Quiet Book Cover & Bubble Gum Machine

I finally got around to making the cover for Sage's quiet book.  I think it took me so long because I wasn't sure what I wanted it to be.  There are so many colors going on in the book that I didn't want the cover to compete with that.  I finally decided to go with something that was special for me which was an old pair of jeans.  The jeans I used were actually my dad's in the 70's.  I then wore them all through high school and college.  I would still wear them for their vintage awesomeness but I'm not into showing my undies.  SO - what better way to give them new life.

I used this tutorial for the cover but had to modify it a little bit.  The long piece needed to be 30" and well, my family is short and these pants were a 28" inseam.  So - I actually had to piece some material together in order to make it work.  Since I was dealing with some old and oddly shaped material, it's not perfect but I still love it.  And let me save you time - order your 3" rings on Amazon.  They are hard to find in stores.

 This is the front.  I actually meant for the pockets to be on the front but I used a fabric on the inside with trees on it.  I didn't pay attention when constructing it and if the pockets are on the front then the trees would be upside down.  Whoops :).  Also, I'm not loving the purple/pink buckle so I might make a fabric one out of the same tree material and get a green buckle.  This works for now though.

The pockets are still functional so I am planning on making a little doll or something attached by a string that she can keep in the pocket.  There are some quiet book pages that use dolls so maybe if the string is long enough then the doll could function for all of those pages??

I plan on adding a little patch on the inside cover with an embroidered note for Sage.  This tree material is leftover from my favorite dress that I made for Dakota.  I can't wait until Sage can wear it one day.

And while I'm sharing - I have a new page.  Sage loves this page and as soon as I gave it to her she said, "I match?"  She knew exactly what to do with it and it's helping us work on colors - "pupple" is her easiest to identify.

I found this idea on here but I'm pretty sure that is not the original source.  I've tried finding it but turned up empty - my apologies for not giving credit where it's due.  Since I didn't have a pattern for this page I searched for a clip art that would give me the shape I needed.  Here's the one I used.  It took me a few printings to get it the size I needed.  The buttons were purchased at Wal-mart.

The next page I am going to make for her is a piggy bank page.  She's really into her real piggy bank right now and is always dumping the money out so she can put it back in.  I also still have 2 unfinished pages that I mentioned in my last post.  

Socks & Ladybugs

Two more pages down for Sage's quiet book that I am working on.  I am finding that Corban is especially interested in this project so I might make a few pages for him.  The great thing about using a grommet system is that the book can change and adapt with the child.  I still haven't made the cover that will hold the pages but I'm thinking I might need more than one so there isn't any fighting.  There are some patterns that have games like tic-tac-toe and even ones that teach fractions and other math skills that might be appropriate for Corban or Dakota.

I finished the Sock Matching Page that I was working on last post.  We've already lost a sock but thankfully found it with a little couch cushion searching.  Something tells me they are not going to survive too long, which only seems appropriate since you can never find all of your socks after a load of laundry.  I accidentally put the grommets on the wrong sides of the pages but I don't think it matters (the dryer should have been on the left).

The next page was super quick and easy.  I adapted it from this Counting Page but I couldn't find the same beads at my Joanns.  Ok, now that I reread her post she said they were in the kid crafting area.  Whoops, never looked there.  They probably would have worked better than these buttons because mine sort of flip around.  Oh well.  Since I bought ladybugs and flowers I tried to make the numbers look like sticks and then added some leaves and ants to the party.

  

That's all I've got for today.  I'm currently working on a page for her to learn to spell her name and then I might do a camera page with family photos that she can pull in and out.

Sidenote - I decided to use a hybrid of cotton and felt for my pages.  I wanted to use cotton for all of my backgrounds because there are so many fun choices out there.  If you want to do this for your pages then you need to iron on a stabilizer first or the cotton will have difficulty holding up the embroidery and felt.  Also, the back of my pages are cotton to coordinate with the front.  They also have a fusible stabilizer on them.  

Shhhh....Be Quiet

I probably could have come up with a more clever title for this post but it's Sunday and my brain is taking the day off.  I've been so excited about my recent project that I wanted to share it.  I stumbled across a pin a while back of a "quiet book" and quickly fell in love with the concept.  Basically a quiet book is a fabric book that has interactive pages for a baby/toddler to play with when you want to keep them occupied.  Airplanes.  Cars.  Restaurants.  Church.  I decided I wanted to take a stab at making one for Sage for her 2nd birthday.  Knowing it would take a while I got a head start instead of waiting until the last minute like usual.  The blog I have found to have the best tutorials and patterns (they're free!) does a lot of hand stitching with felt.  When I first started looking at her patterns I decided I would adapt them so I could use my machine...but then I got nostalgic.  I remember the sweet days of my mom sitting on our couch cross stitching by hand with her DMC embroidery floss and decided I wanted to be just like her.  So I pulled out her old floss that I've been saving:

I remember mom coming home from Piece Goods with her stash and putting them in these little envelopes and preparing for a new project.  I'm not going to lie, when I pulled out the first color my breath caught a little.  They are all in pristine condition like they have been waiting 18 years for just the right project.  Something about using mom's old thread to stitch a project for my baby girl just makes me smile.  I think she would be proud.  Sorry, I didn't really mean to get all sappy on this post but had to open my heart a little.

