Blog book?

I just read this post over at "Or so she says" and I'm pretty excited about it.

She essentially explains how she made her blog into a photo book using blurb, and I can't wait to get started. I've always wondered how I could preserve everything I've done with this blog, because it really has been the most consistent of my records. (My journal doesn't get much attention...) While I do think I need to write more in my journal, I love using this blog as a record of events and coming and goings, and some of my thoughts on life. I think that a journal could be more useful as a recording of spiritual impressions and revelation, and so I guess this is one of my goals for this year: I'm in a D&C religion class and all of this talk of revelation has really got me thinking. I also have a theory on Joseph Smith, but I'll talk about that later because right now I have to get to class!

And thanks for reading, for those of you who do. It's nice to not be a voice in the wilderness too often.

I also need to get in on this...

Tree skirt I definitely plan on copying

Another awesome idea from blog land!

Ruffle top

Pretty sure nobody needs a tutorial for this, but I'm doing it anyway. Na! (In French, this is what kids say when they are being contradictory, sort of like "so there" or thumbing your chin at someone).

So I just took an old tank that I never wear anymore and cut up another old white shirt into strips, about three inches wide, maybe less (still having trouble with non-metric system...)

and ruffle them (see here for how-to). Just sew a 1/4 inch from the edge. If your strips are about 1 1/2 times as long as your shirt is wide, you're good. Make sure to leave plenty of string on both ends of the strips to adjust the ruffles if the strips are now too short/long.

Don't forget to put your machine's tension back to normal after making all your ruffles!
Now tack on and start sewing from the bottom up.

Your top ruffle will probably need to be smaller depending on the neckline, etc.

There you go! I like it best with a cardigan to give it some structure.

Linking over here:

Tall and not big?

Why is it we can't find a single shirt that has long enough sleeves and that isn't a tent? We just went to do some pre-Christmas shopping for Andrew (yes, I'm afraid I'm one of those boring wives that gets their husband clothes.. it's that or video games) and shirts his size simply don't exist!

I just don't understand it. I know plenty of guys that are tall and thin. So why do stores simply not make clothes for them? Are they trying to encourage people to get fat so they'll fit? We asked the sales lady about it and she said we could special order, but if we got them long enough we'd have to go up a neck size...come on people!

My husband is not a freak of nature. And I know he is not the only guy out there in this situation. At least he has a wife that can fix his shirts up somewhat...

Little bonnet

I made this for a friend who's having a little girl soon-- I can't wait for her to send me a picture of her wearing it!

Linking here:

Hello there

I'm beginning to think it's silly for a girl to have two blogs... :)

So I'm combining this one, in which I've been posting only about crafts, sewing and other creative endeavors, with my original one. If you're still around and reading this, I'd love it if you'd follow me over there! (hint hint)

Thanks for reading, I love getting your comments.

Thank you Pottery Barn

For giving me this fantastic idea :)

I really hope I am pregnant on halloween one year...

So that I can make this...

 

How adorable is that?!

Apron

I really want to make this apron...

 
Check it out over here!

A little bit of lace can go a long way.

I saw these in Banana Republic the other day and loved the little touch of lace...

So why not add some to a nice comfy shirt?

Just a hint around the neckline...

Two strips down the front...

And there it is.

Oh well

I didn't make the top 15... oh well, next year maybe. There are a few that I really like, and then a few... that I think are atrocious, but that's just me. I would say that though.

Gymnast shirt

I call this my gymnast shirt because it reminds me of the leotards that gymnasts wear. It always seems like they have some sort of diagonal stripes. Since my mom and sisters used to be gymnasts, why not follow the trend? :)

This shirt used to have a crew neck (meh) so I did this neckline and then added some strips taken from the extra length (Downeast makes some looong shirts) to the front. My friend Jourdan gets the credit for that idea. I just sewed two lines about 1/8 inch from the edges, and the fabric naturally curls up.

Done.

Dress contest

Hello there :)

I just entered the Shabby Apple Dare to Design contest-- I'd love it if you'd go check it out!

Shabby Apple Contest!

