do it yourself fabric using fabric scraps - YouTube

do it yourself fabric using fabric scraps - YouTube:



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This is a GREAT video, for stash busting!  The Arttist, whost videos I have been watching  a LOT lately, is AMAZING!!  She has TONS if /DIY videis you ALL need to check her out!!  'fran

I'M TATTING!!!! My very first ring!

Today was a low energy day, so inspired by a vintage tatting shuttle in my case I started watching tatting videos on YouTube.  I have always wanted to tat, since I was a child.  I don't really know why.... I remember a childhood friend, Catherine Thompson, telling me about tatting, and then later my dad picked up a few tatting shuttles in his wanderings.  I don't know how I knew they were tatting shuttles, but I did. Now I have those tatting shuttles, and a few more that have wandered in with sewing supplies, and today finally, a few months before I turn 50, was THE day.

Now, this  may not seem like much, but even after watching a couple of different people explain and show it different ways, it takes some patience and some practice, a bit over an hour, to get this very first ring.  Everyone else in my house is asleep, and I have been neglecting my blog, so here I am, showing the internet my first ring.  I am sure many more will be forthcoming, along with picots and chains, because those are the  only stitches you need in tatting.  But THIS is a BEGINNING. YAY!!

Well, I'm off to practice more rings, and then some sleep.  I will show you more later, hopefully better shots, and more interesting results, but it is a begining!!

Newborn Caps for Baby Dolls by Franstuff | Crocheting Ideas

Newborn Caps for Baby Dolls by Franstuff | Crocheting Ideas:

'via Blog this'

This is a review I did on my first crocheted baby hat in oh, 25 years.  It's a 1.00 pattern on Craftsy, and I had fun cranking a couple out for my great nieces baby dolls. I made these smaller to fit the dollies, now I want to make one bigger to fit the niece.

I made a great BIG pillow for my niece, Sofia today.  It's almost 3 feet square, and is all soft and squishy.  I made it from the bag of scraps I had still left over from her quilt.  I had bought the whole bag of flannel at a thrift shop, and there were a bunch of squares cut out, which is what I used up today.  Earlier I made her a twin size quilt and then a baby doll quilt out of some extra blocks. Today I used up the last of that stash of fabric

I had no plan except to make her a pillow. I just started sewing squares together, with some sashing strips, then I had to make the other side as big as the first side.There were lots of different sized squares and I added sashing from a large chunk I had.  I must say it's a little bigger than I meant to make it, but she'll probably like it being big. I really like it...going to be hard to give up.

Here's some pictures of it.

I am really happy with how the pillow turned out, especially since I was really just winging it.  It did give me some practice on matching seams up, which I really need.  Not everything matches, but pillows are very forgiving, and so are 3 year olds!

Still around and Sewing Barefoot!

Ok, I'm still not posting regularly, but I'm working on it.  I have sewn a few pieces of clothing since I posted last.   They have all been upcycling projects, for my granddaughter and grandniece.  

The must recent project was a pair of leggings for my 2 year old niece which I made from a small tshirt which sports a zebra on the front.  The zebra now goes across and around one leg, while the other leg is plain white.  I was hoping to get some of the print on each leg, but the shirt was  to small to give me much choice in placement. I am really happy, they turned out really cute!!

                  
I also made a  a layered ruffle skirt made from parts of 2 different bed skirts, one battenburg lace and the other flowered.  This took much longer than I thought it would, but I have since learned an easier way of construction a ruffle skirt, so next time it should be easier.

My next project is this adorable little tank top made from a lightweight sweatshirt that sported a pretty rose.  I used bias tape around the underarm curve, leaving enough to tie them into bows or knots at her shoulder.  This one was really easy to make.

The final piece is a dress made for my granddaughter out of a beautiful vintage bedsheet.  Unfortunately, she hasn't grown as fast as I thought she would.  It looks like it may fit next year.  I made it from a pattern, which I can't find right this minute or I would give you the number.  It is a simple aline jumper with buttons at the shoulders.  Isn't she just the cutest thing ever?

I have a pile of clothes my 14 year old daughter has outgrown, and I am trying to decide which one to turn into toddler attire next.  Till next time, Fran AKA The Barefoot Seamstress.

The Loss of Kathreen, Founder of Whipup, and her partner...

As many of you may have heard, Kathreen and her partner Rob, both died in a tragic accident while on the trip of a lifetime, with their 2 children and some friends in Australia, last month.

She was a big part of the crafting and creating blogging world, and founder of WhipUp.  Sadly their two much loved children have been left without their parents. Blessedly the children were with people they already knew, and not alone.

