Project Time

January came and the doldrums set in.  I was trying to figure out what I could do or where I could go, short of a warm sunny cruise to snap me out of feeling boring.  And I had a nice little simple project pop into my head that I had spotted on a blog a while back.  I remembered I had picked up these lovely cloth napkins like five years ago because I liked them. 

They usually sat in my buffet table rolled up, taking up space in the unused wine rack.  Until a week ago, when I found a much better use for them. And I already have a million pillows that need new covers so this project cost me nothing but a little time.

You need 2 cloth napkins to make one pillow cover, and need to obviously make sure that if you have, say an 18" pillow that your napkins are about 20".  Basically you cut one cloth napkin in half.  Flip it so the hemmed sides are together and overlapped.  Pin pretty side of both napkins together.  Sew them together around the edges.  Then flip right side out using the overlapped already hemmed edge to pull it through, and boom you have a pillow cover.  To stop the gappage that may occur you can sew little strips of velcro across the opening.  (that was the time consuming part for me, the detail work).  And if my directions are fuzzy check out the tutorial that I loosely followed.

the pillow at the top shows where the hemmed edges and the velcro strips that hold them.  You can hardly even see it.

I love an easy, free and satisfying project.

Productive Pinterest Project Weekend

 I was able to cross a few projects off of my long Pinterest to do list. Starting with sewing new buttons on a Goodwill sweater, turning a Goodwill sweater into a pillow, and a birthday bunting/banner for Dane. Whatever you prefer to call it.  Though a bunting is lightweight cloth used for a flags or festive decorations, you be the judge.  I had a difficult time picking out the corresponding fabric for the bunting.  Dane really wants a baseball themed birthday party and he fell in love with the baseball fabric.  And when you have a boy that likes something at the fabric store you better go with it because that is a rare occurrence.  The problem with the baseball fabric is that most coordinating fabrics made it look very much Americana in style.  gag.  I think we found a happy medium and are pleased with the results.  Now I just need to find a few more cable knit sweaters with large buttons!

getting started

sneak peak of the birthday bunting

Before as a sweater

After as a pillow

Cross that off the list

Remember way back when, when I did a little lamp shade project?

Well the other $1 lamp and shade turned back up during the move. I had been ignoring it looking for a new shade to go with the base. If my memory serves me right I really really think that the shade was squashed a bit. No longer the perfectly round shape it ought to be. That is why it was shoved to the back of the closet and it didn't get fixed up, and that is why I was looking for a new shade. Because I just KNOW it was definitely not round like it should be. I swear it miracuosly became round after it moved to our new house. I have no idea how that happened because I KNOW it was squashed before the move. Usually it is the other way around, something is round and it gets squashed during the move, but not this tricky lamp. It was squashed and got round during the move. So I went out bought some fabric and now I have another new lamp for under $5. I love it when things work out.

And now that I am done with all the important tasks for the day, maybe I will see about getting the laundry and grocery shopping done.

What I have been doing.

I was just noticing what a blog slacker I have been lately. It seems September has just flown. We did go to Colorado for a week, and then I was sick with mastitis-a very horrible infection and I had a very crabby baby for a week and a half- growing pains maybe?
It's hard to be crabby during bath time though.I have also rearranged the living room, not something I do very often.
I painted our other kitchen (that's right we have 2, it makes me feel rich to say that) lime green that I found in the $5 oops paint at Home Depot. I think I am going to turn this into a office/craft room before Andy leaves so I wont have to hang out in the yucky basement.
Here is the before picture. I bet he didn't expect this to get on the blog but I guess that's what you get for jumping in front of the only 'before' picture that turned out.
After: Still needs stuff moved in but you get the idea

And I fixed up a lamp that I bought for $1 at a garage sale this summer. Just glued a little fabric to the shade and 'bam' new light fixture. An idea I stole from my friend Peter Marie. I have one more I think I may try to fix up.

Is it ridiculous to keep decorating and redoing things when I know I will be moving late spring/early summer? I don't know, at least I haven't put much money into, so far only $10 :o) I guess I still have to live here for many more months so I might as well enjoy it.

I also just completed my first "for hire" sewing alteration on a very lovely dress. It feels like an accomplishment since I have never tried anything like that before. (well I have tried by winging it, but I did it correctly this time) I called my mom who is an accomplished seamstress and she talked me through it. Though she did keep talking louder and louder until I understood how simple it was. Thanks mom for the help! Seriously it was simple, the hard part is being able to think backward and inside out.

That's all for now, the nap time silence has been broken.