Boys CAN wear pink!

The blog has been quiet for a little while and it's time to change that up! I've been working hard on a lot of things. Lots of planning and sewing of course! And starting February 1st, things are going to be hopping over here!

I am so excited to announce my first blog series!

And let me tell you, it's going to be a big series! It will run the entire month of February with a new blogger each day showcasing how their boys wear pink. We are breaking the gender rules! Pink is NOT just for girls!

AND..... there's a giveaway at the end.

Pretty sweet, huh!

Are you interested in creating some awesome pink fashions for your boys? I hope so because we are having a sew-a-long also! I'll give you the info for that later.

Need some great fabric to play with us? Check out this amazing fabric from Mabel Madison.

Stenzo Pit Stop in pink corduroy

Stenzo Pit Stop in pink poplin

Just a little pink, nothing crazy. I bet any boy would be thrilled to have a shirt or pair of pants made out of this. Or a jacket! This would be a cool jacket.

Now this is a bit more bold. I admit, I love it! And I have some plans for this knit next month.

Stenzo Buses in Pink knit

Another boy print that isn't afraid of a little pink.

Verhees Funky Robot in Navy Euro Corduroy

There is way more over at Mabel Madison! And to sweeten the deal, I have a discount code for you to use over there! Take 15% off your purchase with the code PINKBOYS from now till 2/28.

Purple Seamstress also has amazing fabrics! She has an entire rainbow of cotton lycras and a ton of fun coordinating striped knit fabrics. You can find her on Facebook here or at her store front here. She runs regular sales on Facebook so go like her page to stay up to date with all the latest finds. Just message her and let her know what you would like to purchase. Simple as that!

And then there is Funkalious Fabrics. 

Tell me a little boy who wouldn't love a shirt out of this for Valentine's Day!

 Impossibly Difficult Love cotton lycra knit

Hawthorne Threads  is another great source for boys. Check out all the great stuff they have! They have a large selection of wovens and they have knit also. And a lot of it!

Fashionable Fabrics has this amazing print!

 Robert Kaufman Beatbox in Retro by Ann Kelle

 This would make an amazing bow tie!

Riley Blake Geekly Chick Small Mustache in Gray

Fabric Worm is another great place for fabric. Like this fun fish fabric.

Windham Fabrics Ahoy Matey Fishy Friends in Red

Of course, all of these great shops have lots of boy fabric that doesn't have pink in it, also!

I am not an affiliate with any of these shops. They are just shops I have used in the past for great fabric and want to share the love!

Need great patterns for sewing up some pink boy stuff? I'll share those later in the week. ;)

I'm so excited! Tell me what pink awesomess you want to make the boy in your life in the comments!

Project 365

I started up a new project this year that I'm rather excited about! It's called Project 365. The goal of the project is to take a picture everyday for a year. I'm all of four days into it and I'm still doing it! Whoo hooo!! If you would like to follow along with what I'm doing, you can find the pictures here on my photography blog. To catch you up, here is what the first four days included.

Day 1.

Day 2.

Day3.

Day 4.

Day 5 can be found here.

I plan to link over each week to share what I have been doing. You can also follow along on facebook for daily updates. If I was cool and organized, you could follow along on instagram. I'll get there eventually, baby steps, guys.

Happy New Year!!

I know it's been super quiet around here lately. I'm sorry! The holidays and sickness and waaay too many projects have taken priority.

 

This little guy had a rough few weeks.

But we made it through the holidays!

My goal for this blog in 2015 is to bring you more tutorials and share with you more great patterns for boys. Ya know, typical bloggy goals.

I hope you had a fabulous 2014!!! Let's make 2015 even more fab!

Concert time!

I almost titled this post "How to dress a boy for a concert". True. It's awfully long for a title, though. But really, that it what this post is. Did you know that you have real choices when it comes to what you can dress your little man in for his little holiday concert this year? You don't HAVE to do khakis and a button down, or a polo. Really. I mean, if you want to, go for it! But you can do so much more!

We went with hipster musician.

Nobody ever said that musicians have to be composed. ;)

But we can fake composed.

So, want the details in this outfit? I knew I wanted to do a giant bow tie. I used Peek-a-Boo's  Little Gentleman's Tie. It was really fast to sew up. And I love that all the seams are hidden or enclosed so it has a really nice finished look. I did a child size for a slightly over sized look. And really, yellow polka dots had to happen.

 

Okay, maybe we can't fake composed.

His shirt is Peek-a-Boo's Classic Oxford. Hands down, one of my favorite patterns. The results are so professional looking. You can't see it, and that's okay, but the collar and cuffs have fun contrasting fabrics. I love little touches like that. He knows he has bikes on his cuffs and he loves it.

