Southern Fried Northern Chic

Christmas hats!

2011-12-09T06:12:00.000-08:00

Sew December is always crazy! I have been mostly working with Evie on sewing, so my things have gone on the back burner. I did make a few hats for presents, and did these for my cousins....

I wanted to see if I could embroider on fleece. Not to hard, but just like applique on fleece, you have to use a bit of stabalizer. I also used a 90/14 needle. Hope they like them!

I realized I didn't post anything about my My Little Pony Hats.

This is the one that came out nice. It took me a few tries to applique fleece. I found I had to use 2 layers of stabalizer and not forget the wonder under!

I also had to make Vasili a stocking this year, I chose rocketships!

Evie helped me make the tree skirt. She is loving sewing. We are currently working on a quilt.

Happy Sewing!!!

E is sewing!

2011-11-15T09:03:00.000-08:00

My 7 year old has been learning to sew for a while, and these past two Saturdays has taken the kids sewing classes at Joann Fabrics! It was nice, it gave her a chance to learn from someone else for a bit, and she had time to sew where we weren't being interrupted by everything else that goes on in our house! Her first class, she made a pillowcase and this week she made pajama pants!

Her teacher was a member of the quilt guild, and taught her how to do a french seam for the pillow case. She has already started her list of things she wants to make.... I think I might have to buy her her own sewing machine!

She also started her first quilt... well, helped me get this one together for her student teacher, who is having a baby. the class is having a baby shower for her this week, and E really wanted to make a quilt for her. She picked all the fabric and helped piece most of the blocks.

All the pieces are from the stash I keep of 6.5 inch blocks leftover from other projects. I was impressed how good she is at keeping a straight seam!

This week we have a doll for her to make, and she has all the other scraps that she wants to use to make a lap quilt for herself! I love that she has chosen sewing as a hobby, it is nice to share it with her! I hope S decides to try it in a year or two also!

Happy Sewing!

Make a pin cushion cup thingy!!!

2011-11-10T05:59:00.000-08:00

I made this pin cushion cup thingy this weekend, it was really easy! First, I found a container...

measured the height

Then around. It was 4.5 inches hight by 12.5 inches around. I cut a piece of heavy fusable interfacing the same size and fused it.

So I cut the interior piece 13 bt 5. I took the lid and added 1/4 inch around for the bottom for the interior bottom...

again, I used heavy interfacing. I assembled these pieces by making the tube, then attaching the bottom. Then I took my measurements from the cup and came up with the "ball" piece pattern. I knew I would have 8 pieces, so 12.5/8 = 1.5 plus .5 for seams, so the TOP has to be 2 inches wide. I wanted the ball to be really fat, so I wanted the center about twice that, and so it would be nice and cushiony it had to be about twice the height. I came up with this piece...

I curved the top edge and cut it on the fold. Cut 8 of these. Then cut fusible interfacing and fuse to pieces. Seem them together like you would a ball, leaving 2 openings to stuff

Now you should have 2 pieces

Pin together and sew!

Then invert and add to your container...

Cut another circle using the lid with about 1/2 inch extra to turn in to seam. press the seam allowance.

I stuffed a little bit from the bottom, then hand stitch the bottom piece on, stuff from the openings to get the shape and density you want, then handstitch those closed, and there you go!

Cowboy booties!!!

2011-10-18T18:21:00.000-07:00

A few weeks back the quilt guild had a retreat I was able to go to, and there I found some great deals from Blackberry Patch Quilt Shop. It is a great online shop, but since she lives nearby she came to the retreat! She had Curby Closet's cowboy booties pattern on sale, and they were so cute I couldn't pass it up! She also had some great Fat Quarters for 1.25, which is always worth checking out!!!

Pointy toed boots!!

Round toed boots!

I loved this patten! It was easy and fun! I made these 2 pairs for baby gifts, and hope to have time to make a few more soon!

Speaking of shopping, I have found out that Fabric Designer Tanya Whelan is coming out with her book in time for Christmas! I am so excited! I first discovered her patterns and fabrics in an issue of Quilts and More, where she had a ruffled skirt pattern for little girls. I made several for Evie and Rena when they were younger! I had to search down her fabric, which is manufactured by Free Spirit.

Anyway, her book can be previewed on Amazon and on Barnes and Noble website.Sew What You Love looks amazing, she is giving us little peeks at projects on her blog. Check out the bag on the cover ...

I already told Kevin he is buying me the book for Christmas :) I think the bag on the cover will be my first project!

Doctor Who Halloween!

2011-10-09T17:13:00.000-07:00

We are done with our Halloween costumes! Now, we have a rule in our house. We make our own costumes. We start planning for Halloween about the beginning of September. Why? Well, because that is how it was when I was growing up. My dad and I would start planning and sketching things out as soon as school started. We would start collecting materials and constructing by the end of September. Sometimes my sister and brother and I would just raid the closets and see what we could find. Other times, we would spend weeks working with glue, tape, cardboard and paint to make something different.

Another reason we make costumes is because when Evie was 2 she wanted to be Ariel. I started looking at costumes and decided to make her and baby Rena's mermaid costume because I thought it would be easy. It was. It was also lots of fun, and no one else had their costumes! On the other hand, I had a friend who spent $120 on a complete Disney Princess getup. Yup, $120 for a costume. Granted, it included the wig and shoes and jewels and a Disney store deluxe dress which her daughter played with until she outgrew it, but for me, that is a lot to drop on a kids costume! We have had years where we coordinated with friends for Halloween. At 3, Evie and her friend Lio were Japanese princesses. The year after the girls were Tinkerbell's friends with another set of sisters! It's just more fun to go in groups!

This year our idea for Halloween started with Evie, who wanted to be Amy Pond from Doctor Who. She talked her sister in wanting to be River Song, and it just went from there. As you know, I am the TARDIS, Vasi is The Doctor, and Kev is being Rory.

Kev's costume is all felt, and also cost only $12 to make! The girls clothes are from their closets and a few pieces from Goodwill. We found the wig at Joann Fabrics, all their Halloween stuff is currently 60% off.

Happy Halloween!

Make a TARDIS costume

2011-10-06T17:21:00.000-07:00

We are doing a Doctor Who themed Halloween! I finished my costume today, I am the TARDIS. It cost about $12 to make and about 2 hours!

Joann Fabrics had classic Felt on sale for $2.99 a yard for the 72 inch wide classic felt, so I bought it there.

1 and a quarter yards of blue
1/2 yard black
1/2 yard white fabric
elmer's glue
fabric paint white
fabric marker black
scrap of white fabric, cut about 6 wide by 7 high

I found a bucket hat pattern online here. But since I was making it out of felt, I cut out 2 side pieces in white and the top in black. I also cut strip and wrapped it on itself to make the top bit. Sew the sides together, then the top on, then handstitch the knob on top.

Cut a strip of black fabric about 5 by 22 for the Police Box sign. Use white fabric paint to write on.Set aside and let dry. Cut the black fabric into 6 windows 8.5 inches by 8.5 inches. Then cut a few 3/4 inch strips. cut to size and add a 4 strips spaced equally to the hat going up and down, then one around the hat about at the center. Glue.

for the body, I measured from my shoulder to my ankle, which was about 48 inches. I laid the blue fabric on the floor and pinned up the long side and the top. I found center on the top and left a generous opening for my head, then 5 inches down on the side I left an arm opening about 16 inches long. I had to cut a matching arm slit on the other side.Turn so the seems are on the inside and press up the corners.

From the white, cut windows 8.5 wide by 10.5 high. add black strips. Glue and let dry a bit. Then write the the Free for Public Use saying on the little white scrap of cotton. I used cotton because the fabric markers do not work on felt, and it was hard to paint letters that small! glue to one of the windows. Then lay everything out
.

glue in place! You're done!

bowties2 and Baby Doctor Who!

2011-10-05T15:17:00.000-07:00

I have become addicted to making bowties! They use so little fabric and sew up so fast, and look so cute! I don't have the other costumes done, but here is Vasi as The Doctor for Halloween (I made the fez too!)

Today I found a few scraps of Penn State and Steelers fabric, so I whipped up a few more!

Then I made a few more...

I think I need to stop, there are Halloween costumes to be made and a quilt that needs finished!

Happy Sewing!

Bowties are Cool!

2011-09-30T17:51:00.000-07:00

After last night's episode of Project Runway I grew to have a greater appreciation for Viktor Luna. At first I didn't like him. I thought he was a cold fish. But even though he is not BFF material, he is a great designer and a pretty cool guy. Super cool, because he wears bowties, and wears them well...

I will say it, Bowties are cool. Very cool. Even the latest Doctor Who sports one!

Let's face it, the bowtie is back. It's not just for men named Orville anymore.

Here in the south, bowties have never gone out of style. On any given Sunday, there are a few men at my church sporting seersucker suits with bowties. It's just classy. It just says Southern Gentleman.

Today I had to make a few bowties for Bubba. OK, so one big reason is I need a red one for his Halloween Costume. I also wanted a few others for my little southern gentleman. I found this tutorial from Prudent Baby. There are a bunch out there, but I liked this best. I didn't use interfacing though, after the bows were sewn and pressed open, I sprayed them with stiff starch.

I started with three double ties.

I raided my stash of fat quarters for these, and went for my vintage reproductions! Love how these turned out, so I had to try 2 or the single bows.

I think this last one is the one Bubba will wear to be the Doctor for Halloween!

I still have bowties on the brain! I have to finish the neckbands and will probably make a few more when I get a chance! Bowties make me happy!

Dress2

2011-09-29T19:06:00.000-07:00

I was messing around with the easy jumper pattern, and raided my stash to make a little size 3 one for a friend's youngest daughter who likes frilly things.

The bodice and bottom are leftover from a quilt backing, and the skirt is from 4 fat quarters I bought at the quilt guild's retreat a few weeks ago! They were $1 each. Can't beat that for a little girls dress! The snaps are vintage mother of pearl I found in my sewing stuff.

I wanted to see if A letter would fit in the bodice, so I broke out my embroidery arm. I really should use that thing more often!I also think the pink breaks up the sea of brown a bit.

To make the bodice pattern, I copied the top half of a jumper pattern I have. It runs a little big, so I have to remember to shrink it a bit next time!

dress

2011-09-28T15:53:00.000-07:00

I had a bit of fabric left over from the bag, so I whipped this up today! I kind of made up the pattern, tracing the top part from a jumper and then rotary cutting the bottom.

Of course, I am procrastinating with my current quilt. I am doing the blocks in steps, so it is going slow. I have also been making hair accessories!

We added buttons to Evie's yo-yo's!

Flowers made from knit fabrics.

a bunch of lace and tulle bows.

A brocade flower.

Large brocade flower.

I had a lot of fun, and it is nice to have handwork I can do when Bubba and I are playing on the floor!

Go Mama! Diaper Bag

2011-09-07T15:58:00.000-07:00

Sew... after doing the StudioKat Designs Quattro Bag, I decided I really like the front pouch detail. I love the Quattro bag I made, and use it when I go anywhere without kids. I still need to carry quite a bit for the bubba, so I started looking for patterns with a front pouch I liked. I found this Go Mama! Diaper Bag Pattern on etsy. Here is how mine came out...

front of bag

back of bag

side view

inside with pockets, 3 on each side.

It's always a gamble when buying patterns from etsy. You never know how well the pattern maker will explain the directions, or how well drawn the pattern itself will be. This pattern was easy to follow and well written. I did make a few changes, I did 2 sets of pockets on the inside, and instead of just folding down the top edge I lined the pockets. I also lined the back zipper pocket. I think when I do the next bag from this pattern, I might stich the front pouch into 2. The bag itself is wonderfully huge. I am totally in love with the shape and back zippered pocket. The designer only has 2 patterns for sale at this time, a cloth diaper and this bag, but I am hoping she comes up with a few more patterns!

Exterminate!

2011-08-26T19:08:00.000-07:00

I have not screen printed in AGES. But the girls wanted special Doctor Who shirts for their little viewing party tomorrow night, so we worked on Dalek tees. At first, they were suppose to be tardis tees, but we had major issues with the tardis artwork, So we switched to Daleks. We did the cheap easy screen printing, which you can do too!

Materials
Embroidery or quilting hoop (mine was the 8", $2.99 at Hancock Fabrics)
Piece of organza or similar fabric
fabric paint
paint brushes
mod podge
painters tape
saran wrap
tee shirt

1. Put the organza in the hoop. make it tight. place your artwork on the table, tape the saran wrap over it and tape it down. Put your hoop over your artwork, tape that down too.

2. take your mod podge and paint the clear spaces, where you don't want there to be ink. you will need small brushes to get the little bits.

3. Let the mod podge dry. Check for any areas that were missed. Here is your screen!

4. Put the tee shirt on a piece of cardboard so it is flat and stretched. place the screen on top. You can tape it down so it doesn't shift.

5. put a glob of paint on the screen. I use a paint brush, a hard bristled one, to move the paint around.

6. gently lift the screen up off the tee.

Let dry for about 24 hours. don't wash for about 48. Enjoy!

Yo-Yo's!

2011-08-12T20:09:00.000-07:00

I am trying to teach my 7 year old to sew, we have done a few projects from books, and she is getting better each project, but we hadn't tried hand stitching yet! So the other day at Walmart I found a packet of make your own yo-yo's on clearance for $4.50. It was a big piece of fabric with printed circles you cut out and the stitch marks are already there! You cut, press and sew. I think I might go see if they have more. Evie needed practice cutting fabric, so this was perfect. She cut out a few, I pressed them for her and showed her how to stitch along the lines. She was soooo proud of her first we hot glued it to a headband!

