NIGHT LIGHT

 I simply need to share this tip with anyone who has/will have an energetic toddler in the house. A night light can help your little one to sleep better!

  My daughter climbed out of her crib some weeks ago. Yep, over the edges like a Tarzan. So that marked the end of her crib time, and now she sleeps in a "big" girl´s bed. That in turn means she can come and go as she pleases, in and out of her new nest (a phase I was not looking forward to very eagerly...  =).

  It was time to dig up the old night light I had bought for our son many years ago, when he was in this stage. What I did now was set a timer in the power outlet for the light, so that it switches the lamp on at around 9.30pm and off at 8.00am. Then I explained to my daughter (who recently turned two) that when the light is on, it means it is night time and we all need to sleep (especially mommy...). And that she is not to come to mommy and daddy´s bedroom in the morning until the light has switched off.
  This worked well with our son, and looks like it will work with our daughter now too. We have been learning to sleep according to the night light for a couple of weeks now. Looks promising.

  We live far up in the North, where summer nights are light. Soon there will be no darkness at all, and it would impossible for a two-year-old to tell time without a clock. But now she has a "clock" and will know!

  The result of our night light is that the whole family can sleep better and thus be happier. Ingenuous!

FREEDOM COLLECTION: DRESS FOR A TODDLER

  Once again I had a leftover piece of fabric lying around, waiting to be useful. It was that from my Freedom Collection´s  t-shirt w/ a frill neckline. Here is what I made of it:

This dress is super easy to make, just slab two pieces together and neaten the edges. I might say that summery hot days have surprised me this year by arriving so early, so I´m not yet well prepared when it comes to my girl´s wardrobe. So I´m more than happy to slam this quick project together for her in no time!

This dress just screamed for a detail. But I wanted to keep it m, not breaking the harmony. And since I have a bag of these little bows in my drawer, why not use them? It adds a welcomed bit of girlyness to the dress.

The fabric is knit but airy and light. And very soft and comfortable.

  Bring on the warm summer days, we´re ready now!

P.S. You can find a similar (cheap) pattern for the dress here, if interested.

NEW FAVORITE T-SHIRT

  I´m sure this will become it, in all of it´s versatility. So plain, yet a little feminine, breathable, and cozy. Easy to slip under a dress, short-sleeved shirt, vest, or simply wear by itself paired with jeans (and nude-colored bra of course, I´m a modest person...  =).

Like mother like daughter. The kid´s size came as a bonus from the leftover pieces. I can but love making children´s clothes, they are so easy!

I freaking love this fabric! Although I don´t even know what it consists of, it feels just perfect against my skin. I fell for the fabric when I saw it at the shop, and just had to get it. I knew immediately what to use it for. The shop is a two hours´ drive from my house, and I only go there like twice/thrice a year. But each time I do, I come out with a huge bag filled with amazing(ly cheap!) fabrics.

The neckhole is trimmed delicately, simply by turning in a 1cm seam allowance and sewing it on with a twin needle. This way it remains light, and underneath another garment merely complements the other rather than draws attention to itself.

  I can already see myself wearing this shirt with multiple different outfits. Can´t wait for tomorrow - I´m gonna wear this baby for sure!
  And the girl´s shirt, I must point out, is also perfect under the vest/dresses I make for my cutie.
  

EASY BABY BLANKET

  Clothes are my passion when it comes to sewing. But occasionally I have to give in and make something else I/we really need. This time it is a blanket for my growing baby (or I should say a toddler now, she´s turned one and walks around, instead of crawling).

  Up until recently my little girl has slept under a tiny blanket my mom once knit for her third baby-to-be, my little sister/brother, who unfortunately was never meant to be (my mom had two miscarriages at a rather late stage of pregnancy).  =(  But the blanket did end up being very useful after all - both of my babies have slept soundly under it´s warm care.

  Now it was time to conjure up a new, bigger blanket for napping. But I´m no knitter. And I have no patience to do patchwork either. But I love patched quilts. Here is my short-cut-solution:

The blanket in action!

This measures 120cm x 150cm, so it is big enough for my girl even in her teens. Reducing consumption is the key here - I´d hate to have her grow out of this in a few years. (Okay, and I´d hate to have to make a new one in a few years too. =)

The patches are purely decorative. The material is 100% cotton, which in use creases up and gives a nice contrast  next to the fleece base.

