These little charmers are made using 2 different fabrics, making it fun, cardboard to make it stand, velcro and dowels, thats it. Its super easy to make and can be made in a matter of about 20 minutes.
Sunday, September 8, 2013
Got a Nook?
Ever enjoy a meal at the table by yourself, or take a lunch break at work and like to read your Nook or other EReader? The perfect solution is a Nook/EReader stand! I made one of these for myself and LOVE it!! With Kevin's crazy schedule, I eat a lot of meals by myself and I love to read. I get so bored eating by myself so I like to grab my Nook to read a bit while eating. The nice thing about the Nook/EReader stand is it folds down and is approximately an inch thick, thats it. There is velcro that holds it together when it stands, plus there is a hidden dowel to hold the Nook so it doesn't slide down.
These little charmers are made using 2 different fabrics, making it fun, cardboard to make it stand, velcro and dowels, thats it. Its super easy to make and can be made in a matter of about 20 minutes.
Folds flat so it takes up very little space in a purse or suitcase for travel.
These also make a great gift for someone that has a Nook. They can be made in any color combination, or even different sizes for other EReaders.
These little charmers are made using 2 different fabrics, making it fun, cardboard to make it stand, velcro and dowels, thats it. Its super easy to make and can be made in a matter of about 20 minutes.
Friday, September 6, 2013
As mentioned in the previous blog entry, I was going to tell you about the most incredible crafting opportunity I have ever done. This will take me a bit, so go grab a cup of tea, coffee, whatever your choice of beverage would be and sit back for a little bit with me while I explain this.
I apologize to those of you that already know this story, but Im pretty proud of these accomplishments and I have to share them because a lot of people dont get this chance.
My friend Donna, who is a couple of years younger then I, told me her daughter Stephany, (who was Kaylas best friend in school) was getting married and wondered if I could make a quilt out of her own wedding dress plus Stephanys flower girl dress. Not thinking it would be a major project, it would be something I could handle, I said yes.
The day I picked up the dress I said to myself, "Oh my God what did I get myself into". This dress is massive, with what seemed to be millions of pearls and sequins with several dozen yards of lace. But I felt confident I could do this. It was February and I had until October to complete everything. One request was a quilt and a pillow for Donna. Besides that, I could create whatever I wanted.
The very first cut was the hardest to make, but I soon had pieces cut out of every shape and size, all lace was cut out, every pearl and sequin was kept, everything.
In the end I was able to create an end of the bed quilt runner, 3 christmas ornaments, a cone shaped christmas tree, a large pillow for Donna, a smaller pillow for Stephany, a wedding day purse, a keepsake box for Stephany and one for Donna, matching bracelets for Mom & daughter to wear during the wedding, a photo album, their wedding invitation framed, and the bodice of the dress framed for Donna.
I literally had hundreds of hours in labor. I had the tiniest pieces of lace that I was gluing onto a glass ornament that I cut apart. All of the pearls on each piece of lace on the quilt were sewn back on. Handmade flowers using satin, buttons from the dressed used to look like a button up shirt on the keepsake box. You name it, I used it right down to the smallest pieces.
This entire project was and still is one of my greatest achievements ever and Im proud to say that every single Item I created came from my mind. Not one thing was a pattern nor was any item created using someone elses ideas. For that reason I am pretty proud of that too.
I want to thank Donna again for the faith she had in me and the trust me placed in my hands to create these keepsake items.
Below are the completed items.
One of the keepsake boxes, with lace and a flower made from the satin and some of the pearls
This small purse was created from the sleeves from Stephanys flower girl dress with the pearls woven through the ribbon that was the dress hangers that were sewn into her dress.
The matching bracelets. Each bracelet was created using the exact pieces of lace that was hand cut off larger pieces and hand sewn together onto a larger piece of sheer fabric. Even the pearls were all hand sewn on. Each piece of lace was placed in the exact same spot on each bracelet so that they matched exact.
This pillow was made using a larger piece of satin and the flowers created using satin from the dresses, pearls from both and tulle that was on Stephanys dress.
Their wedding invitation placed on a piece of dress satin with a piece of tulle covering part of the invite and engagement photo. The flowers on the corners were made using satin from the dress with rhinestones as the center. The purple flower on the top was created using ribbon that was also used on the photo album.
A styrofoam ball that I pinned lace onto then pinned pearls and sequins and applied glitter to the whole thing.
A class ornament that I glued tiny pieces of lace flowers I cut out from the lace on the dress, glued pearls and rhinestones and covered it with glitter also.
