all buttoned up.

Character Reference

This morning Sam and I met Sally, Big J and Baby J for some coffee, baked goods and general tomfoolery.  I had a sneaking suspicion that we would discover much in common-- as is the case in these scenarios we spent the morning talking about all sorts of things completely unrelated to crafting.  She is generous and genuine and barely batted an eye when Sam bent from his waist and without using his hands tried to suck the crust off of Big J's croissant.  In other words-- a good mother.  I hope we are able to spend lots more time together. 

I arrived empty-handed.  I knew it was a bad idea but I could not get my act together.  I also knew Sally would understand.  And she did.  Even though she spoiled us completely.  There is the sweetest apron for Sam which he is now napping in, and this book which I've had on my list since before I had a child. 

She included some beautiful tags (which are going straight to good use) and a garden of buttons and pins that suit me completely.  They were gifts I would've given to myself.  Of course, everything was impeccably packaged.  Her goods are going to be hot property once she gets her webshop open.  Consider yourself forewarned. 

Thank you so much, Sally. 

Ride On

This morning we went for a bike ride to a sunny spot in the neighborhood for muffins and coffee.  It was gloriously windy and sunny and reminded me of a brisk October afternoon.  It also reminded me of the long bike rides I took as a kid in the small town where I grew up.  I learned how to ride a bike pretty late, 7 or 8 at least.  My parents traveled and we were never in one place long enough to give it a go.  My first bike had been refurbished by my uncle and was blue.  Basket?  I think so.  Definitely streamers.  My dad taught us to always ride on the street-- a concept that was at once bewildering (does he want me to die?) and awe-inspiring (he really thinks I'm brave enough!?).  My second bike was a pink and  purple Huffy-- a 10 speed road bike that took forever for me to learn to ride.  It had the curly handle bars, and did I mention that it was pink and purple-- heavy on the pink?  I liked it for a year or so-- then it got a bit embarrassing.  When I was 15 my dad bought me a trail bike.  Green.  Straight handle bars.  *love*.  I did everything on those bikes.  My sister and I rode to our friend's to play, I rode it to all my jobs (right through college), and I even tried riding to school (which was about 10 miles away through hilly country-side and busy roads) in Grade 12-- until I realized how much sweat was cute and how much was down-right disgusting.

Paul loves to ride.  He raced bmx when he was young and he used to bike commute regularly.  He has the clicky shoes, the rain gear, and the swanky saddle bags (thankfully he draws the line at the shorts.  A firm line.).  He has been hit by a car.  We bought a fancy European trailer for Sam last year and he's learning to ride his very own Haro.  These days I ride (I'll give you one guess) a pale pink Huffy inherited from my grandma.  The brakes squeak and I have to concentrate really hard on making it go in a straight line.  It's embarrassing at how cautious I've become.  Portland is a bike lovers dream.  Still, I'm terrified to ride through town and am consistently amazed at the way people take to their two wheels with so much confidence.  Riding with abandon is the only thing I miss about being 12. 

This brings me to today's project.  Bike pants for the little one.  Shorts that cover his little knees.  Little boy capris.  Short pants.  This was the best picture I could get-- I know you can't tell it, but they are VERY SWEET.  And the best part is that they were made in about 30 minutes using "My Favorite Things" baby stuff pattern.  He's normally in the 2T-3T range, but this 6-12 month pant pattern fits just between the knee and the ankle with plenty of room in the seat.  I think I can continue to modify the pattern pieces to make the same type of pants as he grows.  We'll see.

This jacket is from the same pattern and is for my yet to be born niece or nephew.  A future bike lover.  I've been in a tizzy waiting for this baby-- pacing up and down for a week.   

I finally turned some of that nervous energy into productivity and cut into the cutest seersucker you everdidsee.  Baby pants and a onesie with one of Laurie's iron-on robots.  There's more.  The child's sex needs to be determined in order to determine if there will be a matching bonnet or maybe a bucket hat.  I've got stacks of things cut and ready to sew the minute I get the call. 

Sam and I are heading to my parents house this week.  There will be lots of new baby smell and fun in the sun.  I'll leave it to my dad to teach him how to ride on the street. 

Presto Change-O Part II: Sam's Room

Our room prior to the Switch.  After we moved in and eventually got the new drywall up we painted everything upstairs.  I loved this colour even though I didn't own a lick of yellow anywhere else.  The homemade headboard came later, as did the paper lantern.  I loved the way this corner felt.

Sam owns this room now.  The awful cream poly-blend curtains came out of the closet and got a little lovin' from some fusible interfacing and this "retro mini print".  They are bubble curtains and I dig 'em.  I got him a new lantern (he liked ours so much), and we're slowly filling the room up with special things just for him.  We never really finished a "baby" room for him-- our house always seems to be a state of upset-- but I'm determined to give him a space for his very own "big boy" room.  I'm not so matchy-matchy but I'm happy with the way things are coming out. 

