Close enough

 Close counts, right?  The jacket is as done as I can get it for now because my stash let me down.  I know - horrors!!  I need four big dome fasteners (only have 2) and I was sure, in all the buttons I have, there would be four big red buttons.  Sadly no.  So, I'm calling the jacket done - until I can get to Fabricland to get what I need to totally finish it.  You'll have to use your imagination and pretend to see four large red buttons on the front where the pins are.

And....wonder of wonders!  It fits!!
(well, the sleeves and the body could have been
a wee bit longer, but it's okay)

- If you've discovered the many uses for beeswax wraps, perhaps you'd like to try making your own from the tutorial HERE.

- If we still had a garden I'd like THESE.

- Aren't THESE pretty?  I can think of lots of uses for them.

- Ummmmmm - WHY???

- Some of THESE are incredible!  

Today's quote..."Be nice to crafters.  We have enough creativity to make your death look like an accident and due to a lifetime of hot glue gun burns, we leave no fingerprints"

and we have a quilt...but wait!

Yes, there's a quilt top flimsy done using all the denim I cut up as you can see from this...

 But - sadly it doesn't seem to have made much of a dent in the container of denim.

And - since this picture was taken, I've chopped it up again (still befuddling the RC over why on earth I would want to do that).

- THIS might spark an idea about what to do with a paper road map.  Now we have GPS maps seem to be a thing of the past.

- I may have posted a link to something similar to THIS but it was a long time ago and so I thought a refresh might come in handy.

- I think THIS is rather awww-worthy.

- Wish I'd known about some of THESE ideas when my Dad was still with us.  He had THE biggest collection of rusty nails imaginable.

Today's quote..."The problem with crafting at 10:30 pm is that it comes exactly one minute before 2:30 am  if you're not careful"

AAaaaannnndddddd......

 We have a finish!!!

FOR SALE!!!

This one is titled 'Abandoned Blues' - a play on words of sorts, referencing the fact the house is abandoned and so were the jeans I used to create it.  Measures approx. 22x30".

- THIS is quite pretty  - I envision it as a mug rug.

- Have a peek through the creations by THIS amazing artist!

- THIS would keep someone toasty warm over the winter.

- This is something some of you might find of interest...

Today's quote is from Bob Marley..."Some people feel the rain, others just get wet"

Tote bag

******

I just finished working on a new tote bag.  Nothing, in itself, is the least bit exciting about that....but I DID have to come up with something to post about!  This one is made using recycled denim and lace from my stash.  The denim is some that I discharge dyed many moons ago and  had been lurking in my stash.

Front

Back (large pocket)

Another anonymous quote for you...."My wish for you is simple.  Have the best life imaginable, live like you will never grow old, laugh, giggle, cry if you must.  Play as hard as you work, make time for people and things you adore.  When you sleep I hope you have the best dreams that will make you wake up with a smile on your face.  And that you always know that you are loved.  That's my wish for you"

Another finish

This afternoon I had a bit of time to sew and I finished making a tote bag that will be added to the Christmas gifting cupboard....

This one should be titled 'Comedy of Errors Bag' because I managed to flub up the pattern royally and had to do some creative fixing to make it work.  I had the orange fabric in my stash and also had the 'crown-thingie' lurking in there too.  It's something that I've held onto waiting for the right moment to use it.  The denim was from a lovely big piece of yardage I found at the thrift store.  My idea of a  great gift!

Pattern, if you want to have a go at it (and are better at following directions than I am!!) is the 'Quilted Tote Bag' from HERE.  

Today your quote is a 'funny'....

If you know who did the drawing, please let me know so I can give proper credit!  

Something a little different

Over the weekend I played with some of my now almost-defunct denim stash and made a couple of the little hats for our grandsons from the link I gave you  a day or so ago.  Pictures aren't great, but I think they turned out rather cute.

They're reversible - with denim on the outside and some green cotton from my stash on the inside.  Pattern is the 'Reversible Bucket Hat' from HERE.

Today, instead of a quote, I have a poem to share with you...

THE FINAL INSPECTION

The Soldier stood and faced God,

Which must always come to pass.

He hoped his shoes were shining,

Just as brightly as his brass.

