Twinkle Toes and Company

{Please note that some of these links are affiliate links.  If you purchase something I have recommended, sewn etc. through those links I will receive a small percentage of compensation.  It helps me support my sewing "therapy" and the ability to review and test more patterns.} I’ve been eyeing The Eli Monster’s Patterns for awhile.  Really, drooling over them would probably be more accurate.  The Eli Monster's style is quite different than most patterns I've seen for sale lately, and for some reason I've just never jumped on The Eli Monster band wagon.   I’m happy to say that I’m firmly planted now. The Admiraal is a double breasted dress with a pleated  skirt.   I fell in love with the double breasted fitted bodice and the shaw collar.  It is beautiful and classy with a style you don’t see very often. I think it's important to note right about here just how vital making a muslin (or two...or three) is to achievin

{Please note that some of these links are affiliate links.  If you purchase something I have recommended, sewn etc. through those links I will receive a small percentage of compensation.  It helps me support my sewing "therapy" and the ability to review and test more patterns.} My kids seem to go through pants, shorts, capri's etc. like they're made out of paper.   They either hit a growth spurt and all of the sudden are waiting for flood or they come home from an activity or playing outside with holes in the knees.   It doesn't matter how often I buy them pants,  it always happens!   So, one of my goals this year is to make the kids pants.  If I can make them to fit their skinny frames perhaps I can keep up with their growth spurts/crawling around/sports accidents.   You can stop laughing.  Logically I know that won't happen, but if I can realistically make  a pair or two when they need them I'll consider it a win. Enter Pickl

{Please note that some of these links are affiliate links.  If you purchase something I have recommended, sewn etc. through those links I will receive a small percentage of compensation.  It helps me support my sewing "therapy" and the ability to review and test more patterns.}   This last fall I had the opportunity to do a pretest  for the Perfect Play Henley.  Just the pretest version has become my younger three kids favorite shirt.  *NOTE*: this is the pretest version.   They love that they can "match" and yet not look identical at the same time.  I love that I can add some extra details and make it "girly" for my very girly daughter and "cool" for the high schooler who typically wouldn't be caught dead in mom-made clothes.  He actually wears this top regularly.  When he first wore it to school he kept getting asked what store he got it at because it was so "cool"!  I *may* have been a tad bit tickled that he was

{Please note that some of these links are affiliate links.  If you purchase something I have recommended, sewn etc. through those links I will receive a small percentage of compensation.  It helps me support my sewing "therapy" and the ability to review and test more patterns.} Remember when the clothes you wore were so fashionable they weren't comfortable? Yeah, me too. Thankfully, the Boho Babydoll pattern isn't one of those! It's beyond comfortable! Miss. Thang has been asking for a Maxi skirt for a long time.  Typically she gets whatever dress or skirt I happen to be testing or I think is cute.  She rarely gives specific requests, I just hadn't found the right maxi yet.  And then the Boho Babydoll-Youth entered the picture. The Boho Babydoll-Youth comes in several different lengths.  Miss. Thang is wearing the slight high low maxi here with 3/4 sleeves.  We LOVE the high low!  It's just high enough in the front t