To-Do List

My kids are staying with their grandparents for two weeks.  Here's my to-do list while they are gone.  Probably wishful thinking, but it's good to have goals, right?

 Sewing Projects

 1.  15 t-shirts for my ongoing sewing job; must be done this week YAY!
2.  2 burp cloths and 2 crib sheets for shower gift
3.  Jacob's bed skirt
4.  begin working on Bitty Baby patterns and an AG--had a burst of inspiration while finishing t-shirts
5.  2 block-of-the-month quilt blocks--yes, the program just started and I am already behind
6.  faux Roman shades for office
7.  mend camisole for my sister
8.  new pin cushion
9.  sew more stock for cutie pie & me
10.  sew pjs for Kelly
11.  fix Chris' shirts--change from long to short sleeve where ripped
12.  attempt zipper in Chris' pants
13.  Finish Minnie Mouse purses even though one recipient is now "over Minnie Mouse".  : /
14.  Sew thing for Gary's car; needs to be done by 7/26

 House Projects to do or "supervise"

 1.  Put away things in laundry room since cabinets got hung last night
2.  Bought file cabinet from Craig's List last night--need to spray paint it
3.  Finish cleaning and rearranging office (need finished file cabinet first)
4.  Hang wires in hallway and Kelly's room for artwork
5.  Find missing table legs to Grandma's sewing table!!  
6.  Unpack and display Ball jars in laundry room
7.  Hang Roman shades in dining room--didn't fit, have to return
8.  Rearrange broom cabinet and hang hooks
9.  Decide how to proceed with laundry sorting under counter
10.  Tools out of bedroom!!
11.  Switch my shirts over to new hangers
12.  Reorganize Jacob's room
13.  Unload silver box
14.  Keep working on cleaning and organizing basement
15.  Sort and organize recipes
16.  Put handle on pocket door in kids' bath

 General Goals

 1.  Add pin button to blog
2.  Read through all those pins about prettying up the blog and FB page
3.  Try to learn more about photo and graphic editing
4.  Get through more of the sewing project pile
5.  Organize kitchen drawers better
6.  Learn to use the Silhouette
7.  Exercise more!!!
Posted by at No comments

Gift in a Jar--Inspired By Pinterest

I recently attended my cousin's bride-to-be's bridal shower.  While I usually only shop the registry, I felt like branching out this time.  I was inspired by this post I found on Pinterest.  I went a little overboard and it took me quite some time to fit (almost) everything into the jar.  Here are some photos of what I included and the finished product.  
A shot of everything that was in the jar:  napkins (handmade), baker's
twine, plastic silverware, dishtowel, paper straws, note pad and pen,
cake tester, cookie cutters, ice cream scoop, cupcake liners,
mini spatula, microfiber cloth, monogrammed  dishcloths (why not!?), scrubbie, seeds, recipe cards, and thank you cards.  The recipe card maker 
is available at Skip-to-My-Lou.  I used some family recipes and a few of 
my favorites as well.

Close-up of fabric used for the napkins.  She likes to bike.

Close-up of monogrammed dishcloths.

View one.

View two.

View three.

I added a chalkboard label and piece of chalk.  While my
intention was to use the jar as the wrapping, I ended up
buying a reusable shopping bag so that she could
open the gift and throw the contents into the bag.
It took me about a week to get almost everything to fit,
so I figured it would be easier this way.  The label and chalk
are Martha Stewart products available at Staples.

The bride-to-be.  : )
Posted by at No comments
Labels:

Current Projects/Inspired by Pinterest

It seems like when you get a new house, there is a never-ending stream of projects you want to complete.  We, like most people, have more ideas than funds.  Good thing I've found Pinterest and that we are pretty handy.  : )

 Our house is seriously lacking in the window treatment area.  We did get black-out blinds right away for the kids' rooms so that they would sleep longer--is it too much to ask that they sleep past 6:00 am?!  The rest of the windows are either bare or have temporary paper blinds.

 I thought that I would like some Roman shades for the office, but didn't really want to deal with all the stringing and the hand sewing on of tiny rings.  Plus my office window is quite wide and I wouldn't be able to buy fabric wide enough to cover it without making two matching shades.  Enter Pinterest.  A quick search found numerous tutorials for converting a cheap mini blind into faux Roman shades.  After taking measurements, we headed to Lowes and Jo-Ann.

 While I was unable to find really cheap mini blinds in the widths we needed, we did find not-so-bad customizable width mini blinds.  I also got lucky and found some nice bamboo Roman shades on clearance (cheaper than my office blind project) that will fit my dining room windows.  Hopefully I still like them once I take them out of the packages!

 At Jo-Ann we chose a fabric and got black-out lining so that if need be we can use the room for a guest bedroom and I don't want the slats to show through the fabric.  Also, the back of the mini blind/Roman shade in the tutorials is not very pretty. This is a large window right on the front of my house.  I think if I line the shade with white, the white slats may be less noticeable on the outside of the house.  

 The tutorials I found all just glued the hems in the fabric.  I will be sewing mine because I am not a fan of just gluing a hem.  I will have to wing it a bit since none of the directions include any lining instructions.  They are all glued, after all!  I have about $60 in blinds and fabrics.  Not bad for custom shades for a 5 ft x 6 ft window.

 Here is the fabric we agreed upon:

 The fabric is laying on top of a quilt top I just finished piecing. This was also a Pinterest project.  Here's a link to the instructions.  I was lazy and didn't iron after each seam.  Don't make the same mistake!  My top came out a little wavy.  I know better.

 One more project in the works, besides my ongoing doll clothes piecework projects and cutie pie & me doll clothes, is a pincushion.  I have had my current pincushion for close to twenty years and it is just worn out.  Pins fall out of it if it rolls over--it's a little turtle that's not very balanced.  I want to make one in the "pinnie" style (on Etsy).  However, instead of just stuffing it with fiberfill I want to add some emory to keep my pins sharper and to give it some weight.  I can't find one pre made that I like, so I'm going to have to make one myself.  I'm having a hard time deciding on a pair of fabrics.  A few years ago I bought this fabric to make one.  Since I can't decide on anything different, I will probably just use this fabric and call it good for now.

 Yes, I work very slowly!!  I'll share pictures of these projects as I complete them.
Posted by at No comments
Labels: , ,
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)