The Complete Ensemble

Today I was capable of getting both a skirt and a dress/shirt done! YAY for me and Bella (but more of a THANK YOU to Cody). Here is the website for the skirt and it was SUPER EASY; in all it took roughly 30 minutes: http://oliverands.com/files/free-patterns/Oliver+SLazyDaysSkirt.pdf.

Miss Bella is modeling both her new jacket from last night's post and her new chevron skirt. Notice that I did a fabric hem in the fabric of the exterior of the jacket and the actual skirt is the same fabric as the lining of the jacket.

This is what Bella did most of the day. :)

The dress/skirt took me a bit longer. I found the "sew a long" on the website Craftiness Is Not Optional. I am beginning to adore this website as they have all kinds of different sew a longs and ideas. The dress/shirt I chose was called the "Sadie Shirt" and can be found at this link http://www.craftinessisnotoptional.com/search/label/the%20sadie%20shirt.

In the Sadie shirt, you have to take a shirt that fits your child well and draw the pattern. You can see in the above picture all of my fabric pieces with a few of the pieces still with my pattern attached. I just used regular white paper taped together. I only taped one side so that I could store the pattern easily.

This is my completed Sadie Dress/Shirt; for Bella this is a dress. I love the front ruffle placard, but I don't like how high I had to make the collar. From a learning perspective, I would have done my sleeves and collar differently. I love this shirt so much I am going to make a few more so hopefully I will have this pattern down to a science!

Here is a picture of all 3 pieces completed. I wanted to make 5 pieces, but after re-looking at my receipt I realized my material was only $20 so I am feeling much more accomplished about my 3 pieces. That is roughly $7 per piece. If I would have not messed up on my lining I would have been able to accomplished at least one more!

Remember, the two patterns mentioned here are free! CHECK THEM OUT!

My First Outfit for the Little Lady!

I have been looking online for fall clothes for Miss Bella, and needless to say when I found what I wanted it was over $250!!! To be honest, I wasn't really SUPER in love with what I had found (I shopped at Crazy 8 and Gymboree). I got this idea to get my really old (14 years) sewing machine and make Bella some clothes. Hey..if I can make my dog clothes, I can make my baby clothes! My journey began on etsy.com. I found a really awesome PDF downloaded pattern (you print it on regular paper and tape together) from MyLittlePlumCake for a cape. From that point my mind went wild! While waiting for our friends to go to dinner (thank goodness for Meme watching Bella), I talked Cody (my husband) into stopping at Hobby Lobby. I found some coordinating fabric; 1 for the lining and 1 for the outside of the coat. I chose to do a regular pattern on both inside and out so that I could correspond the fabric with outfits. My plan is to make a dress, a shirt (and buy leggings), and potentially one more outfit that can go with the jacket. Being my first endeavor in children's clothing and not sewing for a VERY long time I had to work out my kinks; predominantly, my old sewing machine. Its been on its last legs for awhile and my bobbin kept getting caught (I think its called a bobbin haha). Luckily, I was talking to my awesome next door neighbor when I let the dogs out and she let me borrow her brand new only used twice machine and WHOA its AWESOME!!! So here is what I have done. I am hoping to find a free pattern online for the dress and shirt. I spent roughly $35 on material and $7.50 on the PDF pattern. I would like to get my cost per item down to $8.50 per item (5 items). Not sure my fabric will go that far since I messed up on my coat lining but here's to hoping! 

The two things I learned from this project is 1. How to use a basting line! 2. Button holes are extremely hard!

Now off to bed, and hopefully tomorrow I can make a skirt or a dress. I have a feeling though that Miss Bella is not going to allow for sewing. 

Welcome to Making For Baby!

I myself am a quagmire of sorts. By the day time (and sometimes night time), I am a fifth generation oil and gas well driller in Eastern Kentucky; and at all other times I am a frivolous "waste not want not" kinda gal! The way my family lived was always off the Earth. We gained our monies from what the Dinosaurs gave us, and understood that in the good times you must store up for the bad times. You may be asking...what does this have to do with making for baby. Well, now my identity is not only fifth generation oilfield worker and wife, but we have added... you guessed it.. BABY! My husband and I welcomed our first, and potentially only child, Carsyn Bella Sturgill, on November 30, 2012.

Through the past 9 months, I have found that the things your baby needs are both expensive and of poor quality. For instance, baby food jars are 52 cents at Kroger and 50 cents at Walmart, but I can make the apples in the applesauce jar for 16 cents. Growing babies rarely stay in one size of clothing very long, and the fortune I spent on clothing has been astronomical for the amount of times she has actually had the outfit on. Not to mention all of the really cute clothing is CRAZY expensive! This need to stretch my dollar has brought back my traditional raising. Needless to say, this is my journey of making for baby..."waste not want not!"