She is frantically making yo-yo's, and wants to do hairpieces for her friends and has designed a yo-yo necklace she wants to make too.

I can't wait for my 5 year old to become interested in sewing too. But since she isn't, I can share her latest artwork...

This is me and the children at the grocery store. I am the sad face with curly hair in the middle. Serena is on the left, being crazy. Evie is on the other side yelling at Rena to stop being crazy in the store, and the baby is the little red face at the bottom sitting in the cart flirting with all the ladies in the store. Yup, that sums up mommyhood.

Oh, and here is a tote I finished to maybe use as a diaper bag...

I fell in love with the robot fabric...but it is a little obnoxious for everyday use!

Diaper and Wipes Carrier Free Tutorial!

2011-08-08T18:38:00.000-07:00

There are a few places online that sell these great little diaper and wipes carriers, but if you can sew a straight line why not make one? They are so easy and quick to do, I make one to match every bag! They fit the little plastic wipes container (mine is from huggies) and about 4 diapers.
So here is how to whip one up!

Body cut
2 - 7.5 by 10.5

Lining cut
2 - 7.5 by 10.5

Flap cut
2 - 5.5 by 6.5

to angle the Flap, take your ruler and see the 45 degree angle line? place that on a side, and inch in from the corner. Trim off the end. Do the other side. The flap should be 6.5 high by 5.5 wide. If you don't want angled sides, use a quarter to round them!

Sew around the sides and bottom, trip the corners.

flip and make crisp corners. Press, then edge stitch around. Sew 2 sides and bottom right sides together on the lining and body pieces.

Find center on back side of body, mark. Fold flap in half, find center and mark. place your center marks together and pin. Sew flap on with 1/8th inch seam.

Then place inside your lining (make sure right sides are together!) and sew, leaving a 3 inch space in the front to turn.

Turn, topstitch 1/8th from the top, so opening is closed. You're all set! Now you just have to add fasteners. I use velcro tabs.

They are sticky, but I add a little fabric glue to be extra sure. Place them where you want them (center close to edge) and go!

Tutorial, Giant Messanger purse with Zip front pocket

2011-08-04T13:40:00.000-07:00

This bag is huge, but easy and fun to make. I didn't take a lot of pictures in process, so I hope the directions are really clear!

Cut
Body
2 - 20.5 by 20.5
2 - 30.5 inch strips (sides and bottom)

Lining
2 0 20.5 by 20.5
2 - 30.5 inch strips

Flap

to make a pieced flap, cut the following 20.5 by
6, 3.5, 12
1 20.5 by 20.5 piece for lining

Straps
2 - 4 inch strips
1 inch strips of craft fuse

Front Pocket
20.5 by 12

cut fusible fleece for all exterior pieces
cut fusible interfacing for interior pieces (not too heavy, so it moves) also for pocket pieces.

also need
22 inch zipper
magnetic snaps
1 inch or 1 1/4 inch square ring
1 or 1 1/4 inch buckle

1/4 inch seam allowance.

1. assemble the flap pieces. Sew the side pieces together to make 1 large strip for exterior and 1 for lining.

2. iron on fusible to everything but the straps.

3. Use a cup to make the bottom corners only of the body, flap, and lining pieces rounded.

4. pin the flap front to flap lining right sides together , sew sides and bottom, clip edges, press so right sides are out, topstitch.

5. Fold in half, mark center. then mark 5 inches from center on each side, 2 inches up from bottom of flap. this is for your snap placements. put top snaps here.

6. take zipper and 2 20.5 by 12 inch pieces for your zipper pocket. pin to one side of the zipper, right sides together to make a zipper sandwich.

7. This is tricky. Make sure the open edge of the zipper is at the end of the fabric, so the little metal stop won't be in your seam. Then you have a little bit at the end that will be over so the heavy metal stop will be cut off after sewn. Sew together, flip and press.

8. topstitch.

9. Fold this pocket in half, mark center. measure 5 inches out each side of center, 4 inches up. Mark, then place your bottom snaps here. test before actually putting them in to make sure they match up with the flap ones! only go through the top layer of fabric with snaps.

10. pin pocket to front exterior piece, matching sides and bottom. trim the corners of the pocket. Stitch the top part of the zipper down close to the edge, then go around the sides and bottom.

11. Take the long strip for sides and bottom, match up center seam to your center mark on the pocket, pin right sides together. Your strip might be a wee bit longer than the bag body, that's OK, you can trip that later. stitch.

12. Take bag body back, fold and mark center. Line up center with seam on sides and bottom, pin in place right sides together then stitch.

13. Repeat with lining, leaving a 5 inch opening in the bottom of one side to turn.

14. take flap, mark center on flap where it will attach to body. mark center top of bag back, line up and sew in place at 1/8 inch.

15. sew the 2 4 inch strips together at an angle if you can. Press seam open.

16. Press in half. Then fold ends in so you have a 1 inch strip.

17. Cut off an 8 inch piece.This is for your ring. stitch 1/8 inch on both sides then fold in half, place ring in loop and use your zipper foot to stitch close to ring. Then, measure 2 inches from bottom and mark. This is where you line up to attach to bag body at sides, centering it up. After you topstitch the bag, make a square to anchor this part of the strap.

18. the strap left, take one end and fold it down so there is no raw eddge. then add the 1 inch strips of fusible interfacing. edge stitch 1/8 inch on both sides. at raw end, measure 2 inches from edge, then line that mark with bag body at side, stitch down at 1/8 inch.

19. Attach body and lining, turn, press, topstitch. anchor the straps. Put your buckle on your long strap, then take that through the ring front side to back side. Bring the strap to the buckle center, attach it using your zipper foot. Take it slow here, and make sure it is tacked down well. Pin first to make sure everything is correct and not twisted.

20. Slipstitch opening in lining closed and there you go!

Library Book

2011-08-03T06:17:00.000-07:00

I took The Glass Castle out of the Library a few days ago, and got a surprise discussion along with my read.

Someone who had read it before me left little post it notes with their thoughts on them. That struck me as odd. I like to discuss books with others, but usually don't. I do still read a bit, I have to read before I go to sleep, always have. So now I am not only enjoying the book, but wondering who left the post its...

Speaking of Libraries, if you are in Hernando, our Quilt Guild president Teresa just put up a display about Vintage Sewing in the front display cases.

I am heading out there tomorrow, when the girls are in school. I have to return a few things and have a few things on hold, and next week I will start taking Bubba to storytime there. What would we do without good libraries!

Bags!

2011-08-02T18:37:00.000-07:00

Sew, I have been busy these past few weeks. Well, not quite. I have been trying to squeeze in some sewing. I did manage to do a few bags. The first is the June Messenger.

It is HUGE. 20 by 20, created for a friend. It has an adjustable strap, and a pieced flap. This is the front.

I did a zippered front pocket instead of just opened pockets under the flap. The inner compartment is HUGE, and I added a row of pockets to the back so she could find things easier. I also did a little cell phone pocket on the side.

I also completed the Studio Kat Designs Quattro Bag. I fell in love with the pattern after reading about it on LGD's Blog.

The pattern is written more like a dressmakers pattern than a quilters, but it was actually easier to follow than I thought, and I am pretty pleased with the results. I can't use it as a diaper bag, it's a little too small, but it is my new go to purse when I get to go somewhere by myself! The pockets are awesome. Seriously, the zipper front fits all the makeup and first aid stuff I carry, the sides fit keys and cell, and the front pouch is great for quick grabs. the interior is really roomy too.

I am trying to decide which Studio Kat Designs pattern to try next!I have a few things lined up as next projects. The girls go back to school on Thursday, so next week I should be able to sew during Bubba's naps!

Getting back to sewing

2011-07-06T15:48:00.000-07:00

Now that all the summer travels are over, I am sorting through my fabric and trying to get back into sewing. I think I might be out of luck for a while, Bubba only wants to be held!! So much for sewing with a baby in the house...

Thanks all!

2011-05-19T05:09:00.000-07:00

And congrats to April our cover winner!

Nursing cover tutorial (giveaway ended)

2011-05-16T10:05:00.000-07:00

Sew first, the tutorial!!

My girls were both born in Ohio, were everyone nursed, and in public, so we would cover up with a blanket or just make sure nothing was showing and it was no big deal. Here it is a little different. Modesty is a big deal, and while nursing most moms cover up with a nursing cover if they have to be in public. Most times, moms find a private place and still cover up. Being a plus size gal, the store bought (and even mail order) covers did not work well for me. I need just a little more cover. So I made a few of these...

They cover everything, and when Bubba squirms he can't "expose" me!

Supplies

1 yard fabric
2 1 inch D rings
1/2 yard boning

Start by cutting a 4 inch strip of fabric for the straps. The body piece is about 24 inches by the width of fabric (usually 44) I just trimmed up the salvages. I say about, because if you are taller or bigger boobed, you might want a little longer.

Start by hemming the 2 sides and bottom.

I have a roll hemmer for my machine (which I love) but if you don't, just press about 1/4 in, then again for your hem.

Take your 4 inch strip

fold and press in half

open up and press edges in towards center

Then press those together. press both ends inward and catch them in the folds to create 2 finshed ends.

Cut a piece about 9or so inches off, so one piece is longer than the other

Take the top and roll and press 1/4 inch

Then roll over and press again about an inch down.

With a washable fabric pencil mark the center of the boning and the top roll. Place so marks meet up and pin.

about a pinky width away from the edge of the boning, put the straps in raw side into the fold. push it into the end, then fold over and pin.

Sew the bottom of the fold first, about 1/8 away from the edge.Then do the top. This step is tricky because of the boning.

then go back and stitch down the sides of the straps.

put on your D rings(I start at the bottom of about an inch and a half fold, then sew in a square getting as close as I can to the rings)

and you are all done! Thread the D rings with the free strap and you are set to go!

Now, I made this cover specifically for this tutorial, so I am going to GIVE IT AWAY. That is right, if you would like to win this lovely larger nursing cover made with Thomas Kincade Pinocchio fabric (I kid you not, I know it is super tacky, but trust me, every old lady will compliment you on it! I have a matching one!) All you need to do is:

follow my blog! then...
Leave a comment, it can be about nursing, motherhood, sewing, crafting, or just about anything!

That's it, so if you are already a member, just leave a comment! The random number drawing will be Wednesday, May 18, 2011 at 6:30 p.m. central time (a little later if I am feeding Bubba at that time!) So entries are from now until 6:00p.m. central time on Wednesday!!!

Happy Sewing, Happy Nursing!

Tardis cake!

2011-05-16T09:31:00.001-07:00

So for my annual 23rd birthday this year my husband got me 2 great things. The first being a serger, which was more of a mothers day gift, and then...

A TARDIS cake!

This is from a local woman, Angela Thomas, who makes art cakes locally.

Unfortunately, this TARDIS is not bigger on the inside...

but it was totally delicious!

May sewing

2011-05-13T12:09:00.000-07:00

I had posted a post about the gifts I made for the teachers in our lives, and how good teachers are worth their weight in gold, but it was lost :( So here are the projects again...

Giant beach tote for Evie's piano teacher!

Lap quilt for Serena's preschool teacher. She meant so much to us this year, and truly is a teacher worth their weight in gold!

For Evie's teacher and assistant we made this little wall hangings/table toppers with the class picture in the middle and all the kids got to draw or write on the border. Evie helped stitch it together!

Last Sunday for Mother's Day and my birthday Kevin bought me something I have wanted for a long time... a serger! Hancock's had a great little Janome on sale, perfect for a beginner like me! Of course, I also hit up their clearance fabric and found this adorable M'liss city signature for Hong Kong and had to make my little Vasili an outfit...

Also bought the London version! Working on a Hawaiian print one right now, but got sidetracked today with wonder wallets for a few little friends of Evie.

Happy Sewing!

An even lazier way to install a zipper into a wonder wallet

2011-05-13T11:56:00.000-07:00

I am a big fan of Lazy Girl Design patterns, and end up making a ton of wonder wallets for gifts and donations. I like adding a zipper to the back, and originally wrote this tutorial to do so.But being a little on the lazy side, I came up with an even easier way!! This is not a pattern. You need the LGD wonder wallet pattern already to understand what is going on here, but you can use the same general principal to add an exterior zip almost anywhere!

First, cut out your pattern as normal, and sew the main piece as directed, turn and press. Cut an additional piece, about 5.5 by the the width of the wallet. Fold that piece right sides together, press, place around zipper and sew

Then flip and topstitch

on backside of wallet, position about 1/8th inch down from edge of the top of the wallet, and stitch close to the zipper top (in the pics my pocket piece is longer than the wallet itself...)

It actually helps a lot if you stitch all the way around at 1/8 inch seam allowance so it doesn't shift when you sew the inside pockets.

lined zippered coin pocket!!

stack and add your interior pockets like normal, and viola!!!

Super easy!!

Teacher Gifts!

2011-05-12T05:23:00.000-07:00

I can't believe the school year is over already! I am ready for Summer, and I know the girls are. It has been a roller coaster year, especially for Serena.

With all that we went through, I came to realize a few things. The first being is that a good teacher is worth their weight in gold.

