Tree Skirt for a friend

I made a tree skirt for a friend who was redecorating her house for the holidays. She wanted green and red and candy canes. This is the skirt folded in half. Not so bad if I say so myself. The best part was seeing her smile when I delivered it to her. Hope you love it Stephanie!

Cowl for cold weather - if that exists in Texas!!

I got this pattern and yarn as a gift last year from my mom. I tried over the last year to make it and EVERY time I would mess up. I decided tonight to try one last time..... AND I nailed it. I love it. It took me 45 minutes to make up. I started flying through this pattern which only has 5 rows, and now I wonder what confused me so much with making this. Who knows? But I am just glad I did it. Now, maybe I need to make one or two more to match some more of my sweaters and coats. Hmmmm. Let's think about it!!

An Apron for a Spider Worthy Friend

A friend of mine was promoted at work and I was so excited for him. He LOVES spiderman, and I LOVE aprons, so I made him a spiderman apron. My husband was generous enough to model the apron and not pout that he didn't have such a cool apron. Pretty fun to make!

Some upcoming projects to show you:

Some tree skirts

Stockings

Progress on some quilt tops (my first quilts ever!!)

and some crocheted projects!!

Also - I will be working on our annual slideshow Christmas Card over Thanksgiving! Watch for the fun!

Awesome sewing event to learn and meet online friends

I am so excited to have found this event. All my blogging email friends, start saving your pennies now! We can all finally meet and learn sewing techniques. I am planning on saving and attending. Let's meet up and have a good time. You have a whole year to save up!!! Anyone thinking about attending???

More Sewing Projects

I reupholstered our dining room chairs, made halloween pillowcase, and made the scotty dog for our Alaska trip to use as a pillow on the plane!

Alaska Sewing Projects

Sewing projects I made for our trip to Alaska. The eye mask was extremely helpful!! The lap blanket was for the plane.

More sewing projects for Bunco

A closer look at the table runner I made, pillows I sewed for the couch, and reusable snack bags filled with candy to take home as a prize for each of my Bunco Friends!!

Bunco Night

It was my turn to host Bunco Night. We had such a good time. I made the teeth card holders, the napkins, and the table runner. We had a blast. More photos to come in other posts!

Look What Came in the Mail

It came yesterday in the mail and I picked it up today and framed it. I have completed my Masters in Social Work and I am so excited to have that piece of paper already!! I have TONS to post of sewing projects that I have completed, but I want to take this moment to just look at this photo. And enjoy. 3 years of hard work to get to a place I have waited years to reach. A job I love and the knowledge that each day I go to work I have the chance to change or assist someone's life. Wow. This is a powerful moment.

Massive Projects

I have a ton to share with you!! I have to upload my photos, but coming in the next few days:

• Scotty Dog Pillow
• Eye Masks
• Travel Wallets

And coming soon:

• A new bag
• My second quilt

Photos coming soon!

Zoo Date

My husband is a mad working machine and we haven't had much time together. This past weekend he had both Saturday and Sunday off. I had heard about a fund raiser at the Dallas Zoo that helps academically successful underprivileged teens get into college. As we are huge supporters of Higher Education in this house, we thought what a great date night.... help someone else, spend time together and go to the zoo. We had a blast. We only took two photos as we were covered with sweat by the end of the evening. I made the husband take my photo with my sunglasses on because my makeup was running. Gotta love Texas summers!! (not so much). Notice my husband's grimace instead of a smile. He looks a little silly, but he is really so cute. Trust me!! Notice how tan he is and how pale I am. So unfair!!!

