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Category: Life
November is half over already, and the season of Advent is fast approaching. Now is the time when we are trying to make our Christmas gift shopping lists, plan out Christmas sewing – outfits and gifts alike, design our Christmas cards, and get things organized for the upcoming holidays. Ideally, many of these tasks will be finished before Advent starts four Sundays before Christmas. We can then spend our time throughout the Advent season preparing our hearts for the coming of Christ and experiencing the calm, joyful expectation of the season in the peace of our home with our family. One beautiful tradition that we are incorporating into this liturgical season is the Jesse Tree.
I got the really exciting news about a month ago that I’d been accepted as a Rebecca Page Brand Ambassador. This means that I am compensated with fun, free patterns, and then I get to sew them up and share them with you. Fun, right? I knew that Rebecca Page (formerly Mummykins and Me) was known for well-drafted clothing patterns, but with the name change, she’s moving into different areas. Pattern sizes now range from dolls to newborn to child to tween to teen to adult to plus sized (18″ doll to 5xl). Plus, maybe even more exciting, more crafty-style patterns will begin to find their way into the lineup (such as this Elf and Fairy Crown and Wand). The newest pattern, and what this post is about, is the Dolls House Quiet Book.
I feel that I could write a chapter on the influence of sewing and motherhood on my life. I hope I can do this topic justice in one blog post.
I’m honored to have been invited to contribute to the #EaseIntoMotherhood series hosted by Jodi, Erin, and Monserrat. Here is a collection of my thoughts as a mother who sews.
The following testimonial will include the role sewing has played in enhancing my personal life and happiness over the past ten years. It does not include the tremendous support I have received from my husband, our extended families, our faith, and our community in my parenting journey.
I have a teenager.
Weird, right? This itty bitty girl is now nearly 14 and in the 8th grade:
This was a flower girl dress that I made her. Back then, she liked party dresses with fluffy skirts, and ruffles, and bows, and really anything Mommy made her. Things sure have changed! She still likes the things that I make her, but the focus has changed. I think now it’s more about my taking the time and thought to make her something, while still wanting to look like her friends. The hardest sewing lesson I’ve had to learn is to listen to her and use fabrics and patterns that she likes. We still have our disagreements, but giving up the ruffles and florals when I sew for her has gone a long way. Now, if we could only find the perfect compromise to hemlines and NOT having everything fit like dance wear…
Hola! I am proud to be a stop on the Fiesta Fun Fabrics blog tour today!
Last fall, I had the privilege of attending Quilt Market with Simple Life Pattern Company. Right before market, I started seeing sneaks of the Fiesta Fun fabric line by Dana Willard. I drooled over the swatches and waited anxiously for this line to be released.
I actually made a few things for the look book when the line released such as this Simple Life Pattern Company Sophie.
I (Alisha) have been quite quiet over here on the blog for quite a few months. I hope you missed me! I have a wonderful reason for being so quiet. We are expecting baby #5 in about 8 weeks! Right now I have 4 boys, ages 9, 7, 6, and 3, and we are very excited to announce that we are expecting a little girl! It was shocking news that I’m not sure I’ll believe until I actually see her!
Getting to sew little girl clothes has been so much fun! Caroline Hulse of Sew Caroline, a designer for Art Gallery Fabrics, provided me with some beautiful designs from her Chalk and Paint collection to sew up for my new little girl.
I tested the newly-released Wonderland Wings by Peek-a-Boo Pattern Shop. The Wonderland Wings pattern includes three unique wing shapes: butterfly, fairy, and dragon. Testers also used the shapes to make angel and bat wings! This is a very versatile pattern to be used for Halloween or everyday dress up. I finished each pair in about 2 hours from cut to finish. The wings are made with 2 layers of very stiff interfacing to give them a nice shape! I was intimidated at first to sew with two layers of Peltex 71F on my little machine, but the tutorial includes tips and suggestions to make it easier.
Hey all! I’m a little late to the party, but I *did* manage to sew some swimsuits for my girls! I’ve actually had these completed for a few months, but the girls weren’t very excited about having photos taken in their swimsuits. They just wanted to get in the water!
For my middle daughter, I used the Coco Cay Colorblock Tankini with some of Peek a Boo Pattern Shop’s amazing swim fabric. The thought of sewing a swimsuit was completely intimidating, but man…it was So. Easy. I used the Ocean Cuties and Mermaid Scales for this cute colorblocked suit with the bikini cut bottom style.
When I was approached by my dear friend and godmother to my middle little, T, to make a First Holy Communion dress for her daughter, B, I was excited and honored. And then, when I realized it would be made from her wedding gown, I was very, very nervous.
B and her family chose the pattern (Vogue 7681), and we made a shopping trip to pick up some basics that I’d need to construct the dress. When I noticed how similar the pattern B chose was to her mother’s wedding gown, a few ideas started percolating.
Independence.
noun 1. Also, independency. the state or quality of being independent. 2. freedom from the control, influence, support, aid, or the like, of others. 3. Archaic. a competency.I’m so excited to be linking up with so many talented bloggers this week during the Sew Americana Blog Tour hosted by Wild and Wanderful! I love celebrating Independence Day with our family. We celebrate it small-town America style with parades, candy, and lots and lots of explosives. You will also see that Alisha and I share very similar tastes as we both used the same panel for our days on the tour. Make sure you check out Alisha’s darling boys from earlier in the week here. The 4th of July panels, cotton lycra solids, and firework print were all ordered from Peek-a-Boo Fabric Shop. My look was created with Riley Blake white and navy stripes purchased from the Fabric Fairy.