Category Archives: heirloom sewing

Coming Home Outfit~Daygown

 

Alastair, 2 1/2 months, on antique carriage cover.  He had nearly outgrown this daygown, but this was the first time that the harried new parents got around to taking a picture for me.  It DID fit when he came home, but at 9 lb.s 6 oz. it didn't fit very long!

Alastair, 2 1/2 months, on antique carriage cover. He had nearly outgrown this daygown, but this was the first time that the harried new parents got around to taking a picture for me. It DID fit when he came home, but at 9 lb.s 6 oz. it didn’t fit very long!

One of the first things I made for Alastair’s layette was his coming home outfit. The daygown was made from Maggie’s Classics Daygown #113 pattern. The matching blanket was featured in a previous post and the sweet little cap will be shown soon.

Obviously, this picture was taken lonnnnnng after he came home from the hospital. He was 2 ½ months old and the gown is ridiculously short. When he was newborn, the length was adequate if not generous.  But were I to make another, I would make it much longer. You can see that it still fits him except for the length. But if it had been cut longer, he could have worn it much longer. Continue reading

“You’d Better Not Pout” Pillowcase

Our hearts grow tender with childhood memories and love of kindred, and we are better throughout the year for having, in spirit, become a child again at Christmas-time.~Laura Ingalls Wilder

I love holiday pillowcases. Christmas, being the most special holiday of all, is reason enough for several sets of pillowcases—for my bed, for the guest room, for my grandchildren’s beds at my house and at their homes, for our cabin in North Carolina, for the guest rooms in my children’s homes, for special little friends……. I could go on and on. Continue reading

Angel Watch

My daughter loves pretty blankets for her baby  boy and this is one of her favorites.    I like to think this angel and others, unseen, watch over my precious grandson.

The shawl is made of 100% wool challis.   It has the drape and softness of rayon challis, with extra lightweight warmth and without synthetic fibers.  What a luxurious and cooperative fabric this is!  This shawl has been machine washed and dried a number of times and requires only a light pressing. Continue reading

Patient Pillowcases

Everyone worries a little–or a lot– when a loved one is admitted to the hospital. Often, flowers are sent to express love and concern, but I don’t do that. Instead of sending a floral arrangement, I sew.

Embroidering a personalized, pima cotton pillowcase does a lot for the patient and offers me a modicum of peace of mind.

What can it do for the patient aside from the cool comfort of that  silky fabric against the face? It draws attention. Continue reading

Lemon Drop Doll Dress

zlemondropdollbishopBrite

 

Doll clothes are always fun to make. This smocked, lemon yellow bishop dress will be part of the petite wardrobe I am making for my granddaughter’s Christmas doll Molly, one of Pleasant Company’s American Girls.

Made of Swiss batiste, with French lace on the sleeves and in the fancyband, the color reminds me of lemon drops. The tiny yellow rosebuds in Bear Threads  Swiss embroidered insertion,  reinforces the lemon drop image it generates for me.

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Nana’s nursery window shade and valance

Valance is made from antique bassinet skirt.

Have you ever bought something just because you had to have it, even though you had no idea what you would ever do with it? I’m pretty sure most of you have.

About 20 years ago, a vendor at a doll show had an elaborate display of antique textiles. Among her wares was a bassinet skirt, cut in half. In her opinion, bassinets were no longer in use so she cut it in half to make the price more reasonable. I thought it was far more likely that one doting grandmother would pay a good price for a breathtaking skirt than it was for two creative sewists to pay a little less for a chopped up bassinet skirt.  But maybe she was right—I was one one of those “sewists” (I really don’t like that word, but it beats sewer) and she had already sold the other half to another like minded lady.

valance top

Maybe I was on a rescue mission, but I knew it was mine and it came home with me. And then it rested in a drawer for all those years. Continue reading

Silk Dupioni Quilt

 

quilt pattern is a variation of Grandmother's Fan

quilt pattern is a variation of Grandmother’s Fan

Have you ever quilted with silk dupioni? It really is a wonderful fabric for a special use quilt.

Occasionally, you will see an heirloom style dupioni quilt in Sew Beautiful magazine and this one was featured in Creative Needle magazine a few years ago. The only person I have ever known to actually make one was Rebecca Kemp Brent, a frequent and fabulous contributor to machine embroidery magazines. It was a great compliment for her to reproduce this one.

silkGrandmotherfancornerclosebrite

 

The reinterpretation of traditional quilt designs by using heirloom fabrics and techniques gives a refreshing and elegant twist to favorite old patterns. Testimony to the popularity of the Grandmother’s Fan pattern is the ready availability of vintage quilts of this design. Continue reading

Gender Neutral Daygown

little lambs daygown

little lambs daygown

The day after we were told that our first grandchild was on its way, I began sewing. Of course, it takes some time for the amazing prenatal ultrasound images to identify the baby’s gender and I had no time to wait on the pink or blue designation.

Of course, I had a sizable grandmother’s hope chest ready to go.  But there were very few things for a baby boy and I didn’t want to come up short if we had a grandson.  So I was in a rush. Continue reading

Linen Machine Shadow Embroidered Pillow

linenshadMadeirababypilwhole

 

 

I love projects for babies and this is one of my favorites.  From design to execution, this linen pillow has some interesting details. The open ends of the pillowcase offer the opportunity to give more balance to the overall design, with color and embroidery at both ends.

The handwork techniques used on this baby accessory look convincingly like they were stitched in the traditional manner, but they were all done entirely by machine. Thanks to the miracle advances in sewing notions and machine technology, Madeira appliqué, feather stitch, pinwheel roses and shadow embroidery are quickly, easily and quite perfectly done.

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Binche Elephant Doll Bib

 

Binche elephant lace

I came across this little doll bib today as I was going through some old teaching samples.  This will be included with 5 year-old Laurel’s Christmas doll, the  American Girls Molly.

Made on my Elna Diva, circa 1994,  the bib was, to me,  a miracle of machine embroidery. I know I am easily impressed, but the perfect decorative stitch of elephants was strong testimony to the quality of the sewing machine. It still is a fine  machine, but its embroidery has long been surpassed by hoop embroidery capability.

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