Top-Toberfest Day Five: 'Bot Top

Today I'm sharing this raglan sleeve robot shirt that I made for Clark.  He loves this shirt and lovingly refers to it as his "bot".  I'm sure that it is a lot of fun to dress up little girls in ruffles and lace, but there is something about robots and dinosaurs that warms my heart. I love my little man, and am so pleased that he loves this top.

I had found a free downloadable image of a robot.  I was pretty excited and I showed it to my husband.  I was sure that he'd be pleased that I was going to make a robot related shirt for his boy, but to my surprise, he seemed less than enthused.  As it turns out he was not impressed with the image itself.  He said to me "You can do way better than that", so I set to work and sketched out this quick little robot.  I think that he's pretty cute.

I also made this little BEEP word block.  I placed it on the back of the top, and love the way it turned out.  I transferred the image to the shirt using a freezer paper stencil.  The gray paint is a mix of a white and Night Sky Pearl soft body textile paint from Tulip.  The gray paint had the slightest bit of glitter in the mix, but I think that a bit of sparkle is fitting for a robot.


I added some embroidery floss stitching around the heart, head, and the word block.  I think that it adds a bit of dimension to the top and ties in the colors of the shirt itself.

Because I ended up liking this robot so much I thought that I'd share it with you.  You can access the printable version here.  It is available for personal use only.  I hope that you enjoy it.  I have two little nephews on the way and am planning on making some little robot onesies to welcome them to the world. You could use this image for an applique or a stencil, whatever you need it for.

Thanks so much for stopping by and taking the time to read.  I enjoy your comments and feedback so much.

I'm partying here today.  Don't forget to link up your top related projects to the Top-toberfest show and tell.

Hand Stitched Cap Sleeve Top

Recognize the bracelet?  Find the tutorial here.

You are probably wondering how many more cap sleeve shirts I am going to be making, well the answer is-a couple.  This shirt was made so that I could make a tutorial for y'all, but you won't see that until tomorrow.  I keep trying to talk myself into just making a solid and unembellished T-shirt, but there are too many techniques that I want to try.  

I am so inspired by that uber talented Cheri from I am Momma Hear Me Roar.  She does some really adorable handstitching on shirts, hats, backpacks, ect.  I thought that some fairly subtle handstitching would be a nice touch to this top. 

I'm starting to feel the change of seasons here in Idaho.  We are waking up to crisp cool mornings and I know that it will only be a matter of weeks before I'm sporting a sweater everyday.  I thought I'd "autumnize" this warm weather top by playing with a more autumnal color pallet.  I know that the moss green trim probably isn't everyone's favorite color, but I kind of love it. I thought that the muted teal and red thread were a nice compliment to the green and brown fabric.

As far as the actual stitching goes it was all a bit of an experiment.  I was pretty lucky because the brown knit that I was working with is quite heavy and was a nice material to stitch into.  I created the pattern as I went and just kind of eye-balled it.  Nothing is perfect, but I kind of like it that way.  I made sure that I secured the thread with small knots before starting a new section of the pattern.  I hope that by doing so I can keep the thread from shifting and bunching up the fabric.  After I completed the handstitching, I used a fusible interfacing to attempt to secure the stitch work.  If anyone has helpful tips and tricks to stitching on knits I'd love some suggestions.

So what do you think,  hit or miss?  I definitely need to perfect the hand stitching technique, but it was a fun little experiment.  Hop back over tomorrow for a tutorial on how to make this super easy (and extremely versatile) cap sleeve top.  

Check out these great link parties that I'm participating in today.  Don't forget to stop by and check out all of the great Stashbusting September projects at T-shirt Diaries, and link up if you are participating.

My Felt Needle Book

This is a project that has been on my Craft To-Do List for quite some time. I am known for misplacing needles-my husband seems to be the one that normally finds them (in his foot, or hand). So in an attempt to organize my craft life (remember my blog post with craft room organization ideas) I finally made this needle book. It was so simple and fun to make. I used Kunin Rainbow felt, embroidery thread, a button, and some thin white batting for the pages (I didn't have any white felt on hand). I cut out 3 pages for the inside and rounded the corners. I then wrapped my gray felt around the pages and cut to fit the bulk of the book form. I rounded the corners of the cover, and stitched around the outside of the cover with my bright pink embroidery thread. After stitching I added my little pink rosettes and attached them to my cover with a few quick stitches. I sewed my pages into the needle book, attached a small flap that I cut out with a button hole, and sewed on my button to the front of my cover. That's it and that's all. It was such a fun and quick little project.

I love how the pink and gray felt coordinate with the pincushions that I made earlier.  The button flap was an afterthought so it isn't shown in all photos, but I am quite pleased with my kitchy little needle book. Have I mentioned that I am becoming quite fond of felt. I really am...wool felt is too rich for my bones, but maybe one day.