Perfectly Pink

I recently finished a "perfectly pink" bubble for a baby gift.  Is it possible that my son's high school friend and buddy could be getting to be a parent already?

Just yesterday he and my son were playing pranks on me ("oh, by the way, put the buoy back in the lake where it belongs....not in my swimming pool") and creating a "ruckus" in the yard with their motorcross bikes.  Not to mention all the good times we had bringing him along on road trips and church camp!

[caption id="attachment_480" align="aligncenter" width="300"] They look innocent....[/caption]

So it was only appropriate that I make a "perfectly pink" smocked bubble for his first baby girl!



I used Miche Mooney's Classic Bubble pattern, which is a favorite of mine and SO easy to assemble!  The smocking plate came from Australian Smocking Issue 91 "Babe in the Woods" and I modified it just a tad.  The "perfectly pink" batiste is from Martha Pullen and the citron green dog print fabric actually came from a grab bag at her School of Art Fashion!  It is from Anna Griffin's Fifi and Fido Collection.  I made the piping from some black microcheck bias I had in my stash.



Of course I got carried away with the dog and perfectly pink theme, so I made a burp cloth with matching fabric ruffles and pink rick-rack featuring an embroidered pink poodle.  How much more appropriate for the whole perfectly pink theme?  A matching monogrammed bib using my Brother fonts just made the whole collection complete!



I can't wait to meet the new baby when she arrives and hopefully the bubble will suit her personality.  After all, she can be "perfectly pink" and  still create a ruckus and learn to play pranks on her dad, right?

Happy Sewing!

Renee

Bishop Babbling

I'm sure you've heard the saying "if walls could talk"...If the smocked bishop dress I recently completed could babble it would have a lot to say!  This bishop, if it could talk, would have many memories to share, or as my son says "makin' memories".  When I look at this dress, I don't just "see" the craftsmanship, I see all the places I worked on it to complete it or rather the memories made while it was being constructed.

 

Daisy Mae, the name of the dress, was actually born at Martha Pullen's School of Art Fashion back in July while I attended Gail Doane's workshop.  The smocking wasn't even started when I left the school, but construction tips and techniques had been thoroughly covered.

 

So the bishop babbling begins as I feverishly tried to get the holding row completed in a hotel room the night before a flight so that I could smock while flying. I was able to remove the bishop from my blocking board and pack the dress into my carry on bag and stick the board in my parked car before heading to the airport. (Yes, you can carry needles and "kid" scissors-I didn't want to risk losing my expensive embroidery scissors) As I smocked on board a flight to NYC I had many question my craft.  A good way to share the art of smocking! Needing a break from all the site seeing ,  I continued to work on the dress in my daughter's apartment in Chelsea while waiting for her to finish work.

If the bishop could babble, it would also tell you that it visited Tennessee, my childhood home, and sat and looked at Old Hickory Lake in Nashville at my in-laws  home.  Riding in the car was a common occurrence and could be pulled out of the sewing bag only if the road was straight and not bumpy!

 

Most often, though, the bishop would tell you if it could,  that most evenings were spent in the hands of a woman with a passion for smocking.  Curled up on the couch with coffee and a fire, my "babies" on one side and sewing bag within reach.

Once in my sewing studio for construction, I remember the rainy day I worked on the garment construction, hearing the rain pelt the roof.  Or the squirrels running across the roof on a beautiful, clear winter day.

 

 After completion, the bishop could babble about being the star of a recent trunk show at the American Sewing Guild in Macon, GA.  The babbling of this bishop will continue once it finds a home with a special little girl to live with.  Maybe a future client? Perhaps my own grandchild a few years down the road?  A special Easter dress for that precious someone?  A Sunday dress that will attend Bible class?

Do you get "emotionally attached" to your projects?  When I see my creations, memories flood back of all the places I worked on that particular garment, who I was making it for, if it was a gift or custom order and the life I gave a piece of fabric.  A bishop can babble...just ask it's creator.

Sew happy,

Renee

 

Pinteresting Projects

 

 

 

My husband accuses me of being addicted to Pinterest.  Anyone else have the same issue?  It is a great resource for anything from sewing, which I utilize the most, recipes, home decor, education, gardening....and the list goes on and on.  It is really easy to sit at the computer instead of getting projects completed.

Recently I used pins from my sewing board to reproduce AND complete two projects.  Since my daughter just moved into a new place, she pinned curtains and asked me to make them for her.  So, I deviated from my normal niche of smocking and dove into home decor.

http://besserina.blogspot.com/2012/01/tutorial-ruffled-pleated-curtains.html

Here's the link to the tutorial provided for Anthropologie style curtains.

I found my project to be very easy and inexpensive--great for rental property!

[caption id="attachment_433" align="alignleft" width="300"] Lots of ironing and folding.[/caption]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[caption id="attachment_434" align="alignleft" width="300"] Now to stitch![/caption]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[caption id="attachment_435" align="alignleft" width="225"] Now to steam and scrunch.[/caption]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[caption id="attachment_436" align="alignleft" width="199"] Finished and hanging![/caption]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My niece also pins on Pinterest and recently showed me an ipad cover she had found.  After she sent me this link, http://craftsanity.com/2010/05/craftsanity-on-tv-make-an-easy-fleece-ipad-cozy-tutorial/ I set to work on her project.

This is how it turned out!

[caption id="attachment_437" align="alignleft" width="300"] Ipad Mini Cover[/caption]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[caption id="attachment_438" align="alignleft" width="300"] I used a template from the internet to size the cover.[/caption]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So, yes, I guess you could say I'm addicted to Pinterest.  I do spend a lot of time on the computer "researching".  Just remember to put those pins to use in a project!

Sew Happy,

Renee