Boys Can Wear Pink Season 5!

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"But, Pink is a girl's color" ...

Oh, my son. Have the previous 4 years not taught you anything? Pink is just a color. It does not belong to either gender.

After all. If Jason Momoa can pull off pink, and not just pink but pink Velvet, then any guy can wear pink!

Welcome to my stop and the last day of the "Boys Can Wear Pink" series! Such some awesome outfits this year. Don't forget to check them out after reading through this post!

Seriously though, 5 years ago Handmade Boy brought about the Boys Can Wear Pink series and it is still just as amazing!

Check out the past years we have made up by clicking on the corresponding picture! My little guy has grown in the past 5 years! And this year we added a little one!

What I sewed up this year is inspired by some finds from online. And my need to be carefree and worry-free. And don't mind my quick phone photos. It's been a whirlwind of events here testing my patience to make these "no worries" shirts! Missing camera, a baby not sleeping. But I did not give up! They are done! And, in true mommy fashion, I think my boys are cute!

So Shaka stenciled color-blocked tanks are just what seemed to fit the bill!

My big guy's top is a Maui Muscle Tee from Peek-A-Boo Pattern Shop. I color blocked in the pink and blue horizontal stripes.

My little guy's romper is the Romperall from Peek-A-Boo Pattern Shop.

And in true worry-free fashion, I totally got confused on the stenciling and put the Shaka on the back of the romper. I did not realize however until it was complete and after we wore it for a day (before I had taken pictures even!) I almost put his in the middle and I think I should have.

I did not fully think through freezer paper stenciling on a seam!

The entire time I was sewing up these outfits I had a song Husband and I learned on a bus ride to a luau while we were honeymooning on Oahu. "Just hang loose, and just have fun. Sitting on the beach lying in the sun"...  Oh, how I would love to be by a beach right now...

My big guy is excited to have a "no worries" shirt. And one that matches his beloved baby brother to boot!

And, don't forget to check out these other awesome makes celebrating that colors are just colors and are not assigned to a specific gender!

Monday: Wild & Wanderful

Tuesday: Handmade Boy max california

Wednesday: Tales of a Tester Handcrafted by RED

Thursday: it's Liesel Sprouting JubeJube The Fairy Dust Bin

Friday: Paisley Roots Made by Jack's Mum The Berry Bunch

2019 finish a long: quarter 1 goals

A goal this year is to have my sewing machine grace us with its presence out of its carrying case. And, not just during Halloween!

Samara's Quilt

This is my main priority. Gosh Golly, Gee Whiz. It needs to get done. I am such a sewing slacker!

What still needs to be done:

finish the last border (green fabric)

baste (the backing is a pink minky she had picked out)

quilt

bind (in a gray and white striped fabric)

label

Abacus Quilt

I have not the expectation to get to this. But, just in case.

I need to:

cut pieces

sew remaining blocks

assemble to top

border if necessary 

baste

quilt

bind

label

Band Shirt Memory Quilt

I am adding this in, though I am sure that I will not complete it (let alone even get to it!) this quarter. I'm debating another border or calling it good (I'm leaning towards calling it good!). The black large notes is a flannel and have since decided against that. The backing will be Jazz Jam from Andover Fabrics. The colors and notes are perfect for this quilt!

I need to:

baste

quilt

bind

label

First and foremost is Samara's quilt, since I haven't made her one in her 5.5 years of life. Poor Thing. Though I have made her more clothes than any of the other children. 

What do you have to finish?

Linking-up!

Back to School Wardrobe: Planning Update {kids clothes}

I know it's not back to school anymore. It's already nearing the end of the semester! But... Back in August I talked about the kids' clothes for going back to school and looked at different planning tools/worksheets with which to build their capsule wardrobe for school. You can check out that post here.

To be honest, that post super stressed me out. documenting what the kids had and trying to find the holes (which is what I have been attempting for my own wardrobe for the past, I don't know, 4 years?)... I gave up documenting the girls' clothes. We are blessed to receive hand-me-downs and it's not necessary at all. Through the good graces of friends, we have not needed anything for them.

My oldest is in need of clothes, however. I was still overwhelmed by trying to document and find holes in his wardrobe. Totally overkill for a 7-year-old who still has tons of shirts he has yet to grow out of and a taste as simple as {tee + pant + shoe} and an aversion to layering shirts. No button-ups over graphic tees, or graphic tees over polos here. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that maybe he might decide to try that combo. I always thought it looked rather sharp.

The simplest approach for this mom of 4 is simply, did we make it through the week without the blaring "mom, I have no clean pants!!!"? I've since put a box in the kids' closets and much better about telling them to take off what they are wearing if it doesn't fit and put it into that box.

We've since made it to the point where he is in need of pants (about another 2 pairs). I got lucky with clearance items at both Target and Walmart, but since have stopped looking. He could probably use a khaki pair and another blue denim. He has blue denim (2) and a black denim (1).

He is also in need of another 2-3 long sleeve shirts. He currently has 2 graphic tees (1 is getting a bit snug) and a long sleeve school shirt.

So, I'm making a plan. I miss sewing. I want to sew him a couple shirts, and maybe store buy another 1 (or 2).

Shirt 1:
He likes Spock from Star Trek (the original series) and a shirt for that would be awesome.

Looking at this picture, I am thinking a raglan maybe modified with a v-neck but without the high neckline. It's moments like this where I wish I had an embroidery machine, or cricut maker, or silhouette. The symbol will have to be freezer paper stenciled on.

Shirt 2:
He likes Pokemon. Now, with it being super popular I was hoping to find a shirt like this in kids sizing. I have not had luck in my semi-non-thorough search.

I will use a basic long sleeve shirt pattern and color block in the black, red, and white parts. I am thinking either applique the circle, or sew a set in circle. either are an option.

Shirt 3:
Who doesn't love comic characters? DC or Marvel, gotta love them all. Flash seemed fun (plus Sheldon had a few Big Bang Theory episodes where he "ran fast in the flash costume" according to N.
Now picture something like this...

in this pattern

It's the Thumbs Up Tee by OUSM Designs. (Feeling Nostalgic at the moment. Seriously, my little boy was so cute!) I will be freezer paper stenciling the symbol on the shirt too.

Fingers crossed I will be able to accomplish these things! My machine is still hiding in it's case!

2018 Finish-Along: Quarter 4 Goals {2018 FAL Q4}

How are we onto the last 3 months of the year 2018!?! Did you accomplish sewing last quarter?

Guess What?! I Didn't!

I have been so busy with having and taking care of a baby that I did no sewing what-so-ever last quarter. 

That's a pretty decent excuse, right?

I wanted to have Samara's Quilt done by the time she turned 5 (didn't happen) and then I wanted to have done before the baby was born (I was trying to get things ready for his arrival), and my sewing machine just did not come out of it's case. I have Halloween I need to do, so the machine is going to have to grace us with it's space it takes up for the next 2 weeks. Eeek! Thank goodness I am not going to sew 6 people's costumes this year.

On to my wish-to-complete list!

Samara's Quilt

This is my main priority. Gosh Golly, Gee Whiz. It needs to get done. I am such a sewing slacker!

Maybe I can have it done for her for Christmas? Though not as a present since she has watched this long drawn out process. And if I finish it sooner rather than later, I am not holding on to it until then. Maybe it might be nice as a Christmas Eve gift, but I won't wait. Ha! If it is done!

What still needs to be done:

• finish the last border (green fabric)
• baste (the backing is a pink minky she had picked out)
• quilt
• bind (in a gray and white striped fabric)
• label

Abacus Quilt

I have not the expectation to get to this. But, just in case.

I need to:

• cut pieces
• sew remaining blocks
• assemble to top
• border if necessary 
• baste
• quilt
• bind
• label

Band Shirt Memory Quilt

I am adding this in, though I am sure that I will not complete it (let alone even get to it!) this quarter. I'm debating another border or calling it good (I'm leaning towards calling it good!). The black large notes is a flannel and have since decided against that. The backing will be Jazz Jam from Andover Fabrics. The colors and notes are perfect for this quilt!

I need to:

• baste
• quilt
• bind
• label

First and foremost is Samara's quilt, since I haven't made her one in her 5 years of life. Poor Thing. Though I have made her more clothes than any of the other children. 

