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A common conversation in our house:
"Jude can you back off your brother a little bit?"
"No mom, I can't! I just love him so much. He's my favorite person in the whole world!"
It's hard to argue with that!
I love these two so much it makes my heart hurt.
Here's to brotherly love!
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Alright so he might be four months old, but better late than never right? I was determined to get out an announcement for Ronan since I'm trying hard to avoid the whole second-baby-doesn't-get-the-same-hoopla effect! After seeing these two super cute DIY baby announcements (1,2) on Pinterest I knew just what I wanted to do for Ronan's debut.
Alright now, would you like to know how I did it? First I used a photo I really liked of him in his diaper on his sheepskin. (I've been taking these monthly, more on that later.) In Photoshop I did a bit of editing and used the rubber stamp and blur tools to carry the sheepskin all the way out to the edges of my 5" x 7" image.
Next, I placed that photo in Illustrator and went to town on the fonts and little details (lines, stars, banners). Note, this whole thing could have been done in Photoshop, but I love me some Illustrator for text editing! If you are new to Illustrator, you will want to learn how to maniplute type: highlight the text, go to the type tab in the menu bar and click create outlines, now you have an object you can mess with easily. Font Squirrel and Dafont are my two favorite places to find fun fonts for projects like these.
After saving at a high resolution, I had them printed at Vista Print on heavy matte paper. I just love how they came out. These announcements were very affordable and extra special because I made them. If you are great at handlettering you could also print the photo, write the text by hand, and scan the whole thing for printing.
Welcome the the world Ronan Sky, you are such a delight!
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Another amazing year of Shorts on the Line has come to a close, and once again I am wowed by all of the fabulous things that everyone has made! Make sure you check out all of the 250+ pairs of shorts linked up on Kollabora... it is just a shorts inspiration bomb over there!!
Our guest judges have deliberated (I'm always so glad I don't have to choose!) and managed to narrow down the field to their top three. Without further ado, the winners are... third place All About Boys Shorts for Henri by April of Modern Handmade
Second place Mini Blinging Prefontaines by Holli of Stitched
First place Urban Safari Shorts by Sasha of fruits, flowers & clouds
Viewer's choice Class Picnic Shorts by Tami
A huge congrats to our amazing winners (we'll be in touch about your PRIZES!!) and an equally huge thank you to everyone who sewed along with us and shared their shorts! This is always such a fun event, and this year was no exception! Thank you to the 2014 Shorts on the Line sponsors, Britex Fabrics, Hawthorne Threads, miss matatabi, and Soak Wash. Please visit and give them some love for helping to make this event happen! And of course, thank you to my lovely co-hosts, imagine gnats and Kollabora. Rachael is the best sewalong hosting partner EVER, simply a powerhouse of awesomeness! And Kollabora made running shorts on the line so much easier and more fun! Yay shorts!
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I couldn't possibly let shorts on the line pass without adding my own post! Even if it is at the very last minute! I sewed up these super cute and very simple little knit shorts for our family's newest member. I've decided to call them Micro Shorts and I'm more than a little excited about them.
This is a prototype and it needs a tiny bit of tweeking but man oh man are they cute. The took me 45 minutes start to finish and that includes pattern drafting! Want a free pattern and tutorial? I knew you would!
Said pattern and tutorial are coming very very soon. I know I'm such a tease! (It's really just that having a baby means very little time for tutorials.) If you want to make sure you don't miss it, might I suggest you subscribe to my new monthly newsletter? Once a month you will get an email that keeps you in the loop with all the haps here on small + friendly, plus some extra content you won't find anywhere else!
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Well I think we have successfully flooded the interweb with amazing handmade shorts! Our fabulous guest bloggers from week two really out did themselves! Just look at all these spectacular shorts!! Be sure to click on everyone's links to get the full details and tell them how cute their shorts are!
Free Pattern 2 in 1 Shorts by Make It Perfect // Esther Shorts by Ada Spragg // Iris Shorts by You and Mie // Tulip Shorts by Cali Faye // Tap Shorts by Groovy Baby & Mama // Katy/Judy Shorts Tutorial by The Scientific Seamstress // Sketchbook Mustang Shorts by Girl Like the Sea // Jogging Shorts by Siestas & Sewing // Clover Shorts by Petit a Petit & Family // Anima Zumba Shorts by Max California // Color Blocked Tap Shorts by Katy & Laney // Jacob Shorts by Caila Made // Picnic Shorts by Skirt as Top // KID Shorts by Buzzmills // Oceanside Shorts by Melly Sews // Cisse Shorts by Zonen 09
Don't forget to visit the Kollabora page and vote for your favorite shorts by hearting them. Winners will be announced Friday!!!
