The Corduroy Jumper

Soft off white featherwale corduroy made using pattern #132 or #136.  Smocked with Little Memories "go fish."  

Corduroy Hint:  Because of the bulk of the fabric, I only used a 40" strip of fabric to pleat for the insert.


Michie'

The Nap Quilt

One day it occurred to me that maybe we needed a special nap quilt for our house.  I am a basic quilter.  Nothing more complicated than squares stitched together on the machine and then hand quilting.  Quilting gave me something to do at the beach and helped me through another football season.

The quilt has been kid tested and approved!

Michie'

Give Thanks

Psalm 100:4

Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name.

A Little Christmas Sewing Inspiration

 Classic Bubble #115

Need a little Christmas sewing inspiration?  Well this certainly did it for me.  Once again I need to thank Patrice for sharing her lovely creation!  You can visit her blog and see more details about the outfit at http://smocksewandbemerry.blogspot.com/

Michie'

You Should Always Invite A Friend...

You should always invite a friend over when you are having this much fun.  And it is even better when your friend brings a friend, in this case her new Lamb Chop puppet she got for her birthday.

They kept looking at us like we had been keeping a fabulous secret from them.  I don't know how we'll handle the fact that our magical pile of leaves will not be here forever.  And by the way, Lamb Chop loves animal crackers!  Who knew?

Lamb Chops mommy decided that she needed to do her own free style jump into the leaves.

*No, I have not quit sewing, but we are having a whole lot of fun doing other things that I don't want to miss a second of.  As I was laying on the couch last night exhausted, Rex commented that maybe sitting in the floor playing with the kids and playing tag through the house all day long, might be a little more tiring than I realize.

May you also be exhausted from fun!  :)

Michie'

The Magic Of Being A Little Boy

Someone forgot to tell you that the leaves would fall of the trees.  Someone also forgot to explain to you about raking leaves at Nana's house with Daddy, Grandda, and Uncle Ben.

But, no one had to tell you how to jump in a pile of leaves.  You started dancing with anticipation as soon as the leaves began to pile up.

The boy's face says it all.  May we all enjoy the little things in life as much as he does.

Michie'

Smocked Truck Jon-Jon

I am aware that my smocking days for the boy are numbered, so with that in mind I am smocking with a purpose and many times with a theme in mind.  So, in honor of the new truck sounds that he has learned to make, the boy now has a new outfit featuring trucks.  The Jon-Jon is made out of a soft chambray which pleated up nicely and is smocked with Ellen McCarn's "Keep On Truckin."  The Jon-Jon will work well with a long sleeve shirt underneath for Winter and then short sleeve for Spring.

I must admit that I had almost forgotten how much fun it is to roll a truck across the kitchen floor making the appropriate noises!

Michie'

The Birthday Girl

        Guess who is two years old?

Hard to believe that the time is passing so quickly.

And harder still to believe that she is even more a joy with each passing day!

*Her birthday outfit is the long version of the Jon-Jon with elastic at the ankles.  A machine applique' on the front matches her jungle themed birthday party.

Michie' 

Snowman Ribbon!

Thank you Pam for letting us know that you located our much sought after snowman ribbon at The Brooklyn General Store online.  The ribbon is on the featured outfit in the latest Sew Beautiful Magazine.  Not only is it cute on the boy's outfit, wouldn't it be cute for a matching sister or cousin outfit?

Michie'

A Long Sleeve Dress For Fall

A few changes were made to pattern #124 for a simple dress for Fall.  The paisley cotton print went well with buttons and trim from my stash.  No collar was needed, just a simple neckband and the sleeves were lengthened to long sleeve.  Afraid of plackets?  Well...this pattern buttons all the way down the back!

These are the basic measurements that I use for long sleeves. The measurement is from the top to the bottom of the sleeve and includes the seam allowances.  3 month-9 1/2", 6 month- 10 3/4", 12 month-11 3/4", 18 month-13", 24 month-14".

Michie'

New Sew Beautiful Magazine

I must admit that it was when I spotted the new Sew Beautiful magazine in the grocery store yesterday that it occurred to me that I had failed to blog about it.  Makes me wonder what else I have forgotten to do the last few weeks. :)

The "Ribbon/Christmas Issue" is full of inspiration.  The boy's article gives detailed instructions for adapting a collar and completing the Bridging Stitch.  A lovely effect on the black corduroy outfit.  The outfit was made using pattern #134 and a vintage look snowman ribbon really dressed up the outfit.  The ribbon was given to me for the purpose of the article and I have been unable to find it available for purchase at this time.

It is fun to open up the magazine and see how our little guy looked a year ago.  Sitting alone was his new trick and once he discovered the artificial snow, things went downhill pretty fast.  Who knew that little boys instinctively roll in snow?

Have you started your Christmas sewing or are visions of Christmas outfits still dancing in your head?

Michie' 

Cutest Outfit Ever!

I feel free to call this the cutest outfit ever, because I didn't dream it up or make it!  :)  I love when I have the opportunity to see what someone else has done with one of my patterns, in this case pattern #103.

Someone suggested that I look at http://smocksewandbemerry.blogspot.com/  and I must say that I enjoyed the visit.  You can click here for the outfit details.  Beautiful job Patrice!

Michie'

The Party

There is always a lot of excitement and anticipation for the party.

A kitten and a puppy came for a visit.

A birthday party for Grandda was enjoyed by all.

And sometimes your puppy has a meltdown!

Michie'