Roosters-N-Rickrack Pinafore courtesy grosgrainfabulous

Roosters-N-Rickrack Pinafore GIVEAWAY!!!!

An adorable dress! I love the ball fringe... I need to sew faster so I can add projects like this to my sewing table. I like the little roosters. It reminds me that I have some rooster, chickens, cats, etc in a file from my great grandmother. I believe she appliqued them to her quilting projects. I think I will get them out and re-inspire them into my projects. Slow as they may be.

June berries

Went to my aunt's yesterday to check on her place. Her raspberry vines are loaded, which is unfair because mine is huge but probably has about a handful or two of berries. Note to self: prune them next year for more yield. In my defense though, we had some crazy wind and I lost two of the stalks.
So, I will enjoy her berries since she is not back from vacation until today. =)

wearing a dress

Well, let's say it's been a few years since I have worn a dress, and it was probably for a wedding or something. I did wear maternity dress, but that does not count, since it was a short term outfit. However, today I'm in love with a bunch of dresses, found here, and they are just cute. I like how she throws a contrasting slip under them, or a shirt. And, some of them are even for short people, like me. So, I may break the trend I have going and actually start wearing dresses again.
So, I will thank Kathleen... and at some point I will sew for myself, but I might have to supplement with the above. =)

Strawberry Quart Caplet with Simple Sailing Frock

In Blogland today:

Strawberry Quart Caplet with Simple Sailing Frock


I hope I win, then I don't have to figure out how to make one. ;)

I guess I am in inspiration mode today, and hopefully sewing mode will resume this weekend. Iron man junior's pj pants are ready to be stitched together. (DS has been wearing his winter boots in his effort to make his own Iron man costume.)

Fresh from the garden

We moved the garden back about 12 feet a few weeks ago. I decided I'd leave the strawberries and raspberries in their old place as long as possible. (Future patio). Last year they were pretty small, but this year there are tons of baby plants. I am surprised at the size of the berries. Of course I had to take a pic of the first ones. =)

Pinafores, weeds and things

I received issue 01/08 of Ottobre design for my birthday, from my sis. I made a little pinafore for A. It fits her pretty good. After I make myself the "swing" purse, then I will be on to making pants for A, to go with the pinafore.
I prewashed my fabric for the purse, but the canvas doesn't want to unwrinkle. So, I am armed with a new spritzer, and hope to get it flattened out. I also want to use up some of the Alexander henry scraps to make a little zip pouch to go with my sis' purse. I like the rounded bottom ones from Amy Butler, but maybe I can do it myself. I feel like experimenting.... maybe with muslin first though. The quilt shop by me is carrying more Amy Butler patterns and the new midwest modern line, some of it anyways.
Spent the weekend mortified... of all the dandelions in my garden beds. First thing on my list for monday morning is to call the mulch guy, and check my stock of newspaper/weed mat. I am very happy to say that after being here for several years now, that some more of my plants are ready to be divided. I have lots of Shasta daisies, and a crop of sedum coming up, and an aster plant that is a giant circle of a plant now. The deer came by and sampled some stuff a few weeks back. It looks like some of the tulips survived. Yay! So far, we have yellow.
And, I finally decided on a great place for wall vase. It's in a nice visible spot. The ribbon is a little delicate, but I plan to change that throughout the season. Dainty is good for spring.
Found a nice garden chair that somebody threw out in the trash during garbage week. It appears to be freshly primered, so I am putting a coat of exterior paint on it, to match my garden gate and house trim. I'm thinking I may paint the slats the clay color of the house.. haven't decided yet if I will like that or not.
Also, getting back to doing some house projects. Will have to get the list going again.

I finished my sister's belated birthday present this weekend. It is an Amy Butler pattern, using Alexander Henry on the main panel. I thought it came out pretty good. She liked the print, so that made me happy. If I have enough left in the scraps I want to make a little zipper pouch, key/cell strap, something....

Baby shoes

cloth_shoes_001.JPG
Originally uploaded by twolilacs

I finished the cloth shoes from Ohelene's pattern. I thought they were fairly easy to complete. I want to make a pinafore for my little monster, and thought a pair of matching shoes would be cute. I already got the fabric, it's sort of a large pattern, but it might still work.
Also, my friend bought ballet socks for her baby girl, I thought it would be cute to make a cloth shoe version, with flannel backed satin. I'm just not sure about lining up the heel with the toe... I thought I could possibly use ribbon to hide any mismatching.
I'm also wondering about making these for spring and summer. I guess I would have to use lightweight fabric on both sides. Food for thought.

