Remember this photo of my Inspiration Wall in my Studio?
This is a that’s been added to the , and I’ve been following the pool ever since. I’m always looking for and collecting things that inspire me. They got on my mantle, board or in a notebook (one of MANY!). But I love looking at other’s inspiration boards. I love the and love even more that there’s now about the creators of these inspiration boards.
Lately – I’ve been inspired by raw edges.
I love this piece on the cover of the latest . I love this magazine. I could tear the whole thing apart and hang it all on the wall. I love the garments in the feature article. If you have a chance to pick it up, it’s worth it. Lovely.
We are all finally home. Iz recoved quickly from her Pneumonia and Rob brought her to meet me in the city. She loved it. We didn ‘t get to do as much as we had hoped, but we did eat wonderful food, walked, rode the and and almost fell backwards as we tried to see the top of the . We wish we could have stayed longer and visited with more friends, but next trip.
It’s been a busy few months and I’m hoping to catch up on, well, everything. After the stress of working a J-O-B and being away from home while Iz was sick, I am now sick. Perhaps it’s a sinus infection, I am exhausted and argh. I’m sitting on the couch, a wonderful blanket, 600 channels (of nothing) to choose from and my friend the lap top. Hot tea is brewing and after cancelling a private instruction session today, I’m hoping to bounce back and be as good as new tomorrow.
To get ready for my trip, I did a bit of pampering. A little snip here, a little snip there and a date with a bottle of the white stuff, and I have a new doo! I was hoping to swing to while I was in the city for a little mani-pedi, but no time. It’s my favorite place for this sort of thing.
The last few weeks have been productive for the HomeSchool Sewers (could be a band – no?) We made FABULOUS Fabric Belts and the warmest and oh-so-lucky Winter Hats.
The grown-ups got around to making some Lucky Winter Hats too. Meg’s (the one on the left) is made from and old felted sweater. These are just too cute!
I’m bummed that I had to cancel my private instruction today. We’re working on a wedding dress! EEEK! Have you ever felt so inspired by something things just start flowing? Libby has a beautiful vision and design for her wedding dress and after we spent a bit of time mapping out the execution of her dress, we got busy. Using fabric from my stash and hers, we started draping for part of her outfit. I love draping. I love patternmaking too, but draping really allows you to feel and shape fabric around a form. Very different from drawing lines on a paper to get the same effect.
Pinning and cutting and pinning and tucking and marking and JOY OH JOY!
Next…I will finish my jeans and other items from my wardrobe plan (that was all put on hold when Iz got sick before I left). I need to update all my bookkeeping (anybody have any tips, argh – this is overwhelming for me). I have to finish up a doll I’m making for Iz’s 3rd birthday (just a few days away!), and I need to finish my Christmas presents and get them in the MAIL!
Wool is good. Felt is good. Blankets are good. Lists are good. This is going on my project list. I found this picture of a felted wool blanket in progress by . I can’t tell you how much I LOVE it.
I love it for many reasons. Using found materials is high on my list and finding things at thrift stores is not only fun, it’s good for our environment.
I love that wool is such an amazing medium. I learn more and more about wool all the time. Needle felting is something that’s on my list of things to learn this year.
And I love blankets. Maybe it’s the drafty and sometimes chilly house we live in, or maybe it’s the comfort of being wrapped in a warm blanket.
It could be a big project. But nice and warm. Maybe I’ll start with a small one, one for Iz to keep in the car.
Iz has been working on some of her Christmas presents. Here’s a sneak peek:
I’ve been busy with my AWESOME HomeSchool Sewing Series Class. It started on Wednesday. We spent a good half of the class learning about the sewing machines, how to wind a bobbin, how to thread the machine and what all the lines and numbers mean and what happens when you move them all around. Then we made soft trees. We made our own patterns (because you know I like to do that…), but it was all inspired by . Check out what these creative and super talented kids made and their wonderful personal touches of beads, stitches and embroidery:
Check out the
Later that night there was another Bag Sew :: Sew-cial at :
Bag Sews will be happening at least once a month at , and they happen at other times too, at other places around the Valley and Hilltowns. Sew-cials happen almost every other Wednesday at .
