Another Towel

I bought this lime green stripe flannel at Joanne's awhile back when I found it in their remnant bin. I love this fabric! I have tried to use it many time but just couldn't bring myself to do it. The color is fantastic and it was just so soft. However, it was the night before the baby shower and I needed bias tape for the towel. The fabric I had bought to use wasn't even close to the right green so I had to use it but I love the way it looks as bias tape. I barely had enough fabric to make the bias tape needed for the towel. This towel was obviously for a boy and I like the way to the two greens came together with the white of the towel.

bear

Last month I made this owl for my best friend who is having a girl. Another good friend had a baby shower today but she is having a boy so I wanted to create something similar just boyish. My mom bought this book, One-Yard Wonders, so we spent the weekend flipping through it and came across a stuffed bear pattern. I thought if I took off his arms and legs he might make a good toy and I love the way he turned out!

The pattern suggested a corduroy fabric but I decided to use an old pair of railroad pants instead. The added touch of hand embroidery on his face makes him all the better. I even added a small bell inside so he is kind of like a rattle. He was the perfect topper for the gift box.

Case-e Baby

This kid is getting so big so quick. As in eighteen pounds at four months so big! Mae started school this past week so I had a whole morning to hang out with just him. The light was good in our front room so got some pictures of him and then walked to the park so that he could swing. Of course by the time we get there he was fast asleep in the stroller. Got home in time to start a project for him before having to pick up Mae from school.

I often feel bad because so many of my projects these days are for Mae. Rarely am I making something for the little man. He has grown so quickly that it seems pointless to spend the time for something he will wear for a month or so. However when I came across this hat pattern on pinterest I knew I had to make him one.

It came together quickly and it was nice to be crocheting again. Have already started another for a gift.

Happy Valentine's Day!

It started out a good one this morning with a special valentine donut for just me and Mae- this kid LOVES donuts!

We put together valentine treats for our neighbors  which we will deliver after nap today. We froze some cake balls from the baby shower and made sugar cookies. Possibly the best sugar cookie recipe ever. Frosted the cookies last night and then wrapped up the packages this morning. Added the heart stamped cards and the packages were set.

Valentine Cards

With Valentine's Day quickly approaching I have seen tons of ideas for cards all over pinterest. But when I saw this idea I knew I'd found a project Mae would love. We grabbed an empty toilet paper tube, red paint, and some pink paper and set to work. Mae loved it and I love the way they turned out. I especially like the one where Mae added part of his hand print. What a great idea!

Baby Owl

I had seen these scrappy monsters over on Made and loved the idea of attaching a homemade toy to the top of a baby gift. So for the shower last weekend I made an owl that attached to a ring to go on the gift. After I got him all made and stuffed realized I forgot his beak. Oops.
Wish I would have taken pictures of him attached to the gift but in the chaos of getting out the door on time it completely spaced my mind.

Another Shirt

After making the last Easy Linen Shirt for Mae my mom had suggested possibly making one out of fleece because it would have more stretch than just cotton. I have held the idea in my head and when I was going through my fabric stash last week I found a piece of blue fleece left over from a baby blanket I had made almost 5 years ago. There was just enough left to cut out the shirt. I figured I had nothing to lose since I already had the fabric- if the idea bombed I would throw it away and move on.

When I began sewing the shirt up I was quickly reminded how much I dislike working with fleece, especially for clothing. Yes it's great because it doesn't fray but it's just so thick and awkward to work with. I couldn't finish the front of the shirt exact to the pattern because of the thickness but because it doesn't fray it worked out. Like the first shirt I added a hood because figured a fleece collar might really be odd.

The other addition was the knit stripes on the sleeves. Awhile back there was a boy at the playground with a tee shirt with similar stripes. I loved the look and wondered if it would add some interest to an all blue shirt. I used turquoise thread for all the top stitching to add some extra color. I also added the same turquoise to the neck of the shirt to hide the seam.

Overall I am happy with it. More importantly Mae loves it. He calls it his 'coat with no zipper'.

boy play: cloud dough

Have you heard of it? I have read about it on numerous blogs and really wanted to try it simply because I was intrigued. Moldable like play dough but crumbly at the same time? Definitely interested. The ingredients are simple: flour and baby oil.

Oh. My. Gosh. Cloud dough equals a HUGE mess. This might be because Mae is two and was really enjoying himself but I had put out a drop cloth and we still had it everywhere. And of course in the three minutes I go to put Case to bed even Bailey our wiener dog started eating some! The kitchen sink, vacuum, laundry machine, and the bath tub were all involved in the clean up. Mess is an understatement.

With that fair warning, cloud dough really is wonderful! All the raves are true and it kept Mae entertained for longer than any other art supply we have ever used. We made cupcakes, avalanches, roads, tunnels, and eggs that Mae cracked to discover hidden treasure inside. Even I couldn't keep my hands out of it.

We used 2 cups flour and 1/4 cup baby oil and had plenty for Mae to play with on two different occasions. We lost quite a bit both times to the floor and the dog but still have some in a tupperware waiting for the next time. I am unsure of how long or well it keeps but after a week in a tupperware it still maintains the same consistency.

Try it, I think you will love it.

Another

Late last week I posted about this skirt that I had made. Same idea this time around but different fabric and a little less teeny. I gave it away at the baby shower and it was well received. A success!

Cake Balls

The baby shower for one of my best friends was yesterday. I had volunteered to bring some treats and since there was already a cake I had to figure out what else to do. I considered cookies or cupcakes but both seemed like too much since there was cake. Then I recalled cake balls. I made them two Christmas' ago when they had just started to become popular and have wanted to make them again but haven't had an occasion. This seemed like the perfect excuse.

You bake a cake, I used a chocolate cake mix out of a box and baked it in a 9 by 13 pan. Then put the cake in your kitchen aid mixer and mix on low until you haven crumbs. Then add some frosting- most recipes out there call for a whole can but I only used three-quarters of the can and had the right consistency. You then have a weird cake "dough".

Roll it into balls- I made one inch balls and got close to 90 of them! Freeze them for at least 4 hours so they will hold up when you dip them in chocolate. Melt the candy coating chips and dip the balls in, adding sprinkles right away before the chocolate sets up. It takes a bit of trial and error to figure out what tools work best to get smooth chocolate but I ended up using a couple different spoons and putting them out on waxed paper.

They were much loved at the party and were the perfect compliment to the chocolate cake. Yum!

Headbands

Headbands on newborns; so stinking cute! They are really cheap to buy but with scraps left over from clothing projects for my boys they are practically free. I read a few different tutorials but wasn't loving any one in particular. So combined a handful of tutorials and came up with these. I like that they are gathered under the flowers. Also that all the seams are hidden inside. I made some flowers out of wool felt and hot glued them in place. Wish I had a cute baby girl to model them but Case just looked silly.

I made a skirt. A teeny tiny newborn skirt using this as a rough idea of what I wanted. It's cute and all but really all things this tiny are cute. Right?

Too bad I only have boys!