Here it is,

my dress design for Shabby Apple dresses :

I wanted something light, simple and elegant, and I think lace certainly embodies that. The lace has more of a crochet-ish feel, which makes it less frilly, and the design is simple but classic.

The edge details give it just the right amount of femininity. Wearing it with a light cardigan also makes it a good business look. It would also be great with a contrasting sash in coral or brown.

I like it in this creamy white color, but black or a nice peach would work nicely.

So wish me luck friends :)

http://www.shabbyapple.com/t-daretodesign.aspx

I know it's not Christmas yet...

But I got this awesome kit for my birthday, courtesy of my mother-in-law, and I couldn't stop myself from.... well, almost finishing it. Not quite though.

LOVE those mini pompoms

I really should've saved it for later, but it's so much fun! and cutting squares for a quilt is a great General Conference activity :)

This is Halloween! This is Halloween!

Did I mention I put up fall decorations? Well, I did. I love the holidays. My little witch and her crew have finally found their home on our front door. Makes the door a little less ugly I say...

And a few other odds and ends around the house that I've been collecting for a few years..

Bats!

People always think this says "Bod", but no.
It says "Boo!" Just in case you were wondering...

Nothing like some mini-pumpkins to...
look Halloweenesque

This little cat meows. It's awesome.

Birthday flowers :)

Dress... done!

But I'm an idiot and made it too tight... ARGH!
I can fit into it, I can even move my arms around and sit, but I need to either go on a drastic diet or just continue to look... well, pregnant. No, I am not. (sadly) The sleeves are a little too perky, but oh well. The biggest issue is that it's too tight across the chest. I have depth perception issues a wide ribcage. Blech. I'm planning on convincing a friend or two that is skinnier to try it on and see if it at least works better for them. I still want to enter it into the Shabby Apple dress contest, I'll just have someone thinner model it.

But here's the result!

Don't breathe... don't breathe...

Neckline -- see, I even used darts! But still too snug.

Invisible zipper!

This is how I did the edges.. Unfortunately, going around curves didn't work as evenly as the straight bottom hem, but oh well.

Turned out quite nice on the bottom!

Smurfette toes :)

And I put so much stinking work into this dress that DANG IT I'll wear it on Sunday anyway.

Edit: Turned out not so bad with a cardigan :

Dress

No, nothing very exciting to show... Mostly, the dress is not cooperating, so at this point I need a longer torso for it to fit correctly. Blegh!

 
It's bunching at the waist and small of the back, and it's driving me nuts. Stupid dress. Apart from that, everything was going so well :(

Shabby Apple Design Contest

I am so excited about this: I am going to enter the Shabby Apple Dare to Design contest!

Of course, lots of people will enter, but hey--it's worth a try. You should too! It'll be good to have a challenge.

I'm currently working on a dress that I thought was a disaster, but managed to save (thanks to much encouragement from my husband) and I'm going to enter it as soon as I have finished (which should be pretty soon... finally!). So tune in soon to see the dress :)

Halloween table-runner

If you (the two people that ever read here haha) are sick of halloween stuff, I apologize, cause I'm just getting started :)

I made yet another themed table-runner. They're just too much fun to make! That and the fact that they are relatively simple and don't require too much time make it perfect for my short attention span. So here we go:

All I used was left-over scraps from the Halloween door hanging that I made. Cut into a few different sizes (I ended up doing two wide strips and one thinner one).

I call these "monster colors": orange and black with purple and green. Perfect for Halloween :)
Sew together your strips:

Now comes the fun part! Armed with my newly-acquired skills in quilting (beginner's skills, but still... I think I'm hooked), add on batting and the back fabric

(black is probably best, but I used an off-white...  I think it's called muslin? Incidentally, in French off-white is literally called "broken white." haha) and pin together the layers. And now....

Freehand sew a spiderweb all over it! (With a freehand foot... check out this post for a brief explanation)

It would probably be cool too if the spiderweb started in a corner and spread from there, I just went with a central one to hold all the layers together. See, double function, how easy :)
Now bind the edges and you're done.

This will go quite nicely in the living room :)

I'm linking over here: