Happy Halloween!

Well, I was up late but not because of the costume. I was doing a load of the kids clothes before bed. I figured I wash them and then throw them in the drier before going to sleep. Well... I got the clothes out of the washer and there was this gel stuff everywhere. Each piece I pulled out had tiny bits of gel on it. I was thinking my son had put some sort of squishy ball in his pocket or something, but no. I swear I'm losing my mind. I guess I grabbed my daughter's clothes off the bathroom floor and I thought I put the pull up in the diaper pail, but aparently I put it in with the laundrey basket I was carrying. And if you've ever seen the inside of a diaper or pull up, THAT was the gel stuff in the washer. So, rather than heading off to bed I had to shake off all the clothes and before I could rewash them I had to clean out the tub and run a clean tub cycle with bleach (a 1 hour and 20 min. cycle!). But the load is finally clean. What a pain that was!

And today I spent all mornign at my son's school for his Halloween party. I took a video of them and got a still shot from that, it's not the best but it will give you an idea. And here's a couple of the wolf costume from yesterday after I finished it:

I'm so cliché

Here it is the day (afternoon) before Halloween and what am I doing? Sewing my child's costume! Well, at least I *hopefully* won't be doing it up until the wee hours of the morning. I am almost done really. The only thing that is making this worth while is that he LOVES it! Oh, and if you are wondering, after seeing everyone's prefernce for Little Red Riding Hood for my daughter, we decided my son can be...The Big (not so)Bad Wolf!

I have to admit that I am pretty impressed with myself on this one. While I enjoy sewing things geometric in nature (purses, twirly skirts, etc) I am NOT good at garment making without a pattern. I kind of proved that to myself back at Mother's Day when I attempted to make myself a dress. But somehow this is all coming together. Granted I'm not making it to last a lifetime though, just tomorrow!

We looked at all the Halloween stores, Target, K-mart, etc. but we could not find a wolf costume suitable for a child. I was thinking of buying one and cutting it up to recon it, but at that point, why would I want to spend $29.99 to do more work? If I was going to go that route, I may as well make the whole darn thing!

And off we went to JoAnn's yesterday at 3:30pm. I found a nice felt fabric that looked like wolf fur yet still seemed breathable and was only $4.99/yd (AND I had a 40% off coupon), so I bought 5 yards of it for $14.97. Why so much of it? Because if I messed up the first try I didn't want to have to run out again. But so far the first try is a success and I'll have loads of fake fur around for some other future project. Probably stuffed animals of some sort.

Right now I've got the hood done, the paws and most of the body. I just have to sew on a couple velcros to close up the back and finish the shoe covers (which are attached to the body. Then if I feel it's needed I can add toenails later tonight.

My son's favorite part is the tail. I stuffed it and he can shake his rump and make the tail move back and forth. He also likes the paws. He walked around singing "If you're happy and you know it clap your paws" this afternoon. Like I said, he makes it all worth while!

Here's a sneak peak:

He's wearing the head and the paws pretending to be a werewolf.

Going, going, gone!

The nesting doll fabric is officially gone. It is a limited edition of 4 purses, all spoken for. I've also sold some of my other purses! Yeah! I only have a few left, the pink tote, the black/olive drawstring, the red/green small messenger(the blue one sold!), the Asian print and the floral orange bias tape clutch. That's it! I also have a few special orders for Christmas, mostly for little girls! It's fun thinking of how happy these little girls will be to have their first "real" purse and it will be one of mine! Makes me want to cry (happy tears of course)!
Well, I'm off to stay with my MIL tonight. We're going to have girls night out (her, me, and baby girl) while the guys (Daddy, Papa, and my big boy) all go camping! I think we're just going to go to dinner and then rent a movie, something the guys wouldn't care for like 'The Other Boleyn Girl' or maybe one of the many Jane Austen movies. Hope you all have an awsome weekend! Oh, and be sure to check out the Clair winter collection, it rocks!

Mystery picture answer

I thought it was easy, it was a brown crayon tip. You all are so smart! I'll try to be more creative next time!

Things are looking up

Well, Saturday night my best friend called me and said she wants to buy the extra large tote for her mother-in-law, she just wanted to check with her sister-in-law to see if it was something she'd like. Then at church another woman said she wants me to make a custom purse for her niece for Christmas. My neighbor behind me wants me to make her a Gator purse but the size/style of the Asian one I did. And, I also saw the woman who commented on the black and white purse at Oktoberfest. I told her it didn't sell and she said she wants it. Turns out she didn't have the $$ with her at Oktoberfest and didn't want me to lose a sale if she were to claim it. That's why she said if it sold to make one for her. Ah, it all makes sense now , so simple too. So, things are looking up!
I've got to get to work on the nesting doll order (and maybe an extra one? Christmas is coming and I do have to send a package to Portland, I wonder if anyone there would like to get one for Christmas? hint hint!) and make the kid's Halloween costumes too. I'm trying to decide what to do for that. Originally I wanted to make baby girl a mermaid costume similar to the one Heather Bailey made for her daughter last year, (but I'd probably make a shell bra type top because it's still warm where I live). But, while going through her clothes (she'll be switching from 18-24 mos to 2T soon) I ran across an adorable little red riding hood my folks got her for her B-day last year. It's a 2T and it is SOOOOO cute! I figure I could put her in the dress shirt/shirt dress I reconstructed with little patent leather shoes and ruffled socks and give her a little basket with some gingham fabric inside it and voila, instant costume. But, I already bought shear dark blue, light blue/aqua, and pearlized fabrics and green satin for the mermaid tail. What to do, what to do?? I have plenty of fabric that it can be next year's costume too I guess. My son was going to be a fisherman to go with the mermaid. I could make him a wolf costume but it would be really warm. He could be the woodsman who rescues little red riding hood, but again, flannel shirts aren't really weather appropriate here. I need to decide soon. What do you all think?

