4 way split

So, today, I am thinking about Jeannine, Teri, Melissa and Beki. I have a random list of things I want to do today, or get started this weekend. So, I hope my brain will cooperate help me plan it out.
I am hoping Jeannine and her kids are feeling well. We just started coming down with something yesterday. The only plus I can say about it, is that we all seem to be getting it at once, instead of it slowly going from one person to the next. Although, I may change my mind in a day or two.
Secondly, I'm thinking how awesome it would be to have a sewing table like Teri. I did not realize how many more Expedit pieces there are, and it seems like the prices have reduced, too. Hmm.... So, while I'd love to run right out, I'll have to save and plan, and maybe clean in the meantime. It's funny because I was just thinking yesterday, how it hurts my back to hunch over my current table. Also, how great it would be to tuck storage under my table. I currently have a kitchen table, extended, and my machines spread on one side, and cutting room on the other. My serger is closest to the cutting space, and it's in the way. I've been thinking about moving it, to be behind my main sewing machine.
Third, I am hungry, and Melissa has posted a great looking loaf of bread on her blog, that is a 5 minute deal. I put the book on hold at the library right after I read it. She posted a link to a recipe for it, so if I have enough flour, I may take a crack at it this weekend. My dh might fall over if he sees me touch the stove. LOL.
Fourth, I've been scouring craigslist and some of the resale shops for some furniture. Beki has repainted her daughter's bed turquoise, and I just love it. My little girl is outgrowing her cute , vintage dressers, so I either have to revamp her closet, or find her something new, to us. Her room is granny apple green, so turqoise, or periwinkle blue, or something vibrant would look lovely. I found an awesome buffet, but I really need to go up, not out, her room is small. There have been some interesting child height wardrobes, but I am thinking the bigger the drawers, the better. I guess we'll see.
Lastly, I have some sewing to do this weekend. I need to look for a woven top pattern, in Ottobre, to make my daughter a shirt. I got her some cute Dora fabric at Hobby Lobby yesterday. I am thinking there was a sleeveless tunic, that tied on one side. I'd like it to have a lining or extra layer of fabric, but I guess I'll see what I find. I also need to work on a gift for our neighbor's daughter. She's turning 4 at the end of the month. So, I have plenty on my mind.

Training pants for dd

Otto4-04-girlsundies_21.JPG, originally uploaded by twolilacs.

I did my best to hack an Ottobre pattern for little girls undies into a pair of training pants for dd. It's from 4/04, pattern #34, size 86. Despite some of the sewing flaws, I think they came out pretty useable for now. Love the fabrics. The stretchy pink was a small challenge, but I kept at it, and adjusted my foot pressure to be looser or tighter as needed.
If anyone would be interested in my hack, I'd be happy to put together a quick pdf. And clicking on the photo will take you to the rest of the images.
It took me about two nights (tv sidetracked), and a few 15 minutes here and there to trace and redraw the pattern, cut the fabrics, hem and haw about doing the binding, sitting down and sewing like a speed demon so I didn't lose momentum.... until I ran out of bobbin thread in one of the legs.... no worries though, I had a spare bobbin of a close enough color. They are only undies.
For some reason, my darling daughter refused to participate in any fittings... so I finally wrangled her into them before I bound the waist. The fit is snug getting on, but wearable... next time, I should use a bias cut, or more stretchy fabric as the padding. I am wondering how warm & natural or maybe some bamboo (fleece?) would be. As far as adding stretch elsewhere, I might add a bit more fabric across the width of the hip piece.
I am hoping that the training will be short, and she'll be going on the potty sooner vs. later. She really is pretty good about it, just needs consistency from me. I have not pushed her, but she's probably been ready for training for a couple months. I didn't really want to do it in the winter time, and now that it's summer, I'll be seizing the moment.
I really miss my baby though...

Time is getting away from me

The crocus' are withered away and spring has come, some of my flowers are blooming. I'm so excited to see that my handful of Prairie trillium have multiplied. It will be years before they all flower, but last year I was graced with one full beauty. I grew up calling them bloody noses... but my curiosity as a gardener wanted to know the real name. They aren't a typical looking flower, but one of my favorites. I think second in line would be Spring Beauties, as far as bulbs go.
We'll see what this year has in store for the garden. I have some lemon drops that I bought at a plant sale, and last year my one or two plants turned into at least two dozen seedlings... and now there is a full crown starting. My mind tells me I should be dividing them soon. It's suppose to be 70° here friday, so maybe then, if the kids allow me to wander away from the playset. Whatever I did with that helpful sheet with suggestions of when to divide and deadhead.... I always try to look before I dig since I can't remember all the plants likes and dislikes.
I finished my aunt's purse last week. I made it from the Ottobre pea pod purse pattern(free download). It came out pretty well, she was excited to have something made for her, too. I've never used the fusible batting before. It wasn't very difficult, but I had some challenges putting in the zipper and stitching along the top. I had to restitch some of it because the fabric was folding over itself, so I had lost about 1/4" in a few stretches. I'm glad I didn't just leave it and move on. I thought putting the bottom on would be hard, but it was just a matter of maneuvering the fabric around. I didn't get any puckers there. The expanded instructions were great. In a few weeks, Tuula and the Ottobre staff will be posting the rest of the bag photos they received on their new blog.
I'll come back and post some photos after lunch.

Look Mom!

1stdollquiltswap_13.JPG, originally uploaded by twolilacs.

