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Showing posts from 2011

Mrs. D's Pencil Pouch

Another teacher gift... a pencil pouch. I've been holding on to these Michael Miller "Dick & Jane" fabrics for more than a year now. They were a great choice for a teacher gift, especially a Preschool teacher. I followed this Zippered Wristlet tutorial . I added the personalized felt monogram embellishment, easy peazy and it makes the gift more meaningful. The "Mrs." is done using a Threaded Backstitch . The teacher tote on the left can be found here . Please join our   flick r  group  and upload pictures of your pencil pouch or any other Finding Pins and Needles projects. I'd love to see them! Pin It

Teacher Tote

The teachers in my kid's lives do so much for them, and I wanted to make something special and personal for their Christmas gifts. These are also great for Teacher Appreciation Week! For the teacher tote, I had Caleb write a message to his teacher. This works great if your child likes to draw.... but mine doesn't :) He doesn't enjoy coloring or writing, so I'm sure his teacher will appreciate it even more. Here's how to do it... scan your child's drawing. Use a photo editing program and flip or reflect the image horizontally. Print the image at the size appropriate for your project.  Next use an  iron transfer pencil  to trace the image; iron it onto your precut fabric. Next,  hoop  your fabric and sew over your image using  embroidery thread  and an  embroidery needle . I suggest using a  backstitch  as it is simple and allows the lines to keep their detail. It's best to follow your child's lines from start to finish, so the hand drawn

Donut Break

Let's take a break from making doll clothes and have a snack... or a tasty pincushion! Tutorial can be found  here . It's really pretty easy, use a CD as a template, felt, needle & thread, stuffing and get creative. I used embroidery floss for the s p r i n k l e s . There's all sorts of room for embellishments and different color combos. It's also a great pretend play toy for your kiddos. Please join our   flick r  group  and upload pictures of your donuts or any other Finding Pins and Needles projects. I'd love to see them! Pin It

Dolly Purse Freebie

The dress pattern can be found in this book:  Sew the Contemporary Wardrobe for 18-Inch Dolls . It's worth it to buy the book, there are a ton of basic patterns that you can embellish. The dress pattern I used didn't have the gathered bodice or the belt loops. An easy addition! The shirt pattern is free at Liberty Jane Patterns I created the purse pattern. You can download it for free : pattern , instructions . Download  instructions Download full size pattern Please join our   flick r  group  and upload pictures of your Dolly Purse or any other Finding Pins and Needles projects. I'd love to see them! Pin It

Sew Cool for School

This was probably my biggest doll clothes challenge thus far, and certainly a hodgepodge of patterns. The skirt is from  Liberty Jane Patterns . This was my first time sewing pleats, it was time consuming, but the payoff feels great! The beret pattern is free and you can find it here . It's Molly's hat (I left off the loop on top) The long sleeved  blouse I patterned myself. The free  vest pattern and tutorial can be found here . The glasses can be found at  Hobby Lobby The chalkboard is clearly a cut of the vest fabric. I glued it on cardboard. Please join our   flick r  group  and upload pictures of your school apparel or any other Finding Pins and Needles projects. I'd love to see them! Pin It

That's a Wrap!

Another adventure in sewing doll clothes... The free pattern for the  skirt  came from  youcanmakethis.com . Because I used the leather the way I did, I couldn't use the pattern in the intended way. Below I show a diagram on how to alter the pattern. The free pattern for the  shirt  came from  libertyjanepatterns.com . The  headband  and  wristlet  were my own, I just pieced the leather together with a zig-zag stitch. The headband has a small elastic piece sewn on the bottom (see picture below). The  purse , again was just pieced. I folded up the bottom up on iteself and sewed the sides, then folded the top over. Not rocket science. I sewed in a snap for the closure and used the decorative button to hide the stitches. The leather I used was from a swatch ring. It was free and gave me a wide variety. Once you have laid out your material, zig-zag stitch to piece them together. You will have to print 2 copies of the  pattern  since you aren't cutting on

American Cowgirl: A doll clothes adventure

Another doll clothes adventure. This one was a hodge podge of patterns and ideas. If you're interested in recreating it, here's how I did it. The hat can be found at Hobby Lobby . I dressed it up with a brad and some extra material. The skirt pattern can be found in  Simplicity Sewing Pattern 3936 Doll Clothes . My first time doing gathering, and there was a lot of it!! The vest pattern is also from Simplicity Sewing Pattern 3936 Doll Clothes The lacy trimmed off shoulder blouse  under the vest was my own creation.  Please join our   flick r  group  and upload pictures of your cowgirl outfits or any other Finding Pins and Needles projects. I'd love to see them! Pin It

All dolled up and no one to play

So, my daughter is only 20 months, but that hasn't stopped me prepping for her American Girl Doll phase, that I will  now force her into. I pulled out my Samantha AG doll from my childhood and was inspired to make her a bit trendier. I've never really used patterns or sewed clothes in general, so this has been an experience. Periodically I'll post more outfits, over the last month I've created quite a few. This is the first in a string of posts sharing my new venture into sewing doll clothes. This was my first attempt at sewing doll clothes. So... my daughter had this ADORABLE (12 month) winter coat, embroidery, scalloped edging, fur.... the dog ate it. Jack, my  Pugalier  ate the zipper. I couldn't stand to throw it out and she'd be grown out of it by the time I replaced the zipper, so I turned it into American Doll clothes. No pattern, just snip snip. The skirt was made from the coat sleeves, the doll coat was made from the back panel from the coat.

A new kind of needle

I've found a new kind of needle...an embroidery needle. I've taken a few stabs... at my finger. It's been fun though. All of the patterns are from the amazing book, Doodle Stitching: The Motif Collection: 400+ Easy Embroidery Designs I embroidered linen napkins I already owned, here's how my first attempts at embroidery went: Pin It