sew love sew

a summer pyjama set for DD1

2012-02-02T11:19:00.004+11:00

I had a couple of days off to prepare DD1 for starting school. During one of the days I made this set of summer pyjama for DD1 upon her request after her seeing me wearing this set and found out I made them myself. She always finds it fascinating to wear exactly the same thing as me. She always asks me to make a smaller version for her too.

So I took one of her pants that suits her well at the moment and drew a pattern on a piece of scrap paper:

Then I cut the pattern off and placed it on the fabric that I used to make my pyjamas (lucky I still have plenty left!):

and cut two pieces on fold:

Because she asked me for the full set, I had to cut two rectangulars to make a top too. I used her existing well-fitted top as a guide for size/measurement:

The pants:

The full set:

I'm really happy about the result.

It was a very easy project. It took me 70 minutes in total from start to finish. I used elastic at top of the top to gather the fabric so that it fits her well. That's also what I did with my top. So DD1 is now a smaller version of me. LOL.

I find making my own patterns is so much easier than using commercial ones for these simple projects. And my homemade patterns fit perfectly while the commercial ones always has some parts that don't fit well.

Stuffed bunny toy

2011-11-26T19:13:00.003+11:00

DD1 loves the stuffed toys I made her from scraps of fabrics. One day she requested a bunny. So I cut a simple pattern off a piece of paper. I didn't draw. I just made it up while cutting.

After I sewed it up (again using scraps of fabric) and stuffed it up, I used some fabric paint to paint the face. It's a very ugly bunny. But DD1 loves it. It's the size of a palm, so easy for her to take everywhere.

Baby bloomer to skirt

2011-11-26T19:09:00.002+11:00

DD2 inherited this baby bloomer from a friend's baby and as much as I love it, I don't find her wearing it much. She's either in pants or dresses/skirts. So I decided to refashion it into a skirt.

I cut off the bottom part where the elastics are:

Then I sewed a ruffled rectangle on. A skirt!

After it was finished I found I made it too big. So DD1 can wear it for a couple of years before DD2 can inherit it again!

Refashioned baby dress

2011-11-22T12:15:00.002+11:00

As DD2 grows some of her clothes I try to refashion them so they can fit her again. Recently I finally found some time to refashion.

Here's a pretty dress that was a gift but only worn once or twice. It was a size 00.

I cut the bottom part off. It's basically a rectangle.

Here's a size 1 bodysuit which is too small for DD2.

I cut the top part off. Now it looks like a tshirt. I ruffled the bottom of the dress.

And attached the ruffle to the 'tshirt'. A new dress!

It was too plain. I used some scraps of the dress and made a narrow ruffle and decided to wrap the ruffle around the heart of the 'tshirt'. It's much prettier!

This dress looks a little bit big on DD2. But I think she'll grow out of it before the end of this summer!

Halloween refashion from two baby tops

2011-11-05T20:45:00.006+11:00

The left pink top was too skinny for DD2. I loved the skeleton design so I kept it hoping that one day I could refashion the skeletons onto some other clothes. And I came across the right red top and thought it would be perfect for this refashion project. The red top was worn by DD1 and it looked very plain and old.

But now after adding the skeleton it looks very Halloween, perfect for the holiday season!

1. I cut the front piece off the pink top, and pinned it onto the front of the red top. I didn't use heat-n-bond.
2. I handsewed （because DD2 wouldn't let me go near the sewing machine, but somehow I could manage to handsew while looking after her）the skeleton onto the red top, using red thread and running stitches along the outline of the skeleton.
3. I trimmed all the excess fabric off the skeleton.I found this easier than cutting the exact shape to sew onto the red top because you get plenty of fabric to play with.

I was so happy that I handsewed. I wouldn't have achieved this neat result with a machine. I think knit fabrics are better done this way, but woven fabrics can be a problem coz they would fray, unless we want the fraying result or we don't mind it.

UFO Patchwork to bib

2011-10-09T21:26:00.002+11:00

Now you know I'm obsessed again....

After making so many useful bibs out of useless things, I went into my UFO (UnFinished Objects) drawer for inspirations.

This is a patchwork kind of thing I handsewed on the train long time ago from scraps of flannelettes (yeah you can see traces of my many other projects in this patch work). I'm never a patchwork/quilting person but I hated to waste such soft cotton fabrics even small scraps, so I did this thing but I didn't know what to do with it.
Now I find it's perfect size for my bib pattern!

Here's one that's finished!

Most of my bibs are handsewn on the train while commuting. Not many projects can be brought to be done on the train and bibs are fortunately just perfect. So I always cut them out in advance and grab one or two before I head to the train station. I can usually finish one or two in one day. It takes about 35 minutes each way on the train and I never feel it's long enough!

Toddler winter top to bib

2011-10-09T21:23:00.002+11:00

Yeah you can tell that I'm having so much fun refashioning things into bibs.

These are two turtle necks that I made for DD1 for winter but her head was too big to fit in and considering DD2 has a big head too I don't think they're useful any more.

So I've refashioned one into a bib:

Tshirt sleeves to bib

2011-10-09T21:19:00.002+11:00

This tshirt of DH's has already been cut from the body for some other work,
and after I cut it open, I found the sleeves were big enough for my bib pattern.

So I made a bib out of the tshirt's sleeves!

The other side:

Preschooler's tshirt to bib

2011-10-08T13:00:00.002+11:00

Since I successfully refashioned the toddler tshirts into bibs last time, refashioning clothes into bibs has become my new obsession. I have just the right excuse now that DD2 is 12 months old and generates at least 3 dirty bibs a day. Yeah I definitely need more bibs to work!

This is a tshirt of DD1's. It was fine until after a couple of washes it went into a weird shape and DD1 just couldn't wear it any more. I guess the fabric wasn’t cut correctly. Talking about cheapy clothes...

So I cut a layer of bib out of the back of this tshirt,

and cut another layer out of a piece of fabric that I cut out maybe 3 years ago but never got to continue working on, then adding a layer of polar fleece to make a double sided bib (well actually all my homemade bibs are double sided). The piece that I cut off the back of the tshirt had to have some seam in it and I didn't like it so I covered it up using some lace cut from this unwanted tissue box cover.

Not too bad huh?

The other side:

Baby Tshirts to baby bibs

2011-09-27T14:46:00.005+10:00

DD1 had these two Tshirts that were too small and I extended them with some fabrics for her to wear another year or two and then I kept them for DD2. But when I took them out to put into DD2's wardrobe I felt they looked too shabby for her to wear, especially the dead elastics around the neck. I didn't have the patience to remake the neckline, and recently DD2 is quite short of bibs, so I put my homemade bib pattern on top of the tshirts and thought, wow, perfect for a bib!

So I cut them out, yeah with the ruffles on, because that's cotton too. I thought the ruffles would make an interesting part, as I've never sewn any ruffles on bibs before, and this one has built-in ruffles. What a bonus!

And I went through my scraps drawer and was thrilled to find some scrap polar fleece that was just enough to make two bibs:

Then I pinned two layers of tshirts and 1 layer of polar fleece together and sewed the bibs:The pink one was totally handsewn on the train, and the yellow one was halfly handsewn, and turned and topstitched by sewing machine at home, because I couldn't wait till tomorrow morning's train ride...

The very well worn tshirt fabric is sooo soft...

Toddler pants to shorts

2011-09-27T10:58:00.003+10:00

We got this pair of boy's pants from a friend, with a hole on the knee. It looks very comfy but she doesn't know how to sew and she hated to throw it away and she knew that I could sew so she gave it to me. Boy's pants huh.....
I thought it was too much hassle to patch it up, and now it's beginning of summer and I don't have the appetite to make long pants, so I decided to cut off the lower part with the hole and make it into shorts:

To make it more girly, I pulled out the scrap that I cut off the baby romper that I 'refashioned' the other day, and cut off the hem to make the new hem of the shorts:

And took off the remaining little red bow to handsew onto the shorts. Then I got a pair of comfy shorts for DD2!

Reversible baby sun hat

2011-09-22T08:18:00.002+10:00

We lost DD2's sun hat on Sunday at Sydney Opera House. I felt guilty that I didn't look after it well and now DD2 doesn't have her favourite sun hat any more. So I made this reversible sun hat for her: The other side:
The left one is a Pumpkin Patch of hers, which is getting smaller for her. I should have taken the photo with the gingham side out....
I used this pattern, without ruffles. I made the ruffled ones before but felt they looked too big with the ruffles.

The hat looks very nice. I like the fabrics that I used. I have plenty of these two fabrics and I think I'm gonna make some sundresses or sorts to match the hat.

Quickly refashioned baby romper

2011-09-22T08:08:00.001+10:00

Summer is coming! DD2 has this little romper from DD1:
I like it but I find it hard to find occasions to put it on her because there're two layers at front and it's gonna be too hot for her as a no-sleeve romper. So I took off the top layer, carefully enough to cut a hole at the shoulder:

I took off one of the little red bows on the top layer and covered the mending of the hole:

Adult thermo to baby leggings

2011-09-20T08:06:00.005+10:00

I just can't part with my old clothes. I keep them to refashion, mostly into baby clothes.

This is one of them, a very soft thermo that's too skinny for me to wear. I kept it for years before I decided for it to go into my refashion pile.

I made it into baby leggings for DD2:
Then handsewed a few buttons to make it less plain:

Adult Tshirt to preschooler skirt

2011-09-20T08:04:00.001+10:00

I had this tshirt that I wore for many years and now that I’ve put on some weight I don’t think I’ll be able to wear it any more. So I made it into a skirt for DD1. I even couldn’t part with the scraps.

Which one is the best?

