A Day for Making Dolls

I have been so excited to share this post and just got all the pictures for it! During Spring break we decided to have a "kid sewing day". I had so much fun and really want to do a kids sewing course over the summer. Or at least just have a few days for kids sewing projects. We used The Girl Inspired's doll pattern  and let the girls choose their own fabrics and buttons for the eyes. 

My friend Becky came over with 2 of her girls and her niece. She was awesome enough to take pictures and I am so glad she did! 

So this is really how I do things. On the floor. Our basement is still a work in progress and one day I will get a sewing room with TONS of space and counter tops, but for the last 9 years, this is how it's been. 

My kids have learned to just play around me. lol

The girls did such a great job of sewing on the buttons all by themselves. 

And yes, those are red "zombie" eyes for Zoe. Don't ask. 

I adore this little stack of dolls ready to be sewn!

All of the girls were so good and patient waiting for me to finish so they could stuff them. 

And I know I didn't have them actually use the sewing machine, but I thought using a thread and needle made a great first lesson. 

Aevarie decided that the heads made some pretty fun hand puppets. 

The girls sewed up the bottoms by themselves and I believe they passed hand sewing with flying colors!

Afterwards we went outside to let the girls play with their new friends and get some pictures. 

I love this picture of them throwing their dolls up in the air!

And here's the girls video of playing Ring around the Rosie. 

I know they love their dolls. I hope it will be a memory that they will cherish forever. Thank you Becky for coming over and being part of our fun day! 

A glimpse into our week

This week I have been taking a break from sewing. I'm still pattern testing and working on my own pattern plus trying to figure out how to flip EVERY pattern that's going to be in Frances Suzanne's new sewing Series "Flip this pattern". Sure, it's going all year round, but my brain isn't really taking that into consideration. Wait, did I just say I'm taking a break from sewing? I take that back. I'm not neck-deep into sewing this week. Here's what's been going on. 

Over the weekend Gavin got to go on a "Daddy and son" campout and go fishing with some of their best friends. Sadly they didn't catch any fish, well, not any LIVE fish, but I was so excited for them to go and have fun. 

 Gavins bear "Armie" had to go as well. 

Since I wasn't there there isn't loads of pictures, but the guys were nice enough to send me a cell phone pic of Gavin fishing.

Me and the girls had a movie party and those monsters didn't go to sleep until midnight! 

We found out that Jude loves tents. Gavin put a sheet over his little play mat thing and he has been crawling in and out and giggling about it the last few days.

We're so very inventive. lol

It's finally decided to warm up so we've been outside quite a bit. We cleaned off our porch and cleaned off the girls play house and all of our benches and planted some rose bushes.The kids have been having fun in the sprinklers too. Yesterday we were at our friends house playing in the water and all this time in the sun is apparently wiping Paisley out. She didn't even make it half way through dinner and fell asleep with her hotdog in hand. 

The table bench is one of the most comfortable places to sleep, didn't you know? :D

I need to finish painting our book shelves for the kids bathroom and then have Corey put them up. That room is so close to being finished! 

Anyways, that's a glimpse of our life. I'll have more to post in a couple of days. 

Have a great week!

Ginger Dimples, Aurelia Tunic, Skirt and Sash Pattern

I've been on a sewing board for a while now and have made some really fun and crazy talented blogging buddies. Crystal from Ginger Dimples just released her first pattern, the  Aurelia Tunic Skirt and Sash Pattern. The first 100 people to purchase will get it for $4 and I really think this is a "need" pattern. First, it's very versatile. You get 3 pieces out of it that can be used to make a lot different looks. It's also very well written. Third, it looks darling with every combo I've seen so far! You can check out all of the other testers pictures on her blog. 

Here's our little photo shoot:

This is the skirt and top together.

She was pretending to climb up the wall.

The tunic with leggings.

Don't you just love the back?? 

Then the tunic with the sash. 

I'm not sure which look I love the most. 

