A little Hoodie for a little being

Mariann had a tiny, 2 month sized hoodie, made in a lovely Owl print. It was given by my sister.... and was pink. I loved it a lot... but apparently, no pink for boys (but I'm seriously considering getting it out of the box anyway...). So I took some black fabric leftover (knit I think...) and came up with this:

Hopefully enough I only have one size of zippers and it was the right one!



Now excuse the blurry pictures... He was pretty active, and this is our best shot!

It won't fit long... but it's the price to pay when you make tiny, cute little piece of clothing!

A new dress and a children book

Thanks all who let me know what they were thinking of my blog, I really appreciate all the nice comments and will continue to be random... And tonight I wanted to show you a little dress I made for my daughter.

I put her in the new dress after changing her, so she wanted to change her baby Hermione (Meen) as well...

It kept her busy for a while... But I've shown her the little dress I made for her doll, and with my help she put in own her. Always fun to match!

That's when she spotted the book. She LOVES to "read". I think she knows how the speak Elfish.

First install some spectators...



Then read aloud!

For the curious, here's the book:

Now I make a Christiane of myself:

the book is about a Penguin knocking on a boy's door, and the Boy assumed he's lost. He'll do all he can to bring him back home. After learning penguins came from the south pole, they travel all their way to South pole in a row boat... But finally arrived to the pole, with the penguin looking sad once again, the boy realizes the penguins isn't lost, he's just needing a friend!

It's in English. I found in at the (now closed) only English bookstore in a 300 miles radius. I felt in love with the watercolor illustrations. But the story is really cute, too! Now it's a tad worn... sign it has been loved.

{This moment}

{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. -soulemama

It's been more than a year... Where is this blog going?

I really wonder.

I first started MamanTattoo (my first blog) to record the making of my daughter's room, which I still adore, but I feel my blog as completely derived from the decor blog it first was. As I rethink about it, I still love decor, but I don't have money for it, and it became less of a priority...

Somewhere in August last year I found Craftster.org. All those tutorials, and swaps!...This blog turned more into a crafty blog, and this part of the blog is still alive today. (And all around the computer stands tons of crafting supplies and wip projects...)



Then was born a deep love for felt food and I started making some for my daughter. And then LOTS. So I created another blog that now have a life of its own (even if being neglected those days) not to bury this one into playfood images...



And in craftster I found a marvellous group, the WWP (witch/wiccan/pagan) which operated like a slap in the face. See, I started studying those thing back when I was 10, but my teenage bf made me forget it all, and I shamefully and lazily buried my love for that craft so deep...



And it bursted when I found the WWP swaps. And I started crafting a lot, things related to paganism. And created another blog. But having this one and the pagan one didn't worked for me at all... so I've scrap the 2 and made a new one, that one you're currently reading.



Than I developed a true love for sewing and sewing blogs... And started sewing, and received a new machine when my old broke down...



And now I found the Eco blogs, the Waldord-lifestyle blogs...

All of those interests me. And I don't know where I'm heading out with this blog. It seems like I have a very large spectra of readers : mainly crafty people, lots of pagan friends, sewers, and eco-minded people. One post that might interest one might not interest the other... Or do you read my sewing post even if you don't sew??

So I'm asking, what do you like from this blog? More creations, more toy-making? More pictures? Less pictures? More reflexions???

If you stick with me, here's what I think you'll see in near future...

-Our family's journey to "quit" meat and diaries and find delicious and nutritive ways to feed our hungry selves.
-My hunt for the best bread recipe in the whole word.

-Trying to be greener, on a budget

-Comments on my breastfeeding journey, trying to feed as long as we could, and other general mom reflexion

-Us trying not to buy anything new, use and re-use, re-purpose what we already have, or find/buy items that have previously been loved
-Purging from plastic, most importantly for toys but also any house wear (it's tougher than it seems! it's everywhere!)
-Toy making that is eco-friendly and creative, and calls for creativity to children.
-Making cloths for my family, re-designing cloths we already have or using coupons I find..
-Post on Pagan Sabbaths and the cycle of the year..

Does that all interests you? What interests you the most when you stop here for some minutes? Do you get tired of seeing cute pictures of Mariann all the time...?

I'll appreciate any feedback!

The Full Moon Dress

Last week I went to a thrift store and found some coupons. This lovely, shimery white one was 1$ and I crabbed it instantly!

I don't know how much of fabric there was, but it all went into this dress, which is lined, and the skirt is a bubble skirt.



Ive finished it while Mariann was napping. I've put it there on the hanger on the wall for her to see when she'd wake up.



When she saw it, she immediately asked for it, saying "waw! bo robe!" (waw nice dress!)



Unfortunately it's a little tight to put on... We had to wrestle a bit for the second arm to get in...



But once in, it was comfortable enough to play around.