And then, I just have to share the most wonderful note I received just a few hours after a class:
Original art card:
It’s been super cold at my house. There is no insulation in the crawlspace under our 200+ year old holey-frickin-moley farm house, so perhaps you know or can imagine what the floor may feel like. It took me a year to realize that was the reason Iz always wanted uppies in the winter time. So today at we made wool felt slippers:
We drafted our own patterns from our own feet. I didn’t used to be a pattern person. When I was in , I’d make my own clothes and clothes for my before we’d go out. I’d cut bodices, sleeves, pants, skirts, all without a pattern. Then, after several years of intensive patternmaking, I’ve come to LOVE making patterns for things. I love it when things look good and have a great fit!
The orange and pink slippers were made with wonderful thick wool felt. They are comfy and warm. I think these will be the first of many. I think family members and friends will be knocking down the door…
These are mine (note the stars):
I don’t think you know this about me (except for those of you that have gone shoe shopping with me), but I have EEE wide feet. What this really means is that NONE OF MY SHOES FIT. ever. IT SUCKS! Shoe shopping is, while I try to keep a chin up and hopeful, one of the most devastating things I’ve ever done. I can literally leave a shoe store in tears because NOTHING FITS, not even the ugly shoes. sad, but so true.
Anyway, I made these slippers, and they fit. I added stars to remind me of the left and right.
I added a layer of fleece to the sole. They are warmer than I could have imagined.
With a few dabs of fabric paint, I added grippers to my slippers.
I might have to add a few pairs to my list for Christmas presents. They are fun, and would work with old sweaters and blankets too. I think my next pair will have even another layer for the sole, just for a bit more cushy-ness.
On another note, tonight was the first part of the Christmas Tree Skirt class. Below is the winner of the BostonMamas.com LuckyStitches certificate, using her dollars wisely. She’s starting this really great business around her ideas and sewing (maybe more on that later…), so we talked about that for a while, then got busy working on our skirts.
What I came to realize from our talk about Christmas Tree Skirts, is that they are so much more than the 2 pieces of hot pink satin I’ve been draping around our trees for years. Rather, they are an opportunity for family tradition and memories. While they are displayed for just a few weeks, they can come to mean so much in a lifetime.
Years ago, I started making my own Christmas cards (I can’t believe I don’t have any pictures!!! argh). It started out of necessity really, I was a college student, completely broke, but wanting all my family and friends to know that I have been thinking of them throughout the year. Being in , I had tons of supplies, and my beau at the time (now my husband) was handy with the paint and paper, and he helped me make the cards. I think we made 30 that year. So every year since (barring the year I was pregnant, and the past 2 years), we’ve made our cards.
We’ve always used things from our stash, but sometimes complemented them with tin and velvet and beads and cellophane. I would start thinking about cards after every new year, try to get started during the summer, but never really start until mid-December. For the few years while this has been on hiatus (due in large part to becoming a mom and figuring life out again), I so wanted to make cards. I think about family and friends all the time, but I’m not as fabulous at keeping in touch, and I always feel like these cards are my way of saying, “I’ve been thinking about you all year long…”
It’s been on my little to start again this year. So, now that it is after Thanksgiving, I thought it would be a good time to start. It’s a family affair. We’re making cards, working on them after dinner. The list has grown to well over 100. Tonight we started prepping, cutting and painting cardboard stars. Everything is from around the house. The only thing we’re buying this year are the stamps.
It was a lot of fun. I think Iz is about the age where memories stick around. I love that we can do things like this as a family. Family traditions are so important and can be loads of fun. I get pretty giddy thinking about the memories we are making as a family and wonder what Iz will remember and cherish. I love the holiday season. I love taking the time to make things that will let our family and friends know that we are thinking of them. I can’t wait to do more tomorrow night.
Monday night a bunch of bag (and lucky) stitchers got together at for a little Sew-A-Bration. It was the launch day in Florence for . Florence Hardware, Leather & Lace and Cooper’s Corners all now participate in . So there was much to celebrate. With pizza, yummy soup and a bunch of other goodies all to sustain sewers, we stitched up more bags to contribute to the cause. Fabric had been donated, a bunch of machines were on hand, people were busy and the machines were humming. Oh, how I love the sound of sewing machines. The next Bag Sew at is Dec 5, 6pm-9pm. Hope you can make it. We have so many bags to make!
