Mom Bag essentials

There’s a point in your mom life when you no longer need a full-on diaper bag. You wake up one day and you realize, “I don’t need to tote around 10lbs worth of diaper rash cream, toys, bottles, and 4 tiny outfits.” Your baby stops pooping SO MUCH, and they begin to turn into a little friend. And that’s when you need to transfer to the “mom bag.”

The “mom bag” doesn’t have to be a giant purse, though, mine ALWAYS is, because, what can I say, my mother was always asking me, “Shall we find a nice bag for that?” And I found a nice big one.

Another one of my favorite mothers, a woman to look up to and try to emulate, is Heather of The Coterie. Heather is SO GOOD at keeping things smart and simple. I am sooo bad at keeping things simple. I always feel like I need to do elaborate involved activities that take time and money. For example, I made Ginger fourth-of-July suspenders that she refused to wear. Cute, yes. Necessary? No. Heather meanwhile had her 3-year-old all hopped up for the holiday by teaching him the pledge of allegiance and having him practice with a mini flag. HE LOVED IT!

Anyway. That’s why you can trust her when it comes to what you need for your mom bag. And because Gigi was napping and Heather’s boys are ANGELS, we made a video. Heather has some great things I wouldn’t have thought of! Like a lightweight scarf you can use if you get chilly or you need to wipe up a spill! So check it out!

And because you haven’t seen nearly enough of her lately, here’s the lady who makes me a mom. My Gigi.

I hope you have a wonderful weekend! Thanks so much for stopping by.
xo
Alison

Tiny Tank top Sewing Tutorial & Pattern

It’s been a while since I busted out the old machine and did some sewing! But Eric and I had a baby shower to attend, his old friend is the drummer of a popular rock band, haha, and I just HAD to make a little something for her soon-to-be rock star baby.

I bought a whole bunch of amazing knit fabric in the LA fabric district a while back, and it’s perfectly lightweight for a summer tank top. It’s so funny, I bought that fabric for $2 a yard, and I’ve seen it in use at Nordstrom and Forever 21. I’M ON TO YOU RETAIL WORLD. You could also easily make this baby tank top from one of your old shirts, check out my Tiny T Tutorial for tips on knit fabric.

First I made the little tank, and then I freezer paper stenciled the song lyrics onto the front of the shirt. Here’s the break down.

Tiny Tank top sewing tutorial

Download my free pattern here! It includes the “I WON’T SLEEP TONIGHT” print. Which, come on, is perfect for a baby. So if you wanted I guess you could just freezer paper this to a store-bought onesie!

I made this one size, it’s probably like a 3 month size. But you can easily size the tank up by adding 1 inch to the sides, top and bottom.

1. Cut out two of the tank pieces, wrong sides together
2. Pin the two pieces together RIGHT sides together, sew the side seams and the tops of the tank with a 3/8″ seam
3. Iron your seams open, and then *hem your shirt

*QUICK AND DIRTY METHOD= Roll the bottom of your shirt up, as pictured, 1/2 inches, press in place, then hem your shirt, sewing a row of stitches a little less then 1/2″ from the bottom. (I think it’s easier to turn the shirt right side up so you can see the line you’re stitching on the front of the shirt.) Sew another line 1/4″ under your top row of stitches. This will make a double row of stitches. So quick, so dirty.

4. Finish the collar. Roll the collar under to the wrong side 1/4″, press in place and sew in place by sewing close to the edge. You could roll the collar under twice for a more finished edge, but that’s just prissy. And if you’re prissy go ahead and repeat this step on the arm holes. I didn’t because I’m a bad-A messy seamstress (lazy). Plus it’s a knit fabric, it’s not going to fray people. And it’s for a baby. They will wear it twice, max!

5. Check out my other freezer paper tutorial here! But as a reminder: Tape down my “I WON’T SLEEP TONIGHT” print on a cutting mat. Then tape some freezer paper, shiny side down, on top of the print. Using a razor blade cut out the letters, make sure to save the insides of the “o’s” and “p”. Place some scrap paper inside the tank top, and then iron down the stencil. Use fabric paint and get crazy. To get white to pop on dark fabric you need 3 coats. Peel off the freezer paper and you’re ready to party!

Pair this sucker with a some Freshly Picked moccs and you’ll be the most popular girl (or boy) at the party.

I need to make Gigi one now! If I size up the pattern for her I’ll be sure to share it with you!

Happy crafting suckers! I love you all!
xo
Alison

Winner winner chicken dinner

Hey Nicole Choules!!! You won! You won! I did that random # thing and it said #98! Good thing you eeked in there at the last minute because you were 98 out of 100! I will be contacting you hot mama. But in the meantime you should go check this girl out, she’s mad talented and I do love her guts.

And a big thank you to Shabby Apple for the $$! You can now get 10% off your purchase for the next month by entering “thealisonshow10off” when you check out. BOOM.

Thank you all SO MUCH for entering the giveaway. I also want to thank all of you for your constructive criticism on my video I asked about. I think the general consensus was that my music was just way too loud, and I think my editing in the beginning was a bit choppy. Sometimes things don’t transfer how I’d like, but I’m just learning as I go! One step at a time on my way to world domination and syndicated fame…right?

ILLUSTRATOR FOR BLOGGERS ROUND 2!

I also wanted to let you know I am teaching my Illustrator for bloggers class again this Wednesday, July 18th at 12pm MST. So grab yourself a lil lunchies and join me while I act like a dork and talk about Illustrator. Find out more about the class here.

