angry chicken

Mermaids, & more importantly, the Merbaby.

I know this is a little weird. Especially maybe for people without kids, or people without girl kids, or non-doll people, or non-mermaid people, but for anyone who is into these things, either by natural proclivity or by default because of your offspring, you can see the importance of these removable mermaid tails.

They fit all the major dolls in the house and are interchangeable and even fit the baby dolls, creating the main player of all underwater play here— the Merbaby.

I made the first tail before Christmas but never finished the second one and the holidays got a little out of hand anyway. I sort of remembered them around Easter, but again, couldn't finish them and then about 2 weeks ago finally finished them after I had to make the shell-shaped bras, which I discovered are almost as important as the Merbaby herself. There was a lot of pantomiming here, "The shell-shaped bra, Mom, you know??" Yes, I know. So, both girls got the tails and the shell-shaped bra. They do know the real Little Mermaid story, where she turns into seafoam (minus some details) not hanging with prince Eric on some crazy boat or whatever.  And there is no Merbaby. I am thrilled these have been well received considering how close they are to a major licensed character, and yet are not that licensed character. The only issue is they don't go into the bathtub, but that seems to be okay. The middle child told me her Merbaby takes her tail off to pee. Ha!

Here's how to make the tail suitable for Mermaids or Merbabies-

Supplies:

1/8" elastic for the waist
velcro for the shell bra
wool felt and cotton velour (I got mine from Wier Dolls and Crafts)

*quantities depend on your doll size, but 1/4" yard of cotton velour is ample. I used one piece of 8 x 10 felt for the tail (folded in half) and another sheet for the bra.

1. Measure your doll, or if you need the tail to fit several dolls, measure the biggest one, or at least hold the fabric up to the doll and eyeball it. Measure the waist as well. You'll want the tail a bit longer and barely wider then the doll.

2. To avoid swearing, draw the tail shape on the wrong side of the velour, stitch on the line to another piece of velour (right sides together) and then trim. No shifting fabric that way. Now turn right side out.

3. Fold a piece of felt in half and draw the fin shape with a fabric pen/pencil, or something you can spritz out with water. Top stitch the lines through both layers and then cut out, leaving a scant 1/8" edge. The top will be on the fold, so carefully cut that open.

4. Stuff the tail in the fin opening, pleating it if needed, and top stitch through all layers, be sure to check the back. Put this on your doll to test the length and waist, if it's all good, fold down a bit of the top hem and zig-zag narrow elastic to the inside stretching the elastic (not the fabric) while you sew.

4.5 Make the shell bra by cutting out the shape in felt on the fold—this length is longer that you think to make it in all one piece, you might have to make the bra and straps separately.

5. Sew velcro on the back and cover your naked mermaid immediately.

don't fear the stretch

It's out (early on Amazon, I don't know if it's in stores yet) and I got mine Friday—the much anticipated new BBW book, Sew U Home Stretch: The Built by Wendy Guide to Sewing Knit Fabrics. I knew it was coming soon so I ordered some cotton knit from SewZanne's from the previous FOE freak-out. I have no idea when I will start a new project, but a comfy knit skirt sure sounds good to me right now.

I read this cover to cover and I love it. Similar to sewing with wovens in her first book, she explains all ways to sew with knits and is very reassuring. I am SO HAPPY there is a cool knit book out there. Ribs, hemming while keeping a stretch, ball point needles, all the things that can seem freaky when sewing with knits are clearly explained here.

Here's what is so rad about this book: she tells you straight up, you don't need a serger, seriously. However, If you do have a serger, she describes handy stitch info and techniques to use it the best way. You get the low down on knit fabric types, you get 3 basic patterns (included in the back—full size tissues) a basic t-shirt, a raglan sleeve t-shirt, and a dress/skirt. Then, just like in her first book, she provides a gazillion variations. Sweet. She also has a bit on altering existing knits, so you don't even have to go to the fabric store to start sewing. All the patterns are designed by Wendy, so take a look at her site and this book (if you can look before you buy) to check out her style if you aren't familiar with it. I dig it a whole lot. The knit designs in this book have a sporty vibe which is totally adaptable, but is very1980s, just so you know.