I left the edges raw, so the blanket looks more worn and loved.

I made a pattern for the letters by simply sketching them on a piece of paper. Then it was easy to make them in the same size.

  The recipe:

120cm x 150cm piece of thick fleece fabric
20cm x 20cm pieces of random cotton fabric

+ Design the outlook of your blanket. Cut out the decorational patches, letters, and other forms you want to use. Place them on the blanket, fixing their place until you are perfectly happy with it. Pin in place. Stitch close to the edges. (Don´t worry about the hanging strings of thread outside the stitching line, they will set in place after the first wash. Simply cut them short afterwards.) Fold in about 2-3cm edges around the whole blanket and pin in place. Stitch. This gives the blanket a nice finished up look, although otherwise not necessary.
  Done!

  Happy naptime (a beauty sleep would not do me harm either...  =) !

"HAPPY FIRST BIRTHDAY!"- DRESS

  My baby girl´s first birthday is coming soon! And the little princess needs something to wear for the big event. Here is what I made for her:

I´m learning to use pink... The material is wonderfully stretchy, breathable, and light. The guests will want to hold her in their lap, so I want to make sure she won´t roast!

We´ll have a bunny-themed party, but I could not find anything bunny to go with the dress! So I had to take the second best option available - cupcakes. These are buttons, which I simply sew on the dress. I think they give a nice three-dimensional touch, and are deliciously adorable.

She does have enough hair to wear this bow! My son did not at this age (but I wasn´t going to make him wear bows in his hair then either =).  I made this bow from a length of ribbon, which I folded and then sew by hand on a hair clip.

  It feels wrong to buy, or even make, an outfit for a single event. To be worn only once. This dress multi-tasks as an everyday wear after the birthday party  is over. I will cut down the amount of cupcakes (if not remove them all), and voilá, an easy-to-wear casual dress is born!

RECYCLED BABY DRESS

  A leftover piece of fabric had laid in in my dresser for, hmm, let me count... five years. I found it some weeks ago, placed it next to my sewing machine, and decided I would make use of it. Like this:

Everything in this dress I found in my dresser drawers. I love not having to buy anything, and in the end being perfectly happy with the result!

Pink goes so well with dark brown! Pink stitching on brown gives the dress some detail and binds the colors together.

I did not have dark brown buttons, but black is so close, I bet nobody will notice... The buttons were the only other detail I wanted to add. The dress will be worn with a shirt and tights underneath it, so too many details in the dress would make the whole too busy.

  Buy Nothing Day. What a great idea! But why only once a year? I try to buy nothing for at least 2-3 days a week. I find it liberating. Saves time for other stuff. Like digging through my dresser drawers in hopes of finding a treasure, like this pink fabric.
  Other free stuff I like to do: playing with my kids, hugging my husband (sometimes he tries to dodge my attempts, and when I chase him around the house we both get a little exercise!), going for a walk/bike riding with my son, gathering food from the wild, swimming... I even enjoy gardening in the summer.

  It is easy to rely on external means of entertainment, like going to the movies, shopping, eating out, golfing, etc. You get the point. There is a place for them, but in excess is dulling.  I find it important to use my own brain too. Whipping up entertainment out of nothing, and for free. That way I stay appreciative of the small joys in life. The ones that make up most of my life anyway.  =)

 

YE OLDE TIMES- BABY DRESS

  This is a basic linen-type dress I just adore. Something that should have been in my girl´s garderobe months ago, but didn´t happen until now:

I wanted to keep this simple, and give room to the material itself. Not 100% linen, but close enough, color and all. Combined with an off-white body shirt underneath, I really get a sense of 1800´s going on here.

I couldn´t resist adding some contrast and depth to the dress. These bows I bought ready-made from a craft store, and they keep well in machine wash too. Color black suits well the old-fashioned style.

I hand-painted this text with a small brush and some textile paint. Very handy and versatile tool for many uses.

In the back I added random buttons, each different from the other, but in the same color scale.

Unlike in many of my creations, the top two buttons actually work!

  This lovely little piece is not sabbat-related, and therefore can be worn year round (although in case of a baby, it will not fit her that long =).

