Knit Layered Skirt

How do you turn this white T-shirt into a skirt for your little girl?

First, go to Make It and Love It for the tutorial on how to make a Girl's Knit Layered Skirt.

Then, if you haven't done so already, raid your hubby's closet for a shirt he isn't wearing anymore. The ones I grabbed happen to be t-shirts from his academy days. He wasn't sorry to see them go. :) (just a Kirkland brand men's t-shirt)

Below is my finished skirt. Makes a cute little skirt to put over her Gymnastics outfit......or do a little "Thriller" dance in.

Not too shabby for being your daddy's leftovers.

If you haven't tried a tutorial from Ashley yet you should! She has the cutest ideas and her tutorials are easy to follow with lots of pictures. Thanks Ashley!

My Husband Loves Me

He really does. I know this because I went to the sewing super store the other day to look at machines with his Aunt Marianne. She was thinking about a new machine for quilting. As she was discussing machines with a sales person I was checking out sewing machines. Totally harmless, right? Well then I came home with this little gem. It was on sale! How could I resist? So my husband does love me because he didn't even bat an eye and even unloaded it from the car. It is a Baby Lock Sofia. I am now in love with Baby Lock A-Line series machines. I loved my Kenmore that my mother bought for me. I plan on keeping it and one day Julia will learn how to sew on that same machine. Thank you mom for my love of sewing! (and for putting up with me not always wanting to follow directions on patterns-hehe)This machine embroiders and sews. It is the perfect entry level embroidery machine for me. Not too big and very easy to use. I can use it without a pedal! How cool is that?

Twirly Skirt

Through blog hopping I found a great tutorial on a Twirly Skirt at 7 Layer Studio. The instructions looked pretty easy. I picked up some fabric and headed home. Over the course of two days I whipped up two cute little skirts for Julia.

This was the first skirt I made. I didn't exactly follow the instructions in the tutorial and had to fix a few things later. But it still turned out great. I also added a lining to the skirt because the black fabric I bought was practically sheer. Note to self......don't always go for the cheapest fabric! I was able to make both skirts for under $10. I think I could make them for even cheaper if I saved my coupons and bought just a little less material. I had some material leftover. Almost enough to make two more skirts.

This is the second skirt I made. So much easier the second time because I knew what mistakes to avoid. :) By the way, it is always a good idea to read a tutorial a few times through before beginning. I am notorious for reading a tutorial once and thinking that I totally got it just to find out later than I should have read it two more times to get the details.

Below you can see the lining.

I am so happy with how they turned out. I have two little girls, that really aren't so little anymore, that I can't wait to make these for! Thank you Shelley for a great tutorial!!

Fleece Scarf-Kids

Finally got around to making Julia's scarves. It's a slight variation on the Adult version. Her scarf is 5"wide x 48" long, is only three layers of fleece and the strips are about 3/4" wide. I just used scissors to cut my strips on this one while watching hubby play video games.

Probably would have been okay to shorten it up a bit more.

Baby Blue, Cream, Baby Blue version

Getting her to pose prettily is nearly impossible.

Lavender, Cream, Lavender version

Again, a super easy project.

Kid's Papasan Chair

While browsing one of my favorite blogs, Make It and Love It, I saw how she had made a totally new seat for a kid's papasan chair. I have always wanted to get Julia a little chair to put in her room for reading. But never did I expect to find a chair just like the one on Ashley's blog. She had a great tutorial on how to do this project as well so I just had to follow along.



The best part about this project was that it didn't cost me a dime. I would have loved to bind it with a contrasting color but I was trying really hard to just use what I had on hand already. I found the chair at our ward's FreeCycle event. My husband and a few of the other men couldn't believe I was taking this chair home. But I accepted their challenge.

Thank you Ashley from Make It and Love It for this tutorial!!!!

So after creating the chair I dug out a quilt top that I had made for Julia. I found some batting and backed the quilt with white flannel. Now she has a cozy blanket to snuggle with while reading.
I am now happy with her bedding ensemble. Now I just need to fix the curtains and create a valance.

Fleece Scarf Tutorial

The tools you will need to make it a little easier to cut.

You will need two pieces of fleece measuring 15" long x 60" wide (or the length of the bolt)

First step:

Cut your fleece into four 7 " long x 60" inch pieces. I didn't bother to measure out 60". I just cut it the width of the bolt. You strips will look like the ones below.
Step 2:

Create a fleece sandwich. I like to put the darker colors on the outside.
Then sew right down the middle of your very long strip of fleece. It is okay if you aren't perfect! Just look at my ends. They didn't match up.
No problem. I just cut them off so they were all even and then went back to quick stitch the ends so they wouldn't come apart.
Now the tedious part. Cut one inch strips or whatever size you prefer along both sides. You will be cutting through four pieces of fleece so don't be afraid to put some muscle behind it. Also, be careful to not cut through the seam you have sewn. :) I stop about 1/4" before the seam.

Your fleece strip should look something like this now.

Give it a good shake to fluff it up and you are done! The more you wash and wear the fluffier/mixed it will be. I made the black/grey combo for my sisters for Christmas this year.

This one if for a San Diego Chargers fan.

Small warning about blisters.....don't make too many in one day.

This is the one that my auntie gave me and was my inspiration. I always wore it on Christmas parade days and it usually ended up on one of the guard girls. Or in this case, the baton girl. Doesn't she look warmer already?

My Craft Room

This is what the room looked like before we bought the house.

The first thing I did was remove the carpet and install laminate wood flooring. I didn't want to lose pins in the carpet or worry about my daughter getting paint on the floor. I also chose an inexpensive floor so I wouldn't also worry about constantly keeping it spotless.

Before

The walls are a bluish/purple depending on the lighting in the room.

After I crammed all my stuff in. It was hard to unload my stuff into such a clean room. But at least when it gets messy I know it is being used. This is probably the most clean it will be all year. I just finished going through all my stuff to declutter and reorganize. I wish I would have taken a pic of the after Christmas mess in this room.

After

Before

After

Most of the cubbies and drawers are labeled. Not really for me but for when friends come over. Then they don't have to ask me where anything is located.

I just put shelves in this closet! So excited! Who knew shelving could be so exciting. I had been storing my fabric in bins and it just wasn't working. I also moved some craft stuff that I don't use very often to the top of the closet.

Before

After

I'm short so the cork board above the desk had to be moved behind my chair so that I could reach it more easily. I love being able to have my machines out ALL THE TIME! Even if I scrapbook they can stay out because of the table in the center of the room. That table has folding legs and can easily be moved if needed.

Before

After

I needed to include a space for my daughter because I knew that she would not let me be in here by myself. My hubby also put in a TV for me so I can watch my most favorite channels....HGTV, FOOD Network, and Nick Jr.

Before

After

In my previous life I was a band director. This is my office area for not only printing pics but where I use Finale on occasion, keep my instruments that I currently use (under the desk), and store office supply type stuff that I love to buy.
All furniture items were purchased at IKEA with the exception of the 8 foot table top (Home Depot). I love IKEA and I'm very sad that the closest one to me is 3 hours away! Probably better for my pocket book that way.