A Raggedy Andy Birthday

My little grandson turned a year old a couple of weeks ago and I wanted him to have a handmade gift from Grammy that he could keep forever. I guess kids don't play with Raggedy Ann and Andy all that much any more but I couldn't resist making him a classic Andy doll. I made a lot of these dolls back in the 70's so I dug out my vintage pattern and made Hayden a little buddy in the just the right size for him to carry around.

I was running a little short on time so, rather than hand embroider the face, I found this listing on Etsy for a digitized machine embroidered face. It turned out great and I got Andy finished in time for the birthday party! 

Little Easter Jon-Jons

I can't believe it's been 6 months since I've blogged! I sewed. I sewed a lot. I just couldn't find time to sit down and blog. As a matter of fact, I feel like I never sit down. Always something that needs to be done.

Nothing like a cute little baby boy to get you inspired to sew and blog about it. My grandson needed an outfit for his first Easter. I have always loved Jon-Jons on little boys. He is a healthy little boy and the Children's Corner pattern I have was just a little too slim fitting for him. I found a pattern on Etsy from OlaJanePatterns which looked like a better fit. I paired it up with classic blue striped seersucker, embroidered his initials on the front, and it was just perfect.

The pattern has very detailed instructions and a pretty nifty lining technique. I plan to sew up a few more for the little prince for hot summer days and, hopefully, find a few minutes to blog about them!

Little Hilltopper

Okay, I know I said I was all caught up sewing for Baby Hayden but I saw a men's red and black striped T-shirt on the clearance rack at WalMart for $3.00 and it reminded me of the Western Kentucky University Hilltoppers. Since Hayden has a gown for his dad's school, I thought he needed one for his mom's alma mater. I bought the largest size they had so I would have plenty of fabric for the gown and accessories.

I used Kwik Sew 3090 again for the gown and Kwik Sew 2433 for the hat. The tutorial for the pacifier clip can be found here. I took the pocket off the T-shirt and made a tiny little pocket for the gown.

 I like the elastic at the bottom edge to keep little feet from poking out.

I was able to salvage the knit ribbing from the neckline of the T-shirt and used it to make the sleeve ribbing for this gown rather than the hand covers.

And this is my sewing buddy, Kitty Boo. She loves to keep me company when I sew. I found her at the Humane Society with that "take me home" look in her eyes. It was a trick. She is a stinker!

I mailed this little surprise to the expectant parents last week. I think Hayden has enough gowns. My friend, who is a nurse in labor and delivery, told me that babies need sleep sacks nowadays rather than blankets. So, guess what, I bought a pattern today for sleep sacks. I just thought I was caught up!

A Crib Quilt for Hayden

Little Hayden will be here soon so I thought I had better get his crib quilt finished. I've had this easy quilt top sewn up for a while but just needed to get to the quilting and binding. The fabric is a collection from Fabric.com called Fox Playground. I added a couple of blender fabrics so that I would have enough variety. The strips are 4 inches wide (except for the panel with the foxes in cars). I used a soft cotton batting, one of the foxy prints for the backing, and the stitch in the ditch method for quilting.

For the binding, I cut 2 1/2 inch wide strips across the width of the fabric which I folded in half lengthwise. I stitched these strips on from the front and hand-stitched, yes, hand stitched, with tiny little stitches on the back. That's 200 inches of teeny tiny hand stitches. Only the best for Hayden!

I machine embroidered his name on one of the strips before quilting. Now that the quilt is finished, I have a couple more items to make for Hayden and one for his Mommy. And then, the waiting game!

Did you know that September is National Sewing Month? What are you sewing this month to celebrate?

Hayden

In a few short months, I'll need to update the "About Me" on my blog. I can hang on to the 50 something for just a little while longer, but wife and mother will need to be changed to wife, mother, and grandmother!
Woo Hoo! Yep, a little grandson is on his way!