There has been a fund set up for the children by Jules, and I am posting a copy of that information here, and also a button that leads to the post.

I know I am in shock, and while I couldn't do a lot, I was able to make a small donation, which if we all donate what we can, will add up to much needed help for these beautiful children.  I am also keeping them in my prayers and thoughts, along with all of the close friends and family who must be just devastated.

This text is from the May 17th post on Whip-Up.

"UPDATE: You can now contribute via PayPal. The email address is otilijaandorlando@gmail.com. Hopefully this will remove some of the international barriers that have been encountered

For Australians :

BSB : 633-000
Account# : 149480667
Account Name : ITF Otilija and Orlando Shugg
Cheques and money orders can be sent to ITF Otilija and Orlando Shugg, PO Box 370, Dickson ACT 2602.

For International Contributions :

Account # : 633000149480667
Swift Code : BENDAU3B (International Banks will require this code)
Account Name : ITF Otilija and Orlando Shugg
Bank Details : Bendigo Bank, 161 London Circuit, Canberra ACT 2602 Australia
International people may require an address for the beneficiaries as well. That is PO Box 370, Dickson ACT 2602 Australia EDIT: Overnight I have been advised that some US banks will not accept a PO Box due to money laundering legislation. The physical address for this account is a home address so please email me procrasticraft at gmail dot com for details should you require this.

Enquiries can be directed to Julie McMahon via email to procrasticraft {at} gmail {dot} com or post to  PO Box 370, Dickson ACT 2602 Australia

*All donations, no matter how big or small are gratefully received. However, due to the cost of bank processing fees, we respectfully request that donations be more than $2 as this is the charge of processing an international transaction. Should international contributors wish to send a cheque (check), the fee for processing charged by the banks in Australia is $10.
^Regrettably, contributions are not tax deductible."

Here is the html for a button that will take you to the page itself on whip up. I don't know if I am doing this right, so I will also post the web page html below and put the button on the side of my blog.  I am kind of a newbie at inserting stuff other than pictures in my posts.

Kathreen Rickertson Memorial

This is the link to the page in bloglovin frame.

http://www.bloglovin.com/frame?post=1047119423&group=0&frame_type=a&blog=493165&link=aHR0cDovL3dpbGRvbGl2ZS5ibG9nc3BvdC5jb20vMjAxMy8wNS9vbi1sb3NzLW9mLWthdGhyZWVuLmh0bWw&frame=1&click=0&user=0

Blessings to all.  Fran

Sewing again, but missing my sewing kitty...

Pepper was my sewing cat. She was very smart, and had figured out when the light on my Viking was on she could stand on the big foot control and it would go. I learned to turn it off, even if I was just pressing, although I did let her have her fun sometimes -- with no thread. She would step on and off the foot control, over and over and over.... I always tired of it before she did. She also knew it didn't work on my featherweight -- the button you push is to small and hard to press for a cat, and she would have had to figure out just where to step.

Pepper sadly disappeared around Christmas. It is one of the dangers of taking on stay cats out in the country, sometimes you lose them. It's pretty tough to convince a stray or feral cat to become an indoor cat. She would never tolerated it, and everything breakable would have been broken. Pepper couldn't meow, so she would get our attention by taking things.if taking didn't get the proper response, she would start knocking things over;  glasses, jars of buttons, figurines, she'd knock it on the ground while staying right at me. The only expensive thing she broke was the shade to my antique bankers lamp, when she knows something off the bookshelf and onto the lamp. Fortunately I have a persistent antique dealer friend who found me an original replacement. Thank goodness for bartering, cause that shade would have cost over 200 bucks!

I just realized I hadn't seen at all since she disappeared, or blogged, so I got my featherweight out, since my roommate had worked on the bobbin case for me. There was a wee bit of corrosion on the bobbin case, which I was pretty sure was causing the driving problems I had been having. James worked a miracle, I thought I was going to have to supporting for another one. Betty Jean now sews like a dream again!

I still miss Pepper, although we still have our other three helper cats, and my daughter found a nearly starved and obviously abused kitten (we thought) about the weeks after Pepper disappeared. Precious was so tiny we thought she was a kitten, then she doubled in size within a couple of weeks. Her tail had been broken in a couple of places and has nerve damage. She can swish the last four inches of her tail, but from the base to that break she can only stiffly twitch it. Her hindquarters are also shrunken compared to the rest of her. Precious is also terrified of men, she still won't let James pet her very often, although she trusts me enough to let me pick her up, and I don't have to fear blood loss when I pet her. She also lets my daughter pet her, but she is nervous about picking her up.

