On the Second Day of Christmas I Posted on My Blog

Two Handmade Ties

Yep, I'm at it again. I had so much fun making Elder Hitchins' tie and it made him so happy that I decided to make some ties for my nephews on missions. So I found some awesome material in the remnant bin at JoAnn's and I made some more ties (I snagged the material for less than $3!). I even monogrammed the tie loop! And I have enough fabric to make a third one for their other brother who will serve in a couple more years. And if I'm really careful I might be able to squeeze out a fourth for James. He really liked the fabric and he is picky about ties.


In the spirit of handmade gifts, here's a website I found last night. It's called Foldschool and they have free instructions for how to make kid's furniture out of cardboard. I think I might attempt the chair if I can get my hands on some cardboard. I was kind of sad that I didn't have any Christmas Eve assembly projects (not really) so now I might have one. And it's outrageous what they charge for children's furniture. I figure if it's made out of cardboard I won't freak out when Zoe colors on it. In fact, that might be a fun project for us!

If You Make a Missionary a Meal...

You will probably pick something that is easy to make and feeds a lot of people. Of course that means that you'll be making lasagna. But lasagna can be a little messy to eat so of course you'll bring out the cloth napkins.

When the missionaries arrive, they'll compliment your home, the meal, the plates, and of course, the napkins. When he sees the napkins, the missionary will remember how he's always wanted a tie made out of the same material. Being flattered by all the comments, you'll blurt out "I could make you one. I made the napkins and I still have some material left." Then the missionary will jump out of his skin because he is so excited.

As the week drags on and you begin work on the tie, you remember that you haven't sewed for so long because your sewing machine isn't behaving properly. You'll fight with it for weeks until you throw in the towel and use your friend's machine. But sewing in front of others is just a little intimidating so you'll do just enough to get by and finish the rest by hand.
Just when you think you're finished you'll ask your husband what he thinks and he'll remind you that ties need a little loopy thing on the back to tuck the loose end in. So you'll make one by hand and sew it on - twice, because the first time just wasn't right.


Then the missionary will come over nearly past his curfew to pick up the tie so he can wear it to zone conference the next day. And he will call you his "hero." Aww. What a nice story. Enjoy your picnic table tie Elder Hitchins.

But seriously, check out that hand stitching on the back!

The Little Sewing Machine that Couldn't

I have had it up to here! I have devoted hours over the past week to a sewing project that should have taken me about 30 minutes. And so now I find myself between a bobbin and a hard place. Do I fix my ANCIENT sewing machine and hope that a $50 tune-up does the trick? Or do I cash in my chips and get a new one? I love my old machine and it has been great - providing us with curtains, table linens, bedding, and clothing over the past few years. But lately it spends more time mutilating my project than is really necessary. And I spend more time fixing the mistakes the machine has caused than I have caused. Basically it is two steps forward and three steps back (does anyone else remember that lame country song? It was my favorite when I was little!) . I would love to have a new machine but that would involve some sort of knowledge about how to buy a machine and what I am looking for (not to mention a large sum of cash floating around).

This is a picture of the model I use (it's not the one in my living room but I really didn't want to take a picture of it so I found this). If you don't know, my machine is THE EXACT machine my mom used when I was growing up (and still uses today). It really is old. 1963 old. It is made out of metal, which is actually one of the problems because the little internal light bulb heats up the casing and I tend to burn myself, since said casing is less than an inch away from my fingers most of the time. But I am so scared to get a new machine since basically I have never sewn on anything but this one. I am such a wuss.

But while I'm ranting - Can you (Erin, Marie and ToVah) believe that after last week's cliffhanger we will have to endure a CLIP SHOW this week? Of all the things to be UN-thankful for. Sheesh.

Death, by Sewing

Also known as a Handmade Chenille Blanket.
The website has similar instructions, but better pictures of the finished project.

If you ever want to sew yourself to death, here's a pretty good way to go.

Step 1 - Gather your materials:
5 pieces of "coordinating" flannels, each cut to a yard and a quarter
VERY GOOD SCISSORS
fabric pen (disappearing or washable)
lots of thread
seam binding
sewing machine
seam ripper (maybe this one is just for me)
extra needles for your machine (again, maybe just for me)

Step 2 - Decide which piece of flannel you want to be the base and lay it face down on the floor. This step sounds simple, but when you live in 700 square feet and have plenty of bulky furniture and a toddler under foot, it is easier said than done. Lay the remaining 4 pieces of material face up on top of the first. The order doesn't matter (unless it does to you). Square the pieces and pin them together. Sew around the edges with a basting stitch and then trim all the edges to about 1/4".

Step 3 - If you are neurotic and a bit of a sewing masochist, like I tend to be, then next you need to wake up and decide that your work is just not quite right, rip out all the stitches, and repeat Step 2 with roughly your original results. By this time you should have stabbed yourself a few times with the straight pins. If you are normal or just don't care, you can skip to Step 4.

Step 4 - Now for the fun part. If you find tedious monotony fun. Sometimes I do. I am a stay-at-home mom, after all. Basically, you need to mark/sew straight lines on the diagonal - about 1/2" apart. I started out carefully marking, remarking, then marking a third time for a large portion of the blanket before I realized I could just eyeball it on the machine and it turned out alright. Apparently I flipped the neurotic switch off. But I think I'm more on a dimmer switch, so I guess I just toned it down as I realized I was undertaking a week-long project with only days to complete it for a baby shower I went to today (not advisable). Also I went through 4 needles on my machine. I'm not sure if this is normal for this project, normal for my ancient sewing machine, or just normal for me. Luckily I had some spares.


Step 5 - At a certain point during Step 4, you will realize the enormity of this project and think you will never finish. Then about 30 minutes later, it is doable again. Then you begin Step 5, which involves very carefully cutting through 4 (all but your predetermined "base" layer) of the 5 layers of fabric . You will now cut between each and every one of the stitches you just sewed. Again, at some point you will be overwhelmed, and an urge to rock yourself in the corner will wash over you. And that too passes.

(from here on out you'll have to excuse the pictures. James took the camera to DC with him, so I borrowed a friend's and it just isn't as awesome as ours. Oh well, you get the picture... hehe)

Remember when I mentioned very good scissors? This is why. I like the nice ones with the spring in the handle so they just pop open after every cut. Minimizes blisters. Oh, you laugh.

Step 6 - Bind the blanket. Really, that's it. Check out that awesome mitered corner!













Step 7 - Let your washer and dryer pulverize the blanket (like you want to but no longer have the strength to) until it is fluffy and pretty. Two words you would never have used in the previous steps.

Step 8 - Pick off all of those annoying little fuzzies stuck to the non-chenille side. Or you can get one of those defuzzer things that kind of shaves them off. Whatever.

Step 9 - Record your work so you don't feel inclined to repeat the process too soon. Also, rest your arms. If you happen to have the unfriendly combination of an old sewing machine that doesn't pull the very thick blanket through very easily - you have to push a little - and an old wrist strain from lifting garage door openers two at a time, then you will probably be sleeping with your brace for a few days until the throbbing subsides.

New Album Blog

For those who may be interested, I started a new blog page to document the process of creating my next album. Some of you may find it boring but hopefully I can keep it a little interesting. It's mainly for myself I suppose but anyone is welcome to check it out.

I just got some pictures up so it looks a little better.

For those who are not aware, I have a little habit of writing and recording music. This habit has produced two albums so far. Let Me In was released in 2003, followed by Making It Right Again in 2005.

My 3rd album has taken considerably longer to make due to having a child and the responsibilities of life and such. But rest assured that it is coming.