Skirts

I've been cranking out the skirts this week so that my step-mother can try them on her grand-daughters this weekend and I can get some feedback about fit and if they like the style.  Can't wait to hear!  The bottom of skirt #2 is made from a thrifted bed sheet.  I think it turned out so cute!

More Skirts

I'm really liking this style of skirt, taking the top of a pair of jeans and adding the bottom of a thrifted skirt.  Can't wait to see someone wearing them so I can see how they fit!

Jean Skirt Upgrades

 I'm working with my step-mother to make some skirts out of jeans for her grand-daughters and friends.  My step-mother is a conservative Christian and they believe that girls and women should wear skirts to show their femininity but they should be modest and cover the knee.  Anyway, this is a tall order for these Christian women as many skirts for little girls are quite short and it is hard to find modest skirts for women as well.  While I don't personally subscribe to her beliefs and dress code, I do like to be helpful and this project has been a nice way to bond with her on a topic that I feel very strongly about - sewing!!  Judy has purchased a number of thrifted pairs of pants and skirts and has given me freedom to hack and sew as I see fit.  I am looking forward to the challenge!

This was my first attempt at making a skirt of jeans.  I love that you can use an existing skeleton of denim and make it a cute skirt that has built in structure and you don't have to do much measuring around the waist.  This was pre-cut for me by my step-sister-in-law and I added a sweet purple calico print that I inherited from my mother-in-law.   Judy really liked it and I felt very happy with how it turned out.  The true test will be if Judy's grand-daughters will like it and if it is a good length for them.  I'll be sure to show the results of all of my experiments! 

Dinosaur Bag

 What do you do with a bunch of dinosaurs constantly underfoot?  Why make a dino-bag!  Ronan is in love with dinosaurs and he got this great set (two sets, actually!) from Uncle Sean and Aunt Val for Christmas.  So I had to make a little dinosaur themed drawstring bag for him.  He really likes it!

It is so much fun making things for Ronan now that he appreciates them and he knows that I made them for him.  I can't wait for the time that he can actually make requests for things he wants/needs.

I made this bag after seeing a blog post by "The Empty Bobbin" about making drawstring bags without the use of a button hole or grommit, it was so easy it was brilliant!  (Her pattern has a different style bag, but the closure procedure was the same) I was so glad because these bags are cinch to make, look great and are very useful.  But my button holer (is that a word?) doesn't work as well as it used to and I can't find my grommit kit...  Hooray for internet tutorials!  Thank you, Empty Bobbin!

Oliver + S pajama pants for Ronan

I love how these pants turned out!  I used the Oliver + S pajama pattern that also includes a kimono top.  I don't know why, but I had some trouble getting the pant legs to sew up together properly.  I'm guessing I transferred the pattern incorrectly when I traced it to pellon (so that I didn't have to cut the original).  I was able to fudge them enough to work, but I'll have to try and work out the bugs for future pants.  I thought that the extra cuffs and waist band were unnecessary when I was putting it together but I think with the finished product they look so nice.  I would definitely do that again on future pants!  Ronan loves them too, so, bonus!!  I used flannel cotton remnant purchased at Joann's, I believe it was a Joann exclusive print.

Christmas Craftin'!

This is a new design I have for place mats, I'm really pleased with how they are turning out!

Target's 2010 Christmas Album

A free download on Target.com, this is a MUST HAVE for the holidays!  An amazing album of holiday music like you've always wished for.  Tired of listening to Dean Martin singing "Baby, it's Cold Outside" for the 100th time this year?  Check out "Electronic Santa" by Blazer Force or "Toy Jackpot" by Blackalicious to rock your socks off. 

http://www.target.com/b?node=2492229011&ref=sr_shorturl_holidayalbum

Looking for the unexpected in your holiday listening this year?  Try these downloads too:
Christmas Tree - Lady GaGa
Nutmeg - Stephen Colbert & John Legend
Deck the Rooftop - Glee Cast
It Snowed - Meaghan Smith
Christmas is Interesting - Jonathan Coulton

Beloved Childhood Toy

It is so fun when you can take a toy or game that you played and loved as a kid and play it with your own children.  I brought out "Blockhead" today to see if Ronan would get a kick out of it and we played for ages!  It is so simple, you just each take turns building a tower until it falls and then you shout and giggle and try again.  I highly recommend this toy for the winter months!  It is still sold on Amazon.

Elephant Quilt Update

I have finally found the photos of the completed elephant quilt!  I am really pleased with how it turned out.  I wanted satin edging since kids always seem to like that on a quilt.  The coloring is off compared to the blue cotton edging which bugged me at first, but now I don't mind it so much.  When I first showed it to Ronan he said "No, I don't like that one!" and rejected the quilt outright.  But he has since warmed to it, and is in turn warmed by it.  :-D

Elephant Quilt

 I started a quilt for Ronan a couple of months ago and was able to finish it up just be fore we left Minneapolis.  These are shots of the quilt as I was pinning it to machine quilt.  It is part of my stash busting year in which I use only fabrics that I have on hand.  I had to cheat a little bit to get a small amount of grey fabric for the elephant and Ronan's name.  Also, I think I had to buy the satin binding, but other than that it is all stuff I had!   I am glad to report that the batting was even left over from another quilt. 