Precious always sleeps near me, occasionally on me. Sometimes the other cats will pick on her, and I am her savior. They are starting to get the idea that I don't approve. I also with a water sprayer next to me, and I'm not afraid to use it! Our make cat, a big orange tabby, is the worst one about it, but even he's getting the idea. Natural selection doesn't apply to our house. The vet told me someone must have loved her once, or I would have never won her over. We also found out she is 2 or 3 years old and had already been spayed.

We think Cassidy chose her name well, since it isn't likely she would have survived much longer if Cassidy hasn't found her. She's still got some hand ups, kinda like she'll shock, she asks to be let out, but sometimes will still his and growl as I approach the for. I am the only one who she will come to when called. James will see her at the door, but she won't come in, if she's upset, unless I call her. She's also afraid of brooms. The vet said someone probably threw her by her tail, this causing the nerve damage. She's not to sociable with the other cats, especially Teddy. She is starting to tolerate the other two females, and they are starting to accept her.

Precious had no reason to trust humans, but somehow she knew Cassidy was safe, and learned to trust me. She is slowly healing from her trauma, as are some of us. She may never completely calm down, but she has come a long way. We feel her trust and love is a special, precious gift. Tonight she watched me sew a bit, so maybe she can help me to.

May your weekend be peaceful, and you have precious gifts come to you that will help you heal too. We all have a few scars.

Cool Jewelry Display

Img_0225 - Copie, originally uploaded by PaT de Verre.

I really like the jewelry displays people are coming up with on Flickr!

Ready Made Belt Earring Holder

Ready Made Belt Earring Holder, originally uploaded by Naughty Secretary Club.

What an awesome idea!!! I will be looking at belts in the thrift shops with a new eye!

Thank You For Your Comments!!

Thank you everyone who has commented on any of my posts!  I guess I was surprised anyone was even reading it! I hope I am able to contribute something to this electronic world that has given me so much. Thank you everyone!

The Process Pledge.....

This is about showing the process of your projects, not just yoir finishes.  Of course I need to get better about blogging at all. The idea is a good one.I know I would like to see how people put their quilts together.  I have a quilt I am working on now using my collection of plaid and stripe squares.  I have some pictures on my  phone. I am gojng to learn to post to blogger from my phone!  So I will post the process of my projects as soon as I figure out all of this technology out! Now I will be posting the badge for showing the process on my sidebar.  Happy quilting and sewing!

More Upcycled September Sewing

So I have been pretty busy sewing baby and toddler clothes again the past few days.  I am making matching skirt/blouse sets for the little girls of some friends from Church.  I have the skirts done so far, and am still planning the blouses.

Here's the skirts:

They started out life as the ruffle for a bed.  I still have enough left to trim both shirts and to make a skirt for Sofia and Elise. 

This skirt is a bit big for Sofia, Purple Tie-Dye and Black Lace...

I picked up the purple tie-dye sheet at a thrift store.  Not sure if it was that way originally, or if someone dyed it at home.  I still have the middle of the sheet, that I think I am going to make a circle skirt out of.

I also put together a skirt out of two cloth napkins.  I just sewed the sides up to make a tube, cut about 5 inches off the bottom, in two 2-1/2" strips, and made 1 super long tube, which I gathered on the sewing machine to make the ruffle on the bottom of the skirt.  Then I folded down 1/2" of the top and put some elastic in and we have a cute paisley skirt.  Who would ever guess it was made from 2 napkins from the thrift shop?

So....I have been learning a lot as I create this week.  It's hard to put into words what exactly I learned.  Mostly just "be careful" stuff.  Like having to take a waistband off 3 times on one skirt I made earlier this week made these skirts' waistbands go much more smoothly.  As always, never give up, and don't expect absolute perfection.  It's been awhile since I have been sewing regularly, so it's going to take me a while to remember all of the tricks.and tips. 

I am having an absolute BLAST upcycling, recycling and repurposing!  It's fun to take something which was discarded or at least seen as having no value, and turn it into something beautiful!

Happy recycling!!
Fran

Upcycled September Sewing for Toddler Girls

Twirly Skirt from vintage sheet goodness.  The waistband is 2x her waist size and each subsequent row is 1.5 x longer than the previous row...

Until it comes Full Circle to a wonderful Twirly Skirt, and what little girl doesn't love a Twirly Skirt?

