read all the books

 
This was a sad year in our little town of about 1500.  Both our only bookstore and our only fabric store closed.  Now we have to drive at least 30 miles for a fabric store and about 90 miles for the nearest book store.

Of course, one can always order from Am*z*n but I generally try to avoid doing that and purpose instead to shop locally.  I know there are many bloggers that fund their blogs through Am*z*n and while I have no quarrel with that at all, my choices are generally local.  Of course, I avoid shopping at all costs - I cannot be depended on to keep a blog or a local shop in business.

Those two closures prompted me to challenge myself to use what I have on hand - for sewing and for reading.

A few years ago, when I was going to be traveling I downloaded a bunch of iBooks.  And buy a bunch, I mean 130.  I didn't pay for any of them, they are all part of the public domain.  They are books I would not have ordered or bought from my local bookstore but checked out from the library.

Here are some examples:

I

I have read about 30 of the iBooks so that leaves 100 to go.

We have about 150 books on our shelves here at home, not counting reference books, cookbooks and Bibles.  I have read probably 3/4 of those.  

   These bitter cold winter days are perfect for reading..  A cup of tea, a good book - count me in.  When I'm not at the sewing machine - you'll find me on the couch with a book in one hand and a cuppa something in the other.  Trying to read all the books.

And speaking of sewing:

I made some good progress in stash busting yesterday.  I pieced together 5 Christmas stocking tops.  

The handwork- embroidery and quilting -on these will take quite a bit of time, but I have a road trip coming up and anticipate getting a bit of it done then.

How about you?  Are you setting any goals or challenges for yourself in the new year?

sew all the fabric

 '.

 One of the things I hope to do in the new year is 'sew all the fabric'.

I have never been the  kind of 'sewist' (which reads better than 'sewer') to stash fabric. I buy what is needed for a given project.
 And yet somehow I seem to have developed a fabric stash.  

Not being able to turn down free fabric has resulted in a bit of a collection of fabric.
Since none of my three beautiful daughters-in-love sew, I have taken it upon myself to bust my stash.  They are not going to want this stuff when I am gone.  While I have no plans to depart soon - one never knows.

I enjoy making these stockings.  It is a nice combination of hand and machine work.  Very portable too and not boring even after making 11.

Over the years I have made Chistmas stckings for all 6 grandchildren as well as two sets of their parents.  And one for a baby shower gift.  11 stockings.  There has been some leftover fabric.

So my first stash busting assignment is to see how many more stockings I can make out of the remaining fabric.  Without buying anymore.  I think the answer is 4-6 and that should really deplete my Christmas fabric.  Which is what I am going for.  These will make nice baby shower gifts or maybe wedding gifts.

I made this table runner several years ago.  A combination of a thrift store dresser scarf and fabrics on hand.  I could probably make a few more of these as well.  For gifts.  How many table runners does one need?

Somehow, there is also plenty of felt in my stash.  I could make more Christmas ornaments like the above, since I saved the pattern I bought from Alicia.  Pattern here.

Unless my 3 year old grandson wants one of these, I don't anticipate making another pillow sham(this was made for 9 year old Josh).  But I could - I still have the orangey and lime green fabric left!

I made baby quilts for each grandchild too.  I think I have enough fabric to make at least two more.  Because I am hoping for one, maybe two more grands.  Hear that kids?  

Anyway, my plan is to considerably reduce my fabric supply.  Once I have finished the bigger projects I plan to make some make-up bags, pencil bags, totes, ornaments, coffee cozies etc.  Smaller things to use up the stash and build a supply of little gifts on hand for that moment when you need a special something for a friend.

(Both Patsi and Annabel recommend keeping a gift pantry, closet, trunk...whatever you call it it is smart to have some special handmade or frugally purchased gifts on hand.)

So starting today, with cutting our a few stockings - I am going to 'sew all the fabric'.

here a little, there a little

When Patsy at A Working Pantry  announced her sewing challenge, I knew I had to participate.

It is a simple challenge.  Sew 15 minutes a day for 100 days.  She was kind enough to say that they did not have to be consecutive days.

I have, not a large stash of fabric, but a large pile of Things With Which Something Could Be Done.  I make tee shirt bags for a non-profit I at which I volunteer.  There is a bag of wool garments that no one wanted to wear, but the craft ideas for them are endless.

There was a box I scored for free at a garage sale.  I haven't even looked beyond the first layer or two of that.

This challenge would be great motivation to get a move on.

