by Sherri Sylvester | Nov 13, 2014
Eeek! The Forest Glen Satchel Pattern is likely going to be released within the next 24 hours! I’m just finishing up the last few things. (I’m so excited to finally be able to share it with you!) Back on topic….
This Quiet book page is another one that my kids loved most. Putting someone or some-bear to bed is apparently enthralling! This also gives you the chance to put together a super-cute mini quilt. I used tiny pieces of my hoarded Geekly Chic Cassette Tapes from Double Decker Fabrics in mine. (Get a discount code for Double Decker Fabrics, expires Nov 21, 2014) Add in a little pillow and prepare to be sleepy! This Quiet Book page is found along with other information and tutorials links on the Sew Along page.
Here are a few little extras you can keep in mind when making this page…
Tips for a better page:
- Use a piece of low loft batting under the pillow to make it stand out a bit more.
- Place a small jingle bell inside the bear – make double sure to secure the opening well to avoid a choking hazard.
- Don’t make the bear or pillow too thick or the page will not fit inside the book properly.
- Replace the pieced quilt with one piece of fabric for a simpler and faster page finish.
Ready to start?
You will need:
- Background Fabric/Bed Sheet: 1 piece quilting cotton exactly 9″x9″ square
- Page Interfacing: 1 piece exactly 9″x9″ square, medium weight fusible interfacing (you will have this from your Week 1 shopping list)
- Pillow: 3 1/2″ x 2 1/2″ faux fur or fleece
- Quilt: 9″ wide by 4 1/2″ high pieced fabric
- Blanket: 9″ wide by 7 1/2″ high sweater knit or fleece
- Quilt Binding: 9″ wide double fold bias tape
- Teddy Bear: 8″ high x 12″ wide quilting cotton or corduroy
- Teddy Bear Ribbon: 11″ piece of ribbon/twill tape/rick rack
- Teddy Bear Face: embroidery floss/needle
- Small amount of stuffing
- Ribbon Tab: 3 1/2″ long for the side tab
- Small Safety Pin
- Teddy Bear Pattern Pieces -> Click here to download
Before we begin/Important Notes:
- Print out the pattern piece pdf on letter size (8.5″ x 11″) or A4 paper. Important: Do not select “fit to page” when printing, make sure you print at the original size. Once you have printed the pages, measure the 1″ test square to ensure the pattern is the correct size.
- When you are sewing this book it is good to remember that some of the edges will be covered after the book is completed and sewn together. 1/2″ on the top edge of your page and 3/4″ on each side edge will not show in the final project.
- Remember to use your iron liberally when you are sewing this book. It is going to be a work of art when you are done! Since it is thick and some of the pages will not be iron-able once you are finished with them it is advisable to take all of the care you can to remove wrinkles so they are not accidentally permanent in your final book.
- Fuse the 9″ square fusible interfacing onto your 9″ square background fabric.
Here We Go:
by Sherri Sylvester | Nov 7, 2014
Hooray, It’s a new series! Thanks to some generous sponsors and partners, I am now able to post a fabric shop discount every so often along with some of their newest gorgeous fabric lines. Today we are featuring Double Decker Fabrics. (Scroll down to get the discount information, it’s after the pretty fabric!)
If you’d like to know more about Dorienne’s shop, Double Decker Fabrics is one of the first shops I interviewed in my Canadian Online Fabric Store series. She runs the shop from Alberta, Canada – and ships internationally!
Dorienne happens to have just received two of my favorite collections right now – and they are both Art Gallery lines! Winged by Bonnie Christine (Those butterflies are amazing!) and Emmy Grace from Bari J, whom I’ve just started following on Instagram – talk about gorgeous inspiration there!
To get 15% off your purchase at Double Decker Fabrics use the code “winter15”. Dorienne has been very generous and your discount can be used on anything in the shop, including sale items! (Discount expires November 21, 2014)
Reader Feedback: Which fabric is your favorite? (I know I have a hard time choosing! I think it would be either the Wingspan Melon or the Budquette Dayspring print)
by Sherri Sylvester | Nov 7, 2014
I’m so excited to get this posted! I’ve been trying since Monday to get everything finished. Between unexpected design work and my husband working 19 hour days it’s been a challenge! The joys of working from home, though, I think the outweigh the more difficult times!
