I Promise I've Been Sewing...

Well I wish I could share with you all the sewing projects I've completed this summer, but I can't. It seems that the best I can do is just complete them.

I turned 30 this summer. Wow. I don't like being in a new age bracket, checking a different box on surveys and forms, but I refuse to mourn. This is life, I'm living it. I'm 30 and that's young to someone else. Now I just need to befriend this someone else so they can make me feel young! =)

My husband threw a birthday party for me. It was wonderful and he did all the work. Good food, great friends and well behaved children (until they reacted to the ice cream cake like it was crack). Did I mention it was wonderful?

But I couldn't let this milestone birthday go by without receiving something handmade. I just had to make it myself. I treated myself to a birthday banner. I cut into one of my favorite fabrics, this navy blue with white polka dots. And then didn't even cry when I cut apart a stark white doily and sewed pieces parts randomly onto the exactly 30 pennants I had cut out. They were strung together with white binding. I hung it up on our porch for the party and I think I'm the only one who knew they were there. But that's all that counts. Of course I took lovely photos of them and then accidently deleted them. I'm too lazy busy to go back out there and get more photos to show you.

Then I put together a LOT of reusable cloth gift bags for the Christmas in July sale on Etsy. That was a bust. Not a single sale. But I got my items into a second shop around here! Hip hip hurray for cold calls.

I made a bag for my sister that traveled to Africa and back. Jealous.

I finished a quilt (queen size no less) for my other sister to celebrate her graduation from college (to be bestowed upon her this weekend). Not so jealous at the idea of going through college, but proud none the less.

I made two table runners and one baby quilt from the scraps left over from the queen sized quilt. Lets just say I have a problem with over estimating how much fabric I need. I still have a grocery bag full of scraps left over. I'm just so sick of the colors that I can't do anything more with them.

I am in the process of finishing 7 cute cloth color books for babies. I'm building up my inventory for a craft sale I'll be participating in for December.

On the not so glamorous side I also altered at least 13 cloth diapers. Boring, but yeah for having properly fitting diapers now and less leaks!

And of course on my to do list/pile is a lap quilt for a wedding present, a dozen or more flower hair clips and bobby pins, felt crowns for dress up, a purse/clutch designed just for me, and lots lots lots more reusable cloth gift bags.

Some Sewing Has Been Done

I finished my second custom order for Seamingly Sarah. A cute little bag for a world traveler. I think this accomplished young woman (it's for my sister, I have to brag about her!) will enjoy it while trekking through Africa this summer!

But I may have been a fool to take on a queen size quilt too (since it's for my youngest sister, she won't mind if it takes awhile!).  I can find 5 minute increments to sew, but that takes a while to add up when the project is in the dimensions of 90" x 96"! Oy. Right now I'm stuck on what to do for the backing. I love to repurpose stuff and make do with what I have (i.e. whittle down my stash of fabric before another single piece comes into this house!), but I just don't have something that will work. I'll just dig deeper.

I'm feeling better about this whole mom-hood gig. I read something on Momformation (on babycenter.com) that resonated with me...something along the lines that this is just a season. Similiar to "This too shall pass." But more like this is the season for playing pretend, dress up, nursing, making silly faces to entice a smile and nothing else. Yes, I feel boring when I recite what I did for the day to my husband (who by the way is my biggest supporter). Yes, I yearn to dive into my bin of fabric and not come out for days. Yes, I feel socially awkward at the thought of finding mom friends (that's a whole other post). But this is now and now requires reciting Cinderella or Beauty and the Best to my three year old and carrying around a chunky newborn (love her to bits and pieces). Tomorrow may be different.

SPRING CLEANING SALE!

Don't forget that the flower accessories are 35% off at the Seamingly Sarah shop.

Shop now while you still can!

*****And if you're local (i.e. I can hand deliver the item to you) I'll even take off shipping******

Spring Cleaning SALE

Maybe it's nesting, maybe it's just an urge to do some spring cleaning, but either way all the flower/hair accessories in my Seamingly Sarah shop are on SALE! Everything is marked down 35% and ready to go. An added bonus: if you're local (i.e. I can hand deliver the item) then shipping is free. Just contact me to arrange it.

I'll be introducing new items and ideas to the shop later on when the cleaning purge has ended.\

Nesting = Sewing

I can't stop sewing. I would say it's an addiction, one I'm not likely to seek help for, but from previous experience I can feel the nesting hormones kicking in. I'm just using a needle and thread this time instead of a vacuum cleaner, mop and rag. Did I ever mention that I went around cleaning the baseboard in my entire house last time I was pregnant? No? It's certainly something my mother will never forget to remind me about.