Skirt with attached leggings and embellished shirt

I just finished sewing a Twirly Skirt from vintage sheet scraps, and a skirt with attached leggings and embellished top that I upcycled from a nice women's lined lace shirt I had little hope of ever fitting into, and a textured knit shirt which would never fit Cassidy again.  Both of them are for my granddaughter.  I hope she likes it as much as I do!

Scraps to Eyeglass Cases

I showed you my scraps, now I will show you something I have made with them.  Some time ago, at some thrift store, I found a big pile of 6" squares of lightweight denim.  It's probably a lifetime supply, as there are hundreds of them.  They are great to play with, practicing different techniques. Here's a photo of some of the ones I have played with:

The top left block I was just zigzagging down random scraps of fabric out of my bag.  The lower left block  I have stitched down some fancier fabric scraps and ribbons randomly The two blocks on the right are both string quilting, one square completely covered, the other square leaving half of the denim exposed.

Today I started playing with my scraps and looking at the squares I had finished, and decided they were the perfect size to become eyeglass cases, a useful item we are in need of at my house. The project also gave me the opportunity to practice some techniques I need to work on, like binding.  

So far I have made three cases, and started number four I decided the cases needed some kind of soft lining for the glasses.  The first one I used a piece of a felted sweater for the inside, and made a strap out of the bottom edge of the sweater, making it kind of curly by folding it in half and zigzagging the open end. It will be functional, even though it didn't turn out perfectly,which is kind of the point of this post. by sewing small things that I can use, I get to play around, practice, and if it's not perfect that's ok.

Here's the first one I made. I ended up with some double stitching, because I didn't catch the binding right the first time.  I also decided the felted sweater was too thick, as I had a REALLY hard time with the edges and with sewing the strap in.  It was was just too thick.  

It will work fine to hang from my roommate's bed post so she won't loose her glasses. We have three glasses wearers in this house, all with multiple pairs of glasses, so I can make a few more, each one learning from the last one.  Case two has binding that then extends to become the strap. My stitching is better, but I still had extra lines of  unwanted stitches showing.

This one took awhile, because I sewed several 2" strips of fabric together and then made a binding out of that, which also became the strap.Again, this is not perfect, but it gave me lots of practice edge stitching, using binding, and construction of an item without a pattern.

Case number three I used the hem of a sheet I had cut up, and ran it through my sewing machine with a zigzag stitch to cover the raw edge.  I attached the strap after constructing the case, which again left me with some stitching I didn't want to see.  

Now I will be moving on to case number four, which I haven't finished.  I think I will solve my problem of not so pretty stitches showing by attaching the strap first, then sewing on the binding which will cover where I attached the strap, then sewing it up.  I'll let you know how it turns out.

I am not one to want to dive into putting the binding on a quilt before I practice, yet I don't want to practice on things that won't be used.  I also like to use my scraps up.  Now I have 2 eyeglass cases for my roommate and one for me finished.  I'll finish number four next time, it's getting a little late tonight.  I had fun making string quilted squares, and turning them into eyeglass holders.

Oh, I forgot to tell you, on the other 2 cases, I fused a smaller piece of fleece to the back of the square, so it wouldn't be in the seam.  It works much better, less bulk but still soft. I like the long straps because I can wear it around my neck, or hang it from a bedpost or hook. I need all the help I can get to not lose things!

Practice while making something you need.  I also need potholders.....

Here's my current sewing area:

It's kinda cramped together until we finish the floor in the front room.  Then I will have a bigger area.  I'll have to post a bigger photo that shows the sewing cabinet.  I found it at that Goodwill outlet place I told you about for 4.99.  I can't lower my machine to be hidden in the cabinet,  I can't put a bolt into the bottom of my viking. It was probably made for something like a Singer Touch and Sew. But I have a nice table it sits down into, a large cabinet, about 5 feet wide, with lots of storage.  I can even keep my serger in the cabinet.

SCRAPS!

Saving Them...Using Them

I know my family thinks I am nuts. Sometimes they even call me a hoarder, because I save ALL of my fabric scraps. I have always collected fabric and I have always saved most scraps, but now I save ALL of them.  I have a big pillowcase I put the scraps that I either haven't dealt with, or are the ones most people would throw away.

You can also see the little garbage can I keep next to me when I am sewing, to throw the scraps in while i am sewing. Later it will be dumped in the bag, even the thread scraps. Bigger scraps go into a milk crate, until I either cut them into strips or squares.  The small scraps, selvages, sheet hems, etc... all get put into the bag.  Even if they are never used in a sewing project, they could become the filling for a floor pillow, which does not have to be as soft.  My thought is to wrap the blob of scraps with something softer like batting or even an old comforter, then make a cool pillow cover out of all of the usable you have and you have a wonderful floor pillow. .  

