The start of a modelling career!

BubbaBoo is 4 weeks old! 

And we're starting to phase in some clothes beyond onsies.

Being a monster baby he's pretty much into the 3-6 month sizes already!

Here are some of the outfits we've been rocking:

I'm especially loving the Big Butt Baby Pants and the PurlSoho Baby Pants. I foresee more of those in our sewing future! I also foresee a Plantain T shirt to hide the fact that BubbaBoo killed my tummy muscles. 

If I can ever force myself to switch newborn cuddles for naptime sewing...

Australia Day 2014

Our first as a little Aussie family!

But probably the quietest since we've been here.

We went to our local Australia Day ceremony to re-make our pledge, catch up with a few friends and celebrate our new little Australian. And you can't get much more Australian than a gathering under the gumtrees with the Kookaburras laughing throughout!

To celebrate the day, I made BubbaBoo most of a shirt before he arrived (10 days ago) and just fit the side seams in the last few days (the plan was a shirt onsie, but that was way to much for this new mummy).

How fabulous is this fabric for Australia Day:

And how fabulous is this pattern matching for a first attempt, even if it was fudged slightly:

It still ended up a bit big for him, especially around the shoulders, but he is only 10 days old and it was a 0-3m ish pattern. He still looked super cute though (I'm biased)

Now were home and recovering, and planning a little BBQ for three this evening.

And for future reference, the only time BubbaBoo cried was through both verses of the National Anthem.
Where is the national pride?!

Extra Baby Sewing

Despite all my pattern sampling even I think theres a limit to how much of a huge baby wardrobe its reasonable to sew in advance... Got to give myself something to look forward to in the future, right?!

So some time has been spent on other baby related sewing, mainly for the nursery:

Cot Ruffle, change mat cover and lamp shade are all "thrifted" from a K-mart bedding set. The change mat covers are made from the pillow cases, which magically fit nicely over our mat once the edges were squared off. 

The ruffled skirt can hide any extra storage we need, and is simply 2 long strips of fabric (its only present on the two visible sides) the same height as the drop, ruffled/pleated using my pleat foot and sewn onto a rectangle the same size as the base board. I figure once we need to drop the base down I can quickly tack the hem up again so it doesn't pool.

The cot sheets are made from some heavily reduced kids bedding sheets, using Danas tutorial. While buying them would be easy enough, I could never really find any plain and cheap. Being time rich this was the best option!

The curtains were an Ikea doona cover... Seeing a trend here?! Made into hidden tab top curtains using a similar method as described here. The lining I picked up doesn't do much to block the light (though these are unlined in this pic, and what we have does help a bit), so for the time being we've left the vertical blinds up too. Next summer we'll look into proper blackout...

Fabric baskets for keeping all those extra bits.

It still needs some finishing touches and neatening up, but I think we're ready!

I've also finally just got my act together to finish a liner for the pram. I've loved this Spotlight whale print for ages, and this way I get to show it off! Its 100% draped, using lots of pins and air-disappear markers to get all the openings in place. I think I'll trace it now though, as it will make the next generation a bit easier! Its nice and soft thanks to some polyester wadding, and should be a bit nicer to sit on than the black plasticy seat!

Being modelled by one of many rattle/squeak/taggy toys I've been making out of scraps as inspiration has taken hold.

Its also crazy on the other side, should we fancy a change!

Whenever you're ready, Baby!

Top 5 of 2013

So... its 2014 already. Last years review is here. If all goes to plan my life will change forever in less than 3 weeks, hopefully sooner, as I really want to avoid the overdue and pregnant tantrums and eventual induction. So, my biggest hit of the year:

But making people has drastically reduced my sewing output... or at least adapted it and changed my goals for the year! Only a few months into the year we found out about the new addition and all sewing stopped- I didn't want to jinx anything; there was no point making fitted clothes if I couldn't wear them, or maternity clothes if things went wrong early.

So just to change the order around:

Reflections

My goals set last year were:

1. Sew for the person you want to be. 
2. Take part in MMM 
3. Go beyond your comfort zone.
• 1 Pair of shorts/trousers 
• 1 coat/jacket
• 1 set of undies.
4. More separates. 
5. Less is more- join the slow sewing movement and make sure that you're proud of what you are making. 

In general I have been sewing for the person I want to be. Maybe thats because I can use all my crazy fabrics on actual child clothes... but the things I have made have been mostly "more grown up". With a few exceptions, but if you cant sew for comfort during pregnancy, when can you?! And prior to bubs interfering there were plenty of separates, so I was definitely onto a good start on that front.

Me-Made-May fell right in the middle of the first tri and I failed from the start. I wasn't in the mood, I was bloated, tired and stressing. Ah well. Maybe it can spur me on to fit back into my me-mades for this May so I can join in!

