Pattern Review - Butterfly Kisses Emma Skirt

Time for a little FLUFF in this week!

This is the outfit "Sister C" chose from the coordinating fabrics used for Sister A's outfit that I posted about last week. Another personality and style matching score here!

She chose the ultra girly and ruffly Emma Skirt also by Jina Barney of Butterfly Kisses Patterns.

While not as quick and simple to put together as the Olivia Skirt, all the ruffle twirl of this skirt is worth the extra time!!! And if I'd just get acquainted with my machine's ruffling foot, that might help too! Machine instructions, who has time to read them with so much sewing to be done!? ;)

This skirt offers such feminine flair! It's perfectly easy to wear and looks darling  paired with boots...what my daughter chose when she wore it out this week....it would also look sweet with some delicate flats or even sandals in the summer. I can certainly see her wearing this skirt year round! She says it's so comfortable and you can tell it makes her feel pretty to wear. :) The fabric combinations are endless, so this is sure to be a fun pattern to sew again and again!

She of course helped to design her matching top. 

 And since she is convinced that she is meant to grow up and move to Paris one day ;) , we decided to stitch the words "Amour Paris" for "Love Paris". With the Eiffel Tower kind of serving as the "I" and the large heart applique helping to complete the phrase "I Love Paris!" in a way that tied in her favorite parts of the fabric designs. The scooter of course being the perfectly pink transportation option for such a chic city, we thought we'd even make it's exhaust glamorous with tiny pink buttons and stitching...

Yes, another over the top cute collaboration with one of my sweet girls!

Always fun!!!

Pattern: Emma Skirt by Butterfly Kisses Patterns

Fabric: Bon Voyage Collection from Timeless Treasures

PUL - What is it and do you want some???

What is PUL anyway?

PUL officially stands for "Polyester Urethane Laminate". However, most any fabric that is laminated, cotton, knit, whatever, often carries the name of PUL. I suppose PUL is universally known as a laminated or waterproof fabric. It is NOT the same as vinyl or oilcloth in a variety of ways. Those ways include, the type of lamination, the thickness of lamination and the fact that PUL is most often laminated on the fabrics wrong side for use as cloth diapers and diaper covers. PUL has a nice drape and in addition to being a practical fabric option for diapering items I've seen it used for many different things like raincoats, bibs, shower curtains and cloth pads like we made in August, to name a few. 

PUL is the fabric I am using to make the Preemie Diaper Covers for our October monthly project. I will be using both polyester and cotton laminates that I have in my stash. Being that these covers are so tiny, I may even be able to use some scraps from other projects!

Where can you find PUL?

Up until just recently, most folks could only buy PUL from on line sources. Typical fabric stores in your local community often didn't carry it. However, if you have a JoAnn's near you, they are now carrying a line called Babyville that is making cloth diapering supplies much more convenient for home sewers. It can be expensive, so make sure to take advantage of those coupons! ;)

If you are interested in committing to sew covers for Hopeful Threads monthly project this month, I have a large donation of PUL that I will share with you free. I just ask that you cover the cost of shipping...and I can only ship to US addresses. Requesting the PUL also means that you understand it is to be used primarily for donation, though I don't mind if you use some for yourself, it is just not to be sold or used in a product you would make for sale. The color that I have available is the burgundy/maroon color in the picture below.

I can send packages by stuffed Priority Mail Flat Rate Envelope for $5.50 or Flat Rate Box for $11.50.

All payments/shipping will be handled through Paypal to allow for tracking. If you are interested, please email me and we can arrange details. I will respond in the order in which messages are received and will ship as long as there is PUL to send! (and I have a BUNCH!)  No longer available...thanks!

And for the Fold-Over Elastic (FOE) that you will need for the covers, remember Kathy's Lace & Elastics carries LOTS at great prices! She's the one that offered the great giveaway last month, so it's always nice to say "Thanks!". :)

For those unable to get your hands on PUL/FOE, I will share diaper covers made from other fabrics/materials as well, so please stay tuned!