Well the binding is on the black and white tree quilt. I just have to hand sew it onto the back.

And the custom order for a quilt/art piece is done!!!!!

I had originally planned on quilting large gold thread circles on the top, but after just one the fabric became bunched and wouldn't lie flat. So this design will have to do. With my limited resources and tools (i.e. no quilting frame or fancy long arm sewing machine) there are just some things I can't do. At least not for now. But I still like the outcome a lot. I hope the customer does too!

And I fit in one more sewing project into the weekend. I actually got around to some of the personal sewing projects I've had on my mind. More about those tomorrow!

Custom Order

I received my first custom order awhile ago. This is very exciting and nerve wracking for me. I'm so afraid that what I create will not be exactly what the customer had in mind. But it's a friend of my sister's so they have been very reassuring that they are flexible and also understanding of my schedule (trying to finish up my nesting/sewing list). Anyways....I am tasked with making a large 3 x 4 foot piece of fabric art. I'm new at this, so bear with me, but I'm basically making a quilt top and the customer will mount it on a frame in their home.

Here are the inspirational photos the customer sent me.

Here are the fabrics I bought.

And here is the basic design I have in mind.

What do you think?

Did I mention this custom order is for a man!?! Also intimidating. I've never sewing anything for the masculine point of view. But I am extremely excited to get paid to try new things with my sewing machine. Here we go!

One Down, Two to Go

It must've been all of your positive thoughts because I buckled down and in two nights I finished the binding for Whirlwind's quilt. And look at that! It fits her toddler bed perfectly. I have left over fabric from the binding so I plan on making her some matching (or at least coordinating) pillow cases.

I have a whole post planned on showing you her whole bedroom soon. We've done a lot of work to get it ready for baby # 2. I'm just waiting on the curtains to arrive and to hang the frames on the walls. I'm getting excited about the impending family addition!

And just because I'm obviously throwing valuable nesting energy into sewing instead of cleaning the house I finished the top for another quilt. I've had 3 quilts on my to do list for at least 6 months. They are all getting done now! Whirlwind's quilt (done), a black and white tree quilt and a baby blanket for baby # 2.

The black and white tree quilt top is done! I'm really into this raw edge applique look. Look for it in upcoming Seamingly Sarah products.

Now I'm off to iron, cut, baste, quilt and bind this quilt.

New Items in the Shop

I've been experimenting with a new way to make flower hair and shoe clips. This is the end result!

I like them a lot and I hope you do too, or someone out there does. I was able to use up the last of these three fabric scraps (a goal of mine is to use up everything I have before I go buy more).

Check them out at Seamingly Sarah

More Adventures in Hand Sewing

Of course I couldn't stop after just one craft!

As I made the heart barrette for my daughter and then for the Seamingly Sarah shop I decided to just keep on sewing. I made some heart magnets for the upcoming Valentine's Day. I used some magnets from some broken name badges I had been saving for over a year now. Does that make me a pack rat or a frugal woman?

Then I made three new sea creatures to replace some broken ones from a set I made my daughter (also over a year ago now).

New guys.

Old guys that aren't broken.  

The old set of sea creatures can be found at Purl Bee. I'm not a fan of following directions to a T, so I made mine in different colors and eye balled the shapes. Just be forewarned: make sure the felt sea creature is big enough for the magnet! And expect the Jellyfish to break first. Their dangly legs are prone to tugging and my toddler is none too gentle!

I Couldn't Help Myself - Valentine Craft

I was snowbound last week when a snowstorm brought several inches and some "wintery mix" to our doorstep. Good thing it was a "work from home day!"

So while my now napless daughter gave me a few minutes of alone time I frantically searched through my overflowing bin of fabric to find a sanity saving craft to do. I've been wanting to make a felt heart barrette for about a year now. I whip stitched one up and loved it so much that I made one for the shop too!

Whirlwind* here is modeling the one for the shop by the way. I've given up on trying to hold my arm over my head and wait for the perfect product shot after 100 some odd clicks.

Isn't it cute? I just love it so much. If you don't buy it, I will. =)

*I've decided that Whirlwind will be her blog name, because let's be honest, it describes her. This girl regularly breaks things, even classic long lasting tinker toys made out of real wood. You should see what she does to plastic! And when she gets going things start flying. She is a force of nature to be reckoned with. And I love her all the more!

