Surprise Baby Shower

Color inspiration!

 

 

 

 In the middle of November I hosted a surprise baby shower for my friend and neighbor.  It was disguised as a brunch amongst friends, so I was able to have everyone bring something to share for the meal.  That allowed me to sneak in a tiny bit of sewing/decorating for the party.  The week previous to the shower we hosted our annual Harvest Party where 40 of our friends come over for a home cooked fall themed meal.  The fall decorations were still out so I decided to use the centerpieces of winter kale and pumpkins as the color inspiration.  The day before the shower I stopped in at my local quilt shop and was elated to see Kate Spain's new fabric line Terrain on the shelves*! Right then and there I knew I NEEDED to make a fabric banner to make my dining room more festive. 

 The gender of the baby is a surprise even though the decorations are insinuating girl. Just a half a yard of three prints, two packages of thrifted bias tape, and 80 minutes later the banner was cut, sewn and hung.( I love pinking shears!)

 A friend came over the night before to help me make the tissue paper "chandelier ".  I was totally trying to channel Dale Chihuly when I was brainstorming this feature. (Side note: have you seen the PBS special about him?!)  I ended up with a nebulous jelly fish looking sculpture, which honestly, is better than I anticipated. I have it hanging in my sewing room because I like it so much.

 It was such a simple way to dress up the room and it added so much ambiance.  It has me thinking of making banners for every special occasion to hang in this room!

* I am beyond excited that my LQS is stocking more "modern" prints.  I'd like to think that it has something to do with every trip I am there I asked if they are getting any ____ designer fabric from their new collection.  I always get a puzzled look and I can't help but wonder if a fabric store owner doesn't read blogs?

My most favorite sewing project this summer

 I made two dolls this summer.  Both were meant to be gifts, but little Ginger stayed with me.  She was my first.  And because of this her little arms aren't as securely attached as they should be and I learned that I needed to trim the tails on my embroidery floss shorter because you will see the excess strands through the fabric on her face.  But she makes me so happy. 

Stop right now and go make one for yourself or that little girl in your life. The pattern is free!

Back to Basics

 I decided I needed to expand my fabric stash.  I know, I know.  It was such a chore! I was cleaning up and refolding fabric a couple of months ago and realized that I own a lot of prints.  And not much else.  I needed to diversify.  So I started acquiring some solids.

Which then led me to think about what sort of prints could also be considered basics. Polka dots was clearly my answer.  I couldn't help myself with the Laura Gunn print on the bottom.  It is SO PRETTY!  I really love her collections.  I always fall hard for big bold prints!  What do you consider basics in your fabric collection? 

Sept 25 was a good day

Hello Lovelies.  I've been getting messages that it has been awhile since I have posted. :)  I am spending the evening cleaning off my camera and getting the photos resized.  Getting this accomplished makes blogging 100 time easier.  Sewing was at a minimum this summer. The garden really took over all my spare time and I only wished that I documented that adventure in more detail.  Much canning was accomplished and we are enjoying those fruits of our labor right now, quite literally.

I am so glad I did dust off the camera a few times this summer and I would have forgotten all about Sunday, Sept 25 if I didn't capture the following images.  It was a lucky find to say the least. 

11 genetically mutated clovers standing in a row.

One six leaf clover

A couple of 5 leaf versions.

And the remaining were four leaf beauties.

It's always fun to find them.  I don't think I will ever tire of finding four leaf clovers.  People say I must be a very lucky person to find so many four leaf clovers.  The only thing I'll admit to being lucky at is finding genetic mutations and then point to my husband. :P  

Reason #76 of why I garden

I can't believe that I have taken ZERO pictures of my garden this year!  I try to grab a few each month so I can reference back to see what blooms when, what plants play nice together, and as a general documentation of the progress we make over the years.  But not a single photo this year.  I have taken notes of bloom and harvest times and other notes to help me select plants in the future, but I have to get out this afternoon and take a few shots.

However, last week I did go pick some of my beautiful zinnas and arrange in one of my milk glass vases.  When it was done I couldn't stop looking at it.  It made my week!  These bloom as long gone, but I'll be out there tonight to pick a few more. 

This posting is so late it's embarassing!

Considering this swap took place a few months ago, I am very late in posting the wonderful goodies Ann-Margret of Piece of Mind sent me way back in May! Earlier in the year we contacted each other to do another swap.  In the past we have completed color themed swaps, but this time I suggested I would like a Woodland/Nature theme since I was loosely using this direction in decorating my living room which already has a fieldstone fireplace and hardwood floors.  Ann-Margret choose her favorite decorating theme of cottage chic (with a preference toward turquoise and yellow) and we both got to work.

So without further adieu here is what I received in my swap package. 

 Now Ann-Margret really knows how to fill a box!  Opening this package was like digging into Mary Poppins carpet bag!  There was a whole slue of stationary, which I already have put to good use.  My inner 8 year old screamed out loud when I saw the pony paper. :) 

 One of my favorite items she include was the trees identification cards!  I have them sitting out on my living room end table and they are quite a conversation piece. I've gone back and forth about what to do with the mini pine cones she collected from her backyard, but right now I think I'll be making a winter garland with them.

 Our package had just a couple of rules and one of which was to include a handmade item.  She sewed together a sweet pincushion from a scrap of vintage bunny fabric.  I keep it on my ironing board.  And I think it's funny that we both included a yellow rose in our packages.  This one is a magnet and since my sewing table is an old steelcase table, I use magnets to hold my patterns to my fabric instead of weights.  So this has been used many times!

Along with all the amazing goodies she included a fair trade necklace, wooden beads, ribbons, fabric, and a note pad that says "don't lose" which cracks me up.  Thank you Ann-Margret for such a wonderful swap!

Here is what I sent and you can view it in more detail here.

Thrift Finds

It's been a while since I recorded some thrift finds on here. I have found a few beauties over the past month and I grabbed a few photos from my latest haul. I have been in the middle of decorating my living room. The sofa reupholstery project helped furnish some of the room. New curtains were hung. I still need to upholster the coordinating chair and ottoman once I find the fabric.
I seem to be attracted to shiny accents for the room, so when I found this vintage (?) brass crane lamp (with working light bulb!) for $5 I did not hesitate to throw it in the cart. I did not take a picture of the under side of the shade, but there is a half moon piece of frosted glass that helps filter the light from the bulb. It casts a soft light and I love it. I also found a few fun drinking glasses. The purple print glass is a specific type of drinking glass that I think was featured in a Martha Stewart magazine article a while back. I just tried searching her website for a link, but if you know what I am talking about, please fill me in! I wouldn't mind a whole collection of this type of glassware. And you know no home is complete without a crank pencil sharpener in the basement or garage, so I am excited I found one. I also amassed a collection of white glass mixing bowls and bakeware. I now have a complete set of bowls with this latest find. :)

Oh, and check this out. I have already shared my love of secret places and locks and keys. So I found this key, which fits into this lock.....


I was so surprised to find the key stored in an inside zipper pocket! I'm not sure if I'll leave it as-is or modify the exterior in some cool Anthropologie-ish manner. It's in pristine condition.

It's nice to find a few great used pieces to incorporate into my home. Now I can check "sew overnight bag" off my things to do. And I have a lamp for the living room. And you can't have too many dishes can you? Don't answer that question if you are thinking "yes".