Sunday, August 29, 2010

Holy 500!

Dear Shayne,

Holy crap! This is our 503rd post -- we missed celebrating #500! That's a lot of posts, girlfriend. Glad we've kept at it. :)

Let's have a giveaway for our readers. Yeah!

love,
kelly



Dear Readers,

Leave a comment on this post before Wednesday, Sept 1 at 5pm Pacific time. Using the Random Number Generator, I'll pick a winner from the comments that night.

If you win, I will make you a pair of Scrabble tile earrings using two letters of your choosing (could be your initials, XO, or any other combo you wish) like these:

Scrabble tile earrings for Jenny

Good luck to everyone entering and thanks so much for stopping by our little corner of the internet!

love,
kelly

Home Ec Project #2: Gift bag

Dear Shayne,

The second project in the Home Ec online sewing class is a drawstring gift bag. I was very excited about this project because I've been thinking for the past couple of years about making reusable gift wrapping. It seems so wasteful every Christmas when there's a big pile o' paper on the floor after the gift exchange.

This project was surprisingly challenging, with some unexpected turns. Now that I've done it once, I know what changes I'll make next time. The pattern wasn't difficult, but not everything went the way I thought it was going to.

First of all, I was surprised by the size. By the original photos, I thought this bag would hold something maybe the size of a grapefruit. In reality, it's big enough for a shoebox:
Home Ec Project #2: Drawstring Gift Pouch
(It's funny -- in this photo, it looks like it could even be as large as a pillowcase. Guess it just needs something next to it for perspective.)

So that was odd. A friend of mine who is taking the class (Hi, Jan!) said, "Oh, did you change the size of yours?" when she saw mine (she hadn't made hers yet), so I know I'm not the only one surprised by the size of it. It's not really a problem. It was just... unexpected.

When I first saw the tutorial, I had some trepidation about the way it deals with the hole for the drawstring to come through. Of course, you want that hole to be strong and you don't want that fabric to fray. To that end, they used hand embroidery and I knew I'd botch that. (To see the original for yourself, go to Home Ec and scroll down to the second project.)

I went ahead with the pattern as described, knowing I wasn't going to do the embroidery but not 100% sure about what I was going to do. When I finally got to that point, it was too late (it's the last step) to do what I think would be the perfect thing there, which is to make a buttonhole with your machine.

It requires planning, because you cannot tack the buttonhole on at the end, but next time I make the bag, I'll know where the hole is going and I'll make a buttonhole right from the start. This time, however, I had to think of something else to do with the project already complete.

So I used eyelets:
Home Ec Project #2: Drawstring Gift Pouch
(Unfortunately, mine are uneven, but you get the idea.)

That photo also highlights something that confused me when making the bag -- can you see the parallel stitching lines on either side of the eyelet? I thought those were going to create the channel for the drawstring. As it turns out, the drawstring actually goes around the top of the bag as its "channel" and then it comes out where grommets are. It works fine, it's just not what I thought it would be.

When I make this again, I'm going to make those lines the channel, so that the bag has a bit of a ruffle at the top when it's pulled closed (which it currently does not, even though it kind of looks like it in my photo at the top. That's an optical illusion.)

The final problem I had with the pattern didn't really show up until I was done, which is that the edges on the inside are all raw and fairly visible from the outside of the bag:


I guess the thinking is that this is a replacement for wrapping paper, so it's just got to be one-step-above-disposable. But my thinking is that, if I'm going to replace wrapping paper with these things, I'm going to want to re-use them again and again and I want something neat and solid that will last.

All this to say, I'm going to line future gift bags I make. Plus, if the gift recipient wants to use them for something else, they'll hold up to that.

I fear this post sounds negative, because it outlines my struggles along the way, but I am happy with this project and look forward to making more. Now I know exactly how to make it, I'll modify my future bags.

Also, the class is great in that there are a ton of photos, lots of descriptions of what's going on, and really great responses to questions (that's how I found out about the drawstring channel -- someone else posted a question about it and they got the correct answer. Yay for support!)

The next lesson is a tote bag. And you know how I love me some tote bag!

love,
kelly

Saturday, August 28, 2010

Project Pouches

Dear Kelly,

I've been doing a whole lot of cross-stitching lately (pictures to come soon), and decided that I needed zipper pouches to hold each project. Of course, I could have sewn my own, but I do love shopping too, so I went on a crazed 2-hour local hunt that turned up nothing - Walmart, Target, Borders, Joann, Michaels and Staples - nothing. Defeated, I went home and started looking online and found these adorable 7" x 9" vinyl pouches at Pearl River. And they were only $7 each! These are the four I got, although I may order some more:



Love,
Shayne

Friday, August 27, 2010

Home Ec Project #1: Napkins!

Dear Shayne,

As I mentioned in this post, I am taking an online sewing class right now called Home Ec. Our first project was napkins:
Home Ec Project #1: Napkins

These are double-sided, which makes them really nice and a little heavy (which I like in a napkin -- I want to feel it there on my lap).

If this fabric looks familiar to you, it's because I originally bought it for a back of a baby quilt, but then I ended up using a different fabric and this fabric has just languished. I love it -- it's really nice quality and a great design from Amy Butler.

The project had instructions for doing two kinds of napkins: either single sided with a zig-zag sewn edge and double sided with a ric-rac trim. The ric-rac trim is cute, but since I share napkins with a man, I skipped that addition.

Instead, I used the zig-zag sewn edge and I like how it turned out:
Home Ec Project #1: Napkins

We use cloth napkins in our house, so I thought this would be a great project, but they came out so beautifully, that I think I'll barf the first time someone goes to mop up some spilled marinara.

I'm usually pretty good with the "Just use it!" philosophy on handmade items, but this one's been a bit of a hurdle for me. I'm sure I'll get over it, but I'm still a little "My precious..." about the whole thing right now. Does that ever happen to you?

love,
kelly

Thursday, August 26, 2010

Little brother to the crazy a** scarf

Dear Shayne,

Do you remember this crazy-a** super-long, nutso scarf? After I made that, I still had enough leftover orange and brown yarn to make a normal sized one for my mom and one for my grandma (normal sized = 6 feet long, rather than 14).

Believe it or not, after finishing those, I still had some of this yarn left (yes, yes, I may have A Problem). I was going to make yet another one in the same colors, but then I thought I would mix it up a bit.

So I went stash diving to find something to go with the brown yarn and found plenty o' purple. I put them together and I think it came out pretty well:
Wacky scarf

It's much smaller than the original one, but how many 14 foot scarves do I need? The best part about this scarf is that it is reeeeeally soft. Mmmm.

Here's a closeup of some of the craziness:
Wacky scarf, close up

For the leftover orange yarn, I think I will mix in pinks. And then maybe be done with this particular scarf craze. Maybe.

love,
kelly

Friday, August 20, 2010

Ack! Fuzzy cuteness!

Dear Shayne,

I saw this guy on the front page of Etsy this week and I just had to share the cuteness:

ACK! Fuzzy green cute! His name is Herb!

Etsy seller Zygopsyche makes many adorable fluffy cuties, including guinea pigs and more bunnies. She also makes versions in colors that occur in nature, but I find myself drawn to these fun ones.

Just LOOK at this fluffy pink bunny:


Oh, wait... this purple guinea pig?
Yeah. He's killin' me:


Sadly, I cannot have such fun in my life because Biscuit would eat them (jerk), but I had to share in case you or anyone else reading our blog has room for a fuzzy cuteness in your life.

love,
kelly

PS - These photos are, of course, from Zygopsyche's Etsy shop. Check it out for even more of the cute!

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

Delicious dishcloth

Dear Shayne,

I've made a ton of dishcloths/washcloths this year, but this is one of my favorites:
Neapolitan dishcloth

Neapolitan ice cream! Yeah!

love,
kelly

Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Dishcloths for you

Dear Shayne,

I realize that you have already seen these in person, but in the interest of documenting my Dishcloth Obsession of '10, I gotta post the ones I sent to you:

Pink dishcloths

In pink, of course, the Color of Shayne. ;)

love,
kelly

Monday, August 16, 2010

Pink woven scarf

Dear Shayne,

I know you'll love this one because it's pink but it's not at all Shayne Friendly (it's wool). I made this scarf out of crazy yarn I bought 2 years ago at Stitches West. It's woven --weaving rocks!

Woven scarf

I used that crazy yarn (Pagewood Farm handspun) for the weft. For the warp, I used Juniper Moon worsted weight in colorway Little Women. Here they both are, pre-weaving:
Two awesome yarns = one great scarf

Once again, I did not do the best job of calculating how much yarn I would need. Not because it's difficult or because I cannot do it... just because I was lazy and over-confident. Whoops. So after I got about 4 feet out of that handspun, I realized I was going to run out before the scarf was long enough.

