I love working with my hands and this is where I document all the fun projects I do. You’ll see knitting, crochet, and sewing, plus a few odds and ends thrown in now and then.
Yesterday at lunch I went on a spur of the moment trip with my mom to a rug and home fabrics store nearby that is going to be closing soon. I wasn’t expecting to buy anything until I came across some great deals on this upholstery fabric. At 20% off of the already marked down prices I just couldn’t resist.
As soon as I can finish up the other six(!) projects that I’ve already got going, these are going to be turning into some fabulous bags.
1 CommentHere I am again feeling the need to apologize for not updating. I’m not sure why I feel that way really. It’s my blog, I should be able to update (or not update as the case may be) when I please. That said, I’m going to make an effort to catch up on what I’ve done the last couple of months.
As far as knitting goes, I seem to have lost my drive a bit. I want to knit. It just feels so time consuming these days. I suppose that’s why I have about five unfinished projects going. I’ll start something and then lose the drive to finish it. I guess that’s why I prefer hats, scarfs, and other quick projects as opposed to knitting sweaters.
Just before Christmas, I decided I wanted to give some handmade gifts. I was a little too ambitious with my plans and didn’t get them all finished, but I did actually complete a couple of knitted items. Hubby’s mom had requested a pink scarf a while back when she saw me knitting the pink Grace Beanie last summer. So, I pulled out my leftover yarn and knitted her up a quick scarf. Then, for lack of any better ideas, I found some camo colored Red Heart yarn at Michael’s and decided to knit my father-in-law a hat to keep his noggin warm. He’s big on hunting so I thought the camo colors would be perfect for him. (Yes, I’m aware the picture quality totally sucks and you can’t really make out the colors.)
With all of the holiday rush, I barely finished those items in time to get them mailed out. Instead of fooling myself into thinking I could actually get anything else knitted in time, I decided to do a little sewing for the third gift.
My sister-in-law was due to give birth to my niece about a week after Christmas, so I wanted to make her a nice tote bag for all that baby stuff she would soon be carrying around. With my procrastinating, I ended up staying up until about 4:00 Christmas morning finishing the bag up. The pattern was actually very easy, but apparently sleep deprivation is not very helpful when you are trying to follow even an easy pattern. I love how the bag turned out am hoping to find the time to make myself one soon.
Projects that I will hopefully finish soon:
Baby blanket started nearly a year ago! (um, baby will be here hopefully in 7 weeks or less!)
Baby bib started last summer sometime (not really sure what the holdup is on this one, just bored with it)
Baby hat (should seriously have finished this one already)
Birthday gift for a birthday that has already passed (started, um, yesterday)
Scarf for myself (not yet started)
And if I can ever get all of those done, I picked up some really cute chunky yarn (Yarn Bee Mosaic in Sunrise – for $.99 a skein!) last night at Hobby Lobby that I’m just dying to play with. I’m thinking it would make some cute hats and/or ponchos for my baby girl and my two new nieces.
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After seeing Zoot’s Valentine’s Day craft that she did with her two-year-old, I had to try it out. I dug out some colored paper and ribbon and Zach and I got busy making our own heart streamers. Since our Christmas paper chain was still hanging over the doorway, I thought maybe it was time to replace it with something different.
Zach got really excited when he saw the scissors, but he didn’t stay interested for long. Much to my dismay, he was more interested in the cartoons on TV. He helped a little bit, but I ended up doing most of it myself. Oh well, I think it looks cute. It also inspired me to try and make some homemade Valentine’s cards this year. Hopefully Zach will be more willing to help with those.
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Yesterday at lunch my mom and I ventured out to the fabric store because she has accepted the task of making a Santa Clause suit for my nephew to wear in his school’s Christmas play. Since it was snowing and my car handles the snow better than hers, I went along to help her pick up her supplies. The only problem with this was that we were going to a fabric store. Fabric stores are like crack to me. I can’t go in without buying something.
I went in with a couple of things in mind that I wanted to look for. I needed some fabric for a gift I want to make, and some art supplies to go along with the easel that Zach is getting for Christmas. I ended up not really getting any of that. I couldn’t find any fabric that I liked for the gift and didn’t find exactly what I was looking for in art supplies. But, I did find some Buzz Lightyear fabric that I couldn’t turn down, a Buzz Lightyear fabric book kit, a few patterns that looked fun, and some fleece remnants that were marked down super cheap (These are perfect for lining my dog’s kennel).
By the time I got home I was so giddy I couldn’t stand it. I had planned on waiting until Zach went to bed and then starting in on the Buzz Lightyear projects. Unfortunately, when I was carrying in the incredibly see-through bag he got a peek of what was inside and started going nuts. He saw Buzz Lightyear and knew it was something for him.
