Little Brother's Jacket

He may be considered the "little" brother because of birth order but there is nothing little about my little man! The kids wear the same size and they both wanted me to make jackets which I had never done before.

With his version I experimented a bit more (with technique). I still wanted a fun lining but I added a cord facing. I thought it would keep it more clean looking. I also played around with the sleeves which don't show.

Then I had to add the blue plane buttons to go with the lining and the under collar. Of course that is not in keeping with a pea coat but that is okay.


And I learned that the moment I start gloating to myself about how easy these new techniques were then I made multiple errors. The seam ripper was my friend. Or enemy.

But I look forward to making more of these coats.

But not the pockets. I still do not like pockets--my son uses them for things like rocks and mud.

Alice Criss Crossed

If you have seen Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland then you probably noticed that Alice's dress changes a few times. My daughter has been trying to get me to make her Alice dresses since she saw the movie the first time. (It is on my ever-growing list of things to do).
This shirred dress had been in the sewing room on my pile of projects needed to be completed. My three year old grabbed the dress and tried to explain to me that she wanted the straps like Alice(when Alice shrunk the first time). Since she has never liked wearing halter-style dresses before I refused. She then directed me to tie the straps like what you see above. (You should have seen me trying to figure out what she was describing).

She then wore her dress out on our errands and said she was a princess.

My mom believes that I am encouraging her to be too independent. But I like the fact that at three years she is clear about what she likes with clothes.

But may the good Lord help me when she is a teen.

A Grape it is Not

This is not the purple of a grape singing monster. This is eggplant with pizazz. It is a little bit of flare for my three year old. Okay, the lining with the purple now reminds me of Anthony from Designing Women which it did not last night; I will have to see what my daughter thinks about it.
The cord jacket is lined in a Michael Miller fabric and four slightly shimmering floral buttons decorate the front. With the black and white lining I did not want a really busy button.

But that did not stop me from adding something different to the under collar. A little secret.

And I already have one cord boot made for her.

Dream Big

"Living is a form of not being sure, not knowing what next or how...We guess. We may be wrong, but we take leap after leap in the dark." — Agnes de Mille, dancer
I love this photo. It speaks to the idea that I mentioned here about going after dreams. Although Button & Boo sells clothing and accessories I find myself wanting to be this woman in her cute skirt on her adventure. This mysterious lady jumps on her steed, um, bike for what ever lies ahead. She goes forward even though we cannot see where that may lead.

I keep finding these kind of images while I focus on what to do next with my new shop. If only I looked so cute while doing it!

QUESTION: What messages/images are paying attention to in regards to your dreams?

Christmas Banner

I thought it would be fun to make a banner this year.

After picking out the paper, tracing, cutting, and then using my trusty Mod Podge I then had to put in holes for the string. Luckily I had an awl. Ouch! Watch those fingers.

It was more time consuming to thread the rope through the letters than to do the other steps!

I am still on the fence on if I ought to glitter around the edge or use distressed ink....But for now I am excited about our new banner!

The Letter A

My two year old picked out the paper. I thought about embellishing it with rickrack, buttons, anything but my husband liked it this way. I did paint the edge of the letter red for a pop of color.

I used Mod Podge to attach the paper to the letter.

I played around with my new OttLight bulb. It was a real challenge to take a photo of a bright green wall no matter how "fancy" the bulb!

Only in a boy's room could dinosaurs be part of the decor:)

Elastic Skirt

I wanted to make a simple skirt for my daughter. Something that I knew would take only minutes. And with the requisite ruffle be in touch with her inner princess. It only takes two rectangles (based on her measurements), a double length for the black ruffle, and elastic. Easy peasy!
I cut two pieces of fabric about 22" X 12". I also cut two black ruffles WOF (width of fabric X 4.5"). Sew the sides of the skirt right sides together. (Tutorial for french seams on the way)


Sew the sides of the ruffle to make an extra large circle. Fold in half wrong sides together, press and gather. Pin to the outside of the skirt making sure to match the seams. Flip down and then topstitch.
For the waistband, fold 1/4" down then another 1". This forms the casing. Sew close to the edge and leave about 1.5" open. Insert elastic, sew the ends together and sew closed! (Sorry, I thought I had a photo of this step).

French fried tomatoes! Scandalously easy skirt. This is so easy you have plenty of time to embellish it with applique or fabric flowers, etc. You even have time to do the laundry but who wants to do that?

Autumn Treats

It is finally under a 100 degrees in this part of Texas. Which is cause for celebration and candy corn.
I do not, however, recommend attempting to photograph said candy corn with two toddlers in the room. It takes way too long to take photos.
But the audible sounds of glee as they discovered this new treat was well worth the time.

Universal Pacifier Clip Tutorial

Make a pacifier clip and coordinate it with matching burp cloths, blankets, etc for a great baby shower gift. Easy to make you will want to make more than one!

What To Do:
1. Cut out the fabric 3" X 9". Cut ribbon 7" long.
2. Fold the fabric in half longways with the Right Sides Together. Sew along the long edge. Then turn right side out. Press
3. Turn under the edges and slip the folded ribbon inside one edge. I topstitch around the entire length for a more professional appearance. This will also close the two ends.
4. Slip one end through the clip, fold over and sew. Your done!

Pumpkin Box Decor

My two year old son is fascinated by pumpkins. I thought it would be fun to make something with the kids and get in the autumn spirit.


STEPS:
1. I wrapped an empty pasta box with black paper. The kids thought I was "making presents."
2. Draw the pumpkin on orange paper and using an exacto knife carefully cut on the line. BE careful to not cut all the way to the end of the pumpkin to leave a fold. (Learn from my mistake!)
3. Glue around the pumpkin but not on the pumpkin.
4. Press down on top of the box and fold the cut pumpkin up.
5. We decorated the box with hand-drawn ghosts, BOO (used my Sizzix), more pumpkins.

Little hands helping...

About Little Andalucia

Andalucia is an area of historical significance in Spain. Known for the Alhambra, Moorish architecture, gypsies, flamenco, lace, vibrant colors, and the birthplace of Pablo Picasso I felt it was the perfect name for a new collection and brand for my creations. I dream of releasing a Spring line in 2011. And in the meantime, I craft through glue gun burns, ModPdge stickiness, and piles of forgotten projects awaiting my return. I create in an organized chaos!