So I got creative and went stash diving. I found some gorgeous leftover Debbie Bliss Alpaca Silk (so soft -- it's like clouds) and I put it together with the Juniper Moon yarn so that it was bulkier and I made... weird stripes!
Crazy stripes

Here's a close-up shot of the two different yarns together as the weft:
Close-up of some of the weaving

And here's a close-up of some of the handspun woven into the scarf -- love this yarn, as the fluffy bits are verrrry soft wool:
Weaving close-up

So it ended up being another one of my misfit projects -- the good news is that I looove my misfit projects, particularly this one!

This is a very thick, dense scarf. Won't be able to wear it until winter time, although it actually still feels rather wintery here in the Bay Area, so I might be able to break it out now. Out here, 2010 will be remembered as The Year Summer Never Came. Brrr!



love,
kelly

Online class, redux

Dear Shayne,

Great minds think alike! You mentioned you're taking a couple of online classes, just as I was about to tell you about the online class I'm taking: Home Ec Sewing Class.



It says "for beginners," but there's something for everyone here (and a great motivator to make stuff). It's a whirlwind of information -- 26 projects in 5.5 weeks! -- BUT the projects (which are super cool -- click on that link and see the goodness) are going to be available for a year, so a little group of my crafty buds and I are going to work through them over the next 52 weeks.

They say on their site that they're taking registrations through yesterday, August 15, but my friend (Hi, Katie!) signed up today successfully, so you might still be able to.

If you're feeling frisky, please join us! Meanwhile, you'll see plenty of projects from me here over the next year. First up: Cloth napkins. (Which we use in our house, so that's exciting!)

love,
kelly

Happy Birthday to Me

Dear Kelly,

Thank you for the awesome birthday presents! I will put them to good use.

Love,
Shayne



Dear Readers,

Kelly sent me the most amazing birthday presents! She sent me this book:


This adorable stationary:



And this amazing pouch full of goodies for making mail art on the fly:


Lucky me!!!

Love,
Shayne

Online Classes

Dear Kelly,

I just signed up for these two online classes:

the big mini workshop - an online class for minibook beginners
with Elise Blaha (found her blog through Kal Barteski's)


and

The Art of Silliness
with Carla Sonheim


Care to join me for either?

Love,
Shayne

Sunday, August 08, 2010

Unicorns

Dear Kelly,

I have a running joke with someone I work with about how when things get lost in cyberspace, they're somewhere with the unicorns and kittens. I decided I need to cross-stitch unicorns:



Love,
Shayne

PS I must stop being lazy and get out my real camera instead of using the one on my phone!

Saturday, August 07, 2010

Harry Potter Letters

Dear Kelly,

Later this month, my sister and I are taking Sam and my oldest nephew, Dylan, to Universal Studios Orlando, which includes the new Wizarding World of Harry Potter. We are all super excited and I decided to make us all official Hogwarts acceptance letters like the ones Harry gets in the first book/movie.

At first I thought I would need paper and envelopes that were or looked like parchment, but I watched the begining of the movie and decided that some cream cardstock would be fine. I found that in the stationery section at Joann's. It took me about a billion years to get the right settings in Word to print on the envelopes, but I now have the A2 settings saved for future use.



For the envelope seals, I couldn't find a brass H, so I bought a fun rubber stamp alphabet stamp set which worked just as good. I already had dark red wax seals, but it took awhile to melt them because I couldn't find my heat gun and had to use a hair dryer instead.



I'm pretty happy with how they turned out and hope the boys think they're fun.

Love,
Shayne

Tuesday, August 03, 2010

LWA at Renegade SF

Dear Shayne,

This past weekend, I went to Renegade SF. As always, it was truly amazing -- I think it's my favorite craft fair. I saw many of my favorite bloggers and artists -- so great to see work in person that I've only seen online before.

I didn't buy too much -- perhaps I was overwhelmed at all the goodness. (Sometimes I get like that and cannot focus enough to buy things -- is that weird?)

But I did stop in at 16 Sparrows, home of the Letter Writers Alliance and I met the lovely and charming duo behind those endeavors, Donovan and Kathy. They were just as great in person as they seem online (and via real mail!)

They were giving out little envelopes of goodies for LWA members:
LWA goodies from Renegade

Inside was a sweet message and fun ephemera:
LWA goodies from Renegade

I also bought a little box of stickers from them -- you'll be seeing some of this in your mailbox at some point, I'm sure:
Renegade loot

The other items I bought were also mailables and probably coming your way soon, so I'll hold off on showing them to you.

After Renegade on Saturday, I had a fun crafternoon with my crafty buddies on Sunday (Hi, Jan, Jocelyn, and Hollie!) so it was an all-around craft-astic weekend. Whee!

love,
kelly