Crafty Girl

Since my German class ended last week I've found myself with a lot more time on my hands. I'm still taking classes but they are much easier for me and don't take up so much of my time and energy. I've been itching to create and make things and spent all day today doing just that.

To make it easier for me to change the sheets and the beds easier for the kids to make each morning I've stopped using flat sheets on their beds. They get a fitted sheet, a blanket, and a comforter instead. A few months ago when I made that switch I decided to keep all the flat sheets from our twin sheet sets. I figured you never know when I might change my mind or when I might come up with something to make from all that fabric. Natalie's favorite sheets are the Lion King ones, she always wants them on her bed. It's really kind of surprising because I don't think she's ever seen the movie.

The first project I started today was making a quilt for Natalie out of the Lion King flat sheet and a plain white flat sheet. I've made a couple of quilts before so it didn't take too much time to put the layers together. The big thing I did different this time was machine instead of hand quilting the top. It made it so easy! I spent three years, I am not exaggerating, three years quilting a blanket I made for Jared. Granted, I didn't work on it every day and it was much bigger than what I made for Natalie, but still three years it took me to finish that thing! I don't know why I didn't do this before.



So, the lessons I learned from making this quilt are:
1. Machine quilting is waaaay easier than hand quilting.
2. The correct order to make a quilt is - put the layers together, quilt the layers, and THEN finish the edges with binding. That last step makes a big difference in how your quilt turns out.
3. Natalie isn't picky and doesn't care that her new quilt is not perfect, she just is happy to have a new blanket to snuggle up with.


The back of the quilt shows the stiches better. I made random patterns across the quilt - zigzags, scallops, straight, and curvy lines.


I've also been having a lot of fun making pillows out of old sweaters today. I saw this idea on a blog I really like and bought thrift store sweaters just for this project. It was super easy to do; just cutting and sewing along straight lines. The hardest part was hand stitching the opening closed. I like how they turned out, because they are made from sweaters they just seem warm and comfy. The green one will probably find a place on my bed and the tan one will be in the family room.




I started making a felt appliqué tree skirt for Christmas. I know that Christmas is still 11 months away, but this thing might really take that long. There is a lot of detail and I think I will only be working on it when the kids are in bed because of all the small beads, sequins, and pieces of felt that I don't want to lose. When/if I ever finish it I'll be sure to post a picture of it on here.

At IKEA last week I purchased some inexpensive, unfinished, wooden frames. In the past when I've bought these frames I've painted them to make them a bit less plain. Today I decided to try something new - I decoupaged fabric to the frame. I cut a piece of fabric for each side so I had to paint on the Modge Podge and then apply the fabric four different times, wait for it all to dry and then paint over the entire thing one more time. When I was done I made a pattern so that next time I can cut one piece of fabric or paper to fit the frame and then attach it to the frame all at once and I think it will make it so much easier.




Such a fun, fun day and a bunch of great projects finished. If we do get all the snow we are supposed to I'm looking forward to being snowbound and working on some more crafty projects.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

What is Faith?

Image
What would you say if someone asked you what faith is? In Hebrews 11, Paul defined faith as "the assurance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." The assurance of things hoped for - faith is knowing that because of Jesus Christ, we can hope for a brighter future. I feel as if hope and faith are one and the same. Life can be heartbreakingly difficult sometimes and even though I know that challenges are there to help us learn and grow, I sure wish I didn't have to go through those hard times. When I have felt surrounded by struggles and I couldn't see any way that things would ever get better, the only thing that has kept me moving forward is hope. Not the kind of hope that is sort of wishful like hoping your team wins a World Cup game, but hope that is sure because it is based on Christ. Having faith in Jesus Christ is having hope and knowing that His promises are sure.  The evidence of things not seen - faith in God grows when we see Him working in our...
Read more

Anxiety, Friendship, and Insecurity

This post has been kicking around in my head for a while now. My emotions have been closer to the surface lately - which can be both good and bad.  For a couple of weeks last month it was a bad thing and I found myself crying at pretty much everything and feeling alone and friendless even when I was surrounded by people. You'd think I'd be better at making friends after almost forty years of moving and having to form new connections at each new place. Instead, the older I get, the more difficult the process becomes. Even after I make friends deep down I question if we're really friends. I think these feelings of insecurity are part of what makes me willing to do almost anything for my friends. If I do nice things for you maybe you'll continue to tolerate my presence? I think I do a pretty good job hiding my insanity. I can fake confidence really well - smiling and laughing and making small talk. And then I go home and overanalyze and question every little thing I said...
Read more

Four Decades

Image
Birthdays are markers in our lives. Moving from one decade to another is a milestone that is not marked by an accomplishment or an important decision, but simply your age. That's something you can't control as time keeps moving forward whether we're ready for it or not. I can honestly say that I'm not bothered by turning forty and that I still look forward to my birthdays. But there's no denying that those milestone birthdays (you know the ones, they end in zero) are a big deal. A time that, for me, leads to some looking back to see if I've accomplished anything worthwhile in the previous decade of my life or in any of the decades of my life.  So I found photos of myself at all those other ages that end in zero. Maybe if I take it a decade at a time it will be easier to see what I've learned? Seriously, whose dog is this? Italy, 1981 Okay, this first one is already breaking the rules as it's not from a milestone birthday. I have two pictures...
Read more