Progress!

I know that I have been busy.  I know that I have not been the most up to the minute blogger lately.  I know these things because they are foremost in my mind and it is DRIVING me CRAZY!  I have been going through serious craft, quilting, and sewing withdraw.  There seems to be a light at the end of the tunnel, even if it is very faint at the moment.

This week I finished off my embroidered shoes.  I showed you these little cuties last week.  I drew this free hand flower pattern on the shoe with pencil. (yup, just plain old #2)  I stitched up these shoes with  DMC embroidery floss.  I have heard that DMC does not hold up as well as peril cotton, I'll keep you posted on that.

I added a little leaf and a tiny vine off to the side of the flower.  I have toyed with the idea of adding the vine around the sides and heal of the shoe but so far haven't decided.

For now I am just enjoying the sweet, sweet joy that comes from finishing a project.

Back to School

WoW!   Am I exhausted.  This back to school year has been filled with one activity or another.  Honestly I have been running from one place to the other non-stop.  Not only have we been busy with our own 3, we have welcomed into our family an exchange student from Germany.  Martin will be with us until June of 2015.  I am sure it will be one busy and exciting year.

I have had little time to quilt, sew or craft of any kind lately.  I am still finishing up my entry for the AMB Farm to Fabric challenge.  It was officially loaded on my long-arm machine yesterday!  Yahoo!  I hope to actually get to quilt it on Sunday.  Sorry but I cannot show you any pictures yet:)

With all of the running and back to school shopping I was able to pick up a little something for me.

New Shoes!

I purchased these with the intention of doing a little sprucing up. I plan on embroidering them.  I have wanted to play with embroidering shoes ever since I saw this post on The Handmade Dress. I wasn't about to head out and purchase a pare of Sanuks and sew on them.  I picked up this pair at Payless on clearance.  

I knew I wanted to create some type of flower pattern.  And this is what I sketched out.

I am sure I will have to do a little more detail work as the design emerges from the shoes.  But for now it's a handy travel projects for my continued back to school pace.

t-shirt remake (#sewwhatselfie)

A few weeks ago, maybe a month?  I read on Gen X quilters about The Fat Quarter Shop's #sewwhatselfie and I decided I would have to enter. For the chance to win $100 in Fabric? Plus they are drawing 2 winners each month!  Woohoo!   I clicked on over to their website and picked up a t-shirt.  I ordered myself an XL with the plan of doing a little fashion remake.

After much practice, I took this selfie. By the way it is way harder to take a selfie than one might imagine.  Perhaps it is easier if you are under 20 it is easier?

Now I love t-shirts, but being short in stature, they are not flattering in the least.  I end up looking more like a box with legs.
Here is the t-shirt on me pre-makeover.

See I told you Not AT All Flattering. Next I went to work modifying it.  I took the sides in, cut the sleeves out, reduced the sleeve length, modified the neckline and the lower edge.  And with a few magic words.  Bibity-boppity-boo we have a new look.

Feel like entering for a chance to win $100 gift card?  Hop on over to The Fat Quarter Shop's Blog and check out!

the AMB blog tour quilt.

I was so excited this week when I saw this sneak peak of the AMB blog tour quilt. There is my South Carolina block (far left row, third from the bottom) pieced together with all all the other states. Doesn't it look wonderful?  I can only dream about the finished quilt.  To check out the progress on this beauty keep checking over to The Works Blog.