TU-TU CUTE!

Yesterday while I was being all energetic and super crafty in-between loads of laundry I came up with another MUST DO project! I have mentioned Little Bears doll - Meagan before. I recently made a copy cat of 2 dance recital dresses for the doll, out of scraps. (see here) I was doing some tidying up in my craft corner and came across more dance costume scraps. I knew just what to make!

A copy cat rainbow tu-tu! It is the cutest thing ever! Total length is about 5 1/2 inches. I love it! It is exactly like the 12 I made for Little Bears ballet class, they are dancing to "Somewhere Over The Rainbow". I had it made in about half an hour, and so I dressed Meagan in it and set her to wait on Little Bears bed (really I just wanted an excuse to play with her dolls!) She was thrilled! I love the loud WHAAA!!!??? That came from her when she spotted Meagan in all her tu-tu cute glory!

Pretty Pillows

I bought throw pillows, 3 of them, about a year ago to put on my bed. I like pillows, Papa Bear does not, but since I make the bed he has no real reason to complain. Well, today I had all kinds of extra energy and ideas rolling around in my head and one of them had to do with my pillows. They are your standard 12 inch square pillow, found for $6 at a store that is supposed to be a grocery store, but I buy way more not-grocery stuff there than groceries. Anyway, I digress from my point. I wanted to dress up my pillows and since my car is on week 4 of not working (grrr.....) I used things that I had around already. I chose orange decorations on purpose! You'll have to wait to see why!

Step 1 - measure and mark the center of the pillow, I am no good at "eye balling" anything. Mark on the front AND the back so you can keep them both centered.

Step 2 Thread a long needle with whatever you are sewing with, DON'T knot it. I used an heavy thread, push the needle through the pillow, leave a long piece, thread on the button, then push the needle back through the pillow. Then repeat. You should have the long thread and the needle on the same side of the pillow at this point. I kept the tension very loose at this step.

Step 3 Carefully, and without yanking too much, pull the thread tight until the indent is how deep you want. Then simple tie the 2 threads in the back several times to hold it. TA-DA!! I then hot glued a rhinestone in the middle of the button to hide the thread.

The other 2 pillows I did I put a flower on. I followed the same method as I did when I put on the button. And again I hot glued a large rhinestone in the center to hide the thread.

Here they are on the bed. LOVE! Super easy, and super cheap if you get creative and use what you already have! I'd love to see yours if you make some!

Treasures

Remember my sewing machine from my last post? Ever since I posted about wanting to use it in my living room the history of the sewing machine has been on my mind. I knew it belonged to my Grandma, and then my Mother, but beyond that I didn't know anything.

I did some emailing and some searching, and found out quite a bit more information. First off, Thanks to technology and search engines I actually found the production date for this machine. Not just an approximate time, but the actual production date! I got so excited!

I also got some really good historical information from my Uncle, who is a family history buff. I have learned a lot not only about the sewing machine but my Grandmother. Learning all these new things has kind of put me into an emotional overload today, so I am not ready to share everything. I have promised my family I would compile all the new information into a essay/story and share it with them. I am looking forward to doing that next week. One thing I learned, My Grandma loved her sewing machine, and making things for her family. Something that we share.

Old

I remember this old, old sewing machine. It is attached to this old cabinet. I suspect the sewing machine part is antique or nearly so. I remember my Mom using this once or twice, but it has most recently sat, unused in my basement for years. I don't remember how I came to be in possession of this old beauty, but I'm sure glad I did. 

As I said, this has sat untouched in various places in various houses I've lived in for years. Most recently it held our cereal dispenser in the kitchen. Now? The time has come! To display this in all it's glory! I now have a place to put it where I can see it everyday. I just need to figure out if it actually works where I want to put it. Tell me, what do you think? My plan is to sand off the rough edges, and give the cabinet a few coats of a yummy paint colour, though I'm not telling yet what colour yet. I intend to polish the sewing machine as well. Keep in mind the red bookshelf is being replaced with a dark black/brown one.

This is how I currently have decorated

This is where I would like to put this sewing machine.

I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Sew A Little Something

I took today to make a little something for my favorite Little Bear. I had a few scrapes of things leftover from my recent sewing frenzy, and I put together a skirt for Little Bears Doll. The scraps came from a sewing project I did for Little Bears dance class. So now her and Meagan (the doll) can match!

First: I took the lower leg from some old jeans, to cut the main skirt from. I measured the waist of the doll, then cut a length 1 and half times as long as the measurement. The jeans I used weren't long enough so I just sewed 2 pieces together. The length of the skirt is the measurement from the Doll's waist to the knee.

Second: I cut a strip of fabric 3 inches wide, and 3 times as long as the waist measurement to make a ruffle. Fold the width of ruffle in half, and baste together. Gather up the ruffle and sew onto the skirt.

 

Third: I made a casing for the elastic, threaded the elastic through and TA-DA! All done!