New summer dress

I have been wanting to make one of those cute, long maxi dresses. I wanted a halter style, so I decided to use Amy Butler's Cabo Halter for the top part, since it was the only pattern I had that resembled what I wanted and I needed(wanted) to start sewing immediately LOL I just made a gathered skirt to attach to the bodice. I used the sheets I had bought from Target because I wasn't sure how it would turn out and needed a lot of fabric. I didn't want to waste some expensive fabric in case it was a disaster. I really love the print and the sheet fabric is so crisp and cool, perfect for a summer dress.

For anyone who hasn't made the Cabo Halter, it is VERY low and kind of gaps open, especially if you are any bigger than an A cup. I had to fix this because I don't think it is appropriate for a 37 year old mom of 7 to be walking around with her boobs hanging out, plus my 16 year old son would have just died of embarrassment LOL I had to add a little strip across the front and top stitch everything together. Even after doing this, the top is obviously not made for a woman with boobage. I am not huge, on the small side of a 34D and I am bursting at the top. I really needed to make a full bust alteration, but I don't know how to on a halter top. It kind of just smashes my boobs. It is still very wearable, and besides feeling a little tight across the chest, I really love it. The skirt part is loose and flowy and so cool in this South Louisiana heat!


Dh took the pictures while laying on a float in the pool, so they aren't that great LOL Plus he was trying to get me to make sexy faces at him, which grossed the kids out! I spared y'all those pictures, they are more goofy than sexy. The lighting is terrible, but you can get an idea of what the dress looks like. I wore it to my friend's house and out to dinner and was super comfortable even after I ate like a pig. Which makes this the perfect dress IMO : D

edited: Just a reminder that Project Runway starts tonight! I am soooooo excited, this is my absolute favorite show on tv, well that and LOST. Yeah, there is no rhyme or reason to my tv watching habits lol Anyway, I can't wait!

A Weekend spent frantically sewing

In usual PuddinPop fashion, I waited until the last possible minute to start sewing the twins' baby shower gifts. I had two itty bitty baby dresses and two baby blankets with applique to sew. I started Friday afternoon and the shower was Sunday at 3. I also had to make time to take a trip to Hancock fabrics for the Kona solids I needed for the blankets. This of course took 3 hours out of my day on Saturday, because I *had* to look around! I was a very good girl though, I only bought the two yards of solid cotton and 2 yards of the most gorgeous red dotted swiss fabric that was half off. I passed on a bunch more fabric that was half off, I only bought my favorite one. I am sort of regretting that now, I mean half off, you can't beat that! Oh, and I also bought some bobbins and tear away stabilizer, but those items don't count because they are necessities, not fun stuff. Anyway, I was sewing right up until 3 o'clock, I didn't get to the shower until 4 LOL I am sooooooo bad about this procrastination thing, I hate this about myself. Dh was very helpful and kept the little ones mostly out of my hair so I could work.



Here is what my sewing table looks like after a flurry of sewing. The cup is the leftover of a banana split malt that dh made me to help keep my energy up, my morning cup of coffee and my bra that I throw up on the table every night because I am too lazy to put it where it belongs. Oh, and a stray Lincoln Log and Care Bear from the kids : ) In all honesty, this is what my sewing table looks like all the time, except for the 5 minutes after I spend an hour cleaning it. Kind of like the rest of my house : ] I usually just shove everything to the side when I need to work at the table.

Here are the dresses, I really love how they came out, the pattern is so cute. I mentioned it in a previous post, but the pattern is from Made by Rae. What a talented girl she is : ) My friend LOVED them, which is the important thing : ) I also got lots of compliments from other people at the shower, which always makes me feel so good!



