So I "Made" Some "Jewelry"... And it doesn't suck.

And by "made", I mean "wrapped some wire around it" and by "jewelry" I mean "rocks the girls found in a drawer."

I've never wrapped anything before, so I didn't know I couldn't do it.  I found out, though.

The agates are from Montana, I think.  They are really beautiful when they aren't terribly photographed and covered with greasy fingerprints (mine).  Here's the back:

It's a hot mess.  But the girls don't care and new pretties are ALWAYS good.  They go in order, Prima's is the dark one, Secunda's is the pretty orange one and Tertia wanted the white one.  I just used some yarn to string them.  I have a friend (ANDIE!!) who actually went to SCHOOL to be craftier than the rest of us.  I haven't decided whether to send the pic to her...  

I was terrified to try it and it doesn't suck.  I'm putting this down as a "win". 

Selfish Sewing Part 2 - Winter of Comfort 1

And a new long tunic for me!  Yaaaays!  So from this super-easy Burda pattern I found on sale at Joann's for $2.49 (I went nuts and got a ton), I made myself a lovely long something to wear.

Seriously, super easy.  And I had some beautiful vintage fabric that was screaming for a simple minimalist aesthetic, on account of the paisley.  Since winter is hard on the more voluptuous set (it's always so fucking hot everywhere.  Who said 74 is reasonable?  FUCK.) and everything I love is at least $85, I decided to make myself some winter clothes.

Simple, comfortable, long tunics for leggings and boots in fabric I love and exactly my size and proportions.  Really, what's the issue?  So, as my first project I made this!

Belted with a ribbon for now.

Please ignore my crafting crap in the background.  But SO PRETTY.  I cut the sleeves on the bias for fun.  The hem is a high-low:

And sewed with a tight zigzag to make it wavy.  The shoulders were way too big, so I added a pleat.  Just did it on the fly, but it doesn't suck.

Just folded over an inch and sewed down each side 3 inches.  Then top-stitched the shoulder to make it look intentional. 

I just love the delicate neckline.  And the fabric is amazing.  Thanks, Big Daddy for scoring this little gem for me!!  With a skinny brown belt, pumpkin leggings and boots this outfit will be in heavy rotation this winter.

Seen here!

And here!

Here too.

Fire Truck Pillow Stuffie

Sweet Baby Mitchell is turning 1 year old very soon and I asked his lovely momma what he's into right now.  Because the life of a toddler is imminently changeable, I was thrilled when she said, "Trucks." 

TRUCKS?  I can do that!  So I got out my fleece and felt and got to work. I free-handed the shape with my rotary cutter.  Then I started cutting felt...

The wheels needed something.  But I love how it all looks. 

I pinned the CRAP out of it.  Added an axe, because if you're gonna get a toy from me it's GONNA have an axe on it.  I guess.  Zigzagged all around every piece for safety. 

And here it is all stuffed and pretty.  How cool is that? And it definitely passed muster with the Tweedles.

And the hose is so neat!

Did some ladder loops.

Happy Birthday, Sweet Baby!  We love you so much!

As seen on this blog, too!!

And here!!

Here, too...

"You can do that, right Mom?"

Um...  Sure.  Sure I can. 

You certainly seem to think so, anyway.  So let's see if you're right.

We have a geriatric dove named Gracie who dutifully lays eggs for us every two weeks or so.  The fairies are fascinated with her as she has been a fixture for them their whole lives.  They are rarely allowed to handle her and love her from afar.  Secunda took my design notebook this morning and drew up a little sketch of her Gracie.  And then the question:  "You can do that, right Mom?"

I looked up to Big Daddy grinning at me.  "Right, Mom?" he asked. 

Umm... Sure.  Sure I can.  Because I love you so much, I will risk failure.  And disappointing you.  So here goes.

Here's the preliminary sketch Secunda approved (and Tertia was nice enough to put her own name on it).  I wanted to just use some muslin and Secunda chose the buttons. 

Buttons for beak, eyes, and wings. Chosen by the artist.  There's even a Gracie feather in the shot!

I wanted the wings to button on and off, just to make it more interesting.  I free-handed the whole thing and got it completed in about 45 minutes. 

Nothing fancy, but made with so much love. 

How could I say no to those eyes? 

And this Gracie can PLAY!!  Yaaaays!!

Easy Kid's Sewing Project!

Come one, come all!!

This is an awesome sewing project for beginners or experts.  Not only do I love how it turned out (and I'm psyched about the possibilities), but Prima did 95% of it with her own little 5-yr-old hands.  Plus, what else can you do with 100 feet of clothesline?  Remember, this is a family show so keep it clean. ;)

I started it for her by winding a little bit and zig-zagging it.  It was 3/8" rope, easy to fit under the foot of my machine.  I used pink thread so she could see it (plus, PINK) and she sat there for hours turning... turning... turning...

Finally we got to the end and I whipped out the handles.  Sorry for the crappy photo.  I barely got it taken (with my phone, no less) before she was out the door waving it at her sisters. 

There are tuts all over the web and we are definitely doing this again.  Loved the craft, love the usefulness, love that Prima is so very proud of it.  It's a Win all the way around.

Seen here!

Crafteriffic Crap-a-Roonie 1

 HOME-MADE FINGER PAINTS!

This was so fun and an excellent lesson in what too many choices can do to playtime.  I used a fantastic and easy recipe found here from The Imagination Tree.  It cooked up just like she said and it was EASY.  For REAL.  

Prima helped the whole time and mixed all the colors too.

 Lots of bowls of really cool colors.  I was THRILLED with the results.

I sent everyone outside and plopped the paint on paper and let them have at it.  The weirdest thing happened: 

No one wanted to touch it.  They are used to two colors, maybe three and I went a little nuts with the variety.  Totally overwhelmed the poor things.  I ended up putting most of it back in zipper bags for later. 

Good lesson for me on how Minimalism as a philosophy has impacted the wee ones.  I'm proud of them for feeling slightly uncomfortable with all the excess.