A game of Cat & Mouse

Remember this book! I got it for my birthday a few months back...


It is packed full of loads of fun, cute and most importantly, easy projects! There are about 4 of the projects on my Christmas makes list , time will tell if i actually finish them ready for the big day! But at least one is done......

As you may remember from a previous post ,The Whirlwind is obsessed with playing skittles and we have been using empty water bottles which always looks like someone emptied the recycling in the middle of my living room floor! So this was just perfect to make for my little monkey!
I have to say i really enjoyed making up this little project, it was about 90% hand stitching so i was able to do it whilst i was at work, (it really helped to pass the time when things in the shop were quiet.)


I'm really pleased with how it has turned out, There are 6 mice and I'm amazed how round i managed to get my little cat ball .....Roo is going to love it!

I do have just one little thing to finish for this....a bag to store them all in!


x K

Vintage smock

Ive had this vintage fabric for a while now, I think it must have been a bed sheet at one point! It is my experiment fabric!....you know, when your just trying out a new pattern and you don't want to risk the 'good stuff'!

I'm not sure the colours quite right for The Whirlwind, It makes her look very white!Good job she looks like me, else people might think i stole this baby!

I think i may need to loosen the elastic round the bottom of the sleeve as they keep getting stuck half mast up her chunky arms.

This is The Whirlwinds favourite spot to watch T.V. It drives me mad! I mean seriously you could watch our TV from across the street its so big, but she is only happy unless her face is right in it and her greasy paw prints are all over it. We even bought her a cute chair from Ikea to sit in, ( you can just see it in the previous pic!) She does love this chair and will happily sit in it whilst munching a snack, but the moment Yojojo, Deli and the gang come on screen that's it, shes off to kiss the screen!


Admiring the new fishies!

Thanks to Louise at sewscrumptious for the link to that fab zip tutorial, by flossieteacakes (scroll down to the 2nd tutorial) Haven't had a chance to try it out yet, but went out and bought a hand full of zips in preparation, hopefully one eve this week will give itself up to me!

x K

Boxing day dress

Another shift dress i know, but they are just so easy to sew up during nap times! I found this wool check in my local fabric shop, it instantly shouted 'Christmas' to me! The picture doesn't do it justice as you cant see the silver thread sparkling through it!

My demented overlocker (yes still having issues!) actually came up trumps doing the ruffles, they were so much fun to do. I have also left the bottom flatlocked for now, still deciding if i will hem it or not, but at the moment i think i like the flatlock detail.

I think it makes the perfect Boxing day dress for the Whirlwind, teamed with a long sleeved red tee and some black tights.

I loved the way this looked so much, i couldn't help thinking that it would translate to a really cool bag or purse. So of course i had to give it a go.......

This was my FIRST EVER attempt at sewing a zip, and lets just say this 10cm purse took about 50hrs longer to make than the 2T dress!

Next time i will definitely have to look up instructions! Anyone know any good zipper tutorials?

Not toooo shabby for a first attempt. I feel there will be lots in the making for Christmas.....only 6wks Arrrrrrrrrrrrr!

x K

what a difference a year makes!

I made this little fleece jumper for Ruby exactly one year ago! I was so impressed with myself doing it, as i had no pattern....just copied a dress i loved, bought from Tesco! and i had no sewing machine at the time so it is all hand stitched. I loved it, and the whirlwind wore it loads last winter. I cant find the original pics of her in it but you can see them on my facebook here and here

Today i found a secret stash of the same fabric that i never even knew i had! so obviously i had to make a new one for this year.

This time i just went for a plain shift jumper, with a front pocket.......i must have been sooo brave last year doing those button holes!

Isn't it just the cutest though!I bribed her to sit still for all of 5 seconds by letting her have ago on the hair drier!......And the green bottles all over my living room floor are homemade skittles, a game which the Whirlwind is currently OBSESSED with!

I also figured out a way to use all of last years tights that are now to short in the leg....Just cut the legs off about an inch from the crotch seams and voila....Knee length sox with matching pants......
Complete the look with one of Daddys beanies!

xK

Poor Nanny!

Rubys Nanny has not been well for a couple of days....she has an infection which has caused her face to swell up! So yesterday we bought her some flowers and I a made a vase slip (there is a pint glass in there as a vase!) to cheer her up. Unfortunately i didn't take a pic with the flowers in, but they were a bouquet of red roses with little blue thistle like flowers!....I really have no idea what they were called, but they were very pretty!

xK

Apples & Pears!

I bought this gorgeous Japanese fabric on ebay last week , I wanted to make a dress for The Whirlwind to wear to my friends wedding next week! ................


A couple of weeks ago i saw this dress made by sew scrumptious, and pattern by Whole Grain Baby, so then of course i had to have one like that for The Whirlwind, so i bought the pdf pattern in the etsy shop, and this week i finally got round to having a play. The pattern was very easy and simple to follow, and would only have taken a couple of hours to complete........ however it did take me about 4 days to decide what colour yoke i wanted....pink, green, blue, yellow, orange1????? I actually made one in each colour and pinned the dress to each and still couldn't decide! In the end i went for the pink, but I'm still thinking maybe i should have done, yellow!...or green!


I really wanted a pink with white polka dots for the yoke, to match the pink strawberry's on the dress fabric.....but you can never find anything when you bloody want it can you! So i cut out a few flowers from the remnants and stitched them onto the plain pink,. The idea was to link the fabric's together and break up some of the pink! I used a zip zag stitch and its a bit messy if you look too close! and don't really think it was necessary in the end! but its OK!