2011-09-20T08:03:00.001+10:00

Baby headband

2011-09-20T08:01:00.002+10:00

It was DD2’s 1st birthday yesterday. It was Tuesday so we couldn’t do a big celebration. But we took her (and DD1 as well of course) to RBG to take some nice photos on Sunday. When I got up on Sunday morning I had this idea of making her a headband, you know the type that baby girls wear so that people know they’re girls not boys although they don’t have much hair. DD2 unfortunately falls into this category of ‘little hair babies’.

Anyway it all started with this bunch of scraps and some elastics:

It wasn’t hard to make:So I made another one, using different elastics:They match very well with the little dress that DD1 wore on her first birthday, that I planned to dress DD2 in as well:Doesn’t she look gorgeous, my sweet birthday girl?And DD1 got her share too!

Hi5 Tshirt and cheerleader skirt

2011-09-20T07:58:00.006+10:00

DD1 has been watching Hi5's dance VCD (which DH bought from a garage sale of our neighbours for $1) a lot recently and she wanted me to make a tshirt with a big 5 on it so she can be 'part of Hi5' (she even wanted me to add her to Hi5's videos and I don't think I'm capable of that!). To take a shortcut, I took out a blank Tshirt of hers (yeah she wanted pink and lucky it was pink):
And heat-n-bonded a big printed 5 onto a scrap piece of knit (yeah she wanted pink again!):
And zigzaged around the 5, we got a Hi5 tshirt!

Since I still got a bit of time on hand, I offered to make her a cheerleader skirt, just like the ones that the Hi5 girls were wearing dancing in the videos (DD1 picked this fabric, again, pink!):

Now our new Hi5 member dancing to the hits!

If anyone knows how to add DD1 to Hi5 videos please let me know. I’ll be very happy to learn how to do it and satisfy my little Hi5 fan.

Amazing experience

2011-09-17T05:49:00.002+10:00

Haven't got time to sort through recent projects to post yet, but just want to insert this little paragragh here.

I'm surprised how I've got so far. I started sewing in 2007 only because I was addicted to modern cloth nappies and wanted to make some for DD1. After that I started practicing sewing some clothes for DD1, mainly pants because I was too afraid of the neckline, armhole etc of tops. I bought/got so many commercial patterns but found that only a couple were my favourite, mainly because I only liked to sew with as few pieces of garment as possible, due to time and patience. But gradually I found I kept practicing new things and I have learned so many things so far. Now, at this point, I'm looking at FASHION! (Imagine this for someone who didn't even know pink for girls and blue for boys 5 years ago!) I'm amazed that I reached to another point that I never thought I would get. And strangely, this reminds me that fashion design was my dream when I was entering University, which I gave up and pursued Finance instead after my parents persuaded me.

I'm not sure if the readers of this blog can tell how my sewing has evolved but I certainly feel all the changes myself and I'm glad that I'm growing on the skills as well as aspects of sewing. It's such a big world to explore and I'm sure I'll spend the rest of my life enjoying doing it.

Baby leggings - no casings any more!

2011-09-07T08:24:00.004+10:00

I love this Pumpkin Patch baby legging that I bought for DD2 and found it not so hard to make so I used it to make a pattern:

Here's the pattern I made:

Instead of making a casing for the elastic for the waist, I decided to try the way the bought legging's elastic was sewn in. So I measured the waist of the legging I made:
And cut almost the same length of elastic:

And sewed the elastic onto the waist of the legging using the stretch overcasting stitch. This stitch works really well with elastics as it also stretches when the elastic stretches, which was a very pleasant surprise for me. I didn't even have to stretch either the fabric or the elastic when sewing. What a bonus!

Then I turned it over to sew a straight stitch to hide the elastic into the waist:

It turned out really well. It looks very professional. So now I'm officially liberated from making casings from a wavy waist. It's just too hard to sew a casing when the line is not straight.

This is a comparison of the legging I just made and the old legging I bought:
I got so excited that I made another pair, or two.

I made myself a top

2011-09-07T08:18:00.002+10:00

I don't know whether you call it a top or something but this is the type you wear above leggings.

I love this one that I bought and I made the pattern out of it:

It wasn't an easy project but I made it. And it fits me very well.

Stroller seat cover

2011-08-11T21:31:00.004+10:00

I made a stroller seat pad for DD1 2 years ago and it was a 'trial' version that's been used since I haven't got time to make any more and also it was quite a failure so I kind of fear to take up a similar project.

Now I'm kind of sick of it and want a new one. So today I made a new one.
The batting I got from freecycle was just enough for a new pad:
I pinned a blue flower fabric onto the batting and sewed them together:
Then I layed the two layers onto a purple flower fabric:
And pinned again:
And sewed them together:
I know it doesn't look perfect but I'm not a quilter or have any experience in quilting so this'll do.
I marked where the holes should be so that the seat belts can come through:
Hmmm...buttonholes are 28mm maximum...so I can't use the buttonhole function.
Good that I know zigzag.
Cut open the holes:
Not bad huh?
I know I can do better if I have more time to spare but I could only afford 1 hour. I'm already happy with the result. Last time was a disaster compared to this one.

Old mat to new mat

2011-08-11T21:15:00.002+10:00

I refurbished this mat 3 years ago. Look what it looks now:
It's losing it's colour and it's losing it's shape. It's ugly. Today I found some time to do some long-wishing projects and this one is finally done.

I took off the ugly old cotton cover I sewed on 3 years ago. I went very impatient and unpicked a few stitches and then simply tore off the rest.

I found this kid's fabric that I bought and planned for this project looooooong long time ago. I ironed it on the mat. The mat makes a great huge irong board on the floor. LOL.
Then I put the mat on top of the fabric and cut the desired size off the fabric,
and rolled the sides of the fabric up and pinned onto the mat. Then sewed all the way round the edges:
Now I get a brand new mat for my DDs!
In action!
DD1's having fun tonight teaching DD2 names of all the animals on the mat. LOL.
This project took me a good hour.

New seat for doll stroller

2011-08-11T21:00:00.004+10:00

DD1 loves her doll stroller. But the seat fabric was torn. Thinking that it will need to last DD2 I decided to make a new seat for it.

So I took off the seat and chose a nice pretty fabric:I wanted to measure and make a pattern but I went shortcut and cut the seat into a pattern:

I cut the pretty fabrics according to the seat pieces, without seam or hem allowances as all the pieces are going to be bound by bias tape.

Then I sewed the bottom part according to the seat pattern so that it can hold onto the stroller （later on I found I shouldn't have sewn all the way across but leave opening at each side, so I had to pick the threads....）:
I had trouble pinning the two pieces together. First time I pinned them together I found the edges weren't the same length. Then I found that the lower piece is supposed to be longer and not wholy lined up with the back piece. So I matched the centre and pinned from there leaving whatever longer as it should be.
See? The bottom piece is supposed to be longer!
Finally!
I'm happy how it turned out, although it took me more than 40 minutes!
DD1 loves it. It makes me happy.

Pink pleated spring skirt - lint free version (hopefully!)

2011-08-11T20:46:00.004+10:00

I so love the pretty black skirt I made for DD1 that I made a pink one today. I love the thickness and softness of cotton cord but I hate the lint. I hate any fabrics that shed lint, when sewing and when wearing. But these are normally beautiful fabrics. Sigh. When DD1 wears the black skirt her tights are always covered by the black lints, looking like ants on her legs. I hate it. So this time when I was sewing this pink cord, I decided to try everything I could to stop lint, which means to hide ALL raw edges.

First, when attaching the upper piece to the lower piece, I used a piece of knit to cover the raw edges:

Second, when attaching the front piece to the back piece, I used french seam, which means I sewed WRONG sides together first:
And turned and sewed right sides together to seal the raw edges in the side seam.

The waist and bottom hem raw edges are all rolled in so raw edges won't show anyway.

Now I think I'm safe.

Black pleated winter skirt for DD1 + mini tutorial

2011-08-05T13:01:00.004+10:00

I made this skirt for DD1 today:
I copied the design from an existing skirt given to us as one of the hand-me-downs. DD1 worn the golden one and I was surprised how nice it looked so I decided to make some using that design. I happen to have exactly the same fabrics at home, the black cord/velour/whatever thick fabric, and the sequin material.
I forgot to take photos when I started so below are some photos from middle of the project. The first photo below is already 1.5 hours into the project. The skirt took me 2.5 hours in total.

Basically I cut the following pieces:

Black cotton:
1. 40cmW x 19cmL x 2 pieces for upper piece
2. 107cmW x 18cmL x 2 pieces for lower piece, then I cut each piece into 107cmW x 13cmL and 107cmW x 5cmL pieces.

Purple sequin:
3. 107cmW x 3cmL x 2 pieces to go between pieces No. 2
4. 30cmL x 6cmW x 2 pieces as sash to go in the waist

Steps:
1. I pinned and sewed the pieces No. 3 to No 2, then top stitched to make it look neat. This step is very long and tedious.
2. Using a ruler, I marked the lower pieces made from Step 1 with marks 3cm apart, and pinned the pleats, each being 6cm wide. 3. I pinned the lower pieces to upper pieces, front and back still separate. (The upper piece and lower piece might not be exactly the same width, since there can be some inaccuracies in pleating, but I simply cut the excess off, which might have been less than 1cm wide. )Below is a photo of upper pieces pinned with lower pieces, right sides together.
4. I sewed the upper and lower pieces together, and top stitched:
5. I sewed pieces No. 4 into sashes and pinned them to sides of one of the upper pieces on the right side, then pinned the front and back pieces together and sewed both sides. Turning right side out and I got this:
6. Then I sewed top of the upper piece into a casing and threaded in a 45cmL x 2cmW elastic. I would have liked a wider elastic but that's how wide I could get from my stash.

I like how it turned out, although the sash doesn't look like what I imagined. Next time I might sew it a little bit lower. But maybe it'll look ideal when on DD1.
I could have run another straight stitch through middle of the elastic casing but I don't want to run the risk of making the waist too wide/loose so I'll just leave it like that now.
DD1 is 4 years and 7 months by the way. But I believe she can wear this skirt for another year or two.

Refashioned baby walker No. 2 for DD2

2011-06-19T09:33:00.002+10:00

We now actually have 3 walkers, one from DD1, one bought brand new (which is the only one that we hate to use), and another one rescued from our recent council collection. That one was all good except that there was no seat at all. Saving me taking it off! So I made a quick seat using similar technique to suit DD2's height. I didn't even bother with cutting fabrics and just use an unneeded pocket nappy instead. It's been used downstairs. DD2 looks so comfy sitting in it as well as walking around while I do my sewing or laundry downstairs.

Easy summer top for DD1

2011-06-19T09:20:00.001+10:00

During the hot summer days DD2 lived in her easy summer tops, and I made a couple for myself too. Then DD1 went jealous and asked me to make one for her too. So here it is:

Easy summer tops for DD2

2011-06-19T09:15:00.002+10:00

I bought this pretty summer top for DD2 when she was a little baby:
And thought it looks easy to make so I made a couple of easier ones from the idea it gave me:
She lived in them for the whole summer. LOL!

Wrist warmer

2011-06-19T09:00:00.002+10:00

This is more of an idea than a real product. I was having some wrist pain at one stage (must be the breastfeeding which relaxes all the ligaments). So I used some scraps to make this wrist warmer, enclosing some rice in it. Just pop it in the microwave for 30 seconds or so and I get something warm to soothe my painful wrist while busy with house chores and baby.

Mini taggie blanket

2011-06-19T08:57:00.002+10:00

I'm not very good at making toys. But I quite like making taggie blankets. I used some long-time scraps to make this mini taggie blanket. I didn't just use ribbons, but also used strings to make it more interesting. DD2 sometimes quite enjoys exploring what's on this blanket. Hehe.

DD1's 3/4 skinny legs

2011-06-19T08:54:00.003+10:00

I love making skinny legs. (Have I said that before? Hehe) It's one simple pattern, you just cut pieces of fabric and in 10 minutes a pair of very-in-fashion pants is done! And I love using the decorations of ribbons, laces each time too.

This pair of skinny legs, along with almost all other skinny legs I've made, have been very well worn. DD1 even wears them in winter all the time!

Refashioned baby walker No. 1 for DD2

2011-06-19T08:42:00.003+10:00

I don't seem to have a 'before' photo. This is a very basic baby walker we brought from China when DD1 was about 9 months old. After a few months of wear and tear it lost all it could lose and only had a basic structure left. Now DD2 is at the stage a walker is required, so I decided to make it work. I took off the old seat which was all torn and broken. Then I used a pretty canvas fabric and a upholstery fabric to make the seat, using FOE to bind. Then I sewed some ribbons/strips on and knotted them through the holes to fix the seat onto the walker. DD2 has been enjoying this walker for 2 months and it's still going strong. We later bought a brand new one but never wanted to use it because the new one was not as mobile and also too high for DD2. Strange that a homemade walker beats a fancy shopbought one!

Trial baby pants for DD2

2011-06-19T08:38:00.003+10:00

The pants on the left is an existing pair DD1 used to wear. I made a quick pattern out of it and made the pair of pants on the right. The newly made pants are a bit too long but still look cute. Later on I made more pants out of this pattern and found I couldn't bear with the length of it so I made a different (smaller) pattern which I've been using recently.

Some sleep pants made for DD1

2011-06-19T08:34:00.002+10:00

Using very comfy knits and my skinny legs pattern made from an existing pair of skinny legs.

Two pink long sleeve tops for DD2

2011-06-18T20:07:00.002+10:00

I made two pink long sleeve tops for DD2 when the weather started to be too cold to wear short sleeve tops. I used my favourite pattern Get Creative 4004. This is almost the only pattern I use for tops. DD2 looks very comfy in these tops, except that the sleeves are a bit too long.

Swim nappy

2011-06-18T15:41:00.002+10:00

I started taking DD2 to swimming lessons from 7 months old. The only requirement from the swimming school is a swimming nappy. So I made one using my own nappy pattern. Actually it's a side-snapping nappy cover, with one layer of PUL and one layer of quilting cotton, then binded using FOE I bought from FOE Diaper. I love this FOE I bought. It feels so well made and easy to work with. It took at least 2 months for me to receive it from the USA.

I haven't put it on DD2 yet as I've been using the training pants I made for DD1. This swim nappy is just a backup at the moment. I think I can also use it as a nappy cover. Only problem is I might need to wash it after each use.

Baby feeding cover No.1

2011-06-18T15:31:00.003+10:00

This is more of an emergency trial. Like I mentioned in the previous post, I had to find a way to avoid changing DD2's clothes every time I feed her. So after my mom's suggestion I decided to spend a few minutes to see if her suggestion could work. So I pulled out this already halfly refashioned Tshirt of mine (as you can see the bottom part has been cut):
Cut the centre back and cut two strips of fabric off the centre:
Pinned and sewed the two strips on to the back of neck. This are the strings to be knotted at the back of DD2's neck. I didn't even bother hemming or whatever because I know it doesn't fray.
I cut a small hole at the hem of the sleeves and threaded elastics in.
A baby feeding cover!
In action!
Well I know it's a quick fix but I was quite happy about the result. The only problem is the sleeves are a bit short, since it was a short sleeve Tshirt....But it does the job.

Skinny legs for DD1

2011-06-18T15:27:00.003+10:00

I love making these skinny legs. DD1 seems to like to wear them too. They're so comfy and easy. I made four, two from each fabric. I got these aboriginal-y fabrics for $2 per metre from remanent warehouse. I love working with knits, no need to worry about all the lints!

Baby feeding cover No.2

2011-06-18T15:18:00.003+10:00

So this is No. 2. I trialed No. 1 and got an hang of it so this one was quite well made, so far the best of DD2's 3 feeding covers.

It's made from another old jumper of DH's. It seems that DH has too many old clothes to recycle from isn't it! LOL. Well it's the top one. I took two pieces out and figured the top one would be nice.
Put one of DD2's tops on to cut the pieces (yeah I even omitted the pattern making part!).
Pieces cut! Sleeves and front and back. It's a peasant blouse style but I'll cut open the back to make it a feeding cover.
Sewed the pieces together, elastics at wrists, and FOE at neck. I cut open the centre back and used two strips of the same fabric to make strings so I can make a knot at the back of the neck.
This is the front look:
In action! Awwww....how cute!
This is the best feeding cover I've made. It fits DD2 very well. The fabric doesn't really absorb water so it really helps to keep the clothes clean and dry.

Refashioned baby pants for DD2 - too big

2011-06-18T15:12:00.003+10:00

I made this pattern too big so this pair of pants will have to wait till maybe next winter to be worn.

So I made this pattern from a pair of pants DD2 has been wearing. I wanted to try if the pattern is good enough so I used a jumper that DH doesn't want to wear any more to make the pants.
Cut out the two pieces:
It was easy to sew up the pants, but when I tried it on DD2 they were too big. The knit is kind of 'ribbed' so stretches too much and the pants are too long too.

Refashioned bed rail No 3

2011-06-18T14:56:00.002+10:00

We've had 4 bed rails, all of which are free, coming from either freecycle or council collection. I refashioned 3 of them, the fourth doesn't need a cover so no need for a refashion.

This is the one I rescued from our most recent council collection:
I took off the torn mesh:
And made a simple cover, and add two snaps to fix it onto the bed rail:
It looks fantastic. We now use it on our big bed with another bedrail to prevent DD2 rolling off the bed when she has to sleep on the big bed.

DD1's new season bell pants!

2011-06-18T14:43:00.004+10:00

It's getting cold and when I took out DD1's winter wardrobe I found her pants are either too short or too long. The only few pairs of well-fitting pants have holes at the knees and I'm yet to find a way to mend them. So time for some sewing.

I took one of the hole-y pants as pattern. (I now don't use commercial patterns for pants any more as I find using existing well-fitting pants as patterns are far more quicker and better fitting.) Put them on a piece of newspaper and cut out the shape, leaving roughly 1cm as seam allowance, and 3-4cm as hemming allowance.
Then put paper on fabrics. I folded the fabric into four layers so I can cut out all pieces all at once:
Fabrics cut out ready to sew!
To make it more interesting I found some ribbons. Alright not some but a lot. But then I've got a wide selection...
Cut some ribbons and pin on one of the pieces of the fabrics:
Sew the ribbons on, then sew the pieces together, hem the legs and thread elastics in the waist. A pair of new bell pants!
I even sewed a name tag on the back, so that I don't need to label the pants if DD1 wears it to kindy. To make the name tag, I just took a pink ribbon and using a normal ball pen to write her name on it and folded it before I sewed it on the pants while doing the casing of elastics.
It didn't stop there. I was so happy with the result that I made another one for DD2 too!

Baby feeding cover No. 3

2011-06-18T14:26:00.004+10:00

I know I haven't posted for many months. I haven't stopped sewing. Just got busy with my life with a new baby and my girls' blog so sewing blog is kind of lower priority. I'll try to pick up with this sewing blog and document some sewing I did during the last few months.

This is the third feeding cover I made for DD2. When she started solids at about 4-5 months I found she made too much mess. My mom suggested I make some of these covers so I don't have to change DD2's clothes every time after feeding. Turned out this is a good idea. Although it's a pain to put on an extra layer each time before feeding her, I'm glad I don't have to change her from head to toe after every feeding, and I don't have to have dozens of spare clothes.

Since it's only for feeding, it doesn't need to be fancy. So I never used any new fabrics to make any of these covers. This one started with a business shirt DH didn't want to wear any more.
I put one of DD2's top on the shirt and roughly cut out the sleeves and front and back. The front and the back are exactly the same. I didn't worry about the buttons.
Sewed the pieces together and some FOE on the neck and some elastics on the wrists. I didn't need to hem the bottom edges as they came hemmed with the shirt.
The buttons now come in handy as I don't need to worry about the closure at the back. When feeding time comes I just pop it on, button it up at the back and voila DD2 has a spillproof feeding cover!

3 new version night pads

2010-09-12T21:55:00.003+10:00

After I modified the panty liner pattern and night pads pattern, this is the first time I make night pads using the new night pads pattern. As you can see from the comparison of the old and new patterns, the new version is a LOT longer than the old one, although the old one is already 34 cm long. I feel safer with the new length. As I won't have menstrual periods for a long time I don't have any chance to test it until I finish breastfeeding, which hasn't started yet as the new baby's due date is still 10 days away. But from memory of the testing of the old version, I believe this new length should be good enough for me.

Below is comparison of real products of new and old version. As I now 'overcast' the edges instead of 'turn-n-topstitch', the new version is even bigger than it should be. But I really like this overcasted version. It's so easy and looks so neat.
Again, as you can see, I used the thrifted baby wrap to make these night pads. I've fallen in love with this fabric. It's not just easy to sew, but also very thick so I don't need to sew a lot of layers. It's also super absorbent. Just two layers can hold up a LOT of liquid without me feeling wet! I love it a lot more than the bamboo fabrics, coz it feels a lot better when in place. The bamboo velour feels plush when using hands to feel it but doesn't do as good when 'doing the job'.

4 cloth pads

2010-09-08T23:01:00.003+10:00

I made 4 cloth pads today, using the same materials as the panty liners I just finished. I really love working with this baby wrap thick cotton fabric. It's so easy to sew. I now just 'overcast' the edges instead of topstitching due to the thickness of the fabric. They look perfect. The farbic is very thick so I only use two layers in the body and two layers in the snap on soaker.

So for each pad, there're two layers of soaker fabric and another layer of soaker fabric sewn on to one layer of body fabric. Then a PUL layer as waterproof layer. They make a very thick pad. I can't wait to try them but I might have to wait for at least months since I'm planning to breastfeed....

But I can still use the body part (without snapping on the soaker) as panty liner if I wish.

Ways to recycle wool blankets

2010-09-08T22:20:00.002+10:00

I thrifted a wool blanket from a charity shop long time ago thinking I could recycle it into something but never came up with a good idea. I was thinking maybe I could make a wool nappy cover out of it but since it's a woven not knitted one I didn't think it would work well. Plus DD has eczema so I was advised by our doctor not to use wool on her.

Anyway I found this link helpful. It gives a few very good ideas on recycling a wool blanket. I like the following and maybe try them one day:

1. use as batting in a quilt
2. sleep bag. Why didn't I think of that?
3. as padding in pot holders and hot pads.

5 more panty liners

2010-09-07T13:55:00.002+10:00

My incontinence has been getting worse since my belly is getting bigger and bigger. So making more absorbent panty liners has become an urgent task. I couldn't find the bamboo fabrics so when I came across some very thick cotton baby wraps in Vinnies the other day I bought all of them. It was 50% off store wide so I got 4 of them for $1 each.

Today I got some time to make them. I used less than half of a baby wrap to make the absorbent layers and some PUL to make the waterproof layers. I cut out a body layer and a soaker layer of baby wrap cotton for absorbency, and a body layer of PUL. I really like this baby wrap fabric. It's super thick, doesn't easily fray (does it fray at all?) and very easy to work with.

I turned and topstitched one of them and found the fabric was quite thick for topstitching. So I went with the easy way, using zigzag to finish the edges instead of topstitching. I think the zigzaged ones look much neater than the topstitched ones. I really like how they turned out.

The absorbent side (left 4 are zigzaged ones and right 1 is topstitched one):
The waterproof (PUL) side:

Cot organizer

2010-09-04T21:49:00.004+10:00

I saw this cot organizer and couldn't resist the urge to make one for my soon-to-come baby. Today DH took DD to a birthday party so I got plenty of time to play in my sewing room.

This is what I spent a whole day on (well of course not really a whole day coz I had to take some breaks):
In action:
Of course I used snaps to fix it on.

Some photos in progress:

As you can tell the fabrics came from scraps of the upholstery set that I freecycled from someone who finished almost 95%.

Some measurements:
1. Main body: cut 68x73, finished size 64wx69h (too high so probably should have been 64wx64h)
2. Straps: cut 26hx8wx12pieces. Fold each into 2cm wide 4 layers to sew into straps.
3. I didn't really spend much time with the pocket as that piece of scrap came with the perfect W and H.

Patches

2010-09-03T22:52:00.002+10:00

This is a pair of pants that DD's grandma gave her as a gift. It's super comfy, with soft cord outside and very thin and soft knit as lining. And one day DD came back home with a huge whole in one of the legs.

I guess she'll need to wear steel pants in the future...

I can't just throw it out. It's too good to become useless. So I decided to patch it.

It's actually the first time I've ever patched a pair of pants. I picked this canvas fabric scrap and wanted to use the heat n bond but it wasn't working. The heat n bond did 'heat' but wouldn't bond.
So I had to do it all manual: using the pins to fix the patches on and handsewed them using blanket stitch:
I think it's pretty, although the patches do look too 'round':

Division curtain

2010-08-04T17:27:00.004+10:00

My parents are coming from overseas to stay with us for 3 months to help me with our baby No.2. We're running out of bedrooms so we decided to divide the entertainment room downstairs and make an extra bedroom.

I do my sewing downstairs and the laundry is also downstairs. So we need something to divide the room so my parents can have some privacy. After some discussion and planning with DH we decided to use wire and curtain.

We have a spare pair of curtain. But we found out it's not wide enough. So I pulled out the upholstery fabrics that I freecycled from someone long time ago and cut some pieces to make up the width. The fabric was already 'hemmed' as the original owner was trying to do an upholstery project and she couldn't finish it while it was already like 95% done. So I don't need to hem the fabrics. The only thing I need to do is to attach them to the curtain.

I also used some scraps of the top threading part of the cream curtain (I couldn't use them before but just wouldn't throw them out and now I can use them!) to attach to the top so I can use curtain rings on these fabrics too.

The upholstery fabric and the top part of the cream curtain to thread curtain rings:
The pair of curtain which will make the main body of the division (sorry for the crap photo it seems that only the wrong side is shown):
I sewed the upholstery fabric onto the main curtain wrong sides together and then folded over and sewed right sides together to make something like a french seam so that the raw edges won't show on either sides:
Then I attached the top threading part to the top of the upholstery fabric:
Threaded the curtain rings on (I didn't know which one would work better so I bought both):
Viola a division curtain (sure I'll iron them before my parents arrives...):
When it's open (yeah we'll get rid of the ping pong table and put in bed, TV etc..):
To make it work better I even snapped two snaps onto the edges of the curtain so when they're closed my parents can snap them up so they can't be easily open (by wind for example).

2 great free patterns a tutorial sites

2010-07-29T19:59:00.001+10:00

I've come across this site and found they have large collections of free patterns and tutorials all sorted out in different categories. http://www.freeneedle.com It's a great site as I can easily find many tutorials and patterns if I want to sew a particular thing. They have done the hard work of searching and collecting and sorting in categories.

They also have a sister site dedicated for sewing for baby. It's even better! http://www.makeforbaby.com I was gonna add the URLs on the right hand site of my blog but thought because they're so good I'd better make a post so I can easily find these two links when I need them.

How to modify normal pants into bell pants

2010-06-28T09:35:00.003+10:00

DH loves the bell pants I made for DD so he wouldn’t dress her in the normal pants. To make use of the pants I made I decided to modify them into bell pants. I simply drew lines on the wrong side of the pants to make the middle of the legs skinnier and sewed over the lines.
Now they’re all a little bit more ‘bell-like’.

I was planning to cut the excess fabric but I thought I better try it on DD before I cut anything. If still too 'fat' I can even trim more. If too 'skinny' I can rip the threads and remake it. I'll eventually cut the excess fabrics off once I feel the look and fit is good enough.

Modified (longer) panty liner pattern and night pad pattern

2010-06-28T09:14:00.003+10:00

I don’t like the panty liners I made recently because they’re too small, especially at the front which needs the most protection. I decided to modify my panty liner pattern to make the front larger.

What I did was simply tracing the panty liner pattern on a piece of paper, and put a normal pad pattern over it to trace the front onto the pattern so the front of the new pattern is longer, and the total length of the panty liner pattern is the same as the normal pad pattern.

See the photo below. Patterns from left to right: normal pad, panty liner soaker, panty liner body, new panty liner soaker, new panty liner body.

I cut one layer of bamboo velour and one layer of polar fleece or PUL to make the body, and one layer of bamboo fleece to make a soaker. The soaker is a little bit smaller than the body so that there’s less bulk when the body pieces are turned and top stitched.

I sewed the soaker onto the wrong side of the bamboo velour, then sewed the bamboo velour and polar fleece or PUL together right side together, then turned right side out to top stitch.

I like working with polar fleece much more than PUL. I can never get PUL to look nice after sewing. But polar fleece looks so nice and feels so nice.

I’ve tried the new panty liners on and they feel sooo much safer!

When I took out the old patterns I also decided to modify this night pad, although I don’t think I’ll need it in the next 12 months now that I’m 27 weeks pregnant and plan to breastfeed. I did pretty much the same thing, added length at the front and also at the back. I think it’s now about 40 cms long.

Fourth black pants made!

2010-06-14T13:27:00.003+10:00

I guess the bell pants will be the trend so I made a new pattern based on the 4004 pattern. I just copied the pattern onto newspaper and handdrew the curves to make it a little bit 'bell like' and cut out the curves. Voila a bell pants pattern!
I pulled out the stretchy black cord again and cut out the pieces. I also found some colourful scraps to make some decorations.
This is the piece of scraps that I was gonna make into some ruffles.

Ruffles made and pinned onto the front piece to sew before I sewed the pieces together:
I was gonna make the ruffles into a pocket shape but it turned out funny:

Third red pants made!

2010-06-14T13:08:00.002+10:00

I'm totally addicted to it.

And I've got so much cord to play with too.

DH said the pants I made recently don't have 'curves'. I asked him exactly what he likes and he showed me one of DD's bell pants. Ok I don't think that's difficult. So I modified the pattern I've been using. BTW this is really a very well used pattern. I bought it from spotlight and have made almost every item in the pattern, hooded vest, pants, jumper, tops etc. It is a basic pattern but I can add my own imagination and design to make it more interesting and make many more varieties.

Here's the final product:

I love how it turned out. It fits DD perfectly, even with thermo underneath:The back has even more decorations:
Because I got distracted when sewing and sewed all the decorations on the back pieces. Lucky I still had plenty of scraps to make more decorations to add onto the front pieces so now she ended up with a pair of pants with decorations everywhere!

The pants are made of a bright red cord and the decorations were cut from some canvas type of fabric from a never finished project. I used bands of that fabric to make the big pieces and cut out the small Tshirt patterned pieces to applique here and there.

I cut out the back and front pieces a few days ago from the 4004 pattern and after DH requested 'curves', I simply drawed some curves on the pieces and cut to make it a 'bell' shape.

Another pair of pants made!!

2010-06-09T22:20:00.002+10:00

I was so encouraged by DD and DH after making the last pair of pants for DD, I'm addicted to it!
I like the oriental kind of look of the flowery patch on the one leg.

If you look closely, you'll see the two pink bows were made differently. I decided to add a bow in the seam so the end bit won't show, when I was sewing the first leg. It was successful. See, there're only two 'loops' shown outside, so I don't need to worry about fraying.
Then when I sewed the second leg, I forgot....After I sewed the side seam, I realized I couldn't sew the bow in the seam any more. Then I just added the bow on the outside of the seam. I don't know what'll happen after wearing and washing. If it frays, I'll find ways to mend....
The fabric is a very fine cord that I brought from my mom's place tens of thousands of kilometres away. It's a big piece of fabric and I love it. I was imagining all types of decorations on it to make it into interesting items. And this is the first one! And I do like it!

New pants made for DD!

2010-06-08T11:20:00.003+10:00

Finally I've made something I like. There's been so many frustrations on sewing recently that I've lost a lot of confidence.

Anyway since winter is officially here (17 degrees for the whole week) I need more warm toddler pants. So I pulled out my cord stash and cut out this pair of pants over the weekend. I had a very busy weekend so I forgot about it. Then last night when I went down stairs I saw this UFO and decided to give it a go.

It turned out quite well. I straight stitched the seams and zigzaged the raw edges to avoid fraying.

I recycled a piece of scrap from the nursing cover to make the pants not so plain. And I got some straps from my colleague who rescued them from filing and decided to make a couple of bows on the pants.

DD loved the pants. She couldn't wait to try them on. It's just the right length but it looks very wide on her. I hope it's warm enough....

I can't remember which pattern I used. I'll have to come back to update on this.

Update 100614: pattern is Get creatibe 4004

Modern panty liners - I don't like it

2010-06-08T08:42:00.003+10:00

My pregnancy has made my incontinence worse. Recently my old lovely panty liners are not good enough. I have about 2 dozens of them but they're mainly made by 3-4 layers of flannelette and at most one layer of polar fleece. A sneeze can wet all the layers and a wet panty liner makes me uncomfortable for the rest of the day. (I’m just too lazy to carry around spare ones coz one was almost always good enough before.)

So I decided it’s time to use my ‘modern’ fabrics: PUL and bamboo, to make more absorbent and waterproof panty liners.

I pulled out my PUL, bamboo velour and bamboo fleece, and decided to use two layers of bamboo fleece as inner soaker because of its great absorbency, one layer of bamboo velour as inner layer that touches skin because of it’s lush softness, and one layer of PUL as the outer waterproof layer. I believe three layers of bamboo should be enough for a whole day, and even if there’s a big accident, the PUL should be able to prevent any awkwardness.

I used this pattern, which has always been my favourite. (When I'm checking the tute when writing this blog entry I realized that I did the wrong thing by cutting out the fabric using the pattern and turned and topstitched. It should be like sewing ON the pattern lines not cutting on the pattern lines. No wonder I feel these 'modern' panty liners are slightly smaller!)

So I put them on to the sewing machine and started sewing. Then I got more and more disappointed. I heard that PUL is hard to sew. It’s not really that hard to sew to me but the look after it’s sewn onto the bamboo velour is terrible. Why do I always have these waves? I want it FLAT!
To be honest I like fleece better. I never had this big ‘waving’ problem with polar fleece before. I believe bamboo fleece will be good as well, since when I sew bamboo fleece onto the bamboo velour it didn’t feel so wavy. After I finished my first ‘modern’ panty liner I hated the look. But I believe it should still have the functions that I need: absorbency and waterproof, so I am still glad that I have a ‘modern’ panty liner.

Then I decided to try handsewing the rest 7 panty liners that I cut out . Yesterday I finished two on the train. They still look terrible but well again, all I need is their functions at the moment so I’ll just bear with them.
I’ll have to do some research on how to deal with these ‘wavy’ issues with these terrible knits.

Nursing pads - unsuccessful

2010-06-04T09:57:00.002+10:00

To be honest I don't understand why I keep trying projects that I know I'm gonna fail.

I made some nursing bads before. But I failed. I don't think I even blogged about them because I didn't really want to spend more time on it. When I say I failed I mean I don't want to use them. Not that I was breastfeeding at that time. I was trying to make them as gifts for a friend who just had a baby. But after I finished them I decided even I myself wouldn't want to use them so I can't give them out as gifts.

Anyway the reason I believe I failed was because I believe a nursing pad should be able to form a little cup, not necessary a 'cup' but it need to be able to form a curve to go with the contour of the boob. No one has a flat boob so a nursing pad shouldn't be flat at all. But I couldn't make it properly. I tried to cut a tiny triangle off the circle and sew it up but it was ugly. So I gave up.

Then yesterday after the conversation with Susan, my friend who just had a baby a month ago, I decided she needs nursing pads. Although I mentioned the washable ones I bought from Target were very good (trim, contour, waterproof) I still thought I could give it another go to sew a few for her, since I recently bought my first lot of PUL. I just have to do something to use it.

Ok so I cut out the PUL circles (lucky I was careful and decided to sew only one pair first to try) and decided to cut the other layers into squares so I can cut a neat circle after everything's sewn together. I cut a layer of bamboo fleece and a layer of bamboo velour. It's the first time I use them so I was appreciating the lushness of these fabrics...

Then I pinned the three layers together and sewed around the PUL edge. I was very slow and stop to reposition almost every stitch so I could make a perfect circle. I used a 'topstitching stitch' on my machine which says to sew over thick and stretchy fabrics.

The circle was sewn perfectly. I caught everything I should have. Then I cut out the circle, carefully not to cut any thread. Then I felt although it looked perfectly sewn it didn't have the curve/contour that I needed (I knew there's no way to get the contour part when simply sewing around a circle but I was still dreaming miracles could happen).

Then I decided for the other pad I try cutting all the layers into circles and sewing them together. I was less patient this time and it turned out horrible. I didn't catch everything. It puckled. It even created a curve outwards which was opposite my intentions.

You can easily tell the one on the left is the second one which was made with a lot less patience. (DD insisted I include her house slippers in the photos...)
I was so disappointed. The fabrics were so lush but my product is not practical to use. My friend won't want to look like there're two pancakes on her boobs in public. I guess I'll still give it to her so she can choose to use at home or when sleeping, just to test the absorbency and waterproof part.

BTW I used KCK Nursing Pad Pattern , basically a circle of about 11cm in diametre.

Hey after reading the pattern and looking at the photos, I kind of understand why I can't get the curve inward. The pattern calls for a slightly bigger outer layer, hence a seperate circle pattern for the outer layer only. I guess this is the trick. I may give it a go next time. (Or not?) No I have to give it a go next time...

I just wish that I could make these Homestead Emporium ones. How can she make such perfect stuff? I'm so jealous...

Nursing cover for my friend

2010-06-04T09:31:00.002+10:00

Yesterday I called my friend Susan who just had her baby girl a month ago. She said she's been trying to take her newborn out for fresh air but worry about having to breastfeed in public. I said don't worry about that I did it all the time all you need is a muslin hanging over your shoulder to cover anything you think need covered. She said thanks for the idea I thought I had to buy a nursing cover from internet. I said don't spend that money it's too expensive to buy one it's easy to make and I'll make you one.

