“Vilkas” pants - and a gift from the blogosphere…

I have been wanting to make a pair of pants for Frida, that wasn’t as wide as the typical Ottobre or Onion pattern for woven baby pants is. After browsing through my patterns, I decided to try the “Vilkas” pants - again from the latest issue of Ottobre for kids. They are meant for velour, but I decided to go with the last bit of the velvet, that I have had in my stash since I used it for making another pair of pants for Frida (my first ever) - back in February when I first started sewing. I was going to show you by linking to them, but I just realized I didn’t even upload them to Flickr… However, this dress was made from the same velvet.

If anyone is unsure about the difference between velvet and velour - I was too. So I googled a bit and came up with two pretty good explanations:

“Velvet is a form of textile that is woven on a special loom. It is a tufted fabric in which the cut threads are very evenly distributed, giving it its distinct feel. Velvet can be made from any fiber. Two pieces of velvet must be woven at the same time. They are then cut apart and the two lengths of fabric are wound on separate take-up rolls. Looms which weave velvet must have two takeup rolls. Velvet’s knitted counterpart is velour. Velvet was very expensive.
Corduroy and velveteen, when first produced, were considered the “poor man’s velvet”. Velour is a form of textile, a knitted counterpart of velvet. It combines the stretchy properties of knits such as spandex with the rich appearance and feel of velvet. It is used in dancewear for the ease of movement it affords. Velour is also popular for warm,
colorful casual clothing.”

“The term velvet versus velour specifically refers to the construction of the fabric, not the fiber it is made of.
Velvet is a woven backed fabric with the cut pile, no stretch. Velour is a knit fabric with the cut pile, stretchy.
Both fabrics come in all sorts of fibers, from silk to cotton and many synthetic blends.
Woven fabrics are stiffer and more durable, but only have a bit of stretch on the bias. Knit fabrics are softer and drapier and a bit less durable, but they are nice and stretchy.”

There, that should settle it. So anyway, I made the pants.

I cut up the traced pattern in order to combine the velvet with some pretty embroidered fine cord which I have used once before, but other than that, I didn’t make any changes.

Everything went really easy, and the fit of these pants is great. In spite of the fact that I didn’t use a stretchy fabric for them, they are easy to get on and off, and the material works really well for a pair of baby pants. They will be nice and warm for the upcoming autumn, so all in all, I’m really happy with them.

And now for something completely different….

Computers - internet - blogosphere… Don’t you think modern technology is an amazing thing? Don’t you just love the possibilities the computer and the internet brings us? And aren’t you amazed at how the internet and the blogosphere can bring people together and minimize any distance as shown on a map?

I know I am! Every time I start thinking about it, it just blows my mind. I consider myself lucky to have been born into the internet age, and I was reminded about it again yesterday when this arrived in the mail from California:

Lisa who has the wonderful blog Bon Souvenir and her daughter Saga (”what a cool name”, Mads said - and he’s right too) sent a little something for Ronja and Frida. She wants to give them the opportunity to learn English from traditional English children’s songs by sending two music cd’s, which is such a sweet thought. Had you been here yesterday, you would have seen our two girls dancing around to the sound of Three Little Kittens, Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, and Humpty Dumpty. And oh yes, Frida dances too - she holds on to the coffee table and bounces up and down - quite a sight, I tell you! Thank you so much, Lisa - we’re going to have loads of fun with this! I have no doubt you will be a popular teacher in your beautifully decorated classroom!

First day of autumn

This morning we had bright sunshine and blue sky, but now it’s rather windy, and the sky is grey. Yesterday, when the calendar was still on the summer page, I got a shot of Frida wearing her flower girl dress.

She was in the garden trying out the baby walker, however pushing it in the mossy grass proved a little too tough. Ronja was blowing soap bubbles as she very often does!

I have been sewing again today, but I’ll get back to that later.

