Posted by Stitchy McYarnpants On July - 9 - 2007   ShareThis

. . . . so then I said “Rectum? I nearly killed ’em!”

HA HA HA HA HA!!!!

~sigh~ Good times.

Oh, hey! There you are. I thought you were just popping off to the bathroom and I’ve been waiting, I was starting to get worried. Where ya’ been?

That’s not working, is it?

Ok, well look, sometimes a gal just needs to take a bit of a break. And boy howdy, what a break it’s been! I have been more productive than I’ve been in a LONG time. Not as productive as some people (yay Beckett!), but I lit a fire under my butt (it was more of a raging blaze that may or may not have engulfed an entire seaside town) and returned to my crafty roots. The whole book thing, and worrying about potential future book things was getting way too freaking stressful, so I just kind of tuned in and dropped out. My attentions were refocused on my home, my husband and myself. Work has still been busy, but I’ve been using my spare time for fun stuff.

I do have an admission to make, my dear knitters. I’ve been unfaithful. I have fallen for a new siren’s song. Sure, I’ve dabbled in the past, but hadn’t done it in a long while and was really craving some instant gratification. I thought about how nice it would to use fabric that’s already made rather than knitting my own. It felt a little dirty at first, but with each thrusting pump of the pedal, it felt better and better. And now, well, now I’m addicted to sewing.

In the past two months, I’ve made four baby dresses, two baby shirts, a crib-sized quilt, some baby pants (they still need a waistband), and have amassed a collection of vintage fabric that has gotten my mailman toned up for the summer. Not only have I fallen off the eBay wagon, but the wagon has backed up and driven over me a number of times.

Here is Miss Ginger in a dress made from fabric I got in LA when I was in the company of HRH Lady Linoleum.

And here she is, kicking back with Uncle Jon. Yep, we’re really good babysitters. Her favorite movie is The Running Man. Vintage Ahnold cracks her up.

I have since shortened the dress so she doesn’t get stuck while crawling. As amusing as it is to watch, it must be annoying.

And here is my favorite detail.

Alas, buttons seems to be gnaw worthy in the Land of Ginger and she actually started to bite one of them off, so I replaced them with Velcro. And then she started with the Hulk impersonation and tearing the dress off. Ohhhkaaayyy. So I got the big guns and used Kellee’s new and astounding snap press. Very cool and it seems to have done the trick. She remains clothed and mobile, her airways are free and she looks rawkin’.

I made her another using fabric with pink poodles on a turquoise background. I don’t have a photo of that one yet, but the cotton is too . . . I dunno . . . cottony and comes out of the dryer very wrinkled. I was disappointed at that. I made another for our neighbor and will get a photo of that, too. And here is the fourth dress for one Ms. Bookish Sophia. It’s made using vintage Hawaiian fabric that has an amazing palette and great drape. Aloha, Sophia!

The nice thing about this dress is that it’s big enough to grow into. It’s got pleats at the top, so the body is very roomy. I dare say it can be worn for a year, from baby dress to toddler shirt and then on to the next babe.

And here is what I have titled the €œDaisy Mae Crazy€ halter top, modeled by one Miss Scarlet. I unraveled the bottom to make it look sort of ragged (there’s a hem above that section, so hopefully that’ll keep it from unraveling more) and made the ties out of a few strands of soft cotton twine from Home Depot that Jon and I plied with the drill. That was his brilliant idea. I love that you just see plain bandana material at first, then comes the crazy. Again, one to grow with.

She’s getting so big. She looks like a full-on kid, not a baby. Remember this?

How does that happen in a year and a half?

I made the same shirt for Ginger. I love making baby stuff, it takes no time at all.

So that’s what I’ve been doing. What about you? Did I miss anything?

23 Responses

  1. Mel says:

    Well, as long as it’s fibery stuff, I suppose it’s allowed. Good to see ya. When are you coming for a visit (hint, hint)?

  2. Carole says:

    Nah. You ain’t missed a thing. 😉

  3. ErickaJo says:

    Same old, same old. Glad to see you back in blog land 😀

  4. melanie says:

    Miss Scarlet says she feels WAY cool in her new duds and thank you for supplying the bad ass baby clothes.

