rainy day craft for kids

it has yet to be summer for more than a few days at a time here, so today at 8am me and my little man decided to get crafty. I thought I'd do a little tutorial for some kid friendly fun, it is using the same idea as the post below this one.

first: you'll need something to paint on I chose a tee, you could also use a sweater, a tote etc.

second: tape of any kind, scissors, contact paper/draw liner paper (you can also use freezer paper and iron it in place), a bryer or a childrens rolling pin, a paint brush and cookie cutters or objects to dip in paint and stamp with.

third: paint, you can buy small tubes of fabric paint at Walmart and some dollar store it's about $2 larger ones are about $5 if you have the option I like the 'Soft' type (over the Slick). note: these paints can be a little thin so you could prepare a decent amount of paint in a container and leave it to dry just a little while you organise the rest of the project.

fourth: shapes to put on your tee, my little man is only 2 so I photocopied his hands then traced them on to the contact paper and cut those out but you could let you children cut out hearts, animals etc.

fifth: optional tape any areas you don't want pain on and cover any work areas you don't want paint on (paint wipes off my counter really well so I skip this). Then tape the tee to the work surface so that it doesn't move around.
note: don't forget you are working with fabric paint so wear a smock or like Rio, wear nothing at all :)

sixth: stick on your contact paper shapes (this I did in the picture above but the hands are clear so you can't see them). Then the part your children will really enjoy start painting. If you have chosen to use a roller of some sort use a paint brush to apply paint then roll it across the tee. Now you can see the hands as they are covered in paint.

note: you need to make sure that there is good paint coverage around your shapes so that when you take them off you'll have a good outline of the shapes.

note: to speed up drying in between colours you can use a hair dryer.

seventh: dip your stamping object in a shallow amount of paint and stamp away. (re-dip after each stamp)

hair dry when you are finished and peel away all the tape and your shapes and there you have it a little wearable piece of art.

nap time quicky

I had a very successful visit to the Thrift store today, I bought 8 meters of natural cotton,which I spilt with a friend because that would last me forever. I also picked up a plain tee for my little man.

I was reading I am Momma this morning and she did this super simple tee that used bubble wrap to apply fabric paint to a tee. I didn't have any on hand so I improvised, I cut out an elephant from contact paper/draw liner paper and stuck it onto the tee. Next I brushed a bryer (rubber roller) with fabric paint and dragged my finger nail over it to make squiggly lines then rolled it in different directions re-applying more paint to the bryer each time. I let the paint dry then peeled the elephant off. I hand stitched around the elephant with embroidery floss to make it stand out a little more an there you have it my new fave tee.

A dress for me!!

Inspiration can always be found while hanging out with A. from Our Ilan & Quinn, who was incredibly sweet and gave me 2 half yards of her new fabrics (from her Etsy store).

I headed home with a plan to use one of them in some way with some fabric I already had. I am not a pattern person, I run from them in fact. Martha Stewart's Encyclopedia of crafts has a 'shift dress (pillow case dress) which is seriously a rectangle for the front and back, I thought this was do-able. As I am pregnant I thought I could cut the front rectangle in half and sew a triangle of the wood grain fabric A. had given me in the centre. I put a little elastic under the bust and it was done!! I love it. It is simple i know.
As usual I printed something on it, I put little ants around the hem line. The following evening made a fabric belt kind of like the one on Two Peas in a Pod. I plan to wear the belt tied at the back for this dress, but for other uses the tie can be at the front.

So here is the dress and belt.

a small gift

I needed a hand made gift for a friend's little man who just turned 1. I had been racking my brain till I found these bibs on a blog Delia Creates. They aren't super flashy but I could see them being well used so I made 2. Of course I had to print something on there somewhere, so the word 'messy' seemed to work. These fold and tie up really cutely for when you wrap them.

more of the same

I have absolutely no ideas for new projects. It shows how out of it I am. However, like I said I just want to enjoy sewing, so I made another diaper clutch using I print I did a while ago. The fabric is kinda plain so at least the print adds.. something. Last night I wanted to make something for myself.. as I don't need a diaper clutch just yet ;) so I made a larger fabric bucket, I am really happy with how it turned.

Not sure what's on the agender for tonight, but tomorrow I have my little man in day care and will be heading over to a friends for crafting and a catch up. I can't wait, my friend is always really inspired and as I said above I have no idea what to work on. I do have 50 small cotton bags that I could print on... Only thing I have to do then is cut a few stencils...eeek

Other than the sewing I was inspired to make bread this morning as we were out. mmm. I changed a recipe I found on the net to suit, it was a really simple loaf that I added some thyme to an sprinkled with sunflower seeds, so yum.

yes, i am still hear

Wow, it has been to long since I have had anything to update my blog with, how sad.

I have been busy and stressed about a few things going on in life over the last few months. Now that summer is here, I find myself with a lot of free time especially with my husband gone for the summer. The first thing I had to do was find my sewing table, then sew.. sew anything, whatever just to get the feeling back. It is a passion and definitely something that makes me happy.

I have made 3 projects in 3 days.. which made me think that i should keep this going for the whole week. Not a huge challenge I know, but let me ease into this. :)

Friday night I tucked my little man into bed, sat down with a treat to watch one soap then headed for my room.. PJ pants was the project that came to mind. I loosely traced my PJ pants (a feat that wasn't as easy as I thought as the back panel is wider than the front). Once finished I used a wide bias on the inside of the pants so that I didn't have to fold fabric over to make casing for the elastic.. they looked ok. I put them on, and what do you know they are about a mile to short at the back.. he he I had to laugh. this sort of thing happens all the time as i avoid using at pattern at all costs. Anyway just sewing was nice.

Saturday I set out to sew a tote, a style I have seen on the net quite a lot. I like long straps so I extended it and added a pocket to the outside for a bit of interest. When it was complete I was happy with it but it doesn't sit well when you try to wear it on your shoulder. So I undid the seam and used some belt rings so I can put it around the stroller handle. It's a great size for this.

Enough sewing for myself, sunday night I thought that I should really get to work on a baby gift for my new nephew. What to make?? Diaper clutch was what I came up with. I have made one of these before but it just didn't look as amazing as what I had envisioned. Using only fabric I had I am really happy, and I don't want to give this one away (as is the way with most of the things I make).