At first, I was going to just do the blankets with the printed fabric on one side and the solid fabric on the other, but since I had *so* much extra time ::::eyeroll:::: I decided to applique some birdies : D Did I mention, that I have never really done applique before? I hope she doesn't mind, but I copied Marie's adorable birdie applique. I admired it when I saw it on her blog and thought it would be so cute on the blankets. While making the first applique on Saturday night I went a little crazy with the scissors and cut the blanket while trying to cut away the stabilizer :O It was tear away stabilizer, I didn't even need the darn scissors! Needless to say, I put the sewing away for the night. I had to figure out a way to hide my mess up because I had no more solid fabric and no time to start over. I had originally planned to just have the birdies, but had to put them in a nest to hide the cut. I guess it came out ok, not exactly what I was planning. You can see the pink and yellow applique doesn't look quite right. Oh well, it's handmade it isn't supposed to be perfect, right? At least, this is what I tell myself : ) I am praying that my applique doesn't fall apart the first time she washes the blankets LOL


Oh, and as promised, here is the finished top. The reason it took me so long to share it is because I messed it up. Never get halfway through a project and then wait days to pick it up again, you won't remember the alterations you were making. At least I didn't, I should write these things down, but never do. I tried to position my arms so that the mess up isn't as noticeable, but I altered the top of the bodice on one side to make it longer and forgot to do it on the other side. So, my top is lopsided : [ You can see how much shorter it is on my left side, the right side if looking at your computer screen. I am slouching my shoulder to make the top hang straight. I am going to fix it, but it is going to be a pain in the butt to do. I hate when I make mistakes like this. I will fix it though, because I really love this top and this fabric. The only thing I disliked about the pattern was the neck facing. I really hate facings, they never want to stay down. Next time, I will either line the bodice or just do a bias binding like on the sleeves. A great pattern though,it would even be cute as a dress.
No, I am not planning on wearing the top with that brown skirt, I just threw it on with what I was wearing for the day lol I made this skirt over a month ago and forgot to share it. It is ok, I can't remember the pattern off the top of my head, but I won't be making it again. I don't find it flattering on my figure. It is comfortable though, so I wear it around the house or to the grocery store. I hate that I wasted this fabric : ( Sorry about the wrinkles, but I wasn't going to iron it just to lounge around the house.

Knitting, cross stitch and a broken sewing machine

I did finish my shirt and I will share it later, no pictures yet. I thought I would show y'all my sad first sock. First of all, I needed to use smaller needles. My sock is WAY too wide LOL I used size 3 dpns, I think I need size 1 or 2. I am going to order some of the new Harmony needles from Knitpicks because they are prettier than the ones at my LYS. I am gonna just unravel the sock and start over. I paid $8 for this yarn, I am not going to waste it! And look at my holes and dropped stitches, not pretty LOL




I also took some pictures of a jewelry box that I stitched a cover for. Before I learned to sew or knit I learned to cross stitch. I was just pregnant with my first child and picked up a Christmas ornament kit at Walmart. I was instantly addicted, it was the first really crafty thing I had ever done and I loved it. I really wish I would have learned how to sew and knit and embroider when I was young. I feel like I wasted all of this time not doing something that I really love. However, my mom wasn't into these things, nor was anyone else I knew, so there really was no inspiration for me to learn. I am so glad my girls are learning all of these things at a young age, they will always be able to enjoy them.

Anyway, I eventually taught myself to do other counted thread work on fine linen. For years this was my only fiber hobby. I didn't really learn to sew until about 5 years ago and only learned to knit 3 years ago. Since picking up sewing and knitting, I have done very little counted thread work. I really miss it, I think I may start a new project, Lord knows I have a big enough stash of the stuff LOL I think I will start sharing some of my projects on here. I *think* this is a Lori Birmingham chart, I got it while at a cross stitching convention in Houston. It is stitched on 32 count linen. It sits on my dresser and I really use it for some of my jewelry. It is really nice for when we travel, I can just stick the whole box in my suitcase. The R stands for Richard (pronounced Ree-shard, remember we are French Canadian). You can click on the pictures to see the stitching close up.


