artsy-crafty babe

Happy Mardi Gras!

Nope, no partying here. I spent a quiet day ALONE. It was nice for a while, but I did start to miss my family. They came home at supper time slightly sunburned and loaded down with beads. At least someone in our household got out to enjoy the day.

I was able to get quite a bit accomplished, though now that I think about it I only completed one project. I made this baby blanket. It is super simple, but I love it. It it a bit girly, but not over the top. If this baby is a boy I think I may use it anyway. I dunno. I used a cotton print on one side and yellow flannel on the back. To dress it up I used a decorative stitch along the edge. I'd like to make more like this if I could find some cute gender neutral prints.

I also finished my first quilt top. The squares are totally random. If I had some batting I would have started quilting it, but I didn't feel like going to the store. It was my goal only to start on this, so mission accomplished. This is more boyish and it matches the nursery.

I also added a closure to the a bag I made this weekend, modified a purse pattern to diaper bag size, cut out fabrics for this bag, and cut out Alex's dust ruffle. I think I'm done for the day!

Now on to some super nice people. Look what arrived in the mail yesterday! Autum is so sweet to send me this. I thought I was only getting buttons, so you can imagine my surprise to get all of this. Lily had much fun playing with it all. She decorated my ficus with all the trims. Thank you so much Autum!!!

This was a total surprise, it's from Mary Ann. Thank you! I'm sure I can find something to do with these fabrics. Lily has already claimed the sheer fabric with the pink glitter stars. I told her I'd make a dress-up skirt for her. Your kindness is too much!

I really am blown away by the kindness and generosity of those I've met through blogging. Thank you thank you thank you!!!

A tail of two Kitties

The Denyse Schmidt Quilts "Steve" kitties are made! It started with one for Lily, but after Alex saw it, he had to have one too. I know after making "Lucy" I said that I wasn't making any more soft toys, but these are so cute.. and easy. Neither one has a tail, but they aren't missed. I once had a cat without a tail, it can happen. Lily named her kitty "Keisha". Alex has yet to see his (I just finished it), but since he doesn't say many words I'm sure Lily will come up with something.

I didn't only work on projects for the kids this weekend. I also got all the pieces cut for a baby quilt, a baby blanket and I made myself a new bag. You can't tell from the photo, but I machine quilted the outer fabric, a first for me. I'm pleased with it. It is certainly sturdy. I needed something bigger with all the crap I carry around. I think this will work well. Can you believe that I actually cut into my precious Amy Butler fabric? I just LOVE this print.
That's it for now. I have to work tomorrow, but then I'll have the day to myself on Tuesday, which is when I plan to finish up that "to-do" list I made on Friday. The pain of working on that bedding project from last weekend was too fresh in my memory which is why I didn't even attempt to work on Alex's dust ruffle. I may be ready for it Tues., I hope.

Thrift store finds

Since everyone seems to be doing it, I've jumped on the bandwagon. This morning we went thrifting. Matt was all for it because he loves that kind of stuff. It ended up being a nice little family outing. It was the perfect time because it's raining here and right off the bat the kids had cabin fever. They weren't too bad in the stores. We first hit a local shop that I had totally forgotten about. I really liked it because it was organized, clean, and smelled nice. I found some great linens while the kids picked up a few books. Next we went to Goodwill, which was way more expensive that the first store. I found a few things, but not as good as the first one. Here they are:

I found quite an assortment of pillow cases. I bought one (not pictured because it didn't photograph well) just because it had a pretty monogrammed "R" at the corner. The two with the pretty borders I bought just because of that. They're plain white pillow cases otherwise.

Here are the sheets I found. The large floral one will eventually become a sundress for Lily. I love the colors! I really like that bold blue and green one as well, but it is so threadbare in the center that I'll only be able to use the perimeter. There should still be enough useable fabric to make something.

Lastly, I picked up these two 100% wool sweaters. I've read about people using these for projects, but I'm not sure what to do with them. Maybe a felted bag for the fall? I'll have to research that some more.