MOTHER TO DAUGHTER -REPURPOSED DRESS

  Years ago I bought a robe made of soft and lovely jersey velour. It was a nice lavender blue robe, which I thought I would love to wrap myself into in chilly winter evenings and mornings. For some reason I never felt the need to do so. What a waste of money and material!

  Last March I wore that robe. Once. When the labor of my daughter begun, it was the perfect garment to wear at home before heading for the hospital.

  Now I decided it was time to make the robe useful. I cut it into tiny pieces and made this:

A lovely everyday dress for my little girl. In the color that perfectly suits Imbolc.

Buttons in the front are for decorational purpose only. I often like to add some contrast.

Lace in the hem is made of cotton, and along with the buttons, give the dress a bit of vintage look.

The back of the dress is similar to the front. Only there is a seam in the center, because there wasn´t enough fabric in the robe to fit it in one piece. And the buttons are smaller.

  This dress will have the honor of acting as a party dress too, when we go to celebrate a seven-year-old girl´s birthday soon.
   I love multi-tasking. When it comes to clothes, it also reduces consumption. A very nice bonus to practicality!

BABY´S WINTER DRESS

  In the spirit of my own "Cottage Look" I made a matching dress for my baby girl.

I made this piece from a leftover slice of fabric from a year ago, when I made a maternity shirt for myself. That is one reason why I love making baby clothes - they use up so little material that recycling is easy!

The only detail in this dress is around the neckhole. The print in this fabric is so strong that it doesn´t need more to it.

The material is wonderfully warm, but surprisingly thin and stretchy, wool blend. Just perfect for these cold winter days.

  Babies don´t always need to wear pastels, although they suit them well, I admit. This grey dress allows my baby to look like herself, rather than a doll-wanna-be. It is traditional, yet modern, in it´s simplicity.



  The pattern for this dress I got from Ottobre Magazine.

BUTTONS ON WHITE- OUTFIT FOR A BABY

 Between all the holidays we are living through now, I´ve managed to make this new outfit for my (fast!) growing baby.

Off-white is a beautiful color that can be worn year round, and every baby looks healthy and natural in it.

I added cotton lace to the sleeve- and leg hems to give it a more romantic look. White on white looks subtle and doesn´t draw too much attention to the lace. The beige stitches give it some contrast and add detail.

The buttons are the star of this look. The main focus is on them. I bought a big bag of random buttons, and selected the best suiting ones to go here. They form like a necklace of different beads, which of course could not otherwise be worn by a baby. But this necklace is totally safe, and cute.

I felt the pants were too bland with just the lace and stitching. Then I got an idea to add this fake "hatch" to it. I have always loved the look of old long-johns I´ve seen in movies, and now finally got the opportunity to use the idea myself. With the risk of making the pants look underwearsih. But with all the other details, they didn´t end up that. (Must note here that, the one leg is not shorter than the other, it just looks like it for some reason =)

  This outfit is original, definitely not boring, and makes my baby look soooo cute!
  Babies are cute no matter what they wear, but why not magnify cuteness by dressing them well? It can only do them good.

MY FAVORITE HOME MADE BREAD

  Now this is easy. I´m no baker by nature, but since I want to eat as much additive-free, home made food as possible, I have been on a quest to find a recipe quick and easy enough even for me.

  Have no fear, this bread is so full of nutrients, that it will not make you fat! So many people are afraid of carbohydrates these days that an honest, clean, whole grain bread may feel like a vicious enemy. But I assure you, I have eaten this bread a ton lately, and have not gained any weight. =) After eating it I feel satisfied and full for a long time. Yummy and healthy!

