And So It Begins...

First Two Borders For Wall Hanging

I spent the day in the studio assembling the first part of my bluebird wall hanging yesterday. If you've been following along, you may notice that many of my fabric choices changed. I decided to stick with more subtle colors. The batik I showed you will still be used as the outside border and back, but I'm only showing the borders and fabric choices (along the right side) for the half square triangles which will be the next border. I may add a few other appropriate fabrics as I assemble them.

There's a little tension in the fabric where I stitched the fencing, which is a bit disappointing. I tried very hard to keep my fabric taut in the hoop, and not pull too much when I was stitching, but alas, I still have to fine tune my technique. It should disappear when I do the quilting in this area, so I'm not too concerned at this point.

I placed the feathers that will be in the half square triangle bands on the corners of the main block to show you where I've yet to stitch them directly onto the fabric. The feathers on the main block will be larger than the ones you see here, but not significantly bigger. I kept this block the same size as my other two wall hangings (the robins and the cardinals) so their sizes will be consistent. The next one with the goldfinches will be the same, too. I'll stitch in those feathers after the next border is sewn to what's already done.

I got this much finished so far, and today I'll begin making all the half square triangles for the next section. The golden brown border you see here will be the same width as the darker border (1/2") after the next border is added. 

I work tonight, so I'm not sure whether or not I'll get the next border attached today. I'll surely try. Otherwise, I'll get to it asap. I'm sure you can tell now that I'd love to race to the finish line. I just want to make sure I get it right, and that it turns out the way I want it too. 

Oh, just a note. It was a conscious decision to avoid a lot of blues. I really don't want to take anything away from the needlework. What do you think so far? You like the colors I've chosen? Let me know.

Stuffy Patterns...

Sweet Bunny Stuffy

Every once in a while, these free patterns show up in my Facebook feed. If I decide to make any of them, I'll make a duplicate image, and then crop for the pattern only on the second one, so that I can print it on a full sheet of 8" x 10" paper. I thought I might share them with you. 

You should be able to just click on the image, pull it to your computer desktop (or phone) and then save and print from there.

Favorite Beagle Keychain

Gingerbread Ornaments

Ellie and Whale Rattle or Ornaments

Dachshund Cuddle Puppy

I'm working today, so I'll wrap up my knee to give it a little extra support. Truthfully, I'd rather be home, but I took the job (can you believe it was a year ago already?) to force me out of the house. Otherwise, I'd still be in my jammies in the studio. There are days, for sure!

It snowed a bit overnight. Just enough to be slippery, so I'll be extra careful. The last thing I need is to take a skate on the pavement. I don't bounce like I used to. If you're experiencing the same thing where you live, stay safe. If you've got sunny skies, enjoy them for me, okay? See you tomorrow.

Next Up...

Black cork and Tim Holz fabric will be the main fabrics for my next project...a recently commissioned Bella tote. My plan is to make this on Monday after I get home from taking Handsome to the airport.

This morning I'm driving to Portage for our monthly Craft Day, and I'm taking along a wool needle felting kit to work on. We were all asked to bring a project for needle felting, so mine is a small red fox. I'm not sure how far we'll get with it, but I can always finish it once I get home.

After our morning of crafting, we'll be celebrating Annabelle's Birthday with a tea party. Belle is Adrienne's daughter (generation four of my friendship with Linda's family). I'm not sure whether or not I should bring a tea party hat, so I'm going to take one along, just in case. I'm planning to wear a dress, too, which (in light of the current weather) I may come to regret. Fingers crossed that's not the case.

I'd love to stay longer and chat, but I don't want to be late. I hope you have a lovely Saturday and Sunday, and I'll be back on Monday with all sorts of news to share.

Making Napkins...

A few years ago, I received a bread basket similar to this one from Son #2 and his family as a Christmas gift. The clay plate in the bottom is to be placed in the oven long enough to get warm, and then it's returned to the basket where it radiates heat to warm bread and/or rolls during the meal.

This year, I got this one as a gift for a family member. I absolutely love the tree of life pattern in the clay, and while I was taught to always choose gifts for others that you would like to receive yourself, this one will be hard to send along. (Not really, but I really like it.)

The fabrics the basket's sitting on were cut today so I can turn them into napkins and two basket liners. Once I finish those, I'll carefully package up the set and send it on its way.

