Mary Journal

This beautiful journal was created by a friend of mine. Her first crafting love is anything paper but really wants to get into mix media, which pretty much means everything; anything goes. I can see things going that direction for me too. This was a project she donated to a silent auction. It was truly a labor of love. She put so much work into every detail of this journal. She thought of everything. 

The Mary image on the front cover is a silver embossed Our Lady of Guadalupe she did using a recollections stamp she found at Michaels.

Prayer hands and rosary stamp are from Catholic Rubber Stamps. This little stamp company is a small Mom and Pop business located in Wisconsin. They have enormous selection of Catholic Christian stamps. If you can think of it they probably have it. When my friend stumbled upon them it was like she struck Gold. 

It's hard to see but this little stamp say's "Hands to Work Hearts to God". It's also from Catholic Rubber Stamp.

The list of Mary's names and Hail Mary Stamps are also from Catholic Rubber Stamp. 

Amen.

Thanks for stopping by the nest!

Darla

Pink Daisy Card

Like I mentioned in my last post I have been doing a lot more paper crafting and experimenting with new (to me) techniques. Few months ago my friend got me very interested in trying watercolor. So we tried out the on-line class Watercolor for Cardmakers. Watercolor, actually painting in general, has always seem very daunting. I have to say after taking this class I really think it is doable. I still have a lot to learn and I'm looking forward to stretching my skills by trying more intermediate techniques.

The technique used for this card is not from the card making class. I found this one on Pinterest here.  I had a little trouble with getting the heat embossing right. I tried this with 4 different embossing folders and this one turned out the best. 

Because of taking the on-line class I have tried a handful of different types of watercolor paint. The one I have found I like the best isn't even watercolor paint, its Distress Ink by Ranger. Since it is a water based ink it is slow drying and can be manipulated by introducing more water. I simply press the stamp pad lightly to a slick surface (I use the silicone mat by Ranger but you could use a sandwich bag) and pick up the ink with a wet paint brush and paint.

For this card I added a little sparkle to the darker center flower with the Zig Wink of Stella brush pen. LOVE this stuff. I can see now why it is so popular. I have a friend that hates glitter being brought into her house but I would have no problem giving her a card with this stuff on it. It does not shed what-so-ever.

Supplies used:

Strathmore watercolor paper

Darcie embossing folder

Speedball brayer

Versamark Ink

WOW Fine Clear embossing powder

Picked Raspberry Distress Ink

Mustard Seed Distress Ink

Spiced Marmalade Distress Ink

Sakura Koi Waterbrush, small

Zig Wink of Stella brush- glitter clear

Echo Park Simple Life clear stamp set

Ranger Jet Black Archival Ink pad

Scotch Foam Mounting Tape

Core'dinations cardstock

If you have always wanted to try watercolor you should do it. It's so much fun and really not that costly. 

Is there a craft you have ever wanted to try but never had the courage? Leave me a comment, I'd love to hear about it!

Thanks for stopping by the nest!
Darla

I have no paid sponsorships so all the products I use and opinions I express are completely my own.

Book: Kwik Sew's Sewing for Toddlers

OK start the mocking now. So I bought another sewing book. This one is definitely dated. The Kwik Sew's Sewing for Toddlers by Kerstin Martensson was originally published in 1992. I really wasn't too deterred by this. This book received great (current) reviews. So much of the feedback given on amazon indicated that with very little effort that these patterns can be modernized and that they are timeless. For practical toddler clothes I can see where this is possible. That being said, I think this one has "good bones" and I'm excited about diving in to it. The sizes are 1T-4T and most of the patterns are intended for knit and sweat shirt fabrics.

This is one of the examples of a great outfit for a toddler. I have a handful of rompers just like this that my Sammy wore frequently as a baby and Noah is now wearing. These have been of favorite of mine so I'm happy to have a pattern to make my own. 

For Summer Kids Clothes Week this week I am definitely going to make something from this book.  I may even attempt to make a summery version of this jump suit. 

So mock me all you want. I'm determined to make this one work ; ) For fun I ordered my all time favorite movies to watch while using it, Mr. Mom.

Thanks for stopping by the nest!
Darla

KCW & Sewing Books, Magazines and Patterns

Over the past couple years I have accumulated quite the collection of sewing books, magazines and paper patterns. I really enjoyed pouring over each one of them as they have entered the house as well as when I am looking for inspiration. Sadly, I have not really used most of them. Despite all of the money I have spent on these I seem to gravitate to the free patterns and tutorials that other blogger's have so generously shared. Maybe its the personal feel of a tutorial, like your being taught by a friend. Or the fact that they are real people who just want to keep it simple.

