Rainbows and ruffles

She likes it! 

I finished this rainbow dress today. It's my day 2-3 project of Kid's Clothes Week.  I LOVE how it turned out. It's fun, whimsical, and pretty, all the things I love in a little girl's dress.  I did have a little trouble with this dress at one point and had to turn to my seam ripper but it all worked out in the end. 

The back is simple, slit with 2 covered buttons to close. It has some imperfections but I'm hoping that if I don't mention them no one will notice them. :)  

(Most accurate colors)

Twirl - check. 

There are so many wonderful creations in the Flikr group. Go check them out! 

Rainbows and clouds.

I've been sewing away today but do not yet have anything to show for it. Hopefully I'll finish the rainbow dress I am working on tonight after 'bedtime'.  I did get Anaiah to consent to posing for me in her new dress.. 

She had just woken up from her nap.  I think it's fun and summery and hopefully will not just decorate her closet this summer but will actually get worn!  I think the cloud could have been slightly smaller but I love how silly and fun it looks. Only a cute little kid can get away with wearing a big cloud like this I think! 

I think that the back is my favorite bit of the dress! 

Cloud 9

Well, things are off to a good start. I managed to finish a dress today.  I'm calling it 'a walk in the clouds'. I like how it turned out and I think it's going to look great on Anaiah.  I'll have to wait till tomorrow afternoon to find that out though because it was a bit passed her bedtime when the last stitch was sewn.


Overall I like how it turned out. I like the crisscross straps and the shirring, they should help keep her cool in the hot Delhi summer.


I almost wanted to line the whole dress because it is ever so slightly see through but I am glad that I didn't because that would have added weight to this airy dress.

I wonder what other ladies have gotten accomplished today?! I'm sure that there are some wonderful things being lovingly made for little ones all over the place! 

Now what to sew tomorrow.. 

A little bling.

It's getting hot in Delhi. The kind of hot that zaps my energy in the afternoons and often results in a headache.  Adjusting to the heat is not fun.  So because my brain feels like mush until the evening I have not been getting much done. I have a long list of things I would like to make over the next few months but I have not started a thing yet. Today my sewing machine seemed to be looking at me longingly and I couldn't ignore her anymore. I dug through my stash of craft supplies when I remembered I had these fun rub-on transfers.  It may not have been any actual sewing but my machine did get some attention today. I think she likes the glitter butterflies! 

  I think she looks cute now. What do you think? Have you made your sewing machine 'pretty' or is it just a tool?  I don't know about you but I am very attached to my machines! 

... life happens..

What can I say, life has gotten in the way of blogging once again.  I do hope to be better in the future. There has been some crafting, sewing and baking for birthdays since my last post and want to share a few of the highlights. 

I dyed some yarn and then knitted up these lovely fingerless mitts in February. 

Made a birthday dress and cake for my special little lady in March.  

And now, in April, I'm excited to start sewing summer sundresses for my daughter. What better way to get all ramped up for summer sewing than the bi-annual Kids Clothing Week!  I'm excited to participate again this spring!  It's running  April 22nd- 29th and should be great fun. If you sew for the little ones in your life be sure to check it out here! 

What I did all Sunday afternoon.

This morning I checked my mail as I usually do and found that my mom wanted me to make her a photobook. She had printed a bunch of photos at Target and discovered that she had a coupon code for a free photobook. She is not very computer savy so the job was left to me. I've spent all afternoon and a little of the evening making this book. I really hope she'll like it. Because I work so hard on it I wanted to share it with everyone. So, here is a glimpse of Anaiah's summer. 

Click here to view this photo book larger

Start your own Shutterfly Photo Book today.

Hope you've had a great Sunday!

Yarn shopping in Minnesota.

I told myself (and a group on Ravelry) that my goal  for 2012 was to knit from stash and that I was not going to buy any more yarn till I had used up some of my stash. 
EPIC FAIL!!  I was doing great till I went back to Minnesota this summer. If you've ever been to MN and love knitting you'd know that they are blessed with many cute little local yarn shops. Shops where you can find all kinds of pretty yarns that you'd never find in India.  So I threw my resolution out the window and decided to visit as many of these shops as possible! 

I visited: 
The Yarnery  and Borealis in St.Paul
Knit'N from the Heart in Woodbury
Needlework Unlimited, Linden Hills Yarn, (and one other one who's name escapes me) in Minneapolis
and Darn Knit Anyway in Stillwater

Had there been more time and space in my luggage I would have visited more and bought even more yarn! 

 Borealis Yarn in St.Paul. If I lived here this would probably be my LYS. I loved it, went there a few times. 

sock yarns at Borealis

Darn Knit Anyway in Stillwater. 

I did try to keep luggage space in mind when I shopped, so no sweater quantities of one yarn. My mom went with me to some of these shops and  bought me some lovely yarns also. Thank you mom. She does not knit but she has always been a creative person and so she loves enabling me. 

