Leg Warmers and Mittens: Another Tutorial

A few days before our family photo shoot it became clear to me that the forecast called for COLD.

I scrambled to come up with warm outfits.

Mitts, scarves and leg warmers came to mind as cute accessories but my trip to the mall proved to be unsuccessful.

I don't like NO for an answer so I became determined to find/make/borrow matching knits.

First stop?

Thrift stores.

I bought 4 old sweaters that fit my color scheme.

To make these orange leg warmers, I simply cut the arms off an orange sweater.

It was a boys size7.

I did the same for the turquoise leg warmers.

This sweater was a girls size 4

{Cuteness alert!}

I didn't even finish the cut edges.

I originally planned for these leg warmers to be worn tucked into boots but they look pretty cute this way too!!

See my high tech, well-planned crafting?

I laid the sweater out flat and cut the arms off.

It's that simple!

Snip your way to cuteness!

If you want to finish your leg warmers properly, I just found THIS great tutorial over at Made By Lex.

The mitten project was not as successful.

I used my "wing-it" approach and cut around each kids' hand.

{I used the body portions of the sweaters}

I did not leave enough room for sewing and I did not give any thought to the thumb placement.

Look how funny they turned out up close!

If I were to make mittens again, I would use a tutorial by someone else.

I found THIS fabulous one today at Five Green Acres.

This black and white sweater was purchased to be made into mittens as well.

It came with shoulder pads.

rad.

 Mikayla tried it on and it was no longer an option to cut it up!

{we did pull the shoulder pads out}

I gotta say, some of my projects don't quite go as planned, but they are always opportunities to learn something for next time.

In the end, the mittens helped to keep my kiddos' hands warm and they looked fantastic in the photos.

They went in the "garbagio"(as we call it at home) after the photo shoot.

 We kept the leg warmers and have gotten a lot of use out of them.

Such a great pop of color!

I hope my randomness inspires some new creativity for you:)

Snowy Family Pictures By Simone

 Hey!  My Christmas cards have most likely made their way to their final destinations so I can finally share the fun photos from our photo shoot with Simone.

{most of which you have already seen plastered all over the blog!}

Originally I envisioned sun-drenched autumn photos with tan kids and fall leaves.  

~But~

 By the time I got my act together and scheduled the session, it was cold and the forecast called for SNOW!!! 

I had a slight panic the night before

{wet shoes, red noses, whiny kids, cold hands...}

 but Simone reassured me that all would turn out fantastic and she was soo right!

I love how unique these photos are.

The snow makes them amazing!!

Look at my cute kiddos!

This Narnia-like photo is my favourite!

The girls:)

Mikayla

Mailee

Maddie

Caleb

Cait played shy for her close up.

Caitlyn

{Simone even made Cait's pouting look adorable!}

Cambria

Love.

A big family hug.

My love!

In case you are thinking that your family hates getting their pictures taken and mine loves it, here's my dose of reality...

As we were getting out of the truck Mike instructed the kids "Do exactly what she says so we can get this over with as quickly as possible"

{no offense to Simone of course:)}

I am not sure why men are not into pictures but ever since our wedding day (and the hours of photos he endured) I have known that it is an act of love when Mike willingly agrees to a photo shoot:)

{Thanks honey!}

I am working on a post with some tips for planning a fabulous family photo complete with a mini tutorial, color scheme thoughts and some prop ideas.

Does your family enjoy photos as much as you do?

Or is it just me fighting the masses to get a pretty pic?