New stuff

I've finally finished a couple things! I have plenty cut out, just waiting. AND since Halloween is next week, I figured I should probably finish the boys costumes sometime! We've also had an interesting week, with a visit to Primary Children's Hospital Thursday night. Elsie and I didn't get home from there until 3 am, and have had rough nights since Wednesday, so I'm not getting things done very fast!
Here's the first car seat cover:

It's 100% cotton, backed in brown dot minky fabric.

I can make it to fit these handle types:

Or it can fit a regular straight handle.
The cover is now for sale in my Etsy shop. More of these coming!
Also, the first of the crayon rolls is done.

I also have Superman and University of Utah ones coming!

First package

FINALLY. Sent the first package.
This is for my friend, Leah. She has three cute little girls. I do not have little girls. Although I will someday. Just one. Therefore, we will pretend I know what is cute for little girls. Come, pretend with me, will you?
First up? Crayon rolls for her two oldest.
I used both fabrics on each, so the one with the stripes outside has the farm print inside, and vice versa.
They even include crayons! I'm full-service, y'all.
Next up, for her sweet little one (whom I wisely assumed should not have access to crayons), a rags n' tags.
Girls like pink and butterflies, right?
And polka-dot ribbon? How does that go over with little girls?
So there you have it. Colorful stuff for Leah's girls. And I'll be including a jar of my homemade apple butter as well. Mmm, apple butter. Because I got a little excited about the whole "sewing for little girls" thing and need to make sure I include something for the person who actually won the giveaway. Sheesh.

And we're back ...

It's very hard to describe how my trip went without just saying, "Awesome."
I played with the kids. I danced with the national police. I ran a pharmacy. I organized a cafeteria for a village school and helped feed the kids their first meal sitting at their new tables. I helped during an extraction. I did face painting. I comforted children waiting in line for the clinic.
It's overwhelming. I want to go back so badly.
•••
I'm excited to announce the winner of the giveaway - not because I have everything together, but because I really want to give more to other people.
I hope this feeling lasts.
•••
And the winner is:
It's Mel! My beloved sister!
Want a hint about part of your prize?
Do you know what four legged animal Peru is famous for?
That can be used as a pack animal but is mostly used for it's coat?
And the babies are especially prized?
That is all.

Kindness

I just wanted to say that I feel much better about people right now. First, there was the comment from Jacquie on my previous post (sorry I'm just replying now!). That was just so dang sweet of you to offer to send the boys something - it doesn't matter where the package comes from, it's just fun to receive something of your very own when you're a kid (maybe I should arrange my own swap - with just two partners, ha! I couldn't have you send anything without sending something in return).
And then today, the boys got a package from my sister, which was totally unexpected but hey, sometimes she's like that. They were so excited. When I told Benson it was for him and Jack, he said, "Really? We never get mail!" Aw.
My sister also sent this to me.

(Late night + Pathetic photographer = Blurry picture)

That's right, I'm 30 (although I don't look a day over 35). My birthday was Saturday and she sent me an eCard then, but a birthday isn't a birthday without one of her handmade cards.
Moving on.

The boys' package had bouncy balls and sidewalk chalk, which they put to immediate use.

Jack is just fine, he's just demonstrating the proper use of a chalk drawing light saber.
Benson drew a Yoda head and a lovely, um, bug.

A new superhero perhaps?He was obviously inspired by these.(those black specks are a swarm of ants)

Apparently it's time to get out the ant traps. How fun.

Girly

Now, we know I only have boys.
But some people in this world have girls.
And those girls have birthdays.
And they like presents.
So here's a crayon roll:And a bag:For my sister-in-law's niece.
I didn't use all of the two fabrics Cami gave me to make her present. I have just over a fat quarter of each, a cute pink toned floral and a very whimsical butterfly print.
So what else does this girl need?
A doll quilt?
A crown?
Hmm?

Wow

I made stuff.
AND I TOOK PICTURES.
Bad pictures, but pictures nonetheless.
If you are Aimee - DON'T LOOK.
DO NOT SCROLL DOWN.



Unless you like to spoil surprises.



Don't look.



Are you looking?




Okay.
I put together a little package for a friend who is unfortunately on bed rest right now.
First we have the gift for my friend's baby girl, due in March.
It's a Rags N Tags blanket and a hoodie towel.
Then for the mom, a rice heat therapy bag, from this tutorial. With a couple modifications, of course.And then for the big brother, a crayon roll: He's a big Ute fan and I'm happy to continue the indoctrination.
I'm going to be mailing it out tomorrow. I'm so grateful for flat rate boxes because I don't want to know how much it costs to send 2 pounds of rice in the mail!
Hope they enjoy this!

