I Used my Cricut!

I have always wanted to put the word "create" in my craft room.  You know, something to remind me that that is what I am supposed to do while I am in there, not just sit at my computer looking at everyone else's creations.  :)  So I put my very neglected Cricut to use today.

I made stencils out of cheap (Georgia Pacific) cardstock, and used them to paint the word "create" subway style on a canvas.  See...

This was the first time I have ever stenciled anything, and it took me a letter to get the hang of it.  Unfortunately the "c" is a little sloppy.  Oops!  And I can't believe I mixed upper and lower case letters.  *gasp*  I don't really get that trend because it's just not right to do that.  But if I look at it in a creative light, I can live with it.  I just wish the "T" was a little longer.  *sigh*

For now, I set it on my stamp display tray, but I will find the perfect place to hang it.

Or better yet, maybe I should put it in front of my computer screen!

More fun projects to come...

K

My New Toy and a Yoga Headband

I am so excited to finally own something I have wanted for a loooong time.  You know how I have been doing other crafts besides making cards?  Like sewing?  Well, I finally splurged and bought myself a serger!

Woohoo!

I have so many projects and things I want to make, I can hardly contain myself.  And Joann's Daffodil Dash sale this month hasn't helped.  Well, I guess it has helped me save some money, unless you don't count spending money to save money as saving.

Here she is...

Isn't she purty?

And wait 'til you see what I just made with her...a Yoga Headband.  I got a remnant of rayon/spandex for next to nothing, and made up my own pattern after studying a headband I paid about $12 for.

Here is a tutorial on how I made it.

Yoga Headband

supplies needed:
remnant of stretch knit fabric at least 4" wide
serger (if you don't have one, a zigzag stitch will work)
sewing machine
thread
pins

I cut my fabric 4" x 19" to allow for a seam allowance.  It ended up a little loose on my head, but I'd rather have it too loose than too tight!  It still has stretch and will hold my hair out of my face.

With right sides together, serge the seam.  (This doesn't look as good as the first one I made, but it will be hidden anyway!)  If you don't have a serger, zigzag the seam to allow for a little stretch.

Turn edges to wrong side, one edge about 1/3 of the width, and the other edge about 1/4 of the width.

Now take the smaller turned edge and fold over again.  Pin in place.

With a regular sewing machine, sew in the ditch of the seam on the right side of the headband.

That's it!  Easy as pie!

I chose to leave the edges unfinished, but you could certainly hem them with a coverstitch if you have that option on your serger.

I can't wait to make more of these in different colors.  They are so comfy and so easy to make!  And by my calculations, this headband cost only $0.25 to make.  How's that for the deal of the century?

K

I Need to Simplify (WARNING - RANT!)

Ok.  I know it has been a while since I've posted a card, but I've been busy doing other crafty things.  I've been crocheting doilies and pot scrubbers, painting and padding the top of the stool in my craft room, (thinking about) refinishing a cubby organizer for my daughters hair clips, elastics, etc., sewing scrub hats for me to wear at work, and making felt posies.  I will post pictures of all my fun stuff as soon as I take some.  I haven't taken the time to do that yet!  Besides that fact, my craft cave is so messy from having 8 million projects in the works, I would have to clean it up first!  *sigh*

I have also been going through our basement 'junk' trying to get it organized in our new storage area.  *big sigh*  What a job that has been!  I can only say that I have waaaaaaay too much stuff.  It has been rather emotional going through boxes of things I have kept from my childhood.  Some things are easy to part with like all the rocks I thought were pretty because they sparkled, but what do I do with my vintage Freakies magnets?  Do you remember them?  Who knows why I kept them, but now I have to decide if I should just throw them away or try to sell them.  And is it really worth it to go through the hassle of passing them on?  Ugh!  I have some major baggage, and that is just one example of everything I've found!

