Photo Challenges

Recently I've been finding a lot of photo challenges in random blogs I stumble upon. Seriously, sometimes I have no idea how I make it around to some of these places. It's funny how that happens. So you might be seeing a bit more photo stuff going on mixed in with all the regular crafty crap. Photography is a type of craft right?! :)

That being said, I'm thinking this picture up to Sailor & Company today for this week's yellow Raw(e) challenge. Honestly, is anybody who knows me surprised that I would pick this picture? :)

Until next time...

New clutch! Small Keyka Lou Inset Zipper Pouch

I'm super excited about this new pattern that just came out from Keyka Lou! It's available in two sizes, so of course I had to make it difficult on myself & start with the smaller size. :) It just seems to be my way. I'll be making the larger size soon, maybe this week if I get a little breathing room, just to have a comparison of the two.

I love the "peek" of the center fabric on this pattern. I happened to use the same fabric for the peek and the lining, but obviously that's not a requirement.

I had some issues on the final top stitching on this one & will probably end up pulling it out & either leaving it without or redoing it all together. You can see my little oopsies if you look closely.

The big oops:

I still can't quite figure out what happened here. I know the foot got hung up a bit going around the corner, but I didn't realize until I turned it over that the loops & knots were quite this bad. If it had only been the small gathers you see in the first two photos (top right corner of each), I probably wouldn't even bother ripping out the stitching since I won't be selling this particular one, but there's just no way I can leave it like this.

I'm thinking about doing some sort of give-away for this one (after I fix it, of course!), so let me know if it's something you'd be interested in.

Finished size is about 8x5 inches on this one, the bigger one will be about 11x7 inches. This style will be available for order as soon as I sort out the best way to get the top stitched decent. I have an easy fix in mind, I just have to try it out.

Until next time...

I'm sharing this here today:

Progress: Week 7 and a final look

Here we are at the end of the month (well, close enough in this case), and the end of the timeframe I set for myself. When I set my goals back in July, I looked back at the ones I set at the beginning of the summer & hoped my new ones would be a little more successful. For the most part, I'd say I did a pretty good job.

In only two weeks out of seven I wasn't able to get my five projects completed. When I set the goal, I wondered if it was a little too lofty, especially considering it was basically one item per day with only two days extra if I wasn't able to finish something up in one night. Thinking back on it, I'd have to say I'm pretty proud I met that goal for five weeks! Considering the fact that most of the LOP purses took me at least three evenings to complete, I'm happy I could fall back on small crochet items to pick up the slack. This week is no exception!

This week I finished up four more crochet flowers, one crochet butterfly, three coffee sleeves, and a new Keyka Lou pattern (brand-spankin' new from her!). Definitely a successful week, especially considering I didn't expect to get any sewing done at all.

This week's new pattern was the brand new from Keyka Lou (Hey! I'm a poet & I didn't know it!) Inset Zipper Pouch. More on that in a separate post. I'm already getting interest in it from work & even Nick seemed impressed with it, so it's definitely a keeper pattern!

The Facebook goal kind of went out the door back in week four when I created the MCC FB page. I consider it a good reason for not meeting the goal for the full seven weeks. :)

I don't have as many items in the Etsy shop as I would like, but it's mostly because I've been too busy with either personal stuff (hello home repairs thanks to these little guys!) or making items for special orders. This will be a continuing goal.

Christmas gifts are indeed in the planning process, but for obvious reasons, I can't exactly talk about what any of them are. I wouldn't want to spoil any surprises, since I happen to know at least a few family members will be reading this. :)

The Origami Impostor bag...umm...total failure on this one. I mentioned a while back that I had been thinking about the bag a lot, and that's still true, but it's also as far as it got. Now that I won't have the five-items-per-week thing hanging over my head, and after I finish up a few special orders I was finally able to find fabric for, I'm going to make some time to sit down & really work on this. I really like the idea for the bag, and even though I've seen a lot of similar styles showing up lately, I think mine is a little different in ways that will set it apart. I hope. :)

Overall, I'd say the past seven weeks have been a success, and I'll definitely be setting similar goals for myself again, but not any time soon. I need some time to work without a deadline or quota hanging over my head. Except, of course, for the deadlines that come with custom orders! Those will be met without any problems!

Until next time...

I found happiness in the mailbox

This evening has been pretty stellar since I left work. Yes, I said stellar. Don't even ask my why I said that, but it's the very first thing that came to mind.

I headed to JoAnn with five coupons & vowed to not buy anything that wasn't on sale or couldn't use one of the coupons. I also really needed to only buy stuff I actually need, not just stuff I liked.

Jackpot! I found 3 fabrics - two super, super awesome courdoroys I can't wait to use & think will be perfect for a custom order for someone and another fabric that couldn't be more perfect for the lining of a bag for another friend who had already picked out her focus fabric but I didn't have anything to go with it (yes, that was probably the longest run-on sentence EVER, please forgive me).

