Summer Sewing

I'm caught up on custom orders for the moment, so I finally get a chance to sew for my own kids.

I finished these 2 dresses yesterday. It's so fulfilling when the girls actually LIKE the clothes I make them.

Strawberry Sweetheart

I just listed this sweet set for the Haute Couture for Kids Summer Is...... launch. I just love how it turned out!
Click here to see the listing.

The gorgeous matching hair bows can be found by searching lilbellebowtique on ebay.



Kelly is also to thank for the fabulous photos.

Latest Addiction

I have a new addiction....it's the round neck top/dress pattern that I bought from that*darn*kat
Thank you Katie for another awesome ebook!!

I've made a few for each of my girls & plan to make a bunch more in an attempt to use up my stash & raise some $$$$ in the process. The girls actually LIKE these & can hardly wait for me to get the buttons on them so they can try them on! I really like the fact that they can be layered in the fall for maximum wardrobe potential.

Here's just a couple that I've come up with so far. I have a couple that I used some beloved vintage fabrics to make, but they are in the wash, so that will be another post.

Back in the Saddle again

I've been MIA a bit lately due to some personal issues, but I will be blogging again regularly soon :-)

I'm going to take a new direction here & try to make this blog creative & inspiring. I get so much inspiration from the many blogs I read & would like to try to give some as well.

I will be including links to my favorite fabric shops and sharing my creations as well as the places I draw my inspiration from.

To start off, I am going to share my favorite place for online patterns. I met the creator of this site on a forum a couple years back & it's the first place I go when I need a new pattern, thanks Kim for creating it, I taught myself to sew with the ebooks you offer YouCanMakeThis.com.

Be warned tho, it's very addictive! Make sure you set up an account so you can earn points that that you use to get FREE ebooks yay!

A day with Daddy

Yesterday, my wonderful husband took the three older kids fishing, so I could get a little break & spend some one on one time with our youngest.

Cassidy caught a fish for the first time on her own! She's done it with help before, but this is the first time she reeled it in on her own. Her brother did take it off the hook for her, she'll have to wait a few years before she can handle that task on her own :-)




The boys had some luck too. Ethan caught this beautiful rainbow trout & Cassidy just couldn't get over how big the fishy was! She's used to bluegills, so this was something new & exciting for her.


And, just to show how crazy Rob's hair is getting, here he is! He is about the same height as me now! I'm not sure if it's due to the massive amount of hair he has, or if it was another growth spurt.

Let's Get This Party Started!

Houston, We Have a Problem

So, Admitting you have a problem is the first step, right? Well, I'm admitting it, tho I'm not sure it will help me in the slightest.

I am a fabric junkie. That's right, fabric. I just can't say no. I love the colors, textures & the rush that comes with finding the "perfect" print. This is the reason you can no longer find my dinning room table without a map.

I realized I needed help when I found three separate stashes of the same black & white dot fabric. I have more than a bolt of it now & each time I ordered thought I was out....ooops.

I'm going to challenge myself. I cannot purchase any more fabric until I have transformed a substantial amount of my current stash into a summer wardrobe for the kiddos. I have enough fabric, elastic, buttons, trims, thread & zippers to make myself & the kids a complete new wardrobe...yes, it's that bad.

I am also going to start using the embroidery function on my sewing machine. I've spent a small fortune on accessories for it & have only ever done a test run with it. It's time to let my baby show her full potential & hopefully make me some $$ in the process.

I started last night & have so far made:

A Dozen cloth wipes (from flannel I bought on sale last summer & had no particular plans for)

A Manatee outfit for Cassidy (from fabric leftover from a custom Sea World set)

I will have to update later with pics, because as always, the camera battery is dead when I need it.