I’ve been hooking up a storm lately. I finished this scarf and I’m using up the extra bits to make a bookmark. I’ve also started a new scarf that’s almost done. I’m not sure what’s gotten into me. Maybe it’s the cool Autumn weather?
I can’t wait to block the scarf for a final reveal. It’s going to be so beautiful!
What are you working on this week?
I love books — old, new, hardback, paperback, electronic — I just can’t get enough of them. I am currently downsizing my collection, but couldn’t resist going to our city library’s book sale. I found non-fiction titles for myself, brand new books that will become gifts for others, and children’s books for my daughter.
Of course I had to check out the craft books and I came home with some not-so-typical choices. No sewing, knitting or crochet! Here’s what I got:
The Creative License: Giving Yourself Permission to Be The Artist You Truly Are This book looks like fun. Here’s the sentence on the back cover that sold me: “Somewhere deep inside, we all have a longing to make things — be they drawings, music, hand-knit sweaters or loaves of bread.”
Country Living Making & Displaying Quilts I don’t ever see myself making a quilt and don’t own any other quilt books, but I love Country Living publications. The beautiful pictures always inspire me.
Crafts and Keepsakes for the Holidays: Christmas with Martha Stewart Living I don’t own any holiday craft books, either. I am still committed to handmade holiday gifts and there are some really cute ideas in here, plus lots of yummy recipes.
Good Things from Tag Sales and Flea Markets Does this book even need an explanation? Honestly, I think I have checked out this exact copy at least twice. It’s filled with information on how to shop, what to buy, and how to restore thrifted items.
Print Magazine’s 2004 European Design Annual: Print is one of my favorite graphic design magazines. I love all of the annuals, but there’s something special about the European edition. It’s a nice change of pace from the design we are surrounded by every day.
I’ll be devouring these over the next few weeks and will let you know how they are. I’m curious what everyone else is reading these days.
Share your favorite crafty recommendations in the comments!
I don’t have a plan for this yarn yet, but I really do enjoy unraveling sweaters. These colors are so nice together. Any project recommendations? I’m open to suggestions!
I am so excited this is finished because I’m really ready for a new project. It turned out just as beautiful as I had imagined the day I found the sweater.
I couldn’t wait for it to dry, so I took pictures while it was blocking. I don’t normally block blankets, but because this is a gift, I wanted all of the squares to look perfect.
Some friends have asked me about my seaming technique on this blanket. I took pics along the way so I can post a tutorial. My next blanket will be joined as I go. Maybe it won’t take so long to finish.
original post: You can see parts of the original sweater in my first post about this project.
My daughter loves wearing dresses. She also loves to climb tall jungle gyms and roll around in the grass with her feet in the air. She understands the concept of modesty, but she’s too busy running, jumping and playing to be worried about such things right now. I get it. I want her to have fun and not be self conscious. So the new rule: bike shorts under dresses.
A few years ago, I posted a pattern for easy kids shorts. I followed the same basic steps to come up with the bike short pattern. I had also planned to share the template with you, but it’s gone missing. Whoops!
I have a few more to make, so I guess I’ll be redrawing the pattern. I’ll let you know when it’s posted. In the meantime, I’ll be outside teaching my daughter how to do cartwheels.
stash: One of my t-shirts rescued from the donation bag. Thrifted elastic.
A seriously fast, easy and inexpensive project. Plus, they go under a dress, so they don’t have to be perfect!
I haven’t done a Thrifty Thursday post in awhile. I haven’t done a lot of thrifting either. It might be because it’s too darn hot for garage sailing. It might be because my best thrifting buddy up and moved to California. (Hi Kelly!) Whatever the reason, I decided to remedy my situation last week at the 99 cent sale. My daughter was at camp and I spent the whole morning finding some pretty awesome deals.
I came home with six pairs of jeans, one brand new with the tags still on. The new pair is for me, the others are for my daughter. They are size seven. She’ll be the first to tell you that she’s only a size six. She doesn’t need size seven clothes. She’s not the only one in denial. I can’t believe my baby girl will be wearing size seven soon, either. But that’s what comes after six and I’m sure I’ll be happy to have these when she pops up another inch or two this winter.
Thrifting is a serious hit or miss adventure. Many times I go and come home empty handed. Maybe that’s the real reason I haven’t been hitting the stores lately. But then some days the stars are aligned just right and I score some great stuff. If the weather would just cool off a bit, I might just rediscover my thrifty spirit.
Remember the thrifty buffet we found a few months ago? It had been sanded and primed then pushed to the side when our weekends got busy. Yesterday, my husband pulled it out and started painting.
The primer is gray and the paint is chocolate brown. I think he was hoping for a darker, espresso color. We’ll see what it looks like after coat number two.
This space hasn’t been very creative in the past week. I’ve been sick since last Saturday. I’ve spent a lot of time sleeping and not much else.
Right before that I had made a trip to the thrift store and started work on some summer refashioning. I also drafted a skirt pattern from scratch and made this muslin. Notice what’s on the side? A zipper! I’m not sure why I’m so intimidated by these buggers, but I’m going to conquer that fear this summer. So long elastic waistbands!
pattern: I used the a-line skirt formula in Sew What! Skirts. Muslin fabric is a floral sheet.
More creative spaces here.
Ok, so this really could be a how to: personalize any gift. It’s just that I really wanted to get my daughter involved with her teacher thank you gifts this year and this was all her idea.
She had been playing with a fabric gift card sleeve of mine and asked if we could make something similar for her teachers for “receipts and stuff.” She also wanted to decorate it herself.
You could do this with any fabric gift: zipper pouch, bookmark, you could even buy some blank canvas tote bags from the craft store. The important thing is to get your child involved!
Materials
In addition to your project supplies, you’ll need:
-disappearing ink pen
-fabric markers
Step 1
With your disappearing ink pen, mark off the area where your child can draw. It’s ok if she wants to draw outside of the lines, just make sure that the most important artwork is in the marked area.
Step 2
Let her go to town! When she’s finished, follow the directions on your fabric markers. Mine did not require heat to set the ink, but it did recommend two coats of ink. I traced over her lines after she went to bed.
Step 3
Sew up the gift!
What surprised me most about this project was how specific my daughter was for each drawing. Sueann received a picture of a treasure map (something she saw at school) with X marks the spot at a heart-shaped rock. Lorie received flowers (it was nature school—makes sense). Diane received a picture of “things falling” (not sure about that one—neither was Diane). They were all so different! She made sure I put a tag on each gift so it went to the correct teacher.
stash: I wish I thought to put a note about all of the recycled textiles that went into this gift. Nature school teachers are all about reusing. The fabric was thrifted and the zippers were recycled from other textiles. I wish I took a pic of the insides. She picked out different linings for each teacher, too!
Severe weather is finally here in Nebraska and my creative space is filled with some not-so-creative sewing.
In the Spring, we stuff blankets under this cover to protect our car from hail. We got lazy last winter and left it on all year. The Nebraska winds nearly shredded it to pieces.
Now the weather radio alarm is going off and all we’ve got is a giant rag. I grabbed some canvas from my stash and started sewing patches. I gave up after fixing the biggest holes. It’s good enough to hold some blankets in place. That’s about it.
My husband asked if I could use the old cover as a pattern to sew a new one. Ha! I’ve taken on some crazy projects, but I think I’m going to pass on this one.
garage sale find: The canvas came in a tub with a bunch of muslin. I almost tossed it because it had spray paint stains on it. Now there’s hardly any left. I’ve made all sorts of heavy-duty patches with it.
Creative Spaces have a new home. Stop by and play along!
