Studio Activity...

Ahh...the studio...one of my favorite rooms in my home.  Mr. C designed and built this room just for me.  It was once a part of the unfinished back part of the home.  It technically is not a basement as it is on the ground floor of our home.  It was all concrete and unfinished studs and not very pleasant.  He transformed it into a beautiful place to spend time.  This photo is of the biannual refinishing of the french door.  Our weather is harsh here in the mountains and due to the snow, rain, sun and just general aging these doors need refinishing every other year.  We have six exterior french doors and they are a ton of work with mega sanding to be done, priming and hand painting around each and every glass pane.  Mr. C is really good at this however this is definitely NOT his favorite thing to do.  He uses very expensive marine primer and paint to help it last better.  It is all oil based and requires massive clean up.  Thank you so very much Mr. C for keeping our home and this lovely studio so nicely.

Hmmm...what is this photo you ask?  In my waste bin I spotted some wadded up clumps and did not recognize them.  I normally have lots of paper and fabric scraps and even more packaging scraps in the container.  Hmmm???  Cloth?  Painted cloth!  Stained cloth!  Mr. C had thrown his used fabric pieces from the painting of the door and I found them.  Hooray!  Now to figure out the perfect use for them.  The cloth is really quite interesting as it must have been one of the damask sheets I cut up for him long ago for rags in his workshop.  No odor...very good.  Not rough...very good.  Oh to set these aside so as not to let him know I have retrieved them for crafting.  *_*  There are just some things I do that he will never understand. 

I did manage to get this little cover made from wool felt.  I do the three month tracker for my Weight Watchers lifestyle plan and this cover fits the tracker nicely.  Actually our meeting has a Traveling Journal that goes home with someone different each week and this cover is for that tracker.  I made one before and it lasted at least three or more months until it got a little sadly worn looking.  This cover is dark purple and has the heart pocket with a beautiful purple butterfly sticker.  I was thinking of inspiration for those choosing a WW lifestyle plan and a fresh beginning as butterflies represent.
What are you doing this lovely first weekend of Autumn?  Our weather is much cooler and the leaves are falling fast.  There is definitely change in the air.  Autumn is the essence of change. 
Blissful inspiration to each and every one...  

Creative Case...

I love to present a present (one of the funny things about our English language) in a clever creative case. Here I used wool felt for the case. It is soft and protective and very friendly to sew with as no hemming is necessary. Embellished with lace around the top and sides. Now for the closure of this case. I used decorative small safety pins which I adorned with beads. Inside resides a pretty choker I handmade. This was wrapped with tissue and mailed in a padded envelope all the way across the country to it's new home. Thank you buyer for purchasing from my etsy shop. I hope you enjoyed the extra gift of this jewelry case. This type of packaging works for so many items. Then you also have a protective case for keeping your jewelry safe from scratches and tangles. A drawer full of these pretties and you will always smile when selecting what item to wear. How about a basket of these on the shelf? Or a tray of these on the counter. Just think of all the fun and pretty possibilities. What are your ideas? I am working on another case and will show it soon. Happy weekend to each of you...

Valentine Tote Bags...

My idea completed. A group photo. The feel of these is soft and wonderful.

Right after New Years I went to our local fabric store to buy some wool felt. You do see it on the bottom of this beautiful stack. The gorgeous wools are for future use. And the laces...well a girl just has to have lace in her stash. So back to the wool felt. I purchased three colors, burgundy, pink and white. Here is what I made.

The perfect lightweight durable small tote for errand shopping or snack carrying or anything you like. I think they would make super cute Valentine gifts...empty or filled.

Here is the pink tote. Did you see the hearts stitched onto each handle? I love my sewing machine. Together we can keep the thread industry in business for quite some time to come.

Hand cutting all the red felt hearts and the red organdy hearts that are sewn on with the buttons was tedius but what else would I be doing?! Of course I did list these in my etsy shop. We will see if anyone needs to own these cute handy totes.

It felt so good to spend time in the studio and the sewing room making these.
What are you making, creating, painting, journaling, etcetera?

Happy weekend to everyone...