So there you have it, not too bad for my first official thrift hunt!

Oh, I haven't done a bit of sewing yet...maybe during nap time.

I'm Ready

No, not for a baby, but ready to sew. Work is done and the weekend is ahead. My sewing machine is cleaned and oiled. My fabric is washed and dried. My patterns are ready. It's time to get busy!

This weekend I'd like to make:

• Alex's dust ruffle
• a "Steve" kitty
• a baby blanket
• a new tote bag

I think I can get it all done. A bonus is that Matt is taking the kids to Mardi Gras parades on Tuesday, so I'll have the whole day to myself. HOORAY!!! I'm not going to know what to do with myself.

Clothes...

I'm quite jealous that my friends are buying cute clothes for spring. That is something I can not do in my current state. I have officially started wearing "tent" clothes. I'm getting tired of the look of horror people give me when they ask how much longer I have. *sigh* So instead of buying clothes all I can do is plan (buying fabric is out of the question!). I've already purchased enough fabric to outfit an army, so I had better use some of it. This afternoon I picked some cute Butterick patterns for $1 each at Hancocks.

I can picture this in a light weight cotton or linen. I especially like the sleevless one with the collar. I'm still thinking about nursing access, possibly an overlay for the upper bodice with snaps at the empire side seam providing access to the nursing openings underneath. I'm sure that made no sense.

I thought I'd be trendy with this one. I don't think I've worn a tiered skirt since I was in elementary school.

This one would be perfect as a nursing top. I can't wait to make this one, but with short sleeves. There's no way I could do long sleeves in our summer heat.

I probably already have a skirt pattern like this in my pattern collection, but for $1 I couldn't pass it up. I love wearing skirts like this!

Of course there's no way I could start on these until this baby is out of my body. Who knows what kind of body I'll be left with!

Corners

It's Thursday again, time for Corners of my Home. I've already posted this picture, but right now it is my favorite corner. It really pepped me up last night. Yesterday afternoon Matt banged up his truck (which isn't paid for and we were trying to sell) by hitting a mailbox. He was trying to get something from the passenger side floor and ended up running off the road. There are dents and scrapes from the front all the way to the back - NOT cheap to fix. Oh, this is the third time we've had to fix this stinkin' truck. The first time was two years ago, when we only had it for 6 months, Matt poked a hole in the rear fender with a trailer when we were moving into our house. Then last year I side swiped a pole in my parking garage. And now this. I felt no need to scream or get upset with Matt, he was beating himself up enough. While the kids were in the tub I went upstairs to my studio and played with my fabric. It made me feel better. I managed to pick out some fabrics for my next project and gather a few things to send in the mail. Yes, this space will be my sanctuary.

Click the photo to read comments. You can check out other Corners here.

Four

No crafting today, I'm a little worn out. I'm hitting the sack early tonight. I know y'all have seen variations of this everywhere, but here are my 4 Things. Yes, I'm copying Amanda's post today, but I thought it was a good idea. I was tagged by Candy for the Teacher way back in January, but never got around to doing one. Here is it. Don't worry, I'm not tagging anyone. Feel free to do your own 4 Things if you haven't already.

Four Jobs I've Had
tour guide at an antebellum plantation home
receptionist at an art museum
sales associate at a fabric store
computer programmer

Four Movies I'd Watch Again
When Harry Met Sally
Steel Magnolias
Auntie Mame
The Godfather

Four Places I've Lived
Portsmouth, Virginia
Gonzales, Louisiana
Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Gonzales, Louisiana

Four Places I've Vacationed
Destin, Florida
Williamsburg, Virginia
Berkeley, California
Santa Fe, New Mexico

Four of My Favorite Dishes
anything Mexican - bring on the guacamole and tortilla chips!
chicken shawarma with hummus and pitas
crabmeat au gratin
steak (filet mignon or NY strip)

