Natural Violet is up and running

I am finally starting Natural Violet again after about a two year break. I think the last time I sold through Natural Violet was at a Holiday Market when I was about 4 months pregnant with the little guy. It has definitely been a long time. I started this blog originally to get myself going again with crafting and hoping that would lead to starting up the business again. It has definitely helped to blog about my crafting adventures and I think it was the boost I needed to get everything going again. I really love crafting and have enjoyed selling through my home business. It is so great to be able to make thing for others and help out my family as well.

The direction of the new Natural Violet is towards baby crafting. I am going to make organic cotton and hemp cloth diapers with inserts and other fun diapering accessories. I am also going to make baby clothing from organic cotton and hemp fabric as well as recycled fabric. I am going continue with the quilt making. I hope to incorporate as much green fabric into my products as possible.

The new website is up for viewing at Natural Violet. It is really basic but covers all the bases. I am going to sell through Etsy for now and hopefully at local craft shows. I am still fine tuning a few patterns and hope to have some items in the Etsy shop soon. For now, I will keep the blog updated with my product making adventures. Lots of diapers and Teeny Pants on the way.

Another cottage loaf

I made a cottage loaf this weekend. I used a third whole wheat and the rest white flour. I recently bought fresh yeast which is a really good deal cost wise if you bake a lot. I found the fresh cake yeast at the Whole Foods bakery. I used 0.75 ounces of fresh yeast instead of the freeze dried package. I mixed it with the liquids and let it sit a bit before I mixed everything else together. The bread turned out great. The only problem with the cake yeast is it is very perishable and needs to be used within a few weeks or less. I have seen a few estimates for shelf life online. It can also be frozen, but I haven't had good results so far. It is probably because I forget about the yeast and it stays in the freezer way too long. Anyway, it produced a really nice bread with and great texture.

Teeny pants - more recycled t-shirt pants

I have gone through a few iterations of the "Teeny pants". That is my new name for the recycled t-shirt pants. I am sure it is not extremely original, but it is cute and fits the pants. So I have made the Teeny pants with both an upward and a downward curving gusset or a smiley and frowny face. Sorry, more cute terms. I have also worked on giving room in the seat portion for movement and diapers. I originally tried making the waistband curved to allow more room, but found it difficult to sew in the the elastic casing with a curved seam. I switched to allowing more curve in the gusset and it works great. The only difficulty is I am not sure if the pattern will work for non-stretch fabric since the gusset portion is a little larger than the bottom back. Well, only one way to find out, so that might be my next project. I also worked on the cuffs and they fold great in the final pattern. I like having cuffs of course since he is growing out of his pants so fast in length it is amazing. So here is my latest and I think final version of the Teeny pants. I have also included pictures of the other pattern styles I have tried during the process.

Red velvet recycled diaper

I have been sewing lots of stuff for the little guy during the many snow days we have had over the past week or so. I found a pair of bright red cotton stretch velvet pants at the local thrift store and I decided to use the fabric to make another recycled diaper. I turned and stitched this diaper instead of using zig zag edge. The pattern is the same as for the recycled t-shirt diaper. The diaper is really plush and fits great. I use Snappis to close it, but it also works without closures if I use a close fitting cover. I used the red cotton velour on the outside and a layer of hemp knit and recycled fleece on the inside. I have to say the cotton stretch velvet makes a really fabulous diaper. I also made a new insert using organic cotton and hemp jersey. The insert is 15" x 13" and is three layers of fabric. I rounded the edges and used a fancy stretch stitch to sew it together. I also sewed down the middle to secure the layers. I fold it in thirds and it fits perfectly in the pocket.

Snow coconut cream

We got a lot more snow this weekend and I love it. It has been a lot of fun and reminds me of being a kid up in snowy western NY. We are supposed to get a few more inches tomorrow which is very exciting. Little guy has really taken to the snow and is having as much fun as his mom in the winter wonderland. We spent a lot of time shoveling yesterday to get the car out and also to build a sledding run in the back. It turned out great and the little guy made his mother proud when he went down it by himself. He laughed the whole way and at the bottom all he said was, "More, more". A friend of mine posted about how she was going to make snow ice cream. I looked up a few recipes on the web and decided to try it out myself. It is basically milk, sugar and lots of snow. I made a vegan version using coconut milk, sugar and vanilla. It turned out really good and tastes like a coconut slushy. Here is the recipe. It is definitely worth making the next time you get a good snow storm.

