Buzzmills

Handmade Wedding Attire...

Last weekend my husband's cousin got married.  It was a beautiful day for a wedding along the water's edge.  The bride and groom did such a lovely job putting together a wedding that had so many perfectly "them" special touches. 

The kids were extra excited because this was only the second wedding that they had been invited to and they couldn't wait to don some "fancy" clothes and see what all the wedding "fuss" was about...plus it meant that they got to stay in a hotel!

I have been trying really hard to curtail my fabric and pattern buying.  After a massive clean up and out of fabric and too small patterns over the summer I'm now planning to work on dwindling my fabric stash and use those not yet made patterns first, but sometimes...a special occasion calls for new fabric and patterns, right...

So, the story goes...I bought the blue striped Cotton & Steel for myself, but didn't know what I planned to make with it, I had always intended on using the Loominous for Henry, but not necessarily in this fashion, and Violet requested something "organey" for dress when I headed off to Joann by myself one day...

She's not so much into florals these days as it turns out and the only "organey" fabric I found was this beautiful (I think!) Juliana Horner rosette fabric...

She instead was drawn to the Cotton and Steel, Gust in Cobalt that I had wanted (for something)...

Well, since she was taking "my" Cotton & Steel, all that I had left with enough yardage for me was those orangey florals...

As it turns out...she was right, I was wrong.  Those roses were never meant for her nor were those paint brushed navy stripes meant for me.  Whether she knew it all along or not, she picked the perfect fabrics for us both.

The dresses themselves...Violet is wearing Dana's first day dress which was totally perfect for a little twirly wedding dancing...because hey what's a wedding without a little boogieing ...

It's fully lined with a pale pink cotton peaking out underneath to match the touch of pink of the piping at the waist.  There is a sweet little pink rose button on the back too (I snuck a rose in there afterall!) to tie the pink all together, but alas no picture of the back. 

My dress...I looked hi and low and asked for advice and changed my mind over and over again before deciding what exactly to make.  Part of my decision changed when my fabric choice changed.  In the end I decided on the Gathered Sundress from Pattern Runway.  I actually used the free version from Peppermint Mag's Sewing School.  I'm not sure what the differences between the two are except that the free pattern has it's zip at the side whereas the purchased one is in the back.  I chose this dress because I loved it's classic style, but with a bit of a modern twist with the curved pockets.  The pockets, seriously...they sold me on the dress, well the pockets and the fact that my fabric and this pattern just seemed like the perfect match for each other. 

Initially I made a quick muslin using the size 38, but that was much too big for me, so I cut the 36 instead.  I made most of the dress in one day...leaving the last little bit till I had finished the kid's things...The last little bit, as you know, ends up being the zipper and the hem...which I was finishing up an hour before we had to head out for the wedding!  Dumb!  Such a dumb move on my part because after putting the zipper in I realized that the dress was still too big up top!  I quickly resolved it but sewing an additional 1/4" along the two back seams and along the top of the straps which worked, perfectly in fact, but the inside of the dress does not look so pretty. 

Anywho, I love this dress!  I will probably be making another for next summer, but for now I look forward to wearing this one with tights and boots and a cardi, the colors are perfectly autumnal as well.  Oh, and to add a little extra poof to the dress I totally made myself a mini "tutu" slip from some extra tulle I had sitting around.

Last, but not least, for our little "photo bomber"...

A sailboat top in Anna Maria Horner Loominous, another pattern/fabric match made in heaven...

Also another morning of the wedding make...I was about to give up on trying to make Henry something, but then thought I'd just squeeze it in...which, since I already had the fabric cut I was able to manage.

This top is actually a pretty quick sew about an hour I'd say, and the style is perfectly "Henry", I can't believe I haven't sewn one before...

oh there will be more though... 

I'm so glad that I did just squeeze his shirt into the morning of...because what could be better than a sailboat top at a "nautical themed" wedding along the water?

Plus, these two matched each other perfectly...

In fact, for the first time, perhaps ever, we were a color coordinated family.  Of course, we were rushed and didn't really get any "perfect" pictures of us...

But, it's a family photo none the less.  And really, it wasn't about the picture, it was about us all being together and celebrating the bride and groom.  Oh and dancing and laughing and having a grand old time!  It's nice going to a wedding unencumbered by children...but having them there with you is super fun too!  Man I wish you could have seen their dance moves, stellar! 

Happy Day to you!

