My Art, My So Called Life

WIPocalypse Update #1…

2012-01-09T17:29:00.001-08:00

I joined up with a lot of lovely ladies for this SAL. I don’t know if my definition of it is exactly the same as theirs, but that’s okay. I have decided that if I stitch it (cross stitch, embroider, bead, machine sew) that it applies as long as I am getting through my works in progress. Sounds reasonable…right?

Here goes…

First up is something actually done!!! I made a quilt top about 3 or 4 years ago and hung it over the window of my living room. Well, there it stayed. So… since I have officially turned my living room into my sewing room, I needed curtains for my french doors so that my lights wouldn’t bother my husband while he was watching TV in the family room. I cut the quilt top in half, backed it with pieced material left over from when I made the top (plus a little extra material as there wasn’t quite enough of the leftovers), added some fringe to the bottom and voila! New curtains!

Now to the more “traditionally understood” meaning of this SAL . I have this lovely etui pattern by Twisted Oaks Designs that I purchased a couple of years ago:

I started it last year, just after becoming very ill. BIG mistake…I messed it all up! Used the right colors…in the WRONG places!!! Never start a project while you are sick! What you see here represents my frogging of stitches and reworking them the proper way:

I will be listing in my sidebar the items I hope to finish this year by participating in this SAL. My daughter says I won’t finish them, but at least I’ll be trying…that is until I find something new I just HAVE to make!!!

‘Shroom-alicious!

2012-01-05T03:42:00.001-08:00

How cute is this needlebook?!?

…and you can make your own thanks to Megan from Generation Q!

A Month Long Scrap-Along…

2012-01-04T10:57:00.001-08:00

Just click the Pleasant Home button on the right in my sidebar and join in the fun!

New Year’s Yuck…

2012-01-02T08:38:00.001-08:00

So, anyone who has been coming to my blog for a while knows that I have Diverticulum.

I went out with my friends to a masquerade NYE. Lots of fun, until it wasn’t. Apparently, four drinks plus diverticulum equals…well…to put it nicely…yuck!

Anyone with this affliction out there…just wanted to let you know that alcohol is now poison to your system. Even in cooking it lingers quite strongly.

I don’t make new years resolutions…I just end up not living up to them. I am however, going to try to take better care of myself. Occasionally when I run across a tip, I’ll pass it along.

Take care of yourself in 2012!

2012 WIPocalypse…

2011-12-08T15:36:00.001-08:00

Thanks to Patty over at PipStitch I have signed up for this. Maybe I’ll actually get some of my WIP’s done…next year! If you have a lot of WIP’s, you should sign up too!

A Little Bit of Awesomeness…

2011-12-02T06:07:00.001-08:00

I found this via Craft Gossip…it’s just too cool not to share! Just click the link and see what I mean!

Planning Ahead…

2011-11-21T05:48:00.001-08:00

I have been very uninspired about making Christmas presents. It seems that every other year this happens. One year it will be gangbusters sewing, the next…not so much.

I am however, planning ahead. I have a project I want to work on in January…when I can’t feel guilty for not using my crafting time to make presents.

I have found the cutest little free block of the month here at “With Needle and Thread.” Here are just a couple of images of the blocks:

Aren’t these darling? And since I apparently have a purse fetish (you should see how many I’ve made!) this will make the best little wall hanging for my sewing area! I’ll print them out as is (minus the dotted lines) and embroider all the details. I also plan to use only fabrics from my stash…I have way too much fabric!!!

So what do you think? Anybody want to join me?

Bias Tape

2011-11-16T12:17:00.001-08:00

So I’ve never been very good at applying bias tape. It seems to be a problem for many of us. I just stumbled across this video from Amy at Angry Chicken…it’s awesome!

A Ghastlie Day 9

2011-11-03T09:37:00.001-07:00

Here’s who is up for today:

Mrs Corrie Ghastlie

Mrs Cheryl Ghastlie

Mrs. Linda Ghastlie
Mrs. Pickles Ghastlie

Please stop by and give them a ghastlie hello!

It’s the Seventh Day of Ghastlie…

2011-11-01T15:23:00.001-07:00

…go check it out!

Miss Daisy Ghastlie
Mrs. Dana Ghastlie

Mrs. Elaine Ghastlie

Mrs. Gramma Sheri Ghastlie
Ms. Suz Ghastlie

On The F0uth Ghastlie Day…

2011-10-27T10:48:00.001-07:00

Here are my Ghastlie sistahs that are participating today:

Mrs. Katherine Ghastlie

Ms Sharon Ghastlie

Mrs. Gooden Ghastlie

Ms. Selina Ghastlie

Mrs. Melinda Ghastlie

Here’s a sneak peak at the Day 4 Giveaway

I’m especially loving the alarm clock…think I’ll have to make myself one!

It’s A Ghastlie Day!

2011-10-25T19:54:00.001-07:00

If you have this thing for Ghastlies

and they have tied you in a knot

and you wish you could get them out of your mind

than this may be a thought.

We heard her plea for a cure

Mdm Samm was pos/it/ively sure

that we could stitch the nights away

in hopes that we MAY----???

( all 54 of us)

BUT....

The side effects are Ghastlie

there is no mistaking too.

if you don't run this very minute

YOU too will catch the FLU...

We suspected all along

this was her master plan

she did not want to be alone,

with all YOU Ghastlie FANS..“

When Madame Samm put out the call for Ghastlie lovers around the internet, I just couldn’t resist. I had to play along with the blog hop! I discovered this material by Alexander Henry last year and fell in love.

For those of you who don’t know me…I have something of a purse fetish. I have made so many that I have lost count! I knew right away that I had to make a purse…or two… from this addicting fabric.

First I made an everyday purse. I sketched out the shape I wanted and went to work! I used a metallic braided ribbon and made a shabby rose with an antique rhinestone button for the center. Lots of pockets inside and a magnetic clasp…it’s my new favorite everyday purse!

front:

back:

Then, since I had a wedding to go to and just COULDN’T carry a dress purse I’ve been seen with before, I knew I had to make a fancy one with my two favorite Ghastlie ladies! I used the tutorial from here to draft my pattern. Mine was a little fiddly since I have a shaped purse top. I had to sew my purse to the frame as it is the sew in type. I used antique lace from my grandmother, a necklace for the strap and silver beads on the trees. I LOVE how it turned out! Here are both sides:

Life wouldn’t be complete without a journal to write things in…we must record the important things in life! I covered a composition notebook with the dinner table vignette since this represents the Ghastlie family so well!!! First I had to paint the cover white so the book’s pattern wouldn’t show through the material, then I adhered the fabric to it. I finished it off with more of my Grandmother’s antique lace and a ribbon on the edge!

Last, but most definitely not least are these portraits framed and ready for the wall. They will hang above my sewing area so that I will always remember the fun I had joining in this blog hop!

Here are the other participants for today:

Mrs. Barb Ghastlie

Miss Karen Ghastlie

Ms. Jen Ghastlie.

Ms Penny Ghastlie

Mrs Rhonda Ghastlie

My Ghastlie Sisters…

2011-10-25T13:10:00.001-07:00

…have you been visiting them???

Our Ghastlie blog hop has begun! Today is day two for the festivities! Tomorrow is my day so be sure to hop on in and see my lovely…er… ghastllie offerings!

Here are my sisters showing their goodies today:

Mrs. Annie Ghastlie

Mrs Doris Ghastlie

Mrs Brandie Ghastlie

Ms. Alidiza Ghastlie

Mrs. JudyC Ghastlie

Did I mention there are prizes???

Don’t You Just Love Babies…

2011-10-18T14:53:00.001-07:00

My daughter’s dance instructor is having a baby…a little girl. Of course, I had to make something for the little one! I made an elf hat and a pair of Mary Jane's. I think they turned out darling!

The hat was a free pattern found here. I did double rows of color instead of single ones. The shoes are a paid for pattern found here. I don’t recommend the shoes for anyone just beginning to crochet.

Speaking of babies. My baby boy, Boy Genius, had his first date last Saturday. He went to the homecoming dance. Don’t they look awesome!

Oh…by the way…I have a surprise in store for you all next week so don’t forget to check back!!!

Fashion…

2011-10-17T20:10:00.001-07:00

…through the years…

I totally stole this from Bloom.

Recognize your styles?

Giveaway Alert…

2011-10-11T09:29:00.001-07:00

Jenny over at Elefantz.com is having a giveaway! Check it out! (just click on the picture!)

Fungi…

2011-10-10T11:52:00.001-07:00

Do you pintrest? I do. It’s amazing the things you can see on there! Things you wouldn’t normally stumble across unless your whole life is spent online.

I found a darling, and new to me, pincushion tutorial that I thought I would share with you. Aimee Ray over at Little Deer Tracks shares it with us. While you’re there you should check out her other crafting goodies…they’re adorable!

Why “My Art, My So Called Life”

2011-10-08T12:39:00.001-07:00

So Dawn over at Sweet as Cinnamon wants to know how some of us got the names for our blogs. She’s even offering a lovely gift for one of us to win if we participate by explaining ourselves! So here goes:

“My So Called Life” was a short lived show that ran for only one season in ‘94/’95. I was very disappointed when the show was cancelled. I was fascinated by the main character, Angela, played by Clair Danes. I don’t know why I identified with the character Angela. I never went through a rebellious stage in high school. I didn’t have an antagonistic relationship with my mother, but still I get something about the character. Maybe it’s her social awkwardness or the not knowing exactly how to define herself or what group she belongs in.

“It just seems like you agreed to have a certain personality or something. For no reason. Just to make things easier for everyone. But when you think about it, I mean, how do you even know it’s you? And, I mean, this whole thing with year book, it’s like, everybody’s in this big hurry to make this book, to supposedly remember what happens. It’s not even what really happens, it’s what everybody thinks is supposed to happen, because if you made a book of what really happened it’d be a really upsetting book.”

