Patriotic Toddler Attire - A Refashion Tutorial

Time to show off your patriotism by making your little one an American flag shirt.

For this project, I started with an old 4th of July tee shirt that no one would wear, and cut out the American flag-map. Next, I took two running shirts, which I received from some 5k races - you know, those shirts with tons of logos on them.  I made a pattern using one of my grandson's tee shirts and cut out my shirts, first the white shirt and then the navy blue shirt.  Now, if you have some old shirts too, you can follow these steps to make a quick patriotic shirt for your little one:

Sew the sleeves into the shirt.   Lastly, finish that shirt by applying a favorite American flag, or other patriotic image.

Purchase your little one a flag and teach them the song "America the Beautiful".  I taught this two year old to sing this song last week.  It's so adorable hearing him sing these lyrics - melts my heart! Gotta teach 'em patriotism young! 

Happy Fourth! - xoxo Grandma

Shared:  2 Crochet Hooks, Project Run and Play, The Dedicated House, Brooklyn Berry Designs, Skirt Fixation

Making a Tee Pee from Sheets - a Tutorial

I suppose every little boy at some point gets into the "cowboys and Indians" phase during playtime. Of course, those imaginations work a whole lot better when they have a full-sized tee pee to go along with it. As my grandson's second birthday approached, my daughter kept dropping hints to me that he really wanted a tee pee for his birthday (or maybe that she just really wanted him to have one). Either way, I happily obliged with this request. 

Now the question remained: how on earth do I make this happen? It just so happened that I recently bought a new set of king sheets. The old ones got deposited in my charitable donation pile. And every time I walked by them, they starred me in the face, practically begging me to find a new use for them. After walking past them a few times, it suddenly dawned on me that these old sheets would be perfect as a tee pee. 

After about 13 hours of sewing, which I did three nights in a row, I finished just in time to send it to the Midwest for this sweet boy's second birthday. Thank goodness for priority shipping!  

When the package arrived, I gave my son-in-law specific instructions on what kinds of poles he needed to purchase from the hardware store to erect this tee pee. He was impressed I was right on with my measurements. I only knew exactly what was needed because I purchased one 2 in. x 4 in. x 8 foot piece of wood to measure so I knew how big to make the casings. I decided that the casings would keep my grandson and any of his wild friends from getting slivers. 

If you look closely at the above photo, you'll notice I added a buffalo on each panel. I only wish I had of been smart enough to think of that idea before I sewed the panels together! Then to finish off this tee pee I added self made brown piping and a feather accent on the top of the frame. This accent was made from three strands of cording that I braided and hot-glued 4 colorful feathers onto the ends.  

As you can see, this little boy liked his tee pee. I'm told he squealed with delight when he came downstairs and saw the teepee set up in his living room, filled with balloons. I really wish I could have been there to celebrate with him.  

How to make a tee pee from sheets - warning, there is a lot of sewing involved with this project, it's not complicated, just time consuming:

• Fold the top king sized sheet into fourths.
• Using a straight edge, draw a diagonal line from the bottom of the sheet to the top of the sheet.
• Cut along this line.  This will give you 3 large triangles and two smaller triangles.  
• Use one of the large triangles as a pattern to cut one additional triangle from the fitted sheet.
• From the fitted sheet, cut out 5 strips of fabric 5" x the length of the fabric triangles diagonal edge.
• Press under 1/4" on both sides of the longs stripes, making the stripes 4 1/2" in width.
• Sew the large triangles together.
• Sew 4 - 30 inches of seam tape together - these will become the ties to keep the tee pee door open.
• 30 inches up from the bottom of the tee pee, sew one 30" seam tape to both sides of the tee pee opening.
• Overlap the center of the small triangles and pin.
• Sew the small triangles together from the top about 30" down.
• Sew the small triangles to the large triangles (the bottom of this will be one large polygon).
• Sew two more of the 30" seam tape ties 30" up from the bottom of the tee pee.
• Cut a 12" circle at the top of the triangles to allow the poles to go out of the top of the tee pee.
• Sew seam tape to the unfinished bottom and top of the tee pee.  
• Once all triangles are sewn together, sew the strips to the wrong side of the center on each seam, tucking under the top & bottom edges.
• Insert five 2 in. x 4 in. x 8 foot pieces of wood into the casings.
• Go outside & set-up your tee pee.

I created this post for part of the Summer Fun Ideas which can be found over at Nap-time Creations.  xoxo Grandma

Stained Glass Flag Craft-365ish Pins...SO cute and crafty

TeePee from a Sheet- XOXO Grandma... I am making this for sure!

Princess Slime- the Sewing Sparrow... this looks fun! Even for my boys

Grilled Bananas- For You With Love... These look so tasty!

