I started sewing for KCWC over the weekend because it was damp and super-duper cold and the girls just wanted to stay inside, playing together magically for hours (during which time I prepped and cut and sewed and planned). Technically, I need not have started until Monday. So if you do the math, as of today, technically day 2, I'm way ahead of where I need to be in the challenge, which is a good thing since I'm not going to sew today (oops).
To distract you from my failure to follow-through, please enjoy this awesome video, courtesy of my darling friend Meghan. You might want to have a strip of paper handy.
Tuesday, October 9, 2012
Monday, October 8, 2012
KCWC Day 2: Pattern drafting
I had thought to sew pants from Dana's pattern, but I just wasn't sure how to adapt the sizing (wasn't I just saying yesterday I needed to trust myself more? so much for that!). Meg of elsie marley has made countless pairs of pants from Happy Handmade Vol 2, pattern O. Those seem very simple, look great and are available in multiple sizes, so I decided to try those. I still plan to follow Dana's instructions (it's a great pants tutorial!).
Not being able to read Japanese isn't a big problem. Most of the directions are pictorial anyway. The most important tip I've read on other blogs is be sure to add a seam allowance to your pattern (there's a good tutorial about this here). The tip I didn't read but learned the hard way is notice the little numbers indicated on the fabric layout image. Those little numbers are specific seam allowance in centimetres. For these pants, I needed to add an extra 5cm hem and 3.5cm waistband.
The fabric I cut is a meter of navy corduroy with baby owls purchased last year at Spotlight for less than $7. This pattern in size 110 with pockets used all of that. I will need maybe 1.5 meters to make pants for my older girl.
Alas, with all of the tracing and drafting and cutting and repeating (when I made the seam allowance error), I more than used up my sewing time today without actually starting to sew. Tomorrow!
Not being able to read Japanese isn't a big problem. Most of the directions are pictorial anyway. The most important tip I've read on other blogs is be sure to add a seam allowance to your pattern (there's a good tutorial about this here). The tip I didn't read but learned the hard way is notice the little numbers indicated on the fabric layout image. Those little numbers are specific seam allowance in centimetres. For these pants, I needed to add an extra 5cm hem and 3.5cm waistband.
The fabric I cut is a meter of navy corduroy with baby owls purchased last year at Spotlight for less than $7. This pattern in size 110 with pockets used all of that. I will need maybe 1.5 meters to make pants for my older girl.
Alas, with all of the tracing and drafting and cutting and repeating (when I made the seam allowance error), I more than used up my sewing time today without actually starting to sew. Tomorrow!
Purple plaid flannel tunic thingy
She needs pants and long-sleeved shirts. Obviously, first up would be a purple plaid flannel tunic with sleeves that stop at her elbows. Ahem.
Trying to enlist kidlet in the KCWC fun, I took Stephanie with me to Joann's fabric store to buy a new cutting mat and some corduroy for her pants. As we walked along the aisles of fabric, she grabbed and admired many, but few so fervently as this super-soft purple plaid flannel. To me, flannel screams "PJs!" or "Lumberjack!", but to her, it screamed "Soft and Warm!" Fair enough.
Because I'm too cautious to wing it, I used the chic chic dress pattern for the measurements, but you don't really need a pattern; there is a fantastic tutorial here. I used the directions in that tutorial rather than what came with the pattern. Next time, I will trust myself more (and use the tutorial for the whole thing). My reliance on the pattern meant I didn't actually measure my kiddo; thus, the sleeves hit her elbows rather than her wrists (sigh).
This dress is so very easy, though mine was more a comedy of errors. At the time we purchased the fabric, I had an image in mind but no pattern or measurements, so I bought a yard...not really enough to fit the pattern, which I only really discovered after cutting one big piece out of it. I fudged the rest to use the fabric I had rather than buy more purple plaid flannel. No two pieces are quite the same. Fortunately, for this dress, it doesn't really matter. Whew.
To keep it from being too borderline-pajama, I added two pockets on the front: simple rectangles with a light blue velvet ribbon trim from my stash.
Verdict?
Soft and Warm! Happy kiddo (with cold forearms, alas)!
