Pillowcase dresses are SO SIMPLE!!

Yes, you can start with an actual pillowcase, but you don’t have to! In this case, I just cut some fabric, about twice as wide as she is big around. (So I measured her around the chest, and doubled it.) Sew up one side seam. Now you have a tube, right?

You can either hem the bottom (and you pick which side is the bottom, since when it’s just a tube, either side could be the bottom!) or you can add a length of seam binding, or make a decorative band with another fabric, whatever.

Once you get the bottom hemmed, focus on the top. Lay the dress out, you can put the seam in the back or on one side. Cut out armholes. Like this:

After the armholes are cut, you’ll see only ONE straight part of the fabric that’s not hemmed, right there, top front and top back, between the armholes. Make a casing out of each of those little flaps, just about 1/4-1/2 inch deep.

Now, you need to hem the armholes. You can just hem them, or you could use seam binding. I personally recommend seam binding.

Next, cut two lengths of seam binding long enough to thread through the casing and tie over each shoulder. I recommend sewing the seam binding closed for this purpose.

And you’re all done. Easy peasy.

If you want pictures, post here and I’ll take some and put them up.

We bought these napkins on clearance at a local store, then I stenciled them. Fun! Available at Etsy.

I made Wally this Link Tshirt with freezer paper stencils. I’m not totally happy with that smear under the eye! Notice that it’s already stained.

I really like this pattern, though I can’t memorize it to save my life. It’s not complicated, I think it’s more my brain. I’ve actually made SO MANY mistakes I’ve had to go un-knit and re-do on this pair of socks. But I’m having trouble really focusing while I knit right now, and I think that’s the main issue.

Here is the pattern, Dragon Breath. And the Ravelry project page. The yarn is the Eeyore’s Dream colorway of Monkeypal’s sock yarn. I have come to just love Monkeypal sock yarn.

Goodness, but I’m a wee bit behind posting completed projects here. These socks were knit as part of my Geek Knitting Kick I’ve been on lately, and are officially called Eragon Socks at my house. The pattern is Wyvern (which is a type of dragon) and it’s a nice, easy pattern that’s easy to memorize - a must with me. It’s the same stitch pattern as my Eragon Gauntlets.

The yarn is Monkeypal SuperWash Sock Yarn from Monkeypal’s Etsy store. Um, it’s my new favorite sock yarn. It’s very soft, straight from the get-go. It’s mashine washable, it’s comfortale on the feet, easy to knit with. The colors are beautiful. Love it. This colorway is, um, “Saphria.” Yeah. That’s why I bought it.

And of course, here’s the Ravelry project page.

Genna’s outgrown all of her winter newborn hats, but we still needed something warm for her for this summer. (Camping in the mountains, it gets pretty chilly.) So I whipped up this adorable pixie hat. The pattern is free, of course, because I generally only use free patterns, lol. I liked how it knitted up, but the sizing seems to be a little wonky, which other people on Ravelry said, as well. I made it with some Lorna’s Laces that I had leftover from another project.

And who would have thought late May in Iowa would bring an opportunity to wear it outside, also in our fleece bunting with pants and a sweater underneath?

Here’s the Ravelry project page.

I’m finding some posts I left in Drafts for some reason, so I’m posting them now! This is a bunting I knit up a while back for Genna for summer. Yes, a wool gown for summer. It’s for camping, really. Waterproof and warm, because it gets chilly most nights.

The yarn is from my first delivery from the Willow Ridge fiber CSA. It’s single ply, but I doubled it as I knit. The pattern is from the awesome Knitty, and here is the Ravelry page for this project.

Star Trek, Triforce (Legend of Zelda), Stargate, and the Alliance Symbol (Star Wars)

I don’t know, man, one day I got a gumption to knit some geeky washcloths. And here you go. They’re all gifts. The Star Trek and Star Gate are already off to my brother in law, and the Star Wars and Triforce are headed to a friend.

