HAPPY NEW YEAR

Just the way I like it....New Years Day, the kids are sleeping, and the Vienna Philharmonica Orchestra is playing Strauss. Now all I need is a Berliner or Krapfen and I would feel like I am home. One of these days, I will learn to make them. That will be fun. Oh goodness, no more sweets. My waistline is about to burst. I did my first set of 50 sit-ups tonight after the kids went to bed. I have to get my belly back in shape.

I hope 2008 brings lots of changes, happiness and good health to everyone! I for one am looking forward to a new year. We have lots of things planned for this year.........like going to Europe this Spring, buying a new car in the Fall, and putting Nicolas in PreSchool. Of course, I have lots of projects planned:
- Cleaning out the Garage (getting rid of lots of things no longer needed).
- Selling things on Ebay
- Making bedroom curtains for my sister.
- Redoing my Dining Room Chairs.
- Sewing a complete wardrobe for Olivia and Nicolas.
- Sewing for myself again.
- Cutting down on my stash.
I think it will be fun to experience Olivia's first year. She will be walking soon, and eating by herself. I am looking forward to seeing Nicolas and her play together and take baths. At the moment, Nicolas still has a size and speed advantage over her, but that will change once she can walk. It makes me smile to just think about those two together.

So back to my sewing. I wandered away from Ottobre for alittle while, and bought a new pattern from New Conceptions. It is a baby crossover T-Shirt. I was not too impressed with the one from Ottobre, however I may try it again with a different material. I made the first T-Shirt in a size 6-9 months, and it is huge. Now I am making another shirt in a size 0-3mos, and it looks like it is going to fit. It is very easy to put together. The binding was really easy. It took me about an hour, so if I do have a good fit, then I am sure I will be making alot of these shirts in the future. I would really like to make a dress as pictured below. I just love this owl knit too. No,no,no...first I am going to get rid of the stash I have.

So here is the shirt. I made it out of a thermal knit fabric I purchased several months ago. I thought it would look different, much lighter. Since it is not my ideal fabric choice, I decided to test the pattern with it, and then turn it into pj's for Olivia. Good timing, since the temperatures are at 38degrees right now (9:17pm). They are going to dip into the 20's tonight. Hard to believe in Florida the temperatures reaching such low levels. I cannot test the fit, since the little one is sleeping, but it comes close to the fit of several of her shirts. Yippee! I hope it fits. I like the opening much better then that of Ottobre. It sits lower. I also like the binding and how flat it lies. That is not the case with Ottobre pattern.

The new Ottobre is due to arrive in about 10 days. Yippee! I cannot wait to start sewing Spring things. Speaking of which, I have to make a birthday todo list for Olivia: 24 days and counting.
- Pajamas
- Birthday Dress
- Orange Velour Pants and Euro Knit T-Shirt
- Corduroy Jumper Ottobre
- Pink Quilted Coat

On another note, Daddy has been working with Nicolas on spelling his Name. Tonight he said NICLAS. We were very proud of him. At least he is trying.

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Delicious!

Some people love shoes. Some people love purses. And some people love clothes. I love beautiful fabric. Cashmere, leather, boucle or a wonderful italian wool. Yummy! My stash proves my point. I have a hard time walking away from beautiful fabric. Oh that is another topic, so let me stop right here.

Lately, my obsession is with european or boutique fabrics especially for children. Unlike alot of the women that sew on the Ottobre group, I always notice the fabric before I notice the pattern details. I love these fabrics, and there is nothing similiar on this market. I search Ebay, and check out some of my favorite websites for any deal I can find. Ha! I wish. Not many deals to find out there. So I decided to splurge.

The new issue of Ottobre included alot of patterns that I had requested via email several months ago. I don't mean to pat myself on the back, because it is possible that they were aware of this trend before I said anything. Anyhow, I had requested a japanese-style crossover one piece outfit and dress. It was all there! They had also included alot more items for smaller babies (size 56). That is great. I had both of my children in that size for at least four weeks. It is not easy to find clothes for premie sizes. Yeah for Ottobre!!

So, here is my most recent project. It is scrumptious! I was so excited when the material arrived. I bought it through Banberry Place. Beautiful velvet. Lightweight, great quality and the colors were just gorgeous. The pattern was the Baby Pinafore Dress from the most recent issue of Ottobre 6/2007 in a size 62, which by the way fits. Thank goodness. My little princess just refuses to grow.

