Juicy Bits

231: poor planning, good results

Did you notice I skipped blog post # 231?  Unintentional.  I just forgot to post it sometime at the beginning of the year.  Whoops.  Well, here it is:

I made very few gifts for Christmas again this year.  Honestly, doing so has saved my sanity the last couple of years.  I love homemade stuff and the thought and care that goes into it, but I'm not enough of a planner to get things done early and by the time the holiday season rolls around, who has time to make masterpieces?  So, I've been making small and quick gifts, and just a few.

The main one I did this year is these cute little ipad stands.  These are just the two I made for my kids (yes, we got them mini ipads this year, don't judge).  I made 5 others including one for me. :) Really by sewing them all at once it didn't take much longer than making a couple.  

I started with this pattern that I saw on Pinterest.  Obviously.  What didn't I get from Pinterest lately? There's also this pattern which I referred to.

The major changes I made were I filled it entirely with rice and the lip on the bottom front is a casing with a piece of wooden dowel in it.

Because I used all rice they're very plump to say the least.  And not entirely triangular shaped (especially the tip which is empty so it doesn't always stand up). The reason I did this was the theory that if it was set on a surface not totally flat, it could conform to a curve.  Haven't tested that theory yet, but they are functioning quite well on our countertops.

So, you might be wondering how this project amounts to poor planning (if you ever read the title, that is).  It doesn't.  That project was beautiful.

But I also decided to make ipad mini cases for the kids.  Adorable right?

But you won't ever be seeing a tutorial for them here because they were kind of a pain in the butt to make.  That's because I designed them for their cuteness and functionality and neglected to think about all the aspects of construction.

Here's what I wanted:

-a somewhat fitted pouch case for traveling

-to fit over them when they have their permanent "case" on as seen above

-a hard outside so that if something pokes them in a bag, the screen is protected (this was really the key, because the case they have has no screen protection)

- a hole where the power plug goes so they can be charging in the case

-a pocket for storing power cords and headphones

Here's the problem I encountered when I started sewing my brilliant design: a hard case (pressed illustration board inserted between layers) doesn't bend.  Duh.  So when I went to sew the binding around the top I realized I couldn't get it under my machine.  I was able to do most of the long edges but then I had to very slowly sew around the corners by hand and since it doesn't bend that meant poking it in and pulling out the other side.  Ugh.  Not fun.

Then once I put the ipad in I realized that my fit was so nice that I could barely get the ipad out.  That was solved by adding the little strap.  It is a piece of ribbon that actually goes under the ipad and part way up the other side.  So when you tug on it, it pulls the ipad out part way.  And it doubles as a nice little handle, so I guess necessity is indeed the mother of invention again. :)

But despite the troubles, I love how they came out in all their Japanese cuteness.  And they function well, until we decide we need different permenent cases, then I'll need to make new ones to fit.

JT

230: a new year and a new "toy"

Happy New Year!

Here's hoping you are starting yours with peace and joy.

And the big news I have neglected to post here is my new machine, Lucille.  Isn't she a shiny beauty?

I've been considering purchasing a long-arm for some time now.  I had planned on buying a Gammil but at Quilt Market I fell in the love with the APQS machines.  They just glide as light as air.  And the support is awesome.  So I changed my mind abruptly, which is so unlike me.  :)

But I'm not regretting it.  Not one bit.

Hopefully you'll be seeing lots of beautifully quilted quilts from me soon.  I have plenty of tops lined up so 2014 is looking be the year of finishing.

JT

229: animated characters

This year we actually had halloween.  Yay!  Last year was such a let down.

The kids both picked characters from animated films. 

Aurora wanted to be Vanellope Von Schweetz from Wreck it Ralph.  If you're not familiar, this is her: 

Super cute.  Both the character and the girl. :)  

For the most part it wasn't a ridiculously challenging costume to make, except then it kinda was.  The sweatshirt was store bought (Thank you, Target).  It's not exactly the right color, but I can live with that.  But finding leggings that were in a close color proved impossible.  So I decided to make them. Just go buy some turquoise and white knit fabrics and bust out the serger, right?  Nope. No knit fabric at all close in color.  I attempted painting some tights.  Disaster.  Finally in a last desperate search of the mall I found an XL woman's Tshirt that was close in color to cut up.  Turned out to be a slinky material that got holes kinda easily, but the leggings made it through the holiday with only one repair.

