thrifting

Gosh, it seems like I am barely blogging these days. It's not really that I'm that busy, it's just that I haven't really done any creating lately. Anyway, we had a great Memorial Day weekend and I think I'm still recovering from it. We had a BBQ here on Sunday that I still have dirty dishes from. I'm hoping the magic dish fairy will come finish them for me.

On Monday, my sister and I ventured out to the thrift store because everything was 50% off. There were tons of people, but I managed to find some really great stuff. I don't know about you, but whenever I see pretty dishes I have a really hard time leaving them behind. If only I needed all of them! I did pick up quite a few, but I plan on listing them all in my vintage etsy shop. I just don't have the room to keep them around but I couldn't leave them at the thrift store! I really think there needs to be a support group for this problem.

Most of these items were designed by Ben Seibel and there were a lot more of his designs at the thrift store too. I was just imagining that someone was a huge collector of his stuff and that it was given to the thrift store. I mean there was so much of it there!

At the last minute, I also found this really cute apron which I couldn't pass up. It's reversible, the one side has lace and the other has the cutest bird print fabric with blue strawberries! It even has pockets on both sides. My sister looked at me like I was crazy when I picked it up, but I still love it! I guess she doesn't appreciate aprons as much as I do. It's a terrible photo, aprons are so hard to take pictures of!

I guess I'll go finish the dishes since it seems that fairy isn't coming today. What's on your agenda for today?

back

So we're back. Actually we got back from Milwaukee Tuesday afternoon and I have been playing catch up ever since. John went back to work on Wednesday for the first time since his transplant and he also had a PET scan today, both of which were really stressing me out! We got good news today though, so I'm feeling much better and feel like I can actually get something accomplished. I'm happy to have a long weekend coming up and my family will be in town so it will be good to just hang out and relax.

We had a great trip to Milwaukee although I never expected it to be so windy there! Thank you all for your suggestions. We visited the Public Museum, Lakefront Brewery, some great restaurants, and Isaiah and I went to the Children's Museums. All were great, especially the Brewery. They have so many delicious beers and it was very entertaining.

Anyway, I'm finally getting around to uploading the rest of the things from the craft fair. These are the remaining crayon rolls which were pretty much the only thing I sold at the fair. With any luck I'll get them up on etsy today. They'll be $12 each or 2 for $20, so if you like any, I'd be happy to reserve them for you.

Alright, that's all. I hope you all have a fabulous weekend!

Road Trip!

We're heading off to Milwaukee tomorrow for my brother in law's graduation from college. John and I decided it would be best to drive out there so that John could avoid being in an airplane with who knows how many sick people. He still have the immune system of a baby, so we need to be really cautious. Anyway, I am very excited for many reasons. One, this is the first trip that we have taken since last summer, since John's relapse. It feel so good that he is allowed to go further than an hour away. Second, I've never been to that area of the U.S. before (well actually, I went to Chicago once, but I'm not going to count it) and I really love road trips. I'm taking along several projects with the hope that I'll get some finished objects. I'll be working on some Dear Jane blocks that need to be appliqued and then this luscious yarn that has been sitting around my house since the fall. I still need to find something to make with it though. Any suggestions?

Speaking of suggestions, anyone know of anything fun to do or an absolute must see while we're in Milwaukee? We'll be there for almost a week so I'm sure we'll need something to do! We might try to stop at Indiana Dunes on the way back. Has anyone been there? Just want to know if it's worth it.

I'll be back next week, hopefully with lots of finished things to show!

spring to finish

I've decided to join the Spring to Finish 2 hosted by Jacquie. I have so many unfinished projects and I really need the motivation to finish them. I figured if I write it down I'll be more committed to finishing them up. Among them are :

a special quilt for John
a quilt from Amanda Jean's first quilt along (how long ago was that!?!)
Isaiah's quilt
Mother's Day gifts
oh, and several bags and dopp kits

I'm sure there's more, but I'm going to focus on getting through this list first. I just checked and I can't believe that quilt along was a year and a half ago! Crazy. Time to get on it!

I have done some sewing the last few days. I finished up my 16 nine patches for the three by three swap hosted by Anina. These are a lot of fun to make and you can make a lot of them pretty quickly.

I also finished up these two reusable snack bags. One with this adorable owl fabric and one with some dinosaur fabric I've had around for a while. They're both in the shop if you're interested.

Ok, that's all for now. I'm headed to the farmer's market to get some fresh donuts and it looks like the sun is finally out. whoohooo! I'm sick of rain!

