The Material Mama Podcast

Sewing for a Hogwarts American Girl

Dipping my toe back in the fabric stash!

Mel turned 9 and of course I made her the ubiquitious 9 shirt my girls have loved since Mary (her older sister) was 1:

My girls LOVE Harry Potter and we are on the thrid book.  We're talking BIG FANS.  We even went to the West Coast Quidditch Tournament, and great fun was had by all!

They participate in a great site created and maintained by JK Rowling, Pottermore.  I highly recommend it, safe and fun! The kids were sorted into 'houses' when they first joined.  I now have one Hufflepuff and one Ravenclaw girl.  They really are excited about being in these houses! There's some fun videos I'll pop in at the end they have also been LOVING.

I purchased an inexpensive used American Girl Doll (not sure 'who' she was in her former life but for now she's a Ravenclaw girl ;)  ).  Mary and I set to making a complete ensemble for the big birthday.  This is what we did:

Robe:  Liberty Jane, available from their Etsy Shop or their website.  I found the instructions easy to follow and answered all my questions. I found a nice thick poly blend knit that ha a great 'hand' to it.  Satin would be nice too.

Tee shirts:  I purchased the black long sleeved one from Michaels.  I found some Hogwarts 'crests' on ebay and sewed one of the Ravenclaw ones onto it.  Then I made the white one using an old tank top and the free tee shirt pattern from Liberty Jane.  Mary made the tie wout of ribbon and felt. I sewed in onto the front.

Skirt:  This was in the package with the black long sleeve top.  Not very Hogwarts but oh well.  Can't have everything!

Wand:  Mary made this out of Fimo brand clay.  The Liberty jane pattern has a 'how to' for the wand using paper, I believe, but the Fimo turned out so well!

Marauder's Map: Drawn and detailed by her sister using parchment paper

Finished product, very well loved by the birthday girl.

 

Other ideas:  You can get some cute tees here. Some plain that you can embelish and some with logos on them already.

Enjoy these videos from Not Literally Productions!

 

 

 

 

Follow me on Twitter whilst I reset my sewing room! We moved last year and everything went crazy.... So for now, here I am :) https://twitter.com/nutmeg

{ Do you Pinterest? } The Material Mama Blog

What is Pinterest?

You 'Pin' your 'interest' thus the name.  Pinterest is a virtual public pinboard. Pinterest allows you to organize and share all the beautiful things you find on the web. You can browse pinboards created by other people to discover new things and get inspiration from people who share your interests.

People use pinboards to plan their weddings, decorate their homes, and share their favorite recipes.   You can learn more about it below.  If you'd like an invitation to join, email me and I'll send you one, or post in the comments section with your email.   I have gotten some really fabulous ideas not only for sewing but for crafts, cooking, my home and more.  So check it out!

As always, take care and have a lovely day!

Nutmeg

{Read Me!} -The Material Mama Blog Post

Howdy!

Last time I wrote about how much I love listening to podcasts while momming. Today I wanted to share a few books I have enjoyed while on my many travels this summer.  I joined Audible years ago and get a 'free' book/credit each month.  I haven't spent this month's credit yet, if you recommend a book please do so in the comments here on the blog or give a call to the number to the right.  As with the podcasts, some may be repeats of earlier recommendations.

Join Audible for some great listens and a free book to try it out:

I have enjoyed listening to these books while I go to and fro.  I liked not only the well stold story but the readers as well. Little somethin' for any taste:

• BossyPants by Tina Fey
• The Help Katheryn Stocket
• Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin
• Hunger Games Trilogy Suzanne Collins
• Shanghai Girls and Finding Joy  Lisa See
• Madame Bovary Gustave Flaubert
• Packing for Mars Mary Roach
• True Grit by Charles Portis

I occasionally listen to music as well. Showtunes, Carly Simon, Eminem, my tastes vary.  I'll spare you that list ;)  Pandora is a great resource and available on computers as well as iTunes.

Motivated Moms

I've used this method for keeping the house and my brain together.  They now even have an app!  yay!   Click here to visit Motivated Moms.

Fun

Here's something to think about as well, I found it on Facebook.  It feels like my whole life and  especially my sewing LOL!

Ciao until next time!

Nutmeg

{Cut it out!} -The Material Mama Blog Post

I just did a deep deep clean of my sewing room, donated about 90% of my fabric, then I reorganized it so I can actually get some work done in there, or change it into an office suite if the sewing thing doesn't work out for me.  Regardless, t will always be a creative space.

The 'Pod-scape' has changed so much since my last show (to download any of my older programs, click this link: http://materialmama.typepad.com/blog/podcasts.html )  I'd love to get back into it but not sure how to approach it.  There are so few female podcasters, and the big sewing related companies don't really 'get' it.  Heck you can't even buy a Babylock online yet. I try to explain a podcast to every sewing shop I go to and get a blank look, or worse, they look condecendingly at me.

This is where you come in. Do you have some awesome ideas for my Material Mama 2.0 Podcast? Please put them in the comments section of my blog or look over to your right on the blog, or give a call to my answering machine or email me.  I love to hear any ideas for what you're looking for!

I'm not so interested in interviewing other famous crafters, that's what other shows do very well. I may chat with other Sewing Mamas or podcasters though.  I'm not a professional sewista, I just really like it.  So I don't have great talents like Threads might. To be honest I'm guessing that I'm not going to show up on a crafty show or DIY channel.  Too many kids, too busy.  I quit my teaching job to be home so it would sort of defeat the purpose if I had to get a sitter while I was taping or whatever.

Podcasts are a great medium for a mama (or papas), because you can keep it in one ear whilst doing errands etc. I've mentioned some of these before but here are my top current listens:

• Wait Wait Don't Tell Me NPR news quiz.  I get most of my news from here, for better or worse.  Very smart people that make me laugh
• Stuff You Missed in History Class  Short and interesting tidbits of history that will make you feel smarter. 
• Freakonomics Radio  The hidden side of everything
• The Nerdist -- good nerdy fun
• Slate's Spoiler Podcast -- makes me feel like I really get to see more movies than I do
• Judge John Hodgman "pressing issues" decided by Famous Minor Television Personality John Hodgman, you may know him as the PC in the Apple/PC advertisements.

I really liked the Freakonomics podcast about the upside of quitting. It really helped me understand how strange it felt to 'quit' teaching to be a full time mama.  I LOVE teaching but had to quit to make my family work. It's basic freakonomics.

AND..... I've cut out a shirt for Mary (thus the title)! European size 132, good heavens. Nothing too fancy, just an Ottobre 301  long sleeved top in pink cotton lycra blend, but it's the first thing I've cut out in a few years.  She's going to help me pick out the ribbing for the neckline and decide what if any decorations for the front.  I have the embroidery machine, as well as the silkscreening machine (YuDu) or ribbon is always fun.  So we'll see, I'll keep  you posted.

Oh and we have a new pet to be a friend to Indy our dog.  Candace the guinea pig.  She was the class pet in the third grade but the teacher couldn't take care of her so we got her.  She is so sweet and I've totally changed my mind about the creatures.  They are docile, sweet and a great 'first pet' for a 7 and 9 year old.  (In fact now that I'm thinking about it, it's time to clean the cage!):

 Next time -- books I've been listening to that I recommend for mamas :)  Upcoming -- my Very Busy Summer!  And off to Hawaii this November.  Yay! I have lots to share if you're interested.

Ciao!

{Happy Columbus Day!}

Proud of my 1/4 Italian kids today! Raviolis for everyone!

 

And I'm breaking out the embroidery machine, hoping to make some fun, personal things for the holidays!