KCWC Round Up

So here's a quick round up of the Kids Clothing Week Challenge

Top : Woollen Tunic, Pyjama Pants
Bottom : Pyjama Pants with cuffs, Camo Shorts, Embroidered Denim Skirt

It has been really fun taking part this year!

I can't quite believe I got as much done as I thought I would
and yet still, there are a TON of other projects that I would liked to have sewn.

But one thing is certain, I wouldn't have taken part if it wasn't for the lovely Juliet from Tartan Kiwi

She is the one that 'gently persuaded' me to take part

THANKYOU JULIET!

And thankyou again to all the people
 who left those lovely comments :)

Last Project for the KCWC week

I really enjoyed this project infact I had to write some of this post in the midst of creating it, or if I hadn't I would have forgotten to mention that : 'I unpicked this sooooo many times to get the gathers looking right and the back elastic looking good, one of my threads on my overlocker kept on snapping' 

I was screaming inside several times...

 but just like magic, I got to the end of it all...popped it on my little girl... took these photo's.... and as if by magic it was all forgotten and in my head... and I was already planning the next one!

Infact its a bit like giving birth, by the time you are ready to have another child, you have magically forgotten about the labour!

Although saying that not all of them are so easy to forget...

there are some of us that have birthing stories that still linger in the back of our minds....

A pop of colour at the inside on the waist

and I guess that's also true when you come to those disastrous sewing projects that don't end so well... they're the ones that make you pick up your knitting for a while!

Anyway enough said....back to the skirt.....

I pretty much made up my mind that

I wanted to make a skirt after seeing Nin's one here

Her little girl looked so cute in it....

I thought "I WANT that!" 

So this skirt was born.  

 I used my own pattern but Nin has a tutorial and pattern here 

 for your use if you would like to make your own

I utilised the last of some light weight denim that I scored for $1 at a Sallies Army store last year.  There was so much fabric, I was able to make these and this with it, aswell as a denim skirt for myself!  ( which I still haven't taken photo's )

I also had always wanted to do the running stitch embroidery on something and the plain denim seemed the perfect candidate.

But now I'm looking at the smallest of scraps that are leftover and I don't think I can bear to throw them in the bin....

I'm thinking a headband.

Oh and last of all, this is for some of my bloggy friends whose kiddies are too excited to stay still for photo's

Mine is too.....

And there's still twenty more like it on my camera!

KCWC Day 7 - Hand stitching

The kids are having day 2 of their painting session see here...

And I am enjoying the peace....

using the quiet time to sew some finishing touches by hand

Herringbone stitch

Perfect for easing in big full hems.

If you need a refresher.... like I did.  

And do better with video demonstrations.... like I do.

Then here is a good one

and while on the subject of hand stitching techniques

How do you make a knot?

Do you wrap it around your finger several times, and pull into a knot, like you mum taught you?

I did!... Until a few years back,

when a lady from my quilting group showed me a quilters knot.

Thanks Helen! I've never gone back :)

I'll post some photo's tomorrow of my last project for KCWC

KCWC Day 5 and 6 - Down Time

Even the best laid plans go south

but in this case.... it was welcomed change.

Mum came to visit overnight, so sewing has temporarily come to a stand still, as I spent most of yesterday cleaning up.....
Surely I'm not the only one who lets the house go to the dogs when a sewing frenzy takes place?

And today after we waved goodbye to Nana, Big J asked if he could paint his piggy bank.... I hesitated for moment, I had already said no to this earlier in the week, then I remembered Miriam's regular posts here.  Inspired by them, I said yes!

So after Lil Miss was put down for her nap, my sewing table was hijacked by newspaper, paints, brushes and three very happy kids!

And boy was it worth it!.... two hours of peace and quiet and pleasant words of encouragement between them..... brilliant!

What more could you wish for with 3 boisterous boys?

As for me? I snuggled into the couch with a magazine mum brought me and had some down time of my own :)

 

Middle B's work in progress... can you see the doorway,welcome mat, and mugs on hooks?

However with kids in bed and Day 6 still not over, I may get some sewing squeezed in afterall.

Oh and just to note, when I put my Lil Miss to bed tonight.... she said "I love you Mum" and gave me a kiss - first time she has said that! Ah Love x

KCWC Day 4 - Something Girly

Excuse me while I gloat....

 But I love this little tunic!

Sewn out of a lovely Lambswool rib knit, that I've been hoarding for the last two years.... waiting for the perfect project.

