The Next Biggest Thing

Todd is going on 4 days now working day and night.  He's pretty sleep deprived and sometimes not making all that much sense.   He told me this morning that during the one hour he got to sleep he dreamed that I came up with this idea that was selling like hot cakes.  Here's his idea.  I'll start taking orders Monday.  Get in on the ground floor while you can.

A Hidden Spot

There's a blog of mine that no one visits.  It was created for one person to see some paintings I was selling -  Ryan.  He saw them, end of story.  I'm posting this because people are asking to see some paintings I've done.  Go here if you'd like to see some from 2007 and before.  They are all gone except for two of them and I'm not willing to part with those two right now.   (The one shown above is one that I still have.)

Since school is starting in a matter of days, I will probably get the urge to break out the paint brushes again and do some more large format work.  That may not make since to you if you don't already know that I teach art for a living.  The kids very much inspire me.  Trying new techniques inspires me.  Change of pace inspires me too.  If I do paint, I'll post them and probably offer to sell them.

Diagonals

I like this shirt.  I have nothing else to say about it.

A Little Sweetness

I haven't posted her face in a while. 
I asked her to smile and she gave me this sweet face.   I hope you're awwwwing right now.

We tried for 6 years to have her.  It's a constant reminder that "Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows."  (James 1:17)  God gave her to us.  There is no doubt in my mind.  I don't have the creativity, craft, skill, intelligence, etc. to produce such a precious child.  She causes me to glorify God and consider his sweetness on a daily basis.

Funny Names

Sarah Beth's vocabulary has grown so much this summer.  We are constantly amazed at what she comes up with at the spur of the moment.  Once last week she said, "Oh they are getting SO married."  What's that mean?  We always ask her what she wants to name different stuffed animals and toys she has.  Here are some of my favorites.  Enjoy.  

1. Peck - Soft fluffy white dog ... lets name him Peck!

2.  Buddy (left) was adopted after Balance.  My favorite is Balance.  Where did she come up with it, I don't know.  None the less, it is so appropriate for a monkey.  You get it?  He needs his balance to be a spry monkey.  Get it?  

3.  Pinky the baby penguin - I liked the name so much that I made Pinky a dress and monogrammed her name on it.  I hope Sarah Beth meant for Pinky to be a girl.

4.  Snuggle Duck really does seem appropriate for him and not at all out of place.

5.  Stun-I don't get this one.  I thought maybe Snow or Princess, but no, it's Stun.

6. Chicky Pooh - because there is a character on Nick Jr. who looks similar named Chicky Pooh. 

What's your favorite name from the list?

Dress

Another comfy knit.  The bottom band is actually the midsection of a shirt that came from the thrift store.  I didn't like it as a shirt, but it matched perfectly with this little tunic. 

There is a pile of aweful clothes in my closet waiting for a little TLC.  They will hopefully find their way into something I make one day.

A close up of the pocket. 

I wear this with brown leggins.

What is it about this shirt?

Honestly I look preggers here.  I've got to do something to this to make it less maternal.  Any suggestions? 

I like the monochromatic look here and the subtlety.  It's hard to tell, but there are two different kinds of pattern prints on this shirt.  For a little contrast I couched some white yarn at the bottom to compliment the rolled hem of the neck line.

My Educated Guess

So you know that both of my sisters are pregnant.  Well Crystal knows she's having a boy and Katee doesn't know what she's having and doesn't want to know.   I've decided to guess.  No, I've not had an epiphany or any angel come down and tell me what it is.  I've got a 50/50 chance though.  So.... I guess it's a boy.  Now if I'm wrong don't go all "You were wrong" on me.  I admit there is a good chance that I'm wrong, but I could be right... or not... but maybe.

Because of my guess, I made my sister Katee a sling that's more boyish than girly.  If he turns out to be a girl, well... we'll stick a pink bow on it.   Since we don't see Katee all that often, I haven't had a chance to give the sling to her.  Sarah Beth hates to see it sitting idly by and often asks to ride in it.  Here's a photo of me carrying her in it.  Katee, I can safely say that if you give birth to a 24 pound baby he will ride securely in this sling. 

New Life for an Old Pullover

Here's my contribution to Greenies.  This used to be my husband's pullover shirt.  I always loved this color on him.  Now it's a wrap shirt with a flower at the snap point.  The front is actually the original back.  The challenge is to use the pieces wisely.  There's no room for mistakes in cutting. 

Shirred Shirt

A shirt from scratch with no pattern. 

It's a trapezoid that's smaller at the top than at the bottom.  I shirred the waist all the way up gradually increasing the elastic spacing.  Honestly, if you are even slightly self-conscious about your midsection, this is not the shirt for you.  It's very flattering to the smaller figure, but not so much for the rest.  If the shirring were a little looser it would probably work for anyone.  I plan to add some handmade flowers to the neck line.