I work tonight, so after I get that task checked off my list, I'll rest a bit before I have to go in. I'll be up early tomorrow to drive to Portage for Craft Day and Annabelle's Birthday party. I want to make sure I don't overdo things today so I'm up for the travel and celebrations tomorrow. For now, I'm off to sew! Once again, it's the weekend already. Rather than "spring forward/fall back", I wish there were a "slow down" setting!

Fabric Possibilities...

What do you think? Girly enough? I was going through my fabrics last night and landed on this as the possible choice for the pinafore dress for my niece. The bottom fabric leans more green than yellow in person, and is part of the same fabric line as the top fabric. I'm thinking it might be just the thing for her Easter dress. I'm open to feedback.

A Birthday Dress...

While attending my g-g nephew's party this weekend, I was reminded that his middle sister's birthday is the end of this month. So, I've decided that I'm going to make a party dress for her! I simply love sewing for little girls, so I'll make hers, and then when her big sister's birthday rolls around, I'll make another for her. Note: This little boy is the son of one of her parent's friends. It's not a photo of her little brother.

I had quite the lovely interaction with this sweetheart on Saturday. We were playing a mini version of volleyball with a party balloon, and after playing for quite a while, I managed to bring a few other kids into the game. I had a method to my move. As I started to walk away thinking she'd turn her attention to playing with the other kids, she stopped and protested that she wanted to play with me. Who could turn her down? Not I. We continued to play until she tired of the game.

This is the pattern for the dress I'll be making for her. I've done this one before, making matching dresses for my twin great nieces more than a few years ago, so it will be fun to do it again in new fabrics. I'm leaning toward the style in the middle, and I'm sure I have perfectly girly fabrics for the dress and pinafore.

While I do have some time before the official party, I'd really like to not wait until the last minute to make this. I'll have to make sure my daily lists allow for time set aside to work on it. 

This week, I work today - and then I added daytime hours on Friday to help out my boss. As I only worked six total hours in the past two weeks because of the holidays, I'll be adding twelve hours to my regular ten each week for the next two.  As long as I'm planning ahead, I'm sure that I won't have any trouble at all completing the birthday dress. 

I'll definitely share my progress on this project, but for now, I'm off for my regular Tuesday six hour day. I'll play with my fabric choices first, and let you see my selections soon. See you later!

Current WIP...

This is my current Work In Progress (WIP). I'm making a Birthday cushion for a special little two year old - my great-nephew. His party is on Sunday, and I only just learned that he's a huge Mickey Mouse fan. 

Knowing that, and owing him a cushion for his bedroom (as I did for his two sisters), this will be the perfect design for this sweet boy.

I'll be sure to share photos of him opening his gift - and if possible, catching his mama's expression, too. She really appreciates and treasures the handcrafted gifts her husband's aunty makes for their family. 

I'll get this finished by early afternoon (first I'll press the embroidery - thank you, Destiny - and add a stabilizer to the back of it), and then I have another Birthday party to attend this evening for a dear classmate. It's going to be a busy couple of days, so I'm really glad to be 100% again! I'll share party photos on Monday. Off to the studio now...

Just In Time...

As I was pulling fabric for the Grammie's Jammies this year, I got the niggly feeling that I'd already used the plaid flannel for Grandson before. Sooooo, I went back through last year's photographs and blog posts to find that I had, in fact, made last year what I'd planned for this year. Great. Now what?

I went through my soft cottons and found this fabric for our "sporto" guy. Although they have two Golden retrievers now, their last dog was a gorgeous big, black Labrador retriever named Duncan. He was our grandson's "goodest boy", and we all miss him - even though the Goldens have also stolen our hearts. I think he'll like this fabric for his pjs this year, and I'll find a red or black long sleeved t-shirt to go with the bottoms. Crisis (and a duplicate gift) averted. 

 

Then I got to thinking about the girls. I had planned to make nighties, thinking that I'd made pj pants for them last year. Wrong again. The photos from last year revealed that I had already made nighties last year. I don't want to duplicate, so I'll make these pajama pants from the fabrics I already chose. 

 

I'll likely choose a pretty white top to go with the floral, and green or russet to go with the gnomes. I'm planning to be out shopping for them either Sunday or Monday, and I just take a fabric swatch with me to find the perfect colors.

I'm glad I take photos of the finished gifts each year. That way I can be sure to avoid what I almost did this year! Now that I've settled on the fabrics and patterns, I'll start cutting today. We did get snow yesterday, but thanks to Andy, I'll be able to get out to work tonight. In the meantime, I'll be making jammies. Woo hoo!

 

Getting Started...