October Monthly Project Announcement!

I'm super excited about the monthly project for October! I suppose I didn't get enough tiny sewing fun last month! So, when a friend expressed a need for Preemie sized diaper covers I said "You got it!". :) But let me share a little more...

My friend lives in Cambodia. She and her family are part of an amazing organization called Children In Families. "Children In Families (or Komar Knong Krousar in Khmer) is a non-government and non-profit organization in Cambodia, established by individuals concerned about the overuse of institutions in caring for the needs of Cambodia's children at risk." Instead, they have a vision and purpose "to find permanent Cambodian families for children through kinship care, permanent and long-term foster care for children who can not be reunited with their families." Children in families....as they should be.

One group of children that falls into the at risk category are those born prematurely. As I'm sure many of you may understand firsthand, preemie babies require lots of extra care and attention to help them grow and thrive. In the US that care often takes place in a NICU department of a hospital, of which many countries are not fortunate enough to have available. This is where Children In Families (CIF) comes into the picture for these tiny and fragile newborns. They will often personally care for babies until they are strong and healthy enough to be returned to a family member or placed with a waiting Cambodian family. Additionally,  CIF will provide on-going training and support to the families, encouraging family-based care and thus preventing the precious child from ever entering an orphanage. Such a beautiful picture of empowering a beautiful culture to care for some of the most vulnerable around them!

I hope you will take time to visit the CIF website and learn more about the work they are doing and possibly consider showing them support. You can also find them on facebook.

Now for the sewing fun!!!

Look at the teensy tiny cuteness we can make to support the care of preemies in Cambodia!

This one is from Samantha of Little Comet Tails who provides a FREE Preemie Sized TEMPLATE on her blog! (Little Starter pattern can be purchased here) Thank you Samantha! This is the pattern I will be using for the covers I make this month.

I invite you to join me in another "batch sewing" monthly project!

I will be sending the covers with a friend traveling to Cambodia early November, so if you'd like to sew along I just ask that you be prepared to send your finished covers to me by the end of October.

And you know me and motivational giveaways, so I of course have some goodies planned to add to the fun! ;) I will also walk you through the fabric selection and sewing process and gladly answer any questions you might have. 

So....are you in???

If so, grab the button from my sidebar,

and let's get sewing!

A Giving Perspective

Maybe, just maybe he's getting it. 

We talk a lot about using our gifts to help others around here. When I come across businesses, individuals or organization using their unique gifts to help others, I always like to share it with my kiddos. There are some really amazing and interesting folks doing some really impressive things like...

Clean the World

Amazima

Stop Traffik Fashion

Just Love Coffee

...to name a few.

We talk about how each of these saw a need and found a way to use their special gift and interest to impact that need. These discussions have caused my 6 year old to begin asking what his gift is. I've told him it could be a variety of things, and time will tell, but he has continued to ponder this on his own apparently. Leading to him bringing me the picture above that he had drawn.

See, we keep a large mason jar on the counter in our kitchen. Any spare change that turns up is put in the jar. Once the jar is filled, we choose a specific place to donate it. It's shown our children how little can add up to a lot, and they love being the ones that find extra coins in the dryer or sofa to contribute. The picture above is that jar. My son decided that his gift might just be inventing new items to help others, and this is one of his first inventions. It's a cork lid with propeller to fit our mason coin jar. Then above it is his remote with maps so he can direct the jar to the destination in greatest need. 

Hmmmmmm.....I love it!

I love his idea and the way he's thinking!

"We must be the change we wish to see in the world." ~Ghandi

Get ready for some TREATIN'!

Being the first day of October and all, it's kind of pushing me to start thinking a bit more seriously about getting ready for Trick O' Treat! My kids always come up with some of the most creative (and challenging!) ideas for costumes, and this year is no different of course. Time will tell if I can make it happen or if we'll be throwing something together the night before!