Superhero Princesses

I have an easy time finding a model when I make items for boys.
Girls? Not so much.
I had made two sets of capes and crowns for a swap we're doing with two sweet little girls in Australia and I wanted to take pictures that were a bit more exciting than a couple capes and crowns sitting on a chair.
And Jack didn't want to be my model, for some reason.
But fortunately I went to JoAnn's. And saw a friend from down the road with her three little girls. And realized that two of them were the perfect size to model the capes and crowns for me! I am brilliant! (in very short spurts only once in a great while)
So thank you so much for modeling, girls! And let's just ignore the fold line down the back of the capes, shall we?Jack decided he needed to be in a picture with his new cape.This is the pose he decided would be best. He looks unaffected by our little photo shoot, but just before we took this pic, he was bouncing around, yelling, "Look at me girls!"
He's so subtle.
I can't decide if these are for royalty or for superheroes, but there's nothing that says it can't be for both.

Because I really am doing crafty things. Really, really.

Exhibit A:The largest non-tied quilt I have ever made. Which isn't actually that big. It's a throw.
Um, no, it isn't finished.Have to finish quilting the white border and the center. And bind it.
It's patterned after this one:From Last Minute Patchwork and Quilted Gifts.
For my grandma and grandpa for their birthdays.
I bought a walking foot and you know what? My top layer is still bunching up. I keep having to make little tucks to try to keep the corners from getting too funky. Hopefully it will look nicer when it is washed.
Perhaps I need to make sure I'm pulling the top as taut as the bottom when I'm basting? Makes sense.
And basting on carpet? Not quite the smartest idea I've ever had.I kept getting pieces of carpet stuck in the thread, which I didn't realize until I was finished. Had to cut some of my carpet. Duh.
I'd better work out the kinks before I get going on this one:For another set of grandparents. In fact, I have five sets of grandparents and they may all be getting quilts this year. Or maybe not. Depends on my sanity.I really want to make this quilt. So yes, my sanity is in question.

Hi. It's been awhile. Where you been?

Or, um, where I been?
Huh?
Anyway, time to report on Christmas. I didn't take the homemade Christmas pledge because I know my limits but I did try to make as many presents as possible.
I'm proud to say that almost all the gifts we gave to others were handmade. By me.
The gifts to my boys? Purchased.
It would have been rather difficult to hide the gift making process from them and I like gifts to be a surprise. So maybe next year.
Anyway, my cousin's daughter got this:and this (it's the smock she's wearing - isn't she adorable?):I ended up making five crayon rolls total, three more for my nephews and one for a family friend.I also made the presents my siblings and I gave my dad and stepmom. We gave Mom a set of DVDs with videos I made of her parents talking about their lives and we gave Dad a scrapbook with all the LDS temples that he's worked on (60!). These were very time consuming and oh so very fun to work on. And their reactions? It was wonderful. There was a lot of crying that night. Which is why I'm giving them useless, meaningless items next year. Can't handle any more crying.
And this is the final Christmas gift, finished today. Because no, I didn't finish everything.But this is for my sister, Goobie, who didn't finish her Christmas gifts either. So we're okay.

Christmas

Ooh, a slideshow! With completely inappropriate music!
By inappropriate I mean not related to the pictures, not full of swearing and references to private parts.
I also like that my VERY messy sewing area gets shown too. I'm so proud of it.
The smock and pink crayon roll go to my cousin's daughter, Ashley. She's VERY girly. Which was interesting because we are NOT girly at all around here.
The other crayon roll is going to a different cousin's son, along with a stuffed robot that I haven't taken pictures of yet.
———
I'm talking to my sister right now. She says her son is naked, standing on the phone stand playing with some oatmeal and watching TV. Word World. He's learning a lot.

Pay it forward

Pincushions (made from this tutorial), stars, cool envelopes, a little bag of embellishments, stamps (don't you love that Target is carrying Autumn Leaves?) ... and Dr. Pepper Lip Smackers, of course.
I'm pretty sure some Nibs may find their way in, too. And whatever else strikes my fancy.
If you will find some way to pay it forward to three people, whether it be on your blog or somehow in person, leave a comment. It doesn't have to be big, it just needs to be something that may brighten a person's day a bit.
Oh, and it's time to delurk! If you have never commented here before, it's time.
EDITED: We'll draw three names on Sunday.