"Step forward now, Soldier,

How shall I deal with you?

Have you always turned the other cheek?

To My Church have you been true?"

The soldier squared his shoulders and said,

"No, Lord, I guess I ain't.

Because those of us who carry guns,

Can't always be a saint.

I've had to work most Sundays,

And at times my talk was tough.

And sometimes I've been violent,

Because the world is awfully rough.

But I never took a penny
That wasn't mine to keep.

Though I worked a lot of overtime,

When the bills just got too steep.

And I never passed a cry for help,

Though at times I shook with fear.

And sometimes, God, forgive me,

I've wept unmanly tears.

I know I don't deserve a place

Among the people here.

They never wanted me around,

Except to calm their fears.

If you've a place for me here, Lord,

It needn't be so grand.

I never expected or had too much,

But if you don't, I'll understand."

There was a silence all around the throne,

Where the saints had often trod.

As the soldier waited quietly,

For the judgment of his God.

"Step forward now, you Soldier,

You've borne your burdens well.

Walk peacefully on Heaven's streets,

You've done your time in Hell."

Author Unknown

The wonders of my stash

I know I promised to show you more of my project I did for the San Francisco School of Needlework and Design but I'm waiting to get some pictures of it now that it's been framed.  Hopefully I'll have that for you tomorrow (we actually have a wee bit of sun today which is much better for pictures).

So...in the meantime.....I've made myself a new purse!  I surprised myself with the fact that I found everything I needed in my stash and didn't have to buy a single thing.  Yay!!  The original pattern is called 'The Gadabout' and is by Studio Kat Designs.  Of course I changed it somewhat and added an additional pocket on the back as well as a recycled jean pocket to hold my keys.  

(btw - if you have a peek at the 'crazy quilt purses' category in my sidebar you can see some crazy quilted versions of this purse that I made earlier).

FRONT

BACK (showing the additional pockets)

INSIDE - there are more pockets than show in this picture.

Today your quote is from Billy Connelly...."A woman's mind is as complex as the contents of her handbag; even when you get to the bottom of it, there is ALWAYS something at the bottom to surprise you"

yawn....

I'm doing my post early today because I've had a couple of inquiries regarding the denim quilt I posted about yesterday.  The pattern is free and can be obtained HERE and also there's an updated version HERE.  They're really easy to make and could be created using cotton fabrics in place of the denim.  I think it would make up into a great I-Spy quilt for little ones too.

Soldiering onwards in the ongoing looking back series...

Yet more in my love affair with recycled denim.  Two pillows made in 2011.

2012 seemingly was the year for making felted bags.  I did quite a number of them and this is one example.  It was a gift for someone who is a pianist.

Another knitted project from 2012 - a journal cover.

In 2012 I took another online class from Carole Brungar called 'The Road To My House'.  It involved a great deal of free motion embroidery, something I wasn't particularly good at (still aren't!).  

The houses you see here are replicas of the houses I've lived in over the years.

The rest of the 'elements' are things that I love...there's a bookcase filled with books, a ball of yarn and knitting needles, a sewing machine, a spool of thread, a cup of coffee, flowers, and one of our cats, and my dog Odin. 

It was a really fun class and I definitely learned a lot.




Today your quote is from Anonymous..... "If you can lay down at night, knowing in your heart that you made someone's day just a little bit better, you know you had a good day"

 

Moving right along

And I can hear the collective 'would she just get ON with it already!!'  from my faithful readership.  So sorry, but I have absolutely nothing new that I am allowed to show you at the moment, so the looking back series will just have to continue for a little bit longer.  I do promise that I will be doing something I can show before long if you can just hang in there with me a little while!

This post bounces around a bit chronologically, but I thought you might like to see a few of the different things I created.  

 From 2012....
This was another of my recycled denim projects and was created for a throw on the back of our couch.  I really loved making this, so much so that when DH suggested that maybe it would be nice to have two smaller ones for the backs of our respective recliner chairs I was happy to oblige.
***UPDATED TO ADD - the pattern is free from HERE and an updated version is HERE.  

From 2011 - another of my recycled denim bags.