Compliments don't pay the bills!

Today was the big day of the Oktoberfest craft show. I got tons of compliments on the purses, however I only sold a few. The first to go was the garden clutch with the bee button, next was the Gator tote (like I said, I knew that one would sell) and the third was the nesting doll purse. Don't freak out, the nesting doll purse was marked as sold but someone else wanted me to make another one. So I technically still have the nesting doll purse in my posession until I deliver it to it's original intended owner.
The most looked at and complimented purse was the little mod black and white one. Everyone loves it but no one buys it. Weird. I even had one lady tell me that if the one I have sells, to make another one for her. Umm, okay, why wouldn't she just buy the one I was already selling? I think she was just trying to be nice? (Remember, I go to church with a lot of these people).

Anyhow, while I did sell some, I am overall in the red. Good thing I have a job waiting for me next year I guess!

Here's a picture of my little table:

Super cute!

Okay, probably last (unless I finish a FSU tote) but certainly not least, and already spoken for is one of my favorites! The nesting doll purse! I used a snap on the open inner cell phone pocket, and it has a zippered pocket too. I was going to do pleating on this purse like the blue/red one but it would have taken away from the dolls. So I left it smooth. I like how the antiqued magnetic snap and rings look with this fabric. Oh, and if the fabric looks familiar, it's because it's the same as the twirly skirt for baby girl but in a different color. I love this material but it is very hard to find, not to mention expensive now that it's RARE, but worth every penny in my opinion! So here it is:

Don't mind any strings you see, I was so excited about this purse that I took pictures before trimming the strings from sewing, opps! They will be cut after I post this though!

Get your Gator arms ready

Okay, first and foremost I am a USF Bulls fan. I can't help it since many moons ago they decided I had paid them enough money and walked on their campus enough times to give me a piece of paper (which is in a closet somewhere) saying I could go work for the rest of my days. And they have a good football team. But if I wasn't a USF fan I'd probably have to be a UF fan because I know way too many people who got their piece of paper from them and, well, I like these people and don't want them to throw me to the gators their school so loves.

Anyhow, that said I like this basic curvy tote I made for some lucky UF fan(this is the one thing I KNOW will sell). The flower pin really makes all the difference though. Fabric yo-yos can jazz anything up! The tote has no pockets or zippers, because 1) It's crunch time for me to get things done and 2) It's not meant to be an everyday purse. It's a GAMEDAY purse. I wouldn't want some woman putting something in a pocket and lose her mind thinking she lost it all week until she pulls the purse out for the next game, or worse yet, all off-season! So it's a WYSIWYG purse, nothing is getting lost in it!

Well, I'm off to watch the debate and get some sleep. Doggie gets his teeth cleaned tomorrow and has to be there between 7-7:30! Good thing I have coffee in the house!

Here's the pics. Oh, and the flash distorted the colors, the mirror shot (I'm wearing my new shirt for debate day!) is most accurate for colors.

A favorite place to shop

I thought I'd put up a link to one of my favorite fabric shops, Heritage Quilt & Needlework. I love it because they have BEAUTIFUL fabrics and the people that work there are very friendly and helpful. My kids like it because they give out Dum-Dum lollipops, which is great to buy me a few moments to look around!

I know some of you have asked me to make you a bag and I thought that if you have this link you can brouse online and see if any of the fabrics strike your fancy.There are so many I'm sure one will! Let me know which ones (remember to pick one for the exterior and one for interior, or if you just want to pick the exterior I can find a coordinating one for you too) and I will then go buy it and make the bag for you!

I shouldn't even be writing right now, I shoudl be sewing! I am working on a UF tote now and yesterday I did a cute USF (Go BULLS!) purse. Unfortunately I messed up some stitching on the front because I didn't measure correctly for the magnetic snap closure. BUT I will be going back and creating either a bow or flower to cover it up. I had some scrap green and made a make-shift bow and it looks alright. So in the picture the bow is not the final product! And for all you FSU fans (boo!) I'll be making a bag for that too. Here's the USF one:

Mystery picture returns!

I'll give it a couple days this time for people to guess. But it's probably pretty easy.

Ewww.

My dog barks at almost anything, but once in a great while he fixates on something to bark at and its usually with good reason. So when he decided to bark at the underside of our shed I wanted to know what it was. It was dark and I had had a few glasses of wine. So feeling brave I grabbed the camera because that was the only way I could think of to get enough light and to fit under the space to see what it was. Well, I almost wish I didn't find out. And I won't be trying that again. I don't know who was more scared, me when I looked at the picture, or it when I took the picture.

