When the Dog Bites. . .

 I was at my friend's house recently when she needed help in a hard time and I came across a potholder in her kitchen drawer that I had made long long ago. It was a funny blast from the past, but it also made me laugh out loud because her dog had clearly tasted a corner of the hotpad. 

I asked her if I could replace the bitten hotpad with a pair that matched her new kitchen better. She said yes! 

This is now the third time I have replaced my worn-out handmade hotpads for friends - I like knowing the hotpads are worn because that is what I meant them for. Satisfying all around. 

Two Patchwork Pillows

I have been sitting in my bed more this winter - drinking tea, reading, journaling, you know, cozy things. In the past my whole house was a quiet sanctuary when the children were in bed, but these big beautiful children have independent social lives now and sometimes it takes place right in our house.

 

Which is good! Hilarious! But not quiet.

So I made myself a patchwork pillow to sit against the headboard and in the magic surprise of patchwork, I adore it. Restful yet not at all bland.

I limited myself to using my small scraps, which makes me extra-proud of my results. I used an extra throw pillow we had around, so I didn't have to buy anything at all for this project. This butterfly quilt was made by Grandma Weaver and I adore it.

 

I also saw the end of the patchwork living room sofa pillow. It stood up bravely to pillow fights (big kids!) and mending, but it was too worn for more mending.

I took the zipper out and used it again. For the last year or so, I have been pretty determined to sew down my stash, but I had a vision for deep purple in some way for this pillow and no fabric to assist me.

The striped fabric I found for pennies at the local creative reuse store is delightful in my living room. I pieced it with red and lavender and then I felt led to put baby rick rack on some stripes too.

Patchwork magic again! I am thrilled. I am less fond of the other side, but have moved on to other things. 

The Vegetable Dress

This dress turned out so differently from my vision. I'm still not sure I like it or will keep it. . . my vision was for a summer dress that was easy to wear, an everyday dress.

Yes, why did I pick fabric with a white background that needed a full lining? And. . . white? Why, Margo? The vegetables spoke to me, I guess? And the dress I made feels like a sweet, cute 1950s housewife dress - it doesn't feel like me! 

I thought by way of decoration that the skirt lining could peek out with a bit of eyelet lace, but I've gotten well-meaning shocked comments that my slip was sticking out.  Overall, I think the dress is just a bit too sweet for me. 

Funnily enough, I was at the optometrist one week, wearing the dress. The receptionist was so tickled to see there were vegetables on my dress. Then, when I brought Phoebe for her appointment next week, she remembered me (I was surprised - it's a big practice) for wearing the vegetable dress previously! 

Fortunately the side pockets I added are successful. And the blue and white is such a refreshing cool vision on the eyes in the deep sticky stink of a city in summer.

I found the bodice very tedious to fit. I needed to take in the top and let out the bottom, but since the dratted thing is lined and a multi-piece princess style, I had to rip out and the reconfigure twice the number of seams. 

All the photos on this post are by Phoebe! She did a fabulous job.

This dress caused me to think more carefully about my wishes for summer dresses. I did some research on pattern styles, and thought of the clothes I have that I like the most for comfort and personal style. Then, I purged my sewing patterns and carefully bought some different ones. Stay tuned - I fit in some successful sewing in my busy summer!

Raspberry Nightie

I cranked out a swishy yellow nightie for the growing girl.

The flowers are just so pretty on this vintage fabric from my stash. I used a size 5 pattern and just eyeballed some width and length. When I had her slip it over her head before I put the finishing sems in, we tore the armscye a bit. I'm afraid the vintage fabric might be a bit fragile. I topstitched a patch over the tear.

I did actually make the nightie too wide, so I put a pleat in the front neckline. Sewing over it with rick rack is a bit homemade-y looking, but I knew the fancier the trims, the more Phoebe would love it.

Well, it is pretty and she loves it! And raspberries. Keeping up with the bramble is a twice-a-day job right now, and the black raspberries are coming in, too. One of the fun parts of summer!

An Easy Calico Dress

 I made Genevieve a first-day-of-preschool green calico dress and then lengthened it as she grew taller and then saved it for the little sister who wore it to literal shreds.

Mending fabric that is shredding due to age or heavy wear is like bailing a leaky boat. I've become a savvy mender by inspecting items carefully to make sure I can truly extend their life with mending. Here the fabric was giving out at the bottom of each tuck and I had already mended a three-corner rip that had torn open again. 

So, the middle of the green dress went in the piece bag, the top was discarded, the buttons put back in the button tin, and Phoebe said sadly, now I don't have a calico dress.  

That is an easy fix!

I had a length of navy calico just barely enough for a Phoebe dress - I almost wrote "little girl" but Phoebe is just not very little anymore (and when you look at little Genevieve wearing the green dress - oh my heart! my little girls!). 

I planned to use the same dress pattern as the green calico, but apparently I had gotten rid of it at some point. I used a Style pattern a neighbor gave me when she cleaned out her sewing stuff. I added some rick rack and juicy red buttons and that is a very smart summer dress. 