I had decided to make a couple of quick pillows out of the fabric so as soon as I got Zach out of the bathtub and settled down I headed back to my sewing room and started in. I figured I could whip up a quick pillow for him before bed time. After a little problem with my machine and thread, I finally got a pillow put together. Zach came in and helped me stuff the pillow and we got it finished up just in time for him to head to bed. He was very excited about his Buzz Lightyear pillow and pushed his old Diego pillow right off the bed to make room. It didn’t help him go to sleep any faster, but he sure did like it.
I put together another quick pillow for my nephew but didn’t have quite enough stuffing so I’ll have to make a quick trip to Wal-Mart sometime this weekend so I can finish it up. Then I started in on the fabric Buzz Lightyear book. I know Zach is really a bit old for these types of books, but he still loves the one his Granny made him so I figured we might as well try it. Besides, I’ve been wanting to make one of these anyway to see how complicated they are. There are a LOT of babies that will be born soon and I really love to make gifts. I’m not sure when he’s going to get the book though. I think I may have to hold out for a while and make it a “potty prize”.
The book probably took me a couple of hours to put together, but part of that time was spent watching Grey’s Anatomy so I wasn’t going full force for that hour. It really was fairly simple and the finished product came out great. I think I could do it much faster the next time now that I have the process down.
I really surprised myself by finishing these all up in one night. I guess it just goes to show that I really can do it if I am determined. Now I need to get started on those Christmas gifts I wanted to make. I just need to find some more fabric…
Comments closedNo matter how much I want to slow it down, Christmas seems to be coming up very quickly. I always enjoy the shopping, but I’m not exactly finding myself in the Christmas spirit yet. We’ve decorated the tree, pulled out the Christmas music, and have been reading all of Zach’s Christmas books, but I’m just not feeling it yet.
I really want Zach to get excited about Christmas this year because for some reason I think that if he gets excited it will help me get more excited. I’m not sure he really understands the whole concept yet, but I’m trying to teach him little by little what to expect on Christmas morning. I also would like to find a book written on a toddler level that tells the biblical Christmas story so he can learn that as well.
In my effort to get us both a little more excited, I decided to pull out the construction paper and have a little craft time with Zach. He wasn’t too sure about it at first, but once he found out he got to use glue he got a little more excited.
He worked really hard for a while, picking out the right colors and gluing each strip.
He got pretty excited when he started seeing results and figured out that we were actually making something with all of that paper and glue.
Zach got a little bored before we were finished. What can I say? He has the attention span of a two-year-old for some reason. While he watched Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, I finished up the chain. He came back to help a couple of times. I was pretty tired of it myself by the time I finally glued the last strip.
When all was said and done, we hung our Christmas paper chain up along the doorway next to the Christmas tree. Zach was very excited to see the finished product. I was just glad that it was finally done. I have to say that it was kind of fun while Zach and I were working together on it though. I can’t wait until he gets just a little bit older and we can do more things like this together.
I meant to write about this earlier this week, but somehow let it escape my mind. A very, very long time ago I followed a link somewhere that led to another link somewhere that led to another link and eventually I found a pattern for this super cute little tote bag. I would link to it but I have no idea where it originally came from now. At the time, I had just gotten a new sewing machine and was really wanting to learn to sew so I copied the pattern and had grand plans of giving the tote bag a shot.
As usually happens with my big plans, I never got around to starting it. You see, it required me going to a fabric store and actually purchasing the fabric and supplies needed to make the bag and I never managed to find my way there until last week. I decided Thursday during my lunch break to check out one of the local fabric stores. I was on a search for some cute Halloween fabric so that I could make Zach a Trick or Treat bag that he wouldn’t drag on the ground. I was apparently a little too late to find Halloween fabric, but along the way I fell in love with some coordinating flannels and decided they would make the perfect little tote bag.
I couldn’t wait to get started on my project and started cutting the fabric that night. By the time I got all the pieces cut and the interfacing ironed on I had to quit and go to bed. I couldn’t wait to get home and start sewing on Friday. I didn’t actually get started until about 9:30 that night, but after many toddler interruptions and a couple of sewing machine difficulties, I finally finished it. My seams are far from perfect and I could have possibly measured a little more carefully, but I absolutely love my little bag. Plus, I’m very impressed that I made the whole thing from start to finish. It is my first “real” sewing project and it actually turned out okay!
I also bought enough material that I can make a second one (because I figured I would manage to screw up the first somehow) so I’m thinking of trying again and possibly doing some experimenting with the size. We’ll see how it goes!
Today I am thankful for lazy Saturday mornings. There is nothing I love more than getting out of bed and snuggling up with my boy on the couch watching cartoons. It is really the only time all week that we get to just relax and be together. We spend so much time doing this and doing that, rushing through dinner and bathtime and bedtime routines during the week. It is really nice to just relax and enjoy being together for a couple of short hours on Saturday mornings. It is the perfect way to start the weekend.
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