– Angela Chase “My So Called Life”

I honestly believe that most blogs are “books” about what we want people to think happens. If we truly told the day to day, boring, grinding, sometimes angry and annoying truth about ourselves…well…really, who would read out blogs? And seriously, anyone that would like to read that type of blog is not really someone we want to be friends with. We want to surround ourselves with people who exhibit the same personality traits that we ourselves show to people. When we see only perfect lives on blogs…they’re lying! What we see is a “so called life” as it were. That’s the honest truth in my humble opinion.

The “My Art” part of my blog title is rather self explanatory. I like to show off my “art” in all it’s varied forms. I have had many different “so called lives” over the years when it comes to my arts and crafts.

For years I crocheted. I started crocheting when I was five and at my pinnacle, I made the most beautiful doilies and pretties. I think I was pretty good at it.

Next came cross stitch. I did that for years, made lovely large “paintings” with thread.

Then came beading. Probably the art that I have been the most skilled at. I ended up branching out from making beaded things to teaching others how to make beaded things. I helped my father to design a bead loom that he still sells and gets wonderful reviews from those who have one.

Now, I am a bit more eclectic with my art. I sew. Both by hand and by machine. I like to embellish what I have sewn with beads and embroidery. I have started to incorporate many of my skills into single pieces. I really like it as it adds an extra dimension to whatever I am working on.

So now y0u know why I have chosen the title I have for my blog. It’s all about my art and my so called life…the part I want to show you!

Terrible, terrible picture…

2011-10-02T17:33:00.001-07:00

I know this is an awful picture but I wanted to show you what I have been working on lately.

This is a 20”x20” appliqued quilt block for my husbands niece. In my husband’s family, when someone gets married, they receive a quilt made up of blocks from whatever relatives wanted to participate. My niece wanted all fall colors. I wanted to do some applique. So that is how this block was born. I would have a better picture of it, but, as is par for the course for me, I left making it until the last minute and it had to be delivered tonight…so no natural light to take the picture by.

My hubby was so sweet to offer to drop it off at my in-laws after all the hard work I put into it.

Christmas gifts…

2011-10-01T17:38:00.001-07:00

Wouldn’t these darling bath bombs make great Christmas gifts? I see some of these in my future!

Go visit Little Birdie Secrets to get the tutorial!

I have a secret…

2011-09-30T14:55:00.001-07:00

…a Ghastlie secret!

I am going to be participating in a blog hop that will happen from October 24-28th and October 31- November 4th.

Its all based on a common love of Alexander Henry’s “Ghastlie” material line.

These are just a few peeks at this awesome material.

As part of the blog hop, you will get to see lots of awesome projects made with this fabric. I already have two thing done to show you and have one more special one to do. You will find giveaways and tutorials and eye candy…so please stop by and check it out!

October is around the corner…

2011-09-20T13:08:00.001-07:00

I know that I have been MIA a lot this summer. My summer has been incredibly busy! I’ve definitely been living my life on fast forward.

It will soon be October and as we all know (or should) it will be Breast Cancer Awareness month. Some of you know that my stepsister Kathy passed away just over a year ago from breast cancer. Well, now I have another story to share with you.

We all know that we are supposed to check our breasts for lumps on a monthly basis, ideally in the shower, but how many of us actually do it? Many of us go through life, not unlike our children do, thinking that it can’t happen to us…”it’s not in my family history, so it isn’t something to worry about.” WRONG!!!

My mother was diagnosed with breast cancer this past July and I want to share her story with you.

One day, while showering, my mother found a lump in her upper breast. Now for the women in my family, this is not such an unexpected occurrence. You see, my grandmother, mother and I have fibrocystic breasts. This means, for us, that we form cysts in our breast tissue. They are benign, but can become uncomfortable so we go off to the doctor and have the cysts drained. No big deal, not fun by any means, but not life threatening. Most women with this have a cessation of it in their 50’s, when menopause is complete.

My mother is 65 and hasn’t had a problem with them for a while. When she found this one, it felt different to her than what we usually have experienced. For starters, it was up high, right above what we think of as breast tissue. Secondly, it didn’t hurt. That can be a big warning signal, fibroids are usually uncomfortable at the very least.

Off she went to the doctor, who decided that it needed to be removed. The next week, he removed it and sent it to be tested. It came back positive for two different types of slow growing breast cancer. The doctor had my mom back in the next week to remove more tissue and also check her lymph nodes. Needless to say we were all on pins and needles waiting for the results to come back.

When the results did came back we were over-joyed to find out that everything looks clear. Her lymph nodes are clear and a bone scan showed no signs of cancer anywhere else. As a precaution, my mom is now getting radiation treatments. She is also taking a medication to reduce the estrogen she has in her system. Estrogen feeds cancer…it’s like candy to it. My mother is very proactive and has said on many occasion, she will do whatever it takes to make sure this doesn’t come back and that she is around for many, many years. We were very lucky.

Because the mammogram my mother had back in October of last year didn’t show any signs of the lump, we are telling every woman we know…check up high!

I made a drawing for you based on where my mother’s lump was located…CHECK THERE!!! If we can help one woman find something that would have otherwise been missed, there will have been some purpose to this rollercoaster ride we have been on. Tell your mothers, sisters, daughters…everyone you know.

…no, I’m not giving up my day job…and no… it’s not a self portrait or a drawing of my mom…we should be so skinny!!! Ha-ha!

Mark Twain…

2011-09-16T04:57:00.001-07:00

There has been this quote running round and round in my head. It really sums up my summer…

Of all the things I’ve lost, I miss my mind the most.

I definitely think I need to embroider this on something and display it prominently in my home!

I didn’t realize that the quote was from Mark Twain, but soon discovered it, and many more funny ones, while looking for it’s author. I always enjoyed reading his work, but now can truly appreciate some of his quotes. He had such a dry, snarky sense of humor and it really speaks to me!

Here are a few of my favorites:

Last week I stated that this woman was the ugliest woman I had ever seen. I have since been visited by her sister and now wish to withdraw that statement.

Better to keep your mouth shut and appear stupid than to open it and remove all doubt.

It is by the fortune of God that, in this country, we have three benefits: freedom of speech, freedom of thought, and the wisdom never to use either.

You can't depend on your eyes when your imagination is out of focus.

I do believe I would have enjoyed knowing this man.

So who makes you chuckle, or stop and think?

2011 Fall Haute Couture…

2011-08-10T10:21:00.001-07:00

Proof that fashion designers either need prescription drugs or are already taking too many:

Valentino:

Christian Lacroix:

The embroidery on this one is exquisite, but who really wants to look like a dead Russian bride?

John Galliano and Bill Gaytten for Christian Dior:

They wants to asphyxiate us all in cellophane.

…or maybe the Easter Bunny never visited them…

Chanel:

I find them to be one of the least ridiculous of the design houses. They actually have some lovely designs, but they too feel the need to dip their toes into the avant guard nonsense.

…really??? A pinecone???

For totally avante guard check out this house: “On Aura Tout Vu” Lady Gaga wears some of their designs…’nuff said!

Have to get me one of these…who wouldn’t want to be a futuristic, yet feminine, Viking???

Though there are many other design house offerings that I have looked at online, they are hardly worth mentioning. Some look as though they are designing for the female characters in Star Wars, most are just unimpressive. There are a few lovely pieces that will probably trickle down to the unsophisticated masses in the form of knock offs, but lets pray that the other garbage stays where it belongs…with the rich who have more money than sense. They can look down their snobby noses at us in a superior manner as we snicker behind our hands at their total lack of taste and style.

…just my two cents worth…

MIA…

2011-08-03T10:29:00.001-07:00

trying to find the cure to my antigravity suit so I can post more goodies…

Hidden Treasure…

2011-06-18T14:58:00.001-07:00

Cuteness of Elephant Proportions…

2011-06-12T15:32:00.001-07:00

I’ll Make You, My Pretties…

2011-06-02T21:37:00.001-07:00

So I Googled “pincushions” tonight. Usually I’ll type in “pincushion tutorial” at the search engine, but not tonight. Just the single word. Boy did I find some cute, amazing, adorable, awesome pincushions! I now have a bunch more projects to add to my 5,653 other things to make this year! I adore pincushions, what can I say? When it comes to them I can’t help myself, it’s like the Queen song says: I want it all, I want it all, I want it all and I want it now!!!

Here’s the eye candy…just click the picture to go to the original link:

…and last, but not least, my favorite:

But, I have been busy…

2011-05-31T17:40:00.001-07:00

Even though I haven’t been posting lately, I haven’t been sitting idle. Once I started to feel a little better I started knitting. Actually, I started knitting a little before I started feeling better…not a good idea, actually. This is what happens when I craft while sick:

This cloth was originally supposed to be part of a Christmas present, but now, I’ll be keeping it myself. I had to laugh when I finished it. I had no idea how badly I was messing up when I finished it!

Here are a few that turned out MUCH better:

Sorry for the bad pictures.

Just before I got sick, my daughter had a living museum project to do for school. She was supposed to be Betsy Ross. Well, as we all know as crafters, that means we (I) have to make stuff! So here is the result of my endeavors for her costume:

Of course, one of her brother’s had to get involved in the photo shoot:

I want to thank everyone for all their well wishes on my recent illness. I am feeling wonderful now. I’m watching what I eat and have added some supplements that should keep me right as rain!

Let me tell you a story…

2011-04-30T12:11:00.001-07:00

…about a man named Jed, poor mountaineer barely kept his family fed…

Oh, wait, wrong story. I was going to tell you all the gory details of my being sick. My mistake. So for anyone who cares (and I’m sure a few who don’t) here’s my story:

I haven’t been feeling well for quite a while. How long exactly, it’s hard to pinpoint. You know how it is. Life gets in the way of paying attention to our bodies warning signals. I’ve had normal “illnesses” during all this, so I guess I have attributed a lot of my symptoms to that.

