I have crafty news to share! Yesterday, I participated in my very first craft fair as part of a local festival called the Feast of Lanterns. The event is a revival of a tradition that dates back to Victorian times when the neighborhood would decorate the local park with paper lanterns to celebrate the Chinese […]

Here are Josie and Kate’s “hip hop” lounge pants in action. I know I’m lucky to have a husband who can appreciate silly homemade frog pants, not to mention dressing to match his daughter.
This photo also features Josie’s one-of-a-kind Mini Muffin t-shirt made by Dad for Christmas. So cute!

Happy Holidays! Christmas 2006 was filled with wonderful visits with oodles of family members this year. We were so lucky to be able to see all members of both mine and Kate’s immediate family — plus several aunts, uncles, cousins, and friends besides.
I didn’t give many handmade gifts this year (for obvious reasons). That felt […]

Of course, we had to dress Miss Josie for Halloween. Nevermind that she was pretty much oblivious to the whole thing. One of her first nicknames was Josie-Mouse because of her little newborn squeaks, so here she is!
The pattern for the costume came from Ottobre Magazine (4/2006). Their version was as Piglet from Winnie the […]

I’m so happy to have my sewing machine back from the repair shop! It was only gone for a few days, but it had been behaving badly for quite some time. Now, it’s all back and as good as new.
Here’s the diaper bag I just finished from the Amy Butler Nappy Bag pattern. Whew, this […]

So, we’re planning to use cloth diapers as much as possible for this little girl. I’ve been really intrigued by all of the styles there to choose from, especially since many of them come from small cottage businesses or homemade from patterns. I got on a diaper sewing kick last year and have been slowly […]

I’ve been avoiding the computer during non-work hours these days, but today I sat down to create a flyer to post up at the office about selling our piano. I have mixed feelings about letting it go . . . but when it comes down to it, I don’t use it enough to justify the […]

I picked up the premiere issue of a new craft magazine today. My two first impressions are (1) I like it, and (2) whoa, this must be sponsored by Hancock Fabrics. For some reason #2 is a bit of a bummer, but that’s mostly just because I have yet to find an HF store where […]

I gave this oversized tote bag to my little sister for her birthday. She’s a teacher, and she loves to have big bags for carrying all those papers and books.
It’s pretty much just a basic lined tote with a reinforced bottom. This one was actually going to be my prototype, but once I added the […]

The wife of one of my co-workers just had a baby girl who is having some serious liver problems. In lieu of a baby shower, the folks in my department got together to make a quilt. I brought in pink and white fabric squares and some fabric paint pens so that everyone could design their […]

But, they were awfully fun to make.
Here are five sets of fleece hats and mittens (kids sizes) that I made for the fall sewing swap on Sewing Mamas. (Actually, there are six sets, including my original prototypes!)

The hats are from the 03/2005 edition of Ottobre magazine. Oh, I am so in love with […]

As part of my month of sewing, here’s a cute little onesie made from some vintage kitty knit fabric that came from Kate’s aunt. The pattern is Kwik Sew #2656, size 3-6 months.
This was my first experience with a Kwik Sew pattern, and I’m really happy with how it turned out. The instructions were easy […]

I have knitting to show you, but the camera is sitting on my parents’ kitchen table across town. Arg. So, the photographic evidence will have to wait.
In addition to the knitting, I’ve been hanging out at the new SewingMamas.com forums. Even though I don’t (yet) fulfill the “mama” aspect of the site, I’m finding that […]

With three new nieces/nephews on the way, I’ve been on the lookout for cute baby projects. There will be knitting, of course, but I think there will also be embroidering. I scored a few white onesies on sale at Target the other day, and treated myself to some new patterns from the always divine Sublime […]

There’s been too much crafting and not enough blogging going on around here! I’ve been especially focused on sewing lately, because I’m trying to finish up a few things to bring along on vacation.
I have a real love/hate relationship with craft deadlines, it seems. On the one hand, over-extending myself around Christmas time can be […]

