My newest little storyteller...

Amidst my book release for Ladybird, Ladybird I get my own little story in the making. Erinn Ember J.

Also be sure to check out my new book, website, and book trailer @ Www.ladybirdbook.com

When Will Baby Come?

So, this month I will have my baby and I've decided to take a poll to see when you all think she's going to come! I will give you the facts of my pregnancy so far to help you guess:

- I have Gestational Diabetes
- I've been having small contractions since week 31
- I have weekly NST's
- I was put on bedrest for one weekend because I was 1cm and 50% effaced, but after the weekend there was no change, that was three weeks ago and I don't know what I am now.

So! Guess away!!!!

Nursery Updates!

So I changed a few things to add color.




I cut a bunch of butterflies from scrapbook paper. Too bad the crib tent to keep kitties out is less than amazing...




Added accent butterflies here and there...




Including on the door! My husband rolls his eyes...




And those classic tissue paper puffs we see all over but I love them all the same! Best 3$ buy!

32 weeks! So close yet so far! Hope she keeps cooking a while but the gestational diabetes sometimes makes that tricky I've heard.


Happy nesting!!

My Little Cupcake Receiving Blanket

So, I had fun at the fabric store and I found this super cute Moda cupcake fabric and vintage frilly trim and decided to make a receiving blanket out of it!

Materials:

- 1 yard Moda "confections" fabric
- 1 yard white cotton fabric for backing, or flannel if it's winter time.
- 5 yards ruffle trim in yellow (or whatever color/trim you like. Rick rack works well too.
- matching thread. I used pink.

Directions:

Wash and iron your fabric




Then, with pattern side up, pin ruffle trim around edge.







Then lay your one yard of white fabric over it and pin as well. On machine, sew along edge being mindful of where the ruffle is. Go slow and leave a five inch opening to turn out.




After all edges are sewn, turn out your blanket. Iron all edges so we can gem them for a finished look. Hem on machine about an 1/8" from outer edge. Begin by closing the five inch opening and continue around.




At last you're done! Your little cupcake is going to look so cute!!

Teaching My Little Girl About Shopping...

So, I couldn't stand it anymore. I've been saving and saving and I finally snapped. Baby has learned enough about being frugal alone, time to teach this little girl how to be frugal and SHOP!

Even though I'm a bubble and probably look off-balance in heels I didnt care. Mama needed to stand taller than Hubby and that's baby's first lesson, so I got these:




I think Piperlime.com has the best packaging!!!!




Not your average box!

Then I taught her about thrifty name brand shopping and I found her some outfits, brand-new but at the second hand store:




And how to pamper herself second hand with this massaging bouncer:




Even grandma is a thrifty fashionista buying her this little outfit and a cute cuddly home-from-the-hospital outfit from my fav. bargain website Zulily.com:




And last but not least she's gonna get her bum wiped in style on this changing pad cover mom so stylishly sewed for her (pattern from prudentbaby.com):




Thrifty fashionista already!!


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New Nursery Additions!

So, lots of new additions (I had coupons!) This first is actually an Easter decoration but it goes well with my garden motif and was on sale for $7.99 marked down from $29.99 in the Safeway floral department.





This one I made. My friend Rosie owns a fabric store and had these great fabrics - a cute bunny/fancy pattern and a super plush brown fabric. I added batting between it and quilted around the pattern with my machine. Nice and fuzzy warm for stroller!









Then I got this wreath. Another Easter goody for above the crib. Anything heavy makes me nervous above the crib!





Then I found the matching bird series that goes with my butterfly series I already had, also 40% off! I really like how it blends with the wall color. From far away it's very chic and beautiful. Girly, just like my little peanut!

Happy Nesting!!

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Nursery Progress!

So, it's a girl! I'm very excited because it's so fun to decorate for a girl!! Here is the progress so far!

I sewed my own bumpers because I wanted it all to match and pre-made wasn't gonna cut it for me, plus it's much more affordable! It's really easy to do, just buy the bumper pads from someplace like fabric.com and follow the directions inside!

I'm also sewing a matching butterfly mobile.

I'm reusing my old equestrian tack trunk as the diaper changer and storage box for the diapers etc. Great way to reuse what you have!

Happy Nesting!!

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Reflections of Motherhood

Whether a mother to be, a child, or a grandma, this is the best movie ever.

www.nummies.com

Celebrating The Art of Craft!

Today I am celebrating the art of craft with fun baby things from Etsy. I love to support the arts and instead of purchasing mass-produced decor I like to support all those stay at homers out there, just like me!

Everything Available On Etsy.com

By ButterFlyOrb

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By Katkuta

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By RAKJpatterns

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By SweetPepperGrass

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By ModernDecals

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www.Etsy.com

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Tutu Cute!