 In 2010 I took a wonderful online class (my first) from Carole Brungar where we created a fabric journal.  I, of course, being an over-achiever made one twice as thick as the original.  At that time we were planning to sell our house and move to the apartment and I wanted to have a memory book of our garden.  Each of the pages featured a photo of one of our flowers.  That was also the year that our garden was featured on the local garden tour so there was lots to celebrate.

The photo below shows a closeup of one of the pages.  If you embiggen it, hopefully you can see some of the details and can also see the table that my DH created using an old sewing machine base with a cement top.  We scrounged an old wooden rocking chair to complete the scene (wouldn't dare have sat in that chair though, because I suspect it would have fallen apart!).   We set it up at the back of the garden during the tour and many people commented on how pretty it was.

Today the quote is from Max Lucado.... "Next time a sunrise steals your breath or a meadow of flowers leave you speechless, remain that way.  Say nothing, and listen as heaven whispers, "Do you like it?  I did it just for you"

Plugging along

Well, at least I'm able to get back at my stitching, which is a huge step in the right direction.  I even actually managed to spend a whole night in bed last night (as opposed to having to be propped up in the recliner).  Still not working on anything I'm able to show you quite yet, so I will continue on with 'the series' (at risk of losing my faithful readership who really do want to see something new!!).

 Back in 2011 I was heavily into working with recycled denim and one of the things I designed and created then was a circular knitting needle case.  To the left you can see the outside and below the inside of what I came up with.  Unfortunately I didn't keep the pattern and couldn't likely make another one like it now (at least not without a lot of thought!).

 In 2011 I took part in another art doll round robin and this is the 'naked' doll I sent out into the world.

Her 'skirt' was metal as I remember, but I don't know the origin of it.  The upper 'body' was a glass part from a lamp.

Below you can see what came back to me, complete with her own table and vase of pretty flowers.  Her name was 'Anneelaw'.

I also took part in a crazy quilt heart swap and this is the one I created...

Today the quote is from Aristotle... "Educating the mind without educating the heart is no education at all"

A weekend post....

While I'm at it, I'll show you a couple pieces of my work from 2009...

For some reason I ended up covering a large coffee can with recycled denim and 'artsy' touches.




Pretty sure I missed the mark on it, but it still serves as a recycled paper receptacle in my studio, so there must be something about it I like.

 I also made a ring bearers pillow using what else but crazy quilting.  The center fabric was from a piece of the gown the bride wore.

Today's quote is from anonymous..... "Habit saves you the trouble of making a lot of dull decisions"

Another bit of looking back

Today I'll show you a few more of the things I made in 2007

In 2007 I was in the midst of my love affair with recycled denim and the tote bag on the left was one that I made for a Christmas gift.

 The bag on the right was a project I created during the Winter Olympics.  Stephanie Pearl-McPhee spearheaded a knitting olympics - the rules were that you were to cast on something when the Olympic flame was lit and that it was to be done when the flame went out at the end of the games.

This bag was knitted using torn strips of recycled denim.  It was a fun project, but VERY hard on my hands. 

This was another of the bags I did that year, most of which were given away as gifts.












Today the quote is from Ralph Waldo Emerson.... "Guard well your spare moments.  They are like uncut diamonds.  Discard them and their value will never be known.  Improve them and they will become the brightest gems in a useful life"

Further looking back, and yummy soup

I know summer isn't perhaps a time that one's thoughts (and taste buds) turn to hot soup, but something cold certainly hits the spot.  DH is the chief cook in our household and he's  come up with this recipe for Gazpacho Soup.  Mmmmm - it tastes so fresh and lovely on a hot day!  I thought you might like the recipe (there sounds like a lot of ingredients, but it's oh so worth it!)....

JACK's GAZPACHO SOUP

4 ripe tomatoes, peeled and chopped

2 stalks celery, chopped

1 sweet red (or green) pepper, chopped

1/2 c. chopped onion

1/2 c. chopped cucumber

2 green onions, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 tbsp. fresh chives, chopped

1/4 c. fresh basil, chopped

1/4 c. fresh parsley, chopped

4 c. tomato juice

2 tsp. sugar

1/4 c. red wine vinegar

3 T. lemon juice

1/3 c. olive oil

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. worcestershire sauce

6 drops Tabasco sauce (or to taste)

Place all ingredients (in batches) into blender and blend to desired consistency.  Chill overnight.  

