Christmas Sewing Officially Begins

When I first learned to drive I didn't want to drive for very long. I would get tired of it quickly, finding it almost mentally exhausting and with sewing I feel much the same. I think it is for this reason that the projects I choose tend to offer that instant gratification of a project that come together quickly and finishes in a single sitting. When I started with diapers I could only sew one or two at a time and then I was done. Not a second more would be spent doing anything sewing related, well except during early labor, I sewed up about 7 diapers that morning.
I also have a tendency to remake all those patterns that I love. I have made near a dozen pairs of yoga pants for Meara. So I am feeling a little nervous right now, as I have chosen a bit of a bigger undertaking and I suspect it may take me a few afternoons in the sewing room to pull it all together, but of course it will be well worth it. The Amaryllis Dress, which was released this week in Pattern Anthology's Winter Wonderland bundle, is that bigger project. It is a gorgeous and reversible dress. Perfect for Christmas, don't you think?
Yesterday I spent about an hour wandering Fabricland and looking for that perfect fabric. Sure, I could order online and get a good deal, but I felt for this it was more important to feel the fabric and see it before I bought it. I needed to know I did have the perfect fabric.
I chose a beautiful cream cotton plaid with grey, pink, metallic gold, and blue in the colors. It has a casual feel that is still dressy. Because I wanted the dress to have a pop of color to it I chose the subtle blue in the fabric to be the main color on the reverse side. I had one of the associates help me pick out the perfect fabric to match, a teal blue crepe (I think, I neglected to read the info on the end of the bolt) with body and a subtle shimmer. This dress is gonna be gorgeous!
Today I am pre-washing the fabrics, and assembling my pattern pieces. I will try to get to cutting into the fabric today too, but since I am trying to finish a pair of Sadie Grace Nightgowns I already cut, I think it just might not be in the cards. Meara would have to let me have that much time for me. Dream on!
So, the nightgowns are actually the first Christmas gift that I have sewn so far. One is done and the other is just waiting for me to sew it up. I decided to use up some of the Crib Bedding fabrics that I had left on this project and to make a generous size 2. Meara is such a big little girl.
In terms of the DIY Christmas Project, I am realizing that I need to scale it back. I can't realistically sew that much in less than 2 months. So, now I am going to call it, minimum one hand made gift per person on the list, and most of that gets covered by the Christmas baking. Maybe I can sew up several Pajama Eaters for the nieces and nephews, maybe.
Well, I have spent enough time online, onto the sewing room and the many projects that await!

Craft-tastic Tuesday - My Stash is Ahhhhh!!!! In Need of Help

This is most but not all of the quilting cotton portion of my stash

In some ways my fabric stash is small, I have been sewing for less than a year, it is young. And it is not. There is no balance to it, no rhyme and no rhythm. My tiny space is often taken over by the mass of fabrics everywhere.
I have bins of apparel knits and wovens, yet I barely sew any clothing. Just a few baby items so far. But I am drowning in fabric that would be perfect for my wardrobe. I really need to get brave and selfish sew.
Most of my stash comes from my Gram, who was great with a sewing machine, and made a lot of her own clothing. Every time I pull one of these fabrics from the bins I think of her and I wonder what her plan was for that fabric. Sometimes I have a good idea what she may have intended and sometimes it is less clear. I feel it is really important to use these fabrics and use them well.
I have the same Autumn skin tone, as my Gran called it, so though not all these fabrics have prints that I would have chosen for myself, they are in colors that suit me well and I will feel comfortable in. My Gram also bought multiple yards at a time so I know I have enough fabric to work with.
It is time now that I try to make use of these. I can drool over fabrics at girlcharlee.com all I want, but I need to make room in my stash and master new skills before I overload myself. So what I am going to do is post one fabric at a time and ask you, my readers, for suggestions of patterns and advice. Please help me find the right project for these wonderful fabrics that do have a lot of meaning for me. These projects can be anything from clothing for myself, siblings, and children to items to dress the home.
I will post a few photos once a month, and a description of the fabric. I will tell you if it is a knit, about its drape, if it is synthetic or not and answer any questions asked and I hope that in the comments you can suggest great projects and help me.

Octobers Fabric Selection

Here is what I know:

Type - Knit

Colour - Bright Red

Stretch - 2 way 30%

Weight - Medium  to Heavy weight

Pattern - Solid red with a diamond pattern woven in

Content - Appears to be mostly cotton

Comment below to help me find the best use for this fabric, I think this would make a great fall sweater, but I don't have a pattern in my size.

