A rushed move and kids car playmat

Things have been so hectic. Apparently my daughters landlord decided to never tell us that he lost the house she was renting to foreclosure. We had no idea until a bank official showed up and told her we had 72 hours to be out. After a very frantic packing job, with a 110 degree heat index (we even packed dirty dishes, no time to wash them) we ended up with her all her worldly belongings spread out between my mom's, my son's and our house. The kids sleeping in the spare room upstairs and my daughter sleeping in my sons camper in our backyard, for the last few weeks. We just got them moved into a lovely house yesterday.

I did get my DGS's Car Mat finished for his 2nd birthday.

Next project up on the list of things to do is a helmet skin for my son and a dollhouse play mat for my daughter inlaw's future niece.

Summer Beach Hat , Free Tutorial

Got this tutorial from my BurdaStyle Newsletter. It looks fun to sew and easy too.

Click here for Tutorial

or

 Click here for PDF of the Instructions

Reusable Cloth Snack Bags Free Tutorial

Forget the disposable plastic bags and make a greener and prettier alternative. Make cloth snack or sandwich bags with this tutorial from

Click Here to go to tutorial

Ice Cream Cone Cozies Tutorial

I first saw this tutorial in my FaveCrafts newsletter. Then I clicked on the link to the tutorial designer Leigh Ann Tennant's Blog The Object Project  All I can say is this is one of my must do's for the grand kids. Come to think it, I'm going to make a bunch to keep in the cars, You never know when the immediate need for an ice cream fix will hit ya ☻
Click here for the Tutorial and check out her blog while your there. She has lots of other great ideas.

How To Darn A Sock

Sewing:
How To Darn A Sock

As much as I want Spring, I can't stop finding Christmas

I can just see the Christmas presents under the tree all wrapped up in these fantastic quilted boxes. And these Journal Covers will make the best presents with a fancy ink pen. Quilting Arts is offering this FREE eBook with these patterns and more.

Click here to go to the download.

The Dog-Food Bag Project

I've made these before from feed bags and bird seed bags. When I saw this tutorial at

I thought it was one I had to share.

Click here to go to Directions.

Free EBook ~ Seven Quilted Bag Patterns:

Found these free patterns at Quilting Arts, they say "You can never have too many bags, and here is your opportunity to add seven quilted bags to your collection! Patricia (Pokey) Bolton, Editor-In-Chief of Quilting Arts Magazine® has put together this wonderful free gift for anyone who loves the art of handmade quilting (and beautiful quilted bags)!

Whether you choose to make all of them, or have a special favorite you can't get enough of, Seven Quilted Bag Patterns: Handmade Quilt Bags from Quilting Arts is sure to be the pattern book you turn to again and again. Best of all, it's absolutely FREE!"

Click here to go to the ebook

1940s/1950s Sewing for Girls

I sew for my grandkids, I also sew for my house, Now I need to get back to Sewing a little thought back into my wardrobe.

Why cloth diapers?

My Parents are on their 50th anniversary vacation, driving thru the Southern states. While they're gone my daughter has been painting their kitchen, dining room and bedrooms. I've been babysitting the #1GS. While we've been playing, I've been pondering the genius of cloth diapers. Wish they had diapers like these when my kids were in them. When DGS was born I made him some infant diapers. I found lots of free patterns on the Internet. Here's some links.




How to Sew a Fitted Cloth diaper (on the cheap!)

Free Cloth Diaper Patterns

DiaperPattern

Once he grew out of the cute newborn diapers I made out of bluejeans and polka dots I began pricing the Waterproof PUL Fabric Since our fabric stores do not carry this I found that buying it online was a pretty hefty price.

We stopped by

and fell in love with the bumGenius 3.0 One-Size Cloth Diapers. These diapers grow all the way to potty training. The website states that they "easily fit most babies from 7 pounds up to 35 pounds. One diaper for multiple children simplifies laundry and the diaper drawer. No more sorting by size or having to carry multiple diapers when going out. Three snap-downs on the front of the diaper (patent pending) adjust the rise as your baby grows. For newborns, fold down the insert stopper for an extra-small rise."

The price on new ones is a pretty hefty $17.95 Which is pretty worth it considering that you would not be buying diapers again after your initial investment. But then we found their used diaper drawer. First of all just seeing these used diapers makes you realize how will made they are, they still looked brand new, actually after using the used diapers for a year now, they still look brand new. And the prices of the used diapers are usually less that half price. They often run specials for the used diapers on their website. Click on their logo to check them out.

