Holy Hiatus!

Life's been marching on! Little Miss will be one in 6 days. The last year has gone by in a whirl...

It's hard to believe a year ago she was a round ball of pumpkin inside my tummy!

 

She's so independent, agile and daring. We adore her...

Having her party tomorrow! With a spooky theme. Should be fun!

I'll take pics (we got a new camera- thanks, in-laws!)

-S

Snack bags...snack bags... and more snack bags...

A little over a year ago, I bought a snack bag pattern off of Etsy. It was fairly easy to read and use, and I found myself making these reusable snack bags for my girls'. And my girls' friends. And the lady at the park's kids. And then the entire preschool! They are quickish to make- but require Ripstop Nylon (not available in all fabric stores). I put out a little flyer for back to school season this year, and have made not less than 30 sets in the past few weeks. I'm SO ready to move on. Still haven't made any for my kids this season, though. And the orders are still pouring in. Eesh. I have so much other fun sewing I want to do...

Got this lovely half yard set of Jennifer Pagnelli Poodle in Aqua. From my favorite etsy shop SewLoveFabrics. Love. Every. Single. Listing.
Want to move into her fabric studio and bury myself in the fabricky goodness. Yes, I just said fabricky.
More about poodles later this week. Lots more.
-S

Whew- what a break!

Wow- has it really been over 2 weeks! Time has flown by here. Girl #1 started kindergarten. We love it. She even takes the school bus. She's growing up so quick! I know how fast it goes, so I'm really trying to enjoy the baby stage with #3. She's all over the place, crawling, standing, couch cruising. It's exhausting, and really putting a damper on the sewing. My machines are in the "studio" aka guest room, which is through our laundry room. Totally not within arms reach of our very mobile baby.

I've been sew busy lately, too! I finished this custom quilt for the preschool director.

It's for her first grandbaby, and I sewed it with so much love. She had been hanging on to the Alexander Henry "Dick and Jane" fabric for ten years! Her daughter loved it so much, that she commissioned me to do a crib bumper and sheets to match- such a fun project!

It's hand tied with pretty pink crochet thread on all of the joints.

This is a poor picture of the back, but it's white minky with a focus strip of the "Dick and Jane" fabric.

In other sewing news- I'm teaching 2 classes at Quiltz this fall! The first one is the Hippy Chick Skirt pattern by Pink Fig, and the second is Serger Basics. I'm super excited about it- if you live in the Phx area- stop by and say "Hi!"

-S

Where have I been?

Yup, at the beach. Don't be a hater. It was lovely.
I've got lots on the burner: 3 sets snack bags, 1 custom baby quilt, 1 t-shirt quilt, 1 diaper bag, 3 huge ruffle ribbon orders. And one poor 9 year old baby blanket that met the playful personality of a golden retriever. When it rains it pours, right?
Oh yes, while I was in the San Diego area, I went to Maisonette. It was heaven.
-S

Maybe I should move to Australia?

No luck on the button hole.
My camera however- that's a different story. After spending a good chunk of time googling, calling, researching and generally messing around with the contraption, I figured out how to make it work-
JUST USE IT UPSIDE DOWN.
Seriously. I have to aim, focus, shoot and use the menu- all while holding it upside down. It's a nicer model Canon, and it would be at least 120 to fix it- so guess what?

I'm moving to Australia. Just kidding. I'm just practicing using it the new "right" way before we go to the beach in a few weeks.

Ruffle coin purse

I've been working on a few new products for fall. I'm thinking of retiring the BlueberryKisses etsy shop. I've already reserved one under my new dba name Hustle Mama, as well as a BigCartel shop. I've heard lots about the difference between the two, and am intereseted to see how BigCartel evolves over the next few years. I used some of my free custom printed twill tape as the edge tag (does that have a technical term?) I love this stuff, and love twill tape in general. I can't say enough nice things about working with Jon at twilltape.com. Plus, I ordered this on wednesday afternoon, and got it friday. For reals.

In Quilting News:
My I-Spy squares came! There are some really great funky fabrics in the mix! I'm excited to get started on it. Trying to finish the New Wave first.

Didn't fix this pic- still upside down.

My aunt had picked up some great FQs for me in Seattle of foods for my I-Spy project. I decided to turn around and use them as a thank you to her for putting my whole brood up for a week. I thought they would be such fun cloth napkins! They are turning out really lovely, and I think I'm going to make some for us to use at home. What a great way to go green!
I cut 4 ea from each FQ- 9"x10.5". You cou;d make them bigger- but I thought this was a great everyday size. I used a .5" seam allowance, turned, pressed, and then top-stitched with a decorative stitch. I use any excuse I can find to use the fancy stitches that came on my machine. Trying to finish up a few projects today-

(Another great hostess or thank-you gift)

Turned this pile of white bar towels into safari themed powder room towels for my MIL.

-S

I wish...

