My Crafty Summer Visitor

I was fortunate enough to have my ten year-old niece Megan up for a week-long visit this summer. (She was actually nine at the time. Her birthday is tomorrow… Happy Birthday Megan! ) She helped organize my workshop, a necessary task that I am not always motivated to do, as well as clean and prepare the pre-owned Coach bags I’ve recently added to my space.

In exchange for her dutiful services we worked on some functional furniture and design elements for her new bedroom. The problem: a tiny room measuring 6’x11’ and a very artistic 5^th grader in need of some workspace. So, I found this bunk bed on craigslist for only $65 with the idea that we could convert it to a loft. This way she would have space for projects and homework.

When my niece arrived we discussed what color palette she wanted. Since black and green are her “favorite colors” we went in that direction and added light blue and a touch of purple. I let her make all the final decisions and had her help out with the execution of the projects as much as possible. This was a different experience for me as I’m usually the one with the final say. I had to let go of any need to control the outcome of the work and just let the results be. It was a very freeing experience.

In my previous blog I discussed my sewing addiction gone cold. With Megan here I finally blew the dust off my sewing machine and let it’s needle soar once more. This was Megan’s first machine sewing experience…and I loved every minute of it! We started with a mini pillow for practice and then she made a large pillow complete with a decoratively stitched edge. My 16-month old daughter Ella even got involved!

 

Working with Megan was a wonderful experience as she is incredibly intuitive and creative. Her instincts and consistent ability to quietly problem solve had me intrigued. She truly has an incredible gift and so much potential. I’ve found that after Megan has left my work has become more inspired. I am truly thankful for the opportunity.

 

 

Garden Photography

 

 

My Husband's Garden Addiction

My husband Joe is wonderful. We met in college at a random party and have been best friends ever since. Our passion is planning, executing, and dreaming about DIY projects together.

This summer Joe has become obsessed with landscaping. Early in the summer, he realized that the Lowe’s near our home has a clearance section for annuals and perennials.  He was able to purchase some amazingly healthy plants for incredible prices.

So now, I have been harassing my dear husband by calling him an “addict.” Since he made this discovery, he’s been to Lowes nearly every day checking out what plants have been marked down and never coming home empty handed! There have been several days where he has made multiple trips (like today…he went four times!) He is hooked on the thrill of the find. This is, as you will learn if you actually care to follow my blog, more like me than him.  For the last several months the routine has been: baby goes down at 8 pm and Daddy is out in the yard by 8:01. He’ll stay out there most nights planting, digging, weeding, and watering until 11 or longer! ! I can’t seem to be out in the yard in the evening for longer than 20 minutes before I find myself covered in bug bites! And so, our yard… thanks to my fabulous husband …has never looked so good.

We found this great little house….excuse me “Cedar Chateau”  at Sam’s Club for under $300! It was a great find. Check out all the fun little details. I added some of my own custom touches like this sign. Come on…how cute is that?

Sewing Machine Gone Cold

I’m not the kind of person that has decorations for every holiday, or makes a habit of dressing the color of the occasion.  I do however love the idea of Halloween costumes and CAN NOT wait until my daughter is old enough to play dress up with me! There is something about being both a mother and crafter that makes me want to make outfits for my daughter. I suppose I have always wanted to have a baby girl to dress up in fun clothes like a doll. 

This was last Halloween...

Here’s the thing…I have yards and yards of fabric and seven sewing machines...well four that work (not including the Playschool one…that’s my daughter’s) and I have not sewn a mechanical stitch in a really long time. Between moving 6 times in eight years, loosing my father to cancer, starting a few businesses, and having a baby, I never seemed to be at the right state to make my sewing dreams reality.

Over the years I have managed to horde away an extensive amount of fabric, buttons, and other sewing materials. I have used the fabric in small projects, (like my lamp revamps) and other no-sew or minimal hand stitch projects like the owl in my daughter’s nursery. But, haven’t turned my machine on more than a handful of times since….well since I got it. It was the last birthday gift I received from my father before he passed. I needed it to replace the one I had been using for years that no longer worked very well.

Now though, I am ready. I have the workspace, I'm working on a rolling cutting table (details to come), my fabric is organized (sort of), and the inspirational sewing artwork is in place. Now, I just need to sew….