I pulled fabrics yesterday after assessing just what I want to accomplish in the next few days. I also found myself thinking about what kinds of things the residents might be interested in. Rather than spend this time making more handbags and wallets, I decided that fabric napkin sets, mug mats, gift card holders, and walker caddies might be more desirable - especially pretty things for the ladies, and patriotic things for men and/or women.

So, I just started pulling fabrics that I thought might be suitable for my projects. I'm going to do the napkins in sets of two and four. They'll be nine inches square. That's size we use here, and who really needs a big napkin anyway? I haven't decided yet whether or not they'll be two-sided, or just put a mitered hem on single thickness fabric. I'll decide that when I start cutting.

 
I'm sure I won't use all of the fabrics I've photographed here, but these give me myriad options once I begin.

I'm off to the DMV this morning as my driver's license needs to be renewed. They'll be taking a new mug shot, and making sure I can see well enough to get behind the wheel. Once that's over, I'll be back home to start sewing. What's a little production sewing between now and Thursday, right? 

Oh, and tomorrow is my actual Birthday...and I'm working. Talk about poor planning. I should have switched with someone else weeks ago, so now I'm committed. I have a new Birthday photo to share that our dear daughter-in-law snapped over the weekend. I can't wait to show it to you tomorrow! See you then.

Special Delivery...

Although I'm not planning to do any shows in the near future, I will be working on a few new things for my Etsy shop. This new hardware came in today, as well as the new strap material. Wrist bands or shoulder straps? I haven't decided yet. I'll know it when I see it. I am tickled with the kittens, musical, and paw print zipper pulls, though. Makes me want to get back to sewing a little.

You can find me at the other store for one more day and then Friday and Saturday back where I usually work. I'll be glad for Saturday to be over so I can resume my stitching! I'm looking forward to putting my feet up, too. With a cup of tea. And lots of threads. And a little background music. Ahhhh, yes.

Ellie Loves It!...

Ellie's mama shot a video of her opening her gift today, so you know I just had to share. She was so tickled! I would have shared the video, but her little sister and brother are bouncing around in the background, so I decided to capture some still images to give you an idea of how she liked it.

Once she (quickly) realized what it was, a huge (missing one front tooth) grin appeared on her face. She immediately put it on as a crossbody, and then inspected it further. She opened the zipper and had to show her mama the paw print lining.

You've got to know that I was grinning from ear to ear the entire time I watched the video...and my glee has lasted for hours since then.

This last photograph is sweet Ellie looking at the camera to thank her Aunt Donna for the gift. I'm grinning all over again as I write this.

Her mama, Brianna, told me that Ellie had a date yesterday evening to go to a ball game with her daddy. She asked her mother if she could take her purse with her, and was told she could. The update after they left was that her mom was going to have to "break her heart" tomorrow to tell her she couldn't take it to school with her. sniffle

In Ellie's card, I told her that I had designed and sewn the purse just for her, and that there isn't another one like it in the world. Her mom told me she was feeling extra special knowing that. I've made gifts for Ethan's family before, and as always, I really enjoy gifting them because all of them appreciate the time and effort that went into their creation.

I told Brianna that I know their second child loves kitties. I'm already working on that design in my head, and will make that purse soon, so the next gift won't be late...I mean...extended.

Soon...

I must have been really tired last night. I fell asleep reading and only just woke up! Sooo, my plan is to work in the studio today on that little puppy purse for Elizabeth. 

I hope you're having a good day. It's perfect weather to be outside, so I'll have to concentrate to get this done. Let's see how that goes.

Getting Back To The Studio...

Now, I can finally focus on my great-great niece's Birthday gift. Talk about an "extended Birthday"! I'm teaching this young lady the concept without even planning for it! lol

So, I thought you might like to see the process for this project. I began with paper and pencil, drawing out my idea for the little shoulder bag I'm going to make for her. I'll be using cork fabric for this project, and of course, I have all the colors in stock to tackle this bag.

I decided this puppy face should have a spot around his/her eye like the old Spanky and Our Gang pup. Then, I thought, "Well, wouldn't it be cute if its tongue was hanging out, too?". Sure it would!

I haven't decided on all the colors yet, but I'm leaning toward natural for the main body, Rust for the spot and ears, black for the eyes and a red tongue. I'll add the muzzle and eye highlights by machine.

When I thought about the back of the bag, what could be more appropriate than to add a fluffy tail? hee hee  My drawings have extra lines and the shape is a bit wonky, but I'll even that all up when I draw the final pattern prior to cutting. 

