Ok so we had our first cool snap in Louisiana this week and I was stuck dressing my kids in clothes from last year that were too short, too tight, you get the picture….So I felt terrible for sending my kids off to school/daycare looking like a pair of hot messes so I grabbed a few things online to make sure that they would look cute in the cool days to come.

For Luna I picked up lots of printed henleys, long sleeve tees, a few hooded tunics and dresses, leggings, sparkly cords and heart patch jeans.  There is a lot of print here but I did buy solids too, just not fun to show off solids.  Old Navy has great stuff that is super cheap that you don’t feel bad about ruining by sending her to play at daycare in the pieces. I am really excited for her to rock her Toms boots that I picked up for her a few weeks ago with these adorable fall looks.

So I realize now it looks like I went a little cray cray for Luna and poor Bailor didn’t get anything. The truth is that Bailor goes to school with uniforms so he only needs clothes for weekends and lets be honest there just aren’t many options for boys.  Another issue is that Bailor is at an in between age.  He is 6, almost 7 so he is out of the kiddy boys clothes but a lot of times the big boy blothes don’t offer XS which is what he needs.  So he got a few waffle print graphic tees in bright colors and a cute gray zip up sweater that will look cute with uniforms or even with a button down underneath for something a bit more dressy.

For me I grabbed a few new fall-esque dresses, metallic pencil,  jersey pencil skirt, jersey blazer (really excited about this) and a few pairs of wedges and booties.  I am pretty excited about the hounds tooth peplum dress as the black/print number is way out of what I normally buy and I think it could be pretty versatile if styled correctly.

What do you guys think of my finds? What are your favorite looks for fall?

Share on Facebook

So, your precious little boy or girl is about to turn a year older, and you want to plan the perfect birthday party for him or her to celebrate. Unfortunately, you may be wondering how you’re going to avoid that birthday party. Finances are tight for just about everyone, and throwing extravagant birthday parties for kids just isn’t realistic anymore for most people. Luckily, there are ways to save money on planning a birthday party for your child. Here are some of them:

• Choose an Affordable Location for the Party – Hosting the party at your house will probably save you some money in comparison to hosting it at a party and play center like an indoor moon bounce arena. Plus, the kids can have just as much fun at your house. If your child has his or her heart set on a party at a party venue, call around to figure out what your most affordable option is.

• Send Out Electronic Invitations – Paper party invitations aren’t very expensive, but they do still cost some money. Most people prefer email invitations anyway, and these types of invitations are usually free. You might as well cut corners and skip the paper invitations.

• Make Your Own Decorations – A birthday banner you make yourself and some confetti you make out of construction paper can look just as nice and festive as the store-bought stuff. Making your own party decorations will cost you some time, but it can save you some money. Additionally, opting to not buy paper plates and plastic utensils will save you a little bit of money, but it will mean that you’ll have to spend a good amount of time cleaning up after the party.

• Make the Party Food Yourself – Having the party catered or buying store-bought food is simply not a great use of funds, especially when you can make the food yourself. So, look up some snack and cake recipes online, and don’t be afraid to experiment in the kitchen.

How much money you spend on your child’s party doesn’t matter. What matters is that your child feels loved, special, and happy!

Author’s Bio: Melissa is a guest post writer on the subjects of children’s self-esteem, family relationship building, and how to plan a Mario birthday party and other types of parties for kids.

Related Article:

• Luna’s Valentine’s Day Party

Share on Facebook

I love refashioning, taking something that already exists and getting at it with my seam ripper and making something from the pieces.  Not only is it rewarding but it helps with new sewers, you are able to reuse things that you are not good at yet, like hems, collars etc.

Little Boys Button Down to Toddler Tie Top – My son Bailor just made six, so he has a closet full of button down shirts that may have been worn 2 times each that are too small.  I used my seam ripper to take off the collar/top part of the shirt and the sleeves.  I ironed down an inch/inch and a quarter seam across the top of the back and front of the shirt.  I stiched up that seam and finished up the armholes with some biastape.  Last step is to make/thread the ribbon through the top pocket.  I used a basic cotton in a solid fabric but you could easily use ribbon as well.

To make the tie I took a long strip of the fabric probably about 4 inches wide and stiched up 2 of the 3 sides.  I turned it right side out then stitched up the end and threaded it through the top with a safety pin.  TaDa! There you have it, a new little top for Luna to wear with skinnies or leggings that will look so cute this spring and summer.  I will defeintely be making more of these out the outgrown shirts we have!

Little Boys Button Down to Patchwork Bubble Dress

The best thing about making clothes for a tiny girl is the fact that you don’t need much fabric! With the leftovers of this 4T button down (the sleeves mainly) and the left over purple fabric I used as the tie I was able to make an entirely different dress for Luna to wear.  I started with the long sleeve of the plaid button down with the cuff cut off.  I placed the button of the sleeve at the top to create a cute little V neck with button look.

I surrounded the sleeve panel in the front with two purple strips for the left and right of the front piece. I created a similar back piece in the oposite pattern, purple in the middle, plaid ont eh sides.  to finish up the top, I sewed a pocket to the top of the front and back pieces for my tie to go through and hemmed up the armholes and the sides.

