Sewing Archives - Palmettos and Pigtails

Easter Bunny Bowling

March 29, 2012 posted by Shara

Well, aren’t I the crafty one lately!! I told you I have been working on lots of things…. I think it must be my daily schedule. I seem to be more on track lately and better able to manage my time (which gives me more ME TIME!). You know that we have put ourselves on a budget, but did you know we are also on a diet? I’ll have to post more about that another time (just know we have lost almost 10 pounds each within the last month!!). Because of these two factors, I have been searching for some creative, cheap Easter basket stuffers. I didn’t want to fill the girls’ baskets with tons of candy and junk, and didn’t want to spend a ton on little Easter-themed junk either. So what did I do? I turned to Pinterest, of course!

I found a free pattern for these cute little guys on etsy….free! courtesy of The Long Thread . Hers were solid colors with patterned ear-insides. But I had some beautiful spring scraps that I decided to use instead.

And I had the hardest time finding a hard wooden ball to serve as the bowling ball. I finally found one at A.C. Moore….but it’s actually a doll head, and a little flat on one side. So I plan on sanding it down a little more so it rolls better, and then painting it brown and modge podging something cute on….TBD. I just have to find a naptime when both girls are down to break out the paint and glue!

I chose six fabrics, but made sure that they were grouped in pairs that matched, because I wanted the ears to coordinate with the bodies.

If you try this project, here are a couple of hints: Although I loved the darker, busier patterns (my reds!)….it’s much harder to see the embroidered faces because of this. However, the lighter fabrics made the dark embroidery floss show through….so make sure to trim if you use lighter fabric. I had planned to add a little something for a tail, but I forgot…so let me know if you try this and add one-I’d love to see your ideas! Also, I did use a 1/2 cup of rice like the directions stated, but I filled the bunnies up with a little more stuffing than she prescribed….to about an inch from the bottom. And finally, I don’t really like my ears. I was worried about them being too short, so I was stingy on the seams….when actually the opposite happened and I think they are a little long (they have a hard time standing up!). So feel free to extend their seam allowance a little (maybe to 1/2″)…and maybe your bunnies’ ears will be perkier!

Here’s the direct link to the pattern

I’m linkin’ up this week…and I have some new linky parties so be sure to check them out for other Spring inspiration!

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Filed Under: Crafts, Tutorials

Scrap Quilt

January 25, 2012 posted by Shara

I’ve been sewing for about a year now, and have no real craft area. Everything is kept in Tupperware tubs in a giant armoire. So, needless to say, I was overflowing with little scraps of fabric. Time to do something with those little pieces. Because they were kind of all in one color family (pinks, browns, turquoise and green), but all different sizes, I decided to try my hand at a scrap quilt.

Don’t get me wrong….I can appreciate the design and hard work that quilters put into their creations. But I have no desire to become a quilter. In fact, I can barely call myself a sewer……so I needed to be able to do this simply and quickly.

So I cut up my fabric into different size pieces, using several pieces of cardboard as my templates to trace. I had a quilt panel in my pile of random fabrics, but like I said….I have no intention of quilting. So I cut it up instead, cutting the characters from the quilt panel into the largest squares, and then using the surrounding patterns as smaller parts. I used strips of the fabrics as the borders too. And to be honest, I did this completely by trial and error….I had no idea what I was doing. But, I figured it was a scrap quilt, so the more hodgepodged it looked, the better.

Bear with me…..here’s how I did it:

Materials:

thirty 6 1/2 inch squares

sixty 3 1/2 inch squares

seven strips of 45 1/2 inches worth of fabric…..with each strip being 2 inches wide….and having 1/4 inch of seam allowance on each end

one large piece of fabric 47 inches by 45 1/2 inches

1 piece of quilt batting measuring 46 1/2 inches by 45 inches

I had a big scrap of padding….so I folded a corner over to form a square and cut off the excess ( I think it ended up being about 46 square inches)

This was one of the spare pieces of fabric I had that I loved, but wasn’t sure what to do with….so I cut it up to use as my focus squares on my quilt.

