CHICKPEA SEWING STUDIO

Similac Share

http://www.flickr.com/photos/malocks/532966427/

I am putting this out there, I don't know if it's cool but here it is:

I have six Similac $5 dollars coupons that are going to expire next month (July 25th). I would love to send them out to someone in need of such powdered drink.
Let me know...

Update:

Ok I have three people interested, I'll divided them up and send tomorrow.

Tutorial promise...

Hats are in great demand at this house, it's been sweltering hot in Utah lately. As per recommendation of the flight attendants I made myself one first and now I am ready to give assistance to others while keeping my cool.
In this spirit I rummaged my pattern collection yesterday only to find out that I have none for a baby sun hat.  A quick web search revealed the evidence that I had to draft my own. After taking a few measurements of the boy's head I came up with a little reversible number that still need twicking but can definitely hold his own. I will try again, paying more attention to what I am actually doing, making the crown deeper and fixing up the brim. After that you should have a tutorial in no time...That's a promise! (sort of).

Tell me what you think:

Father's day and more

Did you have a good Father's day? It was Thomas first and Finn gave him a nice stack of presents. Two daddy and baby books, this one and that one. Two framed portraits, a big one and a small one and finally a mixed CD from me ( a labor of love and iTunes).
I think that having portrait of the two together might be a brilliant father's day tradition ( not to flatter myself) and I intend to act on it every year to come.
All have have to do is take the month of July off from sewing and focus on learning Raw photography. I am currently reading The Art of Raw Conversion and understanding every one word out of five. But that word already teaches me so much! It's no walk in the park but I might as well learn to use my dSLR now that it's here.What did I say...Quit sewing in July! Madness... especially since dear Karin makes sure that I have the most enviable Japanese import collection of double gauze. I can't stop looking at them... What shall I make?

( I'll add a picture here of the fabric later today)

A new quilt

A new quilt is on his way, at last. It's most likely going to be a repeat of my Birthing quilt pattern, with a few minor changes  (possibly). The fabric is Wee Play (Moda), the stash I used to make the banner for the blog ( look up!). I added a few pieces from the line as I came across them while shopping elsewhere.
All the bands are cut and ready to go, I just need an hour or so of peace to get it going. We transitioned Finn from the bassinet to the crib last night and I couldn't help but feel a pinch in my heart. The baby on his end feels nothing and looks content as usual.

Back to yesterdays discussion about baby wraps... Thanks to everyone that left a comment. I have a few more questions if you'll indulge me. I ask them here this way everybody gets the answers.
1. When you say that the stretchy fabric is good only until they get heavy, how heavy do you mean? Finn is already over 13lbs.
2. Has anyone tried to use Kaffe Fassett shot cottons for this application, are they strong enough? They are really nice, and not made by slaves ( Made in India with fair trade practices).
3. If I go the woven route, can I make a seam in the middle, a French seam, and save money?

It's a wrap

Yes, it's a wrap, a Moby wrap, and it's not mine. The baby is. Finn absolutely HATES the one I made for him earlier ( a pouch sling). It looks so cute but he doesn't care. What he wants is to face the world with his legs dangering out although technically he's only three month and should not be able to hold his head straight... He doesn't see it this way and is perfectly content to hold his own if I support is torso a bit.

We both loved to visit our new friend Shauna. She let us give her Moby wrap a try. Success! the boy loved it.
After the visit I went to look for similar fabric only to realize that the only knit with this kind of texture and thickness is sold by the inch (!). It would cost me close to $100 with loads of waisted material left.
I saw that they can be made out of woven fabric too, but wouldn't they be harder to maneuver the baby in. The great advantage of this wrap is that the baby fits in quite effortlessly.
I might have to actually buy one and that bums me out. If things should come to that, I located a few mail-order companies that are actually local and run by moms, here and here.

Bath Time

I thought  a nudy pic would cheer us all up on a rainy Friday.

Belly button

This amazing thing is my son's belly button, I seem to have just discovered how marvelous it is, and can't get enough of it!

Finn of many faces...

Thomas calls this Finn's survival face. He makes those cute mouth movements so my heart will melt, this way he ensures that I keep feeding him!

Slow Monday...

Disclaimer: the child in the picture is much grumpier than he appears.

The pouch sling

The sling is done! I finished it late last night, we all look very tired for sure... I was planning on timing myself so as to report how long this project really takes, but I had neglected to account for the ill-will of infant Finn and his voracious intentions! I am estimating that you would need two hours of calm to make the sling with the finishing touches used (more on that later). The pattern is a mix of this one and this one. The fabric is Amy Butler Nigella. Total cost: $20, that's pricey fabric that is ;)

What I changed:
I double-topstiched (not a word surely) the hemmed edges, it looks very finished. I also used a flat-fell for the round seam, then triple-topstiched that. It's very strong this way...one hopes.

I am planning on making a little tutorial this week-(end) on how -to make nice narrow edges as well as a rounded flat-fell which I discovered are not really strait forward.

How to get the baby to happily lay in there:

Ah! good question... I decided to nurse him in there twice (remember that he's a hungry baby). After some initial screaming, he realized the clear benefits of being quiet. I still need to try it today and see if he is still imprinted.
My greatest problem I suspect was that his bottom was too high. You really want it down there in the rounded pouch.

For more eye-candy ( very expensive/ gorgeous slings) check those out.