Here and there...

finally a little productivity in the studio in between all the sorting:

I finally managed to crank out this string art (it was from my whimsy box 3-month subscription I had). It is has found a home right next to my bed and I also decided to paint the sides of the wood gold. Next up to rummage through my dad's shop and snag some wood to make a few more!

A last minute decision to make some quick thank you gifts for x's preschool teachers ended up with me breaking out the sewing machine.

Some wonky coasters were whipped up (I still am going to make one for my mom, but it will be more of a mug rug). Overall these were pretty quick and with an addition of a mug, some candy, and a sweet thank you note from the little man, I think that they turned out pretty awesome!

Finally some sewing...

this mini-quilt is still in progress... but here are some pumpkins I finally sort of finished up (x took them to play with, so there are no stems or leaves, maybe next year):

I Have Actually Completed Some Projects...

I have been working on finishing up several projects last week along with starting a few more, here's a recap:

 my mom was busy crocheting flowers for me so I could finish up the wreath and this scarf:

 I love the way both projects turned out. 

The next one was a last minute project that I found on the Moda Bake Shop but for some reason I can't find it now.

The stripe fabric is a thrifted sheet, the flowers are some leftover denim I had, and the inside of the flowers is some authentic from moda. I glued buttons to it that were from my grandmother's button selection. It is a little funky, but brings a little spring to my computer area. 

Using up my scraps I cut out a bunch of these ovals and turned them into these:

I saw this Easter Egg Tutorial from Retro Mama last year and made a plan to make them up for the next Easter. I finished up 11 and so far, Xavier loves them and they make for a great game of dodge ball. Also the lemonade in the picture is my new favorite mix to replace my pop- it is half Newman's Own Virgin Lemonade and half Lemon Perrier. I have finally found something that fills my pop craving and assume that I will be hooked on it for sometime. 

Now for some projects that are in the works:

A new spring skirt that I cut out for the One Pearl Button Sew Along; Marie skirt #9177  from BurdaStyle

 

Two pairs of pants and a pair of shorts cut out for Xavier.

A couple of fat quarters to be used for a mini quilt to hang up in Xavier's room...

so that has been what I have been up to, hopefully this week will be as productive!

 

A Simple No-Sew Felt Valentine Wreath

Xavier and I worked on this project together (he was so funny handing me pins and grabbing the felt)

Materials Needed:

1 Foam wreath form (I got mine at the dollar store)

measure around the wreath to get the length of the felt pieces (mine was 5") and add 1/2"; make the width of the pieces 2"and you may need more pieces to make it all the way around depending on the size of your wreath

8 white pieces of felt  (mine were 5 1/2" x 2")

8 light pink pieces of felt (mine were 5 1/2" x 2")
8 red pieces of felt (mine were 5 1/2" x 2")

1 piece of felt 5" x 3/4" for the hanger (I chose red)

1- 15" x 1", 1- 13" x 1", 1- 2 1/2" x 1" of felt for the bow (I chose light pink)

stick pins

scissors

Start wrapping your wreath with your felt strips (I went white, light pink, red, repeat; but change the order to what ever floats your boat.

1.) Start by flipping your wreath over to the back and wrap your first piece around the wreath making sure the seams are on the back of the wreath and pin.

2.) Take your next piece and place on the back covering your first piece about halfway. Wrap all the way around.

3.) Pin using one pin as shown. Repeat until you make it all the way around the wreath with one piece left to fully cover it.

 

4.) Take out the pin from your first piece (in this case the white) and fold back.

5.) Insert last piece, wrap and pin.

 6.) Fold down first piece over your last piece and re-pin.

7.) Decide where the top of your wreath will be and grab the piece of felt for your hanger. Fold as shown and secure with 2-3 pins along the back.

8.) Your wreath will look something like this now. The super fun part begins now: embellishing. I chose to do a simple felt bow but I thought these Felt Roses from The Purl Bee would also look really cute. (I may still add them!)

 9.) Take your longest piece of felt (15" in length), fold in half and dove tail edges and spread out like the last photo.

10.) Secure using 1 pin in desired location.

11.) Take your next longest piece (13" in length) and fold so ends meet in the center. Take your short piece and fold around the center, making sure ends overlap along the back.

12.) Insert a single pin through the front of the bow (under the center piece and through the seams) and pin to the wreath covering your pin from the bow tails.

Hang and enjoy!

Knitting...

something I pick back up every winter, mostly scarves (I <3 scarves and wear them all year long), I don't why I feel like knitting is a winter activity for me. Maybe its the yarn, the fireplace, the ability to watch x and still be working on something or being cozy under a blanket watching a movie, but here we are once again...

a super simple scarf (only knits and large needles), I think I might crochet some flowers to attach to one end, but I haven't made any real strong plans for it. Do you have any hobbies that you only pick up for a season?

Camera Batteries are dead...

so I haven't been taking any photos for a few days, but I am getting some stuff of my to-do list.
- First I finished my book for January (I am still on target with the read 1 book a month goal)
- Took the photos for the Valentine cards this year
- Have 2 Valentine tutorials in the works
- Worked on the sketches for the February blog banner and background (they are almost done)
- Made some baking plans which include a red velvet 2 layer heart cake and heart sugar cookies
- Knitted half a scarf
- Finished this stamp:

Still have a few things I am going to try and get crossed off my list by the end of January
- Organize all my books
- Design Valentine card and print
- Sew cat teepee
- Sew a baby gift
- Write 3 tutorials
- and pick another thing off of my list of 26 things to do before I turn 27 to finish

Getting a few things done...

first my grandma gave me a bunch of thread (plus some awesome buttons and some sewing books):

I started sorting it:

so far so good...

then I went and got some felt:

for x's valentine card photo

it is slowly becoming fun things:

Hoping to show you a little more later this week!