Color Blocked Cocoon Dress...

A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to test a new Heidi and Finn dress pattern, the Cocoon Dress...

I was immediately drawn to the dress because of it's unique shape, but also because it's another dress (like the antalya) that is perfect for older girls! 

I love that it can be made with a variety of different fabrics (here I used teal ponte de roma from Imagine Gnats and the grey grid knit is from Joann) to give it a variety of different looks.  Violet loves it and especially loves how comfortable it is. 

I love that it can be made all one color or color blocked...

Plus, the exposed zipper and pockets ...well they always makes for a fun added touch...

Really, I am totally imagining more of these dresses this fall and winter!  They are perfect for layering.  The pattern itself is well written and easy to understand, plus it's a quick sew which is perfect for a wardrobe staple! 

Somehow this is my first time sewing up a Heidi and Finn pattern, I'm not sure exactly how that is, but...there will surely be more!  Next up, the new Pumpkin Spice Tunic and Dress and perhaps even the Coco Jacket!  For now, though, Violet has deemed this her "School Picture" dress!

Ps, Happy First Day of Fall!  (time to pull out my knitted cowl!)

Linen Grid Lunch Bag...

Last month, the day before, school started my husband and I celebrated our 12th wedding anniversary.  That day we celebrated together as a family taking a long bike ride downtown and watching "Babe" on the big screen in an old movie theater.  It means a lot to the kids that they get a chance to be a part of our "celebration".  I think partly it's just because they like to celebrate and make decorations, they even made a big "Happy Anniversary" banner for us all on their own!

Of course, we love to celebrate with them, but sometimes it's nice when it's just the two of us...so we went Contra dancing by ourselves...If you ever have the opportunity to go contra dancing (like Irish square dancing, kind of...) GO!  It's crazy, hot, sweaty, confusing, tiring and giggly fun!  We had so much fun together just throwing ourselves in to the "unknown".  Working through our uncertainties and helping each other as we went, holding on tightly as we spun down the line.

Twelve years married and sixteen all tolled, it hardly seems possible that it's been that long.  In hindsight I see that the road is long and has been well traveled, of course there have been a few bumps, but we've continued to grow together and walk laughing hand in hand each day.

Each year since we've been married, I look to the "traditional anniversary gift" by year suggestions...it started out as a fun thing to do for our first anniversary, but since then I've enjoyed the "challenge" of finding a gift that works within the traditional (sometimes modern) boundaries.

This twelfth year is linen, and so I made a linen lunch bag...

It's hard to come up with men's gift ideas, let alone gift ideas to make for men!  I'm not sure how/when I settled on the lunch bag idea, perhaps I was inspired by the lovely linen grid that I acquired during my quick Purl Soho trip early this summer and has been on my shelf all summer long...Perhaps, I was inspired in part by the "back to school" excitement...whatever it was...a lunch bag was my linen gift answer...

A lunch bag with neon orange stitching and an antler button...

One lined in oilcloth and insulated with Pellon Insul-fleece...

One with a pop of red linen on the sides to make it more masculine (did it work?)...

It's a little bit bulky due to the insulation, but I wanted it to be functional, not just "pretty", because men are much more for function over cuteness, right? 

I used Martha Stewart's oilcloth lunch bag as a pattern guide and went from there because I really liked the idea of the traditional "paper bag" style, it too seemed a bit more masculine.

The kids really got a kick out of the fact that I was making Daddy a lunch bag.  I really loved the way it turned out but was uncertain how it was going to be received...It turns out he loved it.  Plus, really it's a win/win...a lunch bag means I make him lunch everyday now...A handmade (with love of course!) lunch each day filled with good things to eat, and now, for three entire weeks he's taken lunch to work with him!  That might be a record!  I've been trying to get him to take his lunch to work for years!  I guess all he needed was a lunch bag to make that happen.

Oh, I'm sure the twelve little hugs and kisses there at the bottom help too...

Ps...some of the other traditional (& modern) gifts I've given with a handmade twist to them... 8, 9, 10...

This year I was feeling a little extra inspired by the "modern" gift idea of pearls and had this custom piece made by little green things...

I love all of the things that Leah makes!  You may recall seeing a couple of her other pieces here and here...And this song, "Pearls on a String" by Ryan Adams (a favorite of ours) I could not shake the feeling that it'd be a perfect little green things piece...So this year, I went with both traditional and modern...

Have a lovely day!