My sewing room looks a little different now. Minky, ribbon, flannel, cotton chenille, etc. One of the first things I pulled from my stash was this Tiny Toon fat quarter pack which I bought a few years ago just because I thought it was cute. I've pulled it out over the years, stared at it, and put it back in the closet. Finally, a project came to mind for Baby Hayden and this is what evolved.

I used the stitch in the ditch method to quilt the floor mat sized quilt, stitching around each block. For the binding, I cut the backing fabric larger and brought it to the front, turning under the edge and stitching.

With the leftover scraps of fabric, I made little soft blocks and balls. I added ribbons to the football because, apparently, taggie toys are good for babies.

Then, of course, we had  to have taggie blankets. This is just a small blanket, about 15" by 15" for Hayden to hold and feel the different textures and grasp the ribbons. The black fabric is minky and the print is flannel.

My grandma sewing is somewhat on hold now because I still don't have my Bernina embroidery system back from the Bernina repairman. I drove 75 miles last week to pick it up, brought it home and it still doesn't work. I drove the 75 miles to take it back and now I'm waiting for my phone to ring with the message that it is working perfectly and I can pick it up. Needless to say, I'm getting a little frustrated!

A Sewing Emergency! and a New Summer Top

I had a little sewing emergency over the weekend with the Bernina that I use for most of my sewing. The machine is fine but it stopped communicating with the embroidery unit. And, of course, I have a stack of projects that I need to monogram. I drove 75 miles on Monday to get it to a reputable Bernina dealer who promised to have it ready in about a week. Of course, he also showed me the new generation of Bernina embroidery systems in a non-pushy sort of way. I was quite impressed with the Bernina 780. Things have come a long way since I purchased my system in 2003.

• The bobbin holds 80% more thread.
• Freearm embroidery
• Dual feed
• 1000 stitches per minute
• USB connections

I have begun my research but, hopefully, my old machine will be a simple fix, maybe a short in the cable.


I miss my Bernina and really wanted to sew a summer top last night. I have a lightweight Brother travel machine on loan to my daughter. I pulled out my Singer Genie that I purchased in 1973 or 1974 when I was in college. Last year, I had it supposedly "restored" but knew that it still wasn't quite right. Oh my, it sounds like a freight train with all it's parts about to fall off. It had no stability to sew even a straight seam. Frustrated, I put it away and pulled out my dependable Singer featherweight which was made the year I was born. It sewed beautifully!!!

For the neckline of this top, I always make bias binding rather than facing as the pattern suggests.

This is one of my fabrics that I purchased last summer at FabricMart in Honolulu. It is a woven rayon and feels wonderful. I don't know why I waited so long to sew it up. Kwik Sew 2866 is such a quick pattern and can be made in about 1 1/2 hours. 

I can't seem to get that Bernina 780 off my mind. Any advice from others who have this machine or have taken it for a test drive?

Dressed for Derby

What a fun project this turned out to be! My daughters went to the Kentucky Derby this year and, of course, needed new dresses. The Oaks is the day before Derby and is partnered with Bright Pink, an organization which focuses on risk reduction and early detection of breast cancer. Everyone is encouraged to wear pink and they do!

Remember the Little White Dress Contest sponsored by Patternreview.com? Well, Hannah wore her little white dress with a beautiful pink hat which she bought on ebay. The hat has a stargazer lily which is the official flower for The Oaks.

 

Just for fun, Hannah entered the Longines Kentucky Oaks Fashion Contest. Simon Baker from The Mentalist was one of the judges and told her that she looked "beautifully understated". Made her day!

The next day was the 140th running of The Kentucky Derby. Sarah wore Vogue 1236 in red/white striped seersucker. I made the same adjustments that I made for "The Underwear Dress" and it turned out great! I lined it with a cotton batiste and added a zipper to the back to make it easier to put on and take off.

Patternreview link

She wanted a monogrammed bow for her hat because it's all about the hats at The Derby.

