Momma's got a new bag!

This week has been a harder week than normal because T has been gone since Monday.  My days feel normal, because I'm used to being here with the 3 kids all day, but the nighttime routine has been harder.

Yesterday was our busiest day with Co-op in the morning and a full evening of events at church.

I needed to take our laptop to church so the kids could watch a movie while I practiced in our bell choir from 8-9 last evening.  I had been using a tote bag from the medical practice that delivered our babies, but I yesterday I needed a distraction and a creative outlet.  I sat down at my sewing table with a plan to make a bag to hold our laptop, cables as well as a movie (and maybe a few snacks).  I wanted it to of course be functional, but it also needed to be stylish.

I had no pattern - I only had the dimensions of my laptop and an idea in mind.  A few hours later, I was feeling re-energized and pretty lucky to have such a cute bag (if I may say so myself) to carry my laptop.  I like it so much, I think it will carry just about anything, not just the laptop.

I have a few slight modifications for the next one, but I think I may try to type up a pattern to sell as well as make a few more of these cuties.

Excited for T to arrive home tonight - and we're following his travels on flight tracker, aka T Tracker!  Now to straighten up the house so it looks like I did more than just sew a new bag this week! ;-D

Stretching fabric over a frame - hedgehog applique

I am in love with the applique blocks at Wee Folk Art.  As soon as I saw the little hedgehog pattern, I knew I had to make it for Elle.  Before I could even start it though, I had to figure out how I was going to display it.  I had first thought I'd make a pillow, but I really wanted it to hang on her wall.  To hang it, I didn't want the expense of framing it.  I started researching stretching fabric over a frame.  Most websites I found used a canvas art board, with a 1" or 1.5" side.  I had found one website that mentioned stretcher bars.

When I got to the craft store, I found the stretcher bars, for the size I needed, were considerably cheaper than the canvas art boards.  The thing I like about these stretcher bars (see below) are you buy 4 sides so it can be whatever size you need.  I wanted my final project to be square, so I bought four 9" bars. 

Their notches and grooves made it easy to connect them.  I only needed the outside corners to be square - the inside corners didn't join perfectly, but it didn't matter because the fabric would cover them.

The hedgehog was easy and quick to stitch up - and lots of fun!  Elle loved observing my progress.  After I finished the 6x6" piece, I used a blanket stitch to stitch the applique onto a purple gingham.  I used a felt sheet (9x12) to back the fabric.

Using my dad's staple gun, I attached the fabric to the stretcher bars.  There are plenty of websites to show you how to attach it at the corners (I didn't take pictures of that).

And here's the final project (from Friday's post).

And, here it is displayed in her room. 

Sneak Peek

I've been working on some projects around the house.  My mom made Elle this quilt a few years ago and I finally have hung it in her room - it is gorgeous!

And Elle's love of Peter, her hedgehog,

inspired the embroidered piece in front.  I found the pattern at Wee Folk Art, but needed to search for inspiration how to display it. 

I'll share a little more next week, how we finished the piece and then a picture of her room, all gussied up! ;)

Have a great weekend!

Projects...

I'm finished with the stitching, now I just need to complete them into something that can be displayed - hoping to do that later today!

Become the Perpetual Change!

Perpetual Change is a 501(C)(3) non-profit organization that exists to inspire change. It does not take much for one to greatly affect the life of another. Together with you, Perpetual Change accomplishes this through Orphan Care, an Adoption Promise, and Advocacy of the Voiceless.

“Get people talking, Get people motivated, Get people involved”

Become the Perpetual Change!

Perpetual Change asked me to donate a bag to their etsy store - that opened TODAY!  Please visit their store and help!!

In making the bag and writing up a "sale page" for them, I decided to finally stock my own etsy store.  Momma Roar's {forget me knot} is officially stocked with 6 different, made to order, bags.


Feel free to browse! 

Jesse Tree Ornaments

Let me introduce you to my most current headache project.

My Jesse Tree ornaments.  I've ooh'ed and aah'ed over the ones on this site, but knew I could make my own.  I even bought the iron-on transfers, but it looked like tedious and intricate work - work that would never be completed.  So I waited.

And waited. 

For 3 years.

And then this year, I was looking at new project releases on the You Can Make This website.  And then I found it.   I was thrilled because I found a way to add color to the designs.  I was planning to stitch outlines around the designs, but giving it color is what was holding me up.  I came across stitching projects using crayons to give the design the perfect bit of color!

So I set to work and I'm more than halfway done.  I have until November 28, the first day of Advent, to complete them.  I'm really excited about them.  So I wanted to share just a sneak peek.  I'll be sure to post them when I'm done with a short tutorial.  If you like them, but don't want to make your own, I'll make sets to sell for about $500! ;-D

Feeling Crafty?

Even if you don't feel like a crafty person, I think you'll love this website and their weekly shows.  The DIY Dish (theDIYdish.com) was developed by the twin sisters who first showed us YouCanMakeThis.com.  A site which I've shared often with you.

The DIY Dish brings a weekly show with very do-able crafts.  This week's episode is posted below.



The entire group that puts this together is just amazing - and I'm blown away each week with their creativity.  Not only do they bring great craft ideas, but they also do amazing giveaways.  Which, about a month ago, I was special enough to have won!

I won a table runner and fresh flowers.  The table runner came last week and the fresh flowers came today - they are beautiful and smell amazing!

