Category: sewing

Days for Girls International….

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About three months ago, I started working with an organization called Days for Girls International. It is a wonderful organization that brings washable “feminine hygiene kits” (basically pads and shields) to women and girls throughout the world who otherwise would have nothing.

I have started a Team, Days for Girls Cherry Hill NJ Team, in my town and I am busy sewing sewing and sewing. My first goal is to have 75 kits ready by June. It is a daunting task, but I am hacking away at it, with the help of some volunteers.

These first 75 kits will be hand delivered to Uganda by my daughter who will be volunteering for the organization this summer! I am very excited to be part of this program that has such a grass roots feeling to it. All of the women who are part of this group are truly amazing and the founder, Celeste Mergens, is an incredible woman who has dedicated her life to this project.

Each day I am at my sewing machine, trying to get a little bit more done. I love the feeling knowing that each component of the kit will be well loved and taken care of by a woman/girl in another part of the world. She will look at it and appreciate it and know that someone cares about her well being. For some of the women, this is their first pair of underwear! How crazy is that!

Right now, Days for Girls has been selected by the Huffington Post as one of their “Next Ten-Helping Incredible Causes that will Shape the Next Decade.”  Through the month of May, this fund raiser will be going on and thanks to doTERRA Essential Oils, Days for Girls is offering 2:1 matching on contributions between now until the end of May, up to $100,000.

If you’d like to donate to this incredible organization click here:

Huffington Post Days For Girls International Cherry Hill NJ Team Fundraiser

Summer stuff from winter stuff….

I have so many winter pajamas for the babies…..pajamas that still fit them.  And I had no summer pajamas.  And have I ever mentioned that I got a serger for Christmas??!!  I love it..but haven’t had a chance to use it much.  It is a Husqvarna Viking Huskylock s25 and I feel like I need a degree to use the thing!!  It has a million stitches and it takes forever to learn how to thread the thing.  I just haven’t had tons of time to learn everything on it.  It was purchased at a local sewing shop and the men who work there are useless.  The guy has never used this machine and when I went for a lesson..he was learning right along with me.  So, I don’t think it is worth going for another lesson.  I just need to slowly learn how to use all the bells and whistles.  The can can skirt that I made a couple of weeks ago was my first major project on it!  So, far, all I’ve done is small little things.

So, I had all these winter pajamas…with feet….and I knew the babies wouldn’t fit into them next winter..so I thought..why not cut the feet off and serge the edges!  So, I did just that to all of them…half of them I left long sleeve and the other half I made into short sleeves.

So, now the babies have lots of summer pajamas…for free and I got to use my serger!!  I forgot to take photos of them in their new pajamas..I need to do that for a future post!  Have a great Thursday!

Can Can Skirt….

You know when you have a project that you’ve been meaning to do forever?  Well, I have many……..  But I finally finished one of them!!  I have been meaning to make River this skirt.  I love all of Dana‘s stuff and I bought the pattern awhile ago and had it sitting on the shelf.  Then, I finally ordered the Chiffon and had it sitting on the shelf.  Then I finally bought the material and had it sitting on the shelf.  Well, last week I finally found some time and made it!  I hit a few kinks here and there, but it turned out really cute.  And River loves it.  Now, I just have to find the time to make another one….in purple!!

Oh the things…..

Yes, the things we do for our little ones.  My time seems so precious.  While the babies are napping, I run around getting all the things done that I can’t do while they are awake…like EVERYTHING!!  Of course, I always feel the first thing I need to do is give River some of my time.  So, I had to iron some little bead creations she had made…about two weeks ago!  And then, I had to FINALLY put velcro on her iflop frog. This iflop frog was Quinns and now it is Rivers.  It has gotten so much use.  An ipod is inserted into the little creature and then you turn it on and it lights up and has speakers inside of it.  River loves it and the zipper to the ipod case had broken.  Well, that poor creature sat on my sewing table for about a month….and finally today I fixed the little guy…so River is very happy.  It all gets done…eventually!  Enjoy your day.

Making cloth diapers….the inexpensive way…….

When I became pregnant with my twins last year, I realized I needed to get some inexpensive cloth diapers.  Then, I thought, why not make them myself.  Though I have a lot of sewing experience, I think making your own diapers doesn’t have to be daunting!  I wanted to make a total of 40 diapers.

