Turning a mountain into a molehill.

Many of our spaces are in need of a purge.  There's messy build-up in pockets, corners, and rooms.  In an attempt to just get a couple of spaces to the point that I could walk into them without cringing, I simply dumped what I could find into laundry baskets or totes and hauled them to my room, with good intentions to get through them in peace and without a little one wandering in and inspecting every item that was in the recycle/toss and giveaway piles. 

For the most part, it worked.  Except that there is now more messy build-up in my room.  Clothes that no longer fit, or need to be mended, or moved to the next stage of their lives (think pants that will now be shorts due to the holes in the knees), were piled on the chest at the foot of my bed.  I was feeling that exasperated, cringe-like feeling every time I entered my room now!  It turns out there is no escape from it unless it is dealt with once and for all.

So a couple of hours were spent with my sewing machine to reduce the mountainous pile down to a manageable molehill.  I think I put together a pretty well-rounded summer wardrobe for my older two, who now have an abundance of shorts. 

And what to do with the cut-off legs below the hole?  It turns out they are the perfect size for most of the panels in the Indi-go bag pattern that is in Reinvention:  Sewing with Rescued Materials.  My pile of jeans is now down to this:

Ahhh, now a wee bit more room for clarity!

Creating in the new year

I didn't do much in the way of reflecting of the year gone by or dreaming of the future ahead of us like I did last year (it started here and went on for several days after that).  I did, however, request that each of our family members write down two things on New Year's Eve.  The first was what we wanted to leave behind in 2013 (which were thrown into the fire that evening) and the second was one thing we wanted to bring into our lives in 2014.  Those little pieces of paper are sitting in our kitchen right now, waiting for a home so we can glance at them occasionally and remember the one goal we set for ourselves this year.

My goal for 2014 was to do more creating with my hands.  Sure, I have done much creating over the past month, and in little bursts here and there before that.  And as much as I love making for others, I became gun-shy about making things for myself after attempting to make myself a tunic that looked more like a potato sack (likely the most beautiful potato sack I've ever seen, but not very flattering).  After that experience, I found an on-line sewing class on Craftsy dedicated exclusively to knits, and impulsively bought it.  And there it has sat, a mere click and password away.

Well, the weather turned frigid, the basement was begging to be cleaned out, and so while Chris did the hard work of sifting through boxes of stuff, I grabbed some jogging fleece from my stash (my contribution to reducing the volume of stuff in the basement) and started to sew.

In the span of an afternoon, a garment was made.  While it may only look like a utilitarian hoodie, it's warm and cozy, it fits just right, and it's something I'm proud of.

With one success under my belt and a bit more confidence, I'm off to sew up a long-sleeved V-neck t-shirt next.  Fingers crossed this one works out as well as the hoodie!

Birthday wishes

The eldest in our family celebrated a birthday today.  And while we didn't get much of a chance to see him, what with work and ball games, a garden to be watered and children to put to bed, we did try to carve out a bit of time to show him how special he is to us. 

Chris had complained around Christmas time about our oven mitts wearing out.  We've managed to survive the last six months with what we had, by either strategically placing our fingers in just the right spots so as not to burn ourselves, or else just giving up on baking altogether.  It's time to change all that, though, so the girls and I made Chris some oven mitts.

The pattern we used was from Reinvention:  Sewing with Rescued Materials.  While we didn't do all the stencilling that the pattern describes, I found that painting the fabric was just the right thing for the girls to help out with.  Making sure all had their paint shirts on and the table was covered, we set to work using potatoes, cookie cutters and apples as our stamps.  We used standard fabric paint that could be found at any craft store (I think our paint came from Michaels).

To make a stamp from a potato and a cookie cutter, simply select a potato that is large enough for your cookie cutter.  Cut the potato in half, then press the cookie cutter into the cut side of the potato.  With the cookie cutter still in the potato, use a paring knife to trim the outside edge away from the cookie cutter.  Pull the cookie cutter out and voila - you have a ready to go stamp.  Paint the stamp with the fabric paint and you're off!

