Stop staring and start sewing!

Some new threads

My little sewing machine store is closing today and I'm really going to miss them.  It's the sweetest little mom and pop store and I've been on a first name basis with everyone since I starting handing over my hard earned cash to them.  They like me.  Anyway the owner Leonard is a spunky little Sicilian man who has been extra kind to me since I have a Sicilian last name.  Unfortunately he had a heart attack last month and is very blessed to have survived but is no longer up to the task of running the business.  I really like him even though he did make it a point to let me know that I've been mispronouncing my last name for the past 21 years.  At least I can spell it finally, and that's what really matters.

So I stopped by today to say goodbye and helped them clean the store out by buying off some of their thread in these pretty, perky colors.  Definitely a nice addition to my collection and they're nice to look at when I'm not using them (see, dual purpose).   I'm really going to miss that place.

Speaking of stores (sloppy segue I know) this is my favorite print from Jennifer Paganelli's Sis Boom Basics line.  I adore this golden yellow color.   I will be receiving another shipment from Free Spirit soon (Sun Drop by Dena) and it's gorgeous too!  My goal is to have Fabritopia up and running by March 1st and I'm already having anxiety dreams about having zillions of customers frothing at the mouth wanting to order from me and of course I will run out of stock the first day and then what??!  Maybe I should relax?

Sew worn out

This is the last package from my Trash Ties give-away I had on ebay last month (thank you Heather!).  I sold over 30 dresses (and then filled all those orders) and I'm spent!  Gone I tell ya!  Kaput!

This dress with the cute little bird and mouse (and some other characters) was by far the most popular and I lost track of how many I've made.  Sweet, but I definitely need a break from it.

On another note, my sweet 16 year old Olivia (who just had her birthday and I can't figure out how I got to be the mother of a 16 year old what the heck's up with that would someone tell me please oh Lord is that another wrinkle?!...) has been doing some pretty things with Trash Ties.  She has very long and thick hair so I'm glad she she has a way to whip it into shape, especially when she's running out the door to class.  This is a kind of classy "Olive Oyl" look.

Here she added a blue ribbon. Nice.

Anyway, I need a bit of a break so tonight I'm making 3 crockpots full of chili so I won't have to cook dinner for the rest of the week. My family will love me!

January showers bring.....babies!

It's been a long time since I went to a baby shower.  Actually I think the last one I went to was my own when I was pregnant with my son (who's 18 months old now), but before that it was a while because I think all my friends are done having babies and are now starting to have grandbabies (yikes!).

I had fun putting together some pink things for my friends soon-to-be-born granddaughter.  I bought a set of onesies and appliqued some simple things on them and put together these burp rags with some flannel and fabric I had.  So really the only cost was the onesies because I had everything else on hand.  Nice.

The pink print is one of Anna Griffin's designs and I love this sweet shade of pink.  It's super soft too.  It only took me a few minutes to whip these burp rags together since I just stacked the fabrics and used my rotary cutter then serged the edges (each one has flannel on one side and the pink woven fabric on the other).

Here's the pattern I use. When I cut it out I ironed some heavy duty interfacing on it and I just keep it up in a clip hanging on a nail by my cutting table. I can't count how many times I've made burp rags with it and it makes a much appreciated gift (pretty yet practical).  It's especially great when you're short on time but want to bring something handmade.  Fun!

Super Secret Sources

Okay, I've had a lot of readers ask me if I'm going to be carrying this cute birdie fabric in my store.  Well, I'd really like to but can you spell L-A-W-S-U-I-T (I can!)?  So rather than take that risk I will let you in on one of my favorite super secret sources as long as you promise to keep it a secret.  Here goes:  It's a sheet set from Pottery Barn Kids.  It's their new Penelope line and isn't it darling???

Here is an outfit I just finished and listed on ebay.  Actually the dress under the pinafore is also from a PB Kids sheet set (last spring).  I really like using their sheets because they wash up very nicely and keep their crispness and bright colors.  So anyway if you want to go get them it's 49.00 for the twin set and you get a lot of yardage out of that!

