Hello there

I'm beginning to think it's silly for a girl to have two blogs... :)

So I'm combining this one, in which I've been posting only about crafts, sewing and other creative endeavors, with my original one. If you're still around and reading this, I'd love it if you'd follow me over there! (hint hint)

Thanks for reading, I love getting your comments.

Thank you Pottery Barn

For giving me this fantastic idea :)

I really hope I am pregnant on halloween one year...

So that I can make this...

 

How adorable is that?!

Apron

I really want to make this apron...

 
Check it out over here!

A little bit of lace can go a long way.

I saw these in Banana Republic the other day and loved the little touch of lace...

So why not add some to a nice comfy shirt?

Just a hint around the neckline...

Two strips down the front...

And there it is.

Oh well

I didn't make the top 15... oh well, next year maybe. There are a few that I really like, and then a few... that I think are atrocious, but that's just me. I would say that though.

Gymnast shirt

I call this my gymnast shirt because it reminds me of the leotards that gymnasts wear. It always seems like they have some sort of diagonal stripes. Since my mom and sisters used to be gymnasts, why not follow the trend? :)

This shirt used to have a crew neck (meh) so I did this neckline and then added some strips taken from the extra length (Downeast makes some looong shirts) to the front. My friend Jourdan gets the credit for that idea. I just sewed two lines about 1/8 inch from the edges, and the fabric naturally curls up.

Done.

Shabby Apple Contest!

Here it is,

my dress design for Shabby Apple dresses :

I wanted something light, simple and elegant, and I think lace certainly embodies that. The lace has more of a crochet-ish feel, which makes it less frilly, and the design is simple but classic.

The edge details give it just the right amount of femininity. Wearing it with a light cardigan also makes it a good business look. It would also be great with a contrasting sash in coral or brown.

I like it in this creamy white color, but black or a nice peach would work nicely.

So wish me luck friends :)

http://www.shabbyapple.com/t-daretodesign.aspx

I know it's not Christmas yet...

But I got this awesome kit for my birthday, courtesy of my mother-in-law, and I couldn't stop myself from.... well, almost finishing it. Not quite though.

LOVE those mini pompoms

I really should've saved it for later, but it's so much fun! and cutting squares for a quilt is a great General Conference activity :)

This is Halloween! This is Halloween!

Did I mention I put up fall decorations? Well, I did. I love the holidays. My little witch and her crew have finally found their home on our front door. Makes the door a little less ugly I say...

And a few other odds and ends around the house that I've been collecting for a few years..

Bats!

People always think this says "Bod", but no.
It says "Boo!" Just in case you were wondering...

Nothing like some mini-pumpkins to...
look Halloweenesque

This little cat meows. It's awesome.

Birthday flowers :)

Save Paulo's education

Hello my crafty friends. I know there are some people who actually read this blog (I have a secret counter :) and I need your help now.

Or rather, Paulo needs your help. He's a friend from the foreign language housing, and he sacrificed a lot to come to B.Y.U. from Brazil and get an education, and now he's in a bit of a pinch.
All he needs is a small donation to help him stay in school and finish what he came here to do.
I know too well what it feels like to be in school and realize you have no idea how you're going to pay for life next semester. Or even next month. It is a scary, scary situation to be in.
So please, go to this website and donate. It'll only take a minute but it'll mean the world to Paulo.
This isn't some scam, and if it is you can personally come beat me up, I'll take full responsibility.
Now go! Do it!


http://savepaulo.blogspot.com


In fact, if you donate at least $10 and post on this comment, you can have a chance to win this awesome Halloween table-runner that I made!

See, there's even an incentive to donate. So go now! http://savepaulo.blogspot.com

EDIT: goal attained! Paulo has the money he needed now! Thanks so much if you participated! 

Because what you really need is another ruffle shirt tutorial...

It's true!