From Japan

I got my package today from Leslie - I was so excited to win her drawing!
Wonderful fabric and cute bagsChocolate, notecards and ribbon(For some reason my son wanted me to take a picture of his hand in that strange position with the chocolate. Um, okay.)I love it all. Especially the fabric. Oh, and the hedgehog ribbon. I wish my camera was good enough to truly show the cuteness of the hedgehogs. The landlady in my old apartment had hedgehogs that I adored, so I really love the ribbon.
So now I need to pay it forward. I'm getting things together, planning the packages ... and dealing with a sore ankle. I tripped over a rug by our laundry room on the way to the bathroom. I can only imagine how hilarious it looked, since I was having stomach problems and crawled into the bathroom, moaning the entire way. And now I have a sprain that is shooting achy pain up my leg into my hip. How delightful.
Back to the giveaway.
If you are willing to 'pay it forward' in some way to three people, check back on Friday for details. I must get Halloween out of the way and then I will be able to devote my attention to the giveaway. Oh, and I need my ankle to feel better so I can stop my obnoxious whining. Because we're all getting a little sick of it.
See you Friday!

News and details

I won a giveaway! I've never won anything before and this giveaway was especially cool because I'm supposed to pay it forward to three people.
More info to come ...This is the larger table runner I'm working on. It's about 17" by 54" before binding. There are four of the pieced squares, all surrounded by cream broadcloth and tan corduroy.
I've decided this corduroy is an evil creation, bent on the utter destruction of my sanity. It stretches widthwise and sheds little tiny threads everywhere and makes me question why I ever though sewing was a good thing to try.
Ugh.It's been quilted (yes, by machine - haven't gotten any more patience lately) and the binding is just waiting for me. Since I've already made a similar table runner with the same charm pack and corduroy, I was a bit more prepared for the stretch problem. I don't have a walking foot to try to help with this problem, so I just ironed some heat n bond along the edge and that helped quite a bit.
And now I have to bind it. And that's when I had most of the problems with the first table runner. Guess I'll just have to suck it up and do it. Stay tuned.

WIP

I bought a charm pack of Moda fabrics, ('Fall back in time'). I just love them!
Anyway, I've started on what I'm hoping will be a table runner. I was going to do a cathedral window quilt with these fabrics, but I just couldn't find a solid I liked to go with them all. So instead, we have this:This part is about 3/4 done. Then I plan on doing a thin strip of cream around this section, then a thicker strip of brown, hopefully corduroy around that. I can't decide how to quilt it. I'll probably just stitch along the seams. I thought about putting buttons in some of the squares, but I'll have to see what I think about that. I'll probably back it and bind it with solid brown.
Any ideas for the quilting? It might be fun to try something new ... without destroying it, of course. It's a gift and I want it to be really cute. Oh, and I would like to finish it when it's still fall!

Wedding album

I going to a wedding shower for my cousin's fiancee today. It's a theme shower, 'it takes a village to raise a bride,' and I am the village photographer.
And since there was no way I was buying them a new camera, I decided to go for things that hold pictures. I bought two frames at Target (which are already wrapped, or I'd show them to you) and made a small album for them to put pictures in later. I am struggling taking pictures with my digital camera. Even on the macro setting, it has a hard time doing closeups. I end up getting things like the nasty wheels to my barbecue in focus while whatever I want in focus is blurry.
Anyway, on to the album.Here's the cover. There's a leather strip with a charm and elastic on the back that goes around it to keep it together (does it look familiar? It's the same album from the giveaway — when I like something I tend to buy several), but I forgot to put it on before I took the photo. The album is a 6x6 accordion album from All My Memories and the patterned paper I used on the pages is from Chatterbox. I have a rather large stash of Chatterbox paper, a lot of it with flowers (um, duh Jenn, when are you going to use floral paper with two boys?!?), so it's nice to get a chance to use some.Anyway, I just put some blank green paper in the front because I don't have a photo of the happy couple. I wrote the cropp sizes on the mats so all she has to do is cut and paste photos on. I'm considering adding a photo album to the gift, but this might be enough. We'll see how ambitious I get today. My youngest is sick and so I might not be making it out of the house — the visit to the shower might end up being a short stop to drop off the gift.