WIP and STOCKING MY SHOP FOR CHRISTMAS...

If you read my post from a few days ago, you know that I began an "experimental" dresden as a way to prepare myself for making my mom's quilt...which will contain quite a few dresdens.  Since I had NEVER made a dresden I thought using some of my scraps to see if I could accomplish the block at all made sense.  The dresden went together quickly and easily.  I wasn't quite sure about the center circle, but finally decided what made it seem "off" to me was the size.  Smaller looked better!

I immediately fell in love with this block and was going to turn my scrappy dresden into a mini quilt.  But with Christmas rolling around I decided to turn it into a 16" pillow cover and list it in my shop.  

Today I attached the smaller circle center and attached the dresden to the center of a beautiful piece of white linen (using my favorite stitch, of course, lol).  "Ellie" behaved herself today and didn't skip any stitches!  I think I put the fear of a visit to the sewing machine hospital into her!  I have sandwiched the dresden and will begin quilting the front part of the pillow when I have the next open block of time.  Stay tuned for the continuing progress on this happy little pillow cover!

Today I also listed a few scissor fobs in my shop.  Feel free to check them out and let me know if you have any questions.  I am REALLY on the Christmas binge here...both gift making and shop stocking.  Maybe it has something to do with the "burning bush" planted right outside of my sewing room window that has ALREADY started to burn!  Fall can't be too far away!

In other news...my plans for my Expanded Sewing Room and Guest Room have changed, and I am really, REALLY excited with our new plan.  I'm getting even MORE sewing/crafting/storage space!  

Take care and have fun crafting!

I'VE BEEN BUSY....

I woke up this morning with much less tremor than I have had the past week or two...so "Ellie" and I spent some time getting properly reacquainted. 

The first thing I did was try to complete MOST of the three mug rugs I am giving to my mom, dad and aunt.  I won't show you the back yet because I want the back as cute as the front and I am still looking for a particular shade of rick-rack to finish it off, lol.  

"Ellie" is still uncooperative at times.  This is my FAVORITE little fancy stitch for "prettifying" seams.  Okay, it is sort of like a baseball stitch...but I still think it is pretty and use it quite frequently.  For some reason (known only to "Ellie") she is skipping stitches all over the place.  On the first of the three mug rugs I attempted to go over the missing stitches.  Not good...all I did was draw attention to the area.  So on the last two I simply left it be.  My mom, dad and aunt won't mind as these mug rugs are not for "show and tell" but to be USED.  I think my dear sweet "Ellie" is going in the hospital while we are away on vacation this fall!  Do you hear that, "Ellie"?  Straighten up or you are going to have your guts examined!

Fortunately, even if I want to use this stitch on my mom's quilt...I won't get to that point in the process until WELL after we are home and my Ellie girl should be "all better" and sewing properly by then. 

Today was also a day to experiment and plan.  The design I have in my head for mom's quilt calls for dresden blocks alternating with machine embroidered blocks.  There is just one little catch to that plan...I have NEVER made a dresden!  I'm nothing if not ambitious!

I decided it would be a good idea to experiment with making a dresden using scrap materials.  That way I could make sure the overall block size is what I want....AND that I am actually CAPABLE of making a dresden, lol.  The result?  I am THRILLED with how my experimental dresden turned out.  I still have to properly center the circle and sew it on...but the tremor is returning and for safety's sake I am moving far away from sharp, pointy objects, lol.  But, I am THRILLED.  I keep looking over at my sewing table and smiling.  I think this is eventually going to have to turn into a mini quilt.  It is just So. Darn. Cute! 

In other news, with the giveaway just a little over a week away, I think I am FINALLY done adding to the pile.  This was SO MUCH FUN!  I can't wait to ship this bundle off to the winner!  Don't forget the drawing is September 8th and for a chance to win...please follow my blog and LET ME KNOW YOU ARE A FOLLOWER ON THE ORIGINAL GIVEAWAY POST.

Take care and have a great day!

PRAYERS NEEDED, PLEASE...

A very dear friend...my life-long best friend...has just received some bad news with regard to her health.  If you could please send prayers, or warm wishes...whichever you are most comfortable with...I would be most appreciative.  She is only 51 years old and way too young for these problems, but she has lupus and it plays havoc with the body.  Thank you so much for keeping her in your thoughts and prayers.

Linda

COUNTING SHEEP.....