I'm excited to finally get some things up on the walls-- like these great things made for him by crafty people that we love.  There are other things-- like a Mr. Dressup album that Paul thinks is creepy, and a wooden car that he made in boy scouts, but those things will have to wait until I find that (ubiquitously) perfect shelf.  I'll keep you posted (I know... thrilling stuff.) 

Turning Two/How To Slipcover in a Hurry

Party Highlights:

• Hours before, Sam began sneaking corn muffins off the counter, taking two bites, and then putting them back (Does that remind anybody of Ramona the Pest and the basement of apples?)
• Eight kids and no meltdowns (on a Tuesday evening, no less!)
• Baked Potato bar-- perfect for vegans and omnivores alike
• No gifties, so no squabbles
• We had the right size tshirt for everybody
• Sam is totally and completely in a state of bliss over his new bike (mama however, is freaking out)

Half an hour before friends were due to arrive I took a good long look at our furniture and asked myself, "am I ready to tempt fate (ie. facepaints, chilli, chocolate cupcakes and orange juice) yet again by not covering our furniture?"  But where to find giant slipcovers that don't look as though I'm trying to put a 50s plastic coat between our guests and their comfort?  Aaaah.  My stash of waytoomuch thrifted and new cotton in 1-2 yard pieces.  It's easy to throw in the wash and the right combination can look downright festive.  Watching my son literally bury his runny nose and chocolatey face into the cushions of our couch made the little extra laundry SO worthwhile. 

All Bagged Up.

This is Beth.  She is eleven years-old and occasionally watches Sam for me while I clean house or work on sewing projects.  After she's worn the little one out and he goes off for a nap she gets to do whatever she likes until her mum comes to pick her up.  The last two visits we've been working on a little bag collaboration for her library books.  Today, she and I put together the outside and the liner, and then after she left I whipped up a handle.

She used Crayola Kids Fabric markers for the illustration.  There was very little bleeding and the colour stayed really vibrant after a good long heat set with the iron.  I can't attest to its wash-ability, but it looks like it might do fine.  She's only used the sewing machine once before, and was totally into figuring out the square bottom and turning things right-side around once we had the tops sewn together. 

This  beast of a bag is off to a friends house to be used as a "gym bag".  (Now, I'm not sure what you do at a "gym", but it sounds intriguing.  Apparently it's supposed to be good for your overall health and well-being.)  Until I started thumbing through Japanese Bag Books, the thought had never occurred to me to square the corners off after the whole bag was finished.  For a bag this big, I think it's a nice finish.

Our Easter was spent looking out the window and watching the weather change from one moment to the next.  These bunnies and bonnets were secretly taxied over to some special little girls first thing in the morning.  Tomorrow is Sam's 2nd Birthday.  *sigh*.  I have some work to do. 

Roll On Over Honey-o!

There is so much Rain Rain Rain.  Which is fine.  That's not going to stop me from preparing for all forms of cool, summer, fun-wear.  Indeedy. 

My poor neglected Gocco was put to the test this weekend.  Fabric printing with a Gocco screen and ink can be a little unpredictable.  But, other than some design issues and a screen that insisted on clogging in key areas, I'm happy to have these checked off my list.  I'm by no means confident in my drawing ability, so I had to get them over with before I spent too much time obsessing (and thus scrapping the whole thing completely).  They're for Sam's birthday-- last year we did Nicholas the Bunny shirts, cake, decorations, etc.  This year we're all about wheels.  I'm not sure how well it's going to translate as far as decorations (any ideas?), but we've got the party favors all wrapped up.

Next, we went the Instant Gratification route with the Laurie's robot iron-on transfers.  I've got a pile of these so we're going to be one, big, Robot-Wearing Family this summer.  (She's got ninja ones, too, in case you're interested.)  The pink shirt is for me.  Not Sam.  I still want to try the freezer paper method-- which is going to be great for all the one-offs I'm going to try for summer.  Maybe some skirts?  Oh, I think so.   

Now I've got to get back to Easter baskets.  We don't have a lick of candy in the house.  It's pretty appalling.   

Good Sweet Mail.

My swap package from Justine arrived yesterday.  She was both generous and thoughtful and the whole thing was just perfect. 

My new bag.  It's a great size for me and the little Mr.'s lives right now.  It looks right at home on our kitchen pegs. 

Sam's new pillow cover and super sweet chocolate cars.  There was a pile of fabric, a sweet sweet pouch, and the greatest magnet and iron on patch set (which are going to be featured very prominently in a future post).  Justine has an on-line shop out of Melbourne that can be found here.  Both the quality and cute factors cannot be overstated.   Pics of the package that arrived at her house (on the same day!!) can be found here.

Thank you so much, Justine!

Presto Change-o or What Was Once Big is Now Small(er).

