A Buttload of Undies for Gwen

While sewing up some undies for myself, Gwen asked if I was making any for her.  I said that I would and she insisted on pink and purple.  Well, I didn’t have those colors, but I used some of the repurposed white fabric from Josiah’s undies along with the elastic I used on mine and chose pink and green thread for fun.

I love how they turned out! 

She refused to wear them because “white is boring.” 

I found a few more baby blankets I held onto, not wanting to give them away just yet.  I used a cute pink and white giraffe blanket and got about eight pairs of undies for Gwen.  She loves the little giraffes and asked to “dress up” in the undies as soon as I had finished the first pair.  They fit her really well!

I’m horrible at math and measurements, scaling down or writing my own patterns, but I did find a pattern for 2T/3T Big Girl Underwear, to which I added 1/2″ all around and changed a bit to sew up like the ones I made for myself. 

 

Since I had already made a few pairs they whip up pretty quickly, but I will say I’ve been frustrated with my sewing machine.  When the fabric doesn’t slide smoothly or the thread bunches up underneath I’m not sure if I should change pressure, tension, needle, thread… *sigh*  And the zigzag stitch has been inconsistent; it won’t stay on the chosen setting and periodically skips.  Also, I accidentally got universal ballpoint needles as opposed to ballpoint; I didn’t realize there was a difference but I guess there is.  So, the size 16 needle that was on my machine when I started using it – and has been on there for who knows how long – is getting used for almost all of my projects.  It hasn’t given me problems like the new pack I bought recently; I guess they really don’t make things like they used to. 

I made a couple more pairs of undies for Josiah, too, using up the rest of the farm blanket I chose for him.  I finally settled on what is – for me – the easiest and nicest looking method for his undies.

Just like before, I used Katrina’s Quick Soaker Pattern pieces.  If you’re using a non-directional fabric you can cut the front and back all in one piece, but after making his first pair I decided I wanted the print to face up on both sides so I cut them out separately and sewed them together, doing a flat felled seam in the middle to make it neat and comfy inside.  Since he still has accidents, I added an extra layer in the middle and zigzagged it in place.  

The leg holes are done bias-tape style, matching raw edges on front, right sides together, then folding it over the back.  I use the measurements from the pattern, stretching the material slightly as I pin, making sure there’s some overlap at the ends.  To make it nice and neat on front, you stitch-in-the-ditch all the way around, making sure to catch the underside. 

Side seams are next.  I usually sew with 1/4″ – 3/8″ allowance, but for flat felled seams I like to do closer to 1/2″ to make sure I have enough to fold over.  This looks nice and neat on both the inside and outside and there are no raw edges to contend with. 

I did a couple pairs with elastic at the waist but like the look of folded over fabric best.  This is done the same way as the leg holes, bias-tape style, making sure to stretch as you pin so the waist is nice and snug.  On the overlapping ends I folded one of the raw edges under and encased the other inside before folding it over to stitch-in-the ditch. 

His underwear uses up more fabric because of all the trim pieces, but I may try some fold over elastic in the future.

Expanding the Garden

I love the idea of being self-sustaining – growing and raising our own food, living off the land so we’re eating the freshest, healthiest foods and not answering to someone else’s standard of living.  We’re still contemplating raising chickens, maybe even goats for milk one day, but we’re not ready for that yet.  Baby steps. 

Last year we had three raised beds, and while we thoroughly enjoyed the resulting crops, we didn’t get enough to put any produce away.  We pretty much ate it as it ripened, although we did give some of it away here and there. 

This year Phil built five more raised beds making two rows of four; though I believe he really just wanted to borrow his friend’s backhoe as an excuse to play around and tear up the yard.  The kiddos drove around with him in that thing for over an hour! 

Our side yard looks completely different now.  A big tree was cut down, a side garden uprooted and transplanted (we haven’t really committed to flower gardens yet since we know we’re not done with the yard), and the beds added.  The kiddos were a big help raking the dirt.

 

There are always folks around here with manure for the taking so we scored a load and got to work mixing it in with the soil.  As you can see, Josiah is Daddy’s Big Helper.  I had to laugh when I saw the two of them; apparently, Phil had taken off his shirt while he was working and Josiah promptly followed suit. 

 

Another trip to get some free (I love free!) mulch and we filled in the ground between the beds. 