The material did not ravel, which was another sign that it was a better quality. It was easy to cut and easy to sew. I used a size 80 needle with polyester thread, and cut the pattern pieces using a rotary cutter with a seam allowance guide. My seam allowances are usually no more then 3/8". The pockets were alot easier then they look. I sewed a 1/4" seam allowance around the bottom to ease the pocket into shape. I also followed the instructions for the bow, and I think it turned out nicely. The only thing I did not care for, was when it was time to attach the skirt to the bodice, I was not satisfied with just serging the front seams. It just did not look professional to me. I folded the seam under 1/4" in case the front opened and became visible.

Otherwise, all the pieces went together nicely as usual, and I think this pattern could be used with a variety of different fabrics. I am sure this pattern will be a favorite of mine.

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Pink and Lace

After entertaining my in-laws for 10 days, my husband and son gave me the weekend to sew. I did sew, but there were so many things that got in the way, that I barely finished the dress on Sunday evening. On Friday, my daughter got her vaccinations and shortly thereafter developed a very high fever. I had less then three hours of sleep that night. I tried my best to stay awake on Saturday, but as soon as I read the pattern instructions, I fell asleep. Saturday night was a bit better. She woke up around midnight cying, but then fell asleep again until my son woke us up at 6:00am. Then to add to my bad luck, I woke up with a terrible migraine on Sunday and it would not subside all day. The good news is that my dd's fever broke on Saturday evening, and she was almost back to her "happy" self on Sunday.

So, back to the dress. I decided to try something besides an Ottobre pattern. This is NEW LOOK 6687 in a size NewBorn. I really liked the pattern picture. The Ottobre patterns in a size 62 have been too big, so I thought I would try something new. This dress was too big too. It will most likely fit her in about 4 weeks. The fabric is a pink and white striped seersucker.

The pattern went together very well, and the instructions were easy to follow. The bodice is doubled, which I will probably not do again. Instead I think a batiste as the lining would probably feel lighter and feel softer on the baby's skin. The armhole and sleeve binding went on very easily. I liked the way New Look applied this part of the pattern. The binding was sewn together to form a circle and then a 3/8" was pressed under on one of the long edges. The other edge is then sewn (3/8" of course) to the dress. I will probably use their idea again in combination with some other patterns. The skirt had a nice fullness. I was not fond of putting a zipper into the dress. I used a lightweight invisible zippper. Have to practice my techniques again. It has been a long time since I had to add a zipper to anything.

Very happy with this pattern, and I cannot wait to to make the romper.

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Girlie Things

I had so much fun sewing for my son, can you imagine how much fun it is sewing for a girl! There is so much to choose from. The choices for patterns and fabrics are endless. So I always like when I am inspired by something or someone else. Coming up with new ideas is just not my strongpoint.

So I found this burda pattern, and since Olivia is not blonde like me, I thought the red prints would look great on her. I intend to add some more pieces to this ensemble, however I really had to work on another important project.

This was a size 62, and it turned out to be bigger then her normal size 62 clothes. The construction was easy and fast. I had problems with the front ruffle piece, which ended up being too short. I also thought the ruffle was too wide, at least for the baby sizes. I reviewed this pattern here at Patternreview. I will definitely sew this up again, but most likely when Olivia gets a bit older.

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Olivia's Room

Although I am not completely finished with her room, I have finished everything important, and thought it was time to get the pictures up on my blog. I actually only have a few small things that still need to be done, like hanging pictures.

Cool Slideshows

First of all, I owe the completion of this room to my parents. If it was not for my father and mother painting and sewing, and their great ideas, I probably would still be working on this room. The only thing I did was the crib. Thanks mom and dad.

My father painted the room. It turned out to be a bit more neon then the paint chip, so we had to paint the room twice, adding a quart of white paint to dim the color. My father also painted the dresser, the dollhouse, and the flower hooks. Yes, he is a great painter!

My mom put everything together. She made the daybed cover, and all of the pillows. She found the carpet in Target, and loved the various pastel colors. I was stuck on pink and green, but she liked all of the colors, in particuliar yellow and pink. She was right. The yellow looked much better with the pink then the green. She went to Michael's and found all the knick-knacks for the wall, and the dollhouse. She also added the roses to the lamp.

I did the crib and the bulletin board, and the pictures which are not finished yet. I saw the bumper pads on a website and fell in love with the plush padding. They really turned out nice. I do realize that they will probably have to come out once she is old enough to stand. The idea for the bedding came from a store in Germany called "Baby Royale". The bedding in that store was simple and very elegant. I copied their boys room for Nicolas, which was alot like this one, except navy blue ribbon and no ruffles. If I can find a picture I will post it.

I am very happy with how the room turned out. Although the room is a bit cramped due to the sleigh bed, it comes in quite handy. I have often spent the night there when Olivia gave me a hard time sleeping. It also allows me to keep my sewing room intact. We don't get that many guests, and when we do, I will have to move Olivia into our room or the sewing room. It is that simple.

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