The first page I decided to do was a Forest Page.  It requires very simple motor skills for a child - basically pulling the owl out of his hole and lifting the leaves to find a baby bird in a nest.  It went so fast and I LOVED the hand stitching.  I am a little OCD and I appreciate the unwritten rule that hand stitching isn't supposed to be perfect.  When I use my machine I get very a little frustrated when it doesn't look just like I want.

My second page(s) was a Cookie Page.  This set will be a little more difficult for Sage but hopefully it will teach her to match colors and shapes and eventually do buttons.  Actually, I've been letting Corban practice with it because he still has a little trouble with his shirts.

The one I am currently working on is a Sock Page.  It will teach matching of patterns.

That's all I've got for you today but I'll try to keep you up to date on this project.  I will make a cover that the pages can fit in and we will be able to add or remove from the book as needed.  There are so many patterns that I want to try and I hope to design a few of my own.  Well, I'm going to pick up my needle and thread and enjoy the rest of this lazy Sunday...

Girls' Weekend: Sewing in the Mountains

Ahhhh....That's the sound of me relaxing.  Thursday, September 30 thru Sunday, October 3 allowed for a very fun, relaxing weekend.  Obviously I love to sew or I wouldn't have a small sewing business but a normal project for me consists of a million interruptions and distractions.  A fifteen minute sewing project often turns into a several hour project due to diaper changes, snotty noses, playing pretend and reading books.  That's ok though, those kiddos come first and I love them dearly.  BUT...sometimes a girl just needs to get away and enjoy her favorite hobby without any worry other than if her bobbin has enough thread on it.  In comes Quilt Weekend 5 (I've only actually participated in one other but I believe this was the 5th year).  My best pal, Ryan who trudged through architecture school with me, got me interested in quilting several years ago.  Though I've only made a few quilts and haven't worked on any in years, it is something I hope to get back into one day.  The weekend was spent in a cabin in Maggie Valley, owned by a cousin of Linda.  We went to a quilt show, shopped at a quilt store, ate some good food, did a lot of sewing and little sleeping.  The projects completed between the 8 of us ranged from a crib skirt to hooded towels to pillow covers to dresses to monogramming to actual quilts.  I really had a great time and am already looking forward to next year...and I think the beautiful Christmas quilts have inspired me to take a stab at quilting again.  Thanks Sally for watching the kiddos while Jacob was in Paris and I was in the mountains!!

 I love how this chandelier is hanging by a pulley.

 After finishing the binding on an old quilt she started with her mom 20+ years ago, Martha switched needles and hopped on the knitting train.

 Ryan finally finished piecing this quilt together that she started 5 years ago as part of a quilt club.

 Ryan fell asleep on the couch and Nichole needed space to lay out her pillow cases so she took advantage of what she could find.  In Ryan's defense, she is very much pregnant in this picture (as in due in a week and a half of when I am posting this) so she is allowed to fall asleep while taking breaks.  However, the only other time I participated in Quilt Weekend, she did the same thing so I'm not sure we can blame it on the pregnancy :).

 L to R.  Ryan, Linda, Sue (Ry's mom), Me, Martha, Ry's Grammy, Nichole (Ry's Sis), Rachel

 Aren't these Christmas Tree quilts that Sue and Linda made gorgeous??

 We stopped at an apple barn on the way home to get some cider and fresh veggies.

I grabbed an acorn squash and butternut squash to try out some new recipes:  Apple Stuffed Acorn Squash and Butternut Squash Soup.  mmmm

Sewing: Table Runner?

I finally got around to sewing a treat for myself and our new (if we've been here 6 months is it still new??) home.  I want to write a whole post about our house even if it is a little late.  Some of you may not know the whole story of why we ended up moving where we did, why we didn't build and why we sold our other property.  I want to make sure I document it though because it's a beautiful story of God's providence and protection and love for our little family.  I'll put it on my to-do list for next week.  How's that?? 

Anyway, Jacob and I love antiques, we love hand-me-downs, we love refurbishing junk and we love hand-crafted pieces (especially James Cartner originals!).  Since this house is one we plan on being in as long as God has us in Memphis we are trying to consciously fill it with furniture we really adore, furniture that means something to us or furniture that has a story.

The first piece I am sharing with you is my mom's old sewing machine table that is now serving as my bedside table.  This table is special because a) it belong to my mother and I want to hold on to her as long as possible and b) it housed the sewing machine (a 1970's Singer) that I learned on about 6 years ago.  When it needed a good (and costly) servicing I decided to upgrade since I knew this was a hobby I would stick with.  Jacob and I refinished the wood when we moved to Memphis and I love the honey color and the simplicity of the form and hardware.

Ok, so I started rambling about the furniture but really this post was to show you my little project that I made for the table.  I have a slight obsession with fabric so when I find something I love, I like to buy a small amount and figure something out to do with it.  Most of my "me" fabric is still waiting to be used since I usually don't have time to make myself anything (wah,wah,wah).  I finally set some other projects aside and treated myself to a little thingy (pretty sure that's an official term) for under my lamp.  Critterbug and Cricket is available to make small, custom, home decor items for you too.  Always looking to expand my repertoire!