pillows

During my Sister's Christmas visit,

she put me to work!

After sewing some coasters

and place mats

as Christmas presents!

Well what is a big sister to do

but to sew some more for her little sister?

She saw the pillows I made

a while back with pictures from The Graphics Fairy.

She liked them so much, that after looking through some pictures,
she found 2 pictures she really enjoyed,
and we went to work!

 

Because of a certain lack of time,
I simplified a few things and forwent the ribbon around the pictures.
As with the other pillows, I just printed the images on muslin
with freezer paper in the back.
I sewed a 2 inch black border all around,
and for the back I used the back and white cotton

that you see on the middle pillow,

which I also made!

It took just a couple hours to make these 3 pillows,
and my little sister was happy!
But her suitcase was very full!

Happy sewing!

place mats

Here is another sewing project

that was to remain hidden,

well at least until now!

To go with the coasters I showed you previously,

I also made some place mats.

They are also quite simple,

yet have a great texture and feel,

well at least to me!

As previously I used linen, flannel (as batting)

and the fabric from IKEA.

To add interest and texture,

I used a beautiful cotton print from Liberty of London,

you know how much I enjoy these fabrics!

I started a rectangle of linen

and appliqued a band of cotton print on the top,

with the raw edges turned under by ironing.

I placed the flannel underneath,

then the IKEA fabric on the top,

and stitched all around it,

leaving an opening to turn it right side out.

Then I stitched all around it

and did some quilting through all the layers.



I decided to vary the location of the band with each place mat,

making each one unique,

but still part of a set.

The back is just the cotton strip fabric,

which once again, makes it ideal for summer!

Happy sewing!

more coasters

Now that Christmas has come and gone,

I can share more sewing projects

I made as presents.

Remember the coasters that I made for my Mom?

Well I made some more for my Sister.

This time I made them even simpler,

with just one fabric for the top.

I purchased a very cute cocktail fabric (a fat quarter)

and was inspired to make coasters for a intimate cocktail party!

I used linen for the tray,

and instead of batting, flannel.

The back is a nice fabric I found at IKEA,

it was just perfect, with a summer feeling,

well just in case, when not in the cocktail mood!

I cut my fabric in 4 squares (4.5 x 4.5) in all three fabric,

layered flannel, top fabric and back fabric,

and stitched almost all 4 sides,

turned it right side out, and top stitched all around!

Yep, it is that easy.

The back side will be perfect for cool lemonade

on a hot summer day!

The tray is made the same way,

with a square 6.5 x 6.5.

The corners are stitched together,

and voila!

I really need to make some for myself!

Happy sewing!

flower

I made mostly simple presents for my Sister

this Christmas,

so to fancy them up,

I made this beautiful flower to decorate her present.

I used silver raw silk and a stunning button,

both purchased at Joann's (small raw silk selection)

it coordinated perfectly with the ribbon and the paper (not on the picture!)

I followed this tutorial from A Girl In Paradise.

It was easy, fast and the flower is just beautiful.

Because I liked it so much,

I added some felt in the back

and stitched a brooch pin.

So not only did it make the present stand out before opening,

it is a great little brooch,

two uses, one beautiful flower!



Happy sewing!

Christmas update

Our Christmas was fun,

the kids outfits were finished just in time,

Santa came,

and we were all merry!

I managed to make Brick master's bow tie

using this tutorial from Kojo designs.

 He also wore a vest that I made in the same corduroy than

Miss C.'s dress.

I used this pattern from You Can Make this.

It was fast and easy.

I made a little shrug for Miss C.'s dress,

I used another Sew Beautiful pattern from Oct 2008

I used a nice white cotton velveteen,

and lined it with the same tartan that was used for the dress.

I think it made a great ensemble,

perfect for a cold night.

But the best part happened a few days before Christmas:

we finally sold our house!

After over 6 months on the market,

it finally happened,

 it was the Christmas present we were all wishing for.

So the next few weeks are going to be very busy:

finding a new place to live,

packing

and moving to DC,

2011 promises to be very exciting!

Happy day!

Joyeux Noel

Je vous souhaite un joyeux Noel.

I wish you a merry Christmas.

Big and little kids are excited, ready for all the fun that will be happening tonight.

The snow is still here, the cookies are warm,

the champagne is cold,

just a few more hours to wait...

just enough time to make a bow tie for my big boy!

Happy day!



crunch time

There are only a few days left,

and it is going to be hard to finish

the doll bed.

It is about 40 degrees in my garage,

so not really ideal for woodworking or painting!