Evenin' folks!  It is just about midnight on Friday and I'm still wide awake!  Amazing change, and I'm not all that sure I like it, lol.  For someone who has had to take Provigil daily in the past to combat EDS (Excessive Daytime Sleepiness) from my sleep apnea, being awake at close to the bewtiching hour is unheard of!!!!

A little over a week ago my rheumatologist called me out of the blue.  It seems he had received a second notice from my insurance company that the Cymbalta he has been prescribing for my fibromyalgia is contraindicated due to my liver disease.  Despite my liver specialist giving the okay, my rheumatologist called to find out "just how much relief" the Cymbalta is providing.  Quite honestly, I think the steroids he prescribed for my inflammatory process and the Flexeril muscle relaxant are helping my pain the most.  So I was okay with him taking me off of the Cymbalta.  Less drugs in my body and less money out of my wallet!

However, I am now realizing just how much its sedating effects were countering the insomnia side effects from the steroids.  Since stopping the Cymbalta "The Sandman" has apparently lost my address!  I WAS hoping that once I am weaned off of the steroids I'd go back to my normal sleep pattern.  I kinda doubt it though, as the last two times the doctor stopped the steroids my pain increased dramatically...and then I'm awake for a whole different reason.  Oh well, I do some of my best thinking while counting sheep!  I am forever grateful to the Serta company for giving me such an adorable little representation to hurdle the fences in my mind. 

So, without any further ado, I am going to toddle back to my bed and try (for the third time tonight) to fall asleep.  I do hope my poor little sheep aren't getting too tired!

Nighty-night.... (fingers crossed, lol)...and sleep tight!

THRIFT STORE SCORE.....

WOW...two posts in one day!  The stars must be aligned just right, lol.  Actually I just had to share my thrift store scores.  After I treated myself to breakfast at Dunkin Donuts I headed out to my FAVORITE thrift store to do a little browsing/shopping.  Even though today wasn't the "everything 50% off" sale, I did manage to get some really good deals!

Starting at the top, that little fold out sewing box was only $7.49.  I have wanted a bigger version of this box for AGES, but refused to pay the ridiculous prices asked.  This smaller version was just the ticket to satisfy my need for an accordion box...without the high price.  I intend to paint the box pink, blue, white or turquoise.  Decisions, decisions...

The little crystal cordial glass was a necessary replacement.  Many moons ago I received a beautiful Waterford wine decanter as an engagement gift.  It held a place of honor on my dining room buffet, surrounded by much less expensive Crystal D'Arc (sp?) cordial glasses that just happened to match beautifully.  Unfortunately one of the small glasses was accidentally broken.  Thankfully it wasn't my beautiful decanter!  Today I found a replacement for a mere $1.49.  Score!

Next to the cordial glass is a flower shaped wire holder, I assume for toast?  Whatever it was originally intended for doesn't matter because I think it will make a cute little quilt ruler holder; and at just $2.99 I couldn't let it slip away!

Next were four Fimo polymer clays...tagged at $1.49 each...but all Yellow stickers were 50% today.  WooHoo...$.75 sounds MUCH better!

Next to them is a small rolling pin I will use when playing with polymer.  It was tagged at $.49...but since the tag was yellow the price was only $.25!

Next to the rolling pin is a pack of 6 peel and stick foam sheets.  I am going to use them to make a few project boards a-la Lori Holt of Bee In My Bonnet.  If I stick the foam to some scrap cardboard they should be firm enough to cover with batting.  At $1.50 it is worth the experiment. 

Under the foam sheets is a single vinyl placemat for $.49.  I REALLY need something to protect my work surface when using glue or paint.

The remaining items were all found in the "Thrift" shop of the thrift store, lol.  They were $.25 each:

a set of small buttons to cover, a set of extra large buttons to cover, two bias tapes, four DMC embroidery flosses, and a Hello Kitty lanyard.  I dislike Hello Kitty intensely and will trash the ribbon, but purchased the lanyard solely for the clasp. 

OOPS...I forgot to include in the picture a 45 mm. OLFA rotary cutter for $6.49.   It was hiding in the bottom of the bag, lol. 

So once again the thrift store has proven to be an incredibly inexpensive source for many of the things on my "wish list" or "need list".   What I couldn't find?...9 x 12 manilla envelopes, snack size plastic bags, dark green rick rack, rubber bands, a power strip with a flat plug, skinny elastic hair ties, and ice cube trays.  Maybe next week... 

