Cliche Title Remarking on My Absence

Ah, but the details are typical and not really worth sharing with the world :)

While I've been attending to my Mom Duties, I've actually made a ton of things!  Time to share!

I made this hoop several months ago for my friend jexxican.  We share a love of trees.  I had a hard time not keeping it for myself, no joke!

The design is from the lovely book "Little Stitches" by Aneela Hoey.  I love the designs in this book and the way they portray childhood.  So sweet.  The book is also great for instructional purposes and has great inspiration for using different fill stitches.

Thanks for looking!  More projects from the archives soon!

A Farewell To Summer (sort of)

Ahh, finally, back to school!  I always feel slightly mean when I excitedly count down the days until the kids are back in school, but its true.  This year they started a little later than normal, an effort by the district to keep the kids out of very old buildings with no air conditioning, due to the fact that Colorado is quickly becoming a desert. (sort of)  First day of school was Monday, and the high for the day was a whopping 98 degrees...so much for that idea.

We had a great summer!  Had lots of fun here in the city, and still had time to participate in a few Craftster swaps!  I've got a back log of photos of things I made over the summer that I haven't had time to share with y'all, so the next couple of posts will get you caught up on my latest adventures in makin' stuff.

This trio was made for the Sew Something Summery Swap--so much fun to dive in to a sewing themed swap when I still consider myself very much a beginner.  A very simple (and reversible) tote bag, wristlet, and lined zipper purse.

I found some PVC shower curtain in the remnant bin at JoAnn and lined the inside with it.  I didn't write down the measurement of the bag (duh) but it is big enough and designed for a wet swimming suit to be thrown into.  This came out better than expected, and while I didn't have time/will/energy to make more, it is definitely on my list of items to make for the kids for next summer.

 Of course I had to throw in some fancy embroidery to try to make up for the sewing  being so simple.

The center of the flower is all french knots!  Honestly, I was very happy to have a project that would give me the opportunity to make a bazillion of them, is that twisted or what?  Also, any chance to practice satin stitching is a good one, so I used tons of that too!

Ah, I think I'll enjoy the quiet of only have one kid at home for the rest of the afternoon, in the A/C, of course.  Because, back to school may say fall, but around here, mother nature says it going to be 95 degrees today.  Yay summer!

Lady Crafts

I finally succumbed to peer pressure and read The Hunger Games.  I remember two years ago when Shorty was raving about it, and as she told me about it, I kept thinking how it may not be appropriate subject matter for a sixth grader--sounded so violent!  I also have a tendency to avoid teen fiction (don't get me started about Twilight!) because, while I still don't quite feel like a grown up, I am a realist and have a hard time relating to 16 year old girls.

Anyway, while it is quite the gory read, I am so glad I finally sat down and gave it a chance.  Katniss is not your typical teen age girl and after I spent two nights with my nose buried in a book for the first time in ages, I had a lot to think about.  Like fear and control and oppression and strength and survival and love in the most horrible of places.  For some reason it kept bringing me back to thinking about a conversation I had with ERL after watching a Twilight Zone (or was it Outer Limits?).  Either way, it was about a post-apocalyptic future and he turned to me and said, "You know, you ladies with your needles and hooks are really going to save us all."

He's so right!  I've read a few things about the feminist movement and that many woman dropped crafts, not only to go into the workforce, but because they felt knitting, crocheting, embroidery and things of that nature were anti-feminist.  Things have shifted back the other way and woman are learning to do those things once again, learning the skills from their mothers, friends, books and the wonderful world wide web.  I for one intend to pass down what I've learned (and am still learning) to my daughters so that they too can learn that there is nothing more feminist then women sharing valuable skills with one another and the world.  I know that I can mend torn clothing and crochet a basket out of anything rope-like, and for that, I feel empowered.

Maybe these skills aren't the most important on the survival skills ladder, but since I know I will likely struggle to kill something for food, the least I can do is make a pretty pillow.

Oh yeah, I made a pretty pillow!

Yet another gorgeous design from Doodle Stitching :)

Get out there and make something pretty (or useful) ladies!  I think I might just find a stick and a blade and whittle myself a crochet hook...

Welcome to the World Little One!

Today I'm sending out well wishes and congratulations to my bestie Ruby Murray on the birth of her gorgeous baby girl!  While I'm sitting thousands of miles away just wishing I could squish that little bundle of beauty, thought I'd share some things I've made for and picture her wearing them :)

There is something so satisfying about crocheting baby clothes.  They work up quick, don't require a whole lot of yarn and their tiny nature makes them instantly adorable.  This is the Angel Wings Pinafore from Bev's Country Cottage.  I cannot say enough good things about this website!  Tons of free patterns for all things crochet and despite my out of control collection of crochet books and magazines, it is always the first place I go for baby items.

This pattern was so quick and easy to follow, and only used about a half a skein of yarn.  I made a second one with the other half for another girlfriend who is expecting any day now!  I decided not to seam it up like a dress and put a button on it so that it can be worn open and used for layering.

And of course I couldn't go with making her something with just one type of craft I'm currently obsessed with...I had to do a little stitchin' for her as well!  Found this lovely little cardigan for a great price and couldn't wait to fancy it up!

This was my first time using interfacing to stitch on stretchy fabric, and honestly I don't know why I waited so long!  The image came from the awesome book Doodle Stitching by Aimee Ray which I'm sure I've mentioned before because I love that book so much!  How about a close up?

Makes me feel happy just looking at it!

Congrats again to Ruby Murray and sorry for the spoiler as the cardi hasn't been shipped yet!

Again with the embroidery!

Just can't help myself!  Here's my latest project, which presented an ENORMOUS challenge for me, but I fell in love with the pattern, provided for free by Gina Matarazzo (thank you!!!) so I welcomed the learning opportunity!

Its mostly done in back stitch but also some satin, split and the squiggles on the birds were done in the scalloping chain stitch I found in the Sublime Stitching book.
Oh!  and a special thanks to the Sublime Stitching website, for having a great tutorial on the french knot!  I went through four needlework books instructions and couldn't figure the buggers out until I found their tutorial.
I actually did count the french knots in this piece and there are 220!  Whew!
A few close ups!

Have a lovely week!  I'll be back soon!

Stitchin Away

Remember that time Spidermom wrote a blog post about a Yarn Mountain that was in serious need of de-stashing?  Yeah...about that...I have a tendency to be easily distracted when it comes to crafts.  I set out to do a lot of practicing crochet technique this summer, making small projects.  I promise I really did that, for a little bit.  But then...I found an afghan hook looking sad and unloved on a clearance rack and raced home to pull out my favorite craft book EVER, the Readers Digest Complete Book of Needlework from 1979 that I rescued from a thrift store (not the Stinky Thrift, but a rather fancy one on the other side of town, we'll call it the Not Stinky Thrift)

I followed instructions for basic Tunsian Stitches and made a little pouch., which, to the amazement of my family (i.e. NinjaBoy) it looked like it had been knitted!  How could I not have to play with that for a while?  So ERL bought me a book on Tunisian crochet and the completely awesome Denise Interchangeable Crochet Hook set and I'm now working on two projects, one for a friend, and the other is actually for me!

Anyway, that is my excuse for not following through with my goals even after I publicly set them!  This post is supposed to be about stitching, of which I have been doing TONS.   I am crazy for embroidery.  I've always touted the relaxing qualities of crochet, but I'm starting to think that embroidery may top it.  It can be dangerous, however.

This wicked iron burn is from cutting out a transfer on the ironing board while the iron heated up.  Duh.  That's my first craft related injury in a long time.  The kids all think its cool and NinjaBoy said its gonna be an awesome scar.  Thanks buddy, but there goes my dream of becoming a forearm model.

The embroidery binge was started by being contacted by the fantastic artist Spooky Pooky to do a personal swap, after she saw this piece that I made for a Doctor Who swap over on Craftster.

