I did it! For the first time in months, I finally sat down at my sewing table and whipped up this little dress. If you've been around for a while you know that I have a thing for Anna Maria Horner's Pretty as a Picture dress. What can I say? The pattern is lovely to work with, and even though the largest size only goes up to 18-24 months, by relaxing a few seam allowances I can still make it work on my almost three year old.
Almost. Three. How did that happen anyway?
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Last week (or was it the week before?) I made some time to sit at my sewing table. This little baby boy is due in less than two months and I've yet to make anything for him. A recent trip to the fabric store, and a quiet weekend morning inspired me to make the time to sew.
I'm sure you're not surprised to see that I worked, once again, with my favorite pattern from Anna Maria Horner. Yes, I made yet another pair of quick change trousers. As always, they came together so easily. And Zinnia, was quite happily occupied with her new favorite obsession: using laundry clips. She must have clipped and un-clipped for nearly an hour.
I was also inspired by our favorite little Bird's birthday. Jules' sweet Avi Bird turned two at the end of last month. I had some sweet owl print fabric from Robert Kaufman that was just calling his name. Working on the fly, I came up with this little satchel (aka, man purse) for him. This little bag came together in less than an hour, and I love the way it turned out. I used a cotton batting in between the outer and inner fabric, as well as on the strap, to make it nice and soft. I also added a little velcro closure tab, because what two year old doesn't love the ripping sound of velcro?
Zinnia wore it around the house for a day or two before we gifted it to him, and I think I better get to making her one as well.
I have another trio of fabric waiting for its chance to become a pair of quick change trousers. I keep thinking that third trimester nesting urge is about to kick in, but so far, all I want to do is nap. And snack on cherries.
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No birthday is complete without a {sweet} pile of goodness, topped with a candle. How else are those wishes going to come true?
In searching for the perfect not-so-sweet birthday goodness for Zinnia, I went to my go-to cooking site, 101 Cookbooks where I found this yummy desert. I totally jive with Heidi's approach to food and I've tried and shared many recipes from her site. For this birthday goodie I wanted to make something for my girl that was sugar-free (or close to it) so I made a few adaptations to Heidi's recipe. The end result was de-lish and I'll definitely be making it again.
The recipe combines many of my favorite things - dark chocolate, bananas, lemon and olive oil. I made three main changes to the recipe: 1) I substituted maple syrup in place of brown sugar 2) I left the chocolate out of the kid's portions 4) I used freshly whipped cream for Zinnia's portion and used the sugary glaze on the remaining cupcakes 3) I made cupcakes instead of a cake, which cut the baking time in half.
Here's how it came together.
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Lemony Banana Birthday Goodness
1 cup + 1 Tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
2/3 cup maple syrup
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 large bars coarsely chopped bittersweet chocolate
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 1/2 cups mashed, VERY ripe bananas (about 3 bananas)
1/4 cup whole milk yogurt
1 Tablespoon freshly grated lemon zest
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the glaze (that I used on the grown up cupcakes)
1/3 cup maple syrup
1/2 cup confectioner's sugar
4 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juicePreheat the oven to 350° F, and place a rack in the center. Line cupcake tin with liners.
In a large bowl, whisk together the flours, baking soda, and salt.
In a separate bowl, mix together the olive oil, eggs, mashed banana, yogurt, zest, and vanilla. Pour the banana mixture into the flour mixture and fold with a spatula until just combined.
At this point I used a spoon to fill several cupcakes 3/4 full. These chocolate-free cupcakes are for the kids.
Then I folded the chocolate chunks in to the batter and filled the remaining cupcake holes. Cook for about 20-25 minutes, until the cupcakes are golden brown, but not at all dark.
Let cool completely before applying the glaze or whipped cream.
Recipe makes ~18 totally delicious, not-too-sweet cupcakes.
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And in other sweet news... You may remember that my girl picked out her birthday dress from two that I recently made. The day before her not-really-a-party party, the weather forecasted chilly temps with a chance of rainy/snow. The birthday dress wasn't exactly a good fit for that forecast so, at the last minute, I whipped up a pair of pants to match. These are definitely not an example of my finest work but they turned out just fine to be worn under this dress. I love the way this outfit looks and it's actually become my current favorite. And Zinnia wears it especially well, with those shoes on the wrong feet.
Celebrating my girl, in little ways all week!
