Next Project

So I will have this crochet project done before the end of the week. It is a special project for my first born boy.

 Any guesses for what it will be?

 

It is crochet with an extra bulky, very soft chenille in vibrant colors. It works up super fast. I just began it on Sunday.

Stay tuned for the completed product.

Many blessings to you on this autumn night-Kate

Time a Little Tight

I am hard at work trying to complete a sewing contract. Which has left little time for completing other projects. I did manage to get one started though.

I found this dark blue shirt at a garage sale last summer and thought there was plenty of material to be able to make something new from it. I was not sure how I wanted to convert it though. Tonight I figured it out. I decided the width of the shirt was probably such that it would work just fine if rotated to become the length. I took the bottom strip off and cut it to fit the new bottom hem.

Tomorrow I just have to sew up the sides and shoulders and decide if I want sleeves. Then reattach the bottom hem, figure out what to do with the neck opening and I should have a new shirt to enjoy this summer.

Stay tuned tomorrow when I reveal the final product.

Many blessings to you this fine night.--Kate

Old Mini Skirt to New Purse

I have had this project on my "To finish" shelf since high school. I attended a clothing swap at which I came away with a cute, short, tight, black fleece mini skirt with a hot pink inside. Once I got it home I realized that it really was not something I would ever be willing to wear in public. I did mention the short and tight bit right. The more I fiddled with it though I realized that it would make a great purse. I started the transformation right away, cutting 9 inches off the bottom, sewing up the bottom and sewing one half of the cut off bit over the waist opening to make a closing flap. That is where I got stuck. I had enough material to make the strap. I took the other half of the cut off bit and cut it in half, but I just did not know how I wanted to make the strap. So I put the project on the shelf. Over the years I have pulled it out a couple times but never had anymore inspiration. Tonight I was in need of a quick transformation project and thought of the purse again and inspiration hit. If I cut the straps and braided them they would be thinner, cute and there was the possibility of having both black and pink on the same side.

So now I have a new hold everything purse. The best part is the two front pockets that can hold keys, lip balm and cellphone.

Many blessings on this fine night.--Kate

Summer Scarf Shirt

A few of the sewing and customizing books I have been reading lately suggest taking old scarfs and turning them into light and breezy tops. The last few days have been exceptionally warm and it has me thinking about summer. So on a resent trip to the thrift stores with my girl I was on the hunt for scarfs. I was very excited when I came across these two that had the same pattern in colors my daughter loves.

Quick and simple construction. Sew at each top edge 5 inches in on each side or leave the center just large enough to get your head through. Then on the sides, from the bottom up, sew 12 inches. I put a ribbon on just to corral the fabric a bit. The placement is 3 inches down from the arm hole openings. You want to sew it wrong sides together (inside out.) Then turn it right side out and it is ready to wear.

The whole top took less then 10 minutes to construct, and it is reversible.

 

Many blessing on this very fine night.--Kate

Old Angora Sweater, New Ear-Warmer.

A few years ago when my grandmother past I helped my mother pack up the estate so the house could sell. My grandmother was an amazing craftswoman and artist. She is the one who taught my mom who is also an amazing craftswoman and artist and my mom taught me.

When all of the grandchildren grew up, my grandmother switched from sewing clothes to creating beautiful porcelain dolls and fuzzy fur teddy bears. (she also made her own greeting cards.) So let us just say that my grandmother's sewing/hobby room was a treasure trove of wonders.

Besides being very talented my grandmother was quite lovely and had a beautiful sense of style. My grandmother was super petite though, I do not think she quite weighed 100 lbs and was maybe 5 feet tops. I have 12 inches on her and 30 lbs so there was no way her clothes were going to fit me. I still selected a few precious items. That really reminded me of her or that I might have a chance of wearing if altered.

One item was a luxurious white cashmere sweater. I have been trying to come up with something I could make from it. Today a had a great idea.

It is beautiful here in the Inland Northwest, blue skies, sunshine but it is still quite cold. The sunshine pulls me and the kiddos outside. The bitter wind chill sends us right back in. My biggest weakness in the chilly temperatures is cold ears. Once my ears get cold, I start to get a major headache and can not stand staying outside one more second. That is where today's brainstorm came in.

I took a section off the bottom of the sweater and turned it into an ear-warmer. I am not completely finished. I still want to embellish it, but it is at least functional. My ears shall be toasty warm and happy and I shall have a lovely reminder of my grandmother.

Many blessings on this fine night.--Kate

P.S. Here is how I used the fabric flowers from last Tuesday's project.

