Patch it up!

Does this look familiar to you?

I'm not sure if it's just a boy thing, but Elliott seems to get holes in EVERY single pair of pants that he wears.  He's had his newest pair of jeans for about six weeks and the knees are getting so thin that they're gonna go at any moment!  I really should be proactive about this, but here's what I've been doing to be completely REactive on his other pairs...

PATCHES!

This project took me about 45 minutes in total which I think is pretty 'top shelf' for getting a pair a pants out of it that Elliott can actually wear in public that don't make him look like a little ragamuffin.

Supplies?  Patch material (I used some vintage leather that I had previously purchased), oval pattern (I used a mason jar lid to make the curves), seam ripper, scissors and sewing machine.

 Steps:
1) Pin patches in place over holes (or if you're being proactive, where kneed will wear out material)
2) Rip out the stitches from the outside pant leg (of whichever side does not have the decorative stitching) so that you can sew the patches on using your sewing machine. I left the side hem intact at the bottom so that I didn't have to deal with resewing the bottom hem.
3) Sew patches on using a zigzag stitch with coordinating thread.
4) Sew the seams back together and you're done!

I have a few cute pictures of Elliott modelling the pants, but I noticed (after the fact) that he was flying low and decided to make the most out of my crop function! :)

Testing out his knee-bends with the new patches!

When I showed Elliott his new pants he exclaimed that they were 'AWESOME' and wanted to put them on straight away!  Then at bedtime he told me that I should make purple patches to put on my shoulders...I guess in case I wear them out somehow?  :)  He's too cute not to love!

In Progress...

Here's the deal: I am currently working on four quilts.  Yep, I know, if I focused on just one at a time I'd finish them a lot faster, but I can't seem to get this under control!  Picking fabric and choosing a design is so much fun that I've done it four times over and now have to follow through.  :)  This is a good thing though.  I truly do love the whole process of quilt making - just some parts are a bit more exciting than the others!

I thought since I haven't been posting much lately that I'd show you some of my progress...(and happily, I found quilt batting on sale this week, so the pieces are coming together)!

Elliott's quilt:

Last night I finished reconstructing the quilt front - I had managed to piece a section of 8 blocks on upside down, and had to take it out and make it right.  Ahh...that feels better!  At this rate I might actually be done his quilt in time for his birthday at the end of the month (fingers crossed).

I wasn't really sure what I thought of this one...but I got an entirely new perspective today when I saw it from a distance (I had to stand on a bucket on my tip toes to keep it from touching the ground)! 

Living room throw:

This quilt will be made up entirely of 2.5" squares, so it's definitely time consuming.  I've pieced together a few sections and will be focusing on this one once all of the others are done.  And I'm going to try REALLY hard to not start any more projects until this one is sitting on my living room couch (completed!).

I've had to piece this one as I go because I don't have a design wall and I don't really have anywhere to lay it out that doesn't have to be used on a weekly basis.  My walking foot has been working like a charm on this puppy!
Two Others:
The other two that I'm working on are for two dear friends of mine who have recently celebrated their birthdays...so I can't show them.  But I will tell you that their a little modern with a bit of vintage flare!  They are EASY to piece and won't take much time at all!  Okay, okay, here's a little sneak peek!

And here's what I'm sending to school with Elliott tomorrow for his class Easter party!

You can find these little bunnies here along with a few other cute pretzel and chocolate ideas.

On a side note - this chest cold that I have will NOT go away.  It's been two weeks in counting and I think I might actually venture out to the doc to get looked at.  Maybe.  :)  There just doesn't ever seem to be a good time with quilts on the go, kids to adore and a husband to love.  Though, I guess I won't be doing any of those things if I don't take care of myself first!

~Karina

Scrappy Mini Quilt

When Rachel at Stitched in Color announced her Festival of Scrappiness, I knew that I wanted to make a little mini scrap quilt for Arlyn's stuffed animals that she fancies.  I had some extra Loulouthi fabric sitting around from Arlyn's curtains in her room, and thought that I would put it to good use! 

