Yarn wrapped Christmas trees

Every year, the moms board of which I'm a part does a holiday gift exchange. It has to be something handmade and cost under $20. 

I remember the first year I participated and shook in my shoes thinking that I had to make something for someone else. Something that didn't suck.

I've survived without hitting up Etsy so far, but this year, I drew Gail's name. 

Now, Gail is the queen of craft and beauty. Her photography is art. She can sew anything without a pattern. She makes amazing things from paper.

If you can dream it, Gail can make it.

I was nervous.

I commiserated with our mutual friend, Constance, who gave me some wonderful ideas, but best of all, reminded me that Gail would love whatever it was because it was made by a friend.

With that reminder, I settled on something that I thought at first was too modest and easy.

Yarn wrapped Christmas trees. 

I found the tutorial on Pretty Ditty awhile back and have been dying to make these ever since.

They are so simplistically beautiful. The texture, the muted colors, the bright pop of the berries. I just love them.

But they are SO EASY to make. I wasn't sure it was the right gift for the woman who can do anything.

I think though, that she likes them. She took this picture of them, and makes them even more beautiful than they really are.

Then again, that's what her gift is. She brings beauty to the ordinary. Every day.

Merry Christmas, my friend.

Pants, pants, and more pants

Holy cow. I cannot take pictures. Seriously.

But, here are some pants. And a hat. 

I'm an awesome craft blogger.

Long version: I always make Christmas pj's for the family. Little tradition that started the year I got my sewing machine. 

They have gotten progressively better over the years - of course, that isn't saying much. The first pairs were hysterical. Huge - as in, Kevin and I could both fit in one pair.

Not that we tried.

Nope.

Not us.

Anyhoo, this year, my pal Nita requested some matching jammie pants for her crew. I made her a pair last year for a Secret Santa swap. It was the first time I had sewn something for someone to wear when I couldn't have them try it on. Made me really nervous.

This made me even more nervous. Especially after she bought the fabric and realized that it can be pricey to make your own stuff. Eek. Don't waste your friend's money! 

I got some measurements and went to work. We'll see. I'm hoping the Christmas photo turns out like she wanted it to.

The picture is of her son's pants and the little hat I threw in because there were some odd pieces of extra fabric left over.

Oh, and someone remind me next year that fleece isn't as wide as flannel. Because if Nita hadn't ordered extra material? I totally wouldn't have had enough.

Next up? MORE PANTS.

Teacher Gift Rose Arrangement

I admit. I saw this in a magazine with fake roses, liked it, and thought I could do better with real flowers and a lot less money than $130. The best ideas are often ripped off, are they not?

These arrangements were put together with roses from Trader Joes, some moss and flower foam stuff from Joann, and some tin containers from the dollar section at Target. I paired them with gift cards to Starbucks to make end of year gifts for Christopher's preschool teachers last May. What? I know I'm awfully behind on things here. Forgive me.

Anyway, super affordable, and i think they turned out kinda cute. Not sure I'll be delving much further into flower arranging though.

 

Birthday Shirts for Two Year Olds

Whoa. It has been MONTHS since I last posted here. That makes me sad. I really love this little blog. My little web space as an accidental crafter. Which I just typed "crapter" and had to correct. HMMMMM.

I haven't been making much. Well, I did make a baby, which is not exactly crafty, but it is hard, time consuming, and far more fun. Since he came along, I haven't been doing too terribly much in the way of anything.

Of course, before little Colin made his arrival in January, I made a couple of birthday shirts for the CC's. The "2" was a little big, especially for Pip, but I kind of like that it was so very very "2."

Christopher's birthday shirt:

The red and white striped arms are actually just another shirt underneath the black t-shirt. I order all my blanks from Jiffy Shirts. They are super cheap and fast, but the Rabbit Skins brand runs really small, so beware.

Here is the shirt for Pippi. I always make hers and Christopher's at the same time, so they always match. I say that like I've been doing it for decades. They are two. So twice. I'm such a dork.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Finally, I tried out a new design for a new neighbor down the street. She turned two in September, so that makes this almost a current post. Almost.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What I didn't know when I made this one was that this particular birthday girl said, when referring to her birthday, "Happy Cupcake!" It was pretty cool.

There you have it. The birthday shirts for 2010. I do love some birthday shirts. I think if I ever started an Etsy shop, that's what I would do first. Birthday shirts. 

Zipper Pouches

This is the first year that Little Bird has had teachers. He goes to Mothers Morning Out one day a week at our church, and he has four teachers. Halloween was my first excuse to try something handmade for them.

I found some very cute fabric on sale at Hancock's one morning - just so happened to be on my "Morning Out." I bought a couple of yards of each because I didn't know how much I would need. Let's just say that Bird's teachers from now until he's in middle school will likely be getting the same zippered pouches for Halloween. Ahem.

My friend JC told me about these pouches and gave me the link to the instructions.  My first two attempts were quite disastrous. What I have found about sewing though, is that if I don't give up - if I plow through and finish something, that I will usually figure out what I've done wrong and how to do it right the next time.

Since I didn't take a picture of any of the pouches, I cannot offer any proof that in fact, I did figure it out and whip out four of those puppies in about 90 minutes. But I did. I just had to get the knack.

What I learned in this project is that I can cut out a straight line to save my life. I have a cutting board. I have a self healing mat and a rotary tool. I have the right tools I think, but I always end up with a random rhombus. Lovely.

Another lesson for another day, I suppose. But you would think that I could cut out a straight friggin' line.

