simple Analogy

Matchy Matchy But Not Really

So... do you remember this?  During the fall, I helped Ruth (my oldest niece) learn how to make pillowcases.  She picked out fabrics and made one for herself plus one for each of her sisters for Christmas.  Since moving back here, my nieces now all share a room.  I figured they'd like having matching comforters, so I made them each a duvet.  Well, not exactly made because I cheated a little and bought white ones from IKEA, but I did applique their initials using the same fabric as the pillowcases.  Each girl has her own color and I think the white background will help to pull it all together.

These really could have used a good ironing before the picture, but it's one of those holiday things... spend time ironing and take a really good picture - or - have a few extra minutes to prop the feet up and take a deep breath.  I took the breath.

Blooming

The big secret was revealed Monday night.  My sister loved it just like I knew she would.

So here's the low down on the Bloomers Skirt...

Not hard - just LONG.  Really, the directions were easy to follow.  Nothing really threw me for a loop even though this was my first all hand sewn garment.  It just takes a lot of time.  Don't plan on making one in an evening.

I made it a size bigger.  I kept reading everywhere that I should do this.  I was still unsure, so I commented on Arsty-Crafty Babe's and asked her about it.  Beki very graciously replied and told me that the sizing seemed to run a little small.  That's what I love about the craft blog community, we're all here to help each other out.

Loving the thread makes all the difference!  It really does, even though it's a pain and seemly a waste of precious time.  Don't skip that part.

The FOE (fold over elastic) was a pleasure to work with.  Never used it before; will definitely use it again.  I bought mine from Sewzanne's.  The directions called for 1" FOE, but I had a hard time finding it.  I used 5/8" and it worked just fine.

It's just beautiful!  I love the weight, the design, the fit!  I'm gonna take a bit of a hand sewing break, and then make one for myself!  In the spring perhaps...

My Advice Is...

Another present checked off the list.  I was just hoping to get it done in time for Christmas, and look here it's not even Thanksgiving yet!  Just look at the underside of that skirt!  It has got to be the poofiest I have ever seen.  Ms. Magdis is going to flip when she opens it at Christmas!  Full view later.  The wind is blowing all that fluff around.

The directions were pretty straightforward.  If you've ever made a tiered skirt, you know the drill: gather, sew, more gathering, more sewing.  Only this one has oodles (and I do mean OODLES) of fabric to work with.  Plus everything is done twice because there are two layers.  Not to mention all the ruffles - of which I had so much leftover that I promptly sewed another layer on both tiers.  Might as well!

So, here's my advice if you've been thinking about making a pettiskirt...

1. If you've got the eighty dollars, buy one!  It's worth every single penny!
2. If the cash just isn't there, think really hard before jumping into this one.  I made this one for about $15 dollars and while that sounds like a great savings, it makes up for it in time and energy. 
3. If you feel you must make one for your precious bundle of pink, learn to shir or buy a ruffle foot.  I used the shirring method and it worked like a charm.  Trying to gather all of that fabric by hand would drive even the most patient of saints mad!  I'm planning a "how to make ruffles by shirring" post for the end of the week. 
4. When shirring, your gathers are able to stretch.  This gave me a bit of trouble when I was trying to attach the top tier to the drop waist because the tier was so much wider in diameter.  I worked through it by matching North/South/East/West points on the top tier with the same points on the drop waist then gathering and pinning all the extra fabric in between.  (I know that was probably confusing.  If anyone needs more details leave a comment and I'll try to be more specific.) 
5. Do not try to complete it in an evening.  Take it in small steps.  I must be truthful and say that there were several times I had to "STEP AWAY FROM THE RUFFLES" (think car alarm warning here) so that I could keep my sanity!
6. Oh, you'll need a trip to the chiropractor/masseuse afterward.  Or maybe it's just me.  My posture is horrible when I sew because my table is too high and my chair too low.  My shoulders get very tense.  I've had a kink for a few days that just won't work itself out.
7. If you're new to sewing, wait until you have a few more skills under your belt.  I'd hate for someone who's just beginning to give up sewing forever because of this skirt!  

On this end of it I can say that I'm proud I made it through, but I will probably never make one again.  Unless it's for my grandkids and that is a L-O-N-G way off.  Hopefully by that time I'll have the eighty dollars to blow!

2:1

I'm feeling a little crazy right about now.  We've had a busy start to our week and it doesn't look like it's going to slow down either.  With company coming for the weekend and the subsequent cleaning of the house, last day of Bible study, haircuts, and school, there hasn't been a whole lot of time to sew.  I'm hoping for a few hours tonight after dinner because I'd really like to clear off the dining room table before our guest comes.  The dining room is where I sew and right now it is littered with my red fluff undertaking.  My husband (dear man) told me that it is totally unnecessary to clear the table and that we can just eat in the kitchen, but something inside of me just won't rest until that room is presentable.  We'll see how far I get! 

2:1 is the ratio for eating my favorite fall comfort candy.  2 peanuts to 1 candy corn = payday! 

Cherub Sewing

One of my favorite cherubs is turning one and I wanted to make her a skirt.  I knew the fabric I wanted to use, but it seemed like every pattern I looked at called for more than the amount of fabric I had.  Enter Sew Mama Sew's Scrap Busters!  Vintage Fern's Scrappy Skirt tutorialgot me out of my jam.  It was perfect!  Add some leggings and a onesie from Target and I had a very cute/modern outfit for said cherub.  Almost.  The onesie was a bit too plain, so I added a small ruffle to the front.  Wrap it up!

