Where does a cat or dog button live?

Where does a cat or dog button live?

When I put the dog buttons and cat buttons from the last post in my shop I had to think about two little houses I sewed for my kids last Christmas. They are like tiny fabric doll houses/ stables to carry along. Super cute! :-)

Maybe you are already looking for Christmas presents for some special kids in your life. After all, now is still enough time to actually make them. ;-)
(I usually have a LONG list of stuff I want to make … which never gets done in the end.*laugh*)

Sewn fabric doll house / stable by Ursula Markgraf

My kids got these fabric houses together with some dog and cat buttons. They then could choose which ones of the buttons they wanted on the houses – and where (in front of the door, on the roof, on the window sill). And I sewed the buttons on as they wished.

Sewn fabric doll house / stable by Ursula Markgraf

(The photos of the houses were taken before I had sewn on the cat and dog buttons.)

You can find the instructions for the fabric house on U.K. lass U.S.

Little disclaimer: As always all my buttons are handmade and one-of-a-kind. When they are gone, they are gone. Right now I only have 4 cat buttons available, 2 in the shop right now. Once all of those are sold there will not be new cat buttons until somtime next year. Just so noone ends up being sad. :-) 

And if you knit there is a supercute knitted take-along house on Fusselideen.

So, what will you be making for kids for Christmas?

 

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Summer sewing – Mermaids by Revoluzzza

Summer sewing – Mermaids by Revoluzzza

A couple days ago I sewed some dolls. For the first time in my life! :-) I have made stuffed animals before (like this unicorn/horse) – but no dolls so far.
Feels good to try something new. :-) And my kids LOVE their Calypsos by Revoluzzza!

My daughter and “the tiny one” – who is not at all tiny anymore *sigh* – were allowed to choose what their dolls should look like. And this is how they turned out:

Calypso Revoluzza Nixe Mermaid Ursula Markgraf

A little merMAN (is that a  proper English word?) for my son – with lots of GREEN! :-) And a crown of course.

My son was so excited about getting this doll that he could not wait for it to be finished. While I was handstitching the last hole – it was his bedtime already – he pressured me to promise that I would put the doll next to him in his bed as soon as I  had finished it! :-) I thought that was pretty sweet!

calypso_klein_revolulzzza-nixe-mermaid-ursula-markgraf

And my daughter got a mermaid princess. Of course also with a crown. And lace! And a little hair clip and bow on her bikini. :-)

(And I finally got to cut into that strange gold-coloured fabric that I had laying around since forever … *laugh*)

calypso_gross_revoluzzza_nixe_mermaid_ursula-markgraf

I was actually quite thrown with how excited my kids were about these dolls. I mean I knew they would like them. But they were so happy when they woke up and found their new dolls in their beds! Just melted my heart!

The “tiny one” even insisted that he take his merman with him when we went to the library. Just cute!

Have you ever sewn a doll? Or do you think of trying? Leave me a comment – I would love to hear from you!

 

 

Almost ruined ….

Almost ruined ….

but could luckily still save it – the owl-shirt for my little man. The pattern is by allerlieblichst (German).

shirt-sewing-ursula-markgraf

The appliqued owl is a pocket. Just the right thing for little explorers who have to collect everything that they find outside!

(I am already looking forward to fingering sticks, leaves, acorns, and rocks out of the pocket before washing. *laugh*)

The eyes of the owl glow in the dark. Of course they are a button made by me. ;-)

What do you think? I have to admit I am kinda proud that I managed to create the applique-pocket-thingy (The fusible webbing I put on was quite a pain! But I won!)

Do you like it?

 
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I did it again

I did it again

No, nothing bad. So no “ooops” ;-) I sewed another top for my daughter. It is another pattern by allerlieblichst called Karolinchen.

Genähtes Oberteil nach Schnittmuster Karolinchen / Sewn top

The sewing pattern is actually for a top that is a bit shorter – and I would have preferred to cut it that way. But my daughter did not want to hear about it. It had to stay long. *shrugging shoulder*

Genähtes Oberteil nach Schnittmuster Karolinchen / Sewn top

 I really love the fabric of the top part of the tunic.

Genähtes Oberteil nach Schnittmuster Karolinchen / Sewn topThe fabric of the bottom part is not really my favourite. But my daugher picked it – and she loves it. Oh well. She has to wear it after all. :-)

Genähtes Oberteil nach Schnittmuster Karolinchen / Sewn top I made the buttons especially for the dress. They did not quite turn out like I intended to. But the color matches the dress really well. *laugh*

The sewing pattern can be bought HERE(Sorry, in German only). Buttons can be bought in my store of course. ;-)

 
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P.S. Party happening tomorrow. 

Black + pink + lace = ?

Black + pink + lace = ?

Curious? 

