Ellie Claire Knits

5 hour baby sweater

2010-10-02T14:07:00.000-07:00

5 hours?
it can't be true.
a whole sweater?

Well, I didn't time myself...but this 5 hour baby sweater really truly is a quick and fun knit!

and impressive if I do say so myself. I even had time to include the matching bonnet!

This was a gift for my husband's coworker-people I don't know. You never know the level of appreciation someone will have for a handmade gift-but I was delighted today to see that baby Grace came home in this sweater. I was touched!

and what a gorgeous baby she is. Welcome to the world Baby Grace!

Reduce, Reuse, Refashion!

2010-09-30T10:42:00.000-07:00

I love the idea of taking something with potential and making it into something else. My son was given these pants in a hand-me-down package...and while they have a cuteness about them-they just aren't my his style. So, here is my version of a boys pants to jean skirt refashion


the starting product...cute denim w/ corduroy embellishment.

So, basically-I just hacked off the top of the jeans. These were a 5T so I did have to downsize them a bit for my 18 month old


the first cut

I fiddled with the bottom for a while-I wasn't exactly sure what I wanted there. But, I ended up with something of a ruffle. A little 80's? maybe. But, isn't that style cool again?

and a little embellishment for the bum with some leftover corduroy

She's starting to be a little more cooperative for the camera. She likes to pose and say "cheese!"

cheese!

It's not my most graceful project ever..but I'm pretty happy that the pants that would otherwise not been worn now have found a new life!

One thing is abundantly clear

2010-09-25T09:50:00.000-07:00

I really kinda suck at blogging!

I did NOT forget about the kids clothes challenge week. I DID sew this week! I have one measly thing to show for it and it's not even finished yet...

trust me, this is ridiculously cute on her. It totally needs buttons. I will post pictures of my model when it's done!
eta: The finished product!

oh, I did sew one other thing this week...doesn't really fall in the kids clothes category, but it will wrap a sweet little baby. :)

Swaddle blanket from a Prudent Baby tutorial.

A Challenge!

2010-09-09T16:50:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite crafty bloggers, elsie marley, is once again hosting a kids clothes week challenge in honor of National Sewing Month. I'm holding myself to it this time! Watch for posts with my updates! I, of course, have eleventy billion projects swimming around in my brain so maybe I can churn some out.

It's time for Fall!

2010-09-08T11:54:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago I picked up some adorable apple printed corduroy fabric and decided that it was destined to be a jumper for the Diva. It turned out so cute...if not a touch too big. But, she'll be able to easily wear it until the spring.

She also ended up with a matching baby doll. This was an impulse project! But I found this tutorial and it was too stinkin' cute!

hug your baby!

what else comes with Fall? College Football!! One of my favorite crafty ladies from Crafts for Lily gave me the idea/inspiration for this little outfit and I'm just tickled with how it turned out!

Go State!

Happy Fall!

Shirr Madness

2010-07-29T13:15:00.000-07:00

Yes, I know it's nearly August...and I *should* be thinking of fall clothes. But, I still had some cute fabric left from the summer-and these bubble/sunsuits have been all over the interwebs. I have also been dying to try this shirring technique with elastic thread. It was so much fun! And such a cute result


it's the perfect outfit for gardening

okay...back to knitting (which is why I am here in the first place, right?) and thinking about the fall. Somewhat of a challenge when it's so hot out! But if you also are in the mood to squeak out one last summer frock...here is some inspiration:
Made By Rae's Sunsuit tutorial
Crafts for Lily's take on the bubble
an easy shirring tutorial

And so far this summer....

2010-07-19T15:47:00.000-07:00

and that's pretty much it....

A Happy Belated Birthday!

2010-05-01T18:39:00.000-07:00

I've never been one to, you know, be on time when it comes to loved ones birthdays. They understand (I hope), and know I have the best of intentions (I do! Honestly!) So, when my dear Nephew turned 3 in March-his gift from me existed only in my brain.

My Brother is one who is passionate about all things mechanical (and rusty, and smelling of gasoline-but I digress) He "rescued" this (previously owned by our Great Grandfather) 1941 Ford from our Grandfather's barn and has restored it to it's former glory*.

*while retaining some of it's "patina" as my brother puts it

it's restoration has become a family affair

that's my Nephew, by the way. Here's a close up

How cute is he?

So, when I happened upon Made's 90 minute shirt and freezer paper stencil tutorials, I instantly decided that he needed a shirt for all those car shows this summer.

