new door decor...

Last week I received a gift that came in a couple burlap bags. Then I saw a cute wreath made with burlap on someone's door, and it inspired me to create something for mine.

The chipboard letter (it's the first initial of our last name) came in a box of scrapbooking supplies from my sister, and the fabric was left over from a bench cushion that I made for our front entry.  The 'wreath' is just a circle cut out of cardboard.  So this was a very thrifty project.

Now I have one more burlap bag left, off to Pinterest I go . . .

mini quilts...

A couple mini quilts got made in my craft room  - perfect size for tucking in a favorite teddy bear or hosting a pretend picnic. Fabrics are all flannels, except one is backed in minky.

bee blocks...

My January and February bee blocks for Do Good Stitches were sent out. Each month a different quilter tells us what she wants, we all make our blocks, and mail them to her. This time the requests were purple 16 patches and Valentine-inspired butterfly blocks. My turn is coming up again soon, so I'll be looking for new ideas, any suggestions welcome :)

a new tote...

One of my sisters asked for a tote she could take to work, big enough to fit her lunch along with her purse items and other stuff.  I was happy to oblige, especially since this is a sister that I haven't made much for in the past.

The pattern is from the Winsome Baby book by Nancy Halvorsen. The only changes I made were using a magnetic snap closure instead of velcro, making the straps a bit wider and adding more stitching lines, and skipping the accent strip on the outside of the bag.  I also added a layer of fusible fleece to the lining, which made for a bit of a challenge when sewing the bag together in the final steps - thankfully I own a walking foot and a jeans needle.

It turned into quite the thrifty project. My sister picked the blue fabric from my stash, which also happens to be a fabric that was given to me by another sister of mine (she decided she didn't see a future in sewing and gave me all of her fabrics one day). The black fabric is a home-dec weight, and came from my mother-in-laws stash, and the fabric used for the pockets inside were left over from another project.

This was also the first project from start to finish done in my new sewing room!  My fabric is all on shelves now, and I'm pretty happy with how the room is set up.  I just need to hang some things on the walls yet.  I'm also hoping to make a design wall for my quilt blocks - I have a bunch of high-loft batting laying around, but I can't seem to find an online source that says if this will work or not?  Otherwise, I think I'll be wrapping flannel around a board to make one. I just can't see myself using warm n' natural - I'd be too tempted to rip it down when I have a quilt to finish...

my kids being crafty....

I'm not much of a crafter outside of fabric and a bit of paper-crafting. But I have 9 and 10 year old daughters that come up with creative requests and ideas ALL THE TIME. So with Valentines day coming up, and 48 Kinder Surprises gifted to us from Kinder - I gave them a craft to do. Just using wrapping paper and tape, they made little gift bags (there are lots of tutorials on-line, we didn't have a favourite).  Then they helped their little brother and sister put the treat in them, and write out their cards.

But then my older girls clued in that their classes weren't getting anything, so they insisted on making home-made treats for them. We made a quick dough recipe - then they rolled, baked, iced, and sprinkled.

If I give my girls some room and tell myself not to micro-manage their work, it really turns into an enjoyable afternoon. And most of the time I can sit back and watch, or get some other work done in the kitchen while keeping an eye on them. But best of all, the girls LOVE that I give them the opportunity to create or craft, which equals happy thankful kids.

new craft room...

Over the past week, I have been painting, moving furniture, packing up my old craft room, and starting to set up my new one.  We decided to convert our large playroom to a bedroom for two of the girls, and turn my old craft room into a mud room/Wii room.  This freed up a bedroom upstairs for me to turn into a craft room, but it will also have an area for the kids crafts. 

As you can see from pics of my old room, I haven't unpacked and organized all my fabric in the new room yet, and I'm sure I'll be filling up a box to donate and a garbage bag along the way. The new room also comes with a large closet filled with shelves which will make my job a lot easier. And since I'm itching to work on some sewing and quilting, I'll hopefully have it all in order soon.

Self Care Sewing . . .

There has been a new thing trending in the online sewing and quilting community - it's called Self Care Sewing and the intention is that we craft for ourselves more often, without guilt. Sounds good to me - and I have plenty of favorite fabrics that I would love to see and enjoy more often. The first item for myself this year was a custom cover for my Bible - I included pockets for a pen and notebook - and I want to mention that these were bought (along with another book) with a gift certificate from my secret sister (THANK-YOU!). And you want to know what's fantastic about the pen?! It has my full name embossed on it - no sharing or getting stolen by my kids :)

The fabrics are from Pat Bravo's Poetica line, and are left over from a quilt top that I made for myself - which has been left untouched in my sewing room for almost a year! I have been distracted by other projects, and more than a little stumped by how I want to quilt it - suggestions are always appreciated!!

Not sure if I love the fabric flower, I think I'm going to remake it in a flatter version. But I love everything else about this cover. So now I'm already thinking of what I should make for myself next - I think I've made myself enough bags and pouches, and would love some more every day items for around the house. I'm thinking sewing machine cover, KitchenAid cover, Nook cover, more ideas welcome . . .

Win with Kinder!

I've said it before - winning never gets old.  Social media has taken giveaways to a whole new level, and there are always giveaways being hosted on my favorite blogs and Facebook pages. Over the past several years I've won several items including clothing, fabric, a magnetic message board, SPA items, gift certificates, a camera bag, and more. Two really fantastic wins were a $1250 credit to the Brick (which we used to purchase a kitchen table, bench, and six chairs) and a weekend getaway to a lodge on a beautiful lake, meals included.

Kinder® is having a special Crack 'n Win® promotion, with over 2.4 million dollars in instant win prizes! Prizes include a Fiat 500 POP, family trips to Orlando, a night out to the movies, or Kinder® treats. Just look for the specially marked Kinder packages, and inside each egg you'll find a code that can be entered online to see if you've won.

Disclosure: I’m part of the Kinder® Mom program and I receive special perks as part of my affiliation with this group. The opinions on this blog, as always, remain my own.