Reversible Apron

Kate will sometimes "try on" my apron and then trip as she tries to walk around the kitchen. It's obviously much too big for her! I've been meaning to make her a smock type apron but when I saw this tutorial I liked how the apron was reversible and thought I'd give it a try. It was really simple and took less than an hour to make. The most time consuming part was cutting out the letters for "chef" and "artist". It would also be cute to put the child's name on it. I used heat 'n bond lite to iron on the letters, then did a zig zag stitch around the edges before sewing each side together. Bias tape is used for the tie and it's adjustable so hopefully it will fit her for a while! Now my little "chef" can help in the kitchen and hopefully be a little neater. Although I doubt an apron will really change much.

Another interesting bit of info i read lately on the Montessori philosophy of apron wearing:
An apron makes each task special. Donning and taking off an apron marks the beginning and the end of important work. These aprons are used for preparing food, setting the table, washing dishes, painting, and so forth.

Alphabet Magnets

I’ve been looking around for some magnets for our fridge that Kate can play with—but my search hasn’t gone very far. I remember seeing the idea to make your own on The Purl Bee and decided I would give it a try. I found business card magnets on eBay, 26 magnets for $2.50. Don’t go to Staples, they want to charge you $15 for 50 magnets. Then I just used scrap fabric I had around. One side of the magnet is sticky, so you stick the fabric on the sticky side, trace the letter on the back and cut it out with pinking shears. The trickiest part was drawing the letters backwards on the back of the magnet so they turned out right on the front. Kate seems to have taken interest in them. Although she doesn’t quite get that after taking them off the fridge you’re supposed to put them back on. Alas, another thing for me to pick up off the floor!

What was once old, now new!

Before:
After:

We cleaned out our closets last weekend and this t-shirt was in the giveaway pile. It had been sitting there for a few days when I remembered an idea I saw in the book “The Creative Family” by Amanda Soule. She suggests repurposing an old t-shirt into a pair of comfy knit pants. I’ve been looking for a little white knit skirt for Kate and haven’t found one so I thought I would try repurposing my old white t-shirt into a little white skirt. It worked out pretty well. Especially considering it was free! I used another skirt Kate had as a model and figured if it didn’t work out there wasn’t too much risk involved (besides time, of course). The most frustrating part was figuring out how to sew on the knit material. It’s not the same as quilter’s cotton! My thread kept breaking and eventually I figured out I needed to change my needle and type of thread I was using. Now Kate has a new comfy white skirt for summer. And if she stains it, I don’t care! Look through your closet—what can you make new again?

Getting things done

I feel as though I have been furiously sewing lately and I don’t have much to show for it! Nothing too exciting--just mending, hemming, sewing diaper pail liners and these shoes. I’ve made these cloth baby shoes before in a girl version and they were even easier to make the second time around. Comparing them to Kate’s shoes now they seem so small! I’ve already forgotten just how little newborn toes are.

Simple Pillows

These pillows came together so quickly. I got the general idea from this book, but basically it's just three pieces of fabric, 1 front and 2 for the back. The back pieces overlap creating a nice pillowcase. No zippers but still easily removable and washable for all of kate's messes. Really simple and really fast. Finally our pillows match!