One day last month Phil told me we should be able to start planting soon.  Not two days later he said we’d better hurry up, his mother already had her garden planted!  I didn’t realize it was a competition. :)  So he got his butt in gear, printed out a planting schedule, and we got to work with a first planting of spinach, lettuce and peas. 

On the left you can see the beginnings of what is now our new compost pile and on the right is our camper, next to which we have a nice section of rhubarb, complements of my grandmother’s old garden.  The kids were very excited to help plant the seeds and bulbs and it provides such a great learning experience for them.

 

 

Whenever I tell them we’re eating fresh food from our garden, it’s one of the best feelings in the world.  And when we ate the first of the asparagus – ohmigoodness, the stuff in the stores just doesn’t compare!  I swear all vegetables are sweet when freshly picked.  I can’t wait to try bacon-wrapped asparagus…

 

Poking their heads up we’ve got the asparagus, two types of lettuce, spinach and peas.  This year we also hope to have tomatoes (a couple different kinds – I think plum and some sort of hot for salsa), squash (summer, butternut and zucchini), peppers, potatoes, onions and garlic.  After last year’s carrots I’m not too keen on growing them again, but Phil said we might as well try.  I feel the same way about broccoli. 

My sister-in-law gave me Canning for a New Generation for my birthday last year and I’m excited to try some of the recipes.  I’m already looking forward to filling in the fruit gaps picking peaches and blueberries this summer, too.

I can’t believe I’m sewing underwear

I was determined to make another pair of undies after my first attempt.  Once again I used Indigo Orchid’s pattern, although this time I used the next size up in case I needed to create any seams. 

Using a pair of jersey pants that have since started getting worn around the edges and hole-y in the waistband, I made two pairs of undies for myself.  I love how they turned out!  I will admit to being stumped each time I attach the crotch gusset in indigo orchid’s sewing underwear, the basics.  Rolling the pieces inside makes sense but when I unfold it I always get one piece of the main part inside out. *sigh*  Yay for seam rippers.  

Just like I do with recipes, once I attempt a pattern, I’m ready to make it my own.  I took her suggestion to make a flat felled seam on the side seams, which makes it look nice and smooth.  I ordered some elastic trim from Fabulace on Etsy and used it for the leg openings, following the tutorial (which confused me at first then made sense once I went along).  I didn’t even bother pinning, which cut down on time.

I didn’t have elastic lace trim for the waist, so I decided to use regular elastic, another suggestion in the extras part of the tutorial.  I cut my 1/2″ elastic in half, zigzag-stitched it to the waist on the wrong side, folded it over, and zigzag-stitched it again.  Nothing fancy, but it works just fine.

I’m so proud of myself!  I like them better than my store-bought undies; the green-edged pair is my favorite.

 

Onto the kiddos!  I’ve wanted some more undies for Josiah for a while now but just don’t feel like buying them.  So I figured, why not try to make him a pair?  I’ve pinned a number of tutorials and started with Home Sweet Homebodies’ Easy-On Potty Training Pants pattern and tutorial.  I wasn’t crazy with how it all came together because of the different pieces, though I love how hers turned out!

I had already downloaded Katrina’s Quick Soaker Pattern, and when I saw The Sitting Tree’s upcycled t-shirt underwear using this pattern I decided to give it a go.  I went with the large size for Josiah (with the medium size extra protection layer), using grey scraps leftover from making my undies for the leg and waistbands and some jersey material from an old baby blanket for the main section. 

This one was easier to put together and I love how it turned out; I made the felled seams with these, too, but I still wasn’t too crazy about how the bands get sewn on.  I decided to get creative with the second pair, sewing the legbands on like bias tape (which I became familiar with while making the clothespin aprons) and making the waistband with a foldover like mine. 

 

I think I’m narrowing down the process! I was pleasantly surprised how easy the legholes were… but realized a) I should have done it before sewing up the side seams, and b) when doing the trim that way you’re supposed to sew the right sides together first (the nice, neat sides are now on the inside, d’oh!).  I haven’t tried the white ones on him so I’m not sure how the waist is; I may end up going back to waist trim like the green one but we’ll see how it fits.

He was excited to wear the tractor undies and they fit nicely!

 

Gwen was excited when I told her I might try and make her some new undies.  “Pink and purple, alright?”

Dude, I can’t believe I’m sewing underwear.

