Orange October

We love our World Champion San Francisco Giants!! Way to go boys :) Congrats on a job well done. We have fan fever, keeping Orange October alive!!

Refashioned: Toddler Maxi Dress

I have a stack of old shirts that I no longer wear, waiting to be refashioned, reused, repurposed...  

which ever term you prefer :)

I finally plunged in and was able to get one done this summer!! Yay, me!!

Just took one of my old strapless baby doll tops 

 and added some straps and some extra length to make it a full length toddler maxi dress :) 

 I was so pleasantly surprised with the finished result!! 

 And my 4 year old loved it too :))

xo,

Erica

Football Fever

Just added some 49ers flair to a basic red hoodie for my girlies today! A little satin gold ribbon trim with the logo fleece!! I love the results. Go Niners!!

My 1st Camera Strap...{Giveaway}

I have seen quite a few camera straps out there

{all of them super cute of course!} 

and I thought it was time to give one a try myself!

For this particular style I used two different tutorials

here and here

What do you think of the color choices?

I am in love with grey and yellow!!

Since I think it turn out pretty darn good!

I wanted to give it away to one lucky follower!! 

YAY!!

{It should fit most SLR camera straps :}

Here's how to enter:

1. You must follow BigSis LilSis {one entry}

{If you already are, you're in! Just post a comment letting me know!

if you aren't... no worries... 

just click the follow button on the side bar 

and then make sure to post a comment and let me know!}

*Reminder: make sure to add your email if it's not linked to your profile!!

Extra Entries:

2. Grab my button! Post it in your side bar! {one entry}

3. Go to my Etsy shop,

then let me know what your favorite item is!! {one entry}

So that is a totally of 3 entries!! 

Do all three and up your odds :}

This giveaway will run until 

Feb. 28th @ midnight PST

This is also the last day for my 

Etsy shop SALE!!

A winner will be announced on Mar. 1st!!

***GIVEAWAY CLOSED***

Good luck,

Erica

xoxo

Sassy Pants

So I was browsing Target once again 

and it seems like everything is on clearance, 

it's great!

I happened to find some plain old sweat pants for my girls

that I thought I could make a little more sassy! ;)

SASSY PANTS ;)

I just took some satin ribbon and sewed it down the sides,

then made a couple of bows to add to the bottom.

Lastly, I added a little rhinestone for an extra girly touch!

What do you think?

I was hoping to add them to my etsy shop,

but when I went back they were all gone :(

Sassy,

Erica

xo

linking to these parties

Hooter Hider

Isn't that a funny name?! 

But these things sell like crazy and for $30!!

{I bought one before I knew how to sew! ;}

I have been procrastinating wanting to make a 

nursing cover since I was pregnant with my second 

and talked about it on my very first post of this blog!

{well my baby is now 6 months old and other projects have had priority :}

BUT...

A friend asked me if I could make her one,

so now the pressure was on ;}

{just kidding, I was happy you finally got me to do it!}

I believe breast is best for baby and when my baby is hungry 

she doesn't care if we are in the middle of Time Square! 

So since not everyone is comfortable with 

Moms breastfeeding in public, these covers offer a 

"I have to feed my baby, 

but I am trying to be considerate of how others feel" option!

I found a great tutorial {there a ton out there} that I liked best 

and it helped me step-by-step.

This way I could go back and forth between my computer 

and sewing machine to make sure I had it just right!!

{that's the perfectionist in me ;}

I am actually very happy with the final product 

and excited to make more in different prints :}

It was easier and quicker than I thought it would be 

and I can't believe I waited so long to make one! 

I am planning on adding these to my Etsy shop

{as long as I get a good review from my guinea pig piece ;}


Leave a comment letting me know what your favorite print/color would be?
Thanks :}

Happy Nursing,

Erica

Linking to these parties!

Leg Warmers are in!

It seems like I have been seeing a lot of tutorials

on how to make your own leg warmers!

I went to my local Target

{as I have mentioned here, here and here!}

and SURPRISE!

Long socks on clearence for $1.40

so I got a bunch!!

I found the easiet tutorial to follow here

from Baby Night Night Botique.

So here is my take on it...

Cut off the toe and heel of the sock

{you will want to do both socks, but I just wanted to show you the difference ;}

Discard those or maybe use them for another project?!

Take the short piece from between the heel & toe

and tuck it in inward

so the two raw edges are together.

{it should look like the smaller piece in pic}

Then place the smaller piece

around the outside on the end of the long sock,

so that all the raw edges are together.

Next you want to pin it and sew 1/4" zig zag stitch

all the way around...

Then just flip the end around so the stitching is on the inside

and it should look like this when you are done!

So now you can have leg warmers for everyone,

just in time for the fall weather :}

They are especially great for those little ones

who are starting to crawl

 OR

for yourself when loungin' around the house ;}

Warmly,

BigSis LilSis

xo

For the LOVE of Make-up...

What girl doesn't love an adorable make-up bag

{or really any kind of bag, satchel, tote, carry-all, etc.}

I know I do!

When I came across my friend Suzanne's blog A New Creation

and saw her awesome tutorial for a cute "boxy" pouch,

I wanted to make one asap!

