upcycled baby clothing creatures

Our baby is growing like a weed and that means lots of clothing doesn't fit anymore! And while we haven't invested very much money in her wardrobe (thank goodness!), we still have some cute things that already hold lots of memories and I can't bear to get rid of. So I have been saving my favorite outfits to cut up and create a whole bunch of abstract and whimsical little creatures to keep in Lucy's room for future play time and to display as little mementos of her early years. As she continues to grow out of more clothing, I will keep adding more creature to the collection!

I began by sorting my stash of baby clothes- I pulled all of the things that had a cute print or held special memories.

Next I started cutting things up and piecing them back together in different shapes and sizes of the soon to be creatures.

I used free motion sewing to "draw" the faces and I used a piece of stabilizer to back my fabric.

I went for an abstract, whimsical and child-like style for my faces.

Next, I stacked the front and the back and I sewed up the top and sides with a zig zag stitch.

I inserted stuffing and sewed it up.

I made legs out of the sleeves from the garment

and sewed them to the body.

I made little ears and sewed them to the top of the head.

I made a couple more little creatures.

This is the beginning of the collection!

And of course I couldn't resist photographing them with my little lady but she cared more about grabbing her toes

and putting them in her mouth.

But I know someday these little guys will be appreciated!

big and messy

Lately I have been sharing some of my own personal art that I have created to hang on our walls see here, here, here. As I mentioned in previous posts, I like BIG statement art that can be hung in places that pull your eye in or create a dynamic focal paint. A while back when we were organizing and updating our bedroom we went back and forth between purchasing a headboard.

After giving up- because I'm cheap, I decided that a great colorful piece of canvas may be just a good as a headboard. I didn't want any images, words, patterns- just lots of messy color. Never underestimate the beauty of a really good messy painting it can add that pop of color or even an element of abstraction to your walls.

I started by first stretching my own really large canvas- about the width of our king size bed. (I talk more about stretching your own canvas in this post)

Next I start slopping paint on the surface- this is the fun part because there are no rules, no right or wrong, just good ol' messy fun.

I blend color, I drip, drizzle, splatter all over the surface and let things dry in between layers so that the color won't get muddy.

The process is quick and expressive (perfect for blasting some good music while working).

And result is beautiful messy statement piece!

(Important note- because we live in Southern California and we experience way too many earthquakes and because my husband is a structural engineer who does earthquake testing for a living we bolt the big art to the wall- especially if it hangs over the bed! The last thing you want to to wake up to is a large painting on your head!)