Teachers don't just teach. How a teacher treats children can effect their emotional well being for the rest of their life. Think about it, when you look back on your education, can you remember a cruel teacher? a nice teacher that changed you? I know one of the reasons I love to sew is my middle school sewing teacher Mrs. Hank. Middle School is an awful time for pretty much all kids. She not only taught me how to sew, but encouraged me to keep at it. I would get a pass to visit her class during study hall to learn more from her. I was devastated when she retired after my 7th grade year. But because of her, I asked for a sewing machine of my own for my 13th birthday and got more involved with sewing with my grandma and great grandmas, which created wonderful memories for me.

So if a positive experience with education effects a 13 year old, think about what a negative experience can do to a 4 year old. Yeah, not pretty. Which is why after finding Serena's current preschool, I am more grateful to good teachers. Her teacher at Carriage Hills Baptist, Mrs. Jan, rocks. She was able to guide and direct Serena in positive ways, which actually taught her how to better handle situations like waiting her turn and interacting with other children. I hope Kindergarten next year goes as well!

So for Serena's teacher I wanted to do something extra special, so I made her a quilt

It's a 50 by 50 lap quilt, done with Civil War Repro fabric. Teresa Pino, our guild president and new owner of a long arm quilter, quilted it for me.

I love how the quilt finished. She like it to. It takes me so long to piece a quilt because I never have longer than a baby nap to sew! But like I said, a good teacher is worth their weight in gold.

For Evie's piano teacher, I made a big beach bag

I found this jazzy music print a while ago and it took me forever to figure out what to do with it. As you can see, it could easily fit my sewing machine in it.

I know Serena will be OK in Kindergarten because I trust the school. I have meet most of the teachers and the support staff at the elementary school. I feel lucky to live in an area with excellent public schools.

Evie had a really sweet teacher this year. Our school has a teacher and assistant in each k and 1st classroom. For Evie's teacher and assistant we made (her choice, and she helped sew the borders!!) little wall hangings

In the center I printed a class picture on fabric then just added a big border for the kids to sign and draw on!!

I am looking forward to next school year, but for now we are sooooo ready for summer!

Happy Sewing!

Stash Buster girls skirt

2011-04-27T12:27:00.000-07:00

Let me see if I can get this all down while Bubba is taking a nap!!!

So, I did 2 versions of this skirt last week, out of random sized strips. If you are a quilter like me, you probably have strips hanging around. I always cut what I can from leftover fabric, especially yardage. I know I can use 2 1/2 strips for binding, but will trim the edge so I have a strip of whatever is left, sometimes its 1 1/2 inches, sometimes its 3 or 4. None of these strips were more than 4 1/2.

Our neighbor on the left is wearing the plain skirt, which I did a tute for yesterday. Rena in the middle is wearing the vertical version, and Evie at the right is wearing the horizontal version. It's all a matter of preference. I did Evie's horizontal because I needed at least 42 inches around. :) From here on out, I'll go with Evie's measurements.

To start, just like the basic skirt, measure around the waist. My daughter Evie is a size 10, her waist is 26. Then measure the hips. If it is for a child, it might be the same as the waist, Evie's was 29. Then measure from the waistline to where you want the skirt to hit. Our measurement was 20 inches.

Since this is elastic waist and not fitted, it doesn't have to be perfect. You need at least 12 inches more around than your largest measurement (hips or waist), so I wanted the final piece of fabric to be 44 inches wide by 20 long. The more you add the fuller the skirt. Yes, I rotary cut. Then I cut 2 pieces 44 inches by 4/2 for the ruffle. You need about twice as much width in the ruffle to make it full.

Start by sewing the strips together, randomly for that scrappy look! As you sew, press seams in one direction. (you will be stitching the seams down, so you want it to be uniform and going in one direction.)

Here is my final piece of fabric, pressed. This was for the vertical stripe skirt. I was able to cut this in half and make 2 skirts! Everything is pressed nice and neat! After pressing, TOP STITCH each seam, so you go over the seam. This will prevent fraying. You can do a decorative stitch or a straight stitch. When you are done, trim the fabric ends (I used my rotary cutter and straight ruler) then do your side seam. If you are doing horizontal, topstitch the seam. If vertical, don't worry about it.

For the the ruffle, take your two pieces of 4 1/2 inch strips and sew the ends together to make one long strip. Then, bring the other ends together and sew to make a big loop.

Take the loop to the ironing board and fold in half, wrong sides together.

.
press seams open while you press the look in half.

take to sewing machine and topstitch around the fold. Then at the raw end, start at one of the seams and do a long gathering stitch to the next seam. Do a second gathering stitch from the second seam back to the first, so you will gather twice, once for the front and once for the back. It's just easier. start by pinning one of the seams from the ruffle to the seam of the skirt right sides together, then take the other seam of the ruffle and pin it to the opposite side of the skirt (there isn't a seam, so estimate). Then gather ruffle pinning as you go.

Once gathered and pinned, take to the machine, go back to a regular stitch and stitch down.

Press seam towards skirt, then go back and topstitch. This will keep the ruffle down and also help prevent fraying.

Now for the waist. You can do it as in the first skirt, or you can do another really super easy waist. Take a strip of fabric 2 1/2 inches wide by the width of your skirt plus about an inch. Fold in half and press wrong sides together. Press the raw ends in about 1/2 inch.

pin to top of skirt, making sure ends tough but don't overlap. Stitch right sides together, press to shirt and topstitch.

Take your elastic, take it through your tube. Overlap about an inch and stitch elastic together. You can either whip stitch the opening closed, or just add ribbon around the elastic and make a pretty bow!

All Done!!!

So from the $13 of fabric I bought at Cotton Treasures a bit ago, I got 2 basic skirts, 2 vertical skirts and a horizontal skirt. 5 skirts. $13. Can't beat that!!!

Skirt tutorial #1, basic skirt with ruffle

2011-04-26T06:10:00.000-07:00

Hope this helps a few people with french seams and basic skirts! This project is perfect for beginners and children learning how to sew!

First, measure around the waist. My daughter is a size 10, her waist is 26. Then measure the hips. If it is for a child, it might be the same as the waist, Evie's was 29. Then measure from the waistline to where you want the skirt to hit. Our measurement was 20 inches.

Since this is elastic waist and not fitted, it doesn't have to be perfect. You need at least 12 inches more around than your largest measurement (hips or waist), so I cut a piece of fabric 44 inches wide by 20 long. The more you add the fuller the skirt. Yes, I rotary cut. Then I cut 2 pieces 44 inches by 4/2 for the ruffle. You need about twice as much width in the ruffle to make it full.

For the French seam, fold the skirt so the 20 inch ends are together and wrong sides are together. Stitch at a scant 1/4 inch seam. Trim it to 1/8 inch, then take it to the ironing board.

turn it to right sides together and carefully press the seam. Then back to the machine.

Stitch a 1/4 seam right sides together. This encloses your original seam to prevent fraying. Cool, huh? I love french seams now!
So now you have a giant tube.
For the the ruffle, take your two pieces of 4 1/2 inch strips and sew the ends together to make one long strip. Then, bring the other ends together and sew to make a big loop.
Take the loop to the ironing board and fold in half, wrong sides together.

press seams open while you press the look in half.

Once gathered and pinned, take to the machine, go back to a regular stitch and stitch down.

Press seam towards skirt, then go back and topstitch. This will keep the ruffle down and also help prevent fraying.

Fr a roll over waist, at the top end of the skirt press down about 1/2 inch all the way around, then fold over again about an inch (less if you use smaller elastic). Stitch around at the bottom to make a tube for the elastic, leaving about a 2 inch gap.

Cut your elastic about an inch less than the waist measurement. Using whichever tool of your choice, bring elastic through waistband.

Once through, stitch elastic together. I overlap it by about and inch and go vertically and diagonally a few times. Then work it through the waistband, and stitch the opening closed.

All Done!! Super Easy, huh?

Letter to a boy...

2011-04-25T17:02:00.000-07:00

After a hectic weekend and crazy storms this morning I finally got around to opening the mail after dinner. In it was a letter for Vasi from my uncle Frank. Uncle Frank is my father's cousin, his grandma was my great grandma Lissa, who taught me how to sew and whose sewing items I still have in my sewing room. Uncle Frank never married or had children, and I always remember him riding a motorcycle and being very quiet. He was the only one of the four boys (my dad, his brothers and Frank were all around the same age) who served in Vietnam. I remember that was the answer to a lot of questions asked about Frank. The answer always given was "You know, Vietnam changed him, no one came back the same". I didn't know what that meant, and I probably still don't really understand. I always wondered if he wasn't in the war, would he have had a family? Would he have chosen a different career?

In the card was a gift of money for Vasi's college account and a small note, written on paper with "Things to do..." written on the top. I thought it was really sweet, so here it is...

Things to do....

- Pursue knowldge
- Don't hit your sisters (they'll get you later)
- Read everything you can get your hands on.
- Avoid war
- Get ourdoors to hunt and fish, learn self sufficiency and love of the land
- Love your Mother unconditionally, Fathers are the path to manhood, but your mother is your soul.
- Study Judo, very practical in the real world.
- Avoid war
- Watch what the rich do, and do it. Watch what the poor do, and don't do it.
- Study math, the man who is savvy with numbers always makes out better in life.

That's enough of the basics, there's lots more and you'll hear it for sometime to come from a lot of people. Trust only your family and your heart.

Good Luck Kid!
Frank

I tucked the note back in the card with the money, placed it back in the envelope and put it in the safe for him when he gets older, so he can read the wisdom uncle Frank chose to share with him.

triple play skirts!

2011-04-20T16:12:00.000-07:00

I am short on time and looking for easy projects. Not just for me, but for Evie to try her hand at. I came up with these, three easy skirts!!

The first is a pillowcase style skirt, the middle is a vertical stripe and the third is the horizontal version. They each take about an hour, and all three were made with fabric I got from Cotton Treasures last week. Let me tell you why this is important... Out of the fabric I bought for $13 on sale, I got 5 skirts. Yup, 5. Insane!!!

I am currently writing the tutorials so YOU can make these skirts. I used a couple easy tricks to help a beginner, like my Evie. She did a lot of the stitching. The tutorials will be posted after Easter!

We're off to hunt Easter Eggs! See you next week!!

Senatobia, MS

2011-04-14T14:29:00.000-07:00

So today Rena, Bubba and I ventured a little ways south on 51 to Senatobia, Mississippi. The main reason for our trip was to go to the music shop there, Tobie's, for drum sticks for Rena. Our neighbor moved away and gave Rena a child's drum set, but had lost (or in mom terms, "lost" as in hid and forgot where they went!) the drumsticks.

The guy there was really nice, and they were well stocked for a small store, including a really good selection of used items. They also have lessons, including drum lessons! So next fall when the dust settles from a new year of school, we are going to do a trial lesson there. Rena is so excited.

Of course, there was a subway next door, so we didn't get to try any of the local places that were recommended to me, like Penny's Pantry.

Rena LOVES Subway. So we had to stop. Had to.

Bubba didn't seem to mind though. He was chilling watching everyone in the restaurant.

Of course, I chose to go down to Senatobia because there was also a new quilt shop. The guild took a trip down, but I can never do any of the daytrips because of the kidlets.Senatobia as a town is really cute. There is a neat thrift store and shops on main and a few of the side streets, and around the downtown there are some great older homes to look at! But nevermind the town, on to fabric!!

Cotton Treasures is located at 117 South Front Street right off of Main near the post office. Like Doctor Who's tardis, it is bigger on the inside than it looks from the outside. They have the shop in the front then a classroom in the back, and a long arm there too.

Chantay, the owner, spoke both my languages, fabric and SALE. See this bookcase of fabric? All of it was on sale for $3 a yard. Yup, $3. for the good stuff. a lot of 30's repro and civil war repro. I about died.

Chantay and Ann (from the guild!) were super sweet. They had a lot of really cool fabrics and notions. It is so worth the trip! I can't wait to go back, and hopefully take a class. It was hard moving down here from Franklin, TN because of the ladies I had met at The Quilting Squares. Now I have a new local shop! They also gave me the info on a woman who teaches smocking in the area!

All in all it was a good day. We went to the Hernando Library on the way home to pick up a book for Evie, and of course, Rena wanted her picture taken with the Star Wars figures on display.

My little ham, she was like "look! Daddy toys!"

This is the fabric I bought at the shop, for $13 total.

I'm kicking myself for not buying more. Might have to go back next week!

I am still piecing the Belle Meade quilt by Bonnie Blue Quilts. It is taking me forever, mainly because the quilt has 336 2 inch half square trangles. I did the 6 inch ones a while ago, but am still plugging through the little ones. With the leftovers from that quilt and the Stones of Franklin I did a while ago, I made this little lap quilt.

It's just half square triangles set on point, and I still need to add the piano key border, but it feels nice to get SOMETHING done.

Happy Sewing!!

Teaching Time

2011-04-10T17:05:00.000-07:00

My 6 soon to be 7 year old has decided she wants to learn how to sew. I was waiting for this day, with both excitement and dread. How was I going to teach the basics? I remember a little from when I was starting out, 30 some odd years ago. I started with the parts of the machine, and the tools she will be using, Then went to sewing lines on paper. She was really good at following straight lines, so I went to Kids Learning Station, a place I usually go to find worksheets for my preschooler. They have scissors skills worksheets, and we used those for her to stitch curved and zigzagged lines.

