A couple of hopscotch skirts

I have made a couple of hopscotch skirts this past week, as hubby has been working nights and I needed some quick projects to work on after the girls had gone to bed.

The first one I made out of some more Out to Sea fabric and the second one I made out of some scraps I had from a dress I'd made myself a while back (yes, it remains unblogged as do most things I make for myself!).  I only had half a yard of the Out to Sea fabric and I ran out of fabric to make the pockets with, which was ok as I wasn't quite sure how I was going to match the print anyway. I made a mistake with the plackets, forgetting that you actually place them after you have sewn the hem, so the print didn't line up - oops! But you can't really tell so it's not too big a deal.

I could have added pockets to the second one, I had plenty of fabric I could have used, but I really just wanted to make something quick. Plus both girls have developed a habit of bringing home pockets full of sand from kindy. No pockets, no sand. Well, they can always bring home sand in their shoes, but at least we can take these off outside before we come into the house!

Of course, with my husband working nights that means he's home more during the day. The girls loved having Daddy around a bit more earlier in the week. I snapped these photos while they helped him wash his motorbike.

Katherine seems to like the skirt - she picked it out to wear to Kindy today as well, along with her red striped shirt, and she got lots of comments from the teachers about her outfit when I dropped her off this morning. She told them she was dressed as a pirate!

I took some quick photos of the second skirt the next day - the weather can change so dramatically here from one day to the next, it really is insane.  It was so cold and windy here that we almost needed jackets!  The day before it had been almost unbearably hot.  

Not sure what we are going to do with all of our warm clothes when we move north - I doubt we'll need many jackets up there!

Here fishy, fishy...

I usually sew for Katherine, as she is usually the one in need of new clothes, and Ellie has so many of her big sister's old things that she doesn't really need anything extra.  Katherine probably doesn't need half of the stuff I make her either, but that's neither here nor there.  Anyway, today I was going through my fabric cupboard - sometimes I like to do this when I don't really know what I want to make next - and I came across this fish fabric that I bought at Spotlight a while back.  I don't even really know why I bought it, it was definitely an impulse buy, and I didn't really have any particular project in mind for it.  But today I really wanted to turn it into something.  First of all I was going to make a skirt, but then Ellie said she wanted a dress.  I thought I might make a singlet-style bodice with little bias straps that tie up at the shoulders.  But then Sensible Mummy decided it would be better to make it sun-safe.  So in the end I churned out another Rosy Posy dress (I just can't help myself).

There wasn't enough fishy fabric to make the whole dress (I only had half a metre), so I made the bodice out of white poplin and just used the fish fabric for the skirt and sleeves.  I was under strict orders to save enough fabric to make a matching dress for dolly as well!  

I think Ellie enjoyed having a dress made just for her - she was much more enthusiastic about trying it on at fitting time than her big sis, and she loved having her photo taken.  I did have some trouble getting her to stay still though, she wanted to run and twirl and race over to me to see the photo on the camera before I'd even had a chance to take the shot.

As always, I put buttons down the back instead of a zipper, plus I lined the bodice, but not the sleeves or skirt.

The dress was a big success and she wore it all day!   

Summer Shirt

I have to confess I actually made this top on the weekend before the KCWC started, but there has been a complete lack of sewing the last couple of days and I thought I had better post something. I know there's quite a few people who started early, so maybe it's not such a stretch to include this top in my KCWC projects...?

For this top I took a pattern from one of Katherine's existing tops, and gave it slightly flared sleeves. I followed the Modified 2+2 tutorial over at Siestas and Sewing to create the yoke. The fabric is just some cotton gingham I picked up from Spotlight. I wanted something nice and light for Summer that would still cover her arms as she is so fair. We are moving to Far North Queensland before the end of the year and it gets so hot up there!

After making the top I decided it needed "something" so I added some yellow buttons around the front yoke.      I think it was just enough embellishment for this simple top.

Because the top is quite loose, I added a tie so that it could be pulled in a bit at the sides.  

I think this top will be perfect for the hot summer sun!  If I get some time this weekend I have a pink version cut out and ready to sew up as well.  

KCWC - Day 2

So, day two of the challenge is drawing to an end (for me anyway). I managed to finish off Katherine's hat today and it was a great success!