The first warning signal that I ignored, for months, was the exhaustion. I’m always tired. I could sleep all the time. I mean it. All. The. Time. That’s not normal. I attributed that to the fact that I could be a little depressed due to our financial situation, but we’re doing okay. Treading water, so to speak, so I don’t really have that excuse.

The second warning signal that I ignored was an upset stomach. Easily self diagnosed, I told myself. After all, I’m a smart woman and can surely figure these little things out without medical attention. I have acid reflux like my Mom I told myself definitively. I can treat that over the counter no problem. Thus started my months long love affair with Prilosec. A fourteen day course and I’m right as rain for a month! Got that handled…I’m so clever.

The third and most important signal that I ignored was intestinal disorders. I won’t go into detail due to the “icky” nature of this subject, but suffice it to say that I never knew on a daily basis what I would be dealing with. Lots of grumbling coming from that area too, I just chalked it up to my acidic tummy making things seem out of whack.

This next part is the most personal part and I can’t leave it out of the story and have you understand what happened.

I started having some trouble in the girly department. Again being the wonderfully intelligent, medically trained (not) woman that I am, I again self diagnosed and decided I had a yeast infection. Go to the pharmacy, buy the over the counter stuff… just to be on the safe side I got the one you use for three days instead of just one as I felt it warranted a little extra treatment due to the severity of the symptoms. It didn’t work. Hmm… Gee… let’s wait a little longer (can anyone say stupid?). After ten days, off I go to the doctor’s office. Big surprise, it’s not a yeast infection. It’s a bacterial infection. So, off I go from the doctors office with a prescription in my hot little hand and everything is right with the world… right?

Wrong. After five days of taking the oral medication, the way I was supposed to, the symptoms really weren’t any better. Call the doctor. Two days later I’m on a different type of medication for it. Twice a day. I got three doses done.

On Good Friday (4/22) I was feeling extra tired, so went to bed to read for a bit before going to sleep. While I was reading, I became aware of the fact that my face was very hot. Also, I was very cold. I know how to fix that (again with the being an idiot thing), grab the dog and an extra blanket to warm up. A few minutes later my daughter came in to give me a kiss goodnight and told me “Mama, you’re on fire!” I took my temperature… 101.8. Not good. My (in this case, good) advice to my self was take two Tylenol and call me in the morning. Unfortunately, morning came a lot sooner than anticipated. By 2:00am, I was up, rejecting the Tylenol I had confidently taken a couple of hours earlier. By 4:00am my temperature had gone up to 102.4 degrees. Call the doctor. She recommends that I go to the emergency room after hearing all of my symptoms.

Well, I’m too smart for that. I know how expensive the emergency room is and with our limited insurance (or even possible lack there of due to a story I won’t go into here) I decide that I am going to wait until the local clinic opens at 9:00am.

By 5:00am, I gave up. My temperature was up to 104 degrees and I was miserable. Off to the emergency room. IV’s for liquids, drugs for nausea, chest x-rays, a cat scan of my belly and twelve hours later, I’m admitted to the hospital.

Well, Mrs. Maresh, you have a bacterial infection (duh…I already knew that); no, it’s a bladder infection; no it’s an unspecified bacterial infection in your intestines; no, colitis. Yes,that’s it, we’re sure it’s ulcerative colitis. Once we get your potassium up, your fever to stop coming back and your white blood cell count down (it was at 25,000 and normal is 10,000) you can go home and follow up with a gastroenterologist.

Tuesday, since I was still doing poorly, they decided to have a look see at what was causing the problem so they could better treat me. A sigmoidoscopy is what is needed they said. They gave me the cutest little tiny orange pills to clear everything out from the top down even though I hadn’t had anything to eat since Friday night. Guess that water and three sips of chicken broth can be oh-so dangerous (snort). Well, they worked wonderfully… except that they didn’t just clear me out from the top down. They cleared me out from the middle down and the middle up all at once, if you get my meaning. Next came the really fun part… not just one, but TWO enema's, now that’s an experience I don’t ever want to repeat. Never. Ever. Never ever. Wheel me into the procedure room, leave me laying there, un-sedated, for 20 minutes with my tush hanging out for all the world to see before the doctor arrives and I get to go, blissfully, to sleep.

Ah, now we know what the real problem is! While scoping me out (ha!) they ended up doing a full colonoscopy and found out that what I really have is Diverticulitis. Thank goodness! MUCH better than Colitis!

So after five full days in the hospital, ten pounds of weight loss (was hoping for more, might as well have gotten something positive out of this situation) and missing Easter with my family…I got to come home. I’ve slept most of the time I have been home. I’m still exhausted. Feeling a bit like I’m 95. I’m still taking three different antibiotics (they had me on four in the hospital, plus potassium) and can barely eat anything… but, I’m home.

If you’ve read through my whole experience…bless you! If you haven’t, that’s okay too. I just felt the need to put it down in print…the frustrated author in me I guess. If you take anything from this at all, take this: Don’t wait to be checked out…you never know what could be wrong and I was lucky…other’s aren’t always so lucky.

Eww...

2011-04-26T14:50:00.000-07:00

I've been very sick. I'm in the hospital right now and have been for days...I'll update you all on some of the gory details when I'm back home and feeling better. Hope everyone had a lovely Easter.

April TUSAL…

2011-04-03T18:51:00.001-07:00

New threads are in the glass on the left. I’ve been doing lots of applique lately with not a lot of orts left over.

March Christmas Through The Year…

2011-03-30T17:21:00.001-07:00

Well, I barely made it! Here is my finish for March:

I covered a small three ring binder that I picked up from the Dollar Store for a friend of mine. I love it so much that I want one for myself! I’m also going to make a couple more for more friends now that I figured out a pattern for this size book! I stopped at the dollar store tonight and picked up 5 more binders…unfortunately, they didn’t have any more girly colors left. :-(

On another, but related note, I’m hoping someone might be able to help me find a particular material I am looking for. Here’s a picture:

I really want to make one of the binders out of this material! If you have any clues as to where I might be able to purchase some, please let me know!

I Guess It’ll Be A Good Day…

2011-03-19T08:07:00.001-07:00

after all.

I woke up with a headache this morning. I seem to be getting more and more of them since I’m getting older. I was thinking to myself “great, another wonderful start to another wonderful day.” I noticed the sun was shining through a crack in my room darkening curtains, so decided to open them a little. Nothing kills germs better than sunshine and after being closed up all winter, I’m sure my bedroom could use a lot of sunshine.

As I was opening the curtains, I was thinking about the fact that after twelve years of living here, on four acres, in the middle of the woods, that I have rarely seen deer. Seriously, only a handful of time over the twelve years.

Scanning the still mostly barren woods around my house, the unbelievable happened! I noticed the sun shining off of a strangely shaped stump just inside my woods near an area where we have a fire pit that we never use. I squinted…hard…I can’t see very far without my stupid glasses. It just so happens that I had a very dusty (I’m such a good home maker) pair of binoculars on the window shelf. After wiping the lenses off with my robe tie (I’m also extra careful with my things – ha!) I put them up to my face. Adjust…adjust…lo and behold! A deer. Laying down in my woods! I never would have seen her if the sun hadn’t been shining on her. I watched for a couple of minutes and then noticed movement to her left. OH. MY. GOD. Anther deer! This one was standing just to the right of the first eating. She even stuck her tongue out at me! (Yes, I know she was only licking the tree next to her, but I choose to imagine she was sticking her tongue out at me!!!)

So anyways, after twelve years I finally got to see deer laying down in my yard. Even after I let the dogs out to do their business, they were still there. About an hour later, Hubby came home from running club and they didn’t even budge when the car came up the driveway. I’m so excited, we have our very own deer pets!!!

Are You Clean or Dirty?

2011-03-15T20:18:00.001-07:00

We recently (FINALLY!!!) got a new dishwasher. It is absolutely wonderful! No more tea stains! Everything is sterilized again! I am a VERY happy camper!!! I only have one gripe. Since the dishwasher is super energy efficient…it doesn’t have an indicator of whether the dishes are clean or dirty…not a light to be seen!!! So, being the crafty diva that I am…I just had to make a clean/dirty indicator for the front! I looked at a few different ones that I thought were pretty cute (click picture to got to site):

There’s crafty girl’s:

On Home Made Simple, Cascade offers some graphics you can print out and put on a magnet…super simple!:

I finally decided I liked the look of crafty goat’s polymer clay magnet. She has a great tutorial on her site if you want to make one in polymer clay:

I ended up doing mine in wool felt.

Not quite as crisp as my inspiration, but it makes me happy! It’s two sided with magnets sandwiched in between. It definitely let’s us know whether the dishes are clean or not…now if I can get the kid’s to remember to flip it when appropriate!

I May Be A Ditz…

2011-03-09T14:20:00.001-08:00

but at least I can sew a (mostly) straight seam!

I saw this picture and thought what a cute little bag! I can use this to hold my little applique pieces I have been working on.

Please note the FULL SIZE items in this bag. I did NOT take note of them. Even when I was cutting the material, I wasn’t really paying attention to dimensions. I had my head to full of figuring out what material should be where since I decided to make the bag with three different materials instead of two. I would like to point out that Gina Allen even included the finished dimensions (7”x13”x6”) AT THE TOP of the instructions I printed out.

It wasn’t until I had already started sewing the bag together that a light bulb went off in my head and I said “wow, this is going to be a big bag.”

