Merida the Brave Peplum

Last night I couldn't sleep.  So of course I started trolling Craftsy.  What did I find?  This Pippa Peplum by See Kate Sew.  Oh how I loved it!  Oh how I don't want to spend another $9 on a pattern.  And then...I noticed it's just a t-shirt with a gathered skirt.

What did I do?  I drafted my own after reading a few tutorials on Pinterest.  I took the next size up on the Alex and Anna Winter Pajamas AGAIN and shortened the torso.  Then I cut out a circle skirt to add to the bottom.

And Voila!  A Peplum dress.

 At first I thought this teal plaid was too much to handle.  Now, I think it looks great with the preschooler's red hair.  Right now the top is a little big in the shoulders.  That's ok.  I want her to be able to wear this all winter.

 The toddler is not wearing a Made by Mom dress but we can't leave her out of the photo shoots.   As soon as she hears the words "take a picture" she starts running around saying "Cheese!"

This is what happens when I ask them to kiss each other.  So much love.

Nudist No More

The child who refuses to wear pants to eat dinner, decided tonight to wear her flannel pajamas in 90 degree heat.  Somebody please explain.

I did brush her hair today, but that was before she played in her bucket of water on the deck.  Don't ask.  Please ignore the ketchup on her face from dinner.  She is her own person.

I Couldn't Take it Any More

Ahh! the stretching and gaping and curling!  It was mocking me.  So I hacked it up and tried again.  The Anna Lap Dress top portion just isn't working for me right now.  See, isn't it hideous?

I took the top of a pajama top and cropped the torso length.  The toddler modeled it for me because the preschooler is going through a nudist phase.  Hopefully she works her way through it by the time school starts again.  Oh, and we always stand on the dining room table to try on clothes.

Unplanned Greatness

It wasn't my plan to make a perfectly assembled pair of summer pajamas yesterday, but the preschooler is without any due to an overnight growth spurt.  After I finished a planned project, I quickly threw together this Alex and Anna Winter Pajamas altered version.

The sleeves and pant legs were shortened.  I had bought the flower knit a few weeks ago, but then thought it was hideous.

What ended up happening was pure magic!  The collar came out perfectly.  You know how you always have that one thing in a project that bothers you?  Not this one.  Also, I'm not sure what this knit is but it was so easy to work with.  Maybe a little heavy for summer but the preschooler wore it all night no complaints.  The pants on the other hand came off as soon as the photo shoot was over.

The younger child here is a girl despite the boy's t-shirt and short hair.  She does own lots of real pajamas, and she does have pants.  Neither of which are reflected in this photo.  

Pluses and Minuses

 The pre-baby sewing marathon continues now that we are back from Up North.  I got to work on another Anna Lap dress.  Some good things happened.  

One:  I did not overstretch the neck.  

Two:  The pre-schooler tried it on and said she loved it.

Things that make me grumpy.

One:  The plaid does not run straight of the grain so the plaid runs downhill.  I'm hoping you don't notice this when it's worn.

Two:  The dress is way too big to be worn to school just yet.  This could be good though since I want the preschooler to wear it through the winter.

I'm also working on my labeling system.  I'd buy labels from Etsy but there are so many to choose from I get overwhelmed.  So I won't buy any!

Parsley Pants Hack

 I've been on a pdf pattern buying binge.  Eee!  Don't tell DH.  Last night I saw the Parsley Pants by Made By Rae.  I WANTED them.  I NEEDED them.  I just can't buy one more pattern.  There are tons of pants patterns in my stash.  Really all I wanted was the pockets.  So I tried my hand at pockets.  And it WORKED!!!

 To make my prototype I used an old pair of maternity pants that were too big.  I just had enough.  I also tried having a flat front with the elastic in back only.  The results are mixed.  These will take some practice.  Right now these pants are huge.  Maybe they will fit when the preschooler goes to kindergarten in 2017.

Frozen in June

Father's Day went something like this.  Get up, do the dishes, make DH breakfast.  Head to the basement.  Clean out room in basement, sweeping up ten tons of kitty litter.  Put toddler to bed and send DH to store with preschooler.

 Cut up and stitch together two Minnie Mouse sun dresses.  Speedy quick, no talent required project.  DH returns with sleeping preschooler and begins to install new car radio.  I then cut out Frozen flannel pj pants and have them done lickety split.  We test drove car with new radio.  Came home, cut out winter pj top and assembled before a late dinner.  In 22 minutes there is a new Masterpiece Theater on PBS.  I couldn't be happier.