A New Bag~ for me!!

I had the pleasure of testing one of Sara Lawson of Sew Sweetness's newest patterns and it was a dream to sew! At only 12 pages to the whole pattern, it was also quite quick! :-)

The Renegade~

This is the perfect travel bag! A big zipper across the top will keep everything safely inside.

I used faux leather for the bottom and handles. :-)  Sorry for the dark photos~ its raining, its pouring! :-o

The finished size is 14" long x 10½" tall x 3½" deep

Some of the testers opted to add an outside pocket. I did not. There are plenty of inside pockets, and my thought was that if I am sticking this in an overhead airplane bin, or under the seat, I wouldn't want anything falling out of the pocket. I like it all safely inside. ;-) 

If you have never made a bag, but want to get your feet wet~ this is the perfect pattern for you! It is filled with little tips to help you along the way AND if you really want some fun, now is the time to get in on a great little bundle she has put together of both the pattern & video tutorials for 4 of her patterns! 4 Pack Bundle

The sale starts tomorrow.

This special will only be in her shop until March 8th~ so don't 'think about it' too long. ;-)

Until next time~

Happy stitchin'!

Fun & Games...

Well, to be honest~ it's all fun!! :-)

First lets talk hand embroidery. I joined Kathy Schmitz One Stitch at a Time Club this year to keep me hand stitching and for something a little different. I have loved the designs for January and February!

January was this big planter with greenery in it~

Kathy did hers all in ivory and turned it into a sachet. I chose a variegated green thread to embroider mine.

I am going to turn it into a little wall quilt-just a mini in a spring display. :-) The lightest greens got a little washed out in the photo, but in 'real life' they look good. ;-)

For this month we have the bird holding the key to the heart.

 

I love how hers was framed and quilted so I did the same, except I again chose a variegated red thread and red frame. I do love red! LOL ;-)

Are you sewing along with Buttermilk Basin's 'Spirit of America' BOW? 

I got all caught up over the weekend. I don't have the last block in this pic, but it is finished too. :-)

I just love how these blocks are coming together!! I am using scraps from my CW bin,

but sticking to the reds, tans & blues.

And for the 'games'~ I love to enter giveaways from fabric companies on Facebook, and I share them on my page in the hope that someone I know will win. My friends & I have all won one here or there. Fun! :-)  Well, earlier this month I won a FQ bundle from Quilting Treasures fabrics. :-)  New fabrics~ always fun! Right?  Well, they just blew me away! This huge box arrived and they sent not only the bundle I won, but a bunch more!! :-) Squeeealllllll!! Did you hear me all the way to your house? :-)

Can you believe this?!!

I am still a little speechless.  I have been making plans like crazy! LOL

I hope you have been having a little fun sewing & creating too!

Until next time~

Happy stitchin'!!

Something Different today~~

Are you plagued by dry skin in the winter?  

Our heater has been running so much this week, and we do run a humidifier, that my skin just dries out! 

My DH laughs at me because I call this concoction 'Wonder Cream'- it feels wonderful!! LOL

My Mom and I both mixed up half batches many years ago and I came across my little recipe the other day, so had to make more. 

It is really easy, and so soothing!

In this case your local dollar store is your friend!

I used~

2- 15oz bottles of baby lotion 

(you could go to a drug store or Wal-Mart and get an unscented version if the scent bothers you)

2- 8 oz containers Vitamin E cream

(I had a hard time finding this, so went to Rite Aid and got 4- 4oz containers; it was on sale so win-win.  Later I discovered Wal-Mart has a less costly version.)

1- 7.5 oz petroleum jelly

(you just have to trust me with this one LOL)

I use a glass mixing bowl, put it all in and used my mixer to whip it all together well.

Then I put it back into the Vit E containers, the petroleum jelly container, and a bunch of smaller containers. :-)

As you can see~ it makes a lot! 

