Hula Dancer costume

Erin with her favorite landmark--the "Sface" needle!

So rare is it that my crafty visions come to fruition as smoothly as with this project! I had ideas of making Erin a hula dancer costume in time for my mom's performance at Live Aloha this past weekend, and I finished this late Saturday night. I probably spent 4 hours on this costume, including the time spent shopping for the shirt (value village), skirt fabric and felt (Joann).



I wanted the outfit to look a bit cartoonish, and I think it does. Finding the green stripe seersucker was a real "aha!" moment for me at Joanns. I walked up and down all the aisles trying to find something that would make for an easy to make and easy to play in "grass" skirt. I used felt for the coconut bra and lei--all sewn directly onto the shirt with zigzag stitch.



A few details that really made this project seem perfect: I bought 1 yard of the fabric, which was just enough to make a skirt that is about 4x Erin's waist--excellent for twirling. For the flowers, I started by drawing and then cutting 8 flowers out of each of the 5 colors of felt-->40 flowers. And I used all but 1 of them to make the lei and bracelets. How often do I premake almost the perfect amount of something--like never!



Best of all, when Erin saw the finished costume, she exclaimed "I love this one!" And no last minute Halloween preparations! :)

Here's a quick video of Erin dancing along with some hula dancers

Sun bonnet success!

After that floppy, mis-sized sun hat, I climbed back onto the saddle of the sun-hat sewing horse (tortured metaphor!) and I'm so glad I did! This bonnet turned out great. It's a bit ridiculous looking but does a GREAT job shielding Erin's face from the sun. She likes it because it doesn't flop down into her vision. The pattern was really easy, too! I changed it just a little bit--did edge-stitching around the perimeter, and used my machine to sew down the little pleats at the back (vs hand-sewing them as called for).

FO: Piece A Cake dress

I made a super simple dress for Erin! Used a free pattern from Anna Maria Horner (Piece A Cake baby dress) and for fabric, an old sundress of mine. Simple raglan sleeves, gathered neckline. Easy peasy. The largest size is only 12 months, unfortunately, so I just did a shallow bottom hem. I may consider lengthening the pattern piece for the body to make it longer if I sew this again. This was finished in just two naps (my unit of time of choice). 

Second sewing project for #15in15. Trying to get back on track!

FO: Log Cabin Potholders

I got the book Log Cabin Quilting from the the library and one of the projects is pot holders. Inspired by those images, I turned those 4 log cabin blocks I made a while back into these two bright potholders.



I chose to do a square-swirl of quilting that mimics the log cabin block. The binding was a little bit tricky for me (guess I need more practice) but I'm overall happy with the result. :)

FO: Plush Letter Pincushion

I used scraps to whip up this stuffed R pincushion. I tried my best to stuff it so that it didn't look so wonky, but with only limited success. Still, I love it. It has a little ribbon the top so that I can hang it on the wall (or my lamp) when I'm not using it.

I think I'll make more of these for gifts.

Floral log cabin blocks

I'm pretty sure that this was my first foray into log cabin piecing. It was pretty fun. I re-used some fabric that I had initially sewn together into a little tablecloth for my window sill back in NYC, when I used to get dirty dirty dirt everywhere bc the air was so icky. So I could just throw this little tablecloth thing into the washer every so often, instead of scrubbing grimy dirt off my window sill. Oops--tangent! Anyway, you can see the original item in the background of this pic of socks:



So, I pulled out my seam-ripper and got busy. Then I cut the strips into smaller strips, and 4 small squares. And a few hours later, I had those blocks--yea! I'm planning to make them into a small wall hanging for a friend's birthday that's coming up. The blocks all ended up slightly different sizes, so I'll do a bit of sashing between them--probably unbleached muslin...stay tuned!

FO: DPN Case

A couple months ago, I ordered a set of double pointed needles from ebay and since then, they've been a mess in a mug. Well, no longer!



I whipped up this puppy today based on some cases I saw online. The fabric is from my stash (I used it to make a skirt a few years ago) so this project cost me $0--yea!



The flap there keeps the needles from falling out when it's all rolled up. (I still need to rinse out the blue marker.)

FO: Awesome Bag

I spied this bag tutorial a couple days ago and knew instantly that I had to make one! A quick glance at my fabric stash and I had the fabrics--some quilters cotton that I bought last year for a house project that went awry and the remnant from some Ikea curtains that I had to trim down to fit our living room.