A Breath of Spring

We have been most fortunate in our Spring-like February. There are signs of green life popping up all over. When the wind does not blow there is a warmth in the air, and I am almost certain that I heard a flock of geese returning from the south the other day.

So of course with all these small promises of fairer weather and fragrant blooms it is hard not to catch a mild case of Spring Fever.

I've been having a blast lately checking out craft and sewing books from the library. Pouring through them looking for inspiration and new projects. I found these little cuties in a quirky, fun, DIY book by Mary Jane Baxter titled,  "Chic on a Shoestring."

 

I fashioned my flowers from outgrown clothes and some old buttons. I am not yet sure what I want to do with them, (except fluff, fuss and play with them,) but I will post it here once I figure it out.

This really was a fast, fun project. All hand stitched so it is a perfect take with you craft.

Many blessings to you this fine night.--Kate

Velvet Bee Scarf into Jewelry Box Art.

Many years ago I received a blue velvet scarf with little bees stamped into it for a Christmas present. I thought it was so cute, I adore bees and I always love receiving handmade crafty items. Time marches on though and my scarf style has changed, plus the scarf was far to lovely for everyday wear. So for the last few years it has sat in one of my many craft baskets. I have thought about remaking it into a longer thinner scarf, but as I mentioned velvet is far to nice for everyday wear. I was desperate to come up with a fun alternative use. I love the little bees and wanted to come up with a use that allows me to enjoy them everyday.

  

I ended up with the idea to use smaller fabric squares in some jewelry boxes and a picture frame. I apologize that the bees are so hard to see. I struggled getting the lighting and camera angle just right. None of them are 100% finished. They all need a top coat and I discovered while taking the photos that the red box needs a bit more red in the space below the glass. Regardless I am really pleased with how they turned out. 

I still have quite a bit of the blue velvet left, but I have another idea (or two) on how to use it, so keep an eye out for this material to show up again.

Many blessings on this very early morning.--Kate


P.S. If any one is curious about how to stamp on velvet let me know.

Heart Sweater and Pants with Plaid Hearts

I adore shopping at thrift stores. When I was in high school one of my very best friends took me to Value Village for the first time and I fell in love. It is like going on a treasure hunt, if you dig deep enough for long enough who know what gems can be found. Recently I have found a new obsession in my thrift shopping, discovering clothes that can be turned into outfits for my daughter She is quite the fashionista. She goes into her closet and the clothing combinations she comes out with look crazy then she puts them on and they are darling.

From this past weekend's shopping trip I found a number of outfits and I can not wait to see what she does with them. I have decided that I would not let the size of the clothes stop me from finding things I think my daughter will like. That means I have to do some alteration work on many of the items I pick up.

This week's alteration projects. A bright yellow sweater with a grey heart and some pink leggings with plaid hearts. Both are for older girls, so that means that I need to take them in a little.

Here is where we started.

This is the start of reconstruction. I have shortened the sleeves taken in the sides and trimmed a little off the top.

 In this picture I have the sleeves to the right length but need to do the cuff.

The only thing remaining to do here is finish the neck opening and shorten the length and then remove some of the extra fabric from the seams.

 The pants are pinned and the leg cuff open and ready for serging.

 Tomorrow I will be wrapping up these projects and will post the final pictures.

Many blessings to you on this very fine night.--Kate

Felted Needle Book (part 1.)

Buried deep in my yarn stash I had a knit kit for making a felted "Sushi Wallet." Yes that is right, a wallet that has little embellishments on it to look like sushi rolls. The kit appealed in every way, clever packaging, unique design and beautifully colored yarn.  The only problem was that it was a felted project, which I was interested in trying but had only done unintentionally to date. So even though the project looked intriguing, it got lost for a few years in the black-hole of yarn.

Very recently I came across a charming pattern for a felt needle book. My plan was to use some 100% wool felt I had left from a market bag project I did as a Christmas present a few year ago. The more I thought about it though I figured that maybe it was the perfect excuse to try felting.

 Out came the sushi kit. I quickly worked up a square in each color. Then I sought a little guidance from the internet on how best to felt the pieces by hand.  I was not sure if they were big enough to felt well in the washer. I had to felt them in three batches because I did not want the darker colors to bleed into the lighter colors. It was hot, splashy and minimally messy, but oh so much fun. It was amazing to watch the yarn go through the felting process. I am sure there is some awesome science behind it. I think that when my kids are older and I do not have to worry so much about hot water safety, I will let them try their hand at making their own felt. For now I have four cute little felted rectangles that are drying so they can be turned into a needle book. When it comes to transformation projects this experience was one of my personal favorites.