The patterns come in XS-L. She provides a measurement chart in the book, but for reference, the XS fits a Chest 32", Waist 25", and Hip 36" Large fits a Chest 38", Waist 31", and Hip 42"—so get out your tape measure. Of course these stretch and are all very easy to alter— she emphasizes doing your own thing and making fabric changes (like silk jersey vs. sweatshirt fleece) to change the look of a pattern. Even if you wouldn't make everything in this book, it's still an amazing resource if you are willing to learn about altering patterns, which she describes thoroughly. That said, she describes how to alter style not size, so you will have to experiment if your size falls outside of the XS-L range.

This is a great sewing book. I highly suggest you get her first book and at least read it before you start this one. Not because this one is more advanced, it's actually easier to sew with knits, but because I think the whole serger/sewing machine techniques will be easier if you are familiar with basic garment sewing to start with.

OMG, FOE is my new BFF!

I am loving these types of tops, the ones that are everywhere right now. Hopefully I don't look pregnant when I wear them. Let's not answer that question for now and thank god when I do go out that baby is in the sling, which is the perfect camo for my empty baby house (my soft tummy.) The thing I don't love about these tops is making the casings for the elastic. I don't hate making the casings, but it's not my favorite thing to do. I made a lot of these tops for Sadie last spring and am now making them for me too, and just found my easy answer—ditching the casing all together and using fold over elastic instead. That's FOE for all you sewing peeps (I didn't make this up, it is really referred to as FOE on some sites)

Before I switched to this, I actually made another casing variation using hem tape on the inside (instead of turning the fabric over) and then threaded the elastic through the casing made by the stitched hem tape. That worked, but then I was still threading the elastic. When I use FOE, it finishes the edges AND is the elastic all in one. Dig? It's awesome, and very unscientific.

I trimmed the edges of the farbic where the elastic was to go because I wasn't folding it over twice anymore. Then I stitched on the elastic, folded, with the fabric sandwiched in the middle. I stretched the elastic while I stitched it down knowing how much I needed it to gather, less in the arms and a lot around the neck. I used a wide 3-way zigzag.  I did this all in one pass by machine, even easier than my tutorial for seam binding.

The elastic comes with an indent down the middle for easy folding. There is a shiny disco/ice skating costume side and a dull side, I opted for the dull side on this top. I am in love with this stuff. Even on the dull side there is a glittery sheen which is slightly gaudy, but it's still wonderful and comes in a million colors, and is way cheap, so what's not to love? I plan to use it a whole ton for all kinds of things. It's really popular as a way to finish the edges of sewn diaper covers, but not this exact kind, a thicker type is used for that.

Some specs:

The fabric: Nani Iro Double gauze. I'm not finding this exact pattern readily right now, but a google search will get you some patterns similar. I have used this double gauze for a few garments and although I love the way it looks, I am not a huge fan of the drape. It's pretty clingy and is so light it just sort of sticks to my body. Hard to explain. I think a linen or a cotton knit would be a better choice.

The blouse pattern: McCall's #4685 pretty altered, but it's where I started from. It's view D without the buttons or the elastic around my empty baby house.

Fold over elastic: From Sewanne's. All these color choices make me so happy. She also has some great fabrics too, so look around.

 

family helping

So, I have been working a lot on the next book. A whole lot. And getting a chance to actually work on it alone is near impossible. I am asked how I get stuff done with the girls and I have no clue. Sometimes it goes great and I get a ton done, but other times I get very little done and it's all a mad house. And sometimes, I let them work with me, and they have the most fun they have ever had. Seriously, I have never seem them so into a project.

I know it's because they are "helping mama with her book" but also because these new projects are fun! At least they sure like them. They took this one over. It's a tablecloth that is painted on with fabric dye. They are so excited to see it on the table, as am I. They kept asking "Can we really paint on it?"

This exact project isn't making it in the book, but it's still awesome. I can say that 'cause my girls painted on it.

Hooray for sun this weekend!

Random items:

—my brother sent me this artcile about blogging moms. Or more specificaly, Dooce blogging. So interesting to see what the outside world thinks. . . or not interesting. I can't tell. And 40k a month?? Expletive!! But, man, the hate mail— that's so lame.
—still searching for the perfect mineral make-up green eyeshadow, will report back soon, I am getting closer
—I know there was something else, but can't remember what.

new duds

These were purchased after midnight 2 weeks ago. With a nursing baby on my lap. It's amazing the damage I can do one-handed. I got this in grey.

