Manly Crafts

My dad works graveyards and outside, so for Christmas this year we gave him things to keep him warm. Here are two of the things I made for him.

I finally made a hat that passed my husbands criteria for "manly." I was so glad he liked it I made one for him the next day! The brown thing is a heating pad filled with lentils. (Place in microwave for 2 minutes to heat). I made it out of a quilters quarter. I cut it in half lengthwise so I was able to get two out of one. Not bad when it only cost $0.79! I made about 8 of these for people as well as for a family auction to raise money for our reunion this year. I wasn't there, but my mom tells me they went for $8.00. I like that kind of profit margin! I wanted to fill them with dry herbs (I found a list care of the sewing dork) but could only find two of them, cinnamon and thyme. It smelled too much like a Thanksgiving turkey with only those two so I didn't put them in. Anyone know where to get a variety of dried herbs in Portland? I know they have to be here!

Wool Shorties/ Soakers

Once again my idea comes from the sewing dork. I used the arms from this same sweater to make the longies of an earlier post. Click on the link for an awesome tutorial. The sweater was a really big one, so the shorties fit my almost 3 year old great. However, she says they are itchy and I could hardly keep her in them for this photo. I wonder if she has a sensitivity or allergy to wool since this is oh, so soft merino wool and I think it is especially comfy.

As with a few other things I made for her that she won't wear, I find hope in the fact that her sister is only 17 months younger and hopefully will choose to wear them.

Also, if you look in the comments from my Training Pants Tutorial, you'll see that the Sewing Dork made a comment. It's like a celebrity stopping by! {{Blush Blush}}

Travel Bag

When I was growing up we always traveled by car on our vacations. My mom would make special vacation bags for the 12 plus hour trips. They had coloring crayons and books, doodle pads (the kind with the red plastic "pencil" where you wrote and lifted it up to erase it). And of course the bald guy with magnetic shavings to give him hair, a beard and mustache.

This year we flew to Utah to be with my husband's family for Christmas and I wanted to make a special bag for my daughter for the plane ride. I was please with how it turned out. I made it reversible with a Christmas pattern picked out by my daughter on the outside and a coordinating solid for the inside. It has 4 pockets, 2 inside and 2 outside. The fabric is a basic cotton so I used stiff interfacing on each piece to make the bag thicker and more durable.

Although the bag is reversible, I expected her to use it with the print out since she chose the "cookie men"
However, she preferred this on the inside. In this picture it is full of the art supplies we took for the plane.

This is how the bag looked during the duration of our vacation. I love how the crayon
holders turned out and Cake loved putting them in and out!

My mom took us the the airport so of course I showed her the bag. She commented that she was impressed and that the bags she made for us were never that fancy. I was very pleased because of course I remembered them as that fancy and was hoping to equal my moms work.

Holy Hats-- 31 to be exact

Yup, that's the finally tally of how many hats I crocheted between Thanksgiving and Christmas but most of them were done (like 20) the 3 days before and 3 days after Christmas. Here's just a sampling of a few that I made. I wish I had taken more pictures, but I was working so fast and furious and giving them away as fast as I made them that I didn't have a chance. I learned crab stitch (gotta love you-tube) and used it to finish the boys hats, I don't have a picture of that though.

I made hats for all my husband's nieces (10 including our girls) in this style.
I just love how the sugar and cream yarn looked!

I didn't make the had I'm wearing (I hadn't finished mine yet) I used woolease thick and quick yarn with a K hook. I also really liked working with this yarn. I know you can't see my husbands very well,
I'll try to get a better pic later.

This is the first had of the season that I made its just basic yarn with a double crochet. I started from the bottom on this one. All the other's I started from the top. The picture is so bad because my camera was cold. My daughter is in the hat and my sister is holding her.
My nephew in his hat. There are three nephews and three on the way.
Unlike the hats for the girls, theirs were all a different style. One even had ear flaps.

My daughter and her cousin in their coordinating hats

Toddler Training Pants Tutorial

Potty training is a continual adventure in our house. My daughter will be three in February and is bright, articulate, creative, but less than in touch with her bladder! (Luckily, bowels are fairly consistent at communicating the need to sit on the potty!)

