Toddler Hats

First off, Go Phillies! World Series Champs!!!!
We have a serious lack of Phillies gear in the house, so I dug out my out-of-print Phillies fabric and made a cap for Nate! I just came across this tutorial from Made by Petchy yesterday so it all just came together perfectly.



Blue one is fleece with a center panel of On a Whim Owls. I put a layer of fleece behind the owls too. It's not reversible and I used some bias tape for the edging. I skipped the elastic on this one.

Red twill one has Phillies (woohoo!) on one side and a bit of Michael Miller Guitar fabric on the reverse. I almost cried with joy when I saw that I had a scrap of the guitar print just big enough for this.



My model:

I got a new camera!

Woohoo!
Getting a picture of my 2.5 year old is just getting impossible. He doesn't smile for pics, but most of all he doesn't stop moving! My husband suggested I go ahead and get a digital SLR since I figured I'd get one at some point, but which one to get? I'm notoriously terrible at over-researching and taking forever to make a decision on purchases like this. Fortunately I read this site kenrockwell.com that just made 100% sense to me and I was done! So I got the Nikon D40 and already I'm much happier with the vastly improved responsiveness. I also picked up the recommended external mount flash (SB-400) and I'm just about giddy about how my indoor shots look now. My living room has particularly bad lighting but of course that's where I'm trying to take pictures all the time. I can't wait to see how actually, you know, learning how to use the camera helps even more! :)

A few pics:

Pretty Pillowcases!

I just LOVE the new Heather Ross Mendocino line. But I had a very hard time figuring out what I wanted to make with it! I'm all stocked up on fabrics to make bags or skirts or PJs for me ... I didn't see making something with it for my boys... and I loved the way the different prints looked together too.
Then I saw a great little half-yard bundle from Fabricworm on Etsy and I realized they would look great with my orange duvet cover! So a few half-yards headed my way and I made pillowcases! Each side of the two pillowcases varies a bit with the four inside fabrics in different spots.

All cut and laid out:


All done!


Action pic with the rusty orange sheets & duvet:


I'd never had pretty or even interesting pillowcases, they always have just match the solid sheets. It seemed like a frivolous project at first, but I can see making more. It's so nice to see your handiwork first thing in the morning (or for me, every time Ben wakes up to nurse!)

A project for baby & mama!

A new baby needs new carriers to snuggle in right? ;)
I bought a snuggly wrap, chopped it in half, dyed it blue and turned it into a ringsling! I'm so happy with the color (I'm not a dying expert!) and the sewing for the ringsling shoulder is very simple. Here are some instructions for sewing a gathered shoulder BTW.

Action pic:


With the undyed other half of the wrap: