L is for lace, leather, leggings & lightbulb

Okay, so technically it's not real leather.  Just add a P.  I wasn't about to use real leather for a 4-year-old's skirt, but I couldn't resist giving a "leather" skirt a whirl for Clover.  I was talking to my mom about creativity today and I told her that I've really enjoyed this series.  I hadn't anticipated it becoming so formal, but anticipating things has never been one of my strengths.  That's why I married Ryan.  He gets to be the boyscout, always prepared.  Tangent.

So.  I used Oliver + S sailboat skirt pattern and with baby wale corduroy for the side insets.  It was giving me a motorcycle vibe, so I went whole hog with the silver metal buttons.

The green lace was something I ordered online a long time ago, but when I had the package in my hand and opened it, it was entirely different than what I imagined, so it's been relaxing in my green stash.  The green is actually subdued with the black knit behind it and I added some exaggerated cuffs to make it go with the skirt.  I just traced a dirty, old t-shirt she had stuffed in her drawer.  Gross.

This is how her hair was when she woke up!  If only we were all blessed with such obedient locks.  And children.

When sewing with (p)leather, you can use pins as long as they are within the seam allowance and holes won't be visible after sewing.  I used some binder clips for the waistband so keep it in place, you could also use clothespins or even paperclips.

I sewed most of this while Clover was at school or asleep,so I left the final stitching undone until I could fit everything to her and found it humorous and thought I should document, so you know what it looks like behind the scenes.  Drummer is in the background, making copious amounts of crumbs, I don't like to cut elastic until I know the exact amount I'm going to use so I don't waste a single inch, so she's got the entire roll hanging in the back.  

I actually had finished the leggings.  I thought.  But one should always test the stretch in a fabric BOTH ways, because when I flipped the cuffs the other way, they didn't stretch.  At all.  I underestimated the importance of stretch.  It's probably part of that whole lack of anticipation, so changes were needed.

Cut them off!  I added a bit of decorative elastic, which I happened to have in a very close shade of green to the shirt.

Giving herself bunny ears

Then I added "love" in silver thread (you know, because it's L week.  Plus, I love her) and did a C and R in black.

She borrowed my lightbulb necklace for the occasion.  Brilliant idea ;)

One more letter this month, this year!  Are we halfway there, yet?

K is for key, kite, kitten, keyhole & kangaroo pocket

As I was showing Ryan what I made for K week, he inspected the key and said, Isn't that the key that goes to the antique desk?.....Um.  Yes.  But isn't it just so perfect for this dress?

It is, isn't it?  And actually, it's not a dress.  More like a tunic.  Fun story: I was looking through my fabric (which I still haven't shared a picture of, have I?) and trying to decide what to use for K week, when I saw these little kitties peeking at me between some corduroy and linen.  I pulled them out and lo and behold! it was already a half-finished dress!  

What?  When did I start this? And why did I not finish?  And boy howdy did I do an amazing job on matching the sleeves with the bodice!  

It seems to me that I made it with a vintage pattern because the neck is borderline choking hazard and I'm 93.6% sure that I made the front the front, unless it was supposed to have a cute placket going up the front.  Then in that case, it's backwards.  

It's a pretty snug fit, and I'm surprised I didn't get a single complaint about the tightness of the neck from little miss Clover Love (it's looser in the back, I promise).  It's also why it was turned into a tunic which necessitated something below.  I made some quick little leggings out of cozy rib knit.

You might recognize the triple stitch from the blankets I made earlier this year.  If it looks good once, why not two more times, right?

This is Clover, racing me out the door.  I totally let her win. ;)

I used my ruffling foot for the edges of the sleeves.  Didn't want you to think I sat there making tiny pleats for 304 hours. 

My little Kangaroo.  She's got the key to my heart.

H & I...finally

My friend told me it would make lots of people feel better knowing that I, too, get behind.  Yes?  I am human.  I have stuff happen.  < that sentence is lame, but I'm going to leave it anyway.   

H is for holes, heirloom, handkerchief, and herringbone!  Hooray!

I?  Haha!  I had this strip of imitation fur that Clover repeatedly pulled out each week and asked if I would put it on her next dress.  I hoped she would forget about it, but then she would pull it out again.  Ol' elephant memory, that girl.  And impractical?  Yes!  This skirt is what non-quilters do with their scraps.  Or is just me?  I had a little bit of lining left from the jacket, as in less than 2 square feet.  I cut it up into a million bias strips about 5" long and sewing them together, ruffled them and smooshed them onto a little triangular insert, added the tiny bit of herringbone I had left that was a scrap before I even started the jacket, did some iridescent sheer scrap in the back and then filled it in with the eggplant wool.  Ryan sat in the sewing studio reading a book while I was working on this, and I kept talking to myself.  He's learned that I do that when I sew.  So.  Impractical? Absolutely.  What happens when she gets it dirty?  Not sure yet.  Just glad I'm all caught up.

