"Falling" Behind

See what I did there?  That was a pun... cause its fall and I'm falling behind in blogging...... *ahem* moving on.

September and October have been eventful for me, most of which I enjoyed.

In the past 6 weeks I've walked in the woods;

gone to the pumpkin patch;

enjoyed warm days outside and cool evenings by the fire pit;

practiced some new photography tricks;

visited cities;

spent time in my favorite places;

celebrated birthdays (he's 2 already!),

   
         (and he's 34 already!)

and remembered two special lives passed.  I lost two grandmothers in the span of 3 weeks...

But in the midst of it all I've even had time to work up some new projects.  I just haven't had the time to share them with you.

(left to right:  Red/White Kitty Hats, Gina Giraffe and Newborn Newsboy Cap, Striped Brimmed Hats)

(Swirl Cap with large flower)

So now we're all caught up!  What have you been doing to enjoy the glory of fall?

Mixed Breed

I was recently contacted by a previous client to see if I could make her a baby sweater and rattle set for her new baby girl.  She wanted the sweater to feature an applique of a dog similar to her beloved little pet - a black half scottish terrier half cocker spaniel with a schnauzer haircut!  We did a little digging and found a great applique at my favorite doggy-related Etsy store.  The sweater turned out very sweet in red and white stripes with the black dog.

The rattle pattern was another Etsy find.  While the seller of the pattern does not allow them to be made for sale in large quantities, she granted me permission to make one for my client.  Such a cute cute pattern!  I was a little confused by the sewing on of the legs of this guy, but once I got it all tacked down I was very satisfied.  And best of all, the client was very happy with how it turned out!

School Year Wrap-Up

Well its officially summer break here, which means 3 kids in-house all the time, playdates galore, trips to local attractions, and even a chance for a family vacation next month!  All this also means I am having to work harder to fit crafting time in :)  I won't complain though, I am truly truly enjoying this time with my kids.  My oldest was in first grade this past year and I realized for the first time that, while its nice to have time to do work while he's in school, I really missed him.  He left at 8:30 am and didn't get off the bus till almost 4.  Then there was homework, after school activities, dinner, and only about an hour to actually enjoy time together.  Next year my middle child will be in first grade and I am already anticipating how much I'm going to miss the older two!  Luckily I still have one at home to keep me company though.

Anywhoo... I have gotten a few things done in the last few weeks.  I wanted to make an extra special gift bag for my kids' teachers because of all the love they put into teaching them this year.  Last year I did a movie-night themed bag for Eli's teacher, but I wanted to do something a bit different this time.  Just like last year I made simple patchwork-style gift bags using some fun coordinating fabrics and lined them.  This time I added an interior pocket and a fabric flower turning these totes into almost a fashion accessory!  I posted a pic of them on the Knits and Knots Facebook page and got a lot of positive response. I had several follow-up orders and I had fun seeing how they each turned out with different fabrics.

I was contacted by a photographer for some seasonal hats for her fall/winter newborn photo shoots.  I loved the outcome of both of these sweet toppers.

And my last project is the most fun of all :)  This sock-monkey photo prop set was commissioned by a girl who had seen one online and tried to order it for her soon-to-be-newborn baby only to find out the woman selling them had closed her shop to new orders because she was swamped with business!  I couldn't blame her as the idea is simply darling.  Its a sock monkey earflap hat and matching diaper cover with the cutest little tail on the rump.  Unfortunately for me I don't have a good model to show it off, so this was the best I could do.

Sister Set

My first order from the Summer Line was a "Sister Set" of coordinating pillowcase dresses.  The dresses are for the daughters of a dear friend of mine.  She wanted them to be in the same print but not identical.  We chose this gorgeous bold print and accented it with cream on one dress and black on the other. 

I love the versatility of the pillowcase dress.  It can be worn as a typical dress, with leggings or capris for a fun contemporary look, layered over a long-sleeved shirt and jeans or tights for a fun winter style, and it can even be worn as a top as the owner ages!

Easter Dressing

For some reason Easter is the time of year I feel the most motivated to make an outfit for my daughter.  Maybe its the expectation that everyone dresses up for church on Easter Sunday.  Maybe its that the dreary weather of winter is finally gone and with its departure comes the desire for bright colors and breezy clothes and something new.  This year I started with a skirt.

I used a fat quarter pack I had bought last fall, cut strips of varying width, sewed them vertically into a rectangle and made a simple gathered skirt.  I trimmed it out on the bottom and added a nice comfy waistband in a coordinating knit.

I scoured Anna's drawers for a tank or t-shirt in coordinating colors that I could embellish to match the skirt,  but just couldn't come up with what I was looking for.  I did, however, have a ton of the knit leftover so I decided to throw caution to the wind and work up my very first t-shirt.  I'll be honest, sewing with knit fabric scares me.  Inset sleeves scare me. adding a neckband scares me.  Making up my own pattern scares me.  This was a BIG leap for me!  I took a t-shirt I knew fit her and used it as a pattern for the new one.  I kinda just winged it, but I think it turned out pretty nice!

