Birthday love

I have to share some goodies from my blogger friends. Last week was my birthday and some fun mail showed up on my door step!

I'd like to thank Mary Ann for this very pretty fabric. There is plenty to have fun with. I have been reading Japanese crafting magazines and I can use this with some linen and vintage trims to make a couple of cute bags. So thank you very much Mary Ann! And by the way, she has a very cool give-a-way going on. Check it out!

Lindsey's birthday is just one day after mine and she surprised me with a bunch of goodies.

Lindsey challenged me with these squares.

Buttons and puppy prints! Included is also a fabric pendant. I'll be using the little snap pouch to keep my jewelry from tangling while traveling.

All these scraps from her Swell Quilt!

All the frogs agree that this was a good birthday!

Thanks everyone for the emails, phone calls, and well wishes!

Getting back into the sewing saddle

Sometimes a small sewing project can get me thinking about more ambitious projects. I whipped up a set of 6 coasters using the Amy Butler Lotus print and some linen from an up-cycled skirt. I also used some scrap flannel as a absorbent layer.

I used a continuous straight stitch to quilt all layers together. The flannel added a great weight.

I used a hidden stitch to close the turn openings.

I also used some of my scraps to make a large hot pad. No more using multiple pot holders or folding a couple of dish towels to protect your table top. Now you can take your largest pan from oven to table top and it looks pretty too.

I used thrifted bias tape to bind the layers together. This was my first attempt to finish binding by hand. It only took me a 2 hour movie to finish!

This is the reverse side. A more simple design with the print in the middle flanked on each side by linen.

Purple and Gray Swap

Months ago Ann-Margret and I decided to do a personal swap. I decided on a color theme and chose purple and gray. Ann-Margret knows how to pack a box, let me tell you. She gave me many items of inspiration including a handmade card holder that I am now using to hold my Moo Cards. Trims, zippers, paper, stationary, yarn, pens, soap, ribbons, and fabric too.


Ann-Margret chose the colors apple green and red. You can see what I sent her here. I found this awesome piece of embroidery at a thrift store and turned it into a red themed summer bag. I think its one of my favorite reclaimed items.

Birthday weekends

*sigh of contentment*

My birthday isn't until this coming Wednesday, but we started a little tradition of extending the birthday celebrations to the weekend before. You kinda get a free pass to do fun things and spend money (moderately). Like yesterday I went to a Lavender Festival with a good friend of mine and yard saled our way back home. Afterwards, Jeff and I left to find an open thrift store to find fondue forks (found a brand new stainless steel fondue pot a while back for $5!). We left the thrift store empty handed and used our BedBath coupon to acquire a set, which then lead to Thai for dinner, and used my Birthday Coupon from Cold Stone Creamery (birthday cake remix all the way!). But our night wasn't finished yet. We headed to the grocery store and bought lemons for lemonade and salted shell peanuts for snacking.

Now it's Sunday afternoon and I wish it was still Saturday. I don't want my weekend to be over. Right now we are both sitting on our shaded patio after just finishing a bike ride. I threw a vintage table cloth over our small outdoor table. Jeff is reading the paper and I tried to download all my photos from my camera. We are both sipping lemonade. So perfect.

I was only able to download one set of photo's before the camera battery died. That's why we use rechargeable batteries I suppose. I did get a chance to post a new pin cushion in the shop along with another reusable grocery bag. I am trying to finish sewing up all the to-do projects so there may be some odds and ends showing up on Etsy over the next few weeks.

Tonight we are going to enjoy a special dinner out on the patio. Awhile back I grabbed some king crab legs for $7/lb! We figured we enjoy them this evening with butter. I doubt we'll make anything else. Just eat a bunch of crab and that's fine with me. :)

I have a few posts lined up for this week once I get the pictures.
1) A very delayed swap post.
2) Lavender festival
3) How does my container garden grow? Very well thank you!

I am sure when I wake up tomorrow it will be Saturday again.

Where in the world...

have I been? Ah well, there is something called a full time job and sunshine. :) Heh.

Online shopping is still fun. I wanted to share a few Etsy shops I have purchased items in lately.

Funky Fabrics- has the new Anna Maria Horner fabric for $12.50/yard!

Bee Square Fabrics- bought a little flat quarter pack of the My Folklore fabric. Love it. Requested more of it for my birthday!

Bridgeman Studios- I got the perfect pair of tea bowls in a vibrant turquoise color. Beautiful!

Pomadour- Japanese crafting magazines!

Karaku Fabric- Japanese fabric prints!


Here a a few fresh favorites I hope to purchase from in the future...

Cotton Blue - I can't stop checking back just to admire.

Gabriella Fiabane- I love paintings involving large portions of sky.

Marie Fly Fly- Very colorful, very soft, very fem.

Care to share a few of your Etsy favorites in the comments? I'd love to have a look!