flower embellishments

layered circle flower embellishments, how-to found here

bon weekend mes amies ! see you at the next post :)

for the birds

wool yarn scraps

for the birds

literally

i took a paper egg carton leftover from a science project & filled it with wool yarn scraps leftover from my knitting projects, put it outside for the birds, to help build their nests, got the idea from here:






A Nest Full of Eggs by Priscilla Belz Jenkins suggests in the spring to leave some: shredded newspaper, grass clippings, string, hair, cellophane, dried weeds, or yarn in your yard to help robins build their nests.

bon week-end mes amies ! see you at the next post !

vintage swap

i received these lovely vintage goodies from Kyndale who blogs @ earthy crunchy.
this was for the Vintage Swap Winter 2010 organized by Heather who blogs @ Shivaya Naturals.
i sent Kydale some 1970's orange kitchen items, she blogged about it here.

so with these lovely vintage sheets i have plans to sew a wonderful beach blanket/quilt, something like this, using bamboo batting i already bought. beach season starts June 11th, so i have a few months to sew it. i need some time to muster up the courage to cut into those lovely vintage sheets ! i will have to think of something special to make out of the super sweet matching vintage pillowcases, i'll have to look through the Craft Challenge: Dozens of Ways to Repurpose Pillowcases book. the crochet doily will make a wonderful addition to my crochet doily obsession, i mean collection - oh, how i love crochet doilies ! i look forward to reading the How to sew for Children book, it's from 1966 !!! what treasures ! thanks so much Kyndale !

as you can see some of the above photos were taken outside & we are so enjoying this sunny & spring-like weather :)

day 20 :: 2009 craft books

2009 craft books :: One-Yard Wonders: 101 Sewing Projects; Look How Much You Can Make with Just One Yard of Fabric! by Rebecca Yaker and Patricia Hoskins

this is another fun post for me because i got to meet one of the authors, that's Rebecca Yaker in the above photo standing next to her famous sock monkey dress ! isn't she cute !?! she's also got a really great sense of humor !


One-Yard Wonders contains 101 sewing projects that only require one yard of fabric, what a great concept ! when you think about it most fabrics cost under $10 a yard, so here you have a book full of projects that you can create each costing at most $10 to make... what a deal ! be sure to check out the One Yard Wonders flickr group.


i met Rebecca at the No Coast Craft-o-rama & she signed my book :)


so far from this book i've sewn the strapless bandeau shorty jumper for C --- i sewed it out of some new fabric that i came across recently & this project was relatively quick & simple (oh, how i love quick & simple!) i think this will make a perfect beach cover-up for this summer...

well, that ends my month long blogging about 2009 craft books, i had fun sharing some of my favorite crafty type books from 2009 & what i created from them --- although i didn't finish making everything that i wanted to from these books, so i will probably blog about a few more 2009 craft book creations in the future...

day 19 :: 2009 craft books

2009 craft books :: Itty-Bitty Toys: How to Knit Animals, Dolls, and Other Playthings for Kids by Susan B. Anderson


Itty-Bitty Toys contains 27 knitting patterns including 5 reversible toys. i wanted to be sure to mention that the lamb pattern is available for free on the internet, so be sure to check that out...



this is a super fun post because i got to meet the author ! Susan came into town for a book signing & she signed my book... that's Susan sitting behind the table in the above photo --- isn't she cute? she's also friendly & down to earth & not to mention a very talented knitting pattern writer ! this is her 3rd book, by the way, i really enjoy the way she writes her knitting patterns, the step-by-step directions are always very clear... anyway, back to that 1st photo... every single knitted item photographed in Itty-Bitty Toys was on this table, it was nice to be able to see how all the toys compared in size, also to be able to touch them, i think you really have to watch the reversible toys being reversed to see how amazing they are...


so far from this book, i've knitted the hippo (although i used worsted weight yarn instead of doubling sock yarn) the purple hippo was a big hit ! it's a great pattern & makes such a unique toy (you don't see too many hippo knitting patterns out there).


the other project i knitted so far from this book is one of the reversible toys: the Egg to Bluebird and a Little Nest, Too


actually, i knitted a robin's egg --- from natural wool yarn that i dyed with blue Kool-Aid to make it robin's egg blue :)


OK, now this is the really fun part, watch this... turn the egg upside down & see that the eggs tranforms into a bird. here you can see the bird cracking it's beak & head through the egg shell...


it's a Robin ! the first sign of Spring (does this mean Spring is right around the corner?) since i knitted a Robin, i made it orange breasted...


also i used a bulkier yarn for the nest, so i only cast on 40 instead of 60 & for the decrease rows i skipped of few knit rows. it made for a smaller nest, doesn't the Robin look all nice & cozy & snug in her nest ?


this little robin/egg/nest will be an Easter gift/decoration, so this is probably what it will look like Easter Sunday morning on the table with the 3 paper nest bowls/Easter baskets filled with goodies in the background. oh, how i love all things Spring !!!

see you tomorrow for day 20 (the last day of 2009 craft books month) !

day 18 :: 2009 craft books

2009 craft books :: Good Mail Day: A Primer for Making Eye-Popping Postal Art by Jennie Hinchliff & Carolee Gilligan Wheeler


be sure to check out the Make Every Day a Good Mail Day blog


this book is filled with many ideas & techniques so you can make pieces of art to send through the mail


here's an idea i took from the book, using the envelope template from the back of the book, i cut out water color paper & water color painted a rainbow... leaving the white cloud blank, so a can later add who it is to...


another idea i used from the book was stenciling --- by using a paper doily & sponging with rubber stamp ink, lovely results !

see you tomorrow for day 19 !

day 17 :: 2009 craft books

2009 craft books :: Silhouettes: Contemporary Paper Cutting Projects by Sharyn Sowell

this book includes 22 decorative ideas using silhouettes, from Christmas tree ornaments to napkin rings...


bird designs were cut out of self-adhesive vinyl & put on glass for use in a bathroom.


using my digital camera i took a profile photo of my son & cut that image out of black cardstock & framed it... it's a relatively quick & easy project.

see you tomorrow for day 18 !