TtV :: Christmas girl

this was the Christmas outfit i made for C, her favorite part was the white pompom on the top of the candy cane hat (knitting pattern is from itty-bitty hats book by Susan B Anderson), i also knitted the matching candy cane legwarmies, then i sewed her a granny smith apple green with white polka dots peasant style dress from the Sweet Little Dress Pattern from leila & ben.

(these ttv photos were taken through an Argus 75)

happy bench monday !

TtV :: purple

TtV (through the viewfinder) photos i took using an Argus 75... i had envisioned this purple ensemble for my daughter, C, & this is how it turned out... the lazy days skirt was sewn from the purple Russian nesting doll fabric from Denmark that i got in a swap, the legwarmies & the one row lace scarf were knit from purple DROPS yarn (also from Denmark that i also got in the same swap), & the purple hippo is a knitting pattern from the itty-bitty toys book by Susan B. Anderson.

happy bench monday !

denyse schmidt quilts

i've been so inspired by craft books lately - so much so that i'll be doing a month of blogging on 2009 craft books during January 2010. we are very fortunate to have access to a public library with so many books & we check out a ton of books. this book above - Denyse Schmidt Quilts is an older one (from 2005), so you've probably already seen it...


i had these purple, pink, & yellow scraps of fabric sitting around & they were perfect for making these Dis-Cards as this project is called in the book. basically you quilt a greeting card, so far i have 3 done & i have 3 more to go...

wordless wip wed

simple country wisdom

have you read this book yet? it's called Country Living Simple Country Wisdom: 501 Old-Fashioned Ideas to Simplify Your Life by Susan Waggoner & came out in June 2009... it is packed full with tips & tricks, household hints, & practical solutions to everyday problems.


i love these pages... here they took vintage items: patterns, belt & measuring tape & used them all for wrapping a gift !


here's a great idea: repurposing an egg carton for a sewing kit & storing your current craft project...


... i was so inspired by it that i made one of my own - super easy & didn't cost anything as i used what i had.

mail joy !

recently i've received a few packages in the mail from Europe... Joanie sent me many lovely items: an issue of The Green Parent magazine, heart straight pins, vintage buttons, bunting, hot chocolate mix, a lovely handmade doll, Cath Kidston, Liberty, & modern print fabrics !


from Mette: paper tags & cards, angel & stars ornaments, doll making kit, star straight pins, handmade pincushion & zipper pouch, purple wool yarn, Russian nesting doll fabrics, & a Russian nesting doll tote (where ever i go with it i get so many compliments).


these lovely fabrics are from a fabric swap with Dorte, Russian nesting doll & vintage floral fabrics from Denmark, marimekko fabric from Finland, & Cath Kidston fabric from the UK.

i was absolutely spoiled ! all of these packages arrived within the same week, so i had a very wonderful week - i also have a lot of fun crafting time ahead of me now that i have all these lovely crafting goodies !! thank you gals ! i am truly blessed to have such great internet friends !

Scandanavian Goodies

recent Scandanavian goodies i bought: 2 yards Dala horses ribbon, 2 yards red Scandanavian design ribbon, & 2 St Lucy cards (just in time for St Lucy day December 13th).


more Scandanavian ribbons at the store, called Cafe Finspang, located at the Midtown Global Market in Minneapolis.


i was excited to see all the Dala horses !

No Coast Craft-O-Rama

last weekend i went to the 5th annual No Coast Craft-O-Rama in Minneapolis. i met Christopher Straub from Project Runway season 6 --- remember i'm a huge fan of Project Runway --- Christopher is from Minnesota & was in the top 5 & although he didn't win, he got the most votes for favorite designer...


this is me in my Christopher Straub t-shirt that i bought.


there were almost 100 crafters & here are some of the business cards i picked up.

yarn bowl from jennie the potter


earrings with knitting pattern, she also make them in stitch markers !

i also bought the One-Yard Wonders book & Rebecca Yaker & Marlene Gaige signed my copy, but i will blog more about that during January 2010 when i will blog a month of 2009 craft books & what i made from them...

Sew, Mama, Sew! Giveaway Day Winner!

out of 99 entries, the random number generator gave #23, so Sara is the winner ! this package is on the way !

Sew, Mama, Sew! Giveaway Day!

for the Sew, Mama, Sew! Giveaway Day, i'm giving away this hand knit sweater (hand knit by me), it's a child size 4-6 years vest with a boat neck collar --- based on the Neighborly with a Twist (free) knitting pattern, it can be for a girl or a boy, it has a brown leather vintage button, & the yarn fiber content is 50% cotton - 50% acrylic (machine washable & dryable).

