle of fabric, ribbon, and notions. the most varied selection i've ever seen. it's my fabric heaven. if mr. pike and his sisters hadn't accompanied me, i'd still be there.

i tried to be modest in my selections, but it was hard to walk away from some of the fabrics. below are my choices. a magenta toile with an orange kimono inspired ribbon for a dress for me! fish and giraffes for baby girl. and bright red, yellow, and green fabric for a pillow in the family room.

shabby dress design contest

so, i didn't end up being a finalist in the shabby apple design contest. but, that doesn't matter much, because i still got a dress i liked out of the whole thing.

if you're interested in seeing the chosen 15 finalists, go here. and even give a vote for your favorite.

dress design for shabby apple dresses

shabby apple's hosting a dress design competition for its spring line. with some encouragement from my sister, miss m., and mr. pike, i decided to come up with a dress design for Shabby Apple dresses.

as part of my submission, here are some details about my design inspiration and fabric choice.

DESIGN INSPIRATION: so why this dress? after baby girl was born five months ago, i was ready to box the maternity clothes up and welcome back my old wardrobe favorites. i was especially excited to wear my summer dresses. little did i realize then that even when you lose the baby weight, your body can be completely different from your pre-pregnancy self.

when i began trying on my dress collection, i was either a little too busty or my baby pooch was a little too visible. i longed for a dress i could easily wear before and after pregnancies -- and maybe even for a bit during pregnancy.

that's where this design was born. i wanted something super flexible -- a simple tunic-type dress that can grow and shrink with your body. the sash creates a waist -- and you can wear it high or low depending on what you want to accentuate or hide. (i went for a little higher than my natural waist to hide my belly -- so i look thinner!)

the sleeves are very structured -- to give the design a polished look. i pleated the sleeve and then added a band to finish it off. (with any other sleeve, it may have just looked like a sack with a sash.)

i cut a square neck because i think it's a very flattering neckline that isn't used as often as a round or scoop neck. and then added some fabric flowers around part of the neck to give the dress a point of interest and uniqueness.

COLOR/FABRIC IDEAS: i love this vibrant fabric i found. it reminds me of watermelon, cotton candy, and sherbet all in one. spring brings new life to the earth -- and i think our spring wardrobe should be no different. be bright, be bold. (now some may say, "this fabric is too bold for me." i thought the same thing even after i started sewing. but, it turned out great. i think most everyone could wear such bold colors.)

i also liked the wavy vertical stripe -- i think the stripes make you look leaner and longer, yet the waviness of the pattern helps disguise and camouflage. i like cottons for this dress -- it's a perfect spring fabric. and cotton will give the design the structure it needs it without compromising on the flowy movement. you could also use a silk or a knit -- but the sleeves may need to be altered a bit to accommodate those fabrics.

here are a few more pictures to showcase my design.

ps - thank you, mr. pike, for being my photographer and cheerleader. and for making time for me to work on my dress.

finding her toes

baby girl has recently found her toes. on her back, baby girl can't help but reach for her feet, look at her toes, and slobber all over them.

i feel sad that now baby girl's found her toes, it's time to cover them (since the weather's getting cooler).

for several months, i have had all the best intentions to make the cutest booties for baby girl's feet. with our trip to scotland looming, i was finally motivated to work on them.

i finished the denim pair just before our trip, but they were already too small for baby girl's feet. so, i tried again with a pair of brown booties. a perfect fit, with a little room for her feet to grow.

i used heather bailly's pattern and modified the look to meet my creative whims. here are pics of my first two pairs. i have plans for a cream, pink, denim, and black pairs. i will share pictures as i make them. (the denim pair went to our new baby girl cousin. welcome to the world, little girl!)