A tutu for baby!

Today I tried my hand at tutu making and found it insanely easy and customizable. There are endless options here, and I hope you find many ways to make your own wonderful tutu from these basic instructions.

 YOU WILL NEED

Tulle:

1/2 to 1 yard per color or double that if you only want to use one color (or triple it if you want a super puffy tutu which I recommend now that I've completed this project!) This depends entirely on the size of your child. I bought two half yard pieces (one total yard) to make a tutu for a newborn. Naturally the longer the fabric the more gathers and puff, too. If you want more gathers for a newborn then size up to 3/4 yards instead.

Ribbon:

I bought a 1/2 inch ribbon for the waist tie but I could have easily done a whole inch. I also bought a 2' ribbon to decorate the waist instead of using fabric which I would have to hem and sew first. You'll see what I mean as you read on through these directions. 

Sewing Machine and Matching Thread

Pins

Wooden Dowel, Pencil, or Pen:

For threading the ribbon through the tutu.

 DIRECTIONS

First you want to fold the fabric lengthwise three times (or two if you want a longer tutu but then I definitely recommend adding at least one more tulle layer.) Once fabric is folded sew a half inch in from the folded edge. This is to create a pocket for the ribbon to go through much like a curtain rod through a curtain. See below...

Here is me sewing it along the folded edge:

After this is done, take a long piece of your 1/2 inch threading ribbon (I recommend not cutting it until you have it threaded into the tutu) and tape the end to the end of a dowel, knitting needle, pencil or pen. This is now your needle as you thread the ribbon into the loop you just made by sewing the folded edge of the tutu.

After you have the Ribbon threaded on, you can play around with gathering the tulle to achieve the perfect gather and width you are looking for. Pin along ribbon to hold it's place.

It will look something like this:

Now we wand to sew those pleats you made and also add the decorative 2" ribbon to the top. All I did for this was pin the 2" ribbon and sew another 1/2'' from the folded edge. I was careful to do this in a way that I didn't sew the threaded ribbon because I liked the mobility of the ribbon, and if I erred on the side of too big with my pleated tulle, I could just scrunch it in more.

Once this is done then you're almost finished! The last thing is to cut apart the looped bottoms of your tutu so that they fluff out more. BUT this is also where you could get creative. Instead of cutting open the bottoms you could try adding flower petals  and sewing each end instead creating a bubbly tutu with petals! Or you can cut apart the bottoms and make a few random vertical cuts up to the hem and ribbon to add more fluff-ability as your little princess bounces around.

The options are endless!!

He he he...

 

 

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Pointy Kitty Plush Toy

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Who can resist a something so cute?

I couldn't.

So I am here to save you, and show you how! I got this pattern from Wee Wonderfuls. It is actually a free pattern that you can download off Hilary's site:

Download Here:

 Pointy Kitty Pattern 

So, after reading through all the lovely instructions, I decided I wanted to make my Kitty a bit larger, but by all means keep it easy and just print her pattern if you like. All I did was bring it into my computer and I uniformly made it about 25% bigger (I bought 1/2 a yard of fabric to supplement this change). After that, I cut out my pattern!

Then!

Then I pinned the pattern to my fabric, per the instructions (doubling my fabric over). These where my fabric choices (I chose to make the belly a different pattern for fun)

Then!

Then I cut out the fabric, and followed further instructions as to sewing the little beautiful together. Needless to say I made a dummy kitty first, which didn't turn out too hot, then I made a second as seen headlessly standing proud in the foreground of this next photo...



Then!

When it came time to stuff, I made the mistake of not packing that little bugger to the brim with stuffing the first time. The second one I stuffed, and I mean STUFFED the living daylights out of the kitty and it was much better. I used a knitting needle to stuff the skinny parts. (Just try not to snicker as you read this and try not to break any seams!).

Then!

Then I assembled the head and before attaching the head to the body, I hand-sewed on the felt stripes on both the head and the body... (I picked a real nice contrasting color to the pink).

Then!

Then I sewed on the eyes and nose which I chose to cut out of felt because buttons are a no no if you actually plan to let your little one play with this toy. Choking hazard!



Then!

Feeling like Jack Skelington's girlfriend in the Nightmare Before Christmas, I somehow managed to sew up all the open holes and get the head on. It looked good, but I thought for cuteness sake I'd add a bow around it's neck, but again, if you're going to give it to your child: A: Really sew that head on, and B: Lose the ribbon, we don't need any choking, again.

And there you go! A cute, cuddly, home-made plush toy for either baby, or bragging shelf!

=^..^=

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