Happy Anniversary

6 years ago I married the love of my life! Our wedding was beautiful and we had fun spending the day with our friends, and the evening with each other. We didn't get married until 7 pm, so it was a long day of not seeing each other!

Some say their wedding day was the happiest day of their life. Ours was fun, but definitely not the happiest. The planning and day-of were full of drama (his side of the family) and caused a lot of headaches.

The REAL happiest days of my life have been the days our beautiful babies were born! Having a wedding is easy, but raising two babies together is something that takes love, support, understanding, and patience.

I never loved him more than the day our first baby was born and I saw how much he loved her! Then of course, it was just as sweet when baby boy came along. I love watching him love our babies, our world.

He works hard so I can stay with them and care for them each day. He is a good man and I am happy to call him MINE!

Happy Anniversary Hubby! I can't wait to spend so many more with you and our little family!

A Very Pink Quilt

I found another quilt in my house that I forgot to share with you! I say "found" because this one is buried in Goldilocks's bed.

 

I actually made this one for her for Christmas two years ago. It has seen a lot of love since then.

 

The fabrics are a beautiful assortment of pinks. I got most of them in a "pink bundle" from an Etsy shop. They are all Amy Butler prints so they are of course, gorgeous. Some of the prints are from my fabric stash, and I threw in a few solids as filler.

 

I let baby girl pick the back and binding fabrics. So yes, they're also pink. She did a good job though. This quilt got a classic grid, outlining the seam lines of all of the squares.

 

It's been washed sooo many times, and used for lots and lots of sleepovers already. I'm glad she still loves it even two years later.

The Emily Sport Shorts

The Emily Sport Shorts are ready for YOU to sew!!

The Sport Shorts are REVERSIBLE shorts, perfect for little girls on the go! These are intended for girls because they have a short inseam.

Pattern includes sizes 12 months- 6 years

This pattern requires intermediate sewing skills. If you've sewn shorts before you should have no problem!

The pattern e-Book includes full-size printable pattern pieces, and step by step photo tutorials on putting the shorts together.

Make them in your favorite team colors! When one side gets dirty...just flip them over for a new pair!

Vented sides allow for even MORE movement and comfort during sports, play, or sleep.

Download them HERE 

Stone Fire Pit

We received a fire pit as a wedding gift 6 years ago and have used it maybe 3 times. We never spent a lot of time outside and it just sat, rusting, unloved and unused.

 

We're making an attempt to spend more family time outside, so to help us out, Hubby dressed up our little fire pit and made it look more substantial.

 

One afternoon of serious stone stacking and we had a beautiful fire pit that we were ready to use.

 

Nothing fancy, just a sweet circle of blocks in 4 layers surrounding the existing metal fire pit.

 

 

I love how it looks rugged and beautiful too.

 

 

 

It's gotten some good use so far. The babies love a good fire!

 

 

 

Next on the list is adding a couple of stone benches to match, but that's for another day!

Summer Knitting

I learned to knit only a few months ago after taking my first online knitting class at Craftsy. I made a little scarf and although it looked a little rough, I was proud of myself for learning something totally new! 

I've had the knitting bug again and have been wanting to make something plush and warm for winter. I know, I know...it's 90 degrees outside. I am a S L O W knitter so I figured if I started now it would be done by the time I wanted to wear it. 

I was inspired by a ridiculously beautiful scarf at the PurlBee. It had lots of beautiful colors and looked so warm and comfortable.

So I grabbed my knitting needles and got to work. I'm only using three colors. I wear a LOT of brown in the fall and wintertime, so I'm hoping it gets lots of good use. 

The "knit" side is looking smooth and pretty.

But for some reason I love the "purl" side even more. I like the bumps and texture.

I'm only on my third stripe, and I have a really long way to go, but I'm determined to finish it before fall. Hopefully I'll have a "finished" picture before winter comes!

Mini-Scrapbusting

I'm almost ashamed to admit that I have never owned a piece of sewing equipment that most would find essential.

 

I didn't own a pincushion.

 

Crazy...I know!!

 

So during my scrapbusting mission, I decided to make a little one and see if I liked it.

 

I grabbed 2 of my favorite prints out of my scrap bin and cut little 1 1/2" squares, then made a tiny patchwork top. A little stuffing and a few beans for weight and it was ready to go!

 

I am now IN LOVE with my pincushion. It's so nice not to reach into a little box of pins to pull out ONE. I didn't realize how much time I was wasting with my little pin "box".