She wore it all day, literally would not take it off - I had to wrestle it off her at dinner time tonight. I made this one out of some scraps of a floral printed cotton (just a cheapie from Spotlight, and I'd already made a dress and a top out of it, but I had just a little bit leftover that wasn't really going to be good for anything... until now) and some spotty yellow quilting cotton. Technically the quilting cotton wasn't a scrap, but it was a small piece I bought to add as a trim on a dress that I later decided not to make.

Katherine's hat is a medium, Ellie's is a small. My children must have small heads as I have mostly been hearing that this pattern runs on the small side, but I haven't had any trouble with the fit. If anything, there is still a bit of room to grow. Katherine is almost five and Ellie is two, just in case you were wondering about ages.

It didn't take me long to sew the hat together this morning so I also whipped up a super quick little Christmas skirt for Ellie. Seriously, it took me 15 minutes, with her sitting on my lap. She loves to help me sew, although her version of 'help' includes quite a bit of pressing the reverse lever on the sewing machine, removing the spool of thread, and opening and closing the little tool storage drawer.

She wanted to wear the skirt as soon as it was done, which was great, but by the time I followed her outside to take a photo of it, she had already been drenched by her sister, who had sneakily turned the hose on. Then she fell in on the wet ground and so inside we came, and the skirt ended up in the wash, and I didn't get my photo. You'll just have to take my word that I made it!

KCWC - Day 1

I had the best of intentions in the lead-up to the Kids Clothes Week Challenge. I was going to be oh-so prepared and write a list of all the projects I wanted to complete, and have everything cut out and ready to go come October 8th! But a hectic week last week kind of put a dent in those plans, and so I enter into the KCWC completely and utterly unprepared.   I haven't even given serious thought yet to what I'd like to make.

So today I thought I would ease myself into things by putting together a couple of Oliver + S bucket hats, like the ones I made last month. My girls have been wearing them non-stop (well, they take them off to go to bed at night) and having outgrown most of their non-Mummy-made hats I thought it would be best if they had another they could wear.

I knew from experience that these hats go together fairly quickly, plus they are great for using up scraps too! So I got to work raiding my scrap bin (literally overflowing - I must put up a photo of it one day!) and chose some cute coordinating fabrics. I probably spent a couple of hours cutting, assembling and sewing up the hats (well, one hat is sewn up, the other is cut out and waiting to go!). But a fair bit of that time was taken up by looking out for the girls, getting their afternoon tea and rescuing my craft supplies from their sneaky fingers - oh, that reminds me that there is still an entire jar of buttons spread out on the toy room floor that nobody picked up... oops!

We even managed to get a few photos before dinner time, and I have blogged about my efforts, so... the day wasn't a total disaster. Tomorrow I am going to finish Katherine's hat and hopefully while I am doing that, inspiration will hit and I will figure out what I am going to do next.

Maybe something with these gorgeous vintage pillow cases that were gifted to me by a friend (they are even more lovely up close, I am not sure how I am going to bring myself to cut into them!) or with my order of Sarah Jane Children at Play fabric that arrived last week, just in time for the challenge! Decisions, decisions...

Little Lace Dress

I've been seeing lace everywhere lately.  Part of the whole "everything old is new again" movement, or - as I've seen it referred to recently - "old lady chic." I saw a photo of a beautiful little girls lace dress on one of my favourite blogs (No Big Dill - you can see the blog post here) a while back  and thought to myself "I have to make this!" Plus there have been so many beautiful dresses I have spied while out shopping that I thought I would just have to add some lovely lace to Katherine's summer wardrobe.

So anyway, here is what I came up with.  I used my favourite A-line dress pattern, cut front and back panels out of lace and lining (which was just some white cotton poplin), and a hem panel out of the lining fabric too, to sit on the front of the dress.  I also had to make up some little sleeves as the dress pattern I was using was sleeveless.  The sleeves aren't lined, just finished with a little bit of binding on the sleeve hems.




Katherine likes the dress and hopefully will get a bit of wear out of it.  I've never been afraid to dress my girls in white, for fear they will get their clothes dirty.  That's what Napisan is for, right?  Plus look at that face.  This girl would never get up to no good and ruin her clothes, would she?  Surely not!  (Don't you believe that for a second!)

The dress has buttons down the back and I even made a coordinating little hair clip.  The middle button on the hair clip is from my Nanna's button stash, to complete the pretty vintage look.

Are you in?

