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Ottobre

Ottobre

.Baby Tops (but not for much longer).

It has been 5 months since I last shared any tops I have sewn for Harvey. This is good and bad. 
Good, because it means that the clothes I am making him now will be worn for a much longer time. 
Bad, because he isn’t growing as fast which means that he isn’t a baby anymore. I had to title this post “Baby Tops” because I fear that it won’t be long until we are referring to Harvey as a toddler more and a baby less. Boo hoo.

The growing baby required some more tops though. I managed to squeeze the front and arms of this top out of a little piece of this favourite left over cloud fabric that I had. Because I didn’t have quite enough for the whole top, I used a little left over piece of solid grey (from this dress) for the back. I like the look and think I will be using it more in the future. A good way to stretch out your favourite fabric that little bit further too!

This pattern is one that I have used a lot in the past. From Ottobre 1/2011 called “White Rabbit”. I used some solid grey ribbing for the neckband and sleeve cuffs.

And this slouchy top was added to the collection too. I used a new pattern for this one – from an older Ottobre magazine: Spring 1/2009. The design is called “Muksis” jersey tunic and top” – you can definitley tell the way that trends and styles have changed over the years of Ottobre magazines. The older styles are much more slouchy and baggy. I don’t mind how this top is nice and loose fitting though. It will definitley fit for a long time – particularly becasue the sleeve cuffs are folded over. 

I don’t love the envelope neckline though, I never have really. It doesn’t ever seem to sit right and tends to stretch out of shape. The ribbing I used to bind the edges is quite thick too so was a bit tough to sew to the shoulder seams and ended up pretty bulky, but nothing too noticeable for a baby’s top. The little pouch pocket is very cute too. Unpractical, but cute!

SUPPLIES:
Grey cloud jersey knit

Charcoal jersey knit

Hilco campan knit in lime/blue

Home & Family, Ottobre

.Harvey Charles: 12 months.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Well here we are – 12 months! Bittersweet for Mama…I love little babies and would have many more if they stayed little forever – the real hard work starts when they are moving and talking and wanting. Harvey was such a lovely baby too, full of snuggles and smiles (the memories of constant spew and bad sleeping are quickly fading…) and now here he is, a big one year old.

A big one year old with two front teeth! I love it when babies get teeth later, it seems so much easier when they are eating and chewing foods to soothe their sore gums. I didn’t even notice Harvey was teething until they popped through one day! And then two weeks later we noticed four teeth at the top were making their way down too. Now we have a cute, toothy one year old.

A couple of weeks before Harvey’s birthday he mastered walking – he got it so quickly too, in the morning he started taking a few wobbly steps and by that evening he was toddling from one end of the house to the other. And he hasn’t stopped since. We call him The Destroyer.

In the last few weeks Harvey has destroyed more things than any of my other children have in their lifetime! A full bottle of Jaron’s aftershave smashed all over the bathroom floor, a remote control in the toilet, deodorant in the toilet, ceramic platter smashed, cake stand smashed, melamine bowls broken in half, massive container of rice tipped onto the kitchen floor multiple times…it goes on. And he always follows with a cute little “uh-oh” and I can’t help but smile.

We have a family chant where we sing “Harvey, Harvey, Harvey…” over and over again and Harvey will stop what he is doing, drop to his knees or all fours and rock back and forth like he is dancing. Now, he calls the shots and has started singing the chant to us until we join in then he starts clapping and dancing.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Harvey was born with big lips and I have always been expecting them to slim down as he get bigger, but they are still there and still as kissable as ever. And his chubby cheeks that get rounder and wider when he smiles. I love them.

 Little boy,  you are a pure delight. Thankyou for choosing our family and bringing us so much joy x

 
 
(Rocket top sewn from an Ottobre pattern. It comes from Ottobre 4/2011, Baby Basics T-shirt and the fabric is Rocket Boy knit by Lillestoff.)
Ottobre

.A Snuggly Star Jacket.

 
 
 
I’ve mentioned before how much I like to sew cold weather clothing, especially for the kids, and this jacket is no exception. It is extra warm, and soft and snuggly.

I purchased this star-print french terry lycra from Miss Matatabi at the beginning of the year with no plans for it’s life (all sold out, but a few other prints here.) I tend to do that when I see a boy-friendly fabric – especially one that will work well for all ages. They can be hard to come by so I like to stock up the stash when I find them.

Then soccer season started and we found ourselves out in the cold on Saturday mornings and Thursday afternoons and Harvey had no jackets that fit him anymore. I still carry him in the ErgoBaby a lot, so knew that a jacket made from a knit fabric would be a lot more comfortable that one made from layers of quilt cotton and batting.
I sized it up so that the jacket could be layered over other clothing and with the hopes that it will still fit for next winter too. It certainly is roomy now, but I think that adds to the snuggly charm.
 

