February 22, 2012

my go-to gift for baby showers


 Hello dear readers! I am still alive and well and crafting if not blogging.

Some crafts are not post-worthy (finishing an update to the family scrapbook just in time to clear off the dining room table before guests arrive!).

And some, like the flannel burp cloths below, I did not adequately document with photos. Mostly it was because I was trying to get it done at the last minute and then got derailed by the stomach flu (my children, pause a day, then me). So I guess I have been slacking a bit. It does pain my perfectionist heart to miss regular post days. In the end, I suppose it does not really matter how well I follow my self-imposed blogging schedule!

So about these burp cloths. If you are the least bit craft inclined and have learned to sew a straight line, you can do these. I promise. They are fabulous for several reasons – flannel comes in adorable prints, homemade gifts are great, and man do they really soak up the baby-produced liquids. I know from experience! Plus, the way they are assembled makes them super sturdy so they hold up despite weekly tumbles in the washing machine.

I was going to write up the instructions myself but here they already are on other blogs. This one uses a different fabric for each side. And here's another tutorial. She made hers a bit wider than I made mine. The only thing I do differently is to snip the corners before turning it inside out. I think it helps when you are poking them out. And I didn't bother to iron them again before sewing the final stitching on the outside. Although I can see where that would have been helpful as I had a few that did not quite lay flat.

Now there is no photo of the lovely presentation so you are just going to have to visualize it with me. First I folded the burp cloths lengthwise, then I rolled them each up into tidy swirls. Then I tucked them in an open box (about the size of a a photo storage box). They looked like cheerful little flowers all nestled in there. It was so cute that I didn't bother to wrap it up.

February 10, 2012

a favorite artist makes fabric


I love and adore the work of Gennine. I have yet to buy any mostly because I can't decide which piece I love the most. This past week she announced that some of her work will be used on fabric to be released this spring. I am thrilled! I think I will use this one for sunroom curtains. It has little birds (I intend the sunroom to be a sit and watch the birds room as well) in a teal that is found elsewhere in my house. And it has the colors orange and yellow (already in or near the sunroom) and poppies, which are one of my favorite flowers. Sigh! Just lovely!

February 8, 2012

lime green couches do exist!


Was anyone else super-impressed with JCPenny's ad this past Sunday? New logo, new layout, perhaps new products? Before seeing this lovely, artist, white-space filled ad I would have associated their store with "grandma" (no offense to my dear grandmothers). Now I think of sassy spring clothes that I would actually wear and lime green couches (pardon, "gecko") that just might work in my sunroom. That's the power of graphic design my friends!

February 6, 2012

happy heart quilt for me

I have a vision for a decorative quilt!
 It would hang over my mantel for the valentine season, bringing some color and cheer. A fuzzy bold read heart, loose and abstract and imperfect would rest in the center (there is a sweater in my give-away box that would be perfect!) and bands of pattern and color would radiate out from the center. And I think that the heart would be quilted on with scribbely, overlapping, many-hued colors of thread. Rough like a sketch. Mmmm... this could be a lot of fun!

February 3, 2012

sky full of color


Days are lasting just a bit longer as of late, allowing me a lovely view of the twilight sky on my way home. I especially appreciate the way bare, dark winter branches spider across the sky, creating lacy patterns.

February 1, 2012

minimalist mantel


Just a dash of color to brighten the white of January. The magic wands were an autumn craft for us.