Trying to enlist kidlet in the KCWC fun, I took Stephanie with me to Joann's fabric store to buy a new cutting mat and some corduroy for her pants. As we walked along the aisles of fabric, she grabbed and admired many, but few so fervently as this super-soft purple plaid flannel. To me, flannel screams "PJs!" or "Lumberjack!", but to her, it screamed "Soft and Warm!" Fair enough.
Because I'm too cautious to wing it, I used the chic chic dress pattern for the measurements, but you don't really need a pattern; there is a fantastic tutorial here. I used the directions in that tutorial rather than what came with the pattern. Next time, I will trust myself more (and use the tutorial for the whole thing). My reliance on the pattern meant I didn't actually measure my kiddo; thus, the sleeves hit her elbows rather than her wrists (sigh).
This dress is so very easy, though mine was more a comedy of errors. At the time we purchased the fabric, I had an image in mind but no pattern or measurements, so I bought a yard...not really enough to fit the pattern, which I only really discovered after cutting one big piece out of it. I fudged the rest to use the fabric I had rather than buy more purple plaid flannel. No two pieces are quite the same. Fortunately, for this dress, it doesn't really matter. Whew.
To keep it from being too borderline-pajama, I added two pockets on the front: simple rectangles with a light blue velvet ribbon trim from my stash.
Verdict?
Soft and Warm! Happy kiddo (with cold forearms, alas)!
Sunday, October 7, 2012
KCWC
Some of the many projects swimming in my brain these days involve sewing clothing for the girls. This will be our first cold winter in quite a long while, and we simply aren't geared up for it. We need warm pants and tops (long johns, coats, snow pants, boots...). For most of that, I'll need to make some purchases, but I haven't found quite what I wanted as far as pants and tops go, especially for Stephanie. Both of my girls are long and lean, meaning even the pants with the adjustable waist bands end up getting cinched so tightly they aren't comfortable. We just want simple things in cute fabrics; why is that so challenging? Oh wait, I have a sewing machine...
The week Meg of elsie marley is hosting the Kids Clothes Week Challenge (KCWC). The challenge is to commit at least one hour each day to sewing clothes for children.
Like many moms who sew, I have great intentions (and a ridiculous stash to prove it), but I don't make or take the time to follow through. Honestly, I find the sewing process a bit daunting. It's like origami: each step has to be done precisely or the end result won't look right. First, you prepare your fabric and trace the pattern. Then, you cut out the pattern. Then, you cut out your fabric. Only then may you sew (itself a multistep process involving lots of ironing). What I find difficult is I rarely have the luxury to flow from start to finish in one go. Most often, it's start, stop and put it all away, days (weeks?) pass, get the pieces back out again, try to figure out what you were doing, resume, stop, put it all away...and just thinking about this stops me before I begin.
The KCWC respects this process (and frustration). It's just one hour per day for one week. You can count any or all of the steps as your committed hour. If you pick simple projects, you might even finish more than one! I'm hoping to make a couple of pairs of simple elastic waist pants* and maybe even a top or two. Want to join us? Sign up by commenting here. There's a whole dedicated community Pinterest board here.
*I have made pants from this pattern before, but in case you are needing inspiration, Meg invited guests to share variations on that pattern in the week leading up to KCWC.
The week Meg of elsie marley is hosting the Kids Clothes Week Challenge (KCWC). The challenge is to commit at least one hour each day to sewing clothes for children.
Like many moms who sew, I have great intentions (and a ridiculous stash to prove it), but I don't make or take the time to follow through. Honestly, I find the sewing process a bit daunting. It's like origami: each step has to be done precisely or the end result won't look right. First, you prepare your fabric and trace the pattern. Then, you cut out the pattern. Then, you cut out your fabric. Only then may you sew (itself a multistep process involving lots of ironing). What I find difficult is I rarely have the luxury to flow from start to finish in one go. Most often, it's start, stop and put it all away, days (weeks?) pass, get the pieces back out again, try to figure out what you were doing, resume, stop, put it all away...and just thinking about this stops me before I begin.