Here's the critter:


If you've never seen one before, it's an opossum. They are gross. Ewww.

This sums it up

I just got my new T-shirt in the mail today (yippie! I love packages, especially on a day like Columbus day when there isn't any mail). I plan on wearing it to the polls this year. I don't usually share my political views with strangers but I think this will be okay. I got it from threadless.com I love their shirts! I like that they aren't mass produced and that anyone can submit their idea/artwork for a shirt and if it gets enough votes...voila it becomes a shirt!

In case you don't have kids, the shirt is a tribute of sorts to a popular childrens book . We have it in the kids bathroom, which is also the guest bathroom and I think it's the piece of literature most commented on at our house when guests come. Ages 18 months-4 years? Yeah right! I don't know any adults who dont' think this book is hilarious too!

Here's the shirt:



Do ya like it?

Twins!

I liked this red fabric and happened to have two other fabrics in my stash (which were purchased at different times, a couple years apart actually, for two differnet projects, and turns out they are the same fabric but different colors! I didn't realize it when buying it though). Anyhow, I couldn't decide which one went better so I used both and made two. So I gave birth in a sense to non-identical twins! Would you like to meet them?

Me so happy

This little ditty was super easy and I love how it came out. There are no real bells or whistles to it though. No pockets, no zippers, nada. But it's so darn small that I didn't think it was needed. I am however debating whether to add in a magnetic snap closure or not. I'm leaning towards not because the snaps would come together and take away from the shape of the purse, but it would be securely closed. It's pretty well structured with the interfacing so it's not like the purse would sag open without the magnetic snap or anything. So I ask you all my friends, mostly women, what would you want? Shape or security? Keep in mind this isn't meant to be an everyday purse either. I left a bit of the lining open so I can decide later if I want. I just have to remember to close up the lining before selling the purse!

Okay, on to the good stuff. I got this fabric from the famous Alyson Clair (Thanks again!) and was thinking of using it in a garment, but when I saw it next to the blue velvety fabric I used for my son's puppy dog, the idea for this purse came about instead. I love using the velvety stuff for a lining!It makes it so much more elegant! And the bamboo handles just seemed to fit since the fabric is Asian. Well, here it is:

Mystery Picture

I thought it would be fun if I took a picture at a different angle than usual or zoomed in or whatnot, if people (you, my readers) could try and guess what it is. Here's the first one:

Cheese Gromit!

That's all I could think of while working with these grommits. These are the screw in kind from JoAnn's, not the kind that needs a special tool. What a pain in the rear these were though! My stress level was on maximum while putting them on. Why? Because I had already created the body of the purse and I had to cut through it and if I made the hole too big I pretty much would have ruined the purse and would have had to eat the cost. And I was installing it through layers, so I had to hope that in the end all the holes would line up. Luckily everything worked out alright. I started with a small hole and kept trimming it. Hence the pain in the behind.

This purse has a lot of hardware, but that's what I'm seeing a lot of lately in leather purses. So I thought why not fabric purses too? If my camera could get a true color picture you'd see how well the antiqued hardware goes with the gold color in the fabric. It really pretty and quite roomy.

I have to pick up my pace! I did NOTHING with the purses this weekend. Instead I went to the beach. Hubby did a triathalon on the beach (I'm so proud of him!) and the kids and I met up with him and the in-laws afterwards for some beach fun and a nice lunch (Thanks again Mom & Dad!). Oktoberfest is a week and a half away, time to stop futzing around with new techniques like Grommits (Cheese Gromit! See, I can't help but think of it!). I've got to get some basic bags and totes done to sell. Although I REALLY want to try my hand at an applique on a bag. It will have to wait though!

Here's the latest:

Front (it's hanging, it just looks like it's on the couch, but it's not):




Back:



Outer pocket:



Inside:



Inside Zipper:



Being carried (so hard to take a picture in the mirror!):

Butt Floss

Literally. Somehow my dog got into dental floss (I'm pretty sure my son was involved) and ate it. How do I know this? It comes out the other end eventually. Yep, yesterday my dog had an extended tail. First we thought he just sat on some floss but no, it was in there. Gross. Definately no pictures of that! He's fine now, poor thing.

Oh, and I've been geting compliments on the bag I'm using for myself. My cards came in and I've been giving one to everyone I know. Hopefully these folks will come to the Oktoberfest and buy or order something! Also some of my online friends are requesting bags too! I'm so psyched thinking my bags could be carried in different states! It seems folks like the black and white bag a lot. Many have told me it's their favorite. Figures, it's the one that was a pain trying to get around the machine because the handles don't bend, AND the fabric makes me googley-eyed when I sew on it. It's like an optical illusion, sometimes I see all circles, sometimes all diamonds, and sometimes I see what look like flower pedals. BUT, I hear the people and they want more, so I'll be making a few more like that. I may change up the interior though and the button was one of a kind (it was in my button collection so it must have been an extra to some article of clothing I used to own.) but I'm sure I can find something similar out there!