Needless to say, I have been in extreme purge mode.  I even went through my stamps again, and now have another huge stack I am going to get rid of.  I decided it is more of a hassle to keep them around 'just in case', and it limits my creativity when I have so many choices.  Not to mention feeling bad every time I see un-inked sets I have had for years.  Why do I need them?  If they havn't been used yet, chances are they will never get used, so they have to go.

I am starting to feel the same way about all the color choices as far as my paper goes.  I use mostly white, ivory, and kraft, so why do I have no less than 107 different colors???  And I'm not making that up - I counted them all!  Why in the world do I need that much paper?  Knowing myself and the reason I have it all, I could answer that question with one word.  Comfort.  Comfort in knowing it is there if I need it.  But it is weighing me down.  I am starting to think the convenience of having it all isn't worth the weight of having it all.

Remember all that velvet ribbon I bought on sale the other week?

I returned it all except for the red and green narrow spools.  I intend to use them on Christmas cards, and that is all I really need.  Not every color in every width.  It wasn't until I was at a different Hobby Lobby and bought even more colors that I realized I had gone way overboard.  Geeze, what was I thinking?  I really don't have to have it all.

Sorry for the rant, but just wanted to let my dear readers know what has been going on.  My creative energy has been more focused on other crafts lately, but I know I will get back to making cards.  Sometime.  I just have a lot of simplifying to do in the meantime.

If you have any tips or thoughts you want to share on how you simplify your stash or life, please share.  I would love to hear what you do.

K

Fabric and Felt Case for Reading Glasses

My eyes have been struggling for about the past 6 months (maybe longer - I'm in serious denial) to focus at short distances.  Several months ago, I broke down and bought the lowest magnification reading glasses I could find, +1.00.  This was a long process that involved trying on glasses everywhere I saw them - the grocery store, the drugstore, Ross, TJ Maxx, Walmart, and probably countless other places I can't even remember, in an effort to find ones that looked good on me.  Well, that was an impossibility, so I settled for the cheap ones in the dollar bin at Target.  That way I could buy a couple pair and have one in my purse, and one at home.   I didn't care what they looked like anymore.  After all, I didn't really need them, so no one would see me wearing them if I never put them on.

Whatever.

The cheapie glasses came in a cheapie plastic case with a zip top that offered no real protection.  They wouldn't cost much to replace, but I had invested a lot of time to find them, and wanted something cute to carry them in.

So I made a case for them.

I went through all my scraps of fabric, and the one I wanted to use was barely big enough.

I had to cut both sides separately instead of one piece folded over, but was able to use just one piece of felt for the lining.

PTI felt is da bomb!  I love using it for die cut flowers, and in this case (very punny!), it was perfect for a nice protective lining.

I started by sewing the two sides of fabric together.  You can omit this step if your fabric scrap is big enough to cut a single piece.

Here is a scrap of velcro I used for the closure.  I sewed the velcro just to the fabric layer.  Don't laugh at the blue and white velcro - it was free!

With right sides together, I sewed the flap closure made of felt between the felt and fabric, making sure to line the edge of the flap with the seam in the fabric.  I used an oval Nestabilities to die cut the flap, but you could freehand cut it to any shape.

Turn the seams to the inside and press (I finger pressed them because I was too lazy to go upstairs to iron it.  I really need a second ironing board in my craft cave.)  Then pin right sides of fabric together and sew the remaining two sides.

Turn right side out, sew the other velcro piece to the flap, and you are done!

I added a die cut flower with a matching fabric scrap center, and added detail stitching around the flower and flap.

I love my new little case, and also the fact that it matches my current purse and the more expensive reading glasses I bought.

Now if I would just wear the darn things so I could see!

You will need:
Fabric scrap
felt scrap, or other soft lining material
velcro for closure
pins
sewing machine
thread
optional:  dies for flower and flap

I may be posting some of my other crafty projects I've been working on until my stamping mojo returns.  I think it's still on spring break!

K