The button!......I stitched the elastic too loose, so the button serves no purpose at all! Nice decorative feature though!


All in all i do LOVE IT.......Its not perfect but only if you look really closely!


Of course to get the full impact of how fab this dress is, you need to see it being modeled by the little madame!..........But she's not called The Whirlwind for nothing!!!!.....so their not the best shots!







Im not sure she will be wearing it at the wedding yet!........It depends on the weather, as we have no cardies that will match! and also no shoes! ( I don't think white flashing trainers or gold sandals will really work!) ...Still! ... There is a week to go!....Maybe i will make one in more light pastel colours!
x K

No strings attatched!

So as promised. Here is the bag i made for The Whirl ind to take to nursery. i WAS quiet pleased with it until i went to collect her yesterday......the day after making it and first day of using in! .....Only to be told by the 'stooopid' nursery nurse, who has been handed Roos old tatty rucksac (an old linen one of mine purchased from Gap over 10yrs ago and never seen the inside of a washing machine! EXACTLY THE SAME DESIGN AS THIS ONE!!!!!but they all said was lovely!!!!!) twice a week for the past month!!!! That the under 2s AREN'T to have DRAW STRING BAGS as they pose a hazard as the coat hooks are within reach in their classroom and they might wrap them round their necks!!! As soon as she told me i knew exactly who's neck I'D like to wrap it round!!!!!
.........Back to the drawing board this weekend!........Isn't it just lovely though!.....Perhaps i can add handles and turn it into a tote!


Bella is I'm afraid, still awaiting rescue from The Whirlwinds toy box.....i shall be mounting a rescue mission on Sunday!

x K

Ruffels, Bows, and Bibs!....and finally something for mamma!

So i actually pulled my finger out this weekend and did some sewing. And i have to say i am most pleased with my little creations. They are all gifts for the numerous babies we know that have been born within the last 2/3 wks ( seriously! one friends wife had a little girl last Mon, and his brothers wife gave birth to twin boys the very same day.....only 2hrs between them all!) In total i have 2 girls and 4 boys to sew for, so I'm half way there!

This was my first attempt at sewing ruffles! I must admit i found it very fiddly!.... Oh how i long for a serger!!!....In the first one i made the ruffles from remnants of one of my favourite prints which has served me well on about 10 different projects and i have just enough left to do another set of ruffles.....I'm thinking knickers for Roo!

For the second i used an embroidery Anglais trim and gingham bias, which you would think would be easier!!!! but stitching on to knit is a real beeeatch!....I love them though, I will defiantly be making more, and adding them to my shop in the next few days.


The third one is a boys set with bib and shoes, i think the set looks lovely together. I have been meaning to do gift sets for a while now! The other 3 boys gifts i have to make will be a set in the Cath Kidston mini cowboys print and the grey mini stars.....I'm all out of blue now unfortunately so will have to have a look see what suitable boy fabrics i have for the last one......I have primarily girly prints, as im sure does everyone else, but they are soo much more fun!

And then i finally got round to making my (first of many I'm sure) Lazy summer day skirt and i just LOVE IT, I am seriously going to have to buy a tun load more of this fabric as i have visions of a matching halter top, a dress, maybe a hat for roo.....I made the skirt early Sat morning and have worn it every minute since......really should introduce it to washing machine now! it is so versatile, i wore it high on the waist (or at least were my waist used to be before giving birth to The Whirl Wind!), with leggings to see my boys on Sat ( Take -That put on the BEST SHOW EVER!) and down on the hips ( again ....where once they were!!)with a little vest the rest of the time.


I am thankful that my 8mp camera does not show up my decidedly stubbly (Yes and stumpy!) legs in the last picture!

The whirl wind has her first day at nursery tomorrow! I'm not sure they are ready for her! ....she had an hour settling in session yesterday and they all commented on how 'confident' and......'loud' she is......That's my baby!......Don't know where she gets if from! Am going to make her a little drawstring school bag now with her name appliqued on it to put all her gumpf in.


x K

Daddy's finally home.!......Yipeee

Well it has been a busy past couple of week! I have been out and about visiting family and friends whilst daddy has been away, and after 3 wks living life as a single mum, ( i honestly don't know how those ladies manage...much respect!) he is finally home Yayyyyyy! And first thing on the list now he is back is to BOOK OUR HOLIDAY!...... Cant wait, Sun Sea, Sand here i come!.....although i have a dreaded feeling that holidaying with the 15mth old whirlwind is going to be a somewhat altogether different experience than last years hol's when she was only 3months old...... and couldn't move!!!!! But Bring it on anyway!



So in honour of the impending hols, i have made a start on The Whirlwinds wardrobe. Starting with a pillowcase dress (although not actually made from a pillowcase!) Needless to say she wouldn't keep still, but i think i managed to catch most of the detail. I am not really that pleased with it, i don't think that it hangs very straight! But its not bad for a first draft.



I need to shape the armholes and loose the pocket on my next attempt, but it is a quick and easy enough design for me to whip up in an hour or so. I have a feeling Roo's suitcase is going to be full of them!

And how cute does she look in her hat!

I also managed to get a few shoe and bib orders done last week.They turned out really well!.......After a few mishap's with my dodgy curved stitching on the bibs! Will definitely be making square ones in future!




x K