TreasuresInTerraCotta

I have been saving, washing and storing Capri Sun pouches for several months now.  I finally got around to making a bag this week.  I laid out the pieces and decided to make a big bag, 3x4 for each side, and 3 each for the edges and bottom.  I had some trouble with the tension and also with the spacing of the stitches.  I decreased the tension and that seemed to fix the problem.  I also slowed down and fed the pouches through the machine carefully instead of relying on the feed dogs, because they just didn't grab the foil very well.        Here are the sides all pieced together.    The bag portion assembled.   The bottom corners were a little tricky making three pieces come together.  The solution is to stop the stitches before going off the end on the first two sides.  I ended up ripping out some seams to attach the bottom correctly, but it worked out in t...

The weather in Southern Arizona turned the slightest bit cool and my mind began swirling with craft projects.  It wasn't intentional, but one day in early October, I looked around and discovered I had about six crafty projects in various stages of incomplete. It seems no coincidence that in early October I also started reading an enlightening blog by Emily over at Chatting at the Sky .  During the course of the month, I've read along as Emily has discussed art.  Not just the painting or symphony writing kind of art.  Not just a commissioned artist or professional art teacher kind of art.  But the art of living as the person you were designed and created and crafted to be.  The art of you!     What if the book, the painting, the meal,  the presentation were all simply evidence of  a deeper art happening within the soul of an artist? Art is what happens when you dare to be who you really are .   Emily'...

It is an unwritten law of the universe:  If you have a truck people ask you to help them move. Akin to this is:  If you have a sewing machine people ask you to make costumes. I have certainly used my machine to make plenty of costumes for the kids and adults around this house.  So when my 13 year old friend asked me to help her make Bubble Skirts for the Taylor Swift concert I was game.  I ended up with three adorable skirts, but in the process I actually made five skirts!  First I tried to copy a design I had on hand, but I quickly realized I needed more of a tutorial.  I finally found two that, when combined, were exceptionally helpful.  But in an effort to make the learning curve shorter for someone else (and to remember what I did when I try to sew another one) I thought I would write a tutorial of my own.  Supplies: Fabric for the outer skirt Fabric for the lining Matching/coordinating thread Elastic (3/...

My blog has a bit of an identity crisis.  Am I a craft and garden and recipe blogger.  Or am I a kid and family and homeschool blogger.  Or, on the intellectual side, maybe I am a book review blogger or a contemplative Bible studier blogger.  Or perhaps, I just blog to keep family and friends updated on my little life.  All of the above and probably a few more, too. This week, I have sewing on the brain.  I planned an "enrichment activity" (AKA a sewing project) for my Texas-friend who had never used a sewing machine.  We happily sewed away an afternoon and a morning.  We made a simple potholder using a few different sewing techniques and tools. We made a potholder like this one.  Which, by-the-way, I made when my Colorado-friend was visiting.  In that scenario, she was the one teaching me.  So we are all learning and sharing and paying-it-forward in a crafty sort of way.  We sandwiched a square piece of batting between...