I whipped up a little flower in matching fabric to add some feminine charm.  Turns out the outfit is great for jumping,

spinning,

and overall looking sweet :)

*lets all pretend we don't see those weeds in the patio, ok?  I can only handle on task at a time these days :) 

Its Coming!

Spring is coming.  Its truly on its way.  I can see it in the grass that is slowly getting greener, the CRAZY intense thunderstorms that come and wash away the last bits of snow, and the bright colors that are making their way out of  my closet and back into rotation.

I love accessorizing my wardrobe with handmade goods year round, but hadn't really found a great spring hat just yet.  I was asked this week to make a matching mommy/daughter set of Sweet Traditions hats and after finishing up the adult one I think I may have found the solution!  I think I'll be whipping up one of these for myself this year :)

Show and Tell

I have been slacking in my blogging as of late!  It has been a whirlwind around here with someone in the house being sick almost at all times.  I really think that from the moment we brought our youngest home we have not had one single 7 day period without someone having some form or illness.  I am still taking orders and finishing items, but getting around to blogging about them all is proving more difficult to find time for.  Good news is that the last 36 hours we've had some crazy winter weather (or Snowpocalypse according to some) and the kids have been off school.  We're off again tomorrow meaning I finally have a bit of a breather to get caught up on things!

So, here's a quick view of what I've been up to as of late:

I got "real" tags!  These woven tags are from Custom Couture Label Company on Etsy.  Dianna was amazing and a huge aid in helping me get just what I wanted.  I'm thrilled with how they turned out!  The second pic is the back-side of the smaller tags.

I made a beautifully soft and squishy blanket for Loree of Loree Alayne Photography to use in her shots.  I can't wait to see a sweet little newborn cuddled up on this!

Gina Giraffe is back, this time paired up with a Sweet Traditions hat. 

Inspired by the many beard hats floating around the internet, I came up with my own pattern and made a hat for my brother to wear on his ski trip in Colorado last week.  It was such a hit that I now have a line of 5 more hats that I'm working through for various family and friends.  My husband has had lots of fun modeling these silly creations for me!

I worked up this quick spring hat for my daughter in a fit of longing for warmer weather.  It will go great with her Easter dress this year.

And lastly, another photo prop for Loree Alayne Photography, a cute earflap hat with extra long ties.  The beauty of this hat is that it is a neutral color.  Left alone its great for boys, but add a little flower clip and you've got a darling girl hat too!

If you aren't already aware, Knits and Knots has a facebook page and I do a much better job of posting new pics almost daily there.  Come join the fun!

Owl Hat

I recently had a request for an owl hat to be used as part of a little boy's Halloween costume.  I thought the idea was brilliant, and couldn't believe I hadn't done something similar for one of my own children in the past!  Looking on Etsy I found a super cute pattern that allowed the user to sell items made from the pattern (not always true!).  While the pattern wasn't as thorough as I am used to I was able to complete the hat and make it look just like the example.  I was thrilled with how it came out!  It was made with a bulky yarn and is super soft and should be VERY warm, which is good since it was so cold at Halloween this year :)

The customer also requested some mittens made from matching yarn.  We chose to go with a thumbless mitt because of the age of the baby, and it had a connecting cord to keep those little mitts from getting lost when baby inevitably pulls them off!

Cold Season

Its that season.  The time of year where a warm sweater and hat are necessary in the morning, but by afternoon you wish you were in shorts!  I pulled out all of my kids winter wear this past weekend and thoroughly enjoyed watching them wear things I've made for them.  I realized this week that my oldest son has nowhere near enough handknits.  I guess I can add that to my Christmas list!

If you missed it, last week I did a brief giveaway on the Knits and Knots Facebook page.  Here's the first of the winning hats.  Its the ever popular Divine Hat with a special Saints black and gold flower.  The winner lives in Louisiana and requested a hat her daughter could wear to celebrate her favorite team for football season :)

Shirt to Dress Makeover

Today I turned this women's 2X shirt (found at a garage sale for $1!)

Into this girl's dress

Definitely had to sport the crossed straps.  Much easier to keep on my squirmy 5 yr old's thin shoulders.  Although you can't see it, they need a bit of tightening up.  That's what I get for trying to measure the straps on her instead of using a measuring tape!

Oh she's so sweet :)

Ok, now I officially am a slacker mom to my son.  I gotta figure out some boy crafts to do!

Divine Idea

So I actually have been doing projects over the last few months, but so many of them were repeats that I just didn't think anyone would be interested in seeing 200 Divine Hat or Gina Giraffe photos.  I have been refraining from posting multiple posts about the same pattern, however, we discovered two things when we were preparing to go sledding:

 piggietails fit perfectly through the holes in the Divine Hat!

and little girls look super cute this way :)