Maybe a tutorial later.

Fleur De Lis Shirt

One of my students created a linoleum block with a fleur de lis design on it.  (It's basically like making a rubber stamp.)  When he was done making his art prints with it, I borrowed it to make my tshirt design. 

This scoop neck tshirt was $4 at Target.  All you need to spiff it up is a little fabric paint and a groovy stamp.  I created a stencil of swirlies and added them to my design since the fleur de lis was only 4 inches by 6 inches.  Later, I added some hot fix crystals for detail.  This is one of my favorite shirts to wear.  It's comfy.  (I like that word.)

Knit Picky

There's a big stigma attached to sewing jersey knit.  I don't know why people are so afraid to tackle it.  For the most part it's way more forgiving than woven fabrics.  

Top 5

Reasons to sew knit:

5.  Mistakes? Where?

4.  Draping is often flattering to the figure and less bulky than wovens.

3.  Raw edges are cool. (knit doesn't ravel)

2.  Who needs a zipper!  Go ahead, stretch it over your head.  It won't hurt.

1.  Comfy, Comfy, Comfy 

I'll pick a knit to wear any day over a woven.  I guess that makes me knit picky!

iPhone Craze

Yesterday Mom, SB, and I went shopping and to a restaurant to eat lunch.  Sarah Beth has been under the weather for what seems like the entire summer.  I thought she was feeling better so we went out to get some fresh air (shopping).   She was a pretty good sport about the whole thing and put up with our wandering for an hour or so.  We rewarded her with a good lunch and some window shopping for toys.  I am blessed to say that she is almost always willing to put something back on the shelf after handling it for a few seconds.  If you ask if she wants something she will generally say, "No. Put it back."  It's always a reminder to me about my own contentment.

Anyway, I looked at my phone to see what time it was and, wow! it was 1:00.  I knew it was well past her lunch time and she was probably really hungry, not to mention, not feeling well either.  I gave her my phone to play with while we waited for our order to come to the table.  She was quiet and never said a word about having to wait.  It was nice because my mom and I could hold a conversation. 

The party at the table next to us noticed how small she was and how easily she could work her way around on the phone.  It's true.  She's a little more than 2, can't read yet, and can navigate the phone like a pro.   The crazy thing is that all together she's probably spent 2 hours total on the phone playing games since I've had the phone.  Apple should advertise the iPhone as something "even a 2 year old can work."  Kids are truly amazing.  I wonder if I was that smart when I was her age.

Serendipity Skirt

There's my face.  I plan to keep it off of most of my pictures, but here, you can see how much I like this skirt.  When I was in the store buying the fabric, there was another customer there who I began to talk with.  I told her I was using all of these fabrics in a skirt.  She began giving me looks of disapproval.  Then she got vocal about it.  She tried to explain to me how they wouldn't work together and grabbed other bolts of fabric to suggest in place of my current choices.  I still ended up with these.  Her suggestions were fun, but I like my concoction. 

About the pattern:  I bought the book Sew Serendipity by Kay Whitt.  I really like this book and it comes with all the pieces you need for the 18 or so patterns.  There are some cute shirts and jackets in the book too and she uses material from designers I really like so the finished pieces are beautiful.  I believe the book was released less than a month ago. 

Eyelets

This top is by far not one of my favorites but I get lots of compliments on it whenever I wear it.  It's a sort of peasant top with a touch of extra detail.  I was using this eyelet material (a thrift store find) as a muslin to sew a draft of a shirt pattern I made up.  I was planning on making another one when I ironed out all the kinks in this one.  I never did make the second one but this shirt has been worn multiple times and holds up really well in the dryer. 

 

Tent Shirt

Here's what I like about this shirt - The color combination of the shirt and the buttons.

Here's what I don't like about this shirt - EVERYTHING ELSE!  I'm not sure I'll ever wear it in public...or at home. 

Hah!  Take that, Tent Shirt! 

Try something new.  Even if it comes out awful... 

No Sew Hair Clip Holder

Here's Sarah Beth's hair clip holder.  You may have seen a variation of this before, but this is my take on it. 

Materials and Supplies

Open-back frame 16x20

1/4 inch thick foam board cut to 16x20

20x24 piece of fabric

2 pieces of 16x20 batting

Box of straight sewing pins with flat heads (no pearls or rounded heads)

25 buttons or cute brads from the scrapbook store

4 yards of ribbon, lace...

Glue gun and sticks

Thimble

Hammer

Small nails or brads

Spray adhesive

Directions

Cut out your fabric to 20x24 inches.