Going beyond my comfort zone was a wash out. I did make knickers. And I even made some maternity ones with a dipped front and a banded waist rather than elastic. But pants and a coat... No comment.

My Hits:

Maternity Tshirts - Having the overlocker has really increased my confidence with knits, and my creations have mostly lasted the full duration and been worn on a regular basis, especially the Moustache and the dinosaurs.

And while I'm on maternity wear, my most worn items this year have been shorts I hacked into maternity shorts by chopping out a lot of the front and replacing it with really stretchy jersey. Not hugely pretty if you look closely, but very comfy and a lifesaver. And a money saver since the shorts were ones I owned already and the jersey was salvaged from singlets in matching colours. 

Laurels - I made 3 tops in the end, and still managed to wear one of them up to about 20 weeks. I think there will be more. My favourite never even made it to the blog somehow! Navy blue with a bird print. I wore it at least once a week. Maybe I should dig it out and take a pic!

Rocky Horror Outfits - I loved the whole process of creating these, and I'm very proud of how they turned out. Rocky is coming to Perth but bubs will be too small for us to realistically even consider going, despite the temptation of a tiny golden nappy cover

Meringues - I loved these skirts. Especially this black moleskin one. And I wore the chevron version a lot considering I only made it a week before those two little lines appeared. I used the pattern for my little red dress skirt too, and while that project wasn't a huge hit (worn once) it was a fun make. 

Baby Shirts - So I can't confirm if these are a total win yet, as obviously they are yet to be worn. But when they fit (they're supposedly a 0-3) he's going to be a very cool little man :D

I traced the pattern from a RTW shirt and I've now lost count of how many he has. I even made The Boy a shirt to match (or is it the other way around?!) for a cutesy photo opportunity. My current favourite is the blue and yellow seersucker shirt, though I have one as finished as possible in the most fabulous Australiana surrealist fabric, featuring the highlights of Sydney tourist attractions. Once he's here I'm hoping to find the time/motivation to sew the side seams up to fit whatever tiny newborn size is right so he can wear it on his first Australia Day.

I've had lots of fun making a large volume of tiny clothes. I fully accept that many of them wont get worn, but the process of making them has kept me sane! And hopefully will give me an idea of what works and doesn't once I find time to get sewing again.

The Misses

I'm not going to go into the failures too much. Most of what I've sewn this year has worked for its purpose. Even if I wouldnt wear it out of the house. Examples are hugely bright baggy dresses. Not flattering, but they are cool and unintrusive and keep me covered on the off chance that someone knocks on the door or the neighbours kids are spying over the fence on their trampoline ;) And they removed these fabrics from the stash!

The main miss has been trying to get the Washi Dress to work. One version worked out OK, but tight across the bust. It was wearable right up until recently, when it became too short:

But others have failed-

Cotton Sateen- not enough drape.
FBA attempt - Hard to get smooth with the way the darts are drafted.
Front placket for feeding- without fixing the FBA issue it just gapes and pulls.
Maybe I'll try again at a later date, but for now I'm done!

Goals for 2014

I'm trying not to load too much on my plate this year. I think adapting to life with a baby will be quite enough!
I would love to be able to keep sewing as much as possible once things are feeling a bit more under control, so I might see about setting some more specific goals later in the year.
I think I will try and partake in MMM, even if its simply wearing one item (including accessories) on either me or bubs ;)
But otherwise my plan is just to try and see the positives in the hard times and enjoy this new challenge as much as possible!

I don't think I'll ever be a quilter, but...

I wont say I hugely enjoyed the process of making this quilt. I cant imagine making them on a regular basis. 

I managed so sew some of the blocks the wrong way round, which threw the balance out a little. And it probably could have done with some plain fabric to tone it down a little. And the two afternoons I spent hand sewing the binding with a sore finger because I apparently somehow don't own a thimble of any description? Don't ask.

But I'm pretty happy with how it turned out, especially for a first try. 

I have no idea what the pattern would be called. I just knew that I didn't want plain squares but I also didn't want anything too complicated so I fudged my own pattern after some googling.  The quilt is roughly 90 x 120 cm which will be perfect for a play mat and sofa snuggling. 

I had a pretty hard time attempting to baste it. I used warm and natural batting inside, which handled pretty well and was eventually easy to quilt. But the basting felt like it took forever and despite using tape and the spray and some pins I never quite got it to sit right. Its worse on the back than the front though, so its not the end of the world. 

The actual quilting wasn't too bad. Free motion quilting was asking a bit too much, so I stuck to outlining each shape, and adding an extra square inside the larger shapes too make sure the batting was sufficiently held down.

I followed one of the myriad of internet tutorials for the binding and ended up with some OK mitred corners and a join that is solid yet not obvious. As much as I didn't much enjoy the hand sewing (seriously, how do I not yet own a thimble?!) I do like the clean look. I would never have managed to keep my machine stitching neat enough to be happy with it.