I gave away one of the red top containers, a little square one, and one of the Vit E containers before I thought to take the photo. :-)  

I have been putting it on my feet at night and wearing my fuzzy socks. Elbows, hands, it works well every where, and after a few minutes it seems to just soak in. I love this stuff! Hubby even took a container to put on his cuticles at night. ;-)

If you try it, let me know what you think~

Until next time~

Happy Stitchin'!!

Busy! Busy!

I'm back to show you the quilt top I got put together last weekend~

It is folded in half because hubby doesn't have an 8 foot arm span. LOL

I used jelly rolls from my DSIL's stash and will get it quilted so I can gift it back to DBIL.

I've also had the embroidery machine humming the last few days~

Unicorn hand sanitizer key fobs! :-)

Design from Designs By Little Bee

Also I was lucky enough to win the horses key fob set from The Applique Place,

so just had to make some for the DGK's! 

Sorry the heart is too reflective~ I used a glitter vinyl. ;-)

And I got a BOM finished for February~~

Chris's Star from Quilters Cache

Not sure why it flipped in resizing it, but my points are all there! ;-)

I hope you are having a little fun in your sewing rooms too!

Until next time~

Happy Stitchin'!

Sewing!!!

Hi everyone!

  I spent the weekend at a small retreat with friends and managed to get a lot of things that were weighing on me finished! Yay!

I cannot show you the pattern tests yet, but I can show a few other things...

I got this table runner together. It's from a charm pack that a shop had put together.

I have a red dotted print for the binding.

Oh! My camera did it again and turned the photo on its side!

I need to figure out why the editing program does this sometimes. Sorry.

I also got caught up with my January BOM. Some friends and I are doing this one.

This block is from Quilters Cache and is called Carolyn's Star.  

 

 

I had a FQ pack of Halloween prints that I am using. If you have been following me for any time at all, you know I love stars! ;-)

In my next post I will show you the quilt top I got together. I need hubby home to be my quilt holder. LOL

I hope you all had a sewing weekend too! Tell me what you did and I will stop by your blog for a visit. 

Until next time~

happy Stitchin'!

A Machine Emb. Finish

I finished this last week, but we have had such rainy, gray days that I couldn't take a decent photo! But~ drips are better than flakes!! ;-)

This is an in-the-hoop design from Titania Creations.

My DS1 told me that DGD was having a few 'listening issues' the last time we talked, so I thought this cute little quilt might inspire her. LOL  Each day that she is good, they put a sticker over the number and when she collects all 7 stickers, she gets a little incentive reward.  I am not sure how well it will work, but it will be cute hanging in her room. :-)

 

I put little hanging triangles on the back to slip a dowel into, and also added a little pocket for the stickers.  I hope she likes it! 

This week I am doing a bunch of cutting~ preparing for an upcoming retreat. 

I plan to sew the weekend away! Crossing my fingers I get at least half of what I am taking along finished. ;-) 

I hope you are having a little fun stitching too!

Until next time~

Happy stitchin'!!

Mama Always Said...

...whatever you do on New Year's Day, you will do the whole year through.... or maybe Grandma said that. LOL ;-)  With that thought running through my head, I tried to do a bit of everything!

Sewing, hand embroidery, machine embroidery, making quilt blocks, cooking... it was an exhausting day! :-)  LOL  What did you do?

I put together these quilt blocks for the Ventura Modern Quilt Guild to use in quilts for the Thomas fire & flood victims.  They are collecting blocks through January, the last I heard.

Hmmm, it looks like I will need to play in my photo program some more~ not sure why it didn't use the whole shot.  But, you get the idea, right? ;-)

I joined the Buttermilk Basin "Spirit of America" sew along and finished the first two blocks.

I am just using scraps from my CW bins.

And I just put the finishing stitches in my first finish for the year~ a Valentine table topper.

The hearts are the machine embroidery I did on NYDay. ;-)  They were free designs I found on-line,  if you would like to know the sites, let me know and I will look them up.

I have a bajillion things I want to make this year, so I'd better get off the computer and busy!

I hope you are having a great new year and keeping warm & happy!

Until next time~

Happy stitchin'!!