I love the way my bag turned out. Love the colors and the instructions were pretty easy to follow. I do think I will cover a piece of bass wood with matching fabric to reinforce the bottom.

front with embellishments:

back with large subdivided pocket:

Inside with large subdivided pockets:

Moral of the story…I need to make sure my head isn’t in the clouds when I decide to make something!

You can get the directions for this bag on Gina’s blog. Scroll down and the pattern is on the right hand side.

This Says It All...

2011-03-06T03:03:00.000-08:00

Thanks to Erin for this video

TUSAL Update…

2011-03-04T11:12:00.001-08:00

Not a lot of threads this moon phase. Not to shabby either considering I was sick for most of the month!

Happy Birthday, Dr. Seuss!

2011-03-02T08:52:00.001-08:00

I thought I’d do a post about Dr. Seuss since it’s his birthday today. My favorite Dr. Seuss book has got to be “One fish, two fish, red fish, blue fish.”

I have most of it memorized.

The copy I have is very well loved! The corners are chewed up. The pages torn, taped and torn again. The binding has let loose. My book has been read millions of times in the last 21 years. I read from it to ALL of my children. I will fix it up...again... and read it to my grandchildren some day! It is definitely one of my top two children’s books ever!

I love Dr. Seuss’ way of looking at the world. He definitely understood the necessity for adding a little bit of silliness into our lives. Where would we all be if he had never written down his wonderfully wackiness!

February Christmas Through the Year…

2011-02-27T16:41:00.001-08:00

Here is my February finish for Allie’s Christmas-a-long:

It’s a mug rug for my Christmas present box. I got the pattern from Nickles Pickles. Just click on the translate button on the right and then on the mug rug tutorial. Didn’t it turn out cute!!! I’m going to have t make more mug rugs!

I have been AWOL because I have been sick with bronchitis for a couple of weeks. I put off going to the doctor for 11 days before finally giving in and going. I kept hoping that it would just go away on it’s own since we don’t have any real insurance to speak of and I didn’t want to spend the money on an office visit. When the coughing got to be too much for me I gave up and hacked, wheezed, sniffled my way to the local clinic. After a shot in each hip, steroids and antibiotics I am finally feeling a bit more like myself.

I don’t really have much else to show for the month except for a bunch of “started” things. Here are a few pictures of the components to a few projects I will finish soon:

I’m sensing that I may have a circle or dot theme going…hmm…

Once Upon A Time…

2011-02-15T07:16:00.001-08:00

…there was a boy child born unto a family. This boy was the third child of four and was a delight to all who loved him. This boy child was an amazing being. Whilst still just a tot, before going off to school, he taught himself to read so that he wouldst know what the words scrolling across the magic box said as his older brothers did play their video games. Whence he was but still very young, in his first grade, his teacher did have him tested and he was made to go higher in mathematics than his grade would suggest (he skipped a grade in math). And then, in his sixth grade, he did decide to play upon a musical instrument. This instrument was called saxophone.

One day, in his 11th grade, in his 16th year of his life, he did compete in a competition most fierce. The name of the competition was called District Band Festival. He did play a composition, solo, that was much difficult and challenging and it went thus:

And he did well. His playing did please the judge and the boy’s family much.

Later, in that same day, he did compete with others of some talent, in what was called an ensemble and it went thus:

As with the solo he preformed, it did please the judge and the boy’s family much.

Verily, it pleased the judge so well, that the boy, both on his own as a soloist and together with his ensemble will be moving on to a more difficult and perilous competition called State Band Festival.

To be continued…

Congratulations to my wonderful third born child on his accomplishment!

TUSAL ORT Update…

2011-02-05T11:01:00.001-08:00

One (wo)Man’s Junk…

2011-02-04T07:57:00.001-08:00

…is my treasure!

I went to my Mom & Dad’s last night, as I often do, when Baby Girl has her dance classes as they live right around the corner from the dance studio. My Mom has been going through some boxes filled with “stuff.” You know the “stuff” I mean. Treasures that you don’t know what to do with. You don’t really want them anymore, but for one reason or another, you just can’t get rid of it. I am a firm believer in the fact that one of the reasons we have children is so that we can give them the “stuff” we don’t know what to do with anymore. That way, we can feel better about not just getting rid of our “stuff!”

There were actually quite a few things that I really wanted and I was smart enough not to take anything I really didn’t want! Here are a few of the things I did want:

Some beautiful laces and trims

An embroidery hoop that belonged to my Grandmother’s favorite Aunt. It was used in the late 1800’s. It still has the twill wrapping intact and the patina on the wood from use is lovely. The metal “disk” in the center was actually an ashtray that belonged to my Great Grandfather and apparently was a set of undetermined amount, but we only have this one left. It also is from the late 1800’s.

Two fans that had been mine as a girl. For any of you in the know, the front fan is from a place called “Boblo Island” that was an amusement park on an island near Detroit, Michigan. It was open from 1898 through 1993. I got the fan there in the 1970’s.

These glass squirrels. Yes, I’m aware that they are ugly. Yes, I am aware they are an awful shade of green. Yes, I am aware that they are chipped. The thing is, my Grandmother received them as a gift around 1960 and she loved them! She also used to let me play with them when I was a very little girl. I used to love the sound they made when I would tap them together, hence the chips! Truth be told…I still do like the sound they make!

This last thing was in a very special box. My Grandmother’s jewelry box. It is actually the catalyst for me bringing some of the other things home. Yesterday, while brushing my hair looking in the bathroom mirror, I had a stray thought. I would love to have one of my Grandmother’s watches…this watch, in fact. It may be that something about my movements, which I usually pay no attention to, may have reminded me of the way my Grandmother used to move her arm and it made me think of her watch. So, when I got to my my Mom & Dad’s, I asked for it! It’s a wind up Helbros watch, I have no idea of the age, but it was meant for me! It still works and fit’s my wrist perfectly! Definitely a treasure!

So what “stuff” have YOU run across lately?

Snow Dogs…

2011-02-02T10:58:00.001-08:00

So, we got a lot of snow. A. Lot. Of. Snow. Yesterday in anticipation, our school district closed school for today. My two oldest son’s colleges cancelled classes in anticipation of the snow storm too. Good thing.

After listening to the wind whistle and batter against the windows all night, plus hearing one of the loudest crashes of thunder ever, when I woke up this morning (really woke up, not that first “have to get up and stumble to the bathroom” kind of wake up), I decided to let the dogs out to do their “business.” The dogs, of course didn’t want to go off the porch…not that you could discern the difference between the porch and the sidewalk and the yard! I could tell, once I got them off the porch, they were going to do their business on the sidewalk. *sigh* I ran to the closet, threw my boots and coat on, grabbed the camera and ran outside. After cleaning up the snow-walk, I took this picture of my boots to show how deep the snow is (mind you, my feet are not actually touching the cement of the sidewalk):

Next I wanted to take a picture of our “snowmobile.”

My puppies wanted to go in the house, but I wanted to torture them a bit…after all I had to clean up their “business” off my “snow-walk!” Here they are with snow beards:

At this point, both the dogs decided they were done…

I’m not sure exactly how much snow we have gotten so far, but I’m guessing about 7” at this point. Who knows how much we will end up with, it’s still snowing and it’s 2 in the afternoon! I just know…I’m not going anywhere!!!

A Strawberry Tutorial for You…

2011-01-29T10:01:00.001-08:00

Felt Strawberries

VIEW SLIDE SHOW

DOWNLOAD ALL

Supplies: wool felt in green, white and red; white beads; yellow beads; beading thread or very strong sewing thread; green yarn or embroidery floss.

1. Start with a circle shape, I used three sizes (2 3/4”, 3 1/2” & 4 1/4” across) cut it in half. I like to use freezer paper with the felt as you can iron it onto your felt and then cut your shape…makes life much easier.

2. sew straight edges together, turn right side out.

3. sew a gathering stitch around the top and stuff with fiberfill. Really stuff that little sucker good!!! You’ll be amazed by how much fiberfill you can get in there! You could stuff it with a little sand or bb’s for weight but make sure to have fiberfill in the top portion to hold it all in. Pull gathering stitches tight and tie off.

4. take a length of your yarn (about 7-8”) and tie a knot in the end. Poke knot into top hole. Using the thread that is left on your needle, pulling tightly, sew back and forth across the hole and occasionally going through the yarn until the hole is completely closed.

5. sew white beads randomly around the berry pulling tightly so you create a divot where the “seed” is. Knot off in the top of the berry by doing a few backstitches.

6. for the leaves, cut out two starfish like shapes, one slightly smaller than the other. cut a hole in the center and pull yarn through the larger one. sew leaf down by coming out near the juncture of two “leaflets” and back out the center. repeat around the whole leaf cap. repeat with the smaller leaf cap.

7. cut out a 5 petal flower or two for the top. sew to top and add yellow beads to the center.

There you go! Hope you find my instructions clear enough.

Hattitude…

2011-01-28T11:03:00.001-08:00

I made a hat. It turned out pretty cute. I wanted to show you a picture of it, but it didn’t look right just laying there on the table. No style. No “hattitude.” So, even though I hate pictures of myself here it is on my head:

It only took me 45 shots to finally find one I would post online!

Tomorrow, I’ll show you my strawberries! I didn’t make them the way Paulette from Beedeebabee did, so I though I would try to do a simple tutorial for you. They are super easy!

Where Oh Where…

2011-01-25T11:55:00.001-08:00

…has my crafting mojo gone?

Oh where, oh where can it be?

With my yarn and threads and material galore,

Oh where, oh where can it be?

Do you ever get into a crafting “funk?” I don’t seem to want to finish anything I have started. I don’t seem to want to start anything new. Nothing really seems to be inspiring me. I guess it must just be that time of the year…or maybe the month…for the last couple of months!