Latest project

I'm working on a table runner for our kitchen table.  Lots of hand applique, but it has been a good learning experience - I'll stick to purses and totebags!! ;-)

Do you love the strawberry pincushion (with emery too) ring as much as I do?  I was so excited when I found it on etsy.  I even bought my mom (a quilter) one.  Too cute!  You can find them here, if interested.



*I'm not receiving anything for mentioning or linking to the etsy site.  I just love the ring and wanted to share!

LA's got her groove back!

I believe I burned myself out during December 2008.  That's when I participated in the Thrifty Under $50 Challenge.  I made something like 65 Christmas gifts that month for under $50.  It was great fun, but I burned myself out.

Then this past Fall/Winter, we had workers in to frame and drywall our basement.  Which meant - everything had to come out ... EVERYTHING.  It got packed up and moved to storage areas above our garage or it was moved out of the house for good.  It was a good way to clear some things out that were still in original packing boxes when we moved in to the house in Sept of '05.

My sewing area was in that dark, cold basement.  Ok, it isn't completely dark - but it was C.O.L.D.  All my fabrics, threads and notions had to be packed up and put away.  I didn't even sew the kids' trick or treat costumes last year because my sewing supplies were in lock-up.

Sometime, right before Christmas, they finished the drywall and we could move back in.  We aren't planning to completely finish our basement for a few years, but the combination of framing and drywall assited in the addition of H.E.A.T. to our basement.  Lovely, wonderful heat!  No more frigid fingers while trying to sew.  Or having to wear 5 layers while doing something I enjoyed!?!

My sewing essentials have moved back down and guess what?

I've got my grove back.

I feel like sewing again.

Wanna see?

They are both made from the same Amy Karol pattern, but I made the one on top smaller.  After making the green flowery one, I realized I was carrying a dufflebag on my shoulder and my poor lil' wallet had nothing to snuggle in against to stay warm.  The brown spring-is-a-comin'-soon bag (ironically, its picture snapped next to the 3' pile outside my kitchen door) is my new favorite bag.

WooHoo!  LA's got her (sewing) groove back! :)

Simple Summer Dress

I found the pattern to this "summer sun dress" free at Joanns. It is truly simple with one seam down the back for the dress. And you add trim as you sew the hem.

The pattern includes accessories too - a little purse and headband.

The best part is the fabric is "mock smock." The fabric is gathered at the top already on the bolt - before you purchase it! See what I mean by easy?

The fabric is a little more expensive than a yard of just a cotton fabric, but just measure your daughter's chest before purchasing to make your dress - and if you get on Joann's mailing list (and email list) you get 40% off coupons almost every two weeks.

Doesn't it look fun?

I think so!! It's a weaving loom.

I just love learning a new craft and I've seen these before and I think it would be fun to learn. Someday maybe. If I take anything more on, my family may never see me! HA! And these things aren't cheap - although the price is not near what I thought it might be. It's a little less than an average sewing machine.

Is there a craft/skill you've wanted to learn. What's holding you back?

Have a wonderful weekend!!

WFMW: Notebook Tutorial

At Christmas, when I posted my homemade gifts done while participating in the You Can Make This "Thrifty Under $50 Challenge" I recieved a few questions about the notebooks. There are two ways to do them, and I decided it would be fun for a little tutorial on how to create them.

With Valentine's Day just 10 days away - this might be that perfect personalized gift and what Works For Me might just work for you!! Visit Shannon at Rocks in My Dryer for more WFMW ideas.

Supplies:

~Cereal box (there are so many possibilities here - use your imagination: posters glued to cardboard, old folders, shoe boxes, vhs tape boxes)

~wire-bound notebook (any size will work - I used popcorn boxes to make smaller 3x5 notebooks at Christmas)

~cutting mat, rotary cutter, rotary cutting ruler (these are all items I use with sewing - if you don't have them, a scissors and ruler would work just fine)

~very small hole punch

~needle-nose pliers

~snack (I choose pepsi and chips that day - very important to stay hydrated!!!)

Take the pliers and work to unhook the ends of the wire. After it is unhooked, and before you begin to "un-thread," work to get the wire into the same spiral shape as the rest of the wire - it makes it go so much faster. Now, you'll only need to do that to the end that is going through the notebook - the other end can be bent since it won't be pulled through the notebook.

Begin "un-threading" the wire.

Set your wire and bottom of notebook to the side.

Take apart the cereal box. I like to remove all the edges along the fold first, before I begin cutting it to the cover size.

Using the notebook cover as a guide, center it on your cereal box and cut to size.

Lay the original cover behind the cereal box cover and flip over. Using a pen, mark the holes on the new cover, making sure you are marking the top side of the cover.

Use the small hole punch to ... well, hole punch.

Lay the new cover on top of the notebook and now it is time to re-wire. Not tricky at all, is it now?

When the wire is in place, you'll need to bend the ends of the wire to make them hook back onto the notebook.

Completed notebook! Personalized for your recipient!!!

At Christmas, I also did some by taking them to the local office supply store and having them bind them - this is much more expensive than the above method.

I purchased a pack of blank 5x8 index cards and cut my boxes to size. Using a fruit snacks box, I could utilize both the front and back of the boxes. I found cereal boxes with games on the back are usually too large for the notebooks.

This is just an easy and fun way to create a low cost personalized gift! Again, there are so many possibilities with these covers - even using a child's artwork glued onto cardboard (for stability) is the perfect cover for a notebook for dad to use at work - or Grandma. A great way to get a one-of-a-kind perfect-fit gift for just about anyone!