What do you have to finish?

Linking-up!

2018 Finish-A-Long: Quarter 3 Goals {2018 FAL Q3}

Motivation is a good thing to have but so hard to come by! My motivation to do anything is extremely limited.

Having accountability through friends, link-ups, you, my readers, is great too. On something like the Finish-A-Long, it is very one-sided. We, the crafters and bloggers, post and share what we are working on, making, sewing, creating and that's it. We hope for comments and responses but those are not all guaranteed to take place.

So, here I am hoping to keep my motivation up to complete at least 1 more quilt this quarter during the finish-along!

Samara's Quilt

I got the grey border added during the last quarter. I just need to:

• finish the last border (green fabric)
• baste
• quilt
• bind
• label

abacus quilt

I did not do anything with this one last quarter. I am really hoping I can get more of my craft space cleaned and organized. In my daydreams, it makes it easier to work on a project at this stage.

I need to:

• cut pieces
• sew remaining blocks
• assemble to top
• border if necessary 
• baste
• quilt
• bind
• label

Band Shirt Memory Quilt

I am adding this in, though I am sure that I will not complete it this quarter. I'm debating another border or calling it good. The black large notes is a flannel and have since decided against that. The backing will be Jazz Jam from Andover Fabrics. The colors and notes are perfect for this quilt!

I need to:

• baste
• quilt
• bind
• label

First and foremost is Samara's quilt, since I haven't made her one in her *almosr* 5 years of life. My time is quickly running down since the baby is due in about 7.5 weeks! fingers crossed! 

I'm hoping I can keep up the momentum with even 1 finish a quarter!

What do you have to finish? how do you keep the momentum going and the motivation when your discussing them others is extremely limited?

Linking-up!

2018 Finish Along: Finishes {18 FAL Q2)

Can you believe the year is halfway through already? The kids start school in about a week and a half!

This summer has been crazy with the kids losing their minds inside because it's just too darn hot to play outside and the only time it's cooled off is ... never! Usually, by now we have had a monsoon storm or two, but not this year. So we have not even gotten the respite from heat a storm gives.

I have managed a finish this quarter! (yay!) I only listed three in my FAL goals for this quarter.

Labyrinth Lap Quilt

You can check out the details here.

One is better than nothing! yay!

I added in the project planner from Sew Of Course into my bullet journal to keep track of all the finishes I have and what I have left to do for them. She has a pretty neat printable. I like the accessibility of having it in my bullet journal. Which I will have to move soon since I'm running out of pages in this one. LOL, but that's ok!

I am color coding by quarter what I have completed. orange was prior to joining back in, the pink was quarter 2, blue will be quarter 3. I've only listed 3 projects since those are all I can think of at the moment. I'm sure once I go through my craft space and organize it some (one of many nesting projects in the works as well), I will find more and write them down as I come across them.

How'd you do this last quarter?

Linking up to the Finish A Long! 

Organizing PDF Sewing Patterns {Self Care}

Organizing our things. How do we do it, how to get our plethora of junk squared neatly away in tidy places so we can find it when we need it and put it back when we are done with it? I am not the greatest at giving my things homes. I have too much stuff. And I am definitely not great at putting things away when I am done with it either, but I have been working on it and getting better.

But, as a sewist of PDF patterns, how do we organize those? And I am not meaning the ones already printed. I have yet to find a system in place for those. The hanging file folders in a crate is no longer working since it won't hold all of them! I am talking about those the digital copies we all have a knack for collecting.

Just having my pdf sewing patterns stored on Google drive, in a folder is starting to get a little bit stressful. I have a lot of patterns (not nearly as many as some though) and having them in one file got too cumbersome to sift through. Then I started separating them out by the designer.

It's really nothing special. But it does help a little. Surprisingly I am familiar with most the sewing patterns I have, but of course, tend to go to the same designers for the kids and certain designers for me.

Yet I needed a better way to catalog. So I went through and wrote down all the patterns I had in google sheets. I have them listed by designer, pattern name, the type, how many times I have sewn, and whether it is woven or knit (I think I may need to fix several).