Photo from seattle. See the Space Needle? Cool!
• Summer here was over. Becase I am over it. 116* today. For reals.
• I could sew a butt-hole. I mean a button-hole.
• My camera wasn't malfunctioning (somebody had a few too many jello shots on Independence Day, and may have dropped it)
• School was back in session. My kids are so over eachother.

Hmmm, I can actually control two of those thing.

So- tomorrow I am going to the camera shop to drop off our camera for a tune-up. And I'm GOING TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO SEW A BUTTON-HOLE!

Too bad I can't photograph it. Or maybe that's a good thing, because I think it's going to be ugly.

Seattle

Posting from Seattle. I'll be home tomorrow, and hope to stop neglecting the blog then, but until I get home:

I'm trying not to hurt my children. All 4 of us are sleeping in one room, and it's lost the novelty. Baby girl was up until 10:30 last night. Ugh. Missing the hubs, but having a blast. Hit up lots of great fabric shops, too!

Signing off!

-S

Birthday shirt tutorial

Things have been busy around here! The girls and I went up north for a few days this week to get out of the heat, it was so nice! Busy preparing for a trip to Seattle with the girls and my mom in a few days-

This one has started moving- in earnest! Ugh....

In the meantime, we've had birthday parties! Yesterday our little friend Colby turned six. We've also got a birthday party for one of our little school friends this afternoon. I wanted to share with you my go-to birthday gift (although the girls are getting a little irked that they never give toys-I try to tell them this is better!)

Supplies needed: Blank shirt, Heat N Bond light, scrap fabric, template

Fuse the Heat N Bond to the back of the fabric you wish to applique. Trace around your template number (or letter- initial shirts are way cute, too!) I used Pharmacy font- available at DaFont.

Peel backing off and position the applique onto your shirt. Iron on following Heat N Bond instructions. Stitch around the edges if desired. I use a tiny zig-zag stitch in a corresponding color.

I included a few hair accessories to match. Voila! Perfect for a birthday- or all year round!

Have a great Fourth of July!

Free Printables for the Fourth of July | Skip To My Lou

Free Printables for the Fourth of July Skip To My Lou

Nice weekend...

We took the big girls to the circus yesterday- they had so much fun. I hadn't been in years, and it was just as awe-inspiring as I remember! We decided to try out the new Valley Metro Light Rail to get us down-town. It was fast and fun- although we saw a few shady characters.

I've had a few projects in the works, and it feels nice to do some leisurely sewing. I have almost finished this table runner. I sewed a few bands of ribbon, and a band of  twill tape onto one of the panels. I love the textural look of it.

 I am so excited about my TwillTape.com gift certificate that was part of my awesome Skirt Week prize package. I've ordered from them before, and the shipping time, quality, and value can't be beat!

I made it to practice using my walking foot, something I've never done. It wasn't as hard and scary as I thought it would be. The hubs loved it- I was surprised, he usually doesn't say much about my sewing projects.

Speaking of Hubs, this was his Father's Day present. He also loved it. Easy, and adorable,
something we'll appreciate for years to come.

I won! I won! I won!

The Seersucker Summer special won the full skirt competition! I am so excited! The prizes rock, and while I have a few of the patterns in the other categories, I don't have any of these! I am soooo excited! After being up all night with a feverish baby : ( I seriously woke up to check at 6 this morning. It was like Christmas for me! Thanks to Adrianna and Susan for putting this on.

No offense to Rae, but I think skirt week prizes totally kicked STW prizes out of the water!

Skirt Week Entries!

Aaaahhh.

Skirt week entries submitted. I actually completed this seersucker number with 75 minutes to spare. Who says I'm a procrastinator? In my defense, I thought the deadline was monday...

I really think my 5 year old is going to be a wonderful photographer- she took every single one of these (except the one of her!)

It is basically this OliverandS skirt, with some mods. I added pockets in the same LOVEly Amy Butler fabric. I also made a flat front waist band, with the elastic gathering in the back. I seriously whipped up the whole thing in about 90 minutes, with all three kids clamoring for dinner and bed. I had been working on it in my head for 3 weeks, though! I love pockets- they make it soooo easy to run in anywhere with all 3 kids in tow...

This was with 60 minutes to spare- but hey- who doesn't have time for a little Ring-Around-the-Rosie? (this was not for the photo shoot- we actually played, and then the sprinklers came on, and the big girls and I ran through them- I need to remember to "play" with my kids more!)

I use this tutorial from Ruffles and Stuff to make this skirt- although the technique is the same as the birthday skirt below. So fun and flattering!

Another shot of "Date Night" skirt- I called it this, because even of you gorge yourself at dinner- it's still flattering!

This is Avery's birthday skirt. I made it along with a matching "5" shirt. I have a secret to making this twirly skirt- and plan on sharing it in a tutorial in the next few weeks. She loves this skirt and would wear it everyday if I let her. The birthday shirt is already showing her belly- she has grown over 4 inches in the past year- insane!

Have a great weekend, and be sure to spoil those Daddys in your life on sunday!