October

Just a quick one today. Because If I write it, I have to do it. Right?
Well, we shall see how that turns out.
My head is full of Christmas. Sewing gifts, crafting gifts, baking gifts. I am just overflowing with festive thoughts. By the time the stores start playing those tunes I am gonna be so sick of it.
Oh well.
I am trying to make the DIY Christmas Project a blog-able thing with out spoiling the surprises on anyone's Christmas gift. I have no idea how just yet, but I am going to do it.
The plan I have so far is that some of the gifts I make that could be for anyone on my list may get posted, hopefully as tutorials. As for gifts that the recipient would know have got to be for them, well, maybe I will pre-write the tutorial to be posted for Christmas 2014 (but then post them early mid year, in a fit of too lazy to write a tutorial post). Can't I just post, SPOILER ALERT at the top of every post?
Well, my family are already used to receiving baked goods every year, and I feel okay with them knowing what in advance, so I wont hesitate to share what I am baking as it happens.
OH NO, just realized that I am over due for a Craft-tastic Tuesday, better go work on that for next week. Oops.
Well, happy crafting anyways :p

The Trouble with Baby Books

Meara's birth announcement, printed through Snapfish.com (and I still have a few that haven't gotten to their recipient yet, oops)

Well, normally today I would be posting a Photo Friday but I haven't taken a photo in 2 weeks. It seems that now that school is in there aren't as many photo ops for the boys (they seem to be sleeping over with Aunts, Uncles and Grandparents every weekend) so most likely Meara is going to continue dominating the Photo Friday posts for a while. Since I don't have photos to post for you today I have decided to write about a related topic instead, the Baby Book.
We all start our children's baby books with the greatest of intentions, but I think most of us seem to peter out somewhere along the way, and we end up with incomplete books, half the milestones recorded, and lots of blank pages. Oops.
Joseph's baby book is a little sparse, it starts out good, but somewhere around month 8 it just stops. When I had Greg, I swore to myself I would do better, My sister in-law had given me a calendar to record his milestones and I thought that would help with the completion of a baby book, but nope, again, towards the end of Greg's first year, the pages are again blank. I had to come up with something different for Meara. No more browsing and searching for the perfect book, and not completing it. I am doing this one right (so far anyhow).
Enter Snapfish.com, I am doing it online, and creating my own entirely unique book just for Meara. There are definitely a few positives to this approach:

• The baby book only contains the info I want it to
• It will not have any blank pages
• If the original is ever lost or destroyed I can order a new copy
• It is easily edited and tailored

This seems to be the ideal approach for me, I scribble on our calendar little notes about her weight and milestones as they happen, and every month I sign in and add the new info and write a little note to her about how she has grown for that month. If I want to add more info it is easy enough for me to go back and do so, and it will always look neat and tidy. I am going to leave a blank page to glue an envelop to for a few keepsakes, and take photo's and scans of some of the other keepsakes so that it is all incorporated into her book. I have all the cards from the shower and the hospital to possibly scan and turn into a collage for the book too.
I am loving this idea so much that when I am done I may just redo the boys baby books for them too.
I chose to use Snapfish for this project partly because I have been using Snapfish for years, and partly because they still seem to be the most versatile yet affordable photo printing site. They do have a Canadian version of their site, but I prefer the American site, the shipping is higher but the options are greater.
How do/did you handle keeping your baby book(s) up?

The DIY Christmas Project

Christmas 2007, visiting Grandma's house

I know, it is only August, but I am once again, way ahead of myself (and possibly a little late to start this). Yes, Christmas, that is what is on my mind. I am challenging myself to DIY my gifts for everyone this year.
Honestly, it really isn't much of a stretch, I already bake all the gifts I give to my extended family, I just need to find a few good gift ideas for the immediate family. But, I am one to go overboard, and I may get to blame Pinterest for making me want to DIY a little more for the extended family.
I have a Pinterest board to go along with this post and I would love a few ideas to add to it.
A little more info about my giving style. I have always made a point of giving my children a pair of PJ's to look good for Santa in, on Christmas Eve. This is a tradition I enjoyed as a little girl. Santa is the one who gives the toys in my household, I give gifts of reading material, clothing, and other necessities. I don't think it will be to hard to DIY most of the kid gifts, however, I will still buy the books. Dan is going to be a challenge, I have no idea how I am going to do with his gift, this is where I am most likely to cheat, but I will try my darnedest. I have, for several years now, given baked goods as gifts to my extended family, this has taken a lot of the stress out of Christmas, no more stressing about the hard to buy for family members, or how I am going to come up with cash for everyone's gifts. Baked family gifts is just easier, and I love doing it. This year, I am going to make fabric applique Christmas cards, and I will try to come up with something small to go with the baked gifts, something a little more personal. And, lastly, I have been buying toys for the children on my list in the extended family and close friends category, they will be getting something DIY as well.
The ideas are spinning in my head, maybe a kids crafting party for my kids, their cousins, and close family friends to make a few simple gifts? This is going to be fun.
And a challenge!