Easter Bunny Sachet

Just a short blog post to wish everyone a Happy Easter! The Easter Bunny was filling baskets for my daughters and didn't have anything handmade to put in them. I just can't let a holiday pass without a little handmade gift. I ran across these cute, and very quick, Easter bunny sachets. I sewed up a couple and filled them with lavender. Tutorial can be found here. Every time I think I need to get rid of all my little scraps of fabric, I run across an adorable little project like this.

Happy Easter from me and my two favorite people to sew for!

Stash Busting for Charity

So it's been a while since I blogged. I didn't realize how long. I really have been sewing. A LOT!  I just haven't had time to stop and write about sewing. I have another excuse also. I decided to catch up on Downton Abbey by watching the first season online. I couldn't stop. I've now watched Season 1, Season 2, and all but one show of Season 3. I'll sure miss watching it when I'm all finished.

I always do a little stash busting in January. I've been gathering up remnants which were about 1/2 to 5/8 yard to make these easy little girls skirts. No pattern is necessary. I use the width of the fabric which is usually 45", seam up the back, hem with a border or regular hem, and add elastic to the top. I really like the "paper bag" waist treatment for little girls. Check out this blog for inspiration.

Excuse the poor quality pics. I couldn't get good pictures in the dark house and it was too cold to go outside!

 

  
I gave the skirts to my sister to distribute at the school where she teaches. She told me about 3 sisters who love to wear skirts to school even on cold days but really need new ones. I bought some tights at WalMart to match so that they can wear their skirts right away and stay warm!

Sew4Home Roll-up Case

If you haven't visited Sew4Home.com, you should check out all the great projects featured there. All projects include very clear, well-written tutorials. At my monthly American Sewing Guild meeting, we made the roll-up makeup brush case.

I forgot to bring along the clear vinyl which would make the inside of the case easy to wipe off so I adjusted the size of the pockets, making them about 1 inch. I filled my case with colored pencils, turning it into a storage case for art supplies. It's great to keep kids organized and also great for long trips.

I decided that I needed a little sketch pad to complete the art set. I made the cover for the sketch pad using the same construction method as the roll-up case, customizing the size to fit the sketch pad. This would make a great gift set for a little artist.

Here are a couple of the other fun projects that my ASG group has made this year from Sew4Home.

Fleece Neck Pillow

Fabric Basket

And this cute towel is on the schedule for December - a great last minute gift idea!

Kitchen towel with rick-rack

Don't forget that September is National Sewing Month! What have you sewn this month?

Copycat T-shirt

My daughter shops at a popular teen store at the mall where the clothing is trendy and not too expensive. I have to admit that I look around the store occasionally just to get ideas for sewing projects. I've noticed that all of their t-shirts are basically the same pattern with different neckline, sleeve, and hem treatments. I decided to trace the simple pattern for one of her favorite knits tops and use it as a basis for her summer top wardrobe.  I added a self fabric knit binding to the neckline and topstitched with my coverstitch machine. The sleeves have a narrow hem also stitched with the coverstitch and the bottom is finished with a band cut crosswise from the same fabric. I used Design Plus Ultra-Soft Double Sided Fusible from The Sewing Place to fuse the sleeve hem before stitching. With very lightweight knits such as this one, hems tend to tunnel even when stitched with the double-needle coverstitch. The fusible makes the hem very even and professional looking.

I decided that I really like the color of this knit and hated to throw away the small amount of leftover scraps. I cut a narrow scarf across the width of the fabric about 8 inches by 66 inches (the width of the fabric). I let the edges roll rather than finishing them.

I also had enough little scrappy pieces left to make a headband and a fabric flower. For the headband, I cut a strip 5 1/2 inches wide and 20 1/2 inches long. I folded the strip lengthwise, serged a 1/4 inch seam, turned the tube and stitched a seam in the back. I stitched on a fabric flower and it's done. Quick and easy. I had enough left to make another flower which I sewed to a felt circle and attached a clasp pin to the back.

I finally decided that there simply was not enough fabric left to make anything else and moved on to my next project. What are your ideas for using leftover fabrics from your sewing/craft projects?

