inkstitch

under the tree

These little girls are just a couple of the handmade goodies that were kept underground for the holidays.  I'll try to share a few more over the coming days and weeks (but you know me and blogging, so no promises!).  Inspiration came from the Black Apple, and of course it was easy to use only stash supplies.  In fact, these little dollies are the perfect project to use carefully saved bits of favorite fabrics, because they showcase them so beautifully.  I did put rice into their little bottoms, which gives them a nice weight, which I love -- but I wish I hadn't!  What was I thinking?  The girls already need a wash, and the washing machine would, um, come in handy for that.  Der.  So they each may need to endure a minor remodel when I rip a little seam and try to re-stuff.  I'm still debating.  Meanwhile, though, they are a huge hit, and are the constant companions of their new little mama.  Gotta love that!  :)

we've got bibs

A peek at one bit of making last month....
 














I made about a dozen of these, for Julia and for some of her smallest cousins.  I don't have photos of all of them because I suck at that, and they left my house before it occurred to me, yet again, that I like to photograph this stuff.



















They are all reversible, all from the scrap basket. 
 















That yellow one with little red flower-cherry-things is my favorite.  Red ric-rac?  How could it not be?  Besides, the back is from an awesome green tablecloth I thrifted a few weeks back.  Love that.















The patchwork was very, very fun.  This would be an ideal project for a beginning sewist, all those curved edges and the clipping and the turning and the topstitching... plus all the fun of selecting and patching the fabrics -- but none of the pressure.  Like, I didn't even change thread colors for the topstitching.  I know, I should have, but I let myself off the hook sometimes.  Because, well, it's a bib, and somebody is going to smear it with crackers and strained peas.

















(PS: Is anyone else going out of their minds with the new Typepad composition screen??  How the heck do you make your images align the way you like, without all this extra space between the text and the photos!  Gah!  I don't have  time to blog as it is, and fiddling with this is making me CRAZY!!)

just in time

May you have a peaceful and joyous celebration.

The One About the Cats

You may remember Miss Kitty from a few posts back.  Meet Wyatt, Alice, Steve and Sherman.  They are her progenitors, my first attempts at stuffed toys.  I know I'm a little late to this game; there are some really great stuffed sewers around the blogoshpere, and they've inspired me, obviously.  This gang was created completely from "found" materials: from the stash, the scrap basket, or the clothing-on-its-way-to-donation box.  The topic of over-consumption is always on my mind, so I really enjoy this kind of recycling.

Sherman's blue was rescued from a musty, dusty box of found fabric in my mother's garage; Alice was formerly a great sweater (that I really never should have been painting in); Steve is quilt scraps.  Wyatt may be my favorite... He is made from a retired pair of wool pants.  He belongs to Ian, who feels his face is crooked and his eyes don't match, but has become satisfied with him anyway.  Hehe. 

The basic form for these came from Denyse Schmidt's pattern.  They were a quick and easy response to, When are you going to make something for me?  Well, right now.  One for each of you.  And they are very loved.

needle case

Nothing like a clever post title, eh?  That's alright, just look: the pure sunshine-factor of this dang cute needle case will make up for any lack of illumination in my writing.

I mentioned before, crochet has been getting its share of project time lately.  Aside from being nicely portable, it is also a very winter-y thing to do-- and since I'm still not sure spring will ever get here, that fits about right.

As always, My Current Project Interest = My Girls' Current Project Interest.  They (especially she, since one of my girls is currently out of project mode) always gravitate toward whatever it is I am doing.  This is why my Nat has owned her own sewing machine since she was six: she loves to be working alongside me, whatever the craft.

But I'm digressing here.  Simply put, we need more than one crochet hook in each size, which means that we have a lot of crochet hooks which need a home.  And now they have one.  A very, very pretty patchwork one.