As far as this page, if you’d like some help teaching your little one buckles, snaps and buttons you are in luck! And, you know how much little kids think belly buttons are hilarious? This page has one built in! (It’s my favorite part.) This Quiet Book page is found along with other information and tutorials links on the Sew Along page.
When you are looking for supplies for this page, here are a few tips:
- I used clothing that my kids had outgrown for this page. Make sure the pants and shirt are at least 9″ across if you’d like to use them.
- Pick pants that open easily and make sure they have belt loops along the waistband.
- Choose ribbon and a buckle that are the same width and fit through the belt loops.
- Pick a snap or button closure on the pants, depending on the skills your little one has.
- The best shirts for this page have a design along the bottom. Unfortunately I didn’t have one to use this time.
- Check the buckle to make sure it is easy for a child to open. Some are very stiff and almost impossible to use with small hands.
You will need:
- Background Fabric: 1 piece quilting cotton in “skin” colour exactly 9″x9″ square
- Page Interfacing: 1 piece exactly 9″x9″ square, medium weight fusible interfacing (you will have this from your Week 1 shopping list)
- Belt: 2 pieces 5 1/2″ long belting/ribbon as wide as buckle
- Pair of Pants: (front only) with belt buckles or make them (will use a 9″ wide by 6″ high piece of front only)
- Shirt: bottom of shirt or hemmed knit (will use a 9″ wide by 4″ high piece only)
- Belt Buckle: Clip Buckle, mine is 1″ wide
- Belly Button: small button (1/2″ – 3/8″) – will not show, is used to “fill” the belly button
- small 2″ square scrap of fusible interfacing
Before we begin/Important Notes:
- When you are sewing this book it is good to remember that some of the edges will be covered after the book is completed and sewn together. 1/2″ on the top edge of your page and 3/4″ on each side edge will not show in the final project.
- Remember to use your iron liberally when you are sewing this book. It is going to be a work of art when you are done! Since it is thick and some of the pages will not be iron-able once you are finished with them it is advisable to take all of the care you can to remove wrinkles so they are not accidentally permanent in your final book.
- Fuse the 9″ square fusible onto your 9″ square background fabric before you begin.
Here we go:
- Melt ends of synthetic ribbon/belting or hem ends of non-synthetic. Attach buckles to ends.
- Cut 6″ high by 9″ wide piece out of front of pants with top front as top edge. I find it easiest to cut the front off of the pants first, then draw the cutting line before cutting it to make sure everything is correct. It is ok if the middle front of the pants curves down a bit.
- Cut the shirt to 9″ wide by 4″ high. Use the hem from the shirt as the bottom edge.
- Align the edges of the pants with the bottom of the background rectangle. Baste sides and bottom edges with a 1/4″ seam.
- Stitch over the original pants top-stitching between each belt loop and the side edge using a matching thread. Leave the centre portion un-sewn so the child can still open and close the fly.
- Stitch over the original fly top-stitching. Leave the zipper opening so the fly will still be workable. You may need to use a denim needle to get through the multiple layers.
- Top-stitch over the pocket edges if you want them to stay closed.
- Place the button on the back of the background fabric where you want the belly button to appear. Place the extra piece of interfacing over the button and fuse it to the wrong side of the background fabric, enclosing the button.
- Hand-stitch around the button to secure it better and add more depth to the belly button shape. I used invisible thread to match the background best.
- Align the side and top of the shirt to the background fabric. Place the ribbon/belting into the belt loops. Baste top and side edges of the shirt and belting with a 1/4″ seam.
- Fold the 3 1/2″ matching ribbon tab in half and use the small safety pin to attach it to your page so it does not get lost.
See you next week! (PS. Only 2 more pages and the cover to go!)
by Sherri Sylvester | Oct 31, 2014
I have been waiting for this moment for… well… about two years and a few months (since I started this blog!). I finally convinced one of my daughters to dress up as Little Red Riding Hood – hooray! Amazingly I even managed to do this costume for $0. Of course, not really $0 – but all of it was already around the house. Most of it come from my stash, and the cape fabric came from a very generous friend.
Actually, it was going even better than this a few months ago – I had the little one agreeing to be a wolf, with my oldest as Red Riding Hood. THAT would have been amazing! Either way, I finally got my Little Red Riding Hood and both myself and my youngest are super happy! On to the next goal!