Four Sites I Visit Daily
Bloglines
Gmail
Hotmail
my online bank account (gotta see how much money I have for fabric)

Four TV Shows I Love
Sex and the City (I watch it in syndication almost every night)
Project Runway
What Not to Wear (I like the BBC version better than the American one, but we don't have BBC America anymore)
Desperate Housewives

Four Albums I Can't Live Without
10,000 Maniacs MTV Unplugged
Harry Connick Jr - 20 (though I love all his albums)
Madonna - Immaculate Collection
Vol. 1-Very Best of MTV Unplugged (my favorite song on there is Constant Craving by K D Lang)

Four Places I'd Rather Be Right Now
on a beach somewhere watching my kids frolic in the waves
strolling down a quaint little street full of artsy shops with Matt
enjoying a glass of wine while soaking in the tub (God, I miss wine!!!)
in my bed taking a nap

Okay, now I'm finished.

To complete my swap, I whipped up this tote to hold all the goodies. Now I'm done. Tomorrow, I'm packing it up and sending it all to a new home. Ahhhh....

Tying up loose ends...

Not only did I complete the duvet project over the weekend, but I finished up with my Second String swap stuff. All I have left to do is gather a few things from my stash, then pack it up and send it on its way. Here's a little sneak peek: Sorry about the horrible colors - it's been gray and dreary for days!

I'm sure the recipient doesn't read my blog, but just in case I don't want to be too revealing. I was surely influenced by the Denyse Schmidt Quilts book. I bought it on my Valentine's date last week. I am loving this book! I can't wait to complete more projects from it.

Now that my obligations are out of the way, I can finally sew for ME (or rather my family) with a clear conscience. There are so many things I want to make. I was sewing like a mad woman this weekend in order to complete those projects because selfish me wanted to start on my own projects. First off I want to try that kitty "Steve" in the DSQ book. Then I want to make some baby blankets. If machine quilting those goes well, then I'll work on Alex's coverlet, and of course I still need to make his bed skirt. After that, a new purse for me maybe? I'm sure I'll start on a few of them and work simultaneously on them all. Ah, so many projects, so little time! That nesting instinct is definitely kicking in.

Okay, after posting all that, I've decided that my swap package isn't sufficient. I have a few more projects to do - back to the sewing machine!

Hooray!!!

Thank God I am finished with this project!!! It took me a while to get around to it, but it is finally done. Here is the duvet cover I made for my niece's room. I spread it out on my queen size bed for the photo, and it doesn't have a duvet in it, but you get the idea. I think it turned out really well.

I worked on this sucker all weekend long. When I went to bed Friday night I was determined to finish it before the end of the weekend. I'm so happy that I did! I didn't get it done all at once, but it's finished, which is the most important part.

I'm not sure if you can tell from the picture, but it is made of a tiny leopard print. The top 1/3 is the pink, the bottom 2/3 green. I sewed fabric covered buttons in the opposite color on the top part, but that is purely decorative. I used snaps at the bottom of the duvet to allow for easy insertion/removal of the duvet. The back of the duvet is the complete opposite, with green at the top, pink buttons, and pink at the bottom. Technically it wasn't difficult to make, as it is all straight seams, but every seam is a french seam because I don't have a serger and I didn't want any raw edges on the inside. It was also a major pain in the butt to measure and cut the fabric. It required me to move my furniture around in my living room in order to spread it all out. Plus, crawling around on the floor while you're 7 months pregnant isn't much fun either.

This duvet cover coordinates with the bedskirt and window treatment I made this past summer. I couldn't find a blog post about it, but here it is, hanging on a broom stick in my entry way.
That green lepoard is the same as on the duvet cover and the bed skirt fabric is made from the floral. Because I couldn't help myself, I made those two pillows on the bed to coordinate with it all. I haven't brought my sister-in-law and niece the finished product yet, but I hope they like it. I can't wait to see it all together in the room. I'll be sure to post pictures of it in its proper setting.