Itty Bitty Skirt

I'm not too sure a skirt for a 9-month old makes sense, but I had fun sewing it, and it's so cute on her! It's just not very practical for sitting on the floor or in car seats, and I can't imagine it will stay on for long once she starts crawling. It was also really hard to photograph on the model.


It's a slightly modified and downsized version of the Corduroy skirt from Emma Hardy's 'making children's clothes'. It's shorter and I did not use the entire width of fabric (maybe about 30 inches? I could take measurements if anyone is interested). I also left off the ribbon. The corduroy is from a local craft chain. The owls were an online purchase and are from the 'Apple' collection from Timeless Treasures. I love these owls and have plenty left to play with.

And then there was sewing...

Another pregnancy, another new craft. This time I found out that I was having a girl. I'd borrowed my mother-in-law's sewing machine to make some basics - curtains and burp cloths and snuggle blankets. But now I started dreaming of sewing cute dresses and skirts, along with all the baby accessories you need: bibs, change mat, etc. After getting the machine serviced a couple of times and putting it to good use, it is, at least temporarily, residing here. It's a gorgeous 70's orange Bernina that weighs a ton, and I love it.

So far I'd only sewn some basic items, using mediocre fabric from the local chain craft store. Then my girlfriend bought me the best type of gift for a crafter - supplies! - when Miriam was born - 3/4 metres x three different fabrics - to sew something for Miriam. Two of them were Panache by Sanae prints, the other one of MoMo's Wonderland. My love, perhaps obsession, of quilting fabric began. (Should I send her the invoices?).

I've spent quite some time, money and effort collecting fabrics from two particular lines of fabric - MoMo's Wonderland and Lizzy House's Red Letter Day (leading to the name of this blog). I was lucky enough to grab a couple of charm packs and a jelly roll of Wonderland, and a fair bit of yardage, especially once they did the reprint. With some internet searching, quilt shop calling, and swapping, I'm on my way to having at least a fat quarter of each of the Red Letter Day prints. Joy! What will I do with them? Well, I initially planned on just sewing clothes - cute dresses, etc. But now that I have a collection, I'd love to make some quilts. But that's for another day. Here are some of my creations from my meagre stash of quilt fabric.

So why start a blog now? Well, I've been looking at lots of blogs and have been inspired by them. But when I left a comment, there was no link back to me. Plus, I'll be needing some advice as I venture into designing and making my first quilts. And then, of course, I'd love to offer up some giveaways. I haven't thought of a milestone yet - maybe a certain number of posts or a certain number of followers? Any thoughts? Anybody listening yet?

Inspiration

why i started knitting

It all began when we visited friends and their new baby boy. The new mum showed us some gorgeous handknits that her mum had made for the baby. They were so unique and beautiful that my only thought was that I'd love to make things for my children. Shortly thereafter I became pregnant with my first. So after a failed attempt at knitting about a decade earlier, I came home from a craft store armed with a pattern book, some acrylic baby yarn and wooden straight needles. This is what I created:


Nearly four years later my yarn choices, skills and tension have improved greatly, but I still love my first basic, wonky, green jumper. Joseph got a lot of wear out of it, and my beautiful 9-month old girl is wearing it today.


Some of my favourite handknits since include:


I knit mostly small projects: baby and toddler clothing; accessories such as hats, mitts, and scarves; toys. I love to knit lace, but don't seem to have the time or energy lately. Most of what I knit is in DK weight, but I adore Malabrigo worsted (so hard to get here!) and have a growing collection of sock yarns waiting to be knit.

It's becoming winter, so I'm mostly knitting at the moment, but in my next post I'll tell you how and why I began sewing (and the subsequent acquisition of an ever-growing quilt fabric stash).