Custom order baking kit

Hi there!

I just wanted to share with you a custom order I finally completed this week. It is a baking kit for an 11 year old girl who also loves horses. My dear friend, Barb, gave me permission to use a print of one of her incredible horse paintings and I love how well it goes with the colors I chose for the box. I hope the new owner of the box finds it as lovely as I do!

 

Enjoy your week!

J xx

Flowers and Spots - Totes for kids

Green Flower tote bag

Denim spot tote bag

Pink Flower tote bag

Close up of stitching on flowers

It has been a busy couple of weeks around here with Spring in the air. We've planted flowers and herbs, cleaned the cellar (ugggh!), dug out a patch of grass in our backyard to plant a new flower garden that will help hide a not-so-attractive rock wall, taken several bike rides/walks through the woods and along the lake (see previous posts) and have just been enjoying the beautiful weather we've been experiencing (well, at least until Easter when the cold and rain returned...)! In the middle of all that, I had a special order for 3 tote bags for one little boy and two little girls! The basic totes were bought in the US a couple of years ago and have been sitting in one of my baskets waiting for inspiration to transform them into more than just a simple tote bag. Since flowers have been on my mind lately, I hand-appliqued some big, bright flowers onto the girls' totes, adding some buttons and ric-rac along the way. In order that the boy tote would last a bit longer, I went with big circles in stripes and polka dot fabric. I lined all the bags with coordinating fabric in order to hide the stitching inside - that was a bit tricky considering the totes were pre-made... I'm pretty pleased with how they all turned out and hope their new owners will also like them!

More to come soon!
J xx

Animal Zipper Pouch

Just wanted to share a little zipper pouch I made this weekend. My friend wanted a handmade gift for a friend who just had a baby and thought a pouch for holding creams, extra clothes or small toys would be great. The handle has snaps on it so it can be attached to the stroller, car seat or whatever Mommy needs to attach it to!

It's rainy and cold again here in Zurich and I look forward to seeing the sunshine again in a few days....

Have a good start to the week!
J x

Upcycled T-Shirt Dress for Miss A

When Miss A found an old shirt that my friend no longer wanted and thought I would like for making things with, she put it on over her clothes and said "I want it!"  I have to admit it looked cute on her with the exception that the sleeve holes hung almost to her waist... So, we "up-cycled" it by adding some lace trim along the bottom, a little ruffling along the top of the chest and made it a bit more A-line by taking in the sides so the sleeve holes were not so big. Add a pretty ribbon and fabric flower around the waist and voilà - a new spring and summer dress!  Think we might be making more of these this summer...

Have a great weekend!
J xx

Awake and Asleep Dolly

Dolly with her PJs and very own carry bag

I borrowed a book from my friend call "Mit Nadel und Faden" ("Made by Me" in English) produced by DK and written by Jane Bull. It has all kinds of handmade things for little girls who like to sew. I guess I am still a little girl in spite of my age as I found quite a few little projects in it to make while I've been stuck inside the house trying to recover from a horrible ear infection where I feel like I have those noise-reduction headphones on my head all the time - good for reducing the noise of bickering kids, bad for everything else!

Anyway, Miss A was so funny as we were looking through this book together and made a comment something along the lines of this, "Oh, I really like that. You can make it for me for Easter or maybe Valentine's day and I will forget about it by then and be really surprised!". Only a five year old would think like this! I just love it!  So, while she was at school, sleeping or playing with Daddy, I made the little doll pattern from the book. I remember as a child, I had a Little Red Riding Hood doll where one side was little red riding hood, the other side was Grandma and under her skirt was the Big Bad Wolf - I loved it! All three characters in one doll - what more could a girl ask for?!?!? This doll reminds me of the one I had as a girl and I hope Miss A enjoys it.

Dolly awake and ready to go out!

Dolly asleep in her PJs!

One side of her head has her awake and the other has her sleeping so you can play with the one that you like. The bow on her head is attached with a baby safety pin so it can be moved to the appropriate side and the clothes are all easy to get on an off (jacket is also attached only with a safety pin with a flower button on it. The floral skirt fabric was from one of Miss A's shirts that was too small but too adorable to throw out. The set is very light and Dolly has her own little bag so this will be great for traveling with. I'm thinking we will be making some more clothes for her, but that will be with the help of Miss A and her little sewing machine!!

Dolly's very own bag

Dolly going into her bag for a nice trip!

Have a good weekend and stay warm!!
Jx