Spring Wardrobe for the Divine Miss M!

Last night one of my best gals (Lore) posted this on FB and said it made her think of me. My hubby said, "that  does not make me think of you, that IS you!"

We are in the last throws of what we call winter here in GA. It has not been terribly cold but I have worn my cashmere over coat on many occasions. Getting to wear it at all pretty much always makes me happy. That said we are all about ready for Spring. Most particularly Miss M is ready for Spring clothes. While I LOVE a good sweater and boots, she LOVES tiny skirts and scant tank tops. And well if I l were a tiny care free child I would too. But I can't fit a pair of Spanks under a tiny skirt so I will be wearing large skirts this Spring.

We busted out big stacks of fabric the other day to make plans for Miss M's Spring line. I sort of love that I get to design and make all these clothes for my little peanut. I gotta do it while she will still let me. The first item in the Spring line has already be made and worn. We had one piece left over from another dress and she looked at it and said "skirt, definitely a skirt as long as you can make it!"

You would think that a girl who gets to say "make me a really long skirt!" and then some one (me) makes it and she gets to wear it would be happy? Why is she so forlorn in this picture? I don't know the kid is 5. But she was happy to wear her skirt. Why she wore it with a tye-dyed poncho, well that we may never know. 

I told her to smile and got a slightly better picture but really only slightly and not really worth showing you. But I will show you all the fabric we picked out for Miss M's 2013 Spring line.

This is fabric hubby bought a few years ago in Japan. It is going to be a skirt! 

M picked out this fabric at a sale it In Town Quilters last fall and it is going to be a t-shirt dress. 

A lovely pirate map print from Michael Miller will become a button up shirt and a short skirt. 

These lovely horses shall become a shirt that I get to design and some shorts. 

There are still a few unchosen items and perhaps some surprises. But I love making M's Spring clothes, so much fun! 

Hope you are looking forward to the mood of Spring if not the heat. 

Peace Out - C

Hipster Clutches

Hey Peeps.

I have to admit sometimes I completely forget that I am awesome! Then a day like today happens and I suddenly remember. And I feel compelled to tell you how awesome I am. Okay, where is this coming from after days of "no motivation" and sort of glum posts. I have no idea. Is it because the sun is shining? And I am beginning to think that there is a chance we will one day shake off winter? Maybe. But maybe it was just time.

A few weeks ago I ordered a box of upholstery scrapes, which I know seems crazy. Why would I buy someone's scraps when I generate so many I cannot figure out what to do with them? Well apparently I needed some inspiration. I needed a change of pace. So I busted out these scraps and made what I am calling the "Hipster Clutch"

These are the large version. There is a zipper and they are reversible, so two purses for the price of one.

These are the smaller version. All are fully lined and full of awesomeness.

This sassy side view lets you see the reversible-ness. So it is basically a really big zipper pouch that folds over either direction.

See here is one side.

And here is the other side.

It is a really simple design and is pretty "on-trend" I believe. These are not the things about this project that make me awesome. The thing that makes me awesome is that I made them. And making things is more than what I do it is so much a part of who I am that when I am not making things I get in a funk and I loose sight of who I am and what I want my life to be.

I am confident that I have my 10,000 hours plus some in on sewing now. However I need to remember that even with all that practice and it being so much a part of me, every now and then I need a re-set. Sometimes a fresh start comes out of no where and makes you take a new branch off the path you thought you were on.  I know you are saying crazy deep for a bunch of clutch purses. I know I know. I busted out 10 amazing clutches in about 4 hours, pretty awesome if you ask me.

Okay, so I made 11 but I am keeping the prototype for myself, seriously the lining was all jacked up. But the prototype is where I worked out all the bugs and figured out what I was doing. So even though it is not perfect I do love it. And one of these days I am going to keep my best work rather than the prototype, but I gotta make some money some how for now.

All this to say that these beauties where dropped off at HomeGrown Decatur today and will be displayed out in the shop soon. And if I get requests I would be willing to do a pattern and / or a tutorial. But you gotta ask nice.

Hope you are feeling your awesomeness today!!! And if not well... maybe tomorrow.

Peace Out - C

A Coupon Just For you!

Hello dear readers....

Well I last wrote that I was ready to get back to work. Well I think working all weekend zapped all my energy or something and I have not done much at all today! I only get to work while my daughter is at school and so my work day is almost done.

