Bandanarama

  A friend of mine's Dad had a stroke this spring and has lost a lot of the use of the right side of his body.  This has been rough on him and their family as you can imagine.  To raise funds for some of his medical bills, some friends of theirs hosted a team roping event this past weekend.  (I did say I was from a small town in rural Florida).  They also had an auction at the event.
  Well, I'm no roper, but I certainly wanted to help out this family that we care about, so I asked if she thought an outfit might go over well for the auction.  She said YES, but I had one day to make it, so I came up with this.  Super easy and I thought it fit well for both the rodeo and upcoming 4th of July (well it was upcoming when I made it).

  I used an old bandana I'd been keeping for a (one-day when I get around to it) flag quilt I've got in mind.  But I didn't mind parting with it for this.  I used Vanessa's tutorial here although it's so simple, you don't even need a tutorial.  I basically just looked at her pictures and went for it.  The bottom band is from Connecting Threads (I don't see it at their site anymore).  For the top, I bought some tank tops at Walmart.  My first attempt at embroidering a boot on this tiny tank top went awry, so in my hurry I decided to just embroider the boot separately and then sew it onto the tank top.  It worked perfectly.  When the boot was done, I just cut it out and pinned it on the shirt where I wanted and then sewed around the outline in the satin stitching with a matching thread.

  I made this to fit a 5-year-old roughly.  Well, at least the shirt is a 4/5 and I measured the elastic around Oren for the waist.  But it fit my skinny minnie perfectly, so...I guess the size is a little flexible.

  Emma's reaction to this outfit:  "OOOOOOHHHHHH, can you make me one just like it????"  She was more excited about this outfit than most of what I actually make for her.  And my friend's little girl actually said "Mama, is that for me?"  I took that as a good sign...and I was right.  This outfit sold for $70!!!!  I couldn't  believe it!!  I was so excited and glad to help out.  It feels good to use my hobby and talents to help out a friend.

  Making this outfit made me count my blessings.  I am so thankful for my health and the health of my family.  I am thankful for my family and how much love we have for each other.  I am thankful for friends and the support we give to each other.  I am thankful that an activity that I enjoy so much (sewing) can help others and make others happy.  I am thankful to have a God that loves us so much he gives us all of these blessings each day to enjoy.

  What have you made that brought joy to both you and someone else?