Happy Valentines!

Ah, the day of love...and the day of the sugar rush around here!

The girlies had great parties at their school, and came home exhausted, full of candy and sugar, and toting bags of valentines from their classmates each. They wore their Valentine Shirts I made them a few weeks ago, and just melted my heart walking around school in their semi-matchy matchy outfits. I do love having two little girls to coordinate.

Daddy got each of them a candy valentine, and they gobbled those up as soon as they were opened. Tonight you can tell they are coming off the sugar high, and will be crashing hard for bed!

I was a bad mama for valentines for their classmates. I had wonderful aspirations of crafting homemade valentines with them, but in the end the Dollar Store valentines with Dora and the Backyardigans won out for convenience!

I hope you all had a wonderful and loving Valentine's Day!

To be soooo tired

I love how kids can sleep anywhere and everywhere when they are exhausted. Andraya is at that age where when she is tired, she can just crash. Even if it's in a random spot or her dinner plate. I came out the other day to find her in our living room like this:

And I love seeing the sewing love surrounding her - leggings and shirt made by me, a skirt that I got from another Sewing Mama (and there is a tut in her awesome blog), a blanket made by my mom and a wristlet purse made by me.

I know I will miss these sweet moments when she gets older.

Monsters for Girls!

Again for the stocking Friday at KandF Shops, I just finished up my monsters for girls dress! Abby is in love with this, and will get this one if it doesn't sell, or I promised I would make her one of her own. It is her favorite type of dress - soft, comfy and spinny. And she adores pointed hoods!

Of course she also pointed out that this monster is perfect for Valentine's with a heart on her tummy, so if this sells I am going to be in a rush to get hers done in time for V-Day. I guess the novelty of the conversation heart shirt I made her has worn off already!

I Heart Farbenmix!

I have really gotten into European patterns the last couple of years - things like Ottobre, Onion, and Farbenmix.


I got especially hooked on Farbenmix when I picked up their Olivia dress pattern from Sewzannes Fabrics at least a year ago. The funky under dress made from knit with a long knotted hood is a staple in my preschooler's wardrobe.


My only complaint is that Farbenmix doesn't instantly translate all of their patterns to English, so being the impatient person I am, I ordered some of the ones I was dying for direct from them. I will say their customer service is excellent, and shipping was surprisingly fast. And I had a good giggle from some of the strange translations that came across from their email translator.


One of the patterns I picked up was the Farbenmix Xenia, a little cross front sundress. Since I am starting to plan the girls' summer wardrobes, I pulled this out the other day so I could give it a test run.


I am in LOVE. Their sizing is so consistent, and it's so nice to be able to trace, cut and sew, and have something wearable!


Here is Abby modeling her trial run Xenia made from $1 clearance fabric:




I did the version that ties in the back like a halter. Being rather lazy about it, and not really seeing sense in a halter dress, I omitted the zipper and just put elastic in the back part. I also wanted it to slip on easy, as it is a pretty fitted pattern, so I traced a size larger than she normally wears. She is usually a pretty good fit in a 104 (European sizing, about a 5), so I traced the 110/116 so it would be less fitted and easy to get in and out of without a back zipper.

I am sooo happy with it! Next time, though, I'll shirr the back instead of inserting elastic. I think it will give it a better fit across the back, and more of the look I want!

Gotta love a dress that cost all of $3 to make!

And would you look at my little girl's long hair?? Sniffle, sniffle. She has grown up far too fast.

Monsters are Coming!

I have been sewing up a storm in preparation for my first stocking with KandF Shops on Friday, February 8! I am so excited by the theme for that week...which is Monsters!

One of my all time favorite boyish print is the cotton interlock ooga booga monsters. I love love love it. So much that I have plowed through about 10 yards of it. Sadly, I have only a little left, and part of that went into this set for boys:

I really hope the person who snags this will enjoy it as much as I do! I found this cute little monster guy for one pocket:

And digitized Ooga Booga for the other:

Also, I used a little of this stacked monster knit to make, what else? Boxers :)


I hope to get a monster dress done for the girl monster lovers out there like my daughter, but time is limited as always!

How Exciting!

Since I have entered the WAHM world via Hyena Cart, I have found a world of WAHMs that I respect for their artistry, business sense, and just overall spirit for life. It is such a creative atomosphere, and I adore it. Sewing is my outlet, and sewing for sale supports that outlet, while giving me the ability to spend these precious early years with my little girls.

I was so honored on Saturday morning to be contacted by a group of artisians that I hold in the highest regard. The ladies at KandF Shops approached me to become a member of their wonderful congo (a collection of artisians selling their individual wares together for outsiders :)). Since I have started shopping WAHM, I have drooled on Fridays before the scheduled stocking time over these ladies' creations, and at times I have been lucky enough to snag a custom made item for myself or my children.

I will now be stocking with them at KandF, starting in early February. This group of women has welcomed me with open arms, and I feel so lucky and blessed to become part of this wonderful thing they have created. There are some wonderful plans in the works, so be sure to check us out!

Getting Ready for the Day of Love

Now that the big holidays are over, on to the ones with less stress!

I love getting ready for Valentine's Day, it's just so much fun! I am really excited this year that my four year old will be having a Valentine's Celebration in her classroom. I am still searching for the perfect little thing to make for her classmates for her to pass with the little Valentines she is already scoping out everytime we go to the store. She is just at such a fun age.

For once I planned the girl's holiday shirts far ahead of time (beats staying up half the night to finish them in time).

For my big girl, I made an embroidered raglan:

For the little girl, a matching reversed raglan:

And just for fun, I made a boy or gender neutral shirt for my shop at Hyena Cart. I have been saving this Mom Tattoo Embroidery for just this occasion:

I would love to see what you are making for your little valentines!