Whatever Wednesday

Another co-worker got a K9s for Warriors dog.  She got little beanie baby dogs for her students and asked me to make the little vests.  That was the perfect mindless task I needed this weekend.

16 tiny "vests" all ready to go!

These were smaller than I have made previously, but I only had to unsew once, so I call that a success.

Modeling his "vests"!

Don't forget to check out my May giveaway.

Linking up to Jo's Country Junction to show off what we are working on.

May Giveaway

For a long time I have been thinking I need to have giveaways for the odd fabrics I end up with that I know I will never use.  You know what I mean.  The random pieces that sneak in inside of a bundle of other fabrics. I have two fabrics that are perfect for May.

In honor of Mother's Day I have a collection of 8 6" x 20" coordinating fabrics to giveaway. I believe the fabric is lawn but I am not sure.  They have been pre-washed. Just leave me a comment mentioning something special about your mother.  A winner will be chosen randomly on May 31.

Aren't they pretty??

In honor or Memorial Day I also have this Air Force fabric to give away.  It is in four pieces each 7" wide.  The lengths are: 23", 36", 44", and 44".  I'm sure it would be great for a QOV, but I know I will not get to it in the near future, so someone else should have it.  Leave me a comment about how you would use it.  A winner will be chosen randomly on May 31.

Air Force Fabric

I am excited.  I can't wait to read your comments and get these fabrics into the hands of someone who will use them.

Hands to Help Finale

Back in January when I still had vacation time I finished up a few little UFOs with the plan of holding on to them until I had just the right places for them.  

The alligator quilt.

As soon as the recipients of Hands to Help 2018 were announced I knew just what to do.  I took the last of the little quilts and sent them off to Little Lambs along with some cute kid pillowcases.  These got sent back in April I think, so they might already be wrapping a little one in love.

Cute little fishy quilt.

This school year has been particularly and unusually difficult for me so this worked out as the perfect way for me to contribute.  I'll have to remember that for the next time I am able to work up a little stash of finished quilts.

Once again, I felt privileged to participate in such a worthy cause.  A big shout out to Sarah at Confessions of a Fabric Addict for making it happen.  

Check out other quilts that were made for Hands to Help 2018 at Confessions of a Fabric Addict.

Friday Finish for Mother's Day

I had seen weaving around a painting canvas at the facility where my father is.  Some of the ladies had made small ones and they were displayed just as a weaving.  I thought that had great potential, but it had to marinate a month or so before I figured it out.

1.5" strips woven over a canvas.

We had wanted to do silhouettes of the students for a Mother's Day gift.  We already had the 8 x 10 canvasses since we had not used them for the Art Show as planned.  What a perfect combination.  At least in my mind it was perfect.

Love the braid.

I did the math and cut tons of 1.5" strips in a variety of florals.  I tried to stay with relatively light backgrounds.

Every canvas is different.

The kids chose their strips trying to not have duplicates.  I stapled one end to the canvas for the horizontal strips and then the vertical strips.

Our surfer dude!

Then the kids worked at weaving.  We made the weaving last 2 days and that took the pressure off of all of us.  They had a lot of fun.  Several of them called the canvas their "pillow."  I stapled the other end down when they were ready.  If they staple didn't go all the way in they got out the wooden toy hammer and finished it up!

The pony tail came out fantastic.

The silhouettes ended up being much easier than I thought they would be.  I took photos of each child and then printed them 8 x 10 in B&W.  Using painters tape I attached the photo copy to black card stock and then cut through both layers carefully with my super sharp scrapbook scissors.  The kids has so much fun trying to guess who was who.  The big surprise was that our non-idental twins actually have an identical chin/lip/nose combination.

Awwww.

We used a watered down glue solution brushed on and weighted them down from the back side to dry.  With a few exceptions it stuck well within 24 hours.

I love them.  I think I need to start a new business.

Linking up to Confessions of a Fabric Addict and Crazy Mom Quilts to show off finishes.

Stash Report 050618

Not much going on sewing wise.  No photos either, so this is a relatively boring post.

No fabric in.  I took a great leap of faith and gave notice at my job without having anything else lined up.  As much as I love my class and teaching in general it is time for me to move on to someplace or something else. But that also means my fabric budget, which was already almost zero, has gone down to zero for sure.  I must work from the stash.

No fabric out.  End of the year at school is super busy, getting applications out, getting ready for College E to come home , and all the other regular weekly stuff meant not much sewing time and no finishes.  The end is in sight though.

Fabric Purchased this week: 0 yards
Fabric Purchased YTD: 30.76 yards

Fabric Acquired this week: 0 yards

Fabric Acquired YTD: 22.65 yards

Fabric Used this week:  0 yards 
Fabric Used YTD: 45.58 yards

Total: 7.83 yards stashed

No movement at all, but improvement is on the horizon.

Kate over at Life In Pieces has challenged us to try to stitch 15 minutes each day.  Once again it was a very busy week and I didn't get up to the sewing room every day. But just touching and breathing fabric seems to help me relax so I will take my bits and pieces of time where I can.

Days stitched since last report: 5/7
Days stitched this year: 113/125
Success Rate: 90%


Linking up to QuiltPaintCreate and Life in Pieces to keep accountable.

BOM Challenge Month 5

I am still keeping up with Jo's BOM Challenge.

Month 5 - Pinwheel Star

I am very thankful for this project because it has been giving me just a little something to work on that I don't have to make any decisions for.  You all know that sometimes that is just what you need.  That has really been the case for me the last few months.

Month 5 - Pinwheel Star

I am a becoming a real fan of pre-cuts.  It sure does make it easy, but I don't know that it satisfies my creative side like scappy does!!

A little story accompanies the block.

Linking up to Jo's Country Junction to show progress in the BOM Challenge.

Ahoy Matey!

For Pirate Week at school we made Pirate Flags.  I had all the pieces pre-cut and ready for the kids.  They decided where to place their cross bones and initials.

Land Ho!

We used regular pins this time, not safety pins.  No one got poked.  I am a firm believer in it is all about the expectation.  Some of them were able to get the other end of the pin back up through the fabric, but all of them had fun poking pins.

Regular pins - no problem.

Then we sewed them down.  This was a lesson in zigzag stitching.  It was interesting how many of the kids noticed the machine was making a zigzag movement before I told them the difference from how we had sewn before.

Arrrrgh!!

Unfortunately I missed getting more pictures and most of the flags already went home.

Yes, your flag is amazing!

Also, unfortunately the felt was in the stash at school so only the black ribbon actually came from my stash.  ARRRRGH!!

Shiver me timbers!!

Linking up to Confessions of a Fabric Addict and Crazy Mom Quilts to show of finishes.