Anything But Petty

Popping in to say that the shirring is going flawlessly this time.  Thank goodness, because I'm shirring a strip 108 yards long by 2 inches wide into one super long ruffle.  That's not a typo!  It really is 108 yards long!  This is a wonderful way to make ruffles.  I've done the ruffling by hand thing which is very slow, produces inconsistent gathers, and raises the frustration level.  Shirring (using elastic thread in the bobbin) is fast and the gathers are perfectly uniform.  Happy thoughts!  

The skirt part of this really is petty.  It's the ruffles that are the star of the show.  I'm up to my ears in "ruffle fluff"!

Groundbreaking Ceremony

I am about embark on a major construction project.  I feel it is appropriate to have a special ceremony to kick off this undertaking.  Drum roll please.....

The Pettiskirt.  I'm following these written instructions, working from bottom to top, and using Martha's video for a visual.  The video alone did not make me feel confident that I had enough information to give this a go.  What am I getting into?  Wish me luck!

Christmas Crafting

This weekend the male species of my family converged at my in-law's for the Florida game.  I was invited, of course, but only as a token maybe-she-might-feel-left-out-so-we'll-ask-her-too invitation.  Thanks guys, but I'd rather be sewing. 

Actually I needed to be sewing.  The Christmas list is long with handmade gifts this year (as it pretty much always is) and though I am well on my way, there is still much to do.  I did spend all of Saturday in my quiet house applique-ing my heart out, so there are three more gifts for the finished column.  Seeing as how my nieces can't stand to wait for Christmas, and seeing how if they knew I posted pictures here they'd be peeking, this is all I can show.  Full disclosure after the festivities of Christmas are over.  Let's just say these turned out just how I hoped they would and I'm sure they'll be pleased! 

Refashion While Waiting

 

I really wanted to sew this afternoon, but forgot to throw my fabric into the wash.  My friend and sewing teacher, Megan, taught me to wash my fabrics before sewing and I have faithfully followed her advice.  So while I was waiting for the dry cycle to finish, I scrounged around in my closet to find a shirt that I'd been saving to try my first refashion on.  What do I mean by refashion?  Reuse, re-purpose, sew green, recycle... RE-FASHION.  

Last week I happened to find Wardrobe Refashion, and while I'm not ready to take the pledge (because I really don't know what I'm doing well enough yet) the idea sparked my interest.  What about that red shirt that I no longer wear?  I bet I could turn that into a skirt for Magdalena.

Dug out said red shirt, cut it one inch above the gathered empire waist, replaced the old worn out elastic with new, sewed about three inches where the stitches had broken, and ta da! 

 

It worked.  My first refashion!  Took all of five minutes. 

***UPDATED 10/26:  I just did what I wished others would not do on wardrobe refashion, and that is just generalize the directions.  So many times I see a refashion that I really would like to copy, but don't have enough information to do it successfully.  To rectify this, I'm adding detailed instructions.

1.  The shirt already had an elastic empire waist.  I lined up the waist and used a ruler and rotary cutter to cut one inch above the gathered waist.  This kind of gives the waist a ruffle of it's own.

2.  Since t-shirt material does not fray, I left the  edge raw.

3.  The existing elastic was worn out.  I opened up the casing and removed the existing elastic.

4.  With new elastic cut to my niece's waist measurement, I threaded it through the casing, sewed the elastic together, and closed up the casing. 

5.  I fixed a few seams where the original stitching had come undone. 

I'd really like to learn to sew with knits.  Anyone have any books/sites you could suggest?

Catch the Spirit

Holiday crafting has begun.  Since I will have TWO nephews by Christmas, which is a first - only nieces up until now, I started searching through my books and magazines to see what kind of boy-ish present I could make them.  These cloth balls (from Seams to Me, but you can find a tutorial here with a variety of sizes) are perfect.  What boy doesn't like to play with a ball?  Of course these balls are very nearly the size of my nephews, but they can grow into them.

I'm thinking they can also come in handy for several other uses besides just playing catch...

1.  Teaching shapes.  Who needs "mama" or "dada"?  Wouldn't it be awesome if my nephews' first words are "pentagon" or "hexagon"?  They just might be categorized as geniuses and all because of Aunt Heather.  Ok, maybe not.  My sister and sister-in-law might never speak to me again if they don't hear their names first.  Maybe we'll start up geometry class when they're three.

2.  Slobber control.  On those days when the slobber faucet is constantly running, these can be used to sop up the puddles.  Nice thing about them - they are MACHINE WASHABLE AND DRY-ABLE which is a major plus for any baby toy.  So, sop away!

3.  Bowling.  Of course the older siblings can use the ball as entertainment while baby is being fed.  How about a nice game of bowling?  Recycle some 2 liter bottles for this purpose.

4.  Yoga.  Shoot!  At approximately 31" in circumference it's almost big enough for a yoga ball.  Ok, exaggeration!  But what little kid wouldn't love to roll around and wrestle with it?

5.  Pillow.  Might give a bit of a crick in the neck, but it's soft enough!

6.  Mobile.  Hang it from the ceiling with some ribbon and give it a spin.  Those patches are sure to mesmerize even the most colicky baby.  No money back guarantee!

7.  Soccer.  Perfect for those indoor soccer games in the hallway - provided there are no pictures or vases to break.

8.  Shooting hoops.  I'm seeing this ball as it sails through the air in slow motion and slams into the laundry basket for a three pointer!  The crowd goes wild!

9.  Floor cushion.  Run out of seats for guests?  Just pull up a ball.

10.  Body pillow.  They may just love the ball so much they want to sleep with it. 

Of course some of these suggestions are far fetched, but really there are so many uses for a cloth ball.  Make up your own!  These balls will make it far beyond the baby years!