Hannah's dress is Vogue 8648. I've had this pattern in my stash for a Susan Khalje class on Craftsy but haven't had the time to start. The pattern was designed to be cut on the bias. Instead, I marked the straight grain and cut the medium weight linen straight. There are lots of seams for taking up and letting out so it was extremely easy to get a good fit.

Patternreview link

My daughters loved their classic Made by Mommy dresses. While Hannah was standing in line for the Longines Fashion Contest, one of the contestants asked her if her dress was Lily Pulitzer. She told her no, it's a JanMade! That makes it all worthwhile.

Christmas PJ's

Finally, a few minutes to blog after a few busy weeks. I had several sewing projects started which I finished up two days before Christmas. That is cutting it a little too close for me. Every year, since my daughters were very small, I have made them a new pair of pajamas to open and wear on Christmas Eve. I always have trouble finding just the right fabric but this year I think I got it right!

Patternreview link

I went to Hancock's on Black Friday only to discover that all the flannel had juvenile designs on it. Now, I'm not opposed to a cute kitty print but it just can't look like a three year old. I was just about to give up when I spotted a bolt of solid red flannel. I have never made plain, solid PJ's for them before. I got it for about $2 a yard and bought the bolt. I also bought white piping because I had this image in my mind of tailored, monogrammed pajamas. I have used this discontinued Simplicity 5338 many times before so I stuck with what works. I was running out of time and running out of steam so I thought I would just leave off the monograms. Then, one of my daughters said, "Oh, I'm pretty sure they will be monogrammed". So, yep, they were monogrammed.

I purchased the interlocking monogram embroidery font from Herrington Design on Etsy for only $1.50!  I took a risk and embroidered the pockets without testing the design and it came out great.

Now, I know I should be on the lookout for fabric so I can start early on next year's PJ's but I'm sure I'll be writing the same story next year, and the year after, and the year after....

Embroidery on Burlap

I've always loved burlap, even before it became a cool fabric for decorating. I always keep a few yards in my stash for covering blah lampshades or cutting a quick table runner with raveled edges. Lately, I have noticed a lot of embroidered burlap pillows items online, at local boutiques, etc.  I have an empty rocking chair on the front porch that needed a little something to perk it up. I already had a 20" pillow form and, of course, burlap in my stash. I hooped the burlap without stabilizer and added Solvy to the top. It might have worked okay without the Solvy but I added it anyway. This is the result. I'm pretty excited about it!

Baby Gift Basket

Baby are such fun to sew for! I have a new great nephew and had lots of fun putting together a gift basket for him. I found the cutest fabrics for a baby gift at Whittle's Fabrics. (I went to the actual store in Chalybeate, Ky., not sure if they are available on the website) The tutorial for the structured fabric basket can be found at Sew4Home, one of my favorite websites for sewing project ideas.

I couldn't find cotton chenille or a good quality terrycloth for the burpcloth/towel. I bought a nice, soft towel and cut a generous size which can be used as a towel or to cover Mom and Dad's shoulder for burping. The appliques are from Planet Applique. I love their appliques, so well digitized and easy to embroider.

Check out the little snap on the bib. I once bought these colored snaps in quantity from Snapsource when my girls were babies for all those little outfits that snapped in the crotch/leg area. I just happened to have a bright yellow that matched perfectly. Snapsource has a handy little tool to make attaching super easy.

I found a tutorial for this flannel-lined changing pad here.  It has a little pocket for diapers, wipes, etc. and fits in the diaper bag for travel.

The changing pad fastens with a button and a ponytail rubber band. Be sure and use a flat button so that it doesn't poke baby!

 

The new mommy knits and sews beautifully and blogs about it here.  Check out all of her adorable baby blankets, sweaters, knitted toys, etc.