Inspired by these pins ( on Pinterest ) here and here... I attempted to make the overlapping collar

And amazingly it turned better than I thought it would!

As for the pattern?  Well I started with Pattern 11 from Ottobre 1/2010,.... I needed it for the raglan sleeves,

but that's where the similarities end.

I chopped it up and repasted it together so much that it's now unrecognisable.

I just love it when a plan comes together like this....

I think patience was the key this time......

Oh and of course, my trusty friend the unpicker ;)

Linking up to

Our Creative Spaces

http://www.thetraintocrazy.com/2012/04/make.html

Tea Rose Home Wednesday Link Party



KCWC Day 4 - Sneak Peek



Day 4 and I have finished another garment,

but unfortunately not in time for enough natural light to take a decent pic.... so here's the sneak peek :)

KCWC Day 3 - Stash busters - Winter PJAYs

Day 3, and a couple of Pyjama pants are completed.

When last years pjays starting looking more like long board shorts, you know its time their replaced.

The boys granted me permission to enter their ' Tree Fort' to take these photo's.... I feel privledged....

In return I had to watch in awe at each of their acrobatic manoeuvers :)

And the best thing about these was, apart from the rib knit, ( to lengthen the legs and make it comfy around their tummys ) the fabric was all from my stash.

These pants and these shorts were all made using

Ottobre Design 1/2010 Pattern 40 as a base template



KCWC Day 2 - Camo Shorts

As the sun set yesterday evening, I raced to thread the elastic through the waist and rushed Middle B out the back door.... 

" Quick pose" I demanded nicely asked

Beeeepp!!!! went my camera...... no battery!

Don't you just hate that when that happens?

However, it was probably just aswell, as the hastily threaded elastic had started to retreat and the pants were starting to fall down.

So on Day 3, after sewing the finishing touches last night, I give you my first project completed..... a much need pair of shorts

Not terribly exciting, but a necessity around here

And did you know?

 It seems that shoe laces are the latest fashion accessory



KCWC - Day 1 - Starting with the basics

So it's Day 1 in the Kids Clothing Week Challenge,

and there's not that much exciting stuff to report today

so I'll keep it brief......

Just the basics today, tracing out patterns and cutting out fabric...

And of course looking after my monkeys!

I think the pegs are supposed to be earrings :)

There's lovely smells wafting from my kitchen

Been baking alot lately...

Mainly due to a pinched budget and sheer laziness of not wanting to drive to the shops :)

Here are some of our latest obsessions

And with no room for a breadmaker, I have been forced to make bread from scratch..... I am a convert :)

Lil Miss and the boys were waiting in the wings, ready to consume

Roasted Capsicum Hummus.... yummy and no need for Tahini :)

Something Crafty

Over the last few months, I may have been busy moving house, organising tradesmen and squeezing our worldly possessions into this tiny house ....

but that hasn't meant my sewing machine has been lying in dust ( okay half truth! it may have layer )

Nor have my knitting needles been sitting idle...

The week before christmas I was busy occupying my friends dining room table, as I hastily sewed these christmas pressies below for the boys, plus a set of summer pjays pants to match...

These art journals hold all their art supplies,  in the center there is pockets for their erasers, sharpeners etc... and space for a ruler and a A5 pad.  And either side as you can see below is space for pencils and a A4 writing or drawing pad which slots into a pocket.

These journals, the pyjama's, the hacky sacks, and a set of popsicle stick bow and arrows, were the only christmas presents from Mike and I.... and surprisingly they were really grateful..... and since then I am happy to report they get alot of use, especially from my budding artist... Big J... see below

 all those drawings are from memory :)

He makes me proud!

Looks like he will be another artist in our family.

Oh and on another note... looks like I have caved in and will be participating in the KCWC challenge this coming week....

Thanks goes out to Juliet for giving me nudge!! :)



Strawberries Anyone?

Strawberry season may be over......

but there's still strawberries in my kitchen.

I know!  it's bit wacky and out of ordinary for curtains.

But I can't wait to see my mum's reaction... I have bit my tongue several times to insure it's a surprise! Not sure whether or not she'll like it, and to be honest while I was sewing these up, I wondered what on earth I was thinking when I chose this print.

But I think I like it?!

The walls were already painted this colour, which I don't mind.... although what were the original owners thinking when they painted it in gloss?  The bathroom is a lovely gloss apricot! yuck!!

Anyway, back to the curtains....I wanted something fun, what I ended up with was a cotton drill from the fashion department...

not super insulating... but it will do.

 The kitchen is from the 50's/60's, and I thought I might aswell have some fun in the meantime. 

