DuhBe.com

I can honestly say I have never done any canning and preserves in my life. But I’ve been working with jars lately and decided to continue that theme for valentines day. So I’ve sewn up some preserved hearts in 2 flavors – both were added to my Etsy shop today.

This is the cuter version. It has a copper patina key tied to it with machine wrapped cord that I make. There’s a preserved heart in there.

Here’s a better look at that little heart. It’s made from scraps of linen and cotton along with some vintage lace. Free motion squiggles and a tiny little “love” fancy it up a bit, along with some programmed machine stitching on one side. That’s a tiny pocket on there, just big enough for a little bit of love.

But not everybody likes cutesy things for Valentines Day. Some people prefer their love darker and a little on the morbid side. So I offer up my second version of the preserved heart…

The anatomical heart was made on the embroidery machine. I modified the design from Urban Threads so the heart could stand alone. It is suspended inside the jar with invisible thread, so it wiggles around in there as if floating in a specimen jar.

Grossly romantic, isn’t it?

Alrighty, lets get back to the cute stuff, shall we?

Of course canning work requires a cute apron. So I should share the little Alice in Wonderland apron I made for myself.

Of course that plucky little Alice is there, along with her quirky friend the Mad Hatter. The apron is made of machine embroidered patches on repurposed linen – which is becoming a trend for me since I scavenge linen garments from the thrift store every chance I get.

This is another example of the Layered, Tattered and Stitched style, although I turned under the edges on the waist and hem for this apron. The patches and buttonholed ties are still frayed. I used heavy weight red threads so the stitching really stands out, and I experimented with some cool buttonholes on my machine that compliment the look of the apron. The buttonholes remind me of the stitches on Frankenstien’s head. (I guess I’m getting Halloween and Valentine’s Day mixed up again. That’s a common problem for me.)

I made this apron for myself, but I’ve picked up more black linen so I might make one or two more for my Etsy shop. That’s assuming I have time for sewing with all the home fixing I’m about to undertake. But I’ll save that story for later.

Related Posts

1. My Mother’s Apron
2. Book Review – layered, tattered & stitched