Studio Photos

If you have been wondering where I have been, this is it... I finally painted my new studio space, and this time, I took my time. Only that which I truly need, love, and use is here.

Quick tour.. the cutting table under the eaves is set up on bed risers so it is 6" higher than a standard dining table. (I'm short.. so that works fine) The skirt covers a fabulous mess of junk.. maybe I'll show that later. The 'sewing' table is a table we had on our screened porch. I covered it in a white damask vinyl cloth to keep things bright.

I still have space on my shelves to fill but that's a good thing. And, yes, I'm loving my Laura Ashley ironing board cover! It has so much more padding than the cheap ones that come on the boards. The clothe hanging is my cover clothe so adhesives, etc.. don't get on everything.

The clock above once had a tacky puppy dog face on it. The outside color was perfect though, so I took it apart and replaced the face with something much more 'me'.

All of the fabulous, vintage knitting needles my mother in law gave to me. I love having them in a tall glass container so I can see their colors..

More storage.. are you figuring out my color scheme yet? :)

Vintage notions.. I love the look and they are just as functional as 'new' ones.

More storage.. the tins hold a medley of supplies.. I really need to label them though, as I have to open both whenever I am looking for something.

This studio space feels so different than the rest of the house. My goal was bright, fun hues that inspired. I hope they inspire you too..

xoxo~

Abbie

To see photos of the rest of the house click on the label 'house' below.

Fragile threads.

I love old spools of thread. Wooden spools that hold fragile strings, those that snap quickly if pulled to hard.

Fragile threads that have served their purpose, held together delicate linens and silks. Even before the time of bright hues, there were threads. Full of function and practicality.

Fashion empires have been built on such a tiny structure; on such a fine line.

Friendships have been bound by them. Quilts for newly weds and newborns have been stitched together. Holes patched, and hearts healed by a single thread.

Fine lace, intricate patterns have been painstakingly created by such a simple device.

I love unwinding an old spool, slowly removing the signs of age to reveal the original, crisp hue. That is the one I use. I use it in my embroidery. The antique threads that show their age and if pulled too hard, snap.

Busy hands...

I have been busy working on crafty bits to decorate my home for the upcoming season of 'Boo!'. the mood has struck, and if I don't go with it, I'll never get anything done! so far I have made several (4) pillows (embroidered and appliqued), painted two grungy boxes, assembled a witchy portrait, created a ghostie from some vintage lace and antique Victorian jet buttons and made several rag garlands. There are so many more ideas in my folder! So this is where I have been lately.. creating for my family and home. It is more enjoyable than creating things to sell.

I hope at some point to post some of the templates that I created.

Hope everyone else is enjoying some creative time!

xoxo~

Abbie

Inspired Clothing...

This Gap jean skirt needed a new life. As I am entering my mid-thirties, the highcut slit, ( in the middle of the front) is just not the look I'm going for with a baby on my hip and two other young children. So.. much to my husband's dismay, I decided to close the 'gap'. (uuggh.. excuse the pun) Above, my daughter helped me decide which cotton fabric to use.

Having settled on the small floral pattern, I pleated it twice at the top, and sewed it on both sides and the top using a pale blue thread. (Mind you, without the pleat, it folded and stuck straight out!!) It wasn't enough.. I cut out a little chickadee from the same fabric (template below) and fused it the bottom corner of the skirt. It still wasn't enough!

On to the fun stuff!! I have been quite taken by Amanda Soule's work and book, The Creative Family. I love her embroidery! So.. I made my own. The little birdie needed a branch to perch on! Using doubled plain brown thread, I stitched (very simply) a perch.

Now that's a skirt I'll wear! Thank you Amanda for the inspiration!



Here is the template for you.. just left click to enlarge, then right click to save it to your PC. You can adjust it's size, use it for paper cutouts, whatever you like!

