Christmas Aprons!

Using a pattern, fabric, thread, and bias tape that I already had on hand, yesterday I whipped up Christmas aprons for Ian, Mila, and Lukas.

 This fabric looks black in the photo, but it's really dark brown. Lukie got this one.

 Mila wanted this one when she learned that it had sparkles (glitter) on it.

 Ian really wanted the penguins.

 I think they turned out very well.

 Purple frosting on a horse cookie. (She asked me to make horses when I asked what shape to use.)

 Ian wanted gingerbread men cookies, so I made five of those for him.

 Oh, dear! It looks like Lukie's nose is running but that's really frosting on his face.

Mila's Birthday Pillowcase

Mila's birthday was sneaking up on me since it is so close to Christmas. Fortunately, I had made one ahead of time that was perfect for her.

 I will give it to her on New Year's Eve.

Mila and Kate's Christmas Pillowcases

I just finished Mila and Kate's Christmas pillowcases.

Mila's is on the left and Kate's is on the right.

I love Michael Miller's fabrics!

Mila and Kate's Thanksgiving Pillowcases

Yeesh! I almost forgot to make these for the girls! And when I went fabric shopping, both at brick and mortar stores as well as online, there was NOTHING available. Luckily, their mamas liked what I had on hand.

Mila is getting the green on the left, and Kate the "Gobble Wobble" on the right.

I will mail Kate's today or tomorrow and hand deliver Mila's since she lives just across the river.

Thinking ahead, I asked the mamas about Christmas fabric choices, and have those cut out, matched to thread, and ready to sew.

Mila's and Kate's Halloween Pillowcases

I love sewing holiday pillowcases for my grandchildren. I just finished the Halloween pillowcases for Mila and Kate.

Mila is getting the pumpkins and the owls are for Kate.

It's just the end of September, but the holiday fabrics are out. I need to go look for some Thanksgiving fabric now!

Mila and Kate's Patriotic Pillowcases

I sewed Memorial Day/4th of July/Labor Day pillowcases for Mila and Kate this afternoon.

Kate's is at the top and Mila's on the bottom.

I do love sewing pillowcase sets for each grandchild!

Kate and Mila's Easter Pillowcases

Easter comes just two weeks after St. Patrick's Day and sort of snuck up on me. Today I quickly stitched up Mila and Kate's Easter pillowcases.

The yellow one with chicks is for Mila and the purple with bunnies is for Kate. The blue one is for Anna, my student teacher's daughter.

Mila and Kate's Valentine Pillowcases.

We had a surprise snow day Tuesday, although it was really for ice, not snow. No local or regional forecasts predicted the sleet and freezing rain that we received, and so none of the roads had any applications of beet juice, sand, or salt in preparation. The roads quickly became very, very slick, and so almost all area schools canceled classes for the day.

Including mine. And let's be honest - what teacher doesn't love a snow day? An unexpected opportunity to sleep in a bit, read a good book, catch up on a few chores? I'll take it, and today I chose to make my snow day a "sew day."

I sewed Valentine pillowcases for Mila and Kate, both of whom turn two this year and so will be getting their holiday pillowcase sets. (I also worked ahead and made Mila's St. Patrick's Day one, too.)

Each pillowcase takes about twenty minutes to make.

And I tag them with orange postits so I know which one goes to who (I don't want to use the same fabric that I used for one of their siblings.)

The Valentine ones are done and just one more St. Patrick's Day to make for Kate. I am also beginning her quiet book, so stay tuned!

Mila's Quiet Book

Mila's quiet book is done! I am very pleased with how it turned out.

 I got some new yellow terry cloth for the lamb.

I had the cutest ghost appliqué for this, but I dropped it and lost it. I looked for twenty minutes and could not find it. Craig came in and looked - no luck. I am a bit disappointed in how plain the page looks now.

 No, "Step" is not misspelled. Lisa called me after I sent her this photo thinking it had been, but it is a hump in the fabric that hides the "t".