Next I created a super easy bubble hem skirt by folding my purple fabric in half and stitching up the top seam with elastic thread.

Lastly I sewed the skirt to the top (be careful not to sew one piece inside out….I did this ) and create your tie or even use a ribbon to connect the top together.

Two new items for summer/spring out of one old button down and 1 yard of $2 fabric!

What do you think of the looks? Is this something you will try? If you do make sure and post a link to your photo/project in the comments or tweet/facebook/pintrest me about it!

-Drama mama out

Share on Facebook

I am so stinking excited and proud of this sweet little tank dress I made for Luna.  I am very new to sewing and this is honestly the best looking thing that I have ever made.  I am not good with actual patterns so this little dress is a combo of online tutorials and improvisation.  I used this photo/tutorial for the inspiration of the ruffle, the back and the tank style but I am challenged when it comes to sleeves which is why I chose to keep mine sleeveless.

What you will need:

1/2 to 3/4 of a yard of fabric depending on your child’s size
coordinating thread
sewing machine/supplies
iron
double wide bias tape
skinny elastic
button

I started by creating a simple tank shape for the body of the dress.  Find the fold of your fabric and fold it again length wise  on the fold of the fabric so that I wouldn’t have to sew the straps together.  For Luna  I measured her chest (18 inches) and space from the top of her shoulder to her cleavage.

Once you cut the dress peice out you will be left with the front and back of the dress only connected by the straps.

The first thing I did (feel free to do it in whatever order you like) is create the ruffle peice for the front of the dress.  I took two rectangle peices of fabric to create this ruffle.  The first would remain whole to create the middle straight price and the other would be cut in half to make the two ruffle sides.  I started by cutting the part that would become the ruffle down the middle vertically.  I pressed a 1/4″ hem along 3 edges of these two ruffle peices leaving one long side raw.  Then I created the ruffle by runing a loose stitch along the raw long side. Create the ruffle by gently pulling on the strings from the loose stitch.

Rectangles for Ruffle

Once you complete this step you will need to create the middle part of the ruffle.  Press the large rectangle peice so that it has a 1/4″ hem around all 4 sides.  Pin the flat rectangle to the top of the two ruffles.  Run a seam down both sides vertically connecting the flat rectangle to the two ruffles.  TaDa the ruffle is done.

Now we will need to finish up the dress.  Turn the dress inside out and line the arm holes with double wide bias tape, pin and stitch.  Next pin up the side seams of the dress while its inside out and run a straight or zig zag stitch to close up the sides of the dress.  Cut any excess over the seam with picking shears.  Press your hem and stitch to your desired length.

Lastly we nee to connect the ruffle to the front of the dress.  Pin the ruffle to the top of the dress butt up against the raw neckline.  Stitch all the way around the flat rectangle trying to stay very closely to the same stitch lines you used before.  Next up cut a small slit into the back of the neckline straight down to create an easier opening for your little one’s head.  Fold the edges of your slit into the inside of the dress and trim and pin the entire neckline and back V with the same bias tape as the arm holes.  Stitch all the way around the neck and back V to finish off the dress.

I added a small elastic loop and button on opposites sides of the V in the back to hold it together but this is completely optional.

Close up of ruffle

Isn’t this adorable? There are so many possibilities for this sweet little ruffle dress.  Do you think you will try this dress? If you do please post a link to your photo in the comments.

-Drama mama out

Share on Facebook

Bailor, my 6 year came home last week with an assignment to create an art project made only of recycled materials. After racking our brains we decided to create a Pintrest favorite, melted crayon art.

We opted to use an old, warped, aged peice of plywood as our cavnas to get the party started.  We didn’t have a saw so we had to break the plywood by hand (by foot really) but it gave it a nice raw ragged edge which I LOVE and I think totally makes the peice.

The next step was gathering the crayons, we were only supposed to use old crayons and I thought that we may have to cheat due to the size of the plywood but I was surprised that we had plenty.  This was the perfect job for Bailor, he was able to gather all of his old crayons, group them by color and actually create a rainbow.

We glued the crayons on using a hot glue gun and this step was way easier than I thought.  Because the plywood was already pretty rustic looking I didn’t stress about the crayons being a perfect line with all labels showing etc, we basically glued them on pretty quickly in about 45 minutes or so.

Once they are all in place we took it to the bathroom for melting with the blowdryer.  BEWARE- this step can get messy, once the crayons start to melt they will splatter, especially on the ends, I would suggest doing this step outside.  I heated up the crayons using the hairdryer going back and forth until I was happy with the result. Depending on the size of your canvas this  can take some time, be patient!

All in all it was a super fun project to do with Bailor and it would look so good in any child’s room or playroom.  Also by thinking outside of the box by using plywood instead of a canvas the peice is more universal and interesting and not so juveile which I love.

The good news is that the judges of the recycled art contest at Bailor’s school loved it too! He won the Kindergarten category and won best overall in the entire school!!! I was so proud that a super easy and free project came out so great and was able to take the grand prize.

Suck it stay at home moms! (joking, SAHM have a super hard jobs but it is nice to come out on top when most of the projects we do get overshadowed by kids with moms at home with time to focus on them)

What do you think of the art project? Do you think this is something you will try with your kiddos?

-Drama mama out

Share on Facebook