Wool Felt Baby Shoes

I recently made this pair of shoes for Little Kicker using a pattern from this book. They aren't perfect, but I'm happy with the end result, and I can't wait to make more. I just need to order more wool felt!

Lazy Days Skirts

I've wanted to make O a couple of skirts using this pattern for a LONG time, and I'm so happy that they are finished and she LOVES them! The skirts were easy for a beginning sewer like me to tackle. Although, I had my mom finish them since the ribbon directions confused me a little bit, and I really needed a nap :)

We appliqued a little monkey to a shirt to match her skirt and to complete her outfit.




We also thought it would be cute for Little Kicker and O to have matching outfits. O chose the monkeys for her shirt and Little Kicker's onesie.


 




Here's O's 2nd skirt.

How to Make Thrift Store Shirts Super Cute...

Embroidery, of course! Can you tell that I'm on an embroidery kick lately???
Since we are planning on starting EC from the beginning with Little Kicker (as opposed to 10 months old which is when we started with O), I realized that we need more t-shirts to make the process a little easier. I found 3 t-shirts at the thrift store for about 50 cents each. The embroidery patterns are from Wee Wonderfuls.















These t-shirts were SO quick to embroider. I completed 2 of them in the car on our way to our Memorial Weekend destinations :)

Baby's 1st Rattles

I'm on a handmade gift roll! These are Little Kicker's first rattles. I used the free bunny and bear patterns from Wee Wonderfuls, and I'm happy with how they turned out. I put a bell in each animal so they make a sweet sound when shaken. O is VERY excited about showing her baby sister how to shake a rattle :)

Embroidered Christmas Dolls

I have set an unrealistic goal for myself...to have all of my handmade Christmas gifts made before Little Kicker arrives in August. Here are the 1st of many handmade gifts. I used a free pattern from Wee Wonderfuls to make the dolls. The doll on the left is for Little Kicker, and the doll on the right is for my friend's baby girl. I can't decide if I like the doll better in different colors or all in red. What do you think? Also, I wish I'd shaped the red doll a little better, but it was my first one and I was being super cautious because I didn't want to ruin it :) Little Kicker's Christmas doll will match O's Christmas stocking. I ordered this pattern for Little Kicker's stocking, and I'll make O a Christmas doll using the same pattern.

Magnolia Leaves Crown

When I called to check on O while I was at work on Friday, my mom told me that O was really enjoying playing with Magnolia leaves. I suggested making a Magnolia leaf crown, and they did! O calls it her "marrying hat" because she loves to pretend to get married. (She also gives birth to multiple babies each day!)



To make the crown my mom cut a piece of cardboard to fit around O's head and stapled it into a circle. She then stapled Magnolia leaves all around the cardboard circle. It doesn't get any easier than that!

Chocolate Flowers

I completely forgot that I planned for O and I to make chocolate flowers for her grandmamas for Mother's Day until I bravely ventured into the guest room/junk room/soon to be baby's room this morning. Luckily, the kit was sitting right by the door, and I knew it was something O would enjoy. She was elated with this project! The girl LOVES chocolate!

The flowers were simple to make. We melted the chips in the microwave, and O helped me squish the bag to get them all melted and soft. Then we squeezed the melted chocolate into the candy mold. O put in the stick, and we put them in the refrigerator to set.




Ta-da! O was so excited that she gave my mom her chocolate flower today. As soon as we got out the car, she was calling "Guh-guh, I have a surprise for you!" She's hoping Guh-guh will share the candy with her :) I love the sense of pride and joy I see on her face and in her actions when she gives a gift she has made :)




Phew! That's it! I'm finally finished with Mother's Day posts. I had one more project that failed dismally. I considered giving it another try, but then I realized that we'd made enough, and I was/am tired!

Another Mother's Day Gift

Are you getting tired of Mother's Day posts yet? I hope not because I have one more after this one :) I bought several plain canvas bags (from Hobby Lobby...when they were on sale, of course) months and months ago for O to decorate for her grandmamas for Mother's Day.

I taped off a frame on the bag and set her loose with a bunch of fabric markers. She enjoyed "making art" on the first one, but lost interest before she did much on the second one. She finished them this morning, and we traced her hand on them, too. This was a fun and easy gift that I hope her grandmamas will enjoy.




Here is the other side of the bag. It has 4 pockets which are meant for pictures, but we put the other small gifts for the grandmas in them. In addition to the things I've already posted about, we made craft foam ornaments. It's not really the right season for Christmas ornaments, but my mom requested a handprint ornament, and we forgot to make it at Christmastime. I decided it's better late than never!

Making Mother's Day Gifts with O

O and I started making Mother's Day gifts for her grandmamas last week. Our 1st handmade gifts were insects made from plaster of paris that she has painted.




We mixed up the plaster of paris and poured it into these insect molds. We also saved Buddy's packaging which was a perfect turtle mold!



After they were dry (the next day), O decided who would get each one and then she painted them. She was adamant that she did NOT want to paint with brushes...ONLY fingers :)




Here are the finished insects! She said she may work on them a little more later :)




I am really excited by how much O has enjoyed painting these plaster of paris insects and animals. I think that a set of these would make a fun birthday gift along with a set of brushes and paints for a couple of friends with summer birthdays. We may also make a bunch of them to have as an art activity/party favor for O's 3rd birthday party in July :)

Handmade Mother's Day Gifts

Mother's Day snuck up on me this year, but I think we are finally through with our making. Everything is handmade this year, and that feels nice. The 2 silhouettes are for O's grandmamas, and the picture is drawn by my niece and is for my sister. Making the silhouette has helped me get a head start on Father's Day gifts since I plan to frame the actual silhouette for Elliott for Father's Day. I think I may make silhouettes a traditional Father's Day gift for him to receive every year :)

Making the necklace pendants was a little frustrating this time around...probably due to the fact that I'm sad, hormonal, and just ready to be finished with a couple of projects from my very long list :) I had a difficult time getting the pictures the right size, and they still ended up being too narrow. Also, I somehow managed to glue my fingers together when I was gluing on the bails. I gave up on the crazy glue and used my hot glue gun instead. They won't be as sturdy, but hopefully the grandmas and my sister will understand that I'd reached my frustration level, so they better be happy with what they get :)