Some Things Old and A Couple New

My mother so nicely took my sewing machine in to be serviced while we were on vacation. I couldn't just plop it back on the dusty table so I took a little time to clean it off. Since I had removed all the crap items off the top to properly clean, I decided to flip out the sewing machine that came with the table.

I became the owner if this beauty in 1999 after my husband's grandmother passed away.   Looking at it today, there's some minor rewiring that needs to be done before it's plugged in again.

The original bill of sale from 1952!

While visiting my in-laws last week, my mother-in-law offered me any of her buttons I wanted.  I picked through and here's what I came home with...

Some of the buttons are vintage, others were clipped off of clothing that was destined for the rubbish bin.

Buttons aren't the only thing we brought home from Wisconsin.

 Joe Bob

Aaron

The Beta fish were used as centerpieces at the wedding rehearsal dinner.  My mother-in-law brought them home for the kids.  Of course, there was no way the kids would let us leave the fish behind.  I was surprised but they endured the 17 hour car ride home.  I've put the last set of pictures up from our trip over at Siestas and Travels if you're interested.

Free Patterns for me and Puppet Show for B

I wasn't sure if I liked my swimsuit coverup until I wore it a few times.  It was put into good use while on vacation when we went swimming at the hotel and in the lakes.  Of course, I never got a picture of it being worn.  Today, I made a point of having K take a few snaps before we headed to the water park.

Peachy Beachy Coverup free pattern download from fabric.com

I used a bubble gauze fabric...the same kind that I used for my Shearwater Caftan but in a different color.  As much as I don't like sewing the stuff, I have to say it's really nice to wear on hot, summer days.  And it keeps getting softer every time it's washed.  I skimmed the directions then did my own thing.  Changes I made:  skipped the drawstring and shirred the back (3 rows) and rolled hems on the sleeves and bottom edge.  It's been so long that I've forgot what size I sewed.  I do know that I used a smaller size on top and eased into a larger size for the bottom.  

My next bit of selfish sewing was the Colette Sorbetto top, another free pattern download.  This top has been making the rounds since it was posted in May.  I'm a little late to the party but better late than never!

My fabric choice was a Lisette Lawn that I had bought a while back but wasn't sure what to do with it.  I used the leftover fabric from my Passport Dress (Lisette Sateen) and made bias binding to finish the neckline and armholes.  I made the size 6 but used the length of the size 16 plus an extra inch.  When I make this again, I'll probably add another inch to the length.  The armhole is a little higher than I'm accustomed to.  For version 2, I'll drop it down just a tad.  I'm pleased with the top and am looking forward to making another.  The possibilities for embellishing/changing up the style of this top are endless!  If you check out the Colette Patterns Flickr group you'll see what I mean.

And last but not least, a pair of shorts for the little girls.  Seen here on BK...

Oliver + S Puppet Show shorts

These were finished at least a month ago.  I used stretch denim left over from MG's skinny jeans.    My seam ripper and I became close friends while I worked on the shorts.  It was purely lack of focus on my part...I really don't do a good job when I sew after the kids go to bed.   

The clock's ticking...only 5 more weeks of summer vacation and it's back to school for the kids.:(

Back in Town

Part of the reason, I dropped down to 1 post a week was I knew we would be travelling some this summer.  Our most recent trip was to Wisconsin for a family member's wedding with a brief stop off in Kentucky to visit with friends.
In the midst of packing, I stopped to do a little sewing...

With 4 kids and 2 adults travelling over a thousand miles one way in a minivan, space is limited.  The big kids take their regular pillows but it's too much to have the little girls bring theirs.  Especially when they are in booster seats and can't really use a full sized pillow.  Before we left, I purchased travel/camping pillows for them but balked at buying the pillowcases.  After all, I have a ton of fabric sitting at home and pillow cases are not hard to make. 

I also spent the day before we left, making K another swimsuit.

Kwik Sew 3785, size L with an extra inch added to front/back, Chez Ami fabric

And along the swimsuit theme, I made a cover up for MG and one for myself...

Burdastyle 6/2011, Hooded pullover

This was a bit of a pain in the butt to sew.  First, the pattern is for a woven.  Secondly, Burdastyle's instructions left me scratching my head.  I ended up winging it.  The cover up works, miss M likes it, but I'll do it completely different next time!

No pictures of mine since I'm always behind the camera...maybe later this week, I'll get one of the kids to snap a pic.

And here are a few pictures of clothes I've made that were worn while we were on vacation:

If you're interested in seeing more from our trip, I'll be posting photos and brief descriptions on what we did over at Siestas and Travels!

It's all about K

My eldest daughter has been on the receiving end of my sewing here lately.  There's the finished dress from my last post:

An Oliver + S UNruffled halter top:

And a racerback swimsuit that's under construction currently so no pictures.

My kids have been having fun with their cousins who were visiting from Idaho.

Uncle Chris (my brother) and P getting ready to paddle back to Grandma's house

Cousin S, BK, and MG along for the ride

MG, Cousin A, and Cousin S enjoying their Nutty Buddies

And I couldn't resist sharing this photo of BK making sure she didn't drown on the walk to the lake beach!

Summer Fun and Sewing

In between excursions to the water park and zoo, I've been printing off pdf patterns (Colette Sorbetto & Hot Patterns Peachy Beachy Coverup) in anticipation of a little selfish sewing.  

One of my recent sewing projects was a tote bag.  I needed one large enough to fit beach towels for our entire family plus sunscreen, swim goggles, and any other day-outside-involving-water paraphernalia.  After perusing flickr to look at the many versions of the Weekend Sewing  Everything Tote and asking a few ?'s regarding the finished size, I made one for myself.

My modifications weren't much.  I added 2 inches to the depth of the bag, lined the pocket, and ignored the written instructions for sewing the binding on.  The end result is a roomy bag perfect for the beach and water park. 

When it's time to sew a new bag, I'll add another pocket that's a little bigger and pad the handles.

My other sew-n-tell project is a dress for my oldest daughter.  She kept changing her mind as to what she wanted and truth be told, most of the patterns I have are more suited for the little girls in style if not actual size.  She liked a dress from Land's End but I didn't have any patterns with a surplice/faux wrap neckline that did not need heavy modifications done to it.  As luck would have it, I found what I needed in an old Ottobre Design magazine in my mom's sewing room.

K's dress in Michael Miller's Plain Jane fabric

I took the front of OD #37 01/06 and left it as is and cut the back of the top to the same length as the front.  I made my own pattern for the A-line skirt and gathered it so it would fit the bodice.  I then sewed 4 rows of stitching with elastic thread in the bobbin to shir the top edge of the skirt.  The bodice is lined and I added piping to the neckline and sleeve edges.  

K and I chose this particular fabric so she would have another dress to wear with her red/white polka dot shoes.  She's planning on wearing this dress to her cousin's wedding in July!