Paris je t'aime

To say I've been busy lately would be the understatement of the century. I have 3 kids, two jobs, and wonderful machines that sit around all day and tempt me with promises of a crafty good time. I don't get to indulge my creative needs nearly as often as I'd like, but I give in to temptation at every possibility. It helps when friends and relations have babies or need a birthday gift, as then I can indulge without feeling too guilty!

My lovely niece had a birthday not long ago. I gave her the link to Huups and told her to pick whatever she wanted. Thoughtfully, she chose the very embroidery set that I had been dying to try - Bonjour Paris. I love everything about this set, including the absolutely spectacular bag made by Anja in the design examples. I normally try very hard not to copy someone else's design elements so overtly, but her execution of this was so flawless I couldn't help myself. She takes all the credit for these! 

I made one for my niece and one for my daughter. I carry the stripe in Bamblue Fabrics. The twill tag is birdie-stamped with fabric ink that I heat-set with an iron.

 

 

Pattern: Lotti

Fabric: Red and Gray Cotton Knit from Bamblue Fabrics

My niece's birthday was also an excellent excuse to play with my Cricut machine and do some card-making. I made the "Love" card using the Groovy Times cartridge. My kids made the other three using the Wrap it Up cartridge. So much fun!

 For a long time, I had purple in my serger and given my ridiculous lack of free time, I didn't really have an opportunity to change colors so I strategically set up purple sewing projects. Two of these did not turn out very well so will not be pictured here, but I do like these. To make them, I took advantage of the new purple-y bamboo colors I have in stock at Bamblue Fabrics, which are divine. 

 

Pattern: Ottobre 1/12

Fabric: Deep purple, aubergine, lilac and almond bamboo jersey

from Bamblue Fabrics

This one is a Burda pattern that I previously made using my chevron crochet knit fabric - you can see that version here. I was originally going to make my new version in bamboo jersey, but I used up most of the jersey I had ready to go in my daughter's dress, so I decided to try it in bamboo french terry. I was concerned the terry might be too thick for this double layer top, but I love the end result. so soft and cozy! I wear this constantly on cool days.

 

Pattern: Burda 8/10

Fabric: Aubergine and Lilac bamboo french terry from Bamblue Fabrics

My sister has recently been blessed with not one but two new grandsons! Pouncing on the opportunity to do some much-missed-and-sentimentalized baby sewing, I whipped up a couple of NCBE's. Good heavens, I had forgotten how quickly and easily these come together. 

Pattern: New Conceptions Baby Essentials

I loved the fabric combinations so much that I decided to make a few shirts my Skoober. I also used my Silhouette Cameo to cut out some heat transfer vinyl. I've had mixed results with this stuff in the past; the vinyl kept peeling off in the wash. I finally figured out this was because I had used fabric softener when washing the fabric after purchase, and it was affecting the adhesive. I re-washed my stripes without it, tried again, and boom! Problem solved.

 

Image: Dog Long Short

Pattern: Farbenmix Quiara

 Image: Four cars

Pattern: Farbenmix Quiara

 A friend of mine needed a birthday gift for a mermaid loving girl, which meant that I finally had a wonderful excuse not only to sew, but to purchase this mermaid embroidery from tausendschoenes.com. I already have several mermaid embroidery designs, of course, but how could I possibly resist this one? Love it!

 Pattern: Farbenmix Henrika

Embroidery: tausendschoenes.com

Fabric: Turquoise bamboo jersey and red wavy dot supima cotton,

both from Bamblue Fabrics

And finally, we have some more fun-with-the-Cameo sewing. I love the variety of images one can find at the Silhouette Online Store - so many great options, even for older boys. I thought this rock star smashing a guitar over his head would be "cool" enough for my 3rd grader. Again, I used two colors of heat transfer vinyl for this.

 

Pattern: Ummm..not sure. Possibly Otto, possibly Farbenmix

Image: Rock Star

Fabric: Yarn dyed hemp from Bamblue Fabrics

OK, I think I'm all caught up now. Next on my sewing table is a Modkids dress for my grand-niece and a Farbenmix Elodie for my daughter's Easter dress. Which I sincerely hope I can finish before Easter!