 

 

Astrin used an apple as her stamp.  We cut the apple in half horizontally, as the core will look like a star.  This stamp was ideal for a toddler, as it simply requires paint on the entire cut side of the apple.  It doesn't need to be pressed well to get the desired look. 

When it came to assembling the mitt, I found the instructions in the book needed to be tweaked.  Rather than placing the pockets on top of the wool, I found the fabric needed to be sandwiched together as follows:

  ~ painted full-length rectangle - right side up
  ~ pockets - right side down
  ~ plain full-length rectangle - right side down
  ~ wool

All in all, I'm hoping the  mitts can be used by all for a long time to come.

Happy birthday, my love!

A sewing we shall go

Jaelyn has been perusing our book, Green Crafts for Children, for a wee bit now.  It's been in her room and she has been flipping through it, moving bookmarks every now and again.  It seems that crafting must have been weighing heavy on her mind, for upon waking, she announced she needed to show me what she wanted to make today.

With an inward sigh of relief, I learned that she had her heart on making a felt bag.  I was fearing she would want to make a salt dough tea set, partly because I knew it would take a fair bit of commitment on our part to stick around while it dried in the oven, and partly because I dreaded our toddler getting her hands on the pieces and breaking them.  But a felt bag?  Of course, we could do that!

Who doesn't love a project where all the materials are right there?   Yes, today we were on - no searching for materials here and there.  Everything was exactly where it was the last time we saw it.  It also helped that the materials list was short (sewing needle, yarn, a button, scissors, a felted sweater).  This was truly a quick and easy project to whip up.  Plus, we brought our work downstairs, which pushed me to do a little bit to get my sewing space into a more useable state.

I'm thrilled to report that my little one is very happy with how her bag turned out.  And I'm thrilled to report that I'll be heading down shortly to spend some time with my sewing machine now that it's back out in the open.

A designer is born

Yesterday, our homeschooling co-op put the rest of the structure around the holiday skit we will be sharing with friends and family.  We will be offering an interpretation of Jan Brett's The Trouble with Trolls.  However, we will be exchanging the trolls for various creatures.  The children will be preparing their own costumes and props and we'll be gathering together one last time for a dress rehearsal before the big night.

As you may have guessed, Nicholas has decided he would like to be an owl.  And, some of you may know that he is very detailed and craves a realistic interpretation of the things around him, owl costume included.  So, there would be no cardboard wings or paper plate masks for him.  He's taking to designing his owl costume and has set his sights on sewing it himself.

We found some large paper in the basement and he drew the general layout of how his costume would look.  We talked about the need for seam allowances.  We talked about considerations when taking a two-dimensional object (the pattern) and making it three-dimensional (the finished piece).  We talked about how the fabric might fray and how the fabric choice needs to be considered in the design.  We talked about the weight of different materials and how weight impacts how the fabric will hang and the finished garment will look (and how hot it will be underneath).  He was very open to hearing about what he would need to consider and problem-solving.

He has settled on constructing wings, a full head mask, talons for his feet, and a tail.  All the pattern pieces are cut out and some of the fabric has been cut too.  Tomorrow we'll work to squeeze in a little sewing time.  What an exciting time!

Our Hallowe'en

Ahhh, the evening of ghosts and goblins and witches is coming to an end.  We had a little too much going on today, and were much to distracted by the solar system this week to really focus on all that could be Hallowe'en.  But we did honour a few Hallowe'en traditions today. 

I must confess, I have a love-hate relationship with Hallowe'en.  I love the idea of creating a costume, decorations and treats, especially when the littlest ones we love come calling.  I love the idea of dancing around the living room to Werewolves of London.  I love a night that exists for fun and fun alone.  I could do without all the processed stuff and commercialism and not-quite-from-nature part of it.