Flower girl dress

Sewing time is hard to come by at the moment. Frida doesn’t always sleep a lot during the day, and when she’s awake, she’s all over the place, crawling and standing up. She doesn’t pay much attention to her toys anymore, it’s all about discovering the world. Which keeps me busy! Also, with all my current running and training, I’m running out of (got that?) evenings…

Still, yesterday I managed to make this for Frida.

It’s the “Nasta” pinafore dress from the latest kids issue of Ottobre. I wanted it to be short enough for Frida to crawl, so even though she’s almost a size 74, I traced the 74 for width, and a 68 for length. And then I detached my head, and started to cut the fabric. Consequently, I forgot the seam allowance for the bottom hem, so it’s definitely short enough - maybe more of a top than a dress.

I chose a twill for the dress, even though the pattern recommends a knit, and it’s working perfectly - I have no trouble getting it over her head. I used striped rib for the binding, which also works nicely - I like the look of the two materials together. The twill is “My garden” in blue from Superbuzzy - it’s deliciously soft and I loooove the design. I’ll post a picture with my little flower girl when I get a chance.

 A few days ago, I made my first bias tape, using a Clover bias tape maker from Smaatekstiler.dk.

Now this is my first attempt, and the quality of this IKEA fabric is quite sturdy, but I still like the dramatic design of it, and it was so easy to make. I definitely recommend giving it a try!

The colours of late summer

 Now, there’s just no way around it. There’s not much summer left, and we’re moving towards cooler days. Most of the perennials in the garden have now withered, and are just waiting for next spring, when they will come back with full strength as they do every year. A few are still hanging on by their fingernails, but now it’s just a matter of time. One stubborn shrub has started to bloom again, pretending that we have everlasting summer in Denmark. But hey, that just isn’t the case, and I for one love our changing seasons - though I do find it particularly hard to let go of summer.

Some things still lend a hand in keeping the garden colourful, though. A month ago or so, Ronja brought home two sunflowers that she had planted in a pot at kindergarten. One of them is blooming now, and the other one isn’t far behind. Looking at them definitely does give you a summery feeling!

The apples on our two 4-year old apple trees are almost ripe - I think they need a week or two still to be perfect, but a few have fallen to the ground, and they have been eaten with much pleasure! Those apples are so crisp and juicy - the perfect snack apples!

Ronja had a wonderful birthday - or rather she had three of them. Besides the kindergarten visiting Friday, we had the family visiting Sunday, and as her real birthday was Saturday, we celebrated then too with a traditional birthday morning, a visit to the National Museum, and her own choice for dinner. And what does a 4-year old choose, when she gets to pick anything? Spaghetti with meat sauce…

Ronja had so many wonderful presents, and she was really happy. She has been playing with all of them (no, literally) since - she didn’t get a single one that wasn’t appreciated. Mads and I gave her a puppet theatre, which we are having lots of fun with - it came from this shop:

Now, some of you will remember, that I recommended a toy shop in Amsterdam not so long ago, and now I’ll recommend one in Denmark (this probably goes mostly to my Danish readers, sorry about that). It’s an online shop, and it’s by far the best online shopping experience I have had for a long time! Klodsmajor.dk not only has fabulous toys for all ages, the service around the purchase is also just impeccable. They will wrap your gift beautifully at a fair price, they ship quickly and include a nice personal note with every order. If you wish, they will handwrite a birthday card and ship the present directly to the recipient, and you can still be certain it looks wonderful! I have recommended them far and wide, and I have used them or seen them used several times - it just always lives up to the same high standard. Thumbs up, Susanne!

Now finally I want to say a belated thank you to Wondermommy for awarding me these prices:

It’s so kind of you and greatly appreciated! At the moment, I’m only going to send them on to one blogger - I’m running out of time for today, so I hope you don’t mind! However, Amy over at Habitual continues to inspire and entertain with her wonderful style in crafts, her beautiful photos, and her personal and well narrated daily adventures. I was sorry I didn’t nominate her the last time I had the chance, so here you go, Amy - two in one!

