Me & Mine project: Intro and a dress for me!

You know what's weird? How mechanics have broken cars, and builders have never-ending renos.. and sewing people never make things for their own family!  I'm forever being asked if I made the dress I'm wearing, or the clothes the boys are wearing, or, well, any fabric gift we give anyone.
And I very rarely have made those things. I am always so busy sewing up custom orders, or readymades, for Croutons - so sewing stuff for us seems less exciting, and less productive (due to not earning money from it!)
But, it sucks. Really, it does. Earning money is great (and much needed) but our kids are growing fast, and I really want them to be the type of grown-ups who complain about how Mum insisted on putting them in homemade clothes! Heh. And the ones who are embarrassed when Mum turns up to pick them up from a party wearing a homemade nana-frock. My best friend in primary had a Mum who made everything for her and her three siblings. Everything from jeans to undies!
(While I wish I could be that dedicated, I can't quite, but I want to at least make the undies...)

And, with that, I announce my personal project for this year. Inspired (heavily) by my friend Hazel (and also by Talia Christine!) I'm doing a 'Me & Mine' project.
I am not setting myself any numbers, but I want to greatly increase the amount of sewing/crafting I do for my family. I want to sew clothes, repurpose things, paint and decorate things, maybe even BUILD things? Who knows where this will lead.

Behold, my first project:

 

I've been wanting to do this for a long time, this was just the kick in the pants I needed.
I took one of my favourite vintage dresses - a style I have found many times, in many sizes, and is super flattering - and traced a pattern from it.

 

I took a duvet cover I found at the Sallie a few weeks ago, and I cut out the pattern pieces.
Then I whipped it up over the course of last weekend.

I was so pleased with how quickly it came together. And even more thrilled when my dodgy pattern taking technique actually proved to be quite accurate!!

I didn't need to alter many things, and I have taken some notes on possible improvements for next time. (Oh, there WILL be a next time - soon!)

 

I'm especially pleased with the pattern placement, totally worked out how it looked in my head. Love it when that happens!
I'm excited to be able to say 'yes!' next time someone asks me if I made my dress.

(Bonus shots of Mol modelling her birthday suit, and of my swish new non-frumpy-housewife haircut. Heh.)

A Baby Raccoon.

For Otto's party, I knew Mol needed to be a raccoon. I also knew she would definitely not leave a hat/ears/facepaint on. She's not a hat wearer at the best of times.

I've been in love with the Wild Things dresses for quite awhile now.

Had I been organised/flush enough, I would have purchased one of those. I'm not big on copying other crafters work, I promise.

I decided to have a go at making something similar.

I used a slightly different shaped dress, a reversible a-line dress. I knew I wanted it to be lined, for a bit of extra shape, so a reversible made sense. I didn't add the pockets, and I made my raccoon face quite a bit bigger. I used dome snaps on the straps, making it super easy to get on and off.

I made some little stripey leggings to be worn with it. For extra Raccoony-ness.

I had a bit of fun making this, and it did look cute on Mollie, but my version is no where near as gorgeous as the originals. Isn't that always the way? It's a good lesson, that I should have saved up/been organised and gone to the source : ) 
I dearly hope to purchase some of these amazing overalls for Mol before next Winter.
Anyone want to split postage?

Matariki Crafting Blog-hop : Upcycled merino tops.

I wanted to make something for this blog-hop, that would be used a lot. I'm so busy filling orders, that I felt a little guilty sewing something non-Croutons - the only way I could justify it was by sewing something that we genuinely needed.

If there's one item of clothing that never goes astray over Winter, it is merino tops. Am I right? They are pretty much the perfect item for layering, for both adults and kids. Not too heavy, but nice and warm.

I decided to my project would be a semi-tutorial on upcycling secondhand merino, into tops for kids.




With merino tops becoming more and more popular, the op shop racks are starting to have a greater population of them, too. If I see an adult's merino top, especially in a larger size, in good nick, then I nearly always snap it up. I generally pay no more than $5. This way, I always have a good stash for upcycling into clothing and hats for kids and babies.

For this project I used the 'Flashback Skinny Tee' pattern by Made by Rae, but you can use any t-shirt pattern you like. You can also make your own, by tracing around a tee your kids currently wear. There are some great tutorials for doing this on the net.