Isn't this fabric great?!  I absolutely adore this print with the big roses!

I like this little hat too.  It's spunky.

Go forth and shop!  But remember to come back when I get my store up (soon)!

Another favorite do-hickie type thing

I love my little Turn-it-All so much I keep it right next to my sewing machine at all times.  It's the perfect tool for turning tubes.  I bought it after looking at it for years thinking "hmm...I should try that".  After one use I kicked myself for waiting so long to buy it.  It saves me so much time and frustration.  I had been using safety pins to try to scrunch the fabric through or poking a chopstick in the closed end and trying to "carefully" shove it through.

Here's what the kit looks like and here are a pair of before and after ties.  It's only around 10.00 (which is why I was kicking myself for waiting so long to get it) and you can always use a coupon if you go to JoAnn.  It has 3 different sizes and the fabric ties I turned today were pretty small (about 3/8 inch across, finished).

It's real simple.  You just put the plastic tube piece inside your fabric tube and then poke the rod through the tube, taking the fabric through with it.

Once you get it most of the way through, you can pull out the plastic tube and pull the fabric all the way down the rod.  Then you can carefully poke out your corners with it.

Press it out really nicely and there you go!  Fun!  (And I'm loving this birdie fabric!)

I really like this pattern (sort of)

I'm having a love/hate relationship with this pattern.  It's Simplicity 4111, a Built by Wendy blouse and I really adore the style.

I've made it twice and the first time it took me about 4 frustrating hours. I rushed ahead without reading through the pattern (because I know how to make a blouse, right?) and ended up taking the neck facing out twice. The facing has to be attached to the wrong side first, then flipped over to the right side and stitched down.  I made myself a note in order to avoid the same dilemma the second time. See:  WRONG (in capitals no less) = not right. Got it?  Good.

I like the finished blouse but it's too low cut for my comfort (even after raising it an inch) so I made a little tank to go under it. I like this style but it's a bit maternity-esque so with 5 kids already I'm at risk of getting those "Not again!" stares while wearing it (mind your own beeswax people, we've got it under control here). This gauze fabric was 1.00 a yard at Wallyworld and I really like it. I capped the sleeves since we don't need too much sleevage in Arizona.  I like it okay, but it doesn't knock my socks off.

So this week I found a sweet, lightweight fabric at JoAnn for 2.00 yd and thought I'd try it again. I kept it real simple (no ruffle) and took in the sides so it's less "fluffy".  I only ran into one glitch which I had forgotten about. Two of the steps are listed in reverse order which was pretty simple to adjust but I feel really bad for any beginners who follow the directions and then think the mistake is their own. So I whipped out my red pen again (and remember: WRONG = not right).

I really like it but the low neckline frustrates me still. It's fine for wearing around the house but if a tall guy comes to the door I'll have to leave it unanswered (I'd make an exception for that guy from Publisher's Clearing House). I've made new notes on the pattern piece and I think if I raise it and angle the front middle edges I can make it work.

Here it is with a tank under it and a brown skirt. It's okay, but definitely leaning into frump territory. Any ideas?  Maybe a less conspicuous camisole-type thing under it?  Or a little dickey (why do they call it that?  It's embarrassing)?  I'm open to advice here. 

Ding-dong!

Wow.  The doorbell seemed to ring all day Friday.  And not once did I open the door to find a magazine salesman or somebody wanting to squirt my porch with some amazing all natural rust, chewing gum and crayon (and everything else) remover.

First was FedEx with some books for Joey's computer networking class (Zzzzzzz....sorry, it's just not my thing).  But things really got exciting when the UPS guy buzzed by with not 1, not 2, but 3!! boxes of fabric from Free Spirit!!  My first batch of goods for my almost-here fabric store!!!  I wiped back tears and lovingly pulled out each gorgeous bolt of Jennifer Paganelli's basics line and Tina Givens' Zazu line.  Oh my precioussssss...... 

