Busy Little Bee

Oh my goodness! I have neglected my blog, but for good reason! I have so busy with projects, it has almost been unbelievable! On top of that, we are moving across the country in less than 10 days, and I still have a ton of packing to do! So here is what I have been up to! Enjoy!

The laundry hamper was a great project, and my sister loved it! The shirt quilt was good learning for me. I am not very good at binding! This project was a lady who recently lost her father and wanted to keep him close. The top part is his shirts and I backed it with a no-pill fleece.

 I love everything about the fold over clutch! It's great for out on the town or even everyday use. I am also loving the color combo experiments!

This is the reversible bag. Need I say more!?! This one is mine. I couldn't part with it once I made it. It's too cute and just perfect for me :)

Diaper bags galore! I have made 4 (maybe 5) bags since my first messenger bag. Did I mention that they were ALL made to order!? I couldn't love my job anymore than I already do. The last one that I made, she wanted a matching changing pad. Again, I am not very good at binding, so I did my best to cover that up ;)

My other sister asked me if I could make a backpack. When someone asks me if I can make something..."CHALLENGE ACCEPTED!" This was not an east project. It took my all day. I found a great tutorial. Everything about it was very clear (except for the measurements!) I ended up having to take half of it apart to fix some things that I couldn't live with! After I made this one, she asked if I could one for her son, so that is on the books, but it may just have to wait til after our move.

This is the 6qt. kitchen aid cover. I searched and searched for a tutorial on how to make this, but came up short. After thinking about it, it was rather simple. So simple, that I should have been able to figure it out sooner than I did. My customer loved it :)

And curtains! Oh boy! My favorite, honestly! I love measurements and lines and pressing and getting things perfect, so I actually love doing curtains. 6 panels, 3 sets and all 3 sets different lengths. They wanted them to match up in the middle as much as possible, and I think that was achieved. I love the way they wanted the straps also. I just can't wait to get a picture of them actually hanging up!

So to say that I have been busy is quite a bit of an understatement. It's been extreme business, but I'm not stopping! I have more to share, but I have lots to do today!

Happy Hump Day :)

The Shower Curtain

Ok, so one more post for the night and then I am done. I have been putting off this particular for whatever reason, I don't really know, but here it goes. I am not an expert sewer, but I have learned in my craft how to do things and how to do them well. The more I practice, the better I get. My first project was an easter basket for my kids. Something small and easy. I am not one to tell others that they can't do something, but oh man! Did I witness a disaster of a sewing job that I did end up fixing. A lady had taken on the task of sewing a shower curtain that had a chevron pattern that hew customer wanted to match up perfect. That right there was a job! Here is the before...

Now, if you have an eye for mistakes, you should see where they are. The chevron isn't matching at all and the bottom is way uneven. That's not even the worse part because that could be fixed.

Whoever thought that this was an acceptable button hole was sadly mistaken.

I had to take the whole thing apart and start from scratch. Just taking it apart took a little over an hour. I got in a full episode of Supernatural so that will tell you that it takes time and effort and even more to fix something that should have been done right the first time. After I got the whole thing disassembled, I was a little nervous about the butchered holes on the corners and the uneven pattern. I was given an extra long piece of fabric that was cut off to finish off the hack job. If that gives you any kind of clues, the seam wasn't even in the middle of the curtain. Ugh!

(you have to know that I was doing this out of a favor to a very good friend of mine or I would have charged a lot more to do this job)

So the first thing that I had to do was pin, pin and more pinning.

Can you tell where my seam is? I sure hope not! I topstitched the seam just to make sure that I got it perfect. My edging foot is the bomb! Just sayin.

I did that to both sides along with cutting off the excess where the hacked button holes were. I was so happy that it turned out!

As you can see, I don't have a ton of room. I work with what I have. My friend wanted to see what I had done so that is why one of the pictures, one of the hems isn't finished. Chevron matched up! I was pretty proud of that. And here is the correct way to do a button hole!

Just to show off my cool new photofy app, I'm gonna recap the button hole!

And here is the shower curtain hanging up!

So there it is people! A custom shower curtain. It took me total about 6 hours to take apart and fix. Let me tell you though, if you want custom items, you had better be ready to pay for it! Like I said before, I did this as a favor to a friend. She did pay me, but not as much as I would have charged anyone else for the time. Don't get me wrong...I loved this project. I was so excited when I got the chevron to match up and the button holes to look like they did, but it took time!.

