Question #2

Where does Lil' Liza Lou donate kimonos to and why? Prize to be determined... leave your email in your answer.

Giveaway Time- Question 1

First person to correctly answer this question will  $5 off their next purchase. 


Question 1- What was Lil' Liza Lou's best selling item THIS SUMMER? The correct name of the item will be the correct answer. Leave a comment with the correct answer and you win...  

Minnie Mouse Dress with Matching Ears

This past week has been quite a week for me. I decided to use up fabric that I had... and just be able to get things done. So... each day I made at least 1 dress. I made 6 garments in 4 days. I would say that is a success with two children less than 2 years apart, 10 months and 2 years... so... I had a very enjoyable time doing it. 


After making this dress... it was a simple pattern... and I loved doing it. It turned out so cute. I had to cut the pattern down because my little Loo is so little that it was much too big on her. So, I cut it down, by half an inch all around, a little more in some areas... It turned out perfect. I wanted to have the whole package so did a search on how most people did them... I used what I had, because I just so happened to have felt lying around. I also got some red ribbon and tied a little bow. Voila. Easy Peasy. Then I just used hot glue, and glued it all around and smooshed it with the hot glue and it worked perfect. Everywhere we went people were remarking on it... It did turn out perfect. I wouldn't change anything, AND I didn't mess up one time. This is the first garment I have EVER made that I didn't mess up somewhere... maybe I am becoming a REAL seamstress...   :)   Anyway. This was easy cute and simple. I am working on another one for tomorrow. It is apples and pears and I am going to do a pink sash. I will be taking LOTS of pictures to be able to show you how I made it. 

Ruffled Leg Pillowcase Romper Overalls

These are absolutely precious. I messed up twice, and thank the Lord for the seam ripper. Lesson from the experience: children and sewing (concentration) don't mix well all the time. When I went to put the ruffle on the leg, first I accidentally sewed the ruffle to the wrong side where the hem was showing... so I had to take all the stitches out and do it over... well then I made the GENIUS move and SEWED THE OPPOSITE LEGS TOGETHER, so it was like a dress, but not... because it looked like there was a trunk coming out from the crotch area. Needless to say, not a good thing for a pair of overalls... so had to AGAIN take all the stitches out... Live and learn. I was just too distracted, and not paying close attention to my project because I was too concerned with making sure it got done, because I wanted her to be able to wear it to church Sunday... Granted, I had a WHOLE other day, and it literally only took me about an hour and a half to complete... (that's including the 30 minutes it took me to get the stitches out and redo it.) All in all, it turned out better than I could have imagined. Next time, I will try and work with the lighting because the pant ruffles DO match one of the colors in the fabric, you just can't see it very well... and the ruffles look extra dark where as the pattern doesn't... Anyway. It looks super cute, and should be able to fit her Highness until Easter. It is big on her right now, but there is elastic in the top, so even if she grows more, it is expandable. :)

I often wonder if anyone reads these, so if you do, please comment.

Pillowcase Romper Overalls

Ok, after a long "vacation" of snotty noses, sickness, and just outright not fun-ness, I am back to the blog. Last night I made a absolutely adorable pillowcase romper overall outfit. The pattern was really well written, and I enjoyed making it. This morning I made another one of them, because the one I made last night was too big... little girl is just a lot littler than most babies her age. So... It literally took me two hours this morning to not only cut it all out, sew it up, and take pictures... you can't beat that. I have a few lessons I learned from it... here they are:

1. When you are sewing something for a child who is very small, it is better to measure it or you will have something that is WAY too big... (lesson learned).

2. If at first you don't succeed try again, because it was so much easier this morning. I practically didn't have to use the pattern because I remembered what it said.

3. A ruffler foot is so much fun. I was able to make close together ruffles, far apart ruffles, and deep ruffles, it was lots of fun learning about it.

4. Don't be afraid to use your son as a model... ;) I won't post the pic, but it was cute... boys will do anything for their Mommas.

5. My little girl is the best model ever.

Reversible Open Back Dress with Fancy Ruffled Bloomers

This is absolutely my favorite favorite favorite outfit EVER. I absolutely LOVE it.

When I found out I was having a little girl, the one thing I wanted more than anything was ruffled butt bloomers. I have tried to make them... made a good effort to it, but, not exactly like what I wanted. This is exactly what I wanted and more. I learned so many things from this project.

#1- I learned about a "Bodkin" It's called an Ezy Pull Bodkin. This works wonders when trying to put elastic through for bloomers. This little tool saved me hours of frustration. Before, I would have tried to push a thin little safety pin through the tiny little pocket in which the elastic goes.

#2- A Rolled Narrow Hem Foot for a sewing machine. This was completely awesome. This little dream you took and put the fabric in and it made a little rolled hem. It was so cute and dainty. I loved it. It worked better than what I imagined.

#3- A Gathering Foot. After doing the rolled narrow hem, I took this little foot put it on the machine, and then... nothing more... just took and put the stitch length at the longest stitch. Then I just put the fabric through... it did all the work.

I bought the pattern from TieDyeDiva on Etsy.com. It turned out perfect. Love It. I am selling the set for $45, (reversible open back dress, matching bloomers) and it comes with personalization, and a hairbow for free. You specify the colors... and in a week you can have the most beautiful thing I have made. Get one for your angel to wear this summer.

Embroidery!

It seems like ages... I have been very busy crafting. My latest and greatest invention has come in the form of a machine... I absolutely love my Christmas present. I have been having so much fun with it... I have a brand new Brother HE-240 in my possession. It is absolutely wonderful and only took a few minutes for me to learn everything I needed to be able to use it... and with reading the manual I made a few things already...

So here goes...

• Things to keep in mind: Stabilizer is your friend. This is very inexpensive but will be a money saver because who wants to go embroider expensive fabric to have it look like trash... no one... so do yourself a favor and get some. I got the tear away kind. I have an embroidery hoop and I just put that under the fabric and then sandwiched it in between the two hoops... and tightened. I then clicked it in... pressed a few buttons an in literally no time I was off and embroidering. I have already embroidered Ms E a few pairs of bloomers, which were ridiculously cute... and she will don at church tomorrow... she wore the zebra print dress before but never bloomers with her name that MATCHED PERFECTLY... so...sew cute...

• When embroidering, take care to notice if your fabric is centered not just on the hoop, but the fabric around the hoop... taking care not to let it block the embroidery "carriage" from moving.

• When embroidering a onesie... use IRON ON stabilizer... it doesn't work well without this. (That was disastrous) Ended up with a HUGE hole in a onesie, a broken needle, thread jammed everywhere... so... use it. It is worth it.

• Remember which way your fabric is laying on your hoop... after you cut out your pattern you don't want to find that you embroidered on the wrong side, it was upside down, or anything remotely like that... it is a sinking feeling...

• Always prewash your fabric when using it if it will be washed. If you don't all that pattern following will mean nothing. You should at that point invest in a little American Girl doll and let her wear it, because it will not be fit for even Fido to wear... (Let me just say you have to add a step to buying the American Girl Doll... first before you do that take out a second mortgage... you will need it)...

So far, I have embroidered a "lovey" security blanket for Liza-Loo... as well as done a few crafty projects, including stuffed bunnies. Everything has turned out super cute. I am wondering what I can embroider next. The hubby has already said a firm NO to embroidering any of his unmentionables...

Tomorrow is my birthday. I have lived 29 years. 29 more years than doctor's said I would. I was given less than a 10% chance at living and if I did, "they" said I would never walk, talk, have cognizant thought... so... This year I wish you a year full of miracles, where you have a renewed wonder at creation, and your Creator.