This is one of my favorite pieces, the tree. A styrofoam cone that I covered first in tulle, then cut out pieces of lace and pinned them over the styrofoam. Many pearls and sequins were pinned on and several rhinestones were glued onto it. The bottom has a solid ring of pearls that were hand strung and then a longer hand strung rope of [earls to make the scallop along the bottom. The tree was placed on a glass candle holder to give it a nice glass base.
A keepsake box that can be used for photos or wedding day mementos. Satin from the dress, the bow ties was off of Stephanys dress and the button from the back of Donnas dress.
The bodice piece framed onto black satin fabric. The base is a piece of styrofoam board with hundreds of tiny pins holding the bodice in place. All pins are hidden behind pearls and under sequins.
An ornament made from the satin and pearls. Each piece of satin was a 2 inch square. The top is a longer piece of satin that was hand sewn into a long piece to look like ribbon.
I apologize to those of you that already know this story, but Im pretty proud of these accomplishments and I have to share them because a lot of people dont get this chance.
My friend Donna, who is a couple of years younger then I, told me her daughter Stephany, (who was Kaylas best friend in school) was getting married and wondered if I could make a quilt out of her own wedding dress plus Stephanys flower girl dress. Not thinking it would be a major project, it would be something I could handle, I said yes.
The day I picked up the dress I said to myself, "Oh my God what did I get myself into". This dress is massive, with what seemed to be millions of pearls and sequins with several dozen yards of lace. But I felt confident I could do this. It was February and I had until October to complete everything. One request was a quilt and a pillow for Donna. Besides that, I could create whatever I wanted.
The very first cut was the hardest to make, but I soon had pieces cut out of every shape and size, all lace was cut out, every pearl and sequin was kept, everything.
In the end I was able to create an end of the bed quilt runner, 3 christmas ornaments, a cone shaped christmas tree, a large pillow for Donna, a smaller pillow for Stephany, a wedding day purse, a keepsake box for Stephany and one for Donna, matching bracelets for Mom & daughter to wear during the wedding, a photo album, their wedding invitation framed, and the bodice of the dress framed for Donna.
I literally had hundreds of hours in labor. I had the tiniest pieces of lace that I was gluing onto a glass ornament that I cut apart. All of the pearls on each piece of lace on the quilt were sewn back on. Handmade flowers using satin, buttons from the dressed used to look like a button up shirt on the keepsake box. You name it, I used it right down to the smallest pieces.
This entire project was and still is one of my greatest achievements ever and Im proud to say that every single Item I created came from my mind. Not one thing was a pattern nor was any item created using someone elses ideas. For that reason I am pretty proud of that too.
I want to thank Donna again for the faith she had in me and the trust me placed in my hands to create these keepsake items.
Below are the completed items.
 | |||
| The quilt. This was a labor of love. The center panel was all hand sewn. There are several pieces of lace sewn onto it a piece of satin with another bow from Stephanys dress at the top. Each diamond shape was constructed using pieces of lace that were cut into strips and sewn together to make the shape. The entire quilt was hand quilted. |
Sunday, September 1, 2013
Welcome
Hello and welcome to my crafting blog. Nothing fancy, nothing complicated, just me showing the various crafts Ive created in the past and present, with some details of what might be to come.
For as long as I can remember, I have been crafting one thing or another. It is not unusual for me to have several projects going at the same time. I do this to keep from getting bored with just one thing. Plus if Im stumped on how to do something, Ill work on another project and think about how I can get past what has me stumped. That thought might come in the middle of the night, while cooking, while Im running errands or playing a game online. Its random and at times drives me crazy that these thoughts consume me.
I will see something on Pinterest or another site and instead of saying to myself, "Im going to make that", I look at it and think about how I can change that project to make it my own. Its very rare that I make something that is exact to something Ive seen, I change everything or in most cases, come up with my own ideas.
I do not follow patterns. Well I guess I shouldnt say that exactly. I have followed a few patterns and I can honestly say I remember each project I followed a pattern. Kaylas bright green and pink quilt, the star hot pads, Kaylas barmaid Halloween costume, her cheerleading skirt Halloween costume and of course all of the counted cross stitch projects Ive completed.
I dont do well with directions, instructions, you name it, they just confuse me and I swear I usually have to read each line 10 times to understand what its trying to tell me. Therefore, I prefer to do my own thing. Ill admit, I fail at things I try on my own, but never one to give up, I tear apart, start over, you name it until I get it the way I want it. Trial & error all the way.
There are a few of my most rewarding projects I have done to date.
Quilts for homeless children was one.
