april's calendar desktop...

Are you ready for April to be here? Do you have your pranks all lined up for tomorrow? I've been trying to come up with a great joke to play on all my blog friends, but be assured, I've come up with nothing, so you're safe.

But I do have the new calendar desktop for you, so that your computer will be ready for this new month. Now, if only a new desktop would also bring new spring weather...

(By the way, this is Swift Sewing Machine. He's orange because, well, how wonderful would it be to have an orange sewing machine?!?)

mondays...

Time for a little of this and that. Unfortunately, I have zero pictures to share. But still, a few thoughts, and that's something, right?

First off, I just want to say a collective thank you for all of the lovely comments that you all leave. Receiving comments is still sort of new here on the blog, and I'm loving it. Every time that one pops up, I smile. Having blog friends is oh so fun!

The embroideries that I shared in my last post are now available in the shop as patterns. And just as a reminder, I'm still working on the Caregiver Kits project (see the sidebar for progress). The next sale I get will bump me to over 25%. (hint, hint) UPDATE: 25% has been reached! (but don't let that stop you...)

Speaking of the Caregiver Kits project, I can see at this point that it is HIGHLY unlikely that I will meet my goal by Easter (Because...how did we get this far into the year already? Where has March gone?). But I've decided that the calendar isn't going to determine where my shop profits go. The need is. So, until the $560 is raised, 100% still goes to the project.

I have been working on some new illustrations for things, and I am excited! Today I got the new April desktop finished, so you'll find that here tomorrow. And the workshop for April is going to be super cute...I can't wait!

Also in the works are some new collage sheets (perhaps embroidery patterns too), that came as a recommendation. The first is called "Game Night" and has things like cards, bowling, etc. The second doesn't have a name yet, but will have more technology/pop culture types of things: tv, mp3 player, video games, etc., but I'm still adding ideas to that list. So, any suggestions for things in that set, as well as a name would be appreciated.

This morning I met a friend at Starbucks and tried something that I read about on Elsie's blog. A Crunchberries Frappucchino. Ok, so you have to order it as a Tall Strawberries and Creme Frappucchino with a shot of Toffee Nut. But yes, it really does taste like Captain Crunch cereal. Yum!

I think it has already been a good Monday...here's to an even better week!

the 600th post...

This week has been one of lists. So much to do. But slowly, I've been checking things off. These embroideries are a couple things that were on the list. The patterns will be in the shop within the next couple days. I haven't decided how I'll use the 1+1=1 tea embroidery above, but I do love how it came out.



For the new Baker's Best Ingredient Friends pattern, I stitched up the Egotistical Eggs, and put them on the pocket of a new apron I made for my brother's birthday. Mad is turning 7 this week, and he loves cooking (pretend and real!). Generally, he just loves food.

This is a super basic apron, which is good. Because, A) I didn't want to mess with a pattern so I just faked it, and B) My sewing skills on a machine are, well, not all that.



And as the title of this post tells you, I've now written 600 posts. That seems like so much. Who would've thought I'd have that much to say? Ok, there are some in my acquaintance that would say that it is no surprise...I can be a bit of a talker. I am making an effort to be more of a listener. What do you have to say?

live what you love...

I saw this print with the phrase "live what you love" on it. The idea stuck with me, and it seemed the perfect thing to wear around my wrist.



This, like the dandelion cuff from the other day, was inspired by the class I took last year with Elsie. The base of the cuff is two layers of wool blend felt. The letters were freehand cut from wool felt and I stitched through all the layers to hold the whole thing together. Two buttons were stitched on, and I just made the loops with embroidery floss. Simple and fun, yes?



My time is escaping from me at a rapid rate right now, so this sort of thing is what I am doing for myself. The process of it is wonderful, and I end up with something that I need to remember. Live what you Love. Now I need another one (perhaps in matching colors to wear at the same time...or maybe that would be a bit much...) that says Make.Do.Create.

a bit of making...