Then came the wig.  Ever made a yarn wig before? In theory it's easy.  And probably for ones that hang down, not too bad.  But this was a challenge to get it in a decent looking ponytail and stay in place.  The sewing on of the yarn was easy enough, but I definitely was a little too liberal and the pony tail ended up being like 6" in diameter.  So my advice is to start with less and add as needed.  I used the top of a pair of tights as the base (knotted and sewn up).  The elastic made a snug fit but it didn't come close to staying put.  But I found some wig clips (little combs that snap like barrettes) to sew in around the edge and they did the trick. Overall, not on my list of things I want to make again.

Theo's was a bit easier.  Of course it was the second choice.  At first we were going with Toad from Super Mario brothers, but boy that mushroom head is challenging to get right.  I have a mostly formed foam base that's all ready for a try again next year. :)

But when I suggested that he and his buddy go as minions, well, the friend aspect won him over.  If you don't know, they're from Despicable Me.

His costume was mostly about finding the right stuff.  Overalls bigger than toddler size are hard to come by.  And funny thing is if you searched for them on Amazon, yellow sweatshirts and googles come up too.   Obviously a popular costume this year.  I found the overalls at a local tracor supply store.  And the sweatshirts online.  I'm not thrilled they had writing on them, but again, yellow hoodies weren't exactly in every store. 

I made the google from the rings of mason jar lids.  They're help together with a metal epoxy and the rest is hot glued on.  I sewed the patches on the overalls and used pie cleaners for the hair.  I did agree to make 2 costumes, but still easier than Toad's hat.

 Hope you had a great Halloween and got to eat as much chocolate as I did!

JT

220: happy valentine's day

Just a quick hello to say I hope you and yours have a sweet day.

These are the pinterest-inspired and much-too-elborate valentines my kiddos are handing out.

Theo wanted juice box robots.  It's all about the fruit punch.

 And Aurora liked the fishy ones because she likes swedish fish. :)

  Sadly, she's sick and will likely miss the chance to hand them out herself.

xoxo

JT

218: getting and giving

My Modern Quilt Guild had a gift exchange this holiday season.  We made it in January so as to not add to anyone's handmade gift stress. :)

The idea was a swap of a smallish handmade gift.  We had members fill out a little survey about their style and favorite colors and fabric etc.  We chose names randomly so you knew who you were making it for but not who was making yours (you know... secret santa style).

In the end, one person dropped out but I had already given their name out so I made 2 and got 2 gifts because it was really my goof up.  Plus, more fun for me!

I actually got 2 members that I at least know a little bit so I had fun making the gifts to their tastes.

First, for Kristina I made small bag.  I forgot to mention that I had everyone bring the gifts wrapped and kept them secret so everyone could try to guess who they were fun as we each opened them.  We might skip the guessing part next year, because it was pretty tough.  Anyway, the bag I made for Kristina was from my book which should have been a dead giveaway. (Pardon the pix but I forgot to take any so I snapped some at the meeting.)

She said she loves color so I went for it.  The accents are navy so I feel like it's great to dress up a pair of jeans.

Next I had Robin, who was our sectretary this past year.  I know Robin loves all things Parisian and she asked for any kind of craft sewing so I went for a notebook cover.  I pretty much made up the pattern myself and it was a tight fit but it worked out great.  

And to go with it was some little holiday bunting that reads "joyeux noel" for next year's decorating.

In return I got 2 fab gifts.  Turned out Kristina also got me. :) She made this awesome zippered wallet with lots of pockets and even place for a pen.  Aren't the fabrics so cheerful?

And she made this bag for fabric weights and gave some penny weights she made.  She knows I do enjoy Hello Kitty.  I put the rest of my weights in it and it looks adorable on my shelf.