Purse Accessories

After sewing lots of journal covers and wallets for family and friends, I decided to make myself a matching set. The journal cover is from Quilting Arts and can be found here.

I use the wallet to organize my coupons from local stores. The tutorial can be found on  A Spoonful of Sugar's blog.

The business card holder was created by Craftycupboard. It is the perfect size for holding my gift cards.

I found the buttons in my stash. I bought them about 20 years ago when J. C. Penney carried fabric and notions. They were marked down to 10 cents per card! I used ponytail elastics for the closures. They come in lots of colors and are so much more fun than plain white elastic.

What are your projects for the new year?

A Little Christmas Sewing

I bought a yard of Christmas fabric last year at WalMart to make this little picture frame project at our monthly ASG meeting. We used a heavy interfacing sandwiched between layers and satin stitched around the edges. I inserted a picture of my daughters and displayed the picture with their Christmas baby pictures which I bring out every year to remind me of their first Christmases.

 
A couple of weeks ago, I decided that I needed something simple for a small dining table. I pulled out the leftover WalMart Christmas fabric and made a table runner. The centerpiece is the pot which last year's amaryllis came in. The greenery is from the pine trees in my back yard and the candle I have had forever. I couldn't get a good picture of this but, hopefully, after Santa Claus brings me my new book, I'll be a better photographer.

Last night, I picked up the leftover WalMart fabric once again and cut out 6 coasters for my 6 Holly Hobbie glasses. I bought these glasses about 30 years ago at a fast food restaurant. I think it was a roast beef place similar to Arby's but was called Rax Roast Beef. I have broken a couple over the years but my sister surprised me last Christmas with replacements which she bought on ebay.

I still have a bit of that WalMart Christmas fabric left. It is the yard that never ends or maybe just enough for one more little Christmas project!

An Angel For My Christmas Tree

I've had a "cutter" quilt in my garage for some time now which was made many years ago by my grandmother. A cutter quilt is a worn, frayed, quilt which can no longer be used as a quilt. I don't like cutting into old quilts but I decided that it was the only way to keep any memory of this quilt. Since I try to make a new ornament every year for my Christmas tree,  I decided to make little quilted Christmas ornaments to share with family and friends.

Supplies:

• Small scraps from old cutter quilt
• Craft buttons - 3/8"
• Curly doll hair
• Ribbon for bow
• Jute or other ribbon/string for hanger
• Needle and thread
• Glue gun
• Fine point marker 

Cut a heart and a triangle from the quilt. Sew a running stitch around the edges to prevent the batting from falling out. Overlap the triangle on top of the heart and sew or glue in place. Draw eyes on the button face and glue to the top of the triangle. Glue curly hair to top of the button head. Add a bow and a hanger. You could also add a date or other information to the back of the ornament.

What are your favorite little Christmas tree projects?

Birthday Sewing

We had a double birthday celebration last Sunday for my daughters whose birthdays are July 11 and July 12. Sarah snapped this picture of Hannah's cake and posted it on her new photography blog.

No birthday is complete without a little something handmade. I made each daughter a Scrappy Loyalty Wallet and filled it with gift cards to their favorite stores.  This is such a fun, quick project to sew.

Hannah designed a little project for Sarah and it turned out great! Sarah has two awfully cute kitties so Hannah made a little embroidered pillow with their "pictures" on it. The back of the pillow is made from the scraps of a quilt (in the background) that Sarah made last fall.

What are your favorite little birthday gift ideas?

Scrappy Flower Headbands

This is one of my favorite projects for fabric flowers. Just grab some scraps from your stash and get started. The headband is a strip of fabric about a yard in length, hemmed on all edges. The finished width is about 2 inches at the widest center part, tapering to 3/4 inch at the ends. The flower is sewn on a little off center so that it doesn't sit directly on top of the head.

For this headband, I folded the strip of fabric for the flower lengthwise, formed little pleats in a circle, and quickly stitched it down to the headband by machine. I added leaves from green linen scraps.

This little blue flower is similar to the red flower from my previous fun flower post. It is hand stitched to a coordinating headband. Similar headbands sell for about $15 in a local boutique!

What do you like to embellish with your little fabric flowers?