It was so refreshing to find yarn that was not 100% acrylic or 100% wool. I bought new yarns with fibers in them that I have never worked with before like Alpaca and Merino. I also bought some cotton blends for summer knits.  I broke my yarn resolution for this year but I don't regret it at all! 

I also got the meet some of the Twin Cities Ravelers! It was so much fun to meet them for the 2012 Ravellenic Games. I hope that I can stay in touch with these lovely ladies (and gentlemen) through Ravelry. I had a wonderful time talking to them about our common love for yarn.  Huge thanks also to Debbie for the nice yarn she passed on to me! 

Hopefully next year I will be able to keep to a yarn diet! (or not - we'll see)

Where has the summer gone?

It feels like the end of summer. I'm back from my long visit to the US to see my family. It was WONDERFUL! I don't think I can say that enough! It was really wonderful to see my dad and go out to the movies with him. It was lovely to see my brother John and his fiance Lindsey and spend time with them. It was amazing to see my older brother Erick and his Korean girlfriend Min Jeong and to hear about their lives in Japan. It was fun to see friends and relatives. But most of all it was wonderful to see my mom! She has always been one of my best friends and so seeing her is like a tall glass of ice water on a really hot day, it makes me feel good even on the inside. I miss her terribly already! 

It was also just wonderful to see Anaiah interact with them. She learned a lot from them and is already missing them too.  I could post hundreds of pictures I'm sure so here is just a sampling.  We really had a great time. 

Playing dress-up with Grandma while waiting for Uncle Erick to make some new belts. 

'Hiding' with Grandpa under a tree. 

With Auntie Lindsey and Uncle John and Snoeks the cat. 

Uncle Erick and Min Jeong.

'flying' 

Speaking of skirts..

I had mentioned in the last post that I wanted to do some sewing for myself and lo and behold it's Skirt Week coming up soon on Crafterhours!

I love wearing skirts in the summer. In fact, I think they are just about all I will wear!  I've already sewn up a lovely tiered skirt in Chambray that I hope to enter and have a few more fabrics just waiting to be turned into skirts sitting next to my machine.  If you love to sew skirts you should definitely enter! They also have a children's skirt category so I might be sewing up a skirt or 2 for Anaiah as well.  

Happy Sewing!

KCWC - Day 6

I got to sleep in today! Sleep is amazing and I think it's what my body needed because I feel so much better now. I got up really late, so late that it was time for Anaiah's nap! Both she and my hubby took a nap so the house was nice and quiet and I could get a hour or two of sewing in. 

Spring Flowers

I had cut out the pieces the night before and made the piping that I used around the neckline and armholes etc.  So this afternoon it was just a matter of sewing it all together. I also made the little fabric flower today to finish it off because it seemed to need a little extra something.  I love the fabric. It's been sitting in my stash for over a year now. Intended to sew it into an Easter dress for Anaiah last year but never got around to it. Had even made a little shrug to match.. oh well. I think it might still fit if I can find it.. I'm usually a sucker for border type prints and at the cost of about $2.25 a meter this dress was cheap! :) I had bought about a meter and used just over half of it. The border is printed on both sides so I probably would even be able to make a second dress for a younger little lady.. talk about a good deal on fabric! I used a little left over plain cotton to line the bodice and for leftover blue cotton for the piping and edging. So the total cost of this dress is probably around $1.75 when you include the 3 buttons and the piping cord.  This is part of why I sew. I get to be creative and save money all at the same time! It's a blessing! 

For those who have been wondering, this is what my pattern looks like:

This is a short bodice block that fits my daughter just right. ( right now.)  I modify it to make other patterns or sometime just use it as it is like I did in today's dress.  Sorry that my picture is not better but on the pattern block I wrote the date that I 'modified' it on. (modified from the last pattern block), the size as in 6" short bodice and that the center front should be folded. I've added the seam allowance that I like to use around the edge. I've cut this pattern piece out of an old cardboard piece that came in one of my hubby shirts. I often use cereal box cardboard too. When I am using this to make the back I just modify it right on the fabric I am cutting for the back. (raising the back a little if needed - button placket - zip allowances  etc..) For yesterday's fishy top I used some newspaper (because it's plentiful here) and this pattern block to draft that simple a-line tunic.  I probably could have gone straight to the fabric for that top but I wanted it to be one piece so I had to draft the front and sides and then place them as one piece on the fabric to get it how I wanted it to be. 

I am still learning about pattern making and hopefully getting better at it slowly. You  also cannot buy patterns here in India, at least as far as I know. I tend to be a fly by the seat of your pants type of seamstress so moving into a more technical - thought out way of sewing is a slow transition. :) I hope to someday be able to write patterns that other people can actually use too, but I think that will be a while still! 

KCWC - Day 4/5

I don't have very much to show for the last 2 days. I am still dealing with illness at home and that is really slowing me down.  I have been getting in an hour of sewing/ drafting /cutting time but that's about it. Just don't have much energy. 


Here is what I did manage to finish, a pinafore style top. 

Because of the scale of the print I didn't want to use a pattern that was too busy. The simple lines of a pinafore work well for this. I also didn't want to cut the fabric too much so it's cut from just 2 pieces of fabric, front and back, and seamed only at the shoulders. Simple and straightforward.  I loved the fish print when I saw it in the fabric shop even though there is a lot more pink in it that I care for.  I'm not a fan of pink. not even a little. But somehow this print pulled me in so I bought half a meter. I've used basically all of it.  

 I don't think it's very noticeable that the back is basically a bit on the bias because the fish are kinda masking it. 

It may be simple but I am happy with it. Plus it was a bonus not to have to deal with buttonholes or zippers and it's reversible. (not that I think I'd ever NOT want to see the fish.)

Are you sewing clothes this week? 

KCWC- Day 2.

This morning Anaiah woke up not feeling so good so my sewing has taken a backseat for now.  I did get a little tunic made while she was taking her nap and she woke up looking a lot better this afternoon so I think tomorrow she can go to school again.  

I made the top on a whim with a scrap of this batik fabric left from a sundress I made for her last year. YAY for using up scraps! She still fits this dress which makes me so happy because I love those bright colors on her! 

Here is today's little tunic. It's simple, shirred, with wide straps that cross in the back.  I love the way shirring looks. If you've never tried it you don't know what you are missing! I  can really see how much she has grown! Slow down little lady, I want to enjoy you as a toddler a little longer!

She loves to share her gems with Charlie!

I've started on a dress today too and hopefully I'll get some time to work on it later tonight after Anaiah has gone to bed.  

What are you working on for KCWC? Or are you sewing for yourself this week? 

KCWC - Day 1.

 Since I was not quite as prepared as I would have liked to have been, I spent most of today's sewing time just sorting out my fabrics and drawing sketches. I did draft a bodice pattern too. 

Some of the fabrics I am thinking about using this week:

Not sure if I will stick to these as I tend to move from one thing to the next based on mood/inspiration so you never know, I might be pulling out something totally different. 


Did sew up a quick pair of ruffle bloomers. I love how this fabric looks but noticed very quickly how easily it and snag and unravel the ruffles. :(  Probably not the best choice of a very active little girl. I also made this muslin with the bodice pattern to check the fit. I don't know what I was thinking with the ridiculously huge butterfly sleeves! LOL. My model was moving all the time and it's hard to get a good shot but I think it actually fits pretty well. 

Sewing and celebrations.

I know I've not posted in a while. Life gets busy sometimes.  It was my hubby's birthday on Saturday! 

We had a little party at home. It was nice. I am very thankful for my husband. I'm not always the best at telling him that though so I wanted to take a minute to write it down. He works so hard to provide for our family and I really appreciate that. His job can be really stressful sometimes and there are lots of trips and nights spent in hotel rooms for him so I love it when he is home. It's so much fun to see how much he loves our daughter. Having a child was never a big deal to him but now that she is here he cannot get enough of her! I love that about him. I hope the year ahead brings lots of joy for him. Love you honey!

My first checkerboard cake! 

This week is the Kids Clothes Week Challenge. I'm excited to be sewing some summer clothes for Anaiah. It's fun to know that there are hundreds of moms just like me spending at least an hour a day sewing beautiful things for their kiddos this week. Hopefully it will be a productive week for me. I was hoping to be a little more prepared with the patterns already drafted etc., however it just didn't happen ahead of time. So, I am spending today mostly drafting the patterns. I always have a long list of things I'd like to make and this week is no exception.  

If you like to sew for your kids why not join the challenge with me and the hundreds of other ladies over at the KCWC on Elsie Marley.

Cakes, Cupcakes and Cuddly Pillows

It's been a while since I've posted anything here and I'll tell you why, I've been busy.  


My daughter Anaiah turned 3 on the 22nd of March. She is growing up so fast. I still vividly remember the moment I heard her cry for the first time like it was last week.  She is rapidly becoming a little girl instead of a toddler. I am so thankful for her. I love her curiosity and watching her discover new things. Love seeing her learn more about the world around her. Love her 'big hugs' and all the kisses. Love how she pretends my finger is an inch worm and gives mine a hug. Love her curls. Love her giggles and smiles. Love her..

 For her school, I baked cupcakes and a little cake for her to share. She had been talking about singing happy birthday for days and it was so much fun to hear her sing to herself loudly with the other kids.

I got to use some of my new fondant tools on the cakes which was a lot of fun. I'm still learning and enjoying that process. I tried to copy the school's logo on her cake.

Her cake for at home:

It was SO yummy! The top layer was fresh strawberry cake with strawberry buttercream filling and the bottom was a 4 layer chocolate cake with dark chocolate ganache filling. all topped with more buttercream and marshmallow fondant.(or as my daughter calls marshmallows, 'baby clouds')


I've also been busy with other projects. I'm still finishing up a blue dress but I did complete this simple sundress this month. 

I've also joined a knit-along in the South Asian Crafters group on Ravelry. We are all knitting/crocheting pillows or pillow covers. I've finished my first one: Hootie. Made using novelty yarn that I was happy to use up and other stash yarns.