another little dress and pattern review

Ally and I headed out to Joann Fabric yesterday morning, since the coupons were so awesome! We decided to make a patriotic little dress for Mackenzie. Ally is going to see her the end of June and she wants some little clothes to take along. This is what I ended up making... Yup! Bought, cut & stitched all in one day. It came out very cute. The pattern I used is Simplicity 4203. The Simplicity patterns were only a dollar yesterday! What a deal.

All in all I liked the pattern a lot. I made the view B dress, which is a lot fuller than it looks on the pattern cover. The skirt is actually two layers of ruffling. Not my favorite thing to do, gathering ruffles, but it went very smoothly. I wish the bodice had been fully lined (if I make this again, I will find a way to do that) but the facings went in nicely and I am happy with the end result. I'm planning to try out the other views on the pattern too. At first I had thought I would make a pair of little navy shorts to go underneath, but the dress is really quite long.... probably not necessary. I might make them anyways, just for kicks. Little girls are not known for being terribly ladylike in dresses, after all!

I also cut into these fabrics yesterday...

I'm going to stitch them into a summery quilt. I'll keep you posted on my progress! All in all, a productive Monday, don't you think?

Tablerunner for a swap

It's time for another swap at The Quilt Asylum! Actually, the swap is in a couple or weeks but mine is DONE. I used a pattern from the book "Let's Do Lunch". This swap is Summertime Table runners. What do you think? Does this say "summertime" to you? I have always loved these colors. When I was 12 or 13 I did my whole bedroom in yellow and orange..... mostly yellow walls with one bright orange accent wall, orange shag carpet, a very graphic & bright comforter on my bed. My parents even painted my desk yellow for me! And yes, in case you were wondering, it was the 70s. Those colors were all the rage. Gosh I wish I had a picture of that room to share with you! (preferably a picture without dorky 12-year-old-me in it!)

My kiddos seem to have somehow inherited my color love. A few years ago, Steve came to me & asked to paint a wall in his bedroom Orange! What could I say? And when he moved into his sister's room a few years later, yup, you guessed it. Another orange wall! And then this spring, Leigh Anne informed me that the kitchen in her new apartment will be.... wait for it.... yellow and orange! I made her some pretty placemats in her new colors and somehow they got into the mail before I caught them with my camera. Maybe when she gets back to Arizona I can get her to photograph them for us...

So I hope my swap partner likes yellow and orange as much as I do. I think a big glass bowl of oranges and lemons would look delightful in the middle of this runner, don't you?

Graduation Day!

Today Allen High School graduated more than 1200 seniors! Can you see Steve? He's the one in blue.... No? You can't find him? I understand. He's in the back row. Here he is with the lovely Cassie, also a new graduate.

And also with his best buddy since the fourth grade, Luke.

And his proud sisters. Ummm Ally? You've got a while before you get to wear a hat like that!

Way to go Steve! You rock.

So, I made a bag...

I know, I know, this isn't exactly news. I mean, I make bags all the time, right? I even design patterns for bags so you can make them too. But when I saw the tote bag pattern in this magazine, I had to make it. It just looked so cute! Now, I rarely follow someone else's bag pattern exactly. Ok, I rarely use them at all! But I decided to make this one exactly the way they did & it just came out sooooo cute!
A friend of mine had asked me to make her a summer bag & her birthday was coming up, so I made it for her. I actually finished it a couple weeks ago, before my little jaunt to Arizona. And, I seriously considered filling it up with my stuff for the airplane & calling it MINE. But I didn't. Great self restraint, huh? I do think perhaps I will make another one for me. I'll add it to the list anyways!

What have you been making these days?

New Pattern!

Wow, I just realized I promised you all this pattern before Christmas! It just goes to show you how life can throw you curve balls and change your best laid plans. Anyways, I'm sorry it took so long, but here it is! Finally. The Town Square Bag.... This is a fun, purse sized bag that I made using a charm pack and some coordinating fabric for the top, lining and handles. Of course it has pockets on the inside to help you stay organized. Here's another one that I made during the design process...