May Blocks

This month for the Pieced Together Quilting Bee we are making two blocks. Colleen sent these gorgeous fabrics from the Anna Griffin Darcey line. She likes stripes, squares in squares, white spaces, so this is what I came up with. I really love this fabric. I think I might have to get some of my own.

Allison sent fabric to make this circle block using the drunkard's path pattern. I was a little nervous about sewing curves, even after making my doll quilt because it has to be a particular size. Anyway, it came out o.k. and only a few parts don't match up. Allison promises that she doesn't mind though, so it's all good.

Both of them are going to have great quilts! Check out the rest of the blocks in the flickr group.

Doll quilt finished

I managed to finish up the doll quilt by Saturday morning and even got it in the mail. Usually I'm not so motivated to get to the post office, but since I was already a day late in mailing, I figured I had to. It is such a relief now to have it done and sent off. Now I have to wait to see if my partner likes it!

Here's the details on how I did this. Pretty simple really. I cut 6" squares of 6 different fabrics and stacked them together. Then I just used my rotary cutter to them into 4 different sections using curved cuts. Then I just rearranged the stacks and sewed them together. I had to do a lot of straightening after cutting to make them into blocks, but they ended up being like 4.5" squares. I used Kona snow white and 2 extra blocks for the back because I wanted to keep it simple and I quilted it using a circular "pattern." I tried doing this free motion, but it came out really, really messy. I really need to practice free motion because I haven't quite gotten hang of it yet.

I'm still patiently waiting for my quilt from the swap to show up. I'll be sure to show it off when it arrives. Have a happy Monday!

last minute sewing

Tomorrow is the deadline for mailing for the Doll Quilt Swap. Nothing like waiting til the last minute! Truth be told, I couldn't make up my mind and actually started 2 other quilts before settling on this.

I started it last night and worked on it a little bit this afternoon. Hopefully with another hour or two to myself I'll be able to pull it off. Oh, and that messy sewing room? It's been getting a very nice cleaning. See the improvement already?

The craft fair

So the craft fair turned out to be kind of a bust. It was hot and sunny and not nearly as many people came out as they had advertised would. Luckily I split the booth (and the fee) so I did make a little bit of money, but not nearly enough to make it worth my time. Of course I forgot my camera, so I am borrowing this picture from my boothmate Katie. I'm so glad I shared a booth with her because even though the fair was slow, at least I had someone fun to hang out with! You should check out her etsy shop. She makes some of the coolest books, especially the lego books! I have lots of things to add to my etsy shop now, and this is just a sampling.

I'll probably be adding all week long, so feel free to check it out.

Today my goal is to get my sewing room cleaned up. Right now my things from the craft fair are sitting in the living room and taking up a lot of room! And since I'm cleaning out my sewing room, I'll probably be adding more to my vintage shop as well. I found a whole stack of vintage quilting magazines I forgot I had bought!

Oh, and if you haven't entered already, Katie at Philigry is giving away some great Amy Butler fabric! Plus you don't read her already, you should. She makes some great things and is an impressive and quick knitter!

And the winners are..

I just wanted to say Thank You again to all who have donated items. This was so fun to host such a big giveaway. Without further ado, the winners are :

1. Sew Create It - Jane said... Happy Birthday! What a generous bunch of people. Such wonderful things!!

2. Kelley said... Wow! Everyone is so generous. I can't wait to check out those links.

3. Meg said... Happy birthday! I will be blogging about this today!

4. Barbara said... What an awesome giveaway! Happy Birthday!!

5. Heather said... I'd be thrilled to win any of those prizes. Thanks for doing this.

6. Maggie said... Happy Birthday! Such great prizes. I'd have to say my favourites are the 5 inch squares and the package from Secretcake.Thank you for hosting this great giveaway and I'll be posting about it on my blog.

7. Snug N Luv said... Oh Ya!!! What a great idea! Enter me to win.This is a fun idea for a Friday. Happy birthday!!!!

8. diana said... how wonderful!!!

9. Aimee said... Holy moly, what a birthday celebration! Happy birthday!

10. kdkmpalmer said... Wow! What a generous giveaway! Hope you have a fantastic birthday.

11.Casey said... oh wow!! what a great list! enter me please :)

12. Colleen said... Happy Happy Birthday Miss Katie!! What a wonderful celebration you are having. I mentioned it on my blog today : )

13. Digital Misfit said... Happy Birthday!What a wonderful way to celebrate with your bloggy friends! There are so many fabulous goodies being given away.hugs,Heidi

14. Harley Dee said... Very awesome giveaway :) Thanks so much for the chance to win, and Happy Birthday!! :) I blogged about it too!