We're done for the day, but I promised her next weekend we would start a project together, like a little bag (thinking of doing LGD's Maggie Bag because it is so simple). I also ordered Sewing Machine Fun For Kids to help me teach her.

I hope I am doing OK! I want her to love sewing, and one day quilting, as much as I do!! Does anyone have stories of when they learned to sew?

Gear

2011-03-13T07:08:00.000-07:00

My mother in law is out this month to meet Vasili so I have an extra set of hands and have been sewing a little bit!

This shopping cart cover was really easy, from a Simplicity Pattern I've had forever. I added loops at the front to attach toys.

Our local WalMart is closing out their fabic section, So I found a few cuts of fabric I liked. I decided to try to make a nursing cover.

This is the first one. I used poly boning for the neck vent,

This took about a half hour to cut and sew, so I made a second one too....

I might go to Hancock's today to see what clearance fabrics they have... these two are nice but not my style fabric. I might do a quick tute for this, since my measurements for making it are "plus size"

And, of course, a shot of my Bubba...

sewing time!

2011-02-26T18:35:00.000-08:00

Bubba is a month old now! It seems are days are flying by, between running around with my big girls and baby care I feel I have no time! Luckily today Kev took the girls outside for the afternoon and while bubba was sleeping I made a bag from this Ikea fabric a friend sent me

The picture isn't great, but I love the bag! I think I might try it again, but instead of pleats at the bottom for shape I might dart the bottom sides. I like the pleats at the top though.

Of course, a shot of why I don't have time to sew...

This is his one month picture, we're doing the stuffed animal project to show how fast he grows!

boobie confessions

2011-01-22T16:55:00.000-08:00

I wanted to blog about this because I know there are a lot of other women who have gone through it, and want them to know it is OK. I know a lot of people are really judgy when it comes to the breast/bootle debate, and we as moms just need to be supportive of others choices, and be happy they are FEEDING their baby instead of worrying about how.

I have 3 children. With my first, she was jaundice. She wasn't too bad and was born in summer, so to help keep her from the lamp, when we got home we had to take her outside with nothing but a diaper and then suppliment with about an ounce of formula after nursing for her first week. I got some slack for it, and was so worried she would get "nipple confusion" that we fed her that ounce with a cup. Luckily her bili level went down, my milk came in, and we stopped supplimenting. But that week was stressful.

My second was the easiest. She was a total boobie girl.

With Vasili who was born this past Monday, he nursed well the first 12 hours. Then he was taken to the level II nursery for extremely low sugar levels. I was given a pump, and to bring his levels up he was given formula and an IV. I was devistated, because I knew he had to bring his levels up and quickly, and this was the best way. So I pumped on a 2 to 3 hour schedule, and they would bring a teeny syringe and suck up the colostrum (barely 5ml if that) and give it to him. When my milk came in, they would give it to him before the formula. The his bili level went up, and he had to spend time under the lights. He was in the level II nursery for 5 days. I was only allowed to nurse him for 2 of those days, and only twice a day. Everything else for him was formula, and for me it was pumping. I was worried he would not take the breast when we got him home. I like nursing. I know a lot of women who could not nurse because of situations like this. Pumping is aweful. It was bad enough I was a nervous wreck, home without a baby to care for, only able to spend short bursts of time at the hospital with him and not being able to hold him for too long.

When we got home this morning, He nursed pretty much all afternoon. I was lucky, even in the hospital he latched on really well and did nurse. I was greatful that at home he has nursed well, and so far I have not had to suppliment yet. We'll see how the next few days go. Keep your fingers crossed for us!

I will say that nursing is something most of us have to work at, not only with our first child but sometimes with each one of our children, because each child is different. It does take a while to get used to each child's nursing style. I wish I could say it was always easy. I do say I nurse because I am too lazy to fix a bottle :), but the truth is I am glad I have been able to nurse because I enjoy it. When nursing, just like when I am pregnant, I watch what I eat. For me, that says a lot, because I love food, and often love foods that are bad for me. Nursing keeps me in check.

Vasili is here!

2011-01-21T16:30:00.000-08:00

What a hectic week! This past Monday our son Vasili was born!

Vasili Robert

January 17, 2011

11:01 pm

7lbs 15oz

21 inches

He is doing well, but has been in the Level II nursery because of low blood sugar and jaundice. He is still under the bililight tonite, but will be home tomorrow!!

Both my girls came home with me, this is the first time I have had to leave the hospital without my baby, and it is aweful.

Now to adjust to life with a new baby again! It's been 4 1/2 years since we have had a newborn in the house. The girls are looking forward to being helpers, and having a little brother to boss around. As a baby so far he has been really chill, but we'll see what his little personality is as he grows!

baby sewing

2011-01-06T13:15:00.000-08:00

I stocked up a few months ago on flannels when they were on sale at Joanns, buying a few yards of boyish flannels but not knowing what I was going to do with them. Today I made a few things out of one of the yards for Bubba. The set includes a kimono jacket from the Bettsy Kingston Kimono Wrap Pattern

The amazing free pattern takes only about an hour to do, has french seems, and comes in 3 lengths. I did the jacket length, so I can layer it over a onsie and pair with plain pants.

Of course, if I have a jacket, I have to make stardust shoes cloth shoes that match! This has to be one of my all time favorite patterns for babies. I found the tutorial when Rena was a baby, and made her a ton. For this pair, instead of bonded fleece, I quilted the flannel with fleece and the lining to make a thicker, soft bottom.

Of course, I had a few scraps left after doing these two projects, and decided to try my hand at peepee teepees!

These totally make me giggle. I saw them in Motherhood Maternity a while ago and thought, hey, those would be super easy to do... I might post the tutorial later, but basically I cut out big circles of the flannel, then the same size in felt that I had laying around, cut the circles in half to make cones and, well, here they are!

Baby Wearing

2011-01-04T13:32:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year! We are waiting for baby boy's arrival and getting the new year started here. Since I lent out all my baby stuff, I have been searching and sewing for this little one. This week's projects so far have been a ring sling and a mei tai! I made the mei tai from a McCalls Craft pattern

I like it, I usually use a mei tai after they are a few months old. This one was really easy to sew up, and the fabric about $2 a yard at Hancock's.

The ring sling is from the $1 a yard bin at Hancocks. I ordered the rings from etsy, but they seem a bit heavy. I might undo this and order nylon rings if it proves to be too much weight. I usually use the ring sling at the begining, until they can hold their head up.

Other plus size moms who sew had told me to do the hot dog fold because it is more comfortable.

I have a few things cut out for this week if I get a chance, I have to get the sewing room in some kind of order before Saturday when my mom gets here to help with Bubba. Hopefully he at least waits until Sunday to make an appearance!

Ring Slings!

2010-12-19T14:56:00.000-08:00

I am working on slings (a ring sling and a mei tai) I *hope* to finish in the next few days. To practice folding and sewing the ring sling, I made one from scraps for the girls. Rena loves using it for her stuffed turtle.

front of carrier with turtle

back of carrier with rings

She has been "practicing" being a big sister with her turtle and sock monkey. She has decided that she will not change Bubba's (what they call the baby, so I guess Bubba will be his nickname) diaper but will talk to him when I change and will watch him when he is in his swing. We are all excited, only a few more weeks!

Xmas part 2

2010-12-13T14:08:00.000-08:00

Done!!! OK, so I didn't sew a bunch this Christmas, but I am trying to sew a few things for Vasili before he gets here in January! I am working on 2 slings and some baby sleepers right now, but just finished 2 LGD Claire bags

The one that is mainly music notes is for Evie's piano teacher, the brown is for Serena's classroom teacher. If it wasn't for Evie's piano teacher, Serena would not be at the school she is now.

Today was Serena's school Christmas program. Instead of just doing it for the parents, they went carolling at a local senior living center!

First they sang a few songs for residents in the lounge.

Then they went caroling through the halls so they could meet all the residents. It was super sweet!

I am just so impressed with her school. They do a lot with and for the community, and what better way to teach the children Christ like love for others than by example?

Merry Christmas!!!

Xmas!

2010-12-12T05:36:00.000-08:00

Sew, I've been spending time doing crafts with the girls and in my sewing room a lot, and have forgotten to at least blog a bit about our projects! First, I was part of a swap. we send each other fabric we have on hand but haven't used, and then whoever gets our fabric makes what they can out of it. My swap partner sent me these absolutely beautiful batiks...

front of bag

back of bag

open

Of course, the wallet is LGD's Wonder Wallet. The purse is a pattern from Liberty Star, the foldover bag pattern.

I also made coffee cozies out of scraps (thanks to my cousin Alexis, who sent me Christmas fabric to make her scrub hats, I had enough scraps to make a few of these!)

I did a few of these last year, but since we were in Pittsburgh I used Steelers fabric. It is SUPER easy, you just take a cozie from your fav coffee shop, trace it, add 1/4 for seams, than use that pattern to cut out 2 pieces of fabric, and 1 piece of fleece, 1 interfacing or 2 pieces of craftbond. sew, invert, edge stitch around, fabric glue ends together like cardboard one was, and you're done!

Then fill with candy! and if you can, a little gift card to the coffee shop.

Finally, the project we did for our family. We are trying to keep this Christmas simple, so we decided to make gifts. We made a huge batch of Salt dough for ornaments, used our big Valentine's day heart cookie cutter.

you just have to remember to poke a hole for string before you bake, than after baking we glued little wallet size pictures we printed at Walmart, wrote the year with sharpie on the ornament, and mod podged about 6 layers. Hope everyone likes them!

We also made a bunch of ornaments with our Christmas cookie cutters for our tree. The girls had a blast, not only working with the dough, but then painting and adding glitter. Of course, a week later, I am still sweeping glitter out of the kitchen...

Black Friday

2010-11-26T11:19:00.000-08:00

So, there are a few things we usually stick fast to. One is keeping Christmas simple. We do not participate in Black Friday shopping. We have always told the girls that Santa is make believe, and they only get one gift from us (though usually make out really well because our families are so large). I love saying that my girls know more about Saint Nicholas and Saint Basil than the legend of Santa. We do mostly handmade items for our family for the holidays. It just feels better, and the girls LOVE picking out what they made for what family members. For us to, it means more to get a tub of cookies or a special recipe than stuff from Walmart.

That being said, last night Kevin and our brother in law Dave announced yesterday that they are going to Best Buy. At midnight. To wait in line to be there at opening to get a doorbuster deal. This floored me, because Kevin, well, my husband is not a spender. We get most of our furniture from Craigslist and thrift stores. When we do need a big item like electronics or appliances, he will spend months researching what he wants and figuring out when and where to get the best price. We will spend almost every weekend hitting all the stores near us, just to see what they had in their scratch and dent sections.

Apparently, one of the doorbuster deals was a TV. The TV he has wanted for a while. Up until this morning, we were using a 20 inch computer monitor as a TV. Hey, it worked. Sure, Kevin missed having his gaming monitor at his desk, but we needed something. This set up has been working for us for about a year now. Kevin would often talk about buying something else, so he could get his monitor back and watch his shows on a TV you didn't need a magnifying glass to see from the couch. So, off Kevin went with Dave at 11 last night, to sit for HOURS in the freezing rain, to get their item tickets for what they wanted at 3 am, then for the doors to open at 5 am. Kev said there was at least 100 people in line by the time 5 rolled around. It took them until 7am to finish checking out. To me, that is insane.

Apparently, for the make and model of TV, they saved almost 40%. Saving that percentage on something he wanted made Kevin really happy. He came home with the grin of a 12 year old boy who got his red rider bb gun for Christmas. He set it up immediately, smiling the whole time.

Now that the cardinal rule of no shopping on black friday was broken, I just hope he doesn't see the TV advertised for less later. That, and I hope both the boys get over whatever illness they now have from sitting out in the freezing rain for hours. They both just woke up with sniffles and coughs, took dayquil and are sitting on the couch under a blanket, watching the new big TV with grins on their faces....

Thankful!

2010-11-23T17:46:00.000-08:00

Sew... I have been out of sorts for a while, it seems I want to nap at every possible moment instead of sew or blog! I did manage to finish a quilt for a friend's birthday, simple and quick in batiks

The other reason I have been out of sorts is all the running around! The girls have had a lot going on at their schools, we are getting ready for Kevin's family coming over this Thanksgiving, Evie is practicing like a mad woman for her piano recital, Rena has tae kwon do, it just seems we never stop!

Rena's school had a Thanksgiving Play last week, which was absolutely adorable! She also did a trike a thon for St. Jude's Hospital.

In this photo Rena is in the front corner, first row! She had a blast.

I owe a lot of gratitude to her teacher, Mrs. Jan. The school itself is wonderful, a true caring christan environment. It was so hard for me, after what happened at the last school, to trust sending her to another place. It's wierd though, so many people lead me to Carriage Hills, first our quilt guild president Theresa had sent her children there, and recommended it to me. Then another mom who had children there about 5 years ago told me her experience and how wonderful it was. I was still getting through all the emotions, especially the anger and hurt, from the first school. Then Evie's piano teacher, who goes to the church, sat with me and told her what she knew of the preschool.

Evie's piano teacher plays piano for the church, and for the preschool programs! She knows the teachers and director, and knowing what I had been through already, sat with me a while after a lesson and told me all she knew, then called the director and helped set me up with a meeting and to see the school. I was at the point where I knew Serena needed to be in preschool, but still didn't know where to trust. After meeting everyone there, it clicked where this was where God was leading us, this was where she needed to be.

