Happy Hanukkah to those who celebrate! (We do both Xmas and Hanukkah in our house, as we are multi-ethnic and have different religions. I want my daughter to grow up in a world of inclusivity, where all peoples and beliefs are respected)
Mommy bought herself a MINI Cooper S Convertible as a DIY project. I named him “Desmond” and he’s officially my new boyfriend. LOL. We play the Beatles “Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da” while we work on him. So far, he’s so much fun and I got a great deal on it. I’ve always wanted to restore a car/customize a car.
We whipped this adorable scotty dog Xmas skirt (with red and white polka dot lining) at the last minute before a holiday carnival we went to. I made a matching hair bow and a bow pin brooch to go with.
It took less than 1.5 hrs to do the entire ensemble.
I think this is my favorite fabric to date! It is adorable and has the requisite twirl factor that Maisie demands.
Honestly, I doubt I will ever buy her another skirt again, when I can churn these out daily.
The quality of my homesewn and designed skirts are far superior to the ones I can buy at the store. I don’t skimp on materials, everything is lined, it’s just amazingly easy for me to do this… and it teaches her how to sew, to boot!
4 yr old Maisie and her new Aleph Bet Hebrew alphabet skirt that we made (even while sick with a bug, that has since gone, knock wood)… she receive a little Dritz dressmaker’s dummy that she named “Trixie” in the mail this week and loves it! Sewing and styling are fun!
This was made for her special recital at shul on Friday.
We felt well enough to finish sewing her Aleph Bet Hebrew Alphabet skirt (with literal NAPS in between steps), just in case we’re well enough to attend family services tomorrow. She learned the Shema and Oseh Shalom with the other little ones and they’re kicking off a special Friday thing tomorrow.
She also loves (and I mean LOVES) this video of the kids Hebrew Alphabet song- at the rate she is going, we could possibly add Hebrew to her English and Persian and Filipino and smattering of French she knows already:
She also received a “Little Trixie”- a dressmaker’s dummy dressform, whatchamacallit. I call my big one Trixie, so now I guess it’s Trixie Sr.
The kiddie one is by Dritz and it is ADORABLE. Maisie keeps hugging it like it’s her best friend. The measurements are adjustable to about size 12-14 kids, so this thing should hold up for a long, long time.
Maisie is slim and tall, so the measurements are a bit bigger than her actual girth- but with elastic waistbands and twirly skirts, that doesn’t matter.
All Maisie requests in a skirt are that they twirl and they have cool fabric. I can do this.
Actually, R’s been doing the actual sewing, while I tell him what to do. I prefer draping and design and hand sewing to machine stuff and cutting. To him, using a sewing machine is no different than making things out of wood with tools. He just has to be told how to do it and he does it.
Everyday we’ve completed a project- she’s doing microwavable bean bags filled with rice for ‘owwies’. She made a heart the first day, a triangle for her teacher the second day, and today we did a bigger triangle with rag box applique hearts and other decorations.
Maisie said she wanted to be like an elf and make a lot of them for Christmas 🎁 presents-
This teeny Janome is a workhorse! It sewed through thick woolen material with no issues and has 10 stitch settings!
Each day she gets more confident with this thing- I should probably start her on hand sewing as well.
I hauled out a brand new sewing machine that had still been in the box for 5 yrs and never touched for me to use next to hers. It’s a Brother computerized 130 stitch quilting/sewing machine and I love it so far, too!
The finished outfit for Maisie’s Gene doll 🙂 Not bad for no pattern…
This is a little throwback Thursday post- I wrote it on Thursday and forgot to post it til Friday, though!
Last winter I went nuts and bought a ton of those gorgeous Gene fashion dolls for Maisie off eBay. I purchased clothed ones, naked ones, doll trunks, you name it… I guess you could say I did this for me. Having a little girl has been fulfilling all of my childhood doll fantasies in a really big way!
I sew and design clothes in my spare time (I used to design dog furniture in Oslo, Norway about a dozen years ago). I have a bad habit of collecting vintage fabrics and clothing (hello, hoarding). This little outfit prototype was made of an early 1960s silk chiffon nightie and some vintage black jersey fabric.
all hand sewn while Maisie was sleeping. It’s a pain trying to make a sloper pattern for a doll.
teeny stitches
the beginnings
had to sort out the arm holes et al
not the neatest hem I’ve done, but it was ok for the prototype
I really loved the belt and stole
voila! My design!
another view
another outfit I started, with a belt made of vintage scraps
teeny head scarf made from 1930s-40s fabric scraps
Miss Maisie and Me 