Triangles.

If you follow me on Instagram, you know I am a huge fan of Raspberry Creek Fabric. Diana is super sweet, and amazing to buy from.  Her fabrics are great prices and she ships suuuuper fast (and always refunds shipping overages!).  We were chatting recently and she asked if I would like to sew up some of her triangle strike offs from her in-house Club Fabrics.  I, of course, jumped at the chance.  Her club line is so, so good.  It is a great weight and washes up so nice.

So I decided to make Jack a color blocked School Bus T-shirt.  I cut the front of the shirt just under the arm pit and added seam allowance to the bottom of the shirt and cut section, sewed them together and then sewed the shirt like normal.  This is a size 8.

The olive, charcoal and white (below) solids are all also from Raspberry Creek.  Again, they are a great weight and I haven't had any pilling or fading even after washing a ton.  I mean, a ton.  I have been using the solids for months now and haven't had any problems.

For Sam, I used the Field Trip Raglan in a size 2T and added some HTV to the front.  As soon as I saw the triangles, I knew they just had to become a FTR.

Since I went the color blocking route on both these tees, I have enough left to make something else.  I am thinking maybe a pair of capri leggings for the twins...

A stack of shirts.

Four of my sister-in-laws are currently pregnant, the one furthest along just had a baby shower this weekend as it's her first.  So of course I had to make my soon to be nephew something fun.  But then I got an amazing idea for a shirt and wanted to make it immediately for Sam.  So in all my procrastinator's glory, I made one for him then started on the baby's gifts.

The baby shower invitations had a picture of three mountains and words about the adventure just beginning.  So I designed a file in Photoshop and used the Silhouette Cameo (my fancy new Christmas gift) to cut some heat transfer vinyl.  I absolutely love the way it turned out, and that's why it had to be Sam's immediately. I was pretty excited that it came out just the way I wanted it being it was my first time designing anything and have only tried out the machine a few times before.

I put it on an Oliver and S Field Trip Raglan, size 18 months with added cuffs and hem band, made in a stretchy french terry.

Will buffalo plaid still be trendy in a year and a half?  Maybe not, but oh well.  I nearly kept this one for Sam, ha!

This is the Oliver and S School Bus T-shirt in size 18 months, again, nearly kept for Sam.  I need to quit making stuff to give away in sizes my kids are currently wearing.

Again with some HTV.  This one is size 12 months.

Again size 12 months.  The mom and dad are big Dave Matthews fans, so I knew this one had to be made.

This one is size 6 months in a super stretchy, super soft knit.

This is also a size 6 month.  I actually squeezed it out of a scrap from a shirt I made for Jack and apparently never blogged.  Whoops.  I have been much better at keeping up on flickr and instagram than here, which is kinda bad since I don't always add sizing notes in other places.

I also decided I couldn't ever be a sweat shop worker, 7 shirts in three days was too much for me, ha!

Hipster Rudolph.

I am not usually one to make my kids themed holiday clothing, but I couldn't resist this one. I was scrolling through Facebook yesterday morning and came upon a post for a groopdealz Rudolph shirt.  Well, I clicked through to buy it and found out it wouldn't even ship until the 17th.  Not good.  So I quit being lazy and made my own. Theirs was a white short sleeved shirt, that's the benefit of making my own, I could use what I had on hand *and* make it weather appropriate.

I used the Oliver and S Field Trip Raglan in a size 18 month and added cuffs and a waistband because I wanted to be lazy and not have to hem anything... And the pants are a pair of 2T Mini Hudson Pants.  He is still a little too small for the pants, but I have been dying to make him a pair.  Both fabrics are a french terry, I love that stuff.

And this is what happens when I attempt to flat lay in the house... I let him off without a warning because he is pretty adorable.  He was hugging the clothing and trying to put it on.  Sooooo, yeah.

In the end, I am happy I made him a themed shirt this year, and he will just have to wear it nearly every day since I waited so long to make it, haha.

