beep beep belt and boston mamas

I made these two belts the night before we left for vacation because the Little Guy’s trusty Gap belt was M.I.A.  The fabric is an adorable safari print from Japanese fabric store Fabric Tales.  I’m not sure how well double decker buses would do on an actual safari, but who needs reality!  They are darn cute.  The belts are made of cotton ribbing with two very sturdy D-rings.  My kiddo says “beep beep” whenever he sees the belt with the vehicles, so I call it his beep beep belt.  It’s so nice to make something that he a) likes and b) uses frequently.

And in case you are curious to learn a bit more about my little life, I was recently interviewed on a great blog called Boston Mamas.  It is an excellent resource for folks with kids who live in the Boston area.  A bloggy friend nominated me for this particular feature called Boston Mamas Rock.  Thanks for the shout-out Anna!  And if any of you Boston Mama readers are reading this and enjoy sewing/crafting, please say hello.  I am always looking for crafty collaborators in my area.  (I know so few…)

one dollar wonder

This sundress dress was made for Alpine Baby just before our beach vacation. The free pattern is from Habitual and it is super simple and very cute. The best thing about it is that after the little girl grows out of the dress, she can wear it as a top. This was my first attempt at making a garment, so the pattern is definitely beginner-friendly.

Don’t tell Alpine Baby, but I found that strawberry print for $2 a yard at Lorraine’s Fabrics in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. I don’t shop there often because it is a bit of a hike from my house and the selection is hit-or-miss, but once in a while I come across a find like this one and it’s worth all the time spent searching the $2-a-yard floor. The total cost of the dress was about a dollar because it only took a half yard of fabric and I had the green fabric for the tie on hand. Thanks to Habitual for such an excellent pattern!

I’ve got a few projects in the works and need supplies, so I will be visiting my favorite fabric store tomorrow. Hope to see you there, Mary.

back from the beach

We are just back from a great week-long vacation on Cape Cod in Massachusetts. The best part of the trip was watching two cousins meet for the first time. Our little guy and Alpine Baby got along just fine. The kisses (him) and face pats (her) were plentiful. I know he is missing his little cousin as much as I am missing her mom because he giggled and grabbed for the computer monitor any time Alpine Baby’s sweet little face made an appearance as we looked over the vacation photos this morning. Sigh… Good thing my BFF and her girls will be in town tomorrow to help fill the void.

an apron for roxy and some melon for my kid

Another apron.  This one was a birthday gift for my running friend Roxy.  We met a few years ago through work, though she jumped shipped a while ago.  She now works for a college that is a lot closer to her home, though I really think she should ditch the day job and start work as a stand-up comedian.   She is a funny girl.  We still stay in touch and since we first met, she has run a gazillion road races.  (We have a plan to transform all of those road race tshirts of hers into a quilt at some point this fall.)   The main fabric used to make the apron is more Freshcut by Heather Bailey.  This time I used a little grosgrain ribbon as trim.  I’m not sure about the name of the fabric I used for the little pocket.  This was a fun little number to make.  Happy Birthday Roxy!

What’s up with the unrelated photo below?  Nothing really.  My kid likes watermelon, gets very messy while he chomps on it, and takes a mean photo.  He’s super happy because he gets to meet his little cousin Alpine Baby in two short days!