Upcycled Layer Skirt for Gwen

Once I started learning how to use the sewing machine I started looking at some of my worn threads in a whole new light.  Things I couldn’t bear to throw out but just had lying around.

After buying some fabric and making Gwen a simple skirt, I decided to try making one with repurposed fabric.  I had this knit jersey-like nightshirt that was getting worn on the top, and with this girls’ knit layered skirt tutorial in mind, I took the scissors to it.

I cut it just below the armholes and used the remaining fabric for the skirt.  It was slightly flared, so the pieces I cut didn’t match up perfectly, but it just added to the “character,” if you will.  After sewing a hem and sewing the waistline (leaving an opening for the elastic), I set to work cutting strips for the layers.  I only had about four to five pieces that were long enough for the main layers, but I filled in the gaps with smaller pieces that I randomly sewed between the full-length pieces.

After sewing all the pieces on – phew! – I added the elastic, sewed the opening closed, then made a little twill tape tag with Gwen’s name on it (for fun and so she’ll know where the back is).

Aside from the undies, I’m not brave enough (yet) to try clothing for myself.  The kids are so much smaller so their projects require less fabric!  It’s so rewarding to make Gwen a piece of clothing, especially when the project involves repurposing and is virtually free.

 

It helps that she loves it, even more so when it qualifies as “dress up” clothes – that means it must be fancy.

Natural Deodorant and My Purple Bathroom

Back when I was researching homemade toothpaste I also decided to start looking into making my own deodorant.  Many of the store-bought brands contain harmful or simply questionable ingredients and the eco-friendly brands can be uber-expensive.    

Since I already had most of the ingredients on hand I decided to whip up a batch, loosely combining Angry Chicken’s homemade deodorant recipe with Passionate Homemaking’s arrowroot version.

6-8T coconut oil, melted
1/4c baking soda
1/4c arrowroot powder
vitamin E oil (I used a few drops)
essential oil (I used a mixture of orange & spearmint)

Mix all the ingredients together and store in a glass jar (I think I put it in the fridge to set up).  I’ve read that some people re-purpose old deodorant containers, but when it’s warm in the house it may not keep it’s shape.  Since it has started getting warm the semi-solid mixture has been relatively soft, whereas during the winter I need to rub off a little chunk and warm it in my fingers before applying; I just apply it with my fingers (like a lotion) under my arms before getting dressed. 

I’ve been using this on and off for a while now (sometimes I get lazy and use my hubby’s) and love it.  At first I worried about oil stains on my clothing but haven’t had any problems with it.  The scent is mild and pleasant and I would be curious to try another scent but I have quite a bit of the orange and spearmint essential oils on hand already!

This sits on the bathroom counter along with our toothpaste, makeup brushes and various other toiletries.  Which leads me to one of my favorite rooms in the house: our upstairs bathroom. 

 
When we were picking out paint colors (read: when Phil broke down and let me go beyond white) I decided I wanted my house to be cheerful and filled with color.  I picked something different for each room!  I used green for the downstairs bathroom but wanted to try something different for the one upstairs.  The first shade of purple we tried was awful, and we finally went with a deep amethyst.

Even though it was expensive, we seriously considered white pebble tile (something like this) for the flooring; even Phil agreed it would be gorgeous.  We did pick out some alternatives just in case, and finally decided to stay within a reasonable budget and go with a greyish-brown tile.  I’m so glad we did!  The dark tones in the tile go really nicely with the purple.   

When we got an antique dresser for free, I begged Phil to turn it into a bathroom bureau with a sink on top.  We chose a square-shaped shallow sink which only utilizes a portion of the upper dresser so the majority of it is free for storage.  I LOVE it!  Phil is so handy. 

when it was first installed

Along with the tile and dresser, I incorporated some more of the rich brown element by getting a deep brown curtain for the bathroom closet.  To keep it light and airy we mixed some cream-colored tile with purple, bead-board for the lower wall (as yet unfinished, like so many things around our house), a sheer curtain for the window and a beautiful shabby chic white ruffled shower curtain (that used to hang in our bedroom!). 

  
    
Do you have a favorite room in your home? 

Aside from the bathroom I love our upstairs loft, which we use surprisingly often (Phil and I often curl up on the couch and watch a movie after the kids have gone to bed), and our open living room, where we spend much of our day. 

*For more homemade inspiration see my Eco-Friendly Pinterest board.