Wednesday, November 2, 2011

My Little Rainbow Monster!

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Finished my 3rd knitting project, Tristan's monsterbum longies! I just love how these turned out! I am not close to perfect yet, probably won't ever be, but I am really starting to learn things now! I can now tell the difference between stitches and can now find a dropped stitch! I have tried a few different stitches each time and now can proudly say I learned the bamboo stitch this go around and how to fix the jog on my rounds in my stripes. Didn't learn that until the end though, so we will see how great it works on my next pair!
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Made a little tee to match yesterday and put the set on my baby boy this morning. It was the perfect day to wear it, because his little personality today has me running for the hills! He is really into everything now, and is running everywhere, no walking here! Definitely a monster in training today! But I love him anyway!!
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I am so glad that I stayed with knitting and didn't give up! It really is so much fun! If you want to learn, please just google knitting tips and watch you tube! It really isn't all that hard to pick up and the outcome is so pretty!!
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Saturday, October 29, 2011

Happy Halloween!

I can't believe it is already Halloween! This year has gone by so fast. The kids are already pulling out the magazines and looking for toys for their lists!

I have been knitting so much, but have made some time to sew too! Made a couple of fleece sets for my baby boy.

This one has a lap tee that is made with one of my favorite japanese knits. I just love the pow that I appliqued on the butt too! One of my favorite sets to put on Tristan!
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I pulled out an old navy tee that I had forgotten about buying! That is the problem with buying ahead! Put together some fleece pants to match and added a BOO to the butt. Great set and I love it on him!
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And trying to lift the pumpkins!
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I hope everyone has a great Halloween! Tristan is going to wear a lion costume that my mom made over 17 yrs ago for my first born. Each of the children have wore it and this year is Tristan's turn. I will post pics this week!

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

My 2nd Set to Match Our Shoes of Course!!

I found these adorable Livie and Luca shoes in a little boutique this summer. Tristan has grown into them now, but I have almost nothing to match them. Found some yarn a while back on ebay and what do you know it was a pretty close match to the blue!

Used the sheepy pants pattern for this pair and they went so much quicker than the 1st pair! No holes either this time to sew up! I think maybe I am getting better!

Made an otto tee to match with a quick hand drawn elephant to match our shoes! We were able to snap a few pics yesterday morning before it became too hot! Baby boy is 14 months old today!!
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Now off to knit another pair! Trying a free pattern that I found on ravelry for the next pair!!

Tuesday, October 11, 2011

My 1st Pair of Longies!! I Knitted!!!

I must confess that I have a horrible habit of drooling all over everyone's pictures of knitted wool! I love to look through blogs, forums, anywhere and everywhere at beautiful knit creations! If it involves a baby I love it even more!

When I started cloth diapering I tried wool interlock for soakers and I loved them. Then during the hotter months I switched mostly to PUL diapers and I loved them too. Then I decided to order a custom pair of woolie shorties after seeing someones amazing creations and we ended up with our owl set, which I LOVE! Now a few pairs later and I decided that I MUST learn to knit!!

Now, I tried this once before. Right before I had Tristan last year, I went and bought all of the needles some yarn and a pattern. I cast on and started a pair of longies. Not even 1/4 of the way through I realized they were so big they would fit a 4 year old(they were newborn sized!) and there were so many holes(can you say dropped stitches?) that pee would leak right out!! So I did what any rational pregnant woman would do, I threw a fit, sold the needles and swore I would never knit!

Now over a year later, I was a determined! I went BACK to the store, bought the needles all over again and found some wool yarn on ebay. Last Sunday night I started! And this past Sunday afternoon I finished! My very first pair of woolies!! I love them, just because I made them, but there are quite a few mistakes. Thankfully I think I have learned what I did wrong and the next pair will go faster and easier, at least I hope!

I made a tee for Tristan today to match and I am hoping to go to the Pumpkin Patch later this week to get some action shots. Here is a preview though for now!! Oh and I can't say enough how much I love youtube and knittinghelp.com, they were wonderful and really helped when I didn't understand the pattern!

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Sunday, September 25, 2011

Shorties with a Matching Tee!

Not much sewing this weekend! I did finally get a chance to sew up a lap tee for my baby boy that matches a pair of wool shorties we received this past week. Gorgeous earthy colored shorties from mylovebugshop on etsy! I just adore these, they are beautifully knitted and the colors are just wonderful!
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I thought at first I would do a tee with an Earth on it, but then decided a tree was in order. Couldn't decide what kind of tree, so I just sat down with the heat and bond lite and started drawing, hoping that it would work itself out! It did and I just love it on my baby!
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I am really enjoying making tees to match woolies!! I need to send off some yarn to have some longies knit up for Tristan for winter!