Since she has started, she is a different girl! Her confidence is back, she is being responsible with her chores and helping around the house, she is excited to go to school.

The other bonus, and I am also greatful for, is that to help Serena get over the emotional abuse at the first preschool we had to stop attending church there. It was a Methodist Church, and since I am Orthodox and Kevin is Lutheran, it was a compromise. Since then, I have gotten Kevin to take us to the Greek Orthodox Church in Memphis. It does take us about a half hour to get there, but the drive is worth it. I feel soooo much better now we are able to take communion, and that Vasili will have a 40 day blessing after he is born. Kevin loves that the service is in English, so who knows, maybe I'll be able to get him to convert one of these days :)

Oh, and if you get a chance and have read this far, pick up a copy of Mark Lipinski's Christmas 365 with this cover

My yia's recipe for Koulourakia is on page 78, along with a really cute picture of the girls!!!

Happy Sewing, Happy Thanksgiving!

Nap Mat

2010-11-07T16:58:00.000-08:00

Sorry the pictures are aweful, but this weekend I wipped up a nap mat for Serena. She needs one for Kindergarten next year and her amazing new preschool has aftercare, which we are going to try out tomorrow so I can stay for the whole quilt guild meeting :) I haven't been to a guild meeting since August.

I found the tutorial for the nap mat on Jenny Garland's Blog. It's an easy sew. I did do velco instead of bottons though.

I like how it rolls up really easily. and she uses velco on one side so the mat comes out to clean, or if you decide to make 2 you don't have to rebuy the foam.

Serena looooves it. I used fleece instead of minky, because it was on sale :)

We're happy with how it turned out, It only took about 2 hours from start to finish if that. My dad is visiting from PA, and then my aunt and uncle came out from Arkansas, and with soccer on Saturday morning I literally had a short window of time to get it together!

Happy Halloween!

2010-11-01T08:03:00.000-07:00

Serena wanted to be a Train Engineer

I made the trick or treat bags for them, half yard of fabric, french seamed like a pillowcase, then hemmed and handles added! So easy!

Evie spent a lot of time designing her costume and picking out the fabric. She is Thunder Girl! Superhero who can control Thunder and Lightning to fight crime. Her civilian name is Evie Evanson, an art and math teacher by day and crime fighter by night!

She was totally in love with her costume. It didn't take too long to make, but I hate working with Lame!

In other news, Rena's new preschool is awesome! Through Evie's piano teacher, we found Carriage Hills Baptist Preschool, which it the next town over, but really worth the drive! She has had no issues at all. Her teacher Mrs. Jan has almost 20 years experience teaching and is really sweet. She loves school again.

Now that Halloween is over, back to sewing baby things!

The next step..

2010-10-13T06:28:00.000-07:00

I am still angry at myself. Angry that I trusted my youngest in the care of the preschool she was in. I need to work through my feelings, but every session with a psychologist, more and more comes out about how incompetently everything was handled. So if you read this, take from my experience and if you see any of these signs in a preschool, RUN. Find another placement as soon as possible.

I am not saying my child is easy. She is my tough one. She is clever but emotional. She in strong willed and very active. If she can control a situation, she will. Her behaviors were not appropriate, but should have been easily controlled.

Every Preschool should have a behavior plan. It should lay out what the steps are for unwanted behaviors. For example, hitting or biting the first time will be a time out, second a time out and all home, third a suspention. This lets parents know there is a clear policy. If not, it is at the whim of the director on who will be worked with and who will be dismissed outright. It also gives teachers a tool on how to redirect negative behaviors and correct the situation. Some teachers, especially in a state where you do not need more than a high school education to work in a preschool classroom, do not have the tools in their toolbox to work with all children. A competent director should be able to help them find the tools they need.

Never, ever, ever let a teacher or director try to hand you a diagnosis. If anything like Aspergers, Autsim, etc comes out of their mouths to describe your child, know that what they are doing is unethical, and if in a public school it is illegal. If they do push testing on you, tell them nicely that you need them, as a professional, to observe your child in the classroom and fill out a Connor or Brief-P. If they say they are unwilling or do not have the time, they are unwilling to do their job. Well, I am hoping that what happened to us was because the director was lazy. Anyway, no one is qualified to diagnosis your child who is not a psychologist. Some people will attend a seminar and automatically start taking it upon themselves to start labeling people. You know your child better than anyone else. Instead of trying to figure out what the catalyst of the behaviors were, I was told I needed to start testing for Serena THE FIRST WEEK OF SCHOOL. I made a behavior analysis for them to use in the classroom, because as a teacher I was taught that everything needs to be documented, and you, as the adult, can modify and control the behavior if you understand what the catalyst is. If you do not get to the base of a problematic behavior, it will get worse. Our job as adults is to guide children, at home and in the classroom. Not all kids are easy. If you don't feel up to the job, maybe you are in the wrong profession. Trust me, I was a teacher, I know that you sometimes get really difficult kids. Sometimes it is hard to find out what is the catalyst for a behavior, but hey, that's part of teaching.

When the teachers went to the director for help, she, as the educated professional in the building, should have been able to guide them.

If your child does not like going to school, try to find out why. For us, we found out that Serena felt her teachers hated her. She overheard the director and a teacher discussing her (yup, how professional is that, talking about a child in front of that child) sometime in the first 2 weeks of school. This and the reactions to her behaviors led to a lot of frustration, and she took that frustration out in the classroom. This explains why her behaviors were limited to that environment. Children need an environment where they not only feel safe, but also liked as a person. At 4, what would you do if you felt the adults hated you as a person?

Also, make sure the staff is willing to put things in writing. In a public school,we have to document everything. It makes it easier for everyone involved.

Now we are dealing with other moms, who I really don't know but went to the school, asking about Rena because the director told them what happened. It sucks having to explain yes, we were expelled but no, Serena does not have any of the issues she is telling people she has. This is the most unprofessional aspect of the whole situation.

We were there this year for barely 5 weeks. 5 weeks. That amazes me. To help us all heal, we also left the church. I don't care if it is almost an hour drive, we are now attending the nearest Orthodox Church. I am Orthodox, the girls are Orthodox. My husband is Lutheran, and we thouht the church was a nice compromise. But I can not keep going into that building. The pastor, who was at the meeting and knew we were hurt, never bothered to call or ask if we were OK after the fact. The expultion meeting was unnessasary anyway. If the director was competent, she would have had a behavior plan. Barring that, she could have written us a letter, handed it to me that day and not involved the pastor. In the meeting, she said she talked to "professionals" who told her she was not equipped to handle a special needs child like Serena. She was the one who decided to diagnosis Serena as special needs. We had barely started testing when she threw her out.

Unfortunately, doing what is right is not always what is easy, and when you work with children, especially young children, the damage done can have a lifelong effect on that youth. A good preschool is willing to work with parents. A good preschool has a plan in place that outlines for parents what will happen when there are behavior issues. A good preschool keeps high ethical standards. A competent director can guide their staff to handle most any situation. A competent director does not recommend testing for children without thorough observation. A competent director keeps good paperwork. A competent director can handle situations within the preschool.

As a teacher, I kept Matthew 18:12-14 in mind.

“If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them has gone astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go in search of the one that went astray? And if he finds it, truly, I say to you, he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine that never went astray. So it is not the will of my Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish.”

It feels like in the case though, the sheppardess decided to kick the sheep over the cliff to lighten her own load because it was the easiest way to deal with a situation from her perspective.

The flowers diatribe

2010-10-07T08:15:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was my nine year wedding anniversary. Nine years ago, I married an engineer. Actually, his degree is in Engineering and Science. He enjoyed academic torture so much, he attainted his PhD in a field called Polymer Science and Engineering. He is both an engineer and a scientist. I am making this a big point to try to preface that while others like to laugh along to the show Big Bang Theory, I am married to it. I am not complaining, I would not change my life for anything, I love my husband. He is cute, smart, a great dad, and an all around great guy. But yes, I find humor in some of the things that come with the territory of being married to, as his sister calls him, Dr. Dork.

The first is offspring. Both girls take more after Kevin than me intellectually. This summer when looking at camps I tried to get Evie to consider the really cool art camps in the area. For her age they had ceramics, painting, gardening, you name it. REALLY COOL camps. What did she chose? Math Camp. My 6 year old went to Math Camp. On her own choice. She also likes to watch Star Trek with Daddy. Any one will do, but she loves TNG with Wesley Crusher. She wants to grow up to be a Communications Officer with Star Fleet. Not joking here. At 6 I wanted to be a princess. Serena was kicked out of preschool, because she was able to outsmart and control 3 adults. I have to find humor in that now, after spending hours with psychologist and specialist because the preschool director told us that there had to be something wrong with a 4 year old because they were incompetent at classroom management.

Yesterday being my anniversary, I got my favorite Sheldon-esq diatribe. The Flowers Diatribe. For this rant, he was labeled temporary king of geeks. Other men have tried the Flowers Diatribe with their significant others. Most get smacked for it.

See, the Geek types have a different view of romance than the rest of the world. Where most people think romance is like movies, where a woman is wined and dined and jewelry and flowers are appropriate gifts, Geeks see things way different. Why go out when you have the Babylon 5 box set and Chinese takeout? Cuddling on the couch with sci fi is way more romantic than having to get dressed up in uncomfortable clothes, driving to some restaurant just to pay $200 for a meal? Chinese take out for 2 is under $20. That leaves $180 for either more sci fi DVDs or electronics. To a geek, romance is making sure your house has a kick butt wi fi connection and your audio system is the best on the block. They could care less about jewels. A new Ipad is a much more romantic gift in their eyes.

Flowers, well, that is a whole big story. It started when we were dating, and I love The Flowers Diatribe, so every time a special occasion comes along where non-geek male spouses would present their signifigant others with flowers, I like to bring up the idea of flowers as appropriate gifts just to hear it. Since he is on a business trip, I totally brought it up.

“Hey, Kev, Happy Anniversary!”

“Oh, yeah, it is the 6th. Happy Anniversary.”

“So, do you want to go out when we get home, I can get a babysitter?”

“Naw, that’s OK. If you want we can wait till the girls are in bed and order take out and maybe watch a few DVDs….”

“So, do I need to be home this afternoon for any deliveries?”

“Like what, did you order anything?”

“No, I was wondering if I was getting flowers for our anniversary!”

THE FLOWERS DIATRIBE

“Flowers? No, I don’t think flowers are an appropriate way to show love and affection. Think about it, I mean really. You take growing, living flowers, kill them, present them to someone. It’s saying “Hey, I like you so much I am going to give you these dead, rotting things in a pretty glass container to remind you that life is fleeting and you are fading just like the dead rotting plants I present to you!” That does not say love. Flowers are a horrible idea for a gift. Plus there is no skill in decapiting flowers. It would be more a show of manhood if I went out and killed an animal or two to lovingly provide nourishment or show strength by beheading a few enemies and presenting their heads on sticks as trophies. Those feats show affection and love, not the rotting flesh of flowers.”

It does change a little each time. Sometimes he’ll just look at me because he knows I get a kick out of his rants and he doesn’t fall for it. Sometimes he goes for the history of flowers as gifts because hygiene was sub par. I love when he does that. Esp when he adds “so if I gave you flowers, it was if I was saying you smell so bad you need to cover it up”.

sufjan stevens sewing day

2010-10-01T06:47:00.000-07:00

I am trying to get a few projects ready to sew. We found out on this week that we are having a BOY! The girls are so excited, Evie because a brother won't bother her barbies and Serena because she can teach him how to play cars and soccer. After two girls though, all of our baby stuff is pink and purple! I don't even have a white onsie on hand.

I have Sufjan Stevens playing, I love listening to him. But my thoughts today for some reason are lead through how we relate to others. How sometimes we hurt others and do not even know it until much later, because it was something small we didn't realize we did. As opposed to how some people hurt others intentionally. I think it is easier to ask forgiveness for things we did not do on purpose, because we genuinely feel remorse after realizing we have done harm, where as those that harm intentionally have no remorse.

I think part of this is I am still trying to decide how I feel about how Serena was treated by the director of the preschool. Was it intentional? I know that it was not considered what was best for the child in this situation, but what was easiest for the adults involved. Which is why part of me hopes that is was pure laziness on her part she decided to act like that. But then I realize that she often pushes parents into testing their children for special needs. That part to me is intentionally malicious and unethical. Luckily Serena is over the fact that she heard the director and a teacher discussing her negatively. I wonder if the way she was treated by the adults was what triggered her behaviors in that classroom, since that is the only place where they happened?

Halloween Purse!

2010-09-28T13:53:00.000-07:00

It's another Lazy Girl Design's Claire Bag with a zipper. Behind it is the second version, since I wanted to make both front and back the same this time. The other one is almost done, its the bright orange owls and bats on the outside.

Now to just finish (ok, start) the girls costumes!

Soccer Hairbows!

2010-09-22T16:06:00.000-07:00

So for soccer each season I make the girls on the team bows or flowers. This season both girls are playing, and since Rena's team is florescent orange, I opted for making bows from this cute ribbon with soccer balls on it!

I left long tails because most girls wear thier hair in a pony and I thought the tails would look cute on either side of the pony! I had to make 12 total.

I also found this cars ribbon on clearance, and of course Rena had to have a cars bow!

Last January I ordered a gross of hair barrette backs for making bows and flowers, and I now have only two left!