Regardless, motivation with a dash a guilt has me feeling like I need to challenge myself to 1. make at least one of these patterns a month and 2. do it with only the supplies I already have on hand and 3. for heavens sake make something for my boys! I say this to you with hopes of having some accountability.

For now I am going to focus on the books and magazines since they are the most neglected. They also offer more possibilities for my boys. 

I have made one item out of Growing Up Sew Liberated by Meg McElwee. The Basic Pocket Pants for Samuel a couple years ago which can be found here. There are several non clothing patterns that I would love to do for my kids. The art satchel and the dress-up bucket are high on that list. I like the knit PJ's (Crossover Tee & Sleeping Johns) for all my kiddos which I believe will be the next thing I make from this book.

I have never made anything out of my copy of The Pattern Book for Boys by Shelly Figueroa. This book receive really mixed reviews on amazon. I bought it regardless thinking that a good number of the negative reviews could be from individuals with poor sewing skills or just couldn't adapt to the method of instruction. I'm not saying I could do better but figured "What the hay, give it a try," it's not like there are a ton of sewing patterns out there for boys to choose from. Looking over the pictures there are definitely things that are not our style but there are a bunch that I love, like the two-in-one jacket and the little heartbreaker pants. 

My most recent acquisition is Stitch, Wear, Play by Mariko Nakamura which I just stumbled on amazon a couple weeks ago while looking for another pattern book for boy (which are in short supply I might add). There were no ratings and reviews so I searched for other bloggers who have used this book and I couldn't find any. I really like the snippets of images I could find and the size range so I took a leap and bought it. At first glance I really like this book. It has a nice balance of boy's and girls clothes. The styles seem timeless but modern. It's broken down by season which I especially like. I am feeling a bit challenged by the fabric suggestions (or lack of multiple fabric type suggestions), a good number only list linen which it not my preferred fabric for everyday kids clothes. The first thing I would like to make out of here is the girls Suntop and Shorts & the Boy's Shorts. 

I have seen a lot of projects completed from the Happy Homemade (2) Sew Chic Kids by Ruriko Yamada and always love the results. The fact that it is a Japanese sewing book that has been translated in to English makes it a good place to introduce myself to the Japanese sewing world. So many people have raved about this book that I can't believe I haven't touched this yet. The knee length shorts are top on my list for Samuel. 

I really wanted the Japanese Lesson Book by Vogue Sya and now all it does is mock me. I am so intimidated by it. It has a ton of awesome basic patterns. When I look at working on one of these patterns I convinced myself that I need to invest to much time trying to translate the instruction and I am instantly defeated. What I need do is exactly what I do with English written patterns and let my previous experience with similar items guide me through the assembly. (I'm too impatient to read instructions) This is probably a dangerous approach but at least the book will finally be used. There is a pair of shorts that would work great for the boys that doesn't seem too challenging and is probably be a good place to start.

While at a local half price book shop a couple years ago I came across a couple used but never touched sewing books for really cheap so I couldn't resist purchasing them. Who knows if I will ever use them but they are entertaining and educational if nothing else.
The first is Sew Cute Couture by Gail Doane which looks more dated than it really is. It was published in 2009. This book is really about heirloom sewing and contains mostly smocking and embroidery embellishments along with dress and jacket patterns. The sizes range from 6 months - 12 years depending on the pattern. According to what I found on the internet Gail is well know heirloom sewer and a fantastic instructor. This book receive great reviews on Amazon. I don't know if I will ever do any major embroidery embellishment but I would like to try my hand at smocking someday so this could be useful. There are some really cute jackets and a wrap skirt I can see making for Hannah in a few years. For now maybe I can plan on making Hannah a jacket for over her Christmas dress this year, minus the embellishments.
The second is Designer Smocking for Tots to Teens by Helen Davies published in 2007. It too looks dated and maybe it is a little but the closer I look at it has the potential with slight alterations to the pattern can be modernized. This book takes classic smocking and applies it to every day clothes which I find very interesting. The pattern sizes range from 12 month - 14 years depending on the pattern. This book also received great reviews on Amazon. Most of the projects include complete clothing patterns. Some are smocking add-ons to ready-made-clothing. There is a complete project where the smocking is only on the pocket which might be a good place for me to start. These cute smocked pockets would look great on a little dress or Hannah.

One of the first sewing books I purchased is called Making Childrens Clothes by Emma Hardy published in 2009. I did it on a whim right after having my first baby when I had my first thoughts of sewing for kids. I really wish I had done my research on this book prior. This received mixed reviews on Amazon and the ones that panned this book are very intelligent. I have picked this book up from time-to-time thinking that I will make something (prepared that I will probably need to alter patterns) and see for myself but never follow through for some reason or another. This is book is very girl heavy and and has only one item directed at boys that interests me, the boy's shorts. I just need to bit the bullet and see for myself if this book has any value. 