Has it really been 4 years?

It has been a busy week. No sewing, no blogging… Really busy week! 

It’s after midnight now, and Ronja’s turning 4 years old today! She’s getting so big, and yesterday the kindergarten was visiting to celebrate her birthday. She has been looking forward to that specific event for weeks, so Mads and I did our best to make it special for her - which I’m sure it was.

I wanted to do something different for a birthday cake, and I chose to make cupcakes. I’m saving the more traditional birthday cake for the family on Sunday… I was really happy with the result too - they looked very pretty, and everybody liked them. Ronja wanted to serve them herself, and she looked so sweet, balancing the plate on one hand, and handing out the cupcakes with the other.

After the kindergarten left, we had a real family afternoon - just hanging out, relaxing, and having fun. The girls are really starting to enjoy each other’s company, which is awesome!

Today - when we get up in the morning that is - we’ll celebrate some more! So…

Happy Birthday, Ronja!

Bird outfit for a little one

A few of you guys have asked whether I made something for my new niece, and I did, so I thought I’d put it out here.

I didn’t have that much time to make it, meaning it couldn’t be too complicated, and I still wanted it to be sweet and usable. I made the Nirunaru-dress from Ottobre for Frida a while ago (this was before I blogged about my sewing), and we have been using it quite a bit, over a long period of time, because it fits over several sizes. It is good for warm as well as chilly weather, because it can be worn over a onesie or a blouse to fit the conditions. I decided to make that for my niece along with a pair of matching pants.

The pants are a modified Onion-pattern, which in my opinion is great for babies. I left a small opening at the waist to make it easy to change the elastic, if needed. I added little details like flower-tags on both pieces, and ‘M’s for her name.

The bird-fabric is one of my favourites from Amy Schimler’s “On A Whim”-line, and the dotted fabric is from Moda.

I really like the way it turned out - the two pieces will be sweet together as well as by themselves, which is a good thing. I think they were pleased with it as well!

Strolling along the Amsterdam canals

We had a wonderful couple of days in Amsterdam, and even though the drive is rather long to and from Denmark (10 hours each way), it went really well with the girls.

We arrived in the evening, and stayed for the next two days. During the day we did as little as possible - basically we relaxed, and strolled along the Amsterdam canals, looking at little galleries, peculiar shops, and beautiful house boats. I adore the way everything in Amsterdam just kind of follows the same mindset - all the beauty of the canals and the architecture clearly inspires its inhabitants to design their homes with the same kind of casual beauty.

Near Prinsens Gracht we came across this amazing little toy shop called Tinkerbell. It’s the kind of toy shop, where you feel like getting everything out and starting to play. Good toy shops are rare these days, and the big chains have taken over a large part of the market - this shop was just provoking your sense of discovery and exploration. If you live in Amsterdam and need to buy a gift for a child any age - Tinkerbell has my warmest recommendations! I brought home this great little alphabet stamp set, which Ronja and I have already been having lots of fun with!

In the evenings we visited my brother and his wife, and of course my adorable little niece Marlinde. It was wonderful to see them all, the baby is beautiful, and the parents are just as proud as they should be! I’m looking forward to seeing her grow, and getting to know her better.

Today is the last day of our vacation together. Tomorrow Mads is returning to work, and Ronja is going to kindergarten. I, of course, go back to being on maternity leave with Frida. We had a wonderful vacation, but I cannot believe how quickly it went by. This evening we made a bonfire in the garden, and dinner consisted of twistbread with sausages and home made potato salad. MMmmmmmm!

Now we return to the usual drill - which is also quite alright! 

What’s in a name?

Ronja has been having lots of fun writing the name of her new cousin. This was her first attempt…

She’s really into writing at the moment - constantly asking about letters, spellings, and finding the letters for her own and our names everywhere. I love the fact that she’s learning for fun - you go girl!