My sister took this picture today while we were sipping our coffee (me: caramel macchiato. she: cinnamon dolce latte). She commented that people always seem a bit nervous when someone pulls out a camera in a public place like Starbucks. Which is funny, because I think that people are a bit thrown off when they find someone crafting there. We must have really made some people's days!

crafting with a friend...

...always fun!



My friend Catherine came over this morning for a bit of crafting. So I made this cinnamon swirl cake/bread, and a pot of tea, and we worked on bracelets.



Catherine is making hers with violets...so cute!



And I painted little pieces of canvas with a dandelion life cycle. I used safety pins to hold them on, which kind of balances out the girly eyelet.



I love how it turned out, and will definitely make more. (I have a word one planned for next.) I thought that I wouldn't like how it feels or that it wouldn't be "me", but I think it is soooo fun! And it keeps my wrist warm!

Working by oneself is fine, and nice. But getting together for this sort of thing is very enjoyable. I need more crafty friends and more time to get together!

making a mix from scratch...

Baking from a mix is convenient, yes? What if you have a great recipe that uses a mix, but you don't have a mix on hand? Just make the mix from scratch! OK, this actually sounded a little crazy to me, but when I found myself without baking mix, I decided to give it a try.

There are all kinds of recipes for baking mix or bisquick recipes, so I just chose one. It was easy, and it worked very well. I have made Cheeseburger Pie as well as Peanut Butter Cookies with it. Plus I have plenty ready for the next recipe.

The next "mix" that I plan on trying is cake mix. This came to mind when Sonia mentioned not being able to get yellow cake mix. So I thought, I bet you can make it. Sure enough, a quick search for "make your own cake mix" turns up all kinds of things. What a great idea!

this and that...

I feel as though Mondays could be a day of little bits of random around here. Some pics, some talk about things going on. Yeah, I like that...



First off, you know you're addicted to craft when despite wearing a brace, and the many warnings from folks, you still stitch. This piece is almost done. I work on it between all the other things that irritate my carpal tunnel wrists...



...like playing the guitar. I brought my guitar in to church yesterday to use when leading worship with the kids. I don't play very well, but it worked for sitting around and doing some simple songs. It was a change from what we usually do, and I think the kids liked it. At least I had fun!



My house is one full of craft supplies, and in some recent cleaning out/sorting through my mom came across this ribbon. She asked if I would like it. Would I? Of course! I see cami straps...



And Nancy mentioned wanting to see my remade tank top cardy, so I had my sister take a picture of me in it yesterday. I now have two of these made, and will soon make another one, after I first dye the top. (Plus another shirt...I've not really done this before, so it should be fun. I'll be documenting and sharing with you certainly...)

Oh, oh, almost forgot! I have a new band that I'm loving: The Welcome Wagon. So wonderful! The Sufjan aspect doesn't hurt either...

Enjoy the rest of your Monday!

a cuppa...

I've been quite taken by the look of embroidery on patterned fabrics. So when I went to start this new stitched up example of a new pattern, I thought I'd give it a try. I love gingham, and had this on hand, and it seemed cute to go along with a cuppa tea.

(view large on flickr to get a better look at the pattern traced onto the fabric!)

The thing is, it isn't cotton gingham. So first off, it stretched and pulled all over the place when tracing the pattern. But then it also splits a little strangely when stitching. I'm just crossing my fingers and hoping that it doesn't run. Otherwise, I will be just like the tea kettle...sad, and a little steamed!

(and guess what else is coming for patterns...Baker's Best Ingredient Friends!)

i should very much like...

...to have an assistant.

It's not that I'm really all that busy. When I look at the things that I need to get done, they are realistic. I think. But if I had an assistant, I would have them...

...keep me on task.
...find things for me.
...organize my everything.
...be extra hands.
...clean up the trail I seem to leave behind.

