Saturday night I took my sister to JoAnn’s to find some fabric for some curtains she wants made.  I thought I was doing a really great job of not picking up any extras, but we stayed in the store just a little bit too long.  I ended up picking up a couple of fabric quarters, some ribbon, and bias tape to make Evie another little pillowcase dress.  The quarters were just the right size to make her a dress and a matching headband.

This dress is a little bit longer than the Halloween dresses.  I’m hoping Evie can wear it at least through the next Spring and maybe even Summer.  I love the fabric (if you look closely a few of the flowers have aqua colored centers) and I think the bias tape around the arm holes and the bottom really gives it a finished look.  I also made the headband a little differently this time and I think I like it better than the other ones.

What do you think?  I would love to see more pictures of pillowcase dresses if anyone else has made any.  These are so simple and I have lots of ideas for little embellishments!

My niece Caitlin came over on Saturday morning and it gave me the perfect opportunity to get some photos of the girls modeling their dresses.  Caitlin didn’t want to sit still, but I still managed to snap a few cute shots of her.  Evie, on the other hand, was posing and grinning like a pro.  They both looked adorable in their dresses and matching headbands though.

I love these dresses so much that I bought more fabric lastnight so I could make a few more.  Aren’t they just adorable (the models and the dresses)?

After finishing up my Halloween Trick or Treat bags (which you can still buy here), I had a bit of fabric left over.  I debated over what to use it for, then decided that it would make some adorable little dresses.  I’ve been finding tutorials all over the place for pillowcase dresses and since I was dying to make one I decided to whip up a Halloween version.  I figured as long as I was using scraps I wouldn’t mind so much if I screwed it up.

I used Leslie’s Pillowcase Dress Tutorial for the basic steps but adapted it for size.  I left off the frills and didn’t have any bias tape for the armholes so I just turned it under and top stitched.

The first one went so fast that I went ahead and made up another one for my niece.  I haven’t had a chance to try them on the girls yet, but I held one up to Evie and it looks like the size came out just right.

I discovered that I definitely need to work on keeping my stitching even, but I think for a first attempt these look pretty good.  I also decided that I like the thicker ribbon used on the candy corn dress so I’ll probably go switch the ribbon on the other dress before I give it away.  Once I finish up the matching headbands, I think the girls will look just adorable in them!

Ok folks, the contest has come to an end and one lucky winner has been chosen.

I used a very scientific method to choose the winner.  I wrote out all the names of everyone that entered, either by comment, tweet, or stumble.  Then I cut the paper up, separating all the names, folded them up, put them into the bag and shook it up.  Then I found an assistant to help me choose a random piece of paper out of the bag.

And the winner is…APRIL!!!

April (who is blogless) accidently posted her entry on the wrong post, but I still let her enter the contest because I’m just nice like that.  April, please e-mail me your mailing address and I’ll get the bag sent out to you.

If your name isn’t April, don’t be sad.  You still have time to order your own Halloween totes over on Etsy.

Thank you to everyone who entered the contest!  I really enjoyed your comments.  It was nice to see some new names around here!

I’ve been hinting around for a while now about my big Halloween project and it is finally time to show it off.  It took a long time to get everything ready, especially since Evie’s sleep patterns have been extremely inconsistent lately.  I discovered that it is very hard to sew with a baby in your lap!

But, today I’m finally ready to share two big announcements.  First off, I have opened my very own Getting Crafty Etsy shop.  I’m a huge fan of Etsy and I’ve wanted to do this for a very long time. 

The first items up for sale in my shop are these super cute reversible Halloween Trick or Treat bags. I wasn’t sure they would ever get finished in time, but I finally have enough to open up shop. There are currently two different patterns available - the sweet Pumpkins and Candy Corn or the spooky Ghosts and Goblins.

That isn’t the best part though.  One lucky person is going to win a bag of their own!  There are three easy ways to enter the contest.

1.) Leave a comment telling me what you (or your kids) are dressing up as for Halloween.

2.) Post on Twitter about the giveaway (you must include @deew27 so I can find it).

3.) Stumble this post and leave a comment here letting me know that you did.

All entries must be completed by 5:00 p.m. (Central) on Thursday, October 9, 2008.  One winner will be randomly drawn from all entries at that time.  The lucky winner will win one reversible Pumpkins and Candy Corn Trick or Treat bag, perfect for toting around all those sweet treats the kids will be collecting.

Life has been a bit busy lately and hasn’t left much time for playing online, but I wanted to share a few of my recent favorites.

First off is the amazing Spookable digital scrapbook kit from Dani Mogstad.  I wish I had more time to scrapbook because I would definitely be putting this one to use.

Crazy Aunt Purl’s Reversible Halloweenie Beanie is perfect for this time of year.  I wanted to make one of these for my son when he was little and never did.  Maybe my daughter will be the lucky recipient if I ever get around to it.

Need a baby gift idea? Mama’s Doodles Twiddler Tag Blankie would be perfect.  I know my 6-month-old daughter would love this right now.  She’s very interested in textures and the combination of bright textured tags on a soft little blankie would delight her to no end.

Another great baby gift idea comes from Gretchen at the Junk Mail Gems blog.  She posted a great tutorial for making a diaper clutch out of a placemat.  It’s perfect for carrying by itself on quick errands or sticking in the diaper bag.