Patchwork is one of the pure joys of sewing.  It's the recess; the dessert; the Girl's Night Out of the sewing project week.  Aside from the fact that the fabric combinations can make a girl giddy, one fabulous thing about patchwork is the opportunity to use little bits of fabrics you are hoarding, the ones you love so much you can't bring yourself to use them all up at once.  This little case is backed in one of my prettiest thrifted sheet finds, that I have used ever-so-sparingly.  It has a place to put sewing needles (I didn't have any yarn size ones to do the modeling for me - been needing to get some) for weaving in ends and assembling, and flaps to cover both the hooks and the needles so they won't slip out when tossed in a to-go tote.  It closes with some pretty grosgrain, since I just happen to have some on hand!

And it has an excellent button, just because.

See?  Isn't that a nice bit of sunshine?

WIP

Stitching done by Ian, from a drawing also done by Ian...  Will be made into something special soon....

Meet Kitty

She is on her way to Annie's house to live, and she's a bit nervous.  She has her own nap quilt, pillow and mattress, all to tuck her into her little box-bed when she gets overwhelmed.  She can be coy, but is mostly just eager to please and hoping for a chance to cuddle. 

I've made very few stuffeds, and I find them to be a bit tricky, a very different kind of sewing from my norm.  The pattern is my own, and although she turned out sweet, I'm not entirely pleased.   I don't like the "wonkiness" of her shape... I liked it in the drawing, but sewn up it kind of looks like a mistake.  Also, her dress was a little too stiff and shapeless.  The box-bed is a discarded cell phone box, trimmed in pretty paper and "laminated" for sturdiness with packing tape.  Kind of a kitschy addition, but I have made these boxes for my kids before, and they love them.  (And hey, that packing tape holds up pretty well!) 

I used buttons, both on the dress and for the eyes, even though there are babies in her new home.  I sewed the little buggers on good, and the mama at that house is a maker-of-things herself, so she'll not be bewildered at re-sewing a button if one seems loose.  Although I would change a few things (and I might get my chance), Kitty was quick and fun to make (I thrive on instant gratification), and I'm pretty sure she'll a big hit with the recipient.

We now return you to your (not so) regularly scheduled Make Blog

First, just this: Three patches. No definite plans.

But coming soon, this: Freshly cut, and almost finished...

destiny

This wants very much to become pillows for my sofa.

On the table tonight: Beefy-cheese pasta

a little fabric love

Many months ago I began some new work, and it quickly became overwhelming and all encompassing and ate up my former fabric-collecting, bread-baking, sunshine-loving self. I have not quite found my balance with all this, but I will!  Meanwhile, as I have been away from my sewing machine so long it makes my tummy ache, I will share some fabric love at least...  I think everyody has seen these somewhere -- But the love! Look again! Oh, don't they just beg to be a bag, a quilt, a pillow, or one of these fantastic floor matts? *Sigh* I need to find time to play very, very soon!!

First, the Amy stuff I am currently coveting:

I pretty much love everything in this collection. If I were spending fifty bucks today, it would go here.  Such restraint...

And I had to throw this one in as well:

Yes, I am really needing some fabric therapy!  Maybe a trip to the local shop for a fat quarter, at least...

piles of found fabric IV

And more.  (I saved the best for last)  Enjoy!

piles of found fabric III

I am doing these in multiple posts because I think it is so fun to look at old fabric patterns and I wanted to show them each individually (although my favorite photo is that one of the stack.  Oh boy!). 
On to more:

piles of found fabric II

Tough decision where to start in the fabric box.  There are actually two.  Dusty medium-sized totes that my sisters and I packed away sometime in the eighties.  At the time we were cleaning out a storage room in the basement, and these piles of fabric were shuffled from cardboard into plastic without a glance and hidden away with foldaway steel highchairs and grandpa's tool chest above the garage (so they've really not been looked at since even before that).  There are so many great things here, am just tickled.  Every cut is better than the one before.  Some are big -- 3 or 4 yards; others are just a half or so; none are scraps.  Some are thin and filmy and I am not sure what I will do with them.  Several others are heavier, for suits, and many of the livliest prints are decorator weight cotton canvas...

Okay, okay, let's get to the fabric!