My %$*&*@ Nook Holder

Yeah - this was a Tracey project. It was made with love, cuss words and seam ripping galore. I love projects that I sit down and just decide I can make. No thought to a pattern or measurements. Note to self: STOP DOING THIS!! I am pretty sure I ripped out sections of my hair all over my craft room and really yelled at myself for not thinking things through. The outcome however: I LOVE MY BAG. I didn't like any of the covers that Barnes and Noble are selling for the nook, so I made one for myself. I love the Nook. It goes to the gym with me and all over the house. I have to keep myself from sleeping with it at night. If you love to read and you love technology.... this is the thing for you!! I made the pouch from Riley Blake fabrics and I made it in a patchwork design. I have the best tutorial on how to get a patchwork design. If you are interested let me know. I will get the link to you. I use it all the time.

Do you still sew???

I DO!!! It may not seem like it around here!! I am getting into a groove with my internship and writing my last paper of the Masters Program. I have started cranking up my sewing machine again. Coming by this weekend: an apron for a swap, two quilt blocks and hopefully the start of a Nook cover. Nook is the barnes and noble version of the Kindle. I am designing our own cover case for one. My husband won the Nook through a contest and I am thrilled. He hasn't had a chance to really touch it!!!

Photos coming soon!!

The Journey toward completion begins.....

Tomorrow I start my internship for the completion of my Master's Degree. I am excited and really nervous. This means a little less time to sew now, but I am determined to get a little time in each weekend. I keep reminding myself that I am about to do start a career that fits me so well. I think it is the student that is still inside me saying "Hope you know what you are doing and are you sure you are ready for this?". I just need to silence the doubt and prepare to learn. What other time in my life am I allowed to make mistakes?? Being a student does have it's benefits. Wish me luck!!!

$1.00 Sale and more

I am really needing to get this fabric out of my house!! I have marked down all my fat quarters for $1.00 and many of the other fabrics have been brought down as well. Take a peek at my Etsy shop and see if any of the fabrics strike your fancy!!

Caution: This blog is addicting

Well, I don't mean mine, but maybe I should!! Anyway - here is a blog that I am LOVING. Warning: You may lose hours on this site, but it is HILARIOUS!! I may be behind a bit from what others have already seen, but if you haven't - you are missing out!

Take a peek:

My Parents Were Awesome

No emails yelling at me - I warned you!! I had to set a time limit each day to look at the site just so I can get other productive items done!!

Block

I made this block recently for a block swap that I am in. The theme was Growth and I instantly thought of gardens and paths. This block by no means is my own creation, I just started making a zig zap block and turned one of the zig zags upside down. I am sure there are a million more like this out there. I did decide to make this block this way to show how I saw growth. The green reminded me of garden paths and the blue reminded me of little garden patches. I wanted to do a more abstract block than a literal. Not so bad for a novice quilter. When I say novice, I mean, I have yet to completely lay out blocks to make a quilt, but I am on my way with a couple of quilts right now. I will get there eventually!! Off to finish some gifts for my mom and to hopefully start on a shirt for my OYW challenge.

Bike Basket and Gift for Mom

I have been getting some sewing done!! Now that my last final was taken tonight, I am free of night classes. Yea! Just an internship and one last paper to go this summer and then I am done. I have a red cruiser bike and it came with a brown basket. I wasn't so cool with the basket, and felt it needed something. I added these two fabrics which are favorites of mine!! Cute huh? You can see more of the basket at my flickr site!

You can also see a gift for my mom I am working on at my flickr site. I don't want to post it on here in case she decides to peek.

Still working on some new projects and one more project for my mom. I am hoping to post a few more projects this weekend.

Join me, won't you???

Won't you join me?? Head over to Chickpea Sewing Studio to find out how to refresh yourself and your sewing. There are times when you have so much sewing or maybe you are sewing for SO many others, you start to get tired or burnt out. Not that we don't love sewing for others, it is what makes giving gifts fun. However, we can get tired or burnt out.

I have recently hit this wall. When I actually get started, I remember how much I love it. I just need the initial boost to get me going. This group might be of assistance if you feel the same way. Head over and see if you are interested in this challenge.