I devised a super simple 'analog' way of keeping track of my days:

See what you can do with just paper and pencil, kids?  No batteries or cords or updates necessary.

To date I have:

• changed a full length sleeve blouse to a 3/4 length sleeve. 
• mended a pair of the resident fisherman's shorts
• made a pillow sham for my grandson
• repaired a quilt for my other grandson

I made this quilt for my oldest son when I was pregnant with his brother.  In anticipation of needing to move him to a 'big boy bed', I wanted him to have something special to be excited about.

I saw a pattern in a Better Homes and Gardens magazine in the early '80's and ordered it.  I was too young and foolish to realize I was in over my head (or skill level).  There was embroidery, quilting and applique.  I had done precious little of any of these. But I kept at it.   That is how you make progress. A little bit at a time.  Rome wasn't built in a day and all that.

  That is what attracted me about the 100 day challenge.  Slow and steady is my speed.

The quilt had some wear and tear, what with raising three boys (pretty much the whole house had some damage - as adults the boys now compare what they broke, bent, busted or tore apart when they get together - I learn something every time).

Boys.

wear

tear

I did it!  I got it mended and will give it to my firstborn's firstborn.  A sweet little red-headed guy ready to go into his 'big boy bed'.

Ta da!

to a tee

I know I've mentioned this before but I volunteer at a faith based organization here in town.  We give clothing and toiletries to those in need.  No charge.  A local coffee shop donates cinnamon rolls and other baked goods and really good coffee for us to serve our guests.  Some donated couches and chairs and we've got ourselves a cozy place to gather each Wednesday from 9-4.

All our goods are donated.  Our little community has been so generous.  We always have MORE than enough clothing.  The one item that seems to languish on the shelves though is tee shirts.  Tee shirts that have writing on them.

Not Green Bay Packer shirts but the other variety commemorating golf scrambles, music camps, equestrian events, camps, 5K runs.  You name it, someone has been there, done that AND bought the tee shirt.

Then, they donate it to us.  Since we have such an abundance of shirts, we have come up with a plan.

Did you know that you can make a tee shirt into a shopping bag?  You can.  Easy peasy.

Cut off the sleeves, scoop the neck (I trace around a cake pan for a nice uniform scoop).  Sew the bottom of the shirt closed and you have a bag!

We pack them with our guests selections and send them off.  Our guests have been returning with them, so they are being used.  Yay!

Cut-off sleeves and collars.  Awaiting another project.  Sometime later.

I have made about 100 of these so far and I'm not even close to being out of tee shirts yet.

But I need to take a break, for now, and work on a Christmas stocking for the newest grand baby.  No peeking, Taya!

88 days til Christmas

  

It might be 88 days until December 25, but we are having our family Christmas at Thanksgiving this year.  

Which means 49 days until Christmas.

Which means 49 days to make a stocking for the newest family member.

Which means I need to spend some time in the basement unpacking and unearthing my sewing supplies.

But first, a review of today's Bible study lesson.  John 1.

"In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God."

Ancient, mysterious words full of meaning and truth.  It is a delight to ponder these words and discuss them with a group of beautiful, godly women.  We meet to study God's word each Thursday afternoon.  How I look forward to this time!

Staying grounded in these truths will help us not corrupt the true meaning of Christmas.  

And each stitch in this stocking will represent a prayer for this newest little grandson of ours who is expected to arrive after Thanksgiving and before Christmas.

The most wonderful time of the year!

Finally

One of my favorite blogs is this:
http://rosylittlethings.typepad.com/posie_gets_cozy/

(I'm using a blogger app on my ipad and don't know how to/if I can imbed that link.  Anybody?)

Last fall I bought two of her Christmas ornament kits.  I finished one, but then we sold our house and crafty pursuits were set aside while I packed, pitched and cleaned.

It was great fun to stitch again.  I finally finished these:

Not sure if I will keep them or pass them along to these cuties:

paralyzed by perfectionism

photo taken prior to adding binding

Many years ago (10?) I bought a pretty dresser scarf at an antique store for 10 cents.  No floss, no color chart - just the scarf.  It languished in my unfinished project box for quite some time.  I wasn't sure what colors to use, I didn't know how I would finish the edges....excuses, excuses so I did nothing.

A few years ago after discovering that prolonged 90 degree day heat spells keep one just as house bound as 20 below zero days, I pulled it out and got to stitching.  I finished the embroidery that long, hot summer,  but still wasn't sure how to finish the edges, so back into the box it went.

