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ivy's quilty-quilt

 may i introduce my proudest sewing accomplishment of last year (if not *ever*) - ivy's crazy colourful clothes quilt! made up of patches upon patches from her baby and childhood clothing it is cozy and familiar and delicious - and for my sentimental girl it is her most loved possession ! i began the undertaking of this mammoth (to me) project a few days before christmas 2012, with delirious confidence that i could finish it for the big day. making the top was a success by december 24 (to make it managable, i cut an old bedsheet into quarters and worked on each piece, covering it with random sized patches of the clothes, topstitching them in zig zag or straight. once each piece was covered i attached the 4 back together and went over the seams to cover them in more patches. more patches!) - then at 4am christmas day i was a weepy mess with a tangle of quilt top, wadding and poorly sewn on back that i had to rip off. i wrapped the top and gave it to her anyway (she was delighted!) with the promise to finish it *soon*...because i enjoy a challenge (apparently) i happened to think that hand quilting might look really cool. hand quilting DOES look really cool! but may not be the best craft for someone as impatient as me. it took forever...and ever and ever...

i tacked a wool blanket to the back and then over the next, um, 18 months would stitch a spiral here and there through the layers. i am not the fastest at hand stitching. and i get bored of repetitive work, oops !

in the end ivy took matters into her own hands...and finally it was ready for the binding! oh it is just the happiest most ivy-ish quilt - and most likely wherever my girl goes, i will find her quilt with her. there are pockets for little friends or secret love notes (or candy!) to be tucked into. we remember and love every.single.piece.of.clothing in there. many that her little sister also wore. and there is a shirt of daddy's and a top of mumma's in there too. it is her comfort blankie!

i am honored that it means so much to her.

and c'mon, is there anything better to snuggle in a wheelbarrow for an outdoor movie with, than a quilt with all your favourite old cheerful clothes on it (and maybe some chocolate hiding in a pocket?)...

cozy drawers!

i recently thrifted this ol set of drawers for ivy's room for $20, and here's where you'll have to use your imagination because i never remember to take 'before' photos in my repurposing-frenzy...each drawer had raised decorative plastic-wood thinggys with white and gold scrolly handles...i ripped those off ready to paint...and then - hello! i remembered ivy's first ever dresser that i thrifted, painted and covered in fabric while pregnant with her so many years ago. this time, wooly sweaters were calling to be used, along with a couple of jacket pieces that we chose together to make a crazy cozy place for her room!

for each drawer, i cut a rough piece of sweater or fabric slightly - sat the drawer on top of it and trimmed to have an inch-ish border, then wrapped each side and used the trusty ol staple gun to secure. it worked a treat! after they were all covered we drilled holed for new doorknobs (rescued from another piece of furniture and painted green)...way easier than sanding and painting, and perfectly happy & quirky for my happy quirky girl!

quirky quilty scarf

i was looking through some old pictures on my computer and came accross these from a tutorial i did for a website 2 autumns ago. i thought hey! thats a cool scarf! (and hey! thats a really ugly table...why didn't i paint it sooner?) i should make another one of those! maybe i will, maybe i won't...either way - here are the simple instructions should you find yourself staring at a pile of fabric scraps one day and wondering what you could do with them...

..ta da! a quirky colourful fun scarf to dangle around your neck! should you be the type with hips worthy of drawing attention to (i am not), it could be a cool belt too. or flag-type-dangly thing from a doorway. crazy quilting, i love it in any form!

back to school wardrobe for $0!

i spent all day yesterday huddled down with the girls sewing - irene passed through here with loads of rain, wind and fallen tree branches - but kindly left us with power (thinking of those who weren't so lucky...)

with school about to start i gave myself the challenge to outfit ivy for the new year with a total cost of nothing! so, i gathered up clothes she already had that were too small (i should note that the clothes she already has are either thrifted or hand-me-downs, i rarely buy anything new)...dug through a bag of size 6 clothes someone just gave me for yindi...and then took it all down into my studio to meet my many piles of thrifted tshirt scraps!

snipping and sewing and music and chatting and milos-with-whipped-cream all day...ivy has herself a very colorful and very 'ivy' new set of clothes...

pair of mama size trakkies cut down to fit, new waistband and part of an old fave too-small tshirt.
her favourite 'comfy pants' - had a hole in the knee and major highwaters. cut them at the knee and added scraps to make them longer, and a bit at the hem.
same same. size 6 - too short but still fit her tiny waist. so chopped the bottoms off and added new panels!

too short and waist too tight on these brown pups. new waistband and stripey cuffs at the bottom. and an apple. (i'm just glad she didn't request an elephant)
highwaters become shorts with ruffly edge. leaf and spiral a must in 8 y/o fashion.

boring brown pants are way more fun with orange cuffs and randomly placed flowers.
tshirt skirt to match one i made for her friend last week. big plans to rock the 2nd day of school in these twinsies.

twirly tshirt skirt made a few months ago (to match bff anna's.) she chooses all the fabrics from the piles. i love her combos.

twirly asymmetrical skirt with scrappy flower. perfect for layering.

old mumma top made into cardi with pointy fairy bits and wooden button. and a flower. always a flower.


my personal favourite! thrifted jumper/sweater from last winter, cut to make a cardi. felt balls for buttons, leaf, knitted pocket and swirly flower. it's all about the little earthy details for this child!

 

these were all really quick 'fixes' and a LOT of fun to do...i love to personalise plain/stained/thrifted stuff for my kids. easy on the budget and i get my crafting high. it's a win win for all!

now, if only a few snips and scraps would make my wardrobe (and self image) this happy!

ivy's birdy

my girl loves to handmake gifts for her friends, and last week planned out this sweet little soft birdy (inspired by a similar bird her much-adored-and-missed friend lilith made for her) for a friend's birthday.

we thought it would be fun to make a little tutorial as this makes a fun morning sewing project!

supplies needed:

template, cotton fabric for the birds, wool sweater scraps or felt for wings, needle & embroidery thread, 2 buttons, lambswool, pins, scissors.

ivy made 2 teeny baby birds to tuck into one wing (arrr! so cute!), and we cosied some hairties into the other wing before wrapping it all up ready for the birthday party.

send us a picture if you make one! ivy will be thrilled :)