  5. elisa says:

    Oh – I won the lottery, took a fabulous vacation to Belize, and have decided that working is for shmucks.

    Other than that, you haven’t missed much.

    If you keep talking about sewing, though, I may end up dusting off my own sewing machine and joining in with the madness. So please stop now.
    Thankyouverymuchbye.

  6. maryse says:

    nothing’s happened since you’ve been away. i may have gone away on vacation or i may not have. all i know is that i have to go back to work today and that sucks ass.

    the baby clothes are super cute. and ginger is her father’s minime. just to prove it, i think you need to make him a matching dress.

  7. Marnie says:

    Welcome back, my friend. I’ve missed you.

    The sewing is looking great. When we finally move into a house, I’m treating myself to a sewing machine (had one, but couldn’t move it – no room – and gifted it to a friend)

    But you better keep craftily sleeping around because we knitters miss you. 😉

  8. Carol says:

    I love the pic with the great big eyes where she is sitting crosslegged. Huge eyes! great pic!

  9. Kim says:

    Love the adorable baby garments. The vintage fabric is awesome! Running Man is my favorite Ahnold movie. Best line from that movie: “Need a light hot head?” Then he sets some dude ablaze.

  10. Lee Ann says:

    I must have that skull cloth. I’m not kidding. That stuff rocks.

    I didn’t break my head while you were gone. Also, I almost finished a sweater but then remembered I never finish anything for me so I stopped. But I might change that trend…

    Kid visited Mel and freaked my mother out by examining a dead shrew Mel left in his driveway just because he knew she’d want to look at it.

    The first line of your post is what my grandfather said to his nurse when he was dying of kidney cancer. It remains one of my favourite Grampy one-liners :-)He also used to ask us when we were coming out of the bathroom, “Everything come out alright?” Good times indeed :-)

  11. Those kids clothes are too freaking cute. Seriously.

    Nice to see you!

  12. La says:

    ok, it’s scary how much she resembles the big guy, going as far as to have the same look on her face (picture able).

  13. Becky says:

    hey, it is about time!!!!I could have turned blue waiting to hear from you 2…..

  14. Erin says:

    Hey, there you are! It’s been awhile! Don’t worry too much about the sewing… or should I say, dark side. Everyone eventually sees the light (read: knitting) and returns to it! Though I have to admit, those dresses are adorable!

  15. How the hell did I miss this post?! The cloths are awesome. Did I tell you I picked up a bunch of second hand fabric the other day – get this…at the craft thrift store. A thrift store dedicated to crafts. You’d shit yourself if you ever saw it. Yet another reason to come visit.

  16. Lucia says:

    Floral skulls? That is just too classic for words.

    (I could take you to task for being a craft slut, but the truth is that the only reason I don’t sew is that I’m sewing impaired. And even then, occasionally I find myself buying fabric just because it’s pretty.)

  17. martha marin says:

    COME. TO. MY. HOUSE.

    You’ll love it. First we look all regular, then you see the crazy.

    XXXXX

  18. Elinor says:

    I think it’s great! It’s funny about the sewing. I’ve gone on a binge in the last two weeks too. Four baby dresses and some pants and bloomers. WTF? I hate to sew. Oh well. I like cute baby clothes! Must blog about this soon…

  19. Meg says:

    Hey, I was wondering if I could ask you a question? When you knitted the Manly Sweater (a while ago) did you use the circular needles the pattern called for the knit the sleeves? Or the straight ones? Sorry.. This is the first sweater I am knitting and I am in desperate need of help =\

  20. heide says:

    ha HA! Another knitter sucked into the sewing vortex!!! It is so satisfying to be able to complete little projects in no time at all, isn’t it? I’m about to start putting yarn on eBay, I seriously don’t know how much I’ll knit anymore — except maybe for very special little baby things or scarves or whatever. Yay, sewing!

  21. Sstring says:

    omg, that fabric had me goin to the chapel (i.e. the online store) but I am making linings for felted bags so I have not stepped off the straight and narrow….

    however, take all the time you want…love the occasional moks updates!

  22. Kim says:

    Yeah!!! I am so f-ing happy that Bingo is on for this year. I had so much fun as a Playa last year and now I can be a Square! Thanks

  23. Ina says:

    Woo-hoo! Thanks for organizing this – I’m in!

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