Shhhh...It's a Secret -- Where I Get My Best Deals

So this is a big secret...really.  Where I get my BEST deals.  ALWAYS.  Thrift stores are great, but did you know there are OUTLET Thrift Stores?  Well, at least the Goodwill has one, actually two in my area.  They sell stuff by the pound mostly, and some stuff by the piece.  Cheap.  

It's no secret I LOVE vintage sheets.  I have a hard time finding them at my regular thrift shops.  Then I found there is a Goodwill Outlet store closer than Seattle, there's one in Everett!  1.09 per pound over 50 pounds, 1.49 per pound under 50 pounds for clothes and linens.  That makes a nice vintage sheet like a buck!  Compared to 6 - 10 bucks at the regular thrift shop. Cool.  WAY Cool.

I got a bunch of, like DOZENS of vintage patterns that came to like 9 pounds.  Cool.  Everything is in bins, HUGE bins.  Be prepared to dig, because you will find treasures.  Vintage lace and crocheted doilies, hand sewn quilt blocks, huge body pillows (pillows are all 99 cents) a couple of goose down comforters (all blankets are 1.99 each). TONS of fabric  That's some of what I got yesterday.  Oh, and of course vintage sheets.  LOTS of vintage sheets, plus a complete set of plaid flannel sheets for my nephew.  FILLED my van for less than $100.  Did I mention the 2.99 microwave and the 4.99 chair?

Go see if you have a Goodwill Outlet in your area. 

Blogging, pharmacies, and I still sew barefoot

I haven't been good at updating my blog in the past, or even doing anything interesting with it.  I have so many ideas and projects running around in my brain it is hard to focus on any one of them.  I want to have a cool blog.  I want to contribute to the blogosphere in positive way.  I want to connect with other people who think like me.  Now that I know I am not alone, I am not a hoarder, or a nut because I am obsessed with upcycling.  I have been doing it since before there was a name for it.  I just liked taking what someone would consider trash, and making it into something beautiful, or maybe useful, or both. I still do.

In my other life I am a pharmacy technician.  Kinda funny, because there is NOTHING creative about pharmacy.  It is all cut and dry, black and white, no grey areas. Routine.  So very opposite of the ceativity I want to express, and have wanted to express.  It pays the bills.  I got a raise when I changed jobs.  I had worked for one company for many years, mostly as a floater, which I enjoyed because it afforded me some flexibility, since I also have another life as a caregiver for my best friend who lives with me.  Then things started to change.the flexibility went away, wages were frozen, no more mileage.  Slowly leaving started to creep into my mind.  A hard thought after 28 years, most of my adult life.  But I was no longer happy, and I felt I was no longer appreciated by them.  So I left, and went to work for a temp agency, which I LOVE!!  I have gotten nothing but compliments, a raise, mileage, and much better working conditions.

I am so much happier, I am glad I left, I needed to. I needed to let go of the past and move forward to my much happier and more creative future.  I hope to share my journey to creative living here.  Hopefully we can have fun on the way.

Oh, and did I mention, I sew barefoot...                                                                                                        

Social Networking and Blogging

I am trying to figure out this world of blogging and social networking.  Everyone is online, sometimes it seems like the online world is the real world, and the real world is a dream. How many people have more friends online than they do in person?  We are finding out that we are not anonymous behind our keyboards, information is always being collected so someone can market something to us.

Blogs......it seems like they have been here forever, and yet it has only been a few short years since they were created, since they went viral. Viral, that's another word that has been given a new meaning by the internet. So much information...anything we want know we can find, but we have to be careful to filter the information, sort the garbage from the gold.

Time...how much time have I spent just hopping from blog to blog, Starting with something that interests me, finding another blog linked to the first one, then on to the next one, until I fall alseep....information overload.

Oh, did I mention I sew barefoot?

Sewing Again... Sophia's Sunsuit

Sophia's Sunsuiet, originally uploaded by franstuff.

This is the first garment I have sewn in at least 10 years. I made this sunsuit for my roommate's great-granddaughter, Sophia, who will be 2 this summer. I targeted it for her birthday, July 2012, giving me plenty of time to get it done. Yay! It's done and it turned GREAT!

I am so happy to be sewing again. I don't know why it took me so many years to get my sewing machine fired up again, but here I am. It's like the years of pent up not sewing are bursting out!

Romance in blue

Romance in blue, originally uploaded by ZiZou ArT.

I jsut love this stuff!!