Little bit, little bit

It's taken several late nights lately (we're talking 2 am or later), but I've been able to squeeze in some extra sewing, which has been oh so nice. After finishing the latest 241 Tote, the next item was tackling a project that's been on my to do list since we moved in — a seat for the bay window.

The previous owners actually left the old seat for us, but it was covered in some very yucky fabric, so I had to track down something I liked and then reupholster it with some new batting. I'd been eyeing this gray chevron at Hobby Lobby for weeks before I finally managed to drag Matt in to approve it. As soon as he did, I grabbed it.

A simple seam down the middle and a heck of a lot of staples later, and we've got a comfy, cute new place to sit. I love how the gray looks with the yellow.

The other item was a winter hat for B. I've had a fleece hat on my list for a long time, but I finally got around to it this week in anticipation of needing it this weekend.

On Sunday, we're going to a kids' costume party hosted by some friends, and B has an absolutely fabulous chicken costume to wear. Really. I can ... not ... wait to put it on him. However, we're not terribly confident he's going to be willing to keep the costume on for very long, especially because it probably won't be very easy to crawl in, and this boy has to move.

So we're taking a backup outfit. For those who don't know, Beckett's middle name is Fox (Matt's mom's maiden name), so I'm kind of obsessed with all things "fox." For an easy backup outfit, we decided to just take over one of his nightime longjohns that has a fox embroidery and fox feet, but he really needed some ears to go with it.

Enter: the fox fleece winter hat. This was my first attempt at making a fleece hat, and it turned out pretty great actually. It has ear flaps and is totally lined. The only flaw is that it's a bit on the small side. It should work for this weekend, but it's probably not going to make it to winter.

Still, it was simple enough that I'll probably throw another one together before too long, this time with some larger ears so it looks more like a fox and less like an orange cat.

B, of course, was less than keen on wearing it for the pictures, but hopefully we can get some better ones soon (though, cross fingers, not on Sunday, because that would mean the chicken suit didn't work out, which would be a crying shame).

And speaking of foxes, I have been eyeing this print from the Fox Hollow collection for months. It is so cute, and the minute I saw it, I had dreams of using it to make B some pants.

I hemmed and hawed awhile before buying it because I'm trying not to buy as much fabric right now, and it's organic, which means it's also a bit pricier. But when I found it on sale at Pink Chalk Fabrics (sorry, it's all gone now!), I jumped on it.

It arrived a few days later with another print from the same collection (it has a fox cameo — see him behind the trees?), and I was immediately disappointed. The print is still ridiculously cute, but the fabric itself feels terrible. It's very stiff and rough, which was such a surprise considering it's a high-quality organic fabric.

I washed and dried it hoping for some improvement, and it helped a bit, but not enough. I ended up emailing the lovely ladies at Pink Chalk just to let them know my concerns. I completely understand it's not their fault; they didn't produce the fabric, they're just selling it. But I thought there might be a chance I'd gotten fabric off a "bad" bolt or who knows what else, and I thought they should know. After all, I'd read so many good things about this line on other blogs, I figured something must have gone wrong.

Anyway, much to my surprise and delight, they emailed back very quickly, apologizing for my disappointment and trouble, and issued me a gift certificate for the price of the fabric (a not insignificant amount considering it was organic and I'd bought a couple yards). This was only the second time I'd purchased something from Pink Chalk, but I assure you it won't be the last. Great customer service makes me a customer for life. I highly recommend you check out their great selection the next time you need something.

Now what to do with the foxes ... . I'm thinking pants might still work if I line them with something soft. Wouldn't that be SO cute??