I'll add a 1/4" seam allowance, and this bag will have a 1" gusset all the way around. It will have a top zipper, rings and a rolled shoulder strap so my niece can wear it as a shoulder or cross body bag.

What do you think so far? I'll take photos of my cutting and sewing as I go, and who knows? Maybe I'll turn it into a pattern for others to make their own, too.

Handsome is doing really well, and so glad to be back home. (So are we!) I'll make sure he rests through the holiday weekend, but I'll be sewing, canning applesauce, and picking up more tomatoes and peppers to do more canning. I'm happiest when my husband is near by, and I'm busy.  This plan should serve me well.

I hope you have a great weekend. Stop by to see what I've accomplished, or just catch up after the holidays. I'll be here when you get time.

New Beginnings...

I spent the day painting the walls and trim in the pantry yesterday. It snowed all day and dumped copious amounts of the white stuff everywhere, so it was a perfect day to be working indoors. Painting, however, kept me from this project.

I'm going to embroider flowers along the border to add a little color to this sweet Michelle Palmer image. Once I've done that, I'll use it to create a new zippered project bag. I'll begin sewing for the show this week, and will keep after it until I have what I want for show inventory for February 10th.

If you haven't noticed yet, I've added my show schedule for this year into my side bar. If you're somewhat local to me - or to these show locations - I'd love to see you at any of the shows!

The countertop was measured for installation next Monday, and now that the walls are painted, there is only the electrician to complete his work, and the plumber to come after the counter goes in. Did I tell you we chose a gorgeous quartz countertop? It's just over ten feet long! (The tech said it's going to be an interesting install because the space is "tight". We shall see.) Oh, and we have to get out to get more door and drawer hardware so Jeff can install that, too. I'll take more photos to share as the appearance changes.

Grandson's Jammies...

 

More soft, cozy jammies. This time flannel for grandson. Handsome thinks they're outstanding. Good thing I purchased plenty to make a pair for him, too! (mum's the word)

I purchased a black, knit Henley for him to wear with these, in case he's cold or needs to be covered (dorm room). It's actually easier and less expensive than if I make it for him. I've done that it the past, but it's more frugal to purchase the tops for him now. Plus that style shirt can be worn during the day with jeans, too. It's not just suitable for pajamas.

I haven't decided whether today will be for painting cabinets or baking. I'll make a call up to our carpenter's house to see if the heat is on in his workshop so I can wield a brush. If he's not going to be home, I'll bake.

Happy Christmas Eve Weekend!

 

Sneak Peek...

 

While I can't share photos of finished Grammie's Jammies yet, I can give you a peek at two of the three fabrics I'm using. These are the sweetest, softest cottons to become the most lovely jammies. I think the young ladies will like them. What do you think?

Grandson's jammies are complete, so I'll photograph that fabric some time today to share with you, too. His are soft, warm flannel. I'm thinking I'll be making some for Handsome with the perfect-sized remainder.

More sewing today. Coffee, then a deep breath as I'll keep my head down today to finish them up. Lazy elves. lol

Shipping Today...

 

I created a new Bryn Wallet in the Nature Girl Series - Deer and Rabbit - over the weekend. Well, actually, I made it yesterday. I have one in the shop in natural cork like this, but my client wanted navy. So, navy she'll have.

Rather than attach my usual Brynwood badges to the wallets as I do on my handbags, I like to machine embroider my "Brynwood"  onto the back of each wallet. That way, nothing is sticking out on the back to catch on things inside a handbag.

I chose a lovely grey/blue canvas fabric for the interior lining, with the credit card pockets a nice, sturdy cork fabric. This one is sold and is in the mail this morning...but I do have one left with the same flap, but natural cork for the body. You can find it in my Etsy shop HERE.

I'll be getting back to my Goldwork Frogs and Autumn Strawberry Sachet this week. As I'll take each stitch, I count all my blessings this Thanksgiving Week. Are you going to be with friends or family on "turkey day"? Are you traveling? I'll tell you my plans, if you tell me yours.

Punkins!...

These guys have been in my head for a little while, so I decided to do something about it. I've had these drawings from my friend, Michelle Palmer for quite a while. I have a number of others in different themes, too, but right now, it's punkin (pumpkin) season, and I just had to play!

I've been adding embroidery to her drawings and I love how they're turning out. As you can see I also have the perfect fabrics and zipper pulls for them, too. I'm guessing you might be seeing where this is going.

 

So, pretty soon, you'll see all these as completed pieces. I'm planning to have them listed in my shop by the weekend, but of course, I'll share them with you first. What do you think? You like?