Organization Rules!

Yesterday, my hubs and I ventured into the girls' room to do a dresser drawer clean-out in order to cycle out and pack up clothes that don't fit anymore, and add back in clothes that do fit. While the bottom three drawers weren't  too bad, the top drawer was a mess. It's become a catch-all for hair clips, fabric headbands, lotions, hair ties, safety pins, and a diaper wipes warmer.

A while back I made a picture frame hair clip holder, which has done a pretty good job. It lives in the drawer but still managers to collect all the clips. The headbands, though, are wild and out of control. So today I was looking to get my craft on while the younger one napped and the older one watched Dora and found a tutorial from The Ribbon Retreat.

Seemed quick and easy enough and I just happened to have everything I needed, so I took care of business. Except instead of gluing and tacking and all that stuff, I just made a finished fabric sleeve and slid it up on the oatmeal cylinder. I'll probably use my glue to tack the fabric down around the edges later if sliding fabric becomes a problem. The top looked pretty boring, though, so I decided to make a fabric flower for the top. I've never made one this way, but I've seen a million tutorials for them.

Turned out pretty good, if I do say so myself!

Wowza!

It's hard to believe that I haven't gotten a chance to post on STL since March. Seriously. Wow, have things been busy. I've finished a few projects and never got around to posting, then summer happened and we've been outside and busy a lot, and then I found out we're having another baby!

So! There will be more finished projects coming up soon like another coming home dress, crib bedding, and some other seriously adorable clothes that I have planned. Stay tuned for those.

In the meantime, here are a couple other projects I've finished since March:

A toddler shirt in size 3T

 

A high chair seat made from scrap fabric and binding (same as the umbrella strollers). 

I used the original seat as a pattern for the new one. 

Pretty Pleats

I can't believe it's been a month since I've had a chance to write a post. Hopefully, I haven't had anyone on the edge of their seat (I doubt it, but, hey, who knows!). In the time I haven't posted, I've been practicing my pattern making skills and crafting toddler clothes patterns from basic sloper patterns. Of course, I've had a little help from a couple of fantastically insightful books (thanks to the public library!):

1: Make your own patterns : a primer in patternmaking for those who like to sew by Adele Margolis
2: The complete guide to pattern-making by Barbara K. Nordquist

Both the books have step by step instructions on how to change and draft pattern pieces from basic sloper pieces in order to create a whole piece. After three or four days of working with a child-size bodice sloper, I finally drafted a pattern to make a precious little pleated dress for Miss Katie.

This little girl LOVES to wear dresses - a lot more than I did when I was a kid - so she really enjoys modeling the clothes I make. But I only have a good time taking pictures if I can get her to hold still for a few minutes, haha. I usually have to bribe her with candy or juice.

You may recognize the fabric from an earlier post. I had some leftover cotton, so I thought I'd go ahead and use it to test my pattern. 

The pleated dress turned out pretty good, except that it's probably a little too short, which just means I'll have to make some bloomers (Ah, darn. Yet another sewing project to tackle.) to cover K's little panties when she reaches up or bends over. I also had to add that little yellow faux button panel in the center of the dress since I added an invisible zipper in the center back. This was the first time I've worked with pleats, so it was a whole new experience and a lot of fun. This was also the first invisible zipper I've installed - and it went in flawlessly. 

If you're interested in making your patterns, I definitely suggest picking up or borrowing a copy of these books I mentioned. Good luck in all your sewing endeavors and don't forget to check out my Etsy site for new items!