Have a great summer and enjoying shade in your tee pee!
Linked to: Nap-Time Creations, Threading My Way, The Dedicated House, Diana Rambles, Simple Simon

Doll Sized Socks - A Tutorial

How many baby socks do you own that will not stay on those cuties little toes?  I've found a quick easy refashion that will be sure to please any doll loving little or big person.

To get started, you'll need the following: scissors, thread, a needle or a sewing machine and baby socks of course.

Project #1: Doll Sized Socks 
Skill Level:  Beginner
Need:  One pair of baby socks.  

Put a sock on your doll, matching the doll's heel with the sock's heel, mark the excess toe fabric with pins or a washable fabric marker.  Follow the steps in these images:

To download the full color tutorial as seen above, click HERE.
xoxo Grandma


Linked at: Crafty Allie, Nap-time Creations, 2 Crochet Hooks

Make Doll Sized Sandals - 4 Tutorials

What's your favorite thing to wear in the summertime? Mine is sandals. There's nothing quite like ditching socks for a few months and sporting a pair of cute sandals to keep yourself cool during those hot summer days. Your little girl may even want a pair (or four) for her doll too. 

She's in luck, because I have four tutorials for you on how to make your doll fashionable this summer in unique sandals. They are fun, inexpensive and easy to make. 

Supplies Needed:

• Sheet of foam, I used 2mm thick, 9" x 12" (cost was 69 cents - I got three sets of soles from this sheet).
• Hot glue gun
• Glue sticks
• Hair elastics
• Ribbon
• Braid, I used Simplicity #1890581, white ($2.99 - I got four sets of sandals from the roll).

Let's get started: 

First, trace your doll's feet onto a piece of paper.  Now, cut the paper out about 1/8" larger than the traced foot pattern.  Trace your pattern onto the foam and start cutting out. You'll need at least two pieces of foam per pair of shoes.  Below you'll find four variations of the summer sandals I created.  As you create your sandals, make sure you make one sandal the opposite direction of the other, since your doll has a right and left foot too. 

At the bottom of this post is a link to download these tutorials, so it'll be easier to follow these steps as you make your sandals.

Pink Sandals:

Yellow Sandals:

Blue Braided Sandals:

Here are the downloadable tutorials:  Pink Sandals, Yellow Sandals, Blue Sandals, Orange Sandals

I hope you have as much fun making your doll sandals as I did. Now your doll is all ready for summer!

- xoxo Grandma

Linked: Nap-time Creations, Threading My Way

Floral Sundress - Toddler Size

This turquoise floral sundress is one of the first refashions I ever made for my grandchildren. It was refashioned from one of my old dresses.  So why did it take me so long to post this? Without these little ones close by, and foolishly not asking for enough measurements, I've had to wait for a full year to see this on my oldest granddaughter - luckily children grow.

I got the idea for this sundress from Mini Boden (an upscale manufacturer of British Style clothing).  I read a post over at Frances Suzannes blog HERE, showing how to make a knock-off skirt from this company.  I thought a sundress would be a fun twist on this project. With a sundress, you don't need to find a shirt to match. Plus, it's an easy article of clothing for a child to dress themselves in. Truthfully, all those flowers took a long time to add to the skirt, but look how cute it turned out!

 

Here's to sunny days and lots of playing! 
-xoxo Grandma

Linked:  Nap-time Creations, Creating My Way to Success, Simple Simon, 2 Crochet Hooks, Project Run and Play, The Dedicated House

Summer Quote Printout

Summer doesn't officially arrive until June 21st but here's a little poem you can frame and enjoy while you eagerly anticipate its arrival. You can download your copy of this summer poem HERE.  The artwork, poem and doodles are by me, aka xoxo Grandma. ENJOY!

Summertime Clothing for American Girl Doll - Swimsuit

Summertime is fast approaching and it's time to make an easy swimsuit for your doll.  To do this, you'll need one swimsuit that your child or grandchild has outgrown.

Next, you'll need the Lee & Pearl Ballet Basics pattern which you use to be able to get for free on their website here (just signing up for their mailing list).

First, cut your swimsuit out using the free pattern. Now, follow the steps below:

At this point, you'll need to adjust the neck strap to make it fit around your doll's next.  I cut almost all the extra length from the strap and with my sewing machine I re-sewed the strap back onto the hooks.

Enjoy your days at the pool with your doll and her new suit in tow! xoxo Grandma

UPDATE 2017: The pattern used is no longer free from Lee & Pearl. They are now offering a different pattern. The pattern can however be found on their Etsy Shop.

You also might like "Turning Baby Clothes into Doll Clothes" and "Make Doll Sized Sandals - 4 Tutorials"