I cut the pattern pieces from the garments. I tried to use some of the details from the existing garments - the puff sleeves on the grey, and some seaming on the back of the red. I though that was a bit of fun.

Once I had cut out the arm and body pieces, I cut out some bands to use cuffs and bands around the bottoms and around the necks. For the red top, I also cut out a little collar (and a pocket I didn't end up using!)

 I used my overlocker to put the garments together, but you could do it with a regular machine (using a appropriate stitch and a ballpoint needle, of course!)

With the grey top, I added two little hearts cut from Tiny Happy fabric. I was really pleased with how it turned out. Love those sleeves!

The red top, though, was a bit of a fail.
I was one of those people at high school, who did their projects on the very last possible night. I always send swaps at the last possible minute, and I leave birthday presents until the day I need them. I tell myself it's because I work well under the pressure of a deadline - but, really, I'm just not very organised.

This top was a victim of that disorganisation - I left this project until this past weekend to do. And, in the rush to get it done, I cut out the wrong size pattern for the tops! Silly lady. The grey mernio was much finer, with a lot more stretch, so it's small but wearable. This red one is just too tiny.
(When she says 'skinny tee', she means it!)

Oh well, I'm sure I'll find a little lady to gift it to. As I said at the start, merino tops never go astray!

Thanks for joining me today! If you'd like to see some of the other posts in the craft-hop, head over to Tartan Kiwi for the full list, and more info.

Tiny Eyes and a revelation.

A little while ago, Dee invited me (and 6 other wonderful creatives) to design a Tiny Eyes doll. Eeep!

I jumped at the chance, of course.
But then the nerves started.
What will she wear?
Hooooly, the other designers are amazing!
What if I design a doll noone wants?

It turns out, it's really hard to design a doll!
I had so, so many ideas, it was really hard to decide quite which one to use.
I, initially, thought about doing a doll that looked exactly how I would like to look - tattoos, cute hair, peach and grey outfit, woollens, leather boots..
But, I reminded myself, I was asked to do this as Croutons, not as Rhiannon.

I had to think, long and hard, about what would best represent my brand.
(Sounds so flash calling it a brand!)
I decided, in the end, that the doll needed to be child-like. She needed bright, pretty colours. She needed vintage florals and polka dots. She needed a Croutons item of clothing, and a she needed a brooch, too.
She needed to be ridiculously sweet, with a little bit of quirk. Just like Croutons!

It's been really helpful, defining exactly what my brand looks like.
I feel a little like I have strayed from my 'look' a bit, in the past few weeks. I've had some custom orders for hoodies, that really haven't fit into my vision of Croutons. It's been good, and we've needed the money, but I'm really looking forward to taking a break from custom orders, and getting back to my own aesthetic, in the next few weeks.
Putting together the fabrics, choosing the colours and textures, is pretty much my favourite part of creating kidswear. I love putting that little bit of quirk in there - I don't get quite the same amount of joy with custom orders ( especially when I'm having to track down modern fabrics, in patterns I don't even really like!).
Turns out the 'feel' of Croutons comes from my eye for fabrics! I need to remember to run with that!

(Don't get me wrong, I'm incredibly grateful for any and all orders, the money and the love are gratefully accepted! I'm very thankful to be able to do what I do, and have it pay some bills is even more awesome.)

Weekly Mades (and a chance to win stuff!)

I had planned to write this post and be all 'Hey, pop over to Felt and check out these cool hoodies I just listed..' but, they didn't stay listed long enough to even begin writing this post!
I have been completely blown away by the response to these little jumpers - they sold in just 15 minutes, and I have so many orders that the waiting times are up to 3 weeks! Whaaaaaa?!
Luckily, I love love making them, and have quite a bit of sweatshirting fabric up my sleeve. 
Busy, busy, busy!

I also made a few pairs of shorts and pants - custom orders for lovely people. I especially love those bear pants and the sweet little indians on the red shorts! So cute and fun. Can you tell I am absolutely LOVING my work at the moment? Holy moley, so blessed to be able to make money from my hobby.



As a sort of 'Thanks', I'm hosting a wee giveaway for my customers over on my FB page.
For the chance to win one of two $35 vouchers (enough for a kids hoodie, or pants, or two brooches, or a bag etc..) all you have to do it send me (via email or FB) a photo of you or your child with/in an item of Croutons gear.
I ADORE seeing where my handmade goods end up - and, hopefully, you adore the idea of adding another piece to your collection - Win win, baby.