I used two books to make this costume – and I almost never sew from books. It was nice to do something different. The little pinafore came from my “One Yard Wonders” book and was really quick to finish up. The tan fabric came from a box of fabric donated to me, that someone had given my friend Leanne, I’m so glad I kept it! I have no idea what it is, but it’s a synthetic of some kind, because I almost melted it with my iron before I sorted that out! The weave is quite loose, and a bit thin, so I lined the skirt with some stashed broadcloth. And I added a button closure to the back instead of a ribbon tie, since she has to wear it to school. Sashes and toilets can be tricky for a four year old!
The cape came from the Oliver and S book, Little Things to Sew. It’s quick to stitch up and I made a large size so it should fit for a few years and also fit over her winter jacket for Trick-Or-Treating tonight. I got the red velvet from my amazing friend Lisa (who blogs at Lisa in Port Hope). When she came to my place for a test run on the Forest Glen Satchel she mentioned that she had quite a few yards of it she wasn’t using at home. I got busy and forgot to get back to her about it when my doorbell rang and the post dropped off a package. Inside was the most perfect red velvet fabric, along with the book necessary to finish the cape. Amazing! So amazing! Reminds me that the sewing community is so generous and a great place to be a part of.
My daughter’s brown boots still fit, we added a blue headband (her styling), and a white shirt given to us when my oldest was 3. Done! Thankfully it was a nice-ish day for taking photos yesterday, though not so sunny, my favorite nearby forest was running a bit low on leaves, but we made up for that by throwing a few in the air. Which gave us quite a few strange blurry leaf photos that didn’t make it onto the post… ah well!
Tonight has a 40% chance of rain – so we will hold our breaths to see if we will need to use our umbrellas. Either way I’m sure the kids will have fun, it’s always the best watching them get excited!
Reader Feedback: Do you have kids/grand kids going out tonight? Who are they dressing up as for Halloween?
by Sherri Sylvester | Oct 30, 2014
So my oldest says to me the other day… “Mom, this costume is perfect for us! Daddy likes Star Wars, I like Princesses and you like sewing.” She couldn’t be more right!
My husband is helping my daughter discover the world of Star Wars, with an appropriate amount of editing of course! This new found knowledge, along with my not letting them be Disney Princesses again this year, led her to Princess Leia. I hope you don’t think I’m too hard-hearted, but the commercialization of the whole Disney Princess thing can be a bit crazy. I also appreciate not re-creating another puff-sleeved ball gown every year! Trust me, they get their fill of playing princess at home – we’ve got an entire dress-up box of princess dresses that get used almost every day. Of course, now that Star Wars has been bought by Disney, I am redeemed – since Leia is a Disney Princess too!
This costume was relatively easy to make. It’s made from white knit fabric and a very sparkly silver belt. She even wore her rain boots for the second year in a row – perfect!
I used the tried and true Bimaa pattern. Though, in fairness, this has very little resemblance to the original pattern. I lengthened and widened the bodice, added a gathered skirt and cut straight , instead of tapered, sleeves. The hood was also lengthened, and I didn’t line it – because, it’s a Halloween costume and I ran out of white knit anyhow.
We attempted to make sock buns in her hair. Which (spoiler alert) looks super easy on YouTube – and I’m sure it is if you have done it 100 times. I’ve only made it to about 26 times so far – then we ran out of patience and attempted to wing it. Thankfully that lasted long enough for the photos!
When it came time for the photo shoot we had a small altercation over the use of props… since it seems that all she has available as a “true to the movies” prop is a blaster. Which led to a parental “Should we allow her to have a gun?” conversation. I’m sure I’ve got some of you on both sides of the argument… but since we had very little time to decide, (the sun and the rain were going down!) we decided we would skip the blaster for now. Her school won’t allow weapons when they wear their costumes on Friday anyhow, so that made the decision a bit easier.
I’m so excited about how it turned out. It definitely wouldn’t stand up to scrutiny from a hard-core Star Wars fan, since it’s in no way authentic – but it’s good enough for one night’s trick-or-treating! I’m excited to show you my youngest’s this week as well – and hint, she’s going to be something related to my blog name! Though, you may have already gotten a hint on Instagram. See you again soon!
Are you making or buying your Halloween costumes this year?