-S

A little sewing ADD

Since finishing the aprons (she loved them- sadly I didn't photograph them...), I 've decided to do a little selfish sewing. I've had this on the back burner for months, and figured it was time to give it a whirl. It's coming together really nicely.

This was when I had it layed out on the table. I actually couldn't decide on only 12 fabrics, so I have 14. It looks like it's going to end up about twin size. I've got two of the columns together, and am hoping to have the entire topped pieced by the weekend. I'm a little stuck on how to quilt it. I really want to stipple it, but haven't used a free-motion foot before. I've put together some small projects to practice on, and may share them later this week. Most of the fabrics I've chosen are Anna Maria Horner's Good Folks and Flower Garden. A smidge of Amy Butler and Kafe Fassett.

Speaking of quilting, I've got almost all of my I-Spy quilt blocks cut.

These are just a few of my fabrics. I loved the cacti (coming from AZ) however I saw them in the last swap. No biggie, I guess. I also loved the puddles. How random!

I may or may not enter this skirt in Skirt Week. I used this tutorial from Ruffles and Stuff. It was fun and easy! I added a little more volume, because I wanted it a little fuller. It looks really cute on. If I don't finish what I really want to enter (Seersucker and Amy Butler! Just stinks of mint juleps and country clubs- love it!) I will probably enter this one.

Have a great week!

-S

Skirt Week: Update

Gosh, has it really been 5 days?
An update:
I was the very last one to make it into Obsessively Stitchings I-Spy Swap Numero Quatro. I am so excited! I've never done a quilt before, but think that one made entirely of 4" squares seems pretty straight-forward to me. I've long had this one on the radar. I actually have all of the fabric ready to go, I just need to go to the quilt store to buy a plastic template. Can I use anything else, does anyone know? Speaking of the quilt store, I was talking to the owner, and she told me they are getting Anna Maria Horner's voile in the shop! Swoon! Not until fall, but-ohmygosh! So excited.
I've been busy finishing up the children's aprons (I'll have to post pics, because they are really very cute!), sewing for Skirt Week, and trying to survive the heat. Not only did we get shoved into triple digits really quickly, but WAAAY into triple digits. 111 today. Yes, degrees. The girls and I have been swimming daily, but really...It's not that fun without pina coladas.
I'm sooo looking forward to our vacation to Seattle next month. There are some wonderful fabric shops, and the whole mindset in the Pacific NorthWest is just so refreshing. It's just the girls and I (hopefully my mom, too!), but it's somewhere we try to go every year. Hope you have a fun vacation planned for this summer! : )
-S

Do you know what today is!?!?!

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Holey Pastry!

It's National Donut Day!!!!

I made these yummy donut muffins from Smashed Peas and Carrots. This morning. In about 12 minutes. They were so good, and easy. And only one mixing bowl. And the kids helped. This recipe may have changed my life. Yum!

Dunkin Donuts is giving away free donuts with coffee purchase today. I also think Krispy Kreme is giving away freebies.

Happiness.

Here are some of my favorite donut finds from etsy today:

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Now go forth and be holey. And happy. -S

Negotiations, and makin' money

The lovely Becky (give-away winner!) and I have been chatting about her bag, and I gave her the option to special order one. This brought up the issue of fabric choices, which brought up the issue of this:

Yes, that is my sewing closet. Not tidied up for a photo, but pretty much as you'll find it any given day. Usually there's one or more girl-child digging through it, actually.

 "Why do I have so much fabric?", you ask. Believe it or not, I do make money sewing. In the interest of full disclosure, I make enough money sewing to support my fabric habit. And maybe a smidge more. If you sew, I encourage you to put it to work for you!

A fews way I make money from sewing:

• Etsy
• Hemming/Alterations
• Special Orders - You'd be surprised at how many people have small projects, or big visions that they are willing to pay someone to execute. i.e.,curtains, table cloths, pillow covers, birthday presents, personalized gifts, etc.
• Churches/preschools (these typically have special items that require tailoring. Curtains, mini placemats, aprons, etc)

Don't be afraid to put yourself out there to anyone and everyone- in other words, "Hustle!"

-S

Skirt Week Entry 1: Little girls skirt

I am super excited about the crafterhours: skirt week. One, I already have 3 skirts done that I want to enter. Which makes the work load pretty light for me to enter the max of 4 skirts. This is my first entry:

I edited out her shoes for my "official entry"

I used the Bo Peep Skirt from this book. I love this book. It has tons of great patterns from beginner to expert. Plus the eye-candy is fantastic. Lots of Anna Maria Horner's great prints to look at.

A and S announced the prizes today and WooHoo! What a payload! I'm really pulling for a win this time. It would be so great!

Right now I'm working on twenty (!) little girls aprons for the director of our preschool. I'm happy to post a tute if anyone's interested.
Also, the HVAC guy is on his way to finally install A/C in my sewing room (now that it's over 100 here, I need it- talk about a "sweat-shop!")

Happy Sewing- S