slip covered hair clip : a tutorial

If you have girls or are a girl, you know about those painful-rip out your hair metal hair clips. I don't know how many brands I have tried. The packaging always promises that they won't hurt. But they do. 

Having acquired quite a collection of these hair rippers, I had enough. I refuse to buy anymore. Instead I came up with this idea...little slipcovers. Covering anything in cute fabric is great and the fabric also alleviates the hair ripping. 

It works for all sizes and shapes. 

This is how you do it...

Grab those old biting clips.

Trace clip onto the wrong side of your fabric. Make sure that the fabric is folded so you have a front and back to sew together. I happen to be recycling a carrot print boxer short.

Sew it up first, then cut it out close to your stitches. Leave the wide part open at the top (where I have the little mushroom acorn). Make sure you secure the beginning and end of those stitches so they don't open up.

 The trickiest part is probably pulling this thing inside out. Especially if it is real tiny. But, you can do it! I use an assortment of tools (and my teeth), whatever it takes to get the job done. Cut yourself a little slit on the backside. Right where my scissors tip is pointing. If you don't make that slit, it won't work.

Slipcover pulled onto your clip, you can glue it into place or tack it down with a few hand stitches. I ended up gluing this one because I didn't leave enough on the end to sew. Let that be a lesson to you! Leave more fabric on the end, sewing it makes a nicer finished clip. 

And there it is, carrot clip. No longer a menace to our tender heads.

Let me know if you give this a try.

Talk of Spring

I really want to talk to you of Springtime, birds and bright colors popping up out of the ground. But I can't because here in NY, right now...it is snowing! Not just a few flurries, it's coming down fast in big clumps. 

Instead, to satisfy my need for the cute and colorful I will show you this gift that I crocheted for a little friend. I also made a cotton lunch sack to store it in when not being played with using one of my favorite japanese fabrics. 
It evokes a day that I am eagerly awaiting. A day of blue sky, warm sun and pretty picnic. 

Queen ALICE Doll

The nice person who purchased my MAd Alice doll commissioned me to make her a companion doll. I have been itching to make another Alice, all I needed was this fresh kick in the pants to actually do it. She suggested I make Queen Alice from 'Through the Looking Glass'. I picked fabric and trims that evoke a playing card, chess game feel but that didn't scream it. I wanted her crown to be too big for her, for her eyes to be piercing like a cat, but not obvious cat eyes.

This doll went through a couple of major changes before she finished up looking like this. First she had platinum blonde hair in a very uptight up-do twist.  She also has a full length gown. She looked very royal, very much a queen. But she wasn't playful or childlike in any way. So, I took off the fancy hair and went with a crazy bright curly head instead. That did the trick. Immediately she became younger and much more fun. After the adventure Alice goes through to reach the other side of the chess board she should be at least a little messy.

Next to go was the gown. I cut it to tea length to show off stripy leg warmers and a flash of ruffled bloomer. I was pretty happy with her at this point. I thought she was finished.

Then my daughter mentioned how Alice shook The Red Queen into the black kitten at the end of the story. I added the kitten. It adds to the story, but doesn't interfere with the look of the doll.

`And as for you,' she went on, turning fiercly upon the Red Queen, who she considered as the cause of all the mischief -- but the Queen was no longer at her side -- she had suddenly dwindled down to the size of a little doll, and was now on the table, merrily running round and round after her own shawl, which was trailing behind her.

At any other time, Alice would have felt surprised at this, but she was far too much excited to be surprised at anything now. `As for you,' she repeated, catching hold of the little creature in the very act of jumping over a bottle which had just lighted upon the table, `I'll shake you into a kitten, that I will!'

She took her off the table as she spoke, and shook her backwards and forwards with all her might.

The Red Queen made no resistance whatever; only her face grew very small, and her eyes got large and green: and still, as Alice went on shaking her, she kept on growing shorter -- and fatter -- and softer -- and rounder -- and --

-- and it really was a kitten, after all.

two little beardy men

Remember those little doll skins I found?  I ended up using them to teach a few of my daughter's friends how to make dolls. They each got a doll skin of their own to start with. They had fun putting hair and clothes on them but when it came time to put on the faces all the girls froze up. They said they didn't want faces after all. 

I know exactly how they feel. I actually made these two little chaps quite a while ago. I was very excited to try out facial hair. But when it was time to paint their faces on I too froze. The face can really make or break a doll. It either makes it come alive or kills it. 