So last night I couldn't wait to start, and finish, this new project. It WAS easy. I just printed a tutorial http://sewmuchado.blogspot.com/2009/02/description-stylish-and-practical.html from http://sewmuchado.blogspot.com, cut out the fabrics and sewed it up. I don't have any boning or D rings so I just omitted them. Basically I just cut out two pieces of fabrics: 70x100 and 70x10, well I was planning to cut them but I made a mistake and got 70x90 and 70x10x2. Lucky Susan is a petite so I guess a slightly smaller size will do. (What can I do....recently I've started to admit I'm not really a talented/gifted sewer, although I possess the passions...)

Anyway I just sewed one of the 70x10 into a strap of 70x2.5, hemmed the bottom long edge and two short edges of the main body part 70x90, sewed the strip onto the main body when hemming the top long edge. It took me a while to decide which edge should be the top of the fabric because the pattern of the fabric looks really confusing.

Then I tried it on and figured the strap was too long. As I don't have any D rings I have to make sure it's the right length coz it's not adjustable. So I folded the two ends of the straps back about 5cm each and sewed them onto the body on the wrong side. It'll hide when it's in use.

Anyway next time if I make one I'll probably cut 70x100 and 60x10, sew the straps 40cm apart in the middle of the top edge. I think the body of 70cm is too long but I'll ask Susan for her feedback before I change it. (I believe the tutorial has a reason for that size.)

One more thing, about the fabric. I have to mention it because I think it's very pretty. :) I was given this fabric by another friend Lisa. She was going to live overseas permanently and she gave me a few gifts when we last met before last Christmas. I didn't know what it was as it was very properly packed. I thought it was a table cover. When I got home I opened it it was actually a piece of fabric made in Malaysia. It's pretty so I saved it for 'special' projects (I mean projects I don't think I can easily ruin...) It's about 2 metres so I still have a large piece to make some matching stuff. I was thinking a baby pouch when my DD2 is born. We'll see.

Training pants in action

2010-05-28T12:53:00.002+10:00

DD was playing with her baby doll so she wouldn't do exactly what I asked her to do so photos are not good.

Back:
Bottom:

Front (you can see the bulk - I put boosters in it):

The pants look a bit tight on her.

Ok I just got feedback from DH who looks after DD in the morning (as I go to work too early to see them awake). He said it was ALL WET. Everything. The booster wasn't thick enough and she did a huge wee, so it all leakedut to her clothes (poor thing she even wouldn't sit on the chair this morning coz her butt was too cold!). Lucky her sleep bag is polar fleece so I guess the bedsheets are safe.

Lessons learned:

1. Add A LOT more boosters next time.

2. Use polar fleece as inner layer, instead of flannel (cotton). I'm not willing to use polar fleece as fabric against skin so this is unlikely to be a choice.

DH is not willing to give it another go so I'll have to keep this trial product for DD2 due in Septemeber.

Mission failed. :(

First training pants made!

2010-05-27T15:39:00.001+10:00

I just can't buy PUL and not use them. So making something with PUL is my priority today. It was DD's first pair of training pants. I collected a few free patterns online and today I tried one of them. It's called Easter Bunz.

I used one layer of flannel and one layer of PUL. It's actually equivalent to a nappy cover but I don't want any part of PUL to get in touch with DD's skin so I added the layer of flannel. I don't mind washing. If it fits well I'll make more. And DD doesn't wet every night so I won't have a lot more washing.

I was thinking of leaving an opening to make it a pocket but decided I'll just add boosters on top, just for a better look of the training pants.

Flannel layer and PUL layer sewn together, leaving a small opening to turn inside out. Then sew elastics on each of the four long sides. Turn inside out and top stitch. Add snaps to finish.

This is finished product:

Because of all the elastics it's hard to take a good photo of the finished training pants. It'll sure be bigger than DD's normal undies but with all the elastics I think it should be fine. I like it big coz I'm thinking that maybe I'll add boosters for overnight.

I can't wait for DD to come back home tonight to try it on, and have some photos 'in action'!

DD's 3yo house slippers made!

2010-05-27T15:34:00.001+10:00

DD was complaining on Tuesday that she didn't have house slippers while both DH and I have. So DH said 'ask mommy to make some for you!' Then I started working on it straight away.

I drew the size of DD's foot and added about 1cm around the sketch and made a pattern. Then I cut out 3 layers of polar fleece and 1 layer of cord to make the bottom of the house slippers. I cut out a layer of polar fleece and a layer of cord to make the upper part. I sewed exactly the same way as I did with this pair of house slippers and last night I sewed on the bias binding to finish.

DD loved them. She wore them for the rest of the night and this morning she even wanted to wear them to kindy. LOL. They're a bit tight and small though so I've made a bigger pattern today to make her a bigger pair. I already cut out the fabrics and will sew them on the train tomorrow. Hopefully DD will have a bigger more comfortable pair of house slippers to wear tomorrow night.

DD's new slippers and the ones I'm wearing:
Bottome of DD's new slippers:
Her new slippers and old ones made last year:
Pattern I made to make these slippers, and a new pattern to make bigger ones tomorrow:
All fabrics cut out ready to sew!
The other side:
There're a total of four layers for the bottom, 3 layers of polar fleece, 1 layer of thin cord:

All fabrics are cut out from my existing scraps.

Old bed rail to new bed rail!

2010-05-24T13:00:00.003+10:00

I got this bed rail from a freecycler, because last week my 3 yo DD decided to sleep on the 'big bed'.

It was miserable, terribly dirty. But after cutting off all the fabrics parts and gave it a thourough clean (I had to use one of my craft brushes to go into all the little details), the structure was perfectly intact. Fine. That's all I needed.

So I worked in my sewing room for about 1-2 hours (not really worth it is it?), here's what I got:Doesn't it look perfect?

I used the remaining of the curtain that I used to make this stair rail screen, this skylight shade and this clothes pegs holder etc. There's still a fair bit left for maybe another project or two!

I wrote down on my sewing notes the measurements of the cuts in case it fails or I need to make another one. From memory it's 116x30 + 88x20x2P. There was another option which I realized should be better after I cut out the fabrics. From memory it's 88x58 + 20x30x2P. I think this option is better because the seams will be shorter, which means maybe less work.

Scrap project ideas

2010-05-21T08:40:00.005+10:00

Updated 100521

(Below are scrap projects I've experimented. Some were successful some weren't. I list them in alphabetical order and link them to related blog entries so I can see what I learned from them so that when I make similar projects I'll improve. )

1. appliqué
2. camera case cut: 15x20
3. chair feet covers can use polar fleece, cut folar fleece 3x20,fabric 20x20
4. cloth pads can use bamboo velour, PUL; cut L19x34,M28x18+28x10,S19x23+7x23
5. cloth panty liners can use bamboo velour, PUL; cut 18x21+18x8
6. embellishments – bows
7. embellishments – ruffles
8. extensions of clothes
9. headbands can use elastics, cut: 11.5x40 for main band, 4.5x30 for elastic band, 1.3x11 elastics
10. headscarves this is someone else's tutorial and I'm quite confused anyway cut 16x8 as guide
11. house slippers can use polar fleece; cut 12x28+17x24
12. knee pads can use polar fleece
13. name labels can use denim
14. paper roll holder cut: 21x 40cm rectangular piece of fabric and 2 pieces of 19cm long 6mm elastic
15. pin cushions can use tiny scraps
16. portable essentials pockets
17. pyramid door stops can use denim cut: 26x26x26
18. scrap pillow can use tiny scraps
19. scrunchies can use elastics cut: 14x53 6mm elastics: 18
20. seat belt covers can use polar fleece, denim cut: 20x15
21. silhouette appliqué
22. snakes can use tiny scraps; cut 80-90 long
23. toddler house slippers can use polar fleece; cut 2yo: 17x11+17x9
24. toddler shoe pads
25. yo-yos cut: 11x11

Some updates

2010-05-21T08:23:00.003+10:00

I kind of feel guilty that I haven't regularly updated this blog for a long long time. Truth is there really isn't much done recently. I'm expecting DD2 in Septemeber and with full time work and a 3 yo I guess I have every excuse to considerably reduce the amount of sewing. I limited my sewing to only those really needed, like mending my maternity pants, making fitted cot mattress covers for DD2 etc. I didn't take much time doing photos so I decided not to post them on the blog.

Now that I'm in second trimester and most of the first trimester symptoms (morning sickness, exhaustion, worsened hayfever, unstable pelvis etc) have kind of settled down, I think I might have some more energy to pick up a little bit more sewing.

I bought some PUL from snapsaustralia the other day with some more colours of snaps (they are both on sale) and they just arrived yesterday. yay~

I'm also thinking about buying some bamboo velour. Whatever I do with PUL it's most likely I'll need some absorbent materials as well. And bamboo velour is my favourite.

I've added a new 'to sew list' on the right hand side of this blog with some new sewing projects I want to do, with links to my choice of tutorials. I'll update the list when progress.

After I've experimented so many projects and learned so much, I hope I'll be able to make better quality stuff in the future.

PUL project ideas

2010-05-13T13:39:00.008+10:00

Big ones

1. Bibs cut 34x25
2. Change mats
3. Waterproof Mattress protector may not need but just in case. fitted cut 166x106 corners 18x18, elastic 150cm
4. Nappies cut 4mths+ 48x42+booster10x30;4mths- 42x36+booster 10x30
5. Swimmer bags for summer may not need but just in case
6. Toilet training bags
7. Training pants
8. Wet bags

9. lunch box bags

Scrap ones (why all the big ones are for DDs and the scrap ones for myself?)

1. Menstrual pads L34x19, M28x18+28x10, S19x23+23x7
2. Nursing pads 11x11
3. Panty liners 18x21+18x8

Sleep bag made!

2010-03-09T09:21:00.003+11:00

6 months after I cut out the fabrics.....It's a huge one and I hope it'll last many years!