Then, one day I pulled it out again and decided to make it into a lap quilt.  I cut out bunches of 2.5 inch squares for a border.  Then I wasn't sure how to quilt it, so back into the box it went.

Seeing a pattern here?  When I am unsure of how to do something, I quit.  I don't want to do it wrong, so instead - I procrastinate. 

However failing to make a decision is a decision in and of itself.

Fast forward to the use it up challenge. This project is on the list.  I am doing what I call 'rustic' quilting.  It will never win a prize, but it will keep someone nice and cozy on a cold winter's night as they sit and read or stitch. 

After completing the quilting I sewed the binding on. 

Unfortunately I had a major blond/senior moment (do you realize how difficult life is when you have both of those conditions working against you?). I sewed the binding on the wrong side of the quilt.  I was so tempted to put this thing away (or in the garbage...).  But instead, I stitched the binding to the front with a decorative stitch.  Necessity being the mother of invention and all that.

And another 'use it up' project is completed.

~~~~~~

Next up: a black skirt.  Por moi.

rainbow sherbet skirt

I'm happy to report that my first projects in the 'use it up' challenge are completed.  And just in time too.  Our sweet granddaughter Sadie will be celebrating her second birthday (!) and I wanted to commemorate the day with a few handmade items.

The pattern for the skirt came from Anna Maria Horner's Seams to Me book.

The directions were clear and the skirt went together quickly.  Love the added quality of French seams. But when I finished it, it just looked way too big.  Fortunately one of my piano students has a little sister who is almost exactly Sadie's age.  Her mom  (thank you T.!) brought over one of her skirts for comparison and sure enough, the one I made  was 1/3 again too big.  I searched the internet for errata for that particular book, but found nothing for the Bo Peep skirt.  Could it be that I am the first to make it for a two year old?'

So I deconstructed the skirt (at this point not loving the French seams quite so much as it meant twice the ripping), and corrected the bulk and finished it up in about an hour.  Can't wait to see it on her

The second project was a tote bag to go with the skirt.   Cuz a girl's gotta have accessories.  The pattern for the tote came from Amy Karol's Bend the Rules Sewing Book (thanks Nate and Michelle!).

I've made several things out of this book.  Including this tote.  The instructions call for an interior pocket, but I thought it would be fun to make an exterior pocket in the form of a flower pot.  And yoyos and buttons for the flowers.  So now I've used three buttons out of my button stash.  Only two more quart jars full to go!

It was fun to do a little stash busting with these projects.  I hope Sadiekins enjoys her grammie made gifts!

couched in frugal terms

In October 2011, I discussed with my sweet d-i-l Kristi, what I might get the grandkids for Christmas.  She had somel ideas for me.

Three year old Josh has one of these (only in blue):

He loves it.  So does 18 month old Sadie.  

Sharing is hard work when you are 3 and 1.  A good thing to learn, but hard.

 



So, I went to Malwart and got one of these.  Upon getting it home, I realized it was a piece of junk and I needed to return it.  Before returning it though, I measured it.  Grandma had an idea.

I went to our local upholstery shop.  The door was wide open and when I entered, the proprietor apologized for the smell.  The smell of stale cigarette smoke hit me like a ton of bricks, but that was not what he was talking about.  'Yeah," he said, "we've been having problems with sewer gas here."

Well, the smoke was so bad that it overpowered whatever sewer gas there was.  I could not buy upholstery foam for my grands in such a place.

So, on a hunch, I stopped at our local bedding store and asked if they had any foam.  The salesman said, "Why yes, I do."

He gave me two bags of core samples.   I offered to pay.  He declined.

Perfect.



I deconstructed the samples (which in their former life looked like this:





And reshaped them to resemble the couch I had measured.







Not quite right.







There, finally, I had the shape and measurements I wanted.  I hot glued the pieces to death.
Note to self, buy more glue sticks.







And then duct-taped all the seams.







Then, I remeasured all the flat surfaces and raided my small but mighty fabric stash.  Perfect - fabric that makes it look like a granny couch (I almost stitched some doilies on the back and armrests, but figured with 3 grands 3 and under they wouldn't last long).





Here is Sadie sitting on her little couch. She is not picking her nose, but chewing on her doll's bottle.
See doll in a headlock between her knees.







And here are all three grands sitting comfortably on the couch (I'm not sure 3 month old Lainey is comfortable, but she wasn't complaining), mesmerized by Veggie Tales.  When they get back home, Josh will reclaim the Elmo chair as his very own. Before we know it Lainey will be crawling up the Grandma made couch to sit next to her big sis.

I love it when a plan comes together!

Foam $0
Fabric purchased on sale a few years ago for $2/yd.
Seeing my grandkids snuggled together?  Priceless!





stocking stockings

Done, done and done.  Just need to be filled!

more sewing for Sadie

What to do when no computer is available?  

I think I'll sew for the grands.....!

grand's gifts

The ad for ToysRStuff was in the Sunday newspaper a few weeks ago.  A BIG catalog.  I carefully searched through the pages for something I might buy for the grandchildren. 

I only found  one thing in that whole catalog that I might perhaps pick up for three year old Josh, but it was so unremarkable that I have since forgotten what it was.

Same thing with the KMort ad.  And don't get me started on MalWart.

Thought on gifts for grands:

• Parent approved - we don't want to go against Jon and Kristi's wishes or values in what we buy for their children
• Safe - age appropriate, spiritually appropriate, and  not recalled, not something that will hurt them
• Gifts that do not compromise our Christian values
• Promotes creativity when possible.  I would much rather give them a package of marker or crayons and some paper or a box of dress-up clothes than the cutest, most up-to-date whatsit that will simply sit on the shelf.
• Whenever possible - not something made in China
• Whenever possible - something handmade by me or someone on etsy or from our local fair trade store
• Books are always a good idea
• Preferably not plastic (exception: Legos).

Those are just a few guidelines that come to mind - I'd be interested in hearing any that you have.
 
As they grow older I would rather spend money buying experiences - trips, lessons, shared experiences.  Kristi has already told Josh that someday Grandma will take him camping.  But he is a bit young for that now.  In a few years, LORD willing, Josh and Grandma will take the tent and head to the woods for a few days.
 
In the meantime, I'm still hunting for gifts.  Kristi gave me a few ideas and I came up with one on my own.  This little peasant blouse for Sadie (fabric -detail above-Mary Englebreit for Moda purchased a few years ago).  It is such a sweet little blouse, I would love to have one for myself, except it would look like a maternity top and that is not the look I'm going for.

If you have really mad skilz (and a mad skilz saw) you can make one of these like our friend Tonia and her husband Mike did.

Talented folks.  I have my eye on another gift for Sadie, but instead of buying it, I just might try my hand and making it by hand.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Thanks for you comments on my last post.  It seemed to resonate with a lot of you (comments and emails).  I cross posted it on a forum I infrequently frequent and got lots of comments.  One person suggested that 'everyone' copy it and send it to their Congressperson.

Interesting.  Many seem to think that corporate CEO's as well as  Congress type peeps have no clue how those of us down here in the trenches live.

Maybe we should take a straw poll.  How many on our Congressional officials have ever darned socks?  Could this be a new criteria for electability?

