Sewing: Nightgowns and PJs for Christmas

Hope you all had a merry Christmas and are gearing up for a great new year! I've loved all the family time and celebrating traditions with cousins. It's so much fun to have our girls ask about our traditions--they are theirs now too. One of them has become a sewn gift from me to my girls. Scarlett asked if I would be sewing something for them again this year, "because it's a tradition." Well, yes!

You can see some of the things I sewed for them in past years here:  the Ultimate Cuddle (minky) blankets, Waldorf dolls, Waldorf doll wardrobes.  This year I was inspired by Katy's Night Before Nightgown, designed for The Sew What Club. I thought my two youngest girls would love a feminine nightgown. I decided to make them in silky fabrics to up the femininity. I also used satin ribbon for the front panel trim and sleeve casings. (I loved the contrast casings Kelly sewed.) 

Now my first born is not such a fan of silky, girly things, so for her I had to come up with something else handmade. We had just seen the new Star Wars movie and I ran into this incredible fluffy fleece Star Wars fabric at Jo-Ann and I knew some pjs would be the perfect thing. I made another version of these fleece pajamas with my Bateau Neck Top pattern. 

Some ewoks may have crept into these shots too. 

These are the new morning uniforms at our house. The force is strong here.

Sewing: Christmas Tree Pillow for WeAllSew

We all have our lists of things we want to do to celebrate Christmas, and if you are similar to me you toss half of them along the way. Time is short and I keep telling myself I don't want so many projects that I miss just spending time with people! Well this tree pillow is a quick sew that will make you feel like you added a handmade touch to your holidays. It's perfect for a gift too.

I created this project for the BERNINA blog, WeAllSew. They have a great series of projects and daily giveaways this month for the Christmas countdown. You can find my Felt Christmas Tree Pillow tutorial here.

I just love wool felt and felted pom poms. This pillow has a hand stitched look thanks to a specialty stitch option on my BERNINA 580--the only actual hand stitching is on the pom poms. 

I hope you are making progress on your holiday list and enjoying time with the ones you love.

Sewing: Everyday Style Book Giveaway and Wilma Bag

Oh what fun it is to have a big, brand new bag! I was so thrilled when I was asked to be a part of the book tour for Lotta Jansdotter's Everyday Style because the book had been sitting in my cart for sometime, waiting for the release. I love Lotta's simple modern style and clean lines. And I was excited to do some sewing inspired by it.

There are so many great, versatile projects in this book! The book is organized by season and all of  the patterns work year round. That's such a bonus because I love it when I find a pattern I like and can iterate on it in every season by changing the fabrics and adding and subtracting layers. I'm especially excited about the a-line skirts in this book and can't wait to try one in a wool.

But in the meantime I've got lots of projects for others to tackle and a lot of places to be and a lot of shopping to do and lots of gifts to deliver by Christmas. So a giant bag is the perfect solution. This Wilma Tote meets the challenge of December easily. I love it in this bold cotton canvas from IKEA with some of Lotta's cat quilting cotton from her Lucky collection for Windham for the lining.

 

This project sewed up simply and quickly despite my scatter brained state. It will be such a pleasure to some some more after the holidays. 

Maybe this book is just what you need for the holidays! One of my readers will win Everyday Style, one of Lotta's fat quarters, Lotta's temporary tatoos, and Lotta washi tape. For a chance to win this great package enter here by December 23rd. A random winner will be selected!

a Rafflecopter giveaway And check out the rest of the tour for more inspirational sewing and chances to win.

Dec 1 – Lotta

Dec 2 – STC Craft

Dec 3 – Windham 

Dec 4 –  Noodlehead

Dec 7 – Modern Handcraft

Dec 8 – Sew Scatterbrained

Dec 9 – Crimson Tate [you are here]

Dec 11 – Groovy Baby & Mama

Dec 14 – City Stitching with Christine Haynes

Dec 15 – Craft Sanity

Dec 16 – Aesthetic Nest

Dec 17 – Sew Mama Sew

Dec 18 – Lish Dorset

Dec 19 – Fancy Tiger Crafts

Cooking: Sour Cream Coffee Cake with Brown Butter Icing

Coffee Cake is a recipe that deserves a revival. I hadn't made one in years but I remember my husband enjoying it the last time I did, so for his birthday breakfast I scoured recipes and came up with my own ultimate coffee cake recipe.

It's beautiful baked in a bundt pan or a tube pan. A bit more dressed up and so perfect for a holiday brunch or dessert. We aren't coffee drinkers but it doesn't stop us from enjoying this traditional accompaniment. I served hot cider with this cake and it was delicious.

The sour cream in this recipe ensures that the cake is moist, the brown sugar cinnamon struesel creates a sweet crust, and the brown butter icing really puts this over the top! Yum.

Click through for the recipe.

Sewing: Midi-Length Camoflage Denver Dress

I want to keep sewing with the Pattern Anthology Unbiased Collection! Now that I'm converted to dresses as the easiest way to pull myself together in the morning, I need some more for Fall. I sewed the a-line version of this Denver Dress by Melly Sews for their launch tour and had been on the look for the right fabric to try the straight version, when I came across this funky camoflage knit at Jo-Ann. It was in the red tag section and it is likely in the "love it or hate it" category, but I love it. (You may recall I have a think for camoflage.)

I lengthened the pattern by about seven inches because I wanted a midi length dress. I think it works great with heels, but I've also worn it with a bootie, and I plan to throw on a cardigan and tall boots when the weather is colder.

Now the question is, with the great sweater knits out there, which is the right dress to sew next?