smile factory

it's looking like an assembly-line of creatures in here: row upon row of organic flannel bunny faces with features painted freehand using non-toxic paint.

i've moved from using wool felt for my bunny faces to organic flannel. it's so much softer and cuddlier, and it makes sense because i make my tooth fairy pillows from the same fabric. i buy my flannel as leftover trimmings from a local organic mattress and bedding manufacturer. i love knowing that i'm using something that would otherwise be going to waste. the pieces i get are just the right size to cut a row of tooth pillows and a row of bunny faces, so what i'm throwing out at the end is basically just bitty little corners.

they're all eerily staring at me now from the table where they sit, drying, waiting to be sewn to bodies.

weekend project: bedtime story pajamas

i'm so excited to have finally made up a pair of real pajamas for cole using the fantastic bedtime story pajamas pattern from oliver + s, the best kids pattern line in forever.

every pattern is that perfect combination of modern and classic, and thankfully for me, not by nature a reader of instructions, they are foolproof. well designed, simple and illustrated, the step-by-step instructions are easy to walk through. this was a quick project - about 2 1/2 hours start to finish.

they're mainly constructed using a 1 metre piece of funky monkey flannel (similar options here) that i've had in my stash for a while. turns out though that i didn't have quite enough... so, rather than try to drum up more or shelve the project, i dug out enough of a different flannel to make contrasting sleeves and ties.

since they're called bedtime story pajamas, i thought it would be appropriate to get a photo of cole during his actual bedtime story... it started out well enough - he loves to read together, but it soon turned into an episode of mug and wrestle. good to see they don't impede his movements! ;-)

sock monkey toddler pants

is it even possible to not love a sock monkey? they're so... oddly, i guess. not uncommon anymore, but they seem both endearingly homespun and kitchy and creepy all at the same time.

i bought a few pairs of red heel brand socks ages ago, intending to make one, but i've never gotten around to it. yesterday i had a random flash of inspiration and became obsessed with the thought of a pair of sock monkey toddler pants... as soon as cole went to sleep, i hauled out the socks and started cutting and sewing, making them up as i went along, and voila:

these made me laugh so very hard, and it was all i could do to wait until morning to try them on him. oh my goodness:

the best part - the tail, of course. and the fact that they took only about 45 minutes to sew! working with the limited (and sock-shaped) fabric was a cool challenge - my initial sketch showed kind of a gusset/seat section and then separately attached leg segments, which is what worked really well. i tried to keep the overall look of an actual sock monkey - the brown legs, white feet, red bum on the tail... i made them up as i went, but basically make the bum part of a pair of pants using the bottom halves of two pairs of socks, the legs out of one sock top half each and use the spare white sock tops for the waist band. a scrap for a tail and you're golden.

i adore these pants. cole wore them out today for breakfast and again when we ran errands this afternoon and yeah, other folks seemed to enjoy the sight too. oh, and sometimes he notices that he has a tail and then spins around trying to catch it. cute overload.

dresses for wee girls

new dresses! i recently made these two sweet dresses for little girls that i know. it was a nice break from all the pants and shorts i've been making for cole.

the first was this quick and easy dress from lotta jansdotter's simple sewing for baby. a size wasn't given, but it looks like it'll fit approximately 12-18 months as a short baby dress (very short - maybe add pants!) and then i think it'll fit for a little while longer as a top. love the heather ross spooky octopii fabric from her mendocino collection.

and the second is the smocked sundress from weekend sewing by heather ross. i've always thought that smocking must be complicated and awkward - not so! it was the easiest thing ever. you simply buy elastic thread and use that in your bobbin. stitch straight lines across a rectangle of fabric and voila - smocking. it could not have been easier. this dress was given to a little girl of two, but because it's elasticized and has adjustable tie-straps i think it'll fit for ages - maybe even as a skirt!

two new craft books & one seriously adorable hat

oh the happy day that new books arrive in the mail! and even happier when the books exceed your expectations and inspire you.

first up: weekend sewing from fabric designer heather ross. it did not disappoint - chock full of unique ideas and beautiful illustrations it's fantastically photographed and was designed by brooke reynolds of inchmark. can't wait to whip up a wee person smocked sundress for at least one of the five folks i promised to make things for this year. and i need the sweet house slippers, the baby kimono, the gardening gloves, the apron... well, you get the idea. check out several of the project photos here.

