a lil' cutie pouch for a sweet girl

Mallory wanted me to make her a lil' cutie pouch from Noodlehead's tutorial and she uses it quite a bit as a little purse to carry her change when we go out. So, we thought it would be the perfect gift for her friend when she got invited to her birthday party. We added a special soldered charm necklace for her and put it inside the pouch. Instead of a key ring, we added a large lobster claw on the side so that she can hook it on her belt loop when she takes it out with her.

a stash bag

Awhile ago I got a special bag in the mail from Dana at Made. It has become a perfect bag to carry in my purse where I can keep a treat or two just for me. Although, the fish on the front give it away and the kids know they can probably find some Swedish Fish in there. I thought that my friends might need some candy stash bags of their own. I made a few and this is the one I made for my friend Sara who has recently moved to Philly. I filled it with her favorites - dark chocolate. The pouch is just big enough to carry a few treats, but not too big that you might overload it (but, is that really a bad thing?). I followed the directions from Noodleheads's blog for the Lil Cutie Pouch and just beefed up the size a bit and eliminated the tab for the key ring. Oh, and I lined the outside fabric with fusible medium weight lining just to make sure it can hold all that chocolate and not collapse!

my very first bound quilt

I am a bit sad that I don't have a photo of it right out of the dryer. You see...I finished it the day of the baby shower and took photos before I put it in the washer and dryer. I didn't get it pulled out until a few minutes before I left for the shower that night. I loved how it looked after it had been dried. The front fabrics are a combination of fabric left from outfits I have made for Mallory in the past. The back is fabric I picked up at a flea market a few years ago. I like that color combination is made up of both new and vintage fabric. I got so excited that I finally overcame my fear of binding a quilt that I have already started a new one for another little baby girl!

a personalized charm for a friend

I have a friend who was able to go to Paris with her husband for their 17th anniversary. For some reason (I think she lost her camera while there) she doesn't have any photos from the trip. So, for her birthday, I made her this charm necklace as a reminder of her special vacation.

dog applique

I am really not much of a dog person (so sorry), but I do enjoy drawing them and turning them in to appliques. I think they look so cute on clothes for baby boys. So, maybe I am a dog person...just in clothing! Here is a onesie I made for a new baby boy for my friend and neighbor. If there is any interest in the applique pattern, I can draw it and put it in google docs. Just let me know.

a few summer skirts

I have been in the mood to sew recently. Plus, I want to use up my fabric stash. I had a clear a space upstairs in order to do it, but for a few simple skirts, it was worth it.

First, she wanted a skirt with a blue jay on it (just a blue bird) and that was easy. I think I made it about the main part of the skirt 15" and then added a 4" band at the bottom to applique the blue jay on. The bird applique is from this pattern.


Next I made a few from Dana's Simple Skirt tutorial. I made both double layered. I love them both, but am especially fond of the red, white, and blue one with bias tape. Perfect for the 4th of July.

shop update

I have been working on some new soldered jewelry and have updated my etsy shop. There are new Patriotic/4th of July charms, initial charms, Coca Cola charms, and some new Paris/New York charms too. All charm purchases come with 24" nickel ball chains as well.

i can't quite tell...

if I am extra busy so I don't craft as much or a bit lazy when it comes to crafting. I still totally dig it, but I think things changed a lot this year when my six year old started kindergarten. He has juvenile diabetes and it seems as though I spent a lot of time up at the elementary school. I have two older boys and I think I was up there more this school year than I was total the seven years before while the older boys attended. But, it has been a blessing to be up there and see him (them all for that matter) have such a successful first year. And, Mallory (my four year old), she keeps me busy too. But what mom isn't busy with her kids? I guess things just changed here for a bit. I still love this blog and I have been working on a few things lately that I wanted to share with you...

A Coke and diet Coke necklace for my dear friend and diet Coke enthusiast

A charm bracelet for that same friend for her birthday

a birthday shirt for a one year old who was having a doggie themed birthday party


and a birthday banner for that same little one year old for his party

another doggie

I will put the pattern up for this applique soon since it's such an easy one and I am finding it to be my "go to" applique for every little baby boy.

mother's bracelet

My mom has eight children. I wanted to make her something soldered for Mother's Day that had her children's names, but I also didn't want her to look like Mr. T with tons of charms on one necklace. The solution was a charm bracelet with tiny 1/2"X1/2" charms. Each charm has the initials of my brothers and sisters and their birth order. I made one for my mother in law too and put charms of horses and some of her other favorites in between the soldered charms since she only had five soldered charms on her bracelet. Can you believe I said the word ONLY to five charms? Five charms equals five kids and I think that's quite a lot!


I haven't put them in my etsy shop yet because I have to figure out pricing. The tiny charms (believe it or not) are a bit more difficult because of their size, yet I still want to make them affordable for those who have many children. We'll see...

it was feeling like summer

At the time I appliqued on these tank tops, it really was beginning to feel like summer. Now, we are being flooded with non stop rain and thunder storms (that keep us up all through the night). But, as it was feeling nice and warm, I pulled a few tank tops out of my daughter's closet and had her pick a few things to applique on them. She chose the flamingo and an ice cream cone. If I would have had a third tank, there would have been a unicorn as well. Next time. She had a friend over the other day and as dress up, Mallory asked her friend to wear her new tank tops with her along with her tulle skirts from Costco.

this girl loves mud and new pjs

This post was supposed to be about the new pajamas I sewed for Mallory. I took a few photos of her in them last night. We went outside to take them and when I was done, I went inside to get dinner ready. My six year old came in a while later and I realized he was muddy.

I went out to check on Mallory and realized she had turned the hose on a mud hole to make it even dirtier and was covered in mud. So much for new clean pjs. I can't say I was mad because of part of me loves that she likes to get dirty and play outside with the boys. I was a bit frustrated because I could have put some other clothes on her if she was going to start digging mud holes. I guess I will just have to soak them a bit!

It was rather warm last week and I realized that she didn't have many summer jams, so I was excited to make some for her. Plus, she said she wanted to have a pajama party with me. I have had this sheet for awhile and used Simplicity Pattern #4767 to make her a new set. I used the extra fabric to make a pair of pj shorts for myself. Mother/Daughter pj party, right? Well, since she got all dirty and I really was too tired, the party has been postponed. I know she won't let me forget that it still needs to happen. She says we will have popcorn, a movie, and "NO BOYS!"

bib for a babe

Sometimes I am very short on time and don't have much to give to a handmade gift. But, I have a hard time giving a gift without a little something handmade. So, a handmade bib is the perfect addition to a baby gift. Here is one I made recently. I always seem to use this pattern from juicybits' blog.