Sew boutiquey!

Things that made me smile.....

- finishing this outfit

- an unbelievably relaxing morning

- sticking to my guns

- a picnic dinner with the kids

- reading Winnie The Pooh as a bedtime story.

This week is really turning out to be great.  Yes, I had a bit of a meltdown yesterday, and yes I was not nice, but I know most other mothers have been there too.  The kids have a way of .......well you know......driving us crazy.  I sat down with both of them, and we tried to reach an agreement, however it did not last long.  Today they got in trouble again.  I am just taking their privileges away day by day.  Today we did not go to a playmate, and tomorrow there will be no tv.  The kids have to learn to respect this house, this family and my stuff.  

Other then that, I am making sure that no matter what I sew each day.  I am having a blast.  I really wanted to sew and not clean, and I am doing it.  Of course, the plan was that I spent the afternoons with the kids and clean the house at the same time, but ....haha...there has not been very much cleaning going on.  Oh well....I will take a day and make sure I get the house clean sometime this week.  So tada.....I finished the pants this morning....and now this beauty is finished.  I plan on selling it in my shop, and will list it first thing tomorrow morning.  It is a size 3T.  I love the colors.  It is perfect for a spring/summer outfit.  Everything is made out of 100% cotton, and the fabric I used for the pants is a crinkly white poly/cotton blend.  It is great for pants.  It never wrinkles.  Perfect for the summer weather.

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Ottobre and Japanese Pants

Things that made me smile today....

- sleeping a lot longer then I should

- it is raining outside, thank goodness

- finishing up the above outfit

- a fantastic fitting pant pattern for toddlers

- a great dinner

- cupcakes for desert.

It's raining outside, and I am loving it.  It has been almost six weeks since we have last seen the rain.  It's been promised, but nothing ever came.  The yard, the flowers, and my car needed a cleansing.  The pollen needed to disappear.  For the first time, Nicolas woke up not coughing.  What a relief.  I also love the fact that we are forced to stay home.  I have been so tired, and all day I finally had an excuse to say "No, honey we can't go bike riding" or "No honey, no beach today".  LOL.  I was able to lounge in a pair of pants, no make-up, and just do little things without having to get into the car and drive.  What a relief.  I needed it.

So, this is the finished outfit.  I love it.  I introduced the shirt here (http://kinderkouture.blogspot.com/2010/04/feeling-blue.html) and decided to try a japanese pattern for the pants.  I finally can use their smallest size, and oh it was a perfect fit.  I love this pattern.  I had enough room for a large waistband, no gaping, and the length was perfect.  This is a size 80.

I used a stretch denim that I bought somewhere for myself.  I decided to applique a large flower (actually three of them) on top of the pants with a button in the middle.  As you can see it is a perfect fit.  The picture on the top left is cover of the japanese sewing book I used.  I will have to check what other patterns we could make from this lovely book.  

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A little something for Olivia

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I wanted to do something quick, easy and cute, so I decided to just make a summer top with one of the new fabrics I bought a few weeks ago. The print is adorable. The fabric is from Westminster from Valori Wells. The pattern=None used. I just cut out a rectangular piece of fabric out, applied 7 rows of elastic, and sewed it together, and then added the straps. Honestly, I am a bit disappointed with a few things.
First of all, I added a binding on top of the shirt that was too heavy, so it sticks out from her body. I should have made the binding smaller giving it less weight. The same is true for the straps. Smaller bikini straps would have been nicer on this top.
Secondly, the fabric wrinkles like crazy. I have had this problem before with Westminster fabrics, so I tend to stay away from them if I can. However, knowing this, I should have stuck to a pattern that has a lining. That is what I get for wanting to do something quick and easy. When you have not sewn for awhile, you tend to forget the most basic of principles. Oh well, she will wear this top. I love the colors and it is such a fun top.

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Another PS Black and White conversion method

Well, this one was even easier then the last one.  

First open the picture you want to change to black and white.

Create a duplicate background layer.

Go to the Adjustments Box and hit Gradient Map.

Your picture will immediately turn into a black and white image.  

Click on the gradient and this screen will open

Take your cursor and double click in the center of the gradient to create a new stop.

If you double click again the Select a color screen will open.

If you take the cursor and move it along the left side of the screen you will change the colors to what you want.

Once you let go of the cursor, you can see the change in your picture.

Of course then I choose the Curves Adjustment Layer and start to add contrast to the picture.

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Black and White PS Conversion

Another new PS lesson I am working on.  This time it is using the Black&White conversion in PS.   I think the picture turned out pretty good.  During the first attempts I lost a lot of detail in the face, but after keeping the reds

lighting the skin tones.

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I Heart Faces B&W Photo Challenge

Olivia is three. Each year she displays certain characteristics that I think shape her character. Being three, she tends to show her horns. When she does not get what she wants, she whines, she gets angry and then she sulks. I think it is important to catch these moments whenever possible. I consider her sulking a way of dealing with her emotions and gaining control of herself. No matter what, she does look cute.