Today and tomorrow I will be sewing two little dresses and blankets for twin baby girls. One of my good friends is having her baby shower Sunday and I thought that the itty bitty baby dress pattern from Made by Rae would be adorable. I first saw this made up on Creative Little Daisy for her brand new granddaughter Bayleigh. I got this and this from Jona at Fabritopia, I think it will be adorable for twin girls : )

The reason I am so behind on my sewing is because I had a broken machine for half the week. Well, not the whole machine, thank goodness, but the spring for my feet holder popped off. I tried to fix it but the screw that holds it in place was stripped. I have a Janome dealer near my house, so went there praying that they would have the replacement part, since Kenmores are made by Janome. I couldn't find the part on Sears.com, so was sort of panicing. I *need* my sewing machine. It took me two days to remember the Janome dealer LOL My brain isn't working at full speed lately.

Oh, and I got my invite from Spoonflower!!!! Not that I have any clue how to design my own fabric, but if I figure it out, I can LOL

My oldest daughter is 12!

I remember the day I found out I was going to have a girl. I was so happy, I loved my little boys, but I had always dreamed of having a girl. During the same ultrasound, they also found some complications. She had a condition called amniotic band syndrome and there was the potential for serious problems. I was 23 weeks pregnant when we found this out, and the doctors told me that if I could get to 28 weeks without these bands wrapping around her, she would be ok. Those were a long 5 weeks, everytime she would move inside me I was afraid she was getting entangled in these bands. But God was merciful, at the 28 week u/s, she was perfectly fine and the bands had calcified and were no longer a danger. I have never been so relieved in my life! She was my smallest baby at 7 lbs. 8 oz. and is still a tiny little thing. She was 11 days overdue, and has been late ever since LOL She kind of moves at her own slow pace : )

As a small child, she would constantly run into things because she never paid attention to where she was going. She had a gorgeous head full of beautiful blond curls and pale blue eyes, she looked nothing like my child lol She would talk and talk and the most hilarious things would come out of her mouth. My friends would sit and talk with her, just to see what she would say. There was a time when everything was *spooky*. She would say this with eyes open wide in the cutest little baby voice. She was and still is a passionate child, when she gets upset, watch out! LOL Dh is always saying puberty should be fun LOL

She is growing into a beautiful young woman! She is an awesome ballerina, she has beautiful grace. No clue where that came from ; ) Even when she was little she could just naturally dance. She loves her siblings, even her two annoying older brothers. She is always willing to help with the babies, not the housework, but she will do anything I need her to do with Sam and Ava. I have a feeling if I do have any more children, she will be a second little mommy to them. I am sure she will be a great mother herself when she gets older. I am so enjoying watching my daughter grow and mature, I hope we will always be close : )

I love you Sydney, Happy Birthday!!!!


this is a picture taken when her and her friends and sisters were playing in makeup. She is not allowed to wear makeup for real yet. It just gave me a glimpse of her all grown up : )

4th of July

We had a wonderful day for the 4th of July. It started early and lasted all day and into the night. I got lots of pictures of the daytime activities, but didn't get any of the fireworks. Ava decided that she DID NOT like all of that noise and I had to go in the house with her. She did enjoy watching from the windows, though.

First and most important (at least to the kids) was the giant waterslide. They had the best time! Even Ava enjoyed it, my kids are extremely daring, which is kind of scary when your the mother. Which is funny, because I am a big weenie, I don't like to try anything that might remotely end up in injury. Probably because I am very clumsy and always get hurt lol


The other little ones had their own water fun : )

This is my cousin Jenny's little boy Collin, he played with this waterhose for at least an hour!

Here are Ava and Collin enjoying some watermelon


Bubba(Stevie) and Eden, my cousin Carla's little grandbaby and my cousin Dawn's little girl, had fun splashing in the baby pool. Bubba was appropriately dressed : )
Eden had the best time taking the water from the baby pool and transporting it to the trashcan full of water balloons with a water bottle. You can keep kids busy forever playing with water.
All of the big people enjoyed sitting around and visiting. Most of us only see each other once a year on the 4th, so we have lots of catching up to do.

