Summer Rompers for Toddlers

I'm so excited about my new favourite free pattern and tutorial from the internet. It's by Corinne, of Purl Soho, it comes in sizes 2-11 years, and you can find it here. I recommend it for its ease and clear pictures and explanations. Here are my three four finished rompers.

First, for a just over two-year-old (by the summer):

 

Next, for an eighteen month toddler:

                        

And finally, my version for a two and a half year old.

The first is size 2T according to the pattern, the second, a slightly smaller size 2T, and the bottom one is size 3T, made as separates. 

This is a very well designed pattern and tutorial, and I have used it with only minor modifications. Anyone who reads my blog will know that I almost always fiddle to make things work for me. Either the size isn't right, or I want to use the armhole of one with the bottom of another. So most of the time in making something for my grand-daughters is the initial planning of how to do it, and then making my own pattern. Sometimes the original is unrecognisable. However, this was not the case here, it is a great pattern, and I think the small modifications I did make could be helpful to anyone making the younger sizes. Mainly, I wanted them to work for toddlers not yet able to undress themselves quickly to use the bathroom.

So go ahead and use Corinne's lovely pattern, and follow her instructions: but if you are making for a very young child, you might want to read my blog as well! Below, I show how to make the modifications so a young child can have a nappy changed, or can easily use the potty without getting completely undressed!

Mr Potato Head Bag

One other thing I made for Toddler I's birthday was a Mr Potato Head bag. 

She already had one Mr Potato Head for Christmas, but I bought her some more accessories for her birthday, as she seems to like playing with him.

However, I felt a bit guilty, as I could see so many little bits kicking around causing a real nuisance to her Mummy and Daddy. Toddler I is pretty good at putting things away provided there is somewhere to put them. So the obvious answer was a bag to put all the bits in.

Another Birthday Outfit

Having made a birthday outfit (no, NOT a birthday suit!) for Baby a's first birthday, I thought I would also like to make an outfit for Toddler I's second birthday. 

I still had some more of the lovely reindeer fleece material and the denim left, and this time I thought I'd make a dress, and a waistcoat. (Eventually I added a hat.)

Both of these owe a lot to the Small Dream Factory patterns. These patterns and templates are free, so a huge thank you to Small Dream Factory for this. (But the patterns should not be used for commercial purposes. I only use them to make things for my grand-children!) To find out more, read on.

Easter Finger Puppets

I promised that I would write more posts on finger puppets, having described how to make templates here.

It's a little while till Easter, but my time seems to vanish when I'm not looking, so I thought I'd better make a start. So far, we've got an Easter bunny, a chick, and a lamb.

Finger Puppets

I've been trawling the internet for patterns or templates for felt animal finger puppets, but hadn't really found what I wanted. So I decided I'd make my own, and share them. It will take me a while to add all the finished finger puppets, so I'll blog about them a few at a time as they are made. Here are the first few, made for Easter:

A requirement for me is that the finished finger puppet should be recognisable as what it is supposed to be! I hope the ones above can be recognised as an Easter bunny, a chick, and a lamb. Here is my current wish list of some of the animals I'd like to make. I may add others if these go well.

Bear, Bee, Bird, Butterfly, Cat, Chick, Cow, Crocodile, Dog, Duck, Elephant, Frog, Giraffe, Hen, Hippo, Kangaroo, Ladybird, Lamb,  Lion, Monkey, Mouse, Octopus, Owl, Peacock, Penguin,  Pig, Polar Bear, Rabbit, Reindeer, Baby Seal, Tiger, Whale.

I chose animals my grand-daughters would be familiar with, either through personal experience, or through their favourite story books and toys.

I've got three main template shapes, plus some special templates. To find out more about the templates, and making finger puppets in general, read on.

Why Do I Want to Sew? - an Intermezzo

I'm not really quite such a New Grandma any more, the three granddaughters are growing fast. We've had one second birthday, one first birthday, and another second birthday very soon. But I still love to sew for the girls. I suppose it's pouring a bit of the love out. I used to make tiny clothes for their mothers, too, as my grandmother and mother had made clothes for me; though for them, as well as loving to do so, it was at least in part out of necessity in those days. But my own efforts at baby nightdresses for my daughters soon dwindled out, as I went back to work, and there just wasn't any time, and as teenagers they were less interested in having clothes made anyway, than having someone who might be persuaded to do running repairs on a favourite pair of jeans. Suddenly, they were grown up with children of their own. And my mother long past. Now, I have more time, and the old sewing machine was resuscitated (and a new one purchased) almost as soon as my first daughter was pregnant.

It's been a sad time recently, as we have not long had my mother-in-law's funeral. A wonderful woman much loved by all her five grandchildren, in the UK and far away in Australia. She was 94, and as people say, she had a good innings. But the saddest thing is that for the last few years, she suffered from dementia, and in the end could barely remember who her children and grandchildren were - though she still loved to hold her little great-granddaughters, with the idea that they were in some way connected with her. Fortunately, her grandchildren still have wonderful memories of her as an active women in the prime of her life, who pushed them on their tricycles, cuddled them when they fell over, played silly games, swam on her back so as not to get her hair wet, and baked delicious apple pies.

I'm not much of an apple pie maker, I don't suppose any of my grandchildren will remember me for my superb cooking! (And they certainly won't remark on my swimming accomplishments.) They probably won't remember the baby clothes and wigwams and quilts, either, though they may have photographs - and maybe my blog! So I'll keep sewing my love into garments and accessories for them until my eyes give out, or my fingers are too stiff, or my mind wanders off to where I no longer recognise them. Let's hope those possibilities lie a long way into the future, and I have plenty of time to make lots of things. Heaven knows, I've got a lot of material in my fabric boxes, and a lot of patterns I've yet to make up!

Birthday Outfit - Dress, Jumper and Leggings

It seems we hardly have time to get over Christmas and the New Year holidays, when our birthday season starts again. Our youngest grand-daughter, Baby 'a', will have her birthday in January, then the middle one (Toddler 'I') has her second birthday in February (and it's mine in between, but I won't be saying which one, or making myself anything!).

Baby 'a' will be getting a whole new outfit, of a stretchy fleece jumper and matching leggings, and a pinafore dress to go over. It stays pretty chilly here until at least Easter-time, so I hope she'll get some wear out of it. Each garment was made using a free-on-the-internet PDF pattern, and the appliqué pattern was also one I found free. You can find fuller details below.

Rules for Perfect Baby Quilts

Don’t do as I do, do as I say!

I broke most of the rules in making my latest quilt, but I have ended up with a decent quilt in spite of this, rather than because of my shocking imprudence. Here are the rules for perfect quilt making (and why I don't do this to make a living):

• Go to quilting classes first.
• Use a proper quilting sewing machine.
• If at all possible, use ready cut quilt pieces.
• If you aren’t going to use ready cut pieces, don’t compromise on the quality of the fabrics. Especially don’t buy very loose-weave fabrics.
• If you are going to cut your own shapes, use proper tools.
• If you are left-handed, get proper left-handed scissors with the blades reversed, not just the handles.
• Don’t lay out your cut pieces on carpet to pin them. You will get creeping pieces.
• Do check as you pin that your lines are straight and the pieces already attached are perpendicular.
• Don’t be afraid to unpick and re-sew seams or bits of them.
• And finally, don’t trip over your pin tin.

I broke at least half of these. Find out more about the rules below.