It is my first 12 step program. Well, and hopefully my only :)

Flirty Apron Swap

I completed my apron this weekend and I am finally getting around to posting the photos. I have a quilt block to share with you tomorrow. My partner liked green, yellow, purple and blue, and I was able to find the fabrics at one of my local favorite fabric stores. Every shade but blue in it! Not bad if I say so myself. The theme was polka dots and I used the green fabric as the polka dot portion. The pattern in the Lily Apron and it was a breeze to make. This was my first one from the pattern. I would say even if you are a beginner, the directions are very clear and the diagrams are helpful. Off to bed! Be back soon to share my quilt block with you soon!

School's Out For Summer...Almost

I am almost done with the classroom aspect of my Master's Program and I am pumped!! I decided to hold a 30% off sale in my Etsy shop to celebrate. Stop by my shop and help me get this fabric out of the house!! I have one big project left for school and then on to my final internship. I can taste freedom in the future.

My Sewing Circle

My brillant friend over at imagingermonkey told me about My Sewing Circle. It is a really cool site that is just like Raverly for sewers. Go and join. It's free. You can find me under Punkrockertracey!

Projects Galore

Blogger and I do not seem to be friends anymore. I cannot get the dang picture uploader to work and I am ready to rip my hair out!! I am going to post some photos to my flickr account until Blogger and I take some time apart to breathe.

I have been BUSY with a TON of projects, but it is nice to have my sewing mojo back. I have done a little cropping to a shirt I bought at goodwill. Check out my flickr to see how it turned out. Don't miss what happens when you leave sleeves cut off from a shirt on the table. (Hint: my husband is dangerous when unsupervised!!)

I have completed the cushions for our outdoor area. We have been cleaning up back there and I have almost completed the staining process for the table. I still need some more decorations but I hope within two weeks or so to have some more photos!!

Off to sew some more. Thanks to all my seam ripper friends for the encouragement. I don't feel so frustrated with my seam ripper as much anymore.

Now off to try something industrious for myself. I am going to cut out and make a mock up of one of the dress patterns from Built by Wendy. Keep your fingers crossed. Making my own clothes has been a difficult process for me. The first shirt I made when I started up sewing again had to be cut off by my husband. Nice. He did say it did nice things to my chest area - spoken like a true man :)

I will have more photos this week of a hat I am making, hopefully a picture of a completed bag for my mom, and some fun tutorials I have followed (two adorable necklaces for the summer), and hopefully some progress on some long term projects!!

Seam Rippers

We have a joke in our house that the project I am currently working on is not a "Tracey item" unless the seam ripper has been used. It never fails, regardless of how prepared with a pattern I get - there will be use of the seam ripper. I made some curtains for our bedroom this weekend and had to use the seam ripper. I didn't realize how much of a joke it was until I did my normal "growl" (which usually includes my favorite cuss word - here is a hint - it starts with F) and my husband says while looking at the computer "Time for the seam ripper?".

Now - I did glare at the back of his head for a moment, but then the humor got to me. It irritates me that I have to use the seam ripper, like that suggests I can't sew or have no business sewing. When I made a comment to that state, my husband's response was "If all sewers didn't need a seam ripper, than why make it and why are so many bought?"

Leave it to the husband to make me feel better. How about you? Do you have to use your seam ripper a lot or am I just an impatient sewer??

Help Me Help Craft Hope

I have signed up for Craft Hope's next project. This one is a winner in my opinion. We are helping those with need and it is an educational project. Read more about the project here. The basic overall of the project is making bean bags that Liberian children will use to learn. I have emailed for some specifics. There are some examples that schools usually buy from google. I signed up to do a set of numbers.

Here are some of the requirements I know:
* The background fabric must be the same color
* The numbers should be the same color (this enables the children to learn the numbers - not memorize the fabric of which one number 5 is)
* The bean bags are due by May 15th to the organization, so your bag would be due to me by May 5th. That gives me ten days to fill the bags and mail them!!