Now we just need the baby to go with it! 

Hopefully he knows its in his best interests not to be born over Christmas
(but doesn't hang around too long after!)

Stash busting Maternity MuuMuu :)

I've had the Burda "Tara" pattern sitting in my online stash for a while, since it was a friday freebie about 18 months ago in fact. I liked the style and different construction to the norm but I'd never quite got around to making it.

I found this lime green and brown cotton voile in the Spotlight clearance wrack some time last summer. I'd seen a women in a dress with a similar "butterflies made out of butterflies" fabric... but hers was a bit more of a muted colourway. I was going to make it into a shift dress to show off the pattern, something Laurel-esque. But I never did. And I probably wouldn't have worn it anyway! Its very green.

With the weather heating up here (I'm typing this outside on a glorious 28 degree cloudless day, yey for spring!) I decided to bite the bullet and make a simple throw on dress for days when clingy jersey just seems tooo nasty.

Actually, it started out as a top with 3 inches added to the length to stretch over the ever expanding bump. I cut the 44, since I figured I needed all the room I could muster and the empire line is brought in with elastic anyway. I contemplated trying to cut a smaller back and shoulder piece but that was too much thinking so I decided to just fudge it into fitting later...

Tara has a different construction to anything I've sewn before- raglan style flutter sleeves that connect the (very deep) front panels to the back pannel. That made it quite easy to fudge the fit by simply pinching out the extra material at the back seam. You finish the edges prior to sewing, so it literally is just a case of pinching then making sure the edges match. I  took about 4cm off on each side... Its meant that the back sits a little higher than it might otherwise but meh. Good sun protection ;)

Once I'd got it so it didn't fall of my shoulders I finished the edges and realised I still probably wouldn't wear it. Because if its too hot for jersey, who can really be bothered with shorts.
So I used the remainder of my fabric (true stash busting win there!) to add a flounce around the bottom hem.

I'm not sure I'll wear this version out of the house- its got a fair few flaws and its lime green and from the front and side I look like a tank- but its cool and flouncy and presentable enough to answer the door if needed. Though they might get an eyeful from that low-low-low front... Its got plenty of growing room left for the next couple of months, and theres plenty of breast feeding access and post-baby tummy hiding potential for the rest of the summer!

And just in case you think I'm neglecting the little one: How cute are these pants?!

The pattern is from Purl Soho here, available free in sizes up to 9 months. 

Maternity Sewing - 6 months in.

Most of my recent sewing has been for the baby, from cutesy nappy covers to nursery decor like curtains (boring! but satisfying) and an underskirt for the cot. Baby stuffs will continue to be added to my flickr set, over on the side bar. Go check it out!
Some of it has been for me though, with mixed outcomes!

My favourite and generally most successful makes are the gathered T-shirts using the tutorial Zoe put out a while back. When I'm wearing them I feel pregnant, not just fat! Definitely a win. I've made 4 of them now, with my favourites being the dino vest (spotlight clearance, 18 months ago!), and this one I just made in preparation for Mo-vember. Its cut from some thin ?slub jersey I got from the charity shop a while back for $1. Win.

The dino vest was an early attempt at sewing knits, so while I love it there are lots of faults. The Mo is much more "professionally" finished, with neck and arm bands and an extra wide hem band to finish it nicely and add a bit of extra length that it badly needed! The pleats in the mo top feel a little high, but it still works. If I make another I'll probably drop them a few centimeters.

Once it was done I used the below image to free-hand a moustache onto the bump. I traced an outline in chalk, then used a paint-tip sharpie to draw the hairs. I just need to hot press it to hopefully make it stay around for a few washes. It looks good and bushy- not sure I could pull that off again!

A semi-success is this boyfriend cut t-shirt made by tracing a RTW maternity top.
Maybe I'll become more of a fan of this style once the weather heats up and its nice and comfy, but the silhouette just makes be feel like I look fat not pregnant...

And on the subject of feeling huge, my least successful makes are the Washi Dresses I made early on. The silhouette just makes me feel the size of a bus now I have a bump to fill it out! I have one in a very light voile that will be good for hotter days without feeling too huge as it drapes ok, but the one I made from cotton sateen for "special occasions" looks like a tank!

I did learn how to make a functioning button placket... I just need to do a FBA to stop all that pulling! So I'm thinking I might make a couple of these in floaty fabric for all the hot months after baby is here to cover the post-baby bump and allow easy access for breast feeding.

Currently on my sewing table are my first hesitant steps into the world of quilting (nearly finished the top, but I think thats the easy bit!) and some burnt orange ridiculously stretchy fabric which I intend to attempt to use to copy a RTW dress I love. If I survive all that stretch.