Monday, September 23, 2013

Polka Dot Progress :)


I finished the quilt top on Friday.
Not too bad for a day's work :)
This was my first every diamond pattern.
Why didn't anyone tell me how challenging
it is to sew everything in diagonal lines?
Well I guess the sewing diagonal lines wasn't the challenge,
but lining up all the intersections was the real challenge.
I had to get up close and personal with my seam ripper
quite a few times to get those little diamonds to line up.


Now for the really hard part......
trying to decide exactly how to quilt it.

Don't you just love all those polka dots?
I do :)

And I had to throw in some gingham just for good measure!


Today it's back to work on project bags.
I'm hoping to get started on the hand quilting in the evenings
while the hubs watches his 
"shoot-em-up-everyone-dies" kinda movies :)

Friday, September 20, 2013

A Perfect Day to Start a Quilt :)


I've been so busy with the shop lately
that I haven't had any time to quilt at all.
Well today that will change!

I promised to make a quilt for my darling 
grand-daughter Sofie a while back.
I thought it only right that I finish it before
she starts college. (She's 2 now :)

My beautiful DIL chose this free pattern
from Riley Blake.
Can you believe that they offer over 100
free quilt patterns?
Seriously....how cool is that?
You can find them HERE.

The fabrics she chose are just so yummy!
I have my templates cut out.
I have a big pot of Teeccino brewed.
(Teeccino dandelion g/f coffee replacement)
I have a new blade in my rotary cutter.
The weather has finally changed to cooler temps.

Lets do this!!!


Sunday, September 15, 2013

Pin It Blog Hop

Today is day 5 of the Pin-It! Blog Hop!

Thanks to Mdm Samm and our cheerleader Kristen @ Meadowbrook
 for hosting such a fun hop!

There have been so many awesome pincushions so far
and I can't wait to see what today brings!
Click on the button on the right
to check out all the pincushions from last week
and follow the links at the bottom of this post
for all of today's creative goodness :)

For my pincushion
I decided to make a Minion for myself.
He is my own design
and I did not make a pattern.
I think like all Minions,
he should be unique :)
Because as we all know,
If I only had a Minion I could get more done :)

So I'd like to introduce you to Kevin.
He is my new helper.
Just look at those sweet eyes......

There is NO WAY
I could EVER stab him with a pin......

So instead,
I gave him his own little pincushion to hold :)
Problem solved. 
Now he can just sit next to me
while I sew and smile his cute little smile.
He works for bananas,
so he's cheap labor  easy to care for.


Check out these crazy talented bloggers!!!



Thursday, September 12, 2013

Bags, Bags, Bags.....


I know it seems as though I haven't been posting much lately.
I've been sewing every....single.....day......
I've been so blessed that my Etsy shop has really kept me busy.
The awesome part is that I really love making these project bags!
It gives me the excuse to buy fabrics
that I've always thought were cute,
but never had a use for in my own life.
To hear from my customers when they are 
happy with their orders
and especially the repeat customers
is such a great feeling :)


It's also great that all my "Sisters" at church have these bags too.
We use them for our Bible study materials.
I look around the room on Wednesday nights
and see my bags on the table :)
Makes my heart happy!


I put my heart into each one :)
With Christmas just around the corner
I'm using my time in between custom orders
to fill the shop for the holiday shoppers.
I still need some Nana time to work on projects
for my own little Minions.


Also I"m working on a pincushion for the Pin It Hop.
My turn to share is on Monday.
The hop is going on now.
Click on the Pin It button on the right
and check out the awesome pincushions on display :)









Monday, September 9, 2013

Hexie Button Jewelry Tutorial

Every "Sewista" needs fun accessories, right?
Make them for yourself
or for someone you know who loves to sew :)

What you will need:

4mm open jump rings
7mm open jump rings
Package ear wires
lobster claw
1" piece chain with links large enough for the lobster claw
jewelry pliers
sharp craft scissors
1/16th Martha Stewart Handpunch
Phoomph by Coats & Clark (Stiff)
fabric scraps at least 1" square
co-ordinating buttons (1 for each hexie)
Fabric glue (I used Aleene's OK To Wash)
Download Hexie template


It would be best
 to read through all the directions
before you begin :)

A few months back I watched a online video 
for a product called Phoomph for fabric.
It's made by Coats & Clark
and it comes in either stiff or soft.
I couldn't wait to use it!
To see more about it click HERE.