I surely do not need another pair of wooden earrings that are a variation of a circle, but I had to get these anyway.

I love this silk/cotton blouse so much. These are all from forever 21, which is here in the mall and downtown and elsewhere, but not only do I not get out enough, when I do, the mall seems horrible and waiting in line to try all this stuff on seems even worse. So, I shop very carefully online, I pretty much know what will fit after many failed attempts. Like this lovely blouse here will be worn unbuttoned for a bit, if you know what I mean.

Another reason I buy online with this shop is the pieces haven't been tried on. This is not a freaky germ issue I have or anything like that, more that these clothes get so damaged from shoppers yanking and pulling on sizes that are too small—buttons pop off, seams are split and half the merch is on the floor when I go there, so I really think online is better, especially for sale stuff from any store. Sale items get so thrashed in shops! I am always shocked. Then I usually replace any mediocre buttons, add better ribbons, and look carefully at seams, reinforcing if I need to and all that—it all holds up surprisingly well. And stylin' too!

desserts and misc.

These milk chocolate cookies are from that cookie book. They were divine. Not my first choice, but the girls wanted them, so we made a batch and I was surprised at how good they were. They were like cookie brownies. I was thinking about getting all crazy sick with these and putting ice cream between 2 of them and freezing them—but I think it would kill me. Still, it's a good idea. The extra cookies went to Pete's office because of my sugar thing. The girls don't really care, they are much more about salty foods.

Here's my favorite dessert right now. Pineapple and orange with a few cashews and a little coconut.

Middle child loves it too. So, significantly reducing sugar in my diet has been awesome. I have a nibble of something sweet on the weekends, and an occasional maple-syrup-on-yogurt type breakfast, but the random sweet thing I really don't miss. I do, however, need to bake so Pete's office (and friends and sometimes the random person at the door) reap the benefits.

Random things:

-I was alerted to the errata page for the Artesian Bread in 5 Minutes book I keep posting about. (Thanks Mari!). Yes, indeed, get on over there, 'cause it's 2 packets of yeast, not 1 1/2,  and sometimes a 40 min rest should really be more like 1 1/2 hour.

-We are thrilled that our almost 10 month old Liddy is now playing the games we had forgotten about that were so loved by our other children, games such as I'm Gonna Put This On You, I'm Gonna Put This Behind My Head, and the old standby, This is My Hat. Hysterical. She might be our funniest baby yet.

-Um this shoe site 6pm, sister site to the dangerous Zappos is haunting me. Watch out and don't do what I did, which is buy euro kids shoes super cheap (and pay shipping) and then have them not fit the kids (and have to pay shipping to return them) yeah, I suck. But, for adult non-growing feet, it could be awesome.

-In my continuing research of Blackwork inspiration, I found this great shop, Pinpals, where I snatched up this delightful pin. I can't get out needle and thread right now, but I can shop! Click, click.

big skirt, tiny skirt

There was a big bag headed for Goodwill this weekend and Sadie pulled this out. This is a great skirt that never really felt like me so after a few summers, into the bag it went.

Then back out of the bag it went, downstairs into the sewing room, and now on Sadie. Sweet! Good thing she is tall and thank you easy-to-alter-elastic-waistband!

a few things:

-I have had a compelling urge to start a blackwork project. (More Tudor love.) Mostly because I can't really embark on a new thing right now, so of course I want to. I was planning one before Christmas but haven't yet. Something like this, which is just lovely.

-I finished reading Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close: A Novel. Moving and sad and very good. I'm now reading Anna Karenina after starting but not finishing We Were the Mulvaneys. I realize now this might seem like an Oprah list, but it is not. But what if it were? I was so mad at a book group I was in years ago that purposely steered away from any Oprah pick book. That's a shame, you know? I am really enjoying this particular translation of Anna Karenina. Not that I have anything to compare it to, but the intro is fascinating.

-Here's a wonderful e-mail from Shan I got regarding oven temps and their insanity. This is why I love blogs—I get e-mails with this much info. It's awesome.