Man, I would be efficient then. Unless of course my assistant and I got to socializing. Then there would just be two of us not getting enough done.

a march workshop for you...

I think that I've been planning on doing this workshop for two months. And now it's done at last! To make these happy little pins, just download the workshop in a PDF. They are easy to make (as long as you have patience in painting!), and I think awfully cute with their little faces...

Have fun!

pj's embroidery patterns...

How about some free embroidery today?

While hunting around for something, I came across this sheet of patterns that I drew for an embroidery kit that I gave my brother for Christmas. It's just hand-drawn, and scanned, but feel free to use it! (just please only use for personal embroideries...don't sell them!)

For the full size pattern, click on the image to get to Flickr. Enjoy!

is it just me...

or is this a very odd cereal?

much to say...

It's sort of an interesting day, because I've been feeling a bit listless thus far, and yet, I have many things that I could be doing...even that I want to do. And I have a lot of things that I want to share, so many that it seems as though I should save some for another post. But maybe this will just be a long post...here we go:



Food: I made this dessert yesterday. It doesn't really have a name, as we always call it "Barb's dessert" after the person who shared the recipe. It's easy, and very tasty. I always hope for leftovers (and in fact managed to get the last little square before heading to bed last night), but it always disappears quickly. Here's what you do:

Preheat over to 350F.

Spread a box of yellow cake mix into a greased 9x13 pan.

Add 1 stick of butter (cut into thin slices) over the cake mix, and bake for 10 minutes.

When that comes out, spread a can of pie filling over the cake (I've used cherry or apple).

Mix 1 egg and 1 cup of sour cream together, and drizzle over the pie filling.

Bake for 30 minutes.

I like to serve it with Cool Whip (not whipped cream...crazy I know, but that's the way I first tasted it, and I can't change!). This is such a favorite of mine! And I'm also thinking about other ways this might be good. Like with chocolate cake and the cherries...what do you think?

And...any thoughts on giving this an official name? Because it can use different fruit, I don't want to call it "Cherry ______", or something like that. Suggestions are appreciated!



Print it: It's very, very nearly St. Patrick's Day, and so I thought I had better give you a heads up that I have a Lucky Me! printable journaling collage sheet available in the March Sampler. You'll find it in the gallery section.



Me: Yesterday I took some self-portraits, and this one was probably my favorite. I used to have long hair, then cut it all off and kept my hair very short. I never thought I'd go back to keeping it long, but these days I'm loving it. I don't often try different things with it, because I don't like to take the time. So when I quickly twisted it into this, and added the headband ($1.50 at Forever 21), and it came out just as I hoped, I was thrilled. The photo documents what will probably never happen again!

And the rest: My list of things that I'm working on keeps growing! I'm checking things off too, but my, there are so many fun things! March's Make. Do. Create. free workshop is nearly finished (needs another coat of paint, or two!), I have a nearly finished printable for the Mailing A-List (if you're not on the list, join in the sidebar and you'll automatically receive this printable!), and much more!

The downside to this is that between working on the computer, cutting out pieces for Sunday School projects, practicing guitar (because in the midst of my busyness, I decided I should pull out the acoustic again), and much crafting, my carpal tunnel has flared up. Lovely. But worth it, right?!?

my blog book...

Of course, there are so many ways to make little books, like my remade tiny books for example. But lately I've been really loving this kind of one piece of paper, no stapling required book. Just fold, cut, fold.



First, you fold the paper lengthwise, and unfold. Then fold in half the other way, unfold, and fold in the two ends to the middle. Basically, you're getting these creases in place so that the page is divided into 8 sections.



With the paper folded in half, cut from the fold to the first crease, so that you have a slit in the middle of the paper. You can use an exact-o knife for this, but I find that a scissors is much easier.



Again, fold the paper lengthwise, then holding the sides, push towards the middle so that the slit opens, and as you continue to push the sides in, the whole thing forms a sort of "X". Then you just fold it in half to form a book, with each arm of the "X" acting as a page.

