George

Nothing crafty about this photo (unless you want to count me as the subjects creator)... I just liked it and wanted to show off my little man. He is 17 months old.

Winter warmies

Weare in the midst of school holidays at the moment and I am trying very hard not to do anything for tin whistle. Rather, I am focussing on doing STUFF with the Tin Lids and squeezing in some selfish sewing.

I have only managed these two things- a pair of tailored pants and a super warm jacket. I was hoping to put together an Amy Butler tunic top, but tin whistle orders are starting to mount up so I will get on top of those first.

The jacket pattern is a reversible polar fleece number, with hood and zipper front. Its a bit shapeless but will be just right for walking with George in the pram on those cold blowy days when you dont need to look like a super model anyway ;)

The pants are my favourite pattern that I have made a few times. This time I tried putting the opening at the front (instead of side) and did away with a zipper and used snaps. You cant realyl see the pattern, but its burnt orange fabric with a maroon toile-like floral/bird design on it.

Going Spotty

Here is georgeous little Indigo in some polkadot retro dungaree's. Indigo's Mum, Tina, took these wonderful photo's and has let me reproduce them here. There is nothing quite like Denim and red together is there, and I love that Indigo even has her own matching polkadot shoes! Tina has her own store, Purple Happy Tree, selling clothes and accessories on http://www.strollersandprams.com/.

Tin whistle store up and running at Minicuteture Mall

Guess what!! I have a shop. Woo hoo! Here it is http://www.minicuteture.com.au/store.php?SS=20

I have some Longies (knitted pants) up for auction until the 24th April and in the coming weeks will start selling tin whistle clothes and pram accessories. Custom orders, at this stage, will still be via direct contact with me. However if there is too much demand I may look at selling "custom order" slots at my shop at the Minicuteture Mall.

Retro dress for Ava

A little friend is turning 4 this week, so I used her birthday as a chance to try out this cute little vintage dress pattern. I just love the way the stripe meets down the front seam and the pocket flaps are a neat detail (no actual pockets though). I spoiled it a bit with the snaps on the back- I should have done it properly with button holes and buttons. Live and learn I guess.

The pattern called for the dress to be faced around the neck and sleeves, but I decided to fully line it with a cotton floral and make the dress reversible. It makes a nice contrast to the grey and white striped seersucker.

Elizbeth on a mission

In the last post about Elizabeth I revealed that I had decided she was up to being trusted on my overlocker. Well since then I have to practially book in to use the bloody thing! She has discovered 'circle twil skirts'. You know the sort where you cut out a circle, and then a smaller waist size hole in the middle. Roll the hem, add a contrast waistband, thread elastic through. Viola! you have a skirt make in about half an hour. Here are some pics of 3 of them, but this evenings tally is 6.

Some happy customers

Miss Paige in some tin whistle dungaree's. Gorgeous beanie is knit by Amanda Keeys of Etsy store Little Labyrinth using Monster Knits yarn (available at Ozebaby). There endeth the plug!

Chloe in a size 2 kimono outfit. Gingham pants, with flannel lined kimono jacket.

And just for good measure a special little tin whistle hang bag made especially for the latest release from Bugaboo... The Bee.

Some tin whistle goodness- April 08

Some orders from the first 2 weeks of April...

Size 6-12 months dungaree's- red corduroy with red polka dots

Size 1-2 dungaree's- soft denim with multi stripe lining

Size 2+ dungaree's- denim/pink polka dots

Size 1-2 dungaree's- Pinstripe Denim with gold fish lining.

Size 3 pinny- choc corduroy with pink butterflies.
Size 3 pinny- choc corduroy with strawberries.
Size 3 pinny- orange corduroy with whimsy toile.

Snapping crocs AIO

Only cloth nappy users will understand that title. Users feel free to read on, non-users will wonder what language I am speaking.

This is George in a AIO I made for him a couple of weeks ago. I am a fan of true AIO nappies as I just really like the simplicty of a nappy than goes on like a disposable, but gets washed and reused. The AIO accronym means "all in one"- ie the waterproof layer, absorbant layer and lining layer are all sewing in one unit. Unlike, for example, traditional terry squares, which is a cloth nappy system in two parts; the terry square being the absorbant bit and the pilcher being the waterproof layer.

So I have been making cloth nappies on and off for the last two kids, but MAINLY use ones made by other crafty "work at home mums" like myself (gotta love the internet for this kind of shopping). So my nappy pattern is one that has morphed alot over the years and I really like this latest version. The cut fits perfectly on my little man (11kg at the moment). I took a between the legs shot so you can see how it DOESNT gape! the nappy is trim as (I used 6 layers of microfibre and thats it, my son isnt a heavy wetter), and is reaonably narrow through the crotch, but not so narrow that extra boosters wont peep out.

After the fact I ended up adding in a snap in tummy pad- the fit of this nappy is so great on George that it has become my favourite 'outings' nappy and I wanted to boost its absorbancy to more than a couple of hours.

So to summarize this nappy is a true AIO, with optional snap in booster:

PUL outer

fleece liner

microfibre inner

snap closure

My perfect nappy!

And before you all get excited it is NOT a tin whistle item. Sorry! This pattern is just for home use.

Mabel in her "Which Way" Longies.

I am feeling rather blank when it comes to witty blog entry titles today ;) These longies were a custom order for a sweet little girl called Mabel (pictured). The pattern is mine, but they were actually knit up by my Mum. Thanks Mum! They are knit in 100% wool, using red, pink and cream 8 ply yarn. They have an elastic waistband. I am not sure if I have ever blogged this particular fair-aisle pattern before. I call it 'which way" due to the mirror image arrow design. I have worked out a way of adding a gusset and extra rows in the back without disrupting the fair-aisle pattern (this took me lots of pondering and trial runs). This is all to no avail as I have decided not to continue them as a regular tin whistle item. Maybe I should just sell the pattern instead... hmmm there is an idea!

Elizabeths Flamenco skirt

Elizabeth sewing skills have been coming along in leaps and bounds since she has been attending sewing classes. She was always pretty neat and careful but the classes have given her heaps of confidence. The school holidays have arrived and she decided she would like to embark on something nice and challenging.... a flamenco skirt (she has been learning flamenco for about 2 years now). We went on a trip to spotlight so she could pick fabric and on day 1 of the holidays she had everything cut out (9 panels for the skirt and 7 circular arcs for the frill). Day 2 of the holidays she start and complete the sewing- so much for the challenging holiday project! I decided to have faith in her meticulousness and let her loose on my overlocker. All the seams on this skirt are overlocked and she even did a rolled hem on the bottom of the frills. She has done a beautiful job.

Georges Fair Aisle Pants- one year on.

My very first entry in this blog is a photo of George wearing a pair of fair-aisle pants I knitted for him in April 2007. At the time he was 6 months old and he was just about to enter his first winter. Here is a picture I took at the time:
And this is what they look like on George in April 2008. They are now capri's (which I must say look ridiculous on a boy) and the rise at the back is way too short (it only just got over his nappies when he was 6 months old). He hasnt actually worn them since spring 2007. I got them out today thinking to pass them onto a new owner and thought I would try them on George out of curiosity.
I thought this was a cute photo. George is going crazy over the marbles rolling crazily over the floorboards.

PS... "I love Dirt"shirt courtesy of gymboree.com