PBK Style

Let me start out by saying I love Pottery Barn style and quality. Those prices, though. uh uh. But their catalogs are are free and sooooo pretty. Lots of inspiration in those pages.

Several months ago I was flipping through a PBK catalog and totally fell in love with this desk, but seriously hated the price (sure, *now* it's on sale! lol). But I'm thrifty and crafty. Figured there had to be a DIY way.

Probably the next day, kid you not, I was in a thrift store and found this:



It's a little shabby, someone half-heartedly painted it white, but has some pretty bones. Plus it's a true roll top desk. For a kid. Best part? It was only $10! Of course I took it home. Where it sat on the porch for about two months. (Where's the shame faced smiley?)

Then the weather started to change. There's snow in the forecast. Snow. It's hard to paint furniture in the snow. Yesterday, however, was windy and sunny. I got out my spray paint and the drawer pulls I got at Target a couple weeks ago.

Now my shabby, thrift store find has become a gorgeous, PBK-inspired piece of furniture:





Now it happily resides in my tyke's bedroom. I'm ridiculously happy with how this one has turned out.



Cost comparison:

PBK - $249 (okay, it's $149 on sale, but still), plus delivery

Mine - $10 desk, $12 spray paint, $8 drawer pulls, elbow grease


Bonus: the book rack above the desk is also inspired by PBK. They wanted about $99 for theirs, mine was $1 at an auction, plus some spray paint.

What do you think?

k

These feet were made for Walking (and Darning)

If you have purchased a new machine, it probably came with at least a couple of alternate feet. You probably thought: "There's no way I'll use all these feet. What are they for, anyway?" Believe it or not, there are actually dozens of types you can get, whether brand specific or generic. Some of them are pretty pricey, too. Be sure you can justify the cost by using them often and well.

My most used sewing machine feet are the walking and darning feet. They make my sewing life so much easier, and more interesting.

Walking foot (generic):


The walking foot has long been a favorite of quilters. The white plastic feet on this foot help to keep multiple layers from slipping apart. It also is a joy when you're trying to match plaids or stripes.

To be honest, this is my most used foot. It has taken the place of my "A" (basic) foot, simply because it is such a helpful tool. Those pesky 1/4" seams are so much easier, and it's a must-have for quilting "in the ditch" (along seam lines).


Darning foot (Janome, open toe):


Lately though, I've been having a little fling with my darning foot. Also called an embroidery foot, this baby lets me go to town and do some free motion quilting (FMQ); all I have to do is drop the feed dogs, set this foot on the shank and off I go!

It's not just for quilting though. I have also been using it to do some free motion lettering. Embroidery, if you will. It produces a sketchy, jittery looking stitch, which must be repeated in order to get a thicker looking letter.

My first experience with free motion lettering was a lot of fun:



I did use stabilizer inside the bag, so there were two layers. Then I fused some interfacing inside the bag, to cover the stitches (it's not a lined bag) and keep them from coming loose or getting caught on anything in the bag.

The pink pirate fabric is attached the same way, essentially. I call it a "chaos" stitch, just some random back-and-forthing along the edges. No heat-n-bond or anything, either, just the stitches.

Each letter has about five up-down/back-forth sets. They're not meant to be terribly neat-and-tidy, they're meant to evoke a loose scrawl. Takes a bit of practice, and patience. I'm looking forward to using it in some near-future projects.

k

Time keeps on slipping, slipping, slipping....

into the future!

It's been a crazy, hectic and nerve-wracking summer. Still is, actually. Haven't done much sewing or crafting at all. Been a bit depressed, which keeps me introverted, which means I don't do much posting/chatting/interacting with people. *sigh*

Let's recap, shall we?

*Cooper was born early, went home relatively quickly, but is once again hospitalized. Initially with whooping cough (I seriously did not realize how awful this can be in an infant. Scary.), and continuing with a secondary infection. He's at Children's Hospital in Omaha, with loads of specialists and all, but it's rather far away, especially when you know his mama (my dd, Jessica) and family would rather be holding him at home.

*John was offered a job with Google, in Mountain View, California. There was a *lot* of discussion between us about whether or not to accept it. Ultimately, we decided not to go. Now of course we're dealing with the thoughts of "what if" and a bit of regret.

*My laptop bit the dust. Okay, not completely, just couldn't log on to the web. But what other use do I have for it?! lol There was about a week it was not usable. John saved what he could, then wiped the hard drive. It then took a few days to get everything re-loaded, re-installed.

*Last week I tripped and fell. (Feel free to skip to the end of the post...there's just some whining in this bullet point!) Hard. On to my right knee. Now it's swollen, sore and badly bruised. Very badly bruised. Like all the way down to under my ankle! It's rather disturbing, actually. Hoping it clears up quickly.

