If I Had A Little Girl...

I would have bunting everywhere in all of her favorite colors.

These will be going into a care package for a very special little girl. Congratulations to blog mom, Nae!

I Feel Accomplished

I started this sweater in 2009!

It was for my nephew who just a baby. Now he's six and there is no way that future giant is going to fit into this thing. I need to find a new little one to gift it to but I am not going to let that stop me from being happy about completing a long, long term goal.

The pattern is the baby bog from Elizabeth Zimmerman.

It is not perfect (don't stare too hard at the stripes), but it is perfectly made with love and care. And I'm oh, so happy with that fancy gold zipper that I machine stitched in. Cute as can be!

You can read previous posts about this project using the links below.

Mountains of Unfinished Knitting

More of The Same

Back To The Knitting

UFOs

Sometimes the best thing I can do to make myself feel better is pull out some UFOs and get some things done!  Today's project of choice is baby bibs. I have had these sitting around for months just waiting for velcro. 

But since I took so long to get my machine in for service, these have languished. About an hour of YouTube while crafting and...

19 bibs are now in my finished pile and in need of a home. If any of you are pregnant or would like a gift for a friend, let me know. I'll be happy to share some. No charge because I love babies. US only please.

My Old Friend

I have been quite lazy in my crafting life lately.  The biggest contributor to this was my Bernina being out of commission.  It needed a service and I had not yet visited the local Bernina shop. Depending on the shop and what they do in-house, it can sometimes take a week or more to get the machine back so I just didn't rush it.  Silly me.

But I finally got off my back side and got it done. Since my divorce (more about that later), I've been on a mission to recover lost time with the past-times I loved the most. I'm not quite ready to kick back into full gear with my knitting yet, so sewing was the best candidate. And I had projects sitting around waiting to be finished. I am happy to say service at Windmill was quick (~4 days). Bernina and I are back to together again and there is no love lost in this relationship.

In my pile of unfinished projects was a printed stack of paper piecing blocks from Whitney Sews. With my bag of scraps beside me, I knocked out enough to put together this small piece.

Here is a close-up shot of the block detail. 

Because of the size, I thought this would be perfect as a baby blanket. I backed it with some white flannel and stitched in a brown ribbon to use as a tie.

I think this is a great option for a changing pad. Soft, cushy, handmade, unique and just all around perfect! I can't wait to find a baby to gift this to.

Sunday Love

I have tried to sit down and write, but I'm just not interested in it right now.  What Iam interested in is sewing. I made good progress on my baby sewing and I think I will have a nice little care package to ship off before the first of the new babies comes.

I'm also keeping an eye out the window on the Kansas weather.  My cell phone keeps beeping with weather related text message. Gotta love living in the mid west.

Happy Mother's Day

In honor of all the mommies out there and soon to be mommies in my life, I am doing a little sewing today.

Bibs, bunting and a little paper piece quilting.  All the patterns I'm using are free from Whitney over at whitneysews.com.  I've been following her for a while on her YouTube channel. I'll give you a bit of an update when these projects look a bit more finished.

I hope you all enjoy this day, whether you are a mommy, planning to be a mommy or content without.  We all deserve to enjoy these lovely Sundays.

Missing Monday

This is a catalog of the things I miss having in my life so I can strive to add them back in.

My lovely, lovely sewing machine.  

Remaking of the T-Shirt

After cutting into some t-shirts to make my version of the barn throw from Maya’s Reinvention book, I was left with quite a few left overs and no idea of what to do with them. I decided to try my hand at making a scarf. You could consider this a variation on Maya’s story scarf. I used an acrylic cutting template to cut out the squares, ensuring I had roughly the same size throughout and went about piecing them together.

This was by no means quick as each scarf is about 7 feet long, but the end product made the labor worth it. I use snippets of pictures from the t-shirts as accents which adds a nice amount of wimpy to the scarves. I had enough pieces to make two scarves.

I was worried about how to finish the scarf, but after finding long strips of muslin in my stash that were the perfect size, I decided to use that as the backing. I treated it like a pillow case and top stitched the edges for a nice and neat finish.





They are heavy enough to be perfect early fall/spring scarves and the color combination will blend them with a number of outfits but I think they will stand out best with jeans and a nice crisp white shirt.



I haven’t decided what to do with these yet. I have more scarves in my collection than I need at the moment so these may become starter pieces in re-opening my long forgotten Etsy shop. I’ll have to think about it some more. Needless to say, future t-shirts to my closet will meet the same fate.

More Maya Inspired Reinventions

My love with Maya’s book continues. I was very happy that the author made visit to the blog and linked back to me from this post. She also set up a flickr group to showcase the projects that everyone is creating. The beauty of a book like this is that everyone is using different materials and really thinking differently about buying fabric when there are so many fabrics out there that could be reused.

For me, it is important that my current projects use fabric that is already in my stash. For a span of time, I really enjoyed visiting fabric shops for different materials or remnants that I could use. So many of these are still laying around in my stash and I am ready to get them in use.