Speaking of how many times I have sewn a pattern, these numbers are crazy and I definitely need to sew from my stash...
women's patterns owned: 52
                            Sewn: 17
                            Not sewn: 35...
                            that's about 33% of my sewing patterns I have sewn!
Kids patterns owned: 115
                      Sewn: 59
                      Not sewn: 56...
                      51% have sewn.

I locked the first row so I can sort the columns in alphabetical order by any of the categories. Which I love and has been a great help!

And I love having the different tabs at the bottom. Since In my folders the kids and adults patterns are all mixed in together, this makes it easier if I am looking for something for me or for the kids.

The kids' patterns I have listed the sizes so I can sort by size too.

I saw in one of the facebooks groups someone link to this tutorial from "Attack of the Seam Ripper" on using Trello to index your sewing patterns. Now, I am a huge fan of using Trello, but this process is taking me a lot longer than the spreadsheet! I am doing it a lot more slowly. I do love that I can link to the pattern I downloaded in google drive, I can link to project plans in another Trello board as I sew, and I can link those to my blog schedule board. 

I just don't know about organizing them at the moment, and I think I may end up changing the lists around. I'm just not super sure yet. But, it is neat to see them. all laid out so nicely.

There are so many different ways to organize your digital sewing patterns and to catalog them. How do you organize and catalog your sewing patterns?

Sewing a Mini-Capsule: Update {Self Care}

At the end of March, I shared with you my plans for sewing a mini capsule. Or rather, filling in the holes of what I currently have. Now that it's the end of Me Made May, I'm ready to share my updated mini capsule.

And, now you know our big news you can understand my need for a mini capsule! One of the reasons I have been kind of working on the wardrobe is I had gotten rid of a bunch of my maternity wear way before baby 4 was even close to coming. I was fighting through this winter with elastic around the button of my only jeans that didn't kill my hips until I *finally* made my Love Notions Maternity Sabrina Slims and a friend giving me a pair of rtw skinny maternity jeans (among other awesome items).

I used the book The Curated Closet By Anushka Rees to help me out a little bit too. Mostly colors and what kind of items. I have way more than enough skirts for my lifestyle. Even if they are super comfy in the heat. You can read what I had to say about it here.

Here was the plan (using the 4x4 wardrobe sheet from Vivienne Files)...

And what I have now...

<img 4x4 update>

Added Items:
Ponte A-Line Skirt

Grey shorts

Mint Tank
Purple Tank
Maxi Skirt
Denim Capris

Ponte A-Line Skirt

Using leftover fabric from the navy Ponte pants I made a while back I made a knee length A-line skirt. Instead of gathering the waist of the skirt I decided to go with about 2" box pleats. They are far from perfect, don't sew pleats when the kids are awake and messing with you. Trust me.
 I've been wanting a pleated skirt for a long while. I would have preferred it in brown, like a faux suede, but that wouldn't fit in with my clothes and probably wouldn't ever get worn. It may be better in a woven material than the knit, but it didn't require any extra purchases! It's not a "love it!" item, but it is sufficient for now. I discovered this fabric pills horribly after several washes, so this is just going to be a seasonal item. 

Grey Shorts

I was given some grey shorts and decided to add those in place of the pinstripe grey pants! They are super comfy, and perfect for our southwestern desert heat. I'm super excited to have these and have worn them quite a lot recently.

Mint Tank

I used some leftover fabric from Halloween this last year and made myself a knit top using Pattern 4 Pirates Layer Me Up Shirt cut as a tank. It is so nice and cool in our really warm weather though I don't know how long it is going to last since I had to get creative about cutting it out of the leftover fabric. (shame on me, I know) ... I have had a really bad case of forgetfulness and ended up having to restitch the neck binding on twice! I don't know what I was thinking messing up the ratios as bad as I did. No matter how hard you try quartering the binding is not going to match up with the shoulder seams. Gapped in the back and super stretched in the front just looks so bad! I almost didn't fix it, but so glad I realized there was just no pulling off a poorly attached neck binding.