Ok, really now...have a happy day! Stay in touch for the next fun project :)

The Fold Over Clutch

I've been on pinterest for several days now looking for something new and exciting to make. I think that I found that something. Well, maybe not so much exciting, like OMG I have to make this or else, but it seemed really cute and super trendy. I found this Fold Over Clutch. I hate always carrying around a purse and also never being able to find anything b/c I always end up with a bunch of useless junk in it. I love the thought of a clutch b/c it isn't huge, but it's just big enough to carry the necessities. Well, here is mine!

Isn't it just the cutest thing ever! It doesn't feature any kind of strap or handle, but I don't think that it would be too hard to figure out where to put one.

These are made to order, and I will be putting this one up in my Etsy Shop very soon. I need to get all the proper pictures and then I will be set!

Well, that's it for now! Keep coming back for more adventures in sewing!

The Tutu Dress

I decided one day that I wanted to try something a little different. Something that didn't require me to cut and sew, cut and sew, etc...That brought me to thinking about what my little girl would want mommy to make. I asked her one day who her favorite Tinkerbell fairy was. Of course she would say one that I didn't completely expect at all. The Pirate Fairy. Really? That was the last Tinkerbell movie we saw, but she knows what she likes. So, I was determined to make her a pirate fairy tutu dress. Well, it didn't really turn out how I wanted it to, but it did turn out beautiful and she took the stage!

She is my little model for sure. She will strike a pose when she knows that I am taking her picture. 

The Pirate Fairy wears a dark green outfit with a brown belt and some really awesome looking boots. Unfortunately I ran out of the green, so it's not more of a pretty princess fairy tutu dress. This is up for sale in my Etsy store

It was a really fun dress to put together, but now I am on a mission for more! I have been searching Etsy and any other websites that would have sell dresses like these, and I cannot find the fairies dresses, as in all the fairies from the Tinkerbell movies. I have the supplies to work on Tinkerbell next so until next time! Happy crafting!

Where it Started...

Ok, so maybe I won't go back as far as where exactly I started to sew, but I will start from our move to CA and why I love doing what I do.

I'm a stay at home mom so obviously that I means that I do absolutely nothing all day long! HAHA! I hope that you know that I am joking. Between making sure the children are fed, bathed, clothed, and not getting into any trouble at (rolls eyes), I have to keep up with daily household work i.e. laundry, dishes, sweeping, cleaning, making sure the husband has a nice ironed shirt for work in the morning...BTW, I hate ironing, but it has to be done, and at last but not least, dinner when the husband gets home. I have a confession though. I don't always have dinner ready for when he gets home. I try, but I usually get preoccupied. By what exactly? What this blog is going to be all about. My sewing, crafts and more.

Moving to CA has been a huge adjustment b/c it is so expensive. There are no more random shopping trips. I don't even go to Target as much as I like (and I love Target). I'm watching what I spend at the grocery store and make sure that I don't drive too much just so I don't have to put gas in my car.

Good thing I already had a fabric inventory built up! I was a fabric hoarder! Ok, so maybe not that extreme, but close to it. I always start with Pinterest. I am always able to find fun new projects to do on there. Hi, my name is Mary, and I am a Pinterest Addict.

Anyway, one day, I decided that I didn't want to carry around a large wallet anymore and wanted make one for myself. And so birthed this...

Pretty nifty huh? I sent a picture to my sister, and she asked if I could make her one that fit 2 iPhones, a few credit cards and her earphones. Of course I could! So this one was birthed...This isn't the exact one that I sent to my sister, but you get the idea. I made myself one after that, and that is all I carry around.

This particular clutch was made by request of a friend, and yes, it was paid for. 

So here is where this blog is leading to. I am working on these items and more to make and sell. I have excellent prices and do stand up work! If I wouldn't buy, I won't try to sell it. Got it? This blog is also for your enjoyment. If you just want to stop by and read of all the fun things that I get to do and everything that I am learning, that's great! I am here to aspire and inspire. I am so excited to get this project started with you all, and I hope that you stick around long enough to see the big things that I have in store! Happy Sewing!