A Weeks Work.

I'm not going to lie, this is not actual not a weeks work. I just like the title!
I intended to post each week with the things that I had made that week, but I didn't factor in custom orders that wouldn't be able to be shown until they were received and things that I am waiting to chuck on Felt etc.
So, instead, heres a smattering of things I've made in the past two weeks.

These two hoodies were made for a sweet boy named Echo. His Mum and Dad are super wonderful, very supportive and have helped me with lots of businessy things lately. I know that they love to dress their kids in Croutons gear, and I'm so appreciative. I had heaps for fun putting together these jumpers for them, and for Echo.
(I was also stoked to receive a few custom orders when I popped these photo on Facebook. I'll be at Spotlight next week buying all sorts of cool fabrics to create the applique hoodies with - choice!)

I made these pants as a custom order for a lovely lady with twin boys. She loves colour as much as I do, and pretty much let me have free reign ( my fave!). The mail lady delivered them to her today - and she informs me the boys put them on straight away. Love it!

I made two pairs of these cowboy shorts. I've popped them in the Felt store.

It's lucky I also make Otto some Starwars shorts, otherwise he was about to insist he needed to keep the cowboy ones!
This fabric was given to me, in curtain form, by my best friend from primary school. These were her curtains when she was a little 'un. She tells me they were terrifying curtains for a little person - but I'm so thankful she (well, her parents) hung onto them! It's on of those fabrics I struggle to cut into. I like to only use tiny bits at a time. My kids have many Starwars patches and pockets in their futures. Haha.

My weeks work!

Over the past fortnight, I've been working on a big custom order of accessories. I can't show it to you juuuust yet - not until all pieces have been received by the people who are getting them.

It was so much fun to do something a little different, but it was also nice to be back at my sewing machine, creating little wearables again.

I whipped up five of these little sets this week; Two custom orders, two gifts for little friends' birthdays and one for Mollie.
I especially love the little (charcoal) merino leggings, I do so wish I could make some in my size! So snuggly. I hope their new owners will agree.

I also made this wee top, to match this pair of leggings that my Mum gave Mol after a recent trip to Cotton On Kids. The main fabric came in a parcel of fabric from the lovely Nin. It has a slightly brushed feel on the back, making it nice and warm.

These outfits are so much fun to make - and pretty much the perfect small girl get-up. The pieces work well together, but also as separates. And you can easily chuck a merino underneath, or a cardi on top, and they go through the cooler seasons, too. I have a feeling I'll be making many more in the coming weeks!

Presents from brubbas.

For Mol's birthday, I had an idea that it would be really cool for Aesop to make her a present. Normally, on siblings birthdays, a card is made and the present is bought. I am really keen to change this norm, and introduce more of the handmade into our gift giving.
I asked Aesop what he might like to make, and he said a teddy bear. I asked him to draw a, relatively simple, outline of the shape he would like it to be - and the picture above is what he came up with. I love the little stumpy leg.



Aesop carefully chose out the fabric, and the felt for the details. I had planned for Aesop to do the sewing himself, but we ran out of time a little so I sewed it up, and then he stuffed it with the polyfil. He was so incredibly proud of himself!

Meanwhile, Otto decided that he also needed to make Mollie a soft toy. Unfortunately for me, he didn't want to make a simple creature - he wanted to make a puppy and it had to look 'JUST like the picture, Mum!' I had just an hour up my sleeve, and things were going to be a little tight, but who could refuse a boy who made such an AWESOME puppy picture?

(Otto told me, after I had started, the black bit at the bottom of his face is a beard. Silly me, I thought it was his tongue!)



The boys were so stoked with how they turned out, they were almost bursting at the seams for Mollie to unwrap them - and as soon as she did, they grabbed them off her to show them to Abraham (and then to Mum and Dad and anyone else who would look the next day..) and they even insisted on taking them to bed that night! Haha Guess it's the thought that counts, right?





You can't see him in these pictures but, just off to the left, Otto is waiting for me to take the picture.. then he is going to swoop in and snatch the puppy back off Mollie. Poor girl! Haha.
Luckily it won't be too long before she'll be able to design a gift for Otto, which she can then refuse to actually part with!