......But it wasn't over!  The doorbell rang again and I looked through the peephole and saw the yellow DHL van bringing my new shoes!  I fell in love with them at the local Nordstom (a big thank you to my mom and mother-in-law for having a vulcan mind-meld and each giving me a Nordstrom gift card for Christmas!) but had to have them sent from a California store because apparently there are few gals in Arizona with big feet like mine (humph).  So comfortable and darn cute!

All in all, a good day!

Homegrown goodness

I picked this off my tree and ate it today.  We had 4 oranges make it after the freeze last year that nearly killed our trees.  Now we have 3. 

Oh, and in case you were wondering...it was delicious.

My (accidental) new ironing board cover

I was ironing some really cute fabric I got (and washed) when I noticed the grunge on my ironing board cover was bleeding through onto my pretty white fabric.  Ick.  So I tossed the cover into the wash figuring it would be fine because I wasn't going to put it in the dryer.  I made the cover last year and didn't bother taking the time to pre-wash the fabric which, apparently was a mistake.  I was dismayed to see that it shrank about 4 inches (ack!) and no longer fits my board and I really like that cover because it has a cute kind of Cath Kidston look at a fraction of the cost.  Look how short it is.  Sigh.

So, it looks like I need a new cover.  I picked through my fabrics and found a nice black and tan checked decorator weight fabric (I like to use it for the bottoms of my handbags because it makes them sturdier and is easy to wipe clean).  I don't like it as much as the red ticking but I will call it my winter cover and it will do for now.  So I washed it (yup) and set it on the floor under my ironing board and just cut around it about 3 inches out from the board.

I picked this cute Tracy Porter print for the casing.  I know nobody will see it but I know it's there and it's cute.  I love this fabric line and you can get it at Joann for a great price (especially if you have a coupon).

I cut strips 2 inches wide on the bias, sewed them together at the ends (I needed around 125 inches in length) and folded it lengthwise.  I stitched it on the wrong side of the checked fabric (about 1/4 inch seam allowance) leaving an opening at the center of the bottom to pull the cord through. I turned the casing over to the right side of the checked fabric, pressed it and stitched it in place.

I used the kind of string you get for window blinds or roman shades since I can pull it tight and it will stay that way (without breaking). Using my nifty bodkin I pulled it through in no time.

I pulled it nice and snug (using my big toe to hold the string in place while tying a knot since there was nobody around who's finger I could borrow) and tied a tight knot. This cord is pretty easy to untie when I need to remove it. Isn't it cute?

It's nice to have a fresh, clean ironing board cover and I can use this cover as my pattern so I can make one for every season! Here's the finished look.  Isn't the underneath part cute?  And this one won't shrink!

We have a winner!!

Well today I (well, my trusty assistant) got to draw the name for the winner of the 4 piece custom set made from my precious stack of Freshcut fabric.  I've been so excited with anticipation that it has actually kept me up at night (I know, don't say it).  December was a crazy month for having a contest but it was lots of fun and I really appreciate everyone who placed a bid. 

I owe a huge thanks to Heather Bailey for her generosity in providing the Trash Ties for all of the winners!  Let me know what you think of them (I know you'll love them!) and be sure to take lots of pictures because there could be a contest coming up over yonder at Trash Ties Central (but you didn't hear it from me).

But back to the drawing......

There were a total of 305 bids for all of my December auctions (I know, Wow!).  I placed each bid in this mason jar and gave it many shakes.  I then handed it to my assistant who gave it many shakes (too many in my opinion but I'm just grateful he didn't drop it on the tile).

Here's the jar with all 305 bids (I know it doesn't look like much but trust me, it took forever to cut all of these out):

Here's my steady-handed and entirely objective assistant doing his job (the winner may want to send a little lollipop his way, he really worked hard) ;)  See, he's got the winning name right there between his finger and thumb.

And the winner is......Kelly (known on ebay as "nimi_and_noahs_armoire")!! Congratulations Kelly!!  We'll talk!

Thanks everybody!!  I'm scrambling hard to get your orders (and Trash Ties) out!  I'm so grateful for everyone's support in 2007!!  XOXOXOXO