Super secret agent.

Sometimes a secret agent wants to stand out just a bit, ya know, be not so secret....

So I hate the changes on facebook, the ones that cause pictures and statuses that your friends comment on to pop up in your feed, but in this case it was a good thing!! So I saw this coat pop up in my feed and immediately thought of the new Oliver + s secret agent trench coat.  My pattern arrived on Monday and so I went out to buy fabric that night after the kiddies all went to sleep, washed it that night, altered my pattern pieces Tuesday morning, cut the fabric before nap time, and had most of it sewn up by the time naps were over.  Then I finished it up during the first bit of their nap today.  (p.s. I was so humbled and greatful for the amazing response to my WIP shot, thank you all for your support!!) 

Ah, the buttons... I misplaced a bunch of them... I ripped my house apart this morning with no luck. Sigh.  I used 3/4" on the front of the coat and 5/8" on the sleeves, so slightly smaller.  The coat is off white, btw.

Here is a full shot of the back.  I really love my inspiration coat, but I wanted to make it my own, so I went with 4 layers of ruffles.

Sorry, this color didn't photograph the details well.  Here is a close up of the ruffles (duh).  A friend pointed out the O+S was a drop waist coat while my inspiration was not, so I raised that a bit.  Not quite sure if it was enough as I don't have anyone in the house in this size. 

I promise my buttons were on straight!! Apparently the coat was crooked on the back of my chair and I was too lazy to go take another picture, ha!  I also pleated rather than gathered, again to compliment my inspiration trench. 


Never fear my fellow O+S junkies, I am straightening out a few kinks I had with this one and will take pictures and do a tutorial for my next one.  (Kinks in my alterations, not the original pattern!)  I make no promises that you will understand my not-technical terms or my jumbled way of explaining things, but I will try my hardest! ;)  So, until we meet again, farewell!


***Update, here is the tutorial for how I modified the coat!***

(Update #2, here are modeled shots)

In love.

Oh, I am in love, and I want everyone to know it! I was at a local book and fabric shop (odd combination) this weekend and picked up some fabric that I was oh so excited to use.  So I asked some friends what color combinations they thought would go with my prints and they had some great input.  It has been a rainy mucky day so the pictures were taken inside and don't translate quite as nice as they should.  Especially the aqua and mustard one, it looks more yellow than mustard in the picture, but it is not.  When I saw the prints they just scream Ice Cream blouse at me.  I have seen many Ice Cream tops paired with Puppet Show Shorts and I knew that was the way I wanted to go. 

 



 

Both tops are 12m, lengthened for longer wear. 

The shorts are both 6m.  George wears the 3-6m size in these as I recently found out and Izzy is in the 6m, but I decided to make them flat front with button elastic hoping they will still fit Georgia next spring. 

As I was blog hopping the other night I ran across these shorts and loved the lace on the pockets.  I wanted something more dainty, but this is what I had in my stash and so that is what I went with.  I also used some grey linen and brown linen-look from Joann's.  I definitely prefer the linen, but they didn't have dark brown in anything but the linen-look.

I had just made the Classic Picnic shorts and had those instructions on my mind, so I knew I needed to interface the front section of the waistband, then I figured out where the side seam of the shorts would be and added a button hole on each side then put elastic in the back.

One thing that I love (one of the many) with Oliver and S patterns are the hem facings.  There isn't one on the blouse, but I drafted my own.  I love, love the look that it gives.

And two matching buttons.

Now, what to make next... ?

S'more shorts.

This time I went with the Oliver + S Classic Picnic Shorts I have made them once before for Abby, but at the time littles didn't need any new shorts and I kind of forgot about the shorts pattern until yesterday... oops...  We will be hot here until at least the end of September if not middle of October (sometimes even halloween is warm!), so the girls are still in need of shorts as they have outgrown all but the one pair I just made yesterday.  George again wasn't on the chart for this pattern (teensy tiny hips!) and Izzy fit on the 6m range.  Since I was using button hole elastic (LOVE that stuff!!) I went with 6m knowing they would at least fit Georgia. 

I used a bit of my super duper liquidation sale Lisette twill, they didn't take much since they are so small!

Oh.My.Goodness. I am in love with these shorts!  Yes, another shirtless series of pictures... They now need a top to go with the shorts because nothing in their closet matches this, at least not off the top of my head, but I didn't bother to go look just yet.

The above two photos are of the shorts on small twin, the below are on Elizabeth, aka big twin.

See that big tummy? I just love it!! She was the one who ended up wearing them for a few hours today (shirtless;) and they fit her pretty well (again, love the button hole elastic!) but I think I will make her a pair in 12m and keep these just for George.

She thought it was pretty fun to run down the walkway at the camera, so most of my pictures of her were like this, blurry arms or legs, or half of her head cut off. heehee.

Win!

Three posts in one day?! I am on a roll! Or... the kids went to bed early tonight and I finally decided to catch up on blogging my projects...

