Dan's Sharpie Mug Creation

Though this is not sewing related or something I made... I have to share the creation my husband made for me.  I know you've all seen the "Pinterest sharpie mug" and I found a blog that was able to wash her mug after creating, so I followed her how-to.  You can find Homemade Chic's post here.  She suggested using the oil based sharpie and then using an acrylic sealant afterwards.  I got Dan the fine tip markers off amazon for around $10 for a set of five.  I got the mug at Target.

He sat down and created this masterpiece in less than an hour!

I put it on a baking sheet in a cool oven, turned it on to 350 degrees and when the oven was preheated, baked it for 30 minutes. After that, I turned the oven off, let it cool in the oven for about 15 minutes and then took it out to cool completely.

The quote, of course, is from an episode of Parks and Recreation, said by none other than Ron Swanson.  I can't wait to enjoy all morning coffee in my new, amazing mug!

Cheers!

delayed new year's resolution

It doesn't seem to me there are enough hours in the day for a person to get everything done that they need to. I find myself making lists. Lists of groceries, lists of calls for work, lists of crafts to complete... However, there are two resolutions I really need to follow through with this year.

Get healthier. I need to watch what I eat, how much I eat and exercise even though I'd rather be sewing. I had a terrible issue with my sciatic nerve acting up on me at the end of December, so I do have to progress slowly with the exercise, but something is better than nothing.

Blog more. I've left this poor blog sit almost a whole year! I have completed so many awesome projects and I have not posted anything! So... here goes!

Wedding extravaganza

Right now I am procrastinating. In less than a month, my sister is getting married. So far, I have sewn two bridesmaid dresses, a jacket for the bride, a fabric flower for her hair, a wedding quilt (99% complete), little cakes for her shower and have done countless other "maid of honor" duties. Don't get me wrong, I offered to make all of these things and am happy to do it, but it is consuming my sewing/craft life. I am currently procrastinating on making her purse.

See, this is the problem with being crafty... Your sister says, "I really want a green jacket but I can't find exactly what I want" and you say, "I can make that!" You can look at something and think, "if I made that, it would be cheaper... and the right color!" and this is why I am currently working on a purse pattern for a green purse with fabric flowers on it.

Unfortunately, I have not taken a picture of a single project, but I'm sure I'll have some after the wedding :) I still need to write my speech too! I think this wedding is more stressful than my own wedding was!! But I am having fun providing my sister with what she is envisioning in her head and not with what she has to settle for because what she wants doesn't exist. Though we don't like to admit it, every woman wants to feel like a princess sometimes, and my sister's wedding day is good excuse for those of us around that her to make it happen.

So my ability to work on UFOs (which desperately need to be attended to) or bedding and pillows for our unfinished guest room, or even the quilting on two quilt tops I've had finished for over a year will have to wait... at least another month. As for helping my neighbor learn how to quilt, that will have to wait too. I'm sure she'll understand.

I do however have a good first few ideas. Martha Stewart had a pillow pattern in her sewing encyclopedia to create this design on a pillow. This might seem a little complicated for a novice sewer, but I think having the ability to finish just one block and then being able to use it is quite rewarding. I started with an entire friendship quilt, but I had someone pushing me every step of the way, even when she wasn't there anymore... I think this pillow will be a good first project.

Next time, more wedding craftapalooza and sewing lessons for the noobs.

teaching??

My husband and I purchased a house in Late October of last year. With the winter, all of our neighbors were in hiding from the snow and cold. Recently, Spring has come out to greet us and the neighborhood is back in full swing.

Yesterday, our neighbors were having a cookout and invited us over to spend some time. Sitting there, my one neighbor noticed my new tattoo (pictures to come) and commented how much she liked it. My tattoo is a bird (sailor jerry style) holding a piece of thread with a needle on it and the spool falling down. I thanked her and then she asked if I sew. I said I did and then she asked what I sew. Well, this is somewhat of a difficult question to answer, since I do a lot of sewing, but said that I am currently really into quilting, which is true.

My neighbor got very excited and said, "I would love to learn how to quilt. Could you show me?" I said I could. Only twice have I shown someone how to sew. The first was my sister and she tried it once and gave up. The second was my husband who, after the lesson, stated "this is more difficult than it seems." Sewing seems like such an easy task to me since I have been doing it since I was 10... Which makes me wonder if it's me who can't teach?

Oddly enough, my job requires me to teach adults how to use computer software and then re-teach them when they've forgotten something. I seem to do that well since I have many clients tell me how much they appreciate me. So what am I doing wrong when it comes to sewing? Something I hold so dear to my heart?

I think in the next couple of weeks I am going to re-evaluate my past "sewing lessons" and see if I can't come up with a program I could give my neighbor to help her learn how to sew and learn to love it as much as I do.

Almost a Year has passed

Wow... time flies!

It has been almost a year since my last post and so much has changed! First off, I have a new job that I LOVE... which doesn't leave me time during the day to blog (I'm currently at lunch). My husband and I bought a house in October and have been painting and fixing things all winter! My sister is getting married in May and so I am working on a wedding quilt as well as bridesmaids dresses... along with shower gifts, wedding jacket, wedding purse etc... Crazy but I want to do it all!!

I also finished her cross stitch. It took me a year and a month but it's DONE... so I have to post pics of that as well. Life has been good and I love my new sewing space! So I guess I need to take pics of what I have been up to and make time to post a little more frequently.

Due to spring weather coming, I think I want to make some cotton skirts and start dressing a little girlier!

Stay tuned!

quick note

ugh... it is so hard to concentrate at work right now. I started and am close to finishing a crochet cthulhu at home waiting for me...

All I really want to be able to do is craft all day!! I wish I could make money from my crafts and work from home. It never seems like there is enough time in a day to do all I want to do, especially with work getting in the way ;)

Hopefully pictures of mr. cthulhu tonight!

Crochet Ninja

I received Creepy Cute Crochet for my birthday and had yet to try it. Honestly, trying to crochet intimidated me, even though I've knitted before. Well, I decided to just sit down and practice and eventually got the hang of it. Trying to keep your tension the same is a little tricky, but it's less painful on your hands compared to knitting.

I decided to try one of the easier patterns and made a white ninja for my husband. It turned out pretty dern well for a first! He stands about 5 inches tall and is not a happy ninja! I think the neck is a little skinny, but check out the crochet throwing star! Seriously tiny!
I think that this book has some really great patterns for first time crocheters. It does not have how to do the different stitches, so I recommend either checking that out online or buying one of those first time crochet books. I always think having some cool project to work towards instead of just a scarf sometimes keeps you motivated.

OH! I also recommend checking out this video by Wiremysoul on Instructables. It really helps with getting started when you can see someone else do the steps first.

Good luck and keep crafting!!