Looking for some cute headbands that won’t break the bank?  Try these Thrift store tee headbands posted on Craftster.

Bolsa Chica's Simple Clutch

The holidays are on their way and you know what that means, right? Parties! Save a little cash this year by whipping up this cute little clutch by Bolsa Chica to match all your pretty party dresses. I haven’t tried it out yet, but the tutorial looks very simple and can be completed in less than an hour. I’m thinking it would also make some great hand made gifts as well. (Did you know there’s only 12 weeks until Christmas?)

After you check out the tutorial, take a look at the Bolsa Chica Etsy site as well.  She has some adorable purses over there that I would be buying up if I had the extra money right now.

Remember when I told you about the Blissfully Domestic re-launch?  They had a few hiccups along the way, but now the site is up and running smoothly.  The ladies over at Blissfully Domestic are posting some absolutely great content and I can’t seem to stay away.  They pretty much have a channel for every one of my interests so there’s always something for me to read.  And what’s even better?  I have my very first post up on the Creative Bliss channel today.  You should go read it and leave me a comment.  Really, you should.  You don’t want to make me beg do you?  I’m posting with some very crafty ladies over there and I want to feel like I belong.

(If you subscribe here, you’ve probably already seen the post because I cheated a little this time and used something I’d already written.  I promise I won’t be duplicating posts every time.  I was just a little short on time and craftiness this time around!)

Football season is here again and that means the cold winter months are just around the corner.  One of my favorite things to do in the winter is to snuggle up on the sofa with a warm fuzzy blanket.  My son has also adopted this habit of mine so we’ve collected quite a stack of warm blankets in our living room.  Why so many?  We have two dogs and two cats so most of the time half of the blankets are in the laundry waiting to be de-furred!

In my search for the perfect cuddly blanket, I discovered no-sew fleece tie blankets.  They are the perfect blanket to snuggle under when those cold days hit and they are super easy to make.  I can finish a large one off in about an hour (while watching TV) and a small one in even less time.  They make great baby or toddler gifts, and would also be a great craft project for kids to do on a snow day.

The best part is you can find fleece in so many different patterns that you can easily customize them for that special person.  My favorite is my Boston Red Sox blanket.  My son loves his Cars blanket.  And my husband?  He’s about to get his hands on a brand new New Orleans Saints blanket to keep him warm while he hollers at the TV this season.

Here’s what you’ll need:

2 pieces of coordinating fleece fabric (1-2 yards of each depending on size you want)
scissors (or rotary cutter and cutting board)

Seriously, that’s it.  If you are obsessive about straight, even lines then you may want a tape measure or yard stick to help but I just go for it and they always look fine.

Here’s what you do:

Lay the two pieces of fleece out flat with wrong sides facing.  Cut fleece to preferred size.  I generally use 1yard for a baby blanket, 1 1/2 yards for a toddler/child blanket, or 2 yards for a teen/adult blanket.  Keep in mind that you will reduce the size by 3-4 inches in all directions when you do the ties.  Trim edges so that they are even.

Cut a 3-4 inch square through both pieces of fabric in each corner and discard.  If you want the ties shorter do about 3 inches.  If you want them longer you can go 4 inches (or however long you want them to be).  Be aware that the fleece stretches a bit in one direction and not the other. If you make shorter cuts you may want to cut a bit longer on the non-stretchy side.

Next, cut the strips for your ties.  Again, cut through both pieces of fabric.  Cut each edge into 1 inch wide strips, 3-4 inches long.

After you are done cutting (and your hand stops cramping) start tying the two pieces of fabric together (one strip from each fabric).  I do double knots to keep it from coming apart in the wash.  Some suggest tying every other strip, then flipping the blanket over and tying the remaining strips to keep things even.  I’ve never done it that way, but it can’t hurt to try, right?

When you have tied all the strips together, you’re done!

This is such a fun and easy craft.  I’ve made tons of them and have even had special requests.  You can easily adapt the size to make pillows (tie 3 sides, insert pillow form, tie remaining side).  I even made a tiny little snuggle blankie for my daughter using some left over scraps.

*tap…tap…*

Is this thing on?

Oh, hi there.  Glad to see someone is still checking in here even though I haven’t updated in over a week.  I’ve been a little busy doing some scholarly research about teenage vampires.  That *cough* research has kept me from doing much of anything else including laundry, housecleaning, or crafts.  Fortunately, my sister has the rest of my books so I can’t read any more until I get them back in my possession this weekend.

So, while I have a few spare moments, I wanted to share a few of my favorite finds this week.  I always dreamed of making cute little dresses and hair accessories for my little girl and these crafty ladies are making it so easy for me.  The best thing about all three of the fun sewing tutorials I discovered this week is that they all re-purpose old items to create something fun and new.

• These easy headbands from Maya Made are just perfect.  Not only do they re-use old t-shirts, but you can custom size them.  Store bought headbands never seem to fit me right so I can’t wait to make a few of these for myself.
• A Room Somewhere has a great tutorial for the popular pillowcase dresses.  Of course using an old pillowcase gives more of a vintage look, but she gives directions to make it out of regular fabric too.  I’m hoping to make a couple of these in a mini version for my baby girl next summer.
• Over at The Long Thread there’s a super easy tutorial for some adorable t-shirt dresses.  I know a couple of little girls that would look very cute in them!