I love thrifted button up shirts.  Blouses.  Light-weight.  Flattering.  Cover-ups that don't make me sweat.  I love 'house shirts' that women used to wear to do the laundry or make pie. There is a problem, however, with the sizing.  Apparently they were girdled and taped while making pie, or relegated to large, floaty, shapeless silhouettes.  So.  Thrifting for old Chesty La-Rue over here is always in a bit of a pickle.  Until I find an excellent resource for the kind of super-light, very cute cotton I have in mind (swiss? cambrec?), I have to do with what I have.

Make that shirt smaller, Silly Girl.

Both sides held together and pulled tight in front of me. 

Post alteration.  (Paul's going to love the uncropped shot of the baseboard-less room).

How'd you do that? 

Glad you asked.  Darts, my friend.

First, I ripped out the bottom seam.  Then I put on the shirt inside-out and faced the mirror with a mouth full of pins.  Starting just below the fullest part of my bust I started gathering and pinning the shirt down straight to the hemline.  If you were to draw it out on your blouse the pattern might look something like this:

I took the shirt off and matched it up to the other side in order to pin up equal amounts in exactly the same place. 

Then I drew skinnier darts in the back right below where my shoulder blades were most likely to be. 

Sew it.  Try on and recheck.  Rip out and try again, OR iron the darts out flat and re-hem the shirt.  As much as I HATE modeling this business, until a dressform magically appears at my door, it will do in a pinch. 

This method works with all kinds of shirts.  It works best if you're relatively happy with the way the shoulders and necklines look before the alteration, otherwise you're stuck with all kinds of material falling in places you're not happy with.  You can also try taking out vertical darts if they haven't been cut and there's an extra bit of material to work with. 

Listing and Swapping

Justine at Born Lucky and I organized a swap-aroo.  She likes it old school (don't we all) so I hope the package fits the bill.  My things (some of which pictured above) are winging their way towards her as I type, and if that weren't enough she tagged me with a listie (if we are willing to pay waytoomuch airmail postage for eachother, what's a little meme between new friends?).

  Fridge/Cupboard Must-haves:

• coffee.  coffee. coffee. (I love how Blair always refers to them as 'stiff cups in the afternoon')
• Westsoy Plus Plain Soy Milk
• Hansen's soda
• cereal (all kinds!).  We eat it a lot.  Too much.
• Tofu.  Extra Firm.

Closet:

• Tshirts.  The more the merrier.
• hoodies
• stripey socks (of which i am running oh-so low on)
• Skirts (of which I have tonnes but never seem to wear)
• Fluevogs!

Purse/Car

• piles of books
• toy cars
• emergency diaper stash
• little green ipod
• ancient cell phone which Sam has nearly destroyed

Bedside Table-- I don't have one really, so we're going to rename this Pile Of Crap Laying at the End of the Bed

• eye glasses
• support garment (ahem.  The first thing to go on, the last thing to come off.)
• Kathleen Norris "Amazing Grace"
• Pile of Craft and Quilt books
• Sam's old cups and spent bottles

There's going to be some crafting this week.  We've finally dug out of the Great Room Switch of 2006 (we traded around all three bedrooms for a happier sunnier family).  Now if I can just dig out of my head funk a little, this should be a very productive week. 

Weekend in Review

I've really enjoyed all the colour posts from last week.  Life kept getting in the way of doing much more than all the enjoying. So.  Here are the best colours from our weekend. 

Green.  This is the first year we've had anything akin to grass in our yard.  With the way the weeds are taking over, it might be the last.

orange-ish.  Frittata with Friends.  Roasted Vegetable with Pepper jack.  Mushroom, Zucchini and Swiss with Parmesan.  Thankyouverymuch. 

Blue.  My new skirt from Cathy at Bossa Nova Baby.

Brown and Cream.  A Sadler teapot I dug out of a box last week.  My sister and I on a luggage cart in India, 1983.  A clay canoe.  A Little Birds pincone bought at Crafty Wonderland yesterday.   

I forgot my camera on my lengthy visit to the INS processing center on Saturday.  Those would have made for some thrilling shots. 

***

A word about Crafty Wonderland.  I go to lots of Portland craft fairs/bazaars, etc. and most of them are great.  Cathy, Torie and the whole SuperCrafty gang are committed Portland crafters and entrepreneurs as well as being all around Really Nice People.  I've bought lots of stuff from Cathy and Susan over the years (Paul is the proud owner of some great belt buckles) and am always happy.  Even though my friend and I only had 15 minutes to race through the lounge, I was completely impressed with the quality, diversity and NICETY of the vendors. (I have no patience for unhappy people trying to sell stuff.)  I hope it worked out as well as it seemed to. 

Oh.  And I got to meet Stephanie who was undoubtedly a little overwhelmed by the number of blog fans coming out of the wood paneling, but was so gracious and nice all the same.