New Year, New Beginnings, Thank goodness!!

HAPPY NEW YEAR! Here we are again at the beginning of another year. This year I plan to not spend as much on fabric and supplies, I want to use what I have on hand. As my husband says, we are the afterhours craft store. I am also going to try and post here a bit more often. I know, I know I said that before… new beginnings right?  Okay enough of that, I have to share with you a few quick things that I did get finished up in time for Christmas!

First thing I made was this cute pincushion owl. I started out by making 4 of them at once but only 1 completed the flight. I am sure the others will eventually get there. I got this pattern off of a website called The DIY Dish . It is an online crafting show hosted by twins! I still can’t tell them apart, but they do have the cutest crafts and ideas. Check them out! I am sure you will enjoy watching them as much as I do.

The lucky owl who left the nest!



Still waiting for the other owls : (



Another thing I made was a little Sassy chick scissor fob! Isn’t it cute!!  Sitting next to it is my Sassy chick pincushion that I used to teach at a local quilt shop The Quilter Market .



One Sassy Chicken



I fell in love with this pattern when I saw it at the Quilt basket . It is from a company called Hatched and Patched . I was surprised at how super easy it was. The best part was I used what I had on hand! I filled it with decorative sand I bought from Lowe’s. I like using sand as it makes it a bit heavier and the bitty grains will help keep your needles clean.



Lazy Daisy Pincushion

Last thing I managed to complete was this adorable moose! The pattern is from Carol’s Zoo  (Read one of my prior posts and you can see the Hippo I made!) Her patterns are pretty easy and always two or three pieces. The time to make this one said “1 hour” on the front of the pattern. It took me at least that long just to cut the pattern out! Maybe I was just being extra careful and methodical. I recommend she just leave the time to make it off completely. Then no one will feel inadequate if it takes them longer. She does have great instructions and even tells you how to stuff your plushy, so make sure you read it all the way through before you start. Isn’t this moose just adorable!



Mr. Moose!

Time to start on some new projects! I’ll keep you posted!! (But just in case? Please don’t hold your breath ha ha ha) Wishing you all the best in this coming new year!

Hungry Hippo

Wow! I can't believe how fast time flies! Seems like I just posted on here yesterday and a month has gone by already!  SO I must be busy right? ha ha ha... 

I have been wanting to share with you a hippopotamus that I made using a pattern from Carols Zoo ( www.carolszoo.com). 

I was surprised how easy it was to sew together. Took me about 4 hours to make this cute fella. That includes all the breaks and distractions, it would be so much less if I sewed this straight though.  Don't you just love how the ears came out?? I did have to give it plushie surgery right away because I put the tail in the wrong place to begin with. Not very common to see a tail coming out on top of a hippos back! Don't you just hate it when you do something like that? Needless to say, my older daughter came and snatched her up right away. I still have a few of Carol's animal patterns to sew up. I'll post them hear as I complete them. So until next time, have a sew wonderful day!!

Oh my floral heart!

Here is my latest completed project! This heart would make a cute house warming gift or a sweet baby gift. Best of all, it  was quick and easy ! This is a kit I bought from one of my favorite quilt shops here in Tucson, http://www.sewingroomtucson.com/ .  The pattern is from Bird Brain Designs, check out their site for some really cute and fun stuff! http://www.birdbraindesigns.net/  Also, be sure to sign up for their email updates. They include a free redwork pattern every now and then. Okay, getting a bit side tracked, back to the project..

Tip I have for you is to be a little bit patient in cutting out the flowers. Need to take it slow when going around the tight curves so you do not nip off any petals! French knots are used in the center of the flowers to hold them into place. I must admit, I was also always afraid of making french knots. But after this project,  I got pretty good at making them!  I would suggest maybe doing a few practice ones before actually trying them out on the project. I jumped right in there with my french knots and the first few I had to pull out and if one looks closely, you can see how some are smaller (first ones I tried) and some are bigger (got better as I did more and more). If you need help learning how to make french knots or other types of embroidery stitches "The Embroidery Stitch Bible" by Betty Barnden is great! The illustrations are very easy to understand and I love that it is spiral bound so it can lay flat for easy use.

I picked up this book and also these great scissors (by Clover) at the Quilt Basket (aka The Sewing Room) http://www.sewingroomtucson.com/ in Tucson. What I like about these scissors is that the blades are serrated. Which wakes cutting wool so much easier as it keeps the wool from slipping. I also like the they are only 5 1/2 inches long so it makes getting around those corners really easy.

Wow! This is my longest post yet! I better get back to my next project so I can share that with you! Hopefully it won't be so long before I post again. Of course, if I find any new gadgets I will share those with you too!



Carol Doak Postcard Swap

I joined Carol Doak's postcard swap this summer. I have not done much paper piecing before, so this was a good way to get me to try it. Each participant had 3 swap partners to swap postcards with. The patterns I used were from a Carol Doak paper piecing book that included a CD. The CD contained the designs on it with the ability to scale them to the size needed. Just print them out on paper piecing paper and your ready to go. It was a bit challenging until I figured out where to place my fabric and stitch. I am sure if I did more of them I would be able to get them done much faster now. This is also a good way to use your scraps up and pass on a bit of cheer!

Stamping Cards

I enjoy making lots of different things. Here are some cards that I made. The one with the buttons was made using my card software from Stampin Up. I printed out the buttons and used my hole punch and mounted them with a foam dot to give them a 3d effect. The other two on the right were made with a punch from Stampin Up and a coordinating stamp set. These flowers were really easy to make and very quick! If you would like to view the website to stampin up just click this link www.lindaheller.stampinup.net  Linda is a great demonstrator!

I made something!

I made this little fella from the book I posted earlier (see below). I used a combination of wool and cotton. I used garden sand that I purchased from the hardware store to stuff him with, which makes him quite heavy. He was fun to make and I hope to make a few more in different sizes. Makes a great pincushion if you can get past putting pins in his cute little head.

Does anybody blog here?

Obviously not! I don't even follow myself! Ha ha! Well, I am willing to give this another shot if someone wants to read it. Even if not, this has become more of a new personal challenge so let's get on with it!