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With all the seriousness an almost two year old can muster, Zinnia has declared that this will be her birthday dress. And so it's decided then.
Of course, this is another Pretty as a Picture dress. Are you tired of reading about my love affair with Anna Maira's book yet? Thanks for indulging me as I blather on and on.
For this version I altered the design just a bit. I decided on just one "picture" for the front of the skirt. And on the back, I made a simple hem-line border from the feature fabric. I love how it turned out and I just might use this approach on another dress. I'm telling you, this pattern is so sweet to work with.
It feels great to be inspired at the sewing machine again - by Anna Maria's patterns and as always, by my little Flower. Working with this beautiful Echino fabric sure does help, too. It's the same patch print I used here. I love the colors, that sweet little owl and it pairs really well with this simple linen that I've had for years - the softness, the wrinkles, the way it hangs - it's just perfect for kids clothes, if I do say so.
And my girl clearly loves it, too.
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I spent some more time with Anna Maria's Handmade Beginnings this weekend. Gosh, I love that book. This is her Pretty as a Picture dress. It's such a sweet pattern. I made one last year and it's been my favorite dress for Zinnia so I figured with Easter and a Birthday coming up she just might need one or two more. I'm not yet sure which celebratory occasion this one is for, but I do love this pairing of fabrics (both from FreeSpirit: the birds are Joel Dewberry and the blue is Tea Garden by Dana. The bodice is lined with an old, super-soft bed sheet). It just sings spring!
And speaking of spring, is anyone else a little freaked out by this unseasonably warm weather? Don't get me wrong, I love flip-flop season, but it is really, really warm. We had highs in the 80's this weekend. The 80's! And March sailed by without a single snowfall. I've been in CO eighteen years and it always snows in March. Always.
The forecast for the next few days looks more typical for this time of year. Bring on the moisture! We sure do need it.
Tonight Chance Rain Lo 37 °F |
Monday Rain/Snow Likely Hi 46 °F |
Monday Night  Chance Rain/Snow Lo 34 °F |
Tuesday Slight Chc Rain/Snow Hi 55 °F |
Tuesday Night  Slight Chc Rain/Snow Lo 37 °F |
Hope you have a great start to your week!
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Finally. It's only been three months, but I finally made some time to get my crafty on. With some time dedicated to my sewing table, I turned to my all time favorite reversible pants pattern. These are the Quick Change Trousers from Anna Maria Horner's Handmade Beginnings, and since I actually had the book in my hands this time around (thank you, thank you Lisa P!) these were the easiest of the three I've made. They're definitely more refined than the "something likes" I made last Fall.
All this time I thought I wasn't a pattern-following kind of sewer. I was wrong. The pattern and instructions actually made these pants come together in a snap.
For fabric I used a Kaffe Fassett polka dot, along with Mona Luna trees and for the back yoke I used a beautiful and colorful Echino patchwork print; purchased locally from Elfreidas. I think these are my favorite pair so far. And I kinda really want a pair in my size.
Zinnia loves them, too and was quite happy to give me my requested booty shot. This girl cracks me up. Everyday.
Coming up next on the "to sew" list is a birthday dress. Someones second birthday is less than a month away!
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Thankful. Smiling. Laughing. Appreciating. Adoring.
Loving. Holding. Remembering. Sharing.
Here's seven little things that I'm loving today.
:: remembering our excitement in this photo taken Christmas 2009
:: got myself a tree hugger!
:: the backyard winter wonderland
:: a little friend who came to say hello
:: the plug in is pretty rad (more about that soon)
:: this honey from Tennessee. nothing beats a good long-distance barter. thanks again to my friend, Jennifer at Etowah Road Haven!
What simple little things are you loving today?
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Buckets of rain
Buckets of tears
Got all them buckets coming out of my ears
Buckets of moonbeams in my hand
You got all the love honey baby
I can stand.
I've been making buckets all weekend and I can't get Bob Dylan out of my head.
Saturday I spent nap time cutting all my fabric so that nap time Sunday could be spent sewing. I've made five so far, they come together so easily.
I also made a trip to my favorite local fabric store, Elfreida's, and came away with some new favorites. I'm picturing a pair of pants for Zinnia from the Ann Kelle Owls and Kaffe Fassett polkas. And the Echino feels like such a treat. I'm not sure what it will become...pillows? place mats? a dress for Zinnia? For now I'm just petting it, I LOVE it that much.
