recycled+revamped baby clothes

Here are some of the recycled+revamped baby clothes that I sent to my friend in Baltimore. Sounds like it might be a boy, but since it's unclear, I tried to keep it neutral. Maybe you will be inspired to add some embellishments as well.

onesie and skirt to dress

One of my first "mama" friends came over with her little ones a while back. We are both artists, and can hardly resist the opportunity to customize something to our own tastes. She brought the brown onesie and the pink skirt and we scouted my t-shirt scraps for the green waistband and some pink striped ruffles. They are easy to make with a basting stitch (long stitch length - 4) because all you do then is pull the ends to even out the gathers and stitch them in place (after turning stitch length back to 3, of course). Confession time - this is always the hardest part of this incredibly simple process for me to remember!
More girl clothes to come...

happy mother's day!

...help all mothers everywhere. We need so much help, with the little sensitive, loving minds that look to us for guidance and love and understanding.

L.M. Montgomery
Anne of Ingleside

Sending love to all moms everywhere, and thanks to the heavens for their love and kindness.

Happy Mother's Day to you!

baby sundress from a women's shirt

A little something for friends of ours with a new baby girl - a sweet dress made from an off-the-shoulder shirt. It had a nice smocked top so I cut off the sides and serged it up to make a smaller size, using a small onesie from my stash for sizing. The sleeves were smocked too, so I cut them off and made straps. It was still a little long, so I cut it off, folded the edge over twice and sewed a little hem. Turned out great, don't you think?

It's so good when your ideas turn out to be good gifts! What have you been making lately?

{this moment}

Inspired by Amanda Blake Soule at soulemama:

one lovely moment from the week to savor

car seat strap wraps

Somehow I couldn't manage to spend over $10 on this handy little set of strap wraps, so I made my own in about five minutes with some leftover towelling and velcro. Serge the edges, sew on the velcro and attach to car seat or stroller straps so they don't chafe your baby on the neck! They are washable and absorbent!

a clean new bib - it's brown!

I could have a whole basket of these in the kitchen...


This bib has turned out to be our favorite. It's brown, so stains don't show. It's made from a towel, so it's soft and absorbent. It ties in the back so it's not too easy to get off. It doubles as a wipe after the meal.


It was my friend's idea. One day Elara came over to sew, and while the little guys were taking a bath, we took turns on this project. A towel went into the wash. A bib was measured for size and length of the ties. Then Elara traced around to make a nice shape on a piece of kraft paper, and cut a bunch of them out of a towel. I used my serger to finish the edges and pulled in the threads with a large needle.

There was enough towel left to get 5-6 little square wipes, maybe 6-8", all different sizes.

Little Hende shirt and hat

Holly makes the coolest onesies, hats & shirts for babies, boys and girls!

recycled baby boy sweater set

Since we still have snow on the ground here in Northern Michigan, it seemed appropriate to show you what we've been wearing to playgroup. A nice brown wool sweater was the start for the wool longies, which I made with an extra long "waistband" that can be rolled down or worn up (you can see it here b/c he's reaching).
The sweater is made from a few sweaters, but my favorite part is the stripe added to the sleeves. You can't see it, but there's a squirrel on the front!
The hat is made from T-shirts, made with a pattern that was traced from another hat that a friend brought over. I love how it has the little knots on top!
Shoes came from another etsian, baby bug designs, and were custom made in brown ultrasuede.
What will I do when Fyn wants to choose his own clothes??? I hope he thinks his mom's work is cool!

the birthday boy

Happy Birthday, Fyn! One year has passed and so much has changed. Thank you to all our friends and family for being part of our lives.

Fyn's sporting his very own version of the rockabilly cowboy shirt, complete with pearl snaps and faux wood grain fabric, made by his momma. I hope he thinks it's cool someday.

old sweaters have new life

One more example of how old sweaters can be made into new, cool stuff! This is a fleece vest, enhanced using sewing machine and serger, detailed with a tiny acorn on the back! It keeps Fyn toasty on cold, snowy days in Michigan!

etsy photo shoot

Fyn and I spent a day with our friend, Holly of www.hende.etsy.com, taking photos for our etsy site. He was a star, but was worn out by nap time! He fell asleep in his hand art printed shirt...

brown cashmere/merino sweater & hat

Finding cute clothes for baby boys is tough! I love things that have woodland creatures in rich earthy browns, mossy greens and warm autumnal oranges. Elfish hats make babies look so sweet, which is how I started recycling and revamping wool sweaters. Then I realized that I could make all kinds of toasty things for him.

My friend, Rose, makes even more recycled designs for big and little people. You can find them at www.consciousclothing.etsy.com.