It’s not that I haven’t been seeing some darling free projects online. There are lots of those. Here are a few I have found recently (just click on the picture to be taken to their site):

I also have a couple of lovely stumpwork books by Jane Nichols that I received for Christmas:

AND a kit to go with the above book:

So it’s not that there aren’t enough projects to keep me busy…I just don’t seem to have the energy. I think I just need a break…a vacation… How about a European tour…that would be fun. Or maybe a trip to the South Seas where it’s warm and blue and sandy beaches galore. I wanna be like one of those famous people who, when asked, say “I’m going to Disney World!”

Since none of those lovely things are going to happen anytime soon, I think I just need to add a bit of springtime here in my northern climate. I believe I will start with Paulette’s felt strawberries. Hopefully I’ll have some done to show you tomorrow!

Peace Out!

Cookie…

2011-01-24T10:45:00.001-08:00

via One Piece at a Time

A Match Made in Africa…

2011-01-07T06:41:00.001-08:00

***please double click the video to see “all” of it…I can’t seem to make these videos fit my blog width***

Isn’t this just the sweetest thing ever!?! The animal kingdom can be so incredible and we as “thinking” animals could learn so much from them!

A Night at the Roxbury???

2011-01-06T04:59:00.001-08:00

I just thought this was too cute not to share! I especially love the fish in glasses in the bucket! Apparently, I have been spending a little too much time over at youtube, but on a positive note, I’ve been finding some share worthy videos! Tomorrow I have a really heartwarming one planned for you to see…hope you enjoy!

Do You Have ORT’s???

2011-01-04T15:47:00.001-08:00

Or, for that matter do you even know what ort’s are? Well, let me edju-macate you!!! ORT stands for “old ratty threads.” What the heck??? You say.

Over at It’s Daffy, there is a totally useless stitch-along (TUSAL)going on. What we do is to take a picture, on the new moon of every month, of our ORT’s. We post it on our blog so other’s can see what we have been doing. Did I mention the prizes? Guess you’ll just have to go here to get all the details!!!

So, here is my picture:

There is still time to sign up if you want to…come on…you know you want to…

Happy New Year!

2011-01-01T19:36:00.001-08:00

Well, the champaign has been drunk. Well wishes given. Resolutions made. As I did last year, my resolution is to not make New Years resolutions. I’m terrible at keeping them. I’ve tried and I ALWAYS fail!

Instead I have hopes.

I hope to…

1. Continue in my endeavor to eat more healthily.

2. Continue with the exercising I started doing.

3. Treasure moments with my family (even my two oldest, supposed adult, baby birds who really need to leave the nest…soon!!! lol).

4. Have more patience.

5. Do a better job keeping up on the housework.

6. Have a more positive attitude.

7. Recognize and appreciate the more simple pleasures life has to offer.

I think that is a good list. They are not resolutions, just wishes.

I hope you all have a wonderful 2011!

Stay-at-Home…Empress???

2010-12-26T16:37:00.001-08:00

Being the fashion diva that I am, I just love designer clothes…you know, to wear to the grocery store or to drop my Daughter off at dance. Nothing like a special hair-do or designer jewelry to perk up picking my Son up from marching band!

Seriously though, I have never been a huge fan of the whole “fashion collections” hullabaloo. I did just stumble across something that I am finding, though absolutely not practical for me, is none the less fascinating and lovely.

While blog hopping I ran across this:

“This” is the “Chanel pre-fall 2011 Byzance Collection.”

If only this was a “V” neck:

Here’s a lovely “classic black” dress:

Now just because I can’t see myself wearing the lovely Greek looking clothes or jewelry doesn’t mean that it is all too fancy for my daily life. Take a closer look at those GORGEOUS shoes!!! I can definitely see myself wearing those with summer clothes! In fact, I MUST have shoes like that! I LOVE them!!! Of course I won’t be buying these as they range from $130 to $300, but I do like these styles:

These were the most reasonably priced ones I found at a mere $80:

I’m sure, though, this spring and summer there will be plenty of knock offs in the stores. Can’t wait to see them!

What I Want...

2010-12-23T09:30:00.000-08:00

...for my birthday today is a new blender!!!

A Christmas Simon’s Cat…

2010-12-20T15:16:00.001-08:00

Rudolph & The Grinch…

2010-12-16T19:26:00.001-08:00

Earlier this week my Daughter was in a Christmas dance recital. The girls did a really good job considering they didn’t start rehearsing until mid-October. Little Miss M played Cindy Lou Who in The Grinch and the Doll in Rudolph. I won’t subject you to the whole thing, but thought I would post my favorite part from Rudolph. My Daughter is the one in the dress:

Some Gifts…

2010-12-03T12:32:00.001-08:00

…I made for my Mom for her Birthday:

A wool felt candle mat

A Christmas ornament

A wool felt gift tag that I embroidered a message on the back of

Baby Girl made her the cutest pencil organizer and she did it all by herself!

I think it was a very nice birthday celebration! We had a wonderful dinner (made by me) of lasagna made like my Grandmother used to make it, salad, bread sticks and a lovely pineapple upside down cake for desert. A very enjoyable day!

A New Simon’s Cat…

2010-11-26T08:15:00.001-08:00

My Thanksgiving Mantle…

2010-11-18T08:28:00.001-08:00

Little Miss M and I decorated our fireplace mantle the other day and I thought I would show it to you!

It’s kind of hard to see how pretty the pumpkins are. They are covered in beads and so the camera doesn’t really like taking pictures of them! I crocheted the turkey a couple of years ago and have since lost the link to the pattern, sorry!

The welcome autumn banner is a really nice freebie offered by Gwen from Gwenny Penny. It was a super easy, fun and quick project for the Divine Little Miss M and I to do together.

Can you believe that Christmas is only 5 weeks away! It’s coming up WAY to fast for me! I don’t have anything done (let alone started) that I was planning on making! Guess I better get crackin’!!!

A Giveaway…

2010-11-16T11:36:00.001-08:00

Over at Retro Mummy!

She’s giving away a fat quarter of each of the pictured fabrics! 14 fat quarter’s in all! How awesome is that…and I absolutely love this fabric! Keeping my fingers crossed!!!

We Interrupt Your Regularly Scheduled Programming…

2010-11-13T05:34:00.001-08:00

To tell you about something awesome! Have you ever been over to Meyer Imports? They have the most gorgeous German glass glitter as well as some other lovelies. Their glass glitter is so vibrant! They also have this really cool product line called “Earth Flakes. The Earth Flakes are little bits of cork, pebbles, grasses and wood shavings you can use to embellish your little bits! I can see where these would come in handy if you were a miniature enthusiast.

Well, Meyer Imports is running a special deal this month! Any order placed during the month of November get’s these little cuties included, for free, with their order! How awesome is that? The people over at Meyer Imports decided to take it one step further! Anyone who blogs about their offer and shoots them off an email with the link to the post provided gets to have these little darlings for free!!!

Well, I love free…and my Mama didn’t raise no dummy! Go on over and check these guys out! You will be amazed by their products and I have read on more than one blog, from people who have ordered from them, that they are efficient and really nice people too!

Christmas Ornaments…

2010-11-12T16:17:00.001-08:00

I have been planning for a while now to try my hand at making some round “quilted” Christmas ornaments. I first saw one of these round ornaments on the Graceful Designs blog, which sadly, hasn’t been active all year. This is the image she used that caught my breath:

Isn’t this a lovely springtime Easter-y ornament?She offered this link (uses three different fabrics) to directions. After trolling around, I have found one that is illustrated over at Crafter without a Cat (uses two different fabrics).

More trolling and here are some pictures of my favorites around the web. If you like one, click the picture to be taken to the designer. If you don’t want to make one of your own, you can find instructions on how to purchase them on the websites. There are also a bunch available on etsy. Have fun!!!

Just Spoolin’ Around…

2010-11-10T11:07:00.001-08:00

So, I’ve had these little spools forever! They originally belonged to my Dad’s…Uncle’s…Wife. I’ve kept them in my box, in my bead cabinet for years knowing that SOMEDAY I would find a use for the stinkin’ cute little things!
The other day, while trolling around on the internet (I’m very good at wasting my day trolling on the internet), I came across this:
Eureka! A spool advent calendar! I now have a good use for my spools! I am always looking for a simple project to do on Thanksgiving Day with my Mom and Daughter. This fits the bill perfectly!
Of course I had to try one out to see how it would fit. I printed the free “labels” at half size to accommodate the smaller spools, trimmed the length of the paper about 1/2” and it worked like a charm!
Now I just have to find the perfect beads and some cording to finish them off. I might use a little gold paint on the edges too…that would finish them off nicely!
If you too want to see all the great spool advent calendar ideas over at “Just Something I Made” and make your own click “HERE!”
***update***
Cathe has updated her project from last year and suggests that you can make them into kits to give away! Check out her new post with new downloadable graphics HERE!

Let Them Eat Cake…

2010-11-08T11:22:00.001-08:00

If this had been the cake Marie Antoinette was talking about, well, she never would have lost her head!

It’s everything good about Thanksgiving dinner! Here’s the link to the recipe: CHOW

Here Kitty, Kitty…

2010-10-19T07:51:00.001-07:00

This is one of the coolest things I have seen! A friend sent me the video and I just had to share…it’s guaranteed to put a smile on your face!

Computer Time and Giveaways…

2010-10-02T16:05:00.001-07:00

Today, I’m a happy camper! The last year and a half I have been working on an old laptop that I purchased several years ago and has less than stellar performance. I HAD a really nice desktop computer that I bought myself with the sale of a beaded purse that I made. Bad me, back then, I decided that it needed a better graphics card so I could play more graphically intensive games. So long story short…I killed my computer!

Fast forward to now, my oldest son decided I needed to get my computer up and running. So he ordered me some new parts, my hubby put them all together since my oldest is off at school again, and my #2 son spent a lot of time working on the operating system. Now I have my wonderful computer back!!!! I forgot how fantastic it is!