Last Minute Halloween Costume

It's been a few years since I had a request for a Halloween costume. I got a very last minute request this year from my 21 year old for a Captain America costume, female version. She loves Marvel movies and especially Captain America. The Halloween Express tent that comes into town every year had a few poorly constructed, and very revealing costumes for $39.99 and up. We decided to challenge ourselves to come up with something more tasteful.

We found a royal blue dress at Forever 21 for $9.99, a shield in the toy department at WalMart for $9.99, and a mask for $2 at Target. I bought red sparkly lame type fabric at Hancock Fabrics from their costume selection for the belt and gauntlets. I used a heavy decor bond interfacing for both, lined them and fastened with Velcro. To add the stripes to the belt, I used a wide ribbon from my stash.

A little tip for sewing with the lame which ravels faster than you can sew it! I sprayed the heavy interfacing with my machine embroidery adhesive spray and then laid the red pieces on top. This lightly fused them together. I serged around the edges just to make sure there were no ravels when I stitched and turned the pieces.

 
My daughter really wanted a white star on the front bodice. I stitched out a star with my embroidery machine on the heavy decor bond interfacing, carefully trimmed around the edges, and hand sewed it to the front.  

With the black boots that she already had, it all came together and she had a great time at the party!

Ruby's Bloomers

A few months ago, I checked out Weekend Sewing by Heather Ross from the library and traced a few patterns. One of my favorites is Ruby's Bloomers, a cute little bloomer pattern which comes in 6-12 months and 18-24 months. I cut the pattern down to about 3 months. I sewed up the bloomers and put them away. My mother recently asked  if I had an idea for a baby gift for her new neighbor. I pulled out the bloomers and the leftover fabric and had fun putting together a set of personalized baby items for the new baby.

I picked up a few onesies at WalMart when they were on clearance for $2. I had purchased a soft, white bath towel a while ago to make burp cloths. The bib is from The Sewphisticated Stitcher. I always have baby embroidery blanks in my stash to make personalized baby gifts.

The "B" applique and the flower patch for the bib are from Planet Applique, one of my favorite machine embroidery websites. May is Customer Appreciation month and Planet Applique is giving away a few great gifts.
 

I'm taking the baby ensemble to my mother this weekend so that she can give it to Brooklyn, her new little neighbor.

By the way, I ran across Weekend Sewing at Tuesday Morning last week for $9.99! Now I don't have to go to the library when I need to trace more patterns!

The Hunger Games

Today is the day! Well, really, it was last night. The Hunger Games movie is showing. My daughter began reading these books a few months ago so I decided to read them also. Very interesting books. The most disturbing books that I could not put down. It's just fiction.....It's just fiction....

Anyway, I'm going to the afternoon showing today with my daughter. None of that midnight stuff for me. I want to be awake and alert so that I don't miss anything.

This is the Katniss outfit that my daughter put together to wear today. She has been counting down the days.

I digitized the mockingjay pin that Katniss wears during the Hunger Games. I embroidered it onto black wool felt and made it into a pin rather than embroidering it directly on something. She might not always be as excited to wear a mockingjay as she is today!

Baby Gift Update

Update to the previous post......I decided to add a little burp cloth. I bought a nice, soft towel and cut a 10 x 20 rectangle. I rounded the corners and made a bias binding from another of the cute cowboy prints from Hobby Lobby. Okay, I'm done now. I must get back to Christmas sewing.

Little Buckaroo Baby Gift

I've been working on a baby gift for a little baby boy. His parents like horses so I thought this cute little buckaroo fabric from Hobby Lobby would be appropriate. The blanket is a 45 x 45 square of fleece. I made a blanket binding with the cotton horseshoe fabric. I used the same fabric for the cute applique which I found at PlanetApplique.com. Their machine embroidery designs are very detailed and professionally digitized. They have a few free downloads and sale items which you can try out.  I had a little fabric left over which I ripped into strips, gathered, and stitched to an inexpensive denim tote bag for baby's big sister to carry her little books or other treasures in.

Now it's back to Christmas sewing.

22 days and counting.