We put some Halloween candy and a gift card to the brand spanking new Trader Joe's in each bag and gave them to his teachers the week of Halloween. Again, I may be setting the bar too high to live up to in the future, but that's alright. I'll just keep doing what I can when I can.

Birthday Mail Sack

It's intimidating to sew for a seamstress. But seeing as how she has inspired me quite a lot, and seeing as how she is one of my favorite people in the world, I gave it a shot.

For her birthday, modeled by my lovely stepdaughter, a mail sack. It's a pattern from Pink Chalk Fabrics. I swear, there probably isn't a post on this blog that doesn't link to Kathy's shop. I love it.

The base fabric is by Alexander Henry and is called Noguchi. I made myself one of these bags and used this fabric as well. The thing is, I didn't notice HOW cream the cream in Noguchi was. I put my whole bag together with mismatching creams and whites, and it bugs the crap out of me now.

I literally spent months trying to find the perfect fabrics to go with Noguchi for this purse. I don't think I ever did. I finally chickened out and went with the solid black for the yoke and strap. Kathy kindly sent me a big swatch of another fabric that was black and cream, but next to the Noguchi, the cream just ended up looking like white. So solid black.

The interior didn't quite go as planned either. I ordered some fabrics from my fabric co-op for the lining and the pockets. One of the fabrics didn't make, so I was out of luck there. The one that did make, again, was too white to use for the lining. I still really liked the fabric though, so I decided to use it in the pockets.

Then it hit me. Find a print that didn't have any white in it. I know, so simple. But I have a way of making things complicated. I found a cute green and black print at Joann's that could tie the whole project together. Unless you are Kevin, because he really hated my fabric choices on this one.

I don't know. They aren't the perfect fabrics, but I think it turned out better than the one I made for myself.

Better, if you ignore the fact that I cut the straps while completely drunk, apparently. The strap lining was a good 1/2 inch too short, making the edge of the bag uneven all the way around. But hey, there's a zipper that works, which always impresses me.

Besides, isn't it the thought that counts? I hope so, because way too much thought went into this simple purse. Well, way too much for just the purse. Not nearly too much for the recipient. Happy birthday, Girl. I'm sorry it was a week late.

Superhero T-shirt

Once again, the model makes the shirt. Super J to the rescue!

A Robot and a Puppy

I actually have been doing more than just appliques, but I have forgotten to take pictures. I've been making some drawstring bags, just the right size for shoes, as gifts. I like the simplicity of the project and the fabrics I can use. Plus, I just really like bags. All sorts of them.

Another thing on my plate other than appliques is a fabric co-op that I joined a few months ago. It is pretty overwhelming - I don't know exactly what is going on, but I finally decided to just jump in. They were filling bolts of Timeless Treasures, the maker of the pink scooter fabric I used for Tara's apron. I put in for several different fabrics, some of which I have a plan and some of which I don't. I think though, if the bolts don't fill, that I won't get those fabrics. I'm not exactly sure. Did I mention overwhelming?

And now for the pictures. These are the other two t-shirts I bought from Old Navy for $4 each. The first one had the Stratocaster on it, and now to our applique collection, we add a robot and a puppy. The robot is a self-design, which is why I had to tell you it was a robot. I do really like the button eyes, and the zigzag stitch mouth. I also like how he's a little lopsided. I did have an issue with my sewing machine going wonky on one of the arms. Trying to remove all the knotted thread left a hole inthe shirt. Instead of panicking and cursing (well, I did curse a little), I just cut out a new arm, positioned it on top of the hole (slightly lower than the original placement), put some interfacing on the back of the hole, and voila. A wearable robot t-shirt for Little Bird. Only slightly ghetto.

The puppy you can find here on Anna Maria Horner's website. I think it's a very cute puppy. The fabric choice for the puppy took me by surprise, but I love it. I think it goes really well with the shirt, and the pointillistic pattern is reminiscent of fur. It's a fabric I bought on sale at Pink Chalk Fabrics, and had no idea what I was going to do with it. Of course, I still have a lot more . . . I'm going to have to work on knowing how much fabric to buy. It's becoming a problem. A fun problem, but a problem. I was debating on an eye for our puppy, but I think I like him just as he is. The fabric is pretty busy, and the shape is obviously a puppy, so he's going to stay just so. His name is Pupstar.

Handmade Gifts

One of my favorite things about learning to sew is that I can make things for other people. There was a time not too long ago that I never would have dreamed I would give a handmade gift. Now? It's the first thing I try to give.

My friend Nicole had a baby boy in December. Drew received this tassle hat and scarf to wear next winter.

The mom board I'm a part of sometimes has swaps. You can make a gift or buy a handmade gift. Now? I can make a gift. It's so much more fun now! We recently had a love themed swap. I found some adorable fabric (once again on Pink Chalk Fabrics), and made this apron for my friend Tara.

Here's a close up of the fabrics. The little scooters are so cute!

And because I always like to use a pattern more than once, after all, the first time I'm blindly making my way through, I made another apron for my friend Trish's birthday. The fabric wasn't as nice, seeing as how I waited too late to order it online. I popped by Joann's and just went with "cute." Other than the spot on the bottom where I left the iron on it while I rescued Little Bird's fingers from the drawer he had closed them in, I think it turned out well.

My most favorite gifty project lately though, is this birthday shirt for little Pippi. She turned one this past Sunday, and she is sporting a cutie pie birthday shirt. Her mom picked out an adorable little t-shirt from Old Navy and the two pink prints for the "1" I think from Joann's. I thought the shirt turned out well, but I am probably mostly looking at the model. She's such a sweetie.