In real life I work for a company that repairs commercial food equipment and I thought I’d share a little info about ovens and thermostats (which you didn’t ask for – hence the annoying).  All thermostats have ‘swing’, most home units have a lot of swing, meaning that they fall well below and rise far above the set point before they turn off or turn on.  In other words you set the temp at 350, the elements turn on and the temp starts to rise.  When it reaches 350 the elements turn off but the temp will still continue to rise, sometimes by quite a bit (mine has a 50 degree swing).  With the element off the temp will then start to fall and once it drops to 350 the element will turn back on, but again the temp will continue to fall until the element catches up.  When you set an oven to 350 you are really asking it to average 350.

Now for the part you already know:  An oven thermometer is absolutely the way to go, but don’t expect it to show you a constant temperature because an oven is constantly rising and falling.  Also, if you haven’t already discovered an internal thermometer I highly recommend them…you will never use the timer again when you are cooking turkey J  The one I use has a probe that goes into the meat on one end, and plugs into a counter display on the other (just lay the wire through the oven door).  It also has a remote unit that I can carry with me (my favorite part) so I can sew and mind the turkey without even getting up.  Multi-tasking at its finest – heh. Mine is like this.

fabric for wearing on your body.

I just got an e-mail from Holly that I was going to paraphrase, but my brain is fuzzy— so here it is. She writes:

"I just listened to your podcast on craftypod about sewing your own clothes.  The part that struck me was the importance of choosing the right fabric.  I have been disappointed by this mistake myself many, many times.  My question, though, is where do you find good fabric that is not quilting cotton?  At my local JoAnn Fabrics the choices are not good and online I don't find too much beyond solids and some uninspiring prints.  Do you know of any online stores that sell nice cotton/lycra/blends?"

Yeah—quilting cottons (think Moda, Freespirit, etc.) are awesome for crafts and quilts but not always the best choice for clothes. There are exceptions, but for adult clothes they can be a bit heavy and stiff for the most part.

Using old clothes (especially wool sweaters, pants, and old t-shirts) for sewing new garments is always so thrilling—and really rewarding. Check Melissa's pants for Sam. I like to raid my own closet to make new clothes for the girls, then I can use just the right knit or other fabrics that are hard to find by the yard (and new garment fabric is crazy expensive!) I have had more luck doing this than thrifting for clothes to take apart and reconstruct—but that works great too, especially if you leave the house, which I don't do much right now. Check the excellent Wardrobe Refashion site for a lot of ideas about this kind of sewing.

For new fabric, I usually buy here in Portland. I need to be able to touch it and see it drape. I sometimes use quilting cottons for tops/dresses/aprons for kids clothes, so I can buy that online—I know how it feels. For linens, rayons, tencel, wool, bamboo, hemp, jerseys, all that, I usually buy in person. Most big cities have at least one high-end fabric shop that sells fabric suitable for clothes. Right? What is the world coming too?

In Portland, for garment fabrics, I shop at:

Mill End Store
Josephine's dry goods
bolt
fabric depot

(Am I missing any Portland shops that sell a decent amount of garment fabric, not just quilting cottons?)

What about online? I don't have a ton of experience buying garment fabric online. I've listed some online shops I have used or that are highly recommended that have garment fabrics (Not just quilting cottons.) Do you all have a favorite online source for fashion fabrics? Especially knits? Please add it in the Flickr comments, because you know what book is coming out soon, right? And it's all about sewing knits.

I don't have hot links enabled in the comments here, so head on over to the Bend-the-Rules flickr group to add a link if you have one. Thank you!

***And Portland peeps, Anna Maria Horner needs your help! Please read and possibly get lovely fabric for your sofa! Free!

 

I need to dust off my needles

photo by Michael Crouser

Portland's own Larissa and Martin John Brown have a new knitting book out, Knitalong: Celebrating the Tradition of Knitting Together and there are some mighty fine projects in this lovely book. This one above is designed by Adrian Bizilia of Hello Yarn fame. I am a stalker of hers, so I am delighted she has not 1, but 2 (!) projects in this book.

Super cute cover, huh? Time to get my needles out. After I sew that outfit. The list is growing. . .

next up. . .

On deck is this incredibly cute pattern from oliver + s. (Congrats Leisl!!) These sewing patterns come with a paper doll and the outfit shown on the pattern. Seriously! So flippin' clever and cute. Check out all the sweet patterns and the blog and flickr group, too.

The shorts I have planned in a brown linen, much like the pattern shows, and for the blouse I have my eye on this lovely Liberty fabric over at Purl. Sigh. So very good.