I measured all of the little critters on the panel, and luckily they all were about 6″….so I decided to make my larger squares that size (when finished).

I used a piece of cardboard as my template to cut around. (I made three templates…a 6 1/2″ square, a 3 1/2″ square and a 2″ wide strip….length doesn’t really matter…..all seam allowances for this project are 1/4″)

There were large chunks of interesting patterns left after I cut out the critters, so I supplemented more 6 1/2″ squares with them (and other fabric I had), and also used them for my smaller squares (which ended up being 3 1/2″ squares). If you look carefully, you can see where I drew my lines using a washable fabric pen. All of my seam allowances were 1/4″.

I also cut 2″ strips from scraps (varying lengths) to use as my borders. Then I laid everything out on top of my batting. I wasn’t too concerned about it fitting exactly, but I wanted to make sure that it was at least as wide as the batting….I ended up trimming excess at the end of my project. I also cut out one large piece of fabric to be the back of the quilt…..measure it to be the same size as your batting, and then add a 1/2″ around the edges to account for the seam.

Lay out your whole quilt…..I alternated one 6 1/2″ square and then two 3 1/2″ squares across, and then a 2″ strip in between each of the square rows. Just keep cutting scraps until your quilt is filled! I arranged mine on top of my batting to make sure it was big enough, and so I could get a visual on where all of the pieces were going to go.

I wanted to make sure that each of my fabrics were spaced out, and no two same patterns were touching. I also had to watch the spacing of my green and turquoise pieces because they totally clashed together….but spread out against the other patterns looked nice and were great bursts of color!

Time to sew!

Since there were going to be two 3 1/2″ pieces in between every 6 1/2″ piece….I needed to sew those together first.

I started to pin everything together before sewing….and quickly gave up. So much easier just to hold it in place as I sewed!

Take your two 3 1/2″ pieces and place them right sides touching, raw sides together. Make sure you know which edge to sew (based on the two 6 1/2″ squares it will be touching….pay attention to color and pattern placement).

Sew the two pieces together with a 1/4″ seam…do a quick backstitch at the beginning and end to tack the ends.

Here’s what the seam should look like on the right side. Sew all of your pairs of 3 1/2″ squares together…but keep them placed out on your quilt so you know which direction they should go (again, watch your colors and patterns!).

Line up the raw edges of the 6 1/2″ square and the two (sewn together) 3 1/2″ squares….right sides touching.

Sew 1/4″ seams, and backstitch.

Here’s what it should look like.

Sew on the next pair of 3 1/2″ squares to the other side of your 6 1/2″ square and continue to the end of the row.

Here’s the first row I completed….you can see I didn’t follow my own advice about really watching my placement and which sides I was supposed to be stitching together….my snail was sideways! I had to undo the stitching on both sides of that square, turn it, and redo it!

Do the same with your 2″ border strips. Sew them all together-end to end with 1/4″ seams. Then place them right sides together with your square strips, raw edges touching. Sew a straight line down the whole strip (1/4″ seam), and backstitch at beginning and end. Once you do this to all of your strips, your quilt will be all in one piece….very satisfying to see it all come together!

I pinned the right sides of my quilt and the fabric for the back together. I layered the batting on top of the quilt back and pinned it.

Ok, so I forgot to take pictures of these next couple of steps (sorry!), but they were pretty easy:

-I sewed all the way around (1/4″ seam), making sure to get the batting into the seam as well. I left a 6-8 inch opening on one end so I could turn everything right-side out.

-Carefully stuff everything through the hole so that your quilt is facing right-side out. At the hole, fold the raw edges under (and pin if necessary) and sew closed. I use an 1/8″ seam allowance to sew it closed…..and then I keep going all the way around the edge of the finished quilt. Then, I sew another stitch at a 1/4″ in from the edge….all the way around to give it a nice finished look.

