Needle and thREAD

Elizabeth started needle and thREAD a few months ago, and I have to say, I am very thankful!

On the first week of this linky party, Elizabeth wrote:
"I welcome you to needle and thREAD. What have you been sewing lately? Or are you embroidering? Pulling a needle with thread through lovely fabric to make life more beautiful somehow? Would you share with us just a single photo (or more) and a description of what you're up to? Would you talk sewing and books with us? I'd love that so much."

This week I needed to finish up a little patriotic sewing.

Luke needed a new shirt for the 4th of July so I pulled out one of my favorite patterns.

The pattern is Simplicity 3852 and includes all sizes from baby to adult.

I do cut this shirt about 2 inches longer than the pattern.   My boys never seem to keep a shirt tucked in, and the 2 inches help them try to stay tucked in.

I'm reading nothing but relaxing fiction right now on these hot summer days.  Right now I'm in the middle of The Amish Midwife.  This book is hard to put down. It has twist and turns, secrets and mystery.  Perfect for a summer read.

Luke learned to ride a two wheeler this past week.

We also made these patriotic pins to wear on the 4th of July.

You can check out that post over here.

Humming again....

My sewing machine has been idle for too long. I was inspired to get it out and humming. First up, a dress for Kim.
I used a new-to-me pattern source....Oliver+S.
This pattern was the Music Box Jumper Pattern.

Winter outside.....

summer sewing inside.....
McCall's pattern # M4817

Summer dress....

sewed for Kimmy while the spring snow accumulated outside....

fashion show coming tomorrow.....

Wordless Wednesday--Irish Eyes are Smiling

Valentine PJ's #2

Autumn Sewing--Makes My Monday

I love autumn sewing.

I love warm fuzzy fleece.

I love the autumn colors and patterns.

I love cute little children whom love anything I sew!!

McCall's pattern #M5508

(I buy patterns at Joann's Fabrics when they are on sale for $1.99)_
I love the little matching buttons that big sister Amy found for this outfit.

This little face Makes My Monday.

Come and share what Makes your Monday over at Twinfatuation.

Makes my Monday-A Little Sewing

Seeing the results of my sewing-"Makes My Monday"

as the girls model their new cozy winter dresses on a beautiful autumn day.
Kimmy (3 1/2) and Gracie (8 on Thurs!)

A model in the making?

What "Makes your Monday"? Share with us at Twinfatuation.

Gracie's new dress

"Little girls dance their way into your heart, whirling on the tips of angel wings, scattering gold dust & kisses in our paths....." author unknown

Kimmy's new dress

Young Mother Sewing--Mary Cassatt

"I cannot count my day complete

'Til needle, thread and fabric meet".~Author Unknown

Kimmy's new dress.....

April's Shower of Photos-Kimberly's New Dress

Kimberly has reached the "I bet you can't take a good picture of me" phase, so I have included a bunch of photos showing her new Easter dress.
I used Simplicity pattern 5483. It is out of print now, but there are still plenty out there if you do an internet search for it.

It is a very simple pattern and sews up quickly. I was very happy with the final result.

It is a very special dress because Daddy helped pick out the fabric and he picked out the buttons all on his own.

Of course, if you are wearing a dress, you need to swing dance. I didn't realize until today that Kim and Luke think that swing dancing is the only dancing out there, that is all they have ever seen--and they are getting pretty good at it!

If the snow would stop falling I would get Kimberly out into the sunshine for a nicer photo, but for now, this will have to do. Hopefully it won't be so cold on Easter. We don't want to be wearing our winter coats, but according to the weather forecast, we may be.

A new twirly skirt

I made Gracie a new twirly skirt last night.

I just love the patchwork material-I found it at Fabric.com. This material was clearanced when I bought it, and I now can't find it on the site, but they do have many other "patchwork" materials available.
I used McCall's pattern #M4816. This pattern has a lot of fullness, but it is too short for me, so I added a few inches to each of the three tiers.

The perfect amount of twirl!

Warm and Cozy

I made this cozy fleece outfit for Kimberly last night. I couldn't resist. You see, the s and I went out shopping last week on "black Friday" and I was amazed at the prices of baby clothes. So being the frugal mother I am, I took a piece of fleece we bought to make baby blankets
and made this. The cost was about $5.00. You can't beat that.

I used McCall's pattern M4642. It was much more simple to put the zipper in the front than I expected. There are certainly more of this type of outfit for Kim in the future.

A Cold Snowy Sewing Day

It was quite chilly today, and in fact, we saw our first snowflakes of the year, so we hunkered down in the house and I did some sewing.

First, I made Kimberly a hat to match the coat I made a few weeks ago. I used Simplicity pattern #7363. I had made several of the other hats in this pattern before, but I hadn't tried this one. I was very pleasantly surprised with the results.

Kim at a soccer game this past Saturday wearing her new coat.

I also made Kim a pair of pull on blue jeans. They are cute. As soon at I finished them, my friend Sharon came in the door with bags of clothes for the kids, including jeans. Thankfully, a girl can never have too many clothes.