Girl?! Boy?!

I bought two baby things before we found out what we were having...

This little confection. It's a baby swimsuit, have you ever seen anything sweeter?! I am crazy about the colors and mix of large and small polka dots. I would totally wear this swimsuit...maybe if it was in my size with a little more support up top... 

I also bought a set of light gray and cream bodysuits at Old Navy, with a tiny pair of striped sweatpants and a little hat with ears.

            Well, I won't be using that little swimsuit anytime soon, we are having a boy! I am so tempted to keep it though, it's 6-12 months so there is a good chance a girl born in any season could wear it at some point. We are so excited about a boy, a little brother for P, another mischief maker, someone to hang on my other leg while I'm cooking dinner and beg to go "ahh-sahh-ide" (that's the way P says outside).

I think this soft, little hat is so cute. Can't wait to put it on a fuzzy, baby head.

I'm going to be working on a quilt for this new guy. It will match the one P has (oranges and teals), but with some different colors and patterns. I'm using a few prints from Moda "Grow with Me." These trucks and a really cool light gray geometric pattern. I'll post more on that later. I'm using THIS PATTERN by Jaybird quilts. I think it will be really fun and modern, I'm thinking of doing a self binding (like on my picnic blanket HERE) and doing the actual quilting by hand, YIKES! I've just fallen in love with the look of it and Purl Bee is super inspiring-possibly to my detriment.  Look at those teeny tiny stitches?! It's an art form.

My Skirt Secret

So now that I'm about 17 weeks pregnant (Surprise! If you didn't know it already!) I've been on the hunt for a few new maternity things. I was teaching when pregnant with P, so I have more than I need of basic things like black pants, khakhis, plain t's, and all that. What I don't have is pretty, cool, casual everyday wear.

I saw/stalked an adorable pregnant girl at the dr's office wearing a long, flowy maxi skirt with a fitted black tank--super cute combo over a baby bump--and instantly decided that I needed that skirt as soon as humanly possible. I suspected the brand name of the one she was wearing and knew it might be exorbitantly expensive so before springing for that one, I hunted around for something comparable.

Two skirts, one cost $22 and one $99. Which do you think is the expensive one?

Ok, I'll tell you. The first skirt is Pea in the Pod and it cost $99 (if you know Pea in the Pod, $99 is actually on the lower end for them). The second is from Forever 21 for $22 (Holla!). There are some differences BUT are they $77 dollars worth of differences?! Obviously the Pea in the Pod skirt has better quality materials and I think the print is a little more chic and mod. I have to say though that the Forever 21 skirt is more comfortable, it has that wide shirred waist band which is perfect for the bump and it's actually a better length for me. I wish someone were here to photograph them on me, I think you would be more impressed with the Forever 21 version (the paisley looks a little more "BAM" in the photo than it does in real life).

So  my little skirt secret is that I'm keeping the cheap one. If this weren't maternity garb and I were looking at several seasons worth of investment, I might go with the more expensive version because I do like the print and colors best. But...for one summer of wear and since the style and feel are almost identical--I'm going with the cheaper version and treating myself to approximately 77 Strawberry Limeades from Sonic.

I've got a few maternity-wear tutorials in mind, the easiest shirt ever that would also be cute on a non-preggo gal and a pair of lace shorts (AHHH!). I've been so sad seeing all these adorable shorts everywhere that I can't sport this year, so dang it, I'm going to make some. Then I can sport some shorts too... :)

Aden and Anais Swaddlers Tutorial

I'm departing for one day from Easter week and sharing a project. It's that time of year when everybody starts having babies and baby showers, so I feel like there's always a long list of gifts to pick up or make. I really enjoy doing baby gifts, I like to give things that are going to be pretty but practical so that they'll be used and loved on.

One of my top five favorite baby items when I first had P were those gorgeous Aden and Anais muslin swaddle blankets. They are huge and soft and sheer. They're perfect as sunshades for babies in the summer because they stay cool and they're a good size for nursing covers. Lots of boutique stores (and Buy Buy Baby) carry most of the prints, there are stripes, animals, polka dots, cupcakes... I really recommend them for a baby gift if you need one! Target carries a limited selection of prints for a significantly discounted price. Speaking of the price, they are a little steep. I figured, "How hard can it be to find this soft, natural muslin?" Well, the answer is pretty hard. I have not been able to find the exact quality, texture and softness of those blankets!

