I am so honored to have a guest post today over at small+friendly all about how to gently introduce siblings to a new baby.

If you follow Carla’s blog, you know that she just had her third baby (named Ronan Sky..how awesome is that name?) and Carla has been hosting a series of baby fever posts. Guys, I just adore Carla’s great energy and love everything going on over at small + friendly and I’m so excited to see my humble post on HER SITE!  I first got to know her when she participated in Backyard Art Camp and she is just plain great.  So, go check out my post!  And let me know why you think! Do you have two or more kids? How did sibling introductions go for you?

Prepare yourself for some serious cuteness.  Honestly, hold onto your ovaries ladies because scrumptious baby cheeks, huge baby eyes and tiny little hands in an adorable sleep sack are about to come barreling straight at you!

All of this cuteness is courtesy of Ana from StraightGrain and her amazing new Lua Sleep Sack pattern.

I was thrilled when Ana asked me to pattern test for her (me along with 39 other people…this is one well-tested pattern) because two friends of mine had babies recently and I hadn’t really done much for them.  Plus, I love all of the Straight Grain patterns but never have the chance to use them as they are for girl clothing.  Straight Grain does have an adorable (& free!) baby/toddler bean bag pattern that I’ve been eager to try out.

Of course, two babies meant I had to pull together two sleep sacks, which I thought was going to be a big job.  It turned out to be no big deal because the pattern comes together so easily.

As luck would have it, one of the babies fell asleep right away.  Those silly unpredictable babies missing out on their modeling opportunities!  So, I had lots of time to get pictures of the sleep sacks on this lovely lady.  Look at how adorably snuggly this sleep sack is (and, yes, the baby too)!

This pattern is fantastic.  It comes with the option to add piping and a contrast color at the top.  I added piping to both sleep sacks because I love piping and think it made the sleep sacks instantly more ’boutique’ looking.   It has a side, invisible zipper and buttons at the top.  I was a bit nervous about the buttons, to be honest, but Ana’s pattern instructions include the most thorough and thoughtful way to securely attach buttons.  In fact, she cautions against using snaps in case they come loose.  I’ve never had a problem with loose snaps but apparently Ana has.  Long story short, these buttons aren’t going anywhere as they are secured three different times in the most secure method I’ve seen!  Most importantly, this sleep sack comes together easily, more easily than I expected and I learned a lot from making it.  I love when that happens.

I made the second sleep sack in this lovely gold and mint chevron from Michael Miller Fabrics.  Aren’t you impressed with how well my chevrons lined up around that piping?! I was pumping my fist in the air after that success, let me tell you.

As you can see, modeling is hard work and my model started to fall asleep.

Going…

Going…

Gone.

Yup.  She totally FELL ASLEEP in the SLEEP SACK.  I cannot guarantee that result every time but it was pretty fortuitous, don’t you think?

And, right about the time she nodded off, this guy woke up bright and lively as ever!  Hello little man!  Meet the camera.

The pattern is for sale in Ana’s shop for only $6 but if you use the code: LUALAUNCH you get $1 off.

At $6 this pattern is a bargain but at $5 it’s a steal.  Especially if you have any babies in your world, I plan on making lots of these for baby showers and new baby gifts.  It’s perfect and a faster gift than a baby quilt.

p.s. Yes! I’m back from Sew Down Nashville and I have so much to share with you.  Just haven’t fully gathered all of my thoughts yet.

Guys, I have completely neglected to tell you something big! I’m heading to Nashville.  Today. Ah!!! I’m so excited.  I’m going for the Modern Quilt Guild’s Sew Down Nashville.  It will be a weekend of sewing, amazing workshops and seeing friends.  Because I spend so much time teaching sewing, it’s such a treat to be a student.  I can’t wait.  I already know that I’m going to learn so much & come away full of refreshed enthusiasm.  I’m also a huge fan of the town.  Music pours out of every bar & I love that whole Southern vibe.  One of the best parts of the weekend is that conference goers all get to go to Anna Maria Horner’s house!! Ah! I know.  (Isn’t she insane for inviting so many people to her house?! I mean, I would never….) And, I bet you can guess what I’m going to wear to her house?  Yup. I know. So dorky but it had to happen.  I stitched up a Washi Tunic from Made by Rae out of her feathers fabric in a linen-cotton blend.

I’m loving this tunic & not just for the novelty factor.  It’s comfy and fits well.  It’s short-sleeved because (ahem) it’s in the 70′s and 80′s in Nashville.  (Seriously, I packed flip flops because my toes might actually feel some sunshine.  It feels good just to say that.  Sun. Toes. Ahhh!! ) The Washi is just so adaptable, I love it as a dress but this tunic is a great top, too. The elastic at the back just makes it so comfortable without being sack-like.  I opted for a regular scoop neck, as you can see.

A bunch of the lovely women in my quilt guild are going to be in Nashville this weekend & we collectively decided to wear something handmade on Saturday.  I’m going to wear my swan dress for that but couldn’t resist making this tunic as well.

It’s probably about right now that you are wondering why I’m going to a quilting weekend since I haven’t quilted in FOREVER.  It’s a good question for which I have no good answer.  I guess I just want to sew everything and in the long arc of my lifetime I hope to find time to do just that.  So, why not have a good time in Nashville.  Wish me some happy stitching luck!

I cannot stop making clothing for myself. It’s taken over my life, guys.  Every waking moment is spent dreaming about my current project.  I am not exaggerating.  I open my eyes in the morning and think about things like fitting sleeves in armholes and how to attach bias binding.  It’s insane. I love it.

When I showed a student of mine my first Wiksten Tova dress she commented, “I love this dress. I could make seven of these for a whole week’s worth.”  And just like that I entertained just that idea.  A whole week of Tovas!  I’m not there yet but this is my second Wiksten Tova dress and it’s a wonderful lightweight voile fabric & fully lined, once again. 

The fabric is from Mood in NYC. It had no designer or fabric manufacturer information on it.  It’s lightweight and breezy & that is about as much as I know.

By the way, I feel like Mood Fabrics has this almost mythical-like reputation but in real-life it is kind of insane.  Fabric stacked on fabric in a dusty window-less space.  Sometimes you have to get on your knees on the crappy carpeted floor just to SEE the fabric.  There are banged-up file cabinets just laying around the place. It’s all part of the charm but I get overwhelmed in a matter of minutes when I’m there. Just so you know.

The cuffs and front bib area have a contrasting fabric, also from Mood with no identifying information.  It’s a sweet, lightweight, subtle fabric.  If you follow me on instragram you know that I accidentally washed these two fabrics together and the contrast fabric is a bit pinker as a result.  Doh! Such a rookie mistake.  I was so frustrated but everyone reassured me that it looked ok & I do like the end result.

Once again I am impressed with the fit and shape of this Wiksten.  Making it a second time it came together so quickly.  My only concern is that with such lightweight, drapy fabric it’s a little short and I’d be nervous wearing it without leggings or jeans in case of an outfit mishap.  Other than that, I’m thrilled to have another everyday dress in my ever-expanding handmade closet.