Naturally Optimistic

Just back from a weekend up the shore with my friend Elizabeth. *sigh* ahhhh - two nights of sleeping in a bed all by myself, a whole 24 hours without washing dishes, 4 Christmas presents made, one pair of jeans hemmed (we know how to party), glasses of wine on the deck, endless gazes at the big lake & the wonderfulness of being soothed by the sounds of the waves. The only problem was, the weekend was too short!

I have been meaning to make some "Owlies" (my self-named stuffed owl toys) (okay, so that's what I'm calling them in my head. I'm too lazy to do a google search to see if someone is already calling them out that out there). Anyway - I LOVE owls  & since August's room's theme is "Owls" I always have my eye on them. Owl ornaments, owl pillows, owl lovies, you get the idea. There are oodles of owls all over Pinterest & Etsy which is fantastic. But I wanted to make my own. So that maybe I could use up some upholstery fabric & some wool I felted & sell them. In my Etsy shop. Who knows, but why not, right? The supplies are staring me in the face & I'm not exactly gainfully employed at this point (except by a couple of tiny employers who only pay in hugs & kisses, which I gladly accept, but they do not pay the mortgage, sadly). So, I drew a "pattern" (really, I chuckle when I say that) & cut it out ...

I finally did it! I launched my Etsy shop! CraftyCarrster I hope to fill it with more necklaces, card wallets, bags, napkins, magnets, greeting cards, etc in the coming weeks/months/years. I *hope* to sell a few things & make a *little* money. For fun things like - getting new tires & getting my fillings replaced.Wheeee! So- if you see something you like, buy it! Or tell your friends! Or just "favorite" me...that would make me feel good.

I just found this website courtesy of the Yahoo home page & I love it! How inspiring! I wish I could be so talented with thrift store finds & clothing (in general). How fun to turn something bleh into something fabulous!? I'm going to bookmark this page & go back & check out all of her clothing. Maybe it will inspire me to do....something with my sewing machine!

I was going to run to a funky thrift/antique store yesterday to find a gift for a funky friend who's party was last night. But due to children & screaming & delayed naps, that didn't happen. So instead I hit my fabric stash & whipped up this tote bag for her. It's FAR from perfect but I think it's kind of cool & very functional. I used upholstery samples that I've had for years & some muslin for the lining (not very cool, but oh well). Hopefully she liked it! I'm quite proud of myself that I pulled this off in only a couple hours while watching both kids. Thankfully they cooperated!

I'm looking for a good pattern for valances. I need to make one for Dahlia's room and a couple for our craft/play/guest room....I haven't had much luck looking at the (one) fabric store here in town. I really don't want to go to WalMart... any suggestions?

Finished! The Triplet Baby Blankets...as of last week. These are the last two...the yellow is for Joshua and the green for George. I dragged Steve into a fabric store in Minneapolis with me yesterday. He was a good sport. I tried to make it interactive "ooh - I like this fabric, can you find one that matches in blue....etc" which worked for a while... It was so fun to be in a store with SELECTION. I was nearly freaking out. I spent a lot of money there...but I could easily spend that much every week! I have many Christmas projects to work on...you just might end up with these fabrics under your tree...... You never know.

This project was I think April or May's designated project for the " In Stitches Sew-a-long " that I am in...but as usual I'm months behind schedule. Oh well. I made these placemats for my sister Kathy for her birthday in August. I used the pattern in the Amy Butler book IN STITCHES. I used Peltex interfacing (one side fusible) instead of Timtex because that's all the lame fabric store in my town has (don't get me started on the not-so-good fabric selection and poor prices). I did not like that interfacing at all - it just didn't work and the placemats are crinkly sounding! I followed the ironing/steaming directions and it didn't work. I still have enough to make another set of the placemats and I'm not sure what I'll do. Hmph. I also modified the napkins - instead of making reversibles, I just made normal one-sided ones - copied the size on a set I already had. I used a paint chip from the color of Kathy's recently repainted kitchen. It lo...

My bathrooms are clean and I actually completed an entire sewing project. Amazing. Start throwing the ticker tape and uncorking the champagne. haha Seriously - a simple tote which I LOVE the fabrics on. Heh. Fabric shopping is dangerous & addictive to me!!