I found more autism awareness fabric..

2010-09-21T11:20:00.000-07:00

Even after recovering the kids table and chairs with it, I found more autism awareness fabric in my stash! Enough for 2 purses. This is the tweeked version of the bow tucks tie tote. I did use stronger interfacing, giving the bags more stiffness.

The green was also from my stash. I am trying to clean out my stash before the baby arrives, but it seems the more I use up the more I acquire.

onward and upward!

2010-09-11T07:24:00.000-07:00

One thing that always makes me feel better is starting a new project. This weekend we are working on recovering our dining set chairs, but have to wait for Sunday to buy the foam (50% off at Joann!)
This morning I decided to gather my scraps up to start my next project, Belle Meade by Bonnie Belle. I have been searching through my stash and this is what I have that is "civil war"

While going through my fabric I realized a few things. One, I am really unorganized when it comes ot my fabric. It is all just in tubs. My patterns are nice and organized, but not my fabric. The second thing I realized is that most of my fabric is really bright happy fun childrens colors. Third, I realize I have a lot of patterns and magazines I have already done projects from that I don't know if I will do again. I do have my favorite patterns I go back to over and over, especially for bags. I try to make gifts instead of buying them, which is the big reason why. I am trying to decide how much I want to clean out of the sewing room so it can also be a baby playroom in a few months.

Happy Sewing!

I try to keep positive, I really do

2010-09-10T11:54:00.000-07:00

But today I think I lost my faith in humanity. I actually had a preschool director and teacher show animosity towards a 4 year old. Worse, it was my 4 year old.

I'll back to the beginning, when we moved here I enrolled her in preschool at a nearby program that had openings. I told my neighbor about it, and she had worked with the director years before in Memphis. She warned me that this woman was inept, and she wouldn't trust her kids in any program run by said director. Well, the teachers we had were wonderful, and I really never dealt with the director, so we stayed. She had a great year and loved it. Forward to this year. First day, I get a call. They can not handle her behaviors in a classroom. I took note. Few days later, they called me to pick her up. She said they would work with me, I tried to give them some ideas, because really, she's 4. Instead of listening, the director told me they don't really have time, and told me all about her adult childrens issues. That was my second red flag, but we had since joined the church, and I thought the teachers would find what worked eventually. From then on she had both good days and bad. I had a few discussions with the director, who refered me for testing. At the first testing session, I was told that they are wary of children sent from the school, because in the past 3 years they have had a lot of normal children sent for testing from the school. That was another red flag.

So we had been in school about 4 weeks. Just 4. I emailed her last week asking for a meeting with the teachers, to see what we could do. Instead of meeting with the teachers, she scheduled a meeting with the pastor. To me, that said ambush all over it. I was right. The meeting was basically to remove Rena from the school. It was aweful, and extremely unprofessional. When asked what was tried, they basically said everything, but could not give any specifics. Worse, both teacher and the director showed animosity towards a 4 year old. I was more shocked than anything, because here sat 2 adults that one, could not control their classroom, and two, after 4, almost 5 weeks were that hateful of a child. I think I felt even worse that the pastor sat there and just head bobbed with them.

*sigh* so what is next? Do I stay at the church? I was going to teach Sunday school this week, which I might, but I absolutely can not sit through a service. I can always find another school for Rena, but today she has been all out of sorts because her teacher told her she wasn't coming back and took her name off the door. I am glad she is out of there, but it should have been handled better. A lot better.

So thank you if you have read this, sorry I am being negative. I hate that I feel this way. I hate that my daughter was hurt by people who are suppose to be educators. I wish I knew what to do next, other than find a new school. I am waiting for my neighbor to get home, to tell her she was right, the director is inept.

Why I love Lazy Girl Designs patterns

2010-09-08T14:44:00.000-07:00

Sew today while the girls were in school I made a Claire bag. I like the pattern because it is fun to do, but usually make them for other people. It is a fun purse, a little bag with lots of pursonality.

But I added a twist this time. I used the instructions in the Margo bag pattern to add a zipper. It is a super easy technique, and Margo is a great pattern to try if you are afraid of zippers but want to try one.

Working on this project reminds me why I love Lazy Girl Design Patterns. First, I was able to complete the project in a few hours. The last bag I did, Amy Butlers Field tote, took me a few days. Second, she writes her instructions so those of us that are quilters can understand them. A lot of bag patterns are done for people who are used to garment construction. And the best thing about LGD patterns, is that with each one, you learn something new. I love Margo for Margo, but really love that I could take the zipper technique from Margo and use it in other patterns. I often use the LGD way to do inside pockets for any other bag I do. I can't live without lots of pockets anymore!

Amy Butler Field Bag

2010-09-06T08:49:00.000-07:00

I finally finished! This is one of the most time consuming projects I have *ever* done. It was a learning experience for sure.

The bag is massive. I was wondering why I needed over 3 yards of the main fabric, and it used it all. I think it holds more than the weekender. The zipper was a pain in the behind, but her instructions were clear, it just took time to get it right.

little steps

2010-09-03T17:29:00.000-07:00

We are expecting our third child in January, and are very excited! The girls especially. Yesterday we had midway ultrasound, and were hoping to find out the baby's gender, but alas, the goods were covered. Maybe next time.

However, I have been sewing for the baby since we found out, but because we don't know gender, I have been making 2 sets of everything. The diaper bags I posted a while back are an example of this. I also just did these.

boy set

girl set

If you look closely, in each group the one on the left is a quilt, the one on the right is a flannel backed blanket. I fell in love with the Mr. Men and Little Miss fabric when I first saw it, and had to do something with it!

But with this sewing I am also challenging myself. With each item I make for my baby, I want to make another one just as nice to donate or give. My guild donates to a lot of charities, so most will go to charity.

So far I have diaperbags and the blankie sets, hoping to do some of the projects from the new Anna Maria Horner baby book, and maybe from the Amy Butler baby book. I am just now starting to have more energy, and the girls are both in school in the mornings, so I have some time to sew.

Happy Sewing!

Potty Training ideas

2010-08-27T19:18:00.000-07:00

Well, I haven't talked about it here, but for those that know me, We had a really, really hard time potty training Serena, my youngest. I was spoiled, Evie potty trained herself before she turned 2, she hated the feel of a wet diaper, and when she realized that could be avoided by peeing in the potty, she chose to go on the potty. Rena was three and a half before we could even get her to sit on the potty. She actually liked the feel of a wet diaper, which made things difficult. When we tried to just put undies on her, she would just go, because she didn't mind the wet panties either, or the wet carpet, floor, couch, etc.

The *one* thing that got her to sit on the potty was the Potty Fairy. See, one day she recieved a special delivery from the Potty Fairy, that looked like this

It's a little plastic tub that fit on the back of the toilet, The box itself comes in many colors, it is made by Sterlite and is available at Target and Walmart. I like this style box because the sides lock. There were stickers to decorate the box, so she would feel it was "hers".

Inside the box were prizes! lots of little things, like lollipops, bonbelle makeup, and anything that was under $1 and would fit.

Of course, the box came with a letter from the Potty Fairy, that said...

Dear Serena:

This is your official invitation to become a POTTY PRINCESS! I hope you will join us! To be a POTTY PRINCESS, all you need to do is practice sitting on the Potty!

To Welcome you to our special group of POTTY PRINCESSES, I have sent you a special POTTY PRINCESS PACK to get you started.

First, decorate your box with the stickers enclosed, or if you have stickers you like at home, feel free to use them.

After the box is decorated, place it on top of your potty, or somewhere in your bathroom that is easy to find!

Each time you sit on the Potty, you can hold one of the items in the box!
If you pee or poop in the Potty, you get to open it and keep it! How exciting!

When you are all finished becoming a POTTY PRINCESS and are wearing big girl pants during the day, the box is yours to keep in your room! You will be an official POTTY PRINCESS!!!

I hope you will join us!

Hugs and Kisses,
The Potty Fairy

She was so fascinated with getting to go through the box, she actually started to sit on the potty, just to pick and hold something from the box. As time went on, she took delight in getting to keep the item she chose, so after a few weeks she got the hang of it. I wish I would have tried this method earlier!

A few tips if you try this : wrap the treasure box up and have it " delivered" (Kevin pretended to find our special delievery outside when he got home from work). let them open it and read the letter together. Let them decorate the treasure box, spend time with it and let their curiosity grow! Then reread the rules with them, and ask them if they want to try it then. Be in the bathroom with them, so they don't get frustrated and open the item! It is really hard at first to make them put the items back when they don't go, but it will pay off very soon.

Happy Parenting!

Keep your eyes open....

2010-08-21T16:10:00.000-07:00

I am a fabric addict. There, I admit it. I look for viable fabric everywhere, anything pretty and vibrant that I might be able to use. That is why, at least once a week, I hit a few local Goodwills and other thrift stores. I hit the home section first. I look through sheets and curtains, table clothes and bedspeads. Then I hit mens ties. Sometimes I can use them for purse straps. or open them up for the fabric. Then I hit ladies scarves. Last week, I found 2 great pieces in ladies scarves.

Not many people even bother with the scarves in a thrift store. Not many people wear scarves anymore, and most of what is there are thin shiny polyester numbers with big florals, or holiday prints. Once I found a handwoven long scarf, that was made of beautiful hand dyed wool. It was purples blues and greens. But last week, I hit the motherload.

Françoise Heron Timbalier in blue

Laurence Bourthoumieux Tropiques

These are the two scarves I found, but on different days. The first one I found was the Timbalier. I was sorting through the scarves and saw the bright blue border. Then I touched it, a thick silk twill. I rubbed it between my fingers to test, and it was real silk. So I bought it. At home I noticed the Hermes symbol on the scarf, but didn't think it was real because the design name wasn't on the scarf, but all the other telltall signs of a real Hermes was there, the hem, delicately rolled to the front, handstitched in perfect matching color. the car label, the color saturation. By the end of the night with help and a lot of research, I had the scarf authenticated. Two days later, I went back to the same Goodwill and took another look at the scarves, and there was my second Hermes in a week, the Tropiques. This one isn't as desired as the Timbalier, but it is really pretty.

Being thrifty always pays off! Keep your eyes peeled, you never know what you will find at your local thrift store!

Thank Goodness for SCHOOL!

2010-08-19T17:29:00.000-07:00

Now that school has started back up for fall, I actually have time to sew! Last week I tried out Penny Sturges' Bow Tucks Tote Pattern. I used the new Amy Butler Fabrics my husband bought for me when he was traveling. He made a special stop at Green Velvet in Granville, Ohio (where we used to live) for it! I like it as a bag, it's nice and roomy, and I always carry a lot of things. Next time I make it I might make the front pocket smaller though, or make it two compartments. It's a little floppy for my taste, I am afraid my cell or keys will fall out!

I also did this quick little applique this week for Evie to wear tomorrow, it's her principal's 40th Birthday and they asked the kids to wear something black.

I feel so much more "together" as a person when I get to spend time in my sewing room. It also feels good to start working on baby projects, since we are expecting our 3rd in January. I have been piecing quilt tops, which I hope to post in a few days! I found Mr. Men and Little Miss fabric at Joanns and of course had to make baby quilts!

Rena apprently also loves fabric. So much she decided to use all of my pins to reupholster my sewing room chair...

*sigh* it only took 45 minutes for me to unpin the fabric from the seat, find my pincushions, organize my pins again and take a magnet to the floor for strays....

Happy Sewing!

Oxford, MS

2010-07-12T15:05:00.000-07:00

Our friends came down for a visit a bit ago, so we took a day trip to Oxford, MS. She went to Ole Miss, and since it is only about 45 minutes from here, we all went. Oxford is a beautiful town. Since we got there at lunch, we had to try Abners, their favorite Chicken place.

The girls at Abners parking lot.

Then we spent some time downtown, getting ice cream at a little sweet shop and checking out Corner Books.

The town is a square around the court house, with lots of great shops and restaurants. There is a children's corner books, which has a play area for the kids.

this suit just says "southern gentleman"

Of course, after exploring downtown, we had to visit Rowan Oak, William Faulkner's home.

The grounds were absolutely wonderful, cool and shady. The girls ran around outside for a bit, and let the moms explore then inside of the house.

It was a nice day.Oxford is a really cool town, we hope to go back soon to explore more!

Wall Hanging

2010-07-10T16:42:00.000-07:00

Sew... my friend Gina made this wonderful batik and gave it to me! I had no idea what to do with it at first, but found this nice green leaf batik for a border, and decided to make a wall hanging.

I only quilted around the tree to make it pop.

Then I added a few beads to the moon because who can resist adding beads for sparkle?

I am happy with how it turned out, Gina's batik was so beautiful I was almost afraid to touch it!

autism awareness table cover

2010-06-17T10:45:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago there was an "accident" and our table was ripped. This is just a little play table, so I wasn't too concerned, but I had just gotten it and wanted to at least keep it nice for a while. My girls had a friend over, and the friend got mad at something and just took it out on our table!

yeah, pretty bad. I was mighty mad. I do some reupholstery, and knew this would be pretty basic. Since the set is colorful, I decided to use what I had left of my autism awarness fabric to cover the table and chair she ripped (yeah, she went after a chair too).

I *love* the way the table came out. It looks 100 times better than before. I also used a medium gage plastic over the fabric so I can just wipe it down when dirty.

Here is the chair. I aslo did another chair. There are 4 chairs in the set, so eventually I will have them all covered, but for now I just did the damaged ones!