The closest thing that I've found is cotton gauze. You'll see it out now that the weather is warming up, I picked some up at Joann's for $6.99/yd in the apparel fabrics. There were quite a few bright solids and white, of course. The white was by far the softest so I chose that for my baby blankets. I'm thinking that the more it's washed and worn the softer it will get.

Each blanket takes 1 1/4 yard. I wanted two so I bought 2 1/2 yards; washed, dried and ironed it; trimmed off the selvages, split the piece in half and squared everything up. I found that snipping and ripping was the best way to get a straight line since this fabric is kind of wavy and stretchy.  Then just go to the ironing board (get yourself a nice book on tape or something) and start pressing the raw edges under 1/4 inch then under another 1/4 for the hem. (I did not miter the corners.) Next just sew around the edges with matching or contrast thread!

Now for the fun part! I wanted patterns similar to the Aden and Anais blankets so I busted out the trusty Tulip Soft Fabric Paint in matte, some foam stamps I picked up at Hobby Lobby a couple years ago ($1.99-99 cents for a sheet), and some cheap foam brushes. My dear friend, H, is having a boy so I decided to do animals on one and transportation on the other--you know, boy stuff!

I covered my coffee table with freezer paper, squeezed some paint on a paper plate and got stamping.

TIPS:

One thin, even coat looks the best! Dab paint onto the stamp with the foam brush.

Don't rock the stamp, press firmly all the way around so you get a clear impression on the edges too.

Don't forget to mix colors if you can't find the perfect shade (or don't want to buy a million tubes of paint). I have mostly primary colors that I mix until I get what I want, but mix enough at once for the whole blanket so you don't change shades part way through.

If the stamp isn't exactly what you want, change it! I went back with a foam brush and blotted out the faces on my goofy monkey and lion so I had less cartoonish animal shapes.

Decide the 'pattern' before you start stamping, but don't stress about it! I didn't measure or anything like that, just eye it and do what looks right! For the cars and train blanket I stamped all the trains then went back and filled in with cars. The animals I did one row at a time from top to bottom and just kept changing stamps/colors with each row. I think the train/car blanket went faster.

Let the paint dry a few hours before handling, heat set with a hot iron and wait about 72 hours before washing. 

P recognized these blankets as soon as he saw them and grabbed them off my work table to snuggle! He sleeps with an Aden and Anais blanket almost every night.

Since these are hand stamped, every impression is a little different. I think that just makes them more special. They're handmade without looking home-made. Think of all the things you could do! I love the idea of getting some letter stamps and creating a print with initials or just a single initial. They can also be packaged in so many cute ways, roll them up and tie with ribbon, maybe tie a small toy on top or stuff them in a basket with other baby goodies. You could even gift a baby book along with blankets decorated with colors and images from the book. Wouldn't a set of Goodnight Moon or Hungry Catterpillar blankets be awesome! Can't wait to make more!

Doodle Stitching!

I'm so excited! The items I ordered from Amazon came yesterday!

I was hooked when I saw the fanciful cover and there's something I just love about handstitched embroidery. I imagine it on baby shirts, sheets, pillowcases, pillows (projects that take a very long time to finish). The book is great! Lots of pictures, I love the author's color choices and ideas.

There are really good, clear explanations of all the different stitches with photos.

Here's a really original idea, stitching on balsa wood to make charms for bracelets or necklaces.

There's also a CD in the back with templates for embroidery ideas. With all these ideas, I started thinking about this little shirt I found for Baby P on clearance at Old Navy.

I thought it would be easy to outline a few things with embroidery thread, but where to start! The birds were easy, but I didn't know what to highlight on the dune buggy.

The tires seemed fun and maybe the main body of the car, but I thought that thick orange line on the left side brought out the wrong perspective and looked odd.

So...I took out some things and added some others, but still thought it was too much.

Here's what I ended up with, just a few things highlighted, a few drops of water on the surfboard and light reflecting on the windshield.

Not perfect, but interesting. I think it might be harder to embellish an existing design than to embroider something from scratch. It's too easy to accidentally highlight the wrong parts or overwhelm what's already there.

The other thing I ordered from Amazon is this 2 inch, Clover, bias tape maker. It's humongous! I can't even tell you how big it looks compared to my 1 inch. I can finally finish my quilt!

Here I am making tape out of white muslin for the edging on my quilt...many, many yards.