Plus. She's happy she got her fur.

The jacket also has a story.  I love stories.  M for mishaps is what it should be called, but I will tell that another time.

The jacket is made with an Ottobre pattern, Spring 2011.  It didn't come in her size, so I had to readjust.  I also added the lining which caused the mishaps in the first place.

As I was doing Clover's hair, braid after braid after braid after braid, I told her that there was a surprise on the jacket and that I'd tell her what it was as soon as we got some pictures.  Bribery?  Perhaps.  After we were done shooting I helped her unbutton it and showed her the swan handkerchief inside, her own little secret.  

This was her reaction:

When my grandmother passed away several years ago, when Pearl was a baby, I asked if I could have her handkerchief and pillowcase collection.  This was one that I cut off the corner as an heirloom for her great-granddaughter that she probably helped send to us.  I love that it's tucked inside, right next to her.  (And yes, that's strawberry jam on the side of her forehead.  Is that why her hair was so hard to comb?!)

The holes on the ribbon just happened to work into the h scheme.  So nice of them.  The skirt makes me giggle.  I told Ryan it's her hodge-ka-podge skirt (remember that episode of Project Runway, where Heidi couldn't remember the term hodgepodge?)  

She got her fur.  That's all that matters.

My Two Babies and Veggie Pot Pie

Ever since the teachers at school brought us dinner, including chicken pot pie, I haven't been able to get it of my mind.  I had never made any sort of pot pie before simply because when I was a little girl I ate one that didn't agree with my stomach and an aversion was created, fiction or not. But! What I'm about to share with you just very well might become your new go-to comfort food as it has ours (ours meaning Ryan and mine because Olive can't get over "the sauce").

It's a recipe from Ina Garten whom we adore around these parts.  I think part of is she doesn't seem full of herself like so many culinary geniuses, but I love the fact that each ingredient is an actual food.  No preservatives or other spooky additives.  Just put in the veggies you like best.  The recipe is here.  A few of my changes:  I didn't add the butternut squash because we didn't happen to have and Ryan thinks it might add too much sweetness anyway.  I also omitted the tiny whole onions, which without a doubt would have been promptly removed by the baby dills anyhow.  I did add some corn and butterbeans.  Also, I don't think there's any need to precook the asparagus or carrots as they were overcooked by the time the whole pie was baked.

But, altogether heavenly, I tell you!  She says it makes enough for 4 small pies, but I had enough filling for 2 large pies and froze the second half for another meal.  Easy peasey.  You could easily double it and keep batches of the filling in the freezer to pull out at a moment's notice.

Clover declared before even taking a bite that she didn't like it, but I fed her forkful at a time and she cleaned that plate after all.

She has also declared pink as her new favorite color.  After church I asked her if she wanted to wear pink pants or the pink skirt with her pink shirt.

She declared BOTH!

With a face like that, who can refuse.  She might be the last one around here to wear pink anyway.

Because this boy of ours.  Oh, this boy.  I didn't know how much I needed a boy!  I had convinced myself that if it was a girl that it would be fine and so much easier and definitely cheaper.

But how grateful I am to get a chance at raising a boy.  A boy who loves snuggles more than most of his sisters ever did.  He could happily live upon that chest, nestled in the hollow of the neck and, as Ryan says, we will enjoy this last one as much as possible because those sometimes sweaty, but sweet smelling snuggles of this newborn will be gone all too quickly.

My Favorite Spice turns 3

This milestone has meant big things for our family.  Nobody in diapers for the first time in 10 years.

That's a lot of diapers.  

For the past 10 years, we've always had someone under the age 3.

Of course it won't last long.  In fact I bought some newborn diapers today, opened up the box and had to show all these big sisters how small and cute they were.

I got ooh's and ahh's from all the girls, just the reaction I was hoping for.  

Clover immediately wanted to take off her panties and try them on.  Bad news.

Her sisters went thrift style with gifts for her birthday and found some of their old toys to wrap for her presents.

[This is why she has her own personal cake. ;)]

We ended the day by trying to teach her how to do summersaults outside.

Sporting her new haircut, Azure did a great job of showing her, but landed face first in the dirt.

What a good sister.

Happy birthday, Cloves.

You are one cute chaos creator.