I can’t thank the men in my life enough! They are absolutely awesome!!!

On Friday, the Fall into Fall Quilt Bloggers Giveaway started. It is a huge giveaway being participated by more than 150 bloggers and businesses. I will be updating on this post about some of the participants so keep an eye here for some links!

Hop on over to Micki's blog Irish Muses. She has TWO things she's giving away! Spend a little time there too, I have been going to Micki's blog for a long time now and really enjoy her posts!

Stop by Grey Cat Quilts, she is giving away a lovely mini quilt made of my favorite...batiks!!! It's stunning!

Little Bluebell is giving away a Wonderland Momo honeybun...who doesn't love honeybuns!!!

There’s A New Kid In Town…

2010-09-28T16:05:00.001-07:00

well…a new BOM anyways! It starts on October 1st and ends on November 26th. There will be 9 free embroidery patterns in all. Won’t you join in? All you have to do is click on the link in my side bar. Here is a little sneak peek at a few of the designs we will be doing:

…I hear jingle bells…do you???

Have A Drink On Me…

2010-09-27T13:03:00.001-07:00

I’m not quite sure how it happened. I swear I’m not old enough…really! If you have your own, no matter what you do…don’t blink or you’ll miss the trip! It’s official…my “baby” is 21! They sure grow up fast, don’t they!

He’s also HUGE! He’d make a great Viking with all that red hair and the fact that he’s built like a football player! Genetics not withstanding, he IS part Norwegian, he has a softer, funnier side:

He was indulging his little sister!

In the spirit of his 21st birthday I thought I’d share a Strawberry Margarita Shooter from Bakers Royale that I found via Craft Gossip. Doesn’t it look yummy?

I Did A Little Shopping Today…

2010-09-20T12:36:00.001-07:00

Due to the circumstances in which my family and I have found ourselves, it has become necessary for me to be much more frugal than I had been. I recently found a blog called Money Saving Mom that helps you know the best deals to get out of Rite Aid, Walgreens and CVS drug stores. Now, I don’t have a CVS nearby, but I do have a Rite Aid and they just opened a Walgreens in my town too!

I did my research, clipped my coupons and away I went this morning with my list clutched in my eager little hand. There were a couple things not in stock, and I made a mistake picking up the wrong thing in one instance, but over all I’m pretty happy with my haul of goodies! Here’s what I got:

Three packages of diapers (my Niece is expecting twins), two deodorants, two tubes of toothpaste, three boxes of kleenex (the big ones), three cans of soup, a mouthwash and a heat pack. Paying full price all these items would have cost me $60.02. My end price for all these goodies? $18.09!!! Pretty darn good, huh! Just one bag of the diapers at regular price is $12.99! Mind you, this price is after coupons (store and manufacturer), sale prices and rewards, but it’s still awesome!!!

Speaking of my Niece, who will be receiving the diapers as part of her shower gift, I picked up some material at Jo-Ann's today to make receiving blankets and burp cloths with. She will be having a boy and a girl so I thought this material was absolutely perfect!

Won’t they be darling! I’ll be sure to post a picture when I get them done. If you are interested in a couple of links to make something like I am, here is one for receiving blankets (I make mine similar to the first one, but I tie them with yarn) and here is one I have made and absolutely love for burp rags.

Enjoy!

A Little Sewing…

2010-09-19T12:21:00.001-07:00

So, I have been a bad Mommy. My Daughter got this sewing machine over a year ago and I just now let her start learning how to use it. I just wasn’t ready for sewn fingers, and I didn’t feel she really had the skill or patience or attention span for it. She’s now nine, and was ready, in my opinion, to start learning.

Here she is sewing her very first seam:

Here she is almost done with the first half of her project:

…and here she is with the first half of her project, a placemat, done.

She did a great job…seams are a bit wonky, but it IS her first time! On Tuesday we plan to finish up the project…Mom can only take it in small doses (took about an hour for this part).

I have learned one valuable lesson from this. She is using a “Pixie” sewing machine by Singer. It’s worth investing in a “real” sewing machine. Although the Pixie does work, I think it is better suited to paper sewing. I can see that I will be moving her up to my machine before too long.

Tap, tap…is this thing on???

2010-09-16T19:56:00.001-07:00

I can hardly believe it has been two months since I last posted. It has been kind of tough around here with everything that my family has been going through. It's definitely gotten me down. It's time to stop wallowing now, though, and get back to the business at hand.

What is the business at hand you may ask (that is if anyone comes here anymore)? Why crafting of course! What a silly question.

I have been crafting, the problem you see, is that I haven't been taking pictures of said crafting. I would say it is past time to get my photography butt in gear! I promise to start posting some picture of my endeavors very soon.

In the mean time, here is a great e-book for you all to check out. It's Mary Powers' inspired ideas. It has lots of darling projects and fantastic photography and best of all...it's free! I found the link via Stitch School, thanks Janet for the link!

Just click on the picture and you will be on your way!

A Sister Gone...loss

2010-07-13T09:03:00.000-07:00

I am so sad. Broken hearted. I feel heavy, like I could sink into the seat I am sitting in. My step-sister, less than a year older than me, whom I grew up with from the age of 8... is gone. She finally could no longer handle the fight she was engaged in with cancer. She has been seriously ill for two years now. A few years ago, she had breast cancer. Went through the radiation and a masectomy. It came back. Now, her family must go on without her. It's a terrible loss. She has three children and a husband left behind. My heart is the most heavy for her youngest, only 9, like my own daughter. How can she even begin to understand the enormity of it all, let alone deal with the loss of the most important person in her life. It's tragic.

I remember when we were both pregnant with our daughters. Kathy was a month behind me in her pregnancy. She called me before she told anyone else...so upset. The last thing she wanted was to be pregnant again. She had two other children, almost grown. I remember telling her that things happen for a reason and that her new child would bring her joy. We talked for a while about it. I told her we could make it fun, being pregnant at the same time, together. I think I made her feel better about it.

My step sister and I were not really close. Due to family drama's there was always a little bit of a wedge there. It wasn't personal towards me...it just was what it was. That often happens with blended...broken...families. Still, she and my other step-sister were and are the closest thing I will ever have to siblings. Just because we weren't always that close, doesn't make my loss any less. I grew up with her...though in different households. I share so many memories, experiences, history with her. I will truely miss her more than I can say.

Kathy was what I call a gentle soul. She had a sweet disposition. She was quiet, but not a shrinking violet by any means. She touched so many people with her gentleness.

I am so sad at her loss. There will be such a large hole left in our family.

Please pray for her family in their time of need...

I “Felt” Like Showing You Something…

2010-06-08T11:56:00.001-07:00

I know I haven’t been blogging much lately. I just haven’t really been in the mood. I have been crafting though. I thought I would show you my newest finish. It’s a wool felt lamp penny rug. I love the way it turned out. I used beads to accent the middle and sort of “made up” the stitch I used with them. I’m sure I didn’t really make it up…there’s nothing new under the sun! :-)

I also wanted to tell you about a wonderful week long giveaway over at Jane’s Fabric’s and Quilts. Jane is such a nice lady and having a wonderful celebration, why not pop over there and sign up!

See you soon!

Dog Has Kittens for Lunch...

2010-06-07T13:04:00.000-07:00

This is the neatest video!

A Fun Sew-a-long…

2010-05-28T11:24:00.001-07:00

Kelly over at {MAKE} is have the cutest sew-a-long! I’m going to join in…won’t you too???

Join In the Fun…

2010-05-18T06:58:00.001-07:00

I certainly am!

The Bread Art Project…

2010-05-03T09:05:00.001-07:00

…is sponsored by the Grain Foods Foundation. It is to raise awareness of hunger here in America. For every piece of art created, they will donate $1 to “Share Our Strength” which is the leading organization working to end childhood hunger in America.

It’s nice to see an organization that is taking our donated money (and theirs) and basically putting it back into our communities instead of sending it off some place else. Don’t get me wrong, the other organizations are wonderful too, but as my Grandmother used to say: “Charity begins at home.”

Please click on my above image to go check them out and make a piece of art toast yourself!!!

Giveaway’s Galore…

2010-04-11T11:37:00.001-07:00

I have a notion is have the most wonderful giveaways all month long! You have to check them out! It’s not too late to enter all the ones they have already posted about. Look at what they are giving away for today:

It’s an AccuQuilt Go! I seriously want this!

Check out their two sites here:

Blog Link:: http /www.ihaveanotion.blogspot.com/
Website Link : http://ihavea-notion.com/store/

Good luck!

Dance Fever…

2010-04-10T14:28:00.001-07:00

I haven’t had a lot to say lately but I wanted to share this video I found on YouTube. It’ll crack you up!

Once Upon an Easter…

2010-04-05T18:38:00.001-07:00

…years ago, long before Baby Girl was a thought, I broke myself.

Early in the morning, when the boys were approximately 7, 6 and 2, I was, as is usual, completely not prepared for the Easter egg hunt.

I had run to the back of the house because I had forgotten to grab my camera to document the whole affair. As I was hurrying out into the living room, where my family, including my Parents, awaited my return, it happened. Not paying attention to where I was placing my feet, I started to walk through the doorway from the kitchen and swung my left foot too far to the left. I slammed my foot against the wall.

I instantly dropped to my right knee and grabbed a hold of my foot. I couldn’t cry, I couldn’t speak, I couldn’t even breathe! After a few moments of excruciating pain and my family trying to figure out what was wrong with me, I finally was able to take a breath and squeak out a stuttering “I slammed my foot.”