Anyway, those are just a few of the "highlights" of our summer. I'm making an effort to do more posting...okay, it's true, "any" posting would be more than I've been doing! Even neglected the LincolnHandmade team blog (I was supposed to post on Sunday. oops. Sorry ladies!).

Leith goes back to school on the 24th. (Not that I'm counting the 12 days until then or anything!) She'll be doing three full days and two half days. That should be plenty of time for me to be churning out some lovely pieces!

Oh, one last thing. I've decided to avoid the CPSIA hassle all together....the only kids' clothes/item I'll be making will be for Leith. I will, however, be making some gorgeous quilts and wonderful tote bags for folks ages 12 and up. Yay!

k

Seven Little Dresses!

The Anna dress pattern by farbenmix has to be one of my all-time favorites! It's easy enough for beginners and so easily modified or embellished that even seasoned seamstresses can enjoy it!

I really enjoy making these dresses and tunics, Leith has several in her wardrobe. I had a request for seven matching, four-way dresses for the granddaughters in a family. They'll be having a family reunion later this summer (and I'm hoping for action shots!).

Here's what seven little Anna dresses look like:



Each dress has four different main fabrics (plus the pink ties and straps). Each fabric can be the front of the dress, for four different looks!

Here you can see the black/colorful fabric to the front, and a hint of the blue/dotty fabric inside.



This shows the blue/dotty and blue/floral fabrics.



It took well over 20 yards of fabric for these dresses, for girls ranging in size from 12mos up to 7/8! I hope they enjoy them as much as I enjoyed making them!!

k

There's a new kid in town....

Cooper Wayne Chrisp!



That's his 'grumpy old man' look.

If you're wondering where I've been for the past two weeks, well, the answer is Cooper.

On the 28th of May, Jessica called me and said she was at the hospital, thinking her water had broken. Cooper wasn't due until July 31st! Turns out, her membranes *had* ruptured, and they were admitting her.

There were two rounds of steriods (Thursday and Friday), lots of antibiotics and talk of doing a c-section on Saturday (May 31). Jess was required to stay in the hospital, with lots of monitoring of her and baby. On Saturday, the doctor decided that Jess was doing really well, and it would be in Cooper's best interests if he stayed inside for a while longer. We were all hoping for another week, but Cooper had other plans...

Late on Monday night/very early on Tuesday morning, Jess called and said they'd decided to do the surgery right away because she was having contractions. (She'd had a previous c-section, and they didn't want Cooper to go through trauma of labor.) So at 3:30 a.m. on Tuesday, June 3, little Cooper made his debut.

He weighed 4lbs 12 oz and was 17" long. Pretty good size for what they think was a 31w/3day gestation!



He was immediately whisked away to NICU. Doing very well since the beginning, breathing all on his own (yay steriods!). He did have two IVs and the NG tube. The IVs are gone, but the NG tube is still there.

What looks like a skin condition is apparently just the amniotic fluid that dried/stuck to him. It's all gone now (by 12 June), and his skin looks terrific. He has sweet, wavy blond hair, too. Lots of it!

They're working on getting his temperature regulated so he can move to a regular hospital bassinet, but he's currently still in the temperature/humidity controlled isolette.

So. That explains a little bit of my time away from blogger....

k

I left my heart in San Francisco

Finally, some pictures of our recent trip! We were more into experiencing the trip than photographing it, so not many pictures. But here are a few:

Kelly & Leith at Union Square



Leith was fascinated with the flowers being sold on the street corners. We let her buy a daisy one day...the next day she insisted on stopping at another flower vendor. He was so sweet and generous. He offered her the pretty yellow rose and refused payment.

Early Sunday afternoon we went out for dim sum, then we stopped by the Museum of Modern Art. Literally stopped by it....went in to the gift shop, then popped across the street to check out the fountains at Yerba Buena Park.



The taller building is not part of the SFMMA, but sure makes an interesting photo!


The fountains were a big hit. It was *hot* that day!





Our flight was in the afternoon on Monday, so that morning we went to Chinatown for some red bean cakes and a little window shopping.



All in all, we had a blast. Plenty of good food, lots of things to see and some fun memories. We can hardly wait to go back!

k

Heart Melter

I love sewing for Leith. She's rather easy to please, and it's fun to make pretty dresses and things for her. The other day I made a peasant-style dress out of knit fabrics (it's a pattern for wovens). I should have made a size smaller, because the dress is too big -- but I know she'll grow into it!



Anyway, I took it downstairs to show John, and lament about it being the wrong size.

Me (holding up dress): "So, what do you think?"

John: "Pretty. Is she really that big?"

Leith: (hugs the dress) "Mommy! Is that for me!?! Oh Mommy, I love it!! Thank you so much for making it!! Can I wear it to church tomorrow?"

She was so excited and sounded so happy!

Unfortunately, it is way too big so she didn't get to wear it. Still. That conversation is one of the main reasons I like to sew!

k