Lately...

...my 'craftiness' has fizzled.

1st Project of 2010

I made this cute little bubble skirt last month for Elsie's 2nd b-day. I love the fabric!

Here's the outside:

Here's the inside (although, it is reversible, so it could be worn with this on the outside)

More X-mas Crafts

Here are some of the other fun things I made for x-mas gifts:

Wristlets (front):

Back:

Apron for Elsie w/ elastic neck band & velcro strap so she can put it on herself:

Finished Quilt for Andie (front):
Back:

The tension was off in some places, but I really like the way it turned out, so I left it (hopefully that doesn't mean it's going to fall apart!):

And, here's one more (much smaller scale project) that I knit for myself:

T-shirt Making & X-mas Crafting

I took my first t-shirt sewing class last weekend & it was completely frustrating & an absolute bust. Although my lovely, almost brand new sewing machine can perform many tasks...sewing on jersey knit is one thing that it just cannot do. Aside from cutting out my fabric, I completed nothing else in the 2 hrs I was in the class! The lady who was instructing spent quite a bit of time with me trying to troubleshoot, but it was all for naught...I left class with one poorly sewn & puckered shoulder seam. I did a bunch of testing at home - trying different thread, changing needles, changing stitches, anything I could think of, but just couldn't get my machine to work. I did some Internet research, but wasn't able to find anything that I hadn't already tried. Yesterday was the second & last class so I decided to break out my mom's old machine...the 1970's Sears Kenmore...and it worked like a charm! Fortunately, my mom kept the manual so I was able to figure out how to adjust everything. I was such a happy girl! I got caught up to where I should have been at the end of the first class & went to class to finish everything up. So exciting!!! I'm going to have to take my new one in to get it fixed though - I really need to be able to sew on jersey with that thing.

I also realized this weekend that it's almost x-mas. I knew it was coming up, but hadn't realized how soon it was actually going to be here. So, I got started on quilt #2, a x-mas gift for my sis. I have a pattern for this one, so things are going much smoother than they did the first time when I decided to just wing it. Here are some pics:



I also worked on making some vanilla extract - such a great idea!!! It's so expensive to buy a bottle of the real stuff & I seem to go through it pretty quickly, so I made myself a small bottle & made a large bottle for a gift:



I have surprised myself once again by realizing that next weekend is the only one left before x-mas...I still have a few more things to make, so it looks like it's going to be a pretty busy week.

Purse!

Here are some pictures of the purse I finished the other day:

For scale:

Christmas is Coming?!?!

Oh, man, Christmas is coming so quickly. So many things I want to make, and well, just not enough time. If I were a more seasoned crafter it may not be such a problem, but since I feel like I need to make a "test" version of most of the gifts I want to make, it's taking me twice as long.

But, I finished up one of those test projects last night - a very cute purse (pics to follow.) So, I just need to go pick up the fabric for the gift & I can get started on that one. Nana wanted me to knit her a sweater, but I just don't see that getting done in time...I haven't written it off completely as her gift just yet, but I'm thinking that I may embroider some tea towels for her instead. Nate suggested that I embroider a Corvette on them...although this may sound completely silly (since she is 91) but she does have a lovely jean jacket with a rhinestone Corvette on the back. I love that crazy lady!

The Weekender Travel Bag

My bag is done... if I only had a weekend getaway planned! I picked up the pattern & fabric for this bag probably close to 2 months ago & was a little too intimidated by the instructions to start on it. I had cut the fabric a couple of weekends ago when I was really sick & then I didn't do anything with it. I finally decided to just go for it this weekend & start sewing. It's definitely not perfect, but I think it looks nice & will work well for me. Once again, I've learned some things while I was making it, so that's a plus.

I took the pattern & added feet to the bottom of the bag & a couple of pockets to the lining fabric...because I've never had a bag with too many pockets. Here's what it looks like:

Top:

Inside: