Every year, we think of a theme and costumes that aren’t terribly hard to make/assemble.  Here’s a look at us over the years – all decked out.

Made:

• Luke Skywalker and Yoda jackets
• Yoda headpiece (complete with receding hairline) – this is a hat that covers his baseball cap, which he loves to wear and never takes off (perfect!)
• Princess Leia dress, belt and hair buns (made using ear warmers – perfect for the chilly walk around the neighborhood)
• Lightsabers – wrapping paper rolls, electrical tape and tin foil

Made:

• Sushi Chef – Jacket and headwrap
• California Roll – Entire roll, front and back
• Shrimp Sushi
• Soy Sauce Packet – Felt (by the yard) and printed paper for writing

Made:

• I purchased Z’s lil man outfit and altered it to fit him.

Made:

• Dress and skirt
• Headpiece
• Accessories
• Pharaoh staff

Made:

• Box – complete with animated toy caterpillar inside

Made:

• Dodgeball protective padding & unibrow (no, this is not real)
• Snakes on a plane t-shirt, airplane wings and body

Made:

• Fat suit
• Woopie cushion

There you have it. Halloween at it’s best.  Hope this inspires you to make your next costume!

With the Fall and Winter months ahead, it was pretty hard to find anything “Summery”, much less Hawaiian – and so my mission began… I needed something that was:

1. Hawaiian themed
2. Breathable, since it was a hot day and the party was outside
3. Easy to maneuver in, since I’d be running around hosting, carrying Z and of course, jumping in the bounce house

I actually picked up this fabric months ago in an LA fabric store in the rummage pile. Coincidentally,  I bought it with full intention of making a romper – one day. Z’s birthday was  the kick-in-the-butt I needed to make it happen.

I gave myself 1 night to complete the outfit, start to finish. It took me 3hrs and costs $3 in materials – score!

The pattern is actually fairly simple. The top is 2 square pieces, front and back – elastic around the top. Bottom, I used my loose fitting pajama pants as a pattern. Top and bottom are sewn together and the seam is covered by the belt. And there you have it. A summer outfit that’s cute AND practical. Hope this inspires you to take on those projects you’ve been putting off, too!

I followed this tutorial for the most part, but added a second layer underneath to match the material used around the neckline and straps. Made of light-weight cottons it’ll keep her feeling and looking cool all summer long.

Knowing the wedding would be held outside in possibly 100 degree humid weather, I wanted to make something both comfy and fashionable for him. I followed this tutorial to make the flat front linen pant and added the buttons and tabs myself to convert them into shorts. Perfect for fancy weddings or for lounging barefoot around the house (or at the beach).

The gift set included…

1. Baby Blanket. Made with super soft minky and light-weight cotton, this blankie is perfect to snuggle up with. Check out this easy tutorial for a baby blanket.

2. Bib. To catch all the dribble and preserve that cute outfit you just bought, this bib does the trick.  I roughly followed this tutorial, but used velcro instead of a snaps.

3. Burp Cloth. To preserve your clothes from babies mishaps, this burpie gets the job done. Here’s a simple tutorial for this..

4. Pacifier Leash. Never use the 5 second rule for the pacifier again. This tutorial is from one of my favorite blogs.

5. Soft Block Toy. I think it’s hilarious how babies love tags/ribbons so much, why not make a toy full of them?! I followed this tutorial and even added some crunchy plastic inside for added fun.

6. Crib Shoes. Perfect for new walkers! I made these from a pattern I purchased and added buttons extra flare.

In a few easy steps, you too, can turn pants you don’t wear much anymore into shorts you’ll love. It’s a win-win-win situation. You make the most of your current wardrobe, save the cash for something else, and they’ll fit perfectly because they were your pants to begin with.

Hemmed:
1. Turn pants inside out
2. Mark desired length with a line
3. Cut 1 inch below ‘desired length line’
4. Serge both pant legs so they don’t fray (optional)
5. Fold and iron at ‘desired length line’
6. Sew all around both pant legs

Cut & Fold:
1. Mark desired length with a line
2. Cut 1 inch below ‘desired length line’
3. Fold (toward outside of pants so raw edge is showing) and iron at ‘desired length line’
4. Tack (sew a few stitches back and forth) so it won’t unfold. Tack along the sides and front and back (4 total) – Example below

Rolled:
1. Turn pants inside out
2. Mark desired length with a line
3. Cut 2 inches below ‘desired length line’
4. Turn pants right-side out
5. Fold 1 inch and iron
6. Fold 1 inch again and iron
7. Tack (sew a few stitches back and forth) so it won’t unfold. Tack along the sides and front and back (4 total) – Example below

Cut:
1. All in the name… cut it and you’re done! Edges will fray naturally after wearing and washing.

 Example of tacking:

Who cut the cheese? We did, of course!

After a couple visits to Target and Babies-R-Us looking for a faucet extender without much luck, we decided to make our own.  By “we”, I mean my husband – Chris. He’s much more innovative and handy with tools than I am so I let him have this one.

We looked high and low around the house for something that was the right size and safe for Zander to touch and consume water from (because he will drink this water at some point). Since the parmesan container is food grade, it was the perfect candidate. And no, your hands will not smell like cheese after using it. One good wash did the trick for us.

The steps are simple:

Cut and drill 3 holes on the bottom of the container. Large square hole is where the faucet will be inserted. 2 smaller holes are for the rubber band. We used a 4 inch rubber band.

Drill a small hole on the bottom of the container to drain any excess water.

Next two steps are pretty self explanatory. Insert the rubber band and attach it to your faucet. And in the words of my hubby… you’re DONEZO!

Here’s the little monster in action using his new gadget made by his macgyver Daddy

It may not be fancy but it sure is functional! Hope this inspires you to make your own “cheesy” creations.

Step 1:

Fold tee in half and cut arm holes and neckline. Tip: Use one of your tank tops as a guide to mark where to cut.

Step 2:

Hand sew along dotted line.

Step 3:

Pull on thread to gather material. Tie the thread at the end to secure the gathering in place.

Step 4:

Measure about 2 inches down from neckline.

Step 5:

Fold (accordion style) down to the 2 inches you measured. Hand sew in place.

Arm holes and neckline can be left unsewn – they won’t fray.

There you have it! Five simple steps to turn your tee into a tank. Enjoy!

And so the challenge began… Make a basket liner that could hold all my junk (phone, wallet, glasses, keys, water bottle) and usually Chris’ and Zander’s junk too (jackets, toys, etc.)

I searched the world wide web in hopes of finding a pattern/tutorial that would fit my basket, exactly. No such luck. I found this tutorial, but it wasn’t much help. I only used it for ideas on pockets. I had to face my fear and make my own pattern, eek.

Surprisingly, everything went smooth.  I made the pattern and sewed everything from scratch. I even made it into a muli-functional cinch bag… to carry all my junk when i”m not biking.  Serious, could not be more proud of myself. It turned out pretty awesome.

Hope this inspires you to face any fears you have about sewing, and just do it.