Corduroy Twirl Skirts for Fall

With the lovely Chicago fall weather finally upon us, it seemed like a great time to whip up a few skirts for the girls from corduroy. I had a really nice Patty Young print with mod blooms and deep brown tones that I've been saving for a few years now.

The ruffle in the hem adds just that extra touch of cute. My big girl can sure strike a pose!

The cream skirt was my inspiration. It started life as a dress from Old Navy, but it was so boring and the sleeves were an awkward length. So I cut it off and added the ribbon trim (also Patty Young) and an applique of Opal Owl from fabric by Tina Givens.

Full elastic waistbands mean that these skirts will mix and match and be comfy and warm all fall and through the winter. I got the girls to model them in front of a faces wall at our church.

Tooth Fairy Pillow from Voile and Vintage Embroidery

 My first born child lost her first tooth tonight! She was brave and let her Dad pull it. What a fun Father's Day gift for him.  But, being the procrastinator that I am, I didn't have anything special to commemorate the occasion.

First a big thanks to Great Grandma who bought both of my girls a silver dollar when they were born. This beautiful coin will be the perfect first dollar that the tooth fairy can leave behind tonight.

I looked through some vintage pieces of doily stuff handed down from another Great Grandmother. Not necessarily heirlooms...she just had a collection of things in her linen closet, most with stains. I found a piece with small flowers embroidered on it. It makes a charming pocket to hold a tooth that can be exchanged for a coin.

 The rest of the pillow is made from voile. Anna Maria Horner and Tina Givens. Soft and sweet for a great girl!

 

Banded Tank Top for Mommy

Following the idea of the banded tank top in her book for kids: Sewing ModKid Style by Patty Young, I made a Mommy version.

 

The Mommy version doesn't have a second band down at the hips. This makes the body of the shirt fall straight instead of poofing in the midsection (only kids get away with that). I added some rolled fabric flowers to the band to add something a little extra special. I like the way that distracts a little from the circus clown stripe. I love the fabric in the body of the shirt. It's a Tina Given's quilting cotton. Next time, a voile might have a better drape, but this fabric from Tina is really soft as far as quilting cotton goes. I made this all on a regular sewing machine using a ball point needle and a straight stretch stitch for sewing up the jersey.

Dresses in the Wild

 It's fun when dresses actually get photographed on their little owners. These were taken at a favorite Chicagoland pumpkin farm. Both dresses are reverse knot dresses. The blue and green one features an apron and bodice trimmed with chiffon. Fabrics include Anna Maria Horner and Tina Givens.

Fall Ruffle Pants

Forgive the lack of ironing, but these are a pair of pants I made for my youngest. She's wearing a 3T these days. Ruffle pants are quick and easy to make once you have the pattern piece for the leg. Easy to make shorts or Capri length. Baby girl wore the brown and orange pair to our neighborhood apple festival and got some compliments! Those feature a Sandi Henderson Meadowsweet print. The others are a Tina Givens print.

It's a Girl! Baby Shower Gift Set

I love it when my friends find out. It makes it so much more fun to pick out girly fabrics if I know there's a girl on the way. And trust me, the boy babies will appreciate it too if they aren't subjected to my "gender neutral" choices. I hosted a baby shower recently for a mom who was expecting her first girl (second child). I whipped up a nursing cover with one of my favorite all time prints by Tina Givens. That bird cameo from Fairy Tip-Toes is just soooo sweet...

In addition to the nursing cover I made a pair of burp cloths backed with chenille instead of diaper cloth (which I'm pretty much over - I don't like the way it gets all distorted after repeated washing, which Hello! is what you have to do with cloth diapers). Anyway, and rounding out the gift set is a handy Diaper Clutch to carry a travel sized wipes case and several diapers.

The other fabric I used is also Tina Givens from the Treetop Fancy collection. I love how all my Tina Givens (and there is a whole shelf of it) mixes and matches so well.
Here's the gift set all packaged up in a cute fabric box to be used in the nursery...

Morton Arboretum Photo Shoot

Again, our favorite place for a photo shoot. The Morton Arboretum in Lisle, IL has a huge kids area. Outside of that, the settings are limitless. We did a shoot under some large oaks and one in a more formal garden adjacent to the Thornhill Education Center.

My husband took the leading photo about 2 or 3 shots into the first shoot and promptly showed it to me via the digital display on the back of the camera. "That will be $500." he joked. Good thing I make the dresses (and the models!) myself and get my prints done at Costco, or I'd be in debt.

Blue Chiffon Reverse Knot Dress

Welcome to the jungle. This dress has some parrots and some leopard print. My friend Jenn came over a few weeks ago and offered a fresh set of eyes on my fabric stash. She pulled out three of these prints to go together. I added one more to the mix and some trimmings and here's the result.