Purple Tank

This fabric is leftover from a project I had intended to make for the girls but ended up not for some reason. It's from one of those buys where you just get yards upon yards and then never use it. But it was perfect for this project, and I have room to grow. It's the Pattern for Pirates Free Spirit Tank. Super comfy. Super slinky, and super stretchy. I might make another top out of this material. Goodness knows I have plenty of it!

Maxi Skirt

I switched out my mint cardigan for a flower print maxi skirt. I got this from a LulaRoe seller who was closing up shop and selling everything discounted (IMO that's the best time to buy LLR pieces because they are way too expensive!) And I love the material. Perfect in the summer heat!

Denim Capris

I traded out pants for these capris. I am thinking I would much prefer shorts. These, I thought I got rid of, came from a time of my life when I disliked showing off my thighs in public and refused to wear shorts. I have since discovered how much more comfortable shorts are and have gotten over my thigh insecurities.

I'm super happy with how these outfits are turning out so far... (forgive my not so good phone pics, I was rushing through naptime)

Seriously!? So many outfits from a 4X4 Wardrobe from Vivienne Files! And that's not even all of them! I missed the ponte pants with a couple of the shirts! I am impressed. Now to just work on styling with jewelry, changing out shoes, and my hair (cause I am so tired of a bun and so want a haircut!)! 

Now what?

I'm thinking the cardigans need to be switched out for something else. Just one was not enough and I don't need them for the weather we have now. At least that is what I am thinking. Another top in that color, or a tank so I have a sleeved and non-sleeved option. I will need to sit on that one a little bit more. But now that our temperatures have hit a high where layering is just too much with the heat, I am thinking switching them out will be best. A lot changes in two months! I need to work on these things faster! LOL!

Although, I did pick up some cute leafy green patterned olive semi-sheer knit (mystery, it was from Walmart).  I am thinking it would make a perfect kimono. I assume that would make a cute layering piece and if not a cute swim cover. Not that I ever go to the pool. I added it into the plan, but with the gray. I think it should change places with the cream. But isn't it lovely?

I am also thinking of trading out my ponte pants for another pair of shorts. I haven't been wearing those either, it's just too hot and I can't handle the heat right now!

Had you been working on some self-care sewing?

Labyrinth Lap Quilt: Finally Finished {Quilting}

I have about 4-5 posts scheduled to go live on this blog. The only thing those posts are missing is the pictures to go along with the writing. Sadly, my little boy is not cooperative after pick-up from school. I am assuming he's just overtired. After all, it's been a long time since they got a break even with the recent teacher strike that went on. And some of the things I have to share are dependant upon the one post with the kids! I might need to rearrange the posts!

I realized after the kids were making a fort because they used it, that I finished one of the quilts I set out to finish this quarter as part of the Finish-a-long! You can check out the goals I posted here. And I needed to take some pictures of it to share it with you! The camera was charged and ready to go! Pictures are going to happen!

This pattern is called Labyrinth (not to be confused with Labyrinth Walk) and you can find it here. My mom picked it up to sew my brother a queen sized for his bed. I decided to give the lap size a try since it was simple. A selling point to this pattern was no y-seams or diamonds. At the time (over 5 years ago now!) I had not known how to do y seams. Yes. This has sat unfinished that long...

It's a great easy sew. All half square triangles.

I attempted to get some up close of the quilting. I used it to practice my free motion quilting. I am going to have to practice more than once every few years if I plan or hope to make any improvements! Ha, but my writing is shaky enough as it is, there is probably not a ton of chance my movements with the machine will smoothen out!

My favorite quilting was in the gold square surrounding the star and the purple parts to the star.

The back shows the quilting a little bit better than the dark purple thread on purple...

I did not originally plan on using this fabric for the back of this quilt. It really didn't have a purpose when I bought it, but I was not a fan of the two patterns together. For the sake of completion. I decided to go with it anyway. It's interesting. It's growing on me.

But I think it contrasts well with the front even if I would rather not have used it as a backing.

I hand stitched the binding too! Something I have practiced more than FMQ and it is so hard not to hand stitch a binding down. I think the finished look is just so much nicer! At least for me! Ha, squiggly binding anyone? No?

The next morning (since I finished it after midnight) the kids had commandeered the quilt and promptly put it to use making forts. That tells me it's a win!

What finishes do you have so far this quarter?