I am addicted to making buttons!!

I am making barrettes like Amy Karol's listed in this month's Sew Simple. I have always steered clear of covered buttons because they seemed so difficult to make. Especially when someone says to buy a button kit. How expensive is that going to be? Guess what...... it isn't and it is so easy to do - so easy in fact that all I want to do now is make covered buttons. I have taken some photos to show you how easy it is, and I will download them tomorrow (bedtime is calling my name - tonight is my late work night!). Everyone must run out and get the kit (you can get it at JoAnn - hee hee) and start making buttons immediately.

Since I mentioned JoAnn - my last day is August 14th. So sad! The good news is that I am requesting a leave of absence for the fall semester and will return in the spring (yay!!!). I have to do 400 hours at an agency here in town for my first round of internship for school. So add in classes at school, working at an agency, my other job, and sewing - Sept to Dec is going to be busy!!! I will only get to sew on the weekends (BOOOO!!!). However, what a joy to be able to keep my foot in the door at JoAnn.

Okay - off to bed. Photos coming tomorrow to show you how easy covering a metal button really is!

More Vacation Clothes

These are the last of the simple vacation clothes. The rest will take some thought and some major sewing. These required a little less. Well, the ukulele shirt was sewn..... so I guess I am warming up! Here are my two shirts I worked on tonight:

Our 8th anniversary is August 19th (I can't believe I have been married so long - crazy!). We will be at Disneyland that day. I wanted to make something special to celebrate our day. My skirt I am making is a red satin material with white dots (made me think of minnie mouse). So I made this shirt to wear with that skirts:

The other shirt I made this evening was for my husband. He has started playing the ukulele (lessons are coming soon - thank goodness. As hard as he plays for me - I still can't hear the songs he is playing!!). I wanted to make him a shirt he could wear broadcasting how cool ukuleles were, and here is what I made for him!!!

I put ukulele on the back because I was afraid people would ask him about his guitar shirt!!! He looks pretty cute in it. Greta had to model tonight because he was at work! The shirt looks better with no breasts in the way!!!!! (hee hee)

On a humorous note, as I was working hard on the shirts, I noticed my cat has a new role in the family........ the ukulele guard. Is anyone else creeped out by how the case looks like a small coffin? I am making him a case to carry his ukulele around town in, hopefully in the next month or two!

I am pleased with my progress and hope to keep the sewing going!! See you tomorrow with more - I am sure!!!

Some Progress This Weekend.......

......was made!!! I still have tons of work to do this week to complete all of my swaps and I am still needing to sew all of my skirts for vacation. Busy Busy!!! All free time is going to be spent in the craft room the next couple of weeks! Here are some of the items I completed this weekend:

A Family Tank Top (For vacation):

I found these adorable iron on patches at JoAnn and had to make a family shirt to wear on vacation. You can see me, the husband, the cat and dog. Our happy family!!!

Barrette Holders:

I still need to make the barrettes, but the cases are ready to go. I can't wait to make the barrettes!

Gnome Messenger Bag (by Sew Liberated):

The last bag I made frustrated me so bad that I had sworn off making bags again. Of course, I am now hosting a tote swap and I made the Messenger Bag. I cannot stress enough what a joy this pattern is to make. It took awhile to cut out, but once you get started, you just can't believe how simple it is. Plus, she did a bang up job of putting pictures next to the directions. If you do not own this pattern, you must purchase one. Fantastic! One made - two more to go.

Jack's Pillowcase:

My best friend's son is just about the cutest kid I have ever known. He is four and half and SO smart. He loves planes, jets, and knows many of them by name (I told you he was smart). I found this packet of materials bundled together at a favorite fabric shop of mine, Cabbage Rose. I snatched it up and made the pillowcase in 15 mins. No joke! You must make one as well. So easy! I hope he loves it! It was supposed to be in the mail like a week ago. It will be this week!

Still to make:

2 Messenger bags

3 aprons

Vacation clothes

Barrettes

Bart's Ukulele shirt

Two tote bags

Whoa! I guess I better hit the hay if I am going to survive the next couple of weeks. Having my own wardrobe on vacation though........priceless! Wait until you see my shirt for our anniversary! I am making one similar to our family shirt. I got the approval from the husband (don't want to embarrass the man!!!). See photos this week!!!

New Fabric Swap

Check out this fabric swap I joined. There is still time to join if you are interested. The more the merrier!!!

