Sulu Swap

I recently did a swap with Susan of Su-lu Design after I looked all over town (i.e. in 2 beading shops and the craft stores)  for some large ear wires. We’ve never met in real life, but we both lived in Astoria and shopped at the same grocery store for who knows how long. Then I moved out west, and she moved out west, to the point that when we got to the podunk town of Kadoka, SD, I said “No, no, I want to stay at that motel!” which I recognized from her photos. It was good to know I was not alone.

Here are some of the goodies she sent me.

The fabric I used in the background is a hand screened piece by Lara Cameron. Gorgeous, gorgeous- just some of the other good mail I’ve received recently.

It was a fun little swap, and I’ve been wanting some of her earrings for a long time.  Sometimes I feel like making things to sell is just an elaborate form of barter, since I always end up using my paypal money to buy more handmade stuff.

McCall’s 5388

In an effort to use some interesting fabric I got at the NYC Craft Mafia Swap in Brooklyn this summer, I made McCall’s 5388 (View D). The fabric is super, super soft and flowy, but I had an odd amount of it, as I don’t think it’s a standard width. I knew I would have to combine it with something– which I wanted to do anyway, because why not? There were some safe choices, and then there was the cute faux quilted fabric I bought at the Reprodepot outpost at Renegade last summer. I ended up using that because I thought the patchwork and the strange 80’s-slash-Native-Americanesque designs worked off of each other.

Here’s the result. I really like it, but the bib collar is *big*. If I were smart, or patient, I would have made a muslin. That’s just not my way.  I don’t mind the largeness too much, though–especially for summer.  (It was -7 yesterday. I like to think about summer!) I looove supersoft flowy shirts to layer.

Things I altered in my version:
-Left out the sleeve elastic because I don’t like my arms to feel cramped (& I was out of the correct size).
- Changed the bib to a contrasting fabric.
-Made my own bias tape for the back collar instead of using packaged tape.
-Took in the sides at a slight curve (I guess you could call it a dart) to make it a bit less boxy muu-muu.

Things I’d do differently if making this shirt again:
-Take in the bib collar (I’ve already marked the pattern for next time) + possibly chop off a bit of the top of the collar too. Patterns are always too big in the shoulders for me.
-Make it at least a size smaller.
-Try a sleeveless version, because this looked pretty cute w/o sleeves, too. And since this one had generously sized puffy sleeves, I could stand to put some elastic in them next time. I generally cut sleeves a size larger from whatever size I’m making, but I really didn’t need to for this pattern.

As far as patterns go, I’d give this one a B. I’m not sure who exactly that wide bib would flatter, and I had a few WTF moments when consulting the pattern. There were little things left out that a beginner might not know (like how to gather the fabric, or what understitching is) . But overall, I’d probably use it again. I should probably actually do that one day– make something twice– to see how different the results would be.

And there you have it, the last garment constructed on my old machine.

By the way, my friend Nikki, who co-wrote the fabulous book Fashion DIY, took the other half of the grey fabric at the swap. I can’t wait to see what she makes with it.

Ornament Swap

I wanted to share my bounty from the ornament swap before the holidays are a distant memory.  Here they are:

Aren’t they lovely? I can’t quite remember who made each one, but I definitely have my favorites! I love the pine-cone lady, the felt embroidered star (which I believe was Terri’s), and the pink/blue house painting. And, the little clothespin santa reminded me of something dear to me.

Here’s my own clothespin Santa,which I  made when I was about 3 years old. He might be my first ever craft, and I love hanging him on the tree each year. He lost an eye a long time ago, but he gets by alright.

Done and Done

I finished binding the baby quilt! It took quite a lot of time to do all of that hand stitching, but I had time, since I’ve been on the couch with a persistent cold.

Here are some overall shots of the quilt on our bed.  It’s pretty big– 40 x 50 inches, so hopefully my sister’s kiddo will be able to use it for a lot of years. I was noticing as I bound it that it would make a nice lap quilt…. but no, I must part with it.

 

You can see some more details on flickr.  Here it is with my first quilt, which was offended that I balled it up in order to make room to shoot the new one.

And if that’s not enough excitement for the day, check out my Holiday Swap Ornaments over at Reprodepot.  Here’s a peek.

I got two of mine in the mail today– they were sooo cute! I squealed “Ornament swap, ornament swap!” when Paul brought in the padded envelopes. I’ll share them all, but I want to save the surprise in case my swap group is reading.

Stitching Upgrade

This Monday I got a very exciting package from my mom (Hi Mom!). It was a new (to me) sewing machine- a singer featherweight. Still a pretty beginner machine, but loads better than the cheapy I was using to make all of my other projects. I’ve been slacking about getting to the Bernina store to just go ahead and make the jump, so she figured she better at least send me something a little nicer. Thanks  Mom!

 

I got right to work on my sister’s baby quilt. I actually finished quilting it today, but all of the light is gone so you probably won’t get a picture till it’s complete. Other than that, it’s pretty quiet on the crafting front. I’ve been making things to sell at an upcoming holiday fair, and I have a slew of work projects coming up.  I also signed up for the 2nd annual holiday ornament swap, just to make myself totally crazy. Being busy is always better, though, and I was sad not to have heard about it in time last year. Plus I have some fun ideas in mind. You have till this Friday, November 9th, to join.

Over 300 people have already signed up. Wow!