Lady Cassandra is a bizarre and often forgotten villain on Doctor Who, but one of my favorites because she is just so very weird.  It's a 4" hoop and all my own design, of which I am very proud.  It makes me laugh, and for those of you who don't watch Doctor Who and are thinking "nerd alert! nerd alert!" behave and give it a try, its really so much fun.  Kids even like it, and you know kids have the best taste in TV. ;)

As far as other people's desings go, I am in love with Aimee Ray's designs and picked up Doodle Stitching: The Motif Collection which I highly recommend and adore.  Stitched this hoop up for lanikins for a birthday gift (late, because she's really hard to make stuff for because she's an incredible artist).

I love this tree, and had some fun with different stitches (sorta, still consider myself very much a novice!).  Tree trunk is stem stitch, flowers and circles are back and satin stitch.

How bout some artsy shots?

I have a new camera, but am still working on using it to its full potential and I have really weird lighting in my house and/or I have no patience to wait for optimum light to take pictures of stuff I make.

Stay tuned, more projects almost finished in the works and cross your fingers next post will be wound free!

I'm Baaaack!

Spring is a hectic time in Mommyville.  Band concerts, field days, and picnics abound!  I have a mixed feeling of dread and relief when it comes to the summertime approaching, love the lazy days but hard to keep the wee little monsters occupied for two and a half months!  Amid all the chaotic days I have been crafting like crazy but too busy to share.  So here we go, catching up on all you've missed while I've been in hiding.

I have an awesome cyber-buddy/penpal/friend that recently had a birthday.  I've had a list of ideas for birthday gifts running for months prior, so it was hard to whittle down the list due to time constraints, with her living in another country and all!  A while back I scored a stack of vintage iron on embroidery transfers and in that stack was an adorable set of Days of the Week patterns, that are, well, lets just say a little politically incorrect.  I've been unable to figure out exactly when they were made, but my mom said probably 1960's at the earliest due to something about the printer having an address with a zip code. At any rate, I just love them to death and really had a hard time sending the first two days of the week off, but I knew they would be appreciated, especially for one who has just purchased a new home.

I intend for this lovely lady to have the whole weeks worth of international tea towels by the end of summer :)

Among the list of things I wanted to make was this lovely little bookmark, the great, easy to follow tutorial found on How About Orange.  This was a quick, fun project and I intend to make lots more.

Of course I couldn't send a package without making a little something out of yarn.  This headband was a pattern from Ravelry that I altered a bit to accommodate the fine yarn, and I dumped a huge jar of vintage buttons to find the lovely one I used in the center of the flower.  Bonita wears it well, but I'm willing to bet the recipient looks even cuter in it!

All in all, I hope she had a fantastic birthday!  Many more projects to share, check back soon!

P.S.  If you aren't reading Ruby Murrays Musings you are really missing out!

All You Need Is Love

ERL always gives me roses for Valentine's Day.  I, in turn, resist the urge to take the easy route and purchase junk food and a card with a cheesy poem on it and give him a homemade valentine.  This year, he was the recipient of my very first embroidery project.

The adorable pattern can be found here:  http://www.themodernladyblog.com/index.php/2011/02/02/heart-tree-carving-embroidery-pattern-tutorial/

Being a mommy, Valentine's Day is also an important day for me to show my other sweethearts just how much I love them.  Knowing that the sweet little things all hoard their valentine's from me every year, I decided to give them something in addition to their paper cards....

For NinjaBoy:

For Shorty:

For BabyGirl:

This year's Valentine's Day projects proved to me that its not so hard be heartfelt and thrifty...the felt bags were purchased for $1 a piece and I used fabric remnants for the backgrounds.  The patterns for the dog, swallow and kitty were all from the fabulous book Sublime Stitching.  I'd say the total cost to make all four gifts was around $10, not including the treats that will be stuffed inside for the kiddos.

Valentine's Day isn't really about roses or cards or gifts or candy, but I sure do love giving them to the ones I love.