Sad to say, I didn't make this for dd, but she is a wonderful helper, and will be getting her very own soon. This was my first quilt, first free motion quilting, first quilt binding... you get the idea. I participated in a doll quilt swap, so this is going off to my partner in sewing, shortly.
I tried to incorporate the following things based on her answers to some of the swap questions... including, flowers/roses, green (for grass), white (for freshness), children playing... and some little secret hidden things - there is an apron hanging on a line in the yellow roses, her dd's name is free motioned in the bottom corner, kind of on a slant, and a heart above that...
The children playing is from my grandma's stash. I basted it with another piece of cotton because it was kind of thin. Hope I did that right.
I actually felt like the binding took the most time... but maybe it was because I was trying to get done.. Oh yeah, and cutting those stinking roses with my giant ruler... LOL.
All in all, this was a fun project, and I hope she likes it. If you want to see other pics of it, you can check my flickr.
References I used: Sew Mama Sew doll quilt sew-along, Vicki's binding tut, and some free motion reference from Crazy mom.

On the bandwagon

Before & After Do, originally uploaded by twolilacs.

Well, it must be the time of year that everyone is looking for something new. I have decided that my hair needed a change. A drastic change. Honestly, we have a well & septic, and incredibly hard water. It was, literally, taking about 20 minutes to comb after a shower, with leave in conditioner. I did a rinse with baking soda and water while it was still long, and that did make it feel better.
On the bright side, I have been wanting a new hairstyle for a while. I grew out so long, so that I could put long layers and a little style into, and then I went and cut all my hard work right off. I am really happy with it though. It's probably been 15 years since my hair has been this short.
Other than the hair, I am just trying to stay somewhat organized around here, keep at the sewing, and keep the kids busy. I'm working on a little doll quilt at the moment. Hope to have it finished up in the next few days, since I need to mail it out.... my eyes are bulging out of my head because I should be done already. In my defense, I have not had much time to myself the last couple weeks, and the next few weeks will likely be the same.
Oh and on that note, lunch is little late today.... haha.

Christmas doll

Well, she's not really a doll, but she's my doll. Her dress is the Cilla dress from Otto 06/08, #5. (The toys are her brothers.) I thought the dress went together pretty well. I cut the yoke upside down the first time, even after reminding myself... oops. It was tiny, so I recut and moved on. I used dark green for the inner yoke, and snaps instead of buttons. Snaps were a new challenge for me. I chalked the back and lined them up where they needed to go, and they work.
I love the style of this pattern. I was thinking about a valentine's dress, but it would be great for everyday too.
Most of our family lives a few hours away, so we are usually traveling over the holidays. We spent Christmas eve with my family and Christmas day with dh's family, and then had our own Christmas at home friday morning. The kids got to play and visit, and bring home some goodies. I made my MIL a cover for her huge toaster, that came out nice. I'm glad I made a stp dummy to have at home. The cover is in the same waverly print she has as wallpaper. I got the fabric free off of my local freecycle. I didn't think I'd be lucky enough to find any since it's several years old. So that was cool! I didn't really do any other hand made gifts, but I did make my mom a nice red/green plaid gift bag (to wrap her robe). I also bought some yummy smelling soap from WashableArt on etsy, including legos, oatmeal cookie dough, and some pink cupcakes. I'm not sure if it was her or another soap maker, but I saw bubbles, round bubbles in a small mass somewhere and cannot relocate them... wish I would have favorited them. Oh well, that's it for now.
Happy New Year!

Good Mail

Yesterday's mail was great! New reading material. I should've ordered more winter, less spring.... but the goal was to have some new ones for spring.... so I'm really on track.
I can't wait to make something out of 03/07. Such cute stuff. I got 02/04 for the swim wear mainly, so I hope I can make that a go sometime next year.

I had my niece here for the latter part of Thanksgiving weekend. We went to Joann's for the fleece sale on Saturday and picked a few things. I made her a cute new scarf to go with her white puffy coat. This one here is a matching one for her younger sister. Mittens are next on the list, once I find a pattern. I was going to use Otto 04/04, but they aren't big enough.
Other than that, things here are a little dreary and I am tired. Tired of cleaning up spilled pop, spilled milk, pee accidents and dog vomit. Totally disgusting. Someone's either not paying attention, playing with their food and slinging things off the table, running around without a diaper because she knows where the potty is.... or at least I thought she did..... and lastly, the dog. He's just having a bad day I guess. I really wish I had a cleaning lady this week, or a magic wand. I really have to get moving on the office stuff, organizing, containerizing, and so on. The counter top is ready to pick up, and the rest should be ready within 1-2 weeks. Not much time to get through the paper jungle. LOL.

Stepping into fall.

I love the smell of fall. The leaves of the wild cherry tree, and it's berries are dropping all over the front yard, and the large (ash, elder?) is about half yellow. I was thinking about where to put some pumpkins so the kids can see them from their rooms before bedtime.
I have one plant flowering right now, a purple aster. The phlox have mostly set seed, but there are a few stragglers with a bloom or two dangling. Time to get out there and divide things for next year, and pass along some things to my nice new neighbors.
Little girl has been exhibiting her independence lately. She told me she had to potty about two weeks ago, and really went. She just turned 23 months. So, we have been adjusting day to day routines to promote this new found skill. Although, I have a hard time telling when it's just a game sometimes. She is so proud of herself, and daddy and brother must come acknowledge her business and clap and applaud. =) It's cute. (She also wants a potty for her bunny.) I saw one at target with a baby doll, but the price tag was staggering.
The kids and I went to the park last thursday for lunch and that did not turn out as expected. There were instantly bees. Note to self: no picnicking in september. One stung me on the leg, and it is now Sunday and my leg is still sore, but not as red. I am glad though that it was me, and not the kids.
I finished up a pair of pants from the last kids Ottobre for A, and they fit her great. However, we went to lunch and she sat on a mandarin orange.... It's a stubborn stain, but much of it has come out. Oh well. I definitely want to make more of that pattern.