313 Photography Challenge - April

Can you believe I haven't posted by photo challenge pictures since early April? I can! :) I can't believe time has gotten away from me like this.
In order to catch up, I'll be posting them by month until I catch up! I'm finding I've missed alot of days this summer, but I'll share what I did get!

Saturday - April 21

Yummy cheesecake from Costco for a birthday party

Tuesday - April 24

 A new ruffled ribbon yo-yo flower headband

 Wednesday - April 25

My sister got a new haircut and we had fun doing and outdoor photo shoot that evening

Thursday - April 26

 I love this cute little fellow, designed from some of my brown minky dot fleece and an odd piece of soft pink velour.

 Friday - April 27

I had fun doing a photo shoot with handsome 3-week-old (at the time!) William. Aren't his onesie and little jeans just too adorable?!

Saturday - April 28

Boys and working in the kitchen - they always have to find a new way to do things!

Of Upper Tension Assemblies and a Few Small New Projects

I've finished a few smaller sewing projects lately besides doll clothes, and I've made most of these on the Remington. The more I use that machine, the more I love it! Unfortunately, there are a few parts on it that are a little if-y and I'm expecting to break or stop working any time. One of them is the upper tension assembly, and as predicted, it stopped working in the middle of a project. Thankfully, I had a backup plan.

To finish the project, I just took out the numbered dial, turned the spring around, and screwed the end back on. These little Singer 15 clones are wonderfully resilient and I was able to finish the project with nearly perfect tension. After the project was done, I switched it out with the tension assembly and side plate from it's new twin brother (I'll post about that one soon!) I'm either going to try to fix this tension assembly and put it back on, or get a new one if it's past all hope - and by new one, I mean trying to find another parts machine that I can salvage this piece from. I don't like putting aftermarket parts on these machines because I'll be getting plastic pieces, and I don't want to start putting plastic on these beautiful all-metal machines. :)

Now, on the the projects...

 The first one was a reversible checkbook cover. I don't remember where I got the idea - it could have been from looking at the plain blue plastic checkbook cover and thinking how nice a prettier one would be! I'll be putting together the tutorial pattern soon to sell on Etsy, so watch for another post just about this project!

 Another project along the same lines was a strap cover for my DSLR camera. Isn't this one so much prettier than the plain Canon DSLR strap? Like the checkbook cover, I'll be putting together the pattern soon to sell on Etsy, so watch for another post soon!

I made this small quilted tote as a last-minute birthday gift for a friend. I based it off a project from the quilting book "Start with Scraps", but made a few changes such as closing it with a snap instead of a button and buttonhole, and changed the size. This was a fun introduction to quilting, even though it was a really simple one - I just sandwiched the batting in between my quilted piece and my lining and quilted along all the seams of the quilted piece.

Some New Doll Clothes

I got inspired this past week by some fabrics in my stash, namely the cutoff leftovers from a recent alterations project for a friend, and an old dress I had kept for fabric value. I have a hard time deciding which is my favorite of the two outfits.

The black and white t-shirt and capri set was inspired by the leftovers from a recent alterations project. I had turned flared (bell) sleeves into straight ones, which of course is just cutting off a triangle of fabric. So, I was left with two triangles of funky black and white knit fabric. It seemed a shame to throw them away, so I turned them into cute doll capris. I'll explain what I did, and for anyone with some sewing experience, it should be easy enough to figure out.

-I cut off the ends of the triangles (picture below), and cut a notch from the top for the crotch of the pants. I then sewed them up the side, and added those triangles I cut off back in at the back to make the pants big enough around the waist. I then finished sewing them together up the back, underneath, and up the front. They're fitted, and I wanted to keep the bulk around the waist to a minimum, so I just turned the edge under and sewed it with a decorative zig-zag stretch stitch.

The red, white, and blue nautical t-shirt and skirt set was concocted from a red and white striped knit dress I had kept and put away for it's fabric value. I added a little denim from my stash, as well as some red rick-rack from my stash to finish this cute outfit. I even had a chance to try my new Steam-A-Seam2 double sided fusible interfacing with the little denim anchor applique on the t-shirt. I drafted the skirt pattern, making it short and fitted at the waist with a full gathered tier.

For both these t-shirts, I used this free t-shirt pattern from Liberty Jane Clothing. I've often had bad experiences with free patterns, and was prepared to make modifications with this one, but was actually pleasantly surprised. I love the whole look and fit of the finished t-shirt, and it's so easy and quick to make - I can whip one out in about 20 minutes, now. Both these outfits are now for sale in the Shoppe!

Do you have any thrifty, crafty projects you've been working on this week?