Halloween.

Confession, I still don't love sewing for Halloween.  I should, because my kids get so excited about it.  And the twins are still wearing their Elsa and Anna from last year, so I shouldn't mind putting a lot of effort in to something that will be well loved, but I just can't... 

This year the twins knew immediately what they wanted to be.  Georgia wanted to be a witch, then I suggested maybe Izzy should be a kitty (the witch's kitty).  It stuck and they never changed their minds.  I will be sad someday when they end up without coordinating costumes. 

For Georgia, we had borrowed a costume from Grandma but managed to misplace it, so I talked her in to using her recently made Fairy Tale dress with some cute tights.  

She wanted a green face 'cause that's what witches have' but with the stipulation that she 'was still a nice witch'.  

Elizabeth the kitty has an Oliver and S School Bus T-shirt in a size 4 with length added to the sleeves.  I used a RTW pair of leggings and a kitty kit from the Halloween aisle. 

They make an adorable pair, I think.

 Abby went easy on me and chose a Ninja Turtle, the mask from the kit was too small, so she used a scrap piece of knit to make the eye band.

The kids were on their way to a church activity and they requested no masks at the party, so Jack used one of his old costumes from a few years ago.  At the time we had to roll up his pants and safety pin them.  So glad I didn't cut them off like Ben suggested!

He really wanted to be a Lego man, so for our family party and his school parade that is what he went as.  He will do the skeleton for trick-or-treating as he can't see out of the head when it is dark outside, plus it would have been hard to go door to door in.

Dear Pinterest, thank you.  I saw this idea popping up early in October and decided to give it a go.  He is my only baby to love the pacifier for this long.  Iz took one until about 6 months, but none of the other kids did.  He depends on it, it's bad.  I try to keep it limited to nap/bed time, but sometimes if he is crazy bad in public I give in, it calms him immediately.

Anyways, I used the O+S  Field Trip Raglan, size 18 months, and the O+S Playtime leggings, size 18 months.  I found this rad french terry that has a bit of a sheen to it, I knew it would be perfect for looking like a wet suit.

I couldn't find a pair of black socks in or around his size, so while I was at the dollar store today picking up the black tape and yellow gloves for Jack I spied a pair of toddler sized mittens.  Perfect!  I just sewed the thumb hole shut and cut it off, it worked out great.

He didn't love when we strapped the 'tank' to him, which is why it is so low on him, but quickly stopped trying to take it off.

Happy Halloween!

Book nerd.

Girlfriend has been requesting some comfy pants for a while now, and she is on the verge of outgrowing her mini hudsons from the spring so I have been looking for a replacement.  

I used the Oliver and S Parachute Sweatpants and sized up to a 12.  She *probably* should have had a ten, but I figured she wouldn't mind them being a bit baggy at first and for them to last for a while.  I found this rad double sided knit at Joanns last week, they had it in a few different colorways and I also picked it up in raspberry.  

I changed it up a bit by adding a cuff instead of the elastic in the cuffs, but that added length.  I really should have waited until she was home from school, but I am a naptime/impatient sewer, sooooo these ones will be extra long.  I do like the look of the cuff, though, when she pulled the pants up a bit.  So next time I will take off some length and do the cuff again.

I also made my TNT, always go-to, Field trip raglan.  I used a white cotton lycra and a Riley Blake spotted knit.

This outfit got her seal of approval, which is a big deal as of late.

A post for catching up.

I have fallen pretty far behind on blogging, there are things from this spring that I still haven't even loaded the pictures on to my computer.  Sigh.  Since I use the blog as reference in the future for sizing and changes made, I need to be better about it.  I am pretty good about uploading to flickr and instagram, but I am not great about adding notes there.

So, here is a big ol' post full of variations made with the Oliver + S School Bus Tee and the Field Trip Raglan.  I love a pattern that I can alter to fit my needs or wants, and these two definitely fit the bill. 

The latest make, as in this afternoon, is a hoodie mod from the School Bus.  I made a size 3T for the shoulders and width, 18 months for the length.  Sam is currently wearing 18 month RTW and 12 or 18 month in handmade.

I think I may have added too much length with the hem band, but I would rather have it too long than short.

The stencil is a freebie from girl like the sea.

He is ridiculously adorable in it, if I can be so bold.

It is tricky to get him to stand for more than a split second.  What you don't see just out of the frame is Ben.  He was standing on the step, trying to get him to stand.  Sam would laugh and fall to his knees almost immediately.  As Ben isn't interested in nice photos for my blog, he was only willing to help for three tries, this is the best I managed.  That's okay, he's still pretty cute.

Jack's is a size 7 with 8 length.  He isn't a fan of this shirt, but gets compliments every time he wears it.  The back is solid white, btw.  He says he doesn't like the stripes and that's why he fights wearing it.  I may have bribed him to wear it to school today, he reported home that his teacher said his shirt was 'so cool'.  Maybe a non-family member can convince him it isn't all that bad?

He loves this one, though.  It was a long requested shirt, in fact.  He designed it on his own, I had the vinyl and he sorted through all my blue fabrics to determine the two he wanted, and went through his closet to show me the type of shirt he wanted (raglan).  He was so happy and wore it to school for the first day.

This is another long wished for shirt.   Abby is obsessed with The Killers and it is one of the few bands we all agree on in the house, even Jack sings along.   This one is a size 12, I don't think that I added length, but can't remember...

She requested it for the first day of school, and I managed to get it done with an afternoon to spare.

Here is a better look at the graphic and my inspiration.

Photographic proof of their first day of school, fifth for Abby and second for Jack.

Abby is also currently obsessed with owls.  After making the twins Skater dresses I wanted to make on for her, and she agreed.  The only problem was, I couldn't find a pattern in her size.  I shortened the bodice of the School Bus and added a circle skirt. I mistakenly thought it would be a good idea to size up so it would last, but it made it look more pajama-ish than I am happy with.  The back is pretty loose, but the front isn't too bad.  She wears it constantly, though, and is excited to wear it with a denim jacket if it ever cools down.

This one is a copy of the one I made before.  Sadly, the first one didn't survive the wash, the letters started to peel off.  This time I used a heat transfer vinyl and it has survived this time.  I altered the School Bus to be a faux layered sleeve, he had a RTW similar last year that he wore every time it was clean.

This one is a School Bus turned romper, size 18 month.  I used an existing romper to get the shape for the bottom.

This is a Field Trip Raglan and a Tea Party Sunsuit bottom, size 18 month.

This is a School Bus and Tea Party, appliqued like his onesie from last year, another favorite.  I will likely make it another shirt or onesie in the football theme while he is still cute enough to get away with it, and hopefully it will cool down enough to need to wear pants someday.

King of the playground.

Kids clothes week day 6, and I am still going, though I think I'll take tomorrow off as it's a family day for us around here.  

Today I finished the waistband on a pair of Sketchbook shorts and knocked out a couple tees for the baby.

Again, using my all time favorite Field Trip Raglan in a size 18 months.  I can get these out pretty quick by now, though my serger came unthreaded and my regular machine was being a drama queen.  It really wanted to eat my fabric, ugh.  And, even though I bought a nice new machine a while back that has more stitches and such, it hates using my twin needle.  I finally pulled my old machine out to get these done.

Here is a better look at the vinyl, I picked it up in a facebook group and I am in love.

The neckline looks crazy in this pic, but it really isn't that bad IRL.  I assume it will calm down after going through the wash, it usually does.

I used the template from here for the airplanes and added a little embroidery applique.  The Sketchbook shorts were made at the same time as the first pair but I finished up the waistband this afternoon.

I think these two patterns go together perfectly.

For the boys.