Anthropologie Score!

I have a bad habit of getting out a stick of butter, barely opening it and scraping off what I need then just leaving it out on the counter so it will be nice and soft for the next time I want to use it. It starts looking a little gross after a while, crummy, greasy, you know how it is.

Over the weekend, I knew I had to do something about the butter situation when my husband looked at it and asked if it was trash. Hm.

This called for a trip to Anthropologie! I'm so excited to be living in a town with an Anthro, the closest one where we lived before was about 2 hours away. I know from browsing that they always have adorable little half-stick butter dishes so that's what I went in for. And bingo!

 Yay! The best thing about it, besides its cheery red glaze was the $3.95 sale price! What luck! It made me go into that, "Don't I need a gift for someone?" frenzy, you know what I'm talking about. There's a deal on something you don't really need but you're just trying to find some excuse to buy it (them...). Well, I only got one butter dish, but I did come out with two of the adorable mugs below, also $3.95 each. I'm a sucker for a cute coffee cup.

Now it's perfect!

Grown up Christmas To Do List

1) Do the Christmas Shopping for friends and family.

2) Figure out when and where we will celebrate with both sides of the family.

3) Get the youth choir ready to sing Christmas music in two weeks and sew costumes for the children's musical this weekend.

4) Buy Christmas flavored coffee and a Santa hat for Baby P.

5) Select the perfect Christmas tree and decorate it.

Well, at least the really important things are done. 

Two Disclaimers and One Observation

1) Do not read Voyager, the third book in the Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon. It is hideous.

2) Do not order anything from Pepper Kids . W ordered an amazing bracelet for my birthday (two months ago) and it never came. I emailed them about it and got this response.

Hi Chelsea, Thanks for contacting us. We are sorry about the misssing package

and will send out a new bracelet asap this week.

Waiting...

Still waiting...

It's been 5 weeks since that email...

Missing package? Sounds like you never sent it...

I still want the daggum bracelet because I love it...

3) I think Starbucks sells coffee by describing it in language that people can relate to in a personal way.



House Blend: "Well-Balanced and Lively." Seriously...
isn't everyone trying to be responsible and grounded,
yet fun, spontaneous and entertaining at the same time?

 

Breakfast Blend: "Crisp and Tangy."
Who doesn't want to be Crisp and Tangy?
You Certainly don't want to be the opposite:
"Soggy and Bland."

 

 

Here's the Costa Rica Tarrazu that I drink. I was inexplicably drawn to it and it really is my favorite now. "Tangy, Elegant and Refreshing." Yep, me and Audrey Hepburne.

Five recent purchases that I really like:

1) This is a ruffled sweatshirt from New York and Company, but the picture doesn't really do it justice. The collar actually stands up, not flat like in the pic and should never be clipped in the middle. NY&C can be hit or miss, but sometimes they hit it right on. I love a sweatshirt that I can wear with my Target yoga pants or with a nice pair of black pants with almost anything underneath. Also, I can wash it over and over again after a dousing of baby spit up and it bounces right back.

2) This reversible 'puffer' vest from Target for only $15.00! The thing that I love (besides its reversible-ness and the two great colors) is that it's very thin. It doesn't feel or look all bulky.

3) Kroger brand White Cheddar Rice Cakes. I'm sure there are better ones at Trader Joe's (don't rub it in Ashley and Sarah), but I always crave crunchy, salty snacks. These are only 40 calories each, they're cheap and they taste really good so I'm not trying to go back for a round of potato chips later. Being at home long chunks of the day is good for laundry, but not so good for the snacking.

 

4) Dan in Real Life: I love this movie! It's so clever and moving and witty and I'm so glad that I own it now! I like to watch it every other day or so and it's the perfect movie for a farm or lake weekend! I got it used at Blockbuster-that's a great way to buy movies because they're $10 and you can take them back if there's anything wrong.

 5) I'm completely obsessed with this Emmi Swiss yogurt. It is amazing! The flavors are so unique - pink grapefruit and apricot and more, plus the typical strawberry and raspberry- and it's lowfat, but is much more creamy and rich than other kinds of yogurt. I've never been a particularly big yogurt fan, but this makes me crave yogurt and want it for breakfast and snacks and everywhere in between. That's a good thing because Dr. Oz says that it's one of the best ways to boost your immunity and fight off colds. You will love it!