I purchased Sewing to Sell by Virginia Lindsay looking for valuable  information on selling homemade goods which it does. It also has a ton of great sewing projects. None of them are clothes for kids but a few are non clothing kids items like a bib & burp cloth and a really cute lunch bag. I have read this book cover to cover and highly recommend it for any sewer not just those who sell or want to sell. The projects alone make this a great book. I only feel comfortable saying this without sewing anything out of it since the author makes and sells these items herself and could probably sew these in her sleep. They are tried and true. Samuel starts full time school next school year and needs that lunch bag and this one would be perfect for him.

Another Non clothing book I obtained on the cheap is A Quilting Life by Sherri McConnell. This book got great reviews on Amazon and has a variety of quilting projects that a beginner through intermediate can do. I have been saying for a while now that I need to make Hannah a quilt for her bed and just not gotten to it. I think the scale of that project has me overwhelmed. This book has pillow patterns that I think I should start with first. I'll just plan on making it to match the quilt that will be made someday.

Sew Charming by Cath Derksema and Kristen Junor is mainly about hand printing fabric and has several sewing projects. A couple of them are clothing items but most are general home projects. I bought this book simply for inspirations it has fantastic style and vibrant colors. I may never sew anything from this book but it has me interested in attempting fabric printing some day. 

Last but definitely not least my Ottobre magazines. I ordered a subscription in 2013 and when I hadn't made anything from the ones that I had I didn't renew.  It was a tough decision. I loved seeing that package show up from across the seas but I knew it was a bad reason to spend that much money and never actually use them. These are my favorite things to look at for inspiration. There is always a fantastic balance between boys and girls clothing and the sizing ranges from newborn to preteen depending on the pattern. I don't know exactly why I have never used them other then the rumors I have heard about how challenging the patterns can be. I think I just need to start with something basic like leggings or PJ pants to get my feet wet. 

Kids Clothes Week is April 20th - 26th so I will need to put my sewing list together this week. I hope that these books will be put to good use next week (finally : )

As always, I am really looking forward to kids clothes week. I'm not feeling overly inspired by the "Wild Things" theme. I'll have to search around for some inspiration. May be one of my books has something.  

I love my little collection of tangible sewing media. Up to this point it has been a pretty superficial love though. I hope that when I really dive into them that they don't let me down and I can turn this little infatuation in to a long lasting relationship.

Do you have a favorite sewing book or magazine? Leave me a comment, I'd love to hear about it.

Thanks for stopping bu the nest!

Darla

One of the best gifts ever!!..... I think

My birthday is coming up and the UPS man delivered my husbands gift to me.  It was obvious from the box what it was so I did a little happy dance.  A serger!  

Needless to say I was a little gitty the rest of the day. I kinda knew I was getting this but you are never really sure till you have it. The serger means a little more than just an awesome piece of equipment to help me in my sewing endeavors. It means I have my husbands support in what I am hoping to accomplish. John was a little disappointed that I had seen it early and I am sure he was a little sad that he missed me seeing it for the first time. I did really well for the first few days waiting till he was ready to officially give it to me however as I was working on sewing projects I keep thinking "boy the serger would be great here" or "I will wait till I have the serger till I complete this part." So I finally caved and asked if I could crack it open and of course my generous husband permitted it. I was totally excited and had no idea what I was getting in to. 

Like a good appliance owner I tend to read all the instructions manuals before I use things. The manual is not thick so I though this was going to be a piece of cake.  OH MY GOLLY, this machine has so many gizmos I was instantly overwhelmed.  

Not one to let me fear get the best of me, I got started.  It came with four small spools already pre-threaded so I was able to get started. I had pieces for a diaper cover already cut out for this pattern & tutorial by MADE by Dana (I love MADE) which was a perfect start. The seams came together flawlessly. 

I also had a bunch of new fabric to prep for washing. Another good way to practice by serging all of the raw edges.  

I was so excited to see how wonderful things were going and with several different types of fabrics, from sheers to baby corduroy. And then one of the spools ran out of thread. The lower looper one. Soon it became abundantly clear to me that when things were going well it was not due to any skill I have.  Thank you to the factory worker who had originally threaded this thing & got it working perfectly. If it weren't for you I would have had a horrible first impression and wanted to return it. So I pulled out the the manual and tried to follow it's procedure to thread this thing. I must have tried a dozen different things and rethreaded a 100 time and still not working right. PINEREST to the rescue. I had enough forethought to pin a couple serger how to's. This tutorial was great at pointing out the key things I kept overlooking to get this thing working right. Its clear I have a lot of practicing to do & a trip to JoAnn's to invest in some spools of serger thread. Despite a day or two of frustration this is still one of the best gifts ever. Thank you John!