Sharing Love, One Dress At A Time

As you may know, this week is KCWC over on Elsie Marley's blog. I'm sure some of you have been squeezing in an hour a day over the last two days to make something for your own little ones to wear. I started early and took a break on Sunday to sit down and work on one of the simplest of patterns out there, the pillow case dress.

I thoroughly enjoy making things for my kids. They don't always understand or have the capacity to appreciate handmade things right now but I hope they'll look back at photos and old blog posts and see it as another way their mama loved on them. (There is that pose again!)

For this pillow case dress I used a vintage floral pillow case from my collection, extra-wide double fold bias tape, and grosgrain ribbon. The trim on the bottom was already there. I used what I had on hand and it took me about twenty minutes to figure out the logistics and put it together. Twenty minutes, folks!

I love me an instant gratification sewing project!

The thing is, our friends Katy and Adam are headed out to Haiti in June to take clothing and necessary supplies to orphans that attend a school that their church, New Bru (or Center City Church) helps sponsor. The organization that started the orphanage, Center of Hope, celebrated it's opening last October. New Bru is hoping to send over as many pillow case dresses as possible for the little girls that attend the school as well as ones in surrounding communities.

So, one pillow case dress turned into three.

And three turned into five. Five dresses took me an hour and a half to make but will be enjoyed by a handful of girls at the school for a long time.

I would LOVE if you would join me in making a pillow case dress (or two, or five) to send to these girls in Haiti. If you're participating in KCWC, or just really like to sew, think about taking an extra twenty minutes this week or next to put together a simple pillow case dress for an orphaned girl in Haiti.

My friend, Katy, has more information on the work their church does through members that live and work there if you're interested in finding out more. You can contact Katy Shatto at did2613(at)hotmail(dot)com to find out where to send your dresses when you're done.

Standard sized pillow cases will fit most elementary age girls in Haiti but they are also passing them out to younger girls in surrounding communities so they have a need for smaller sizes as well. The only guideline is that they aren't made from solid red pillow cases or any fabric with patriotic (American flag) prints. You can find a variety of tutorials to make your own including this one, this one, or this one.

For every dress sent to Katy, a name will be added for a chance to win a $50 gift certificate to Fabricworm! If you send five dresses, you have five chances of winning $50 worth of fabric! All dresses must be post marked June 1st in order to arrive in time and the winner will be announced later that week.

What a great opportunity to share love in the form of something so essential to daily life. I'm looking forward to hearing Katy's stories of passing out dresses and supplies this summer and will happily report back to share what your kindness helped accomplish.

Again, for more details and an address to send your dresses to, e-mail Katy Shatto at did2613(at)hotmail(dot)com.

Thank you in advance from the bottom of my heart!
xoxo,
Rachel

Their New Pillows

I purchased these two pillows on Etsy a few weeks ago to add to the kids' Easter baskets but only got them unloaded from our road trip this weekend. The bird pillow is from Skinny Laminx and the lion pillow is from Sass and Peril. Both shops are full of beautifully designed product if you aren't familiar with them.

Ruby is so much more affectionate and attached to her dolls and plushies than Sebastian was. He's definitely BFF with his latest Transformer and loves to act out scenarios with the Autobots and Decepticons and he still sleeps with his teddy bear but it's kind of a casual friendship.

Ruby on the other hand gets her dolls in a death grip when she squeezes them. She passes out kisses like candy and has no favorites. All are loved equally. Part of her bedtime routine is saying goodnight not only to her dollies but to the girls in the two art prints near her crib. And the globes. And sometimes Teddy when she feels like Sebastian hasn't given him enough attention.

Do your kiddos have a favorite stuffed animal or doll? I got one of mine back from my parents' house over Christmas. I'll have to share soon.

xo,
Rachel

Inherited

Ruby requested an updated head shot. Look at that pucker.

I'm not sure how many Breyer horses from my childhood collection are left in the box in my parent's attic but they brought two of my favorites last November for Ruby's birthday party. She likes to romp them around and feed them from her cup and has even tried riding one. I love seeing her take an interest in things that used to be mine!

Horsey kisses look a lot like mouth-to-mouth at our house.

xoxo,
Rachel

P.S. I'm really thankful for so many fabulous sponsors this month! I give you permission to take a break from your day and peruse a few of their shops and blogs. It'll be worth your while!

Vintage Here, Vintage There: Casual Vintage

One thing I'm looking forward to about warmer weather is being able to ditch the tights and cardigans for awhile! Friday brought us the most beautiful weather so I donned this house dress for the first time since Elsie gave it to me last year. I hadn't washed my hair that day and was only headed to the grocery store but wanted to celebrate the sun coming out. It felt like a good reason to wear a new (old) dress.

This is a vintage house dress that Elsie picked up in Kansas City sometime last year and gave to me as a surprise. I has beautiful embroidered flowers on the front pockets and is just the perfect length. I didn't even have to hem it!

