13
Feb

Challenge Dress #4 – Freezer Paper Stenciling

Ashley from Lil Blue Boo has some really great tutorials on her blog in regards to freezer paper stenciling (click here to see her tutorial).  I personally had never tried this before, but I thought for the “challenge” I would give it a whirl and boy am I glad I did!!

You can find freezer paper in your local grocery store in the section where you find your plastic sandwich bags, aluminum foil, wax paper, ect.  You get a lot of freezer paper for very little money!

Here is how I did my freezer paper stenciling on challenge dress #4 & #5:

I cut out an image using the freezer paper.  I have a Cricut Expression machine, so I was able to cut out this scalloped edge easily with that machine (if you have one, try it – it works awesome!).  You can very easily cut your image out with scissors too.  Once you have your stencil ready, place the freezer paper (shiny side down) onto your fabric and set it with your iron.

Then take your fabric paint and fill in your stencil.

This is what your stencil will look like when it is filled in completely.

Allow your image to dry for several hours, then simply remove your freezer paper.  The paint does not bleed at all through the stencil – it is amazing!

Challenge Dress #4 – “Animal Rocker”

For this dress I used the Sienna Dress Pattern (once again – love this pattern!).  I used three recycled t-shirts to make this dress.

I used freezer paper stenciling (see above) to make the scalloped edge on each of the sleeves.  I then accented each scallop with a bronze metal stud.  I wanted the serging to show on the edges of the sleeves to add some additional edgy-ness to the dress.

My friend Megan’s daughter, Gracyn is a pretty tall 2-year old, so I used the 2T sizing, but just added additional length for her in the main part of the dress and the sleeves.

Gracyn had so much fun modeling this dress and it ended up fitting her perfectly!

Cottage Mama’s Note:
  • All pictures of the challenge dresses were taken by Megan Abelard Photography.  More of her work can be seen on her website:  http://www.meganabelard.com
  • The Sienna Dress Pattern is an incredibly well-written and easy to follow sewing pattern.  I highly recommend it for even the most beginner sewer or anyone who is interested in starting to sew with knits.  Click here to find out more information. 

13
Feb

Challenge Dress #3 – "The Matilda Tutu Dress"

Oh my gosh, I just want to squeeze those cheeks!!  This is my baby girl, Matilda Jane, and she is just the sweetest little thing ever.  Matilda is 7 months right now and even as I look at this picture I feel like my heart might explode.  When I was pregnant with Matilda, I wondered if it would be possible to love another child as much as I love her sister (Savannah).  And oh boy is it possible – I love this little lady to death!  Matilda Jane is a little ray of sunshine every single day!

I am constantly sewing things for my daughter Savannah because I figure Matilda will wear it eventually, but for the “challenge” I decided Matilda need her very own dress and a special one at that!  I used the Sienna Dress Pattern for her little dress, but made a few adjustments for my sweet baby girl.

Challenge Dress #3 – “The Matilda Tutu Dress”
For “The Matilda Tutu Dress” I used two different recycled t-shirts.  I thought this t-shirt was perfect for my little Matilda because she truly is such a good baby and “sweet” is a very good word to describe her.

I shortened the 6-12 month Sienna Dress Pattern and added a tutu with some bright pink tulle (purchased from Hobby Lobby).  I used a gathering stitch (meaning I set my regular sewing machine to the longest stitch possible, did not back-stitch, thus I was able to gather the tulle to make the tutu).
I also made a pair of matching ruffle bottom bloomers to go with the tutu dress.  I just LOVE ruffle bottoms on little baby girls – it’s SO cute.  I used the green t-shirt to create these ruffles.  I simply cut two long strips (about 2.5 times longer than the width of the bloomers) and used a gathering stitch to make the ruffles.  I then stitched them down the center to the back of the bloomers.  Again, you don’t need to worry about finishing the edges of knit because it doesn’t fray!!
I made the sleeves a 3/4 length and added some rick-rack to add a little whimsy.
After you have run your gathering stitch through the top of the tulle, pin the tulle to the dress and sew with a regular straight stitch (1/2 seam allowance).  I just love how the tutu flares out while she’s sitting (she’s just barely starting to sit up).
And here’s my little Matilda Jane sitting in a bumbo seat trying to model her little dress.  Oh she is just such a sweetheart!  I love you from here to the moon and back again!!
Cottage Mama’s Note:
  • All pictures of the challenge dresses were taken by Megan Abelard Photography.  More of her work can be seen on her website:  http://www.meganabelard.com
  • The Sienna Dress Pattern is an incredibly well-written and easy to follow sewing pattern.  I highly recommend it for even the most beginner sewer or anyone who is interested in starting to sew with knits.  Click here to find out more information.