Whew. Tons going on. LOTS of sewing too! (yippeee for me!) The machines have been humming at . We’ve been making so much fun stuff over the last few weeks, I can hardly stand it (I had to lie down to type this…).
I’m super proud of all the projects and each and every LuckyStitcher, so note that these are all mentioned in no particular order.
Pajamas
I didn’t take pictures of the other pjs, but they are really cute, one pair of flannel lined pants (lined with flannel…oh SO warm!) and another sweet striped tunic and pants, also made from flannel. Now…this might seem selfish – but it really was unintentional, but I have pictures of what I’ve been working on:
Here’s my initial purchase:
I really LOVE the pattern. I fell in love with the illustration of the kids in PJs especially the one modeling the style (C) I’m making for Iz. I love it so much, I want to frame it. Nerdy? Dorky? Geeky? Perhaps…am I gushing?
and I love the buttons (more geekdom…). Stars make my heart pitter patter a bit faster than normal and I found these:
Here’s the first pair (I’m making three…) finished:
On Iz (ugh, I CAN’T stand that wood paneling. It made Elmo pass out..)
Iz LOVES her PJs. “Oh Mama, I love them, they are stupendous and so soft!” She’s been using the camera – and here’s her self portrait:
Sewing Machine 101
I know, where’s the sewing machine? Well I can’t wait to show you the messenger bags these LuckyStitchers are making. Here we put in a magnetic snap, but wait till it’s finished and you’ll see her appliqué, bag, zipper pouch…all practicing all the fun stuff we talked about the first class. Let me tell you, these guys and gals are getting LOTS of practice threading machines, making patterns, sewing seams, topstitching, and they have become best friends with Mademoiselle Seam Ripper. After this weekend, I’ll have proper pictures of finished messenger bags, proof that they have learned how to use their sewing machines!
Make A Pattern From Your Clothes
How many times have you found something wonderful that you can’t wear anymore because the fabric has fallen apart? Yoga pants, a favorite hoodie and a J Crew summer dress can now all be made again, out of favorite fabric, season after season. Everyone learned how to make patterns from their clothes (either leaving them whole or cutting them apart). Can’t wait to see what they want to make next…
Sewing With Fleece
I had actually intended this class to work with squares, circles and rectangles of fleece, embellish with appliqué, but it turned into SEW MUCH MORE. I quickly demonstrated how to draft a pattern of a hat, I always want people to leave learning every aspect of each project, so I always try to help them through the creative process of making something from conception (sketch and pattern) to completion (sewn article). So we drafted a pattern and worked with a few different types of fleece. I LOVE the hats:
My endangered species hat.
I made this one this morning. Hmmm. I might have to make a pattern available. It’s so easy and quick! I made this one in less than an hour.
I’ve been working on the LuckyStitches Messenger Bag Pattern. I took pictures explaining the whole process, and I can’t stand them. Except for a few…but it’s back to the drawing board (or cutting table) to pick some different fabrics that would photograph better.
It’s finally here! I’ve been checking every few days to see when the swap would be announced and ! Can you tell I’m a little excited? I LOVE ornaments, and over the past year I’ve participated in some really great swaps, but this one is IT! I had a lot of fun last year, and have brainstorming ideas all year for 2007. I especially love this swap because the sky is the limit – you can use any media, method, idea for the ornaments, which makes for fun packages in the mail (another one of my favorite things).
To sign up – click on over to for all the details and how to do it. Sign-ups will end on Friday, November 9th at midnight U.S. Eastern Standard Time (New York time.)
The new catalog was in my mailbox yesterday. I like a lot of their items, but never would any of the rooms in my house look like the rooms in their catalogs.
I love . I’ve been thinking a lot about chairs lately. I love my pink chairs at , and I’m noticing chairs more and more. Maybe when the lounge takes off, and it’s time for new chairs, I’ll get a few of these. Although this would be quite perfect at my desk, the one I daydream about having…
A few other things I like in their catalog:
Wallpaper- not a lot of it, but a smidge, on one wall, would be lovely.
Ornaments, oh ornaments. I am so looking forward to Christmas.
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