In my last post, I promised I wouldn’t blog again until I could talk about sewing. And then an entire month went by with no posting. I’ve been so distracted I haven’t even visited my friends blogs that much. Sorry.
Oh sure, I’ve been sewing orders for customers. But nothing new and exciting to report. So yesterday I finally sat in front of my sewing machine and played. It should come as no surprise the new item was bath and body related.
This is a silk pouch for a lotion bar…
I’ve had that lotion bar sitting on my nightstand for maybe a month? Just sitting there on a paper towel so it won’t leave a grease spot. So I finally whipped up a pouch from recycled silks to house my solid chocolate scented lotion.
Then I needed to make a pouch for my sister in law. She’ll be getting a lotion bar for her birthday this week. But her taste runs more to the contemporary fabrics so I made this for her…
Those last 2 pouches had free motion quilting and embroidery on them. They were sort of time consuming. So I thought about making lotion bar pouches that were fast and easy but still made of fabric. A quick jaunt into photoshop with the Digi Dolly legs, some treated muslin to print on, then a few quick stitches on the serger and VOILA! This was born…
The ingredients are printed onto the back of this fabric pouch. This one was a private joke between me and the husband. Since my lotion bar is chocolate scented with lots of cocoa butter, I rub it on my feet at night and exclaim (very excitedly) that I have chocolate feet! Thus the chocolate feet design was born. It still makes me giggle when I see it, and then I smell the chocolate again. Seriously, I want to take a bite of this solid lotion.
And now that I have fulfilled my promise of a sewing post, I will get back to the bath and body stuff that has consumed my time, money and imagination for the past month. You will be hearing more from me, and it won’t take a month for the next post! I suspect I will be coming clean to you in the near future. (cheesy pun intended)
I’ve been busy sewing things lately, but I still haven’t photographed the new pants, dresses and shirts I’ve been making. I need a model and a nice, outdoor setting so I can really do it right. I dream of beautiful ladies in lush, green landscapes wearing flowy clothing from an entire collection sewn by me. But yet I wind up with photos that look more like a cheap item strung on a hanger, then carelessly placed on a dark closet door. More Ebay than Etsy. I want to change my clothing product photos, but that means taking lots of time to get it right. Maybe by Christmas my summer clothing will be ready.
In the meantime I’m busy sewing hearts in jars to ship off to my first wholesale customer – a store in Australia which I’m very excited about. Here are the anatomical and traditional hearts in progress…
I’ve been very obsessed with soapmaking and DIY bath and beauty products lately. I’ll write about that in a few days.
Before I go, let me share a humorous conundrum I recently solved. I couldn’t figure out why the herbs seedlings growing indoors were dying off. They were getting enough sun and water. Then I found the plant killer in action.
I guess sleeping kittens are not conducive to growing herbs. Lesson learned.
Everybody is blogging about Spring.
Not normally one to jump on the bandwagon myself, but this spring has been very lively at our house. Allow me to share? Read more…
Many of the comments on my post about Ruffle Pants raised a good question about pants versus petticoats and why would anyone wear something like this. Believe me, I’ve asked myself similar questions and those are the kinds of things that make me afraid to ever start a new design in the first place. But I was driven to these pants as the basis for a new costume collection. Read more…
I’m having a design dilemma and need some feedback from anyone with an opinion. please?
Would you wear ruffles cascading from your knee to your ankle? Maybe not everyday, but as part of a costume at least?
I’ve been working up several test pairs of ruffle pants for various costuming uses. They would typically be worn under a big skirt, but could also be worn without the skirt. I’m thinking a pair of these would look great peeking out from a floor length skirt that has been gathered up and pinned with a couple of fabric roses at one knee. Read more…
Here’s the little doll I made on my birthday last week.
Read more…
As stated before, I want to update the look of my blog with something original. I’ve designed websites before, but I’ve always relied on free graphics. This time I want something original. So I went looking for ideas to inspire me. And I unlocked the secret to graphic design that has eluded me for years. Read more…
I’ve been unhappy with my blog lately. I don’t like the look of it. I don’t like some of my content. I don’t like that I’ve been re-blogging interesting things I find from other blogs.
I’m going to change all of that. In the next few months, I’ll be slowing rolling out my blog makeover. Read more…
I love the fabric designs of Tina Givens! I made quilts and baby clothes from her Fairy Tip-Toes line (here & here), and I still have some more that I haven’t even cut into yet.
Now she has new stuff. I’ve been looking for blues and greens because my daughter has requested a purse. Then Tina Givens comes out with a new collection called Olivia’s Holiday. Her blog post says “This collection is available now, so check with your favorite shop or call your rep…..”
BUT, I went to every one of the online shops on her “Where to Buy” page and nobody has this new collection available yet. (There were 41 different shop links I visited, plus Ebay and Etsy) I guess it hasn’t made it’s way into the shops yet. Anybody know how long that process takes after new fabrics are introduced at the Houston Quilt market? (Brenda??)
But since I already looked everywhere, I may as well share my research results on the older fabric collections from Tina Givens. Many shops on the Tina Givens “Where to Buy” page don’t carry any of her fabrics anymore and some of the shops don’t even exist anymore. So maybe my wasted time this morning will save you time when you go looking.
Here are online shops that seem to have the best selection of Tina Givens fabric in stock, along with their typical pricing (shipping is extra):
I have intended to make fabric roses from cotton, linen, and silk for a long time. I just never got around to it. But this weekend I made up several sample roses from woven cotton for a custom order request. They are very different than the polyester roses, but they are still pretty. Some have folded edges, and some have rolled hems from the serger. Too many ideas in my head, so I’ll just show the picture and go back to drinking my coffee.
