apple and pear romper

jasons sister katie has been here this weekend as a last visit before she leaves for missions in poland. so, i have not been spending my time figuring out what to do with that cream dress, instead, i made a party romper for emma, and a second one for church this weekend.

armed with simplicity pattern number 3808 and apple fabric from our trip to australia and shopping in jenns fabric dresser, i went to work. i had heard that the pattern runs big, and emma is just between two sizes but growing really fast right now so i went ahead and made the larger of the two. this romper has pleats down the neckline, but they are not clearly marked on the pattern to make sure they are equidistant apart. i pleated it the number of times the pattern showed, but used the facing piece as my guide of how pleated it should end up. i also discovered the wonders of snap tape. i love that stuff. i bought another package of it yesterday.

here it is, on a moving (and therefore blurry) baby. and of course, shoes to match.





the length is pretty good, she needs room to squiggle around since shes almost crawling now, but it is so wide on her. the strap falls a little off her shoulder, and balloons around her waist. this will fit for a while, as long as she doesnt get too much taller too fast. oh, and check out these shoes.




they stayed on her little feet for an entire day. shopping at the mall, diaper changes, visiting family, they didnt come off. i made a duplicate in cream for her sunday pear romper, but in a slightly larger size so they will last a little longer, and they came off a couple times. overall though, fantastic considering there is no tie or strap. (i bought a new fabric for the soles yesterday too, im excited to try it out in a few days.)

will post the pear romper and shoes after they go through the wash, i didnt take any pictures of her in it yesterday. i took in a little shy of an inch on both sides, and squared up the straps (because i am not great at sewing those tight curves) and i changes the pleats to three larger ones in the center front. i stitched down a bit father too so that it would take in a little more fabric. the pear fits her much better, but will probably not last quite as long, because it doesnt have the room width wise. they are the same length.

now its time to get katie packed up and say a few last goodbyes to family around town before we drive to jasons work and then the airport.

unfinished dress and blanket in progress

i did not finish the dress. i love the cream, but together, it is too much cream.




there are the pieces. i like the way the top turned out. i added width in the back, then sewed and turned it so that i have room for three buttons instead of closing the whole with a zipper. this makes for easier sewing, and less money than buying zippers for everything. also, i think buttons are cute. (i think i get that from my mom. she always prefers buttons. but she doesnt like to sew zippers either.)

anyway- i went with ribbon ties, because they dont wrinkle up and it adds a little contrast. the piping isnt sewn in yet, because i just dont like the cream on cream. last time i made this dress, i did a blue top with a patterned skirt.



i LOVE the way this turned out, so maybe i just have too high of expectation? so i dont think i will finish this dress as is. i think i will use the top on another skirt, and find a new fabric for the top of this dress. i have a fat quarter of cream with muted color stars that matches really well. it doesnt match the wish puff on the skirt though. any ideas for this dress?

things to think about. while i decide, i have a blanket i have been working on for a while that needs finishing so i can start a boy version. here is a peek.

freezer paper one, two, and three

i decided this week to learn to use freezer paper stencils. aunty google gave me several great tutorials with only minor contradictions so i bought my reynolds brand freezer paper (my only option was the enormous roll, so if i dont enjoy this, jason needs to go hunting so we will have a use for it!) and tulip soft brand fabric paint. i picked up three yards of white muslin to practice on, as well as a package of onesies.

try number one: scrap of white fabric and a stick drawing.



i didnt photograph the finished stencil this time, but i did on the next two. i had trouble with bleeding under the edges as well as the discovery that my black and red paints were velveteen. bummer.

try number two: white muslin dress with pleats and dots (this is from a simplicity pattern, number 2668. i made this dress out of pink silk for my cousins wedding last may and knew it was a quick sew.)



i like the idea here, the ironed pleats and the dots down them, but its not my favorite. might be the color, im not sure. i still had trouble with the edges blurring and on this try, i missed a step.