Grab A Snack... I Have A Ton Of Updates!!!

RUSSIAN DOLL SWAP UPDATE:

Finally finished my Russian Doll Swap project ( a week late!) for Trash in the UK. I tried a couple different things, but ended up loving a tote bag best.

SOFTIE SWAP:

Can you believe my partner already finished her softie for me? She is good!! She said she spent awhile wondering what to do and then she came up with this:

A cowboy hat! How cute? My dog keeps eyeing the hat, like it is a new toy. Got my eye on that dog!!!

HITTIN THE TRAIL SWAP:

Here are the fabrics I have selected for my partner for the Hittin the Trail Swap hosted by my great friend YarniGras! :

I plan to hopefully finish this apron early this week! I will post some pics when finished!

WE THE PEOPLE TOTE SWAP:

I selected the bag I wanted to make from the beginning and finally chose the fabrics to use. I plan to make this bag for myself as well for vacation! Here is the bag I plan to make twice!!!

FQ SCAVENGER HUNT SWAP:

I received some fat quarters and thread from my partner this week. Check out my cute fabrics!

VACATION:

My vacation is only a few weeks away and I have selected quite the challenge for myself! I want to make my own skirts and a couple shirts for vacation. I haven't really started yet, so we will see how far I can get before we depart in mid August for San Francisco, Yosemite and Disneyland! Wish me luck. Here are some of the plans I have:

Some of the fabrics I am using to make skirts and a dress

Iron on stickers to make two shirts

The material I am using to make a Ukulele shirt. Can't wait to show you that one!

I am making a bag for myself, my mom, and my friend Keli for the trip!

I am making myself and Keli some barrettes and a carrier. Fun! This is in the latest Sew Simple magazine designed by Amy Karol from the Angry Chicken!! Check it out!

I still have some more updates, but I don't want to overload you. Plus, I need to head out to my sewing meeting. Check back later this weekend and week for more updates. I am on a sewing quest for the next several weeks!

We The People Update

What an impressive start we have had to this swap. A couple people were finished about a week or two ago. I know!!! Very impressive! The quality of tote bags have been top notch! I will be sending an email to all of you as well - but I have decided to postpone the deadline to FRIDAY, AUGUST 8th. Due to the plague hitting here, it put me behind schedule, so I need an extra week to wrap up my tote. If you are almost finished, or still wish to mail your bag on the 31st, that is no problem. However, if you have ran into what I like to call "LIFE" - you will have a little extra time to slow down and really make a great tote.

I am going to set up a flickr link and start posting the pics of the totes. I will post a link on here in just a little bit for all to see the fantastic handiwork!

Snake Bite Update

My friend Lori was over at my house last night for dinner and her little foot is still quite swollen. I can't even describe to you the picture of what her foot looked like right after the snake bite! I can only describe the picture as looking totally unreal and almost like a prop from a CSI show. Her foot has improved MAJORLY since the incident, but she still has some healing to do. She is still swollen, on crutches and unable to drive herself. Thank you so much for all the well wishes and prayers for my friend. She appreciated all of your thoughts and prayers! I know your prayers are what helped my friend require no surgery or loss of a limb. The doctors told her she was VERY lucky. I feel very lucky to have such wonderful friends all over America! Thanks everyone!!

Cupcake Lollipops

We had a dinner party last night and I made cupcake lollipops that you can find here - on Bakerella's blog. Mine did not turn out as pretty as Bakerella's - but they were a hit! I didn't take any pics of mine -because they were gone in about 5 minutes. A little bit of work, but totally worth the response and wonder at this tasty treat. Head over and give them a try! Bakerella's website will amaze and inspire you!

Overcoming the Plague and Frustration!!!

The plague has left the house. My eating preferences have not returned fully, but I feel more alive now. Thank you all for your sweet wishes. I am sure that is what made me feel better so quickly! I have been out of my craft room for the whole week, and I have several swaps to finish up. Can you hear my sewing machine running all weekend long? I can!!!

When I got home Sunday (right before the plague reared it's ugly head) I discovered two great packages: my Bend-the-Rules placemat and napkin swap and my One Atomic Summer Swap from the Atomic Housewives group. Let me tell you this kids - I have been in several swaps lately - and I have been getting screwed over. Almost to the point to make me want to swear swaps off for awhile - but I will push on with a positive attitude!! I was jipped 3 (THREE) aprons and one package of Fat Quarters. Where is the justice? Anyway - these two swaps sure helped me cope with frustration.