I finally just did it, I cleared an afternoon and made a date with Mr. Tumnus and Mr. Gnome. The Gnome came to me pretty quickly, but I had trouble with Tumnus. In fact I disliked what I had done so much I painted over the whole thing with skin color and started over. I am very happy with both of them now. When my daughters scream and beg me not to sell dolls I know that I got it right. They squeaked for these two little chaps so I think that they are all right. They are currently in my etsy shop if you would like to see more of them.

Sleepy Hollow Acorns

Looking for a little treat without calories or sugar? Try my little acorn cushions. I just finished a batch and FINALLY added a new item to my Etsy Shop. These spookies were actually gathered from the grave site of writer Washington Irving in Sleepy Hollow NY. 

This huge ancient oak towers over the other trees at the Sleepy Hollow Cemetery and just happens to be in the private family plot of Washington Irving. It showers the ground with these little shaggy capped acorns. 

Irving's grave is the one decorated with flags and pumpkins. Quite humble, not what one would expect from the writer of such stories as The Headless Horseman and Rip Van Winkle.

 I gathered my acorns on an overcast, drizzly October day. Noisy ravens perched on the tops of gravestones. It could not have been a more perfect day for my spooky task.

I was determined to stay until my basket was full even though it started raining. I did fill that basket and I ended up with a stow away.

My Spooky Acorns would make a nice addition to your Autumn nature display or could even be a stocking stuffer for those people on your Christmas list who enjoy the eerie all year round.

Magical Rat Creature

We usually spend Labor Day visiting or being visited by friends or family. Since everyone has the day off work and school it's a good time to get together. B-B-Q and pool time. But this year the weekend leading up to Labor Day was enough socializing for my family. Saturday we went to the NY Ren Faire. My big girl was an elf and my small one was a fairy. (I finished my costume sewing as we walked out the door!) 

On Sunday we had church and then our church's end of summer B-B-Q. We got home late and all agreed that we would stay home alone the following day, even though it was Labor Day. We just wanted to relax by ourselves. I'm so glad we did. We had a great day and my older daughter had a nice long chunk of time to make this magical rat creature.

His name is Thaddeus and he has quite a lot of personality. She used Sculpy clay for his head and feet and made his plush plump body out of fake fur that she picked up at a tag sale.

Thaddeus has a wire in his tail, so he can hang on or even hang upside down. We took him out shopping with us and people kept asking me if he was real! 

Fox stole and Barbie shirt

Well, I finally finished my daughter's Fox Stole. I haven't been in the mood to knit if you can believe that. 

With the garden and other outdoor activities to keep me busy it was a struggle to finish it up. We really do like how it came out, so there will be more foxes in the future. We're already playing with the colors and sizes.

I made this shirt a couple of days ago. I asked my daughter what she thought about it. "It looks like a Barbie shirt", she answered. 

I have a collection of Barbie and Dawn Dolls and their clothes. I especially go for the mod era.  Maybe she connects it with the first Barbie's black and white striped bathing suit. Her comment made me wonder if this shirt really did come from all the doll clothes embedded deep in my psyche.

Bag Refashion: cute fabric is the cure

I've been using this lunch bag for over a year. It comes with me every time I leave the house. It totes water, tea, books, snacks and whatever else the day calls for. It usually comes back with more than we left with: sticks, rocks, flowers, leaves...bugs. For some unexplainable reason whichever bottle I use inevitably leaks tea all over the bottom of the bag. It has been washed and dried so many times but the tea stains remain. 

After the latest washing I noticed not only is it still stained, but it's looking quite ragged and faded from the multiple drying sessions. Lately I found myself Looking at and examining lunch bags when shopping. I feel guilty, I have a perfectly good bag...sure maybe it's ugly but it is completely functional. I secretly wished the dryer had torn it up a bit to justify a purchase. "I'll dye it!", I thought.  One of my tried and true ways to quench my urge for the new is to dye.

I wanted red, I dyed it red. It didn't come out red. It came out a pink that actually looks much better in this photo than it did in real life. I didn't like it, Mama Doll didn't like it. I was so close to buying a new bag. The doll gave me the answer!

She was sitting on my work table next to the bag and it hit me. "I have a bit left of that matryoshka fabric, hmm let's see if there is enough". I made a slip cover of sorts. I had just enough fabric with nesting dolls (and adorable animals) for the front.

There was enough of the small print to cover the rest.

It's so cute!

The new fabric is quite soft, it would not hold up to the wear and tear that the bottom will take. So I left the bottom as is, a nice tough black canvas. Mama Doll agrees, this fabric was the right choice.

Hello Chickadee!

We were walking through a park eating popcorn. There were a bunch of chickadees fluttering around us, my husband suggested that we hold some corn in our hands for the chickadees. He said they would land on us to eat it and they did! These little feet felt so light and cold.