Ruby came with me. She wore a pretty vintage dress that has an appliqued fawn on the front. Rubyellen actually sent this one to me before Ruby was born and I am so happy she's big enough to wear it!!

We're missing the sunshine today but we're getting our spring dresses ready! I made my tote from vintage bark cloth, also gifted from Elsie, and you can find the tutorial here.

I'm wearing: Vintage house dress, gift from Elsie. Vintage belt, thrifted. Cowboy boots, thrifted. Tote, handmade from vintage barkcloth and leather.
Ruby's wearing: Vintage dress, gifted from Rubyellen. Mocassins, Old Navy. Amber teething necklace, Amberizon.

Here are some pretty spring dresses I'd love to wear on any given sunny day!
One, two, three, four, five, six, and seven.

And some spring outfits I'd love for Ruby!
One, two, three, four, five, six, and seven.

Make sure to head over to Rubyellen's blog to see what kind of casual vintage she wore this week! She's got a really good reason to be wearing casual vintage in case you haven't heard yet. Go see!!

xoxo,
Rachel

This Is Supposed To Be Her Birthday Present

I found this vintage baby bed last week in town. I was hoping to save it for Ruby's birthday but I sat it down on my way in the house and she's been playing in it ever since!

Sorry it's been a little quiet all of the sudden over here. I haven't been feeling well and we've been getting the house ready for my parent's visit this weekend. They've been keeping Sebastian busy all afternoon and I've been enjoying the down time! Thanks, mom and dad!

Be back soon with a pretty house tour!
xoxo,
Rachel

Ruby's First Baby Doll

One of Ruby's birthday gifts was a custom doll from Kellie of The Rice Babies. I got to pick out her hair and eye color and give her some outfit colors and was so happy to see what she put together. Ruby has been quite attached to her since she arrived and loves to point to her nose and give her those adorable open mouth, slobbery kisses that only babies can get away with.

We call her 'Baby Doll'. She came with a lovely cape and a wool backpack that sometimes gets worn by Optimus Prime.

A little bit about the creator of The Rice Babies:

"I am a mom of three sweet little boys, and also a teacher at an art school for children. Most of what goes into my shop is inspired by children and story books. If it's fun and exciting to them, it excites me and ends up in my shop." -Kellie

Kellie is generously offering a custom doll to one lucky Smile And Wave reader! Leave a comment sharing your favorite childhood toy for a chance to win one from The Rice Babies. I'll keep the giveaway open until the 24th at midnight and announce the winner on Thanksgiving Day.

I had a few baby dolls as a little girl. If I have my story right my granddad knew someone at his bank who had connections and managed to get me a Cabbage Patch kid just in time for Christmas the year they were sold out. I think he has a soft spot for the girls in his life. ;)

xoxo,
Rachel

Vintage Here, Vintage There: Week Three, Part One

EDITED: Guess who got a little under the weather today. Part Two will show up later this week.

This week's feature comes to you in two parts as Part One was sick and Part Two was only halfway dressed and ready for the Mr. to take their photo when he arrived home from his drill weekend lunch break. By the time Army guy got home for good it was dark and Part Two was worn out and Part One just wanted to growl at the dinosaurs and give them kisses. Part Two plans on being back in action for Monday evening and promises to look into a camera remote for Christmas.

Ruby did look rather adorable despite her temperature. She woke up from her morning nap feeling hot and looking rather pitiful but we got plenty of cuddle time in to comfort and distract her and she was asking for solid food again by the end of the day. I can't tell you how much I love that she can sign for what she wants but it was especially evident today that there was only one thing on her mind while she was feeling under the weather!

I took these photos right after she woke up from her nap. I had to distract her with her baby doll to look up for me and it wasn't long before she started signing 'milk'!

Her top is actually a dress that I wore when I was three months old as seen in the photo below. I had a hard time getting it over her head but it still works well as a top. The shoes are the same ones she wore at her birthday party that belonged to me when I was about her age.

Here is Ruby at three months.


Ruby's Outfit
Cardigan: Target '09
Top: Vintage dress
Pants: Thrifted
Shoes: Vintage

A few of my favorite Etsy shops full of vintage kid's clothing are Hart and Sew, Oh Sydney, Freckle Wonder, and The Fancy Tail. I like to search through Etsy every week with the keywords 'toddler' or 'baby' and 'dress' to see what has been listed and then I favorite things I love and need to think about. I always take into consideration how much it will cost once shipping is added, if it's special, if it'll fit her in the right season (although you can really add a cardigan to anything for the winter), and if it's something I might not find locally.

What are some of your favorite vintage kids' stores? Do you have any tips for finding what you're looking for online? We'd love to hear! Stay tuned for Part Two and don't forget to head over there to see what Miss Rubyellen has posted!

xoxo,
Rachel

Vintage Here, Vintage There: Week One
Vintage Here, Vintage There: Week Two

Vintage Here, Vintage There: Week Two

This week's 'Vintage Here, Vintage There' was brought to you by an especially crisp chill in the air that made me realize Ruby needs more wooly tights!