This is the Amy Butler Swing Bag pattern made using a couple of fabrics from her Ginger Bliss collection. I’ve been hoarding her stuff in my stash for months. Now that I’ve finally made the first cut, I don’t see an end in sight! This one is (probably) going to my mom for her birthday […]

As mentioned earlier, my brother’s recent wedding sparked a bunch of craftiness. I don’t have pictures that capture all of it, but here are a couple of snaps.
The first is the afghan I made as their wedding gift. It was difficult to really get the whole thing on film because of the drab colors […]

Oh dear, time has been flying lately. Time to catch up on what my ongoing and upcoming projects are. I feel the need for a reality check. I suspect I may have unrealistic expectations…
On the Needles
1. Wedding Afghan for Nathaniel: 75% done, need to finish by 3/12
2. Peace Fleece Everyday Cardigan for me: 65% done
3. […]

Good things really came in two’s this weekend…
Stash-o-rama
Stashbusting is off to a rip-roaring start. I’m happy to say that I’m still feeling very motivated. I spent some time revisiting the stash, sorting, reorganizing, remembering it all. My two plastic bins (summery/baby and wintery/wooly) still don’t quite close nicely, and yes, there is quite a […]

Or more precisely, a pilates bag in this case. Here’s the quick carrier I made on the fly over the weekend to carry my yoga mat. I used stash fabric (woo hoo!), so I’m not really sure how much it took. I have just enough left over for two more bags — so my sister, […]

Just a few random goings-on…
Stash Busting
I spent a looong evening yesterday posting some of my craft stash on eBay. I have at least one more batch of items to post today or tomorrow, also. Why does this process always take so much longer than I expect it to? It’s annoying, but also worth it.
So […]

In order of urgency…
1. knit 3 2 toddler hats & 3 1 pairs of mittens
2. knit ear warmers (75% done)
3. knit toddler sweater (75% done)
4. sew 3 tote bags (fabric is cut and ready to go)
5. sew 2 sets of oven mitts
6. sew satin sash
7. sew satin sleeping mask
8. knit Kate’s sweater (need to add […]

I’ve been feeling inspired to start sewing more again. Can you blame me, looking at all those gorgeous yards of Amy Butler fabrics?? These are all from her Ginger Bliss collection. I was collecting a yard here and there from Fabric.com (beware the tempting e-mails that come from being on Steven’s mailing list!), and then […]

Believe it or not, I’ve got several photos in the digital camera at home destined to make an appearance on this blog… but for right now, I just want to get a handle on my list of Christmas gift crafts. I think I’m in denial (as usual) as to what amount of handmade gifts are […]

I logged in all set to post a few Halloween pictures, but first I have to bitch about the insane amount of comment spam that I’ve been hit with over the past couple of days. Like e-mail spam, paper junk mail, telemarketing calls, litter… comment spam is something that I am willing to put up […]

Click to see just how happy she really is!
That’s little Miss Miriam modeling the fun summer clothes that I was sewing a few weeks ago. She’s such a sweetie. (And so is her mom!)
I should have a completed back piece of the Emerald City Tank to show you by now, BUT I got within the […]

Hey! Looks like my creative blog guru (that’d be my husband Kate) has struck again. Thanks for the cool new heading animation, honey!
The other fun surprise of the day was a package from my super secret knitting buddy! I got several really cute fat quarters of quilting fabric, and a wrist support glove to help […]

Unable to suppress my curiosity about eyelash yarn… but not being the boa-scarf-wearing type myself… I decided to try out the Princess Snowball Cat Bed pattern from the Stitch ‘n Bitch book. It’s basically like a big floppy upsidedown hat for your cat to curl up in.
The yarn colors I’m using and my progress so […]

It always feels good to complete a project that’s been on the back burner for ages. Over the long weekend, I finally covered a piece of foam to make a decent cushion for a cute garage sale chair that we found — gosh — could it be two years ago already? I went out and […]

My first sick day of 2004. Ugh. I’m pretty wimpy, so it’s not like I’m on death’s door or anything — but I have been feeling crummy all day. Especially during the night. I didn’t get much sleep and woke up feeling green, so I spent most of the day sleeping.
I woke up with a […]