I bought mine from Joann's online,
but they carry it in the store as well.

First you will need to download the hexie template.
I found it HERE. (Genius right?)
Don't forget to say "Thanks" 
and leave her a lovely comment!
I printed it out full size,
then used my copier to shrink it down 50%.
Cut out your tiny hexies
Then cut the Phoomph into 1" strips
and then into 1" squares.
Peel off the paper and attach your fabric
and then peel the backside and repeat.
I didn't bother to cut my fabric into 1" squares,
I just stuck the Phoomph onto my fabric scrap
and cut around the little square.
So much easier than trying to line up
1" pieces of fabric.


Hold your paper hexie firmly
 against the 1" double sided fabric square
and cut around your template.
I originally drew the shape onto the fabric,
but with these tiny shapes, 
holding it in place went faster
and I ended up with better results.


For  the earrings:
Use your handpunch and 
punch your hole at the top "point" of the hexie.


For the bracelet:
Punch your holes along 2 opposite flat sides.


Choose your buttons
and attach them according to the directions
on the glue package.
I allowed my buttons to "cure" over night
before I went to the next step.

 For the earrings:
Attach 7mm jump rings to the earrings
using the holes you made.
Use your jewelry pliers to gently close the rings.


Attach a 4mm jump ring to each 7mm jump ring
and attach an ear wire,
then gently close the 4mm jump ring 
with your jewelry pliers.
You have now connected the ear wire and the hexie.
The 4mm jump ring assures
that the hexie will hang correctly in your ears.
Your earrings are done.
Stand back and admire your work :)


For the bracelet:
Use 7mm jump rings to attach your hexies to one another.
Use as many hexies as you need,
depending on the size of your wrist.
I have a 7" wrist and I used 9 hexies.
Gently close the rings,
leaving the first and last ring open.
Attach your lobster claw clasp to one end
and gently close that ring.


Attach the 1" piece of chain to the other end
and gently close that ring.
The chain step is optional but it gives you the ability
to extend your bracelet if necessary.
I added a bead to the end of the chain
with a straight pin and jewelry pliers.
You can also purchase an extender 
at a jewelry supply store that already
has a bead or ball on the end.
If you choose not to use the extender,
you can simply close the other open ring
use your lobster claw to hook directly into it.


Your bracelet is now done.
How fun was that?
Obviously you can make necklaces as well
with maybe 5 hexies in the center
attached to chain on both sides.
So many possibilities!
I have to say,
I love me some Phoomph!












Tuesday, September 3, 2013

Patience......

Guess what?
After 3 weeks of being locked out of my blogger dashboard,

hiring tech support only to be refunded
because they couldn't fix the problem after 13 days,

setting up a  whole new blog.......

I can access my account again!
Woo Hoo!!!

I guess when I kept getting the error msg from Microsoft
that said,
"we are experiencing technical problems
please try again later"

 What they really meant was
try again 3 weeks later!

I find it comical that I just finished stitching
"Patience" by LHN.

Seems fitting,
don't you think?

On a whim I decided to try loggin in 
for the 12,000th time 
and "Voila".....
Here I am :)

I have new safeguards in place 
so that I don't get locked out again.

It's nice to be home :)

Here is my little flock of LHN Sheep Virtues.
I'm lovin' my little sheep :)

They will make a lovely table runner when they are all done.


Now I get to transfer my blog posts from the new blog
over here so that they are all in one place.