I designed the quilt myself with a lot of inspiration from Red Pepper Quilts and Handmade By Alissa, two of my favorite blog quilters right now.  The elephant image was taken from a Quilting magazine and the letters from the Arial font enlarged and printed out on our computer.

More shots of the finished product soon!

A Google Eye Adventure

 

Since our move, I have had the pleasure of being a stay at home mom for a little while until we get a little more settled in.  Each week I organize a couple of crafts for Ronan and I to do together.  Usually he doesn't get what I'm going for and gets bored but sometimes I pick a good one for him.  This craft began as an exercise in making egg carton caterpillars but became much more interesting when we cut them up into one egg carton aliens and monsters!  Ronan loves using "google eyes" and in enthusiastic about any craft that involves them. 

We just used google eyes, markers, misc. stickers and colored pipe cleaners to make our creations.  This is definitely one we would do again!  Oh, and I also was able to pull a string through one of the aliens and tied it around his neck for a necklace.  Also a thumbs up from Ronan. 

We're Back!

I didn't anticipate taking such a large hiatus from the Family Craft Blog, but the summer can just sort of get that way!  Our family made the huge and difficult decision to pack up and move to Wisconsin.  We're now living in a small rural town in Southern Wisconsin instead of the bustling metropolis of Minneapolis.  There are a lot of differences (hello, no Starbucks within 25 miles!) the main one being a slower pace of life, which we couldn't be happier with.  While Blake and I are sorting out the job situation, we are getting settled in at my Mother's house which she has generously opened her doors for us while we get on our feet again. 

And now that we are mostly settled in, and computer set up and moments here and there of free time, we can bring back the blog!  Thank you for patiently waiting for our return! 

Kristen, Blake & Ronan

New Fabric

Just as I was composing a post in my head all about using up scrap fabric and stash reduction, I found myself at Crafty Planet and picked up a yard of this.  Erin McMorris' line for Free Spirit called Weekends.  This is the "Go By Bike" print that I immediately fell in love with.  I seldom pick up a yard of new fabric the way I used to since we are trying to be tight with money these days.  But Crafty Planet is a dangerous place to be with a tenner burning a hole in your pocket.  Luckily I had just gotten a 15% off coupon, so I felt that justified the purchase.  :-D 

So.... next post will be about using up existing fabric!

Sounds of Summer

I thought I'd share a playlist of family-friendly songs we're listening to this summer. Blake and I come from the "mix-tape" generation so we love the challenge of putting together a playlist that we will all enjoy. Here are some of our favs!

Party With Children - Ratatat
Woody's Roundup - Riders In The Sky
Day-O - Harry Belafonte
Lovely, Love My Family - The Roots
Hold Him Joe - Ziggy Marley
Sticks and Stone - Jonsi
I Love to Boogie - T.Rex
Fast and Slow - The Laurie Berkner Band
We're Going to Be Friends - The White Stripes
1234 - Feist
Everyday - Rogue Wave
Electric Car - They Might Be Giants
Hold On Tight - The Backyardigans
The Mighty Mighty Elephant - Robbert Bobbert
The Ninjas - Barenaked Ladies
Pack Up Your Troubles In Your Old Kit Bag - Minnutes
Your Personal Penguin - Sandra Boynton feat. Davey Jones
 I Made You Smile - Jay Condiotti
One and One Makes Two - Johnny Cash

Wedding Quilt Done!

And just in time to visit my brother and his wife this weekend! I'm so pleased with how it looks. I machine quilted the entire quilt and then made custom white bias binding that I hand sewed on the back side (machine sewed the top). It has its share of imperfections, but I think it all works together to make a really sweet quilt. I hope they like it!!

Have a happy & safe Memorial Weekend!

Quilt Love

I'm not sure if I mentioned it before on this blog, but I am in love with the quilting site "Moda Bake Shop". (There is a button for it on the sidebar) Every couple of days is a new, free, inventive tutorial on a sewing project. Mostly quilt projects and all using a variety of Moda's fabric in the form of jelly rolls. This one pictured above is from fellow Minnesotan Doug Leko. It is one of those designs that is fairly simple but so elegant when put together. I really like the modern colors he picked out for the project too. If I didn't already have a half completed Christmas quilt waiting for me based on Elizabeth Hartman's design, I would be cutting into my stash for this one. I just love it. But you can't really have too many Christmas quilts. Right?

photo used with permission by Doug Leko.

Summer Shorts

I made these cute shorts for Ronan last weekend. They are from a Simplicity pattern (the specific number eludes me at the moment) and I think they turned out super cute. It is tricky to try and work in enough length around the waist to make sure that you can fully cover the diaper, so he has to have them ride a little low to look right. But he doesn't mind that. :-) I think when I make the next pair I might try the next size up. Most boy's shorts (even Toddler boys) that I see in style right now are longer and pretty much cover the knee.

The "Let's Make Fun Happen" Project....day two

The "Let's Make Fun Happen" Project

I am doing a design a day with the phrase "Let's Make Fun Happen". Each will be available on my tee shirt store.

My New Website!

I finally have a professional illustration web site up after 2-3 years of fits and explosions!