The X-Man cloth and the W cloth, I made for Wally. He actually completely loves them. The G is for Genna, obviously. She doesn’t care that much.

Some of these were patterns I improvised from charts I found online, some were patterns I found on Ravelry. All details at Ravelry.

Remember these knit wraps? I hate them. They just don’t work very well. The Gusset design is flawed somehow, and even on the ones I adjusted to make the gussets bigger and the covers themselves more generously sized, they’re still just ill-fitting. I think wraps just need elastic to work right.

Does anyone else get depressed reading their favorite craft-related blogs? Or even just regular parenting blogs?

Some of the bloggers I read seem to have such perfect lives. You know, after they make all the beds in their adorable, clean, and uncluttered houses, they serve their children a nutritious breakfast of made-from-scratch biscuits served with fruit preserves they canned themselves using fruit they grew, herbs they harvested wild, and locally-grown sweetener. After breakfast, the whole family spends the morning engaging in creative endeavors - sewing, or playing with capes and helmets, or painting, or whatever. After their made-from-scratch and nutritionally-balanced lunches eaten on a handmade quilt under the tree in the backyard, they spend some time learning about the parts of plants while they work together in their spacious and well-weeded gardens. (Their lawn is, incidentally, mowed.) Some time, and I’m not sure when, they also have an opportunity to make wonderful things for their Etsy shop. Evenings are spent with their spouse after, of course, a made from scratch dinner.

Their kids are always really good, and when they’re naughty, they’re naughty in funny ways. The parents never lose their tempers, and always have the right answer. Nobody has bad habits, or does anything like let their kid have frozen pot stickers for lunch 5 days in a row.

Sigh.

I wouldn’t turn down a life like that.

But it’s not my life. And, truly, I do not think that that is what THEIR lives are like, either. It’s just what they appear to be, because I, as the reader, only see glimpses of their lives. Highly controlled glimpses, at that.

So, in an effort to make you feel better about yourself, here is OUR typical Monday.

Get up. Lounge in bed until everyone is good and awake. Get out of bed, make bed, make breakfast. Breakfast choices are the same every day: oatmeal, cereal, toast with peanut butter, toast with cinnamon sugar, eggs. Some days we add pancakes to the list, some days we have bacon. wahoo. Get dressed. (We always get dressed on Mondays!) Wash dishes, clean in Zone. Homeschool, starting no later than 9:15, preferably 9. Story time is at 10:15. (except tomorrow, there is no story time.) After story time, grab a snack and head down to my office (or my apartment, as Wally calls it). Work. Process orders, process shipping, sew, cut, whatever.

While I work, Wally can watch a movie (2 times a week), play games on the computer, draw, paint, playdough, or do whatever strikes his fancy. He will spend a significant amount of this time asking to watch a movie. Genna will sleep for an hour if I’m lucky, and be happy playing with toys for another half hour, and will fuss or need to be held the rest of the time. Sewing with a 6 month old presents some challenges!!

Finish up work as soon as humanly possible, but no later than 2. I aim for 1 every day, but don’t usually make it. Eat lunch. Lunch is usually sandwiches, leftovers, soup, or spaghetti. Soup is usually chicken noodle. From a can about half the time, though I’m trying to cut back on canned soups. I have never served us from-scratch rustic country breads with fresh-from-the-garden vegetable soups for lunch.

After lunch, mommy wants to rest, but usually ends up doing crafts or playing games with Wally. We always plan to read books after lunch, but usually forget. (We read books during homeschool time and in the evenings, so it’s not a huge deal.) Playing games usually means on the Wii, but with the return of nice weather, we’re heading outside more and more often.

Daddy comes home in the evening, and at least usually offers some books or other one on one activity with Wally. (this helps prevent obnoxious begging for attention later in the evening.) Monday is rehearsal night, so we eat dinner and then have dance team practice at our house for an hour or so before bed. Wally watches a movie while we practice.

So there you have it. If I ever give the impression that our life is more glamorous than this, well, I’m sorry.