Much thanks to my pattern testers (who had probably given up on me by now!) Chris, Joellen, Tracey and Annie. You guys are the best. Would you love to make one of these bags? You can find the pattern now, in my shop. I've restocked my other patterns too. And if you make any of my patterns up, won't you add photos to my flickr group so everyone can see?

getting ready for graduation

Last night was senior awards night, where Steve & his classmates were recognized for various scholarships and departmental awards. Sorry about the back of the head shot.... Now we are just a week away from the big event! Graduation! I decided to make some pillowcases as gifts for some of Steve's best buddies. His best pal since fourth grade is going to culinary school. So, I made him these...

And Cassie, Steve's girlfriend and beautiful prom date, is decorating her dorm in pink pink pink! I think these will fit in...

We'll be hosting a graduation party tomorrow since Leigh Anne will be heading out for her summer internship the day after Steve's graduation. More pictures to come I am sure!

Sewing for Mackenzie

Remember the little dress I made to send to Miss Mackenzie? Look how happy she is with it!I love sewing for a happy customer! Oh, and a few weeks ago I sent her these overalls.... I saw the pattern on the cover of Sew Hip magazine & had to try it out. It was simple & fun to make & oh so cute! I think maybe she was a little tired in this picture. She doesn't look quite as happy to be posing for the camera. Oh well! I am not going to take this personally!

I've been off on a little adventure for the last few days. I flew out to Phoenix to see my mom & dad & meet up with my lovely firstborn, Leigh Anne. Then Leigh Anne & I drove her little car home to Dallas. Fun to take a road trip with her! Now, back to work...

May Birdie Stitches finally finished!

I know, I know, it's only May 8 & technically I have all month to get these done (my own personal deadline) but really, you know I like to get them done as quickly as possible. If nothing else, it feels so good to check something off my list early on each month. Sometimes even on the FIRST day of the month! I did print out the pattern for this last Sunday, the first. But I didn't get around to the actual stitching until this weekend. I'm really enjoying Little Miss Shabby's Birdie Stitches blocks. They are fun & cheerful. And I really liked the flowers for May. I popped some applique in the middle of two of the flowers just for fun.

Then I did bunches of french knots in the middle of the orange flower. I love the texture that creates! I must confess, I left some flowers off (YES! There were MORE!). It just seemed like overkill to me. But I love the way it turned out. Five blocks done! Who knew I could stick with something this long?

Prom!

We interrupt this crafty blog for a moment of "proud Mommy"ism.....
Steve and Cassie are at their senior prom tonight. Don't they look fabulous? oh, and you must check out her shoes.... honestly the picture doesn't even do them justice! Sooooo cute!

We even managed to get a shot with mom & dad....

Ok, back to our regularly scheduled programming now. Sorry for the interruption!

storybook quilt

Our quilt guild does a neat project called Storybook Quilts. They purchase children's books that have something to do with quilts/quilting. A guild member chooses a book and makes a small, lap quilt to go with the story. Then, we send the quilts & books out to the local elementary schools, along with activities that the children can enjoy when they hear the book read. From what I hear, the children pass the quilt around while they listen to the story! I chose a book a long time ago & finally finished my quilt to go with it. My friend, Carol, quilted it for me and I just stitched on the binding this afternoon! Now it is ready to be turned in to the guild, but I thought I would share it with you first.

This is the book that goes with it. In the story Star Blanket, little Laura has a special quilt that brings her comfort at night. It has a star on it to represent each member of her family. She sits on her bed with her dad every night and goes through the stars, naming each family member, aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents and so on. I thought it was such a sweet story!

I just wanted you to know that I have indeed been sewing! What are you making these days?

May

Whenever I read a blog and the writer says she is working on a "secret project" I get a little envious. Typically this means they have a special project that will be published.... or featured on the Moda Bakeshop... or they have a book deal.... or a new fabric line...... well guess what? I am working on a "secret project"! Look for details in about a month.

In addition, it is crazy May. I swear May is busier than December anymore. Especially when you have a High School senior in the house! This week we are preparing Steve for the prom. And addressing piles of graduation announcements and party invitations. And to top it all off, Leigh Anne is coming home next week! This is where she will be sleeping. hmmmm I have some cleaning to do!

And yes, that's the Christmas quilt still out. Because it's comfy. If you had popped into my house last Friday morning at 4AM (now why would you have done that? But let's just pretend shall we?) you would have found me curled up under that quilt watching the great Royal Wedding.

So, if you came here to see pictures of my creations, sorry to disappoint. There's a lot going on at ellyn's place right now. Stay tuned!