The back didn't exactly turned out as I planned... I made it so it'd be attaching with 3 buttons... only to realize it will be too small. So when sewing the top to the bottom, I left a 2-3 inches and sewed button hole on the other side of the top, and made a big ribbon with the left out fabric to make a corset look.



I call it the Full Moon Dress, not only because it was made on the full moon but because of the shimmery and whimsical fabric. The Boyfriend asked if I made it when I showed him!



I think it looks good enough for a wedding! ahah
I'm really proud of myself on this one. No pattern at all, and first time making a bubble skirt. I also love the pleats in the top.

How was your full moon?

MamanLunch back for buziness

Here we go again for another breastfeeding journey. I've breastfeed Mariann for 10 months (she weaned herself so quickly!) and I'm hoping it last a little longer this time.

I'm tired and drained. I didn't remember it was so energy demanding. How could I forget? Well, it seems I tend to remember the positive...The sense of accomplishment, the connexion and intimacy...I didn't remember it was so time consuming. Maybe cause this time, as I feed him most part of the night, I know that at around 5am my daughter is going to wake up, and I won't be able to get some rest before she does, and she goes to nap at 1 pm. When it was just me and her, we'd sleep in till noon (with a feed or two).

Today is my first day alone with both. Merrick is sleeping in his carseat and Mariann found how fun a measuring tape can be (and is currently trying to measure my belly)..at least, I'm not as big anymore and we're comfortable being two on the computer chair!

The picture above is a screenshot from a msn conversation. My friend thought is was beautiful and sent it to me... Should I knew it I'd have smiled... anyway. I'm showing you because I still love it a lot. I don't have many breastfeeding pictures past the first days of Mariann's birth, I realize it now, and it kind of makes me sad...

Oh, looks like we're up for another feed!
Hope everyone is enjoying the last bits of summer :)

{This moment}

Mariann, 25 month & Merrick, 10 days

{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. -soulemama

(and I cheat to add this one because it always makes me laugh!)

Maternity leave project guest post: Jessi from Sweet Pie Bakery

Hello! I'm Jessi from Sweetie Pie Bakery! I'm so excited to be guest-posting over here for Andreann while she spends time with her new little one.

I've been meaning to get to this project for months but finally had the perfect excuse. I love how crib and toddler bedding is interchangeable, making the lifetime of things much longer. My daughter recently transferred from a crib to a toddler bed and I was so excited to be able to transfer the bedding along with her.



Anthropologie is a great place for inspiration, especially since I sew and can get similar results on the cheap! Also, they don't make goods for my little one's room so I'm on my own there!

I've been coveting the Cirrus Duvet for a while. I'm really undecided between that and the Tuxedo bedding for my own bed. I'm thinking of giving the Tuxedo a go...but a king size is sure a lot of fabric to work out a tutorial on!


For this version, I worked with some king size jersey sheets. I liked the softness provided from the jersey. I'm all about softness, especially on my little one.




Here's how to make your own:
The final dimensions of this crib/toddler duvet will be 28" x 51". If you want to make one for a standard size bed, just keep in mind to double or triple the width of the fabric to account for the gathers.

1. You'll need four main pieces of fabric:
Front Panel-84" x 52"
Back Top Panel-29" x 12"
Back Bottom Panel-29" x 47"
Strip-29" x 1"


2. Divide the Front Panel piece into 6 sections so each row has a height of roughly 9". (If you are making a larger duvet, I recommend the height of each row between 8" and 9". Just find a clean number to work with to make your life easier)

3. Go ahead and draw the lines onto the wrong side of the Front Panel.


4. Sew down each line with a basting stitch, making sure to leave the thread long on each end. Also, baste the top and bottom of the Front Panel with 1/4" seam allowance.

5. Cinch each row to measure roughly 29" wide.


6. Take the 29" x 1" strips and sew, right sides together, with 1/8" seam allowance. Trim, turn right side out. Iron flat with the seam on the back middle.



7. Lay the strips over the right side of the gathered rows, but not the top and bottom gathers. Sew each strip with a narrow seam.

8. Take the Back Top Panel and iron over 1/2" towards the wrong side. Fold over again 1 1/4" towards the wrong side and press. Sew the flap with 1/8" seam allowance. (I did both ends of the flap because I liked the detail)


9. Do the same to the Bottom Back Panel.

10. Now lay the back panels on the floor, right sides up. Overlap the Top Back Panel over the Bottom Back Panel, making the total height 52". (You could tape this to the floor at this point to prevent it from shifting while layering the Front Panel)



11. Overlay the Front Panel, right sides together. Adjust the gathers at the top and bottom to fit the Back Panels.


12. Sew around the entire perimeter with 1/2" seams.


13. Done! Add your duvet and tuck in your babe.



Thanks a lot Jessi for this great project!

Jessi own a wonderful Etsy shop you should check out. She sells gorgeous felt play food sets and pdf patterns. Her blog is also full of resources (and lots of eye candy!)