Many blessings to you on this fine night.--Kate

P.S. Tomorrow will be the wrap-up of the Felted Needle Book. Then on Friday I will walk you through how to do your own felting by hand. So stay tuned.

Tuesday Traditions

I am going to put transformations on hold to the month to talk instead about some of the traditions that we do during the holidays.

Today's tradition, the Advent Calendar. We have had this cute little Hallmark Tree calendar for a few years now. The kids like it so well they fight over who's turn it is.

So the solution, this year we have two Advent Calendars.

The new addition is a Lego calendar. Where they get to open a new door everyday and build the item that is inside then add it to the city scene. It is already turning out to be a lot of fun.

I am excited for this season of festivities, family and traditions.

Many blessings to you on this fine night.--Kate

Transformation Derailed

My hope in staring this blog was to give myself the motivation and accountability to reduce some of the stress triggers in my life. Well I am full in the middle of one of my biggest triggers and I am finding that things are going about as expected. My big trigger is large sewing contracts with unrealistic deadlines. Instead of setting boundaries with my client, I take on the work and work twice as hard to try to get it done quickly (or meet the deadline) and I find that all other areas of my life get neglected. Things have not totally fallen apart, but the house is a disaster and all other projects have come to an abrupt halt. I am afraid that I will once again be missing out on the fun of the holiday season because of my ridiculous need to honor this commitment. Do not mistake me, I think that it is important to honor commitments. Sometimes though I wonder if I allow this need to please to cause me to miss out on the much more important and fleeting moments with my family. Then I marvel as the selfishness of that thought because my wonderful husband misses out on many more fleeting moments because he is working outside of the home to take care of his family.

I find peace in knowing that this derailment to transformation is temporary and it reinforces the need to stay committed to this attempt to reduce stress and get my life in order.

Many blessings to you on this very early morning. --Kate

How Children Transform our Lives

In less then 5 minutes a room can go from organized to messy. Your movie collection doubles mostly with Disney and Dreamworks. All flat surfaces become road ways, crafting stations or covered in puzzles. Your favorite blanket, scarf, seat and many other favorites get claimed by someone else and you find that you don't mind. You spend your day trying to define words, explain how things work and putting band aids on any ouchies even imaginary ones. In our family we have chosen for our kids to be educated at home, so now I am learning about all kinds of new things and working to relearn many that I have forgotten. I am also discovering what my kids get excited about. Like medicine and science for my oldest and animals and engineering for my youngest. I am also finding that there are not enough hours in the day to accomplish all the desired adventures and also get the laundry folded. There have been a lot of changes in our life in the last 4 and a half years. Most of them great, some of them tough and a few that we never saw coming. The greatest change of my life though was becoming a parent. The most amazing, challenging and blessed transformation.

Many blessings to you on this fine night.--Kate

something old, something blue, something borrowed into new

I believe that this item is actually on life number 3. It was a veil for a friends wedding. It was a veil for one of my dance routines from the days that I did Canine Freestyle, (or doggie dance,) with a dog my Mom had, Gretchen.

 

Gretchen and I have pink bands.

 For its most resent reincarnation I have separated the headband and tulle.

The headband has been claimed by my oldest.
 

I cut the tulle into strips and crocheted it with a strand of yarn to make some dish and fruit scrubbers. 

These are to replace the sponge scrubbers that are a little to scratchy for some of the dishes and always smell moldy after only a few uses. The green one is to wash fruits and veggies. I try to keep a separate scrubber for this job. It always seems a bit gross to use the same scrubber as I use for the counters or dishes. 

I am excited to have these new little kitchen aids and my girl is thrilled with her headband. 

Many blessings to you on this fine night.--Kate

From feet to hands

I have a lot of fun and crazy socks. For the past few years I have received them as birthday and Christmas presents or found them in post holiday sales bins. I love the bright colors or wild patterns, but socks don't last forever. I have used old socks for a number of things, cleaning rags, dog toys, patches, and even sock monkeys.

Recently I had a couple of socks wear out in the heals and toes. They were made with a thick yarn so I thought rather then cut them up I would see if I could unravel the yarn. That way I could use the yarn in a different project. After unraveling the foot portion of the sock I realized that what remained of the sock would actually make a pretty great set of fingerless gloves. So that is what they have become.

From footwear to hand warmers. My old socks have found a new job, and my hands are loving it now that the cooler temperatures have arrived.

I am thinking that the other set might make a good pair of legwarmers for my little ballerina. 

Many blessings to you on this fine day--Kate