Then, the other Jess, as I affectionately call her, got my name.  Actually she did, then we had to re-pick because I messed up and she didn't, and then when I let everyone know one member dropped out and they should make something for me, that was who she had so she had me again.  She tells it better than me. 

Anyway, Jess knew I was hoping (OK expecting) an ipad for Xmas so she made me this awesome zippered pouch for it.  I love the scraps with the linen and how she quilted it with random lines.  Jess is my VP of the guild this year as well as maintaining our blog, so the Jesses rule!

It was so much fun, like another Christmas, that I'm sure we'll do it again next year.

JT

217: the Harry Potter trio (and their props)

I mentioned that I didn't sew much in the way of holiday gifts this year, but in the past I've always tried to make some.  True, it did elminate a lot of stress this time around, but look at the cute results when I do make them...

Yes, it's now over a year later, and these may or may not have just been finally completed, but I do love how they turned out.

These pictures actually show my gifts for both Aurora and Theo from last Christmas.  Aurora got the cute Harry, Ron, and Hermione dolls.  Theo got a set of branch blocks that I made from fallen branches from that year's storm.  They are cut in increments of 1 inch so they stack nicely together.  There are a ton more than shown here.  Those were actually complete on Christmas. ;)

The dolls, however, were partially naked.  They all had robes, but Ron and Harry were shirtless and poor Herminone had nothing on under there!  Thankfully they're now ready to make their internet debut fully clothed.

The dolls were made from the Pocket Pixies pattern by Ginger Melon.  Hers are not Harry Potter themed, that was my own addition.  I wish I could say I highly recommend the pattern, but I was pretty unimpressed.  Yes, the design is just darling, but I felt the pattern really lacked detail and instruction that I expected especially because I paid $15 for it (I think it's less now).  It was mostly the outline of the dolls that you were paying for.  I did learn how she attached the arms which was useful information.  Some stiches etc were included but if I remember correctly it didn't tell you what stitch to use for every step and it certainly didn't tell you the number of strands to use etc.  Shelly herself was very helpful and responded to my question I emailed her about which color felt to use.  Her style is so great, but I just felt the pattern was too basic for what I paid.

Anyway, the clothes were a pain to sew. SO tiny.  I had trouble getting the hood to look right.  It ended up being skinny and way to small to put on their heads but looked right with the bodies.

They did have shoes, but they didn't last long.  Probably should have sewn them right on.  And Harry's glasses are a little bent in these pictures but I'm too lazy to retake them.  Picture him just a touch cuter.

I'd say it's about time for us to start reading the 6th book.

JT

 

216: merry and bright

I hope your holidays were full of joy and peace.

Although it goes against the creative aspirations of this blog, my goal this year was to NOT make any gifts, thus eliminating much of the stress.  And I'm happy to say it mostly worked.  I had my shopping completed a full week before and had even wrapped about 3/4 of them before Xmas eve.  It might not seem a lot to you all, but for me, it was quite shocking.  Did it mean I went to bed before 3am Christmas eve? Not a chance.  But still. 

I did relax my rule a bit to make some cute fabric star ornaments.  

There were more, but I sent them away.  They are from this tutorial and are pretty easy.  You could easily be make some from magazines/papers as well.  They reminded me of those gum wrapper chains we made as kids.

And these cuties were for Aurora's class party.  It's so fun to have time to decorate cookies all fancy.  I always run out of time for our parties...

Anyway, now that the new year is upon us, it's time for me to try to get stuff done.  Last year by this time I had already completed a new quilt top.  This year, not so much.  But, hey, there's plenty of time... :)

JT

 

215: the halloween that wasn't

As many of you know, halloween is one of my favorite holidays.  The costumes the kids chose this year, may not have been my favorite, but still lots of love went into making them.  And then halloween just didn't happen. Overshadowed by a little thing called Hurricane Sandy.

First I was stuck in Houston after Quilt Market for the storm and some of the aftermath.  Couldn't get back until late Halloween night and there was no trick-or-treating.  We went without power for 10 days and went to a hotel and then family's to keep warm.  There were some rescheduled Halloween activities, but we couldn't make any. :(

The good news is the kids' school had a Halloween party the friday before, so they did can a chance to wear their costumes at least once.  And I took pictures before I left.

