Christmas sewing

For the second part of my Christmas crafting I made pj pants for my sister, my brother and my mom. I used Butterick 5153 with a few adjustments. This is a very very easy pattern. I think I read the pattern instructions enough to know that the tie on the front wasn't functional which I didn't like at all. I did change that on my mom's and sisters to add a functional ribbon tie. I lengthened my sisters and brothers about an inch and a half because they are both pretty tall. I did take about an inch and a quarter off of the waist of each because they do come up high waisted. These were all made out of the $1.49 flannel I got on Black Friday at Jo-ann's.

Somehow, I only managed to take this one picture of my sister, Michelle, with her pants.

My brother, Dylan's were made of this skull and crossbones flannel, which I didn't realize until after I bought was a purplish color. He still liked them, so that's all that matters.

The next pair I made for my mom look like this. I also made this pair for myself last night. There is also one more Christmas present I made last night that will get more photos posted later as I haven't given it yet and I wrapped it without thinking to take a picture.

In addition to those I made myself 2 pairs of pj shorts from the same pattern using version A. I made all the same adjustments as well as taking off about 3 inches on the length. Originally, both pairs would have come down to my knees, which is not a good look.

I still have so much fabric left over that I will be making myself a few more pairs next year. I will also be doing pj pants as gifts next Christmas but will be adding more people to the list of recipients. I just didn't have the energy to get more flannel during my Black Friday trip. Next time I will try to be a little more prepared. We'll see how that works out though.

Yarn Ball Wreath How-to

Here is one of the items I made for a Christmas present. My friend, Bri, is a knitter. She is actually the one who taught me to knit. I gave her this easy to make yarn ball wreath. The needles do come out so that she can use them as well. While I chose to make this wreath Christmas themed, you can really use any colors of yarn and ribbon.

Materials needed:

10- 3" Styrofoam balls

yarn (I used 3 mini skeins)

10 toothpicks

15 craft/Popsicle stick

1 spool of ribbon

knitting needles (any size)

hot glue gun

tape

Directions:

1. To start tape one end of the yarn to a Styrofoam ball.

2. Wrap yarn tightly around the Styrofoam ball trying to cover as much as possible with the first layer.

3. Once done with first layer, start wrapping randomly.

4. Keep wrapping until all the white is covered like the above picture. Repeat steps 1-4 until you have 10 yarn balls.

5. To secure each end yarn end put a dot of hot glue. Before the glue dries, insert a toothpick and connect to second yarn ball. Continue this step until all 10 yarn balls are connected, making a circle.

6. Once the yarn balls are connected the wreath will be a little flimsy. To secure the wreath use the hot glue gun to secure the craft/Popsicle sticks to the backs of the yarn balls as pictured above. This will also give you a base to hang the wreath from.

7. Next secure your ribbon bow with another dot of hot glue. Sorry, I forgot to take a picture of this step.

8. The final step is to insert the knitting needles behind the ribbon. I slide these in so that they would be removable, so as to knit with them. You most certainly can glue these as well but they will stay put without the glue if you have wrapped the yarn balls tightly enough.

This project was very simple and took a total of about 2 hours to finish. I really enjoyed this and plan on making one for myself that has a spring color scheme to it. I hope you enjoy this project.

2009 Favorite

While reading other sewing blogs this afternoon I came across Lindsey T's post about her favorite piece she's sewn this year. She asked everyone what there favorite pieces were. After very short reflection, since I have not done much sewing for myself this year because of the never ending quilt, I picked the gray skirt. This is Butterick 5249. I plan on making this skirt again.

I love this skirt!
I love that it is so simple and chic!
I love the ruffle detailing!
I love the fun hot pink contrasting seam finishing!


What's your favorite piece? Jump over to Lindsey T's blog and share with everyone.

Ahhh..my life

My husband saw this in the Sunday comics yesterday and said I should read it since it clearly follows his life. I laughed.

Black Friday recap

After posting yesterday I realized I never did post about my Black Friday experiences! I will start by saying I made 3 separate trips to Jo-Ann's that day. I think I may have a problem! The first trip involved very long long long lines. They were out of carts so I could only get as many bolts as I could carry, which ended up being 5. I held those 5 bolts for an hour while I waited in line to get them cut. After that I finally got a cart. I did not want to wait in line to get more fabric cut so I grab some yarns (9 skeins), patterns and other Christmas Crafting supplies and checked out. That trip resulted in 20 yards of fabric for different Christmas presents.

My next stop was Hobby Lobby. I was not expecting to buy much here as I was already planning on going back to Jo-Ann's after I stopped to get something to eat. I only ended up buying 4 - 1/2 yard cuts of woven cotton prints so I can make myself a 50's style apron.

My second trip to Jo-Ann's resulted in no shopping carts. So, again I was forced to carry 4 bolts for about half an hour. This time I finished up with 12 more yards of fabric and box of 10 yards of elastic. While standing in line to get my fabric cut the power went out! Talk about a Black Friday. The power went out from Jo-Ann's all the way to the mall which is at least a mile stretch. As a result of the power outage I could not check out, which meant one more trip.

The third and final trip to Jo-Ann's I brought my husband along. The plan was to just get what I had already picked out and go. I am happy to report that is what we did even though we were there for an hour. I will post pictures of all my Christmas Crafting once I have given the gifts.

All in all I spent just under $200 and had a savings of at least $300. I think I did pretty well for getting 36 total yards of fabric and lots of other supplies. I really wanted to go back Saturday morning because they were having sales on other items that I frequently use, but I had to work.

Yesterday I posted about my iron dying and I wanted to let you all know about the new one I purchased today. What I really want is a Rowenta, but with it being Christmas time I just cannot spare that kind of money. So, I got a Shark. I have never heard of this brand, but it should be good for now. While looking at irons though I saw ironing board covers and decided that mine could also use to be replaced as evidenced by the above picture. Below is the result of my purchases. I am pleased with them.

R.I.P.

Sadly, this week while working on Christmas sewing my iron suddenly stopped working. I was in the midst of pressing the very last of my newly purchased and washed fabric on Sunday night when it stopped steaming. I just figured I had left my iron on to long as it was a good 3-4 hours of pressing. On Monday night, after I started sewing and was ready to press I realized what had happened. It was a great iron and I am mourning the loss of it. I had only had it for just about 2 years. That is what irks me about it! But now I get to shop for a new iron, not that I have the extra money with it being Christmas and all. I am going to go shopping for one to see what I can find. I will let you all know!