Pencil Cases

Sunday Sewing.....Pencil Cases             

I know lots of kids are getting out of school right now, but summer session for my college baby is just starting.   She was admiring a charm pack of Noteworthy that I have been saving and said she would love to have something in these fabrics.   So ta-da a new pencil case is born.   I had this chunky long zipper and was able to unzip it and get in nice and close to topstitch the edges (with my walking foot).  With a regular zipper there would be no way to get in close enough.  She loves it and that's all that counts anyway....

http://www.flickr.com/photos/91636153@N07/8931789522/

I had to piece the charms, a rollie pollie would have been perfect to just cut the strips to the right width.

I used Kona solid light grey for the lining and a thin fusible fleece for the batting.   Perfect weight for the bag.

 Love these Noteworthy fabrics.

She doesn't use crayons anymore but they look good in the bag!!!

 Case number 2, bad photo...its actually too sunny today....

Off to sew up a new top, before going back to work......

Happy Sewing, K

Sunny Sunday Sewing on the Go??

Looking out the window and it's a beautiful sunny day in California !   My flowers are all blooming or going to bloom very soon.   The outdoors is calling me....please come outside!   So I will take my hand stitching poolside and enjoy a day in the sun.

Lantana in wild abandon

I have contemplated taking my sewing machine outdoors...have you ever heard of anyone doing so?  I don't have a patio cover, just an umbrella or an easy up but that takes a bit of help to put up..funny since its called an "easy up".   I once read that Pokey Bolton likes to take her machine out onto the porch in warm weather....

Lantana

My only issue is running back inside every time I remember I need something..like the seam ripper or the other seam ripper or a different thread....I already do this when I need to run upstairs for some notion or another.

 Scarlet Trumpet Vine....I never thought it would take to the dry, dry rocky soil......

Are you an outdoor lover too and do you create outside?  Love to hear your comments.....

 The first Hibiscus....they take a while to start blooming, but will bloom all summer long....








 Raised vegetable beds to keep the bunnies at bay.  Tomato sprouts and a lone zucchini plant.

Giant Bird of Paradise.  Not sure if this is the real name...

 Peek of the pool, hillside view

Off to sew away the day, K

Update, here's the blocks I finished today while enjoying the garden....

Linking up with Plum and June.

Help Kickstart This Great Artist

When I first started blogging I spent tons of time looking for other bloggers.......I didn't know what I was doing so I would just click next blog at the top of the blogger page.....this is what I found.

The Cart Before The Horse


I fell in love with these little handmade bits of art.  If I were to live again, this is the kind of free spirit Artist,  I would love to be....   This husband and wife duo are going to go mobile....check out their adventures and follow along with me.  If you can, help them along with a donation to their Kickstart or check them out on etsy......

Happy Sewing, K

The Outline

This layout would require 216 hexagons.

This layout is 14x11 and would need 154 hexies....

Closer look.....

I like them like this, it looks like a lot more than 60.

They make me smile, the fabric is so pretty.  What are you up to this weekend?

I Made The Cutest Oven Mitts and More....

I was inspired this week by Erin @ http://mummyquilts.blogspot.com/ and her oven mitts.  I am trying to use up the fabric on hand and not create any more UFO's but was a little bored with my current projects......while browsing my blog list I came upon Erin's tutorial and  tada here is my new set of oven mitts, coasters and mug rug.  I was really inspired!!!   And the best part  no UFO's!!!!   I FMQ the mitts with Chrysanthemum pattern that I saw on Rachel's blog, Stiched In Color.  One side is solid with FMQing and the other is QAYG strips.  Then straight quilting added making a diamond pattern.  (Shown in picture down below)




I cut up the scraps and made them into improv coasters!!

The mitts and coasters are going to my daughter and the mug rug for my husband.  The good thing about the insul-bright is it keeps the condensation from going through to the surface of the table.  The fabric and batting hold the moisture and your furniture doesn't get damaged.

Fabric is Notting Hill by Joel Dewberry

Mug Rug for Mr. M with random FMQing all over.  

This made my day a Happy Sewing Day, Yeah!!!

WIP Wednesday

Yep it's that time again and I am still working on the same old stuff.......what's a girl to do?

Make more WIPs or keep going on the same ones?

 Or do I stay up all night  and finish the ones that are started, so I would have a reason to start something new?

  I told myself this year I would use up my stash and not make so many UFO 's.  I have sorta stuck to my plan....I only bought fabric for my Get Your Hex On quilting bee and one oops because I thought it would be a good coordinate for the other fabric turns out Avignon does not match Polka Dot Stitches AT all!!!   Oh and one charm pack of noteworthy, again I thought it would have some good blenders to match Hex quilt.    So that plan is on track.....and I haven't stated any ore UFO's.   so that goal is on track.

But this makes blogging pretty boring, right?  So what's a girl to do???? send me some suggestions!!!!  I need some inspiration!!

I did join the Postage Stamp Swap and am just about ready to send the blocks.  They are due out tomorrow.  So that completed one goal of using up some stash.....

Well I caved and bought some insul-bright.   I am going to make up some oven mitts for my daughter...and I didn't buy any new fabric!!!

How To Turn Off Word Cerification

         Have you ever typed up a comment on someone's blog and hit submit and oh no the word verification is on??.

        I have such a hard time figuring out the letter/ number combination that if it doesn't go through on the first or second try I just give up and that great blogger nevers hears my sweet words of appreciation for sharing their project.

         Erin has a great step by step tip on how to turn that pesky thing off !!!  Yeah thanks Erin!!!   Click the link below to see her great tip and many others on her blog.  While you are turning that off you can also check to see if you are a no reply blogger.  Easy to fix but when you first start a blog these things are enabled and you never even knew you had them until some nice person made a tip on how to turn it off.

Erin @sew at home mummy

Hope you all had a nice holiday weekend!!!! Happy Sewing, K

Monday Sewing

I have lots of little EPP's set and ready to go today......my husband will be getting his surgery on his broken ankle today, and I have my waiting room busy work all ready......he has been waiting 2 weeks for the swelling to go down enough to have the procedure.   I am off form work this week and will be able to nurse him, well,  sew a lot and check up on him occasionally.   I love him to distraction but he is a bad patient.  

Working on my Hexie quilt and my postage block swap, due out this week.  I made my original commitment of 10 but have several more almost done.  I find I really enjoy this easy block and its great challenge to match up the intersections perfectly. If not, I am OCD and have to rip and resew.

I am sending the brights and have decided I like the Avignon orange and yellows.  When I bought this online I thought it would work on my Hexie quilt and didn't like it when it arrived.  So I decided to use it for the swap, thinking someone would like them.   So now I totally love the fabrics now that they are cut up and repieced.  Going to make them into pillows, or placemats.....

Off to the Doctors.....Happy Sewing, K

Claiming my blog

This is kind of a silly thing to post, but here is my claim to my blog.  Bloglovin followers can find me now, I think.  Lol. Either way I have been claimed!  
On to more fun stuff, like sewing or making something...


<a href="http://www.bloglovin.com/blog/5244171/?claim=cjv3gfe8epk">Follow my blog with Bloglovin</a>

1940's How To Sew Video

http://youtu.be/-E1j9DxEEUw



Check out this great video on how to sew a garment from a pattern..  This is all the steps my mom used to teach  me to sew and look how good I am. Lol. Well I am pretty good!  
Sunny day in Ca, looking forward to some sewing, gardening and all around fun day.
Happy Sewing, K