So here is what I am proposing:
I want to do a set, but that can be a big project. SO - I am asking for volunteers to sign up on my blog using a form and volunteer to make a bean bag. I will purchase the fabrics for the background and the numbers (no picking on my selection - hee hee). The only thing I ask of you as the volunteer is that you will pay postage for me to mail the fabrics to you and to return the fabric to me. I will also fill the bags. If you will leave me a small opening in the bag, I will fill it and sew the opening up.

I will send you a money request through paypal once you have signed up for $3.00. Then when you return the bag to me - just pay the postage when you mail it.

I will include details with the fabric such as size, date needed back to me, which fabric is background and which is for the number, how to make the bean bags (there is a great online tutorial to make bean bags) etc.

I need at least 9 people to sign up to take a bean bag. If we get more, maybe we could do two sets!! Thanks for considering helping me.

Want to help? SIGN UP HERE!

Projects

I have been finishing some projects and starting some new ones lately. I finally wrapped up some headbands. I have some cute ones for the spring. My photos are over at Flickr. I couldn't get blogger to let me upload. (Some days, blogger, I want to smack you around!!)

I also finished a quilt block swap. I will try to get that up at little bit later for you to see too!

Off to get ready to go out for a Girls Night Out. Whoo hoo!

70 new postings

Check out my etsy shop. I added 70 new fabrics and fabric combos from my stash. I have to downsize my craft area. My area is just too much and is cluttering my ability to really be creative and enjoy sewing. Shop away and help me clean my house!!! You can reach my Etsy shop by clicking on the tool bar on the right of my blog. Thanks!

New Outdoor Furniture and A Challenge

I was able to find an wooden outdoor set for $20 on Craigslist. It was going to need some TLC, but I knew I could do it. I started on it yesterday. It is about 2/3 of the way stained. I still have to work on the cushions. We bought a umbrella from Garden Ridge for $10.00.

My goal is to dress up an area at the back of our driveway. We live in a very strange duplex. We have a huge yard in front, a tiny porch that basically allow two people to stand on it, so no room for furniture there. We have a tiny yard on the side, no room there. We also share the driveway with our neighbors and then it splits off into two parking areas. SO - the only space we really have without having to sit the furniture in the middle of the front yard and with lots of traffic and children is back in our parking lot area.

SO - with the husband starting school this summer and me completing school in August, we don't have a TON of money to make an amazing outdoor area. I feel a challenge coming on!!! I am going to make us an awesome place to hang out this spring and summer all for $125 or less. Let's see if I can do it!!

Here are some photos of the old table set, some of the new stained set, my cushion material and the picture of the old cushions. This challenge is going to be a blast!

The Old Table

One of the Old Chairs

Two-Thirds of the Way Complete

The Old Cushions - Nice condition, but not my style

The New Material for the Cushions

Here is the cost of our project so far:

Table Set: $20.00

Umbrella: $10.00

Material for Cushions: $12.00

Stain: $5.00

That leaves me $78.00 to finish the area. Piece of cake!!

Last Day in Seattle

What a trip!! I will be uploading all of our photos to flickr later this weekend, but here are a few highlights to Vancouver Canada. Canda is a gorgeous place. I had a funny experience with the border patrol to share later next week with you. You will notice from our first photo that the sunshine was SO bright in Canada. We are off to see the last to do on our list today and fly home tomorrow. I don't think I will be drinking tea or coffee for several weeks. I have to detox my blood!!!! See you later this weekend.

Coming to you from Starbucks....

where there is one every quarter of mile!!! I don't think we have had this much coffee/tea products in our entire life. Here are some pictures of our trip so far. I will have more when we get home, but here are some highlights!!

I have to say that in some areas we have been in there seems to be an affection for spandex and outdoor wear. While the outdoor gear is cool, spandex biking wear and walking wear, not so much!! We are having a great time and so glad we came to research. Some areas I would have moved into are not on the list anymore once visiting.

Off to more fun. See you in a couple of days!!