Buzzmills

Beating the heat...

It's Friday, wait, really?  Where did the week go?  Well, I wish you a happy happy weekend!

Oh, and don't forget to enter here for a chance to win your own copy of the Roly-Poly Pinafore pattern. 

Linking this moment up here.

Roly-Poly-along...Rainbow, Flowers and a Giveaway...

I am so excited to be a part of the roly-poly blog tour today!  I am also excited to finally be able to share our mama and Violet creation (it's been made for a while now just waiting on pictures).

You might remember seeing another roly-poly pinafore here several weeks ago when I had the opportunity to be one of Rachael's (of Imagine Gnats) pattern testers.  Violet and I both loved that first pinafore, so when I was asked if I wanted to make another roly-poly for the blog tour I, of course, said yes!

This pattern is a great project for a beginner sewer and it comes together pretty quickly.  The directions are clear and easy to follow.  The roly-poly pinafore pattern comes in sizes 6 months to 10 years so you will get loads of use out of it, trust me, you won't be making just one!  And, it has pocket options, not to mention it's reversible!  Such a fun pattern.

For this pinafore I thought I'd let Violet get in on the design fun a bit herself.  I cut the pattern out of white linen and then gave it to her to design.  She used Fabric Fun Pastel Dye Sticks just as we did when we decorated bags with her preschool.  I gave her free reign of the project.  She took a while to decide what she wanted to do, and then, because of the detail of it, worked on it in stages, but it turne out beautifully!  I am amazed at her design and drawings! I am amazed at her design and drawings! While she was working on her side...I was working on mine...
I used a light blue linen blend and added a sunshine applique and ric rac and ribbon rainbow. The clouds were made with a gel bleach pen and then I used some of the Pastel Dye Sticks to define the outer edge a bit more. I opted for snaps this go around instead of buttons, I just wanted to give it a try.  I made the size 5T again this time around since that is what I made the last time.  At the time I observed that it was a bit on the big side, but that it wasn't too big, especially when wearing a shirt underneath.  I probably should have followed Violet's measurements (ahem, which Rachael strongly recommends, oops) this time around and made a 4T seeing that she won't be wearing shirts underneath her pinafores this summer, but alas, I didn't.  It is a bit on the large size, although it doesn't seem to bother Violet.  I am currently debating whether or not to shorten the straps, but then again it will fit her longer this way, right.

Either way, she loves it! I love how proud and happy she is about her new pinafore that she helped to make.

the flowers ease their way around the sides... (This little sunshine in her armpit cracks me up...) around to the back, wrapped in flowers... And, we all know that flowers need a little rain and sun to grow...

Of course, there wasn't much sun on this day...and this little girl was just too excited to stand still for long, I guess she likes this side too. It's fun and cheery.  It's a bit kitchy, but then again so is my old tic-tac-toe dress and we both loved that dress! 

Here's a quick little view of the clouds on the back... Oh, and see, I told you that those ruffled fancy pants were perfect for this pinafore and the matching was totally accidental. And, before I go, wouldn't you love to get your hands on this pattern to sew one or more up for the summer?  You can buy the pattern here, but I also get to give one away! 

Hooray! 

To enter leave me a comment, you can earn two bonus entries, one, by liking Buzzmills on Facebook, and two, by liking Imagine Gnats on Facebook.  That's three possible entries.  I will leave the giveaway open until the end of the day next Thursday.  Good Luck!

Have a great day!

****Giveaway Closed, the winner is:  Stacy Alfano.

    Congratulations Stacy I will email you shortly!****

A "Bucket" for Cars...

In addition to his car jammies, Henry also got one other mama made gift, a car "bucket". We had planned on giving Henry some matchbox cars for his birthday, because, really, that's pretty much all he asked for, but, for this mama, the idea of a bunch of little cars floating around the house was not appealing.  So, using this pattern, (which I've used a few other times) I whipped up a quick little car bucket to help keep the cars in check.  I purchased this vehicle fabric a while back with Henry in mind and this seemed like the perfect match.  I lined the bucket with pellon craft fuse, rather than the batting it calls for in the pattern, to give it a bit more stability. 

And, what did the birthday boy think about his new gift?  Well, of course at first he was mostly just interested in the cars inside the bucket... But, once he realized the beauty of the bucket, well, that it had cars on it too! But also, that having a bucket for his cars means that he can carry them anywhere!  And, so, for the past week and a half they have been traveling with us in the car, to the store, to the park and in and out of the house countless times!
I'd say he likes it! 

It's funny, I always thought I'd have only little girls...and then this little guy came along...I remember my sister talking about how much fun she had playing with "boy" toys with her son and I thought, eh, I'm not much for legos and such...But, really, who am I kidding!  I've always been a tomboy and I'm totally loving playing cars and trucks and trains, we all are! 

The makeshift car ramp (a saw horse, board and some duct tape) that we put together for Henry's birthday is still hanging around our backyard and is getting quite a lot of use.  First, choose the cars...Then, line them all up...
This part can take a while, there is a lot of precision here... And then, they are off... to race down the ramp and to see who makes it the furthest! Seriously, such a simple thing, but it brings so much joy! For all!

Hope you are having a great day!

Thankfuls...

Today I am thankful for...

A beautiful and long weekend filled with live music, family bike rides, gardening, and a hike to the top of a waterfall
adventurous children This shirt (we also have an adult sized for Daddy), it makes me smile every time someone wears it!  (I wish they still made them!)A first canoe ride for both kiddos and that a summer spent canoeing gave me some pretty great canoe teaching skills.  Violet agrees!

Getting a run in four out of the past six days, and that once you are a runner you are always a runner.  It's amazing how much clearer my head is after a good run!

My play list.  I know I've said it before, but it's such great motivation.

"Scaring up" a Great Blue Heron while running through the woods, they are such magnificent birds!

Having a weekend away from my sewing machine.  I needed a break.

The sweet little moments I have with this kid when his sister is at gymnastics to be celebrating the high school and college graduations of my nephew and sister over the weekend, it's so hard to believe that it's been ten years since this picture of them was taken! To a truly spring-like Spring complete with cool temperatures!  Too often we skip straight to summer around here!

a creative family This is Violet's version of a jawbone instrument made completely on her own after seeing one being played this weekend.

The birds in our backyard.

Creative friends who let me test out their creativity!  (here, here and here and don't forget I've got a pattern giveaway that closes tomorrow!)

And, last but not least a husband that makes me giggle!

I hope you can find a moment to find something to be thankful about yourself.

A Butterfly Sees Stars...

While we were checking in on an injured Black Swallowtail butterfly , who crawled onto my hand, he suddenly took flight right onto Violet's constellation dress! 
It was thrilling, exciting, a little scary, and ticklish! 

I hope you have a great weekend!