 An old favorite. Makes me think of my dad.

 I may spiff up the background the next time I do this page.

But I LOVE the giraffe I found in the dollhouse section of Hobby Lobby. I need to go back and get some more!

 I can now squeeze five dresses onto this page, haha!

 The Purdue and Illinois appliqués reflect Curt and Vanessa's college preferences.

The fluffy fur on Millie is to die for!! And the clip on earrings are stinkin' cute. I love how this page turned out. (My mother drew the dog a few years ago.)

I was excited to find the hotdog and the popcorn appliqués for this page and have ordered some more for future quiet books.

 I am trying to think of a way to make the crown removable so it can be played with but just haven't figured it out yet.

 My mom drew the palm tree for this one a while ago.

Inside is a tiny purse that's on a hook and can be clipped to things. Inside the purse is an orange M&M.

First time page! I saw a pattern book on Etsy that had a counting rainbow in it and just adapted it for my own use. I am pleased with how it turned out.

 Vanessa chose the fabric for the cover. It has pink unicorns on it and is beautiful.

Per usual, I made a matching pillow for Mila out of the leftover cover fabric.

(What an odd coincidence. I finished Titan's book on the anniversary of Craig's mom's passing, and Mila's on the anniversary of my dad's death.)

A K'tan for Mila

I made Vanessa a k'tan baby wrap for her birthday. She picked out the fabric and found some directions online, and away we went.

Only the directions were WAY off when it came to measurements, and I had to resize the k'tan four times. (An easy process, luckily.)

 I love the polka dots!

 Visually, I thought the back looked really nice.

 Safety is key when stitching - you don't want something giving way and the baby falling out. Everything was double stitched and edged.

There's a third piece (not shown) that can also be used to wrap around the baby for added support and protection.

The k'tan is easy to make (Vanessa suggested I open an Easy shop and sell them) and I may make more in the future - they'd be nice baby gifts!

Mila's Blessing Gown

During Christmas break, I asked Vanessa if she would like me to make a blessing gown for Mila. I was thrilled when she responded with a yes! I asked her to think about patterns and fabrics, and then we would go shopping for the things I would need.

I received this picture from Vanessa soon afterward, asking if this would be possible for me to make.

Found on Etsy, it was darling but very pricey. (As a seamstress myself, I understand that price. Having said that, I would not pay that much for a dress.)

I was on winter vacation, so one afternoon we met at JoAnn's and sat down at the pattern desk to see if we could find a similar pattern.

Sharp-eyed Vanessa found the very pattern the Etsy sewer used!  Then we struck gold when buying fabric - Vanessa wanted dotted swiss, and there was just enough left on the bolt to make the dress. Better yet, since it was the end of the bolt, I got it for 80% off. Total cost of the dress was $23. Not bad!

 Because Vanessa wanted a full length dress, I had to lengthen the pattern pieces.

 All cut out and ready to sew.

School began January 4, the day Mila made her arrival. Time was no longer my own, and Saturdays became my only day to sew.

 I got the bodice (sans sleeves) done the first Saturday.

 The following Saturday I added the sleeves and the skirt lining. (The skirt looks longer on the left, but it isn't. The back of the dress was open and it was sagging a bit on the hanger.)

The skirt is gathered, and when you are sewing something that tiny, it is very easy to catch the gathers and the skirt in places they should not be stitched. The solution is to pin frequently and carefully, checking both sides of the fabric to make sure you have not caught unwanted material into the gathers. It is time consuming, but much better than having to go back and rip out a seam (which can damage the fabric) and resew it.

Last Saturday's work.

This weekend, all I needed to do was to put in the zipper, make the bow, and tack it to the bodice.

 A closeup of the bow.

The finished dress! I may put a hook and eye at the top of the zipper, but will check with Vanessa first.

Next Sunday is Mila's blessing day, and I can hardly wait to see how she looks in her new dress.