The Tiger Apron with Claws

I am calling this apron "The Tiger." Technically it wasn't finished when I took these pictures because it is missing its belt buckle, but other than that, this is the finished product. I put the belt buckle on after I took the pictures. This apron features some super cool pockets with claws, which is why I love it very very much. I didn't even want to make it without incorporating claws on it, and the only place to logically do that was on the pockets. It is made from twill and canvas, and virtually all the details on it are appliqued. This project was time-consuming, but seeing the finished product was totally worth it. And now I can grill shish-kabobs without bringing along extra skewers.

Baby Peachy Princess Apron

 I'm a little bit too excited about this apron because it's adorable factor is sky high. This is for a 1 year old for Halloween, so it measures only 15" high from the top of the bib to the bottom of the skirt. The light blue and white apron it is hanging by is for a 4-5 year old girl. This one is just so cute! I want to see a toddling child wearing it!! I just don't have one handy at the moment :-)

This project has inspired me in such a way that I now want to make baby versions of all my aprons. It was so much fun!

Easy Tiered Skirt Tutorial for your Little Princess

My daughter is a girly girl, so for her birthday, besides her annual birthday t-shirt, I thought she needed a fun tiered skirt. This is a really easy project. If you can sew a straight line, you can do this!




1. First, cut your three layers of fabric. These are going to be 3 rectangles. The length and width is up to you and varies on the size of your child, but I generally use 3 times the waist measurement to get it to gather up nicely, with the length of the longest tier being the distance from her waist to her knee.

2. Next you will sew each rectangle into a loop by attaching the ends together, and then will hem the bottom of each one.

3. Layer your 3 loops onto each other with the shortest loop being on the outside and the longest one on the inside. Stitch around the top to hold the three layers together.

4. Fold over the top edge (turning it to the inside) and sew it down to make a channel for your elastic (leave an opening to put your elastic in!). Measure the elastic on your child's waist. Threading elastic is easy if you put a safety pin on one edge and then push the safety pin through.

5. Sew your elastic together (sew it well! You don't want it snap apart!), then sew the opening closed. Ta-da! You have a cute skirt.

Okay, so I also made her a dinosaur birthday cake. Cake decorating is not my expertise (even though I used to do it at a bakery back in college!) but I tried my best. My daughter seemed pleased.

My Enormous Beach Bag

 Okay, so this is a picture of me with my enormous tote bag. I don't think this picture does justice to how enormous it is since I can fit both of my children inside it! I made it with a Little Mermaid bed sheet I found at the thrift store. My daughter loves Ariel so I decided to use it to make a beach bag. The enormity of the bag came about after going to the beach with my daughter and my new baby. I had to carry all the baby gear, a beach umbrella, towels, a beach blanket to sit on, toys, life jacket, a book to read, something to drink, my purse...you get the idea. I decided I needed a bag big enough to carry all of it. This tote bag is made just like any other, only it is super-sized. Here's a tutorial on how to make a lined tote bag.  My pink fabric wasn't actually big enough to match up with the outside, so I sewed a strip of scrap purple gingham to the top to lengthen it. I'll admit that these colors aren't the most awesome I've put together, but it was all scrap and I knew it would just get wet and sandy eventually anyways. My diaper bag fits in the bag, as well as a couple beach towels and everything else I listed above. I put one large pocket inside, perfect for a book or magazine, and a couple other odd shaped pockets on the other side with some scrap fabric, one of which holds a drink, and the other just the right size for a bottle of sun screen. This bag is lined in a heavy canvas and the straps are super durable. See my straps tutorial for how to make really good purse and bag straps. Now if only I didn't have to carry the baby around, I could have a free hand for batting away rogue beach balls!

Mommy Apron in Gingham and Strawberries

 I have finally finished the "mommy" version of the last apron I posted. This one was made using the same fabric but I changed the design a bit. I decided to go with a sweetheart neckline, and instead of bordering the skirt with a continuous ruffle, I added 3 rows of ruffles to the bottom only, alternating the patterns. Once again I used a solid red for accents to break up the patterns. This one used the black and white gingham for the main fabric instead of the strawberries used in the child's version, which I think lends itself well to a cute, but more adult, apron (as does the sweetheart neckline I think).

Here is the child's version posted earlier so you can see them as a set. I have the child's one on my adult mannequin, which is why it looks short with an almost empire waist :-)