A friend called me just after Thanksgiving one year and asked if I had any quilts I had made that I was willing to part with. She explained what she needed to do with them. After talking with her for a few minutes, I had already determined I needed to help.
When we think of the homeless on our streets, its always an older man, maybe a veteran, probably an alcoholic etc. We never think that there are actual families living on the streets. What this call was about, was needing blankets and/or quilts for kids. Newborn to 14 yrs old. I asked a time line, one week.
Determined to meet this timeline, I went to work and made 6 blankets/quilts in just one week for these kids. She completed 3, so we donated 9 blankets. When she picked them up to deliver them, I welled up knowing I just did an amazing thing and what these blankets would mean to these children.
She called me a week later and asked if there was any way I would be willing to make more in time for Christmas. I said yes. Knowing full well I had last minute shopping, wrapping, prep work, you name it for my own home and family. But these kids needed warmth and nothing was going to stop me from trying my hardest to make this possible.
I worked day & night, completing 9 blankets. I wanted to do more, but time ran out and my own stuff was struggling. In all we donated 29 blankets for these kids.
I kept this information to myself, only Kevin and the girls knew what I was doing. I didnt want any pats on the back for doing this, my work, hours and knowing these kids would have something to call their own was all I needed. I did eventually tell a few people, but this is the first Ive really put it out there for all to see. Below is a photo of the first batch. Sadly I never took a picture of the second batch. Yes, they are all pretty simple, but when they are needed that fast, you realize that kids are not going to care that much how fancy you did them, they just want warmth and something to snuggle with during the rough time in their life.
Coming up next, my other major most rewarding project Ive ever done. Thanks for stopping by today. Have a wonderful day. :-)
For as long as I can remember, I have been crafting one thing or another. It is not unusual for me to have several projects going at the same time. I do this to keep from getting bored with just one thing. Plus if Im stumped on how to do something, Ill work on another project and think about how I can get past what has me stumped. That thought might come in the middle of the night, while cooking, while Im running errands or playing a game online. Its random and at times drives me crazy that these thoughts consume me.
I will see something on Pinterest or another site and instead of saying to myself, "Im going to make that", I look at it and think about how I can change that project to make it my own. Its very rare that I make something that is exact to something Ive seen, I change everything or in most cases, come up with my own ideas.
I do not follow patterns. Well I guess I shouldnt say that exactly. I have followed a few patterns and I can honestly say I remember each project I followed a pattern. Kaylas bright green and pink quilt, the star hot pads, Kaylas barmaid Halloween costume, her cheerleading skirt Halloween costume and of course all of the counted cross stitch projects Ive completed.
I dont do well with directions, instructions, you name it, they just confuse me and I swear I usually have to read each line 10 times to understand what its trying to tell me. Therefore, I prefer to do my own thing. Ill admit, I fail at things I try on my own, but never one to give up, I tear apart, start over, you name it until I get it the way I want it. Trial & error all the way.
There are a few of my most rewarding projects I have done to date.
Quilts for homeless children was one.
A friend called me just after Thanksgiving one year and asked if I had any quilts I had made that I was willing to part with. She explained what she needed to do with them. After talking with her for a few minutes, I had already determined I needed to help.
When we think of the homeless on our streets, its always an older man, maybe a veteran, probably an alcoholic etc. We never think that there are actual families living on the streets. What this call was about, was needing blankets and/or quilts for kids. Newborn to 14 yrs old. I asked a time line, one week.
Determined to meet this timeline, I went to work and made 6 blankets/quilts in just one week for these kids. She completed 3, so we donated 9 blankets. When she picked them up to deliver them, I welled up knowing I just did an amazing thing and what these blankets would mean to these children.
She called me a week later and asked if there was any way I would be willing to make more in time for Christmas. I said yes. Knowing full well I had last minute shopping, wrapping, prep work, you name it for my own home and family. But these kids needed warmth and nothing was going to stop me from trying my hardest to make this possible.
I worked day & night, completing 9 blankets. I wanted to do more, but time ran out and my own stuff was struggling. In all we donated 29 blankets for these kids.
I kept this information to myself, only Kevin and the girls knew what I was doing. I didnt want any pats on the back for doing this, my work, hours and knowing these kids would have something to call their own was all I needed. I did eventually tell a few people, but this is the first Ive really put it out there for all to see. Below is a photo of the first batch. Sadly I never took a picture of the second batch. Yes, they are all pretty simple, but when they are needed that fast, you realize that kids are not going to care that much how fancy you did them, they just want warmth and something to snuggle with during the rough time in their life.
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