So today, we hauled up the pumpkins and Nicholas and Jaelyn had their go at designing them.  They felt confident enough to carve them, and so after a quick tutorial (keep the blade straight, cut away from yourself, etc.), they were off.  I think they came up with beautiful designs and did a really wonderful job carving them.

Next up were some healthier, home-made treats, made especially for our little niece and nephew, plus any of our Club friends who know us and trust us.  Nicholas made the candy apples that were coated with a mixture of coconut oil, honey, and our favorite dried fruits and seeds.  Jaelyn made some banana ghosts dipped in a mixture of cocoa and agave nectar, then sprinkled with coconut.  Yum.

And finally...trick or treating.  Our children donned their costumes (Nicholas in his handmade British soldier costume - McCall's pattern #M6143 - and Jaelyn in her hand-me-down Davey Crockett costume) and grabbed their flashlights.  Our first stop with the neighbourhood recreation centre, where they were serving up spooky crafts and snacks.  We made dolls, lanterns and decorated cookies before heading for home the long way.  The children wandered up and down a couple of streets trick-or-treating before they made their way home.

They came home with quite the haul.  Fortunately, they were eager to trade most of it in, as is our tradition, for simple toys and books.  We brought out the candles for their rooms again, too, and tucked them in with a kiss and a Hallowe'en poem to cap the day.

Happy Hallowe'en wherever you are!

The boycott ends

As I got more and more frustrated with the extreme number of things in our smaller dining area space and how un-pretty it looked, I announced that I would do no more sewing until we had cleaned out our basement and had some semblance of a plan for that much dreamed about studio.  Then, all the sewing, knitting, and crafting things could make their way downstairs and we could have an uncluttered dining room.  The picture in my imagination was delightful.

Then, the birthday owl needed to be made.  But did 30 minutes of sewing really count?  And besides, it was a gift for a dear little one.  No, that sewing didn't count.

Then, my husband needed a solution for the story staffs he was making for the Cub pack he helps lead.  How would we attach a wrist band that would work for every wrist?  How could we attach it so that it didn't need to be hand sewn on 25 different staffs?  The solution - one-inch elastic - the same kind that we use for waistbands.  We calculated we needed about 10 meters worth.  That led to a trip to the fabric store with my son.  We picked up one-inch wide elastic for the story staffs, and he found a pattern for a Halloween costume.  And then he found the fabric for the costume.  And then he found fabric for some bedsheets he'd like me to take a go at.  And then I found some sale-priced fleece material that would be great for a hoodie project that is part of a Craftsy class I enrolled in.  But I vowed that nothing - not the costume, not the bedding, not the hoodie - nothing would get done until the basement was cleaner.  I warned Nicholas that I would have trouble finishing the costume before Halloween.

The sewing machine came out again that week to prepare the wrist bands for the story staffs.  But that was helping out the Cubs, so it didn't count either.

My mind was troubled though.  That costume...how would it get done if I was officially boycotting sewing?  My son observed that I hadn't started anything yet - basement or costume, so he casually handed me the pattern envelope one afternoon and said, "If you started cutting out the pattern now, maybe you could have it done by Halloween."  Fair enough.  Cutting out a pattern wasn't sewing, right?  And we had donated things that were in the basement to the women's shelter.  So it was getting cleaner down there too, right?

After I cut out the pieces, I felt a little daunted about having a realistic chance of finishing it on time, regardless of when I started.  It's a more intricate pattern for a fairly rookie sewer like me.  And I like making things for my little ones.  So, I'm happy to announce that the boycott has ended.  The sewing machine came out yesterday to zigzag the cut ends of the fabric, which was then dumped in the washing machine.  It was ironed today and the costume bottoms are about half done.  It seems that the boycott did nothing but restrict me from doing something I love.  Yes, that basement still needs to be tackled, and we will get to it.  But this Mama still needs to sew in the meantime.