So fun, and it fits perfectly in my back pocket so I always have it on hand!

i think i need to...

...keep a blog notebook on hand at all times. I can't tell you how often something happens during a day and I go, "oooh! I need to blog this!" But within a short time, I've forgotten it. Perhaps that means that it wasn't all that exciting or memorable. But those small things are what make life what it is. I'd like to think that at the very least, having those things recorded will be nice for myself someday...

to do tomorrow: start said blog notebook.

you're not supposed to like them...

...but I'm really into dandelions right now. There's something a bit magical about them. First I doodled up a dandelion to go in my Springy collage sheet, then I painted them onto brooches, I have sketches for a big painting, tomorrow I plan on making a dandelion bracelet when a friend visits for crafting, and now I'm stitching one! This pattern is one that will be in April's Sampler (I'll let you know when it's available!). Now we'll see how I feel about the real deal when they start showing up...

making new out of old...

My sister and I were talking about how we had liked a sleeveless cardigan that Kate Hudson was wearing in a scene of Bride Wars. Anna had found something similar online, but we've been making an effort to buy less these days, instead using what we have in new ways. Then a light bulb went on! What if we made our own version using a ribbed tank top?





We scurried off to find rarely worn tops and my favorite scissors. Checking to make sure no children were watching (can you imagine if they had seen what we were about to do?!), we cut straight up the front of the tank. Anna tried it on, and instantly I loved the look.



So far we've each only made one. (That will change soon!) Mine was a tank top that has sequins on the shoulders (and the hem always fit oddly...no stretch). Mine fits a bit differently than the one that Anna is modeling. You see mostly shoulders from the front...which I really like. Anna wore hers layered over a t-shirt, then added a cardigan sweater over the top...so cute!



These are different than the inspiration, but are just the thing to add something new to an outfit, and it cost nothing!

express yourself...

Remember that type embroidery I showed not too long ago? This is how I used it. (click to view large on flickr)

enjoying the day...

Today I...

Painted my toenails. (and enjoyed being barefoot!)

Walked to the mailbox. (and dropped in a birthday card!)

Gave myself new bangs. (and hated the self-portraits of them I attempted!)

Finished some brooches for the shop. (and took these pictures outside!)







I am enjoying the day...

spring...

Thank goodness that spring is on its way! A walk in the warm weather today was just perfect.

I've been working on some new spring themed items to get me in the mood, and today two of the items will go in the shop. Very soon. The Springy journaling collage sheet has icons of some lovely spring things, and the Delighted Dandelion is my favorite.

Then there is the Spring Costume Kids embroidery pattern. They are kids faces wearing Easter and flower costumes. I stitched one of them onto this canvas tote bag, which I have been unable to iron the wrinkles out of. Grrr. I stitched it by pinning the printout onto the canvas and stitching through the paper and the fabric. Well, on all by one stitch, where I missed the fabric. Grrr again. Fortunately the paper tore away relatively easy. My friend was removing stabilizer with a tweezers recently, so I'll try not to complain about this. (How's that going, Catherine? Done yet?



Next on my list of planned projects are making some more painted canvas brooches, and listing them in the shop. That and some paintings on wood, maybe? What do you think?

this is me...

My 4-year-old sister has recently started drawing pictures of the family. She sometimes has a Picasso like quality, especially when she draws facial features with legs and arms nearby, then encircles the whole thing with a body.

This is me. Note my long eyelashes. And either she thinks that I have hairy arms, or many, many fingers (I think it's the finger thing).

Not related to this picture, my 6-year-old brother was looking at me today and gave this evaluation: "Your eyes are brown, but your color isn't brown." (because he has brown eyes and brown skin...) then, "You have twiggy hair." Um, yeah.

march...

Happy March!

OK. The link in the sidebar is working...finally! Now, download your March desktop calendar featuring Pliable Polymer Clay...