Recycling Vintage Sheets on Earth Day

The sheets are ready for the vintage sheet fat quarter swap!

It was a bit daunting to think about cutting all the sheets, so when I saw the advice from My Tiny Robot Heart, I knew ripping was the way to go. That, and my Mom told me it would be a lot faster.

It was a lot easier to rip up all the pretty sheets once I got started. I measured first, found the best way to divide it into a "chubby" fat quarter (usually around 20 x 23 inches, some were smaller though), and made my cuts. I ripped them outside. There are a lot of particles that float around when you do it inside. My mom rips sheets for her rag rugs (seriously cute) and she mentioned that this would be best. Once they were ripped into large strips, I made the second cuts where the fat quarter would be, and ripped those. I ironed each one and folded them the way that our swap master Katie requested.

Blue sheets.

Pink sheets.

Yellow, green, and orange sheets.

I am so excited to participate in my first swap- I can't wait to see what I will get back!

Molly's Golden Birthday

Molly turned three on the third. I can't believe she is three already! A few years ago when I was still teaching I learned about golden birthdays. When you turn the age of the day of the month you were born on (for example 3 on the 3rd, 23 on the 23rd) it is called your "golden" birthday. When my students had a golden birthday, their parents made it a very special day. I couldn't let Molly's golden birthday pass by without having a big party! We decided to have a Very Hungry Caterpillar party. She probably would have loved a princess party, but I didn't give her that option...bad mommy.

It was a lot of fun to create these large tissue pom-poms from Martha. They really added a punch of color to the dining and living rooms where we had the party. I am imagining them at EVERY party we have from now on- they are that easy.

Marshall covered our two Little Tykes tables with a large plastic green tablecloth (cut in half). I have grand plans for the future to cover these tables with fabric with an elastic hem so they won't slide off easily. I think oilcloth would be best, but I need to find a print that goes with pink and purple chairs.

When the little and big guests arrived, they colored Hungry Caterpillar pictures and bookmarks. while I read them the story of The Very Hungry Caterpillar. I wanted to make these, but I didn't have the pom-poms glued to the clothespins. Two and three year olds around hot glue guns...probably not a good idea.

Marshall moved the pom-poms almost a week after the party. They were so happy and colorful we didn't want to take them down. He hung them in our basement- where Molly's giant play room is. It looks super festive down there now!

I googled a Very Hungry Caterpillar cake, and I found this beautiful cake from Lyndsay at Coco Cakes. Wow! I didn't use fondant (it scares me a little) for the caterpillar's head, and I made a smaller trial cake on Molly's true birthday (a week earlier) to make sure I could do it. When I told her I would be making another one for her birthday party she told me, "I already did that Mom!" Yeah, me too...

I used my Michael's coupon to get a large star tip to make the frosting swirls on the cupcakes, and I also bought the gel food coloring there. Many cupcake and cake blogs say it is easier and faster to achieve the colors of frosting you want with gel food coloring. They are right! I used this recipe for the buttercream frosting, and it turned out pretty yummy! It was a lot easier than I thought it would be too.

This was one of the things I really wanted to get done for her party. So much so, I stayed up until 2 am sewing the buttons on them so I wouldn't worry about them on the day of the party. Ack. I wanted the kids to go home with something special, something Hungry Caterpillar, and something that wouldn't be thrown away. I made crayon rolls with Hungry Caterpillar fabric from here. Tiffany sent this fabric so fast, I was very thankful I could get an early start on them. (Of course, I procrastinated on actually finishing them up...) I love buying hard to find fabric (or well, any fabric) from her!

Here are a few pictures of what they looked like, inside and out.

Nareerath made both these adorable stickers we used on the outside of the goody bags (they say, "Thanks for coming to my party! Love, Molly") and the invitation for Molly's party.

For the invitation we emailed SillySeiraDesign (Nareerath's Etsy shop) a picture of Molly, and she emailed us a PDF to have printed locally. Perfect! Everything Nareerath created was adorable and received rave reviews from family and friends, not to mention Molly - she loves looking at her "catapiwere" party invitation. We also purchased the cupcake toppers, but then I decided to make the caterpillar cake...so now I'm looking for something to stick them in, they are so sweet.

The party turned out much like I had pictured. BUT there are always ideas I see after everything is done that makes me wish I had a little more time...

A few days ago, I saw this, and wow, if I had the time before the party, I would have loved to dress Molly in a Hungry Caterpillar shirt. And this pull-string pinata? Or this one? How creative! We bought a pull string butterfly from Party City, but had we had enough time to order the butterfly one from Etsy, I would have!

My mail feels like fabric

My vintage sheet fat quarters from Evelyn.

I am on the counter.

I shouldn't be.

Vintage sheets.

Fat quarters.

In the mail.

I squealed when Marshall told me a package had arrived and "felt like fabric".