My dramatic b&w for I Heart faces.

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My Prince Charming

Things that made me happy today...... 

- watching my son perform today 

- listening to Olivia sing Barney songs 

- my doctor Dr. Pruse and her lovely assistant 

- knowing that when I arrived home today, I would be spending the next two days at home. 

- talking to a friend, whose husband surprised her yesterday by coming home.

Seriously, I have been running for the last three days, and I was so glad to arrive home this afternoon and know that I could finally tend to my house, which is in utter chaos right now. Well, it is to be expected, after having the children home for 14 days. Hard to manage when two toddlers are always looking for that one clean room to play in. Boundaries Jeannine, boundaries. Today, I visited Nicolas and his little fun filled day. Thanks to Darcy, I got another great keepsake, which was this picture of me and my son. There you go honey, now you have a recent picture of me too. LOL. The hair does not look that great, but mornings are hectic around here.
I called my doctor today. Since my mother is coming to visit next week, I will finally have the opportunity to have my blood tests run. My doctor has been on me about that, but she knows our situation and gives me a break. I also asked her a few questions, because my sinuses have been bothering me. I have had a headache for two days, and I know now that it is my sinuses and not a cold. Although I take my medication quite regularly, this cold weather really has a lot of people dealing with problems at the moment. I asked her if I needed to come in. She asked me a few medical questions, and called me back saying that she will phone in a prescription. What a great gal. Seriously, I just love it when I have a doctor that does not harass me or belittle me. She is like a friend of the family and I love her. Every year I get a sinus infection during this time of year. She could harass me and tell me to come in with both kids, but she knows and understands, and I think that is great. I recommend her to everyone I know. The same holds true for our pediatrician. They have a nurse that answers all your questions, whenever you need assistance. I don't have to go running into the office when I don't need to. I think that is great. Forget the money I save. I save time, and perhaps a bigger problem down the road because of all the germs that are in the waiting rooms. I find that fact to be much more important.

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Just got in a goodie from Heather Bailey. I absolutely love the Nicey Jane Fabric, and plan on making an Easter Dress for Olivia. The great thing is that I can find matching green accessories for Nicolas everywhere right now. Although, we really don't do anything special for Easter, it is important to make the children feel special no matter what. The fact that we dress up, look for easter eggs, and set a tradition always meant a lot to me, so I intend to continue doing it for my own kids. Anyways, looking for a picture of the fabric, I came upon two new blogs (see links below) and some nice new patterns. WOW. Whenever I bump into one pretty thing, I find a ton more. How exciting. So enjoy all the reading, and let me know if you like what you see.
I also love the following fabrics - also all from Heather Bailey Nicey Jane Collection. They would make for lovely tops and bloomers or summer dresses.

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Ok on another note, I just got done taking my color quiz. What color are you? Try taking this quiz.(http://www.truevaluepaint.com/content/Color/ColorQuiz.aspx) I think my results are dead on correct.

OOOOOOOOO LLLLLLLLLL IIIIIIIIIIIIIIII VVVVVVVVVVVVVV IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII AAAAAAAAA!
She is going to give me a heartattack. Tonight she went into the kitchen, found her antibiotics, managed to get the top open, and drank. She drank about two teaspoons and I had to call poison control. I swear that girl does everything she knows not to do. Thank goodness I did not have to rush her to the ER. Of course, making medicine taste like bubblegum does not help matters. I think medicine should taste yucky, and then it would not be so tempting. The same with vitamins. They see them as gummibears. Not the same thing. An hour later she is complaining of tummy ache and throwing up. I am bit relieved that it is out of her system. Darn me. I have to put those kind of things high high high. Let's hope she learns something too. Poor baby.

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Happy Birthday Olivia

Created with flickr slideshow.

Things that made me happy today....

- Everything!

- Finding my cell phone buried in the children's toys instead of in the garbage can.

- Olivias Birthday

- Celebrating with good friends

- Listening to Olivia tell me how everyone was going to sing Happy Birthday to Olivia today.

- Lots of giggles and screams

- Getting to hold Baby Bryant

I could give you all the details about today, but I thought these pictures sum it up, and if not this does.  My friend Sarah Henderson put it so perfectly into words that I can rush through this blog post, and maybe get some sewing done.  We had a great day.

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Mommy & Me Day

We decided to play "hookie" today and go shopping together.  No school for her, no housecleaning for me.  We got dressed up, ate out, and enjoyed ourselves.  I think we needed this, even though her defiance continued all day, no matter how much I turned on the charm, right up to bedtime.  Nevertheless, it felt good to be one on one with her and at tell her 50 times how much I love her.  We also had a photography session, which she blessed, and surprisingly enough she wanted me to join in the fun.  Good.  Hubby complained that he did not receive any pictures of me for his birthday.  Now I have enough to send him one each day for a week.  LOL.  It also gave me a chance to post a "Relationship" picture, which is the theme for this weeks photography resolution (a picture each day) between me and a very good friend.  I am afraid that my pictures dont come close to the creative things she does on a daily basis, but I try.  Tomorrow I will post some photoshop edits that I attempted.  I am afraid there will not be any sewing for the next 24 hours, because my house is screaming "CLEAN ME!"