So, the pattern…from Ottobre of course! From issue 4/2013: Stardust Hooded Jacket with Diagonal Zipper.  I loved the quirky feature of the diagonal zipper down the front and the only zipper I had that kind of matched was this bright green one, but it’s fun and adds a pop of colour to a dreary day! There is one circular pocket on the side too which is pretty cool. The only thing I did differently was to add sleeve cuffs instead of binding on the sleeve hems. The sleeves were extra long with the intention of being rolled back, but I didn’t like the thick band of navy blue showing so I cut a bit off the sleeve hems and cuffed them with the ribbing instead. The sleeves were quite wide to start with also, but the cuffs tighten them up a bit and keep his arms warmer too. You can see the original sleeves in the photo below:

The jacket is lined with a soft navy blue jersey and bound with some bright Hilco ribbing. I did have to shorten the zipper, which was much more difficult to do than I imagined, but we got there in the end!

Harvey used to hate wearing hoods, but now when we put them on his head he giggles and moves his eyes upwards trying to look at it! So no more cold baby winter head! He’s cute, isn’t he? And now he is warm too.

 
{While I’m on the subject of Miss Matatabi (I know I harp on about her all the time, but her store is great – and so is she!)…did you hear about the month of June being Nani IRO month? Well it is, you can read more about it on her blog here and tomorrow I’ll be back to share one of my Nani IRO projects as part of the Miss Matatabi and Friend’s team!}
Ottobre

.Little Dino-Dude.

 
 
My Harvey sewing has slowed down considerably now that he isn’t growing as fast. (He turned ONE this week! I’ll blog about it soon, but you can see some pics on Instagram if you’re interested.) It’s kind of nice knowing that what ever I sew him now should fit for the next year and not just a few months! I pulled out the size one hand-me downs from the boys last month and found that most of them have seen their day. Funny how you think they are still good when they are packed away but realise how faded, stretched and worn they are when you pull them out a few years later!
I sewed this top using a pattern from Ottobre 1/2011 called “White Rabbit”. The neck is a bit tight though, if I can be bothered, I might take the binding off and widen it all a bit so that it isn’t so hard to put on and take off! Instead of using ribbing for the arm cuffs and neckband, I just used jersey.
I hemmed this top using a mock coverstitch on my sewing machine, love how it looks and because it is thicker than a straight stitch (I usually use a triple straight stitch for hems) it doesn’t seem to flip up as much as other hems do. The fabric is DinoBones from Lillestoff.

The little cord pants were really quick to make. They fit really well everywhere but seem a little bit short. There is a panel in the knee of the pants where the cord is cut in the opposite direction, creating a nice feature. This is important because, along with all the topstitching it makes the pants look a little less “homemade” and without it they would just be a basic pair of elastic-waisted pants and look a bit pyjamaish!

 

The pattern for these are from Ottobre 4/2011: Ever Grey Corduroy Pants. It is a really good, basic pants pattern for little boys and would look great made up in any woven fabrics – denim would be cute too! I’ve had this cord in my stash for a long time but think it was from Spotlight. It’s actually a little thin and not so good for a crawling baby, the knees are already a little worn but he won’t be wearing these for too long and I cut them out of a scrap of left-over fabric so not a big deal!

As usual, the Lillestoff fabric came from Crafty Mamas and I’m sewing with novelty prints as much as I can while he’s small enough to pull them off!
Home & Family, Ottobre

Harvey Charles: 11 months

In Harvey’s 11th month, I turned to sultanas for help when taking photos! He had never had them before and was enthralled by their sweetness, meaning that he sat still for a couple of minutes while I went snap happy!

This month Harvey started taking a few wobbly steps on his own. Very cute and with the kids on school holidays, they were all over him with an intense walking training programme!

Where ever I go in the house, Harvey is never far behind. He knows when I am in the bathroom and sits at the door trying to get in! I love this age. My favourite baby ages would have to be sleepy newborn 0-4 months and around 10 months when they start to get more independent. The six months in between seem to be the hardest for me, until baby learns to crawl and is happy to move himself around the house. Then it gets easier again. I’m excited about the next few months, when Harvey will really start to explore and discover new things – at the moment he is kept entertained for ages playing in the cupboards and drawers in the kitchen.

(Ninja top sewn from an old faithful Ottobre pattern. It comes from Ottobre 4/2011, Baby Basics T-shirt and the funky Ninja fabric is a knit by Lillestoff.)

Harvey always gets excited to see his brothers and sister after school and spends the afternoon crawling around after them. I love it when it is a warm afternoon and he can play in the backyard with them!

 

He tries to copy things that we say or noises that we make now – and is very good at copying squealing! It’s really cute to hear him forming sounds and mimicking some of the things we say to him all the time.
And even though he is pretty independent and likes to do his own thing, he still loves a snuggle and will happily bury his head into your neck when you snuggle him.

You know what I love about having four kids? By the time you’ve got that fourth baby, you know that time flies and you need to appreciate every little moment (good and bad) with the baby because soon enough he will be a big boy and you only get to do the baby stage so many times. It’s hard and exhausting work, but so special and so rewarding too.
And before you know it – they will be turning 1! Like in 12 days!!! I am in denial…