Bubbles!

As my friends' families have multiplied many times over the past year I've found a few hours here and there for gift making! And my new favorite baby gift is the Bubble! My good friend D over at T.Rex Handmade put her munchkin in bubbles as a baby and it really caught my eye. So I picked up a great pattern from Children's Corner and got to work this year making three Bubbles this summer. I have a few more on the horizon before the current baby boom wraps up but I think they'll have to wait until my planets realign later this fall.

I can't wait for the babies to grow enough to fit in to these little treasures!

Two Bunnies and A Robot

Two of my best girlfriends have babies with birthdays this month and we had a big Halloween/ Birthday Bash to celebrate! Gifts were not required but I'm never one to go to a birthday party empty handed or to waste an excuse to make something cute for babies :) There were two precious little girls turning 1 who I made matching bunnies for and a rough and tumble little gentleman who had just turned 3 who I made the robot for at right. I hear the red bunny has already become a nap time buddy :) Thanks to Revoluzzza for her RevoluzZzionary Easter Bunny pattern!

Alabama Coastal Foundation

I'm happy to say that I was recently asked to help support the Alabama Coastal Foundation by donating an earring and necklace set for a raffle at their Cocktails for the Coast Fundraiser last week. I made a set from two types of freshwater pearls since I thought pearls would be fitting for a coastal cause. The set also has labradorite stones in it as well.


Glad I remembered to take some pics of it on display!

Sewing with Lauren!

This summer I was honored with a visit from several of the ladies in my family all the way from Maine and Pennsylvania, including my cousin Lauren, who is 13. Here we are with the largest Live Oak in Mobile!


Lauren has always shown an aptitude for art and crafting, following in my footsteps making jewelry and in her own media of fimo sculpting, which she is very good at by the way! So I thought she might like to learn a little about sewing and figured the simple Elastic-Waist Flirt Skirt that I'd been making over and over again all summer from Growing Home (of which I now have 5) would be a great learning project since it is all straight stitching and you end up with something totally wearable!


Here it is! She wore it the very next day to the beach and Lulu's, where the picture was taken. I'm so proud of her little skirt and I hear she still wears it, even though it is quickly becoming fall up there in the northern states!

Summer Sewing!

Well, it's been a busy spring semester with very little time for sewing, but I'm making up for it now! This past week I spent a lot of time in front of my Singer and it feels great to have 2 garments that I will really wear at the end of it all!


My first project was to create a dress that I've had bookmarked for almost a year! It took me a long time to realize that the fabric I bought last year was perfect for this project! This is my version of Prudent Baby's Most Flattering Shirt Dress. It was super easy to follow the tutorial and I love the way she used bias tape! The dress is wearable and cute and I haven't even done the smocking yet! I'm not sure I will since I'm loving it with the belt!


The same night I finished the dress I started whipping up a skirt. I just saw this Elastic-Waist Flirt Skirt (inspired by J.Crew) by Growing Home in May and have been looking for the right fabric ever since. Apparently I'm obsessed with batik and batik like prints right now.... The skirt fabric is actually a dyed fabric (not printed) as it doesn't have a perfect repeat, which makes it all the more interesting! I've already worn the skirt a couple of times and am planning to make another one (it only took about 2 hours to make!) but I think I'll make the next one a little smaller so it doesn't have as much volume. And yes, it even has pockets!!!!!

100th Blog Post!

Wow! I can't believe I have written 100 blog posts on here! Looking back at my old posts I realize now that this blog has been a mish-mosh of odds and ends. It's a mix of updates from my Etsy Jewelry and personal life posts. Part of me would like the blog to take on more of a consistency, with more frequent posts (at least once a month!) and just focusing on my craft life, but then, this blog is a reflection of my life, which isn't always organized or consistent!



So, here's my first finished craft project for the new year! I've been preparing to make this adorable messenger bag for weeks. It was another one of those gifts that was meant to be finished before I came to Maine but never happened and luckily it wasn't a Christmas gift but a January birthday gift, so I had a little extra time.




I saw the pattern featured on one of my favorite sewing blogs Sew Mama Sew. It's the Basic Messenger Bag Tutorial by mmmcrafts. Instead of the cute (and time consuming) applique that she did on the front of her bags, I simplified and used a natural burlap type fabric as the background of the bag and then used the lining fabric as both the strap and covering part of the bag flap. I love how it came out!

Crazy Mainers in the Mountains

Today was another day for Dad and I to tramp through the snow on hiking trails! There is snow, sure, but not enough for snowshoes, so I've been a bit disappointed. Snow hiking is good exercise and the scenery is the same but I had my heart set on snowshoeing while I was in Maine. Today Dad and I hiked in to Hudson Falls just outside of Bingham, Maine and then did a longer one hour hike into Moxie Falls. It was a bit icy but beautiful!