I am!  I first came across the Elsie Marley Kids Clothes Week Challenge earlier this year.  Sadly I couldn't join in as we were going away on holiday that particular week, but I loved seeing all the lovely things other people were creating (you can follow them on Flickr or Pinterest).  This time around, I'm definitely joining in!

Obviously I'll be making some more spring and summer things for my girls, seeing as it is that time of year for us here - and I'm hoping to get a few Christmas gifts completed as well, for my little nieces.  And the not so little ones too - they are growing so quickly I can hardly believe it.

What about you?  Are you in?

Down on the farm

We're just finishing up a long weekend here at the moment. I didn't get much sewing done though, as we went to visit my parents place. They live on acreage on the Sunshine Coast hinterland, which is a couple hours drive away from us here, so we usually make a weekend of it when we go to see them, and stay overnight.

The girls loved catching up with their cousins and getting covered in dirt, helping to plant Nanny and Poppy's new veggie garden.  My sisters had done all the hard work prior to us arriving so we just got to do the fun stuff.  I swear I didn't plan it that way.

 The new baby chicks were pretty popular too! Not to mention cute!

I did manage to get a little bit of sewing done the night before we left. And just to be different, I made something for myself! The pattern is New Look 6936. I've made this for myself one other time - view B, with the gathered sleeves - but this time I didn't add the gathers. I quite like it, and I will definitely get some wear out of it in summer. I was a little disappointed that I didn't buy more of this fabric as I initially thought I'd make it maxi-dress length. I love a good maxi-dress in summer! But I didn't have enough, so just made a short dress instead.

This was the only decent photo of the dress, but unfortunately I had my eyes closed so I have edited my head out of the shot!  Trust me, it's better this way!  Can you tell I have been covered up all winter?  Might have to break out the fake tan.... or spend some more time in the garden.

Shorts Stories

I've been seeing floral printed denim everywhere lately, and while I wouldn't wear it myself - I'm too old for that, right? - I thought I might make the girls some new shorts for summer.  This sort of thing was my inspiration. 

Floral shorts $32.99 from Pumpkin Patch

I found some floral denim at Spotlight.  It was about $6 for 1/2 a metre but that was all I needed to make these shorts - plus I still have some left over.  

I didn't have a pattern so I used a pair of shorts from last year that still fit around the waist but are a bit short in the leg.  I just traced around them to make a pattern, and then took some measurements from Katherine to make sure I was on the right track. 

I decided to make a flat front with an elastic casing in the back.  I put some pockets on the front as well, but not on the back.  The ones on the back are just for decoration anyway, right?  I deliberated over putting a yoke in the back, but in the end I left it out and just ran the seam all the way up to the waistband.  Katherine has no bottom anyway, so it sits fine the way it is.

I put a zip in the front, although I shouldn't have bothered.  She doesn't have hips, so she can get them on and off without undoing the button anyway, because of the elastic.  It was just more busy work that I didn't really need.  And there was plenty of busy work with these!   So much unpicking!  I unpicked until my hands cramped up.  I finished them late at night and then the next morning when Katherine tried them on - I already knew they were going to be far too big - they were massive on her.  So I unpicked the waistband stitching.  I unpicked the elastic stitched in at the sides to shorten that.  I unpicked the topstitching down the sides of the legs, and then I had to bring in the sides a good inch or so on each side, and stitch the whole thing back together.  

Oh noes, my child is way cooler than I am!  

I'm still not happy with the fit.  They look ok, but not fantastic.  

The shirt is McCalls M6156, which was another late night project.  Hubby has been working nights, so there's been plenty of late night sewing going on!  I have already made this once before, but this time I really wanted to do it with pintucks.  The pintucks didn't show up very well on the gingham so I ended up getting a little bit creative and making a wave pattern with them by running a stitch across them in opposite directions. I love the way this turned out!

Katherine seems to like the outfit too.  I can always tell by the way she poses for photos.  She's so much more enthusiastic about being photographed when she is wearing something she likes! 

I played around with the shorts pattern a bit and decided to make another pair.  This pair I made out of  some cherry print fabric - it is a stretch sateen that I bought to make one of my Nanna's vintage dresses with (I've made the dress by the way, and worn it!  I will get around to blogging it once I find someone to take a decent photo of me in it!).  I had some scraps left over - just enough to make a pair of shorts.  The fit on these is so much better.  There is still room to grow a bit in them though, which is good.