No matter what they end up wearing, they will at least have some darling treat bags to carry thanks to Sara from Fabric Seeds! She was giving this adorable bag away on her blog and we were the lucky winners!

 The babe has officially claimed this one as her "bye-bye" bag! :)

When the bag came I was so impressed! It's very well made, fully lined and gusseted. Plus, Sarah added rope to the handles which makes them much more substantial and easy to hold, especially for little hands. I immediately emailed to ask her about the bag and she has generously put together a tutorial on her blog for us to make our own!

Thanks Sara!!!

Since the kids can't be having all the sweet treat fun, here's another free tutorial from Riley Blake's Cutting Corners College for a fabric treat basket to hold all those goodies you'll be handing out.

Have some silly, sweet, spooky sewing fun!

Monthy Finale - September!

This has been a whirlwind busy month around here! No single specific reason, but lots and lots going on! How about you all? Summer go out with a bang for you?

Being in the mountains of East TN, this is one of the most beautiful times of year! Time to slow things down a little. Start planning for the cooler, holiday months ahead. And, this is what we have to look forward to in just a few weeks...

Yes. We are so spoiled! I love fall! Especially here! The mountains truly burst with color!

Now, as for our September project and the monthly finale, here's what I have to share...

Baby Girl Layette

 Baby Boy Layette

I'll be delivering these along with some extra baby items and toys to our local crisis pregnancy center. They are always so grateful for donations and we are delighted to support their work!

If you have a baby to sew for anytime soon, you'll have to make sure and check back through all the great links this month! Loads of free patterns/tutorials for adorable baby items!

I've had a special request for an item in need that will be the monthly project for October. Gathering details and free pattern links and I'll make the project announcement Monday, so I hope you'll stop by to take a peek!

Oh yea, and if you didn't see my post on facebook yesterday, Create H.O.P.E. Designs has officially launched their first collection of patterns to support China Little Flower. Make sure to pop over and check them out! The patterns are all wonderful and ONLY $5 each! All the proceeds go to China Little Flower to support their hospice care home for orphans. PLUS...they are kicking off the launch with a pretty amazing giveaway you'll want to enter too! ;)

Happy Fall Ya'll!!!

Pattern Review - Butterfly Kisses Olivia Skirt

This week I've had the privilege of sewing for my girls. They are some of my favorite people to sew for! As always, they must have input regarding fabric and pattern selection. "Sister A" chose the darling Olivia Skirt by Jina Barney of Butterfly Kisses Patterns. 

I bought this pattern quite a while ago, but this was my first time using it. It certainly won't be my last though!!! I ran into a question when I first started, and wanted to make sure I understood clearly before moving ahead, so I emailed Jina. Yep, she's one of those great designers that puts an email address right on her patterns for this very reason. And, she responded promptly to my questions to help me get on my way with my project. My daughter and I couldn't have been more pleased with the end results either! The twirl appeal of this skirt is irresistible!

The skirt came together beautifully! Jina's approach teaches some sewing techniques that were new to me even having sewn similar style products before. Techniques that made the sewing assembly easier, more enjoyable and the finished product even more attractive. These are techniques I will apply to other sewing projects in the future and I am thankful to have learned them through this pattern.

And since a skirt this cute totally deserved a matching top...

"Sister A" helped choose her favorite prints on the fabric we were using and we created a one-of-a-kind applique. Then, I hand-stitched the words "bon voyage", including tiny buttons for the o's. The round button even has little stitch marks around it that match the applique stitching, too cute!!! I also added her initial to the luggage tag and a tiny heart button to the suitcase. Yes, I think I may be in love with this outfit! It matches my sweet girl's personality and style perfectly!

Now to get something made equally fitting for her sisters! So until then...

Bon Voyage!

Pattern: Olivia Skirt by Butterfly Kisses Patterns

Fabric: Bon Voyage Collection from Timeless Treasures