Elementary!

Do you remember when I made Katelyn's Easter Dress? And how I said I'd make a blue one for my niece? I finished it! And it only took me fifteen months.

May I share something with you? Please don't tell anyone else. The reason it took me so long to finish it is anxiety. My niece is so naturally thin that I accidentally made it a little loose, but the thought of what exactly I would have to do to take it in caused me so much anxiety that I couldn't move forward with completing it. Lame, I know.

So there sat the dress in my WIP pile for over a year, nearly complete save for an elementary alteration and the straps. The dress would call to me. Then call me a wimp. Until one day in July I said to myself, "Self! Man up! Mele is a whole year older, that probably means that she has grown enough to fill out the dress. Put the straps on and give her the dang dress before she grows any more!" And I did.

And isn't it just perfect for my beautiful niece?

Waste Not Want Not

I've seen lots of those juice pouch bags, but I really haven't had much of a desire to make one myself. And when I told that to Auntie Debbie she said it's different when all the supplies are prepared for you and all you have to do is put it together. And she was right!

I'm really happy with this bag. Although the assembly is fairly simple, the execution was a bit tricky, but well worth the effort. We regularly buy Capri Suns for our kids, so I've been washing and saving the empty pouches and I plan to make variations of these bags whenever I can. I really like the look of these yellow and green mango juice pouches so I will definitely be working with more of them.

Knowing that there will be nearly no waste when we buy these juice pouches makes me feel a lot better about buying them. Drink up, mama wants to sew!

Happy Birthday USA!

The 4th of July is a great American holiday! Great as in, I love it. But I guess also great as in grand. On Saipan, we celebrate it both as Independence Day for the USA and Liberation Day for the Mariana Islands.

I bet you have something special planned for the 4th, don't you? Maybe it's nothing more than the usual BBQ and traditional parade watching and fireworks. But it'll be special nonetheless.

We are starting the celebration early with a BBQ tomorrow (3rd) with my sister's family and some friends. Sadly, and I actually am a little sad about it, we won't have any red, white, and blue desserts - no American flag berry cake, no patriotic trifles, no stars and stripes cupcakes. Just brownies. And marshmallows. We will roast marshmallows! And that is very American.

I don't want to sound ungrateful for what I have, but I wish every day was a holiday. I'm hoping that my 4th of July will mostly consist of crafts with the kids, jokes with the husband, and sewing in between sips of lemonade.

(Planning to turn this maternity shirt into something special for the girls. Have a happy Independeration Day!)

So Special!

I really love special orders. The level of care I put into the work remains consistent regardless of whether I'm working on a special order. But I particularly enjoy when I know who I'm working for and why. These oils were very special and I hope all the couples who received them are putting them to good use.