The KCWC respects this process (and frustration). It's just one hour per day for one week. You can count any or all of the steps as your committed hour. If you pick simple projects, you might even finish more than one! I'm hoping to make a couple of pairs of simple elastic waist pants* and maybe even a top or two. Want to join us? Sign up by commenting here. There's a whole dedicated community Pinterest board here.
*I have made pants from this pattern before, but in case you are needing inspiration, Meg invited guests to share variations on that pattern in the week leading up to KCWC.
Friday, October 5, 2012
Fall color
Hi. My name is Jennifer, and I am a compulsive leaf collector.
How could I not be? After years without fall color, we are experiencing this:
Stephanie and I went on a leaf collecting walk today. We filled our basket before we even reached the end of our street. Our plan? To press and dry these leaves, then preserve and reignite their colors by coating them with Mod Podge, inspired by this post on Artful Parent. I'm considering sewing them together to create a leaf garland for the living room, but it is entirely possible they will make their way to other destinations. We simply cannot allow all this beauty to go to waste.
Thursday, October 4, 2012
Struck down
Ever heard the saying "Man plans and God laughs"?
I returned from my trip sleepy but refreshed, happy and inspired. My head was filled with stories longing to be recorded, tales needing to be shared and oh so many projects to be pursued.
But in reality, that hasn't happened (or at least not yet).
Since last Wednesday night, we've been fighting various germ incursions here on the Home Front, including our first ever dance with Hand, Foot and Mouth Disease. Yippee!
The best I can tell you is it's not that bad in the grand scheme. Yes, it is highly contagious and a bit gross, but it usually only lasts a week and doesn't typically develop into anything else (like strep can). The hardest part is watching your wee ones suffer with terrible itchiness (or worse, nasty sore throat from sores in the mouth) and not having any treatment to offer (it's a virus, so it will go away on its own; no antibiotic will help, though you can manage fever and sore throat as you usually would).
A proven home remedy for itchiness: oatmeal bath
Add 1 or 2 cups of finely ground oatmeal to a warm bath and soak in that for at least 30 minutes. I had oat flour in the house, but you can achieve this by pureeing uncooked oatmeal in a good blender. At first, this seems really strange, but I can attest a kid got into the oatmeal bath in pain, moaning and crying, totally uncooperative and generally annoyed at murky bathwater, and got out happy as a clam and not itching in the slightest. What more recommendation do you need?
I returned from my trip sleepy but refreshed, happy and inspired. My head was filled with stories longing to be recorded, tales needing to be shared and oh so many projects to be pursued.
But in reality, that hasn't happened (or at least not yet).
Since last Wednesday night, we've been fighting various germ incursions here on the Home Front, including our first ever dance with Hand, Foot and Mouth Disease. Yippee!
The best I can tell you is it's not that bad in the grand scheme. Yes, it is highly contagious and a bit gross, but it usually only lasts a week and doesn't typically develop into anything else (like strep can). The hardest part is watching your wee ones suffer with terrible itchiness (or worse, nasty sore throat from sores in the mouth) and not having any treatment to offer (it's a virus, so it will go away on its own; no antibiotic will help, though you can manage fever and sore throat as you usually would).
A proven home remedy for itchiness: oatmeal bath
Add 1 or 2 cups of finely ground oatmeal to a warm bath and soak in that for at least 30 minutes. I had oat flour in the house, but you can achieve this by pureeing uncooked oatmeal in a good blender. At first, this seems really strange, but I can attest a kid got into the oatmeal bath in pain, moaning and crying, totally uncooperative and generally annoyed at murky bathwater, and got out happy as a clam and not itching in the slightest. What more recommendation do you need?
Monday, October 1, 2012
Home again
Fresh back from a brief but wonderful weekend in New Orleans (I went for the annual Muses brunch).
A weekend with friends in New Orleans is so very good for the soul.
And for the tummy. Oh, the food. Yes, ma'am.
I am feeling refreshed and inspired, but not particularly invigorated after 2 nights in a row of less than 5 hours sleep (ahem)(that would be New Orleans done properly, folks). In the coming days, I am hoping to put at least some of my inspiration into action.
How was your weekend?
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