Pearl Harbor Pillbox Hat

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I have been looking everywhere for vintage dress patterns, so I happened to go to Sense and Sensibility Patterns' website. Whilst browsing through the 40s and 50s categories, I saw the pattern for the Pearl Harbor Pillbox Hat. I of course fell in love with it immediately. I mean, a vintage hat that you can crochet? What could be better? I got the pattern and went to making it. It comes together surprisingly fast. Since I didn't have any wool yarn (imagine it - no wool yarn. simply horrifying!), I just grabbed some Red Heart worsted in brown, and started crocheting. Since it isn't wool, it isn't so "relaxed" as the one in the picture, but I actually like it this way.

I sewed up a lil' bow out of my dress fabric to dress it up. It is just pinned on so I can switch it out with other outfits. 

Long story short; I love my new hat. I can't wait to make one in every color!

Currently working on:

hemming my green plaid circle skirt

planning a regency gown (I have exactly 25 days to have it d-o-n-e)

On Busy-ness....

Goodness...I could totally win the worst blogger of the year award. I don't know how these people do it - they blog every day, make stuff, and have kids on top of it all. They must not ever garden. Or eat.
All that aside, here's a quick summary of what is keeping me so busy:
~Spring. It sprung. Digging up the garden, planting peas, cutting down dead plants...it all takes a ton of time.

~I am playing in a recital on May 1st, so I am frantically trying to come up with a dress for that. We have SO many patterns, but of course NONE of them are what I want....at all. So I have exactly 2 weeks to design my dress, make a mock-up, and make the real thing. Welcome to Yikesville. Oh, and did I mention practicing my recital piece like crazy?

~Our church is having a ladies' tea next month, so I need to get a flowery, girly 40's dress made for that. (And a hat...)

~My mom and I are helping design and plan the ladies' tea as well, so we are racking our brains thinking of ideas. (Actually, we're racking Pinterest's brain) Click here to see my inspiration board.

~Thinking of and making crafts to sell at a local festival in September. Sounds like a long time from now.....isn't.

~Plus, I have a circle skirt languishing in the basement, waiting to be hemmed. For some reason, people think hems should be even all the way around. Seems awfully unreasonable....

~And last but not least, I just have SO many projects in my mind that I want to make SO bad!! It's almost overwhelming because I don't know where to start.

Needless to say, I have a lot to do!! Thanks for coping with my lack of projects. I'll be posting about my projects though, so stay tuned!

~Dolly~

DIY Baby Gift Set

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The last baby project of the week! Actually, this is pretty much just a combination of all of the projects, wrapped up in a nice little bundle. 

First, make a 15 Minute Fat Quarter Burpcloth....

Then, make a DIY Bib.....

And lastly, a Crocheted Baby Headband (if it's a girl).....

Or a DIY Pacifier Clip (courtesy of The Chronicles of Ruthie Hart). 

I had never made a pacifier clip before, but her tutorial made it very easy! I used a Riley Blake chevron cotton (a scrap, incidentally), and it worked great.

Fold it up, tie on a ribbon, and you've got a cute gift for a boy.....

or a girl!

(or twins)

Thanks for stopping by!! Come back soon for some great projects! I have plenty of them in the works, including another vintage dress!

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DIY Bib Tutorial

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Yesterday, I posted the Fat Quarter Burpcloth Tutorial, and today, I have a bib tutorial for you!

I thought that making a bib would be a tough job, but there's really nothing easier.

First, you need a bib to trace, or you can make your own pattern. If you are tracing a bib that you have, be sure to trace the whole thing about 5/8" bigger than it actually is. This will allow you to sew the seams, and have the final result be the correct size.

You will need:

flannel (about half a yard)

sewing machine

thread

scissors

needle

snaps

Trace your bib onto kraft paper, or whatever you have handy. I used some blank newspaper-paper.

Pin the bib pattern onto a double layer of flannel, and cut it out.

Remove the pattern, and pin the bib pieces together, with right sides together. (see picture below)

Look at the back and make sure you don't have any puckers or wrinkles.

Sew all the way around the bib, leaving a 2-3" gap for turning. It is a little tricky to sew around the curves, but if you just go slowly, lifting the presser foot every few stitches, you'll get a nice, smooth curve.

Clip the curves (aka almost the whole bib!!) I highly recommend the Fiskars Micro-Tip Scissors (available at JoAnn). It is the sharpest, most amazing little scissors you have ever seen. It cuts curves amazingly well, and SO much better than a normal sized scissors. 

Make sure you do not clip too close to the seam.

Turn the bib right side out and press. A metal ruler works great for poking the seams out fully.

Pin (or just press) under the open edge so that it is even with the other edges. 

Put your needle in the left position and stitch around the entire bib at about 3/16", backstitching when you get to the end.

Hand sew on a snap for a neck closure, and you're done!

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Tune in tomorrow for another baby project. Thanks for stopping by! Visit the blog live to leave a comment.

The Fat Quarter Burp Cloth

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A friend at church is expecting a baby, so I wanted to come up with a little gift for her. I came across a flannel fat quarter at our local fabric shop, and I knew I had to have it. It turned out to be the perfect size for a burp cloth! The flannel is super-duper soft, and the perfect thickness for it. (And, it's such a cute pattern!!)

 You can have this little burp cloth done in less than 15 minutes, even if you've never sewed a stitch before in your life!

You will need:

a flannel fat quarter (I used Riley Blake chevron)

thread

sewing machine

scissors

Cut the fat quarter in half.

With right sides together, sew all the way around the edges at about 3/8", leaving a 2" gap for turning.

Clip the corners. This makes it easy to turn out the corners. Don't clip too close to the sew-line.

Turn right side out and press out the seams. 

Fold and press under the open edges, so that they are even with the rest of the edges.

Sew the gap closed, and continue stitching all the way around the burp cloth. 

Backstitch (sew almost to the edge, turn around and sew over your sew-line an inch, then turn back around again and sew over the edge) when you get to the end, so you don't have to tie the ends. (I just tucked them in with a needle)

Done! Didn't I say it would be easy?

View of the topstiching

Thanks for stopping by! Visit the blog live to leave a comment.

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