Curses!

I'm working on something big and exciting and new, which I hope to share with you by the end of the month.  In the mean time, this little ditty is the latest addition to my craft room walls:

Isn't it sweet?  Perfect for sewing room mistakes.

I haven't done a cross stitch since I was 12, but I knew I had to do this one as soon as I saw the fantastic kit from Subversive Cross Stitch.  If you look closely you can see where I goofed a couple rows, but I'm not bothered in the slightest.  It was quick and fun, and it perfectly expresses how I feel every time I have to pick out a seam or scrape glue off my iron.

If you buy the kit, you should know the flower thread comes in red only; I added blue and purple for some variety. There's a ton of selection in the SCS shop, so if you like some snark with your craft, it's easy to get stitching!

Fractured Rainbows

After a month of hard work I finished my first self-designed quilt!  It's a playful baby/toddler quilt with big swatches of color and since I didn't hate it when I was finished, I consider it a huge success!  River's school had an evening out for the grown-ups, complete with an auction to help support our search for a new space.  This was my donation to the cause.  I finished the binding Friday night, took some pictures Saturday morning, and handed it over that afternoon.  I didn't get to enjoy it in the house very long, but with two cats and two little kids, that's probably for the best.

The auction was a big success and the quilt is going to a lovely family, so I'm very happy.

As you can see, the pattern is pretty simple, but with just about a month to complete it, I wasn't going to attempt constructing a ton of complicated blocks.  I wanted to simulate a rainbow, but with a loose, modern interpretation (the deep purple on the bottom and binding photographed really dark, but it's not nearly that close to black in person).  Since I was able to use fabrics from my stash I didn't have to spend any extra money on it. (Which is really great considering how much money I spent bidding on other items last night!  I blame the free-flowing wine.)  

I love the back! I had just enough of the ecru fabric to finish - thank goodness!  The quilting was perhaps the most difficult part of the whole project.  Each block is quilted in matching thread, so up close there's a subtle rainbow affect on the back too.  The ecru sashing is quilted in parallel lines and all of the other blocks are done in concentric rectangles.  I marked it all out with chalk before I took it to my machine, and getting those lines to match up was quite a feat!

After a month of sewing exclusively for other people I'm ready for a project that stays in this house!  I recently picked up some fantastic Japanese fabrics and an adorable dress pattern, so I think Lila has something coming her way in the near future.  :)

quilted pillow

Getting back to my machine has been wonderful.  I was starting to go through withdrawals after a month and a half without it, so when I had some time last week, I plowed into the first project that caught my eye.  I've been dying to use this cute tree fabric since I snagged a fat quarter of it some months ago and these fabric boxes seemed like the ideal place for it.

After I decided what to make I realized my mother-in-law had a birthday coming up, and I knew these would make part of a great present for her.  I wanted to to something more, though, and with it being pillow month at Sew Mama Sew! my inspiration was easy to find.

 Since I first started quilting a little over a year ago, I've learned a ton.  Some of it by doing, but mostly by reading blogs and drooling over beautiful pictures.  I've tried a wonky improv quilt before (a table runner that I'm sure I would be horrified to look at now), and I wanted to try again, with a little more experience under my belt.

First I gathered some coordinating fabrics - using the tree fabric as a color guide - and cut them into random strips.  In the past my work has been a bit busy because I've neglected to pair any solids with the crazy patterned pieces.  This time I was conscious to use a minimal pallet and help the few patterned pieces pop.

 I sewed a bunch of random strips together into three rectangular blocks.

 I squared the edges and made them all the same length and width.

 Then I cut them into six even strips and chose my favorites.  (I'll save the others for another project.)

 Previously I would have mushed all those pieces together and made a hot mess.  But I've learned how effective it is to create negative space, largely by reading Elizabeth Harman's blog, Oh, Fransson!  I framed each block in white and squared it up.

 Then I added a green border and the pillow front was complete.  I added a big square of white to the back of this piece and quilted them together with meandering vertical lines.  That way, if the cover needs to be washed, the seams from all the patchwork wont fray and get ugly.  Instead of doing anything too wacky on the back, I left it a simple green (with an opening) and I was done!

I'm really happy with how this turned out.  If feels like most sophisticated work of quilting I've done so far, and it's given me confidence to keep trying new things.

sewing room: paint and furniture

We moved my sewing table and shelves upstairs this week, and while the kids were napping or at school I worked on hanging cabinets and organizing my supplies.  All of the basic elements are in place and it's a functional room now.

Here's a reminder of what this room looked like just a few short weeks ago.  Those wall decals were incredibly difficult to get off and left huge un-painted patches in the wall.

 Big difference, huh?  Here you can see the wall color - a refresh of the yellow paint that was already in there - and the new chair.  We had these bronze curtains already, and I hung them because the windows needed something.  But with the faux leather chair it's feeling very masculine to me, so I'm sure I'll switch them out for something softer.