I usually do not really like pink. But in combination with black it is somehow fun. I made this  top for my daughter and combined pink knit fabric, black corduroy and whitish lace. The sewing pattern I used is from the German pattern designer allerlieblichst and called Josefinchen.

josefinchen-ursula-markgraf-tunika-4

I have to admit – what I like best about this tunic top is that you can embellish it so well with handmade buttons. ;-) 

josefinchen-ursula-markgraf-tunika-3

The stamped heart button fits perfectly, doesn’t it? 

josefinchen-ursula-markgraf-tunika-6I am not too happy with my fabric choices however … To use a thick ribbed knit for a top that is gathered right above the tummy turned out to not be the best choice. No matter how slim the person wearing … it adds quite a thick layer and that somehow is not flattering. :-( But oh well – I learn from mistakes.

josefinchen-ursula-markgraf-tunika-7

And my daughter was not really that bothered by it.  It is still pretty awesome to run around in it. :-)

What do you think about pink?
Love it? Hate it? Depends? Leave me a comment!

 
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Cozy woodland coat – sewn for boys

Cozy woodland coat – sewn for boys

I have no idea why but whenever I see this coat it reminds me of the woods. I suppose the handmade leaf buttons have to do with it … and maybe the cuddly brownish color. :-)

It is the first small coat I have ever sewn and I am so happy with it.  If you would also like to sew a coat for your little one but feel kinda intimidated – THIS is the pattern for you!
(It is an unisex-pattern, so it works for girls as well.)

coat-sewing-pattern-big-little-ursula-markgraf-3

Seriously, it was WAY easier than I thought it would be. The steps are illustrated with photos and the pattern itself is rather simple so even beginners can handle it! 
Would love to make  a coat out of wool felt sometime … next time. ;-)

coat-sewing-pattern-big-little-ursula-markgraf-2

Considering that this was the first project ever that I made out of quilted fabric – I am really super happy with how it turned out! After all, it DOES look like a coat! ;-)

It would have been alot better if I would not have made the buttons holes (4 layers of thick quilted fabric!) with the finest jersey needle I had available! *argh*
But other than that … :-)

Have you ever made a coat? What was your last “OMG, I can not believe I made this”-project?

 
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Fresh from the sewing machine … girl’s tunic

Fresh from the sewing machine … girl’s tunic

Finally I spent some quality time with my sewing machine again.  This time I made a tunic for my daughter. The pattern is called Evelinchen and it is from the German pattern designer  allerlieblichst. I even cut into some treasured cotton jersey (dark brown with flowers) for this top that I had ordered from the US quite some time ago. I think it looks great with the natural colored cotton jersey I used for  the rest.

evelinchen-ursula-markgraf-naehen-sewing

 Apparently the tunic is very well suited for running around in it. ;-) My girl had a good time shooting the photos. Very short time though as it was crazy cold! No wonder that she hardly stood still for a second. I was already freezing just looking at her – and I was wearing a thick coat.

Of course she also chose one of my handmade buttons – one of the stamped ones – and to make it a little extra-special I put it onto a little heart applique.

button-knopf-handgemacht-handmade-ursula-markgraf--evelinchen-2

 I am sure this was not the last tunic I made. Already have some other ideas in my head that I definitely have to try.

What have you sewn lately?

 
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Are you looking forward to fall?

I do. But if you are reading here regular you probably already know how much I love fall. :-)

But there always was one thing that I was not looking forward to when it got colder: hats! I do not like hat. Or should I rather say – hats do not like me?

Because in general there are types of hats that I think look really good. But as soon as they are on my head somehow they change – and it either looks really weird  or it is really uncomfortable or the hat does not keep me warm at all! Combinations of all those are possible and actually highly likely.

I already had made my peace with the fact that hats and I will never be a happy couple … but look at this:

 

Does not look to bad, does it? ;-)

And yes, that is me. With a hat. Even better – a hat sewn by me! I used a pattern from Farbglück which I was allowed to test. :-)
However, my happyness did not last for too long … my beautiful hat soon was stolen and is worn now by my almost-schoolkid. I guess the hat will not be worn by me alot after all. :-(
It is quite hard to be mad though as the hat looks really really good on her!  

 
Guess I will have to make another one for myself. :-) Another one in red velvet and black corduroy … with button of course. ;-)
 

I also had made one hat out of fleece and cotton fabric. The hat turned out fine. However, for some reason blue just is not my colour. Will go for red and black again next time. :-)

And if you like the hat you can make your own – you can buy the pattern  HERE.

And now I am looking forward to going on long walks in the woods …

What do you love most about fall? 

 
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Finally! The prettiest “first day of school” dress ever!!!

This is the dress I made for my daughter for her first day of school.
 

I was SO unbelieveably happy about how it turned out. MUCH better than I ever anticipated. 

My daughter had picked the pattern  (Elodie – by Farbenmix.) And this is actually only my “test sewing” cause I was so terrified to mess up the “good” fabric. 

So my daughter and I picked bits and pieces from leftover fabric … When I was cutting the pieces I was honestly a bit unsure whether this really was such a good idea … to put together the dress out of that many different pieces.

But with every seam I did I got more excited. I could not wait to finally see the whole dress.

And when I was done – WOW! If I would fit into it, I certainly would wear it. *laugh*

 

And because my daughter loved it as much as I did we decided that this would be the “real” dress, not just the test dress. :-) I am not really upset about this. Less work for me. :-) But now I have about 4m of perfectly fine fabric lying around … oh well … guess I will find something to do with it. ;-)

What do you think about the dress? Looking forward to your comments!

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