I considered omitting the canvas lining called for in the pattern since the curtain fabric is about as heavy as canvas, but in the end I zipped over to JoAnns and got a bit of duck cloth (thankfully, 30% off) plus the buttons--navy for the gray side and black for the print.



The sewing went quite quickly. And with my sweet Bernina, the buttonholes were a snap. But did I ever have a dickens of a time with the buttons! Jeepers, it took me struggling through 4 sets of buttons (you sew two on at a time) before I developed a system that involved a small bamboo double pointed needle. (Side note: I was amazed at how much the duck cloth softened up once I washed it. Also amazed at how much it shrunk--I barely had enough for the project.)



With the double pointed needle there, I didn't have to stress about having the buttons too tight on the fabric and now the strap's button holes fit easily over the buttons.

Yea for a new bag for spring! And yea for the sun which actually made an appearance today!

Pink Quilt Top

Last week, in a flurry of craft energy, I pieced this quilt top. I had cut out all the triangles quite some time ago, and they had sat, ignored, on a corner of my sewing table all throughout the holiday season.

The finished quilt top is something like 3.5 feet square (though I didn't actually measure it). The prints are all from the wonderful stack of reproduction print squares that my Aunt Jill gave me for my birthday about 4 years ago. The gift of fabric keeps on giving!

I'm contemplating how I'm going to quilt it--hand vs machine. For now, it's folded up and put away.

Nifty gift wrap

I whipped up this little gift bag to wrap a gift in. The fabric was in my stash, and I used a little ribbon that was laying around near my sewing machine. I added a little decorative stitch to add a touch of class. Hehe.

Super easy, you can customize it to whatever size gift you're giving. And re-usable! Yea!

FO: Silk Scarf

First FO of 2011, by a nose:

Silk scarf from Small Stash Sewing, one of my many new craft books. Thanks, Tracie, for agreeing to model it for me. If only we could get some natural light up here in January...

This project probably took me about 2.5 hours. Ironing the binding took a while. It's about 84 inches long, and maybe 5 inches wide. I had some trouble getting the color right in the pictures. This blurry one below captured the color best.

FO: Aloha Print PJ Pants

Everyone in the family received aloha print PJ pants for Christmas. The ladies received capri length pants and the guys received knee-length shorts. The fabric was chosen with each recipient in mind at Fabric Mart in Kahului, Maui. I used a pattern from Simplicity, 9330.

FO: Calendar Covers

Another quick Christmas gift--a sewn calendar cover. I traced the outline of the calendar onto some canvas to give the cover some stability.

The inside of the cover has two pockets to insert the front and back cover of the calendar into.

The one pictured above was for my mom. The one pictured below was the prototype, and I'm keeping it.

FO: GU Gear

Sister and brother-in-law are big fans of their alma mater, Gonzaga, and when I saw this fabric on clearance last year, I knew it was destined to become something for them.

So, 4 placemats, 4 napkins, 4 coasters, 2 potholders. The Bernina 930 got a full workout with these projects, and overall, I'm very pleased with the results, although I do wish I'd made the potholders a bit bigger. As it is, they're almost too small to be functional.

A quick warmie

Yesterday evening I whipped up a quick wheat warmie for a friend at work. This project makes an easy, literally warming gift.

Materials
A little muslin
A little bit more flannel
Wheat berries (from the bulk foods section)
Whole cloves

For this wheat warming, I aimed for a finished size of about 8"x14" so I started by cutting a piece of muslin ~14.5" by ~16.5".

I sewed up the sides of the piece, filled it right side out then put a seem down the middle of the pouch to help keep the wheat berries evenly distributed. I filled the wheat berries from the open long edge, threw in a small handfull of whole cloves into each side , then just folded it over about 1/4" and topstitched to close it up.


As you can see, I used 1 lb. 13 oz. of wheat berries in this wheat warmie. Now, why whole cloves? Well, the wheat berries on their own, when heated in the microwave, tend to smell a bit barn-ish. The cloves are a nice disguise for that barn-y smell. Some dried lavender would probably also be great.

To make the wheat warmie extra cozy, I made a little case out of flannel. I cut a long strip of flannel, about ~9.5" x ~35", finished the two short edges by turning them under and stitching. Then folded the fabric with right sides facing--first about 7 inches from one end, then about 13 inches from the other end, so that the shorter flap would end up on top when turned right side out.


