Time to cosy up ...

While some of us are welcoming the first vibes of spring, here in Sydney we're slowly getting ourselves ready to the idea that soon, we'll be longing for flannelette, bedsocks and pumpkin soup.... There is still time that is true, but as the nights get cooler, new cosy pyjamas seemed to be right on time. So ... 

Let me present you;

Camay style prints (flannelette fabric from Spotlight) and grey cotton T, (from Target)

with knee pads for extra cosiness, and a yellow thread for a little bit of sunshine.

Mia spends a lot of time on her knees while she plays with all her tiny weeny characters so knee pads really mean extra comfort for her. 

Very simple to make: 2 oval shapes (4 in total) sewn together with right sides together, (don't forget to leave an opening to turn it inside out) top-stitch all around and across (this is optional, but I like the extra texture). It is easier to apply before sewing together the back and front panels of the pants, but providing you have a relatively wide legs cut, you can decide to knee-pad or not once your pants is completed.

Position the top of the knee-pad just below the knee. (When you sit, or kneel, or crouch, pants go up, so you want the pads to sit at the right place.)

Note:  don't limit yourself  to an oval shape, you could have knee pads stars, hearts, squares, flowers and so on ... (for a full tute, click here.)

And a big soft heart. 

For the applique I have used some of that Heat n' Bond paper type but instead of buying the expensive pre-packaged stuff I got a piece cut at the counter. The top-stitches here are for aesthetic purpose only. 

Cute and comfortable,

for growing legs,

(I like a bit of flare and broad seams around the ankles.) 

and funny faces!

And while I had my pattern out (drafted around an old pair of pants= turn old pair inside out, tuck one leg inside the other and draw around, then flip and draw around other side: you should have two different types of crotches; deeper for the back, shorter for the front ), I decided to go for extra cosy and extra crazy with a multicoloured fleece!

Ruffles' on!

Nothing says happy like a set of bouncy ruffles!  

When I saw the lovely skirts on Made, I couldn't resist: the perfect "pick me up" project I needed to keep the good mood going.

My last trip to Spotlight got me exactly what I needed, brand new pins (a special treat) and lemon seersucker. (the grey wool felt is for an Ipad sleeve project I have in line...) 

So all I had to do was to get sewing.

I didn't bother making a tutorial here because the one on Made is perfect, the technique "connector/ruffle/sandwich" is the same as I have used here.

Three layers of bouncing ruffles: very girly,

very sweet,

and full of buzz!

A truly rewarding project, easy to do and so so cute!

Family Portrait ... our way.

Un air de famille ...

Now, it's probably not the best painting in the house but it has its place of pride on our staircase wall. The kids and I did this a couple of years ago. Unlike many families we know, we do not have professional family shots displayed proudly around the house. When the kids asked why, I knew it was time to do something, I didn't want them to feel we were missing out ... So I bought a large canvas and we got busy.
So here is all of us, unprofessionally painted ...

The best part of this is that we can use it to send cards, make bookmarks etc ... with photoshop, the possibilities are endless.

You get the picture ... 

Loads of fun, no special skills required, so go ahead and make your own family portrait!

Then came the circus ... and Mr Fox

A while ago I fell madly in love with MAILEG and their ubber cute series of mice, furniture and mini clothes. And then I came across this:

A circus!!
So So Cute!

Perhaps even more than the Milk Carton House,

or the mum and dad ...

or the twins...

You might also remember this picture from a previous post:

So So inspiring. 

I knew I had to do something. 

So.

I made a bed box. 

For Mia's Mr Fox.

I didn't have any wooden box, and was too eager to start to be bothered going to Spotlight or Lincraft for a Papier Mache one. A simple shoe box had to do.

I photoshop a label for the top, using a Fox illo and an interesting background found on Pinterest. (It's all right to do so since it is for personal use and not for sale.)

It ended up looking like this:

I layered scraps of interesting prints and paper I keep just for these kinds of projects over the shoe box and Mod Podge the lot.

And made some bed linen. 

I wish I could knit or crochet but since I can't do either properly, I used one of Mia's old sweater to make the blanket.

The crocheted flower is from Ikea. One of these odd things they sometimes sell. It was a packet of five I think, all different. I knew I could use them for something :-)

Mia insisted Mr Fox should have his own teddy to go to bed, so using transfer paper, we made Mr Fox a teddy bear. And a toothbrush. And a clock.

(Just a note about transfer: if you have some writing, don't forget to set up your printer on the mirror setting. everything will be reversed on the transfer paper but will be the right way once transferred onto your fabric.)

Mia was well and truly excited about the whole project and decided that Mr Fox's Bed Box needed some art work. So off she want with her texta ...

Et voila!

Not quite MAILEG, but very OOPI, Happy kind of stuff.

Oh, and of course, Mia pointed out that Mr Fox needed a bag to carry his precious belongings ... I was all crafted out by then so I left it to her and she made this:

Perfect!