Sweet Pea in a Pod

Since having Macy I haven't been able to do much in the way of crafting or sewing. I still have a thousand projects I want to do, they have just been put on the back burner, especially since she has had colic so bad. However, I have managed to get one or two things done, this one being my favorite.

It is called a Pod Swaddler and it is WONDERFUL! I came across the pattern before Macy was born, but didn't buy it then because Colby and Chloe didn't really care to be swaddled. Macy, on the other hand, almost requires swaddling to sleep, so this was perfect for us. It is a just a swaddling blanket/pouch thing that ties and actually keeps her swaddled. Not to mention, the pattern is super easy to sew. I have fabric to make another one, I just need to come up with some more time to do it!

I have made a few things for Chloe's room, but not everything is complete and I am not happy with clock I made. Eventually I'll get to those things as well. :)

Crafting Catch-Up

I guess it's time for another crafting round-up post. It seems like I haven't done a lot lately, but I have a few things to show you since my last crafting post.

First up is a little sundress and bloomers that I made for Chloe. I used the free pattern from Made by Petchy. It is super easy to make and I thought the outcome was pretty cute. I also made another one in some super cute fruit fabric, but I can't seem to find a picture of it.

We were having trouble with the kids wanting to color during church. Markers were out of the question and crayons were still getting all over their clothes, not to mention breaking in their bag. I decided that colored pencils would probably be the cleanest, least messy option. I came upon this great free tutorial from Skip to My Lou for some paper/pencil holder projects. I made one for each kid. I was pleased with how easy they were and with the end results. They are so practical and cute. This was my first attempt at machine applique. It went pretty well, but I am still definitely a beginner in that area.

As you can see, they both love these!

For Mother's Day I made our moms matching tissue holders, eye glass cases and coffee cozies. (I don't have a picture of the glasses cases.) I made them all using free online tutorials. The tissue holders were from Bella Dia. The eye glass cases were from Amazing Mae. And the coffee cozies were from House on Hill Road. All three were very easy to make and so much fun. I loved doing little projects that I could finish in one short sitting.

I ended up enjoying making them so much that I went a little crazy and made them for several friends and myself. :)

For my cousin's daughter's first birthday I made a little outfit with a matching hairbow. The skirt was made from the Oliver + S free pattern. I bought the t shirt and appliqued on a butterfly that I cut out from the skirt fabric. The hairbow was a little tricky, but looked really cute in her hair.

My father-in-law made these great doll cradles for all of the granddaughters for Christmas last year. So for our niece's first birthday I made a little bedding set for her cradle that included a mattress, a quilt and a matching pillow. I was really pleased with the results, but I have yet to get around to making a set for Chloe. It will get done one day!

In addition to the cradle set, I also made her several hair clippies. Grace is teeny tiny for her age, so I made simple ribbon clippies instead of big bows so that they wouldn't over power her.

My most recent project was for a dear friend who was getting ready to have her third baby just a week after her little girl's second birthday. I made a pair of sister Molly Monkeys from mmmcrafts free pattern. I was able to find a couple of sets of fat quarter fabrics that were cute patterns and in two different color ways. I wanted to make them coordinate, but they still needed to be able to tell them apart.

And of course, I can't end a post without a couple of pics of my babies.

After the holidays, I will probably have a lot more projects to report on. Right now I am working a quilt to go on Chloe's bed (for when she moves out of the crib). Hopefully I can quit procrastinating and get it finished soon!

Crafting Crazy

Sorry I haven't been around in a while. We are all still alive and actually healthy. Woo hoo! Anyway, I have been a little busy and of course somewhat of a slacker when I comes to my blog. I hope you all have stuck around, I promise to get back on track!

Anyway, the main thing that I have been up to (other than trying to keep up with the babies) is crafting/sewing. After Chloe was born I took a long sewing and crafting break, other than Molly Monkey. Then this past Christmas, as you know, I kind of went into overdrive. When we got back from the holidays I took another break, partly forced upon me by our month of sickness. So now I am back at it in full swing and I can't seem to get enough done. I just finished a couple of projects in one week and I am already itching to start something new.

So here is a rundown of everything that I have been working on this last month (if you want to see more detail, just click on the picture and it will enlarge):

• First up is a gift set that I made for a dear sweet friend that needed a little pick-me-up. The picture, bookmark and card are all free downloads from mmmcrafts.
  

• Next up is a card that I made for a sweet friend's "personal" shower. I was looking for a card to purchase, but couldn't find anything appropriate. So I decided to try my hand at making one myself. The nightie is made from construction and tissue papers and the socks are made from brown felt.
  

• Our church building underwent a complete remodel in the basement. This included the nursery. Once it was finished the gliders clashed with the new paint color and just looked really worn out. I was asked to reupholster the cushions. The first picture is of the original cushions (sitting on my dining room chair). The second pic is of the finished product in the nursery. I love the new fabric.
  

