I Forgot to Mention...

Someone (anonymous) asked where I got the embroidery designs for the tea towels. I meant to include this info with the initial post, but forgot. The Christmas ornaments are from a purchased piece of clipart. The Christmas candle is available here as a coloring page. The other two designs are from needlecrafter.com. There are a lot of other designs on this site that I would like to do someday. For all of the designs, I printed off the design and then traced the back side of it with an iron transfer pencil (against the window to be able to see it better). Then I ironed it on the towels. I found this worked well because it reversed the design, making it the right direction on the towel and I also could easily see the placement of the design.

The 500th birthday party for John Calvin was a fun evening. The hat was a hit. Here it is in action (with "Calvin's" permission):

In my previous post, I mentioned an art show that I went to. The woman that hosts the show asked me if I wanted to be part of it next year. She had asked me before this year's show (after she saw my things at the fair!) if I would be interested in doing it next year. I said I thought I might, but I'm really glad that I made it to the show this year, so I know what it's like. I'm quite interested, but a bit intimidated, too. I've never done anything like that before, but thoughts and ideas are already rolling around in my head.

Well, I think that's all the bits and pieces I forgot for now. Next up...draft busters. Yup, they're as exciting as they sound.

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Grocery Bags

More gifts! These are just like the still-all-too-ubiquitous plastic grocery bags, but they're fabric. I followed this tutorial and you actually use a plastic bag as a pattern. The instructions are very good and include a pocket so that the bag can be folded up and is easy to keep in a purse or a car's glove box. Mostly for the sake of the gift recipients, here's how to fold up the bag.... 1. Lay the bag pocket side down and fold it length-wise using the edges of the pocket as a guide. 2. Fold it in half, aligning the top of the handles with the bottom of the bag. 3. Fold in half again and then reach into pocket with your hand and turn the whole thing (pocket included) inside out. Happy shopping!

Shopping Bags

Most stores in our town charge you a nickel for a plastic bag when you check out. I love this practice and the way that it encourages people to bring their own cloth bags or reuse their plastic ones. My habit of bringing along bags to the grocery store is well established, but I used to find myself stuck at places like the drug store or farmer's market or other impromptu stops. Then I picked up a bag at an upscale kitchen goods store that rolls up quite compactly. Now I keep that in my purse, so I always have a bag with me. I like my bag so much that I wanted to replicate it for the art sale. The final result is a hybrid of the bag I purchased and these that I made last year. The bag is a little bigger than the average plastic grocery bag. The velcro tab is used to keep the bag rolled up, but also can close the top of the bag when it is full. Most of the bag is a single layer of cotton, but the handles are faced. There is a double row of top-stitching around both edges of

The Burda Skirt Again

I'm not sure what prompted it, but awhile ago I decided that I needed a green skirt. The last time I was at Fabricland I saw this green wide-wale corduroy. I wasn't really looking for the skirt to be corduroy and the color was a little different than I was hoping for, but since I had my eyes peeled for awhile and hadn't seen anything better, I thought I'd try the corduroy. After looking for a suitable pattern, I settled on the Burda 2/2010 skirt that I've already used three times . Because of the weight and bulk of the corduroy, I didn't want to try to mess with too many details. I'll use another skirt pattern soon. Really, I will. One of the things I really like about this pattern is the pockets. This time I made the pocket facings and part of the pocket bag out of a cotton woven solid to reduce bulk. Since I'll be wearing this skirt with tights I added a lining. Adding the lining was really simple except that I cut the lining exactly the sam

My Sewing Space

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