The pattern comes in sizes 12 months to 8 years and Crystal did an exceptional job at it. 

I'm serious that you should check out her blog too. She is such a hoot and so real and her kids are adorable. Her daughter is so spunky and her sons little dimples! Everyone on our board wants to kid-nap Crystal and have her as their neighbor. 

And thank you again Crystal for letting us be a part of your journey!!

Tulip and Edelweiss Lulu Pettiskirt

When I first saw the call for pattern testers for this skirt, I jumped and started writing the sizes I could test. Then I paused right before hitting enter. I LOVE pettiskirts and my girls adore them too, but they are a huge undertaking! Was I up to it?? This would be my 7th pattern test in 10 days and I still had 2 more to complete before.....I wishy-washed for a couple more seconds then decided it was a definite "need", especially since Aevarie had outgrown her last pettiskirt, and clicked "enter" without another hesitation. 

I am so glad I decided to make it and was chosen as well! 

The pattern is from Tulips and Edelweiss and is from sizes 12 months to 14 years as well as a doll pattern too. It was very thorough and gave a lot of information. I read through it twice before beginning just cause I did not want to mess this up! Mira gave us the option of doing 3-6 layers, and I was so grateful for this! I chose the 3 layers so that way Aevarie could still wear it to school without it being too big and me getting a note saying not to send her to school in it again.....can you tell that that's happened before?

Aevaries last pettiskirt was very purple with pink and blue ruffles. Adorable, but very childish, so I chose to try and make this one a bit more mature. I found some cream lace at the store and a salmony-pink chiffon and love the colors together. The best part was that the chiffon was on sale for $1 a yard! Seriously made my day! 

I had some crazy late nights getting all the patterns finished. This skirt took me about 5 hours from cutting to gathering to sewing. It was definitely worth all the effort though. Aevarie actually squealed when she saw it in the morning. 

We made the Verushka tank top from Ottobre 1/2013 to go with it. I just added the ruffle at the top and used the lace for the arms to tie in the skirt. I love the charcoal knit with it! 

Aevarie couldn't wait for Daddy to get home so we could go out for a photo-shoot. My girls LOVE their photo-shoots. We had a blast going around and found a few new spots to take pictures. I'll stop talking and let you see the pictures!

Check out Tulips and Edelweiss Etsy shop. You can expect more great things to come from them! 

Update: I bought all of my supplies at Walmart, but you can also find nylon chiffon at AFC-Express online for a great selection and price. If you have bought the pattern you can join her Facebook Pattern page if you have any questions or need any help with her patterns.  

Designs by Moo

Have you heard of Designs By Moo? Meghan's pattern line is pretty recent and I've pattern tested 2 of her patterns so far. I made the boys Moo shorts a while ago. The moo shorts are really basic and came together so quickly. The pattern covers sizes 3 months to 6 years, so Jude is covered for shorts for a good long while! Since Jude still isn't really standing or walking it is super hard to get good pictures of pants, but here's what we got.

I know this photo isn't a great one of the shorts, but I couldn't resist showing off my little boy! 

Super cute and basic shorts. They were a really quick sew and look adorable! Now that the weather is somewhat staying warm and should just be getting warmer, we'll be making a lot more. 

The second pattern I tested of hers was the Bubble skirt. The pattern covers sizes 3 months to 6 years again. And of course my girls all wanted one. We made 2 cause Aevarie is well out of the size 6 range. She's been getting tons of cute things lately though, so I didn't feel too bad. Again this pattern was super easy and very well made. I also have to say that this was one of my most favorite photo shoots with my girls. They were so silly! 

I couldn't resist posting all these pictures. My girls have been asking everyday for their "photo shoot". We really need to get some of Gavin and Jude in there! I really do love how the skirts turned out too. 

You can check out Meghans blog here: http://www.designsbymoo.com/blog.

She has some fun free tutorials on there and her kids are just adorable!

Thank you Meghan for letting me pattern test for you!