Cowboy pjs, reusable grocery bags, & muchos fabrique

Honestly, I have been sewing here and there. The winter seriously screws with my mojo because my machines are out on our enclosed porch right now, which is not insulated or heated, so it kind of sucks to sew out there. I did manage to sew quite a few Christmas presents this year though, AND I was actually able to finish them in plenty of time to send/give them. That is very unusual for me. My, er, sewing eyes are about 10x bigger than my actual ability to accomplish stuff, so I usually have some sort of grandiose "I'm going to sew EVERYONE'S presents this year!!!!" plans which, of course, are impossible. Then I end up stressed & frustrated when I can't complete a fraction of it all.

So, this year I scaled back & everything went so much more smoothly. Here's pair of pjs I made for my nephew, who lives in Texas. My SIL said that he's 12 months wide by 18-24 months long, so these are long and skinnnny. How awesome is it to be able to sew custom pjs for my non-standard fit subjects? This is where sewing is so handy...


I tried something different with these where I used the backside of my coverstitch for the topstitching. Because I have a home coverstitch machine, I do not access to that cool stitch you see on rtw pajamas and sportswear where it's all zig-zaggy on both side of the coverstitch. So I faked it by topstitching everything from the wrong side. It's not technically the same stitch, but I still think it looks cool.




I also was able to sew up these reusable grocery bags for Sam's mom. She lives in cold, dreary New Hampshire, so I thought I'd use some bright prints. When she opened the bags, however, she commented that they were very "California". Hmm. These are from Heather Bailey's "Pop Garden" line, and I have no idea where she currently lives, but I must say that the thought never crossed my mind that it might be California? I dunno. Oh well, I hope the MIL likes and uses them at any rate. (BTW, these are just fabric versions of a Target plastic grocery bag. Except that they will not, in the future, become part of a floating plastic island in the ocean.)



Check out these awesome tags that Shari designed for me. My MIL asked me if I was selling my stuff now. I replied that, er, no, I am, "too lazy," but that I like to put these tags on gifts anyway. Sooo, maybe sometimes *coughalot* I am too honest with my MIL? I think she was a lil' non-plussed.


I also made DH some freaking awesome pj pants and a, "perfectly tailored," (his words) t-shirt that made him jump up and down and ask for more, but alas I do not currently have pics. I have to get some this week so I can brag about my man-sewing. :)

In other news, about, er, 60-70 yds of fabric arrived at my house last week. MERRY FREAKIN' CHRISTMAS TO ME!!!! Why so many, well, these had been mostly piling up at various co-ops for many months. Aaand I don't need any more knit prints? Obviously, it is hard to ignore the fact that you have a problem when you have this many yards staring you in the face, but nevertheless I was, like, jumping up & down in the piles. *sniff* *aaahhhhhh* *giddy*

Firstly some lovely Chez Ami knits that I got at their recent sale. Most of these were 2.50/yd for fabulous, top quality knits. They are A-MAZ-ING.


Next up, these are from my main co-op and consist of boutique knit prints from Baby Nay, Baby Lulu, Plum Pudding, Flaphappy, etc. + some Christmas prints & a bunch of cotton wovens from Laura Gunn's Lantern Bloom line. I'm thinking of re-doing our bedroom stuff with the Lantern Bloom fabrics & coordinates. You can kinda see them in the top, blown out part of this pic.


I got a lovely surprise in this package. A few patterns I had ordered a looooong time ago had been sitting, unpacked, at my co-op person's vault, unbeknownst to me or anyone else. I had forgotten all about them. Well, she found them and there they were in my box of fabric when it arrived. What addict, I ask you, does not want a half-naked man staring out from a huge box of fabric when they open it?!? I mean, hello, I'm pretty sure this might represent my own personal crack, and it's borderline inappropriate. I feel like I have to hide this pattern from DH like secret porn. Really though, it's just a board short pattern so I can make him and DS some board shorts this Summer. Those, uh, shorts might take me a while to sew? ;)

One more shot of gloriousness *imagine Scrooge diving in and out of piles of gold*.

This is one of my favorites. It's a lovely, soft interlock for princess-girly nightgowns. I got 3 yards, so some of these nightgowns will have to be giftage. Love, love, love this fabric!

I always pre-wash my fabric before I store it, not only to account for shrinkage, but also to get some of that chemical crap off of it. Here is everything sorted for washing.


And would you believe it all fit on one bookcase shelf? Amazing. Also, no more fabric for the next 3 months, at least. :D

Pa-jay-jays

Well, that's what we call them in our house, anyhow. I know, so wrong, but that's us. :p~ My kids are so going to be the ones that aren't allowed over to other kids' houses!

I have not been sewing too much in this last month. Every year, starting with my DD's birthday at the end of October on through all the holidays, it gets a little crazy around here. This year I have a son going through his terrible twos, and come to think of it, both of my kids are driving my crazy with their behavior and sleep issues. Soo, it's been a little difficult to get anything done, much less be in a creative mood.

It's Christmas time though, and that means presents/pjs sewing! In the past week I've gotten a few pieces done. These are all from the latest Ottobre issue, 6/2009:

Top nightgown is for my DD, and the two lower ones are for her twin best friends.


Closeup of my (somewhat wonky)coverstitching around the necklines. I don't currently have a clear foot for my machine, and the regular foot has about an inch of opaque-ness in front of the needle. Really, really hard to topstitch that way. I'm hoping to get a more topstitch-friendly foot for Christmas.


The dress is not crooked, just my camera angle. I made the nightgowns almost floor length, sooo fun for girls. Heck, I kinda want one. :)



I also made matching pjs for my new nephew and his toddler brother. This was the first time I've ever made anything sleeper-ish, and it was so fun! I'm so pleased with the way it turned out. I used a wonderful plane/camo interlock I got from Fabric.com, and it matched very nicely with some Joann's rib I had on hand.


Look at the lovely snaps! This part of the outfit could have really eaten it, so I'm so happy with how, well, perfectly the ribbing and snaps turned out. Crossing my fingers that these snaps don't come off with repeated use. I pounded so, soooo thoroughly with my hammer. Oh, and the 16mm snaps & snap tool I used are from The Snap Source.


My first binding with my coverstitch! Once I get that clear foot and/or a binder for my machine, this will go so much easier. As it was, it was nerve wracking, but turned out fine.


These are the jammies for the older brother. I made a size 4T with 5T length, so I am really, really hoping they fit him well.


I used my triple-coverstitch for the hems. Seemed more boy-ish that way.


I like to use a little square of the same fabric to mark the back. That way you (e.g. HUSBANDS) can tell where the back is, but it's still nice and soft.


Here's what the backside of the triple-coverstitch looks like.


I just did a narrow double-coverstitch around the neckline for this one, letting the right needle fall in the ditch. I think this came out better than the nightgowns, but it still sucks to stitch around stuff blind. The coverstitch is stretchier than a sewing-machine stitch, so this will stabilize the neck w/o, hopefully, the stitches popping. Most RTW pjs have the coverstitching around all the ribbing, but that's just not really practical for the way I construct my garments. As long as I do the neckline, I'm happy.


Okay, that's all for now, more to come later!