Crazy Mainers in the Woods

Sundays and Tuesdays are the days that I get to spend with my Dad when I am in Maine, so today was a Dad and daughter day. We like to do active things, so today we did a 4 mile snow hike in Oakland, Maine.




It's a beautiful hike along Messalonskee Stream. It's also a great time to really catch up about the things that are important in our lives.

Crazy Mainers at the Beach

If you haven't figured it out yet, I love the ocean. I love to be near the ocean. I love the sound of the ocean. I love to eat things that used to live in the ocean! I get most of this from my mother. Over the years my mother and I have spent many special days together on the beach. It is the one place that we go to together to relax, to get away, and to recharge. We even go in the winter. The dead of winter, when it's cold and the beach is officially closed and we have to climb in with our snow boots. Whatever it takes! Today was one of those days when we ran away from other obligations and headed for the coast. Apparently we were not the only ones!

Crafty Resolutions 2011

In the spirit of the New Year I feel like making a list of Resolutions but not for weight loss (which I could) or regarding my finances (which I should) but for crafting! There are so many things that I'm dying to make but never seem to find the time for. So here's a list of hope to makes for 2011.

*My advent calendar! This has been a WIP for over a year now. I worked on it quite a bit in December but had to put it down to finish some gift sewing and hopefully I'll pick it right back up when I return south instead of postponing it until next December!


*A Summer Quilt. I picked out fabrics for this project over a year ago, black, white, and green mostly Sweetwater for Moda fabrics (see below) that I want to work up in a brick pattern. I'm hoping it will be a much more finished looking quilt than any of the ones I've made before.


*These little potholders. I love that they allow you to grip easily although I worry about heat resistance. I'll have to look into thermal resistance before I begin.

*A dress. I don't know yet what pattern, but I'd really like to make something that I will wear. I made a dress last year and wore it and was pretty pleased with it. I guess one a year might be my limit.

*I really really really want to make a point of taking a bookbinding class this year. They offer them several times a year at my local contemporary art center, Space 301. I meant to do it last year but the timing didn't work out. The summer session ended up being the one weekend that my mother was coming to visit and I just missed the winter session all together.

OK, I think that's a pretty do-able but productive year of crafting! Wish me luck and hopefully you will see all of these projects on the blog in the year to come!

*Loving the Calendar above! Surround yourself this year with beauty whether you make it yourself or buy handmade!

Gathered Clutches

Every year I enjoy a few days visiting and catching up with my college friends. After Christmas I had just enough time to whip up some cute Gathered Clutches for my girlfriends. I had been planning to make these little purses for at least a month before I came to Maine for Christmas but in the end I had to pack up my fabric and cart my supplies north.


Luckily my mother has a good sewing machine and important things like a cutting matt and rotary cutter, so I don't have to bring those things with me. I love these little clutches so much I ended up making three assembly line style, one for J, one for C, and one for me!


The cream colored one with the navy batik print is mine. I think they came out really well and I hope the girls liked them! I got the pattern from Noodlehead, thanks!

White Christmas 2010

I'm so lucky that even though I now live in the warmth of Alabama, I still get to enjoy white Christmases! Here are some pics of the tree and my cat Elliot, who lives in Maine with my parents. It was a blessed and beautiful Christmas spent with lots of family and filled with joy!

Tini's Wedding Jewels

Last weekend I was delighted to see my friend Tini walk down the aisle toward wedded bliss wearing a custom EJewelryDesigns earrings and necklace set. Tini had first asked me to do the bridal jewelry this past summer and I was thrilled to be able to participate in her special day in any way I could.



I made her dangling white pearl and sterling silver earrings and a three tiered hand-knotted pearl choker that can actually be worn as one long chain or doubled or tripled depending on her mood and clothing. It all came out beautifully! And Tini made such a lovely blushing bride! I also made platinum colored pearl and sterling dangling earrings for the bridesmaids in a slightly smaller scale that the bride's, but I don't seem to have any pictures to post of those.

So Proud!

This past week I traveled to South East Alabama to visit a recent transplant and dear friend and taught her how to sew. It was a fabulous week! And she was a quick learner, well, not really learner since she already had a bit of knowledge but it was an easy job for me. We started with a few burp cloths, easy rectangles, stitched around, turned inside out and stitched again. Then D made a sweet bib and a kimono. Check out the kimono! So Cute!!!!! I'm so proud!

Giraffe Baby Wall Hanging

My dear friends D and J are having a baby! And I wanted to make them something extra special to show how excited we all are about their upcoming arrival. So I instantly thought of making a wall hanging for the baby's room, something bright and colorful to match the style that D is looking at for decoration.



I think the final product came out pretty darned cute! I only wish I had taken some close ups before I gave it to D! I used a few scraps of Laura Gunn Lantern Bloom fabrics. The center panel is leftover from the wall hanging that I made for myself a few months back, Laura Gunn's Lantern Bloom line Climbing Lantern Pod in Turquoise. I also used the Hanging Cages in Lime from the same line but in two different directions. The star of the wall hanging is the little white flannel giraffe silhouette; he came out so much better than I had hoped! He was free-hand stitched on the machine and then cut out. I hand embroidered the eye on him and mad a little brown tail that hangs off the wall hanging for a little 3D addition!

