Dinosaur Dudes

There has been a sudden influx of newborns in my life!  I'm trying to keep up and came up with this simple yet super effective idea for a toy having seen some examples on Pinterest...

1.  I found an appropriate dinosaur silhouette shape to copy from an image on the computer.  Once you've found the shape you want, draw and cut it out using suitable paper, being sure to add half an inch for seam allowance - this will be your pattern.  I will do my best to upload my shape once I get it in the right format!

2. Cut 2 dinosaur shapes in desired fabric.  I've chosen one plain and one patterned print.  And yes, I did iron my fabric but it didn't seem to make much difference!

3. On opposite sides of your cut out dinosaurs use embroidery thread to stitch crosses for eyes.  I prefer doing eyes like this rather than using buttons so that I'm not creating a choking hazard!  Make sure the eyes aren't on the same sides on both pieces!   

4. A little personalisation is always a nice touch too!  An initial or a name on the tail looks sweet on these.

5. Take one shape and lay it right side up (ie with the eye facing upwards).  Choose 8 ribbons and cut about 3 inches in length.  Fold each piece of ribbon in half and pin alongside the dinosaur's back like in this picture:

6. Place your other dinosaur shape on top, right side down (so the eyes are touching).  Pin in place.

7. Using a half inch seam allowance stitch around the outside of the pinned dinosaur shape, removing pins as you go.  Leave a two inch gap at the top of the leg arch.

8. Trim corners and clip edges.  This helps the fabric lie correctly when you turn it inside out, otherwise it'll pucker and pinch.

9. Turn the shape inside out by poking it all through the hole you left in your seam.

10. Stuff your toy with suitable toy stuffing.  I also like to put a little bell inside to make it jingle!

11. I've forgotten to take a picture here, but neatly stitch up the hole in the seam by hand using a blind stitch.

12. Your dinosaur should be done.  Here's one of mine prowling through the garden...

I hope you enjoy making yours!

Easy Peasy Zippy Pouches

I had some left over fabric from the changing bag I made for my friend and I know she wants to use reusable nappies so using the scraps to make a waterproof pouch for transporting wet apparel seemed appropriate!  A useful idea for any of us with little ones, not just those with soggy bottoms!

We're also in the process of moving house, which reminded me that for months I've been planning on making some bags to store some of my daughter's toys.  

I found a couple of straightforward tutorials through my old friend Pinterest, such as this one on See Kate Sew.  I got a bit confused by the reference to folding the zip towards the lining when sewing the two sides of your pouch together.  It felt weird and bulky and not right.  I explored a bit further and found some instructions with pictures of what this step should look like, the most helpful of which was this one at Pink Stitches.  The pouches described on this last blog were a little more complicated on the whole (would make great gifts!), but the pictures simplified the process for me.  I also like the way she has secured and extended the zips with small pieces of fabric.  I used this idea for a couple of my pouches as the zips I had were all pretty small and I sometimes find my zip slipping when I sew it.  This is a great way of solving both problems!

Apologies for not creating any new tutorials recently, but I've mainly been using other people's so I'd rather direct you to them than try and come up with my own when I know they already exist.  

A Much Better Changing Bag

Changing bags are expensive!  Even the plain ones seem to cost a small fortune, as well as being a bit boring.  A friend who recently came to this conclusion asked if I could make one for her.  Suddenly the changing bag world expanded!  Naturally I spent some (read "a lot of") time on Pinterest and found one that met the criteria, which were a) that my friend liked it, and b) it was within my capability!  This tutorial by the Crafty Couple was clear and easy to follow, as well as being patternless - which is ideal as I don't have a printer and could just cut the fabric straight to size.

There were a couple of websites that we looked at for oilcloth fabric (so that the bag was waterproof inside and out).  These were Only Oilcloths and Norfolk Textiles, although I'm sure there are many others.  The fabrics we went for were Stampede Pastel Gloss and Lisbon Denim Matt from Only Oilcloths.  We opted for 135cm x 100cm of each, to ensure we had enough (and the cost was the same for this size or smaller).  The total cost of the bag was just under £30, which is pretty reasonable for a one-of-a-kind totally practical bag of this kind.

Before cutting out I worked out which pieces I wanted in the patterned fabric and which pieces were going to be plain.  