But the bedding is at least moving along.

I am using this jelly roll from Moda,

it has a cute 50's style vibe,

perfect for a country style bed.

The bands are 1 1/2 inch wide,

so a lot of little squares!

For the mattress, I used 1 inch foam that I recovered with some batting,

for extra comfort!

I then made a cover in 2 different cottons,

2 looks with one mattress.

I did not make the cover removable.

For the pillows and pillow cases,
I used this tutorial from From An Igloo.
Because I am working with a jelly roll,
my fabric is only 1 1/2 inch wide
so I was not able to make the band.
But I appliqued it instead,
giving the same color contrast.



Now, if it could stop snowing
and if the weather could warm up,
this bed could be finished just in time!

Happy sewing!



sewing and snowed it

From reading the news,

I am sure we are not the only ones snowed in.

School has been canceled today

and we are keeping warm at home,

at least for a while.

The kids will go sledding soon,

but I do not have to go,

I can see them from the window,

I should be able to keep on sewing!

Before the snow storm,

I was able to mail my Christmas goodies

to my family in Europe, they should make it on time.

A few weeks ago I saw at Noodlehead some real cool coasters.

I was totally inspired and I made some as a present.

I used linen, and some older wintery fabric,

a "vintage" Hoffman quilting fabric.

I made a tree skirt for my mom about 5-6 years ago with them.

I am a little uptight when it comes to patchwork,

I like accurate measurement and planning.

But for this easy project, I decided to stretch myself

and not measure anything,

well almost I just made sure that my squares were 4 1/2 at the end!

I quilted some random lines.

The good part of linen, besides the obvious?

If my mom gets tired of the front,

the plain back is just so interesting!

And with its little tray, I think it is a great gift!

Happy sewing!

PS time to shovel!



copper ornaments

Is interest in all things hand made

a gene or a by-product of having a crafty mom?

Either way, my kids love to build, cut, draw,

make stuff in general,

in whatever medium available.

I have previously shown you

some art done by them.

Well a few days ago we were invited

to do some metal smithing

at the local high school

as part of the cub scout program.

And here is the ornament that Brick master made:

The antlers and the front legs are less than a 1/4 inch!

I might be partial (!) but this is quite impressive!

It was made from a sheet of copper and

cut with a tiny hand saw.

A few blades were broken during the process.

He did not draw the reindeer, just cut it.

He took him over 2h to do it.

Miss C. was also part of the process

(while she is obviously not a cub scout!)



She chose something a little easier,

a Christmas tree

(and I helped, it is not as easy as one would think)



It turned out nicely, and is a great addition

to our tree.

Happy crafting!

I won beautiful ornaments

Last week I entered a giveaway

at Atelier Caroline

and I won!

Today I received my beautiful ornaments:

I took a few pictures of them in our big Christmas tree:

I better enjoy them now

because as soon as Miss C. get off the bus,

she will take them

and put them in her pink Christmas tree!



Are you interested in making your own?

Caroline has a tutorial for them.

Or even better she has another giveaway!

Happy sewing!

chestnut

My papi passed away 10 years ago,

because I was 8 months pregnant,

I did not get to go back.

My grandpa and I never had long conversations 

but we did many things together.

Some of the most memorable were

the many pretend tea parties we had together,

feeding the rabbits in the back yard,

eating chestnuts we picked up during our walks

and getting silly from drinking too much cider!

(I grew up in the country side,

all of these things were normal there!)

So today I am roasting chestnut

and drinking cider, thinking about my papi.

Have you ever been to the grocery store and looked

at chestnuts and wondered what to do with them?

An easy thing is just to score the chestnuts,

put them in a pan and cooked them in a hot oven

for about 20 min.

Then just remove the skin without burning your fingers too much,

or putting black all over your face (!),

and eat them, or even better dip them into the cider and then eat them,

oh the memories....

Happy day!

ornaments

Welcome to my sweat shop,

well since we are not turning up the heater much,

it is more accurate to say

Welcome to my ice box!

I have been sewing, like the rest of you,

like a maniac,

hoping to be done soon!

I saw the pattern for these ornaments in

"quilting arts magazine: gifts" of this year.

And of course I had to try!



They are made using an old heirloom sewing technique,

and pretty easy to make.





I like the smaller size better.




I changed a little the size they gave as I did not like
the gap at the bottom, you can see it on the larger red and white.
I prefer to see the 2 parts meeting at the bottom
and a smaller opening.

I have until the end of the week to finish
a few projects that need to be sent to France,
after that, I will be making some more!

Happy sewing!