Artsy Crafty Weekend

We had a very laid back weekend. The boys were camping part of the time while we girls just hung around. Got a little crafting done, though...

The top pictures are the bag I made from the McCall's 5598 pattern. I love this bag. The handles are what make it...you can carry it on your arm or on your shoulder by pulling the straps to make one long loop. very neat. Also, there is no flipping right side out with this one so you can make it with timtex to really be sturdy.

Artsy Crafty Babe has the coolest header on her blog...it was the inspiration behind the button flower pins. Aren't they cute?

And last but not least...MR and I made these squishy balloon balls yesterday. You use lentil beans and 3 balloons. They feel so good in your hands...she says she will use them to learn to juggle.

Hope your weekend was as relaxing as ours!

Pillows

I love it when I get an idea and actually see it to fruition! I'd been saying for months that my bench out front NEEDED new pillows but it wasn't until I saw some cool outdoor fabric on my shopping trip with my friend Collins last week that I got inspired. 2 yards of fabric...6 pillows (only 4 are shown) ...not bad for an afternoon!

The last picture is of one of my favorite pieces of furniture...it's supposedly an old clothing wardrobe from a slave's quarters during the civil war. It has these cool wrought iron hooks inside for hanging clothes. My kids just store their air soft rifle stuff in it, but it's pretty on my front porch.

List Maker

I love a list. But, I'm NOT a journal person...too mushy...everytime I try to keep one, I go back and tear out the page because it sounds dumb. In fact, I'll probably delete this whole blog at some point because it sounds goofy...but anyway, i digress...

My whole life goes better when I'm checkin' stuff off...in fact, I think my life with all these children would make me crazy if not for the sanity i get from writing it all down. That way, I don't have to remember anything--I'm off the hook and if you don't make it to my list, you can count on it not getting attended to!

So, since I love to sew and especially love making unique and handy little trinkets, I made myself this journal/list cover. It goes on one of those cheap black and white composition books. I figure I'll always be able to find one of those to fit my cover--I'm so practical that way. The pattern for the flowers is one of the paper piecing designs from Children's Corner but the rest is me. Maybe I'll do my first tutorial on this.

Funny thing is...all my lists would serve as a great family log/history except that I cross off and tear out pages as i accomplish things. Why not just save the pages and leave them in the book? Because it gives me such a sense of triumph to call a task finished when I toss the list in the trash. Did I mention I love to throw things away?..Well, that's a post for another day!

I Love Liberty!!

Check out this precious Liberty elephant I made for LE for Easter. The pattern came from 'Last Minute Patchwork & Quilted Gifts'.

The bag was a way for me to incorporate some of the fabrics I had used for clothes for MR...it brings back memories of my sweet girl every time i use it. Kind of like an old quilt from you grandmother.

The bird was just fun and quick. She hangs in my sewing room window.