I had enough fabric to make a changing mat to fit neatly in the back pocket.  I did this by cutting two oilcloth rectangles 30cm x 60cm and one 30cm x 60cm in a lightweight wadding.  I arranged the pieces as follows: wadding, piece 1 right side up, piece 2 right side down (ie right sides together).  I pinned and sewed around three edges (starting with a long edge).  I then turned the piece right sides out, folded in the remaining seam and top stitched around the whole rectangle to close up the open edge and neaten it up.  Folded in three the mat fits just right!

I had a few left over scraps of the fabric so a few days later I made a waterproof zipper pouch, which I'll tell you about properly soon!

JLW's New Bag

When Jola needed a new bag for nursery I tried really hard to find one on Etsy; I like supporting other people's handmade businesses.  I found one, but it was going to cost nearly $30 to ship, which made it much too pricey!  I had recently pinned a tutorial on Pinterest so decided to give it a go.  It's this one here by the Ribbon Retreat.  It's a really straightforward tutorial with easy to follow instructions and pictures.

As it's quite a simple design it was pretty easy to add some additional touches so I made a few changes:

- I added a couple of inches to the side panel pieces to make it wider.

- I added an elasticated front pocket, with velcro fastening and button decoration.

- I added piping to the main body seam.

- I machine stitched initials onto the front.

Changes I didn't make but should have done:

- I shouldn't have bothered with the piping; I'm not very good at it!

- I should have brought the straps closer together at the top as they currently sit too wide to stay on my toddler's shoulders.

I am definitely going to try another one in the future now that I've learnt some lessons for this one!

Mini Advent Stockings!

I'm aware that today is 1st December, aka the first day of Advent. But I've been so busy - had a wonderful time at Lewes Artists and Makers yesterday - that I didn't get round to preparing anything. If only I'd spent less time researching blogs and Pinterest and more time making! But I woke up this morning and gave myself a good talking to. I realised that I don't have to make 24 of something for today...just the first one! So I quickly made myself a miniature stocking template (find it here) and whipped this up by cutting out two pieces of stocking shaped fabric as per pattern.  (Don't forget to do opposite shapes for the front and back if your fabric has a right side)  I used fusible interfacing prior to cutting on one side of the fabric as it stiffens it up and it also means you can just draw straight round the template and then cut.  I folded over the top edge (just once, but you could do it twice) with a 5mm seam allowance and stitched.  On the back piece a stitched a folded piece of ricrac about 1 cm in from the back edge of the stocking so that it can be hung up.  I used bondaweb on the back of coloured felt and cut out a number 1 and then ironed it to the front piece of the stocking.  I then placed the fabric right sides together and stitched round the outside using a 5mm, leaving the top edge open.  Using pinking shears I trimmed the edges - the interfacing also means the raw edges won't fray so is perfect for this quick project.  Turn the little stocking inside out and you should have a cute little stocking to hang on the mantelpiece or somewhere equally as festive!  Now repeat 23 times!

I bought the fabric especially a while ago. I was also able to do tomorrow's stocking. When we were younger my mum made some very similar stockings (another idea pinched from her, despite the hours on Pinterest!) and every morning a new stocking would appear with a little goodie inside - a toy, choc or other treat! Jola is still a bit little to get it, so I figure I can use this year to make the advent stockings and start the treat bit next year. I'm so pleased I realised it wasn't too late! And there are still a few hours of the 1st left, for anyone who's feeling as disappointed as I was with myself this morning!

Crafty Coasters

I made a bunch of these as Christmas presents last year and I think they fit that old cliché of simple yet effective. Choosing fabrics for particular friends can really make them more than just coasters.  My friend Rae recently acquired a new poodle and a new house, so I made a set of 4 French poodle inspired coasters for her new abode.

For each coaster you will need:

- a piece of fabric measuring 4.5" x 11"

- a piece of medium weight wadding measuring 4.5" x 4.25"

- the usual gear: pins, threads, sewing machine, scissors...

1) Cut your fabric so that you have 2 pieces each measuring 4.5" x 5.5".

2) Place your fabric and wadding in the following order: wadding, fabric right side up, fabric right side down (see photo).

3) Your piece of wadding needs to be lined up against 3 edges of your fabric.  Pin and sew around 3 edges using a 1/4" seam allowance, starting on the long edge furthest away from where your wadding is placed.  This will leave one seam open.

4) Trim corners and sewn edges.

5) Turn inside out, poke out your corners and press.  Tuck in the open edge of your coaster about 1" - measure your coaster to make sure it's square; it should be 4" square.  Press and pin.