Vacation Bible School Southern Style!

2010-06-16T06:36:00.000-07:00

If there is one thing I have found about Southern Ladies, it is that suble is not in their vocabulary. From putting a face on to go to the store or even pool, to taking charge of events, low key is not an option. That is one thing that differs from being a northern mom.

Here is an example. When I lived in Ohio, the standard uniform for the middle class stay at home mom was yoga pants, a tee shirt, and a ponytail. We had kids, we were tired, who cares what we look like? Here in the south, you put your face on before you leave, even if you were just running to Walmart. Ladies also dress. At least jeans and a nice top, with a little color. At first I thought this was wierd, why bother? Then I realized it is taking a measure of pride in yourself and appearance.

In Ohio if there was to be a bake sale for let us say the school, you would have a few volunteers and a few people who would bake. We would drop off our goods on time, and stand around in our yoga pants and organic nonfat chai lattes complaining about how hard it was to fit it into our schedule. We would have been happy to make $75 for the cause.

Here in the south, Southern Ladies take charge. If there was a bake sale for the school, everyone would volunteer and there would have to be a committee of 2 or 3 Ladies to be in charge. There would be a theme. I kid you not, a theme. Along with the bake sale, they would get donations from local businesses and have raffles for baskets. They would dress in costume for the theme, and the whole gym would be filled with tables full of baked goods.

These Ladies take pride and care in everything they do. If it is worth doing, it is worth doing right.

And that brings us to VBS, which is this week. I was floored when I walked into VBS, I was floored. I was used to VBS being in the sunday school buildings, and run like a class. Not here, oh no. Everyone was in costume to go with the theme.

They transformed the gym into an egyptian market, with stations for the kids to do a variety of activities from brick making, to jewelry making to weaving, and so on. There were a ton of teen volunteers helping,

The chapel was decked out like a temple.

The walkway was the river nile.

When I say all out, it was all out. The kids are having a blast, because there is so much for them to do and relate to.

I think a lot of it is being that best at what you are doing now. So much of my converastions before coming down here were about going back to work, because staying at home raising kids was not what modern feminist do for an extended amount of time. Here, the conversations are about what we are doing, with the kids, hobby wise, volunteer wise, faithwise. Being a mom and staying at home is a blessing, not a curse.

Talkin' South

2010-06-03T11:31:00.000-07:00

For those Northerners that come down South: Don't get offended when a Southerner invites you to their house to smoke a butt. They are not offering you and your family illicit substances. To "smoke a butt" means to make bbq. They cook what is called a "Boston Butt", or pig shoulder, in a smoker for a day or so and when it falls off the bone, smother it in bbq sauce and that is bbq. It is very tasty, especially for a Pittburgher to whom bbq meant Isaly chipped ham in the crock pot with Hienz barbeque sauce. No one else calls the shoulder meat a butt either, I asked my friend Nicole (being the highest athority on Boston, her family has been there for generations) and there are no Boston Butts in Boston -- unless you count the Bruins.

Another phrase I found out about yesterday was "Bless your heart". It is the southern version of the term "what are you, stupid?" I found this out after a woman at the pool came over to her friends that were next to me, told them her story of woe, to which they kept saying, "why bless your heart". When the tale of woe lady left, her friends rehashed the story and couldn't get over how she delt with everything in the totally wrong way.

I also heard the expression "5 pound bag of sugar" for sweet. I like that one.

Starflower tablerunner

2010-05-26T10:27:00.000-07:00

Last summer my inlaws and I took the girls to Strausburg Railroad for the day, and on our way home we stopped by a few amish quilt shops. In one, my mother in law found a few FQ 8 rolls, which she bought for me to make table runners and toppers for her. This is the second one I have finished.

The pattern for this is the Starflower from quilters cache. It was the guild's block of the month for May. Of course, I didn't get a block done for the meeting, but hey, here's 2 I did now!

Happy Sewing!

Steelers Quilt is done!

2010-05-20T07:03:00.000-07:00

I just finished binding it this morning. The fabric is from scraps I had left from making a zillion steelers bags this past fall!

The quilt is for my nephew, in Pittsburgh. His birthday is coming up and he wanted a Steelers quilt! The machine quilting was done by Linda Camp at http://www.quiltingstitch.com/. She is still the best prices I have found. She did footballs and helmets like the penn state/gators quilt.

Everything for this quilt was from my stash, except for the black backing which I bought.

I had to add rather large borders to make it big enough for his bed, and did a yellow binding. Now that this is done, I hope to do sports bags for the girls!

cupcakes!

2010-05-17T05:17:00.000-07:00

Sunday afternoon Evie and I were running errands and had to pop into the fabric store to get a half yard of solid black to finish a bag I have had half done forever. She saw this cupcake fabric and decided she wanted a dress like one of her friends, so we found the white with dots to coordinate as a ruffle and Sunday afternoon we knocked out a dress. I love doing pillow case style dresses, because they sew so quick! She is wearing it today to school, since it is summer birthday celebration and today they are celebrating hers (even though hers is really in June!

Of course, with the little bit of leftover ribbon we had to make a hairbow. She is letting her bangs grow out, so we are pinning them back most days.

Happy Sewing!

Teacher Gifts!

2010-05-13T13:28:00.000-07:00

So tomorrow is Serena's last day of preschool! It took a while to figure out what to make for her teachers, but I decided on little notebook with a fabric cover. I found the pattern here. I think I am going to do 2 more for Evie's teachers but will have time to embroider their initials.

I hit the scrap stash for these, so the cost per gift was $3 at office depot for the pads and pens!

In Bloom

2010-05-12T14:31:00.000-07:00

All my projects this week are for the end of school for both my girls. This week is teacher appreciation week at Evie's school, and tomorrow is bring a flower for your teacher. She has her classroom teacher and the class assistant, plus one for her library teacher. We decided to add a stem to hair flowers for it!

The big one is of batik

The little plaid one is for her bus driver. She LOVES riding the bus.

I am hoping to get a bag or two in next week, time permitting!

Oh, and Evie was in the paper today! It's just a picture with the retiring principal, but she was sooo excited about being in the picture!

House Divided Quilt Done!

2010-05-10T05:03:00.000-07:00

Ta Da!

It is a king size, so it looks HUGE. I did a small white border, and the quilter did footballs

and helmets

I love how it looks now that it is quilted!

I did white binding, since the backing was white and the border. I just finished handstitching the binding last night.

This is a wedding present for my sister in law and new brother in law. I know, cheesy for a wedding quilt, but they would not give me any ideas for what they wanted, and their bedroom has a lot of their school memorabelia already.

My machine quilter is Linda at The Quilting Stitch. Check her out! I cannot sing her praises enough! Her turn around is really quick, her prices are excellent, and she runs specials.

Quilting Gallery Guest Blogger!

2010-05-06T05:58:00.000-07:00

Follow the link! Today I am the guest blogger for Quilting Gallery!

I am so sorry I haven't written anything for a few weeks! We went to Disney and my sister in law's wedding, spending 2 weeks in Florida. Since returning home, all I have been doing is handstitching binding onto their wedding quilt. Both Rena and I are sick, and the puppies are still young and a lot of work!

Anyway, check out the link to the guest blog, and hopefully by next Monday I will be able to post a pic of the finished quilt, and start a few table runners!

I'll leave you with this, the is my sister in law and new brother in law at their wedding, which was at cocoa beach.

and here are my girls as the flower girls!

Happy Sewing!

Amy Butler's Sophia Carry All

2010-04-13T09:26:00.000-07:00

I made a Sophia carry all to accompany my Weekedner bag! It was OK, I had a few issues with it, and ripped a few seams, but now feel comfortable with her bag patterns. I made both with uber clearance fabric ($1.50 a yard!) so maybe next time I will chose a bold flower print to make it look a little less cutesy. I do like the birds though...

I also tried my first headband...

It's a cute project for scraps, when I get a chance I'll post the tutorial!

And, of course, a puppy shot! They have claimed the wicker furniture in the sun room as their favorite chew toy...

Puppies!

2010-04-11T18:37:00.000-07:00

Well, a dog had puppies under a storage shed where Kevin works.

It was hard for Kev when he realized that there was no animal control or ASPCA in Helena, Arkansas where he works. This means there are a lot of strays, and local teens will shoot or torture the strays for fun. Pretty horrible. The momma dog has stayed in the fenced campus (chemical plant and research building) avoiding that fate, but who can control the puppies from roaming when they get older? There was no place to help find homes for them. So, like the big softee he is, Kevin brought the pups home this past weekend Thursday since they had weened. The mom is being taken care of by the workers, they are taking her to the vet to get fixed and have a dog house for her they placed further away from the storage area. They are hoping to find a home for her. I met her last week when we went down to see the pups, and she was the sweetest dog.

The mom was very affectionate with the girls when we visited, which made me think she was abandoned.

During our visit, the pups came out, and when Kevin asked if we could bring them home to find them homes in our area, how could I say no?

Because there were six, we put a blankie down in the garage for them, and gave them a bath. Here they are clean and sleeping. Friday we took them to the vet for their first shots and to get dewormed. We knew we were going to keep 2 for us and 1 for his parents, and had to find homes for 3. So Saturday we took the three that needed homes to Evie's soccer game and found them homes. It ended up we knew the three families at least somewhat, and know for sure they were placed in great homes, and will be well loved couch dogs.

Our three are...

Lightning McQueen! Rena was chosen by the chubby male. The name doesn't fit him, the only time he runs is when he hears food hitting the bowl. He is laid back and rolly polly.

Laura! Here is Laura with our neigbor. Laura is Evie's dog. She is the alpha female, fiesty and high energy.

Mitzi! The darker beige puppy is Mitzi, who we are keeping for my inlaws. She is sweet and affectionate.

Here they are sleeping in the garage. They will be inside as soon as they are no longer pooping worms. They are very sweet puppies!

I feel like I finished a Marathon...

2010-04-07T15:47:00.000-07:00

of sewing that is! I finished the Amy Butler Weekender!

It wasn't as hard as I thought, just really time consuming because of all the piping. I love it! It is huge, and will be great for weekend get aways! I have the sofia bag pattern I might try next, I have a lot of this fabric left, it was a clearance buy!

Toddler Toilet Seat Carrier Tutorial, part duex

2010-04-06T06:21:00.000-07:00

Sew.... the first version of the carrier worked, but left a few things to be desired. For one, it needed to be a little deeper. The flap was nice, but to be able to zip and have it totally contained would be better, and lastly, a loop to hang on the door of the public restrooms would have been nice. So after trial and error... here is version 2

It's a little roomier, so you can prob also throw a little thing of wipes in there too! It zips and has a loop to fit around your wrist or hand from the door when the seat is in use. With the curtain lining for lining, the bag is also great for an ick bag in a diaperbag!

Start with a zipper at least 14 inches long, 2 inch strip for the handle, two 11.5 by 11.5 squares each of lining and outer fabric (I use curtain lining for the inside, like in an ick bag). Keep 2 scraps at least 1 inch by 1 inch handy for the zipper

fold the 2 inch strip in half, open, fold the edges in so you have a .5 inch strip... sew end closed

Cut out 1.5 inch squares at the bottom of each piece for your box corners.

Get your scrap pieces ready, sew one towards zipper from bottom. Then flip and press, and top stitch

repeat with other side, so it looks like this, the tabs should be 10.5 inches apart

take a main fabric and lining, sandwich your zipper and sew.

make sure right sides are together, and main fabric is facing the zipperpull.

fold back and press, then carefully topstitch. Repeat with other side.

attach the handle to one side, where the zipper closes, about 2 inches down from zipper. stitch in place with a 1/8 seam.

with zipper halfway open for turning, fold so main fabrics are right sides together and lining is together. Stitch the sides and bottom, leaving an opening in the bottom of the lining to turn.

sew your box corners, turn, close the hole in the lining, and you're done!

Happy Sewing!

Easy Spanakopita wrap

2010-04-05T10:50:00.000-07:00

Xristos Anesti!

I am sometimes at a loss on what to make for lunch. During the week it is just Rena and I, and we usually do sandwiches or soup, quick and easy. Well, here is another quick and easy lunch that the girls both LOVE. My sister is actually to credit for coming up with the recipe.

You need veg oil to fry in

1 bag of chopped spinach, defrosted
a cube of feta, usually 8 oz.
dill
salt and pepper to taste

mix all that in a bowl

then instead of phyllo, you need egg roll wraps, which you cna find with the tofu stuff in a cooler by the veggies usually

on a plate or clean surface, lay out your wrapper. Place about a spoonful of filling in, put one corner up, fold side corners in, and roll!

fry in oil until golden brown

let cool on a papertowl covered plate, some oil will drain.

easy lunch!

spring tote

2010-04-01T05:23:00.000-07:00

Most seasons I buy a few fabrics I really like and make a few matching bags for myself so I can change on need. So here is my spring tote. The pattern is here. It is also in the Winter issue of Quilts and More, one of my favorite magazines.

I love the shape and it holds a lot. So this is my new running around with the kids tote, then I have my shopping cross shoulder purse, and my sweet purse I made last week. I have only scraps left of this fabric, so I am making more accessories. I recently bought the Maggie Bag pattern from Lazy Girl Designs. I kept passing it by until I saw an article about a woman who made them as treat bags for her daughters birthday party, embroidering the girls initials on the back. Then I had to order the pattern! I made one for my camera

These are such easy to make, cute little pouches! I am going to make a few more for the cords and things I have laying about, so I can find them more easily when we travel. They take such little fabric, and scraps of batting. I also plan to make them for the girls birthday party for treat bags, of course!

