Like Father, Like Son

With the Spring weather has come a whole new batch of inspiration for me...I've put the knitting needles down for a time and opened up the ol' sewing machine.

Before Landis was born, Luke and I were cleaning out closets, and I gathered up some of his discarded clothes, tossed them in a bag, and stuck them in my closet for later use thinking, "Surely these will be good for some boy clothes, right?" So the time came.

We bought this awesome romper for Landis a few weeks ago that looks just like a shirt Luke would wear (minus the snaps at the bottom!), and so I got inspired to turn Luke's old shirt into one. While it was a mind-stretcher for me, since I've never actually done anything like this before, it was super fun, and I was quite pleased with the result, even though I told everyone not to look too close because it was definitely full of imperfections! But that's okay, it gives it character right?

So it started like this...

(the only pic I could find of Luke

wearing this shirt, and no, he does

not play the guitar, he just dreams...)

I laid out the outfit, tucked and turned,

and added seam allowance, front along front,

back along back, to make use of button holes and seams,

sleeve on top of sleeve, to make use of hems,

and collar on top of collar...

pinned, then cut and sewed away...

I also added some cute pockets and sleeve tabs

and switched out the buttons.

So here's the final product....

and a handsome little baby, I might add...

I learned a new saying that fits quite well with

my experience, "What you sew, you shall also rip."

in orange . . and linen

Joshua and I were in Zara the month after Malachai was born - - "pick something! pick something!" Joshua told me; and I picked out this orange linen bias cut dress. I wore it happily for a few months, and then, it just didn't fit right, so it got tucked away - - till a few months ago when I decided that I either needed to give it away or cut it up.

(hey look! - - baby Malachai!)

so it was cut.
I cut off the bottom 18 inches of the dress,
cut some bias tape and sewed it on;
threaded some elastic through it.


and then, after some extremely creative pattern piece cutting (I was short on fabric, ok?), I made up this little top from the pattern from these cute mamas; Rachel bought the pattern for us a year ago and we have been looking for just the right fabric ever since; we decided that this was it!The pattern gives an option for a dress or top, and I chose the top (right, well, I had already cut off the bottom of the dress for the skirt, so it was like the choice was made for me, you know . . . .) The bodice pattern piece seemed short so I added an extra inch . . but I really think that I should have added two; not that I really had an extra inch to add . . .

here's to making every square inch count!

Amaleah's Kerchief

This is my kerchief. I started it on January 23rd .

I learned to increase on this project.

It started with 3 stitches and it ended with 71 stitches.

At the end of each corner, you tie a piece of yarn 37 1/2 inches long.

You put it through with an embroidery needle, and then come to where it's half-way in, and tie a knot, and do the same with the other corner. I like that you don't have to have just one color, and you can have three of your favorite colors. Mom and I decided that I could give it to Julia for her birthday. One day when it was finished she asked me, "Can you make another one for me?" And I said, "Wait til your birthday; see what you'll find!"

Yesterday, I started a headband and finished it today! Now I'm starting a knitting bag...in the book it's called a "tote bag." When I'm done with it, I'll post another blog!

~by Amaleah

sewing mithril is tricky

Years ago, my friend Kim would pass her hand-me-downs my way; she would give me the best stuff. In one lovely sack full of second hand clothes, I found a beautiful silver sweater . . . and I have had it stored in my closet for five years, trying to find just the right way to use it. last month I decided that that time would never come. mostly, because I realized that Josu's dragon hat needed on arch nemesis of sorts.

and so I chopped off the sleeves of the beautiful silver sweater and after some creative, stitching, this chain mail armor beauty was born:



I will call it mithril;
and today, I will wrap it up with a note from Frodo, asking him to take good care of it - - reminding him that it was mined in Moria by the dwarves of old.
I think this will please my hobbit crazed son very much.

a dragon for Josu

My Josu loves, loves, loves dragons. every time we go down to our local coffee shop
it's pretty much a given that Malachai will bring along a book to be read aloud to,
and that Josu will bring paper and some sort of drawing medium;
and it goes like this this:
1. he begs me to draw a castle with him
2. he insists that there be a dragon in the dungeon
. . . and maybe one flying
. . . . . . and then probably another one - - claws up and fire spewing out its terrible jaws
so, behold (above) Malachai modeling Josu's handmade Christmas gift (handmade is so in this year . . . . )

I followed the basic instructions for this hat,
using a couple of t-shirts that had run their course in my closet.
I added a row of dragon spikes and a nice pointy tail.
it's all a bit off
but I'm hoping Josu will be so busy breathing fire that he won't notice.

p.s. I've sworn off sewing jersey knit forever

My Favorite Sling

I thought I'd share a picture of the sling I made for Landis. I love, love, love it! I found instructions here, and the cutest fabric at Joann's (which is so close to my house I can walk there, how cool is that). It was so easy. It took me a week because I had a newborn, and I sewed on it for 5 minutes at a time, but if I had 2 hours I could definitely do it in that amount of time. Jan Andrea suggests not using calicos, but the fabric she recommends offers no cute prints. So I chose a calico, and then doubled it and added a contrasting fabric, which she offered instructions for. You have to order sling rings here, but they're super cheap. So Landis loves being all snuggled up with mommy, and it's much better than carrying that heavy baby carrier around.

in light blue linen:

these pockets nearly did me in
they're not so tricky . . . once you figure the bad boys out . . .
(it was a two week process for me)
this was helpful for me, and this (which is in Spanish, but the pictures were some of the clearest I found)
I traced this pattern from Catherine's Japanese pattern book (remember that weekend, Cat?!)
almost two years ago. the original pattern is long sleeved, and shorter - - but I thought it would be nice as a summer dress so that I wouldn't have to worry about pairing it with a bottom piece; so I extended the hemline and capped the sleeves.

and if anyone happens on a pair of these at your local Goodwill, please snatch them up for me? they and the dress are meant to be together.

Also,I couldn't read the Japanese on the pattern . . . but whatever size this is, it fits Josu perfectly (we called it a shirt).