When Evelyn from Use the Loot posted she would be putting packages of vintage sheet quarters in the mail (21 fit into my envelope! Wow!) for $15 including shipping, I was super excited. I asked Evelyn for yellows, oranges, and greens in florals and checks. And one checked blue if she had it! She selected these beautiful sheets for me. Thanks Evelyn! I love them! I am planning a vintage sheet nine-patch quilt with these. I have it in my head, now I just need to get started.

I've been collecting sheets for a while, and I have enough that I've joined a fat quarter vintage sheet swap. Katie over at See Katie Sew is running the swap this year. I can send one, or I can send up to eighty. Phew! That would be a lot of vintage sheets.

Eighty is a lot. I don't need eighty. Right? Excuse me while I go count my sheets...

Thrifty Thursday Finds

I love thrifting. It is one of my favorite things to do. When I lived in Anchorage, Alaska, the thrifting was pretty limited. We had two Value Villages, one Salvation Army, and a few charity run thrift shops that were the most fun to shop at if you wanted a great bargain.

Here in Vancouver, Washington, I am surrounded by thrift stores and loving it! Some of my favorites are again, those smaller ones that are run by charities, but I always go back to my reliable Goodwill (which come to think of it- is also charity run). This last week I had a bit of fun shopping and found these bargains.

This chick has been on my mind for about a year! I first saw it on Morgan's blog, One More Moore. It was in her daughter's Easter basket last year, and I loved it. I even saved a picture of it on my bookmarks so I could remember what it looked like! Funny enough, like my Mom always says, you can find anything you are looking for thrifting! You just have to be a little patient. I was so happy to put this little guy in my cart. He will be in Molly's Easter basket this year.

This book cracked me up. I always go through the craft books at Goodwill, and they always have a diverse selection. It has a bunch of fun (old school) crafts in it. One of my favorites is using a nail to punch holes in recyclable cans, then lighting a candle in them to see the design. Does anyone remember doing that at camp or school? I do! The teacher in me cringes to think of all those little kids with nails and hammers. Oh my.

And my most favorite of all- thrifted sheets! I love these retro daisies with the pink background. I have been collecting 1960's and 1970's sheets for a while and have amassed quite a few. I would love to do a vintage sheet swap- I see that there is one right now at Shari's blog, Sew Make Time. I am not sure I have the nerve to cut into them. I love them so much! I am dreaming of making a nine-patch quilt with them. I think a king size. Ha. First I need to finish the other two quilts sitting in my WIP pile!

My first (pattern-less) bag.

I have a huge pile of WIP/mending/projects to do. So every time I finish two or three of these *yawn* projects, I reward myself and make something new and exciting.

I made this bag without a pattern. Without making a muslin first. Or thinking about pesky things like how tall I wanted it, or how deep. And it was new! And exciting! And I wasted a bunch of fabric! But I keep telling myself that that is okay. I had fun doing it.

I love this fabric by Timeless Treasures. It is called "Allover Trees". I wanted to feature it in a bag with a linen-look but without the linen price. I used osnaburg from my local Joann's, and I really like how it turned out. It's soft and squishy. To me it looks just like linen. The next time I will add some kind of interfacing to make it a bit more substantial, shorten the handles, and line it with a more neutral color. This is my first attempt at patchwork. I used three different fabrics to frame the tree fabric. The patchwork was time intensive, but I think well worth the effort.

I even made my first zipper pocket, thanks to a tutorial from Natalie at Cinderberry Stitches! (And look! My first links too!)

I'm back!

Molly at Multnomah Falls on the Columbia Gorge

Let's see.

Things have changed.

My family and I moved. We now live in Vancouver, Washington. We're enjoying an early spring (oh flowers and smelly plants how I love thee)! We are currently living in a house 4 times the size we used to- therefore, I have a CRAFT ROOM of my very own. It is lovely lovely lovely. And our family is also expecting a new little one very soon. Which is kind of funny because...

Lately I have felt like hopping back on the blogging - wagon. I continue to follow (way too many) wonderful blogs by so many talented crafty women (and two men). I am so inspired, I have been sewing! Crocheting! Beading! But...I know in a very short while, I will be looking for 2-5 minutes to sew or create something instead of having small parts of the day to do the same. And blogging? Oh dear. Well, I am going to try!

I Used to Blog in My Head

So, a new blog.  

I discovered blogs shortly after my daughter was born. Reading about other wonderful crafters and moms out there made me feel not so alone in my first days as a mama.

I've been blogging in my head for about a year now.  

A little about me...

I live in Alaska.  Anchorage, Alaska.  I am married to Marshall, and have a two year old daughter named Molly. Before she was born, I decided to stay home with her. Every day is an adventure!

I love to craft.  Making jewelry and sewing are my two favorites.  I am still figuring out both of these things.

I also like commas, a lot.  And exclamation marks.  I am restraining myself, I know it's hard to tell. I can't say I'll use them correctly.  But I'll try!