Coconut snow cream

Place a large bowl out in the yard when it starts snowing to collect fresh snow.

1 can of whole coconut milk
1 cup of sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla
A lot of fresh snow

Blend the coconut milk, sugar and vanilla together in a food processor or blender to dissolve the sugar. Add snow until you get to the desired thickness. Whatever is left over can be placed in the freezer.

Reusable baby wipes

Cloth baby wipes are very easy to make. They can be made from any absorbent fabric scraps you have in your stash. They are also really cost effective and simple to clean if you are already using cloth diapers. I throw the baby wipes in pail with the cloth diapers and wash them at the same time. I made a few more recently to add to the pile. These are made from a flannel receiving blanket and a baby hooded towel. I used the flannel on one side and the terry cloth on the other. I cut the wipes about the same size as the ones you buy. They measure about 7 x 8.5 inches. I put the two layers together and finished the edges with a closed zig zag stitch. I fold the wipes in half and stach them in a regular wipe container. I add a simple herbal wipe solution and presto I have my own reusable baby wipes.

Herbal baby wipe solution

2 cups distilled H20
1 teaspoon baby body wash ( I like California Baby or Baby Oh Baby)
1 teaspoon oil (I use almond, apricot kernel or sunflower oil)

Snow and lots of sewing

We just got close to another foot of snow in central Virginia. It has been really amazing around here with respect to snow. I think that puts our total up to about 3 feet of snow that we have gotten this year. I love snow and should probably live in Vermont instead of Virginia. The snow this time is totally amazing though. It is perfect powder or at least as perfect as I have ever seen. It is super fluffy and beautiful in the sunlight. So I went out early this morning and took a few photos of natures glory.

I made another pair of the recycled t-shirt pants. I am getting really close to finishing the pattern so very excited. I also made pumpkin mini muffins for my little guy. I finally bought a mini muffin pan for him. He can of course eat the big muffins, but I think it is fun for him to have muffins that are his size. I am off to bake a bit more before he rises from his slumber and then we are out in the snow for this afternoon since it is warming up a bit.

Toddler longies

So it has been really cold here this winter. I am sure I am not telling you anything new since it has been really cold in a lot of places. I finally made Jonas a pair of longies out of some left over synthetic yarn that I had in my stash. I have been intrigued by all the diaper covers that I have seen online and I saw that some people make them out of synthetic yarn also. They work pretty good if you use a tight knitting gauge. The result is similar to using polartec fleece covers. So I decided to make a pair for Jonas to use as a diaper cover and also to keep his little legs warm. The pattern is very similar to the boy bloomers execept it has a lot more shaping and an extra leg gusset. In other words it is a lot more complicated. The longies fit him great with all the extra shaping so it is definitely worth the extra steps. I also really like the gusset since it gives him a lot of freedom of movement. Here are photos of the pants and the little guy in action. He really looks adorable in his knitted pants.

Toddler recycled t-shirt pants

I am working on a new pants pattern. It is modeled after a variety of yoga pants that I have seen online. It has taken me a lot longer to come up with a pattern than I thought it would since the pants are pretty simple. The first couple of tries were too big in the hip and then too big in the waist. I am also working on the pants rise to accommodate the cloth diapers. Anyway, it is taking a while to come up with a good pattern. It is interesting that before he was born I definitely spent a lot of time thinking about a pattern and making samples. I find that these days I try to be more efficient with my time since I usually don't get large blocks of time for crafting. I do have his afternoon nap time to mull over different ideas. He typically takes a good afternoon nap. I rock him in the rocking chair and either tell him a story or sing him a song and he is off to sleepy time. I am getting close with the pants pattern and here is my result so far. I am going to change the waistband a bit and also work on the cuffs. I would like for the pants to grow with him, but the cuffs are bit too floppy. I think a few more alterations and then it will be good. This pair was made from recycled thrift store t-shirts.

