Time for an update on the Advent Calendar Craft-Along (see the introduction and inspiration here, and the plan here). What was hoping to get done this week? Get the tree and pockets complete, buttons sewn on and the backing fabric edges bound. What did I actually get done? Sew the tree and pockets. I started […]
Elsa Rag Doll
I swear this is my last Frozen post for a while (forever?). We’ve finished with the party and now we’re on to the presents. I’ve wanted to make a rag doll for my daughter for a while and bought the e-book My Rag Doll for inspiration. I was going to make the Ballerina doll, but […]
Advent Calendar Craft-Along: Preparation
This is Part 2 in the Advent Calendar Craft-Along. For more information and inspiration, read the introduction post here. The concept I’m making a felt Christmas tree, with little pockets below the tree. Each day, we’ll pull out a decoration from the pocket (and maybe a chocolate or two!) and hang it on a button […]
Advent Calendar Craft-Along: Ideas
For years, I’ve meant to make an advent calendar. I was first inspired by the Advent Calendar Sew-Along at Homemade By Jill in 2010 (!). To stop procrastinating, I’m hosting an Advent Calendar Craft-Along this November. It was originally planned a sew-along, but why limit it to just sewing. There’s a million and one ways to make an advent […]
Elsa party dress
The Frozen party blog posts continue… Next up is the Elsa party dress. My daughter already has an Elsa costume, but I wanted a fun dress for her to wear to her party. My plan was for it to be an everyday dress, but it ended a more dressy than I intended – oops. That […]
How to Sew a Quick Elsa Cape
For my daughter’s Frozen party, I loved the idea of all the girls dressing up as Elsa. But I didn’t have the time (or energy) to make Elsa costumes for them all. Instead, I had the idea for a simple Elsa Cape – a quick sewing project and something fun for the girls to take […]
Sew Ready to Play 2014
Sew Ready to Play is on again at I’m Feelin’ Crafty, and Louise kindly invited me to participate again. It’s a month of sewing projects based on games. This year was a struggle for inspiration, but when I finally decided on a game for inspiration, the project came together quickly (actually, because I left it […]
Smocked Christmas Ornaments
I love a crafty challenge. It makes me think outside the box and test ideas that have been bouncing around in my head. Suddenly, I find myself making Christmas decorations in August! (And I apologise for making you think about that event – less than 4 months away, aagh!) Sarah Lauren and Fabric Fusion (two […]
How to sew laminated placemats
We recently bought a new dining table – a big Marri (hardwood) table that should last us an eternity. The previous table was a cheapy, bought second-hand. We didn’t really care about it, so we didn’t use placemats or tablecloths. Now that we’ve got one we want to look after, it was time to get […]
Baby Boy Gift Set
I previously shared a tutorial for how to sew a baby bib with a pocket, which I made for my nephew. A baby bib wasn’t a good enough gift though, so today I’m sharing the other presents I made for this baby boy. I ended up making two bibs, one with train fabric leftover from […]
Frozen-inspired Elsa Costume {Tutorial}
I promised Celeste I’d sew her an Elsa costume (and boy, did she nag me until I got it done!). So here it is: Kids costumes are often difficult for kids to put on by themselves. Being the lazy parent that I am, I went with a shirred back for the dress (similar to my […]
How to Sew Butterfly Hair clips
Do all little girls like butterflies? Or is it just me that’s obsessed with them? My niece’s birthday was this week, so of course I had to make her a present. I wasn’t feeling too original or creative, so I went with the same present I made for a one of my son’s friends last […]
35+ Disney Frozen Crafts
Disney’s Frozen has to be the best princess movie. The storyline, the songs, Olaf, the relationship between Anna and Elsa, everything about it is wonderful. It’s one of those movies that I can watch over and over again (I wish I had the time!). And of course, the movie also inspires me to craft. I […]
How to Sew a Doll’s Mattress
It’s been a little while since I shared the bedding set I made for my daughter’s doll cot. Now it’s time for the tutorials for each part, starting with the little mattress. I used a foam cushion insert, cut down to size, and a plain pink quilter’s cotton. I made bias tape from some of […]
Sew a Baby Bib with Catcher Pocket
It’s baby month at And Sew We Craft. My sister-in-law is pregnant with child no 3, so this was the perfect alignment of the stars to get me sewing. Today I’m sharing a tutorial for how to sew a baby bib with a catcher pocket: Head over to And Sew We Craft for the full […]
How to Sew a Stuffed Snail {Tutorial}
Funny how fast a year goes. It doesn’t seem that long ago that I was making a simple skirt and magnetic paper dolls for one of Celeste’s friend’s birthday. Suddenly it’s time to make her another birthday present. This year, the theme of her party was snails (and her Mum did an amazing job with […]
How to sew a ruffled scarf {tutorial}
Mother’s Day has come around again. Our school has a Mother’s Day stall for fundraising, with gifts donated by parents. I like to make something to create a unique gift for someone’s Mum. Last year, I made a crochet skinny scarf. For some reason, scarves sound like a good idea to me, so I stuck […]
Doll’s Cradle Bedding Set
When I was little , my grandfather made this wooden doll’s cradle: His hobby in retirement was making wooden toys for charity. We were encouraged to donate the toys he made us when we grew out of them (which is a shame because he made the best rocking elephants!). My brother kept a large truck […]
Roses are red…
But sometimes they’re yellow: Hmmm, not sure where this attempt at poetry is going. I think I’ll quit while I’m ahead! A little late for Valentine’s Day, I’m sharing a tutorial for how to sew a fabric rose at And Sew We Craft. I’m now a monthly contributor there, so head back regularly to see […]
How to sew a foot stool {tutorial}
Before Christmas, I asked for help deciding what to sew my brother for Christmas from this fabric: It’s a broadcloth that I picked up from Fabric.com. I ended up going with my first instinct, and made a foot stool (or pouf, or ottoman): I used black quilter’s cotton for the top and base and made […]
Oh Christmas Tee
After making the Christmas Shirr Dress, I thought I’d better make something for Jacob for Christmas too. My first thought was to make a nice collared shirt for him, but he doesn’t wear shirts too often and none of the fabrics in my stash inspired me. Since green is his favourite colour, I then got […]
Sparkly Christmas “Shir” Dress
A while back, when shopping in my Spotlight, Celeste fell in love with this glittery Christmas tree fabric: I must have been in a “keep the child happy, so I can buy more fabric” mood, the bolt ended up in the trolley, thinking it would make a cute Christmas dress. I bought some red dance […]
Handbag and Hairclips
My kids have hit the age where the number of birthday party invites is increasing. Last weekend, the party was for a girl from Jacob’s kindy. Two days before the party, I hit panic stations, wondering if I’d have to head to the shops. Luckily, my husband had a boy’s night out planned – a […]
How to Keep the Hand-Towel off the Floor
Toilet training has provided plenty of parenting challenges in this house (and I’m definitely not qualified to give advice!), but things are progressing well and both kids do their business in the toilet/potty during the day. But every time I walk past their toilet, the hand towel is never on the holder. On the floor, […]