Further in my looking back series....some of you (most of you, probably) know that I have a 'thing' for working with recycled denim.   These two jackets were ones that I made in 2006.

  The rag style was a one-off and was done for a commission.  

The jacket below was one over over 30 jackets I made in the crazy quilt style and using recycled denim, along with lace and recycled clothing labels.

 

 
Alas, the arthritis in my hands has meant that I have had to pretty much give up my work with denim.  It was certainly fun while it lasted though.


Today the quote is from Anonymous......"What you permit, you promote"

 

One x Five

Another series of completed projects to be marked off my list!

One purse, done five times in

slightly different ways.

The basic pattern is the 'Two Zip Hipster' 

by Erin Erickson and can be found

HERE. 

I, of course, have changed the pattern somewhat, along with including a cell phone holder (which is what you can see peeking out of the front pocket in the photo).  

Doing these purses has made me realize that the pain in my arthritic fingers is just not worth suffering through when working with heavy fabrics like denim.  So....denim has now been scratched off my list of raw materials and I will stick to lovely soft fabrics that don't hurt.  Hmmmm.....this getting older certainly isn't for the weak!! 

Today the quote is from Confuscius.... "He who wishes to secure the good of others has already secured his own"

Wildlife and sewing

Over a year ago I made a denim throw for the back of our couch and hadn't gotten around to recovering the pillows.  Finally made it my goal for the weekend and here they are...

You can just see a corner of the throw in the background.

Last night we had a flock of 37 Canada Geese right below our balcony window...it wasn't long ago these were just little balls of fluff!

The quote for today, from Gwen Owen.... "You can't lose weight without exercise.  But I've got a philosophy about exercise.  I don't think you should punish your legs for something your mouth did.  Drag your lips around the block once or twice" 

Manning the buckets...

Well, technically it isn't buckets, but it's lots of towels!  We are suffering the wind and heavy rain tail end of the storms that have gone through the US and our windows, we discover, leak.  A lot.  I was happily stitching away and suddenly heard dripping.  Thought I was certainly imagining things and it wasn't until one of the drips splashed water onto me did I realize that the dripping I was hearing was on the INSIDE.  By all reports this weather has settled in for at least two or three days so I suspect there might be a lot of towels being wrung out.

Oh well.

It could be a whole lot worse

as we're seeing more and more reports

coming in on the news.

I took a little break after finishing Secret Project #1 (sorry, still can't show you even a teeny little hint of what it is) and before starting Secret Project #2 (sorry, can't show you that one either) to create these little gifts....

Recycled denim tote bags,

in the crazy quilt style with

the stitching done with my machine.

Thrifted labels here and there for

additional interest.

Might not be a post for you tomorrow because I'm teaching again and will probably be too pooped to participate when I get home!

Today's quote (very appropriate for me I think!) is from Lady Bird Johnson.... "Become so wrapped up in something that you forget to be afraid" 

Finished purse

Here you go....

Front view - 

Back view...

Pattern is 'Baggalista' 

from Studio Kat Designs.

The embellishment on the front and back came from

a pre-embroidered pair of jeans that I

recycled.

Finished purse

The purse is done!

The purse is done!

Let the bells ring out,

The purse is done!

And here is proof...

(the front)

(and the back)

The pattern is 'The Gadabout'

from Studio Kat Designs.

back to crazy quilting....

- - - - - - - - - - -

And, as promised, a picture of 

my latest crazy quilting venture...

 

The background fabric is lightweight denim

(of the recycled sort, of course!!)

And now, for something radically different....

First of all, I missed the proper TUSAL posting day (what else is new!!)....so here is mine...

and here's my jar to date...

Don't forget, if you want to know more about TUSAL,

there's a link on my sidebar.

AND,

here's the something different...

I saw a picture of one of these and decided it would be a perfect

addition to sit beside my chair and hold my knitting

supplies.  So enter my friend, who has a very handy-hubby.

He created the wooden frame and I did the

crazy quilted bag out of (what else) denim.

There are a couple of things I would change if

I were making it again, but all in all,

it's pretty darned perfect!

I will return on Monday with part three (and the final installment)
of the white cloth.