We'll begin with one of my favorites.  (K has already claimed some of this for a tote.)

piles of found fabric

After more than three decades in the same home, my mother is sorting things in preparation for a move.  She is a very talented and creative seamstress, but her budget "back in the day" was much too limited to buy fabric prolifically.  Even now she is not the type to spend money on fabric she doesn't need for a current project.  Nevertheless, whether intentionally collected or not, a seamstress can't help but amass at least a small stash.  Here's a sneak peek...  Let's spend the next few days sorting through a box of fabric with her, shall we?  (Did I mention this box came from the garage loft, and hasn't been opened in, oh, 25 or 30 years?)

The Stitching Corner

Two posts in one day?  Well yes, because although I said it was a day for catching up on laundry and blog reading, as it turns out, the laundry can wait.  I have puttered and played.  I have baked cookies. (I should have "accomplished" more.  Responsible things. I have work to do!  Bah!  You see what a winter vacation can do to a person?)  I have also spent time on the computer and amidst my fabric.  (Surely that counts as accomplishment.)  And now there is this, the finished block.  There are some places that I am rather dissatisfied with, but I won't be picking any stitches out.  I won't be pointing out the rough spots either (the main one is unfortunately obvious anyway).  :(   Nevertheless, it was ... fun? well, satisfying, anyway to do such an intense block.  Actual dimensions are 12 1/2 x 12 1/2 inches, machine pieced (with over two hundred pieces!).  I am quite happy with the area around the quilts in the trunk and also those balls of yarn and knitting needles.

And then the mail came, and there was this, the pretty fabric used here, by this artsy-craftsy superwoman.  I am already buzzing over how to use it.  Thank you Beki!

On the table tonight: chicken and vegetables

fabric finds

Eeek!  Husband was so very generous today in accompanying me to the local Goodwill, and even lending his enthusiasm over my finds.  I was giddy (really, giddy!) to be there, so "in the mood" was I to hunt.  I am new to the idea of thrifting for fabric, and my-oh-my I do believe I overdid it, but I am coming home with some lovely stuff!  Besides, how much can you overdo yards of fabric for only $2.99?  -- Well, $2.99 times... well anyway, it was a deal, I tell ya!

Did you get a good look at the green one?  A bit reminiscent of yesterday's lamp, no?

And these kitties are awfully cute...

Christmas quilts (and projects) #2

A very grey Monday here.  Snow is still falling, and all is beautiful, but I am not in the proper mood to appreciate it.  I love winter very much through the holidays, but by the time March is getting near, my affection begins to wane.  For today, we'll honor the snow and post more Christmas projects.

First, one of my favorite. The stockings were a very time-intensive project, but I loved doing them and I loved looking at them. (It was so convenient that they were to hang on the fireplace where I could sit and admire them while pretending to be reading.  Amazingly enough, there is no great photo! Shame!) Each stocking is my own pattern, machine pieced, quilted, and lined in coordinating fabric.  Don't be surprised if I try to sneak in a second post about these next December!
Quilt #2 in the Christmas Quilt line up:  There are over thirty different greens in this quilt, and over seven hundred strips.  It is my biggest so far, at 90x100 inches.  It was also a lot of fun.  I loved the freedom of choosing so many fabrics, and the loose, strippy style. Smaller projects included ruffled, monogrammed aprons inspired by the tie one one theme (but never posted to the gallery -- I forgot to send them in time): And this quilt, which was a last-minute gift for a last-minute Christmas houseguest who loves purple.  It is tied, using very large blocks of fabric that went together quickly.  And yes, I machine-stitched the binding, even though my quilt-perfectionist friend would never dream of taking such a shortcut!  (I am on the right. Love that Christmas morning hair.)

sources for renewal

This is the view from my window this week.  There is never a day when I do not feel blessed to live here.  This view is from my front window -- and my favorite view is from the back!  There is just beauty all around me.  That house is my neighbor's, and mine is older and uglier, and needs much TLC to get it the way we'd like it to be, but I don't mind because of this beauty. 