13
Feb

Challenge Dress #2 – "Punky Posh"

I think there might be an inner-punk rocker living inside of me.  Punk is really not my personal style, but I seem to be drawn to punk things.  After all, I did marry a punk rocker.

My husband and I met in high-school.  Back then he was in a punk rock band, wore a chain, and our first outing together was to a “Lagwagon” concert (that’s a punk band, for those of you that don’t know).  I didn’t have a clue who they were back then, but I agreed to go and stood scared to death of the mosh pit, but it was all to win over my man (it obviously worked – we have now been together 11 years, married for 5.5 years, and have two baby girls)!

So here you can see some of my inner punk coming out into my design (Sienna Dress Pattern)…….

Challenge Dress #2 – “Punky Posh”
The “Punky Posh” dress was made from two recycled t-shirts (one black, one gray).  I used a reverse serging technique using black thread to add to the edgy-ness of this dress.
I appliqued the 3 argyle-looking pieces onto the black t-shirt.  I used animal prints to accentuate the punk look and accented them with bronze studs on the top and bottom of each piece.  Each diamond is embroidered with different colored stitches.
The outfit is completed with black leggings & sparkly silver mary janes (every girl needs sparkly shoes, right?)
I reverse serged the sleeve seams to add some additional stitching as well as reverse serged the side seams, the bottom of the sleeves & the hem of the dress.
 My little model, Julia (my friends daughter), just looked too cute for words in this dress!
Cottage Mama’s Note:
  • All pictures of the challenge dresses were taken by Megan Abelard Photography.  More of her work can be seen on her website:  http://www.meganabelard.com
  • The Sienna Dress Pattern is an incredibly well-written and easy to follow sewing pattern.  I highly recommend it for even the most beginner sewer or anyone who is interested in starting to sew with knits.  Click here to find out more information. 

13
Feb

Challenge Dress #1 – "The Gracyn"

A week ago, I mentioned the Lil Blue Boo / Dharma Trading Design Challenge (remember this post?).  My goal was to get 10 dresses made last week because for every 10 dresses entered in the challenge, Ashley (Lil Blue Boo) would donate one of her dresses to a girl in need.  Well unfortunately it didn’t happen – I only got 7 completed, but 7 out of 10’s not bad, right?  With my two little girls (both under 2 years old), I’m lucky if I can get anything done these days, so I’m quite pleased with my accomplishment this last week.
I am going to break down my blog posts about the different dresses, just so this doesn’t end up being the longest blog post EVER.  I worked really hard on these dresses, so I hope you enjoy them and find some inspiration as well!
So, here we go……..
Challenge Dress #1 – “The Gracyn“
I used the Sienna Dress Pattern from Lil Blue Boo for this dress.  I wanted to design something that had a real sweetness to it, but was still somewhat earthy.  This dress was made from two recycled t-shirts & knit yardage.

To add some uniqueness to the dress, I added this organic looking bird & tree applique that is made from a thick bronze metallic fabric.

 
On each sleeve I added a band of light pink & purple fabric from the recycled t-shirts.  I left the edges raw to give the dress a somewhat earthy feel in keeping with the tree & birds.  The great thing about recycled knit t-shirts is you don’t have to worry about the fabric fraying!

My friend Megan took all of these wonderful pictures for me and her daughter’s name is Gracyn.  If you knew Gracyn, you would see this dress and know how much it is “so her” and was designed with her in mind.  After we took all of these photos, I gave Megan this dress for Gracyn as a “Thank You”.  Here is Gracyn wearing her new dress:

How cute is she?  I just love that little smile and I love that she loves her new dress!
Cottage Mama’s Note:
  • All pictures of the challenge dresses were taken by Megan Abelard Photography.  More of her work can be seen on her website:  http://www.meganabelard.com
  • The Sienna Dress Pattern is an incredibly well-written and easy to follow sewing pattern.  I highly recommend it for even the most beginner sewer or anyone who is interested in starting to sew with knits.  Click here to find out more information.

12
Feb

Fat Quarter Baby Quilt & Burp Cloths

So, I think something must be in the air because all of a sudden there are babies everywhere!  Some of my friends are having their first child and some their second, but I have four friends that have all given birth within the last month (and more to come).  I’m SO excited for each and every one of them.  The birth of a child is a very magical time in a couples life!

Tomorrow, I am heading to a baby shower for our friends, Mike & Amy.  Amy was due to give birth to her little angel mid-March, but due to some medical complications, Amy delivered Mary Heather a few weeks ago via emergency c-section.  Mary has been in the NICU, but has not needed any oxygen and is doing great.  Their little peanut is only 4lbs. and is due to come sometime this next week!