I experimented with some patterns that I found online but they were too big and didn't stretch right. My picky daughter wouldn't wear them. OK, to give her a little credit, who would want to wear uncomfortable undies!

I've never done an actual tutorial because most of what I make is from other's ideas. However, I did invent what I think is an ingenious training pants "pattern." I haven't seen it on anyone else's blog or in a google search, so I'd like to think that I invented it!

I started with a onsie that still fit, but was heading for the goodwill. I cut it off at the waist. Then I cut the snaps out of the crotch.

And sewed them to the side. I cut out the whole "strip" of snaps, not individual snaps. I only did one side, but later realized I could have used snaps from the back of this onesie for the other side. In my next pairs I omitted this also because my daughter insisted on unsnapping them and then snapping the side each time she pulled them up and down. They were just more hassle then they were worth!

I initially intended to just sew up the crotch as as but, I wasnt sure without the snaps if the legs would be big enough so I added more length to the crotch. I found out after I finished making them that extra length wasn't necessary, so on the next 3 pair I made, I omitted that. I used PUL as the extra fabric.

I made padding for the panties with 6-8 (depending on the pair) layers of flannel. I also included a layer of PUL (cloth diaper fabric) for some leak protection.

I sewed the flannel together first, then to the panties. I made half the layers smaller and the other half a little bigger so it wasn't so bulky everywhere, but still had protection.

I finished of the top and sides with foe (fold over elastic used to make diapers or diaper covers). The next ones I made did not need foe on the side because I didn't add any extra fabric.

Lucky for me my daughter wears them and likes them! Also usually when she has an accident her pants stay dry most of the time. If her pants do get wet the pee doesn't make it to the floor.

This is my daughter in the second pair that I made her. I think they turned out better than the first.

If you try this, please let me know how it works out or if I can make the instructions better. The whole reason I started this blog was because other peoples blogs and tutorials were so helpful to me I thought if I could help someone I'd love to!

Post Edit: With the top of the onsies, I've been using them as tees for my 1 year old to wear at night with her wollies under her fleece PJ"s since onsies aren't an option.

Knitted and Crocheted Goodies and a COMMENT!

My hands have been busy, busy, busy. My husband and I hosted a party tonight and gave small gifts to our guests. I forgot to take pictures of all my goodies before I gave them out so you'll have to imagine with me.

I made a hat with this yarn, (the berry color) using this crochet pattern (without the huge pom-poms). Another with a very thick acrylic yarn (can't find it on line) and a modified version of this pattern, and a purse with the same yarn. The purse was first intended to be a scarf, but I forgot that knitting in stockinette pattern does not work for any item you wish to have flat, so I sewed it up into a purse instead.

I have had my first comment since I started my blog! To reward this dear person, I will put her blog on my side bar so all my readers (ha ha) can become one of hers too! How about this, if you comment on a post, I promise to link to your blog!

Simplicity 5317

More Pants

If you thought the last ones were easy, you should see this pattern. It has one-- yes one piece! (for the pants that is)

We went out to dinner the night this was taken so she wore her cute red boots. I also made her a matching headband (that she hasn't worn since. . . toddlers!).
When she looked at herself she said, " I look like a Mommy!"

Cakes, my two year old, has decided that she doesn't want to wear jeans during the winter, they are too cold. She doesn't have enough pants without jeans so it was a great excuse to sew. I substituted the 1/2 inch elastic waistband for a 1 1/2 inch and then added 3 inches to the top of the pattern to accommodate for it. (I originally wanted a one inch waist band, but joanns was out.) I think a thicker waist band looks more professional.

When I got these out she wanted "soft pants" instead (fleece) so I had to bribe her with gum that you can see in her hand.

I made the size 3 (with a shorter inseam, my girl is short and as my mom like to remind us, doesn't have much of a chance at height). Eventually I'd like to try the hat and shirt in this pattern. They are made out of a light-weight corduroy. I fell in love with the brown flower pattern.

Cakes with her huge wad of gum and Bug with her obnoxious ugly binky. She just can't stand to be left out!