I managed to spend most of the day away from the computer yesterday.  Had a lovely lunch with friend Andrea and a brief but satisfying stop at the quilt shop down the road.  I have been a bit overwhelmed and under-appreciated lately, which has made me whiney, so a kid-free lunch and fabric was just what I needed.

On the table tonight: ?? (dunno yet - teen party food - yikes!)

pink repurposed

Remember this? 

It has now become this:
For a child who loves to dress up.  Everyday, within moments of coming in the door, she has put on an ensemble similar to this.  The flowy, silky fabric of the dress was perfect for her to feel lovely in.  It also became several of these:
And (hurray!) I am almost finished with these:
I am ever-so-slowly closing the gap between me and feeling caught up on projects that I owe to people.  Now if only I could get off  the computer!  I have only had a blog for a few posts, but already I know I need to join Blair in a Free Friday!

On the table tonight: pizza

my almost first ever bags

Last month K got a sewing machine for her birthday.  She was so excited (and I am so excited that she is excited).  She has done some sewing, but we decided a side-by-side tutorial was in order.  N has this machine (she suddenly is dissatisfied, but it will have to do for now) so the three of us spent Saturday making these bags.  I made my first ever lined bag for Christmas, so these are only my second attempts, but I am immensely pleased, and so are the girls.  Bags could be rather addicting, actually!  Such quick gratifictaion!  I love what reading blogs has done for my motivation to try new things.  Inspiration came from here, among other places.  They are my own pattern (each slightly different), but simialr to this. (Although I have never put in a magnetic button.  Maybe I will try that next time.)

They each have coordinating lining

And N's has this pretty flower detail, which she learned a blanket stitch for.  She did much, but not all of her sewing herself.  The blanket stitch is mostly hers.

On the table tonight: stuffed scones

fabric postcards

I joined this group before Christmas.  Christmas was utterly overloaded with projects (more on that later), but I did manage to do these as a displacement activity.  Of course, being my very first swaps of any sort I signed up for way too many and got behind -- January seemed so far away! --  but now I am catching back up, having set new "rules" to babysit myself and guard against over-commitment!  Really, if I could just have a day or two a week off of my day job, I could fit in all this sewing so much better....

the pink dress

Last week's thrifting also yielded this little lovely.  Oh, come on, you know you want to wear it...   This is my first ever buy-it-just-to-cut-it-up purchase.  I mean, except for halloween remodels.  I am inspired by all the thrifted remakes I see out there.  I bought this purely for the fun print.  Eventually it will become a few of these (although mine are quite elementary by comparison).  I have some overdue cards for a "Hot Pink" theme that will be created this weekend, yay!

new apron love

Last Saturday, K, L and E went sledding.  My wonderful, fabulous, sexy JB sent N and I out for “me” time (well, me-plus-one time) and stayed home with the littlest, “working” (although I happen to know how little work actually can be accomplished when one is home taking care of the boys by oneself). He had more illustrations to work on this weekend. (Big freelance project we are oh-so-happy to have... I won’t go into detail about this happiness, I’ll just say “bad leak in second-story bathroom + water running down kitchen walls = gratitude for freelance income.)  While out, N and I stopped at the antique store.  She was completely taken with the vintage aprons, and the proprietor was taken with her (the delight of having a seven-year-old who loves vintage aprons and handmade toys!).

Once back home we set everyone up in the kitchen.  We love to pile everyone on top of each other some days.  Big kids busy with homework, nachos, and cards; little kids in and out with Legos or rhinos or dress-up; JB at work, me cooking our favorite potato soup and sewing.  I have a room to sew in, but for days like this I move it all up to the kitchen.  This is when we are most happy to have our eight-foot dining table! 

Sometime after the first round of nachos I introduced N to tie one on.  She was smitten.  She dug through her closet and came up with this dress, and, armed with her own sketches, began cutting.  She did all the design, cutting, and sewing herself, with only direction from me.  Her first apron!  She has watched the January gallery slideshow dozens of times, and shown everyone she knows.  She thinks she has joined the coolest club ever.  (She’s right, of course – thanks Amy.)