A Frog for sweet "B"

This applique took a little longer than expected. There were lots of thread changes, and the onesie was caught under the applique. I had to take it out of the machine and rip out the stitches before continuing. Thankfully this happened early in the process. If anyone has any tips for keeping the fabric out of the way, I'll gladly accept them. This seems to be my biggest struggle right now.

Little "B" is going to look adorable in this!

Little "Blue" Riding Hood Cape

A couple of weeks ago one of my piano students asked if I could make her a cape like some of the girls at church have. Of course I said yes, but quickly became nervous because her mother sews. She just didn't have time to make it, and since I've made a couple of them already she thought it would be much easier for me to take on the project.

It was much easier this time around, but I'm always worried Mrs. W will find the few imperfections that I found.

This is a horrible photo. I kept trying to get one inside, but finally gave up and opted for an outside shot. It wasn't much better. The cape has a hood, and it is fully lined. A.R. didn't want anything fancy, so I didn't have to tackle the difficult hand holes.



I also managed to applique one more shirt this past week. The gal I did it for wanted a hot pink and zebra Valentine shirt with the letter "A" in the center. I'm still working on getting the letters the right size, so this one is a bit too small. It's still cute! And I think I'll purchase another alphabet font with sizes 1, 2, and 3 inch options.

Appliqued Onesie

This first appliqued onesie turned out great! And it took maybe 45 minutes to complete. I kept having trouble with keeping the fabric out of the way. I'm sure I will learn better ways to deal with this as time goes on. I was also scared to push the button! I didn't want to mess up my first applique. Only two more to make so I can get that package in the mail.

January Happenings

It was time to get organized around here. Since getting a new to me embroidery machine, I needed to clean up my work space and organize threads so that I could be more efficient with my time. Spool organizers were on sale this week. I came home with one and quickly discovered I need to head back to get one more. Who knew I had so much thread?

My workspace!

Last week I ordered all the supplies to start using my embroidery machine, but since I had to wait for delivery I decided to work on a crochet project for newborn twin girls. In fact, the night before I was to meet them for the first time I started them. Two hours later they were finished! Turns out they are so tiny the hats will not fit for a little while longer. This was the first time I had put a ribbon through, and I think they are really cute.

When my embroidery supplies finally arrived I couldn't wait to get started. I ordered a 16oz. tumbler and a special embroidery paper to insert because I always see women carrying them around. I have wanted one for a long time. After two hours of fussing with it and re-threading the needle, I finally discovered the bobbin was the problem. The paper was really easy to use, and these tumblers make great gifts. Oh, and I had to order and download a font big enough to use on the tumbler. Hopefully next time it will be a quick 15 minute project. I've got lots to learn...

Crayon Purses

Just posted the last four remaining crayon purses currently in my inventory on my etsy shop. So now we wait and see what happens.

I've been very discouraged by the lack of sales on my etsy shop, but I plan to keep posting items and maybe take a different approach. I'm not really sure what that approach will be, so if anyone has an awesome idea I'm all ears.

Vacation Is Over

With all the busyness of getting ready for the Holidays and traveling there hasn't been a whole lot of sewing going on. I have taken up crochet, and that has forced me to sit on the couch and take it easy. Now that I'm getting back to a routine, it's time to get started on some more projects.

I have organized my fabric and placed it all neatly on shelves. My goal is to create using what I already have in my stash before buying any new fabric. I didn't realize I had so much until I actually organized it all. So I'll be sewing and listing items on Etsy as fast as I can get them completed - especially since I've spent more on fabric than I earned from projects. I'm in the red...

And....I'll be able to monogram some of my creations now. Yes, Santa brought me an embroidery machine! I'm very excited to learn how to use it.

Off I go to create!