Tuesday, September 28, 2010

sleep and bowties

Just as easily as my son slipped out of his bedtime routine, he has found his way back to a peaceful nights sleep. Children are a mystery, but be sure that I'm not complaining. Now that he is going to bed more easily I have some time to get down to work and do the sewing that simply must get done. Last night I even had enough time to iron the bowties that needed to be ironed, putting me ahead a day in my work. Its wonderful for the evening routine to go so smoothly, I'm not sure how long it will last, but for now I'm enjoying it. My bowties are looking wonderful, you can find my cherries on black bowtie for sale on my etsy shop. http://www.mrssewbot.etsy.com/ 

Monday, September 20, 2010

delicious snack and a little rambling

I love that I can make a very satisfying and delicious snack in the time that it takes for the previews to play on my DVD. Simply melt the marshmallows, add the cereal (this time I used cocoa rice crispies and toasted o's) and at the last second before you put it in the pan to cool you add the chocolate chips. Delightful! The best part about all this wonderful snack making is that the babe is asleep and so I can quite peacefully watch my movie while enjoying my cereal square. 

On a different note I  have quite possibly come up with my cutest creation yet. Up on my Etsy shop you will find lamb headbands. They come complete with ears and are quite adjustable. I am dying to see them on a baby, except for the brief moments that I can manage to get one on Buzz's head, he simply won't wear it. I don't blame him, with the bow above the ear it makes him look like a girl. He will however tolerate his mohawk hat, which is a very good thing because the cool weather is returning.



Speaking of cooler weather, how adorable are children when they play in leaves? Alright, I am rambling, time to crochet until my fingers stumble.

Wednesday, September 15, 2010

so many projects.... so tired

After browsing many wonderful crafty books at the store today I am simply bursting with ideas of many many projects that I want to do. I am so overwhelmed with crafty ideas that I can't focus on the crocheting that I should be doing. Arg. No matter, I am too tired to do anything anyway, off to bed I go.

Tuesday, September 14, 2010

Buzz's Room - a work in progress

In the months leading up to Buzz's birth we lazily put together a room for him. We were reluctant to get rid of the clutter and we never really got his room ready before he showed up. To make matters worse he spent the first few months of  his life in our own room, and by the time he would have been moving into his own space we found ourselves moving into a whole new apartment. Around Buzz's first birthday we finally got our act together and set up his room just for him. Due to the small space in our apartment, or rather the great amount of things in our apartment, we are still working out the kinks in his space and ours. Currently Buzz is sharing a space with my craft desk. It works well in that I can work on crafts while he plays, however Buzz got his hands on a packet of sparkles this morning and he shimmered in green for the rest of the day. The one thing I do love about his room is his art. Buzz's art collection is better than my own, and more abundant for that matter. With all of his art and photographs I love that he can go to sleep at night surrounded by photographs of family, and art created by those who love him. Our latest change in his room has it split in half so that there is a play area and a sleep area with a shelf separating them. So far the setup has been working well for him and us, easy to tidy, and with his toys in his toy box he is less likely to scatter them everywhere.
I'm sure it will change soon enough, but check out the pictures to see some highlights.
















I promise that sometime in the near future I will post a full tour of his room, fish tank and Mr.Nippers included.


Costume Dilema

Another year, another halloween, and it would seem that we are once again in the age old dilemma of what to be.

I have been everything from a princess to queen of the lawn gnomes and many scarecrows in between, however the pressure to come up with a good costume has never been so great as when Buzz was born. Even when he was a teeny fetus in my belly he was part of our costume, I went as Juno, my husband went as Pauly Bleeker, and Buzz played the part of baby in the belly. He did a very good job. Last year we were already thinking about which costume he would wear all the way back during the summer. We had ideas and plans and then a friend mentioned that with his pale skin and chubby chins he looked like the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man. And so a costume was born! E and I even went as Ghostbusters, the only problem that we have now is that we have a ton of pressure come up with a costume that is even better than last years. Ideas?

Check out the instructions below to make your own baby into the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man.



Materials Needed

1 white outfit. It works best with a hood as well, but a white infant hat would be fine instead of a hood. We used a white fleece one piece outfit with a hood. Halloween tends to be a little cool in Canada, so it was great to have the extra warmth.

4 pieces of felt. 2 royal blue, 1 red, 1 white.
thread
white fabric paint
black fabric paint
thin ribbon

you will also need a sewing machine (or you can hand sew everything) and scissors.

Because the main part of the costume is already done with the white outfit the only things that need to be handmade are the hat and the collar.

Collar





Cut out the shape shown in the picture out of the blue piece of felt. Sew two pieces of ribbon at the top of the opening so that they can be tied together. Cut the red tie shaped piece out of the red felt and sew onto the front of the blue piece.

Use white fabric paint to make the white line around the blue collar. Alternatively you could use white ribbon and sew the line on, but the white fabric paint is super easy and quick.

Use black fabric paint to add realistic detail to the red piece of felt.

Hat



You will need to cut out a large circle from the white. If you use a round dinner plate to trace a circle before you cut you will have the perfect size. Cut a small circle from your second piece of blue felt or from your scraps. This should be a bit bigger than a toonie, don't worry, it doesn't have to be exact as it will look just fine in the end. Also from the blue you should cut a strip that is about 4 inches by about 11 inches. You will also need to cut a red piece in the shape of two pieces of ribbon, its easier if they are attached at the top sort of like a wishbone.

Now for the the construction of said hat. you want to layer it so that the white circle is on the bottom, the red piece is on top of that and the blue circle is on top of that (refer to the picture). Be sure to centre the blue dot in the middle of the white circle. Sew around the edge of the blue dot securing the red piece as you go. You may find it helpful to pin it although I find that the felt sticks together nicely.

Next fold your long blue rectangle in half lengthwise and sew the edges together. This will add a bit of structure to the hat so that its not smooshy. Sew the two shorter edges together to create a loop. Next pin the edge of the large white circle to the blue loop, you'll have to gather as you go, but just try and keep it as even as possible. Make sure that all the seams are on the inside of hat. When the hat is sewn together turn it right side out. Hurrah! You have made a hat. Use the black fabric paint to add detail to the red tie and the white fabric paint to write 'STAY PUFT' on the band of the hat.



I used stitched the hat to the hood of the white outfit in a couple of places to keep it in place, but you could also use safety pins.  The collar will tie on over the white outfit and your little one will be the cutest marshmallow man on the block.