Projects and Snow

I completed the simple tote from the Bend the rules book. It took me some time, spread out over the weekend. I wasn't sure I put it together in the right order, once it was time to put the lining piece into the main bag. Thankfully I did, just had to turn the lining's right side against the right side of the outer bag.
The hallway is on hold until I choose a paint color, and get some lights ordered from Home depot. Apparently black and white track is the most common... so of course the lights I like have a chrome attachment. HD had a chrome track online, so it's either that, or pick a different light with a white attachment. I'm so picky.
We got quite a bit of snow, probably about 9 inches the first time, and then another 3 inches or so last night. Now it is raining, and had been thundering. This weather.

The wallpaper is on it's last leg. I have two feet to go, after nap time is over... clean the walls, fix a spot and prepare for paint. Whoo! These are my paint selections. It's not a very bright hallway, but I am leaning towards the darker color on the top left. We did agree on track lighting to replace the single, dim light. Now, if I could find a glass lampshade with a white base to match the white track. Lots of chrome based ones, but I don't think that would look right on a white track...

Anyone have any favorite websites for inexpensive picture frames?

Zipper bag, yay!

I can tell it's been a while since I have sewn anything, it took me extra dawdling time. I made a zipper bag from the Bend the rules book last weekend. It came out pretty good, although I think the zipper could be done better. I'd like to make some different size ones. I also didn't have any matching ribbon, so I'll try that next time. I have some tiny heart grommets in my scrapbook stuff that would look really cute lined up on a ribbon. Next: tote, pleated purse.
I have an excel file now for the budget file, but have to figure out how to host it or post it.

Resolutions and thoughts

Beki had an inspiring resolutions list on her blog. I am working on my own, but I am not bold enough to make it all public. Although, I know there are many things in the house & garden that can be done this year. The top of my list, is to get the rest of the wallpaper off the hallway walls. It's half down, and the rest needs to go. I won't say how long it's been that way. My family is probably wondering about us. I finally got a rug this week for the living room, so I can knock that one off the list. Yay!
I also need to get flannel interfacing, so I can get going on some projects in the Bend the Rules book. I did find a cute pink cotton shirt on clearance at Targét for my daughter. I hope to experiment some embroidery on it. See Doodle Stitching.
I also ordered a couple gardening catalogs, since none have yet arrived. Bluestone perennials, Whiteflower farm, Prairie Nursery (sells native), and Jackson & Perkins. I really hope to order some things from the Bluestone catalog this year. I meant to last year, but ended up getting some great deals free, and at a annual plant sale, about an hour from here. I like the J&P catalogs for ideas for container plants and garden structures (which I need).
I also need to decide what needs dividing this spring, besides Shasta daisies. I need to find my divide and propagate guide to make this task easier on my brain. I have a variety of hostas, a handful are new from last summer. I can't wait to see how many Fire & Ice I have... they seemed to revert to a green leaf, vs. keeping the white/cream (center?). I doubt I'll get any more of those. I am also excited to see how the new addition of daffodils/jonquils come up out back this year.

Happy New Year

Doodle stitching is good, so far. I've gone through the stitch examples. So, next will be a little sample project. Somewhere in all the stuff I collect, is a seasonal pamphlet, maybe Easter, from Hancock fabrics with an introduction to embroidery. I still remember that, and this book is a fun reminder. I hope to work on a sample next, and see how that goes trying to follow along shapes, etc.
New Year's Day was full of snow and wind. The gigantic snowman out back, has gained a new snowsuit. Funny, the day before his facial features drooped off with the warmth. Gotta love the midwest.

Current ambitions

I got a few new books of interest from the library. Amy Karol's bend-the-rules sewing book, which has some inspiring ideas. Along with that, I've spent the last few days discovering some cool blogs, awesome fabrics, patterns and designers. On my list now, is to make something from the bend-the-rules book. I'm thinking about the clutch project. If the mood continues, I'd like to try an Amy Butler swing bag and maybe one other.
Doodle stitching is next. I browsed it quickly and it looks like it has good examples, and fun vs. traditional ideas. I'm sure my sister would appreciate the "doodled" sneakers.
AB's In Stitches is also on my library list... looking forward to that.
In general, I am not crazy about patterns because after a while they are confusing. I don't really sew very much, only hemming things, the occasional halloween costume, or reinforcing clothes to stretch out their life... i.e. the favorite gymboree flame pants... that have seen better days, and the relatively new Carter's sweatpants with the carpet induced hole in the knee.
So, I have moved on from digital scrapbooking to actually trying to sew some things. Wish me luck.