I gingerly released my death grip on my foot to assess the damage. It was quite an unusual and unexpected sight. My pinkie toe was quite literally standing at a right angle to my foot! I couldn’t believe my eyes, but knew by the severe pain that I was in that I wasn’t seeing things!

Spartan lifted me off the floor and carried me to the couch. Placing me carefully down and propping my leg on the coffee table he told me he was going to go get dressed and take me to the emergency room. I grabbed his arm and said “NO! First the boys have to hunt for their eggs!”

There was no way I was going to ruin the Easter egg hunt for the boys, it was just too important to me. We have few enough truly special days to celebrate as a family, especially when our children are young. So I gritted my teeth, tried to smile through the pain and encouraged the boys to find their eggs. I used phrases like “that’s nice honey” and “great job sweetie.”

I confess that we did give them some hints to hurry them along, I wanted to share the morning egg hunt with them, but I wasn’t completely masochistic!!

Being as it was Easter morning, when we arrived at the emergency room, there was no one else there. I have never gotten care so quickly before! Not that they really needed them to see what was wrong with my foot, I had x-rays done so they could see the extent of the damage.

The doctor on duty was awesome! He looked like your stereotypical heavy-set Harley Davidson motorcycle rider. I just know there had to be a motorcycle out in the parking lot that belonged to him!

“You did a real good job on yourself, didn’t y0u?” He said to me, looking first at my foot and then at my x-rays. “We need to set this toe. We can do it one of two ways. I can either give you a shot to numb it, wait for about 15 minutes for the shot to take effect and then set it, or I can just set it with out the numbing agent. It’s your choice.”

“Let’s just get it over with, anyway you look at it, it’s going to hurt.” I replied. He asked me if I was sure and I said yes. “Give me a moment to center myself so I won’t move.” I said. “Just let me know when you are ready.” He replied.

I took a deep breath and closed my eyes. I used a meditation exercise to help calm my self and forced myself to relax every muscle in my body, including and most especially my left foot. Without opening my eyes, I nodded my head and said “I’m ready.” I felt his hands gently take my foot, and then, quick as can be, heard a loud snap and then felt some relief of the pressure and pain in my toe. I opened my eyes as the Doctor patted my knee and said “You were awesome! You didn’t even twitch as I set your toe!”

Soon a nurse came in the room to wrap my foot and give me my care instructions. Then they sent me on my way.

It certainly wasn’t the way I wanted to spend my Easter morning, but there was one positive to come out of the whole experience. I didn’t have to do a thing cooking or cleaning wise for the Easter dinner! Heck of a way to get out of those chores!!

Yesterday we had a quiet, relaxing Easter day. All my children and my parents were there to spend the day together. It’s just such a treasure to have all my family together and healthy.

I hope that you all had a wonderful Easter Sunday!

Have You Met Maru???

2010-03-29T06:30:00.001-07:00

I absolutely LOVE this cat! He’s a giggle to watch!

My Needlework Hero…

2010-03-22T16:47:00.001-07:00

is Susan Elliot over at Plays With Needles! Just look at some of her work:

The “Giving Purse” she made for a charity auction

June’s bead journal page “My Symphony”

November (2008) bead journal page “Abundance”

My Needle’s Garden

August bead journal page “A Daughter’s Valentine”

As you can see, she employs many different media to create her artwork. Susan’s attention to detail and color placement is exquisite. The words she uses to describe how the piece came together and what it means to her are insightful and motivating. Susan takes you on a creative journey, from trying to make different types of leaves, to beading, to new techniques and everything in between.

If you have never visited her blog before, you should. You will get lost in her family, her art and her heartfelt genuineness. I know you will love her as much as I do!

I Have Been…

2010-03-21T08:31:00.001-07:00

unusually productive with crafting lately.

For me, when I am sewing or doing needle work, I can “escape” reality. I become so focused on what I am doing that there is just no more room in my brain for thinking about the stresses of everyday life. I guess you could say it’s rather “Zen” for me. One site I visited recently described “Zen” as: something that places great importance on moment-by-moment awareness and ‘seeing deeply into the nature of things’ by direct experience.

I rather like that. Moment-by-moment awareness, although not really practical in everyday life, is a wonderful thing to explore in your down time. I feel it is necessary…like my crafting is necessary to my sanity!

We recently had some disturbing, life altering news. My Husband, the sole provider for our family of 6, has been laid off. Not due to anything wrong he did…in fact, his present and last supervising bosses both tried to get upper management to keep him.
“Sorry,” they said, “it’s just a matter of numbers.” Numbers. We are all just numbers.

Living in Michigan has been a scary proposition for many in the automotive and engineering fields lately. Closing plants, dwindling jobs…outsourcing. My Husband is an engineer. With a Masters Degree in Civil Engineering. Who said a better education will make you more successful in life? We are now in the company of a lot of well educated, jobless families. I worried about them, how they feed their children, themselves. Now I worry about us. We were just barely making all the bills that come with a house, a car, children… as it was.

So, are you nice and depressed now? Enough pity party for me…I think I need to go craft something. I’m sorry to be such a downer, I just really needed to get that all off my chest so I can move on.

This post was actually supposed to be about my needlework hero, Susan Elliot from Plays With Needles, but I think I’ll save that post for tomorrow.

Here a few pictures of what I have accomplished in the last few days. I have also supplied links to the tutorials! They were great stash busters.

First up is a pillow that I made based on Calamity Jane’s pincushion tutorial and the crochet button tutorial from Mademoiselle Chaos:

From My Art, My So Called Life

Next up, two armchair caddies based on Helen’s pattern from Hugs & Kisses (I made mine slightly smaller and without embroidery):

A pillow case from a vintage sheet and the first part of the edging for a pillow case crochet along that Cassie over at You Go Girl! is hosting:

And last but not least of my shares for today is a “Simple Party Clutch” offered by Elizabeth of Oh, Fransson! on the Sew, Mama Sew! blog (click here for tutorial):

Hopefully tomorrow I will have my originally planned post for you…and…pictures of my FINISHED (last night) tree!!!

I’m Knot Crazy…

2010-03-12T14:48:00.001-08:00

…yet!!!

I showed you the well wishes project not too long ago. Well, I decided to give it a try, but of course, I have to make it my own! I really didn’t want to make the WHOLE thing embroidered, so I took some off white linen and used water colors to paint it.

I started working on the tree first, since that is what drew me to the project in the first place. So, here’s what’s in my hoop right now:

Since I have spent so many hours working on this I took a BUNCH of pictures!!

You can see the felt I put behind some of the layers to create more dimension.

I have learned one thing, though I still love french knots…I absolutely HATE bullion knots! I had a terrible time making them even! At least it’s a tree trunk and they aren’t perfectly even anyways.

I’m Still Alive…

2010-03-10T18:41:00.001-08:00

I’ll have a couple pictures of projects in the next day or two. In the meantime, I thought I’d share this cat video. This is so me!!!

Well Wishes…

2010-02-28T12:23:00.001-08:00

So last night, while at the bookstore I was looking through the craft magazines and this one caught my eye:

There are many lovely projects in this magazine, but the one that REALLY caught my eye was the featured project “Well Wishes” by Maureen Tarnok. This type of project makes my heart go pitter-patter! I can only hope to have the type of skill, someday, to complete something this detailed and gorgeous. What I fell in love with the most about this project was the tree:

Look at all those lovely french knots! Just about my favorite stitch! I am actually going to attempt, at the very least, to make the tree. I have some left over course linen from a Halloween project a couple of years ago and I think I will do it on there. I want something a little more substantial than just a cotton or muslin. We’ll see what happens!

Here’s a better look at the whole project:

Spring Sewing Party…

2010-02-26T16:26:00.001-08:00

Click on the button above and find out all the details! Hope to “see” you tomorrow!

******************

First picture to share:

I bound two hand towels and one washcloth. The towels have a decorative strip going across the bottom. This was one of my stash busters, all binding was made with one fat quarter. Wish I had more of this material, I love how crisp and clean it looks!

*****************

Update #2

This is the bag holder I have used for the last 11 years. It was made from a sweat pant leg that was my now 20yr olds.

Here is my new scrappy bag holder!

My stash busting has gone well!

Next I think I’ll move on to hand embroidery. Slower but no less satisfying!

*****************************

3rd Update

Well, I was gone for a little while doing Hubby/dinner stuff. Spent a couple hours at the bookstore, one of my favorite past times. As a result, I’m not quite as far as I hoped to be. I should be able to get this project finished tonight and get started on the second one pictured.

We are going to watch Time Traveler's Wife while I finish my stitching. I wasn’t sure I would get done with the movie before midnight, so I thought I’d do my post now.

This has been a lot of fun and SO productive. I look forward to doing this again sometime!

***************************

Final Update:

Well I didn’t get to the second embroidery piece, didn’t even start on it! I did manage to get the fishy one done though!

I enjoyed this a lot! It was nice to be be able to see all the other projects that everyone was working on too!

Bias Tape…

2010-02-23T18:16:00.001-08:00

I am going to be making something practical tomorrow and I need bias tape for it. What I found in my fabric stash, that I wanted to use, were two fat quarters. My dilemma was how to make enough bias tape to cover what I need. Well, I found this wonderful tutorial on how to turn a fat quarter into 5 yards of bias tape! Fantastic! If you want to learn how to do it, go here: Stop Staring and Start Sewing Thank you Jona!!!

On another note, here are a couple of recent finishes:

For Valentines day I made myself a small heart brooch. It’s made of wool felt, vintage seed beads and various other beads.

I am also doing a free BOM offered by Cheryl over at Willowberry Designs. It’s called Under the Sea and it is absolutely darling! Here is the first block done and I will have the second one done in another couple of days! You can just glimpse some of the fabric I will be using, when it is time to finish it, in the background.

Happy stitching!