Aurora chose to be Moaning Myrtle from Harry Potter. So basically I had to make the same kind of Hogwarts uniform as last year, but in all grey so she looked like a ghost.

Here she is happy:

Then typical pouty Myrtle:

Notice the Ravenclaw crest which I had to make by hand because obviously they don't sell them in grey.

 

Theo's choice was no surprise.  He's crazy for Angry Birds.  I don't really get it.  It's cute and all, but how does it have that much appeal?  It's just everywhere!  And from the first time he tried it, he was hooked.

His costume was a hoot because he loved bouncing around and bumping into things in his own protective pillow.  I knew if was going to be hot and unwieldy at the party so he had a t-shirt underneath for when he had to take it off.

I love his angry face.

Of course he changed his mind about which color he wanted to be after I bought all the materials... but he had to stick with the classic red.

 

Hope you Halloweens were more enjoyable and frankly safer than ours here in NJ.  And have a great Thanksgiving!

JT

208: easter sweetness

A little behind as usual, I'm finally sharing our Easter portraits. 

I did make Aurora's dress this year (actually I made it for a wedding before easter), but I tried to just follow a pattern.  Honestly, I really tried.

The pattern is Kyoko by Patti Young.  I've had it for quite some time and been meaning to make one.  Aurora actually picked the main fabric herself about a year ago.  I think she like how it looked golden.  It's Innocent Crush by Anna Maria Horner.

I'll start by saying I love the look of this dress.  It's darling.  The only significant change I made was I didn't make the skirt in alternating panels.  I put one contrast panel in the front and then two sides of the main fabric.  The biggest challenge was cutting because I didn't have a lot of excess and I wanted to match up the pattern and make it symmetrical.  I was a little disappointed in the list of fabric requirements because it just said 1 1/6 yard of fabric, but since it is shown sewn out of 2 different fabrics, it should have said how much for each.  But I think she's fixed it on later versions and it now seems to call for a lot more fabric so I don't feel bad that I definitely needed more than I originally bought.  However, it did claim that you needed 1 yard of fabric to make your own bias tape which was way, way, too much.  

Once I got over these minor issues, the sewing was quite easy.  Diagrams and photos are very clear and really, because I have experience in garment sewing, I didn't have to more than glance at them.

I think it turned out great.  I had to do the hair in two buns cause it's just so stinkin' cute with the dress.  I do wish it was about 3-4" longer.  Aurora is barely a size 7 and that's what I made, but I think it being shorter makes it less formal.  I was going to add length but I didn't have enough fabric anyway.

For Theo I made a tie from my Kingdom fabric that matches the bow on her dress. He was clear he wanted blue even though I wanted something golden like her dress.

And here is the whole happy family.  My husband gets frustrated that I make everyone stand through the portraits, but I'm always so glad I did when I have one like this where we all look our best.  Are they better than spontaneous fun pictures?  No, but nice nonetheless.  

After brunch, we went to a carosel.  How appropriate that Theo chose the bunny. 

And I love this action shot of Aurora.

Hope you've enjoyed your spring and are ready for summer.  I know I am!

JT

 

 

203: more christmas do-dads

Just a few more little christmas gifts that I hadn't got around to posting.

I added these little embroidered sprouts (vines?) to a yummy fur-lined sweatshirt from Old Navy for my Aunt.  (I know, not my best picture taking this time around.)

Here's some things I learned: Don't over-iron tiny bits of fabric adhered with fusible web.  The glue can sort of start to melt away and they won't stick too well.  Also, use a round-tipped needle when embroidering on knit.  You'd think that one would have been obvious to me since I know to do that for machine sewing, but it took me a bit to figure it out.

I also made these coat hook plaques for my sister's apartment.  They're inexpensive wood plaques from Michaels that I painted and mod podged fabric onto.  When I use mod podge on fabric I find it best to paint a layer on the the back of the fabric before cutting it and let it dry.  This makes the fabric stiff and allows you to cut without frayed edges and it seems to prevent so many bubbles.