 Sewing table set up nicely and cabinets hung level (!) and even.  I added some more lighting under the cabinets, so I don't need to keep a lamp on my workspace.  The ironing table is to the right with it's fabric makeover.

And another angle.  You'll notice my ball chair - for anyone who sits at a desk for long stretches, I can't recommend the it highly enough.  It's a huge relief for my back.

I have so much more I'd love to do to add some color and personality.  But it's not going to happen anytime soon.  Thom surprised me with tickets to Vegas, so I'll be escaping the snow with the kids for a week!  (In case you didn't know, we have family there, so no, we won't be spending any time in the casinos.)

See you after my mini vacation!

baby steps

It's been a busy couple weeks with three redecorating projects in the works.  The latest is the move of my sewing space from the basement to a room upstairs.  I'm so excited to have the light, the door I can close (!), and the opportunity to do a little design work just for me.

A trip to Ikea this weekend yielded a few necessary new items for the room plus a frivolous thing or two.  Here are two of my finds:

My husband's one request was a comfy chair he can use on the occasions he needs the room for a work space.  I love the (unfortunately named) klappsta chair  for its sleek design and small footprint.  It's definitely comfortable, but even more so with a pillow in the back.

I bought a little over a yard of the patricia fabric without having too much of a plan for it.  I thought it might work for curtains in Lila's new room, but once I saw it in there, I knew it was a no go. However, it goes fantastically with the butter yellow walls in my sewing room, so my ironing table is going to get a refreshed cover and I'll have just enough left over for a small pillow.  Perfect!

 I also bought some shelving for the closet to hold my bins and bins of fabric.  I can see fabric hoarding becoming a serious problem in the future.  This is what the closet looked like before.

And here's after.  (Cute baby sells it, doesn't she?)  I love the versatility of these ekby jarpen shelves.  We've used them in our library downstairs, in the "mud room" (or "mud corner" to be more accurate), and now here.  They're sturdy, don't have a ton of ugly hardware, and can be placed any distance apart.  I am amazed I actually worked the math correctly and got them hung with exactly enough space for my bins.  There's still a little room to grow, but probably I should just do a big purge.

So it's a start.  I'll be excited to reveal the whole room when it's finished - should be sometime this year. ;)

Once I can get the basics set up, I'll be able to work at my machine again, which will make me infinitely happier and should provide some fun posts here.

Wish me luck!

Brush roll

After seeing the pencil roll I made for my niece, a friend asked me to make her a brush roll, hoping it would motivate her to get back into painting. 

She looked through my fabrics and picked one she liked but I didn't have quite enough to do what she wanted, so I found one in the same line with a matching heavy cotton.  She sent me some specs from similar rolls she found online, and I created my own pattern.

 I wanted the layers to be nice and thick to absorb any water from wet brushes.

 The damask and stripe fabric is more intricate than I would usually be drawn to, but now that it's finished, I actually love how it looks.  As I started, I wasn't sure how I was going to finish the edges, but when I found a package of olive binding in my stash, I knew it was just the pop of color needed.

I added a length of rope under the binding and here it is all wrapped up!

Pencil Roll

I've had about a millions ideas for Christmas presents I'm going to make this year, but since my computer was out of commission for a few weeks, I haven't been able to post what I've been working on.  Well I'm back in business, so here is the first of a few projects I hope to feature in the coming weeks: a colored pencil roll for my niece, Sydney.

An artistic nine year old, Sydney loves to draw and I thought this would be a fantastic way for her keep her creative juices flowing on the go.

This features some of my favorite fabrics of late and rolls up into a nifty little package.

Coordinating zigzags on the inside allowed easy sewing of the pencil slots.

Rainbow fun!  The eraser and pencil sharpener were my own additions to some other fantastic tutorials I've seen around the web.

I also whipped up a fabric covered sketchbook to complete the set.  Great for my little artist-on-the-go niece!

Happy Halloween!

industrial beauties

Three things I love this week:

 circuit cufflinks by digibling

 ipod case by beautiful skin

 sachel bag by nomuu

just in time for goodbye

We've enjoyed the very close company of my brother-in-law, Kevin, his wife, Crystal, and my nephew, Finn, here in Cambridge for years.  But we knew our luck couldn't hold out forever and I'm devastated to say that in a few days they're moving on to - if not greener, then certainly more sparkly - pastures in Las Vegas.

Tonight we're throwing a goodbye dinner with some of their closest friends and I just finished up a project for the baby they're expecting in November to give to them this evening.  I'm pretty excited to present it to Crystal et al as it's probably the biggest hand-made gift I've ever made.  The little one should have a great time playing on this blanket until he's big enough to use it on his toddler bed:

The primary fabrics are technically germs, but I've broadened that out to a larger alien/space motif (inner space... outer space... it's all connected, right?).  Design-wise the gigantic log cabin couldn't have been easier, but I loved the fabric so much I wanted to keep it in large pieces. I think Crystal will love the colors and I'm not totally horrified at my first attempt at free-motion quilting, so I'm pretty pleased overall.