Then I sewed along the right hand side of each of the strips of fabric in order to keep the batting in place. I spread out the seam and used a light pink thread since it matched much of my fabric color and was light enough to be seen on the back of the quilt (my fabric was a yellow and white gingham on the back)

Done!

And she loves it!

Room for two!

P.S. Here’s where I’m linking up!

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Filed Under: Crafts, Tutorials

Lullabelle’s Christmas Dress

December 23, 2011 posted by Shara

Yes, just another something I’ve been working on. I finished it last week, but didn’t want to brag about it until Lullabelle got it. I am quite proud of myself as this is probably the most complicated dress pattern I’ve tried so far. I used New Look’s pattern 6903. It took my about 2 weeks to make, but I also was only able to work for about a half an hour at a time while the girls were napping. I am blessed to have a craft room, but unfortunately it’s an open design (no door) and I have a loud sewing machine. So Jayna hates it when I sew while she is trying to rest.

For this pattern, I learned how to make ruffles, and mastered making a pocket. I loved putting the rick-rack over the outer stitches…it makes the pocket look so clean!

It was also my first time using the button-hole function on my sewing machine. I was way easier than I thought. I even dragged out the How-To video for the machine to learn how to do it, but after watching it once….piece of cake!

I finally finished the rest of our DIY Christmas decor, but want to take a couple of days off to spend with my folks, who are here in town for a couple of days. So, have a blessed Christmas this weekend and I’ll be back next week! Merry Christmas!

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Fall Burpcloth and One Ca-uuuute Baby!

November 15, 2011 posted by Shara

This is the centerpiece on our coffee table in our living room. To me, it’s the perfect type of decor. Symmetrical candles, simple and easy to clean up pinecones and pumpkins, a little splash of fall color for my living room. Everything is contained on a white rimmed plate and the cinnamon scent is heavenly and oh-so-Fallish. It made me want to create those Fall themes on something. But I had very little time (and frankly, not a whole lot of energy). So, the most obvious and functional choice for me was to make a burp cloth.

I found some leaf and acorn cookie cutters in my pantry and decided to make use of them. I traced them onto some fall-ish printed fabric that I had leftover from another project, and used an iron on transfer to adhere them to some flannel that I use to make burp cloths. Then I carefully and slowly stitched around each shape with brown thread. In general, I am terrible at doing this…..but practice makes perfect, right? Here is the template I used, along with the turkey template from this post.

I folded the fabric in half width-wise with right sides touching and sewed all the way around with a half-inch seam. I left about an inch and a half open at one end, so I could poke the cloth through to turn it right-side-out. (Sorry, I forgot to take a picture of this step!)

I took another scrap of fabric and cut it lengthwise so that it would wrap completely around the width of the burp cloth. Allow about 1/2 inch for seams. I ironed the seams and then straight stitched them all the way around. Then I sewed the two ends together to get a nice clean look.

Wrap the loop around the width of your burp cloth and position into place and pin.

Follow your existing stitching all the way around on both sides.

Then I stitched around the entire perimeter of the burpcloth again about a half an inch in from my original stitch….I think it makes a more finished look and is definitely a lot sturdier. Then, I folded the burpcloth in half width-wise and ironed a crease. I sewed a straight stich across the crease. This helps with bunching when you wash it, and also helps when folding.

After stitching in the middle, stitch the middle of both side of the crease the same way….creating fourths.

Iron the whole thing and stick it in the wash. And tada! You can be festive while getting spit up on! =)

Here’s where I’m linking up this week!

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Filed Under: Crafts, Tutorials

Ballerina Big Sister

October 11, 2011 posted by Shara

Buggy is officially a ballerina. She started ballet at the YMCA in our neighborhood and loves it. She loves a lot of things lately! We walk to class every Monday, and join the other three ballerinas in butterfly stretches, sashays and tip toes.

