scalloped baby sweater

 This sweet little crocheted sweater was a project from last week. I again wanted a challenge to follow a pattern & create something new. I found the pattern off Pinterest...you can find it HERE.
I chose a raspberry colored cotton for breath-ability and ease of laundering. I added a simple bow up to add a little detail (I still need to chose buttons as a closure). I love the scalloped shell stitch on the bottom & can't wait to put this on Gwen this fall!



t-shirt refashions...

After being pregnant for what seems like the past  four years straight, my closet was a disaster. I've been pregnant, than post-pregnant, almost my regular size, then pregnant again...and so on. You get the picture. So my closet was in dire need of a good cleaning-out.

During this process I found a few items stained, with holes, stretched out, or just not fitting right that all had one thing in common: plenty of detail. I am a big advocate of donating to thrift stores, but I knew I wanted a few of these pieces to refashion into items for my girls.

 So combine detailed garments with simple sewing & this is what you get:

FROM THIS stained & stretched out JCrew shirt:

TO THIS simple ruffled onesie for my sweet baby:

FROM THIS interesting sequined sweater from Forever21 (what was I thinking? this is not my style! luckily I remember I paid less than $6 for it):

 TO THIS ruffled onesie again for Gwen:

 FROM THIS Foever21 top that I never wore b/c I could never find the right tank for underneath:

PLUS THIS cropped top from Anthropologie (someone else's hand-me-down, given to me):

 it had great embroidery on the front:

 TO THIS little tank dress for my 3 year old:

Now you go! Find something in your closet that you're not wearing, and re-purpose it!

Super simple & easy! (and not to mention practically free!)



linen emroidered top

 I love love love most anything hand-embroidered...and whenever I see it at thrift stores, yard sales, etc, I cant help but pick it up, even if I have no immediate use for it. I just know how long it probably took that person to stitch every little design on cotton or linen (for-e-ver). So anyway, I feel like I have to rescue most every piece of hand-embroidery I find from being thrown into the wasteland.

 I know how to embroider things myself, but haven't taken much time lately to create anything elaborate with it. So anyway...back to this project...

I had this table runner that I picked up in a grab bag at the thrift store a few months ago and wanted to do something with it. Now while the colors are one of the things I loved about it, it didn't quite fit anywhere in my house. I got the idea that this would make a beautiful, detailed top for my little one & got to work. I made a few quick measurements & created the band & arm straps. Then I gathered the table runner to fit that measurement & sewed it together. I added the buttons as a decorative detail & got some good practice using the button hole attachment on my new sewing machine for the button on the back. I used all vintage buttons from my grandmother's and my husband's grandmother's stashes & it suits the top perfectly. I didn't get a great shot of the embroidery up close, but the black lines, the colorful flowers & the leaves are all intricately hand-stitched on ecru linen with a hand-crocheted scalloped trim. B-E-A-U-TIFUL.

The top is a little loose on Tatum, but that's not usually a problem for long around here. These kids grow like weeds, so it'll probably be great come summertime.

Easy breezy little top that will be perfect for hot summer days...