Shop Make Over

There is a weekly challenge on Etsy to participate in a Shop Make Over. It took me two weeks to complete the uniform photo/shop make over challenge. So I'm a bit behind, but I'm impressed with how much more uniform and pulled together the front page of the Seamingly Sarah shop looks! Hop on over and take a look for yourself. What do you think?

I'll have a variety of small and big projects I've been working on to post later. Stay tuned.

Excuse the Absence

I'm in the midst of focusing on a Seamingly Sarah shop makeover amongst other projects. So bear with me while I spend my spare moments snapping, editting and uploading photos.

Valentine Day Bags!!!

I've been busy at work perfecting some reusable cloth gift bags for the Seamingly Sarah shop. I'm smitten with the burlap like fabric of the off-white bags, but I could be bias. Take a look and tell me which ones you like best, or even what you would do/want differently. I am always open to suggestions and criticisms. I'm a big girl, I can take it.

After Christmas Sales

Have I mentioned how much I love sales? The only thing I love more than not spending money at all (my mother openly calls me tighter than bark to a tree) is seeing how much I saved during a sale.

So I hit up Target and JoAnn's after Christmas to stock up on supplies for next year's Christmas bags. There will even be Hanukkah bags this time! 

I'll admit I feel like I'm taking a gamble on some of these fabrics, but I couldn't resist them. I do believe the pink, red and green dotted one will be a hit though, so I bought extra yardage of that.

Forgive the low lighting/flash photos. Sometimes the only free time I have is at night. That's my life.

The 2010 Christmas bags are on sale at my Seamingly Sarah shop. Stop by and find out how you can save during the after Christmas sales as well.

Check Out This Feature

Ever wanted to find out a little bit more about me? Just check out this Q&A I had with The Art of Craft. Of course, you could just browse through my old blog posts for hours, but perhaps this might be a better use of your time! Enjoy!

The Table Runner that Wouldn't Finish

I finally finished this table runner. I posted over a month ago about the origins of this table runner. It was supposed to be a quilt, then I didn't have enough fabric, so it was down sized. Then I didn't have anything quite right for the back. This past weekend I also found out I didn't have enough fabric for the binding. Ugh. Get this thing out of here! So I just sewed it together inside out, flipped it right side out and then top stitched it. Done. Finally.

Now do I give it as a gift to someone? Or try to sell it at the Seamingly Sarah shop?

Hmmm.......

Promoting Myself

Etsy may or may not be the only avenue for me to sell products from Seamingly Sarah.

So I got the idea to approach some stores about selling my items on consignment (I'm looking into craft shows as well, but let's face it, I have my 2nd baby coming in March. I'm going to be out of commission for awhile). I know there are pros and cons to almost every approach of selling your handmade goods, but I need to try them out for myself and figure out what works best for me.

But before I approached shop owners I needed to be able to show them my products. That's where Shutterfly came in! A photobook (after waiting for a coupon!) was just the way to go.

I put my shop photos on my Shutterfly account and created a slim, pocket sized, photobook that I can carry with me and whip out (with business cards of course) at a moment's notice.

p.s. - so far no takers, but life is all about trying!

After Christmas Sale!

I personally love to buy Christmas supplies and other doo-dads after Christmas. Who doesn't love those sales? Well I just added a SALE section to the Seamingly Sarah shop for the reusable Christmas gift bags. Stop by and take a look.

Soon I'll be hard at work making new bags (for Christmas, other holidays and birthdays) to add to the shop. So take advantage of these sale prices while you can!

Boxes from Boxes

I just wanted to say thank you to everyone who has saved cereal boxes for me. I officially have plenty! Now what I'd really like is for someone to order something from the Seamingly Sarah shop so I can test how the boxes hold up through the mailing process!

POST EDIT:

I just wanted to let you all know how my day went yesterday:

(Tuesdays are now my Mommy Mondays)

Cleaned bathrooms

Dusted

Vacuumed

Mopped

Photographed rainbow purses for etsy shop

Washed, dried and put away 2 loads of laundry

Started binding for tree quilt

Sat through an hour long webinar for work

Cuddled, fed, played with and read to my daughter

Play date

Edited purse photos and posted them to etsy shop

Let me tell what I did NOT get to:

A 3rd load of laundry (those two extra loads of laundry were thanks to my daughter)

Iron tree quilt top (photos coming soon)

Iron binding

Baste tree quilt

Go to the library

A fully cooked dinner

(it was slightly undercooked and handsome husband had to take over)

All in all, I'd say it was a GREAT DAY!

New Items in the Shop

The entire collection of rainbow purses are up in the Seamingly Sarah shop.

Take a look!