• One of our good friends was expecting a new baby girl. I have an awesome nursing cover that I used with Chloe and she asked where I had gotten mine because she was wanting one. Well, my friend who had made it (G.R.I.T.S. Embroidery), was taking a hiatus from her work, so I offered to make one for her myself. It was actually pretty simple and fun to make. It has boning in the neckline to keep a viewing opening to see your baby but keep things private. I also made a small pouch with an embroidered button to keep the cover in.
  

• My favorite project of this latest batch hands-down is Baby Binky Bunny. It's no surprise that this is another project courtesy of mmmcrafts. The pattern for this one is available for purchase in her Etsy shop. The first picture shows the bunny in it's blankie and a pair of little hands who wouldn't leave it alone! The second picture shows the bunny and blankie, as well as a sweet card from Larissa that is also a free download on her blog. This gift set was made for Jessica, #3 is on the way!!!

• The last project of the group was for a couple of sweet little girls from church who are moving back to Texas this week. The family moved up this way when the husband got a new job with Caterpillar. Unfortunately, he did not make it through all of the lay-offs. They have a daughter that is 1 month older than Colby and another little girl that is only 6 days older than Chloe. We were really looking forward to spending more time with them, but we know that we will be seeing them again! I made the girls coordinating skirts from the free Oliver + S Lazy Days pattern. I love this pattern and I think they turned out really cute. (I just bought the tops, not too exciting there). If you have a little girl to sew for, these skirts are great!
  

Well, I hope you enjoyed browsing through my crafting craziness of the last month. I love making all of this stuff. The only downside is that I have yet to figure out how to keep my house in decent shape while making all of these goodies. Balance is the key...I just have so much great fabric just waiting to be turned into something wonderful. I can't decided what will come next, probably throw pillows for my living room couches. Or maybe window treatments for our master bath. Or maybe all of the skirts and dresses I have planned for Chloe. Or maybe...maybe I should take a breath and wait a week or two to start something new.

Monkey Madness

May I introduce...Monty and Molly Monkey!

Many of you have already met Molly. I made her for Chloe quite a while ago. She has been quite lonely ever since. Just sitting on a shelf in Chloe's room. Poor thing. She really needed some companionship.

Ever since making Molly, I have been planning on making a brother monkey for Colby. Well, after starting and stopping and procrastinating some more, Monty Monkey has finally joined the family.

The pattern for these totally adorable monkeys comes from my friend, Larissa. She has an awesome artsy-crafty blog and she has generously added several free patterns and cards for downloading. Her stuff is so awesome!!! She has also recently opened an Etsy shop and is selling patterns for Katy Kitty, Molly's long lost sister. As a cherry on top of all of this cuteness, Larissa has added a double-breasted winter coat for Katy (which also fits Molly). There are no limits to her craftiness.

I am pretty pleased with the way Monty turned out. I had a little bit of a hard time making his shorts and shoes and hat. I have never sewed a stitch of clothing before and had no idea how to go about designing shorts or making a hat with a bill. I obviously made a ton of mistakes, but I learned a lot that I can use if I ever make monkey shorts again.

For now I am just happy to have a finished pair of monkeys for my little monkeys.

A Project Completed!

I have finally completed one of my many projects that I have been planning!

My dilemma has been what to do with my sewing supplies, sewing machine, computer, printer and everyday craft supplies. I had an area set up in the living room in the basement, but with a busy two year old son and a growing 5 month old daughter, I never had the time or desire to seclude myself down there to work on anything. I was always bringing up all of my supplies and cluttering up my dining room table. I decided something had to be done. So I got the brilliant idea to turn this unused cart into my little home office/sewing center in the empty corner in the dining room.

The second problem...it was ugly and just did not look appropriate in a dining room. So I decided to make a cover for it out of left over materials I had used when recovering the dining room chairs and making the dining room valance and table runner. I figured if it had a coordinating cover, it would hide everything and could be used as a little serving area when we had dinner guests. Here is the result along with some pictures of the other fabric decorations I had already made for the dining room:

Actually, I have already finished another project as well, but it is a gift so it probably won't be showing up here. Now on to the next one...Happy creating!

Procrastination

Hi. My name is Olivia and I am a procrastinator. This probably won't come as much of a surprise to some of you. It is sad but true. As proof, here is a pic of my stack of fabrics that are sadly waiting for me to get around to making wonderful things with them.


I have been really bad lately about buying fabrics for and planning all sorts of projects and then not doing them. Or at least not finishing them. I now have at least one project with a definite deadline, so that will get finished by the first weekend in October. I have another project that I would like to get done this week, but I'm not making any promises. *Sigh* Okay, in an effort to make myself feel better and jump start my creative mojo, here are a couple of pics of two of my favorite completed projects.

The first is of Molly Monkey. I made her for Chloe a couple of months ago using the awesome pattern from Larissa of mmmcrafts. The other picture is of the quilt I made for Colby. I started it when I was pregnant and finished it when he was almost one. Sad, I know.