This shirt always felt a little off, sleeve in between long and 3/4 and the scoop neck was just wide enough that I always have to tug at it... so it's a perfect candidate for a remake! :)

The neckline is easily fixed with a few gathers..

And since I'm shortening the sleeves and have some extra fabric left... How 'bout some ruffles?!

Go here for a quick and easy ruffle-making technique.

 
Then sew them on. You can put a few in a row for longer ruffles

Tadaam!

They also help cover up the awkward gathers in the front.

Really quick, but now I have a brand new shirt. Best part is my husband really liked this one :)
I'm linking up over here:

Dress... done!

But I'm an idiot and made it too tight... ARGH!
I can fit into it, I can even move my arms around and sit, but I need to either go on a drastic diet or just continue to look... well, pregnant. No, I am not. (sadly) The sleeves are a little too perky, but oh well. The biggest issue is that it's too tight across the chest. I have depth perception issues a wide ribcage. Blech. I'm planning on convincing a friend or two that is skinnier to try it on and see if it at least works better for them. I still want to enter it into the Shabby Apple dress contest, I'll just have someone thinner model it.

But here's the result!

Don't breathe... don't breathe...

Neckline -- see, I even used darts! But still too snug.

Invisible zipper!

This is how I did the edges.. Unfortunately, going around curves didn't work as evenly as the straight bottom hem, but oh well.

Turned out quite nice on the bottom!

Smurfette toes :)

And I put so much stinking work into this dress that DANG IT I'll wear it on Sunday anyway.

Edit: Turned out not so bad with a cardigan :

Dress

No, nothing very exciting to show... Mostly, the dress is not cooperating, so at this point I need a longer torso for it to fit correctly. Blegh!

 
It's bunching at the waist and small of the back, and it's driving me nuts. Stupid dress. Apart from that, everything was going so well :(

Shabby Apple Design Contest

I am so excited about this: I am going to enter the Shabby Apple Dare to Design contest!

Of course, lots of people will enter, but hey--it's worth a try. You should too! It'll be good to have a challenge.

I'm currently working on a dress that I thought was a disaster, but managed to save (thanks to much encouragement from my husband) and I'm going to enter it as soon as I have finished (which should be pretty soon... finally!). So tune in soon to see the dress :)

Halloween table-runner

If you (the two people that ever read here haha) are sick of halloween stuff, I apologize, cause I'm just getting started :)

I made yet another themed table-runner. They're just too much fun to make! That and the fact that they are relatively simple and don't require too much time make it perfect for my short attention span. So here we go:

All I used was left-over scraps from the Halloween door hanging that I made. Cut into a few different sizes (I ended up doing two wide strips and one thinner one).

I call these "monster colors": orange and black with purple and green. Perfect for Halloween :)
Sew together your strips:

Now comes the fun part! Armed with my newly-acquired skills in quilting (beginner's skills, but still... I think I'm hooked), add on batting and the back fabric

(black is probably best, but I used an off-white...  I think it's called muslin? Incidentally, in French off-white is literally called "broken white." haha) and pin together the layers. And now....

Freehand sew a spiderweb all over it! (With a freehand foot... check out this post for a brief explanation)

It would probably be cool too if the spiderweb started in a corner and spread from there, I just went with a central one to hold all the layers together. See, double function, how easy :)
Now bind the edges and you're done.

This will go quite nicely in the living room :)

I'm linking over here:

Slapshod I-pod carrier

You know those things runners use to carry their i-pods? Well I'm trying to turn myself into a running-capable person, and music definitely helps. This one is a 15-minute fast one, but the basic idea is there: I just happened to not have anymore black thread due to that Halloween thingy that took up three spools and then some, so I threw this together to try it out.

1) Make a pouch that fits your i-pod

2) Slide a covered elastic band through two slits. (it would be better with a wider elastic, maybe 2-inch. This is just what I happened to have on hand)

3) Close up the loop and you're ready to go!

Current favorite running song: World Town by M.I.A.