15.Frogdancer said... I so admire the friendship that you must have with so many people to be able to pull something like this together. I've included a link from my blog too, by the way. A giveaway like this deserves recognition!

16.Shannon said... What an awesome birthday giveaway! Happy birthday, I hope your day is wonderful! :)

17.tammiemarie said... Happy birthday! What a fantastic giveaway! Enter me twice, you're up on my blog craftytammie.blogspot.com. Thanks!

18.Sam said... I would love to win any of the items. Awesome prizes. Happy Birthday!

19.Amy said... Oh my goodness, those are some incredible prizes. You must have worked hard to put all that together!

20. sarabclever said... Happy Birthday!

I'll be contacting each of you individually so that you may choose your prize. Thanks to everyone who commented!

A Birthday Giveaway

GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED. THANK YOU FOR PARTICIPATING. WINNERS WILL BE CHOSEN SHORTLY.

Tomorrow is my birthday and I'm going to celebrate with you with a HUGE giveaway. You know that old saying "ask you and shall receive"? Well, there were many great people who answered and I am happy to be able to give away so many great items!

Here's how this will work. To be entered, simply leave a comment. Please make sure to leave a way to contact you. Oftentimes when people leave comments, there is no contact information from them, so if you want to win, make sure you leave me your e-mail. To gain an extra entry into the contest you can blog about it and let me know about the post in your comment. Please do not comment more than once on this post as it'll make counting very difficult for me! There will be around 20 winners, so the first winner will have their choice of prize and each subsequent winner will get to choose from the remaining list. You'll have from today (Friday) until Monday April 27th to enter.

Here are the prizes that have been generously donated. Please take the time to click through their shops and/or blogs since they were kind enough to participate in this giveaway.

1. Secretcake

About secret cake:
Buying and selling handmade, sustainable products has never been more pervasive. secret cake supports this movement by offering an eclectic mix of “rescued” textiles and notions for your unique, up-cycled creations. Please visit secret cake at www.secretcake.etsy.com and www.secretcake.blogspot.com

About the giveaway:
secret cake offers a colorful, spring-inspired grab bag of vintage fabric scraps and buttons. This grab bag includes cotton or cotton/poly blend fabric from upcycled bed linens in four different but coordinating patterns. Great for patchwork, pouches, covered buttons and other smaller projects. The grab bag also includes a half-dozen whimsical vintage buttons in pinks, yellows and greens. Enjoy!

2. Fortheloveofproducts at etsy is offering a $10 gift certificate to her store. "For The Love Of… products celebrate life's intimate moments by providing high-quality bath and body products dedicated to making even the smallest of daily activities pleasurable."

3.Mary offering bookmarks. She sells original artwork in her etsy store, which includes bookmarks, cards, and wallart.

4. Bitofwhimsy sells her original patterns for dolls and other stuffed animals. There are even cute boy dolls which makes this mama of a boy very happy! She is offering 3 PDF patterns to 3 different winners. Each winner will get their choice of pattern.



5. Mary of confessionsofacraftaddict is offering up 1 yard of this cute mermaid fabric. She tells me Joann's sold of out it 2 years ago and it is very hard to find! If you don't already read her blog, you should. Trust me. She makes the cutest things ever!

6. Rosalyn Scent is offering a body butter of your choice of scent. The mango sounds great to me! They carry a variety of bath, body, and fragrance products and there is a $10 off coupon on the home page.

7. MyHeartandSew is offering a $10 gift certificate to her etsy shop. Cassie carries the cutest fabrics and is a delight to work with. She is more than willing to set up custom listings for you, so don't be afraid to ask! She also accepts RME payments, just in case you have a little extra money sitting around in your account (wish I did!).

8. Shelly from Joyful Girl Natural is giving away a 2oz bottle of her Organic Shea Mango Lotion. She says her mom works with a lot of fibers and she loves the way it feels on her hands. She makes products when they are ordered for freshness and effectiveness. Also she can customize products to meet each customers skin care needs. She will work with her customers to assist in healing severe skin concerns, taking time to formulate a skin care regimen that will be healing for them.

9. Katie from Moonlight Bindery is giving away this very cute Moleskin with a Goccoed Snail on it. She will also be my booth-mate at the craft fair tomorrow!

10. Snugluv at etsy is offering a $10 gift certificate to her store. She stocks quilt kits, patterns, and handmade goods. She also blogs at snug-n-luv.blogspot.com.

11. Kiva from farmstandlady is offering these very chic "Little Black Dress" earrings. Visit her etsy shop for other great jewelry items.