Spinach quinoa waffles

The little guy loves waffles. He generally is not too picky about food. I have noticed that since he turned 18 months that he goes in spurts with eating. It is not that he has any particular thing that he dislikes. It is more that at times he is too busy playing and exploring to want to sit and eat. He then makes it up at the next meal and eats everything in sight. I am glad that he still loves to eat a lot of veggies including his favorite which is any type of greens. I decided to make him waffles with two things that I know he really likes including spinach and quinoa. I have some cubes available in the freezer so it made it really simple to add them to the waffle mix. I had to adjust the liquid level a bit, but they turned out great. He ate them readily with the Creamy Cashew Dip from Eat, Drink & Be Vegan by Dreena Burton. I actually made the dip with almond butter instead of cashew butter. He now asks for "Almo" with his waffles so he likes it a lot.

By the way, I love all of Dreena Burtons cookbooks. She has a lot of kid friendly recipes. She also has a great section on food introduction for infants in her book Vive Le Vegan. I used the introduction schedule and Jonas did great with everything. It has been a lot of fun to cross every stage and add different food items. The book is full of lots of great ideas for feeding a vegan baby and toddler and it has been a great resource. I also like the book from Cathe Olson called Simply Natural Baby Food. I have made a lot of recipes from the book and I love that a lot are low salt and sugar. The book is not vegan, but it easy to adjust most of the recipes. One of his favorites of course is the whole grain waffles with lots of molasses.

Here is the recipe for the Spinach quinoa waffles. I have to say they make a really yummy savory waffle.

Spinach quinoa waffles

1.5 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1 cup all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/4 cup rice or soy milk
1/2 cup pureed cooked quinoa
1 cup pureed cooked spinach
1/3 cup oil
1 tablespoon ground flax
1/2 cup soy yogurt

Mix all the dry ingredients together in one bowl. Add all the liquid ingredients together in another bowl. The ground flax can be added to the liquid ingredients. Add the liquid ingredients to the dry and mix until combined. The batter should be fairly thick, but still be able to pour. If it is too thick then add more rice or soy milk. If it is too thin then add more flour. Heat up your waffle iron and start cooking.

Toddler boots

I am making more shoes for the little guy. This time I made a pair of boots that he can wear when we go to indoor play areas or for just hanging out at home. He can also use them outdoors as long as the ground in relatively dry. I made the pair for the tutorial below out of a faux suede that I bought at the local fabric store and leftover recycled fleece scraps. The black pair above is made with black vinyl and red recycled fleece scraps. We have dubbed the black pair as the "Elvis boots" so pretty funny. The pattern is fairly simple and based on the toddler shoes . It is also patterned after a McCalls pattern for baby booties. I enlarged the pattern and also changed the back flap and sole. I tried the original pattern, but was unhappy with the results so since I love to change patterns, I decided I could come up with something that worked better. I am pretty happy with the results and plan to make a few more pairs for the little guy.

Here is the boot pattern in tboot1 and tboot2 . Below are the sewing instructions. The shoe size is approximately a toddler size 6.

Note: A quarter inch seam allowance has been added to the pattern. You can use more if you want the shoes to be a bit smaller.

1. Cut out the pattern pieces. You will need two of each for the inside and outside fabric.


2. Zig-zag all the pieces if you are using material that frays.

3. Sew the front inside and outside fabric pieces together on the narrow curved side. Turn and top stitch.

4. Sew the back inside and outside fabric pieces together along the top and side edge. Turn and top stitch. Sew the casing for the back elastic as marked on the pattern.


5. Cut a 3 inch piece of elastic and thread it through the back casing. Sew both edges to form a gather for the back heel.


6. Grab the shoe bottom and pin on the front and back of the shoe. Sew together and turn right side out. Sew on hook and loop tape or any other fastener that works for you. I used the hook and loop so the little guy can have fun taking his boots on and off by himself.