I think quilts will be rare projects for me since I enjoy piecing, but I really, really don't like quilting.  My husband had to clear the room of little ones because of the horrific stream of vitriol coming from my mouth as I tried to man-handle these gigantic pieces of fabric through my machine.  Uh-oh, kids, mommy is quilting.  Let's go to the playground...

But it's done and I'm happy. 

Now I just have to find a way to get along without Kevin, Crystal, and the boys in town.  If I thought quilting was hard, I can't imagine how difficult that will be.

cute is as cute does

Not all of my designs find their way to my shop.  I edit a ton and my shelves have a growing stack of "not for public consumption" discards.  If I don't love something I've made enough to sell, that doesn't keep me from giving it away.  In this case, my baby girl reaps the rewards (or the cast-offs, as it may be).

Lila is modeling a cute little pumpkin onesie I whipped up in 30 minutes the other night.  It's a little too "home crafty" for my shop, if you know what I mean.  (Do I know what I mean?)  But seeing it on such a sweet little pumpkin herself, I kind of love it.

anyone's peach cobbler

I went a little crazy at the market last week and bought way more peaches than we could eat.  By this morning most of them had gotten over-ripe, so I decided to use them in a lovely cobbler.  My mom's recipe (and I assume, her mother's before) calls for a pre-made pie crust, but since I didn't have one on hand I went to my Joy of Cooking book and made their Flaky Pastry Dough.  I have never found a more reliable cook book than this.  I experiment a lot, but if I want to know exactly how to make a scone, tamale pie, or roux the way it was intended, I go to that book. The following recipe is kind of opposite that precision, but not without it's own brand of charm.

The first time I used my mom's recipe I couldn't believe she could really call it a recipe at all.  It's like reading a map, but the legend is gone and a quarter of the page is missing.  My slight frustration the first time around has actually turned into delight as I've used it again.  I realized this is exactly the way I would write a recipe.  I've made it my own (you kind of have to), so I feel confident to call this:

Grandma, Mom, and Summer's Cobbler

Peel and slice 4 cups of peaches
I left my 6 peaches unpeeled, cut them up and that looked about right.  You'll see measuring isn't a big thing in my family.

Mix with 1 cup sugar and cinnamon
The Anderson ladies have a notorious sweet tooth, so I toned the sugar down to 1/2 cup.  I did 4 or 5 dashes of cinnamon.

Press 2 pie crusts together and lay in 9 x 13" pan
Since I made the pie crust, I just rolled it out into one large piece

Fill with peaches and fold crust over
Bake 425 degrees until browned
This is the thing I love about this recipe.  I'm sure it's just how my grandma thought of it; she knew how long a cobbler took (one load of laundry long, or the time it takes to write three letters), and didn't feel the need to put that in minutes.  "Until browned" turned out to be checking at 30, 40, and 45 minutes for me.

Pour on simple syrup made from equal parts sugar and water simmered
How much sugar and water?  Simmered how long?  I simmered 1 cup of each for 10 minutes, whisking occasionally.  I used about half of that.

Baste with syrup and continue to bake until glazed.
About 10 more minutes for me.

And voila!  One gorgeous peach cobbler.  If you're brave enough, make it your own too.

my first sale!

Shortly after opening up my shop two days ago, I was selected to be in the "Pumpkin and Spice and Everything Nice" Treasury.  What a nice way to launch!  This morning the notebook that was featured sold, so I'm off and running. 

I'm very excited about a new line of skull onsies and bibs, so keep your eyes open for that.  In the mean time, I'm just basking in the love!

visit my shop at: http://www.etsy.com/shop/littlesage

coming soon...

Just about ready to open my doors at Etsy, and I'm thrilled!  I've been a busy bee making sure I have a good supply of stock ready to go. I'm having a blast designing new products and a cute little freebie to go with all purchases.  Here's a sample of one of my bib sets.  Aren't they adorable?

back to work

Back from a lovely vacation in Mexico and I'm excited to get back to work.  First up, I needed an ironing table.  (The top of my sewing table covered with a towel just was not cutting it anymore.)  I recovered an old card table with batting and fabric and now I have a lovely new addition to my workspace.

Even more exciting, my fabric labels came in!  Can't wait to make something that has my logo permanently attached.

I'll have a little bit of everything

A fresh start.  I've been working on refining and defining my style all summer.  Here are some things I've been exploring:

 Simple

Embellished

Graphic

Punk Rock

Clean

Messy

I'm getting closer to a style that is all my own.