Anyway, tomorrow is the regularly scheduled baby shower and it is moving forward as planned (even though Mary is already here!)  I guess we won’t be playing any games regarding Amy’s belly size!

I made a quilt for Mary Heather from a fat-quarter pack.  I love fat-quarters because when new line of fabric comes out it is a great way to get a sampling of everything in the entire line.  Then you can discover which fabrics in the line you gravitate towards.  Here are some pictures of the quilt & burp cloths.

Fat Quarter Baby Quilt

I used 12 different fat quarters for this baby-sized quilt.

I backed the quilt with cream colored chenille (I LOVE that fabric for baby items) and top-stitched the quilt with pink thread.

I also made a set of two burp cloths to go with the quilt in coordinating fabrics.

Fat Quarter Burp Cloths
 
I simply cut four fat quarters on the diagonal & sewed different halves of each one together.

I backed the burp clothes with chenille as well and top-stitched with pink thread.

And here is the completed set ready to go for Mike & Amy’s baby shower!

And here is my new business card!!  Yes, that’s right!  My business cards FINALLY arrived, which means “The Cottage Mama” will be opening soon.  I’m still waiting on my clothing labels, so until I have those I won’t be listing anything in my etsy shop.  I will keep you posted when I finally have some things for sale!

Have a great weekend!
11
Feb

I think she might be addicted……..

to spoons!  So today I decided that I really need to tackle some housework around The Cottage Home.  I have been sewing like crazy (can’t wait to show you my “challenge” dressses!), but haven’t been the best about keeping organized.

So, I was going through my daughters toys this morning, sorting everything, and this is what I found all over the place:

Spoons (and the occasional fork) everywhere!  I found them in the couch, under tables, in boxes, in toys, ect.  Savannah is constantly going into the silverware drawer and pulling out her spoons to pretend she is eating things from different cups.  Usually she says she’s eating chicken soop……mind you…..she has NEVER had chicken soup, so I don’t know where that idea came from. 

Regardless, I think my husband and I may have fed this addiction around Christmas.  We knew Savannah loved her spoons and Brett (my husband) thought it would be funny to buy a pack of “Take & Toss” spoons and load Savannah’s stocking up with them (20 to be exact).  Well, she loved it and has just continued to love her spoons.

I don’t know what this addiction is all about, but I just had to share this with all of you –  it just cracks me up (she is such a funny little lady) and puts a smile on my face everyday! So do your toddlers obsess about anything like mine does?  Or is Savannah just “special”?

10
Feb

Living Locurto – Creative Ideas & Free Downloads

Have you heard of this website – Living Locurto?  I only recently discovered this fabulous site!  Amy Locurto started this website and it has free printables, menu plans, recipes, fun party ideas and crafts.  I can’t believe I am only now just discovering this wonderful resource – Amy, where have you been all my life?

As far as free printables, she has everything from cute valentines, invitations, different fonts, printable cards, and the list goes on.  And these aren’t just any printables – they are incredibly stylish and modern. 

Here are a few of the free printables that I adore:

 
 

My favorite part of this site is the weekly meal plans.  Amy has super-delicous weekly menu ideas, she links to the recipe for each one, and then gives you a printable grocery list to shop for your meals.  I really appreciate all the time and effort she puts in to creating these different menus.  And the meal plans are so delish – I’m really looking forward to trying her avocado enchiladas – YUM! 

Here are a few samples of weekly menu planning from Living Locurto:
Week 1
• Chicken with Olives, Raisins and Spinach Rice
• Margherita Pizza
• Slow Cooker: Beef Stroganoff
• Grilled Ham and Cheese with Pears
• Real Simple Lasagna

Week 2
• Avocado Enchiladas
• Salina-Style Spaghettini with Cherry Tomatoes
• Turkey Burgers with Horseradish & Cheddar Cheese
• Chocolate Chip Pancakes

Here is a sample of one of Amy’s free weekly meal planning sheets so you can just fill in your meals and ingredients needed for each one:

Here are some free printable, customizable calling cards from Living Locurto – they are just beautiful!

I can’t say enough about this great site.  Head over to Living Locurto and poke around, you will find lots of great ideas and inspiration!

Cottage Mama’s Note:  Amy Locurto also has a wonderful list of resources for different cooking websites, decorating, arts & crafts, photography, and simple living.

10
Feb

Capes, Capes, and More Capes

Back in October, I made my good friend Marlene’s son, Ben, a superhero cape and crown for his 2nd birthday (here’s the post).  I just loved this gift and it was a huge hit with some of my other “Mommy” friends as well.