I am waiting for 2 quilts to come back from the quilter, so I can bind them, and planning out a few table runners from fabric my mother in law bought me to make her some from. In May I want to start another big quilt, and tomorrow I hope to begin work on Amy Butlers Weekender bag, which I started then put aside last year! In two weeks I have to send my machine in for cleaning and service, which means 2 or 3 weeks of no sewing... wonder what I can get done before then....

Zippered Wonder Wallet

2010-03-31T18:19:00.000-07:00

So today I finished the girls little purses and wallets for Disney! Yes, they are Lazy Girl Design's Runaround bag and wonder wallet. I have to profess my love for LGD patterns, especially these two, which I make often for gifts. I do add something to the wonder wallet, a zipper in the back!

So I thought I would write out step by step how to do this. THIS IS NOT A WALLET PATTERN, just how to add a zipper. I recommend the wonder wallet pattern to everyone, if your local quilt shop does not carry LGD patterns, beg them to, or check online. I have gotten a few from ebay with free ship. You need a 7 inch zipper.

cut out as instructed, but instead of a six inch long piece for the outside or a 12 inch piece folded, you need two that are at least 7 inches long, fold in half and press right sides together. (plus a 6 inch long one for the lining)

Take the bottom piece (here purple) and sandwich the zipper in the fold, sew.

Flip and press, sewing your top stitch

Take the top fabric and sandwich the zipper, sew

This time, the front is pressed up and the lining piece is pulled down, so when you open the zipper you see the right side of the fabric.

Topstich.

This is how it should be.

Then take your lining piece (6 inch long one) and mark as directed in the pattern. Pin it to the right side of what you just did, keeping the marks just above the zipper.

Pin, and you can cut off the excess fabric.

From here on out, just follow the pattern. Super easy! Just remember to stitch over the zipper a few times to reinforce it.

soccer!

2010-03-27T15:37:00.000-07:00

It has been a busy past few days. Yesterday Evie had her first playdate, which went wonderfully. Not only did the girls have fun, but her mom rocked, so I feel like I made a mom friend in the area! Yeah! It's nice to meet cool moms. Now I just hope that Rena can meet some friends to have playdates with. I have reached out to some of the kids in her preschool but so far no dice. Oh well.

Today was Evie's first soccer game, and she loved it! Even though it was exhausting. She actually played Celia's team, the girl she had a playdate with on Friday. I got to meet another one of her school friends, who is on our team.

He is really sweet, all the girls call him their boyfriend.

Evie and a friend from school.

The team!

Now how cute is this???? He wanted to wear it to play in.

Now if we get them all star wars helmets to wear for games...

This week's projects!

2010-03-25T10:27:00.000-07:00

Sew I did get a bit of quilting done this week! Here are 3 baby quilts from this pattern. They are just charm packs on point, easy and quick, my favorite for charity quilts (no project linus in my area, but the guild does donate to a few places, including Care Pregnancy Center). I always grab a few charm packs when they are on sale, and have found a few great deals on ebay, where I think two of them came from, the other one was from either Quilting Squares in Franklin, TN or a show.

I also did these bags for a birthday party Rena has this Saturday

The little wallet and purse are from Lazy Girl Designs. I have made so many of these over the past few years, little girls love the wonder wallet and runaround bag! I love these patterns, I have to say I am a big fan of LGD patterns because they are easy to follow and come out so cute!

Happy Sewing!

another purse...

2010-03-23T04:43:00.000-07:00

I am trying to get started with another larger quilt, but have a civil war repro picked for my next project and am just in the mood for quick little projects right now, since we are getting ready for Disney and I do need to get my machine serviced. So I got this pattern from etsy...

It's a cute little bag. The only thing I will alter next time is darting the bottom to make it roomier and maybe making it a little longer. I finished it yesterday and am taking it for a spin today. I made the wallet from the same material, so of course I need to have 3 or 4 purse choices to go with the wallet....

Swap!

2010-03-18T18:06:00.000-07:00

Sew.... a group of ladies from the mommy board I am part of get together every few months and do a swap, where we send another person fabric from our stash and they make something out of it and send it back to us. I can't post what I made yet, but here is what I got in the mail today!

A really pretty journal cover! The dot fabric is one of my favorites of all time.

and a very pretty black and white table runner. I love this! Very Modern, and used the last of the Ikea bird fabric I adored.

I LOVE swaps.

Today I finished another hipster for myself.

complete with wallet, makeup bag, tissue cover and key fob. The fabric I found at Joanns, I love pinks and browns. This time around I made the strap adjustable and interfaced it.

Yesterday the girls and I headed into Memphis to visit the Children's Museum. We met my Uncle Joe for a minute, he was passing through on his way to Kentucky.

Rena kind of freaked out at first because she thought it was Papou, and when she realized it wasn't she didn't know what to do! The musuem was great, but packed because of Spring Break. They had a mini town, with a bank, Kroger, auto store, dentists, etc. It was fun. They even have a fed ex plane you can explore, and a River exhibit. The girls favorite was the Disco. Yup, in the town they had a disco...

That was my first time driving in Memphis, I still need to find the zoo now that the weather is warmer. Uncle Joe gave me a box of fabric scraps from all around, and I spent this morning sorting through it. It looks like it is all in great shape, and some of the prints are fantastic. They look like sugar/flour sack fabric!

Now I wonder why we package everything today in disposable packaging. Why not in fabric bags so we can reuse them?

Tunica, MS

2010-03-17T07:19:00.000-07:00

So this week is Spring break, and I have two little girls home and bouncing off the walls! my Sister in Law was here with her puppies this weekend, so Monday we stayed home and hung out. The girls had a blast with their aunt and the puppies ( a golden and a boxer, sweeties)

So yesterday we decided to try to find the indoor pool in Tunica, just south of us. A few moms have told me about it. Tunica is a delta town, which means there is not much there. But they started building casinos in the area, so there are some really nice casino funded things down there. There is also a great outlet mall. For some reason Casinos and Outlets go hand in hand.

To get to Tunica you take all highways. It takes about 35 minutes from Hernando. There is not much in that area besides swamp and casinos. Someone said that the casinos float on the water because that is the law, but I don't know for sure. I do know that if you got lost in the marsh, you would become a bog mummy. Scary to think that if you took a wrong turn or walked away from your car you could go missing now only to be found a thousand years from now preserved, a window for the future into our time. I thought a lot about Vegas, the city in the Desert. Tunica is the Vegas of the south, the city in the swamp. The signs for the casinos are bright and obnixious. One has a Paula Deen restaurant advertised. The rest advertise easy slots. Everyone else on the road is over 70 at least, heading to the casinos. Where there isn't a Casino, there is agriculture. Some fields are being prepped for the growing season, some are abandoned. A few houses that dot the road are abandoned, being eaten by the kudzu that is roaming all over the south. Some are still lived in. There are apartment complexed by the casinos, maybe for the workers. The small towns have names like Dundee, which is not only the town name but the last name of 99% of the residents.

After all the casinos is the actual town of Tunica. You can tell money has been infused recently, they build a huge Ag Hall in the last decade, a Tunica Musuem, and the Community Heath and Fitness Center. This is where the indoor pool is.

For a town as small as Tunica and as Remote, the Heath Center was amazing. The indoor pool had an olympic size swimming pool

See the nice digital display? This pool was just nice. It was also fairly empty. I paid $8 for all 3 of us for a day pass, which is unbelievably cheap. The best part, at least for my girls, was the kiddie area

When it was open it was fun, but after about 2 hours there, someone took a dump in the baby pool, so it closed for cleaning.

Today we are going to try the Memphis Childrens Museum, but the girls said they can't wait to go swimming there again!

This weeks Projects

2010-03-11T18:18:00.000-08:00

Well, most of what I worked on this week I can't post, because it was for a swap. :(

I did make my purse for our upcoming trip to Disney. It's a hipster bag, has a zippered top and zippered side compartment, and the back has a solid pocket. I have made a few of these, they sew up really quick and are great roomy bags. Here is the free pattern from craftster!

This Wednsday I was at Evie's school to be THE QUEEN OF QUILTS. Last year I did a little book and presentation for her preschool class on Q day, and this year her super wonderful Kindergarden teacher let me come in. This week they are studying Q, so I brought my book, along with the shirt I made to wear as Q ambassador

It was just an iron on applique, I used the heavy duty wonder under. I read the book to them, told them why Q was my favorite letter, then gave the class 2 things I made, the first being the super reader cape

It's hard to see, but I embroidered SUPER READER on the back. They each have to read in front of the class each week, so I thought the cape would be cute. They totally loved it. I also made a small quilt for the reading area of their classroom.

I only had time to do a rag quilt, Rena picked out the fabric. Visiting Evie's classroom made me really miss teaching. The kids were wonderful, after we talked about shapes and what makes a quilt, I gave them some materials and let them design their own quilts. It was a blast! Of course, I forgot my camera at home...

Hosptial Gift

2010-03-03T15:28:00.000-08:00

I have a lot of projects in my workroom, but this is what I have been working on for the past few days.

It's a gift for a little boy at Evie's school who is going through cancer treatment. I wanted to give him something to make trips to the hospital easier. The first item I made was the take along tote, which I posted to tutorial to make yesterday.

I love this bag, It is great for kids and traveling.

Then I made a superhero cape from this tutorial. I have an embroidery machine I never use, so I was excited to use it here and for the bag. :)

Evie was my model for the Hospital gown.

This was a really easy project, and thanks to Lazy Girl Designs for posting this free pattern.

Of course, I had to make a quilt :) They had spiderman flannel, and after getting instructions from a fellow guild member at the sew in on Saturday, I had to give making a rag quilt a try. It is so soft and warm! The sewing part didn't take long at all, but the snipping took forever. Oh, and a tip, take to the laundromat to wash and dry. I thought my washer could handle it, but no, stopped during the rinse cycle and gave me an error message. Hade to look online how to fix it, then cup the water out of the machine (3 buckets worth), then find the hidden button trap and empty it. I got water all over the floor, and this came out..

That is all lint from the quilt! It was as big as a baby head, after the water was squeezed out it was the size of a fist.

I hope this little boy likes it, Evie is taking it to school tomorrow to give to him.

Tutorial: Take along tote

2010-03-02T14:03:00.000-08:00

I'll love these bags! I have made them for my daughters for when we travel (above), it is big enough for coloring books, crayons, and small toys for inside the car. This one is for a little boy going through cancer treatment, so he can take a few things with him during hospital visits. I thought I would post a tute, since these are great for that, or for sewing for children in Foster Care. So here it goes: all seams are 1/4 inch

cut

15 (high) by 14 (wide) - 2 each of main and lining

pockets cut a 10 1/2 strip

handles 4 inch strip (you can sub for belting)

you can cut more pockets for the inside if you want

I interfaced the outside of bag with fusible fleece and the lining with decor bond, I always have it in the house and it makes a nice stiff bag.

trim 2 inch squares out of the bottom of the lining and the body to create the bottom.

sew the lining together on the three sides, leaving about 4 inches on one side to turn. You will handstitch this when done.

bring the bottom seam to the side seam, stitch to create the bottom. do this on both sides.

fold pocket strip in half, right sides together. Stitch. Flip right side out, topstitch non seamed edge.

Mark a half inch up from top cut for corner. You can go a little higher if you will use a larger seam allowance.

Pin and sew bottom to bag following that line.

Measure pockets. The outside pockets I do 2 1/2 from outer edge, the the rest are 2 3/4

Sew on the lines, reinforcing at bottom and top. I always stitch about 3 stitches over the top edge too.

Now time for straps!

fold the 4 inch strip in half. Take an inch (this one is wider, just to kind of show you) of fusible fleece, and place it on your crease. Then iron down.

fold the rough edges in. Iron.

Then topstitch along both edges about 1/8th inch.

attach straps about 2 3/4ths inches away from side edges. Then assemble the body of bag as you did lining, minus the opening. Pin the body and lining right sides together. Stitch around top, turn, then topstitch.

All Done!

A house divided...

2010-02-26T17:45:00.000-08:00

OK, not really. I finished making a quilt for my sister in laws upcoming nuptials. See, we all went to Penn State. Her future husband, however, is a Florida Gator. Being from Pennsylvania, a lot of people we know went to Penn State. He felt outnumbered. He is a huge Gators fan, and we, of course, are PSU fans. Now Krissy has a lot of PSU tees and stuff. Dave has a lot of Gators tees and stuff. In fact, in their bedroom, he has a tiffany style Gators lamp on his night stand, and she has her Penn State lamp. So, since when I asked them at Christmas what colors and style they wanted for their wedding quilt they never answered me, I took their alma maters as inspiration and came up with this, the house divided quilt...

her side is Penn State, his Gators. It is totally obnoxious, and king size for their bed. It was a quick sew, I could only find 3 fabrics for each school so I did a simple rail fence. It is ready to mail off the my machine quilter. I use Quilting Stitch based in MA. Check out her prices (and tell her I sent you if you use her). She does a wonderful job and is the most reasonable priced quilter I have found.

So now I am back to my scraps, I hope during a sew along tomorrow to do a few baby quilt tops... we'll see!

Happy Sewing!