I decided to go for a reverse knot strap style. Added an apron so I could use the Heather Bailey Pop Garden fabric to add in a touch more color variation. And went with a two tier gathered skirt design (not my usual treatment for a knot dress). I then kicked the dress up a few notches with some electric blue nylon chiffon (the stuff that makes petti-skirts) and leopard print grosgrain ribbon. Whew! Lots of sewing but lots of fun. My almost 2 yr old is going to rock this all spring and summer and then straight through til winter.

For the Babies and Mommies

I've been sewing up a storm of items for babies and mommies this month. But I seem to have forgotten to take pictures before giving it all away. Well, Kelly got a nursing cover and ribbon lovie from one of my favorite fabric lines: Treetop Fancy by Tina Givens. Christy's girls (she has three!) got 2 mermaid tail beach towels and a hooded poncho towel. Heather and Angela both placed orders for a burp cloth set with matching Diaper Clutch. Katherine walked away from her baby shower with a pair of burp cloths, a Diaper Clutch and a ribbon lovie all from the pink Kleo collection of fabrics by Alexander Henry. All this and silly me without my camera.

Custom Knot Dresses - Amazing!

A customer requested some custom fabrics and construction for 2 knot dresses for her daughter and they turned out amazing! I love helping someone get just what they were looking for.

The top dress features fabrics from Tina Givens and Keri Beyer. The bottom dress is Amy Butler from two different collections: Lacework from Lotus and Garden Maze from Midwest Modern.

The ribbon trim on the aprons is from designer Patty Young. I have been loving her fabrics and trims for a long time and loved how they added the special finishing touch on the aprons to pull the color schemes together.

You can request your own custom dress or outfit by contacting me through my Etsy store at www.mommysaidsew.etsy.com. Stay tuned for Christmas and Holiday 2010!

Mommy Said Sew at the Pumpkin Patch

Swing Top - Just What the Fairy Godmother Ordered

So my oldest daughter has lots of dresses (as you might have guessed) and quite a few toddler trousers in her wardrobe, but not really any tops. I decided to try out a simple modification to a knot dress and the result was a pretty cute swing top. I used a two panel design on the "skirt" part and centered the smaller panel in the front.


The fabric is by Tina Givens from her Fairy Tip Toes collection. The front panel fabric features fairy godmothers, ladybugs, flowers and birds.

My favorite parts about this top are the way it coordinates with two pairs of pants already in our wardrobe, and I love the look of the polka dots on the straps. We'll be sporting this one soon with a simple long sleeve t-shirt, also available in our Etsy store.

Stroller Blanket Perfect for Fall and Winter Weather

You can roll around all fall and through the winter with this special stroller blanket. Unlike other "stroller blankets" this one has a secret weapon: clips! Sewn right into the top corners of the blanket are sturdy but stylish clips that fasten the blanket securely to your stroller so it does not slip off and drag on the ground or get run over.

Your child will be so warm underneath thanks to the "furry" side of the blanket. The faux fur has a very short nap with a flocked design to add warmth. Only the best designer fabric is used. Shown here are a quartet from Tina Givens Treetop Fancy line for Westminster Fabrics. These browns, blues and lime greens are saturated with rich color and make moms of a boy happy to have some high style.

Here's a close up of the clip.

You can clip onto a seat in the car to serve as a lap blanket or clip it on and use it to securely cover an infant in their carrier. And you don't have to worry about it slipping off!

This stroller blanket is available in my Etsy Store. And can be combined with other lovely products in coordinating prints to make the most amazing baby shower gift. You will be the hit of the shower if you show up with this set (shown above).

Sneak Peek - New Knot Dresses

Coming off the sewing machine just this afternoon...

Toddler Trousers - LOVE LOVE LOVE

I endeavored to make some better than average kid pants for Lauren for this fall.

Here's the result! These are real trousers...
~ Tailored cut features a full leg but not too much extra fabric in the hip
~ Flat front waist with elastic in back
~ Pleated ruffle is super classy and is top stitched for a finished look...

Chocolate Bird Trouser - pleated ruffle detail with top-stitched hem

They look super on Lauren - just the right length and fullness to the leg. They will be great with a simple t-shirt or to really fun up some fall dresses once the weather gets colder here in Chicago. Since Lauren is only 3, I've dubbed them "toddler trousers" but they would work on walking babies and on school kids. Wouldn't a closet full of these be great for back-to-school!? And seriously, if Lauren ever needed to go for a job interview, the Golden Butterfly pair would get her the job for sure.

Golden Butterfly Toddler Trouser

Creme Bird - all fabrics by Tina Givens from her Treetop Fancy and Fairy Tip Toes collections