The class will be mostly a Q&A. So the day or so before my class we’ll send you some links to my videos so you can practice some basics and then you can come with questions. But if you just want to watch the videos I’ve made on the topic you can check those out here!

The class is just $15 and I have a presentation with hot tips on “How to use Illustrator to make your brand yours” and then we jump into a screen share mode (you watch my screen LIVE, fancy, I know!) so I can answer all your questions and show you how to do the things in Illustrator you really want to learn.

Anyway. If that interests you! Then so be it!

Susan and I have another big week working on our top secret project. I know, how annoying am I?! But people keep asking if I’m pregnant because it seems like I’ve been laying low, so I just want to SQUELCH that rumor. Not preggers, just busy! Though being busy is so overrated.

I love you all.

How to fold & organize your fabric

I’ve mentioned once or twice that cleanliness isn’t one of my “strengths.” People often ask, “How do you get so much done?!” And I think this is a HUGE compliment, but you should all know that the reality of it is that I get a lot of CERTAIN things done, and then I completely disregard other things that you would probably consider necessary. For example you would probably kill the giant pile of ants you found in your bathroom, instead of glancing at them with mild interest while googling, “When does Dawson finally have sex?” (SEASON 5 PEOPLE!)

However, I’ve been trying to be more balanced, for the sake of my poor husband if for no one else, and I’ve been trying to keep my crap organized. So imagine my dismay when Susan came over to work on our top-secret project and told me how horrible my folding skills were. Actually, this is really NO surprise to me. I am horribly at folding. I didn’t even know people could be good at folding until my mid-twenties.

And that brings us to the latest installment of The Alison Show:

How to Fold and Organize Your Fabric Like a Pro

Or Like You’re Neurotic.

I hope you enjoy it. I certainly enjoyed conning Susan into folding my stash. Sucker.

And don’t forget to enter my Shabby Apple giveaway for a $50 gift card! Basically just leave me a bunch of comments pandering to my ego, saying you follow my every social media whim and we’re good.

Also, I signed up for the Santa Barbara Marathon. On my birthday, November 10! It will be exactly 5 years in November since I’ve run one and I think it’s about time. I’m telling you so I don’t back out. Again.

OH and ALSO I’m teaching another Illustrator for Bloggers class next week!

Have a fabulous weekend.
xo!
Alison

My Summer Momiform + shabby apple giveaway

Is it just me, or is anyone else glistening like a pig lately? It has been HOT. So horribly hot. Which can mean only one thing, TIME FOR A SUMMER MOMIFORM! Cue “Momiform” theme song! If you’re trying to figure out what the hell a “Momiform” is you can take your sad little self, here, here and here.

Here’s my resource guide for this season’s momiform:

MESSY BALLERINA BUN: This is the cousin to the ever-popular “sock bun.” I love a good sock bun, but I’ve been loving the “Messy Ballerina Bun” WAY MORE lately because it involves back-combing aka teasing, which I’m totally into now that I’ve been living in Utah for 10 plus years. Here’s a really good video tutorial for how to get it all perfie.

HUGE SUNGLASSES: These are part of every season’s momiform, even Winter, because if the sun is in my eyes I shrivel up like Spike from Buffy the Vampire Slayer and yelp for mercy. (MOAN, SPIKE.) Plus having half of your face covered makes you look mysterious. These are from Target. Ginger already broke them.

WOODEN GLITTER EARRINGS: These little beauties are from Twig Creative I really like the wood, a natural element juxtaposed with glitter, my natural element.

BONGO JEAN VEST: I kid you not, this vest is from the 4th grade. This is a miracle because I have a very notorious track record for getting rid of EVERYTHING. I’m always a sucker for vests. I’m not really sure why. I love shrunken vests like this one because it accentuates my waist, distracting you from the donuts on my THIGHS.

LIGHT-WEIGHT JERSEY DRESS: And this brings us to the most important part of the Summer momiform. This light-weight jersey dress from Shabby Apple. Shabby Apple emailed me asking if I wanted to do a giveaway on my blog. And I was like YES!! BUT…I’m not going to give something away unless I highly endorse it. COUGH COUGH, send me a dress! And they actually agreed to do it!

I chose this “Beachcomber” number and I was honestly shocked at how it fit. It is so flattering! It feels like a t-shirt because it’s jersey, but it doesn’t hug my thighs. I love that it’s not see-through because for my Summer Momiform I wanted a dress I didn’t have to put anything under or over. This baby totally fits the bill. I’ve been stopped in Michael’s, Joann, AND Hobby Lobby to be complimented on it. Which makes me feel like a rock star.

And now it’s time to win a $50 Shabby Apple gift card!

ENTER TO WIN A $50 SHABBY APPLE GIFT CARD:

1. Mandatory Entry- Go and “Like” Shabby Apple’s Facebook Page and leave a comment telling me which dress you’d spend the money on!
2. Additional Entry- Go and “Like” The Alison Show Facebook Page and leave a comment saying you did (if you’ve already “Liked” me this counts too!)
3. ANOTHER Entry- See the dress LIVE! Watch my tutorial for a DIY Mini Calendar and tell me why nearly a third of people who have watched it so far gave me a thumbs DOWN. No seriously. I want to know.
4. YET Another Entry- Subscribe to my Youtube Channel Alison Is Crafty
5. Follow me on Twitter (again if you already are just leave a comment saying so!)

To enter 5 times you need to leave 5 different comments (with the different entries) on this blog!

If that annoys you, well, it would probably annoy me too? This giveaway will end on SUNDAY JULY 15. I will announce the winner on Monday!

I love you all!

xo,
Alison