I discovered some beautiful linen while out thrifting the other day (yes, someone had gotten rid of their linen scraps...thank you!), and thought that it would pair nicely with the loulouthi.  Add a few more scraps, and here is the finished product!

It measures about 15x15...perfect for covering up a little stuffie! 

The quilting was an attempt at the orange peel design...I thought I might as well try it out on a mini quilt before giving it a whirl on a larger quilt (which is the same story for the binding...it was my first time entirely machine binding a quilt and I think I'm going to re-bind it so that it's a little nicer).  I attempted the quilting with the darning foot first, but I couldn't quite get the stitch length to be uniform with this pattern.  I've used free-motion quilting before here and here, but this design was a little trickier.  Because my squares were pretty large (finished 2.5") I decided to try out my walking foot for the quilting...and it worked!  Since my squares are a little 'off' in a few areas the pattern isn't perfect, but I'm happy with it (for my first try, at least)!

I think Arlyn is going to love it...she has three little animals that she's been carrying around lately (yes, sometimes all at once) so it may be a little hard to decide who will get the quilt each night!

The three animals of choice!

Update.  Okay, Arlyn does love it.  Here's a few photos!

The three choice animals testing the mini out for size!

Testing out the quilt

Pushing the stuffies around



Picnic time!

Why wouldn't I get in here!

A Fishing Vest for Jack

We went home for a few days over the weekend and into March Break, and were able to celebrate my nephew's 5th birthday.  I'd been thinking for a few weeks about what to get him and, of course, decided to make him something!  I picked out some Fish in The Sea a few months back, and have been waiting for some inspiration. Then I had a brilliant idea.  Summer is on it's way...cottage season...boats...and fishing!

I used the explorer vest pattern from the Oliver + S book that my sister gave me for Christmas, and came up with this:

The fish material worked perfectly for this project!

I added some grommets and little fishing lures (removed the sharp hook before fastening them on)...

and attached them using Velcro so that Jack's mom can throw the vest in the wash!

I really liked the idea of the back pocket from the pattern...though it might be a little hard to access without taking the vest off (I guess that's what moms and dads are for).  :)

I'm pretty sure that Jack liked it...even though it was on the small side (kids keep growing so darn fast)!

So, now that I've made one I MUST make some more...well, at least one for Elliott.  He's been asking me when he's getting his fishing vest, so I better add it to the list!

~Karina

Pancake Wednesday

Elliott LOVES pancakes.  I think he asks to have them for breakfast every day.  So, in order to appease the little guy, we've created 'Pancake Wednesdays' that occur weekly.  It goes down something like this: every Tuesday night before bed I make the pancake batter, keeping the wet and dry ingredients separate, and every Wednesday morning Elliott mixes the two together.  While they're cooking Elliott asks 'are they done yet?' about 15 times and then when they are done he cuts out shapes with his heart cookie cutters (or his Santa cookie cutter...depending on the day) and dips them into maple syrup!  The idea is simple, the process is simple, but 'Pancake Wednesdays' mean the world to him!  And that means a lot to me...

I love having Elliott home - he attends JK what works out to be 2.5 days per week and as much as he needs the socialization, I'm so very glad that I still get to have him around!  I didn't become a SAHM until after Arlyn was born (Elliott was 3.5 years old), and I feel a little like I've been catching up with him.  Does that make sense?  What a joy it is to be able to experience my kids - I'm so blessed!

Are you sick of the sappiness yet?  :) 

Okay, so, back to Wednesdays!  Usually we go to the library on Wednesday afternoons to pick out a few books and DVDs for the week (we don't have cable and only receive 'snow storms' on our tv, so the kids pick out a few tv shows to watch), and play with the toys that the library has out in the kids section. But guess what?  Today.  Outside.  It is 11 degrees celsius.  This means that we are going to the creek to explore with some friends!  And on a side note...this is officially MY FIRST PLAYDATE IN BOWMANVILLE!  :)  (Okay Jeanine, if you're reading this, yes, it is that big of a deal)!  :) 

Wednesday also means my sewing class at the college, and I'm always pumped about that!  Here's my little assignment for this week:



Lapped Zipper!