JT

200: holidays

Phew!  Nice little "blog breather" there.  Wish I had something more monumental to share on this, my 200th post, but alas, just a bit of catch-up.

In my usual delayed fashion I haven't really talked about the holidays.  Of course they were busy, busy, busy over here.  I made a bunch of gifts, but I'll have to share most of them at a later date.

But to start with, this is an awesome project I did for my sister.  She just moved into her very very own city apartment and of course I had to help with the decor.

This is a large canvas that I painted and then mod podged on some fabric.  The inspiration is actually from a bedding set, but it was totally different colors, in a different scale, and had no print fabric.  So it's not a copy at all.

But I did make it to coordinate with this bedding set I got her.  I'm not going to put a link because I'm sure by the time anyone cares, it will be long gone, but it was from Macy's.  

It was fun to do.  I normally sew stuff so painting was a departure.  Actually if I could have found a background fabric that coordinated well, I probably would have sew this too, and then stretched it on canvas, but time was limited.  Painting is always a bit more difficult than I think it will be, but I'm quite pleased with how it came out.

Our holidays were mostly spent at home.  I enjoyed my newly converted wood burning fireplace and spent lots of time just hanging out with the kids.  I've even completed an entire quilt since the new year! (More on that later).

Here are a few of the basic holiday holiday portraits.  Aurora chose her own dress this year which she was just dying for, so I went with it.

Hope you had great holidays and that your new year is shaping up to be a good one.

JT

199: bean bag checkers tutorial

This was a Christmas gift I made last year for my then 3-year-old son.  Bean bag checkers!  So simple, and yet I knew he would love them. 

I didn't take a ton of pictures as I went along so this is a more basic tutorial intended for those who already sew/quilt.  If you're a total newbie, it's really not an advanced project at all, but you may need to look up instructions for things like binding etc.

Materials:

 The fabric I used was from the Hooty Hoot collection, designed by Shari Butler of Doohickey Designs for Riley Blake.  As far as I know it's no longer available.  But you can use any fabric (doesn't all have to be from the same collection) that has small creatures or motifs on it.  Check out some of Shari's other collections for cute animals.

1/4 yd each of two contrasting board fabrics (also used for the back of the pieces)

16x 16 piece of backing fabric (or 1 fat quarter)

1/4 yd of binding fabric

1/4 yd of pocket fabric

Enough of the fabric for pieces to cut out 12 of each motif (you need two different motifs that are about 1 1/2"-1 3/4" square)

12 1/2" piece of Velcro

Grain for the "bean" bag pieces

 

The basic rundown of the project is as follows:

            1. Make a mini patchwork quilt board.

            2. Add pocket on back and then bind the whole thing.

            3. Sew little beanbag pieces.

 

Use 1/4" seams unless otherwise noted.

 

The Board:

Cutting:

2 strips , 2 3/8" x WOF, of each of the board fabrics

Construction:

Sew the 4 strips, right sides together, alternating colors, along their long edges.  Press seams in one direction.  Crosscut this strip set in half perpendicular to the seams.  Sew the 2 smaller sets together so that you have 8 alternating stripes.  Press the seam in the direction of the others.

Crosscut this strip set into 8 rows 2 3/8" tall.  Sew these rows together along their long edge, flipping every other row to create the checkerboard pattern.  Press seams to one side.  You will have a board top 8 squares x 8 squares that is about 15 1/2" x 15 1/2"

Sandwich the backing, batting and front and quilt through the layers.  I simply used a straight line on the diagonal through the darker blocks.  Baste around the edges, 1/8" from the edges on the front.  Trim the batting and backing close to the edge of the front.

 

The Pocket:

Cutting:

2 rectangles 5 1/2" x 15 1/2" (you might want to measure your board top and cut these pieces a little wider if needed) (for the pocket pieces I used 2 different fabrics, but you can use just 1)

2 rectangles 2 3/4" x 14 1/2" (for pocket flap)

Construction:

Sew the pocket pieces with right sides together along the top and bottom long edges.  Leave the sides open.  Turn right side out through a side opening and press.

