PJ Pillows and Toddler Comforter from Shams

More projects from my 6-week pause – this time, not gifts, but two projects I pushed off for months and then finally finished so I could start something new, as per my Project Plan.

First, the PJ pillows – one for each girl, with a pocket on the back to hold her pajamas during the day. (Got the idea from a mom who made PJ bags that hung on each kid’s bedpost.)

The other project was using the fabrics from two shams that match the comforters on Sophie and Heidi’s beds to make a matching comforter for Lucy. Now that it is done, I wonder why I waited so long! It was easy enough and Lucy loves that her bed now looks more like her big sisters’.

 ~ ~ ~

P.S. Sewing PJ pillows for daughters is one thing; getting them to consistently use the pillows for their intended purpose is another.

Also, camera angles that obscure the floor—and its contents—and crop out most of the dresser tops—and their contents—can cleverly convey a false sense of tranquility… 

Just wanted to be mention this, lest you think I have my act all together. : )

Brown and Green Legal Pad Cover

Here’s another item that didn’t make it onto the blog a month ago when it was sewn. A gift for a friend who loves nature and is a gifted writer. 

I don’t suppose she’ll be writing any epics on this mini pad, but she is also a consummate list maker, so I’m sure she’ll be refilling it shortly.

I do still want to make her a lap quilt someday (which we started talking about over a year ago while I was making Al’s quilt) but in the meantime, this little 3”x3” square will have to fill in.

Happy belated birthday, Dee!

‘Strawberry’ Reusable Shopping Bags

So one reason I stopped posting at the start of May til two days ago is that suddenly it seemed like all my projects were gifts and I didn’t want the recipients seeing their stuff here first.

For example, the strawberry bags I made for Sophie’s preschool teachers, inspired by the ones Lorraine at ikatbag made. Not sure where the fourth one is in the photo below – oh wait, now I remember… I couldn’t find the fourth one when I took that picture. Glad it showed up again in time to gift it.*

They’re so cute and tiny when cinched up. Why did I not make any for me?!?

~ ~ ~

*That is, if you call gifting it to the two of her teachers three days after that class was over “in time.” When Sophie announced after her Tuesday science class that she had only one more class with Mrs. D and Mrs. H, I assumed the same was true of her Friday music class. So didn’t bother rushing to finish the bags by Friday. Oops, Friday was the last class with Mrs. B and Mrs. C. Nice that I, as her mother, in charge of the family calendar, didn’t know that. … Just wanted to be clear about this, lest you think I have my act all together. : )

More Chin Videos: the Chin Twins, Marilyn and Carolyn

OK, tomorrow I’ll get back to posting more normal stuff, but tonight, I had to post another set of Chin Videos, especially for those of you reading this who know my cousin Jana (on the left) and/or my friend Mo (a.k.a Maureen).

After they’d finished, Mo’s daughter Grace (on the left) and my daughter Soph wanted to have a go too…

I highly recommend this making of Chin Videos, for both old and young alike. Much laughter is sure to ensue.

Though I have to say, it helps to have hilarious friends and relatives.

Chin Videos

 
(images from youtube)

This is not what I expected to write as my first post after a six-week blog hiatus (not planned, just happened for a variety of reasons) but it’s what we made today, my girls and I. And it makes me laugh. And it might inspire others, especially children who are already bored with Summer Break and need a new idea…

It started out normal enough – after lunch (or more correctly, after I had finished and was trying to convince a 3-, 5-, and 7-year-old to do the same) while telling the girls stories about how Daddy and I started dating, I mentioned a “chin video” that Daddy made for Mommy back in college. The girls could NOT picture what I was talking about based on my verbal description alone.

So I “had” to show them…

And then of course, they wanted to try it too.

Sophie went first.

 

Then Heidi followed.

~ ~ ~

Some hints if you’ve never seen this form of wackiness before and are wacky enough to want to try it yourself:

• works well to dangle your head off the edge of a bed or sofa or something, so you have more open space to work with between your chin and your neck.
• eyes can drawn directly onto skin, or onto paper first and then stuck onto chin, or use googly eyes!
• if you don’t happen to have any extra hair laying around with which to cover your chin or “scalp” (who knew that The Hair would be useful for anything other than 80’s parties?), you can:
  • just leave it empty for the bald look
  • use your naturally occurring facial hair (bonus points if you shave it to look like eyebrows, etc)
  • tuck your own hair around your chin if it’s long enough
  • use yarn
  • draw on some hair
  • use a doll-sized hat or cap (as seen on the neighbor boy)

• a lot of people just wrap a towel or something around the nose, eyes, etc.; I prefer to use an actual shirt. One of Ken’s collared shirts was just big enough to still fit around the neighbor boy’s head, seen above. I like to use something that’s thick/ruffly/patterned enough to hide the nose bump.

and most importantly of all:

• remember that smiles look like grimaces… and frowns look like smiles… and sticking out your tongue the usual way looks like you’re trying to lick your eye… and what you say doesn’t hardly even matter if you just exaggerate the movements of your lips, mouth and chin enough!

Youtube has an endless supply of chin videos – Jana and I were sucked into watching way too many of them tonight. But once you start, you can’t stop! There's no way to pick a favorite – well, other than the ones of my girls’ – so here’s just one from the line-up this evening…