Everybody Love a Good Dinosaur!

So there I was in Wal-Mart - buying burlap to make outdoor pillows for my cousin Natalie - when I spied it...the brightly colored "dinosaur" fabric.  I've watched too many episodes of "American Pickers" I guess.  One of the show's hosts...Mike...has mantra that "if you see something you've never seen before, now is the time to buy it".  In other words, "Strike while the iron is hot!"  So...I added a couple of yard of the yellow fabric to my order to make shorts for Timothy, Nathan and Owen.  It turns out... I had enough to make a dress for Zola, too - with the help of a thrift-store t-shirt!  I had already used the sleeves - probably to make leggings for Zola.  But I was able to get a new pair of pants and a dress bodice out of the t-shirt body, so I was pretty excited!

Burlap porch pillows for my cousin.

Three pair of boys' dinosaur shorts will equal three gigantic smiles!

Girls like dinosaurs, too!  Zola's outfit has
matching green pants (not pictured).

Meanwhile, I'd stopped by the local thrift shop to look for toys and other treasures...and I gathered a few colorful t-shirts and dresses that I couldn't pass up.  One t-top became a shorts and top playset for Zola...while a dress morphed into a maxi-skirt for the kids' mom, Jasmine.

Thrift store knit shirt "before"...

...toddler shorts and shirt "after"!

Thrift store maxi dress that morphed into a maxi skirt. 
Sorry, I didn't get a picture of the "after" creation!

What's next?  I am somewhat in a "yellow" phase - cute little black and white bumblebees on a yellow background will become a cute summer outfit for Zola.  Stay tuned!!!

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like... EASTER!!!

I am so close to having the children's Easter outfits finished, and I have to say..."I'm pretty excited!"  It all started with this adorable yellow print fabric I spotted on Etsy and HAD to have for something for Zola.  I used a free online pattern for The Party Dress (modified for my "little princess").  For the contrasting trim, I purchased a man's chambray shirt from the thrift store ($1), and carefully cut the fabric along seam lines so that I had big pieces to create the sash and trim. 

Chambray "flowers" accent the hem of the dress, and I had enough leftover material to create bow-ties for the boys (photo coming soon!).  The sleeves and pockets became a pair of "cargo pants" for Nathan, and I salvaged all of the pretty buttons for a future project.  I dug into my stash of buttons and found four pale yellow ones for the back of the dress.  Yippee!!! (See...it pays to save those buttons!)

Since the forecast is for cooler weather to return, I decided that Zola might need a jacket to go with her dress.  I thumbed through my stash of thrift-store t-shirts and found the perfect shade of yellow, then found my pattern for a girls' raglan sleeved jacket and modified it, adding trim around the neck and front openings that I top-stitched with a flower motif...and lace edging on the sleeves and hem.  My mother-in-law gave me a huge bag of lace trim...including many yards of pastel yellow, blue and pink lace.  This was the perfect accent for this little jacket.  A matching "flower" trim at the neckline to cover the snap fastening provided the finishing touch! 

 

I cannot wait to see how pretty Zola looks - or how adorable Timothy and Nathan will be in their coordinating (store-bought on clearance) button-down shirts with matching bow-ties!  Maybe they will stand still long enough for me to get a photograph to post!

I think our kiddos will look pretty darn cute on Easter Sunday...and I didn't break the bank for these outfits.  Since I splurged and bought the two shirts and a yard of fabric for the dress, total cost was somewhere around $30.  For a one-of-a-kind "look" for three children...I'd say that's pretty hoppin' good!

TA-DA!!!  Don't they look adorable?!

Oh, the Things You Can Do with a Thrift Store Shirt!

(click on image for larger view)

It's been a "repurposing" kind of weekend.  I scored a really cool stash of thrift store goodies on Friday, which will soon be turned into all sorts of cute dresses, pants and shorts for the kiddos.  But today was all about a bright lime green polo shirt and some toddler shorts/pants!  I purchased this X-large ladies 3/4-sleeved knit polo at the thrift store a few weeks ago.  I think I paid $2, but it might have only been $1, since there was a half-price sale in progress.  Either way, it was a BARGAIN! 

The shirt had a knit collar, a pocket on one sleeve with silver grommets, and white twill tape trim on the snap placket and at the side slits near the hem.  I still have the snap placket - it will be perfect for the bottom of a toddler or baby romper!  But I used the sleeves and collar to make a darling pair of wide-leg pants for my niece, Kelsey.  The collar was perfect for folding over and creating the elastic waistband - created a really polished finish!

Then I used my boys' boxer short pattern to cut out shorts, utilizing the hem and the twill-trimmed slits.  I had enough left over to create a pair of toddler pants for my niece, Zola... a ruffled flounce made them just the right length!

In all, I think I got my money's worth out of this shirt... and I still have scraps for making the head and legs of a great little stuffed fabric turtle toy for the new baby!