A Twirly Skirt

S is in dance camp this week, which means an hour or two of daily naptime sewing for me, hurray! It was so nice to have a couple hours of uninterrupted sewing today. I was able to finish this skirt. I used House on Hill Road's Twirly Skirt tutorial, found here.

As you can see, it is a very full skirt. I love the hem band and side drawstring detail. The most tedious and time-consuming part of sewing this skirt was pulling the elastic and drawstring through the waist band. Otherwise, the sewing was very quick and easy.

Here is the skirt in action. Main fabric is Riley Blake. Hem and waistband fabric is Moda Bella solid.

This and That

It's been a crazy few weeks here in our little corner of the world. A big trip, followed by illness, Baby B.'s First Birthday, and then another illness. With all this craziness, I did manage to squeeze in a little sewing now and then.


These are napkins made from Alexandar Henry's Juicy fabric that I picked up from JoAnn's. They are a total copycat from my sister. I just love them so much. I used the mitered corner technique from Martha Stewart's Encyclopedia of Sewing and Fabric Crafts. The napkins are 17 square inches with a 1 inch hem.

Another look at the napkins all folded and pressed. Aren't they beautiful?

This shirt I made from Simplicity 3511. Originally I made this with the flutter sleeves view, but they were stiff and stuck out awkwardly. The fix was pretty simple; I turned the sleeves into cap sleeves by adding elastic to the underside of the sleeve hem.

I found the fabric at a local craft store that is going out of business. They have a small, but amazing collection of quilting cottons. I am super sad to lose the only place that carries nice designer fabrics in our neck of the woods. On the other hand, my fabric stash is growing because I just can't pass up the discounted prices.

Day 5: Oliver & S Ice Cream Shirt

Day 3 and 4 of the Kid's Clothes Week Challenge was a bust. Baby B. turned into a teething monster who woke up every 2 to 3 hours at night and was a drooling clingy mess during the day. Needless to say I did not get much done. Thankfully she is back to her normal happy self and even slept for 6 hours straight last night.

I've had this Anna Maria Horner Little Folk Voile in my stash for quite a while. I think the flowy style of the Oliver & S Ice Cream Blouse really shows off the fabric nicely.

This is a size 3T and fits S. perfectly. I'm hoping it will last her through the summer at least.

KCWC

This week, I am participating in the Kid's Clothes Week Challenge hosted by Elsie Marley. So the basic premise is that you set aside at least an hour to sew for your kids each night of the week. I finished the DMK Reversible tunic last night for Day 2 of the challenge.

All I can say is, what a great pattern. The fit is beautiful, and the directions are clear and easy. A big plus is that it is reversible.

Now on to the next project! See you tomorrow where I will post the results of Day 3!

Baby B's First Birthday

Baby B. has two little friends who are 6 and 5 weeks older than she is, and so we decided to have a triple birthday party for the three babies. We split up the planning of the party and I, of course, was in charge of the outfits and the party favors.


This cute little guy is wearing an outfit made by me. I based the pants on a pair of white capri's that Baby B. owns and drafted my own pattern. The pants have a flat front with elastic in the back. The length is mid-calf and there are little pleated cargo pockets on the sides.

To complete the look, I bought a white polo shirt on clearance at Target, appliqued a number 1, and replaced the collar with one that was the same fabric as the pants. This is a great way to personalize as well as complete an outfit. You could also ad a little pocket to the shirt instead of the applique.

I made each of the babies their own bibs for the traditional eating of the cake. Baby B as you can see was not so happy about this part of the party.

The older sisters received matching outfits of their own. More Joy Ruffle Skirts.

Here is S. modeling the shirt portion of her outfit. The shirt was bought and the flower was made.

The sweet birthday girl in her birthday outfit. I appliqued a little cupcake on her shirt; a raw-edged applique with straight stitching. So simple and easy.