Black Friday!

Last night I participated in my very first 'official' Black Friday shopping trip. I only decided to go because Walmart was starting their sale at 10pm, rather than o'dark-hundred. I knew it was going to be crazy, but MAN! I got there at 9 and several things were already gone, which I thought was weird since the sale actually hadn't started yet... apparently some crazy lady started a mob scene when she yelled "they can't stop us!" and started ripping into pallets. People are so weird. 


I did manage to get almost everything I was hoping to snag, including a steam mop (which I've already used and am in love with), a storage ottoman, some picture frames and various other small items. I even managed to avoid the insane checkout lines! I was done shopping and just sort of milling around avoiding the crowds, and was in the right place at the right time when they sent someone over to open up a register in the lawn and garden section. I was the first person to check out there! Talk about lucking out!! I braved the Black Friday craziness, got my shopping handled, and was home by midnight.

Goodie Bag Swap - in the mail!

I dropped my Goodie Bag Swap off at the post office this morning! Because of the holiday, I'm thinking she won't receive it until maybe next Monday. I really hope my partner likes it:

Are you diggin' my zipper flower!? I watched several tutorials on youtube, and then kind of did my own variation. It turned out really cute!  


In holiday bazaar news, here are some things I cranked out this morning:

I blanket stitched around the letters, because the Heat n' Bond I had on hand was just the feather lite, so it didn't adhere very well. I like the way it looks though. I've got fabric triangles cut out and ready to sew in 5 more fabrics, and some minis too!

I also made my first crayon roll today. I want to have some smaller (less expensive) stocking stuffer items for the bazaar. 

This was really easy to assemble, but stitching the dividing lines every inch took a bit of time. Now to make a few more. Luckily, I got several sets of crayons for free from a friend, so that's one less thing I have to worry about!

 

kaleidoscope quilt top finally complete!!

It hasn't been that long, right? I mean the Kaleidoscope Quilt Along with Don't Call Me Betsy only started, what, last May?!? 

I went all gung-ho on quilt alongs several months ago and this was one that I joined. I've had 3/4 of the quilt top complete for quite a while, but I ran out of my background fabric (Kona Ash) and had a hard time finding the little more I needed to complete the project. Anyway, its put together now :) Wanna see it??

Here it is!

I'm really happy with how its turned out, but I've got to say, this was a b*tch to put make!!! I don't know why, but I had the worst time trying to match points, and square up the blocks. It was the biggest pain in the ass! I'm glad its done now, though, and at least I can say I've tried this pattern.

In other news, I've been obsessing over this Holiday Bazaar I'll be vending at in two weeks. I've got so many ideas and things I want to have made in time, but I'm sure I won't be able to get to all of it. A friend of mine will be doing the show with me, and since the booths were free, we decided to reserve a double-booth. We'll have a 12'x24' space to fill with our wares. 

I'm very visual/spatial, so yesterday I decided to make a to-scale layout of our booth:

Totally nerdy, right? I love this kind of thing - planning and organizing spaces. (I think this is also why I don't seem to be able to clean and vacuum a room without also rearranging the furniture.) This way, when we get to the show to set up, we won't have to spend time hemming and hawing over where to put what.

I've got a couple of things started, and lots more to do. Luckily, my man will be on vacation the entire week after Thanksgiving, so I should get plenty of sewing time. 

This will be a tree skirt:

Its already quilted, but there are some appliques I'd like to add. I bought a small remnant of Grinch flannel that I want to incorporate into this. In my head it looks really cute, so we'll see if I can execute my vision :)



This will be a pillow:

If any of you remember my last spiderweb quilt, you know how wonky those blocks turned out as well. I paper pieced these blocks and they turned out much nicer.



This will be a banner/bunting with a holiday word/phrase:

I used my kaleidoruler to cut out the triangles and I think it worked very well. I think I'll want to make several banners with various sayings, such as "Let It Snow", or "Ho Ho Ho". 



Well, I'm falling asleep writing this, so I better get some shuteye. Nighty night, folks! Back soon! 

just a little longer........

I know I've been MIA lately, but I promise there'll be fun pics soon! I'm working hard to prep for a Holiday Bazaar that I'll be vending at in a few weeks. If any of you are local, you should plan to stop by the De Soto City Hall on December 3rd!

Tulle Wreath Tutorial

Hi there :) Per reader request, I've put together a short tutorial on the fall wreath I showed in my last post:

This one was my first attempt at recreating one I saw on Pinterest. It would have been a lot fuller, had I not run out of fall colored tulle. However, the one I've made for this tutorial is a lot more dense, and closer to the original inspiration photo.

Materials:
     -Wreath form in your desired size (I chose raffia because it was cheapest)
     -Tulle (spools or yardage in your choice of colors)
     -Wide floral ribbon or scrap fabric that matches your color theme
     -Decorative ribbons and trims
     -1 washer or D-ring
     -Scissors
     -Ruler/yardstick
Optional:
     -Silk flowers or any small decoration you might want to add to your wreath
     -Hot glue gun


Prep your wreath by wrapping it with your floral ribbon or scrap fabric. This will give you a good base color that matches your desired end result. ((I forgot to do this step both times, and you can see the raffia through the tulle.))


Start but cutting your tulle into about a million strips of equal length. I cut mine approximately 14" long.

Once you've got a bunch of tulle strips cut, you can begin tying them around your wreath:

See my naked wreath? I definitely should have covered it prior to starting with the tulle strips.
The goal is to tie each tulle strip so that the tails are equal in length. Now, repeat the tying process about a million more times :) When your wreath is full, it should look like this:

I used a 10" wreath form, and 100 yards of 3" wide tulle to achieve this degree of fullness.
Now its time to add your accent ribbons and trims. Start by deciding where the top of your wreath is going to be. Tie your first accent ribbon at this point, and thread your washer or D-ring around it:

Finish adding your ribbons wherever you like, and your wreath is ready to hang!

In my head, I was envisioning like a Seuss-ian Christmasy thing. I pictured pink/red/green wonky ornaments... That's obviously not how it turned out, lol :) But I think this will be cute for the Spring. I'll probably add some zipper flowers and buttons to it... Who knows.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the tutorial. If you have any questions, feel free to ask and I'll do my best to help you out! If any of you make a tulle wreath, I'd love to see it!!