First up, I pulled three cotton tea towels out of my stash and whipped up three of the Fold and Tie Cases. There are so many uses for these. Her book showcases the case as a packing aid. Since I am endlessly addicted to office supplies, that is the use I went for. Since I made three, I may rotate them around to see how handy they are. More than anything, I love that they are completely machine washable.





Last up is another summer bolster. This time I made it out of remnant decorator fabric. For the amount of fabric that I had, this was the perfect use for it. I took a photo of it in front of the first bolster that was made to show the size difference that comes from using different materials. Neither are made using the dimensions Maya calls for in the book. I adjusted the size based on how much fabric I had on hand and wanting to minimize unusable scraps. The first bolster snugly fits one comforter. I have two quilts rolled into the second bolster and there is still plenty of room to add another, if not two. I love having these for extra linen storage but also extra pillows. Again, fully washable so I have no qualms about throwing them around and lounging all over them.



More pictures of all of my reinvention projects are available in my Flickr account. So, what do you think? Any reinventions happening in your home?

Reinvention by Maya Made

I preordered this book months ago. I have been following the Maya Made blog for quite some time and when she announced the publishing of her book, I ordered it immediately. When it landed on my doorstep and I was able to flip through it, I fell in love. There are several projects in it that I knew I wanted to make. Not just that, but projects that I needed in my home.

A few years ago, I bought this remnant decorator fabric with the purpose of making floor cushions. I didn’t know what pattern to use but in my head I wanted some of the square cushions with piping. The problem was the stuffing. Foam is expensive and clearly not in the budget right now. But Maya’s book gave an alternative I didn’t think of. *Silly Me!*

Why not make the cushion and use it as storage for blankets, quilts and other unused linens. And that is exactly what I did. I made two of the large Poufs out of the remnant fabric. One is stuffed with quilts. One is stuffed with extra curtains, pillowcases, etc. And now I have perfect little poufs that can be used for seating or casual foot props. Since making them, the coffee table in the den has become a nice little workspace for me.



Next up was the Summer Bolster. I made this out of two pillowcases that I had bought years ago to use in a sewing project that never came to be. Once I opened the pillow cases and sewed them together, I ended up with fabric longer than required, but I decided not to cut all of it off. A longer bolster is that much better in my opinion. I was glad I kept it. I rolled up the guest bed comforter and stuffed it inside. I used ribbon from my stash to tie up the two ends.
I’ll be making another one soon for the master bedroom.



Since I was on a roll, I decided to pull out a few t-shirts that have been sitting in the corner waiting for a new life. I got most of these at Blissdom 2012 and added in a few more that have been in my bottom drawer unworn for years. I cut them apart and pieced them together using another remnant piece from my fabric stash as the backing. I did not add any batting as I wanted this to be a light summer lap throw, just a little something to drape when sitting in the air conditioning. I did not quilt it but I’m thinking about adding that latter when I am brave enough. I have more t-shirt pieces that will become another project soon. I’m just waiting for them to tell me what they want to be. :)



If you are a sewer or ever so crafty inclined, you really should get this book.

A Little Bit of Sewing-the Nissan Leaf

If you have a lot of t-shirts that you don’t wear laying around or you have shirts that are stained and no longer wearable, consider recycling them into other projects. Lately I have been more into projects that are designed to reduce waste. On Friday, Nissan was in town for their road tour announcing their new electric car called the Leaf. Since they were in walking distance of our office, some coworkers and I walked over to take a look. We didn’t stay to take a test drive, but we did sign up so we could get a free t-shirt. it was a beautiful t-shirt, but I would never wear it, so I up-cycled it.

I didn’t think to take a before shot of the t-shirt so you could se what it looked like, but this is what it looks like now.

​

I told you it was a nice shirt. That logo was begging to be the centerpiece of a bag. The pattern is the Amy Butler Swing Bag. The dark blue external fabric is the Nissan Leaf t-shirt. The internal is a white t-shirt from Lane Bryant that I had stained but had not thrown away. I would often wear it to bed because the fabric felt so good. Now, it has a new life. The bag is lined with Peltex to give it some stiffness. It is reversible but I would never walk around with a white bag. I attract stains too much to be that brave, but having a white interior gives you that extra brightness that makes finding things a little simpler.

But I couldn’t leave it there. I’m constantly looking for ways to organize all the stuff that makes it’s way into my bag. Mostly I do this with little zippered bags. I made two to match my new Nissan Leaf Swing Bag.

​

These zippered pouches are made from the cap sleeves of the t-shirt. These are improvised and far from perfectly square, but they are very utilitarian and ready to toss in any bag.

So, what do you think? Are you off to make new use of your old t-shirts? Let me know.

Happy crafting.

