How cute is this?

Kara, you've been telling me how easy this is - and you're right! Introducing....our April project of the month: a tissue pouch! How much more stylin' can you be as you're blowing your nose constantly with your allergies? Or how about in church, when your child needs a tissue, and you try to discretely get one out of the plastic pouch, making as little noise as possible? (or is that just me?)
Just a scrap of fabric is all that's needed, and voila! We'll be offering it for just $10 - a one hr. project, which includes time to make a few or more - pass out to friends!
Thanks to Sew What Bags for the idea. (being added to the calendar shortly!)

Sewing in the dark

It's Earth Hour, in case you didn't know, which means from 8:30 to 9:30 pm tonight, we're all supposed to turn off non-essential electricity in our homes. Translated by a 9 and 11 yr. old: get out all the candles you can find in the house, and live by candlelight. As you can see by the picture, the sewing machine was considered essential. Oh, and the computer. Ten minutes left, by my watch, though this has been a fun experiment on our dependance on electricity!

This is the project I'm working on tonight - two simple sundresses for my 6 yr. old goddaughter. And this is the task I was faced with when I didn't have a bodkin at home:
turning 8 straps right side out! I had to resort to a safety pin, which I used for years and years before I discovered the bodkin....sigh....it took me so much longer....!

Here's my 1st project from Weekend Sewing: the Yard Sale Wrap Skirt! I just love how it turned out - I'm anxious to be able to wear summer sandals with it, as I just can't find any winter shoes that compliment it. I noticed an error in the pattern, with how much 45" fabric was needed (I even made a comment on Heather Ross' website -http://heatherross.squarespace.com/weekend-sewing-tips-tricks-faq/2009/3/16/yard-sale-skirt-one-panel-short-of-decency.html#comments - I feel so important - haha!) I recommend you read this page before starting - there are a few errors here and there with the patterns, but in my opinion, it's still a fantastic book!)

Next project: the Kimono Dress from the same book. I'm going to make it with Kara, a customer and great friend - can't wait to start!

They're here! They're here!

Delivered this morning.....Weekend Sewing by Heather Ross! I bought this book about 2 weeks ago while at Borders with my girls. A total splurge, as I rarely buy books - I head out to the trusty library instead. But it looked so.....delicious. And it is! All the patterns come in the book - I was up late last night pouring over it cover to cover. Heather even includes recipes to make and gather with friends and sew together - isn't that the neatest thing?! Now the hard part - what to make first...

Hip Teens and Walkin' down Memory Lane

So here are the creations made at Teen Time Saturday night, by 3 extremely talented, creative, sweet, just all-around adorable 8th grade girls! They each made a tote bag, and added embellishments, pockets, even a zipper to one - to make these. I can't wait to do this again! (Speaking of which, the next Teen Time is on April 4th instead of March 21, due to Spring Break)

Next, some of my treasures: the trunk in my room (it belonged to my great-grandmother, who took it on her honeymoon to Niagra Falls, if my memory of the story serves me correctly!) I've put in it special outfits I've made for my girls when they were babies/toddlers/little girls. Dresses, skirts, a cape, a Raggedy Ann Halloween costume, matching sundresses, 1st day of school outfits. You know that theoretical question that if you had to leave your house immediately because of a fire and could only take what you can carry? Well, I'd have to make room in my arms for these...

And another part of the trunk holds scraps from many of the outfits I've sewn, with the plan that someday, I'll put them together to make a quilt, or two!

