Jelly Rolls

The craft fair is over and when I signed up for it I had forgotten how tired I am at the end of the day.  Even though it's fun to sell the things I make and chat with people all day, it's exhausting.  As I put the display racks back in their corner in the garage all I can think of is how the next project I make is going to be just for me.  Don't know what it's going to be but I know I am going to use one of the really cool jelly rolls I have sitting on my shelf.  Those pretty things have been staring at me since I got them at a great sale.  On a good note, I made more cash than I thought I would and emptied two of my four bins of finish products.  I am not sure I will do another fair anytime soon - I think I need to concentrate on some house projects before I get back into obsessing about crafts like I have been over the last three months.  Luckily I have a patient husband. 

Craft Fair Items

Reversible Everything Sack

Gadget Bags

Mini Wallets

Zippered Gadget Bag

Reversible Market Bag

Little Girl's Purse

I am really getting into SewCanShe's daily sewing instructions.  This is a little girl's purse that is quilted with contrasting lining that shows on the top.  It's small and soft and cute.  I'm going to make a few for my craft fair.  I got the pattern from a link on the SewCanShe blog. It was yesterday's tutorial of the day.

Toddler Backpack for Chloe

I just couldn't resist.  I had leftover fabric from Chloe's Toy Story skirt so I made her a toddler backpack to match.  I found the tutorial through a link on SewCanShe's blog.  It took me just over an hour from start to finish to make this.  I hope she likes it.  If she does I might make some more for my craft fair.

A Skirt for Chloe

I found a tutorial on Two Little Banshee's blog for this cute little skirt. The instruction's measurements were for a toddler size 2 so I thought it would be cool to make one for Chloe (since she is toddler size 2 - no modifications are necessary!). Chloe loves LOVES loves Woody and Jessie from Toy Story.  Unfortunately, there is not a big selection of Toy Story fabrics. I wasn't that fond of the one I got so I had to somehow make it cuter than it really is. The  tutorial was perfect for that.  I added some green rick-rack to the bottom ruffle and some felted faux-buttons to give it a girly look.  I think she will like it since she will be able to see Woody right on the front! Here is the link to the tutorial I used.

Modern Mini Baby Quilts

These mini modern baby quilts were made using the busy background fabrics as the main centers of the patched side.  Asymmetrical squares were created around the focal center square then they were machine quilted and hand binded.

Custom Sewing Table Progress

Carcass before wainscoting is applied to the sides.

This will have a cabinet door.

This will have an adjustible shelf and a door.

A 4-drawer unit and a place to slide in and sew.

Adjustible sheving with pegboard in the back.

This is the maple top.

Peek through Toy Bags

I made these peek through toy bags from a tutorial on the Sew Can She blog.  They are quick and easy to make and so cute when they are done.  I think these will be quite useful.  I can't wait to make some more. I used the opportunity to use up some vinyl I had from an old project and I made the binding myself.  I love when I can pull things from my stash and make something. Here is the link to the tutorial I used.

Therapy (Rice) Bags

I've been pondering making these for a long time.  They look easy enough but I thought what's the point if they aren't useful.  Since my husband recently had foot surgery I thought he would make a good subject for testing it out. So I searched online for some free tutorials and found so many it was difficult to choose.  There were big ones, small ones, square ones, rectangular ones... I could go on and on. I picked some pre-washed flannel (all flannel in my stash is pre-washed) from my stash and got started.

I decided to make one based on the ice bag my husband received post-surgery.  It seemed logical to make a size that I know already works.  So I purchased some tea tree oil from GNC then headed to Sam's Club for 25 pounds of rice (it was $8, much cheaper than a much smaller bag from the grocery store).  The tutorial that seemed close to the size I wanted to make called for 4 and a half cups of rice.  I wasn't exactly what that meant in pounds and I figured if it didn't work out, we could always eat the rice.

The next problem was how much tea tree oil to add to the rice. I knew it couldn't be much, since it smelled so strong out of the bottle (it smelled so soothing yet a little medicinal). Back to my online tutorial that said to put about a teaspoon into the 4 and a half cups of rice.  That was a bit much so I added another 6 cups to make a large batch.  It seemed perfect.  So I stitched up the bag and filled it with the rice and put it in the freezer.

After a day of being on his feet, my husband was ready to try it out on his sore foot.  He couldn't believe that rice would stay cold long enough but he wrapped the soft bag around his foot and leaned back in his lazy boy. 20 minutes later he was amazed.  His foot felt better and the bag was still cold! So it's a winner. I proceeded to make six more for the craft fair this month.  I hope everyone likes them as much as he does.

Completed Closet Makeover

Just an update on the custom closet my husband built for me.  While he was starting construction on my sewing table I thought I would take the time to really organize my stash right. So here is all my fabric, organized and ready to go.  I absolutely love how it turned out and it is so easy to use because it is so conveniently located and in plain view.  It's a dream come true. Just looking at the colors makes me happy.