Afterall the house will be gutted when we do the extension.

So I have envisioned a vintage/retro theme... I have bunting already cut and ready to sew :) 

And while sewing up the second set of curtains, I realised I was short of O rings for the cord to pull through...but as you can see below I figured that one out ( late at night while drifting of to sleep, isn't that the best time for problem solving? )  I used crochet cotton and made two loops, and then buttonhole stitched around the loops to make another, loop! yay! I saved myself 20cents! lol

Okay so maybe not interesting to all, but maybe by sharing I have helped someone out there :)

So moving on.......

My kitchen is as I said, passed it's used by date, oh and small!

The only bench space is, the stainless steel sink with half a metre either side, and my crockery and pantry staples are spilling out of the cupboards.... so I was really happy when I came

across this spice rack....yay! more storage space..

and it only set me back a whole $3! Brilliant.

It was a rich nut brown, which didn't really fit in with my 'theme'

so I gave it a shabby chic makeover, and now my $2 shop Ghost 

S & P shakers are look pretty cosy sitting up there!

Of course this kitchen is going to take some time to come together and I somehow have to make sailboat wallpaper fit into this scheme? ( courtesy of the living room,( it's open plan ) 

So if you have any ideas, it would be very much appreciated!



Bird Watching

Among all the birds that come visiting our land, we have a family of resident Swallows.

I remember seeing them this time last year, memorised by their dipping and diving around the land.

Well this year, the house seems to be the part of their obstacle course, and I find myself once again in awe of their acrobatics.

I even tried to catch them on camera, to capture the memory

But alas! they are just too damn quick!

Above is a heavily cropped image of one of my photos, and that's after 30 minutes sitting waiting for them to do their circut

Here's another.... I think you get the idea :)

As I sit here and write this, I can see them out of the corner of eye, zooming past the window :)

May I Mark this Day

I lay in bed this morning trying to grab a few more minutes of snooze time, all the while listening to the happy and silly ramblings of my kids, and as always, at high volume... then suddenly in my dozey state I realised everything was a bit too quiet, my mind rattled of the check points, doors locked.... check......

Then the door opened and in creeped  three boys, holding a plate of toast!

To say I was blown away would be a understatement!

Now, where has this sudden act of love come from?

Maybe all my nagging has finally paid off!

Or maybe it was a bit of smooching to insure I let them play their video game today! lol :)

Been keeping myself busy

My laptop died, so now that I am up and running again... here is a brief over view of the last few busy weeks.......

I'll start of with the yummy figs that I was lucky enough to recieve from some neighbours....
their tree is bigger than my kitchen/living room

And even though I am getting thoroughly sick of the clay,
the boys have found good uses for it, and it's kept them busy right up until bedtime!

A couple of weeks ago, Mum and I took the kids on a weekend drive to see Tane Mahuta in the Waipoua Forest, we loved watching their shock when they finally turned to see the huge tree!

 After the long and slow car journey through the forest,

it was a welcoming stop

We also were lucky enough to spot a North Island Tomtit



And just before the rain set in we all got to get a few bites of our sammies, and I got to admire my $10 picnic hamper

 ( scored over the holidays at a croquet club fair, complete with 8  x 70's plastic partitioned plates)

Then we packed up and headed up to the Hokianga Harbour,

this was a first for me aswell as the boys.

All of sudden you drive up a hill and come around a bend, and wham! there's the big sand dunes



And looking back into the harbour, it was such a mysterious and moody view that day, the photos just don't capture it

This rock was a fave of mine, we had been reading a book from the library about a sea monster who often would hide like a rock... here is his head... can you see his smile?

Lots of treasures were found

And Lil Miss kept herself amused playing in the sand

Little J checked out the sand dunes,

and probably looking if he can spot Australia

I told the boys that Australia is out that way over the waters.... the two younger boys reckoned they could see it!

Then this easter was a brilliant weekend and the weather was gorgeous.  It made for perfect easter egg hunting!

Mike was in charge this year for the treasure hunt, and came up with very clever rhyming clues that took the boys from one spot to another.  They still managed to collect them all in 20 minutes

Next year I told Mike, he needs to make it harder and hide them in the outer corners of the land... I'm glad I won't be hiding them!

Lastly, I have been making this most delicious bread, it's so simple and tastes like you have bought it from a very swish bakery...

it's very much like a Ciabatta! Delissimo!

I'll leave you with the link here on Wendyl Nissen's blog...

 I must buy her book!  And do try it, you won't regret it!