Cut your foam board to 16x20 inches. 

Test to see if it fits in the frame opening.  It will be covered with fabric so allow a little wiggle room. 

Trim if necessary.

 

Place foam board on top of the right side of the fabric and center as best as you can. (See illustration below.)

Trace the border of the foam board with a water soluble pen or chalk onto the fabric.  (This is the part that shows inside the frame.  The 2 inch border will be secured around the back.)   

Cut out 2 layers of batting to 16x20 (The same size as foam board.)

Use spray adhesive on the foam board to secure the batting one layer at a time.  Set it aside.

Create a grid (inside your 2 inch border) on the fabric using the water soluble pen by measuring every 4 inches vertically and horizontally.  See below.

 Draw diagonals as shown by the black lines in the illustration below.

The first square grid should be erased or ignored as shown in the figure below.  Only the diagonals are useful at this point.  These lines will be your placement lines for the ribbon and buttons.

Spray the back of the fabric and set it on top of the batting lining up your border with the foam board.  By now your layers should be fabric, batting, batting, foam board.

Wrap the extra fabric around the back side and hot glue it in place.  Keep it taut as you work your way around.

Line up ribbon on top of the diagonals drawn and hot glue them at the edges (as shown) and around the back side.  Be sure to secure them well with hot glue on the back side. 

Where diagonals meet, use a thimble and insert a straight pin through the ribbon, fabric, batting and foam board.  Turn to the back side and bend the left over straight pin down and hot glue it to the foam board.   The picture below is the straight pin glued to the foam board on the back side.  No one's getting poked here.

On the front side, a button is hot glued on top to cover up the straight pin.  NOTE:  Without the straight pins your piece would not hold hair clips well.  The ribbon would eventually sag.  Besides, they give a nice quilted effect to the piece.

When you have completed the piece, place your finished work inside the frame and nail small nails or brads into the sides to secure it in place.  For neatness, you can add fabric or a dust cover to the back but it's not necessary.

Add bows and hair clips, hang it up, and enjoy!!!

I hope this was clear and concise.  Please comment or email with questions.

New Skirt

I love this skirt.  My legs are really white so I cut them out of the picture, but the skirt is super cool.  The fabric is from Allbrands which happens to be my favorite fabric store.  My husband dreads my suggestion to go there.  It means a hole is being burnt in my pocket and he's waiting a long time in the car.  When I get in there I never expect to stay there so long, but it's so hard to decide on anything because it's all so great.  These fabrics are Heather Bailey's and Sandi Henderson's.  They work so well together.

Sew and Tell Debut

I've been busy...sewing...so I'd like to show you my work (bashful).   I plan to post a series of things I've sewn...maybe some with tutorials.   All of these were taken by my hubby in the kitchen.  He was a real sport and got up about ten times to photograph each new piece of clothing I put on.  Thank you, Dear!

So here's the first post.  Note: They will be posted in no particular order.

I made this vest last summer and recently finished the edges with some white yarn on my serger.  I saw this pattern on line last summer and decided to give it a try with some denim material that my mother-in-law got from the thrift store.  No harm done if it didn't come out because it didn't cost a thing.  I modified this thing so many times I couldn't tell you how to make it.  I LOVE the way it came out on the back.  The original pattern was not tailored enough for me so I added darts and pleats everywhere.  You can click on the photo for a more detailed view. 

Check back for more SEW and Tells.

The Apple Doesn't Fall Far...

Crystal, my sister, gave SB an easel with a dry erase board for her birthday and she loves it.  See other posts for more of her works of art.  These two drawings are among my favorite.  They've got real personality.  The left is one of her first face drawings.  I drew the circle before she started and the ears when she was done.  (Sorry.  He needed ears.)  To me he looks so much like Charlie Brown, don't you think?  Maybe it's the zigzag line.  I don't know.  For the right one, she asked me to draw a snake so she could add the face to it.  I drew the long snake-like body and bulbous head.  She did everything else.  My reaction:  I couldn't have done it better myself if I tried.  I love the personality of this guy.  Maybe someday I'll collect all my phone photos of her drawings and turn them into a storybook.

...Once upon a time, Charlie Brown and his stylish snake friend went on an adventure...  Blaaahhhh... I'll leave the writing to someone talented.

Pretty good drawings for a two year old huh?

School

It's official.  The summer is over half way over.  June is gone.  July is in a hurry.  Please stay, July...just a little while longer. It seems like you don't hang around for very long. 

School...August...wake up early...schedule...lesson plans...kids...deadlines...contests...fun projects...friends...new classroom...more space to make art...PAY CHECK.  Ok.  I'll go back.