So, there you go buddy. Happy 3rd Birthday (late)...hope it fits, hope you like it, and remember that Auntie Sara loves you!

The New Love of my Life

2010-03-21T06:15:00.000-07:00

Addi Turbo 12" circs...oh how I love thee so...

Mama's been busy!

2010-03-12T11:53:00.000-08:00

So, I'm obviously woefully bad at keeping up this blog! The fact is, I tend to get overwhelmed by all the social media in my life! That and well, you know, life tends to get in the way! So, here's some of what's been going on since we last met

Some of that newborn love I showed you in action for Studio 45 Photography:

The one and only thing residing in my Etsy shop right now! My newborn "Ocean Waves" board shorties

We LOVE the Olympics this house. I was so excited to discover that someone had reverse engineered a pattern for the Ralph Lauren hat that the athletes wore in the opening ceremonies. You can find anything on the interwebs!

And Mama's been sewing a bit, too. Now that I have a girl I can't resist sweet little sundresses and all of the gorgeous designer fabrics out there. This is a Lil Blue Boo sundress made with Heather Bailey's Nicey Jane collection.

I've got lots more in the works right now! Loads of special requests and a lot more sewing I want to do. Plus one sweet baby sweater that I can't show yet...but will after it is gifted. :)

What I've been up to

2010-01-22T07:48:00.000-08:00

So, at the encouragement from some friends-I've decided to work on opening a shop on etsy.com. If you've never been to Etsy-it is like an international craft show and is loaded with some spectacular talent! This alone makes it an intimidating venture-but you can't win if you don't play, right? I just want to have fun, knit a lot, and maybe support my yarn habit a little. So, feel free to visit me at www.ellieclaire.etsy.com

Don't get too excited-there's nothing there yet!

I will concentrate on wool soakers/longies/shorties for cloth diapering (it is, after all, the reason I started knitting again)

And thanks to my dear friend Erica at Studio 45, I will probably be doing some infant accessories for photography props.

Of course, I'm open to custom work too if I have time so feel free to hit me up!

and now here are some things I've done recently:
Newborn hats for Studio 45 Photography

and a sling-used as a prop...I'll repost pics once it's been used for a newborn and not a stuffed bunny! I would have tried to cram my 9 month old in there-but I'm pretty sure that would have ended in disaster.

a pair of wool longies for cloth diapering

and my attempt at looking legit! I found a tutorial for the labels at http://www.soulemama.com/soulemama/2006/03/label_this.html#comments

There you have it! I'll keep you all posted on my shop happenings (and all the other crafty stuff I have floating around in my brain!)

Hello Chullo

2009-12-12T13:58:00.001-08:00

We managed to hang on to fall weather here in New England for longer than normal. But, winter had to come sooner than later. So, Miss Ellie needed a winter hat!

Now appearing!

2009-12-12T07:44:00.000-08:00

The magic of Facebook has allowed me to reconnect with my friend Erica Brown who I went to high school with. She is now a professional photographer, and I had the privilege of creating some knit items for her. I'm happy to say that my knits are now appearing at Studio 45 Photography Here is a sneaky peek!

Scurvy Pirate

2009-09-19T18:43:00.001-07:00

Arrr! This be "Talk Like a Pirate Day"...so I bring you the Scurvy Pirate Hat...

Fluffy Bum Alert

2009-09-19T18:22:00.000-07:00

Part of the reason I picked up the needles again was to whip up some wool soakers to go over cloth diapers. After learning all the virtues of wool, and finding some gorgeous (and expensive!!) soakers available on the interwebs-I had a "hey, I can make that!" revelation. These are so fun, and they really do work so well!

flirty skirty

Curly Purly soaker done in Noro

http://www.curlypurly.com/pdf/soaker.pdf

Love these little capri's with ruffles

and a pair in yummy orchid Malabrigo

longies in chocolate and pink...makes me hungry for strawberry and chocolate ice cream!

I gotta get cracking on some new ones...she's outgrowing them almost as fast as I can knit them!

Cadet Hats!

2009-09-19T17:38:00.000-07:00

I find it fitting for my first post to be about these Cadet hats. I made one for my son and everyone loves them! So, needless to say a few have gone out to friends!

My original cadet hat:

One for a little girl:

Even one for a grown up!

I'm still working on a couple that have yet to be photographed, but they are a fun & quick knit. I found the pattern here:

http://kathrynivy.com/patterns/free/kiddie-cadet/

and raveled about it here:

http://www.ravelry.com/projects/Kapalua/kiddie-cadet