The 2014 Shorts on the Line sewalong is sponsored by: Britex Fabrics, Hawthorne Threads, miss matatabi, and Soak Wash. Hosted by imagine gnats, small + friendly, and Kollabora.
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So this year we are doing the shorts on the line a little differently by using the wonderful maker site, Kollabora. I know you all want to win those fabulous prizes so I thought I'd be sure it was super clear how to enter. Below you will find a few graphic that make the whole thing super easy. First you need to go the the sewalong page then just follow the instructions on the pics below!
Log in and click the make button.
There will be a drop down where you can name your project then click complete and create!
Add your pics and tell us about your shorts, then hit publish!
What if you already have your shorts uploaded and want to add them to the Shorts on the Line pool? Just type “Shorts on the Line” into the mint “inspired by” box on the right and choose the event.
When you scroll to the bottom of the sewalong page you will see all the projects! Be sure to go through and heart all the ones you like! Those hearts are your viewer's choice votes! You have until 9pm EST on Sunday, August 10 to enter your shorts and voting continues until 6pm EST on Thursday, August 14. Winners will be announced next Friday August 15!!!
Good Luck!!!
The 2014 Shorts on the Line sewalong is sponsored by: Britex Fabrics, Hawthorne Threads, miss matatabi, and Soak Wash. Hosted by imagine gnats, small + friendly, and Kollabora.
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For the Shorts on the Line 2014 judging, we have put together a team of super-star bloggers, designers, and industry professionals! So many great pair of shorts have been entered so far, and I don't envy these judges having to pick their favorites!! 
Megan Frock of Downtown Housewife · Kristin Link of Sew, Mama, Sew · Susan Yates of Crafterhours · Bari Ackerman of Bari J. Designs · Dana Willard of MADE · Sara Lawson of Sew Sweetness · Erin Sampson of Pellon® · Frances Arikawa of miss matatabi · Melissa Mora of Blank Slate Patterns · Angie Tripp of Wanderlust Fabrics · Shannon Cook of Very Shannon · Delia Randall of Delia Creates · Celina Bailey of petit a petit and family · Caroline Hulse of Sew Caroline · Jeni Baker of In Color Order · Lindsay Prezzano of Hawthorne Threads · Stacy Teet of Kids Stuff World
Sew up some shorts for yourself, your kiddos, the whole family! You can enter as many pairs as you'd like, just be sure check out the rules and judging criteria, and you can see the line-up of this year's guest bloggers right here and the amazing prizes up for grabs here.
The 2014 Shorts on the Line sewalong is sponsored by: Britex Fabrics, Hawthorne Threads, miss matatabi, and Soak Wash. Hosted by imagine gnats, small + friendly, and Kollabora.
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What an awesome first week of shorts sewing! The talent of our guest bloggers always blows me away! Pattern reviews, remixes, tutorials, round-ups - last week covered it all and then some! Be sure to click the links below and get all the details from each look. I promise you won't leave without being inspired to sew a pair or five!
City Gym Shorts by Noodlehead // Scalloped Lined KID Shorts Tutorial by MADE // Harlequin Sarousel Shorts with Button on Kitty by Sew Chibi // Bubble Pocket Shorts by Sew Delicious // Puppet Show Shorts by Fake It While You Make It // Menswear Inspired Shorts by Thread Theory // Claire Shorts by Casa Crafty // 10 Favorite Shorts Patterns for Boys by Things for Boys // Mini Bloomers by Hideous! Dreadful! Stinky! // Little Girl Skater Shorts by Delia Creates // Knit Sketchbook Shorts by Inder Loves Folk Art // Movie in the Park Shorts by A Happy Stitch // Summer Shorties by Clever Charlotte
The Kollabora event page has already gotten so many awesome entries, it's super exciting! Be sure to check the rules and get those shorts in for your chance to win some amazing prizes!
We've got another jam packed week of awesome shorts sewing, here's the schedule!
Happy Shorting!!!
The 2014 Shorts on the Line sewalong is sponsored by: Britex Fabrics, Hawthorne Threads, miss matatabi, and Soak Wash. Hosted by imagine gnats, small + friendly, and Kollabora.
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