Wednesday, November 16, 2011

Bubble Ballet Skirt



Bubble Ballet Skirt Tutorial

Supplies (for a 4T or smaller size):
 1/4 yard of knit
1/2 yard of chiffon
coordinating thread

A Bubble Ballet Skirt is so fun and easy to make!

General rule of thumb for width of the fabric would be 2-3 times the stomach circumference. My little girl is 19" around, and I just used the full 44". Cut the length to 18" long.

for a 19" waist, you could cut two pieces of fabric that are 19x18 to accomplish the same look!


fold the fabric in half the long way and again the short way, stitch up the side to form a circle


I used an overlock stich to prevent fraying.


Turn inside out.

I forgot a picture of the next 2 steps,

Take the raw edges of your skirt and line them up, serge or interlock stitch around the full circle to prevent the fabric from unraveling with wear.

1/2 inch from the top of the skirt sew a long stitch to use for gathering. If you are worried about your gathering stitch breaking when you gather it, then sew a second stitch 1/4 inch from the top and pull the bobbin thread on both stitches together when gathering.

Now for the band. Cut it 5" long, and the width will be Tummy circumference - 2", so my little girl was 17"


Fold in half the short way and stitch together using a knit stitch or a zig zag stitch.


fold in half the long way hiding the seam


Lining up the seams, pin together the knit waist band and the chiffon skirt together, evenly gathering the chiffon around as you go. Use a knit or zig zag stitch so that the thread will stretch with the waist band.


Now put the skirt on your little girl and let her dance circles around your living room!


Monday, November 7, 2011

Silky Cuddle Blanket

I love the minky and flannel together, so warm, soft, and cuddly. Perfect combination to snuggle with from newborn to toddler!


The Silky Cuddle Blanket

Supplies:
1 yard minky
1 yard flannel
1 package of silk binding

Finished size: (approximate) 38"x46"
  • Cut minky to 36"x44", square off the flannel, 1 yard should be approximately 36"x44"
  • Manually wrap the silk around the edges, this will give you the length needed. At each corner fold the edge up 2" so there is a total of a 4" loop at each corner. Add a seam allowance and cut so it matches the length you just measured.  
  • sew the ends of the silk together.
  •  Sandwich the satin between the flannel and minky, right sides together all raw edges matching up.
  •  to create the corner fold up the satin 2" at the corner, angle it and fold the other direction. You will have excess satin hanging out
  • Sort of ruffle the satin along the corner and pin the "sandwich" in place. Be careful that all folded edges of the corner are tucked neatly in and will NOT get caught in your sewing, however you do want to make sure that ALL of the raw edges get caught
  • Pin well!

  • Sew all along the edge leaving a 3-4" opening to flip the blanket right side out. Then stitch a narrow seam along the flannel/minky edge all the way around
  • All raw edges on the satin will be hidden, and you will only see the one seam where you sewed the edges together!

I have an embroidery machine, so I love to personalize the gift. You could also hand applique or hand embroider and design on


My 3, almost 4 year old fights my 8 month old for the blanket we have like this! Perfect for all little ages :)

Wednesday, November 2, 2011

Strawberry Shortcake


My dolly wanted to be Strawberry Shortcake for Halloween. We bought the ridiculously priced costume...no wig and tights WAY too small (even though the rest was too big)...so the costume was quickly returned! In place I made her a costume, what a simple costume to make :)

She was ecstatic that by me making it, she could now get the wig! The happy little girl even had pink shoes in her closet :)

Tuesday, November 1, 2011

Halloween

I'm not good at carving pumpkins. My husband seems to be gone when I feel I want to do pumpkins, so I messily paint them :)  here are my Dolly's painted pumpkins

**It's hard to see from the spray varnish to protect the pumpkin, but there is a face on the left pumpkin, painted by Dolly

I hope everyone had a fabulous Halloween - I know we did! It is so wonderful for the kids to be by their grandparents to enjoy these fun times :)