6) You will now top stitch the coaster in a right-angled spiral.  I usually start this on the edge of the coaster before your still open seam, rather than on the open seamed edge.  Place your needle 1/4" in from the edge of the seam you'll be following, but right at the end of the coaster.  Hopefully this diagram of the spiral will help as this is the pattern your top stitch should follow:

7) Stop sewing when you're 1/4" away from the next edge - for the first 3 lines this will be the end of the coaster, but from then on you'll stop sewing 1/4" away from your previous line of top stitch.  Make sure the needle is down, lift the sewing machine foot, turn your work 90° anticlockwise, put the foot down and sew another straight line until you get 1/4" from the opposite edge or a previously sewn seam.  You will repeat this action again and again until you have spiraled into the centre of the coaster.  Do a couple of reverse stitches when you've finished to secure the thread. 

I hope this makes sense!

8)  I usually trim the threads in the centre of the coaster and knot the tails at the start of the top stitch before trimming.

Your coaster is finished!  These work as lovely gifts in packs of 4, so repeat the whole lot 4 times to complete your set!  If you're feeling super crafty you could make some matching placemats by hopping over to this tutorial by Chloe at Gannet and Parrot.

Friday's Challenge

Not only do I have a chest of drawers full of scrap fabric, I also have an old wicker chest full of larger pieces of fabric that I'm not sure what to do with.  They are either ugly or an odd texture or old clothes or just don't really have an obvious purpose for any of my current projects.  Think upholstery samples, worn out clothes, old curtains, that sort of thing.

So yesterday I set myself the challenge of coming up with one or two projects using an old pair of my jean's and one of Ben's unwanted shirts.

Mission accomplished!

I've been meaning to try this shirt-to-dress idea for ages...and I've finally done it!

To find out how to transform an old shirt into a pretty little frock you can check out my tutorial here.

And I used a small square of my old jeans, along with some other fabric and wadding, to make this pot holder / oven mitt.  You can see what I did here.

Square Hot Pot Holder

The other part of my Friday Challenge was to make something using an old pair of jeans.  This is what I came up with...

1.  OK, so this first bit has nothing to do with my old jeans!  Cut a square of cotton 9 inches by 9 inches.  I had a few scraps of this tea cup fabric left over from some coasters that I made for Christmas presents last year so I stitched them together to get my square.

2.  Cut an 9" x 9" square from your old jeans.

3.  You'll also need an 9" x 9" square in heavy duty wadding.  If you haven't got the really thick stuff you could also use a couple of layers of less weighty wadding.  I got mine from Fabricland in Brighton and I've been assured that it is 'combustion-modified', which basically means it won't burst into flames.  Pretty crucial for an oven mitt.

4.  Once you have these 3 squares layer them as follows: wadding, cotton fabric right side up, denim square right side down.  Pin.  Using a 1/2 inch seam allowance stitch 3 sides of the square.

5.  Trim corners and seams and turn inside out.  Press.

6.  Turn the open seam inwards half an inch, press and pin.  In one corner I tucked in a folded piece of 1 inch wide fabric braid to form a hook.

7.  Once pinned in place top stitch around the whole of the square about 5mm in from the edge.  This will close up the open seam and hold the tag in place.

The dress formerly known as daddy's shirt!

And yes - don't worry - daddy did know about it!

What's great about this is that most of the hard work has already been done!

1.  Find a dress that fits your little one.  You will use this as your stencil for the outline of the dress. 

2.  Place this dress on top of the shirt - lining up the collar/neck line.  Using tailor's chalk draw the outline of the dress on the shirt.  Be sure to make it wide enough around the waist, bottom and skirt.  Mine could have done with being a bit wider as the orange dress is made in a much stretchier fabric.  I realised too late!

3.  Being sure to add a seam allowance, cut out the shape of the dress in the shirt.  I'm going to use a french seam which will require twice the amount of usual seam allowance for your side seams (not the arm holes).

4.  Pin and stitch the side seams of the dress.

I've used a french seam here.  This is neater and feels smoother against the skin!  To do this line up the seams wrong sides together.  Pin and stitch both side seams.  Trim excess seam allowance.  This feels counter-intuitive as initially your raw seam is on the outside of your dress.  Now turn inside out and press.  Pin the seams again and stitch using the same seam allowance.  The seam will now be on the inside of your dress and is a very neat finish.