Phoebe has been helping me set up garden beds and plantings all week long as she quarantines for COVID reasons. She has a pepper plant named Rosalind now. She gets to read books with her pasta and pesto and watercress lunch.  A good week to be at home wearing an easy breezy calico dress!

Mittens Yet

Last fall, I made Phoebe nice black felted wool mittens from an old sweater. I even placed the cuffs on the ribbing so that they hugged her wrists. She ignored the mittens all winter until I finally realized they were just too plain (and sophisticated and New Yorky) for her style. I offered to add hearts to them and then would she wear them? Oh yes, little pink hearts stitched on with blue perle cotton were just the ticket. 

I am still using the Purl Soho mitten pattern. It is so fast and uses just scraps of warm fabric! I can't justify knitting mittens again when these fleece ones are warm, fast, and economical. Plus, mittens are easy to lose, for anybody, not just kids, so I'm very pleased to have found easy, thrifty replacements. 

I even made myself a pair of leopard print fleece. I added a lining of grey knit cotton because I like very warm hands. 

We are having some spring-like days here and there - once I even put away the sleds and snowpants and stock tank heater from the rain barrel. That drew the attention of the snow gods and we got a not-little snowstorm, indeed we did. Spring, you really bring the drama! I have both my mittens and my barefoot sandals in rotation right now. I love it. 

A Calico Tunic for Phoebe

 Phoebe does really love her leggings, so I bought her a stripey pair as a Christmas stocking stuffer and found some blue calico in my stash to make her a tunic. In fact, all the materials for this tunic were on hand.

I have used this pattern before for Genevieve. 

As I sorted through notions for the tunic, I discovered the most astonishing matching flannel, a scrap I have had in my stash for years and enjoyed looking at.

Look! It matches like the calico and flannel came from the same fabric line in 1970! Different fabrics bought as scraps from different stores, marinating in my stash for years, joined in such happiness. I just love it. Phoebe does too!

Out with the Old Hotpads, in with the New

This is actually a hotpad post, but hey, it coincides with the end of 2021, so I made the cute title. 

I really enjoy washing my hotpads and keeping them nice-ish. A little kitchen luxury for the cook. My old hotpads had been used and washed so hard that the fabric was splitting.

I moved them to the outdoor kitchen where they will get some more grease and black spots in their useful life before going in the compost. 

For the new ones, I used fabric scraps that were lingering in my stash because they weren't 100% quilting-weight cotton. I tried to mostly stick with darker fabric or with busy prints, and I do love kitchen brights. 

As filler, I used felted wool sweater scraps that were so thick the hotpads barely fit under my machine's walking foot. The hotpads are wonderfully insulated, if a little thick and stiff, but they are great with the cast iron which gets quite hot. 

Please, if you have insights or reflections for "out with the old, in with the new," leave a comment with your wisdom. Or if you just want to chat about hotpads, I am all ears for that, too. Happy New Year, dear friends!

Two Blue Dresses

In January, deep in covid-cautiousness, my sister got married. It was a delight to dress up again and celebrate!

Phoebe was the flower girl, although as soon as she said "flower fairy," the title stuck. My sister said we should choose whatever dress we wanted (I have the best sister and she was never, not even for one second, a bridezilla). I had a delicious deep dive on winter flower girl dresses, developing a vision that suited all parties: dressy but not out of regular church-wear, wintry but not black or white, flexible with whatever other colors appeared at the wedding. . . 

I used a simple Prussian blue cotton from my stash. I found a gorgeous net sequin fabric for the overskirt at JoAnn's as well as pink satin to line the bolero. For cold weather, she wears the bolero. For warm weather, it's a sundress! I wanted to give Phoebe as many chances as possible to enjoy wearing her dress, but wanted it to look appropriate in any season. At that time, I could not predict when we would be going out in nice clothes again and I did not want any more nice clothes hanging sadly in our closets, especially the handmade ones. 

 I thought I could just gather two rectangles of the net fabric into a black ribbon and tie the overskirt on at the sides, but it ended up being too heavy so I basted it onto the waistline for the wedding. 

Phoebe and I are both so pleased with this dress! She has indeed worn it in all its iterations since January.

The second blue dress is a school uniform dress. I added some light blue topstitching to liven things up.

It has a deep hem, so I'm planning to let it out as Phoebe gets taller. I love Peter Pan collars and here with the puffed sleeves, it's such a charming retro look. 

I had all the supplies in my stash! When my older kids were starting school, I laid in a supply of fabric that would work for uniforms. Our district currently does uniforms until 6th grade and I think that is just right: let the little kids scramble into a prescribed uniform, let the big kids define their own style as they fledge into adulthood.

Phoebe is really the only child I sew for any more. I feel like I live with three other adults and a child! In fact, Genevieve turned 16 this week, oh my word. Such is the speed of life....