According to DH's wishes, I used velcro for the side and bottom, and snaps for the shoulders.

update 100521: DH tried it on DD and gave some feedback:
1. armhole too big (ok I can fix that)
2. body too wide (I made it big so DD has freedom move inside but DH doesn't like it)
3. neck whole too small. (what the??)

Handbag refashioned from a sweater and a pair of jeans

2010-03-09T08:54:00.002+11:00

I love refashions.

My DH's sweater/vest:

My old but very fashionable jeans:

Cut all the useful parts:

A handbag!

I added some snaps at the sides so the pointing corners come up and make a bottom of the bag:

Single mattress covers

2010-02-07T14:39:00.007+11:00

I have a few bed sheets that I brought from China when I came to Australia. They're quite old fashioned but they're pure cotton and very comfortable. In China we never used mattress covers. In fact we only started using mattresses in the last couple of decades. I still remember when in Uni we only had underlays (thicker than the ones I found here in Australia) on bed, and we wrapped the bed sheets on the underlays. It was very comfortable. Actually I hate the mattresses we have now in our home as I have back pain and the mattresses are soft (I already got the hardest one in the shop) and my back pain can only get worse.

Anyway, since now we have a few more single beds in the house, and we don't have any single mattress covers, and the bedsheets are a pain to wrap around the mattresses, I decided to pull out these old bed sheets that we don't normally use and put them into good use.

I measured the single mattresses (they're of different thickness!) and measured the bed sheets. This pinky/yellowy bed sheet is fortunately larger than what I need so I just cut off some and sewed the four corners and threaded in some elastic and voila, a beautiful mattress cover!

Then when I came to this bluey one, it's shorter than what I need. Lucky it's a lot wider so I cut off the sides and used one of the strips I cut off to connect the top and bottom. So still a beautiful mattress cover!

cut 241x141

Bed head remote control organizer

2009-12-21T14:44:00.005+11:00

I was on holiday for the whole November. Then when I came back I've been busy getting back to my normal life and preparing for Christmas. We don't really celebrate Christmas but there're still a lot of things to do such as buying gifts for our relatives in Sydney and organizing a party for our friends. I suggested to DH about making handmade Christmas gifts but the plan was rejected. It's hard to give out handmade gifts in this very material world.

Anyway what I've made has nothing to do with Christmas. One of my friends is off overseas and doesn't plan to come back in the near future. She rented out her unit and had to put some of her stuff in our house, which includes a 40 inch LCD TV. She asked us to use it as she heard it can live longer if we use it than not. So we put the TV in our bedroom. It's nice to have a TV in the bedroom. But there's no TV cable in the room. I happen to have bought a lot of DVDs from our overseas holiday and we happen to have a spare DVD player. So we put everything into good use now. Then we need to find a place for the two remote controls. I don't want to search everywhere for remote controls whenever we need to watch a movie, so I made this organizer which snaps on our bed head which happens to have holes.

It's just perfect. I used the fabric that I freecycled from someone who gave up her upholstery experiment. There's still tons of it left after I made this mail sorter, this bedside table cover and this remote control organizer.

I made two more pockets (because I wanted to maximize the use of the fabric) which fits in my portable video player and a few DVD discs perfectly.

A pillow made for Irene

2009-10-26T21:05:00.004+11:00

I've been visiting Irene as a volunteer community visitor. She's 97 year old next week. She knits a lot. Every time I go there she was either reading the newspaper or knitting. She's knitted lots of scarves. Last time I saw her, she was knitting a pink scarf for her daughter who's now 71 years old. She showed me a few scarves she finished and asked me if I liked any. I picked one and she said she gave it to me as Christmas gift. I happily accepted.

Then I thought I needed to give her something in return. So I made this pillow for her as her birthday gift. I'm gonna give it to her this weekend which will be my last visit before I fly to China on Sunday.

I got this idea from internet. I remember seeing someone selling pillows like this with children's names on them. I loved the idea but never really tried it. Now it's a perfect opportunity for me to try it out.

I printed Irene's name on plain A4 paper and traced the outline of the letters so later on it's easy to see the outline from the wrong side of the paper.

I then glued the right side onto the heat-n-seal (I think it's kind of fusible web)'s paper side. Then I put the other side of the heat-n-seal onto a piece of scrap polar fleece and ironed it on.

Then I cut out the letters (yeah three layers altogether) and took all the paper off.

Then I ironed the polar fleece letters onto the base fabric and hand stitched the letters using blanket stitches. I then sewed the pillow up leaving an opening, stuffed it and handsewed the opening close using ladder stitches.

Some stitches are not perfect on the letters. I've thought of how to improve it next time. It's also the first time I stuff a pillow so it's kind of lumpy which I don't know how to improve.

I'm sure Irene will be happy to have it.

My wardrobe refashion post: http://nikkishell.typepad.com/wardroberefashion/2009/10/pillow-.html

T shirt shopping totes

2009-10-18T16:01:00.005+11:00

I got so inspired by the 10-year-old boy's new business that I couldn't wait to try his tutorial.

So I went through my to-refashion stash and got this:

2 minutes later I got this:

I got so amazed at how quick it was and how well it turned out that I turned another Tshirt:

into another tote:

I was going to make more but I'll see if I really need. At the moment I'm only willing to use those that I'm sure I cannot refashion into clothings.

My post on Wardrobe Refashion

T shirt shopping tote tutorial fron a 10-year-old

2009-10-18T12:10:00.003+11:00

Here.

I was quite shocked at this 10-year-old boy setting up his own business using recycled Tshirts to make shopping totes in such an easy and successful way...

Peasant blouse decorated with Dino Ville

2009-10-18T10:56:00.002+11:00

So my DH didn't like this green dots peasant blouse, because it's not good looking enough. I feared that he would chuck it away and never put it on DD (as he's normally the one who dresses DD). It's such nice fabric and I won't let this happen. So I decided to do something to make it 'pretty' or 'cheerful'. So I grabbed these very colourful scraps:

Cut some interesting figures out:

Laid a few out on the peasant blouse:

And decided which one to use and used my heat-n-seal and ironed them on:

I was planning to blanket stitch them on the train but decided to go the lazy way: zigzaged them using my sewing machine:

DH is quite happy now. I have to say I'd rather blanket stitch than machine zigzag...

Another two peasant blouses

2009-10-15T21:22:00.004+11:00

I made two more peasant blouses. These were cut out quite a few days ago and when I ran out of my 'train sewing' work I grabbed then and hand sewed them on the train. This green dots fabric is my favourite coz it's 100% cotton and very soft and quite thick. But DH doesn't like it coz it's 'not bright enough'.

knee pads

2009-10-10T21:31:00.002+11:00

I have lower back pain so I can't use the normal mops to mop our timber floor. Instead I use cloth wipes to do it. So I knee down on the floor. Over time my knees get sore. So I decided to make a pair of pads to cushion between my knees and the hard floor. They work quite well, except that the elastic was cut a bit too long so they keep going down and I have to pull them up from time to time.

I used quite a few layers of polar fleece scraps and padding scraps to make the cushion, sewed them onto the pink layer, then sewed the pink layer together with the green layer, with elastics. Now no more sore knees!

Revised yellow skirt

2009-10-05T20:43:00.003+11:00

I took off the bottom part of the white fabric inside this skirt,

and cut off a strip to make a ruffle:

It doesn't look like it's changed much. I'll think about how to improve it or I'll just leave it.

This is the peasant blouse + shorts set, if I haven't posted a pic before.

last version of the purple set

2009-10-05T20:42:00.005+11:00

I promise this is the last version.

I used the scraps of the purple fabric to make the ruffle and four bows. I sewed on the bows at random heights so it'll be interesting to see each time it's on DD.

My wardrobe refashion post

Embroidered skirt

2009-10-05T13:54:00.002+11:00

I made this skirt a few days ago as part of a set. I felt the white part was quite plain so I embroidered close to the edge using embroidery thread this morning. Just simple running stitches. I think it looks better.

The set:

Qipao and jumper/dress finished

2009-10-05T09:50:00.002+11:00

I think I'm very brave to give Qipao a go. I never thought I would be able to sew a Qipao. It's the kind of tranditional Chinese garment that's still being worn in China. If you google it you'll know how beautiful it is and how much more beautiful it can be modified into. I know it has its English names but Qipao is the authentic Chinese name of it.

DD had this gorgeous Qipao that I bought from Chinatown in January for her to wear at her kindy's Chinese New Year's celebration. And because of it's tightfitting, it was torn after a whole day's jumping, running and who knows whatever in kindy. So it's been sitting in my refashion stash waiting for some other projects.

The other day I decided to take it out and try to make a pattern out of it and see if I can figure out how to make one. So below is what I came up with last night:

It was a difficult project I have to say. I knew it would be difficult that's why I so hesitated to try. After cutting out the fabrics I thought maybe it wouldn't be so difficult. And while I was doing it I realized how many things I needed to plan ahead instead of just go and do it. I'll need to write a very detailed step by step instruction before my next attempt.

I was too lazy to make the fabric buttons so I just used snaps for the closures. I have the vague memory of my grandma teaching me how to make the fabric buttons before my school age. I've also done some research on how to make them but I haven't really started doing it. I'll do it soon I know.

This is also the first time I've made a collar.

Below is the reversible jumper/dress I made DD a few days ago and I just added the snaps on the shoulder last night to finish it.

Lavender

2009-10-03T14:15:00.005+10:00

I collected some lavender from our back yard and hung them dry for about 2 weeks. Today DH said he wants to clean up so I had to take them off the walls and work on them. I collected all the leaves and flowers and put them in jars. I got 3 jars of lavender! I didn't even want to chuck the stems out so I kept them in the newspaper and will think of what to do with them when I have time.

