On to baby pants!

I've been trying to perfect this pattern for a couple of months now and I think I've almost got it. Of course, my little bean will probably grow before I've tweaked it exactly how I want it, but such is life. I've been able to make several respectable pairs of pants all from upcycled or thrifted materials. The pair I made today took me about 45 minutes, start to finish. I think I could probably cut it down to 30 if I were super organized...


I got the fabric in a lot I bought from a woman I found on craigslist. I think I paid like 5 bucks for about 6 or 7 yards of different kinds of fabric. Yay, craigslist!
This green pair is my favorite. I made them from an old button up of Bruce's.


This little grandpa pair was made from some old curtains a friend gave me.


Its so rewarding and fun to make clothes for Jack. Especially clothes that he seems to be comfortable in. And the random exclamations of "Oh wow, you made that?" dont hurt either.

Im still alive...

Sorry, life got the better of me for a bit. But I'm back. Ive been making lots of things, slowly sometimes since I'm still in and out of the braces as I over-do-it and then reign myself back in. I've been making lots of clothes for Jack of late. Several pairs of pants using my own pattern but Rae's big butt baby pants as inspiration (more on that later). Here's a little something I made this week, commissioned by Bruce in honor of Friday the 13th.


I drew out my own design and cut a stencil from freezer paper for the white part. When that was dry (read: me dancing around impatiently for about 5 minutes and then busting out the hair dryer), I used a toothpick to freehand the black bits over the top. I'm quite pleased with the results. Jack is way more impressed with the drawstrings on his pants.

...and back again

I got a little overzealous with the crafting as soon as I got the braces off and I'm a bit laid up again. Boo!


It was mostly the knitting that did me in. Oh sweet knitting. How I missed it. I finished Jack's beret. Here he is in all his indiferent Franco glory. And then I tried to knit a pair of slippers in like 15 minutes and ignored the fact that my wrists were aching. I know... I'm an idiot. So I'm on a self-imposed knitting hiatus till February at the earliest, and an all crafting break till the end of the weekend. But its not all bad. This gives me time to get my video game on. I am going to try to play so Red Dead Redemption here in a few minutes and Ive been trolling the intertubes, looking for stencil ideas. Hopefully Ill be back next week with a few new things. Probably sewn items.


I've been working on a quilt repair I want to share with you and some more kicking bags for Jack (he's almost outgrown the cashmere one already). Fingers crossed I'm back to normal on Monday. On to the wild west!

Free at Last!

I'm out of the braces! Yayayayayay! I'm feeling great and its fantastic to have them off. Unfortunately I still have to take it easy, so the making is still moving at a snails pace. I have worked on a couple of things since the beginning of the month though.


I've finished cutting and laying out Jack's quilt, and have managed to sew a couple of rows together.
I also made a kicking bag for Mason (owner of this Monkey), which I completely forgot to take a picture of. Maybe his Momma will send me one... *hint, hint T*


I made these glasses cases for my folks, commissioned by Jack of course, with "Grandma" and "Grandad" embroidered on the front. I used this tutorial. It was super easy, a great way to use up scraps and a fun and non-intimidating way to learn to do a lining which I had never done before.
Ive also been working slowly on my Christmas knits. Everyone is getting their presents late this year since knitting seems to really aggravate my wrists and thumbs. I've only been managing a few rows a day. But I anticipate relief with a little practice. I couldn't imagine knitting at all at the beginning of the month, so we are definitely making progress.


We had a lovely Christmas morning at home. Jack got loads of pressies and Daddy surprised Momma with the Beabe Babycook. I'll report back as soon as Jack is on solids and let you know how I like it.


We spent the evening with my folks, ate some yummy English food, drank some tasty wine and we were all tuckered out at the end of the evening. It was a lovely day.



I'm really looking forward to getting back to normal. I've got lists and lists of things to try. Happy New Year to you all. I think 2011 is gonna be a very crafty year.

Ted Allen says I can make vinegar

Since I am breastfeeding we aren't always able to finish a bottle of wine before it goes off. This frustrates the crap out of my thrifty nature. Especially when its a bottle of 2007 Viognier from the Harbinger Winery on the Olympic peninsula. So delicious, so crisp, so lightly sweet... I digress. While flipping through the latest issue of Food Network Magazine, I found the perfect solution. Ted Allen of Queer Eye and Chopped fame suggests making your leftover wine into what he calls "the most delicious vinegar you've ever tasted". The most delicious vinegar I've ever tasted? I can totally get behind that.


Oh glorious 2007 Harbinger Viognier and a very tasty Tempranillo you will live again! These jars will be hiding somewhere dark for the next 6 weeks. Ill let you know what happens, hopefully its deliciousness.

Sleep and kicking bags

First, Jack slept for 9 blissful hours in a row last night. Lets all take a moment to revel in that... ahhhhh. I feel amazing. Now to the crafting. I made Jack a kicking bag, while wearing these giant braces!


I've been wanting to make a kicking bag ever since I saw Amanda's. Little Jack loves to kick. He loves to kick so much that he often kicks his blankets off and wakes himself from a perfectly good nap. Since knitting is kind out of the question at the moment (see previous post) and stash busting is always in order, I used a cashmere sweater that shrunk in the wash. Yes, I put a cashmere sweater in the machine. I am THAT lazy. But Ive learned my lesson and Jack reaps the benifits. When I was finished it looked a bit plain so I looked around my craft room and noticed this.


Remember my adventures with freezer paper? Well I never acutally got around to sewing them on, and my sweet boy has already grown out of his 0-3 onesies. The kicking bag came together very quickly and easily. I wonder if anyone would be interested in a tutorial...

Hangin in there...

So sorry I've been MIA. Momma has finally been diagnosed with dequervain's tendonitis. Which means I'm wearing these.


Which also means I'm not crafting, knitting or sewing and that I'm actually getting sick of "Keeping up with the Kardashians" *gasp*.



I made a couple of hair clips for Kayla and Brenda before I got saddled with these monstrosities, and I started cutting out pieces for Jack's Christmas quilt so it might actually be finished on time. I should be in soft braces in the next week or so and hopefully able to do something other than watch TV (I cant even really read because holding anything is pretty unwieldy, writing this post is taking a billion years).

Here's the lesson. If you are pregnant and your wrists hurt, do not ignore it. If they get worse after your baby is born, really don't ignore it. I could have saved myself weeks of pain had I gone to a hand specialist right away. And I wouldn't have had to scrap most of my handmade Christmas plans. Its not all bad though. I leave you with Jack smiles, which make anything worthwhile.