Stop staring and start sewing!

A tiny tool tutorial (totally!)

Sorry for the long absence.  I've been completely swamped between summer with the kids and sewing for my little etsy shop.  I've finally drawn a winner for Joanna Figueroa's beautiful new book.  It's Allison who said "It is a toss up between Pink Floyd and Prince!"  Congratulations Allison!  :)  I'm so glad I asked everyone to name their favorite band because it was so much fun to read all of the comments.

I've been wanting to share a little tool I've been using a lot lately because it was such a simple way to fix (improve) a pesky problem.  My pesky problem is I have 5 kids and they like to break my stuff.  Always.  But I digress....I had a wooded dowel in my sewing room that my boys (not sure which one) had snapped in half and I was using the snaggled end for turning corners and trying to get nice, sharp points on my little bags that I've been making. 

Well, Joey took pity on me and said "Let me try something here" and took my dowel and gave me a great turning tool in return.  So I'm going to show you what he did.... Here is a 5/16" dowel which you can get at any craft store or Home Depot.  They cost under a dollar and you probably have one lying around somewhere.  I took a saw and cut about 5 1/2 inches off of this one (they come in 36"-48" lengths).  You can probably just use a pair of pruners from your gardening supplies too.

 

I sharpened it in a little pencil sharpener and bang! I have a nice little corner/point turning tool.

 

You can make a bunch of different lengths off of just one dowel so you can reach all sorts of tight spots.  Joey even made me one out of a super skinny 3/16" dowel for tiny projects.  Anyway, I know this is one of those "duh" projects but it has really made things easier for me and eased the pain of my kids losing the dowel that came with my turning tool kit (but that had a blunt end and this is so much better!).

 

I hope you're having a great summer so far!  It's hotter than heck here, or course, but I managed to get an above ground pool for the kids and it's been a real life (sanity) saver.  Keep on sewing!

One man's trash is my treasure

I was going to title this blog post "One man's junk is my treasure" but then the more I looked at it....well anyway.....

Once a month we have bulk garbage day here in our neighborhood.  It's a great way to clean out the big junk in our houses without having to make a trip to the dump.  We were on our way to church a couple of weeks ago when we saw the neighbors putting some great stuff on their curb and yelled out the window "Are you getting rid of that?!".  They said "Yeah, take what you want!" so we did.  The real prize for me was this ugly picture.  It's huge (about 42" x 34") and I knew it would make a great chalkboard

 

We started with this.

 

I wanted the chalkboard to be magnetic as well so we got a piece of metal sheeting at Home Depot for about 22.00.  Joey traced the old picture onto it and then cut it with his tin snips.

 

We cleaned up the metal with vinegar to remove the oils (the guy at Home Depot said that works).  We didn't have white vinegar so apple cider did the job just fine.  Then Joey gave it a light sanding with a fine grit sandpaper so the paint would have an easier time sticking.

 

One can of chalkboard spraypaint at about 4.00 did the trick.

 

We then used contact cement to glue the metal to the glass pane.  Not our original idea but we wanted a hard backing for it and it was available.

 

Meanwhile, I was spraypainting like crazy using a white gloss paint.  This was after we moved the hanging wire in the back so the frame would hang with the long side going horizontal (so it's wider instead of being taller).

I painted this shelf Joey made a few years back since Sofia had expressed an interest in it.

 

And here's what we ended up with.  So fresh and pretty (and the banner is held in place with little magnets)!  We are surprising Sofia with it and I can't wait to see her reaction.  We're doing some other stuff in her room before she gets back but this was one of the bigger projects.  And that wall paint color is Bermuda Bay from Glidden.  I love the color but have learned my lesson and will never use Glidden again (but can honestly say I gave them a fair shake).

 

 

Here's a little close up for some of the frame detail. 

 

I'll be back in a few days to draw a name for Joanna Figueroa's book so don't forget to leave a comment over at that post if you want in! 

With Fabric & Thread....a wonderful give away!

I was thrilled when the good folks at Wiley Publishing asked if I'd be interested in reviewing Joanna Figueroa's new book With Fabric & Thread.  I asked if they'd let me give away a copy to my readers and they were very obliging (so the answer was yes!).  I was even more thrilled when the book showed up here.  I hadn't seen the cover previously so I let out a gasp when I pulled the book from the box.  Seriously...look at how absolutely dreamy this cover is.

I've had the pleasure of spending time with Joanna at Quilt Market on a few occasions and can vouch for the fact that she is a warm, down to earth person and a real hoot as well.  I LOVE the fact that she includes a great deal of her life story in the book and reading it just made me love her more.  Did you know she was born in Poland and moved here as a toddler?  She shares a wonderful story about sewing on the flight over to America when she was 3 years old.  She shares her journey from crafting to quilting to designing fabric (and such beautiful fabric it is).

Right away this book won me over just by the way Joanna share so much of her heart and life with the reader.  But that's just the beginning.  This gorgeous (really, it's such a treat for the eyes) book is loaded with swoon worthy projects.  From delicious quilts (this new quilter really appreciates the beautifully illustrated instructions), to sweeties for your home like aprons, basket liners, and these darling scalloped shams, Joanna generously gives over 20 projects in this beefy, spiral bound book.

In the back of the book is a big pocket holding the pattern pieces and thankfully they are printed on a nice, heavy stock white paper.  It's perfect for tracing and saving and you'll never run out of fresh inspiration with this sitting on your coffee table.

I honestly don't think I can do this book justice with my description so if you get a chance to see it in person at a book store take the time to flip through it.  I guarantee you'll be leaving with it tucked under your arm (just be sure to pay for it first).  But I will be having a drawing later this week for some lucky reader to recieve a copy of the book straight from the folks at Wiley.

Just leave a comment sharing your all time favorite musical band (you were expecting something related to sewing weren't you? ha!).  I'd have to say mine is Abba with The BeeGees coming in a close second.

And take a look at my etsy shop (on the left sidebar there) because I've added a bunch of goodies and some of them will make great gifts for Father's Day (you still have plenty of time).  Have a great week!