hand print for clara

I saw this project some time ago floating around on the internet, and thought it was such a great way to capture a moment in time. I’ve been wanting to do something like it ever since, and the perfect occasion came up when the babies turned one in May. This may confuse you a little bit because first of all, it’s now November, and you’re probably also wondering since when did I have more than one baby? But Bee spends so much time with her baby friend, Clara, and their brothers, Otis and Emmett spend so much time together as well that I find myself always talking about “The Babies” or “The Boys” in broad, sweeping ways. As for the November part, well, let’s just move on.

Clara is just 6 days older than Bee, and on their birthdays, their little hands were traced for when I finally had time to get to work. Although I love the simplicity of the prints from plumpudding, I wanted to add some texture so I filled it in with stitches. I’m not convinced that I like this any better than just the simple outline, but I like how the lines make me think of the lines on one’s palms. I feel like those lines tell such stories about one’s lives, and I spend an awful lot of time wondering how the stories of our kids’ lives will play out so it felt appropriate. I also used some metallic coated linen to indulge my recent love for sparkly things.

I not only refer to our kids in pairs, but I also seem to make things in pairs for them. Matching scarves, capes and costumes have popped up in our lives because when you make one, it always seems just as easy to make just one more. I’ll make one of these hand prints for Bee too, hopefully by the time she turns 2. And Emmett’s birthday is coming up, and I think I see another vision of matching craftiness in my future.

Some time ago, I bought this book about sewing knits, and it made me feel brave. (I loved the book, by the way. I would definitely recommend it to beginners.)

It made me feel brave enough to attempt this:

And it wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be.
Then yesterday, I finished this tunic/dress:

(Those leggings are from H&M, by the way, and they are fantastic! A 2-pack for $12.50)

 

I used an old dress of Bee’s, traced the upper part of the dress, and fudged the rest. And it was fast! easy! Life changing, I tell you. While I was making it, I realized how it could be possible for Target to sell t-shirts for $5. I think I’ll be branching out into knits now. And you wouldn’t know this from looking at our house full of neutrals, but I seem to have developed a love for sparkly things. The fabric from Bee’s dress is actually covered with tiny bronze sparkles, which is so lovely to look at, but has covered just about everything in its path. This afternoon, Bee actually woke up with a thin film of glitter on her face and eyelashes. Between the bright costumes and the sparkles, I feel like I’m going a little Liberace here.

skirts!

I’ve made my latest lazy sewer’s discovery: elastic-waist skirts. I came across a free pattern from Oliver + S, who makes really adorable kids’ patterns. It’s not a pattern, exactly, but more like rough guidelines for how to make an elastic band skirt from a simple length of fabric. It was really fast and easy.

Here is it is with a Etsuko Furuya fabric that I love:

I think I used maybe 1/2 yard? It’s a great way to use a small amount of pricey fabric. Their directions call for using ribbon on the hem, which makes things fast, but I used my serger and a blind hem stitch instead.

I also made a variation:

Instead of sewing the entire width of fabric into the skirt, I first cut out strips to sew straps. This makes for a dress that is a less full. I used a longer piece of fabric (I happened to find a 7/8 yard remnant for $1.80!) and used a wider width of elastic. I added buttons and the straps to make it a jumper. The straps have a few different buttonholes so hopefully we’ll be able to use it as Bee gets taller.

getting back into sewing

Thank you for your supportive comments and emails about my hair. Since I’ve cut my hair, I’ve exchanged hair stories with just about every woman I’ve encountered, and I’ve heard many sympathetic comments that were just so right, in the vein of It looks great, but I know how you feel. It’s interesting how our identities are so closely tied to our hair, and how we express ourselves through our hairstyles.

