A big thank you to LunarAle!
Monday, December 5, 2011
Sunday, December 4, 2011
School Morning Breakfast
School morning breakfasts really need a makeover by this time in the year. To keep the meal hearty and healthy, I usually don't mind whipping up a batch of muffins or pancakes on Sunday afternoon that we can slide in around the cereal mornings. But during the holiday season, pre-cooked breakfasts even become difficult to come by. One FAST pre-cook breakfast is WILDBERRY WAFFLES. I purchase 2 packets of muffin mix (one strawberry and one blueberry), combine them in a bowl, add 1 and 1/2 cups milk or water (whichever the packet calls for), and mix. I then pour about a cup and a half onto my waffle iron to cook. It makes delicious waffles without needing eggs,oil and other homemade ingredients. I put them in the refridgerator and give a quick toast in the toaster in the mornings. YUM! My kids love these things! Thanks for letting me share!
Wildberry Waffles
2 packets of muffin mix
1 1/2 Cups milk
Mix and pour approx. 1 1/2 cups batter onto waffle iron.
Sunday, November 27, 2011
Weekend-Away Travel Bag Pattern Review
Last summer, my sweet sister-in-law bought me a copy of "Weekend Sewing", by Heather Ross. I drooled and daydreamed over the projects, but have never found the time for a new project. Now that Christmas is getting closer, I decided to sew the Weekend Away Travel Bag and fill it with goodies from Bath & Body as a gift. Yes, yes, I know that it doesn't look very Christmasy, but I couldn't resist these fabrics that I found on sale at JoAnn's. It turned out pretty cute and my daughter and I found turquoise lotion and soap to match.
For the most part, this bag went together quite well. One correction that needs to be mentioned is the measurements for the optional inner pockets. The instructions call for a 12" x 9.25" panel to be cut out, but this will result in very small pockets. I cut out a 12" x 12" panel and it worked great.
One change that I also made was to use heavyweight fusible interfacing on the outer pieces. I wanted to make sure that the bag was sturdy, since I was not using home decor fabric as was recomended in the book.
While the projects listed in the book are very inspiring. The book is quite known for its errors. Instructional errors as well as fitting errors can be found in almost every pattern. For a list of corrections, please see this blog. With this in mind alone, a beginner seamstress should beware.
Sewing around the corners when the bag body is added to the zipper was a little frustrating. Patience will pay off as you near this last step. I also found that the corners were easier if I first sewed all the straight edges first, then went back and completed the corners. Just be sure to backstitch at the beginning and end of each seam.
Sunday, November 20, 2011
New Envelope System Wallet !
I love this fabric by Alexander Henry! Please do not hesitate to ask questions concerning the Envelope System Budgeting Method!
Saturday, November 19, 2011
Burlap Love
I have to admit...I can't get enough burlap. I am planning to sew a few Kindle/Nook cases as christmas gifts and want the main fabric to be burlap.
I'll be sure to post pictures of them when the project gets underway.
Some people think that burlap is difficult to cut and sew. Well, yes ...and no. Burlap is great for a rustic look and is very easy to cut and work into large projects. The raveling is difficult to manage on small detailed projects, though. To solve this issue, I simply serge or zig zag around the edges of each indivdual piece once it is cut out. Raveling problem solved!
Anyway, thought I would send you some burlap inspiration today!
Sunday, November 13, 2011
New Envelope System Wallets for your Budgeting Needs
I found these two fabrics last week and I can't help but falling in love all over again! They were perfect for the Envelope System Wallet! Each wallet comes with 3 customizable envelopes, a zippered pouch and the outer wallet. This wallet stands up to the test of time, unlike paper envelopes and is a lot cuter!
You can find these wallets for sale in my ETSY SHOP!
Thanks for looking!
Saturday, November 12, 2011
Lined Purse with Zipper Tutorial
It has been a while since my last tutorial! My hope is that a beginner seamstress will find the instructions and pictures easy to use and the expert seamstress will gain inspiration on how to apply this technique to other projects! Let's Go!
Lined Purse with a Zipper!
Materials:
1. 4 pieces of equal sized fabrics. The ones shown here are cut to 8in. x 4.5".
2. 1 zipper, longer than the length of your fabric.
Steps:
1. Place the outer fabric face up andlay the zipper face down on top. Line the up the edges. *Notice my zipper is way larger than my fabric. This is not a problem as I will cut off both sides when I am complete. The nice thing about using larger zippers is that I can position the zipper pull off my fabric so that I do not have to sew around it. Using larger zippers mean that I also have a zipper on hand and not one that is too short for my project.
3. Place the lining fabric face down on the zipper and line up the edges.
3. Pin all three layers together.
4. Using a zipper foot, sew all three layers together.
5. Remove pins and it should look like this!
6. Iron seams, fold back lining and iron again.
7. Place second piece of outer fabric face up. Then place zipper on top face down.
8. Place lining fabric face down on top of zipper and line up all edges.
9. Pin the three layers together and sew together as before.
10. Remove pins, iron seams, fold back lining and iron again.
11. One side should look like this:
12. The other side should look like this:
13. Pick up just the lining pieces so that the right sides are together.
14. Place on table with lining right sides together and outer fabric pieces together.
15. Unfold one side and unzip zipper half-way. This is a crucial step and yet soooo easy to forget.
16. Pin edges together. Zipper should be folded toward the outer fabric.
17. Sew around edges with 1.2 in. seam and leave about a 2in opening on the side edge of lining fabric.
18. Trim edges and clip corners.
19. Yes, cut right through the zipper on either side.
20. Reach through the opening and turn the purse outside in!
21. Once turned, pull lining out and finger press the opening.
22. Sew the opening closed with your machine as close to the edge of the fabric as possible. Just go slow. *Note* You can slip stitch this opening closed by hand. I have found that with the opeing on the side and not the bottom of the lining it is less noticeable and therefore, a machine stitch is not noticed either.
23. Push the lining back in and iron! Voila!
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
New Envelope System Wallets in Alexander Henry!
I am so excited about my newest fabric stash!! I love Alexander Henry's fabric collection, Willow. I have enough for 8 more envelope System wallets for all you Dave Ramsey fans out there.
If you are interested in purchasing a wallet, you can find it for sale in my ETSY store! Are you new to my wallets? Read below for some more specifics:
The Envelope System Wallet features:
1) A Velcro closure and one main pocket, in which the envelopes fit.2)Three envelopes have been made in a coordinating fabric. I transferred labels to each of the wallets for easy reference. I would be happy to transfer a Bible verse, saying or other labels at your request. The envelopes are lined to prevent your cash from slipping.
3) Last but not least, there is a zippered pouch for coins, driver’s license and pictures of the kids (plenty large enough for up to 10 cards).
4) This wallet could easily also hold your checkbook and deposit slips.
5) Envelopes and zippered pouch are entirely removable for easy access and budgeting. Remove it if its not to be used!
This wallet is in coordinating fabrics by Alexander Henry's Willow Collection.
*Please allow 1 week for custom labels and shipping.
*Additional envelopes may be an option for this wallet. Each additional envelope is $2.00. Please convo me if you are interested. No more than 5 envelopes per wallet are suggested due to inadequate space.
Saturday, September 10, 2011
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