First, I needed to find a pattern and style of diaper.  There are many patterns out there, some are free, some are a few dollars.  Here are some of the sites I found helpful:

http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:FECLujiyoHoJ:www.diapersewing.com/+how+to+put+snaps+into+a+diaper&cd=1&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us&source=www.google.com

http://mayna.livejournal.com/198548.html

This site offers all kinds of diaper making supplies:  http://www.assuntastore.com/cart.html

This site has kits that INCLUDE everything  you need to sew your own diapers!  How cool is that!  You don’t have to do any of the prep work!

http://www.kaylasclothkits.com/catalog.php?item=1&ref_catid=3

I wanted to make my diapers as inexpensively as possible, so I opted for a free pattern.  I found it here at cloth revolution.  Their directions were a bit confusing, so I used a combination of some of the other sites to figure things out.

http://themafiatutu.blogspot.com/search/label/Pattern

Once I had figured out the type of diaper I wanted to use and I found a pattern…then I had to decide on my material.  Again, since I wanted to spend hardly any money, I went to my local Goodwill store and I found lots of inexpensive flannel sheets.  I spent approximately forty dollars on the flannel sheets.  I decided this is what I would use to make my diapers!

I also decided that I would make my diapers with four layers, and use a liner.  I figured that way they weren’t too thick and would dry quicker.  For my liners, I went to my local dollar store and bought wash clothes.  They were two for a dollar, so for forty dollars, I got eighty liners.   Each diaper change, I use two liners.

I had to decide between Velcro or snaps.  I had never made diapers before, so I decided not to make the investment of buying a snap press.  Though I have been told this is the best one to get:

http://www.kamsnaps.com/Snap-Press-amp-Dies/Snap-Press-Dies-not-included-Free-US-Shipping-p112.html

So next, I needed elastic and Velcro.  The patterns tell you how much Velcro and elastic you will need.  I went online to do some price comparisons.  I figured out that I could get the elastic cheaper by going to my local sewing shop with a 50% off coupon.   The Velcro I found here:

http://www.itapestore.com/velcroand174brandsew-onwhiteloop1x1yard.aspx

http://www.itapestore.com/search.aspx?find=VELCRO+ONE-WRAP+Roll+-+White+1%22+X+25+yds

For the Velcro, you need a lot more of the loop than you do the hook, so buying it separate is best.  If I made the diapers again, I would not use this type of Velcro because it started to curl.  I think instead I would buy it from another site.  For the Velcro, I spent about thirty dollars.  For the elastic, I spent around fifteen.

I cut out all the diapers first.  Since I was making forty diapers and they each had four layers, that was a lot of cutting!  Then I was ready to get started on the sewing.  The first diaper took me a long time.  I got confused and had to redo some things, but I looked at the different sites and figured things out. I loved how it looked and I was quite proud of myself.  I did the diapers in an assembly line routine…first all the edge sewing, then all the elastic, then all the inside out flipping, then the closing sewing, then the Velcro.  It probably took me about a week to make forty diapers!

All in all, it cost me approximately $125 for forty diapers…that’s about $3 per diaper.  They aren’t perfect..but they work and I did it myself!

I would be more than happy to answer any questions you had about making your own cloth diapers.  It really was a fun experience!!

Sewing Again….

I can’t believe my little babies are already 9 weeks old!!  And for the first time, I’m sewing again!  My custom orders are piling up….and I must start sewing.  But it is so hard to find a bit of time.  So, this morning, after dropping River off at pre-school…the little babies cooperated.  They fell asleep in their car seats and slept while I sewed!  They don’t seem to like the sound of the sewing machine..it kept bothering their sleep.   You’d think it would be comforting to them..considering how much time I spent sewing with them inside of me!  Well, I’m off to continue sewing…..

Diapers…..and to the finish line…..

I’m got 60 diapers to finish in four days!  I’m 37 weeks and things are nearing the end at this point.  I’m getting a bit nervous, but trying to stay focused.  I’ve never been induced before, so it is a little strange knowing the exact date that I’ll be going into labor.  I think it is a good thing that I have all these diapers to keep me busy!!

Cloth Diapers…..

This time around I decided to make my own diapers…..and of course, I should have started making them a long time ago!  I had never made a diaper before, so it took me awhile to decide on a pattern and style.  I used the pattern and a lot of the information from the Cloth Revolution Diaper Pattern.  But I felt I needed a little more detail on the actual sewing, so I found some different instructions at Dianna’s Journal.  I wanted to make the diapers as cheaply as possibly, so I’ve been using mostly old t shirts and old flannel sheets.

There are so many different type of cloth diapers out there..it was hard to make a decision about what style to make, what materials to use, whether or not to use snaps or velcro…..it becomes mind boggling.  I decided to make the newborn size and I hope they fit nicely and that they will fit for awhile!!

So far, I have finished 16 diapers…..I’ve got a lot more to make!!

New Dress…..

So, I went to the thrift store the other day and found this adorable t shirt..that I just couldn’t pass up (98 cents!!).  I knew it was too small for me..but I thought it would make the cutest little dress for River.  So, I didn’t want to use a pattern..I thought I could try on my own to make it into a dress…it was a bit too short..so I got an orange t shirt and added some length and width…….It turned out pretty cute.  (I thought if it turned out horrible….it could be pajamas!)  Well, River instantly loved it and had to put it on…..I told her no stains until after her sister’s violin lessons where I could snap some cute photos!!