5.  Pin and stitch bias binding around the arm holes.  To ensure a neat finish allow for a little overlap and be sure to fold and press the ends of the binding before pinning in place.

I've made my own binding but your local haberdashery should have a good selection, including pretty patterned binding.

6.  Pin and stitch bias binding around the bottom hem of the dress.  This really neatens it up and looks very sweet if it matches the binding used for the arm holes.

It's that straight forward!  I'm now hoping that Ben will be having another clear-out soon!

I didn't get the chance yet but I think that changing the buttons over to these will make this dress extra sweet!

Build Your Own Tipi - Teepee - Wigwam!

Last week as the sun started shining I wanted to get my little girl some exciting things for the garden.  I was initially looking into some little pop-up tents when I came across a couple of amazing tipis - so much prettier and lovelier!  They are so fun but I didn't really want to spend too much money so I decided to give one a go myself.

You will need:

- 4 metres of 44" width fabric or 2.5 metres of 60" width fabric for main body of tipi

- 5 x strips of fabric measuring 3" by 60" for the pole casing

- 5 x 6ft bamboo canes (or other similar poles)

- 2 x 44" pieces of bias binding

- 4 x 16" strips of fabric/bias binding for ties

- small piece of fabric and Bondaweb for star patch

I got my star fabric as an emergency purchase from Dunelm Mill - I desperately wanted to start making this and didn't want to spend the normal few days researching!  I had a meeting in Eastbourne and was passing so I popped in.  Saw this immediately and loved it! I also got 10 6ft bamboo canes from B&Q for under £4.

1. Cut 5 triangles to this size:

You'll need to do this in different ways depending on your width of fabric.  If you have 60" width fabric you can zigzag your way across the fabric until you have 5 pieces - they'll be slightly taller than 60" but that's fine (just adjust other measurements accordingly).  If you have 44" width fabric (like I did) it's a bit trickier but you can definitely do it with 4.5 metres. 

2.  Cut 6 inches off the top of each triangle.

3.  Fold down (twice) and press the hems at the top and bottom of each triangle.

4.  Stitch your hems.

5.  Measure the finished side length of your triangles.  Your 5 strips for pole casings need to be this length plus a couple of inches for your hems.  Mine measured 56" by 2.75".  Fold down (twice) press and stitch.

6.  Fold strips in half and press.

7.  Take 2 of your large hemmed triangle pieces.  Lay one right side up.  Line the pole casing up against the raw edge (as shown in photo) and lay another triangle piece right side down.  Pin in place.  Using a 3/8 inch seam allowance (approx. 1cm), sew this seam.  Trim seam allowance.

8.  Take another 2 triangles and repeat step 7.  You will now have 2 separate pieces made up of two large triangles with casing stitched in between.  Now repeat this step to join these two parts of your tipi together.  You will now have one single piece of work in the following order: triangle, casing, triangle, casing, triangle, casing, triangle.  Put this to one side for the moment.

9.  You should have one large triangle piece left.  Fold this in half and press.  Cut along the fold line until approx. 9 inches from the top of the piece - the cut will measure approx 44 inches.

10.  Take 2 pieces of bias binding (folded and pressed) and stitch in place along the cut fabric.  To neaten the bottom of opening allow an extra inch of binding and fold it up before sewing.

11.  Iron an 8cm x 8cm piece of Bondaweb to a piece of yellow fabric.  Cut out the shape of a star and then iron it to the top end of the opening, placing it a few millimetres over the top of the binding.  Of course you don't have to have a star - most other shapes will do the same job!

12.  Use a zigzag stitch to sew around the outside of the star patch, securing it in place as well as strengthening the opening.

13.  Use ribbon or binding (pressed and sewn in half) and place and pin somewhere along both sides of the opening using even spacing.  Mine were 14 inches apart.  Sew in place.

14.  Now sew this last triangle piece to the rest of the tipi along the two seams using the same process as in point 7, with the pole casing placed in between the fabrics.

15.  All your sewing should now be done!  Feed the bamboo canes into the pole casings.  Spread out the tipi and use ribbon, binding or a strip of fabric to tie the poles where they cross over (approx. 1ft from the top of the poles) to keep them secure.

16.  All done!  Have yourself a pow-wow!

If I'm honest my pole casings didn't always match the exact length of the side of the triangles - I think partly because I was so desperate to finish it before it stopped being sunny and partly because my triangles were a bit uneven too!  But fortunately little J doesn't seem to care!