Another Bracelet

I made another yo-yo bracelet!
It's hard to stop.
They're fun and and easy to make,
and if I'm not careful I might have one to go with every outfit.

The button came from my grandma's vintage button stash.Close-up of the adorable fabric.
Just a small part of a fat quarter.
Also, I used a 3in. circle.

Same loop closure as the other one I made.Fun, right? Goes great with my favorite red shirt.

Practice

Okay, so I've been practicing sewing,
and following tutorials and such.
Nothing complicated.
I started out with this lined drawstring bag. The instructions confused me a little so I did the hem wrong,
but it's still cute...

And it opens and closes...isn't that really what matters with a drawstring bag?

I also made this envelope-back pillow.
It's made from fabric that my grandma gave me from her stash.
I really like the way it turned out,
but it doesn't really go anywhere in our house.
Oh well, it was for practice.

The overlap/envelope part was pretty easy.

The fabric peeking through is another pillow...
but it's special, so it's going to get its own post.

And the simplest thing I made...a headband out of eyelet lace.
I bought the lace for another project,
but it didn't work out for that...
mainly because I didn't realize how short a half-yard is,
and then I was too embarrassed to ask the lady to cut more.
(Please disregard the fact that it doesn't match my shirt,
I just put the headband on for the pic.)

I just added a little elastic at the bottom.

Again, I know it's simple, but sometimes that's the best.
I'm having a lot of fun with sewing.

Featured!

My little mini dresser got featured at Better After today!
Yay!

Two Years

Today Husband and I are celebrating our second anniversary.
These two years have flown by!
We've been through so much already, but we're still going strong.
We started dating a little over four years ago.

The spot beside this tree is right where he proposed.
Of course, there was a foot of snow on the ground,

so it was actually prettier at the time. It's actually at the top of a tall, steep rock formation in the mountains.
Here's a snippet of the view. We also got married not too far from here.

A couple of Sundays ago we went back for a visit.

Here's to many more years of happiness!

P.S. Husband completely and 100% supports my crafting obsession...even when it means there's paper and twine bits on the living room floor. He even helped me set up, and figure out how to thread my sewing machine. He really is THE BEST!!!

Fabric Bling

Yesterday I practiced sewing, and got pretty frustrated. I posted a venting comment on FB that caused my aunt to ask, "Does it look like the bobbin threw up on your fabric?" And "Yes," that's exactly what it looked like. I think I somehow had it threaded wrong. I need to watch the instructional dvd again. I still wanted to make something cute with my cute fabric. While I was in TN my bff taught me how to make yo-yo's. So, I made a yo-yo bracelet.

I think it's sweet, and unique. It has a button/loop closure.The loop is big enough that it's easy to close the button with one hand,

but not so big that it comes off.It's really fun to wear.

I also made this little flowery thing. I was trying to practice sewing a curved line. Obviously it isn't a strong point yet, but I think it still turned out okay. I attached it to a hair-tie.

Stamping Basics

At the beginning of the year I introduced myself to clear stamps; I've been having so much fun with them, that I thought I'd share the basics with any of you who may not have used them.

First things first, you need to have a clear stamping block.

They come in different sizes for different sized stamps.

You also need ink.
These are my favorites right now.
I use the Walnut Stain (brown) the most often.
The smaller ones are only a dollar at Michaels.

Most clear stamps come in a package with several stamps,
and cost about $10.00.
Like this...

There are also rubber stamps made to go with acrylic blocks.
This one is a favorite right now...
You just peel the stamps off the plastic,
and they adhere (and come off) easily.

The clear block makes it very easy to see exactly where you're placing the stamp.
(Unlike rubber stamps with wooden blocks.)

It's also very easy to line letters up.

You have to be careful about pressing too hard though.
On the card on the left, you can tell I pressed too hard.
The one on the right is better, but maybe I didn't press quite hard enough.

Here are some samples of cards I've made recently.

I know other people make much fancier cards, and I do think they're pretty.
However, I like simple; I mostly use paper and stamps,
and I think they're lovely.

Like the teeny tiny star brads? $.50 in Jo-Ann's clearance aisle.

Don't you want to try them? There's so much you can do! If you don't want to commit to a larger pack, or ink pad...you can get small blocks, small stamp packs, and small ink pads for a dollar each at Michael's and Jo-Ann's (and probably Hobby Lobby). You won't regret it.