sewing • cooking • crafting • all things domestic
Dear Matilda, Happy 12th birthday!!! Today you turn 12 years old. As your big sister told you, you are no longer a tween, you are now a pre-teen! Here are some things I'd like to remember about you when you turned 12 years old and some things you might like to know about your 12 year old self..... … continue reading
Dear Savannah, Happy 13th birthday! How in the world do I have a teenager now? No, it can't be true! I started this blog before your 2nd birthday and now here we are....poof.....you are a teenager. The days are long and the years are short. That's what everyone has been telling me and now I can whole-heartedly believe them. These years are flying by and I could not be more proud of the young lady you becoming throughout these years. Here are some things I would like to remember about you when you turned 13 years old and some things that you might like to know … continue reading
It's that time again.......another Lesson with Lindsay. This week I'm sharing a very easy, beginner friendly tutorial for my Reusable Snack Bag Pattern. I posted a photographed tutorial of this project many years ago and it's been a very popular free pattern here on The Cottage Mama. So I decided to make a video tutorial for all of you visual learners out there. It was funny, as I was watching the edited version of this video (which, oh my goodness.....it's always so weird to hear yourself talk), Josephine came up carrying one of the snack bags that I made … continue reading
It's National Sewing Month and today I'm partnering up with Joann Fabric and Craft Stores for their #sewyourstyle blogger campaign and contest sponsored by Joann's and Pellon. Today I have a free Mary Jane Baby Shoes Pattern to share with all of you as part of this series. We are due to have our fourth child, a sweet baby girl, in about 4 weeks from now so I've been busy nesting and sewing a few things for the new little miss. I came up with these Mary Jane Baby Shoes and have the pattern available for you for free here in size 6 - 12 month (this is a simple, … continue reading
I have been meaning to write a blog post for over a year about this Easy Magnetic Pin Holder, but as life would have it, I just never got around to it. But today is the day! My mom sent me this darling magnetic pin holder that she made last year and I use it so much in my studio. My mom and I have a thing for little dishes. We love to have little cute bowls and dipping dishes around for snacks, etc. We believe you can never have too many cute little dishes! I like having multiple pin holders going at one time, so I can have straight pins within arms reach at … continue reading
Today I have a new Lessons with Lindsay video tutorial for you! This video is a step-by-step tutorial for my free Summer Picnic Dress Pattern. If you've never sewn my Picnic Dress before, I really think you are going to enjoy this video. I take you through every step of garment construction and share some of my tips and tricks with you along the way. Even if you are a seasoned sewer, I think we can all learn a few things from seeing the way someone else might put together a garment. So sit back, relax and enjoy today's video........ … continue reading
Both my girls finished school a couple weeks ago. Savannah finished Kindergarten and Matilda finished her last year of preschool. It's hard to believe I will have a 1st grader and a kindergartner next year! I wanted to create a gift for the girls' teachers that I thought they might really use. I figure everyone can use a good beach towel, so I decided to take it a step further and embroiderer each of their teachers last names on the towel. I didn't want to use their first names since then the other members of their families might not be able, or want, to … continue reading
As I've mentioned before, this year we are having quite a few visitors during the holiday season. I decided to whip up a bunch of Christmas pillowcases for all of our house guests using my '15-Minute Pillowcase Tutorial'. I thought it would be a festive and fun gesture to have new pillowcases for our house guests to use to rest their tired heads. … continue reading
As I mentioned a few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to film two episodes of Fons and Porter 'Love of Quilting' PBS show and magazine. I already shared my Cottage Quilt Block with you that I made on one of the episodes. Today I'm sharing the project that I did on the other episode........ Children at Play Scalloped Pillow. … continue reading
Do your kids have special Halloween Trick or Treat Bags? I have been wanting to make my kids their own personalized Halloween Trick or Treat Bags for several years now. I have admired some of the cute ones I've seen in the Pottery Barn Kids catalog and thought about ordering them several times. But my conscious always held me back since I knew I could make them very easily if I just took the time to create a pattern. So this is the year........we are due with our 4th child in about two weeks and she will be the final little one to complete our family, so this was … continue reading
Lindsay Wilkes is the owner and designer behind The Cottage Mama. She creates timeless, vintage inspired sewing patterns for children’s clothes. She is also a fabric designer for Riley Black Designers / Penny Rose Fabrics, author of the book ‘Sew Classic Clothes for Girls’ and can be seen teaching nationwide and online in her video series ‘Lessons with Lindsay’ sponsored by Baby Lock Sewing and Embroidery machines.