:: enter your chance to win by leaving a comment on this post
:: i will ship internationally
:: a winner will be picked by random number
:: comments will be open until late Sunday night December 6th, 2009

enjoy !

day 21 repurposing a jar

day 21 repurposing a jar :: jar cozy

dress up jars with a jar cozies ! they can be really fun to make & can be for your own storage or for gift giving... the one in the above photo is made from a vintage pillowcase trim, with a few vintage buttons sew on


these jar cozies are super simple, can you guess what they are?


shirt cuffs ! just cut off the cuff of a shirt & slide it on a jar --- instant jar cozy !


almost any coffee cup cozy could work... this is a knitted coffee cup cozy --- a free knitting pattern called Knit Coffee Sleeve

well, this is the last day of the repurposing a jar challenge, but there are many more ways to reuse a jar, including:

:: snow globe
:: picture frame
:: sand art
:: moss terranium
:: storing kitchen utensils near stove top - tongs, chop sticks, etc.
:: displaying a beach (sand, shells) souvenir collection
:: storing paints
:: planter - put pebbles at the bottom of a jar, fill with potting soil, plant herb of flower seeds, keep in windowsill

see you here tomorrow for a Sew, Mama, Sew! giveaway !

day 20 repurposing a jar

day 20 repurposing a jar :: advent calendar 3

this advent calendar is a table centerpiece in the shape of a Christmas tree, with a star on top (the star of Bethlehem), but if you wanted, all 24 of these little baby food jars could be lined up on a fireplace mantle, wouldn't that be cute !?!

supplies needed:
24 baby food jars
decorative papers
paper cutter
mod podge
sponge brush
chalkboard paint
chalk

instructions:
with the decorative papers cut out 24 pieces (these are about 1.25" X 7.5")
with mod podge & sponge brush adhere the paper pieces to the glass jars
paint the lids with chalkboard paint, then with chalk write the numbers 1-24 on the lids

voila !

see you one Monday for day 21 ! (the last day of this month's repurposing a jar challenge) have a happy weekend !

day 19 repurposing a jar

day 19 repurposing a jar :: advent calendar 2

this advent calendar uses the PLAYMOBIL nativity & wise kings set ($20) ---- and it's an advent calendar that turns into a nativity scene. i took all the PLAYMOBIL pieces from the set & divided them into 24 parts, placed into 24 different jars. i painted the jar lids with chalkboard paint, using chalk i wrote the numbers 1-24 on the lids (number 24 has baby Jesus inside). each day a jar is opened those PLAYMOBIL pieces are added to the nativity scene & on December 24th the nativity scene is complete.

see you tomorrow for day 20 !

day 18 repurposing a jar

day 18 repurposing a jar :: gift giving

fill jars with goodies & give them as gifts... peppermint bark

Chex muddy buddies

knit baby hats & booties

knit strawberries

knit green olives

see you tomorrow for day 19 !

day 17 repurposing a jar

day 17 repurposing a jar :: advent calendar 1

this advent calendar is a centerpiece at the table. for this i collected 24 baby food & smaller jars, painted the lids with chalkboard paint, then with chalk wrote the numbers 1-24, with 24 having a star - the star of Bethlehem. since the color of advent is purple, i tied a big purple bow around all the jars, holding them all together on top of a cake stand. each jar could be filled with little things: candy, little toys, pieces of paper folded up (with activities to do each day, messages, prayers, whatever you can think up...)

see you tomorrow for day 18 !

day 16 repurposing a jar

day 16 repurposing a jar :: craft storage

i use lots & lots of jars for my craft storage, it's a fun challenge to find the perfect jar for a specific craft supply or crafting tool... that's a HUGE pickle jar (in the above photo) filled with vintage craft goodies. a few weeks ago i went to a vintage shop i'd never been to before & i bought almost all their vintage ric rac, so now all this vintage ric rac is sharing the pickle jar with bits & pieces of vintage lace & tatting (i added a lavender sachet to help with the pickle smell)



on one of the IKEA shelves in my studio: one jar for vintage knitting needles, one jar for little balls of vintage thread, one jar for vintage wooden spools, & one jar for vintage crochet hooks



in a small white cabinet: 3 shelves with 3 different sizes of Bonne Maman jars all filled with craft goodies



these 2 smaller sizes of Bonne Maman jars are just adorable ! they are the perfect size for teeny tiny craft goodies... one small ball of thread, small buttons, one small spool of thread, small safety pins and surprise ! yes, those are googly eyes - my kids like to craft, too :-)


more vintage craft goodies...



and even more vintage craft goodies



oh, wow ! these are really old... i made the tops of these jars back in 4th & 5th grade summer school ! (where all of my crafting began - look for a future post all about that)



lots of ribbon, button, & prima flower storage


tons & tons of vintage buttons !

see you tomorrow for day 17 !