this is the back of the dress. the pattern calls for a zipper, but i want to try and use buttons instead in some of my patterns (cheaper) so i tried this one. it looks okay from the outside.



i forgot to put something behind the painted part, and didnt unfold the pleats so i ended up with smudgy dots on the back where i dont want them.

and here is the inside of the button. i finished the edges with my serger, but need to figure out a nicer way to do this.





























so after attempt number two, i still need to figure out how to get the edges crisp so the design turns out like i want. also, i need to be certain that there is no fabric behind what i am painting, and that there is something back there to seal it (like another sheet of freezer paper) or to catch it (like the table, or cardboard or regular paper).

try number three: cream quilters cotton from joanns, a wish puff on the skirt of mccalls pattern m5791

i printed out a picture of a wish puff blowing in the wind onto my freezer paper. then, taped it to my cutting mat, and cut, then ironed to my front skirt piece. i extended the wind blown bits a little because it is a gathered skirt, and i wanted a little more of the stencil to be seen. next, i used a fan brush, and painted.

the paint dried for a couple hours (two or threeish) while i ran errands and when i got home it was still just tacky to touch, but i pulled up the paper anyway.







this time, the edges are crisp, and the paint looks good! finally! im not sure if it is the non velveteen paint, a little experience, or what, but so far this design looks like it has turned out!



i plan to finish the dress tomorrow, but before then, i need to learn how to sew in piping. i have some white piping that i want to put in between the gathered skirt and the bodice top to add in a little more white, and i havent decided if i am going to use white grosgrain ribbon as the ties or cut fabric. those things come before the finished product. so, sewing in piping? aunty google tell me everything you know.

dr appointment

Emma is fine. She did not make the raspy noise for Dr Freeman even once, and her oxygen levels were normal. He listened to her lungs and didnt hear anything, checked her ears and mouth and said everything seems fine. The guess? A sore throat caused by a bug she caught but mostly fought off (because she hasnt had any symptoms of anything) that should be gone in a day or two. If it continues, I am to bring her in again. I am relieved, and hoping I can sleep tonight. I was up listening to her breathe for hours last night.

Also, she has gained pounds this month. She is now 17 pounds, 11 ounces.

raspy

I am calling Emma's doctor tomorrow to see if I can get her in. The last two days she has sounded so raspy when she chats and breaths. Typically this happens when she is getting sick, but her sinuses are clear and she doesnt have a fever. I would just ignore it but this evening she sounded quite a bit worse than yesterday so I am taking her to the doctor tomorrow.

Wish us well, would you?

purple dinosaurs

the first thing i sewed was a purple skirt, with little dinosaurs on it. it was a simple elastic waist a line and my moms good friend was teaching me to read a pattern. it was miserable and i hated every moment. i also hated the skirt by the time i finished it because i was tired of looking at all that purple and all those dinosaurs.

the skirt is gone, but my love for creating isnt. i was an artist as a child, and continued to draw and paint and photograph into adulthood. in college, my best friend/roommate/cousin had a sewing machine in our apartment and we made so many skirts for ourselves. (i guess those purple dinosaurs stuck.) my love of sewing was back.

now im married, staying home with my seven month old baby girl and doing what makes me feel wonderful: creating. along the same line, i have kept a journal of some form since i was in the third grade. i like to record transitions. this is my transition from shyness, to sharing what i make and learn through trial an error. maybe i will be able to help someone else out like so many have done for me through the aid of aunty google.

now im off to create something.

daadaadaa

Emma has a new favorite sound to make, and it sounds an awful lot like dada. She enjoyed playing with Brayden, and is now getting used to going without constant attention. She rolls more, but still doesnt travel far. Her main form of transportation seems to be spinning. Still no teeth, and thankfully no summer colds either, this is her longest stretch without getting sick (minus the fever she had yesterday that seems to have passed.)

Not much interesting going on with Emma. She does have lots of cute new clothes and shoes thanks to all the free time I have that should be used for housework. Everything seems to be good. :)