I left the zip off this pair and did a mock fly instead.  So much easier!  I even fooled Katherine - I caught her trying to undo the button (which is firmly stitched on).  Haha, gotcha!

I took them in at the top but left them sort of flared around the leg.  Plus I had a bit more length to work with, so I just did a rolled cuff on these ones.  The denim ones had a separate cuff attached because I was worried about the length.  

They sit nicer at the back too, I think, because there isn't so much bulk cinched in at the top.  So happy with these - I might make a few more pairs yet!  

Puppet show: The encore performance

In my quest to put together a few little outfits for Katherine's summer wardrobe, I pulled out the Oliver + S Puppet show shorts pattern again. This pair I made out of some chambray scraps I had leftover from this dress I made earlier in the year. I paired them with a top from a Japanese pattern book I bought a while ago (from this Etsy seller, if anyone is interested). It was my first attempt at a project from this book, and went better than I expected, really, considering I can't read a word of Japanese!

The fabric I used for the top is from the Out to Sea range and originally I had it in mind for a little collared shirt from the same pattern book, but I just didn't have enough (even if I was to cut it slightly off-grain... which I wouldn't have... but well, I did check!  I really wanted to make that shirt!)

Instead I settled for this one with a pretty yoke and flutter sleeves.  It is actually a dress but I shortened it to turn it into a tunic-length top.  The original pattern also seemed very full in the bodice so I took an inch or two of the fullness out, and there is still plenty of room for my skinny minnie.  She's looking particularly gaunt here as she's just got over a bout of gastro.  I swear, I really do feed my children!

I wanted to add piping under the yoke but had run out of piping cord, so I stitched a piece of ribbon into the seam there instead, and added a little matching ribbon bow to pretty it up a bit too.

I put a button closure on the back as I was worried about room for her head.  The original pattern was just a pop-over style, which I couldn't see working.  Maybe it was supposed to be made out of knit - if only I could read Japanese!  I had a quick look at the step-by-step diagrams and then went ahead and assembled it in a very similar fashion to the Oliver + S Icecream dress.  It's not how it was done in the book, but to me it made the most sense to do it that way.

I used leftovers for the pocket trim and leg binding on the shorts, as I didn't have enough chambray to go around.  This is one thrifty pair of shorts!  I won't tell you how I pieced the waistband together... notice there are no shots of it.  Hmm...

She's almost set for summer.

Handy Hair Clip Holder

A hair clip holder for my girls is something I've been wanting to make for a while now. Today I finally made not one, but two! A quick Google or Pinterest search will turn up endless styles of hair clip holders, but I'm going to share how I made mine today.

Handy Hair Clip Holder Tutorial

First, you'll need to get your materials ready.

Artists canvas (I just used a cheap one from the $2 shop) - choose whatever size you want your finished board to be.
Rectangle of fabric about 3 inches (7-8cm) bigger than your canvas all the way around
Scissors
Staple gun
Ribbon
Rectangle of felt slightly smaller than your canvas 


Now, take your canvas and lay it on your fabric, face down.

Fold up the bottom edge of your fabric by about 1/2 inch, then fold again so that your folded edge meets the inside edge of your frame. Staple it down onto the frame close to each inside corner. Repeat with top edge, making sure fabric is pulled firmly across the front of the canvas (you don't want wrinkles in the finished product).

Fold in the corners as shown in the photo, then repeat the process of folding the fabric edge 1/2 inch, then folding again right up to the inside edge of the frame, for the two sides. Staple and pull fabric tight as you go.

Don't worry if the fabric seems a bit funny at the back - you're going to cover this up at the end anyway, with your felt.

Attach the ribbon by stapling onto each side at the back. Use as many rows as you like - I used three strips of ribbon as this seemed like a good number of rows for the sized frame I was using. Measure an appropriate distance between each row and mark this on the back of the frame before stapling in place.

Turn your frame over and check that the front is neat - now is the time to pull out any staples if your ribbons are crooked, or if your fabric is wrinkled.

At the back, staple a length of ribbon to the top of the frame if you are going to be hanging your hair clip holder on a wall.

Put your piece of felt over the back of the frame and staple around the edges. I also thought of getting my glue gun out for this step, but since I had my staple gun handy anyway, I just continued using that. You could glue if you wanted a staple-free finish as this will hide all the stapling you've done underneath.

Now you've got a handy way to display and store your little girls hair clips!