But I did get a wee bit done and got all my napkins that I have available listed in my Etsy Shop. The link is just to the right of what you are reading.

And just for you I have decided to have a sale on all items listed on Etsy. So make your purchase and then enter the code: FRIENDS15OFF and you will get 15% off your order. If you are local let me know before you order and I will set you up with no shipping and deliver it to you.

Ok I have got to go and find some motivation!

Happy Monday!
- C

Work, work, work......

I have to admit, I was a little bit lazy in January. Which I am now glad of because as the old saying goes, "when it rains, it pours!". And man has it been pouring. I will spare you all the sorted details.... for now. But in the midst of all my drama I managed to get some  work done. Here is a list that may or may not interest you but it makes me feel better to see it:

- New spring napkins over to Home Grown. You may be admiring my lovely new packaging. I am hoping these hold up a little better than the baker's twine. Also noticce how I have large and small napkins all matched up and pretty.

- My Etsy store back up and running. There are only a few things up right now but I plan to get more on there over the next couple of weeks.

- I am also working on re-organizing some things in my studio at home. And I am teaching more sewing lessons. While I really do not mind working and working hard I always look forward to January. It is always the one month that I feel no guilt about taking a break and re-assessing.

I spent a lot of January thinking and planning and buying supplies. Now it is time to put all those plans and thoughts into action. But of course many things are trying to get themselves in the way! It is what it is and I can only do what i can do!  Right?!?!

Did you notice Easter is crazy early this year? You think there is any chance my family will be getting new Easter clothes? A dress for M, a shirt for E and perhaps a little something for me? Well there is at least a chance this will happen. One of my resolutions this year was to make sewing fun again and not just a business. So we will see.

What have you been pondering so far for this year? Are you out of your January re-charge phase and back to work? Speaking of which I better get to gettin.

Peace Out - C

Meet Stripe-y

My sweet daughter M likes to think she can sew. We occasionally do sewing projects together and therefore in her mind she "knows how to sew". Well it is delusional but sweet none the less. And I should cut her a little slack she is 5.5.
 

A few weeks ago she had some money burning a serious hole in her pocket.  So we went to one of our favorite places to go to solve that problem, Little Shop of Stories. It is the best book store in the world. But on this particular day M found a "Sock Puppy making kit" that she felt compelled to purchase rather than a book. I tried in vein to convince her I could help her make a sock puppy without the kit.

I have to admit she worked rather diligently on creating her new pal. Normally she is a project starter and not a finisher. But this one she pushed through (with some help form me). I threaded the needle and did some of the cutting but all in all she did the large majority of the stitching. If you look at it closely you will see why I do not want credit for it. She needs to practice, yo! 

She named him Stripe-y in her ever so creative way. She loves him which is what is important.

I often call M the girl who loves love! She falls in and out of love so very easily. It is fun to watch her do this with stuffed animals and other kindergarteners. But it will not be so much fun to watch as she gets older, sigh.....

I am going to enjoy the love for now. On that note, I will say Happy Valentine's day y'all!! And have a piece (or two) of candy for me! I am very much looking forward to our family sushi date tonight. 

Peace Out - 

C

Yes, I can thread an industrial serger!

So last I wrote I was peeved at myself for buying this stupid #*&!@!! serger. Well the folks over at sewingmachine.com got me all fixed up. And now I can thread it all on my own. So far today I have threaded it twice! And the 2nd time was because I broke a thread and I think I even know why I broke a thread.

See that lovely piece of scrap on the left and how nicely it is serged! Yeah! Yeah! I did it! I did it! I did it!

I have to say I am feeling so much better about myself and my abilities that I cannot even explain it. I was so low about this and all the other drama in my life right now that I was ready to throw in the towel. But yesterday I took a "mental health day". Which really only ended up being a mental health morning. Right around noon I decided to stop feeling sorry for myself and got up and called sewingmachine.com and they said come on back. So I did and they pointed out the tiny thing I was doing wrong!

So the front of the stitches is beautiful. The back not so much. But it took me months to get the tension and everything perfect on my home machine so I expect that will be the case with this new machine. I am just relieved it is up and running and I no longer feel like and idiot for buying in. Well for now any way.

Don't give up just because you have hit a bump in the road! Take a break and start again with fresh eyes. Now if I can remind myself of this every morning for the next couple of month I should make it out the other end for the better!

Hope you are getting over the hump on this lovely sunny hump day!

Peace Out!
C