Our day ended good.  We are both exhausted.  Sorry Sarah, I know this is your idea too, but it was too good not to catch.  Obviously, mama was driving too fast around a corner.  Just think two minutes before I snapped this picture she was talking to me.

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Olivia you wear me out!

I had lots of plans for today.  A little bit of this and a little bit of that.  I wasted most of the day taking care of house and kids.  Olivia (2) is giving me major headaches with her defiance.  She does not listen nor react to any type of punishment, and continues to be a menace to this family and house.  I am irritated and tired from dealing with her all day.  No matter what type of punishment I try, nothing seems to work.   I tried to talk to her gently and calmly tonight, and asked her why she wanted to get mommy so upset.  I asked her if she wanted to live with a new mommy.  "Yes,  a new mommy is good" was her answer.  I guess that is what I get for asking the question in the first place.  Maybe tomorrow will be a better day.

"Olivia you wear me out!"

Things that made me happy today....

- sleeping in

- the smell of brownies

- not driving anywhere

- watching a movie with the kids

- sewing a pair of pants in 20 minutes

- beautiful comments from friends.

Some great inspiration I found....

Blogged here.  Olivia from Farbenmix.  She gives a great tutorial on how she finishes six nightgowns in two hours.  Amazing.

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Sunday........Day of Peace

Sundays are always hard for me. For some reason, the kids always go to bed a little later on Saturdays, which in turn means that I stay up too late enjoying my freedom and peace and quiet. Getting up later on a Sunday is a given, and after I make the kids breakfast and sit them in front of the tv, my husband always calls. I usually do most of the talking, since his days are filled with work and other boring details that he would prefer not to share. I, on the other hand, talk about the kids, school, friends, family, and whatever else is going on at the moment in our life. Listening to every detail of our life, makes him feel like he is still a part of it. I also spend at least 30 minutes each night writing him as many details as I can about our day, plus I make it a point to send him a new picture every day. I take the time to make him happy. :)

After I finish talking on the phone with him, someone from my family calls, and then I usually get a phone call from someone in his family. Yes, my Sundays are full of phone conversations. Today, it was a total of 3 hours talking to family. I actually enjoy it, but by the time I am done, the house is a total wreck from ignoring the children and letting them watch too much tv.

So before I know it, I take my best friend - the vacuum - and go through the house quickly. I know I will need it again in the next four hours, so my friend stays parked in the hallway, waiting. Wow, it is lunchtime, and I am still in my pj's. That is so unlike me, and yet it is becoming a Sunday ritual.

What a difference my Sundays have become since my husband left. He was always a long sleeper on the weekend, but by 9am, we were always awake tending to our house and the kids. By noon, I would have everything done including myself, and be ready to attack a few projects or just relax and spend the day with family. I miss those days, and I long for them again.

Today I planned on getting the Christmas tree, but I am tired, and really hate to venture out. Sundays are meant as family days. Sundays are relaxing and filled with memories. I don't want to work today. I don't want to decorate. I want to nap, sew and watch tv. I guess being mommy is a 24 hour job, and with that said, I will put on my face, hop in the car and make the kiddies happy.

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Autumn Beauty

Autumn Beauty is the theme for this week's I Love Faces Photo Challenge.  I decided to post this picture, since posting beautiful Fall landscape or leaves is completely out of the question here in Florida.  When Olivia grabbed the scarecrow that sat guarding our front door, and hugged him, I thought it was a great "picture" moment.

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Happy Halloween

October 31, 2009

Happy Halloween Everyone!

We had a wonderful Halloween day and night. All things considered, I managed to do everything I had hoped that day. We carved a pumpkin, dressed up, went trick-or-treating, and gave out a ton of candy. Our neighborhood was swamped with kids from all over, and the costumes were great. A lot of our neighbors really went all out with decorations this year. We visited at least 7 haunted houses. Nicolas was very excited, however Olivia was a nervous wreck. She barely showed her face most of the night. She loved the make-up and costume, however would not stand still for one picture-taking moment. Hubby was right, Nicolas lost all of his pirate things, so we scrambled to find it all again, before the big moment. Now I am off to hide most of the candy while they sleep. Shhhhhh……..

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Grumpy and cute.

October 29, 2009

Olivia was not much into modelling for me, no matter how hard I tried to bribe her. Of course, with temperatures in the 70’s, she was not in the mood to wear a fleece top. So these pictures will have to due.

I am off to participate in a pumpkin Extravaganza at my sons school, and then we are off to soccer practice. I am also pretty busy with some christmas dresses. I will try to find some peace sometime today and catch up on my blog reading. In the meantime, wish I could be sewing right now, but I am off to be a Mommy.

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