{but since she is so sweet, she beat me to it and gave me one as a birthday gift!}

So I decided to try my hand at making one a little bigger

to use as a make-up bag!

Update: Now available in my Etsy Shop

Make-up Happy,

Erica

xo

Oh Boy!

After so many baby girls being born, (mine included ;)

I was so excited to finally be able to do a project for a little boy,

one little boy inparticular... Brayden!

One of my good friends had her little boy on July 25th

and I couldn't wait to give her these...

I found a great tutorial at Crap I've Made

and you can find the cutout for the tie applique here!

 

When I saw these I knew I had to pick my colors accordingly,

Mom is an A's fan and Dad is a Seahawks fan!

So I did my best to give him a tie for each :)

 

Congratulations Rick & Elena!

 

Love,

Erica

xo

Dollar Days: "I Like It"

So my new favorite store is Dollar Tree!

They have so many things there

to make fun crafts out of and if you mess up,

who cares, it was only a $1!!

So as I was browsing the other day,

I came across these simple plain swimsuits for toddlers.

Again, thinking this is only $1?!

Since miss Cadee is SOOO into Ice Cream right now

("i like it" is what she calls it)

I thought adding an ice cream applique

would be cute and fun!

All I did was take some scrap fabric I had

and used an ice cream stencil to cut out the shapes.

Sewed it to the swimsuit!

I also added a few ruffles!

TA-DA!

Dollar Days,

BigSis LilSis

Crafty: Hooded Beach Towel

With Summer around the corner

and my daughter beginning to spend her days outside

in her mini pool,

I thought it was time to pull out the beach towels!

{but not before giving them a little face lift ;}

I LOVE the baby hooded bath towels

and when I came across this tutorial 

on making one for bigger kids

I had to get started on one for Cadee!!

I decided to take her cute Hello Kitty beach towel

{instead of a solid color as used in the tutorial} 

and found a coordinating towel for the hood!

Super quick, easy and cute!

I also love that when she gets out of the pool we can

scoop her up

the way we did after her bath as a baby!!

These would make great gifts

for those kiddos with summer birthdays!

Thow it in a beach bag with some sand toys

and they are good to go ;}

Summer fun,

BigSis LilSis

Crafty: Hospital Gown

A cute hospital gown one of those things on my list

that I had been wanting for my labor & delivery.

The hospital gowns they give you in the hospital are great for delivery,

but afterward it's nice to get comfy in something of your own.

I found a website called B.Y.O.G. with really cute hospital gowns,

unfortunately they were pretty $$$ pricey.

So, my mother-in-law said she would help me make one!

It turned out great and I got so many compliments

from the nurses, staff and visitors.

It made me feel much cuter for pictures too!!

I can't wait to make these as gifts for my Mommies-to-be ;}

Sew cute,

BigSis LilSis

Crafty: Infant Car Seat Canopy

My 1st finished project on my NEW sewing machine!!

WooHoo!!

So I made a list of things  {back in January}

that I wanted to complete before Aria was born.

Now that we are a week away...

this is pretty much all I have finished ;}

This was much easier than I anticipated

and I am already working on a second one

for a friend who just had a baby!

I made this project my first priority on the list

because I knew it would get used immediately.

We were always covering Cadee's infant car seat with a blanket,

but it would constantly fall off,

especially when we would carry it by the handle.

So, when I saw this I knew it would keep our little pumkin covered

and able to sleep undisturbed :}

You can find the pattern I used here on Etsy!

Sew Happy,

BigSis LilSis

My New Toy!

Thank you again to my wonderful

Mother-in-Law

for surprising me with this unexpected gift! :}

Although, I will never forget my first sewing machine :}

I am so excited and motivated to get to try it out

and complete some of my projects I have been putting off!

Stay tuned ;}

Sewing away,

BigSis LilSis

xoxo

My Vintage Machine ;}

I finally pulled out the sewing machine...

{I know it's been like a month since I was supposed to get started!}

It was my Mom's

{her dad bought it for her as a teenager}

It works great for being so vintage! {now that it's fixed}

I completed my very first project on it last night :}

A new baby blanket for Aria

This was pretty easy once I got the hang of the machine speed,

 I think the hardest part for me is keeping a straight line ;}

I love this fleecy fabric ~ so soft

I decided to use a 2" satin ribbon around the edge

{it is easier to fold in half and iron before you pin it to the fabric}

Then I was a sewing machine!!

hehe pun intended ;}

 Stay tuned for more fun projects on my new toy!!

Sew baby sew

So... I have been slowly learning to sew

and have a lot of items that i want to get done

before baby #2 {Aria Leigh} is here {May '10} 

a few of the things on my list to do:

~ hospital gowns {2}

~ car seat cover

~ nursing cover

~ baby blanket

{too ambitious? maybe!}

Luckily my mil {mother in law} is great at sewing

and planning to help me get started!

Now it might help if I actually got my sewing machine out...LOL ;}
 

My ultimate goal would be to get good enough at this

that I could make them for all
my lovely friends and family

that may be having babies in the near future :) 
 

 I know these are things i would love to have,

but i wonder...

{would other mamas & mommies~to~be like these too?!}