I can make a sweater without knitting!

Recently I’ve had an obsession with making sweaters for K.   Now I can’t knit at all.  I had a brief thought about it once.  It was the 90′s and I was going to a lot of music festivals.  I thought it would be great to knit some long scarfs to go with my broomstick skirts and Dr. Martens.  One attempt nixed that idea.  I didn’t have the patience or the nimble fingers for it.  That’s one craft that won’t be blooming here.

That’s where Upcycling comes in.  What a great way to reuse.  What a great way to save money.  What a great way to not have to knit!!

It’s also a little bit of a cheat.  I cut down the sweater to K’s size.  Sew up the shoulders and sides, sew in the sleeves and neckline and I’m done.  I’ve found the hardest part to be the neckline.  Especially on the cardigans.  I end up with a seam in the back.  While I’ve been assured by others it’s only noticable to me, it really bugs me when I look at it.  So I’m open to suggestions for a better way to do it. 

Here are a few examples of sweaters I’ve Upcycled for K.

 

(My K is like Ricky Bobby.  She doesn’t always know what to do with her hands when you take her picture.  She keeps putting them up to her face and I keep telling her to put her hands down.  It cracks me up every time.)

In case anyone was wondering, that is suppose to be a dress applique on the blue sweater, not a cat.  There’s been some confusion.  I thought by adding a ribbon belt it might  look more like a dress.  It just ended up looking like a cat with a collar.  Maybe I’ll just tell people it’s a cat.  Or that it’s a Rorschach  Applique.  ( Could be a cat. Could be a dress. What do you see?) 

Each of these sweaters started out as an adult sweater.  Each one cost less than 2 dollars at Goodwill.  How awesome is that?!  Pretty awesome I say!

And I didn’t knit!

Happy Wednesday!

Crafty Ryan

It would seem Ryan Gosling has a thing for a crafty girl. Just check out http://handmaderyangosling.tumblr.com.  It’s deliciously funny.  Just thought I would share one of my own. 

Fun with Doilies

Well, I’m back folks.  Why the long absence?  I have to be honest, it’s fear.  Fear that I’m being silly writing this blog.  When I’m afraid I tend to freeze like a small woodland creature caught in a SUV’s headlights.  Not a pretty sight.   I will attempt to overcome this by committing to posting at least once a week.  Because the whole point of this is to have a record of the things I’ve made since my late blooming craft conversion.  That being said, here are a few things I’ve done lately:

 My Mom gifted me with a bunch of doilies.  Some were old, some were new and some were treasures made by my Granny and Great-Grandma.  This bird stood out.  It was really cool and I knew I wanted to put it on a t-shirt for K.  At first I was worried it would be a problem washing it. I didn’t want to ruin it.  So far not a problem.   Cold wash/cold rinse, then laid flat to dry.  Perfect.  Also  it’s hand sewn so when she outgrows this it can be removed and used again.  I think it’s cute and unique.

I’ve seen doily table runners and doily covered jars on Pinterest.  I decided to try my own.

 

 

 

 

 

Very easy to do.  Who knew doilies could be so versatile?  I have many more of these beauties.  I’m sure they will pop up again.  I know I will be looking for some more animal ones to use on onesies for my sister’s first baby girl.  And maybe some small ones on a skirt for K.

Happy Monday!!

I ♥ Fabric

So I forgot to mention last post that I picked up some new fabric.  I wanted to make some Fall skirts for Little Girl.

I went to a wonderful place my MIL introduced me to called Stitcher’s Garden.  The women who work there are like the Yoda’s of Quilting and Sewing.  It is an amazing place packed with beautiful fabrics.   When I say packed, I literally mean PACKED!  If you find a fabric you like, you need to grab it or draw a map to its location, you might never see it again.  It’s a little like an Indiana Jones movie.

Here are the treasures I came home with:

I think the paisley and the blue are fun and can be worn with different t-shirts and sweaters.  There was some questions about the tree fabric. Whether it would work for a 2 yr old.  I love it though.  The plan is to use the coordinating piece as a ruffle.  And I might applique a shirt with one of the trees.

If you feel like it, tell me what you think.  Is the tree fabric too adult for a 2 yr. old girl?

Oh and I’m still working on the hollow core door desk.  I’m taking pictures of the process to share.

Can I Hitch a Ride on Your Bandwagon?

I must confess.  I sometimes follow the herd. 

Now before anyone gets too righteous in their “I don’t follow the crowd” ways, let me throw this at you. You’re conforming in your nonconformity.  Ponder that.  Moving on.

Right now, I’m riding the Pinterest Bandwagon.  This site is pure genius.  Not only can I keep track of stuff that I may want to craft/decorate/eat/wear/read.  I can see what other people want to craft/decorate/eat/wear/read.  There is no shortage of inspiring things to copy.  

