100% NOT sewing related!

(image from here)

'nuff said!

Wash Mitt Ball-Creature!

These funky wash mitts are back at the dollar store!  Run -- do not walk -- and stock up before they are gone!  These things are made of the weirdest, most fun material to create stuff out of!

Anyway.

Today I will show you how I made a quick, easy, FUN ball out of one of these mitts.

Here's what you need:

~ one mitt

~ handful of stuffing

~ needle and thread

~ googly eyes (optional)

STEP ONE:  Cut your mitt open as shown.  You want to expose the seams without destroying that crazy fabric.

STEP TWO:  Using a seam ripper or fine-pointed scissors, cut the stitching to isolate the good part.

STEP THREE:  Fold your fabric in half and mark the center.

STEP FOUR:  Carefully part the "hair" and cut.  You are creating two long pieces.  Be careful not to snip any of the "hairs" -- it could cause a chain reaction to unravel an entire row of them!

You are going to sew your two pieces together in a T, as shown.

STEP FIVE:  Mark the centers of each side of the T, and lay them right sides together.  Be sure all the "hairs" are poked into the seam.  Sew.

STEP SIX:  Attach the other side the same way, as shown.

STEP SEVEN:  Carefully pin one end together as shown, again poking those little "hairs" inside the seam, and sew.

STEP EIGHT:  Turn it right side out!

STEP NINE:  Stuff with a handful of polyester stuffing and sew the opening shut with a needle and thread.

Now you have a funky ball to toss around...

...or, add googly eyes and turn him into a little friend to keep you company at the office!  It is very addicting to style his "hair" and give him different expressions!

I call him BeardFace!

Note:  I don't know how well this material holds up, so be careful about giving these to small children -- and certainly not with googly eyes!  :o)

Seven Red Things

I was tagged by Angela Pea!

Two rules:

* Post photos of 7 red things in your home.

* Tag 7 people to do the same.

Me, in vintage Fisher Price Little People form.

A framed vintage magazine ad on my kitchen wall.

I love that they advertise their beans as "digestible!"

My shagtastic vintage 60's red carpet.  Our house is only a few years old, but we have two rooms in the basement with fabulous 60's carpet in them.  The other carpet is my favorite of the two, but it's not red.  (Where it came from is a very long story -- too long for here!) 

My red (and pink) scrap bin.  It's much less full since I've been working on my epic I-Spy project -- but obviously still bulging!

Teeny-tiny hot cocoa.  This is endlessly special to my son!

My red paring knife!  It was a Valentine's gift from my husband a couple years ago.  It's a very nice knife -- and my favorite, of course!

And, by request from Angela Pea, seven little red I-Spies -- soon to be sewn into my quilt!

I tag: 
Bethany, Heidi, Jen, Wendy, Cammie, Shannan, and Michelle!

How I Fussy Cut

I've had a couple questions about the best way to "fussy cut" I-Spy squares.  This is how I do it!

First I cut a "window" out of a piece of cardstock.  I cut it slightly larger than I want each cut square to end up -- my cut size will be 4" x 4", so I cut my window 4 1/4" x 4 1/4".  (I used my rotary cutter and ruler to cut my cardstock, which is a no-no because it could dull the blade!  Shhh!)

I place my window over each motif I want to cut out and trace the window with a permanent marker.  I then roughly cut around each square with scissors and use my rotary cutter and ruler to cut it down to 4" x 4", thereby eliminating all evidence that I used that permanent marker.  It adds a few steps, but it is worth it to get those little guys centered!

Other I-Spy Swaps

If you missed out on my I-Spy swap sign-up, two of my readers emailed me to let me know they are doing I-Spy swaps of their own!


My bloggy friend Wendy took part in my first I-Spy swap.  She is an amazing and creative quilter.  (My favorite continues to be this quilt!)  She is in Australia, but would love to have international swappers as well.  You can find her swap sign-ups here.

Joanna, who has a fairly new blog, also emailed to say she is doing a swap.  Hers is for U.S. swappers only, and you can find sign-ups and details here.

YAY for spreading the obsession!!!


And of course, if you miss out on these two swaps as well, I am so obsessed that I will be doing more swaps later on this year!

I-Spy Fabric Swap 2.0

It's that time again!!

The last swap was so much fun, and I'm still completely obsessed with I-Spy, so... To help stay sane during the "lovely" month of January, my sister-in-law Susan and I are heading up another I-Spy Fabric Swap!

THE BASICS:

Mail 200 squares to me by February 3rd.

Get 200 squares back, all different, by Valentine's Day.

THE DETAILS:

1.  In order to keep our sanity, we are keeping this swap small-ish.  The first 18 people to comment are in.  [If you live outside the U.S., no problem -- but please mail your fabrics a little earlier so there's plenty of time to meet our deadline!]

2.  Cut 20 4" squares out of each of 10 different novelty print fabrics.  A 1/4-yard cut or fat quarter will get you 20 4" squares, so you will be purchasing a total of about 2 1/2 yards of fabric.  This is NOTHING when you think about all the different squares you will be getting back!

3.  In order to avoid duplicates, everyone will need to search out unusual or obscure prints.  Look for things that aren't available at chain stores.  But, please, pick FUN ones!  If you love it, the other swappers will love it too!

4.  Remember that we are looking for fabric with objects on it, not printy-prints.  (A fabric with FLOWERS on it is very different from a FLORAL PRINT.)

5.  No "licensed" prints: No Disney, Dora, L.A. Lakers, etc.

6.  Remember seam allowances!  Be sure you can tell what you are looking at within a 3 1/2" x 3 1/2" square. Nobody wants only half of an object in their square -- cut them well!  (Depending on your fabric choice, you may need to buy more than 1/4 yard in order to get an object into each cut square.)

If you want to join me in this obsession, leave a comment here that includes your email address!!

FIRST 18 commenters are IN!

Makeup Bag from Handbag

I've been in serious need of a new makeup bag for a long time.  Today I finally decided it just could not wait any longer and headed to the dollar store.  (That's where I got my previous bag, and I've been using it for 5+ years!)  I looked at all my options and just wasn't satisfied with any of them -- until I spotted this little handbag!

It was a great size, lined, and with a flat bottom it could stand on, but -- no zipper.  And pesky handles.  I looked at it a little closer and decided it wouldn't be too hard to ditch the handles and add a zipper.  I'll show you how I did it!  Anyone can do this!

WHAT YOU NEED:

~ handbag

~ zipper

STEP ONE:  Remove the handles.  This is very easy, since most things you buy at the dollar store have super long stitches holding them together.  For this particular handbag it was a matter of cutting a single stitch with a seam ripper or fine pointed scissors, and the handles popped right out.  (I'm saving my handles for a potential future project!)

STEP TWO:  Lay your zipper right side up along the top of the inner edge of your bag, about 1/8" from the edge.  You will simply sew along the edge of the zipper the whole length down.

When you get near the end of this side of the zipper, you may need to pull the bag as shown to accomodate your stitches.

STEP THREE:  Turn your bag around and sew the other side of the zipper.  Start with the zipper zipped about halfway.  Sew a few inches.

You will then stop with the needle down, raise your presser foot, and unzip the zipper so you can get past the zipper head without making wonky stitches.  Continue sewing to the end of the zipper.

You're done!

Fill it with your cosmetics, and zip it up!

Can I just say I LOVE that it stands on its own?? My last makeup bag didn't, and I hadn't even realized how inconvenient it was until now!