Patchwork Swap Sent + Giveaways

Okay, it is finally time to show off my Patchwork Swap project. Let me just say I had so much fun organizing and participating in this swap. I’m kind of sad to not be expecting any more mail at the moment. Look here to see what my partner Emily sent me.

 

Here is what I sent Erin of House On Hill Road. It’s a little decorative house. I just always think of a nice house at the end of a road somewhere when I am reading her blog. I actually attempted to make a stuffed house before this, from all green fabrics (her favorite color) but it just wasn’t that cute. It needed a varied color palette. I’m glad I gave it another go, as I am really happy with how this turned out. I love small patchwork projects, and am looking forward to what other kinds of small patchwork things the swapees came up with.

Here is the batch of scraps I sent. As a thank you for all of the sweet comments and emails I have been getting lately, I made another batch-o-scraps very similar to what’s shown here to give away. Your emails have made me feel so flattered, and like leaving on this adventure was definitely a good creative move. Comment on this post with what you’d like to make with the scraps by Tuesday, 10/30 at 10 am EST for a chance to win them. Just leave your email with your post and I’ll email the winner for their address.

To a separate winner, I will give away one copy of Softies: Simple Instructions for 25 Plush Pals. If I ever get around to it, I want to modify a pattern or two to make a patchwork softie! I really love all of the cute projects in this book and I know one of you will too, plus, it’s almost time for the Softie Awards. Comment with who you’d like to make a softie for and why by Tuesday at 10 AM EST,  same rules as above, for a chance to win the book.

Happy Friday! (Technically, it’s Thursday night, but it’s close enough for me!)

Friday Decompression + Shop Update

This week has left me feeling tired, tired, tired. Working in the afternoons does this weird thing where I’m constantly thinking of how I have to go to work, and therefore don’t get a lot done. There has been lots of knitting torn out to be crocheted, and vice versa. But, I think some fun things have been created. I’m going to try to take them to the boutique next week once I’m done with some freelance work etc.

 

I also added some brooches to the shop. I really loved making these at one time in my life, and think I would like to start making them again. I just love wearing them on my coats and sweaters, and now I have an even better selection of fabric, buttons and yarns. I also put a few things on sale- the cake hats, scarf/muffler, etc.  It’s getting colder!

Hope everyone is having a lovely friday, and happy weekend for that matter.

And Erin, your swap package was sent yesterday (so, fingers crossed, it might get there tomorrow according to the post lady).

Patchwork Swap Received!

I came home to the telltale sign of fun mail: the key in the mailbox. Which means, you get to open the bigger box! (Damn, I love not having to walk a mile to the post office to retrieve packages). I was super excited to open my box because I knew it was from my swap parnter Emily! Here are my spoils:

 

A cute halloween quilt with embroidered pumpkin. I’m hanging this on the inside of our door to look at each day.

 

And scraps! I love the scraps she chose, very pretty and totally my taste. I also got a kick out of the beaded devil. Something about it is just perfect. When I was showing Paul my goodies, he asked if any of them were fabrics I already had. None of them were (isn’t that kind of crazy when you think about it?) but some of them were fabrics I wish I had purchased. Doing this swap made me realize how much fabric I already have. I really should not buy any more, even if I DO have a project in mind. Except clothing, maybe clothing would be all right.  Anyway, I know I’ll be able to incorporate these pieces into some fun little things.

I really enjoyed making my package for Erin, but I don’t want to show off my patchwork item till she recieves it. And that means I need to ride on over to the post office this week! Once she gets it, I’m also going to do a giveaway with roughly the same scrap fabrics I sent her, so keep an eye out!

I had a lot of fun. I hope everyone else is having fun too. If you’re in the swap, still reading, and have a blog, please post links to your patchwork swap recieved posts in the comments so we can all share in the fun.

Happy Friday!

Hope everyone is having a great day- it’s absolutely lovely weather here in Bozeman. Fall has started and the leaves are changing- I need to get my camera out before it’s too late.

I got up at 7 this morning to start my! new! job! and the light was lovely. It’s a part time job with an office full of great ladies, so I think it’ll be fun and also, get me out of bed every day. Which at this point is very necessary! Plus I can walk there, which is awesome.

I’ve sent out about half of the patchwork swap partners, and plan on sending the rest out this weekend. Don’t worry if you haven’t gotten yours yet, it has nothing to do with the order in which you signed up. I just went a little blind with all the emailing, so I needed to split it up into a few days. Plus I am going out for sushi tonight. We are far from the ocean, but I’m hoping it’s still tasty.

And finally, here’s a nice drawing (but I am biased) by Paul Heaston, AKA the incredibly talented arist/ reason I moved to Bozeman. He’s been working furiously on his website this week, and I wanted to share. It’s still under construction a bit, so be sure to check back. Enjoy!

One Last Chance for Swappers

A couple of you commented but did not send me an email (before I closed the swap- I believe it was up to comment #47). I will wait until Friday at 12pm MTN (that’s 2 pm EST) to send out the partners, so please email me if you actually want to swap. If you didn’t get a confirmation email from me, that means I didn’t get one from you. Consult the original post to see what info I need from you.

And my apologies to anyone who didn’t sign up in time– but I can only organize so many people.  The emails were a little overwhelming yesterday!

I’ve been busy busy around here with freelance work and loose ends, so there’s not a lot of crafting to show off.  Hope everyone is having a good week.