Bridal Accessories for S & C

My cousin S has found a wonderful woman to share his life and luckily they share some of the same passions for hunting and fishing :) I was honored when they asked me to create signature bridal garter belts and a ring bearers pillow for the wedding! The wedding colors are green and brown, colors to match the mossy oak camouflage pattern that will also be found on the men in the wedding party. Yup, camouflage. Not my style certainly, but I was happy to create something for them! Here are the results!

Easter Pineapple Cake

Happy Easter! I haven't been posting lately, mostly because I have nothing to post about. I haven't had much time for making and creating. But I had to do a little something to make this drab weekend feel like Easter, so I made a Pineapple Upside Down Cake. One of my favorites. Now if only I had people to share it with!

Wall Hanging

This project has been sitting in the back of my mind for several weeks now. I was inspired by one of my sewing blogs to search for this gorgeous Michael Miller fabric with the orange flower pods on it; it was my first online fabric purchase! Ah the power of peer pressure! Once I got the fabric in the mail I was pleased to notice that it looked really nice in my living room, so it sat on my couch for a few days before I eventually moved it into the craft room (spare room).

And it's been waiting for me ever since, until last week, when I finally took the time to pop into the fabric store with this project in mind. I found a handful of fun orange and blue and purple prints, all but two of which I used in the finished project. I played with the design a little on scrap paper over the course of this week, working out the proportions that I wanted and finally tonight, after turning in my big work project to my bosses empty desk (it was 4:57 and he had left the office at 4:55!!!!), I sat down and started cutting! and cutting! and ironing! and stitching! and ironing! and stitching! and before I knew it I was dragging A into the living room to look at my creation! It's only the top panel of what will be a quilted wall hanging, but I'm pleased as punch with how it is turning out!


It was much faster to whip up than I thought it would be. I'd say it took me about an hour and a half all in all. This was my first quilt-ish project that I've made that I feel has the proper angles and lines and I'm quite pleased. Tomorrow I will run back the fabric store to pick up some batting and a fabric for the back... or maybe I'll put together another front and stitch them together with top loops so I can reverse it to mix up the decor? eeeee, that sounds like a good idea! Wish me luck!

Blogs I Follow

I realized this morning as I was blogging and posting some new things on my etsy, that all I ever seem to blog about anymore are new items in my shop and I wanted to take a minute to blog about something else! And what better to blog about than my favorite blogs! Because if you like to see what I make, maybe you'd also like to see what I read? Maybe?

Last year I blogged about Sew Mama Sew, a fantastic blog that has inspiring sewing ideas and pattern for free. Last year Sew Mama Sew did an amazing Handmade Holiday collection of gifts that you could make for the holidays. This month, they are doing a scrap busting month with ideas and patterns to convert all of your scrap fabric into beautiful things! Go check it out! I'm especially inspired by this and this and this...

Here are a few other crafty blogs that I read almost every day (when they post something new!)

http://stardustshoes.blogspot.com/
Who posted a cute fabric box that she made the other day.

http://artsycraftybabe.typepad.com/
Who sells gorgeous purses on Etsy and has recently been experimenting with handstitching from Alabama Chanin's book.

http://craftapple.wordpress.com/
Who is a quilter but posts all kinds of great sewing tips for non-quilters as well! Her recent blog features the newest edition of Stitch Magazine which I keep meaning to get my hands on... my friend D bought it for my friend N's birthday and I almost stole it from the birthday girl!

These are a few of my favorite sewing blogs, check them out and share some of your favorites!

Holiday Prep

The last few weeks have been pretty crazy for me between work and helping to organize the SECAC conference that my department was hosting and procrastinating in front of my beads... phew! I realized this week that I tend to make more jewelry when I am busy than when I have free time. Isn't that odd? When I am crazy busy I have to reward myself with 15-20 minutes of non-work every now and then, so I end up turning to my craft room as my getaway space. I can easily start and stop a jewelry project as my spare time dictates. I just keep all of my current project's materials in a velvet lined tray and drop it into a bureau drawer when I stop (to keep it away from kitties). With this method I posted 6-8 new things on my etsy website these last 2 weeks! Much more than my normal listing speed!


It also occurred to me that now is the time to start building up my shop for the holiday season. The more items you have the more likely you will have just the right thing for a buyer! So my goal is to keep making and posting regularly for the next few weeks. Hopefully I can keep up the momentum!


I've also started a facebook fan page. I'm not sure if I will keep it up yet. So far I've only been using it to promote new listings in the shop and thats kinda boring I think. I haven't decided if I really have a use for it yet!


Thought I'd post a few pics of new things in the shop just to spice up this post, hope you like!