It's snowing here and our high temp today is expected to be 17degrees...sigh. I think I'll cozy up by the fire and get back to sewing buckets.
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We had ourselves a weekend full of craftiness over here. Steve and I have been busy working on two different projects for Zinnia (more on those soon!). Between sanding, prepping and painting wood and in between chasing the girl around the house and feeding us all, I snuck in a little time for a quick sewing project, too. Whew!
These pants are inspired by Anna Maria Horner's Quick Change Trousers from her book Handmade Beginnings. It's a lovely book and I wish I owned it and if you haven't seen it I highly recommend it. I checked it out from the library last year and even though I kept it way over the due date (my monetary donation to the Boulder Public Library system), I never got around to making notes on her design, much less copying the pattern. So in the end, while these paints are something like Anna Maria's design, they are not quite the same (and I'm sure, no where near as put-together as hers). I need to get my hands on that book!
I've had some of this fabric forever and it doesn't exactly scream winter, but since the pants are two-in-one and reversible they have some extra weight. Plus, I figure she can wear tights or leg warmers under them to stay warm. The cuffs are rolled up twice and when they're unrolled they are the perfect length to cover her legs when she's in the Beco carrier on my back. I made another pair similar to these, though still not quite Anna Maria's pattern, last spring and we have gotten many, many miles out of those. In fact they're mine and Steve's favorite pants for Zinnia - they're easy to get over the big cloth diaper butt, super-extra-wicked cute and again, they're perfect for piggy-back hiking.
(The toddler books say that at eighteen months she should be comfortable stacking 4-5 blocks. Umm, check!)
And just so you all know, Steve is planning on buying the girl a unicycle before her 4th birthday. He can't wait to have a riding partner. Judging by her dare-devil ways and her agility I have no doubt she'll be cruising alongside racing him up hills on one wheel in no time.
Lastly, notice anything different today? This is my 100th blog entry (what, you haven't been counting?). It seems significant somehow so cheers to that! I thought it seemed like a good enough occasion as any to debut a slightly new blog design. I'm still tweaking things (and typepad's design templates are less than intuitive) but here it is...ta dah!
Happy Monday to ya!
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My goodness that was fun! Who knew making a costume and turning a flower into a bee would bee such a hoot? My girl loves the bees that's for sure - she follows them around the garden, buzzing as she pretends to fly - so this get-up wasn't a stretch of the imagination in any way.
The costume was super-easy to whip up. The dress is a basic pillowcase design with yellow stripes sewn on. The knitted hat took me a little bit longer to make, however. I'm a beginner knitter and this makes my sixth hat (and my sixth overall knitted project). The pattern was a little tricky in parts and I had to go the yarn store once to get some help retrieving a dropped stitch, but the good news is I managed to stay on gauge (although the 18mo-2T sizing is still a wee small for my girl's big noggin). I'd hoped it would be a hat she could wear all winter but I think we'll be handing this one down to another sooner than later.
Overall costume cost: $10.
Instead of trick-or-treating we opted for an afternoon of dress-up at music class. A friend of mine gave me the brilliant idea of giving non-candy-treats to a few neighbors on the block to hand out to Zinnia and we'll definitely be doing this next year. Don't get me wrong I can get down with a bar of dark chocolate from time to time, and I have fond memories of inhaling gobs of halloween candy in my childhood, but my girl is way too young to be consuming her weight in empty sugary calories. She's got the rest of her life to crack-out on sugar and I'm going to postpone the love-affair with it as long as I can. Unitl then it will be toys, fruit and maybe a Lara bar in her trick-or-treat bag.
On that note I also found an affordable non-candy treat to hand out to the kiddos last night: fruit leather.
A box of 48 leathers was actually cheaper than the ginormous bag of candy at Costco and with less than five ingredients, I felt good about handing out these naturally sweet treats. The kids were stoked too. Two quotes from kids included: "Hey mom, that lady gave me fruit leather. Cool!" And (my favorite), "Finally a healthy treat that's not pretzels. I just love fruit leathers." You know you live in Boulder when...
Zinnia stood at the door all evening waiting to get a glimpse of "babeees" coming up the drive. Every time she spotted a group the squealing would ensue.
She had a blast. And so did we.
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