Before our daughter was born we put our condo on the market. During the de-cluttering and staging process we decided that not everyone was as geeky as us and would want 3 desktop computers and 2 laptops in their bedroom. So the mini lab was packed up and I switched to using my husbands Macbook Air. Being a PC person I thought the switch would be hard. It wasn’t. I was in love and I haven’t turned back since!

In fact I’ve become even more of a geek  by getting my first iPhone this month. It was a long and agonizing wait for it to be shipped but it finally arrived and being a crafty person I knew it needed a cozy… not just any cozy but a handmade cozy!

It took two tries and four long nights of cutting and sewing but I did it. It has a little pocket in front for credit cards/cash and headphones for quick trips out and a wrist strap for carrying.

It only took so long because I got stumped on how to sew the lining in and tried a handful of ways until I finally got it. I even took a picture so I wouldn’t forget, which was a good thing because when I went to make the second one I forgot!

Why did I need two? Well in the process of figuring out the lining I made the cozy too short and the phone stuck out about a centimeter. My husband said it looked like it was wearing a hand-me-down and insisted I make a proper one for my beloved new phone.

Oh I’m also a little embarrassed to mention (being in the IT field and all) that I used a magnetic closure at first and then totally freaked out after realizing the magnet could damage the phone the same way they do to computer hard drives. The second one has a proper snap button to  secure the phone and cards.

Any iPhone users out there? I’m always on the lookout for cool new apps to try. Let me know what your favorites are!

Beauty begins on the inside. What does that have to do with sewing? Check out this sewing tip from Make It and Love It and learn why a little trimming on the insides of your project will make it even more beautiful on the outside!

* Image from Make It and Love It.

Over the past few days the Little Peanut has been spending a lot of time with a little toy dog. Feeding it, giving it water, hugs and kisses… I started thinking about building a small collapse-able cardboard dog house so that it could be put away when she wasn’t playing with it.

While trying to construct one in my head my mind wondered again to this fabric house from UK Lass In US and I go to thinking, could I turn it into a doghouse?! My mind is churning with ideas but nothing solid yet! I did find some of these other amazing houses in the Flickr pool that have really inspired me to get something on paper and get sewing. See for yourself!

When Mary gave me a sewing machine for Christmas three (or was it four?!) years ago sewing went to the top of the hobby list.  It’s a shame I don’t have a craft room yet or much storage for fabric otherwise we’d be up to our necks in it! Every day it seems I add patterns to my already long list. These are a few recent ones I’ve added and hope to make them soon.

Playthings for the kids

Superhero cape from Puking Pastilles. These would be super cute for a superhero birthday party theme and then the kids can take them home as party favors.

Fabric dollhouse from UK lass in US. I love this idea of a portable playhouse for when we go somewhere there may not be toys. The instructions are for a dollhouse but if you want something unisex she initially made a barn and you can see photos of the barn on her site.

Play tent from 2 Little Hooligans. How darling is this? The best part is that it is made from bedsheets and a hula hoop. Tons of fun at a low cost price. This would be cute indoors or out. I hope to make one when The Little Peanut gets her own room!

For the home

Fabric basket from Perpetual Plum. These fold down flat for easy storage. These would make fun gift baskets or just baskets for bookshelf storage.

Ruffle rose pillow from the Examiner. This tutorial uses old bridesmaid dresses which is so awesome because I have way more then I should.

Pyramid door stop from Bake and Sew. This sure beats shoving my favorite pair of shoes under the door! I’ve tried other shoes but my cheapo target flats seem to have the best traction. Our door is unbelievably heavy so I would probably use leather or something like Grippies for the bottom.

{this moment} – A Friday ritual. A single photo – no words – capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

You may remember a few weeks ago our Etsy favorite Wednesday: Baby sewing patterns featured the Liberty Lion pattern. I couldn’t resist the adorable patterns and the buy one get one sale from Bit of Whimsy Dolls and bought the Peter Puppy and Millie Monkey patterns.

With the Little Peanut at grandma’s house and no contract work to do I declared today “me” day and finally got to create my own little Peter Puppy. He was so much fun to make and took no time at all. It was nice to get back behind the sewing machine again.

I adore him and I think my daughter will too! She’s in a puppy phase and lets out a little squeal when she sees a dog on TV, in the park, in a car, photos of dogs…. pretty much anything! We live near a dog park and she always has a lot of fun when I take her for a walk there.

His face sides and tail are fluffy fabric that I think she’ll have fun with. I also added interfacing to the face so that it wouldn’t pucker where I used the zig-zag stitching. I stuffed him so he would be a little floppy and easy to hold on to. I’m pretty happy with the embroidery as well since I’m not very good at it!

With a craft room/office in the horizon I’m already imagining myself at the sewing machine whipping up some adorable baby items for my Little Peanut. These are just a few of the amazing patterns I found!

First row: Madeline tie apron dress,  baby sneakers, boutique style swing dress

Second row: Ruffled diaper covers, Mademoiselle coat, Liberty lion plush

Wow! Three of these patterns have already sold in between yesterday and today… yes it actually took me a day and a half to get this post up! It’s hard to work with little fingers tugging at my legs and saying “mama!”