Enjoy!

xoxo~

Abbie

Fabric Egg Pattern

I spent days trying to find a pattern that was free to make fabric eggs. I love the look of them, and have had some very unsuccessful attempts at their construction.. you would think it would be a simple pattern to create. For some, who are adept at that sort thing well, more power to ya! For me.. not so much. The only thing I could find was a description of how to make a pattern. You take an egg from your fridge, mark it all up with lines, and from that make a pattern. Uhh? Well, I did it, and it worked!! So.. to prevent you from either having to pay a fortune for a pattern or from having to mark up all your eggs, I made it and put it on paper for you. Just click it, copy it and print. You may need to adjust for print size, (the original page was 8 1/2" x 11") but the pattern size doesn't really matter here. What matters are the proportions. I hope it works for you.. Now I do not profess to be a professional or have any clue as to what I am doing! :) You do need to have basic sewing skills, and as far as making neat points go.. well perhaps Annie, Rosie, or Kathy can help us with those! another thing I found, the sewing doesn't have to be to neat, as when you stuff it FULL (I mean full 'til the seams are tight!) it rounds itself out into a lovely egg shape. Pound it on the counter, squeeze the top and Voila! You just made an egg! For me, I loved playing with different color combos.. the red and white is my favorite thus far! They are quick and easy (relatively..) and it is 'sew' much nicer to make something for your home than buy it!

Enjoy!

♥ Don't forget to enter for my Spring Giveaway below! ♥

A little bird helped me pass the time..

Our weather here in NH has been absolutely crazy! After every snowstorm we get inches of rain.. homes and buildings are buckling under the weight and most spirits are starting to buckle from being housebound. It is even hard to take the children out to play. Everything is covered in ice, and the snow (almost 4 feet in spots) is so hard we can walk on top. The dogs can now peek in the kitchen window when they go out. Very strange to see... Yesterday it poured all day. So I crocheted; brought out my book and found a cute little birdie pattern.

Just like when I cook, (I tend to make recipes my own by changing and adding) I mixed up this pattern some as well. I am very happy with the way it turned out! It has a contrasting beak, and the silver bead is more like an eye than the buttons. I just need to attach a pin back to it and I can have a little birdie to wear! (mine is chubbier too!) It only took about an hour or so.. a cute little project for a rainy day..

These are a few of my favorite things...

When I browse around other people's blogs I just love the images. The pics grab me, if I like them, then I'll read what goes along with them.. but it is most definitely the images that get my interest peeked. No images, I probably won't stay to read unless the title line is really fetching.. I know, judging a book by it's cover, so to speak. But that is the way my mind works, I am an extremely visual person.. so I thought I'd share some of my favorite things from around my home with you.. first my daughters nursery. Most of the accessories I made myself. It was the first large sewing project I tackled and it took me the entire winter I was pregnant with her to finish all the sewing. First I put together the quilt that hangs over the edge of the crib. Then came the crib skirt, the hanging caddy on the end, the bolster pillow (and a few other pillows), a diaper caddy, and crib bumper.

Above is a mobile that my mother, son and I made one afternoon. I cut squares of pink and green felt and we decorated them with shiny bits and buttons. Put two back to back with embroidery floss running through the center and beaded heavy metal beads at the ends to give it some weight and swing. Balancing the piece was the hardest. I used a round piece of cardboard covered with fabric. Anchored the strings in the center and moved them around the circle until it balanced right. then I secured them in place. A very inexpensive project and so much fun to make!

The room was screaming for a bit of sparkle so I choose this petite 'chandelier' for the center lighting.

Above is a spattering of their blankets. The crocheted piece T's aunt had made for her. I just love the little roses in the corner. That wonderful water blue is the back color to the striped quilt and the corner pink squares are of the quilt I made..

Well, I took a slew of pics from around the house this morning so stop back by again soon to peek at more of my favorite things..

No idea...

No idea where this post is going, I just have a few minutes (shocker!!) so I thought I'd sit and chat. After peeking through my vast image file, I found these pics of an antique replica doll I made a few years ago. It took several months of work, but she was so much fun to put together. Every step was detailed, and the results just thrilled me!

