Sew Messy

Just a quick peak into my sewing snafu (is that a word?), my daughter wanted this sheep that I bought at Target last Easter for my son and for the entire year I've been listening to her tell me that she wants one too...just like his.  So I figure...I'll just make one, I've been sewing for 2 months and I can just whip something out and it will be pink and so much cuter.....as you can see...I failed and the sheep does not look like anything and it's very far from cute...it is pink. Not to mention the complete mess I made, the nice woman at Hancock fabric did warn me about the fabric but I just figured it would be ok.

The below images is the revised final version...much sweeter and well received.  Apparently you must actually follow a pattern or at least a good sketch vs the stuffed animal from Target.

Rob the Robot

Hi Again

Rob the robot, what a funny little robot he has turned into.  I was trying to figure out what to make my little man of 2 years for Christmas this year.  He has this whole slew of animals that he calls his friends (pronounced Fwends when he says it) anyways there are quite a few now that are on the bed nightly...so he didn't really need a new one but my daughter has the teddy bear and rabbit I had as a child and I felt like he was getting the shaft and I needed to fix the situation.  Hence the robot mission I set out on.  

Now, in the event you've missed the previous posts, Im a new sewer and not even sure I can call myself that given how little I've done it.  My mom gave me a great machine about 10 years ago that I've never done much with but due to a recent unemployment and my children finally going to sleep at the same time and by 8pm I have found myself with some time on my hands and I go a little nuts just sitting around watching tv.

So I found this picture in a magazine that I had cut out and put in my journal of projects awhile back, don't know the source (so sorry!).  I ventured down to my local fabric store and blindly put together what I thought I would need for this robot.  I drew out the pattern on paper and sort of taped/stapled it together to get it close to the size I wanted.

After I made a pattern I did a dry run on some scrap fabric I had...thank goodness I did that because there were some issue to resolve, who knew when you stuff a leg it shrinks in size from the front view...

So after many nights, curse words and glasses of wine, Rob the robot was completed and he was welcomed with open arms on Christmas morning.  Currently Rob is in the rotation with all the other Fwends and I get a little extra smiled when I check on my little guy at night and Robs little head is next to his on the pillow. 

Sewing with a 4 year old

Hey there

I wanted to quickly share another new crafting adventure. I mentioned a few posts back that I recently became obsessive in a crafty way, just can't seem to stop, my husband is starting to wonder where his wife has gone.

I gave my 4 year old daughter a sewing kit for Christmas thinking she'd be completely bored with it, especially given the competition of Disney princess paraphernalia but to my astonishment she dove right in and has asked several times if we can sew since...who knew.  The best part...now I have a whole new category of book to reserve at the library...sewing with kids!  

We have done one project together from the book, Sewing School, the doll.  The book is for kids a little older as it really focuses on hand sewing which we are working up to.  Currently we are using an embroidery hoop with a plastic needle to learn the concept and sometimes she will pull up the needle and push it back down if Im feeling especially patient.  So, back to the doll, the book shows how to hand sew but we used the machine and she picked out all the colors and did help sew on the hair.  The project took the better part of an afternoon, this was with a 2 and 4 year old in the room so it might be much faster with just one older child.  I drew out the pattern, she cut all the pieces (mostly) and then I sewed them together (she did the reverse sew button pushing) and then she stuffed them full.  I sewed the main pieces together and she helped out with sewing the face details.  

The clothes were really easy to do from the directions, I acutally played around a bit with my machine and some of the stiches that you don't have to do but since Im new and had some time I took the opportunity.  

All in all, Alexandria has been a nice addition to the doll family and has only had a few repairs needed plus one spin through the wash....I would recommend not using cheap felt as it does tend to pill up with wear.  

Now my 2 year old boy wants a blue doll....will post that one if we get around to it!

Transportation Paintings

Hey there,

I did these paintings about a month ago for my 2 year old son's room that we recently updated with some new paint, the addition of a craft table and believe it or not, real closet doors, one of those projects we've been meaning to do forever but just haven't found the time.  

He is really into trucks and airplans so I found some inspiration for ideas on Etsy and took to the drawing board so to speak.  We are not the cutesy little kid type of people and prefer more modern and clean decor but definitely want to indulge the kids in childhood so I chose some more modern colors and did the layouts in a contemporary way.  

The above was the first step, I took some sketch paper and drew out the general layout and positioning of the elements and dropped on some basic colors with some chalk pastels.  This really helps me to know exactly what Im going to get when I put paint brush to canvas.  Turns out Im not at all someone that just starts to paint and the ideas start flowing, I like everything nice and organized and planned out...Monet would never have approved!  

 

The above image (sorry about the quality, it was late with bad lighting).  I did the initial sketches in pencil on the canvas to make sure all the scales and layouts worked together.  

Then I did the 1st pass with paint...there were many more layers to come, turns out older paint (since the budget didn't allow for fresh new paint) doesn't cover so well on canvas... the sailboat took at least 3 if not more coats..what a pain.

In the end I was pretty happy with my trio as was my little one. Even a few of the teenage/young adults in the family were impressed...now that's what I call an achievement!  

Crafty Chaos…a confession

Since the last time I posted I have developed a mild obsession with crafting.  Ok, I think it's borderline obsession, see picture of most recent pile of books I checked out from the library.  I kid you not, I think I've checked out at least 30 books on sewing in the last 3 weeks, the poor people at the library that have to drive around and coordinate the collection and delivery of my endless requests. Who knew there were so many great books.  I've been scanning and copying patterns and organizing and shopping on a shoestring budget but Im up and running.  I even cleaned out the closets for the new year and cut up some of the kids clothes to reuse in projects (that project was the one that made me consider I may be reaching a slightly obsessive level). 

Im not sure if it's the unemployment, the full time motherhood, or the complete lack of anything to do after 8 pm that has driven me into this whirlwind but I have to say, it's quite satisfying...for the most part.  I'll post a few enteries showing the projects...some turned out pretty well and some have not but I'll share them all.