Mini oven mitts make it into a movie

I just had to share this cute little video as a follow up to December's post about the mini oven mitts I made for my friend Andrea's little girl. Apparently Lila loves them so much her parents are having trouble getting her to take them off! So sweet!

Undercover piano bench

Since Abner was very small, one of her favourite things to do at Grandma and Grandpa's house is play the piano. All of the climbing up and down to get at those oh-so-fun-to-pound keys was sure taking a toll on the piano bench though. The corners were all chipped and other dents and scratches were starting to show up after almost every visit. So, when I drew my mom's name in our family's Christmas gift exchange, I was happy to have an opportunity to remedy the situation.

One stealthy measurement job by my brother and a quick trip to the fabric store and I had everything I needed to create this custom made piano bench cover.

I didn't have a pattern to follow so I just cut the fabric to the measurements my brother gave me (plus seam allowances), added a short skirt to create a tailored look and figured out a very simple way to affix the finished piece to the bench with elastics. I added a thin layer of leftover quilting batting to add a little cush for the tush.

Word from my mom is that the new cover is being put to good use and looks great in the living room...all that and not a dent or scratch in sight!

I may be crazy

So. Holidays are over. I'm back at work. Abner refuses to go to sleep before 10 pm. We have activities planned every weekend for the foreseeable future. My next column is due soon for Urban Baby and Toddler. And I have a project list as long as my arm.

Seems like the perfect time to drum up a few more things to do, don't you think?

This would be the part where I just may be certifiably crazy...I've added an order form to the blog. See it? It's that new page at the top called "Place an Order" [Catchy name, eh?]

Friends and family have been very keen to have me make things for them lately, so I'm testing the waters to see if other folks will be interested too...that, and I need a way to keep all the requests straight so I don't forget anything! I debated about just diving in and doing the Etsy thing, but I'd like to see how this goes first. I predict I will be keeping my day job, but my evenings will be just a bit busier!

It's an exciting adventure! Here goes nothing!

Birthday pillowcases for the anniversary quilt

A couple of weeks ago my mom turned sixty-mindyourownbusiness, so I took the opportunity to make up some pillowcases to match the anniversary quilt I made for my parents this summer. I knew they were something she wanted, so it wasn't a huge surprise for her.

The pillowcases themselves certainly weren't hard to make, but did take an astounding amount of fabric. Actually, getting the fabric was the hardest part of the whole project. Knowing that several months had passed, I wasn't optimistic about finding all ten of the fabrics I'd used on the quilt. For the past few months, every time I went to Fabricana, I'd keep my eyes open for the various fabrics I'd used in the quilt. In the end, I managed to get my hands on six of the fabrics, plus the same extra-wide fabric I'd used on the quilt backing.
The end result is lovely, don't you think?

By the way, this is actually how my parent's bedroom looks most of the time...seriously. I didn't stage this at all. It really does look like a showroom ready for a photo shoot. Yeah, it's hard to believe we're related sometimes.

First skate: A bit like Bambi's

2010 held many milestones for Abner. There was her first haircut, the move to a big-girl bed, the first photo she took by herself, her first time using the potty (thankfully, there wasn't a post dedicated to that event!), and earlier this week we added one more: first skate!

We joined the masses for the loonie skate at Kensington Arena and had an absolute blast taking Abner around and around the ice to her cheers of, "Go fast! I want to go fast!" Watching her little feet go was hilarious...she had all the moves, but couldn't get her feet to stay under her. Not surprisingly though, she didn't want to stop...our backs however, were all too keen to get off the ice!

With a smile like that, I can say with certainty that this is going to be a regular event for us!

There's one more first worth mentioning here -- the first word Abner has learned to spell is...wait for it...IKEA. That's my girl.