Taking on "The World"

So, life has been super busy around here with my stepkids arriving from Scotland on Sunday and what have you, but I am getting very excited about our adventure we begin on Friday. . . at Disney World!
Tomorrow is work and laundry day. I have to get all the business books in order before we go and take care of all the loose ends. I have to fit swimming in there for the kids and be sure we are done in time for Harry Potter tomorrow night, so it will be a little hectic. Then Thursday is the day to finish up our custom t-shirts I have been working on (courtesy of the folks on the DIS) and get packing. Thanks to my friend Mike, I am confident that we will have a great time. This will be our second time using his advice for touring the parks and we can't wait to see if we can manage to zoom through the lines even faster this time! We are looking forward to our villa, too. I can't believe that it is costing us a fraction of what it would cost to stay on-site. I hope it is as good as it looks!
Well, lots to do around here. . . I'll fill you in on all the details when we get home from "The World."

No Pattern? No Problem!

I bought some pieces of Paula Prass's "Flights of Fancy" fabric collection recently from Jona. She substituted (with my permission) one of the pieces I ordered with the chartruese garden trellis fabric. I had originally planned to make Anna Maria's Ruthie Clutch with the fabric, but once I had it in my hands I just kept thinking "sundress."

I really wanted to make a little dress for my daughter, and create something simple that I could possibly sell that would be simple to replicate. I have never sewn without a pattern before, but somehow I managed to come up with this little dress pictured to the left. Can you believe it? Maybe I'll add a little ruffle in version 2.0, but I was quite proud of myself. . . especially considering up until 3 months ago I hadn't sewn in nearly 15 years. . .

Memo Board: from Not to Hot!

I have had these memo boards for about 10 years. When I had a "desk job" they brightened my cubicle and since I started working from home they have become décor in my stepdaughter's room. They have never really gone with any of our stuff, though, and I am really trying to give Hannah a fresh, fun room in our new house. I thought I was going to just garage sale these, but once I started putting furniture back in after painting the room I realized that I really needed something fun for the walls.

It was about this time I realized I had 2 pretty, bright floral fat quarters that would look so pretty against the crisp, pink walls. After a little rummaging I found so fun yellow ribbon and a package of nylon butterflies to use for tufting. Armed with my glue gun, my fat quarters, and my finds I was ready to start.

Step One: Remove hardware, tufting buttons, etcetera to prepare board. Iron fabric.

Step Two: Lay out fabric and center memo board on it. Starting in one corner, apply glue along back edge of board, 3 or 4 inches at a time, and fold fabric up and over the edge while pulling taught and pressing into glue. At corners you will want to fold corner in first and secure with glue, then bring up the edge of the fabric and secure.

Step Three: Time to apply the ribbon! I kept the original tufting in place, simply removing the hardware, so I followed the original lines. Basically I started with a big "X", securing the ribbon on the back of the board with hot glue. Then I ran a piece of ribbon across each corner from the mid-point on the width to the mid-point on the height of the board.

Step Four: Re-tuft your board. The basic tufting remained in place, but I did need to get the new fabric and ribbon to comply, so I just took my standard stapler and pushed one staple down through the ribbon and fabric in each of the tufting places. If you need to properly tuft your board, I would recommend using a staple gun or flat push pin. I was too lazy for that on this project (plus I don't have a staple gun).

Step Five: Embellish! I put a big glob (yes, it's a technical term) of hot glue on each tuft and applied a little nylon butterfly to each. So cute!

Where to start?

Ever since I was bit by the sewing bug a couple months ago, I have been itching to starting a blog about it, so at long last here it is! I didn't know where to start, so I decided it didn't really matter and that I would just start. . .

I've been glowing with creativity lately and thought that I would begin this blog by sharing with you some of the sites that have been inspiring me lately. Heather Bailey's beautiful fabric and precious patterns, Patty Young's unique designs and colorful fabrics, and the super-cute creations over at PinkFig Patterns. . . all I can say is "Wow!" Now I am truly inspired and day-dreaming.

So there it is. . . a start. . . keep an eye on my blog, there are big announcements to come soon. I left you a hint.