Thursday, September 22, 2011

Lots of Upcycles in my Etsy!

I have been busy recycling this past week! One of my favorite kinds of sewing!! I have so many thrifted tees that need a new home and upcycling turns them into new creations!

I love sewing for little boys, but sometimes little boys don't like wearing things that are custom made after a certain age. Upcycling seems to solve that problem! In my experience most boys love a character printed tee! I never cared for them, but once they are upcycled they look pretty cute!!

Here are just a few that are up in my shop! I will have a few more by the weekend. Trying to start stocking a wide variety of sizes from bitty babes to big boys 10/12!

Marvel Super Heroes!
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Halloween!
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Patrick Star!
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Lots more! Feel free to click my etsy ZooTZ link to see the rest! Off to sew now, Tristan is in a good mood this morning so I hope to get a lot done!

http://www.etsy.com/shop/ZooTZ?ref=si_shop

Thursday, September 15, 2011

Itty Bitty Boy Sewing!!

I did a few things for my new nephew this past week and boy did it bring back the memories of when Tristan was born! So cute and tiny!

First I did one of my favorite rompers from ottobre. I have modified this one from the original pattern to snap up and not use as much fabric as the original one does. Love these, sz 50! And a little knotty hat to complete the set.
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Then I decided to try and modify the romper even more by making it a top and added a pair of matching pants from ottobre too! This material was from Chez Ami a few years ago and it is so incredibly soft! Very baby boy I think. Added another knotty hat too.
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And a cute wraparound top with a little elephant to match the cloth diaper that I did. Preemie sized because he is only 6 lbs., we will see if it fits!
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A couple of tees for his big brother! And my favorite breast pads from the pampered cheeks tutorial for the mama!
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Now I am off to sew up another preemie diaper for a DSD mama and then a new tee for Tristan! I received a pair of woolie shorties last week in the mail and I am dying to do a matching tee for my baby!!

Have a great rest of the week and happy sewing!!

Monday, September 12, 2011

Looking Back 6 Years! AND my Winners!

I recently had to purchase a new laptop and I am slowly trying to get pictures off the old one and onto my flash drive. While uploading some pics I realized that it was 6 years ago this month that I started my ebay journey sewing childrens clothing. Before that I had done womens diaper bags and totes. I was feeling a little burnt out and enjoyed browsing the boutique kids clothing. Back then there wasn't near the amount there seems to be now. I decided to make the change and have never regretted it. I just love sewing for little boys!!

This is the first thing that I put up for auction. It was a pair of embellished overalls that matched a Janie and Jack line. I can't remember seems like they went for $30 or so and I was jumping up and down that somebody would actually buy clothing from me!! My photo skills left a lot to be desired, but oh my little man!! I can totally see my Tristan in these pics when I look back. Guess its in the genes, they must be related!
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And now drum roll please..........Looks like #30 and #24, alison and c!! Congratulations!!

Emailing you now and will send these out as soon as I get your addresses. Thank you everyone for playing along! Look for more giveaways very soon!!

Saturday, September 10, 2011

Custom Tees Finished! Moving On!!

Another customer order finished and ready to mail. I just love doing customs! Three of these were made to match longies that a mama is knitting up. I hope they match and I hope her little boy loves them!
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I received a pair of shorties for Tristan this past week from etsy and they are so adorable!! I just love woolies! I can't wait to squeeze out a little time just to make my baby boy a matching shirt!

If you ever need a matching tee for your woolies please convo me on etsy or comment here on the blog. I will do my best to get back to you within 24 hours. It isn't always easy to find a cute matching tee and woolies just aren't complete without one!

Thursday, September 8, 2011

Itty Bitty Diapers! So Cute!! And a Give Away!!

Comments Closed! I will pick 2 winners later today and post!!

Sunday my SIL and her family welcomed baby Mason into the world! He was born weighing about 6 lbs 9 oz and 18"! Reminds me of when Tristan was just a bitty babe!

I would love to convert her over to cloth, so I am sending her a few diapers to hopefully sway her! The cutest, oh so tiny!! They may be a little too small for him, so I think I will make up a few smaller NB and some regular ones too.

These are all preemie diapers that I made this week. Aren't they the cutest? Working on customizing some, hope to have it perfected very soon. Three of the tiniest little diapers all with Babyville Boutique pul fabric!! The monster one even has the little tag and matching engraved snaps. I just love sewing these up!