"Family" Rope Bracelets...

Last week I shared first day of Kindergarten and second grade ensembles.  I also shared a little bit about how I'm feeling about both kids in school full time now, a little bit lost...

After I've dropped them off at school I'm a little bit lost and a whole heck of a lot...oh my, what do I do now!

First, of course, I worry about how the kids will do in school, will they like their teachers, will they have fun, will they worry, will they make friends, will they have someone to play with at recess, will they have difficulty with their reading, writing, and math?  You know those typical things that parents worry about.  But, really, so far so good there...

So, here I am, at home.  I'm supposed to be celebrating right?  At least that's what many people expect me to do in this scenario, celebrate because for the first time in forever I've got all day to myself!  Except, celebration doesn't feel quite right...And it's not really because I miss the kids, well I do some, but that's not it.  It's more the realization that now I'm here, sitting, a stay at home mother with no children to mother...

I'm not sure I ever specifically intended on being a stay at home mom, but it was the realistic decision after Henry was born.  Between the costs of childcare for two and the logistics of finding a new job after we moved several years ago just as I was pregnant with Henry, me staying home simply made sense.

While I didn't necessarily anticipate being a stay at home parent, I have truly enjoyed it and treasure the time that I've been able to spend with the kids.  Of course, it thoroughly exhausts me sometimes too.  It's also always sort of made me feel like I wasn't contributing enough to the family, mostly monetarily. 

Now I sit here and wonder what should I do?  How should I contribute to the family now?  What I was doing previously (research assistant in a neuroscience lab or a veterinary technician) doesn't quite seem like the right fit for me...What kind of grownup should I be now?

Thus, lost...

Of course, I certainly know how to fill my days!  And, I have been making long lists of things I want to sew and dream of ways that I can have a perfectly organized house!  So, maybe that's just where I'll start, who knows...

In the meantime, I was able to quash my worries about how the kids would do in school and any uneasiness they might feel with these...

Family bracelets!

We've been wearing these since we went to the beach.   At the time they were simply beachy bracelets...but since then they've become our family bracelets.  Something that reminds us of each other throughout the day. 

A little, "I love you" reminder...

Yeah, yeah, cheesy, but it worked...especially that first week of school where everyone misses each other a little bit.

All it takes is a length of cotton cording, folded through a plastic buckle...

add a few zig-zag stitches, nothing fancy...

But something simple enough to wear each day to remember how much you are loved...

It's the little things that make us worry less about the big changes, right?

And, in the end...I know I'll figure out how to be a grownup again, someday...But for now, I'm happy with being home after school and hearing about how the day went and helping with homework.  I'm happy knowing that I can come up with little ways to keep everyone else happy even while we are all off doing other things throughout the day.

And, I know they are too!  Thank you ;)

Sewing for Kindergarten...

I was thrilled when Mie, from Sewing Like Mad, asked me earlier this summer if I wanted to be a part of her Sewing for Kindergarten series.  At the time it still seemed so far off.  I hadn't begun to really grasp the whole idea of two kids in school and how it was going to feel...

And now, it's been a few weeks so I've gotten used to the fact that Henry is a Kindergartner, but looking over these pictures again brings all of the emotions back...

To start, Mie asked us each to answer a few questions about Kindergarten...

Is this your first time sending a child to Kindergarten? If not what number child is this?  This is our second (and last) going off to Kindergarten...Violet, started two years ago.

Do you feel like crying or celebrating? I can't say that I felt like celebrating when Henry went off to school that first day.  I think most people expect you to want to "celebrate", especially when you are a stay at home mom and both children are now off to school.  I a sort of "lost" feeling actually.  Not to say that I didn't enjoy the peace and quiet!  I was also surely sad and shed a few tears, it's hard to watch your last head off (it's hard to watch your first head off...) to school.  It feels like they grow up instantly once they walk through those school doors.  But, mostly, I was excited because Henry was so excited!  I am truly excited for him because I know that he will love it and grow and learn and make new friends and get to do all of the fun things his big sister gets to do! 

And what about your child?  It was really interesting watching Henry on the first day.  He was so excited to start Kindergarten all summer long.  And then the day before school started it began to hit him a bit and he had a ton of questions and things he needed to work through and figure out... And then the morning of he was thrilled!  But as we walked to school and he stood in line waiting to go inside you could see in his face that he was working it all out, the uncertainty, the worry, the excitement, the sad and the glad.  Emotionally he is a lot different than my daughter, Violet, is so it was really interesting to see him work through all of his emotions in that ten minute span of time.  He's been loving it though, each day I pick him up and he is all smiles and chatty chatty chatty!