I also found some other odds & ends items I've been wanting/needing, and over all saved only $6 less than I spent (as in, I basically saved 50% on everything). Success!

While in the store I also decided on fabric for another project I need to work on, but put off actually buying it until I have more coupons next weekend. I had decided to use denim for said project instead of home decor, and it dawned on my that I had an old pair of Nick's jeans that would work just as well as buying denim, and BONUS! I would have the pockets to use.

When I ran in to Wal-Mart, I started to realize Nick's pants weren't going to give me enough fabric (dang lucky, skinny, skinny man. And also he wears them threadbare, so they wouldn't be so great), so I could just buy a cheap pair of jeans in whatever size would give me the dimensions I needed. Can't beat $9 size 38x32 jeans! And bonus, the cashier looked at me & said, "well, I know there's NO WAY these are for you, you're WAY too skinny." I just laughed & told her they were for a craft project.

When I got home I noticed I had a package which wasn't supposed to come until next week, so of course I was excited about that. It's a poster of this picture that I ordered to put up in my office. Now I just need to pick up a cheap frame for it.

But, the big, big thing that beat everything else was these:

My very own Moo Mini Cards!

And just how "mini" are we talking here?

They look pretty dark in the picture, but I promise you, they look much better in person.

I found these a month or so ago when they were having a really super deal that just couldn't be passed up. Little did I know, it was a one day deal, so my idea to think it over & take some time designing them didn't exactly work out. They aren't terribly expensive when they're not on sale, but I still put off ordering them because I was trying to decide if it was really a good idea.

Then last week I got an e-mail that they were on sale again (unfortunately not quite as good of a deal...bummer...), so I bit the bullet, designed a back (I had already done the front, preemptively), and ordered a set. They weren't supposed to be here until late next week, so I had kind of forgotten about them. When I saw the package in the mailbox, I thought it was something else I had ordered recently, and didn't get excited until I saw the little Moo label.

Let me tell you, I love them already! I also ordered this sweet little carrying case (in orange, of course), and can't wait to hand some out. I feel like Steve Martin, "The new phonebooks are here! The new phonebooks are here! I'm somebody!!!" :)

Right now, life is pretty good. Sometimes it's just the simplest things in life that can make everything all right.

Oh yeah, and that other project I mentioned for the denim? You'll just have to wait on that, because I'm telling you now, it's gonna.be.awesome!

Until next time...

TWT - Sweet Corn

My little family LOVES sweet corn, especially when it's home-grown by Nick's family.

And I do mean the entire family!

NOM.NOM.NOM.

It was really hard to get a good picture of her while I was holding the corn & laughing, but she tries to eat it pretty much like we do - all dainty with her front teeth. Eventually she got sick of trying to be a lady & just took the whole thing & chomped it (at which point we took it away from her), but she sure did like it!

Until next time...

Last chance to win!

Don't forget, today is your LAST chance to enter over at Envirocraftiness for your chance to win your choice of two items from me. And, because I've been so busy lately (and also - a bit of a slacker!), you will absolutely get a custom item! You'll get your choice of two item from here, here, or select crochet items (baby hat, diaper cover, flower clips, construction cone - basically anything except a blanket). You can choose any fabric you like that I currently have. Seriously, the sky is pretty much the limit here.

Jill is doing things a bit differently today, so you don't have to be a bit crafty to enter! She's making plans to throw a fabulous party, and needs your help planning an "instant photo booth." How fun! When we were planning the wedding, we (well, let's be honest here - I) thought it would be fun to rent a photo booth, but sad to say, we weren't able to. Jill, being more brilliant than I, is doing it Envirocrafty-style with her own macbook. Genius! So come up with some great ideas, then head on over & let her know what you've come up with.

And a quick random thought - I actually like it when the internet is running slow while it loads Jill's page because she has a beautiful tree photo that you only get to see before her content is loaded. :)

So quick - hop on over to Envirocraftiness, wish for a slow connection (just this once!), enter for your chance to win, and good luck!

Until next time...

Keyka Lou basic wallet

A funny thing just happened. I was going through my saved posts (sometimes when I'm in a rush, I try to upload photos right away so I don't forget about them, but save the writing for later when I have more time) & found this one, which I apparently started back in July - mid-July to be exact - and realized I hadn't ever shared this wallet!

I'm really loving this little guy & have plans to make it available in a few different sizes. It's nice because it's quick & easy to put together, so I guess it would probably be a good project for this week when I won't have a whole lot of extra time to sew.

I don't have the measurements with me right now, but this should give you a good idea of the size.

This was my first time using Velcro, and I've got to say I'm not a huge fan. It's secure, but I still prefer magnetic snaps, especially now that I've found my new love - extra thin snaps!

Here's a good size comparison between the mini envelope clutch, basic wallet, and large envelope clutch.

As always, special orders are more than welcome! I'll be sure to share the other sizes when I have a chance to make them. And I promise, I won't wait a month and a half to actually post about them again. :)

Made with Keyka Lou basic wallet pattern.

Until next time...