Thankfully, the sun came out and warmed our faces a little while we had Brett take our photos in the backyard. We're here in the Southwestern corner of Missouri and just starting to pull out the warm coats and wool socks in our crooked little house.

I ordered this vintage plaid dress from Cherry Bloom Vintage about a month ago when the weather was still warm. It needed to be hemmed so it went into the pile and life got busy while the warm days slipped away with the light evenings. However, the plaid print transitions well into fall/winter so I just added a pair of gray stockings, my vintage red belt, and the vintage cardigan and woven oxfords I picked up last week and I was golden!

I found this vintage sweater for Ruby at Goodwill. It had the sleeves cut off and even though I feel like it might be a boy's sweater I thought it would make for an interesting addition to her wardrobe full of pastel vintage dresses. I decided to layer it over an orange corduroy skirt and aqua polka dot top and added moccasins for a fall-ish feel. I later added some handmade leggings (women's colorful knee-high socks with the feet cut off) for the rest of the day so she'd be plenty warm.

I had Sebastian take my picture with my Instax 210 before Brett was available and ended up with a headless and footless one so I filled in the blanks. I am such a fan of that little (kinda huge) camera.

I'm excited to see what Ruby Ellen and her gang wore this weekend in Southern California!

We've got some lovely bloggers who've agreed to let us feature their vintage infused wardrobes in the following weeks as well as specific posts for date night, everyday outfits, outerwear, etc. If you're a vintage wearing mama and want to share your looks we'd love to see them and link up. I love getting ideas of how to mix prints, silhouettes, and colors from other stylish moms and I think all of our readers would enjoy a link tour to some of your blogs and Flickr feeds!

Thanks for stopping by and don't forget to head 'Over There' for Ruby Ellen's weekend vintage.

xoxo,
Rachel

P.S. If you're not already familiar with Modern Kiddo you need to make friends with their site! They are one of my favorite resources for finding vintage clothing for the little ones. They feature Weekly Kiddos as well as plenty of vintage eye candy in the form of toys and ephemera.

Vintage Here, Vintage There: Week One

I have become pretty comfortable in the last few years with my eye for vintage furniture and kitchenware and have taught myself how to mix certain silhouettes, play with patterns, and pair the old and new for a fresh look. I'm not quite as self-assured in the vintage styling department when it comes to fashion. However, I've been inspired by a host of vintage-loving friends to explore a more exciting (and sometimes more affordable) wardrobe infused with vintage pieces.

The darling, RubyEllen, and I have been hatching up a plan for a few months now to share how we wear vintage throughout the changing seasons and to encourage others, moms or not, to do the same. It's also a way to keep us interested in dressing up when some days the cold weather might tempt us to stay in flannel nightgowns. Just kidding. No flannel nightgowns in my closet.

We decided to do a little Q&A to get familiar with each other's vintage back story.

Q: When did you start wearing vintage and why?
A: My best friend, Katy, and I used to hit up the Salvation Army for grandpa cardigans and fun shoes in high school. We lived in Central California at the time and had a casual, surfer, boho style. My vintage fixation shifted towards home goods and random industrial pieces about midway through college and our current furnishings are mostly vintage. I'm most excited to start figuring out vintage shoes!

Q: What do you look for in a piece when you're shopping?
A: I have been gravitating towards blue and red dresses and feel most comfortable in classic prints but I'm trying to diversify!

Q: Favorite vintage find to date?
A: I found a pair of vintage FRYE boots in college for $4 that I wore until I got pregnant with Sebastian and my feet got wider. They stopped fitting so I sold them to a consignment store in the U-District in Seattle and now wish I'd kept them just in case. I'm happy to know that someone else is enjoying them.

Q: The one piece that got away (or would've broken the bank!)
A: Oh, there are so many beautiful 50's cocktail dresses on Etsy that I would add to my cart in a second if they were about $80 cheaper.

Q: How do you style your daughter(s)?
A: I have a lot of vintage dresses for Ruby but not a lot of pants and shoes so I tend to mix the dresses with leggings or skinny jeans to even out the silhouette and have recently stocked up on adorable tights for the colder days.

Q: Favorite sources for online vintage?
A: Obviously, I love the vintage dresses at Red Velvet because they have such a strong collection. I also have purchased items from or plan on purchasing from 3 Ring Circus, Lishy loo, Cherry Bloom Vintage, Ms.Tips Vintage, Oh Sydney, and Fine And Dandy Vintage, and Freckle Wonder!

I'm Wearing
Vintage dress gifted from RubyEllen
Vintage belt, thrifted
Shoes, Target

My Ruby is Wearing
Vintage sailor dress found locally
Jeggings from Target
Mocs from Old Navy

Head on over to RubyEllen's beautiful blog to see more on what she and her sweet girls wore on a recent trip to the pumpkin patch. They are darling! We're going to be posting 'Vintage Here, Vintage There' once a week and can't wait to share some of our favorite vintage mamas and online sources with you. Stay tuned!

xoxo,
Rachel