Now the vest. That vest melts my heart! It's brand new in the works from Love Notions Patterns. You can follow her facebook page to find out the minute it's released.  The vest pattern is great! A very fast sew! And this can be casual, or dressy like I have done here. I want to make another and add welt pockets. 

Wow, he looks way older than 4 in that picture above.

The pants are Small Fry Skinny Jeans from Titchy Threads. I have eyed that pattern for quite a while now and finally took the plunge and bought it for this outfit. Gotta say, LOVE it! Such professional results! The sizing was good. Thomas measured a 3 for his waist and hips and a 5 for length. I extended them a few inches past to do a cuffed leg.

And then, we have the purple Converse. He decided he wanted purple shoes last week. He was thrilled when we went and bought them. I had a heck of a time keeping them clean for the concert because he wanted to wear them every single day.

There you have it! One very stylish boy. We received a lot of compliments on his little outfit. And I gotta say, he did stand out a little bit. It could be because he was making faces like this though.

He was so excited to play on the stage. He has watched his sister preform for years. Unfortunately, my seat, though excellent for pictures of Thomas, was not so hot for getting pictures of Kate.

This was my view, if I hung my head out into the aisle. And the teacher leaned slightly to the right.

 

 And I could only see her for this one part of the concert. For her other song, with the larger group, I couldn't even find her shoes. LOL

I did get this one before the show. Not a good one. She was too busy chatting with her friends to hang with me for a minute to change camera setting between a bright stage and a dark corner.

 (sssshhhh! that dress is store bought. It's a hand me down from her sister from several years back. She almost went with a handmade dress, but then saw this hanging. And well, this was a bit fancier and she won't really have another chance to wear it.)

Oh well, I do have many beautiful shots of her from her past five years in the program.

Just not tonight.

He concentrated so hard during his songs. He has practiced hard since he started playing in early October. Or was it September? I can't remember. Bad mommy moment. I should be able to count the days he has been playing, right. Oh well, fourth child and all that jazz.

"What?! You don't know exactly how many minutes I've been playing cello?!"

This guy couldn't have been a bigger ham. Such personality.

So now are you armed with ideas for what to sew for your little man for his holiday concert?

Take a bow, buddy. You worked hard and you deserve it.

Bravo!!!

This post contains affiliated links.  :)

One Thimble

Have you heard of One Thimble? It's an amazing digital sewing magazine packed full of pdf patterns of all types. Boy sewing, girl sewing, home sewing, it's in there! And at the end of this post, you have the chance to win a copy of this quarter's issue!  When I had the opportunity to review a pattern for them, I jumped at it! I chose to review the Make a Splash Swim Bag.

Because One Thimble is based in Australia, this quarter's issue is full of summer patterns. But that doesn't mean that they can't be used in the parts of the world that are moving into winter! I'm in the heartland of America and winter has arrived a bit ahead of schedule. So instead of a swim bag, I made a back pack. 

Today my son put the elephant one to the test at the library.

He packed it up! He had nine books inside and had plenty of room for more, had I let him. This bag is a seriously good size!

 

The wide opening made it really easy for him to get the large books into the bag independantly.

The draw string style was easy for him to cinch up and throw on his back.

Even though it is a bit large, my 4 year old had no problem wearing it and toting his collection around the library with him.

That's a LOT of books for a back pack that fits comfortably on a child!

Wonder what else fits in this bag?

How about all of this! And there was room for me! This is a set of size 5 jeans, size 6 light weight hooded jacket and tee shirt and two piece pajama set. Oh and can't forget the teddy bear. All of this is in the bag in the picture below.

 

In the flower bag, I have your gym gear basics, women's running shoes, large water bottle, small towel, workout shirt and capris. I could have also gotten my knee brace, shower towel and small toiletry bag in there.

The pattern itself was really easy to read and follow. There are no pattern pieces to fit, instead measurements are given to cut out. It's really simple to do! Each bag took me about 30 minutes to complete.

Would you like to sew your own up? Enter to win a free copy of One Thimble!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

And check out the rest of the tour to see more great samples and reviews of the patterns in this quarter's issues of One Thimble. 

Friday 11/14: Pattern Revolution, Once Upon a Sewing Machine

Saturday 11/15: Handmade Boy

Sunday 11/16: Mimi's Mom, Rebekah Sews

Monday 11/17: Ellie Inspired, Handcrafted by Red

Tuesday 11/18: The Crazy Tailor, The Berry Bunch, Friends Stitched Together

Wednesday 11/19: Made by Sara. Bee Quilted Beauties

Thursday 11/20: Gracious Threads,  Lady and the Gents, Shaffer Sisters

Friday 11/21: Knot Sew Normal, Beazza & Llama, Mae & K

I was provided the pattern I used in this post free of charge in exchange for sharing my opinion of the pattern. All thoughts are my own. Yep, I have some.