  The (basic) recipe:

5 dl water
1 tsp salt
1 Tbsp raw cane sugar
1 bag (11g or 3 tsp) dry yeast
about 1 liter flour (I always use 1/4 white and 3/4 whole grain flour)
1/2 dl oil

+ In luke warm water mix the yeast, 1/4 of flour, salt and sugar. Cover with a cloth and let sit for 10-15 min, until you see it rise and form bubbles.
  Add in the rest of the flour, or until it feels right. (Depending on the flour, more or less may be needed.) Finally mix in the oil.
  Place in a greased kettle, cake tin, or whatever you have big enough in hand and cover once more. Let rise for about 30min and bake at 180 degrees Celsius for about 45 min. or until it is done (again, more or less time may be needed, depending on the form and size of your container). This dough is not sensitive to overtime, it will not burn easily, I have tested... =)

  To this basic recipe can be added pretty much anything you wish. In this particular one pictured I added two finely grated carrots, two finely grated apples, gingerbread seasoning mix, grated lemon peel, and raisins to make it Christmasy.
  My baby girl eats this bread three times every single day. She will only taste, out of pitty, I´m sure, a couple of spoonfuls other food I try to feed her. And the rest of the meal is all about my home made, salt-free bread. I get her to eat veggies by grating them into this bread dough. I have even added celery root in it, and she has eaten the bread with the greatest joy.

BABY´S GINGERBREAD DRESS

  Not a costume, but an everyday dress for Yule time. Inspired by gingerbread cookies to brighten up Christmas spirit for us all.

A vest dress and pants. The dress is just the right length for an active crawling baby, so that it doesn´t slow her down. The pants are big enough at the top to fit a washable cloth diaper easily. With cloth diapers I often find it difficult to fit a baby´s bum in store-bought pants, which are clearly designed for bums dressed in small disposable nappies.

This zigzag is what gives the dress a gingerbread taste. I didn´t want it to be too obvious.

Just for decoration. The top needed a finishing touch.

Just behind the toes I added small bows made with the same ribbon used at the hem. Repeating the same element binds the top and bottom well together.

  It is a joy to watch my baby swish around the house with these beauties on!

  A similar pattern for the dress can be found here.

MOUSE DRESS FOR A BABY

  My baby has grown out of many of her older clothes, so it is time to make her some new ones. Here is my latest creation:

A knee-length dress and leggings. My little baby is standing up a lot these days, so a real dress is more suitable for her than before. Hem length is still important to keep short enough, so it doesn´t make crawling too difficult.

The decorative mouse and a piece of cheese are buttons. I thought they were totally cute and created this outfit around them. I used the fabric here inside out, because I found the wrong side prettier and more interesting than the intended striped one.

On the other shoulder, three more mice are on their way to the cheese (the third one is behind the shoulder so you can´t see it in this picture). I think adding details in the backside too makes any piece of clothing look higher quality.

The paws add padding to the knees as she crawls on all fours around the house, and repeats the pink in the button mouse´s nose. I like to repeat colors around the garment/outfit to make it look complete.

  This is also the time of year when real mice try to sneak into our home. They are totally cute (but don´t belong inside the house!), and I wanted to turn that cuteness into fashion. My little baby mouse just looks adorable in these clothes!

  (The patterns used here are from the latest Ottobre magazine.)

BABY BOOTIES

  Chilly days are here, and my baby´s little feet need to stay warm. Here is what I whipped up for her:

The booties are made of fleece, a leftover piece from another project. The instructions called for felt, but I didn´t have any. Fleece works just as well.

Tie bands are cotton lace, a small strip I had saved earlier.

All in all, this little project was quick and easy to make. And it didn´t need any special material. Going through my cabinets was enough. Handy!

  Patterns for booties can be found on the net easily, for example here.

 

HALLOWEEN DRESS FOR A BABY

  Halloween brightens up this mellow, darkening time of the year just perfectly. Lovely warm summer is long gone, and there is still quite a bit until Christmas. So I like to take advantage of Halloween, and make it an event.

  This dress I made for my (now seven-month-old) baby girl to celebrate Halloween in:

Made of cotton jersey, this dress is both soft and stretchy. The skirt has a princess-like front to make crawling easier, so that the hem will not get stuck under her knees.

Being true to my style, I kept the back quite simple. Halloween offers so many themes and ideas, that it was more difficult to rule them out than take some few in.

The bow is stretchy, so it allows the little belly to move freely. Originally I wanted the ribbon to be see-through and black, but one has to go by what is available. I painted the pumpkin straight onto the fabric with a small brush and some fabric paint.

This little critter crawls on the front of left shoulder and...

... it has a friend just behind the shoulder seam.

  Halloween starts Samhain, so we have reason for a double celebration! Happy beginning of winter!