Adding two to my total favorite pattern makes for day 3 of kids clothes week.  I find I can assembly line two items before I get bored, so I figured why not two tees, one for each boy.  

Jack's is a size 7 Field Trip Raglan in a so soft Volkswagen print.  Don't let his face fool you, he was really excited for this shirt, and didn't mind taking a picture- as long as he didn't have to smile.  He's channeling his inner male model, apparently.

For the first time I didn't use ribbing on the neckline as this knit (and Sam's) was pretty stretchy.  I like the look, and was glad to not worry about trying to match perfectly, as it turns out, this white and my ribbing were two slightly different shades.

Sam's is a Riley Blake knit, they are really nice!  I made him a size 18 month.  He is a few days shy of one, but wears 18m RTW and this fits just about right, maybe a little big.

I used up a scrap of a medium weight chambray I had kicking around after making these shorts, those things held up for forever and I had to hide them when they got too tight.  I used the Sketchbook Shorts also in 18 months and they are big, he is still wearing his 12 month O+S pants, but I wanted them to last the whole summer.

I have another pair of these partially made, well mostly, just need a waistband.  On to day 4!

Field Trips for the whole family.

Spring is coming!  (or in our case, is basically here)  Which means, of course, that the kids need warmer weather clothing.  Enter, one of my top 5 favorite patterns, the Oliver + S Field Trip Raglan.

I am making an effort to make things with the kids input, it is a struggle (haha).  But if I want Abby to wear it, she needs to have a say.  Jack is still pretty easy going, and the twins will wear whatever I make, but they do have color preferences.

And an obligatory photo of all five of them in their new tops.  Getting that many little kids to look at you (and not make bunny ears) is a challenge.

I recently (as in today) counted up the number of times I have made this pattern, and the number very much surprised me.  Counting these, I have made the tops 34 times and the pants 4 times, one being shorts.  I don't know why it surprises me, I have a ton of kids, haha. I also have two more tops cut for the baby and two pairs of shorts for Jack. Talk about a TNT, not to mention getting my monies worth many times over.

Georgia's favorite color is purple, so this one was a no-brainer.  I made a size 4 so the girls could share, but let's be honest, there's no way she will let Iz wear this one.  So I could have done a 3, but it is easier to just make the size already traced.

Abby, oh Abby.  She has decided she only wants to wear knits, so most of my patterns are now out of the question.  I don't know why I haven't thought to show her this one before, but she was SO excited.  I gave her a few options, this is what she chose.

Hers is a size 10 with 12 length.  She has requested more, so I told her she could use the line drawings Lotta put together to design some more tops.  That will make it easier for me to sew for her, as I will have an idea of the colors and prints she likes, etc.

Jack, he's my easy one.  He is currently obsessed with Minecraft (what kid isn't?) and requested a Minecraft shirt.  I gave him the option of green sleeves or a different color, he chose gray.  I have to admit, I was trying to steer him towards green, but I like the way this came out.  My lines aren't straight enough for my liking, so I will go back and fix them after it gets put in the laundry.

His is a size 7.  He is still wearing his 4 with length, so I knew this would fit for a while.  He is also wearing his mini hudsons, he is obsessed with them, who can blame him?  They are so soft.  He even wore him to school the other day, even though he swore he never would.

Sammy is wearing a size 12 month and also his sandbox pants.  Poor little guy has been sick all week and now is super drooly, I am wondering (worrying) if he is getting another tooth.  He is up to 8 already!  Speaking of 8, he is 8 months old today!

Elizabeth, girlfriend has a style all her own.  She loves all the animals on this print and kept asking if I was done yet.  Hers is a size 4.

A combination of everyone (except George, knock on wood) being sick this week and Ben working out of town made these really slow going.  I can typically knock one out in about 25 minutes from cutting fabric to the last stitch, so the kids were really anxious for these by the fourth day.  The squeals of delight and declarations of love made all the waiting worth it, though, they were each so excited to try theirs on.