After yesterday's attempt I knew I just had to make another pair of Puppet Shorts ASAP.  I always liked the design, but after I made them, I LOVED the design.  So I grabbed some darker denim as I used up all of the particular denim.  It is a nice, light weight stretch denim.  I made the 3-6m size this time and tried them on Elizabeth first.  Ummmm... she has thunder thighs and I couldn't pull them up. heehee.  So I put them on George and they fit great, other than I could take the elastic in just a little bit since I left it bigger thinking Izzy might wear them too.  I kept pulling them up on Georgia, but I left the casing open just in case I needed to adjust, so that will be easy peasy!

Sorry about the splotchy lighting, but my giant trees kind of do that, and George wont stand still in a shady spot like the big kids, ha!

So Izzy needs a pair in 6m soon, but I think I will sew something else first so I don't burn myself out on the pattern.  But I can't make any promises:)

A suit.

I made Abby a swim suit at her request earlier this week.  She asked Grandma to change their play day to earlier in the week so she could have one last long day together before school began, and the plan was to visit Beth and Jude's pool.  (Ben's cousins that are Abby and Jack's age).  So I got my stack of swim material, two of the patterns that I had, and let her pick what she wanted.  Well, mostly let her pick, I steered her towards the tankini rather than the bikini.  I don't care if she wears one, but Ben prefers she doesn't.  I wanted  to make the top from the Modkid book, but she didn't want that one, so I chose she chose View A and View C of the kwik sew 3605 pattern.

For the life of me I can't figure out how to get the right stitch with my machine, so I did a very harsh zig zag and then serged the seams out of habit, but as it stretched you could see the zig zag stitches.  I asked some lovely friends and one suggested I just pick out the zags, so I did, after the pictures, though. 

I got the material from girl charlee.  I really like the way it turned out.  Not too bad for my first try, but I know what I need to improve next time.

She LOVED it, I started Monday and "Grandma day" was Tuesday after lunch, I promised her it would be done in time.  Luckily the twins went down easy for naps Tuesday because they were beasts on Monday so I wasn't able to get much done with it.  She put it on as soon as it was done, and put her Zephyr over the top and was good to go!  Grandma said it stayed put just as it should, and she has already requested another.

Sigh.

I recently made two Mayah Pinafores from Sew Sweet Patterns.  I really need to learn not to make two of the same pattern on my first go at it.  Especially if I have already had trouble with the pattern company (and I have made two other items in my pre-blog days that were iffy.  I bought a bunch of their patterns before I made one and realized they aren't for me).  My SIL had mentioned earlier this summer how cute a pinafore with a ruffle diaper cover would be, so I gave it a go.  I picked what I best thought the girls would fit, 12m, but I was way, way off.  It completely drowns George, and is quite big around the neck and arm holes on Elizabeth.  The pattern didn't have any markings for where the button or button holes were to go, so I guessed.  I think I got the holes in about the right spot, but after the picture of Georgia I had to move the buttons.  Annoying.

Completely off on the fit.  Couldn't get a great picture of the front, meh, didn't look good anyway.

It isn't too bad on her, but obviously too big when she moves around. 

It looks fine from the back.

See? They were going to be so pretty and coordinating, but I am pretty frustrated so I haven't sewn the button holes or buttons yet.

I also made (and had another cut out) a ruffle diaper cover thinking it would look so cute poking out.  It does.  I had purchased the Little Lizard King diaper cover pattern but I was a little annoyed that it gave me a half circle and said cut out such and such size rectangle and place the half circle here and cut it out.  I purchased the pattern thinking I would get an actual pattern piece, maybe I am just being picky.  So instead I went with the Made diaper cover, size 12m.  It is a bit big on Izzy (ginormous on George) but I didn't do up the elastic tight since I knew the pinny was too big, hopefully the cover will still fit by the time it is warm again and the pinny fits.

Cute little bum.

And one last of poor little Georgie, they are both teething and have been miserable.  See those two on either side of the bottom middle two? That puts her tooth count at eight and Elizabeth at twelve.

Fail.

Ah, I was so excited for these shorts.  The Puppet Show  by Oliver and S was one of their first patterns I purchased when I discovered them earlier this year.  I finally got around to making them when I realized the twins had outgrown all their shorts and only had pants and dresses left. Every now and then ya just need a pair of shorts!  Silly me, I just went with the size I normally make for them in O+S without checking the measurements. FAIL. I made two in 12 m, turns out George isn't even on the chart for this pattern!! I meausred her waist today and it is 16"... tiny, I know! She must have lost weight since she started walking because her waist was 17" before. And Izzy measures in to the 3-6 m sizes. Sigh. Totally my fault.  I was looking at the shorts as I was sewing them, thinking they might be a little big, when I got to the leg binding I thought really big.  I put them on George and they went to below her knees.  Luckily for me, I have a niece who has a birthday next month and I am thinking one will fit her just fine. The other will likely fit at least Georgia next year!!

But all that aside, I truly love these shorts. As always with O+S they had clear instructions, great pattern, and a cute end product.  Aside from one question I had on the leg binding, but of course Nicole had a picture that cleared up my problem. I am thinking I will have to make another few pairs (one at a time though, to check sizing this time!!).  I just can't get over those pockets!!

So here they are, in all their glory, the one in the back will get elastic next year... when they will hopefully fit.  At this rate, that seems pretty likely!