~~~~~~

It was a productive weekend here.  I roasted our front porch pumpkins and pureed the flesh.  It is all frozen in two cup portions - a pumpkin pie's worth in each bag.  I made a few loaves of bread.  After cooling the loaves, I sliced and cubed them and the cubes are drying in the oven.  The oven was still warm from making one of the desserts for Thanksgiving Day.  And...I've already sauteed the celery and onions for the stuffing (or do you say dressing?). 

A little bit of preparation each day makes for a much more enjoyable Thanksgiving feast.

(Oh, and please don't show this post to Sadie.  I want her to be surprised.)

enough part 2

Whether it started a few weeks ago, when I looked for jingle bells to finish the Christmas stockings I made, or a few days ago as I emptied a shoe box of Operation Christmas Child, I decided I must get the minutiae of my life organized.

No jingle bells were to be found - in either my gift wrap box or the one Christmas box I knew would have them - though I had this nagging feeling that I had just purchased some last year.

The shoe box held a disparate collection of bits and bobs of things - a garter (?), broken jewelry, a die, bobby pins, ribbons, halfway decent jewelry, empty jewelry boxes, a golf tee (?), sewing notions.

After throwing away the useless things, I took the sewing notions to my sewing basket.

If I thought I had enough office supplies to last the rest of my life, whether I live three more years or thirty, I certainly have enough sewing notions to last the rest of my life.