Sew the flap pieces with right sides together along each side and the long bottom edge, leaving the top long edges open.  Clip corners, turn right side out and press.

Center the Velcro strips on the top outside edge of the pocket piece and the bottom inside edge of the flap piece.  Sew them in place about 1/4" from each edge.

Place the pocket piece on the back of the board so it's top edge (with the Velcro) is about 1 1/4" from one of the board's raw edges.  The pocket's raw side edge should align with the board on 2 sides.  Pin in place and baste 1/8" from the raw edge.  Flip the board and align so the pocket it at the top.  Stitch-in-the-ditch along the bottom of the 3rd row of squares (this should catch the bottom of the pocket all the way across.  If it doesn't work out right, you should move your pocket to make sure this seam will sew it on.

Place the pocket flap so the raw edge is centered on the top raw edge of the board.  Baste 1/8" from that edge.

Next, bind the edges of the board using your preferred method of binding. 

 

The Pieces:

Cutting:

Fussy-cut 12 squares 2 1/4" x 2 1/4" of each of the motif fabrics

12 squares 2 1/4" x 2 1/4" of each of the board fabrics

Construction:

With right sides together, sew the pieces fronts and backs together (one color of the board fabrics should got with all the same motif … like my white/blue owls have a blue backing and the green brown ones have a brown back).  Sew around all sides, leaving a 1" opening in the center of one side for turning.  Trim the corners.  Turn them right side out through the hole.

Make yourself a small paper funnel and use that to stuff the squares with some kind of grain.  I think I used barley because I had it and beans seemed too big.  You could also use rice or really any kind of grain.  I guess in theory this could become a snack for mice depending on where you store it, so keep that in mind…

Sliptstich the openings closed.

You can now store the pieces in the pocket and you're ready to play at any time!

 

I originally thought of including a ribbon or a button elastic closure so it could be stored rolled up.  But in the end I like to simply fold it in half because it's flatter.

Enjoy!  And please do share picture in my flickr pool if you make one...

JT 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

197: Errol and Hermione

It's time for this year's Halloween creations... a continuation of our Harry Potter mania.

I didn't really have to make much for Aurora's Hermione Granger costume, because I had already made most of it for her birthday party.

But, Theo decided to be Errol (The Weasley family's owl. He couldn't be Hedwig because she's a girl.)  That was more of a challenge.

In reality he first wanted to be a Chihuahua, but really?  How exactly does one make that?  I mean I can do pointy ears, but he'd just look like a cat.  So with some mild suggestion he went with owl.  Yay!  So much cute potential.

So, no, I did not use a pattern.  I referenced a hood on a commercial pattern, but that's about it.  I started with this Beenie Babies owl called "Hoot" I have and used it as a model.

The body is made of fleece.  It's lined and stuffed with polyfill and batting.  The tail does stick out a bit and has more stuffing.  Then I added the "feathers".  They are flannels, fleeces, and wools and because I didn't want some to fray more than others I fray checked all the edges.  Yes, I'm psycho like that.

They are sewn on everywhere but around the face (where they are glued).  I also added little pleats in the tops of each one to add volume.

The body is velcroed (is that a word?) at the shoulders, as are the removable wings.  There were even little pockets to keep his hands warm (which was a good idea considering that, indeed, that is snow on the ground).

He was a big hit everywhere we went.  He had two Halloween parades and he was able to go trick-or-treating this year (he was sick last year).

 

Aurora was an adorable Herminone.  I had attempted to make the cloak accurate to the movie, but really did you know they change from movie-to-movie?  So I went with my best interpretation.  The patch was bought.  The tie was made (I even made the striped fabric by sewing on ribbons) because the color of the commercial ones was all wrong.  The sweater was from a thrift store with ribbons sewn at the collar.

I made the wand also, which I will go into on the posts about her party, whenever they are.  Sadly, it was a casualty of the night as it got dropped and ruined.