She sits on her settle bench in our living room. I also made a tiny quilt for a doll that she had, but my dog ate her. Yes, my dog ate my dollie's doll. :) It was quite upsetting as the tiny doll (about 2" tall) was just so small and cute (and quite difficult to make!). The larger doll has little black boots with buttons that are painted on and I painted her face as well.

This is not my design. (I'm not that clever!) She came from a kit set. Once I can get back upstairs and shuffle through my boxes, I'll let you know where her design came from. My daughter loves to dress her, and is tries to be careful. T knows that she is momma's special doll. I found that the hardest part was sewing the tiny seam allowances. It helped me become familiar with my sewing machine and all it's special features. The settle bench and the pillow on it were another kit from the same very talented lady. I do have some more dresses to make, but the sewing machine is put away until all the little fingers learn to stay out of the way. Her hair is mohair and so soft. It is getting a bit fuzzy from all the love from my daughter, but her black Amish bonnet covers it nicely.

I have yet to name her, so if you have any suggestions, I'd love to hear. Or if you have a special doll that you treasure, I'd love to see.

The tiny white pitcher is from G, my mother in law. I was chatting with her this summer about how I'd love to find an old, large doll house to decorate. (Melissa has one that is absolutely gorgeous! ) G found the tiny pitcher and said she used to have a doll house and this was the only thing she had left of it. I took it graciously, and it is another tiny treasure to share with my daughters some day. Hopefully, someday, it will find a home on a miniature table in a tiny kitchen.

Not a Christmas post, but more a winter one. The weather here is cold, it was only 7 degrees out when my husband dropped Z off at school. Settle benches were traditionally positioned in front of the fireplace and had a high back to help keep the heat around the people who sat on it. something we could use right now. Alas, I don't think we'd fit.

Gifts, Giveways and Icicles!

Button icicles. Now you know what I was referring to! :) Long dangly 'icicles' made from vintage buttons, balanced with a bead at the bottom and a bow at the top. Perfect for the tree, but also so much fun to dangle around the house. Because some of the buttons are antique shell and glass, the icicles make a lovely twinkling sound when moved. I think they would be wonderful in front of an open window, blowing in the breeze. We can't do that up here in New England right now, but Ellie in Florida could! The icicle on the left uses approx. 20 white buttons that vary in size. Just dee-lish for a shabby chic decor or for a bit of whimsy. I

will be giving away two icicles to one of my lovely blogger friends. Just leave a comment.. but keep reading.. there's more! If you would like to make some for yourself, or as gifts they are super simple and a fun!

Once you secure a bead on string, (I used vintage pink embroidery floss.. but fishing line would work great too!) then you just sew on the buttons, using two holes. As they slide down the string, alternate the direction the buttons face and slide them together. They stack right up. Using a graduated size, gives an icicle look to them, but you could create garland by using random sizes or colors. They would be pretty swagged on a chandelier or hanging from a door knob. You can change the colors of the ribbon or buttons to match you home or the holidays. For buttons you can check out Kathy's Etsy shop, Button Constructions.

For those of you who would rather some crafty goodness to play with yourself I am also giving away a vintage style paper tissue basket filled with delights! Buttons, pink rick rack, Robbin's egg blue vintage seam binding ribbon, a antique skeleton key, paper flowers, etc..

Just leave a comment on this post and I'll enter you for the drawing. Let me know which item you would prefer, I will giving away a pair of icicles and the tissue basket of goodies, wrapped to perfection and given with love! I will draw numbers on Friday! Good luck!

♥ Abbie

*Below is a pic out my kitchen window. We got almost a foot of snow yesterday! This was taken about midday.. why am I making icicles for inside?? You'd think we have enough outside! I hope everyone is warm and I'd love to see WARM and COLORFUL pics on everyone's blogs!! It's cold and white here!

As some of you might have learned or heard through my ranting, I profess to be an 'artist'. Yet because of time restraints, children, etsy and home life, my art has definitely taken a backseat to everything else right now. For those of you who are curious you can view a sampling of my eclectic style by clicking the image below or on the left...