Unfortuantely when I go out in the evening it means that I can't work on my own projects like this little number I'm making with the help of my husband's old pants...more to come on this when I get it finished!

Wishing you a beautiful Wednesday.

~Karina

Skirts!

Want to see what I've been working on?  Of course, they're new projects...because, why would I finish any of my big projects when I can whip up these little numbers?!  :)

I've finally been able to put to use some of the that gorgeous Storyboek fabric that my little sis got me for Christmas - isn't it adorable?  This print is called Field Friends in Coral and it's too cute.

 Basically, the skirt is a tube of fabric with elastic running through a casing at the top.  It's truly that simple.  The binding was made from some scraps in my stash and goes along with the print wonderfully! 

So, this will be Arlyn's Easter skirt (just perfect for Easter with the bunnies all over it) unless I can whip up a little dress in time.  Though, I think my next few free nights might be taken up tackling something for Elliott.  I'm envisioning some sort of suit jacket for him to wear at Easter, but it's a pretty lofty goal so say a few prayers for me! 

Oh, I also worked on this little pleated skirt the other night.  I really wanted to try making a skirt with a dropped waistband, and to practice some of my skills I added a lapped zipper at the side.

The lap wasn't quite wide enough (I should have sewn the zipper with a 6/8' allowance instead of 5/8"), but I put a little tab at the top to cover the imperfections! 

And here's a few photos of Arlyn wearing her skirt to her little friend Abigail's 1st birthday party!

Waiting for her lunch after having a blast in the pool!

Waiting to play 'Pin the Tail on the Donkey'

Reaching for the button to open the door...she played with this for twenty minutes!

I think it would be easier in terms of sizing to make the skirt with an elastic running through the back band, but I know now for next time. And there WILL be a next time. Did I use a tutorial for this skirt? No. (*huge grin*). I'm starting to figure things out on my own!  It's definitely a trial and error process, but I think it's working for me!

~Karina

A Block-and-a-Bit

After cutting out all those squares, I had the chance to work on my new quilt a couple of nights last week.  I laid out the pieces in at least 10 different designs and was finally able to come up with this block that I just love!

It's actually a little bit more than just one block...we`ll call it a-block-and-a-bit.  I was intending on maybe doing something like these granny square blocks from Blue Elephant Stitches - the colours and the x's are just beautiful, but I really wanted to make it my own (plus eliminate some of the white).   So, instead of adding white sashing around each block individually, I decided to set in all of the plus signs to each other. I'm really liking how it's turning out, and can't wait for the finished product. 

The projects were all set aside for Family Day weekend!  We've had a great weekend here in Bowmanville - snow on the ground, above zero temperatures and the sun has been shining!  Family day began with bacon and eggs and continued with tobogganing, games, a little hike, and simply sharing some wonderful family time! 



My parents also visited for part of the weekend and we had a great time just hanging around...plus, they brought cinnamon buns, so it was an extra deliciously good visit! :)

Opa, Elliott and Mr. Snow in our backyard (yes, I cut Dave out.  I think he'll be thankful!)

Opa and Arlyn.

And on a completely different note...you may know that I am in love with vintage Pyrex bowls. So much so that I thought I would share my find with you!  I came across this one on Thursday last when out with my daughter; my heart started racing when I spotted it because I just love the colours.

Okay, I know that it might seem like this bowl has nothing to do with crafting at all, but believe me, it does! Do you ever see something that just inspires you? Well, this is it for me. I've added this to the inspiration bank in my brain. :)

My current collection - sorry for the blurry pic!

Hope you're all finding inspiration today.

~Karina