The funnest (don't care that that's not a word) accessory was the book.  It was an old book, and we didn't bother to change the title or anything.  But what we did do was make it scream when you opened it.  I bought one of those recordable greeting cards and we all yelled really loud and told you to "shut the book, would ya!".  The idea was like it was one of the magical books from the restricted section of the library.  She loved it and enjoyed showing it to all her classmates.  Plus, who is Hermione without a book?

Hope you had a Happy Halloween!

JT

 

 

179: troop 96

First off, thanx for all your praise of Kingdom. I'm so excited to see what many of you will sew with it, so promise you'll share, OK?  And I promise there will be more posts to come with my projects etc., when I get the fabric.

So, I feel like I have a ton to post about and just no time to get to it.  I will be a tease and tell you I have big, giant, HUGE news coming this month!

One project I haven't shared yet is this banner I made for Aurora's Daisy Scout Troop.  They marched in the a local St. Patrick's day parade with it, but sadly I was in Hawaii and missed it. However, they are supposed to use this for many years to come, so I'm sure I'll get to see it in action.

I hear it was cold, but they had a good time. And the troop just loved the banner.  The girls each added a little decoration to a leaf with their name on it.  Is it bad that I didn't actually want them to contribute? I knew they needed to do something to make it their own, but I wanted to keep it with the fabric leaves.  But I was a good mom and let go of the control (a little anyway). :)

JT

176: this and that

I'm back with a couple more little projects.

This first project was a hannukah gift for my brother-in-law's family.  It's a challah cover.  Basically it's a mini quilt the size of a large napkin.  I didn't put batting in the middle because I wanted it to have more drape so I just used a a layer of muslin instead. And as you can see I didn't bind it...I did the sew-around-the-edges-and-flip-right-side-out method.

The characters read "shabbat" if I did it correctly. I don't read hebrew.  It's made of linen and scraps of print fabrics (all from my scrap bin!). 

I quilted it with double straight lines inside the linen. The characters are raw-edge applique.

This one, I didn't make.  My sister did.  Isn't it the cutest? She gave it to my Aurora for christmas. It's a bag, and I think the pattern was in Crochet Today.

Did I tell you I finally started a craft night?  I mean, really.  Finally.  So now once a month I get to get together with some lovely ladies and chat and craft.  Fun! and hopefully productive too...

JT

 

 

172: christmas cuties

Well, I had good intentions to get back onto the blogging bandwagon.  Then life happened. 

OK, maybe not life so much as my obsessive tendencies.  See, I started to crochet a bit over the holiday.  At first I was working on my blanket.  But that's going nowhere fast.  So I decided I need a more achievable goal.  And I started this amazing shrug from Rowan's Summer Crochet book.  My plan is to wear it when I go to Hawaii.  Once I started, I could not stop...

Until sickness hit.  Not that I ever really enjoy reading about people's illnesses, but Oy!  I've been totally out of commission for over a week now.  Bronchitis with a side of not being able to sleep at all.  So, an entire week of my life is gone with nothing to show for it but a very lived-in bed.  I'm going a little bonkers (little might be the understatement of the year).  And until the last day or so I wasn't even well enough to crochet or check my email for that matter.  It occurs to me that I'm making light of this, but for my future self's reference, it was really quite devastating. I was totally reliant on others and couldn't really even be a mom for the week.

So, here's hoping things turn around quickly.  I'm almost done with the shrug and I'll share pix soon.

But for now here are some shots of a few gifts I made for Xmas.  These darling mermaids are from the amazing Wee Wonderfuls book by Hillary Lang.  I wish I had more time to make gifts from it...

 

I embellished these kitchen towels and made a potholder for my sister.  The fabric is Veggie Patch by Blank Textiles.  The graphic look is right up my alley.

I also made an adorable checkers set for Theo, but I'm going to try to post a tutorial of it for you all.

And finally a little look at my own two cuties at Christmas.  We did a whole matching family thing this year with purple and grey as the colors.

JT 

171: not to be remiss...

...but I freaking love Christmas!  I literally haven't touched my computer in three days.  Only happens this time of year.

I do need to post the winner of the Little Girls, Big Style giveaway though.