Beautiful…

2010-02-22T08:45:00.001-08:00

Apparently, I’m A Little Blue…Part Deux…

2010-02-13T10:10:00.001-08:00

I made myself a box. It’s sort of like a camera case. I got the pattern from youcanmakethis.com. First let me say I LOVE how it turned out. Having said that, it was very labor intensive. The instructions were fantastic! There were just a LOT of steps. As they say, though, nothing worthwhile is ever easy! I don’t recommend this for a raw beginner, but it’s easily finished by someone with moderate sewing skills.

I added a felt square for needles for when I use it as a craft case and there are removable dividers that Velcro in. I used foam core board for the sides and bottom so it is nice and sturdy. I am sure this is destined to become our camera case! I also made a pincushion with the extra material!

Giveaway!

2010-02-12T09:54:00.001-08:00

You have to check out this sewing machine giveaway over at The DIY Dish!

Apparently, I’m A Little Blue…

2010-02-10T09:33:00.001-08:00

Many of my projects lately have been relying heavily on the color blue! First up, a bracelet I made.I used some denim from an old pair of Baby Girl’s jeans from when she was little. The denim is so nice and soft and easy to sew. I added some vintage lace on top and pleated down the length of it. Then I embellished with ribbon, Swarovski pearls, Swarovski crystals, sterling silver beads and seed beads. I couldn’t find my snaps (big surprise! I’m so organized!) so I used Velcro dots that I also reinforced with Fabric Tack glue. I just don’t trust the adhesive on the Velcro to stay. I lightly frayed the edges and then used Fray Check to keep it from fraying further.

I love the way it turned out! It’s comfy and looks great with my jeans!

Stay tuned for part two of the blue…

And The Winners Are…

2010-02-06T11:10:00.001-08:00

Here are the results on the “Felt Smack Down” contest!

Pretty cool, huh?!?

Illene’s Quilt…

2010-02-01T15:56:00.001-08:00

Lyn over at “Welcome to Bluebird Quilts” has come up with a wonderful idea! A friend of hers, and a bloggy friend of mine, has been going through a rough time of it lately. Her daughter has cancer and has been very ill at every turn. Every time that something looks promising, something else comes up. Needless to say, Illene could really use a hug from all her friends. The blogging world being what it is, we have all developed friendships with others all over the world so, a friendly hug is not necessarily logistically possible. This is where Lyn’s idea comes in. She is making her a quilt. What does that have to do with you and me??? Well, you can contribute to the making of the quilt and send Illene your own hug! Check out all the details on Lyn’s blog!

My “Felt Smack Down” Entry…

2010-01-30T10:22:00.001-08:00

Well, here's my entry for the "Felt Smack Down" contest! I really enjoyed making this. I have loved working with felt now for quite a while and have been inspired by Salley Mavor for years.

It was a learning experience for me as well as a fun project to make. I tried some techniques on this piece that I haven't employed before as described below. My piece is a wall hanging that is 8" x 9", mounted to foam core board and finished along the edges with ribbon and pearl headed pins.

My “Little” (doll), as I call them, measures 1 3/4", including the little tip on her cap. I painted her face (no easy feat being as she is so small!) and embroidered her tunic and skirt. Her hair is made from yarn.
The pot of hydrangeas measures just over 3/4" and is sculpted and then painted using watercolors for extra dimension. Each flower was made individually with a single strand of embroidery floss worked in colonial knots, gathered and then sewn in place.

The apple tree measures 3" and is sculpted and painted using watercolors as well for extra dimension.

I needle felted the clouds then stitched them down to the sky.
The wisteria vine is actually a couple of different colors of floss that I dipped in a 50-50 mixture of white glue and water, then wrapped around a paintbrush to dry before stitching in place with some silk fleurette's. The clouds ended up being my least favorite part of the project. I need to experiment more and come up with something more satisfactory and realistic.

Overall, I am pleased with my end result. There were times that I was feeling dissatisfied with it, but as I added more detail, the picture started to match what I had in my head. I can see making more along these lines in the future.

Kohl’s…

2010-01-26T20:34:00.001-08:00

is a really cool company. Usually I keep my blog fairly impersonal. Don’t want to bore you all with my everyday boo-hoo-ing.

I have to tell you about this though.

Recently, we have been having some problems with having enough money for everything. Same story that’s going on all over the country. Everything is more expensive, no raises for the Husband and I can’t get anyone to hire me, yadda, yadda, yadda. Every month I have to decide what gets paid off, what gets paid on and what gets held on to. Our biggest problem has been medical bills. Well, this last month I decided I needed to pay on some of them as they are seriously past due. As a result, I have gotten behind on my Kohl’s charge (which I did not use during Christmas, I was so good, I didn’t use any credit!).

Today, in the mail, I got a notice that they would do something they call their “match a payment program.” If I would make the minimum payment due, once it clears, they will credit my existing balance by $50.00. Folks, that isn’t a typo. I said $50.00. Their exact word were “We want to help you bring your account to a current status.” How cool is that! I tell you, I had tears in my eyes when I read it because it means so much to us. I spoke with someone on the phone and explained that I wouldn’t be able to pay on the account until the last day of the month (payday), so she took my information and they are post dating my payment until February 1st.

I don’t know too many companies in this economic atmosphere who are really concerned about their patron’s financial situation. Most companies are all about the bottom line, the big bucks, the fiscal report. Not Kohl’s. They actually care about us and that is HUGE in my book.

So, as a final word on the issue…go shop at Kohl’s… they are good people!

Dust In the Wind…

2010-01-22T22:13:00.001-08:00

All we are is dust in the wiiiiiinnnndddd….

Do you remember that song by Kansas? It came out in 1977. When I was in 7th grade. A lifetime ago.

Anyways, so I’m thinking about dust. “Dust?” you say. Yes. Dust. For the most part, I like to think of myself as a fairly clean person. Like I have a somewhat clean house. Wrong. I found this great little pattern for a broom handle corner duster to crochet. I made it up while watching UP with the family tonight. First I used it to get the cobwebs (yuck) lurking in the corners of the family room. Next, I thought, cool, I can actually get the top of my doorbell thingy-muhjig (technical term)…eww. It gets better though, I ran it along the top of my door trim down the hallway leading to our garage…in a word…NASTY!!!

So, I’m going to share the link with you so you can see how disgusting you are too…come on, don’t be shy…tell me…please…I don’t want to be the one admitting to being gross!

You can find this wonder at Suzies Stuff (found via craftgossip.com)

I made mine out of beige (so it wouldn’t show the dirt – ha!) acrylic yarn. I would have used cotton, but I was afraid it would end up shrinking and not fit my broom handle anymore. Have fun!

Doughn’t Blame Me, I Couldn’t Help Myself…

2010-01-19T06:33:00.001-08:00

Please join me in remembering a great icon of the entertainment community. The Pillsbury Doughboy died yesterday of a yeast infection and trauma complications from repeated pokes in the belly. He was 71.
Doughboy was buried in a lightly greased coffin. Dozens of celebrities turned out to pay their respects, including Mrs. Butterworth, Hungry Jack, the California Raisins, Betty Crocker, the Hostess Twinkies, and Captain Crunch. The grave site was piled high with flours.
Aunt Jemima delivered the eulogy and lovingly described Doughboy as a man who never knew how much he was kneaded. Doughboy rose quickly in show business, but his later life was filled with turnovers.. He was considered a very smart cookie, but wasted much of his dough on half-baked schemes. Despite being a little flaky at times, he still was a crusty old man and was considered a positive roll model for millions.
Doughboy is survived by his wife Play dough, three children: John Dough, Jane Dough and Dosey Dough, plus they had a bun in the oven, Sour Dough (that’s what you get at 71). He is also survived by his elderly father, Pop Tart.
The funeral was held at 3:50 for about 20 minutes.

(reposted from Sew Many Memories)

A "Little" Break and Some Other Stuff...

2010-01-18T10:33:00.001-08:00

So I took a break from working on my “little” project for the “Felt Smack Down” contest.

My Daughter has needed a new dance bag for a while now. She is in more dance classes and has 3 pair of shoes now so needed a larger bag. I finally got around to making what I wanted for her. So first the happy part: I made her a drawstring bag with one outside pocket and four inside pockets for her shoes and what not. Looks cute doesn’t it?

I love the fabric. I bought it like a year ago meaning to use it for something like this and me being me, just “re-discovered” it.Now the sad part: I designed it myself. Great you say…not so much I say. I didn’t allow for enough width so it’s just a tiny bit too narrow. I didn’t allow enough length on the tabs on the sides so I couldn’t thread the strings through and had to jury rig it with elastic bands. The biggest mistake I made was that I didn’t allow enough room at the top for the cord channel. So as a result, the top won’t close down snuggly. Typical me. I added Velcro in the top so that it will stay closed.

On a positive note, and most importantly, my Daughter loves it!

A Couple “Little’s” and a Smack Down…

2010-01-09T17:33:00.001-08:00

I have a new felt brooch to share with you. I used my tiny heart sizzix paddle punch that I got from my Mom for Christmas last year for the flower, some seed beads, rick rack and some new felt I got for Christmas this year (thanks Mom!). I think it turned out pretty cute!

Have you heard about this?

Over at My Life Under the Bus they are having a contest. It is based on this terrific book by Salley Mavor:

Well, I couldn’t help myself…I signed up. I’ve already made a sketch of what I want to do. I’ve also made the main “little” that will be in my piece. She’s tiny. I mean TINY! Her head is 10mm. Other than my beadwork, this is the smallest scale I have ever done! I loved making the clothes for her, very delicate and tiny embroidery! I used a very small applique needle and a single strand of embroidery floss for the embellishments. I’m not going to show the whole project until I get it all done, but I wanted to show my “little” off…so here she is:

She’s very sweet and oh so tiny! I’m looking forward the rest of the project!