This is what Claire picked out for her 1st communion dress:

I'm so excited to make it! I made Jane's dress 2 years ago, and she picked out this one:

This is what I love most about sewing - making the memories. Speaking of memories, I was making enchiladas tonight, which I don't make often, and as I was frying the tortillas, my mind went back to the 3 years I spent living and going to school in Las Vegas, NM. My stand-in- mother (as mom was 2000 miles away) was Rose Martinez, who to this day calls me "mi hita" which warms my heart to no end. Rose makes the best enchiladas I've ever tasted - but my mind traveled on as I made dinner tonight. To sewing....when I lived in Las Vegas, I was flat broke, being a college student and doing it on my own. I did have my mom's old sewing machine with me, and I remember walking down to the five-and-dime style store on the end of the little strip where the Spic-n-Span restaurant still is (anyone remember the name of that store - it closed in the early 90s?). Anyway, they had fabric - remnants, not bolts, on tables, and I'd scrounge through it, looking for something with which to create. I finally found it - a denim-looking material, though lighter, more flow-y...don't know what it was - polyester blend, rayon?! And I found a pattern, and I made a dress - a summery, romantic, flirty, dress, that I loved to wear and felt so good when I did. (I even had a romantic walk in Carnegie Park with a special someone while wearing that dress) I still have the dress - in the attic, tucked away with other memories...I think I'm going to get it out soon and try it on again - see if this 40 yr. old body can still fit into something I wore 18 years ago!
I'm so thankful for memories, and for my love of sewing that has helped make them, well, immortal, in a way.

Oh, the wind.....I just despise you! You make my eyes water and itch, my nose run and sneeze, your howls embed in my brain. It's my only complaint about living in New Mexico. I moved here 20 years ago and fell in love immediately. (Oh sure, there are other minor annoyances, but not enough to write about). I love the food, raising my family here, the people, the culture, the history, the climate......all but the wind. I brace myself for it every year, and grit my teeth through it 'til it's over and I can walk outside and start gardening and soak up summer weather.

But for now? I take my Flonase (not working so well this year), carry my eye drops around with me, turn on music to distract me from the howling, and look forward to calmer days.

We're looking to order more fabrics - Alexander Henry, Freespirit. The last big batch ordered is going fast! Quilt Market this spring is in Pittsburgh in May. Maybe, just maybe, we can swing going....!

Don't forget to move your clocks up an hour tonight!

You go girl!

Check out the creativity and accomplishment of this gal: http://babydews.com/.

Chris is a customer, mom, sewer, knitter, and all around great person, who makes these adorable head scarves for babies and toddlers! Her creations were recently featured in Pregnancy and Newborn magazine - whoo hoo! I also selfishly like her because she shared her knit pattern for a top-down shrug cardigan she's made and I admired - and I'll be started soon, hopefully, after I finish the February Lady Sweater (http://www.flintknits.com/blog/?p=151), which my girls love to tease me that no, it will not be finished in February!!

Our UPS guy delivered yesterday OILCLOTH! We ordered a bolt of Anna Maria Horner's line, just to see what it's like, and what we can do with it - it's beautiful, and you've got to get down to the store and see it yourself! http://annamariahorner.blogspot.com/ Scroll down to her Feb. 04 post to see it on her blog.

Arghhhh!

I'm going to gripe, and complain, and air my grievance. I just got back home from a trip to another fabric store here in town - the name begins with a J, and rhymes with Schmoann's, just to keep things anonymous. I'm doing a job making cushions, and wanted to buy a zipper by the yard to get more exact measurements, rather than the pre-packaged zippers. I also needed to buy the zipper pulls and stops, and I've never assembled a zipper before, so I stopped the 1st employee to ask if she could help, and she said "I don't sew, I'm just a stock clerk" (hmmm, I remember her cutting my fabric and ringing me up on previous visits before.) I attempted a joke, saying she needs to wear a sign as an employee there, saying 'I don't sew'. She didn't find it humorous.
The next employee at the cutting counter I asked responded, "I've never sewn zippers." Fair enough.
The cashier, though, was the icing on the cake. She rang me up, asked if I had a coupon, and when I said no, I left it at home, looked at me with complete disinterest and said "Bummer". I asked if she might have an extra one somewhere behind the counter. Her answer, with even more disinterest: "Nope."
You all have my permission to blog about me, or Jen, or Heather, if any one of us ever says to you in a disinterested tone of voice, "Bummer", when you don't have a coupon at our store.