Open For Business

I took the plunge. I opened an Etsy shop. I must be crazy.

Those two ladybugs are in honor of Ellie & Kate as is the name EK Designs

I have a few things listed. I'll be adding some Halloween things this week.

Come Visit!

Giving Handmade

This past weekend we went to a birthday party.  Happy Birthday, Scarlett!  We had a great time!

I loved how Meg's apron dress turned out and wanted to make one for little Scarlett.

Of course, at the last minute I decided I needed to have a cute little bag to wrap it in.  I found this great tutorial for a reversible patchwork bag.  I see lots more of these bags in my future.

From T-shirts To Throw Pillows

My aunt, Andrea, visited a few weeks ago. She brought up a couple of her favorite old t-shirts and wanted me to make pillows out of them.

Side note: Have I mentioned "To Kill A Mockingbird" is one of my favorite books (I know so original for a southern girl). Have I mentioned the author, Harper Lee, was a Chi Omega at The University of Alabama, and I met her during Homecoming week.

I love pillows. I used this as an opportunity to learn a new skill - making and sewing piping onto a pillow. I searched YouTube and found some great videos on how to make your own piping.

I hope you like them, Andrea. See you later this summer!

If you think you might want to try these, prep the t-shirts by ironing on some feather-weight interfacing.

Quilts in Progress

I love quilts. I love that I (almost) know how to make something I can give to my kids and they can give to their kids.

I'm really great at starting a quilt. Finishing . . . not so much!

I have four in the works right now. I haven't finished one yet, mainly because I haven't learned how to bind them. I'm hoping to get help with that this week in sewing class.
Warning: This post contains multiple pictures of quilts. If you're not a fan, you may not want to read further.

This is my first quilt. I followed along Crazy Mom Quilt's quilt along to learn how to do it. It's called a sampler quilt - a little more traditional than I like, but I learned a lot of different techniques and patterns. I know it's hard to see the fabric, but it's very "girlie". It has lots of flowers, hearts and teacups. My hope is to finish it for Meg before she goes off to college.



These are the first of my 9 patch blocks for Crazy Mom Quilts: One a Day Quilt Along. The idea is to sew one block a day, but I've found it's easier for me to do a few in one sitting. Days can go by before I have a chance to get on the sewing machine, so I do it when I can.




So far this is my favorite! It is called a Disappearing Nine Patch. There's a great tutorial for how to do one here. I'm hoping to add more to this one to make it a twin size - not sure for who. The fabrics are from the Wee Play line.



This is a quilt for my nephew, Nate. It's more like a quilted play mat. It's the closest one to being finished - all I have left is to sew on the binding. I thought I was basing this one on the Disappearing Nine Patch, but when I reread the directions, I realized it's not. I like it anyway and hope he will, too.

Easter Pillowcase

Last week we learned how to make pillowcases in our sewing class. I love the great little piping detail. The cuff of the pillowcase is doubled and you can't see any seams.

Next time I'll get enough fabric to have the print running horizontal instead of vertical. I figure my kids sleep crooked anyway, so I don't think it will bother them.

The cuff is done in yellow polka dot. Love that.

I don't feel qualified to write up a tutorial, but I found a great one here. My measurements are a little different, but otherwise I followed it exactly as written. I used a 10 inch cuff and a 3 inch piping.

Birthday Tutu Shirt

The little girl is turning three this Friday. I wanted to make her something special to wear for her party, but I think she might insist on wearing it everyday this week!

This was my first time doing any type of machine applique. There are tons of useful resources out there to show you how to create an applique.

The whole project cost right around $10. I purposely got a larger shirt size so she could wear it with some little leggings and still feel like a ballerina.

The inspiration for this project came from a tutu tutorial over at Joy's Hope.

2 of 3 completed

I made this bag using Amy Butler's Birdie Sling Bag pattern. It's a gift for my sister in law, who hopefully has her hands too full with brand new little Nate to read my blog right now. It's going to be hard to part with this one, but I'll definitely make one for myself very soon.

It's a very sturdy bag and looks like it will hold tons!

It is lined with some great interior pockets. I'm also going to make a few zippered pouches to help keep the little stuff a little more accessible.

If you're interested in making this bag, check her website for a pattern correction. One of the pictures is printed wrong and there's a correction on her site. Don't ask me how I know - let's just say there was a glass of wine and a seam ripper involved!

The fabrics are from Amy Butler's Midwest Modern line.

Here are a couple other resources if you're interested in making this bag.
Grace Designs
U-handblog

Her Feathers Aren't Ruffled . . .

. . . but her pant legs are!



These might be the only pair of pants I ever sew. I worked from a pattern - a pattern obviously written for someone who has a little more sewing knowledge than I do. I was able to get the two legs done with little problem. When it came to actually sewing the legs together to make them look like pants, I was totally lost and was able to take them to my sewing class for some guidance.

Making and sewing the ruffle on was by far the easiest part! Now that I know how to do this - everything might get a little ruffle!. Honey, I promise to refrain from putting ruffles on the boys' pants.

Have A Little Heart

I was inspired by this heart mobile at Pottery Barn Kids. I picked up Moda's Candy Kisses Charm Pack by Sandy Gervais for $6.00

Cut out heart shapes and sewed them together - wrong sides facing. My little helper, Meg, stuffed them for me.

I'm going to hang them from the light above the breakfast table, but I'm going to at least wait until February.

Lesson learned: don't use the pinking shears to make the initial cuts. Wait until the heart is sewn together and trim edges with pinking shears.

Reversible Apron: Take One

The little apron dress wasn't going to work for Davis. I found this tutorial and decided to tweak it a little.

I couldn't choose which fabric I liked best, so I decided to make it reversible. I put a little pocket on one side and a crayon pouch on the other side.

Yes, those are our dining room walls sans wallpaper. Yeah!

Apparently I should have consulted my client first. After trying it on, he immediately ran to get his construction hat and all the tools he owns. He said, "I want to be just like the character in Katy No Pocket". OK then.

I guess I'll be sewing another with lots of pockets for him and all his tools!

A Little Apron Dress

I started this little apron dress at my sewing class last week and was able to finish it up over the weekend. I found the pattern from a great little Etsy shop, Leila and Ben. Meg loves it, and I was finally able to pry it off of her at bedtime.

Her big brother is patiently waiting for me to make him one - not this girly, of course.

Sewing Project #1: Crayon Roll

I finished my first project on my new sewing machine. Let me tell you, my sewing machine rocks! I found a great blog, Skip To My Lou, and among the wonderfully creative resources was this tutorial.

I had a few questions (who knew rick rack comes in so many sizes?). I emailed Cindy and she promptly answered my questions and gave me the encouragement I needed.


My rick rack is a little "wonky" in some places, Also, if you look closely you'll see I only have 15 crayon pockets instead of the 16 I'm suppose to have.

But for the first go round (ok second, but the first one shouldn't count because I stuck myself pinning several times and got a little frustrated) I'm very pleased with the end result. It really was a lot of fun, and I'm looking forward to doing more.


If you're looking for great ideas for just about any occasion, head on over to Skip To My Lou and be inspired.

I'm Sew Excited!

I hope everyone had a great Christmas. We had a lovely time and got to spend some quality time with family.

My very generous father-in-law gave me this beauty for Christmas.

He purchased it at a local quilting store. I'm going tomorrow to learn the important stuff - like how to turn it on and thread the needle.

I can't wait to get started. I've been looking through my del.icio.us page for sewing ideas I've been saving for awhile.

I'm going to start with something relatively easy. Hopefully I won't be able to screw up these cloth napkins from Design*Sponge.

Don't you think the kids would love these super hero capes.

TipNut also has a great resource of tutorials for making aprons. (Honey, please don't laugh - you don't have to cook to need an apron. It would be nice to wear one while I decoupage something).

I've always thought these crayon roll-up pouches would be great gifts.

This should be enough ideas to get me started. As soon as I teach the baby how to change his own diaper and show the big kids how to make their own pjbs, I'll be able to get some sewing done!

Anyone Out There Sew?

Bob and I are going shopping for a sewing machine next week. I feel like I'm buying a new car. With the high price tag and all the features and functions, my head is spinning.

There's a great quilting shop in downtown Annapolis, Cottonseed Glory. They carry Bernina machines and offer classes and all sorts of support. The reviews I've read pretty much say that the Bernina's rock. Does anyone have experience with one, or another brand/model you would recommend.

Thanks!