The winner is Sara B, and she has been contacted.

I did get my own copy and now I just need to get motivated to start sewing.

But for now, back to my blissful Christmas cocoon.  I do have some goodies I made to share with you, so I promise some pictures next time!

JT

168: boo to you

Yes, I know Halloween is over.  I shall not apologize for being approximately one holiday behind, especially since I still haven't blogged Aurora's September birthday pictures.

Anyway, these are just a few little halloween loose ends.  First the yummy cookies I made for Theo's class.  I tried to reduce my work by only using two icing colors, but, yes, they still took more time than 3-year-olds could possibly care about.  My problem is I freaking love sugar cookies.  Yum!  So I'll make for any ol' reason ...

Next, this is a halloween wall quilt my mom made for me.  Gorgeous, right? It's from a kit from Keepsake Quilting a few years ago.  I think it's a brilliant use of batiks.  I kinda don't want to put it away now.

And finally, a peek at my little costume.  I've got no pix of me in it, so you'll have to deal.  I made the top with my new serger.  :) If you're wondering, the words are Aurora's "word wall words", so that makes me... yes, a spelling bee.  It's pretty lame that I feel the need to explain that, but no one really got it, which is mostly a reflection of the limited creativity I put into it. But it was quick, cute, and totally appropriate for an elementary school party.

I have intentions to be back before Thanksgiving, but just in case...

I am thankful for all my awesome readers!

JT

167: a good witch and a fast driver

Happy Halloween!

 

I hope you're all having a fun day.  I love Halloween.  I don't often get to dress up anymore but I miss it.  Maybe next year I'll have a party?  I did actually dress up for Aurora's school party this year, but nothing too elaborate.  I didn't take pictures.  Maybe I'll snap a few soon.

But, of course, I get to channel my costuming energies into the kids.  I'll be so sad when (if?) they don't want homemade anymore.  Did you know that Aurora's monster costume is kinda famous?  Aside from the inquiries I get, my sister saw someone that doesn't know her printed the picture out as part of their decoration at Burning Man.  It's so bizarre to think something spreads around like that.

This year Aurora wanted to be Glinda.  It's much more poofy pinkness than I would have chosen, but I have to admit she looked beautiful.  

 

She helped with the design.  She wanted nothing to do with the tall crown from the movie.  And she really like the bow on a lace-up corset.  And it must be short-sleeved for the party, but have a jacket for trick-or-treating.

 

I used 2 patterns to refer to.  The top is from Simplicity 3680.  The little jacket is based on the dress pattern McCalls 5954.  The corset I just made my own muslin for and the skirt is made up.

Even though nearly everyone called her a princess, she is very appreciative and I love sewing for her.

This year, for the first time she did a little trick-or-treating with some other kids in the neighborhood.  The image of her running along holding up her skirt with a huge smile on her face is one I'll treasure forever.  I wish I had video.

Theo requested race car driver (big surprise).  He's not too big on the whole costume thing.

 
He really doesn't want to try them on before the big day.  As a result his is a bit snug.  A little short in the torso.  

I based his on these firesuit costumes.  I used McCalls 5952 as a reference, but changed it a little.

 

Sadly, he was sick today.  In no shape to go out trick-or-treating.  I was hoping I could get him into it for 1 or 2 houses, just to say he went out, but no go. 

 

Oh well, at least he was happy in the pictures.  Plenty of goofing around.

I hope you all had a great night.  There's more chocolate calling my name right now.

JT

P.S. Can I ask you guys for a favor?  Can some of you click on a picture or two and tell me if the pop-up picture is more vibrant than the one in the post?  I'm having some trouble with Typepad where my photos get desaturated when I resize them to anything but the full size in the post. It's bumming me out, but I want to see if it's only on my computer.  Anyone else have this problem?

152: 9 years

Yesterday was my anniversary.  9 years.

Would I do it all over again?  Absolutely.

I don't think our photos look too dated yet... but, boy, do we look young.

Next year is the big 1-0.  We're planning a second honeymoon to Hawaii.  Woot!

JT