I don't work for Cotton Babies, even though it kinda sounds like it. Their diapers are just what we found that works for us, Grin. I will say that my DGS has had only 2 diaper rashes in his life, and both of those were when he was really sick and had diarrhea from antibiotics. My daughter lives on her disability income and not having to buy diapers has meant she can buy other things she needs for herself and her kids. And as a nurse I feel that cloth diapers are healthier for our babies. From A Tale of Two Diapers, "the OSHA "Material Safety Data Sheet on Superabsorbent Polymer" states, preexisting skin or breathing disorders may become aggravated through prolonged exposure. A study in the September 1999 issue of Archives of Environmental Health found that laboratory mice exposed to various brands of throwaway diapers suffered eye, nose, and throat irritation, including bronchoconstriction similar to that resulting from an asthma attack. The lead author of the study advised asthmatic mothers to avoid exposure to the chemicals found in most throwaway diapers.

Have you ever watched someone physically wilt in front of you?

Just tell the cashier at Walmart you have your own bags. I swear I saw her give an inward sigh.

It never fails, everytime I sew cloth shopping bags for myself, I end up giving them away. So this week I began sewing bags for myself, I mean it family, I'm keeping these bags! Our Walmart is closeing out it's fabric department so i have been snapping up lots of sweet fabrics at super cheep prices. Last summer our fabric store in the next town had all their Simplicity patterns on sale for $2.99 so I stocked up. I bought Simplicity 2806 and every person in my family, well all the girls, have made me make them the orange bag on the bottom right hand corner. It's really a great bag each of those outside pockets will hold a 2 liter bottle, so if you can lift 6 liters of soda and some groceries inside the bag you only have to carry one bag.

Here's the bag I finally made for myself. I also sewed 10 bags that are shaped just like the stores plastic grocery bags. Then I took some old lace curtains and sewed some drawstring bags for my produce.

How was your Labor Day?

Saturday - DS won 3rd place in the In the C Class at the OXC Ozarks Cross Country ATV Championship. That's him on the left, I wish he would keep those wheels on the ground.

Sunday - I sewed 4 Jumpers for my DGD. And finished sewing 7 cloth shopping bags that my mom ordered from me to give away as presents.

Monday - my DS and I spent the day fencing in a bigger pasture area for the girls, aka the Llamas. I hurt everywhere, even my toenails hurt. But boy were there 2 happy Llama's running around when we let them out into the bigger pasture. Chili was running around kicking up her back heels in the air and both of them were observed rolling around in the grass a couple of times☻ Right now I'm reducing 30 lbs of tomatoes into Spaghetti Sauce so I can get them processed into jars and I still need to bake a cake for DGS's 1st Birthday tomorrow.

INDEPENDANCE DAYS CHALLENGE, WEEK 4, Late post this was last weeks.

1. Plant something - Nothing this time.
2. Harvest something – Tomatoes, Green Peppers, Watermelon
3. Preserve something – 14 pts diced tomatoes.
4. Reduce waste – Recycling cans, Use cloth napkins and handkerchiefs, using homemade laundry soap, saving old jeans to reupholster a chair with.
5. Preparation and Storage – Reorganized, began extended shopping list.
6. Build Community Food Systems – Nothing at this time.
7. Eat the Food –Tomatoes diced, and sauce.
8. Simple Living – Began making Christmas gifts.
9. To Do –* Sew DGD school clothes * Blackberry jelly* Make new batch laundry soap

Head Start Christmas Part 2 - Sewing Barbie Clothes

Here’s some links to some great FREE

Barbie sewing patterns that I found.

Sportswear for the beach

Vintage Barbie Doll Dress Tutorial

Making your own doll clothes - from socks

Barbie Pajama Doll Clothes Pattern

The 1-2-3 Jacket

Holiday Gown

Free Sewing Patterns for Fashion Dolls

Movie characters and costume patterns for fashion dolls

Kiwi Fashion Doll Patterns

My Obsession

What's your obsession? Mine’s composition books, you remember those black and white marbly notebooks we used in early grade school. Every year when the school supplies come out I just can’t resist them, they’re like candy to me. I always have visions of writing toothy tomes of great substance, yea right. They all sit lined up neatly, only thing neat in my house, on a shelf at my desk waiting for those toothy tomes. Right now I have 9 of them and that isn’t counting all the ones around the house with the first couple of pages jotted on.
They come in fantastic designs now
that call out to me every new school season.
As I was writing this I did an image search on the internet and found that I can do so much more with my obsession. On lindamollyellen's photostream I found this delight. Wow I can scrap book my toothy tome covers, a new obsession?

How about the fabric covers that I found at cerulean.viridian' s photostream , and I happen to be in a sewing mood.

Now I can bring my obsession into a new universe, hey from what I found on the internet, I’m not the only on who loves Composition books.
heeheehee