The BTR swap placemats look like this:

Aren't they great? I wanted country looking placemats to match my cowboy items I have for dinner parties. They will look great! Thanks so much to my partner for such great work. These placemats will last forever!!

One Atomic Summer Swap:

What a delight to receive Merry Moon - my previous partner for an Atomic Housewives swap. She is a fantastic swap partner and makes her partners feel like the luckiest person alive!! Check out the goodies I received:

How fantastic is that apron and it is all mine!!! We are having a dinner party Saturday night..... can you guess which apron I will be wearing???? I will get the husband to take some photos!!

So - needless to say - these two packages really made my day and made me feel better about swaps. I am sure we have all been stiffed once or twice from a swap. Why do people have to do that? I am late on a couple of my swaps since the plague visited us here, but my projects will be completed!!!

See you this weekend with some photos of my projects.........finally after weeks of promising!!

The Plague has hit!!

Call it food poisoning or a stomach virus, but something has hit me and hit me hard. I am on a stand still at the moment on sewing. Pics will be coming this weekend (as long as the plague has departed by then). Phantom of the Opera was awesome. I will share some highlights as soon as my stomach feels normal again!!! Happy sewing to the non-plagued!

Suggestions Needed!!!

I have seen people before who sew such wonderful items that they get ideas from Japanese books and etc. Do any of you have a site you find those books on or do you know any blog that offers some information? I would love to get my hands on some - but I just don't know where or what I even need to look for. Thanks for any of your suggestions!

I should have photos of some projects up next week. We are headed home to Tulsa this weekend to see the Phantom of the Opera. I can't wait!!! It is a quick visit home but totally worth it! I will try to not overload you all next week with photos. The next couple of weeks should be fun. I am going to be starting on some major projects in a few weeks. I am going to try and make all my skirts and pants for vacation. Keep your fingers crossed for me as I have a ton of sewing projects to fit in within a month!!! Whew!

My First Children's Dress

Here is my first dress to make!! The dress is a gift for my niece. All that is left is to make a matching dress for her bear. As you can tell - I have no children to model the dress on, so the chair became my model. I tried to coax the dog close enough to put the dress on. He didn't fall for it!!! I totally get it now when people say to start with children's clothing. It was so much easier sewing for her than sewing for me. I hope to make many more items for her as she grows.

Almost Completed

I am ALMOST finished with my niece's dress, placemats and napkins for a swap, and a dress for niece's bear. Thank goodness. I haven't had a lot of time to sew lately due to my schedule rearranging lately, but things are finally evening out. I hope to have some photos up for you tomorrow evening. Keep your fingers crossed.

Please also keep my friend Lori in your thoughts and prayers. She was bitten by a snake this weekend and is in the ICU. I haven't been to see her yet because she is in North Dallas. She is under watch now for damage or the need for surgery. I appreciate your prayers and thoughts!!

Another Giveaway!!!

Check out this adorable dress that I plan to win for my niece :) Go to this blog and enter the contest. Today is the last day to join in! Head over to Grosgrain and check out the cute dress!

Have a happy 4th of July everyone!!! I am living the American Dream..... working - yuck!! At least in America when you work you get Holiday Pay. God Bless America!!! Planning to get some sewing done this weekend. Check in for some updates.....hopefully......this weekend! Now - everyone go eat some pie!!!

What An Awesome Giveaway!!

I found out about this awesome giveaway from a talented gal, Debye, from reading her blog. She cracked me up because she said she hated to post about this giveaway because we are the competition. Very funny and very TRUE!!! Thank goodness she is so wonderful enough to share this, so I can share with you too. Maybe you will win the $75.00 in free fabric.

Here's the details:

Just leave a comment on Sugar Shop's blog telling her what you would like to see more of on her site. Or ask her anything you want to know.

Let's spread this awesome give-away around. If you mention this giveaway on your blog with a link to her blog (email her to let her know you have done so or mention it in your comment) and she will enter your name in the drawing twice!

The drawing will end at 8 p.m. pacific time this Thursday July 3rd. She will randomly pick a winner and announce the winner on Friday.
Only one entry per person please.

Good luck everyone!!

Any swap stragglers?

I have someone interested in joining the We The People swap. Anyone else interested in joining? I need some partners for the people who would like to join. Let me know by this Friday, July 4th!! Thanks!!!