So, my friend Dancia (www.floradanicaphotography.com) asked if I would help her make a cape for her little guy, Roaran.  Roaran LOVES Curious George and they were planning on attending “Curious George Live” at a local area arena.  She thought it would be SO fun for him to have a special “George” cape to wear to the show and asked if I would help her make one.

I just wanted to share some pictures of our cape making experience with you.  I think super-hero capes are one of the BEST gifts to promote pretend play in small children.  So if you have any little ones in your life, I highly recommend making them their own special cape – it’s quick and easy and will be well worth the time!

I used a VERY basic cape pattern piece that I had lying around from my daughters, Little Red Riding Hood costume.  I cut an exterior piece out of Curious George fabric and an interior piece from yellow flannel.

I cut two pieces of yellow ribbon, each approximately 20 inches long for the tie around the neck.

I then stitched the store-bought “George” applique piece to the exterior Curious George fabric.

I place the wrong-sides of the cape together and used my serger to sew most of the cape, but you could just as easily use a regular sewing machine (the serger just makes a faster job of things).

I then turned the cape pieces right-side out and pressed the seams.  I have to say that ironing is my favorite part of sewing.  I feel like that is where you start to see things really come together.  With each sewing project I probably spend more time ironing than I do stitching.

Then I simply stitched the opening of the cape closed & sewed on the two pieces of ribbon (I finished each edge of ribbon with fray-check).  And here’s the finished cape!

And here is SUPER Roaran running off to save the day!!
Cottage Mama’s Note:  These pictures were taken by friend Danica on her new “point and shoot” camera she recently got so she didn’t have to lug around her “Big” one.  So she didn’t use her big fancy photographer camera for any of these pictures, but I think they turned out pretty good.  Thanks D!!
8
Feb

Valentine – "We Dig You!"

My daughters and I are in a playgroup that gets together every other week.  There are 13 Moms, 13 two-year olds and a handful of siblings – a big group, I know!  I have known most of these women since my daughter Savannah was 5 weeks old.  We met at a breastfeeding support group through the hospital where I delivered and have been friends ever since.

[Read more…]

5
Feb

Lil Blue Boo and Dharma Trading Design Challenge

 
Have you heard about the Lil Blue Boo and Dharma Trading Design Challenge?  I have been searching the thrift stores high and low for some different t-shirts and knits to use in the challenge and am finally getting around to sewing my dresses – which is a good thing because the deadline to enter is in 10 days!!
So I know many of you are sewers, so I wanted to share the details of the challenge from Ashley at Lil Blue Boo in case you wanted to enter as well.  
Here is some of the info from her blog: 
1. Create a unique outfit for a girl or boy using a Lil Blue Boo pattern. Alterations to the patterns ARE allowed as well as additional coordinating clothing items and accessories! 
2. Use at LEAST one of the following techniques in your creation: fabric dyeing, fabric painting, stenciling, fabric transfers, screen printing or other embellishments (including applique).

3. Multiple entries are allowed! So submit as many as you like! There will be a gallery spotlighting all of the entries.
4. After all the entries are received, a very distinguished, diverse panel of judges will narrow the entries down to 10 final designs and there will be a week long public vote on Lil Blue Boo! And then the winner will be announced!

How to enter:
1. Post photos of your finished outfit/outfits on your personal blog or website. Make sure to include what pattern and techniques you used for inspiration and a little about your creative process! Make sure to include the words “Lil Blue Boo / Dharma Trading Design Challenge” in your post and link back to the Lil Blue Boo blog.

2. Email Ashley at Lil Blue Boo a link to your post along with your best photo of your creation for the Design Challenge Gallery. Feel free to add your blog watermark to that photo, especially if any children are in the photograph.
3. All entries due by February 15th at midnight (Pacific time). All entries welcome!

And the best part of all – Giving Back!
For every 10 entries received, Ashley is donating a Lil Blue Boo dress to a child in need. She will be sewing them as entries come in or taking dresses out of her Etsy store to keep up! She’ll keep a running update of dresses donated! So spread the word and keep Ashley busy too! Shelter from the Storm received a large donation of dresses at Christmas time so for this contest she is going to reach out to Martha’s Village & Kitchen. There were a lot of needy children there at Christmas time! 


Cottage Mama’s Note:  In the next week I will be posting pictures of the dresses I will be entering.  I think this is such a fun challenge and my favorite part is the fact that Ashley will be donating dresses to little girls in need.  Do you think I can enter 10 dresses?  Well, I don’t know if I have the time to get that many done, but I am going to try my best!

Ashley’s patterns are SUPER easy to use – they have plenty of step-by-step instructions and great pictures.  So even if you the most beginner sewer, I highly recommend trying one of her patterns.  Click here to go to the Lil Blue Boo etsy shop.

Leave me a comment and let me know if you are up for the challenge!