Which is where I tracked my next bandwagon.  I was trying to find a way to incorporate the computer, my sewing machine, and a place for guests nieces and nephews to sleep in the Brand Spankin’ New Bland 2nd bedroom.  When I came upon it.

The Hollow Core Door Desk.

Apparently everyone is doing it, so I’m catching a ride.  I looked at alot of different ideas and tips for putting one together. But  this http://www.younghouselove.com/2010/06/office-progress-deciding-to-diy-a-desk/  is the best one I’ve found and the one I’m using as a guide.  

So after coaxing my husband into getting on board, we went to Lowe’s and purchased the following supplies.

This is going to be fun.

New Home, New Marina? or How Nickelodean Traumatized My Child.

Last month my family moved into a Brand New Home.  Brand Spankin’ New! See…….

  

It’s the perfect size for us, in a location we love, with a newly fenced backyard. A prayer was answered with this house.  And while I love the fact that my family’s germs and dirt are the only germs and dirt to grace this house, it does lack some character.  It’s kind of bland.  Brand Spankin’ New Bland.

  But that’s okay, I’m on it.  Because if you haven’t heard, I’m working on my Crafty Degree.  Going to Crafty College if you will.  This house will be my Thesis.  Not only will I be sharing  my crafty sewing  to the 3 or 4 people reading this (Hi, Mom!)  I will be working on projects for my home.  It’s very exciting.  I’m excited!  Are you excited?

Know what else is exciting??…………The Fresh Beat Band. 

 

 

 

Yep, The Fresh Beat Band.  My daughter LOVES this show.  She dances around to the songs.  Laughs at the silly antics of Shout, Twist, Marina and Kiki.  She really likes Marina.  I think we had all of  Season 2 on our DVR.  A couple of episodes on the Ipod Touch worked like a charm when she got antsy at restaurants or grocery shopping.  I even toyed with the idea of a Fresh Beat Band Birthday Party this year.  We ended up with Olivia, but I thought I might do it next year. Now I’m not so sure. Why?  Well this is what we encountered for Season 3

On Guitar- Kiki, On Keyboard-Shout, On Drums-Marina, And the Real MC-DJ Twist in the…………..Back up! Wait!  What the Frank!?, That’s not Marina!   Who is that?   Is that Marina’s Mom?  Why did she just say her name was Marina?

Or as my 2 year put it “No, No, No! Go Away! Stop it!” 

Did the producers of this show think that no one would notice?  That toddlers, who love their routines, wouldn’t be confused?  I know to most people,  this isn’t that big of a deal.  And I pretty sure that’s my husband behind me giggling   laughing.  But I can’t help but think this could have been a teachable moment for the show.  It could have been an episode about Marina moving to a new home.  There could have been a song  “Friends Help Friends Pack”  or “Big Move”.  Another episode could have been about making new friends.  These are experiences that young children will have growing up.  It would have been nice for the show to acknowledge it.  That’s all I’m saying.

For my daughter, I just said that “Old Marina” and “New Marina”  were sisters.  Kind of like the Mr. Noodles on Sesame Street.  That seemed to appease her and to keep her from yelling “Stop it!”  every time ”New Marina” spoke. 

I should also explain that when we moved we gave up cable. So no more DVR. We have the internet, Netflix, and a digital antenna.  My daughter hadn’t watched the show  in a while.  That could have been another reason for the anger toward the “New Marina”.

Now that I’m thinking about it, maybe I should have told her that Marina had moved. Into a Brand Spankin’ New House just like her.

 

 

Oh, and I wasn’t sure about copyrights. I hope it’s okay that I use these images. If not, I’ll remove them.

A Tale of Two Skirts

So a lot of new and exciting thing have happened in recent months.  I’ll get to that another time, but right now here are the skirts I promise to make. There are so many great sewing/crafting blogs out there but I really liked this tutorial http://www.dana-made-it.com/2008/07/tutorial-simple-skirt.html. She says it’s the simplest skirt you’ll ever make. You better believe it, my friend.  ’Cause  I made both of these in one afternoon.

 

Pretty cute, right?  Now before you congratulate me on my ability to follow simple  instructions, I should show you the mistake I made on the first skirt I did.

 

Do you see it?  The Wonkiness?  It’s Wonky.  I didn’t sew the bias tape to the hem until the end and it didn’t line up right.  I should say “I couldn’t  line it up right”.  I’m pretty sure the bias tape doesn’t right itself. (Be nice if it did.)  But with that lesson learned, I sewed the bias tape on the second skirt before sewing the sides together like this:

 

See, no Wonkiness.  All better.  Nice and neat.  I plan on making more of these skirts for the fall, maybe add some pockets and appliques.  Will be totally cute with tights and boots. And of course a sweater on top.