Peasant blouse and shorts set

2009-10-03T14:15:00.004+10:00

I finished another set this morning. The peasant blouse was hand sewn last night, leaving the neck to be machine sewn this morning using homemade bias tape. The shorts were machine sewn this morning.

Handsewing details:

embroidered seams for my top

2009-10-03T14:14:00.001+10:00

I used embroidery thread to sew the neck, sleeve and bottom seam of this top I made a few days ago. I think it's slightly better now.

pink peasant blouse

2009-10-02T20:27:00.001+10:00

I've got addicted to making peasant blouses. It's more because DH likes them very much. He always put a peasant blouse on top of a long sleeve tshirt on DD and it always look very pretty and cute.

So I made another one tonight. I also cut out another two and will need to find some other time to make them.

life's a beach

2009-10-01T21:48:00.002+10:00

I made this wall hanging/fabric art/whatever piece for my manager who's retiring next week. I hope my manager, who lives close to beach and loves art, enjoys her life after she retires.

It took me a while to come up with this idea. Of course I got inspirations from the internet. I printed out a few images off google images and cut them out to make templates.

I used a canvas with frame that I bought from discount shop as a base.

The shell and seastar were stenciled. I only have red acrylic paint so they're both red. Then I decided to embroider a little bit. I added a few stitches on the shell to make it more like a shell. And I added quite a few french knots on the seastar to make it more vivid.

I blanket stitched the flip-flop and the surfboard which were cut off my scrap fabrics.

The words were stitched using back stitches.

And I made sure I signed and dated. I've started doing this, which I think is a right thing to do for every gift I'm gonna give out.

little shorts

2009-10-01T21:47:00.003+10:00

I made this pair of shorts from DD last night.

Nothing special. It was a quick and easy job just to get something to match this top, which is my DH's favourite.

I used this pattern without ruffles.

top

2009-10-01T21:47:00.002+10:00

I made this top yesterday.

Both fabrics were bought from the remnant shop at Sydenham. The black fabric was from the small piece bin. I think I could make a top out of it but I wanted to sqeeze the usage to two garments so I used part of it to make the top part of the top (cut along the waistline) and used some scraps from this dress to make the bottom part.

The black fabric is very stretchy in every way which I really like but it's also very very hard to sew. So I had a hard time sewing it last night.

I used this pattern.

The top turned out not as good as I thought it would be. My DH didn't like it either. I guess I'll do some small amendments and see whether it'll be better. ... when I have time....

Fourth project - refashioned dress

2009-09-29T21:55:00.004+10:00

This is the No. 3 in this post so you can see how it all started. It was a very plain top of my mom's and she left it here and I sometimes wore it. But I didn't really like it coz it's too plain. But the fabric is very nice so I left it in my 'refashion' bin. Now it's given a new life and I guess DD can wear it for a couple of years since it's quite a lot bigger than the one that I made the pattern from. This is my favourite project of the day. :)

My post on wardroberefashion.

Third project - Yellow skirt

2009-09-29T21:51:00.003+10:00

I made this peasant blouse and I thought I needed to make something to go with it. So I used the remnant to make a skirt. The fabric was not big enough to make an interesting skirt so I used a piece off the big white bed spread to make an 'under' skirt. I think it's quite interesting although it does look weird to me. DH felt kind of the same way and he decided to tell me the 'under' skirt looks too 'under'. So I guess I'll have to make some modifications. I'm thinking about taking the bottom part of the white under skirt to make a ruffle for the outer layer. I may try it when I have time.

Almost finished second project - jumper/dress

2009-09-29T21:47:00.001+10:00

I overestimated my handsewing speed. I couldn't finish the first project on the train yesterday. And I couldn't finish the second project today either. Obviously making clothes takes more time than making bibs I'll have to say. And my eyes (not just my fingers) are so sore during and after handsewing that I decided to give up and finish the unfinished project on my sewing machine.

This is related to No. 4 in this post . It was very difficult for me to work out how to sew it on the train. And finally I made the mistake by sewing the wrong way and when I turned out the right side it couldn't make right. So I had to rip the last seam. I finished it off on the sewing machine after folding and ironing. Now it's ready for snaps before it can be worn.

It's reversible, which I haven't done for a long time.

Finished first project in my sewing queue

2009-09-28T21:14:00.003+10:00

I just love the peasant blouses! To make a matching item, I used the remaining of the fabric to make a skirt. The fabric wasn't enough so I cut a piece off the remainder of the big white bed spread and made a ruffled piece to make the skirt long enough. Now I guess it's long enough for her to wear for a few years!

This cute fabric was given to me by my mom last year.

Qipao

2009-09-28T21:09:00.002+10:00

I saw this Qipao that was hand sewn by a mom and decided to try for my DD too. So I took out the Qipao DD wore at kindy's Chinese New Year celebration last summer and traced out a pattern. I cut out some fabrics and this project is in my sewing queue. I'll post photos when I finish.

Making my own patterns

2009-09-28T11:49:00.003+10:00

I find myself starting to learn how to make my own patterns. Or maybe I started long time ago and I just got some progress recently. I guess I'm the kind of person who prefers doing everything from scratch with minimal aid. Maybe it's because I hate anything commercial, or maybe I just hate spending money.

I've browsed a lot of Chinese websites where people discuss about making their own clothes and upload their own books which have illustrations to tell you how to make your own patterns. After seeing many many photos, I kind of have an idea of the basic shapes of the basic patterns, and I've also got a bit of idea of some simple variations. I find myself starting to try to draw the simple patterns on a piece of scrap paper and think about how it'll work and find errors and modify it.

It seems that there's no real sized patterns produced in China. All the patterns are illustrated on books with measurements (which I can't understand) and you need to work out your own from the books. I think it's great because you don't rely on commercial patterns. Thinking of how much it costs to buy a commercial pattern for RRP price, it'll save the sewer a big amount of money by just making her own patterns. I used to buy patterns at half price sale in Spotty but they were still too expensive for me. Then I bought a lot of vintage patterns from charity shops for 50c to $1 each. Then I realized that most of them are quite similar. Maybe just some small details are different and it's called another pattern.

I remember when I was little I saw my mom drawing out her patterns using chalks (maybe sewing chalks) straight on fabrics before she cut them out, or cutting her patterns from newspaper for future use. These techniques cost almost nothing, yet you get a very good fit because you use your own measurements to make the pattern, not the approximate commercial pattern.

I also find using commercial pattern is annoying because the paper is too big and I need a big room to lay it out and I need some kind of transparent paper to trace the pattern so I have to spend money on buying the transparent paper too. Newspaper cost nothing as we receive community newspaper twice a week.

I don't think I'll buy any more patterns. I believe the patterns I've got at the moment can give me enough inspirations to design my own clothes.

cutting my top

2009-09-26T17:43:00.001+10:00

I ran out of fabrics to make myself clothes so I bought 9.5 metres of dressing fabrics and 4 pieces of scraps from the remanent shop at Sydenham for $23 in total. The scraps were about 1 metre each so I reckon I could make some garments out of them.

This is the black scrap. I knew it would be nice for some tops. I guess I could make one top out of it but I decided to try to make two, by combining it with other dressing fabrics. So I folded the pattern to waistline and cut out the top part of the top, and cut out some rectangles from the scrap of this dress to complete the bottom part of the top.

It's in my sewing queue (I guess I've cut out at least 8 garments so far to sew on the train) and hopefully I can post a photo of the finished project soon. I think it'll be very exciting.

Lots of work today

2009-09-26T17:39:00.001+10:00

I spent a lot of time today in the sewing room. Here's only a small part of what I've done:

1. I wanted to sew a new sleep bag for DD so I took out this big Tshirt that no one in the house wants to wear:

Laid the current sleep bag on it:

Cut out the shape. And because it's not long enough I took out a part of the remaining of the big white bed spread and cut out the bottom part:

I'll use polar fleece as the outer layer for warmth:

2. I couldn't part with the scraps after I made DD the peasant blouse so I cut them into strips and hoping to make some ruffles for future use. I reckon it's a great idea to use scraps:

3. This dress was one of DD's favourites last summer. I guess this summer it's gonna be too small. So I want to try to make a bigger one for her using one of my Tshirts:

I'm gonna be very mean and try to use every little bit from the tshirt:

4. I made a dress/jumper pattern out of another favourite dress of DD's:

And cut out a few dresses to sew on the train:

I think DD will have some very colourful dresses this coming summer!

peasant blouse

2009-09-26T17:38:00.001+10:00

I came across this tutorial and gave it a go and I was very happy with the result. Following the tutorial I made up my own pattern:

This is how it turned out:

In action:

Even DH said it looks very nice.

free fabrics from the fabric store

2009-09-26T17:24:00.001+10:00

I got these free fabrics when I visited a fabric store close to work. The blueish fabrics are very long and stretchy. I'm wondering what I can do with them?

new seat belt covers

2009-09-23T22:06:00.003+10:00

I made these seat belt covers a couple of days ago. I made two trial versions and they'd been working in the cars for over a year before I finally realized how dirty they were and decided to make new ones to replace them.

The top 2 are denim and bottom 3 are quilting cotton I believe, all from my scraps stash. I make seat belt covers because in summer the seat belts scratches my skin (due to less clothes and more exposure of skin), so it has to be cotton.

The other side all polar fleece, all from my scraps stash too, just to add some cushion and comfort:

The size is about 20cm x 15cm. I use snaps to fasten them around the seat belts.

I was trying to take a photo of them in action after I made them at night and the camera couldn't focus well. Below is the only good photo where one of them is on DD's carseat coz she insisted she should have a share too....