IT'S NOT A FAILURE....!

Yesterday, a very WISE poster reminded me that perfection isn't necessary.  Even on my good days I am only operating at 50% of the old me...and I should be PROUD of whatever I can accomplish given my constraints!  You know what?  She was ABSOLUTELY RIGHT (Thank you for being so wise!).

So today you get to see the front of one of the three mug rugs I am making for Christmas gifts.  It was supposed to be four mug rugs (one for guests), but the fancy stitch I used went crooked (okay, I went crooked while feeding in the mug rug...but we will blame it on the rug (or the weather), not my shaky hands, lol).  I MAY be able to unpick it all on a REALLY good day...but seam rippers can be deadly you know, lol.  Since I only need 3 mug rugs for Christmas gifts...it's no big deal.  Hopefully in a short while I will be able to finish the back of this one (need more rick-rack) and I will post more pictures.  (By the way...if you look at the bottom right of the rug you can see that my machine skipped some stitches.  Anyone have ANY idea why my machine would do that?  I was using Sulky thread.)

When I got thoroughly disgusted with my sewing yesterday I decided to move on to another craft that may not require such precision.  

About a month or so ago I was cleaning out my craft drawers and came across some polymer clay.  The clay had sat in my drawers, still wrapped, for at least 15 years.  I opened it, expecting a brick-hard rock of clay that had to be trashed.  Surprisingly, I was able to pull off a small chunk and work it until it became pliable.  I played for a bit and made 4 swirly flowers.  Hmmmm.  I think they would make cute scissor fobs!  So, before baking, I added some little jewelry findings.  Once baked all nice and hard I decided they needed a bit of shine.  I went to Amazon and added some Sculpey Glaze to my cart.  I was working toward a $25 Amazon gift card through MyPoints and would place my Amazon order only when it was free, or darn near close, with my card.   I try to get the absolute MOST for my money!  Fast forward a month or so and the Sculpey Glaze arrived at my door.

When my frustration hit yesterday I grabbed my bottle of glaze and a paintbrush.  How much trouble could shaky hands cause when painting on a bit of glaze?  Answer:  None!  Woo-Hoo, happy camper here!  While the glaze dried I pulled out some variegated pink and some white pearl cotton and made the peppermint stripe cording.  A few minutes spent in Word making up the tag and I was almost done!  I printed my instructions on cardstock and went over to my Sizzix to cut it into a cute little tag.  As you can see, my wording is not straight on the tag, but perfection isn't necessary on a tag.  So I popped the little scissor fob into a small plastic bag and added it to my giveaway pile.  I told you I was still adding to it, lol.  It's addictive!

However, I have a question that I am hoping one of you can answer.  When using one of the original Sizzix dies (red plastic bottom, foam looking dies inside) HOW do you center your wording on the die when you can't see through the cardstock?!?!?  Lol.  I know I must have done something wrong, but since this is only the second time I have tried to use my BigShot, I'm at a loss! My BigShot came with an Extended Multipurpose Platform that includes sandwiching instructions for many dies and embossing folders....but not the original!  Any help you skilled scrap-bookers can give would be most appreciated!  Like most things now-a-days, instructions included with the BigShot are minimal.  Gosh I miss the days of INSTRUCTION MANUALS!  Ha-ha....I think I just dated myself!

So that is what is new here in the Cottage.  I still have the other 3 fobs to glaze, but I will wait for another frustrating day when I feel the need to craft and my body won't cooperate!  In the meantime a nice mug of coffee and some breakfast sounds perfect.  I received a coupon for a free coffee from DD for my birthday this month so I think I will treat myself to a trip to DD for breakfast!  

Take care and see you soon back at the Cottage!

A FAILURE....

Sorry I haven't been around much, but my tremor has been HORRENDOUS and I have gotten very little crafting done.  This morning I was a tiny bit steadier so I decided to do some work on the mug rugs I was making for my aunt and my folks for Christmas.  Well...long story short...they flopped.  Badly.  I'm even ashamed to show them on here!  But, rest assured, I'm NOT completely discouraged.  I refuse to let this DANGED tremor win!  I will just pick out some new fabric and this time hopefully complete them without incident...when my hands are steadier than they are now, lol.  

I'm off to try a different craft that maybe I don't need to be quite so steady to master!

Don't forget...the giveaway will be drawn on 9/8/13, so follow me and then comment ON THE GIVEAWAY POST if you would like a chance to win!