Anyways, a change of subject. I’ve actually been spending some time in my studio, which you may be surprised to hear since I’ve been quiet about it. A couple of days a week, I wake up with Bee and then head right to studio, leaving F to get the kids ready for the day. I love the quiet couple of hours that I get and it feels like a productive time. In the beginning, though, I found that I just sat here and looked around, not sure what to do. I think the collages, for now, are done. I don’t feel inspired to pick up my scissors and paper, and I just need to take some time away from it. It might be a short time, it might be a long time, I don’t know. It feels sad, like breaking up with an old friend, but maybe I’ll feel more inspired when I return to it.

Instead, I’ve been sewing. My lovely new sewing machine had been glaring at me accusingly for some time, its optional functions glowering uselessly, and I was staring back blankly and guiltily. Finally, I just had to make something, anything. I started with this:

Kind of silly, but it was extremely satisfying to make something fast and easy, that I finished in a couple of hours. I used a tidbit of a piece of fabric that I’ve been hoarding forever, and I love seeing that little splash of color every time I reach for my scissors. There’s definitely something to be said for making things that serve to personalize and beautify a space. It got things moving, and I felt inspired to make more. Next I moved on to this:

Another silly and extremely easy project. Have you ever heard that you can tell a lot about a woman by looking at her purse? I hate to think the conclusions one would come to by looking through mine — it’s usually filled with crumpled receipts and napkins, scattered bits of money, multiple snacks and occasionally, an old New Yorker. Sometimes, my wallet isn’t even in there because I took it out to do something and forgot to put it back in. This cinched snack bag is one attempt to tackle my little purse problem. At least I know where to look for wipes and pretzels now.

Now I’ve been sewing as much as I can. I’m having fun figuring out some of the different functions on my sewing machine and serger, and projects are actually getting finished. I’m using some store-bought patterns, but also trying out some variations. I took a pattern-making class a million years ago, and I’d really love to get back some of those skills. But for now, I’m concentrating on the sewing part.

I’ve been thinking about how getting into the practice of sewing was, for me, like the process I went through when I first started making collages. It took me a while to get into it, felt slow and unnatural in the beginning, and then things started to feel good, and more creative. I’ll share more projects soon.

tuxedo pants

Otis has been growing like a weed lately, and all his pants are starting to look like gauchos. Luckily, I’m still having my love affair with sewing pants, which are so fast and easy to make. Pajama pants are perfect for Otis – he will try to force any and all pants down his hips no matter how tight they are and really, who doesn’t want to be in pajamas all day long?

I find the standard pajama pants a little too tapered, so here’s how I altered them to make a straighter leg:

Trace the original pattern (I already cut out the new pattern in the picture above, but just wanted to show you how they are different). I used pattern paper here, but here’s a tip: the huge rolls of kraft paper near the exit at Ikea works PERFECTLY for patternmaking. And it’s FREE. Grab a cinnamon roll while you’re at it.

I started straightening the pattern at the hip. Since they are pajama pants, you don’t need to worry too much about precise fit, so don’t wring your hands over the exact location of where you start. I added width to both the inside and outside seams, making the leg much straighter (refer to the picture with old pattern on top of the new to see the difference).

Finished. Easy. I think I might try to try another pattern, making the pants a little more slim cut, too.

You know that old adage “Measure twice, cut once”? I think I need to have those words tattooed on my arm or something since I seem to spend a whole lot of time either with my seam ripper or in the car, returning yet again to Home Depot. I ran the pant legs through my serger before I realized that I sewed the wrong pieces together. So I had to cut them apart serge them together correctly. At which point, these pants were headed straight for wedgie city. So the solution:

I added a strip down the side. Since they were too tight on top but OK down the leg, I made a pattern for a wedge so as not to add too much fullness to the bottom. It is the same length as my pants pattern, and 4″ on top and 2″ on the bottom (these measurements include seam allowance). I used a contrasting denim for the stripe and topstitched with denim thread. Although these pants took much longer than they would’ve if I’d just been more careful, I actually love the way they look. And this would be a great way to extend the life of any pair of pants that have grown a little too tight.