Cat congrats
Congratulations to Rachelle, who was the winner of the “Knit your Own Cat” Book drawing.
(this is Andy and his Miss Kitty)
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February, 2012
31
January, 2012
A Free Pattern: Downton
My twitter stream and Google reader are both abuzz with comments about Downton Abbey. I am completely in love with this show and those that know me will be un-surprised to hear that I am captivated by the costumes. So, for all of you that love it as much as I do, here is a set of free embroidery patterns just for you, inspired by the costumes of Downton. “Mary” is inspired by a black beaded choker. It would make a nice edging embroidered on something with french knots for those beaded chains. “Anna” is a detail from the edge of a tiny lace collar. “Dowager Countess” comes from a green and purple ensemble with ribbon embroidery. “Sybil” is inspired by the embroidered bodice of the infamous “harem pants” outfit. “Edith” is from a detail on the sleeve of a black and gold evening dress. These aren’t exact replicas, but my take on the design. Click the image above to download a full sized .pdf you can print and use.
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December, 2011
Winners
Thank you to everyone who left a comment! They were so much fun to read and I did read every one.
The copy of Fabric by Fabric One Yard Wonders goes to:
Trish
I made a pretty neat baby quilt for my son before he was born. It has a row of houses, a row of trees, a row of fish, a row of stars, and more all in bright purples, blues, and yellows.
The quilt sounds awesome. The random number generator thought so too, so it picked your comment and I am glad it did. You can find Trish’s blog at Overflow Creativity, where she has some fun projects and poetry.
Then I decided to pick a few of my favorites to win a few more little prizes. These commenters will be getting some little handmade ornaments.
Sharleen
The best gift I ever got that was handmade was from my niece who was 16 at the time, it was a gorgeous quilt for my then new baby daughter with her name machine free sewed into it.
I love that your favorite gift was something made for you by a teenager! A lot of my job involves teaching sewing to teens and I think if you get them hooked then, they will be sewing and crafting for life.
Liz B
The handmade gift I am most proud of was a knit hat I made for my husband. He had shown me the Jayne hat online, and asked if I could do that, and I said I didn’t think I was a good enough knitter. He said ok and pretty much forgot about it. My grandmother had been teaching me to knit every year for about ten years; this was the year that it stuck! I focused harder than I ever had until I really had it down, and then I made that Jayne hat and it was perfect, AND he was surprised, which is really hard to do. I make a lot of gifts each year but I still haven’t topped that one.
My husband would love a Jayne hat too.
The best gift I’ve ever received was for absolutely no reason. When we first started dating, my partner gave me a 2?x2? stained-glass window that she’d made herself. She painted the frame blue, and created a beautiful design in orange, yellow, and blue glass, and put a small square mirror in the middle. She came to my house every day for two weeks with cuts on her arms and hands, and I had no idea what she was doing until she brought the window over. It’s one of my most treasured possessions.
Gifts for no reason are the very best. In college, my friends and I used to celebrate a floating holiday we called “Peanut Butter Day”. We couldn’t afford to get each other Christmas presents, but as soon as the loan checks came in at the beginning of the semester, we would declare “Peanut Butter Day” and have a little party.
Thank you to everyone who commented!
12
December, 2011
Blog Giveaway Day is Here!
That’s right, I am giving away a copy of the book!
I have two designs in Fabric-by-Fabric One Yard Wonders and I want to share the awesome with all of you.
How to enter:
Leave a comment on this post and tell me:What is the best handmade gift you have ever received OR what gift have you made that you are proudest of? (Comments have now been turned off.)
- Be sure to include your email address in the box in the comment form. It won’t be public if you put it there, but I will be able to see it so I can contact you when you win.
- Don’t worry if your comment doesn’t show up right away. I moderate comments and I will approve them whenever I get a chance.
- Comments will be open until December 16 at 5 pm.
- I will choose a winner by random drawing. And I will draw some extra names from my favorite answers for some runner-up prizes too.
- I will ship internationally.
That’s it. Pretty simple!
And I want to play along too, since it’s not fair to ask all of you to do all the work, so…
The best handmade gift I have ever gotten: I love a lot of pretty awesome handmade gifts so I will share two favorites: My engagement ring. My husband folded an origami butterfly ring out of silvery paper and gave me that when he proposed. I also have a carved and painted tiny wooden giraffe that my dad made for my mom when they were dating/newlyweds. Last year for Christmas, my mom decided that the little giraffe needed to come stay with me.
The handmade gift I am proudest of: Usually that is the last thing I finished. So right now I am proudest of a beautiful lace cowl I made for my friend Lynn’s birthday. She is a pretty stellar knitter, so I worked really hard to make sure it would be something she would love.
To find more giveaways for the Giveaway Day event, check at Sew Mama Sew for all of the hundreds of blogs participating.
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December, 2011
Coming Soon! Blog Giveaway Day
I have some really great things planned for Blog Giveaway Day this year! It starts on December 12 and you can visit hundreds of blogs that are giving away all kinds of crafty things. I always love connecting with new visitors.
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May, 2011
The Winners
My Random Number Generator has picked two winners:
The loom goes to Sadie and her girls, who said: “I would love to learn how to weave, so that I could share that skill with my two young daughters. It would be fun to make gifts and projects together as a family and allowing them to sit behind my sewing machine makes me a nervous wreck. Weaving would be a relaxing and rewarding craft to start.”
I am glad my random number landed on you because your comment made me laugh. I teach sewing to kids and I know exactly what you are feeling!
The quilting hoop ornament goes to Rae, who said: “I would love to learn to quilt. Nothing says love like a quilt. “
I second that. You’ve got to love somebody a lot to make them a quilt and you always feel loved when you are wrapped up in one that someone made for you.
Thank you everyone for the comments and another fun giveaway day. I can’t believe how many wannabe weavers there are out there! I will definitely think about doing some more weaving posts for you.