Dozens of needles (embroidery, quilting, tapestry needlepoint carpet making, canvas sewing-because you never know when you might need to make a boat cover), hundreds of pins, seam rippers (2), scissors (2), rotary cutters (2), spools of thread (a few dozen) and about one hundred skeins of embroidery floss, 6 embroidery hoops and a partridge in a pear tree.  I do not take full responsibility for all the floss; this collection contains not only mine, but Mom's and Grandma's.  Not to mention hooks and eyes, snaps, and various lengths of bias tape and seam binding.

I have three sewing baskets* (I didn't buy any of them), 5 pincushions (I didn't buy any of them), enough yardage for four projects. That is one area I have control over - I know my finely honed propensity for procrastination, so I only purchase the fabric I need for current projects - no stash here.  Oh, and enough fabric scraps to make two or three quilts.

Again, I am both embarrassed and amazed at all the stuff I have in the sewing department. 

Need anything monogrammed or embroidered?  I'm your girl. Thankfully my niece Emilee wants to learn to embroider and hopefully in the future I can teach Sadie and Lainey to stitch.

Taking up sewing?  Don't buy anything - call me first.  I have a notion that I have more than enough notions to supply all of us.


* One of my sewing baskets contained 'dog tags' for my husband and brother-in-law.  These were made pre-1958,when they were young boys, according to the address listed on them.  How they got in my sewing basket, I don't know - but I'm guessing they weren't there until after my mother-in-law's death in 2004.  Regardless, I obviously need to clean out my sewing basket more often.

sugar and spice

As the days speed toward Christmas, I've been thinking about what to make.  Especially for my beautiful little granddaughters. 

After raising three sons...what a joy it is to contemplate sewing pink, feminine ruffly things!

Here are some web ideas that have caught my attention:

First, and this is less a gift idea than a 'what a good way to give out-grown -clothes-new-life' - a clever turning of a too short tee shirt and a skirt into a dress.  Directions and pictures are here and here.

The second of those two ideas takes a man's thrifted tee shirt and uses it as a skirt to the too short tee top.  My granddaughters are very blessed to have a daddy who is a youth pastor and one of the perks of the job is a never ending supply of tee shirts.

This is a sweet, simple little dress.    It is made along the lines of a pillow case dress - only not made out of a pillow case.

If you want to make a pillow case dress (and they are very easy and cute so you should) just google 'pillow case dress tutorial' and you will get more instructions than you can shake a stick at.

These are cute too.  For summer.  For winter,  in corduroy with a tee or turtleneck underneath?

Here are some tutorials for both boys's and girls' clothing.  Cute stuff.  Even swimming suits!

These are French patterns, but they sure are cute, n'est ce pas?

Lots and lots of cute patterns and fabrics at this spot. 

I know there is an almost endless wealth of sewing information out there on the world wide internets.  :)Perusing these sites should keep us busy for a while.  But don't linger too long - order up some fabric and patterns and fire up the sewing machine.  Christmas is only 62 days away!

Do you have any favorite sewing sites?

(Oh, here's one more.)

(Kristi, if you are reading this, let me know which ones you like best!)

3 weeks from Thursday

I fly up to Iowa to wrap a brand new little girl into this pink fluffy chenille/flannel blanky.

Scrumptiousness!!


The fabric is whole cloth I bought from Hobby Lobby, so while I did not piece it myself, I did tie it and make the pink and white polka dotted binding myself (instructions for making your own binding found in Amy Karol's Bend the Rules Sewing).


Here is a tutorial for how to make your own bias tape, but I like Amy's way better.

I popped the blanket in the mail today, before the Post Office goes bankrupt and the nation's postal system collapses. :)

In other news (not as exciting as baby news, but happy news none the less): after a bone-dry August, we have been getting rain for two days straight. Over 6 inches so far and very welcome!

busy hands

There are so many wonderful craft blogs on the internet. A person could get lost in them and spend hours and hours gaining ideas and inspiration. But sometimes a person just needs to step away from the computer and get busy . This table runner is almost four feet long and took hours and hours and hours and hours to finish. I still need to back it, but may have to wait until Christmas fabrics return to the shelves to find the right one. It is not rumpled and lumpy in real life.

In comparison, these bibs for our Sadie Beth went super fast. And imho turned our super cute!

Sorry the pictures are so dark. It was a dreary day when I took the pics and I took them with my old camera.

My new camera is not on speaking terms with Pat's computer. My laptop is not on speaking terms with the internet here at home. So when I want to put up a quick post - the old camera it is.

Hope you have a great and productive day! Another rainy day at our house. I cut out a dress for Sadie yesterday and plan to get stitching today. Pictures soon!