What kind of school does your child attend? (public, charter, private, homeschool)  We go to public schoo.  It's right down the street from us so we get to walk to school each day together.   The public schools in our area are some of the best in the country, we are so lucky.  We love our school and it really feels like a great "community" to be a part of.

Question to your kindergartner: What has been the best and worst part so far?
Well, his first response was..."Why are you asking me this?"  Then...Best part:  "Just being in school, making new friends and learning math!"  Worst part:  "I don't really have something like that." (He really does love it!)

Henry really has his own "style".  He has always really known what he likes and doesn't really care if anyone else likes it.  He has particular things he thinks are cool and will not wear something if it doesn't live up to his "style standards"!  So, as with Violet , I let him choose his outfits and patterns for the first day...Because everyone should feel "just right" on the first day, right?

Yet another sleeveless Charlie Tunic and a (another) pair of twisted trousers (turned shorts...).  I mean, when you find something you like...right?  But also, it was 95 degrees and crazy humid on the first day of school so he needed to be both "cool" and cool!

The shirt, apparently the only types of sleeveless shirts Henry deems appropriate for school, (tank tops, in his opinion are not acceptable, although slightly stained tees are...) is made from a couple of 1/2 yard cuts I picked up at Purl Soho this summer (checks and stripes).  Again, I love that leaving off the sleeves from the Charlie Tunic allows me to make something with less fabric!  

And, well, he IS correct in saying that these are "handsome tank tops"  because I really can't stand how cute he is in these shirts (1 & 2 in case you missed them)

The shorts...

While Henry certainly isn't opposed to wearing bikes, or blueberries or comic strips on his shorts...I wanted him to have a more neutral pair of shorts to wear sometimes as well.  These twisted trousers are made using slub linen from Joann (the same as these, so now they get to be matchers).  I love the twisted trousers for their knit waistband, coin pocket and piping along the side option...

Not to mention they fit perfectly!  But I also love those pockets on the back and the yoke! 

They are the perfect place to add "a little something" to an otherwise neutral pair of shorts or pants!  Since these were "first day of school" shorts, why not add something "schoolish"...like scribble notes...

The words inside the front pockets and on the back pockets were a little surprise I added on and Henry loves them! 

It's almost like learning through osmosis right! 

(Side note: did you ever do that...sleep on your books the night before a test...I did and swore by it!)

But, while the outfit was well received and loved...it was not the real star of the show!  That was the backpack...

Oh the beloved panda backpack!  When Violet was entering Kindergarten she had a choice mama made backpack/lunch bag or store bought...after much back and forth she chose a mama made backpack and a store bought lunch bag...That backpack is still going strong and has been well loved! 

In the weeks before Kindergarten began Henry was given the same choice...he was uncertain at first, but when I showed him this panda fabric from Andrea Lauren (I used the linen cotton canvas) he was sold!  I mean how could you resist this face!

Once again I used Rae's toddler backpack pattern, enlarged to the larger size.  I added an outer front pocket...

an inner pocket

with a sweet little name tag/pocket...

and elastic side pockets...

just as I had with Violet's.  The inside and straps are made using this fantastic Schematic fabric from Carolyn Friedlander (same line as the scribble notes, architextures).  

I fell in love this fabric the moment I saw it ...

and knew it would be the perfect match with the pandas!

It's really just so perfect for a little Kindergartners backpack!  And, then that panda face, just lent itself to becoming a little zipper pull as well...

I was working on this backpack down to the nearly last minute (just as I had with Violet's, you'd think I'd learn!)  But when it was done and Henry saw it!  There are not enough exclamation points in the world to describe how excited he was!  Jumping up and down and hugs and cheers and big giant smiles! 

Oh man, then, those moments are when all that cutting and fretting and sewing and ironing and fabric maneuvering are made so worth it! 

Of course watching that perfectly fitting and perfectly unique little backpack walking down the street and into school makes it pretty darn worth it too!

I may still feel a little "lost" without my second hand man boy, but it's going to be a great year for him, I know!

Lest I get too sappy I think I'll just say...Thanks so much Mie for asking me to be a part of this series.  Don't forget to check out all of the other bloggers and their cutie little Kindergartners!