To insert the wheat warmie into its case, fold back the shorter outer flap, slide the wheat warmie into the flannel...

Then flip the shorter flap back over. Et voila!


To enjoy the warming wonders of a wheat warmie, microwave for 2-2.5 minutes.

First FO of 2010!

A dear friend had a birthday at the beginning of the month and that meant it was time for a hand made gift. I dug into the stash for my Lamb's Pride Worsted in a lovely purple color and zipped through the spiral rib wristwarmers from Last Minute Knitted Gifts (one of my favorite books). Inspired by these hats, I made a companion for the mitts.

I decided to reverse the rib on the mitts so it spiraled in opposite directions. Not necessary, but I like the symmetrical matchiness of having the each hand's mitt either spiral to the midline or away from it.

I also made a grocery tote using this great tutorial over at Sew Mama Sew. I'd planned on using some lovely floral decor-weight cotton, but this print seemed oh-so appropriate, and it was half the price of the prettier stuff.

I omitted the pocket from the tutorial and there was ample fabric left over to whip up a lunch bag for Raj. I used the same basic directions as the original, just different proportions. I wanted the base to be big enough to fit all the different containers I use to pack his food, so it's something like 6"x7", and 8" tall.

He said his colleagues were amused and impressed by my handiwork. Hehe.

And for your amusement, Butters wrapped up as a gift:

2009 Recap

Before I start sharing some finished objects from 2010, I wanted to do a little recap post of the things I made in 2009.

1. Hoppin' shoppin' bag, 2. Heart shawl, 3. Yellow-Brown Hat, 4. Traveler's Stockings, 5. Purple cardi, 6. Flaming Nuts, 7. surprise--it's a baby jacket!, 8. Hey Buttercup, 9. IMG_2330, 10. Spring Ruffle Top, 11. Eunice socks, 12. Lemon leaves socks, 13. Purple Pangea Shawl, 14. Placemat and napkin, 15. Minty Cowl, 16. School Spirit Hat, 17. IMG_1315, 18. IMG_2992, 19. Natura Paraphernalia, 20. IMG_2331, 21. IMG_1304, 22. Wee socks, 23. St Patty's Day Socks, 24. Red sixteen-point tee, 25. Melisa's b-day mits, 26. Kiddo PJ pants, 27. Noro sweater--all done!, 28. IMG_1309, 29. Bee Fields Shawl, 30. IMG_1312, 31. Blue cardi all done!, 32. vests, 33. Baby Sweater of Many Colors, 34. Greenery hat, 35. Pouches, 36. Slippers

That's a random sampling of the things I made this past year. I accomplished some things I'm proud of--learned machine quilting, tried steeking for the first time, knit some sweaters I'll actually wear (and some I won't), further developed my love for lace knitting, worked a fair aisle project. I don't have any specific goals for 2010. I just hope to further develop my skills and enjoy the process.

Holiday Recap 2

Another project I worked on during this holiday season was pajama pants for some awesome little girls with late December birthdays. Not technically a holiday craft, but it happened during the holiday season, so it gets lumped in with holiday stuff.


I don't remember the pattern number, but I think it was a Sew Easy or some other name like that. I also made matching drawstring nap sacks. As you can see, the pants came out quite roomy--oh well. This was a fun, easy project. I want to make more other fun easy projects like these.

My biggest holiday craft, by far, was the vest I knit for Raj for Christmas. He picked out the pattern, Alberta by Jared Flood, without any prompting from me.

The pattern appears in Wild Fibers magazine, but it was going to take too long to get the magazine--you can't buy it as an instant download. So I improvised my version. I measured one of Raj's store-bought sweater vests, knit a gauge swatch, did some math, and voila!

I used Rowan Felted Tweed, 1 ball of the dark brown and 2 balls of the light brown, and Noro Silk Garden Lite, about 2.5 balls, I think. The fabric is a bit loose and drapy, but I'm pleased with the result overall.

This was my first foray into steeking, and it wasn't without anxiety, but I'm confident that the result will be stable. I made frequent reference to Eunny Jang's tutorial, and used the crochet method with a 7 stitch bridge. When it was all done, I used mattress stitch to tack down the steek facing. The knitting was finished on December 23, the vest took a quick bath, got spun out in the washer spin cycle, then dried overnight. I stitched down the steeks in the car on the way to Christmas Eve dinner so that Raj could wear it.