12.Precious Patterns offer many different patterns which include but are not limited to baby items, toys, and shoes. If you need to make a gift for a baby shower, you should definitely check them out. Mary and Sara will be offering 1 PDF pattern from their store. The winner can choose the pattern of their liking. They are also having a giveaway this week. They are giving away their new Monkey Crayon Holder pattern to everyone who purchases two patterns or one combo pattern. All of their patterns are e-patterns sent to their email address within 24 hours, and they are always working on new pattern designs.



13. Gulfcoastcottagepdf is another great etsy shop. She has some of the cutest patterns for felt, everything from a robot to a doctor's kit. There is something for everyone there! Jen will be giving away 1 PDF pattern of the winner's choice. She's running a special buy any 4 patterns get a 5th one for free (just in case you can't wait to see if you're a winner).



14. Tara from tarabu is giving away a pair of surprise coffee cuddlers from this collection. Tara has many great things in her etsy shop. One of my favorites are her shawls, which I have seen in person and are fabulous!

15. Raesha is giving away a bunch of vintage sewing goodies. Raesha also writes a lovely blog, so if you're not a reader already, check her out!

16. jmilliesjustforyou In her etsy store you will find cute Japanese fabrics as well as other fabrics and patterns. She also runs a fabric co-op on yahoo which can be found by following this link. For the giveaway, Judy will be sending the lucky winner 12 strips 2 1/2" x 44. 5 of fabric by Tina Givens and one Phillip Jacobs print. This is perfect for getting started on a quilt or any patchwork project.



17. "Life in your Years" Earrings (Retail Value $14) by Sweet Tarragon

Danielle says "Celebrate life, the universe, and everything in it for Katie's
birthday or your own special day with these sterling silver earrings.
Ocean and brecciated jaspers offer depth and warmth, while tiny brown
goldstone beads offer a hint of copper shimmer. Approximately 1-1/2"
in length, including earwire. "And in the end, it's not the years in
your life that count. It's the life in your years." (Abraham Lincoln)

Your readers can enter "Birthday" in the notes to seller at checkout
for a 10% discount on their entire order through the end of the month
at sweettarragon.etsy.com."

18. And last but not least, I'm giving away a pack of 5" squares of fabrics from each of the Flea Market Fancy fabrics I own. I have more than this photo shows, but you get the idea.

So there you have it! Thanks for celebrating with me. And a big THANK YOU to all those who have donated their times. I'll be back on Monday with winner and an update about the craft fair. Have a great week!

attack of the messy house

Thanks for all the love on my tree quilt and a big hello to some new readers! Have you guys been following along all the beautiful quilts in the Blogger's Quilt Festival? There are some seriously beautiful quilts in there!

This week is turning out to be a crazy one. I have a craft fair on Saturday that I am feverishly preparing for. Sewing production line style is not the most fun, but it sure does work. Unfortunately my house is really suffering from neglect! Just a little glimpse into what my house is looking right now.

To begin, I'm a messy sewer. I go through all my fabrics, cut everything and then leave it out. Lest we not forget that I sew in my "dining room".

I can assure you that no dining has been going on in this room at all. Oh, can you see that little bit of green stuff on the table? Yeah, Moon Sand given to Isaiah for his birthday. He loves it. I can't say I share his affinity for it. And last but not least, our kitchen. Dirty dishes piled high.

This is when a dishwasher would really be useful! I'm just hoping to have the Merry Maids come knocking on my door saying that someone sent them to me as a gift! haha.

John also has a PET scan tomorrow, so that is adding a little bit of stress too. It's late in the day, so I'm sure I'll be thinking about it all day long. So any extra prayers our way would be much appreciated.

And if all this isn't enough, my birthday is on Saturday (same day as the craft fair). I am really looking forward to celebrating after this crazy week is over. I have something very exciting coming up for you all on Friday, so make sure you stop by to check it out!

Blogger's Quilt Festival

Have you heard about the Blogger's Quilt Festival? Amy at Park City Girl started this online Quilt Festival for those of us that aren't lucky enough to attend Quilt Market. I'll have to admit that I have more unfinished quilts than finished. In fact, I think I've made more actual quilt blocks for other people (between my two quilting bees) than I have made for myself. That being said, I do have a few favorite finished quilts, both of which live somewhere else than here.

One is a quilt I made for the Doll Quilt Swap and the either is a baby quilt which I sold on etsy (and like to imagine a sweet baby being wrapped up in!!).

So, go head over to Amy's blog and check out the list of participants. If you have some favorite quilts, you should join too. There's lots of cool giveaways!