They are learning a little dance for a performance of Bibbity Bobbity Boo on the last day of class. Jayna loves to dance, but is quite often much more interested in comparing tutus, playing with her friends’ hair, swapping her shoes (she finds it fascinating that there is no right or left ballet shoe! They can fit either foot!), and playing on the kickboxing equipment in the corner of the room. Oh. And don’t forget the mirrors. She loves the mirrors!

But she also loves Ms. Lisa, her teacher (and also a friend from church). And let me tell you-Ms. Lisa has the patience of a Saint with this crew of active girls! But she manages to herd them each week and they all love ballet!

Jayna has proved to be an excellent Big Sister. She loves “babysitting,” which consists of her playing with Amelia while I pee. =) Amongst other things. Really, it has been my saving grace, as I am able to do many 1-2 minute activities now that I have this new-found babysitter!

I am actually so fortunate to have had soooooo much help these past few weeks with moving and settling into the new house. We have even had our first weekend visitors! My aunts and uncle and cousins came to visit and meet Amelia a couple of weeks ago. You may remember Julia and Wouter from our trip to Lancaster this summer.

It was their first time to Charleston, so we had to show them the sights. And indulge in a little fountain playing!

And last week, Mom Mom flew down for a long weekend for her share of Baby Holding.

And she taught Buggy how to drive.

And managed to catch Elly and Tippy hanging out with Amelia!

So, that’s what we have been doing the past couple of weeks. We are significantly downsizing the box situation, and our rooms are actually starting to look lived in! It’s amazing how we can move into this big house, but have somehow manage to have less storage than in our old house. But I guess it’s really a good thing as we have been forced to declutter and prioritize our “stuff.” We pretty much have downstairs under control and are now concentrating on unpacking clothes and bedrooms.

Remember this masterpiece?Dave allowed me to buy it for the loft (aka “My Craft Room”), to do my crafts and sewing on. It was beautiful. Was. It cost an arm and a leg to buy, store and deliver. Turns out, there was a reason why it was so expensive. Apparently it was actually a kitchen island, and was made of one piece of carved wood. And was extremely large. As in, larger than our doorway…let alone our staircase! So….we had to return it. Now I have a store credit to my fav furniture store, but no craft table. And subsequently, no craft room….as the loft has turned into the dumping ground for all things Wii and sorting place for the massive amount of laundry that has piled up wince we’ve moved in. So the saga continues….

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Filed Under: Life, Our Humble Abode

Newborn Matching Outfit

August 3, 2011 posted by Shara

Good morning! We are so excited today because it is our last day of swim lessons! Don’t get me wrong….we love to swim. But unfortunately the swim lessons we enrolled in were less than stellar and have messed with our whole schedule the past two and a half weeks. They were from 12-1 (naptime) and were a half an hour away from our house. I didn’t even take any pictures because the pool was disgusting! The swim lessons teacher was 16 years old and purely a lifeguard, while the three of us moms fended for ourselves attempting to teach our kids…not even knowing where to start! But I’m happy to report that Jayna is able to dunk her head under water while blowing bubbles, paddle with arms and feet while I hold her around the waist, and jump off the side to me! That’s about all we could handle without any direction! But, I can’t complain because we only paid $30 for the whole session…but needless to say, we’ll be swimming elsewhere from now on!

In other news, I spent the evening completing a bundle of burp cloths (in between Braxton Hicks contractions!). I also decided that I’d like to splurge on some in-hospital professional pictures of Amelia and Jayna. So of course we’ll need matching outfits for them! I decided to complete the set I made for Jayna and Lulabelle, with a little onsie, burp cloth and bib for Amelia.

I started with the burp cloth, and made it like I usually do by cutting the fabric and the flannel to the size I wanted and matching up the wrong sides and sewing together.

I also like to sew a double seam for durability.

And I also fold it into thirds, iron the creases, and then sew a single stitch down each crease. This helps with bunching when you wash it, and gives you a little guide to fold it.

Then I decided that a pillowcase dress was unrealistic for a newborn, and a onsie would be better. I hand drew a daisy on the fabric, used an iron-on transfer to get it to stick to the onsie, and then I hand-sewed red stitches around it. I was aiming for it to look a little ragged…I think I succeeded!

And finally, I decided to add a bib to the outfit. I traced a newborn bib that I already had to get the size and pattern right, and then added another inch around the edge to account for the seams. I matched the right side of the fabric to two layers of flannel, and placed piping around the raw edges. I sewed around the piping before layering the back of the bib (fabric again, with the right sides together), and then sewed over my original stitching. Don’t forget to leave a 2-3 inch opening so you are able to turn the bib right-side out!

Then I added velcro.

And tada! A super absorbent spit bib for a newborn!

All in all, I’m pretty pleased with the way they came out, and can’t wait to see how the pictures come out when Amelia arrives!

P.S. I linked up with these linky parties today…take some time to check out what other people have been working on this week!

NightOwlCrafting

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Filed Under: Crafts, Life, Tutorials

Homemade Burp Cloths

July 27, 2011 posted by Shara

Howdy y’all!

Since I have to pack boxes instead of nesting to prepare for Baby Amelia’s arrival, I decided to kill two birds with one stone this week and get rid of some scrap fabric and fat quarters I had lying around and make Amelia some new burp cloths! I love how fat quarters come in coordinating patterns and colors, and I can usually make 10 out of them for about $10. Sometimes I’ll do one burp cloth and a matching bib too. A super easy (and quick) handmade gift for an ALWAYS appreciative Mommy-to-be! Here are a couple of sets I’ve made recently, some to keep and some to give away!

Hope you enjoyed! Come back tomorrow to see how else we have been preparing for Baby Amelia!

Today I joined Night Owl Crafting’s Linky Party…..click on the icon below to see what everyone else has been working on this week.

Betsy…check out #64 Zoo Animal Cupcakes

Mom Mom…check out #97 Grilled Pizza

Love y’all!

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Filed Under: Crafts

Strawberry Fields Outfit Pictures…to go with the Red Pants Tutorial

June 22, 2011 posted by Shara

Sorry I’m a slacker and don’t have a tutorial for these outfits (just the pants). To be honest, the smaller outfit (on Lullabelle) was from two different patterns, for the A-line “dress” and then for the bloomers, and I made it so long ago (April), that my preggo brain just can’t remember how I did it, nor did I take pictures. Buggy’s outfit was supposed to be completely different…just a dress. But halfway through the pattern and directions, I got completely lost….I ran out of patience and time. Luckily I had some scraps left over from the smaller outfit, and was able to make the pants, and then kind of pieced together the shirt (basing it loosely on LuLu’s shirt). I added the ruffles at the bottom to make it a little longer, and added the pocket at the last minute, since Bug is so into collecting stuff right now.

But the hardest thing about making these outfits was getting a good picture of an 8 month old and a 2 year old AND the outfits…..so, sorry! =)

After about a hundred pictures and a hundred laughs between Betsy and I trying to get those pictures, I gave up on the group photo and had a little more success with individual shots! Enjoy!

I linked up to:

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Filed Under: Crafts, Tutorials

Mama-aahhhh Day, Linky Party, and Little Angels

June 2, 2011 posted by Shara

I was soooo happy to have a day for myself today! I finally was able to use my gift card to the spa to get a much-needed haircut…and then an impromptu facial later in the day. Also went Targeting and Dollar-Storing for some projects for Buggy to do in the car (hoping to get some pics up of the final products tomorrow or Friday), on the way to TN on Saturday. Don’t ask why I am starting projects, packing boxes, sewing bags, attempting to finish outfits, cooking, etc. all THIS week for once, when we are leaving at the crack of dawn on Saturday for vacation!

Anyhooo….I needed A DAY. So I took one! =) And it was wonderful! Thanks to Buggy and Davey-poo for supplying my Mama-ahh Day! Much appreciated!

In other news, I joined a linky party with my pants tutorial this week….check it out (click on the below picture and then on any of the pictures on that site to see everyone’s projects!). Enjoy!

Also, I”ve been saving this precious little clip for a day that I didn’t have much to say. These little angels are JaynaBug and her cousin Madison, who we recently saw in Georgia. They were swinging and singing Jesus Loves Me before the sillies took over! I love that they have His Joy down in their Hearts!!

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Filed Under: Crafts, Life

Happy Memorial Day! …and a Pants Tutorial

May 30, 2011 posted by Shara

Happy Memorial Day! I am so very blessed to have a big ‘ole family of soldiers….and I am so grateful for each and every one of them, not to mention all those out there who continue to keep our country safe! Thank you!

Last night I finally finished a pair of pants that I have been dragging my heels on for literally months! Ever since Lulabelle was born last October, I’ve had my sights set on cute summery matching outfits for her and Buggy. I had some really cute and lightweight strawberry print and red fabric that I decided to make into a matching 12-month romper and a 3T shirt/capri outfit. I finished and delivered the romper and bloomers to Betsy this spring (even though it was waaaaay too cold for the baby to wear then). I am still working on Buggy’s shirt, but I will be sure to show you the whole set when I (hopefully)complete it this week. Sooooo, without further ado….here’s how I made the pants (and it was so simple, by the way!)

1. I used another pair of her current pants to create a kind of pattern, so these mesurements are for a 3T, approximately 31 inch tall child. I made the seams on the sides, and used two duplicates of the pattern to create the front and back. I didn’t make a liner for this pair, but it would be easy to add it on. Cut out your two pieces and line up the raw edges and pin the right sides together.

2. Sew the sides and legs together, leaving 1/2″ seams. Trim the seams to 1/4″ and either zigzag stitch over them, or use pinking shears to prevent fraying.

3. Take a Peanut Butter M&M break.

4. This next part (the ruffle at the bottom) is optional: Cut out two 20″x 2 1/2″ strips for the ruffled bottom of the pants. Fold lengthwise 1/2″ along one raw edge and sew. Do the same for the other ruffle. This will be the bottom part of the ruffle.

The top strip is also 20″, just folded in half.

5. Fold each ruffle in half so that the right sides are together and pin. Sew the two ends together to form a circle cuff. The seam should be 1/2″ when you sew it, but then trim it down to 1/4″ and finish with a zigzag stitch or use shears to prevent fraying.

6. Place the circular cuff around the bottom of each pants leg. Right side of the pants touching the right side of the ruffle, with the raw ends lined up.

7. Start pinning so that the seam of the ruffle lines up with one of the seams of the pants (either inner or outer). Working your way around each pant leg, pin the ruffles about every inch or so, overlapping a small amount of the ruffle fabric to create a gathered look.

8. Do the same on the other leg. Carefully sew around the bottom of each leg….be careful not to snag (the leg holes are pretty small, so I really took my time on this part!), and leave 1/2″ seam. Trim the seam to 1/4″ and finish with a zigzag stitch or use the pinking shears to prevent fraying.

9. Turn your pants inside out again, and move up to the waistband area. Fold the raw edge on the top over 1/2″ and sew. Fold the top over again 1/2″ (or more depending on how thick your elastic is….mine was the thinnest possible…looking like a string), and sew. Make sure to leave about 1″ open to insert your elastic through. I tied my elastic to a safety pin and worked it through my 1″ opening, around the whole waist area and then back out again. I triple knotted it and then sewed the 1″ opening closed. Oh, and my elastic was 20″ long, which is how wide Jayna’s waist is. Plenty of room to grow! Tada!