They landed on all of us and kept coming back for more until all of the popcorn was gone. They are very brave for such little birds. Maybe they are just very greedy!

We get quite a few chickadees at our bird feeder at home too. We have a certain couple that my girls have named Timothy and Nellie. They make up extensive stories about them. While watching them at the feeder one morning (and telling the tales), my daughter sketched them. Later that day she took her drawing upstairs and returned with a felt chickadee. He has little glass bead eyes and a soft yellow tinged belly. He sat on our kitchen windowsill for months. Other crafty things the girls made joined him there. It got a bit cluttered looking, so I had the idea to string them all up. They are not piled up, falling on the floor, or ignored. Instead they now bring life to an otherwise empty corner.

Doll Skins

When we are cooped up in the house as we have been, my girls rummage through my stuff. My closet is filled with interesting boxes, baskets and bins containing objects waiting to be rediscovered. I have a large bin filled with my childhood dollhouse furniture and miniatures. I have huge fabric bins, yarn bins, vintage clothes and shoes for dress up (I've seriously got at least 5 cloaks), embroidery supplies, beads, my grandmas jewelry (and mine), hats and DOLLS. 

Vintage Barbies and Dawn dolls, my Sashas, dollhouse dolls, a suitcase of 18" dolls and another suitcase of clothes for them. There are also dolls that I have made over the years. Some have sentimental value because of the times in my life that they were created. I call them my "therapy dolls". There are also dolls I made with the intent to sell, but my girls won't let me because they have fallen in love with them. There are too many of these. 

 So my young one was rummaging and found a pile of what I call "doll skins". I just stuffed them and I am about to breath life into them. I am looking forward to it, it's been a while since I made a doll. I have been knitting too much! I have these ideas for male dolls. I really want to put some beards on! Stay tuned for who will emerge from this pile of skins. If my girls will let me, I will put some into my Etsy shop. We'll see how that goes...

You never know.

 I sat in the dermotolagist's office waiting and fretting. I was there for a procedure that the doctor assured me would take all of 15 minutes. Such a short visit I could surely bring my girls and leave them in the waiting room. 

Well, it actually took two hours. That's were the fretting came in. I wondered how my 9 year old was holding up with nothing to occupy her. She's the type who just can't sit still. Thoughts of her bouncing off the walls and her sister getting really annoyed with her made me anxious.

 I had left a Molly Makes magazine with them. I brought it along for me to look at while waiting. When I finally emerged I found them o.k. (but hungry!) and that aforementioned 9 year old immediately started telling me about all the animals she was going to make. 

The next morning, all by herself  she made this adorable lion and a wolf. Today she made a Kangaroo with a baby in it's pocket. She's not done yet. She has a pile of felt ready to go. We will soon have an ark full of creatures.

There I was thinking the worst, worrying for no reason. It made me think how often this must happen. How our imaginations run wild, making a neutral situation into a bad one. We never think that good might come from an unplanned (maybe even unpleasant) situation. Most times we  fall into the habit of expecting the worst. 

But really you just never know.

4th of July dresses

 I finished my dress just in time to wear it for the 4th of July. My french vibe picnic was complete. We strolled through an amazing sunken garden, had our picnic (pan bagnat, pickled crudite, and dark chocolate truffles), saw a Duke Ellington tribute concert with fireworks to finish it off.

 The dress is so light and comfortable, it's like wearing your coziest cotton nighty. I wore it again today to church because it was so hot out. We don't have air conditioning yet so we had the service outside. The property is edged with woods and thickets of wild blackberries grow there. After church my little one and I picked berries to make Vitamix ice cream, a real treat after such a hot day.

This time last year I was on a gingham kick. I bought yards of gingham in all colors. My family and I went to the same place for the 4th that we went to this year. It has become a tradition. With gardens, concert and fireworks it's the perfect place to celebrate. Last year I made and wore this brown gingham dress and we had a classic Americana picnic. Who knows what will strike my fancy for the next Fourth of July. 

French picnic vibe

 Maybe it's because I'm reading 'Alice Waters and Chez Panisse' or maybe it's just because it is summer that I am in a french picnic mood these days. The Chez Panisse book is extremely inspiring. Alice has an infectious way about her that makes you excited for the things that she is excited about. Yesterday I served a bunch of friends baked cheese and fruit poached in spiced wine. Not something I would have come up with on my own. Today I pulled out one of my all time favorite books for food and garden inspiration, 'Monet's Table' and another little gem, 'Picnics of Provence'. It's small but packed with Van Gogh paintings and delicious recipes, food for the eyes as well as the stomach. I usually pull both of these books off the shelf right about this time every year, but reading the Alice Waters book pushed me a bit farther over the french edge.