Creativity Blooming

Creativity Blooming
Originally uploaded by aldorris105

I've not been feeling well today so I have been camped out on my sofa with a few crafts and books. I've been embroidering and appliquéing and sketching up new projects for the coming year. I also have a little bit of knitting and my Nintendo DS on the table.

For a look at some of my recent projects, follow the picture over to my Flickr page. I'm going to take the week after Christmas to do more crafting. I am developing new projects to teach at the quilt shop and I am so excited about the ideas that I'm coming up with.

I don't like being sick but I don't mind not going out in the cold at all. Hope you all are staying warm. I'm trying hard.

Reverse Applique

Reverse Applique
Originally uploaded by aldorris105

I'm trying a little reverse applique inspired by the book Alabama Stitch Book. Let's see how this turn out. The fabric underneath is a pink stripe. The purple paint will go away for the most part.

I've been doing a little bit of Christmas knitting for someone else but I am not motivated to get it finished right now. I'll really concentrate on it this weekend. For now, I am trying to make this little onesie into something cute for a special little newborn girl.

Rainy Days in Chattanooga

​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​I love rainy days and today is a doozy!

​

This has been a quiet weekend for me (on purpose). I needed some time to reset and readjust since I’ve been on the road for three weeks. It is so nice to be back home. Right now I am cleaning and doing laundry and getting ready for the week ahead which should be quite fun and exciting. I’m teaching my second class at Lavender Lime on Tuesday and I’ve got some prep work to do to be ready for it. If you are in town and like to sew, consider taking a class at the shop. There are a lot of good ones and I’m looking forward to some interesting ones leading up to the holidays.

Enjoy the rain and be careful if you have to drive in it.

And More...

Still more sewing....




And a little cooking. Game hen, buttered spinach and corn on the cob. Sweet tea washed it all down quite nicely. This was my first time cooking hen and I was quite pleased with the outcome. I’m trying to figure out what to cook tomorrow. Cookies are definitely on the menu.

​

I’m finding out how just how much junk can be accumulated over a number of years. I have been in my house for 6 years now and I have more junk that I would like to admit. Not all junk though as much of it will be going to charity. Just a lot of stuff that I don’t need taking up space.

Still More...

This one is plain muslin on the reverse side. I didn’t have enough of this fabric or any coordinating fabric to put on the back. This was much simpler to make and since my brain was working much better than before, I was able to put it together rather quickly with no re-work.

​

And...back to the knitting. This socks are done!!! YAY!

More Sewing

Since I’m feeling so adventurous today, I decided to experiment with some flex clutch closures that I bought during Stitches South. I’ve never made a clutch so I decided to go for something that could be a little more useful. I used two fabrics lined with fusible fleece for a cushy bag. I think ultimately it will be used for holding electronics when traveling.



I’ve never done any hand embroidery before but I may try some now to add a little flash to the front of the bag.

What Was I Thinking?

I set about putting all those fabric store goodies to good use and this is the first completed project that has come about. But what was I thinking? This took all day and I had to redo quite a few stitches. But in the end, it turned out fabulously.



It’s an apron of course. Fully reversible and padded with fusible fleece for those times when it’s necessary to hold a hot pan close to you. I’m going to make at least one more but I’m done after that. At least until I can write out some clear instructions. It took a lot of thought to put this together. Well worth it though. I’m hoping to get a few more simple one’s made before the holidays. I love having these hanging around in the kitchen for general use.

More Goodies...

I paid a visit to the fabric store today. I went in to order a small embroidery hoop for my machine and walked out with all of this.

​

Don’t worry. I didn’t spend too much. Most of the fabric was free. I used up the last of my store credit from the purchase of my Bernina machine. I will spend the weekend sewing and getting ready for the next class I will be teaching at the shop.

I’ll be teaching how to sew a box bag. Perfect for gifts for the holidays. I will be knocking out quite a few for my own family and a few to list in my Etsy shop. I also picked up larger fabric pieces in fall motifs for aprons. My grandmother made me a couple last year and I’m going to use those as templates for mine. I’m also going to make them reversible and interface them for a little more body. I’m really excited for the fall. I love this time of year and even though it’s still hot outside, I’m going to keep channelling the cooling winds of the coming season.

My embroidery hoop will be in next week and I will be full swing into the holiday mojo.

I’m so conflicted getting ready for the holiday season considering I’m looking into selling my house. I do love this house but I am traveling too much to really be able to keep up with all of the stuff involved with maintaining a home. But I’m still also looking into other options that will allow me to be able to keep the house up like I want to. We’ll see how that goes. I’m going to put due diligence into researching both sides of the coin.

Tomorrow, I’m shopping for a dishwasher.

Looking for Pattern Testers

Looking for 2-3 sewers to test my vinyl bag pattern for me. I’ve made some changes based on the class I taught this past weekend at Lavender Lime but would like to get it checked out before attempting to sell it. You will need to some clear vinyl, a fat-quarter of fabric and two coordinating zippers. If you are interested, please leave a comment.