Picture Day... And A Minnie Mouse Party!

My girls LOVES princesses and Minnie Mouse. For her 5th birthday, she had a Minnie Mouse party. So while testing the Olivia Bloomers and Pantaloons for Made for Mermaids (seriously, the easiest an fastest you will ever sew), I made Jenna's party dress, the Minnie Mouse Tunic also from Made for Mermaids. She LOVES this dress. It doesn't itch one bit, which is more than we can say for the Minnie costume she has from the store... yes, we buy those too.

So here was the party. The kids helped make the gift bags and the ears. I used a tutorial from The Suburban Mom to sort of make mine. I skipped the felt and just did them all with foam. I also bought black headbands instead of covering some. Then we cut out foam bows. And do be careful with your glue gun... those suckers get hot!

So where does picture day come into this blog? I'm getting there. Jenna has picture day tomorrow. Tomorrow. I have known this since last week, but I've been busy. So I opened her closet and cheerfully suggested she choose a pretty dress for picture day tomorrow. Her face lit up! She knew just what she wanted to wear! She grabbed her Minnie Tunic and said "THIS!" Umm, not what I had in mind... but she did choose something mama made! So she's wearing outfit to school pictures. It should be interesting! And if you're in love with this dress... it's on Etsy!

Back to School with SewMcCool/Birdsong

I was so thrilled to test for the very first time for Birdsong. You may know her, like myself, from the very wonderful blog SewMcCool. The best part about this test was that it's actually something my girl wants to wear, especially to school! These patterns are included in this months OneThimble, Issue 8, so be sure to head over there and check it out! If you're new to OneThimble, they are an amazing Aussie e-zine for sewists. Definitely head over to see what else they've got!

What do I look for in a school clothes pattern? Umm, it has to be knit (easy care and comfy) and something in which she can dress herself. This set of patterns hits that and more! She Swing Set Skort and Butterfly Blouse are perfect for back to school sewing! (My kids started this week! I'm FREE!)

The Butterfly Blouse features the most adorable little pleat on the front. Seriously, could that get any more adorable? The sleeves are nice and loose with a beautiful drape (a lighter weight fabric than what I used would lay even nicer). My girl can't stand tight sleeves, so this pattern was a win!

The Swing Set Skort is the best for school because it has built in shorts!!! You can do alternating panels like I did or do them all in one color. I liked the look of a cheer skirt and went with it. My girl LOVES this! She loves that she can run and jump and tumble and not show off her Minion panties (Although sometimes I think she does want to show off her Minion panties. Those were a very exciting purchase!).

The patterns are very easy follow. The skirt sews up quicker than you expect. I did use washable hem tape to get a nice, even hem without taking forever to pin perfectly. The top sews up very quickly. I was surprised when I finished it and had been working for less than 90 minutes (and it wasn't uninterrupted either!). So be sure to tell me what you think in the comments below and then head over to OneThimble to see these patterns and more!

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The Hipster Twister Dress

Okay, I confess. I hate ironing. I love handmade, boutique clothing, but I hate the laundry work that goes with it. I never follow my own care instructions... But I love knit. It's why I sew so much with knit! So when I saw Little Lizard King coming out with a new knit pattern, I jumped in on the action.

The Hipster Twister is amazing! The shoulder flutters are even knit! This is the easiest piece of clothing to wash! I love it! And it's super easy to sew! Seriously, I can't say enough good things about this pattern! Jenna loves the twirl. It comes with two other skirt options, including one for wovens (but who wants to iron those?).

This dress is comfy! With an all knit bodice and fixed straps, it's easy for little ones to dress themselves and you don't have to worry about a bow in the back bothering them while strapped into car seats! This is going to be one of our back to school staples!