This is my mom with her oldest sister, Georgia. My mom is 57 and my Aunt Georgia is 78. My Aunt was the second child of 10 siblings and my mom was the baby. My Aunt Georgia already had one child when my Mom was born, as a matter of fact, my Aunt Linda and my cousin Gwyndolyn(Aunt Georgia's oldest) were born only 5 days apart!

As you can see, I didn't exactly get my top finished, I had a busier day Thursday than I expected and only got about 3/4 of the way done with it : ( I really wanted to wear it too! Oh well, I am gonna try to finish it today. That is my cousin Dawn's husband, Steve, behind me. We have our 4th of July celebration every year at their house. They have a beautiful new home that thankfully survived Hurricane Rita. The house was only like a year old when the hurricane hit and they didn't know for several days if it was destroyed. Everyone still remembers and talks about Hurricane Katrina, but Rita hit the Western side of Louisiana a few weeks later and was just as devastating. Most of my Mom's family is from a *very* small community called Johnson's Bayou on the Louisiana coast and it was practically wiped out.

Here are Dawn's son Noah and Parker taking a break from the waterslide.

Oh, and we have a new(temporary) family member. This adorable little kitten was on our back patio Thursday. Stray animals seem to always find their way to me. I guess they know I can't turn them away. Dh is not quite as in love with animals as I am though, I am lucky to have the dog and two cats. So, we are going to have to find her a good home. She is sooooo sweet though, it will be hard to give her away. My animals are as unhappy as my dh is to have her in the house, as you can see, Zsa Zsa just hisses at her. We have named her Zoey.

Sewing machine makeover

I know I am supposed to be working on this. However, I got a little sidetracked. I saw a great tutorial from Not Nigella on Sew Mama Sew yesterday, for a sewing machine cover. I love my machine, but her plastic cover isn't exactly pleasing to the eye. I was also itching for a quick and easy project.

Here is my cover before. (No, I did not bring my whole sewing machine outside, just the cover)
Plain, ugly, boring......

Here she is after! Isn't she lovely : )


I thought she needed two outfits, so I made it reversible


and to make her look a little fancier, I added an embroidered detail around the bottom, instead of just plain top stitching.


I used Nigella and Midwest Modern fabric, both from Amy Butler. The Nigella fabric was really nice for this because it is upholstery weight and holds it's shape well. I would probably use interfacing if using only regular quilting weight fabric. I am thinking some of the new Anna Maria Horner Drawing Room fabric would be perfect for this.

I wasn't a complete slacker, I did start cutting out the pattern for my top. I need to get on the ball if I want to wear it Friday.

Sewing and more Target goodies!

Samuel has been wanting a shirt to go with his pajama pants, so when he goes to the pattern books at Joanns and finds his own pattern, what can a mom say lol This isn't really supposed to be a pajama shirt, but it's what he picked out. He was being silly during his *photo shoot*.




Here is the back

This is my next project. We are going to our annual 4th of July mini reunion at my cousin's house. This is the 4th year in a row and we all look forward to it. We get to see family and they rent a huge waterslide for the kids. Oh, and lots of good food : ) I want to wear this top. I would have never picked this pattern out if I hadn't seen Jona's top. It is so much cuter sewn up. I love this fabric, I found it at Joanns on sale, I think it is from the Tracey Porter collection.

I found some more cute cherry stuff at the dollar spot at Target. Every time I go, they have something new for the collection.



My girls have been having the best time putting puzzles together for the last 2 weeks. This is the 5th one they have done. Dh enjoys doing them too. I am loving that this is a quiet and calm project to keep them busy. Well, it is calm until Samuel and Ava climb up and try to *help* them put it together. Then we hear some screaming lol