Owl Diaper-Did this one first, but decided after it was completed I really don't like to topstitch the legs.
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Monster Diaper-Turned and topstitched with rolled in pul at the legs.
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Monkey Diaper-My favorite! Customized this one a little, but I will tell you more when the Babyville site goes live!
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Oh and did you know my local Joann's has started getting in the Babyville Boutique line. They had it all in the back when I stopped by the other day, but I stopped by the cutting counter to ask about it. One of my favorite ladies was working and she said that she did remember seeing it and went back to search for the monkeys pul I had requested. She reappeared in just a minute or two with a bolt of monkeys!! Oh so cute, still in it's plastic wrapping!! I got the very first cut!!

So most stores will be putting the line up in the next week or so, I think Sept. 18 is the official date.

But wouldn't it be nice if you could have some before then???

Leave me a comment below telling me why you need some Babyville Boutique monkey pul and I will select 2 winners at random to each receive a diaper cut(20x20) of this sweet material! I will keep comments open until midnight this Sunday, Sept 11. Please make sure when you post to include your email address so I will not have a problem getting a hold of you if you win!

Good Luck and Happy Sewing!!

Sunday, September 4, 2011

Girly Sewing!!

One of my best friends in the whole world is expecting a little girl at the beginning of October. I was blessed to attend her baby shower yesterday in Jacksonville. What a great time! It was so nice to see all of her family and friends that I hadn't seen in years! I wished the day did not have to end!

I managed to squeeze some sewing time in with my remodeling. Not as much as I wanted too and the cutest thing that I made, I forgot to take a picture!! It was the little ruffly dress from the summer 2011 ottobre. Too cute and tiny! I used Marie Horner's good folks and it turned out very nice. Hopefully very soon I will have modeling pics to post!

I used an ottobre lap tee pattern and made it longer and a lined to turn it into a sack gown. Added a matching knotty hat. Love this material!
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Then I did a snap up romper from another ottobre issue. Used all different colored snaps and added one of my beanies. I just love these little things! They turn out so small, hopefully Ms. Tanner will be small enough to fit into it for a week or so!
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And Friday, the day before the shower, I baked a cake! Decided at the last minute that it should be a carriage and went with it. Must have tasted pretty good because it was all gobbled up except for a few pieces! I never eat my cakes, I think maybe because when I am making them I sample too much!! Sadly my picture makes it look almost blue and it was a beautiful purple. I guess that doesn't speak highly of my photography skills!
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Have a great labor day! I am off to cook dinner and maybe get in a little sewing!!

Tuesday, August 23, 2011

Sesame Street Birthday and a SUPER baby diaper!!

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Sesame Street was one of my favorite shows as a little kid and I am hoping that this baby will love it too! My other 3 leaned more towards Disney and Nickelodeon shows, but I am really trying for PBS with Tristan!

I decided to just go easy on myself and whip up a recycled tee and diaper set. The tee was made from 3 different shirts that were in my recycling stash and the diaper was made from one of the tees too! The tee is an otto lap tee and the diaper is my first rocket bottoms one size fitted that I have tried. Loved the os pattern, just about as much as my baby boy loved his cake!!

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Today I decided to finally try a fitted with the babyville pattern. I cut the size small instead of the medium because of the stretchiness of the velour and it worked well. I think there is a little room for modifications on the next one, but it definitely works!

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Now off to bed with me! I am pooped!

Thursday, August 18, 2011

My Baby Boy is Now 1

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1 seems like such a big number when you are talking 1st Birthdays. It is midnight now and his day is done. It was a very small celebration, just the kids and hubby today, perfect!

Tonight when I put baby boy to bed, I couldn't help but let him lay on my chest a little longer. I love the feel of his heart beating and the sweet little noises he makes in his sleep. I want to tell him so many things, but I just lay there whispering, I love you sweet boy. Your brothers and sisters love you. Your daddy loves you. You are loved.

I hope he will always feel he is loved.

He has filled a void that I didn't know existed until he was born. God works in funny ways like that. Just when you think you have life planned out and you know where you are going, a curve in the road ahead. Thank you God for the curves!

I look at the clock 9:55 PM.

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A year ago, I woke up early in the morning to my water breaking, never happened that way before. After hours of my labor not progressing and baby's heart rate falling, I was rushed to an emergency csection. Expecting a big 8 or 9 lb baby, no ma'am your little guy is doing fine, all 5 lb. 5 oz. of him, born at 9:55 PM. 5 months of colic, never been this hard before. Lesson learned...

Expect the Unexpected and Embrace It!!

Thank you baby boy, for teaching me so much this year. I hope that you will always know that God had a reason for you and that your family loves you so much. Your daddy, brothers and sisters can't imagine a world without you in it!

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Goodnight baby boy I whisper as I lay him down in his crib for the night. Sweet dreams.

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