Not only am I planning a series of french summer picnics, but I am fixating on the perfect summer dresses for them.  I picked up 20 yards of nice rose patterned fabrics to play around with in not so typical floral color combinations. This one is cream with dusty rose flowers and grey foliage. The one above is grey with brown, purple and blue, unusual and lovely. So, today I am working on a pattern from my last summer beach dress because it is the most comfortable dress there ever was. I'll keep you posted on the progress of my french picnic dream.

Yes- another sweater

Another sweater from that dreaded pile is complete! I really like this one. Very cozy and perfect for layering, which I am doing a lot of these days, it tends to go from chilly to sunny hot. This pattern 'Rosa' it is from Louisa Harding, The Design Collection. I stitched it together on the machine again. So far I like better than by hand, for the ease as well as the look of nice tight straight seams. I'll let you know if it causes problems as it wears.

What I love most about this sweater is the belled sleeves. I will definitely make it again, maybe in fluffy moss green.

the coat:the project

It all started with this coat. My husband was shopping for a winter coat. He lost weight after finding out he has diabetes and all of his warm coats look like tents on him. He was trying on coats, I was hanging around waiting to give my opinion. That's when I spied the faux fox collar poking out from the sea of black and gray. I meandered over just to touch it. I tried it on and looked in the mirror. I was smitten. 

From that moment on I needed a coat like that. I have never worn a light colored coat...ever. It's all black and reds over here. 

My logical (frugal) mind said, "But you do not need ANOTHER coat." OK,  but now I really really want a coat with a collar like this. Isn't it funny how you could have no idea that you "need"/want something until you see it. The advertisers can count on it. I walked away with that coat stuck deep in my mind. 

So, I made a deal with myself. I decided to look at it as a project, a puzzle. I calculated the amount of money it would cost (not to mention time and effort) to make the coat. Way too expensive and thinking about putting in that lining made me sure I wasn't doing it. I began scouring Ebay for a wool camel colored coat. 

 I struck gold with this beautiful vintage coat. I always say that God loves to surprise us with little treats and it's true. I bid on it and waited. Nobody else bid and I got this coat for $7.50!! The original coat had cheap black plastic buttons ( I would have changed them). My coat has gorgeous big wooden ones. It is beautifully tailored, the lining is perfect.

 Now, about that fur collar. Again it was Ebay to the rescue, I found the perfect faux fur. Just what I wanted, it was around $15 for 1/2 yard. Yay! 

I love this coat way more than the one I first had my crush on. It's longer, the fabric is richer, the color, cut and fit is perfect. I don't even like the other one at all when compared. Isn't it funny how fickle we can be? In our instant gratification culture it can be hard to wait for something when you want it badly. Every single time I have waited though it has been well worth it. 

More Sheet Magic

It started when I bought a backpack to use while on vacation. We would be taking a ferry instead of our car. That put a damper on my usual way of packing. I tend to bring all the comforts of home: my drying rack for all those wet towels and bathing suits, my electric kettle and coffee press, teas, "real" cups for us all. You get the picture. Once I even plotted how to take (smuggle) a sick guinea pig on vacation with me. (My husband put his reasonable foot down on that one.) Now, we each were to have one rolling bag and one back pack. A week before we left I found a back pack I could live with, it's purple and blue and flowery. Blue? Mind mind starts turning. Now I want some blue/purple clothes to go with it. I have one week and no money to use for wardrobe. I head to my trusty fabric stash. I find a blue patterned sheet that I got at a garage sale for pennies and a small piece of purple jersey. With no time to waste I forego using patterns. Sometimes I decide not to sew at all because I dread the nonsense of dealing with patterns. It's happened that after unfolding, folding, cutting, reading, sewing I end up with a garment that doesn't fit me and that I don't even like. So this time I grabbed a couple of garments that fit me well, I layed them right on the fabric and just cut away. This cut my work time drastically and gave me a perfect fit. I made this wrap around tie skirt and a purple shell to wear with it.

  I find a long, loose, cotton dress the best thing to put on my sun drenched body after spending all day at the beach. Of course I don't want to look like I'm wrapped in a old soft sheet, even though I am! For this one I used a favorite 20 year old Cynthia Rowley dress. I'm glad that I've kept it all these years, it's tattered and has pills but the fit is still great.
My vacation book, Wren Bay was wonderful. I devoured it.

"There is something satisfying in taking what one already has and using it in a new way."
from Wren Bay, the story of making a home