Knots and Bows..

Mary, over at the Little Red House had a fabulous post the other day with some dee-lish ideas for wrapping your holiday gifts. Now, I don't know about you, but whenever I try to tie even the simplest of bows it either comes out sideways or upside down. I did resort to tying all my gifts and little bundles for my shop upside down, but I knew there had to be a 'correct' way to tie a simple bow or knot. Well, I found it. (these were pulled from somewhere on the great Internet, I would give credit if I could remember from where) So, click on 'em, print these out and slip them in with your wrapping paper. They are invaluable when fumbling with bobbles, berries and beauties. The last thing you need to try to figure out, when the fake fruit and foliage is flying, is how to get your bow right side up.

♥ Enjoy!



The scribble on the knot sheet is courtesy of my two year old.. she likes to add her two cents whenever Momma's not looking. By the way, the day started with a cup of tea instead of Coke. (there is a penny soaking as I type.. just curious..)

My curtains are up!

Well, I finally had time to hang the insulated curtains and make the tie backs. I suppose they should be called 'pull' backs since they do not tie. ;) We have four windows in the hall between the garage and the house (which could be why its so cold in there all the time). This is the last hope at trying to keep the space warm this coming winter.

The construction was fairly simple (I didn't use a pattern) I measured the width and height of my windows, added inches to the top and bottom for seam allowance, and for rod pockets. I did not choose to make them very wide, as I wanted them to lay fairly flat when closed to help with insulation. (that is why there is not much gather to them) Also, the hall is narrow and we don't need billows of fabric to push past when going back and forth. (as well as the fabric would be more tempting for little hands to touch and pull).

I cut the insulating fabric (from Joann's) one inch narrower than the decorator fabric, so the pattern would wrap around to the inside slightly. Sewed the right sides together, in simple straight stitch from top to bottom. The top and bottom were sewn even (leaving a slight gap at one end to turn them right side out), I used a straight stitch to sew that opening closed.

There was some of the insulating fabric left for me to use for the rod pockets along the top. I left about a two inch gap, then stitched a two inch wide strip to the top of the curtains. If I did them again, I would make my rod pocket larger, as they don't slide very easily on the pole. But, I suppose, no pattern, you'll learn from your mistakes AFTER you make them. Not wanting to do it all over, they slide hard. I might try the metal clips with the metal rings at the top, I KNOW they would slide easily, but then again, our rods may be to mounted to close to the window casing for them.. we'll see. I used the left over scraps to sew simple tubes of fabric, and I have Velcro to screw them with. Tada! Not overly spectacular, but I estimate that I saved almost two hundred dollars by making them myself. Curtains are so very expensive, and all you really need to know how to do is a straight stitch and a few measurements. The little mistakes no one will ever notice.

On to a different topic.. My daughter has the most amazing eyes I think I have ever seen. They are almost black, yet she has blond hair. Very mysterious and wonderful! My eyes are a puke hazel brown, (not that hazel eyes are puke, just mine are) When she was born I thought I had given birth to snow white. she had a head of dark brown hair, black brown eyes and ruby red lips. Well, the hair has changed and the lips are usually in a snickery, mischievous grin, but the eyes are still black.

New curtains..

I spent the morning furiously sewing insulated curtains for our hallway that extends between the house and the garage. Even though the house is almost brand new, that small space just cannot keep the heat. So... insulated, full drapes are the last resort. Once they are hung, I'll post a pic.. The place in the ouse I get to use florals!! (the rest of our home is very NH/lodge/plaid/deer head/moose). Speaking of plaid furniture... look who enjoys it the most!

Martha is a 'Good Thing'...

Image from MarthaStewartCrafts

I found the most delightful pattern for Stawberry Pincushions from MarthaStewart.Com. Now that is a 'good thing'. I have been a huge fan of Martha and her ever growing empire for years. Her endurance and impecable taste just bewilder me. (and she has a FABULOUS staff that just keeps generating some neat little twists to old fashioned ideas!)