Isla's Baby Doll Party

I can't believe my youngest is already 4! Everyone says kids grow up too fast, but when they were babies it sure didn't feel that way (at least to me anyhow).  My three children are under two years apart from each other. As soon as one was growing out of the baby stage, another baby arrived. I don't think I fully appreciated the baby stage until I had my third. I really didn't want her to grow out of it. I was so happy when Isla told me she wanted a "baby doll" party. It's one more reminder that she hasn't grown up too much just yet. For her party, we invited her guests to each bring a doll. I made little felt party hats for their dolls that they could take home. To go with the doll theme, I made all the food "doll sized" and each of the little girls were given a tiny crown to wear. 

Miniature Party food: caramel apples, banana bread, grilled cheese sandwiches, pickles, baked potatoes, veggie/cracker/cheese platter, chocolate milk, apple cake, and mini cupcakes

 

 

  

 

Many of the ideas I used for Isla's Baby Doll Party were found on Pinterest. Here are some of the wonderful blogs I referred to:
Lace Crown Tutorial: Being MVP
Mini Baked Potatoes: BBC Good Food
Felt Hat Inspiration: Mother
Mini Caramel Apples: Cook Boum  I followed these directions and the caramel all slipped off the apples. I had much better luck using caramel chips instead of actual caramels.
Mini Food Ideas: Indulgy
Matchbox Doll Inspiration: Poppenatelier Severine

I sewed Isla's dress using the September Tunic/Dress pattern

Pattern Testing Hemlock Top and Magnolia Skirt for E&E

I was recently given the privilege of once again testing for Elegance & Elephants. I have tested many of her patterns and have loved every one. (Bohemian Babydoll Dress, another Bohemian Babydoll, Bubble Pocket Top & Spin Skirt, Bubble Pocket Shorts, and the Ruffle Top). Heidi always gives clear instructions and I often discover new techniques while completing her patterns. This pattern will be released later this week with E & E's Fall Collection.

The Hemlock Top is for knit fabrics. I found it quick to put together and love how it turned out. I even learned a new method for sewing on the neck band and am pleased with the professional look of it. My daughter is 5 years old and usually wears size 6. I wanted to make sure the body was nice and fitted, so I used the size 5 pattern and added 3/4 of an inch to the sleeves and bottom hem.

The Magnolia Skirt is put together with 6 panels and is perfect for twirling in! I love how fast this skirt is to put together. The pattern is quite generous in length. I sewed this skirt using the size 5 pattern and even with a generous hem, it is plenty long for my lanky 5-year-old.

Thank you Heidi for asking me to test this pattern! Elegance & Elephants will be releasing their Fall Collection later this week.

Another Bohemian Babydoll Dress

I made another Bohemian Babydoll dress (pattern by Elegance&Elephants). This time it was for Isla. Recently she has become picky about what she wears, and when she saw me making the dress she asked if it had any kitties on it. I told her no, but it was going to be pink and have ruffles. She told me it had to have a kitty on it. So to appease her (and in hopes she'd want to wear it) I stamped a kitty on the bottom corner. This worked and we're now both happy with the dress.

Bohemian Babydoll Dress Tour

I am very excited to participate in Heidi's Bohemian Babydoll Dress Tour! I love this pattern (available on her blog Elegance&Elephants) and couldn't wait to make it! It has no zippers or buttons, so it is quick and easy to make. I decided to try a knit fabric for this dress. It was not one of the recommended fabrics for her pattern, so I was curious about how it would turn out. My daughter usually wears a size 5/6 and since knit fabrics have so much stretch I cut out a size 4.

 I added a little pocket at the top. I thought it would look cute and my kids always like pockets ...even if the pocket is tiny!

 Heidi's instructions include a contrasting fabric in the hem. I had wanted to do this, but since I used knit fabric it wasn't working out so well for me. In the end I just serged the bottom. This added a little length which worked out well on my daughter. I love the high/low shape of the hem and for the next dress I make I'm looking forward to adding the contrasting hem.

Anja loves the ruffle sleeves. She likes "girly" clothes, so this pattern has just enough frills to satisfy her.  Rather than using two layers of fabric for the flutter sleeves, I just used one layer and serged the ends to finish it off. I finished them this way to match the hem on the bottom of the dress (and because it's faster).

...And here's an outtake. It was such a windy day, so I had to shoot in between gusts of wind. She thought it was pretty funny when her hair was blown all over the place.

All of Heidi's patterns are fantastic and her instructions are so easy to follow. This pattern, though, is my favourite. It's one I'm sure I'll use many, many more times.

Excavation Party

Eli has really been into rocks and minerals this year and he asked me to have an excavation themed party for his 7th birthday.  I had a difficult time finding inspiration on Pinterest for this theme. Most of the parties related to this theme were either about dinosaurs or diggers.  I finally decided to combine rocks with dinosaurs.

THE CAKE:
I made a cake with dinosaurs hidden inside and let Eli excavate the first dinosaur. Step-by-step instructions on how to do this can be found at Instructables.

THE INVITATION:

 
THE DECOR:

GAMES:
I reused the pull-string pinata I had made for Anja's Snow Bunny party. I just took the tissue paper off the outside, repainted the pinata, refilled it, and taped the trap door back on. This time it was completely torn apart, so there will be no more reusing it.
 

Another game I had planned was "excavate the dinosaur". The plan was for the kids to go digging in the snow in the backyard for dinosaurs, but it was -25 out. Instead I hid the dinosaurs in the living room and let the kids search for the dinosaurs indoors.

The last activity we did was make fossils from the dinosaurs they found on their hunt. (I forgot to get a picture of their finished products.) Idea found at Little Bit Funky.

PARTY FAVOURS:
I made fossil cookies for each guest to take home. The recipe and instructions can be found on Martha Stewart's blog. 

...and here's a picture of our littlest one after she inhaled her cake