(Not to mention how many times I've spilled the whole thing on the floor)

 

These are accessible, and most of all...it's cute sitting on my sewing table.

 

It didn't quite make a dent in my scrap bin, but it was needed and I love it. So it's okay.

 

Now I need some cuter pins.

Aviary 2 Quilt

I realized a while back that I never introduced one of our most-used quilts to you! This beauty lives on the back of my couch each day, and each evening you can find me curled up under it! I made it to match these pillow covers using Aviary 2 by Joel Dewberry with some mixed in solids for extra color.

I started this quilt back in 2012, and got the quilt top finished. I managed to get it basted together while SUPER pregnant with baby boy.

The day I "thought" he was coming, I sat on my giant exercise ball, behind my sewing machine and bounced for hours while sewing. It was the only place I was comfortable, and figured I could be productive too. Part of it got quilted. Baby boy didn't quite let me finish. He was in my arms later that night!

This quilt has been washed and used soooo much so it's probably the softest in our house. I still love the oranges, teals and browns. It's timeless, bright and beautiful.

If you've always wanted to tackle making a quilt, large or small, but don't really know where to start... check out the classes at Craftsy! I can't say enough good things about their classes when you're learning a new skill.

It's GIVEAWAY Time

I'm happy to be participating in Giveaway Day at Sew Mama Sew again this year!

Grits & Giggles is giving away FIVE Patterns of YOUR choice.

Best of all...there will be TWO winners! (Sharing is caring right??)

To Enter:

Click HERE to visit Grits & Giggles on Facebook. "LIKE" Grits & Giggles, then "SHARE" our Giveaway Post!! That's it!!
 

You can leave a sweet comment here too for an extra entry!!


TWO winners will be chosen May 16th

Thanks for visiting Grits & Giggles. 

Check out our Tutorials Page for some great FREE patterns and ideas!

The Jennifer Sue Cardigan

It's HERE and ready for YOU to sew!

 The Jennifer Sue Cardigan is an open-front cardigan (NO buttonholes!!) with a flowing ruffle down the front and around the neck. The length is long, perfect for leggings!

The raw edged ruffle, and draped fit make this a perfect lightweight cardigan for casual play.

The Instant Download PDF includes all 10 sizes, with full size printable pattern pieces, and step by step instructions with color photos go guide to as you construct your cardigan.

Perfect for those cool morning and evening hours. Use your favorite knit to make this super-comfortable cardigan for your little one.The cardigan has been tested by my great pattern testers to make sure it is clear and easy to sew!

Stylish and Sweet 

Both of these knits are from GirlCharlee. 

The Instant Download PDF pattern will be on sale for just $5  

(regularly $7.50) for one week only as an introductory price.

Buy it HERE on Etsy or HERE on Craftsy

Reversible Shorts Sewing

It's hard to find cute (non-skanky) shorts for little girls to play in. Lots of sport shorts are either super short, or super tight, or super see-through. Not for my 3 year old. So I wanted to sew her up some to wear when doing group sports, or playing in the yard that would be comfortable, breathable, and cute.

I was working on lining them, when I realized it would be just as easy to make them reversible! 

I searched the internet and found some great sports mesh fabric in our favorite sport colors: purple and orange.

  Since the original plan was to just line them, I also bought some micromesh fabric. It's a great thin lining for sportswear.

I made one pair with the micromesh and purple mesh fabric. And another reversible pair with the orange AND purple. Those are definitely my favorite.  Clearly, Goldilocks likes them too. 

The sides have a slit/vent in the bottom to make them even more sport-friendly. Plenty of room for motion.

I liked sewing these so much, that I wanted to share with YOU! I'm working on getting a pattern and tutorial together NOW. If you've run into the same shopping woes as I have...then you can sew up a few pairs of these in no time! 

Pattern Testing Complete

My AMAZING pattern testers have done it again! They have been testing the "Jennifer Sue Cardigan" to make sure it will be fantastic for YOU to sew.

My friend Autumn is new to sewing and picking it up soooo quickly! She's been making some adorable things for her new little girl. How precious is she in these polka dots! 

The pattern starts at 12 months, but is easily altered to be a little smaller for tinier baby girls.

Brooke from Grace-Nuts made this sweet striped version. I love her little girl's accessories! She's a girl after my own little Goldilocks' heart.

Julie from That's Sew Julie sewed up TWO for her little girls.

Love this pictures of the topstitching and gathered sleeve detail. 

Pretty in PINK!