Monday, April 14, 2014

Baby doll baskets

I'm a big fan of Dana Made It and love reading her blog. I've learned so much from her tutorials and from all the projects she has created.  When the Baby Doll Basket pattern came out, I was a little hesitant on purchasing it since I wasn't sure I'd get good use out of it.  I finally took the plunge and purchased the pattern since I knew it would make an excellent birthday gift for one of our friends.

I usually make a "sample" for my kids first before creating something for someone else.  I always fear making mistakes and would feel embarrassed giving it away as a gift.  So for my first attempt I made one for W.  I used Birch Organics Whale Love for the inside and Monaluna Circa 52 Starburst Sea for the outside fabric.

The end result looked awesome together and is well loved by both kids. It's kind of nice when both kids fight over it since it means they both want to play with it. :)


And of course it's gone through some abuse since W thinks she can fit into it.  I think the next one I make for her I'll have to use a stiffer fusing material for the sides.  It's currently sitting a little lopsided since the original Pellon material wasn't meant to be squashed by an 18 month old toddler.  I also made a little 12" by 12" inch blanket from some leftover kids' flannel and didn't realize there were suggested dimenions listed in the directions.


The second baby doll basket was made for a friend who has a Bitty Baby and I stuck with the medium size.  I got some Mickey & Minnie Mouse print and lined it with soft pink flannel, both types of fabric purchased at Joann's.  When I was finished with it I uploaded a pic on Instagram for my friend to have a sneak peak before actually giving it to her daughter's birthday.


And the best part was it got featured on Dana's blog when she posted a roundup of all the baskets made.  The post is here and I felt so awesome to be featured!


Sunday, April 13, 2014

KCW: day 6 and 7

It's Kids Clothes Week Challenge Spring 2014 edition and I actually participated this round!  The first 5 days I couldn't participate actively since I was out of town for work but used some half sewn garments from the last KCW challenge.

The first item I made was a pajama top for J using the Made By Rae's Flashback Skinny Tee Pattern.  I used size 4 and added a little more width since the husband thought the first couple attempts at this pattern look too tight on him.  (Little does he know this is the "skinny tee" pattern.)  I also made the neckline a little larger too since I think J has a larger head than most kids.  I added cuffs for the first time and they go so nicely with the neckline ribbing.  I didn't sew the bottom hem since the material won't fray. 

Shirt Details:
Pattern: Flashback Skinny Tee
Changes made: Increased width, wider neck
Size sewn: 4T
Fabric: Purchased at Joann's, clearance section

The second item I made for J is a pair of pajama pants using the Parsley Pants Pattern, another pattern from Made By Rae.  This pattern is so easy to sew and a great way to make a new pair of pants.  The fabric is from my former pair of A&F pajama pants which finally started ripping in the crotch area.  I saved the logo to use on the back side of the pants and used the original hemlines for the bottom hem.  I think I made the size 5 so he could grow into it and use the pants for a few years.    

Pants Details:
Pattern: Parsley Pants
Changes made: increased length
Size sewn: 4T or 5T
Fabric: Upcycle from my A&F pajama pants

This concludes my participation for KCW April 2014.

kid's clothes week

Next up, a few more upcycled clothes for the kids and another birthday gift.