also got a copy of lotta jansdotter's simple sewing for baby. it's fantastic! i love her whole minimalist, scandanavian sense of style and conversational writing. i have and love both of her earlier books, but this one is the best of all three, i think. i usually go through a new craft book with a post-it pad and mark the patterns i want to try right away. well, after flagging nearly every page i figured i should just forgo the stickies and get cracking. had, had, to make this right off the bat for cole, despite the fact that it's july:

adorable! micro-fleece and just some random woven ribbonish stuff. it seriously took about half an hour, from cutting the pattern to putting it on cole's head.

weekend project: father's day tie

father's day ties - high up there on the list of conventional dad presents along with hammers, golf balls and whatever this year's new fangled car washing accessory may be. one definite advantage is that, in theory at least, i could make a tie myself...

i really want to make one of these amazing ties from the purl bee for jamie, but am hestitating only because they do seem to have a lot of steps... you may know how i am about steps.

but they're so cool! and i was recently reminded how expensive good ties really are - and how many truly awful ones there are out there - when we were buying some fancy new duds for jamie's business trip to japan. at those prices, and with rather limited options, it makes sense to diy... plus, if i could gather my wits and make a dress shirt too, i would have utter creative control over the upper half of his wardrobe! ;-) so i'll jut have to add this to my list. pretty sure it won't get done in time for this father's day, but someday...

weekend project: oilcloth lunchbag

this week's weekend project: make an oilcloth lunchbag. a project that has before and after steps that are just as nice as the project itself (that would be shopping for fabric and then eating food in the park!). if you have no oilcloth then any sturdy fabric would do, in my opinon...

i've been meaning to make one for ages, but every pattern i have come across seemed needlessly complicated. i know, i know - it's just a simple sack, but still - if i have to reread lengthy instructions a few times while scratching my head and taking a break for coffee, then it's not intuitive - and with my attention span i need my intuition when it comes to sewing...

i was delighted to find, and now to share, this super easy how-to, from the lovely martha. the instructions are so easy they're all right here:

cut main piece 29 1/2 by 8 inches and two side panels, each 12 1/4 by 5 inches.

1. fold long panel, inside out, into u shape with 5-inch bottom.

2. make 1/4-inch cut at bottom corners of side and middle pieces so bag folds smoothly. sew-in side panels, leaving 1/4-inch seam allowance.

3. turn right side out and top-stitch all around, 1/8 inch from edge.

images and how-to from marthastewart.com.

weekend project: the un-paper bag

you really never can have too many tote bags, regardless whether it's to carry your groceries, as a stylish handbag substitute or merely to store silly stuff in. and why not make a truly stellar tote? so easy and so much potential for personalization.

this week's weekend project is the easy un-paper bag from purl soho. using two half-yards of fabric (one for the outside and one for the lining), a few other bits and bobs and a set of the truly yummy inazuma handbag handles from japan, this is a sure-fire compliment magnet.

sewing for little girls

is there anything like making clothes for a little girl? if you're looking for something quick & easy and sure to please, check out this free oliver + s lazy days skirt pattern. found while reading one of my favourite blogs, and one that i find so positive and inspiring, soulemama:

it looks dead easy - something you could whip out in an hour or so. and really, is there anything more satisfying that sewing something that's this cute and that fast? looking for ideas? there are many interpretations of this one simple skirt pattern in this flickr group.

i adore the whole line of patterns from oliver + s - wee little pants and jumpsuits and dresses, the most adorable coat ever... it's so refreshing to find patterns for wee people clothes that are not straight out of 1980 (and not in that cool quasi-ironic way!).

weekend project: ironing board cover

i use our ironing board a lot, particularly when you consider that i almost never iron clothes. it's pretty much the second most important part of any sewing project - just barely after the sewing machine itself!

we had to buy a new ironing board recently. for about seven years we'd been using one that we found in the closet of an old apartment. it was shabby and creaky, i think it was homemade to some extent, smaller than a standard ironing board and it threatened collapse nearly all the time. eventually, the top wore out altogether, so i went out to buy a new one.

the new one is fine - funtional but nothing to write home about, assuming that you would write home to discuss mundane household objects. but having a snazzy cover for the top would certainly perk it up quite a bit! this ironing board cover tutorial from the workroom/make something is just the thing: