My Crafty Side

Surviving Cancer~ Guest Blogger

2012-01-24T21:56:00.000-06:00

It's almost the anniversary of my niece Emmy's diagnosis of cancer. She was not even 3 years old when my sister called me to tell me this news. Today she is almost 5 years old. She has been cancer free since September 2010. We are so thankful for that.

Today I have a guest blogger here with us to talk about the importantace of Surving Cancer by Staying Fit. His name is David Haas. You can find more about him here. Since Emmy's diagnosis our whole family is striving to do more to get in better health. So when Mr. Haas contacted me about being a guest blogger here and writing an article, I thought it was a great opportunity to share it here with you.

Surviving Cancer by Staying Fit

Cancer is a complex illness. Because cancer cells grow in numerous locations throughout the body, cancerous diseases present many symptoms. Furthermore, cancer cells often metastasize, or spread to different locations via the bloodstream. As a result, many of the drug-based mesothelioma treatments used against cancer have unpredictable side effects. For a large majority of patients, such treatments are completely unsatisfactory, especially considering their limited gains.

Even though these factors make diseases like mesothelioma seem dire, there are plenty of natural aids for patients who want to improve their situations. Fitness is one of these. Without a healthy body, you can't fight disease, and if you don't exercise, it's harder to stay healthy. Although many people with terminal illnesses feel that their sicknesses prevent them from exercising properly, this view is often incorrect. Rest is important, but your body also needs exertion.

There's no better time to exercise than when you're sick, because in most cases, doing so will help you get better quicker. Even though taking a few minutes to hop on a bike or take a walk on a regular basis may not cure you, it will increase the rate at which your body can heal itself. Cancer, as noted earlier, affects many types of tissue and various different body functions. This makes it harder to fight with targeted treatments. Most of the typical medical treatments for cancer incorporate drug cocktails or therapies that attack cells all over the body. While this may seem like a bit much, it's actually similar to how your immune system works.

Your immune system sends white blood cells to fight viruses and cancerous cells wherever they occur, and its capacity to battle disease is largely a function of your metabolism. If you eat healthier foods and keep yourself strong with a regular exercise program, your body will generate more of the resources its immune cells need to combat illnesses. These include the energy-giving molecules you derive from food as well as the enzymes and nutrient compounds your body requires to grow healthy cells.

Even though cancer cells often disrupt the inner workings of your immune system, the message is clear. Using exercise to stay healthy is one of the best ways to increase your chances of cancer survival. Unlike modern medical treatments, exercise doesn't attack the healthy cells along with cancerous ones, making it a far more livable alternative.

Thank you Mr. David Haas for sharing your article with us. Even though Emmy is still very young, my sister has started a routine with Emmy to keep her as healthy as possible. Emmy eats healthy and drinks lots of water every day. She is a very active little girl. We know this will help Emmy as she gets older.

Here is a picture of Emmy right before her last chemo treatment.

And here is Emmy today.

Too much time off.....

2011-06-05T13:28:00.000-05:00

Well not really. But I haven't blogged in almost a year and I'm sorry.

A lot has happened in a years time. My now 4 year old niece finished her chemo for kidney cancer and is cancer free!!!! I started a facebook page for Emmy Emmy's Hope My husband deployed to Afghanistan for a year and has returned home to us safe and sound! My kids are another year older. And I hit the big 3 - 0......lol But it's been a fun year and we need to catch up. Here are a few pictures from the last year. I promise to get back into blogging because I've been doing a lot of crafting.

See ya soon

Emmy

Teacher gifts

We took a picture a day while Daddy was away

Our Hero came home!!!!

Purse/Diaper Bag Tutorial

2010-06-14T01:37:00.000-05:00

**This is Picture Heavy** Please before you begin, read all the way through the tutorial!!!

This Purse/Diaper bag comes from necessity. When I would go out shopping with my little man I found it hard to juggle him, his diaper bag and my purse. My purse was not big enough to carry my little man's essentials and my things got lost in his diaper bag. So I set off to figure out a solution and came up with this.

Since then, I've made a few changes. But mostly the bag has stayed the same. I made this one a couple months ago.

My hubby is in the Army and had asked me several times when I was going to make a bag like this. I know some people don't agree with using ACU's to make purses, but my hubby continually asked me to make one. It isn't made out of his uniform, it's made out of ACU fabric, but I love it and carry it every day.

And here's the latest addition to the Purse/Diaper Bag family.

I'm going to show you how I made this one. I hope you can understand it. If not feel free to email me and I will help out where I can.

First gather your supplies.

1 1/2 yrds for Exterior
1 1/2 yrds for Interior
1 yd Fusible Fleece
1 piece of 3/4 to 1 inch wide elastic measuring 17" long
Thread
Scissors
Fabric marker

Pattern pieces:

Front/Back 18 x 13
Cut 2 of Exterior
Cut 2 of Interior
Cut 2 of Fusible Fleece

Bottom 7 x 11
Cut 1 of Exterior
Cut 1 of Interior
Cut 1 of Fusible Fleece

Bottom Border 4 x 18
Cut 2 of Interior

Straps 6 x 44 (or your desired length)
Cut 2 of Exterior

Strap Trim 3 x 44 (This is optional, but should be the same length as your straps)
Cut 2 of Interior

Inside Pocket 8 x 22
Cut 1 of Interior

Inside Pocket Border 5 x 22
Cut 1 of Exterior

Outside Pocket 7 x 8
Cut 1 of Exterior

Outside Pocket Border 3 x 7
Cut 1 of Interior

Ok that should be all of your measurements and cuts. Sorry it's a long list.

Cut all of your pieces.

**All seams are 1/2 inch unless otherwise noted**

First you're going to sew the Outside Pocket to the Outside Pocket Border

Next sew the Inside Pocket to the Inside Pocket Border just like you did your Outside Pocket.

Next we go to the ironing board. Please excuse my ironing board cover.

First iron your pocket seams. Then fold the border over 1/2 inch and iron

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Fold border down to cover your seam line and iron. The outside should look like this.

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Do the same for the Inside Pocket.

Next we are going to iron the straps.

Lay your strap right side down.

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Next fold your strap in half and iron

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Open your strap up and fold one side in about an inch and iron all the way down. Do both sides like this.

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Fold your strap back in half and iron once more. It should look like this.

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Your going to iron your strap trim the same way except you want your sides to meet in the middle.

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Make sure after your iron your sides to the middle, you iron the trim in half just like your strap.

Next you are going to iron your Bottom Border pieces. Fold over 1/2 inch and iron just one side. Do this for both Bottom Border pieces.

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Next iron your fusible fleece to the two Exterior pieces and to your Exterior bottom piece following the manufacturers instructions.

We are now going to sew the Inside pocket. Take your inside pocket and lay it out flat.

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Fold over once

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Then fold over once more. You can iron it if you want, but we are going to be sewing this in place.

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I like to put my presser foot right up along side the edge of the fabric and use it as a guide for the sewing. Sew across the the pocket.

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This is what it should look like when you are finished.

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Now take your Outside Pocket. Fold it over

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Sew across the border just like you did with the Inside pocket.
Next turn over to right side and sew across the top using your fabric edge as your guide.

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Next you are going to sew the straps. Use your fabric edge as your guide and sew up the sides.

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When you get to one end....make sure to leave your needle in and just turn.

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Sew up that side. Do the same for the other strap.

Now take your Strap trim
Center it between your Strap sew lines

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Sew it onto your strap using the same steps as you did for the straps.

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Do both straps. And set aside.

Next we are going to grab one Front/Back piece and one Bottom Border piece

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Grab the Outside Pocket.....measure 5 1/2 inches from the side and 2 1/2 inches from the top and place your pocket.

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Pin in place.

Take one strap and measure 4 inches from the sides and 3 inches from the bottom of your Front/Back piece and pin in place.

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Pin your Bottom border piece in place.

Sew across the top of your Bottom Border piece.

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Next sew the straps. I use the already sewn lines as my guide. Sew to 2 inches below the top edge of the Front/Back piece.

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You should now have something that looks like this.

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Sew your other Front/Back piece following the same steps except you don't have to worry about the pocket. Just use the side and bottom measurements and sew your Bottom Border and Strap in place.

Now place the two Front/Back sides right sides together and pin in place. Make sure to match up Bottom Borders. Sew up each side.

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Next take your Bottom piece and find the center by folding in half and pressing.

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Match the center of the Bottom piece to the side seams. And pin in place.

Sew each side starting and stopping 1/2 inch away from the edge.

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Now pin and sew the other two sides.

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You should now have something that looks like this.

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Next take your piece of elastic...I put a safety pin through one side and run it through the casing of the Inside Pocket. Make sure to secure one end before pulling it all the way through.

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Pull your elastic the rest of the way through and secure that end by sewing in place.

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Pin your Inside pocket to one of your Interior Front/ Back pieces. Make sure you match bottoms...you will have about a 2 inch space left at the top. You need to make pleats at the bottom because of the elastic. See picture below.

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Baste your pleats in place.

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Also baste the part where the elastic sits.

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Now if you want to sew dividers into your pockets measure over 6 inches from each side and sew a straight like all the way down from the top of the pocket to the bottom. You can make your own measurements for the reason of the pocket. Mine are for diapers so I measured 6 inches from each side to make 3 dividers.

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You should now have something that looks like this.

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Now place your other Interior Front/Back piece on top of this piece (right sides together) , pin in place and sew.

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Next you are going to sew your Bottom piece on the same way your sewed your Exterior Bottom piece in place. Find the center of your Bottom Piece. Match center with side seam. Pin in place and sew 1/2 inch from each edge.

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Now sew up the other two sides.

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Now you are ready to place your Interior into your Exterior. Make sure you have wrong sides together.

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You're going to pin your two pieces together. I fold my pieces over about an inch and pin together.

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Can you believe you're almost finished. I know this is a long process, but it's worth it!!!!

Now you are going to top stitch around your purse. I start on the back side and go around. Make sure when you get to the straps, you lay them down and sew over them.

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Once you meet your starting point you are finished!!!!! Can you believe it? lol

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It really is a great bag. And I know it looks really hard, but it's really easy to make. I hope you got through it. And if you have any questions what-so-ever please just email me.

~Tracie

Thank a Soldier

2010-05-31T13:23:00.000-05:00

Today is Memorial Day. Remember the Soldiers, the Veterans, and those who paid the ultimate price....Remember the Fallen. We will NEVER forget. So today.....take the time to Thank a Soldier.

We are missing our Soldier today as he is on his 3rd deployment.

Sorry

2010-04-03T12:39:00.000-05:00

I just wanted to say sorry for the lack of posting.

The last few weeks have been very trying for our family.

My husband is leaving for a deployment soon. And we just found out that my 2 1/2 yr old niece has cancer. It's been a wild ride so far.

Please say a prayer for our family. It would be greatly appreciated. And I promise to be back real soon.

~Tracie

Do you feel guilty???

2010-01-28T14:26:00.001-06:00

I have a question. Do you feel guilty when you make yourself something? For some reason or other, I do. I absolutely love to make things for other people, but when it comes time for me to make something for myself I feel guilty that I'm not giving it to someone.

Yes I know I may sound crazy, but that's just me. Anyways....remember the stroller bag that I have made? Well my little man and I have outgrown that bag. I love that bag…..I used it A LOT!!!! But now that little man is 1 year old, we don’t use the stroller that often.

So move onto my dilemma. I needed a bag to carry little man’s necessities plus my own. It’s hard to wrangle a one year old and hold onto a purse and a diaper bag at the same time.

After a few tweaks I came up with this bag. Please excuse the photos.

It holds, as you can see……diapers and wipes case in one pocket (with elastic), my wallet and planner, three bottles and formula holder(he was still on formula when I made this) and what you can’t see is his cheerios container with his snacks. The front of the bag has a pocket to hold my keys and it has a magnetic snap to keep it closed so nothing falls out. I really like it. It was really easy to make too.

I only felt guilty for a few minutes, lol. Because after all I really needed this bag.

Tell me what you think of it. As soon as life slows down a little I’m going to try to write a tutorial for this bag and the stroller bag.

~Tracie

Handmade Christmas : Nintendo DS Case

2009-12-23T11:22:00.001-06:00

This year the only thing my girls asked for this Christmas was Nintendo DS’s. After we shopped around for a few months we found the ones we wanted. I then went on a search for cute cases or bags to put them in. I found none. So I decided to make one. I searched the internet for a pattern, but didn’t find any that I liked. Luckily my neighbor’s little girl has a DS and I was able to measure hers to get a pattern. Here is what I came up with. Excuse my ironing board cover. Each bag has my daughters initials on them. Tell me what you think.

~Tracie

Handmade Christmas: Photo Blocks

2009-12-16T01:56:00.001-06:00

My mom loves taking pictures of us and our kids. I can honestly say I can relive my childhood through photos because my mom took so many.

If you could see her walls, they are covered with pictures. This year for Christmas I wanted to make her something using our family photos. I found this tutorial at Little Birdie Secrets the other day and couldn’t pass it up. Please go check it out for yourself. It was so fun and easy to do. I did four photo blocks in under an hour. When I had my photos printed, I photo-shopped the kids names in their pictures.

Here are mine….tell me what you think.

~Merry Christmas

Tracie

Handmade Christmas: Fleece Scarf

2009-11-12T14:58:00.001-06:00

I found this great Fleece Scarf Tutorial over at Make It and Love It. Let me tell you, Ms. Ashley is one very creative lady. I love her website and check it daily. She has some really great ideas and I’m sure I’ll be using more of her tutorials for my Handmade Christmas.

For now…here is the fleece scarf.

This was by far the easiest sewing/craft project I’ve done.
You seriously need to try these. Go visit Ashley at Make It and Love It and give it a go.

Have a blessed day~

~Tracie

Having a Handmade Christmas

2009-11-10T09:37:00.001-06:00

This Holiday season I will be featuring tutorials and patterns that I have used to make handmade Christmas gifts. I can’t wait to share them all with you. I am no where near finished with some of these Christmas gifts, but I will be showing you the ones I have finished as I go.

I really hope you enjoy these and try a few yourselves.

~Tracie

Halloween

2009-10-08T08:20:00.001-05:00

Growing up my mom didn’t really allow us to celebrate Halloween. Sure we were able to Trick or Treat, but that was it. No Halloween decorations or parties.

Well since being married and having our own house I’ve always decorated for Halloween. My kids love it, I love it. It’s win win.

Here are some decorations we made this year. Enjoy and please let me know what you think.

Happy Halloween Banner

Our ghosts and ghouls made out of formula cans.

The Boo Banner

Trick or Treat Banner

My little man with his pumpkins.

My kiddos at the Pumpkin Farm.

~Tracie

I was tagged…..

2009-09-21T23:01:00.001-05:00

I got "tagged" by Small Fry & Co. with an Honest Scrap award.
This is so cool because I’ve never received a Blog award. WooHoo. Thank You so much!!!! I’m super excited. Here are the instructions for what I am supposed to do now:

In accepting this award, I need to do the following:

1) Say thanks and give a link to the presenter of the award.

2) Share "ten honest things" about myself.

3) Present this award to 7 others whose blogs I find brilliant in content and/or design, or those who have encouraged me.

4) Tell those 7 people that they've been awarded HONEST SCRAP and inform them of these guidelines in receiving.

I will start with my 10 honest things

1. I’m an Army wife and I honestly love it. Wouldn’t change a thing.

2. I am allergic to dairy.

3. I have the same middle name as my mom.

4. I actually alphabetize our DVD’s. Hey they are easier to find..

5. I am not a morning person at all, but my son is.

6. I would love to go to Paris, France.

7. I can’t dance that well, but I can make my kids laugh while I try.

8. I wear flip flops year round. I hate sneakers.

9. I do not like making my bed, but can’t stand it if it’s messy.

10. I could sew 24/7 and never grow tired of it.

I’m going to tag a couple of people. Mainly because I don’t know many in the blogging world just yet.

But I’m tagging

Stacey@Libby & Co.
Traci@Amazing Mae
Char@Crap I've Made

There are a ton more blogs that inspire me, but my computer is being crazy right now and I can’t access them.

Thank you again Small Fry & Co. for the award. You are inspiring too!!!!!

~Tracie

What I’ve been up to…..

2009-09-14T14:16:00.001-05:00

I’ve actually been sewing.

I made some curtains (only one is pictured)

I made a friend of mine a Stroller Bag. She is having her third baby girl any day now.

The sides are made with Chenille, so soft.

And the flower too!!!

And since we now have hard wood floors (well sort of hard wood) I made my little man some Baby legs. I got the tutorial from here. My little man likes them and I’m sure his poor little knees appreciate them too.

Hope you all are having a great September. Can you believe it’s September already? I sure can’t.

~Tracie

We will never forget....

2009-09-11T14:55:00.002-05:00

I still remember that day like it was yesterday.

Please remember those who lost their lives 8 years ago today and the families they left behind.

We will never forget!!

Moving kind of stinks

2009-08-20T10:51:00.001-05:00

Yes we are still in the process of moving. And yes it stinks.

I am however very Thankful that we have house. We found out about a week ago.

We have enjoyed visiting family. I have even been able to sew. I’ll have pictures of that later on.

For now here are some pictures of my home state of West Virginia.

Enjoy

My family standing in front of the New River Gorge Bridge

And just the bridge.

Here’s a picture of our house!

I hope to be back soon with crafting pictures.

~Tracie

Crayon Apron Tutorial

2009-07-31T09:44:00.001-05:00

If your kids are like mine they love to color. They lose their crayons quite often. I made a Crayon apron to see if that would help out with the loss of crayons. So far, so good.

Supplies needed

1 piece of fabric 8 inches wide x 18 inches long for the crayon pocket
2 pieces of fabric 10 x 18 for the front and back
1 piece of nylon webbing 1 x 18

First step…take your 8 x 18 piece of fabric for the crayon pocket and fold it in half. Iron it in place. After you iron it stitch across the folded edge.

Next you want to make your crayon pockets.
Take your ruler and mark 1 1/8 inch marks like so.

After you are finished making your marks. Take the front piece of fabric and lay it right side face up. Place your crayon pocket on top of it and pin in place.

Following your markings start sewing your crayon pockets.

Here’s what it should look like when you are finished sewing all your pockets.

Next take your webbing fold over edge and sew.

Front

Back

Next basted your webbing to the back piece of fabric.

Lay that piece on top of your crayon pocket piece.

Pin those two pieces together. Sew all sides, but make sure you leave a hole in one side so you can turn it inside out. Make sure you can fit your hand in it. Be careful not to sew up your webbing into the side seams.

After you have sewn up the sides, turn it inside out. I iron mine to get it nice and flat. Pin the hole closed, and top stitch all the way around your apron.

You’re finished!!!!!!

You should have something like this.

Enjoy and have a blessed day!

~Tracie

ps. This will be my last tutorial for a little while. Our household goods are currently in transit to a new Army post. If you are the praying kind, please say a prayer for my family and I while we move. We really appreciate it!!!!

My first Stroller Bag

2009-07-26T23:29:00.001-05:00

As I was reading my blog comments (Thank you so much for those), Small Fry & Co. asked if this was something I came up with. No it’s not entirely my idea. But I can tell you the story.

When I had my daughters I remember how hard it was to get their diaper bag out of the basket of the stroller. There I would be with a screaming baby wanting to be fed or changed and me digging around in the basket of the stroller trying to pull the diaper bag out. Then if I did get the diaper bag out, I would have no place to sit it other than the floor. Not very sanitary. I started carrying their stuff around in a backpack which just led to more messes. I was a very thankful Momma when I didn’t need a diaper bag anymore. Fast forward five years. I find out I’m pregnant with my son. The search for the perfect diaper bag began. I searched the internet for months. I couldn’t find anything I liked or anything that would seem to solve the problem I had with previous diaper bags. Then one day I find this one. I like the concept. But the bag was not pretty or functional to me. So I decided I would try to make one.

The first stroller bag I made was for my sister. She and I actually found out we were pregnant about two weeks apart. Our due dates were a month apart. My sister loves everything cowboys. So when I found the fabric I knew it was for her.

My sister’s bag has two outside pockets for sippy cups or bottles, an inside pocket, and a key fob attached to the bag.

(The inside)

Now to date I’ve only made a total of ten bags. Two of which are my own. I wish I had taken pictures of all them, but I didn’t. So far I haven’t had any complaints about the bag though. I have modified the bag a few times per request, but that’s it. The most recent ones I’ve made have a shoulder strap for easier carrying (because if you don’t use your stroller they strap to shopping carts too), and a removable bottom for easier washing and drying.

Here are two more that I recently made.

This one is for my sister-in-law. My nephew is just two weeks old.

(the inside)

(the added shoulder strap)

And here is the one I made for my cousin. Her son is 15 months old, but still loves her stroller and asked me to make her one. It’s made of Arcadia fabric from Moda. I made it out of 7 fat quarters!

(the inside)

(the shoulder strap)

I love making these and love using mine. Believe it or not, but my hubby likes using it too.

ps. I really hope this all made sense. We are in the process of moving to another Army post and I’ve been packing up our clothing and necessities all day.

Hope you all are having a blessed evening.

~Tracie

T-shirt Dress Tutorial

2009-07-21T23:55:00.001-05:00

I’ve seen these dresses everywhere. I have been wanting to make one for awhile now, so when I saw this cute polka dot fabric I knew I could do it.

These can be made for any size. Adult or child. I made one for my niece. The shirt I used was a 3T. To get the fabric measurements you go by the measurements of the person and of the t-shirt you use.

First I measured an inch from the arm pit of the shirt.

Draw a line to match the dots and then cut your shirt across that line. Hold on to your bottom piece of t-shirt.

Next cut the fabric for the skirt bottom of your dress. My t-shirt measures 11 inches across. Therefore I want my bottom fabric to be around 25 inches. I just doubled the measurement and added a few inches so I could get extra pleats. For the length I cut the fabric 24 inches. To get that measurement, measure from under the arm to the desired length and add an inch for seams allowance.

My skirt bottom fabric piece is 25 x 24. You will need two pieces.

Now onto the sewing.

Place your skirt bottom pieces right sides together and sew along the sides with a 1/2 inch seam allowance.

Sorry I don’t have a picture of that process.

Next I used a zigzag stitch to secure my seams.

After that you want to create your hem.
On the bottom of your skirt piece fold up 1/4 inch and iron all the way around the bottom. Then fold over again and iron once more.

Then you want to stitch up that hem. Stitch very close to the open end of your hem.

Next on the top of your skirt bottom, you can do a Gather stitch or you can do what I do and just “gather” it with pins. Pin your skirt bottom to the t-shirt. Make sure you match side seams and centers.

Now sew your skirt bottom to your t-shirt top. Make sure if you do your “gather” stitch like me, to take out your pins before you sew over them.

When you are finished attaching your top to the bottom do the zigzag stitch like you did before.

The next step is totally optional, but I think it makes the dress look more put together. I top stitched the front of the dress where the skirt meets the t-shirt. I did my stitching right on top of the t-shirt.

This next step is another option. Because I was making this for my 2 yr old niece, I added a fabric flower.

I cut two circles out of the polka dot fabric and one out of the t-shirt fabric. If you do this, make sure they are all different sizes.

Stitch those pieces together.

Next place it where you want it to go on your dress and stitch it on.

Guess what??? You are finished after that step.

If you made it through that I seriously want to congratulate you. When I make stuff I take a lot of pictures just so I can remember how I did it. I’m visual. But if you tried this I hope you had fun at it and I would love to see it.

Have a blessed day!!

~Tracie

Reverse Child’s Apron

2009-07-18T00:31:00.001-05:00

My kids love aprons. Honestly I don’t know why. I don’t even own one myself. I made them a couple half aprons (look for that tutorial later), but they asked me to make them full aprons.

Now if you read my last post you know my sewing supplies were packed up. I unpacked it today. I had to do something. I let my kids pick out the fabric, but they fought over who got what color. That’s when I decided to make the aprons reversible.

My oldest daughter has a play apron she received for her birthday last year. Since it still fits her pretty good I decided to just trace that apron to get a pattern.

Cutting out the fabric and sewing only took me around an hour.
I had a yard of each fabric and was able to get two full sized aprons and two half aprons.

Here are a couple pictures. Sorry they are bad.

Purple side

Pink side

Here are a couple pictures of the half aprons I made for them the other day.

Hope you all have a wonderful weekend.

~Tracie

Got formula???

2009-07-17T14:12:00.001-05:00

My son drinks a lot of formula. We buy the powered kind that comes in these little cans.

These cans add up real quick. The recycling center here does not take them and I honestly didn’t like throwing them away. So I pulled out my fabric scraps and some of this…

And came up with this…

So far I have covered 6. Three are for a friend. Three are sitting on our dining room table. My girls have pencils in one, antibacterial hand cream in another, and the last one holds packs of gum.

~Tracie

Liquid Stitch

2009-07-16T23:37:00.001-05:00

So…we are moving. The movers will be here in less than two weeks to pack up our belongings and put them on a truck to our new destination. I’m thrilled to be moving. Just not too thrilled about the process. Which brings up the subject line above. Most of my craft stuff is packed up. My hubby told me to get all of my sewing needs out of the way last week. Seriously??? That’s like telling me I can’t drink water or something, lol. I finished the last of my projects up and left it at that. Fast forward to today when I go to put my jeans on. They have those button pockets. I really don’t like the button pockets, but when Gap has jeans on sale for $20 you buy them, especially if they are in your size.Since the edges stick up, I don’t like to wear them. My first thought was to sew down the edges. But since most of my stuff is packed up I couldn’t change my sewing needle. So off to the store I went to find a “fix”. And believe me I found one.

Liquid stitch. Right now I really love this stuff. LOVE IT!!!!
I followed the instructions printed on the back and Voila my pockets no long stick out.

The right one has Liquid Stitch the left pocket doesn’t.

It says to allow 24 hours drying time. Well it’s only been a few hours, but these pockets aren’t going anywhere.

Another good thing about this product….it can’t be shipped.
Since it’s a liquid form, the movers are not a lot to pack it. YAY!

~Tracie

Another Stroller Bag

2009-07-14T14:38:00.001-05:00

A friend of mine is having a baby boy soon. It took me 2 weeks to decide on fabric. The fabric is from Anna Maria Horner’s fabric line. I really like it.

How about you?

I hung it on my son’s bed so you can see how it works. It was raining. Why is it always raining when I need pictures?

The side with pockets for bottles and the strap for carrying on your shoulder.

And the inside of the bag.

Enjoy.

~Tracie

Sew Love Fabrics- Etsy Shop

2009-06-23T11:42:00.001-05:00

Before I found Etsy, the only place I bought fabrics from was…….you know that big fabric store that starts with a J…... I honestly would walk in there and be overwhelmed by the selection. I would change my mind one too many times and would often walk out without any fabric.

So one day I decided to search Etsy. It’s so much easier to browse fabric on your computer. The shop owners’, who sell fabric on Etsy, really do put a lot of thought and detail into their listings.

I typed in my search for Andalucia by Patty Young. There I came across Sew Love Fabrics. Ms. Ruth had such a great selection and great prices. But I will admit I was afraid to make the purchase. I had never ordered designer fabric online before. I had never bought designer fabric at all. I wondered if the pictures showed the true colors. I wondered about the quality. But those questions were answered when I read through her feedback, which is pretty outstanding. My mind was put at ease and I decided to buy the fabrics.

I can’t explain my anticipation that I had waiting for my fabrics to arrive. To me the fabric designers are like celebrities. I read their blogs and websites. To me they are famous.

When my packaged arrived I looked like a kid in a candy store. The fabrics were wrapped up and tied with a bow and placed in a cute plastic bag. Tied to the fabrics I had ordered were five charms, a surprise gift. The fabrics were more than I had hoped for. I know some may say that’s crazy, talking about fabric that way. But for me I love fabric. It holds possibilities that you get to mold it into.

So if you are looking for a great selection of designer fabric at great prices. Please look up Ms. Ruth at Sew Love Fabrics. She is very nice and will answer questions that you may have. Oh and she also has a great blog that I follow called Let Me Sew Love. So check out Sew Love Fabrics. Not only does she sell fabric, but she sells sewing patterns and the cute bags that she ships fabric in.

I hope you all have a blessed day

~Tracie

Kid’s Messenger Bag Picture heavy

2009-06-09T11:18:00.001-05:00

We move around a lot. About every two or three years my husband is assigned to a different Army post. We just found out that my husband was assigned to a new post. We have to move in about 2 months. Fun, huh?

My kids are always complaining about having to carry around a big backpack with their stuff in it. So I decided to try and make them a Messenger bag. I have some more tweaking to do. But they like them and are already carrying them around the house stuffed full of clothes and other stuff.

Here are a few pictures. Tell me what you think. My husband says I should have made them two different colors. But because I’m super low on fabric I had to make them this way.

~Tracie

Finished product

2009-06-08T11:36:00.001-05:00

Here are both pictures framed. I was only about to get 8 x 10’s. It would have taken over two weeks for the prints to get here if I had ordered anything larger. I’m impatient so I just ordered 8 x 10’s.

Tell me what you think.

My Dad’s

My hubby’s

~Tracie

Father’s Day…

2009-06-03T22:10:00.001-05:00

is right around the corner. Thanks to Brassy Apple, we now have a fabulous Father’s day present. I’m sharing the one I made for my Dad. My hubby is nosey so I can’t make his until I can hide it. So here is my Dad’s photo. My kids call my Dad “Pawpaw”. And I have to say he is the best Dad and Pawpaw ever. He has done so much for me and my kids.

He rode a Grey Hound bus round trip from West Virginia to Colorado just to help me move. He and my mom moved to Colorado to live with me for 3 yrs while my hubby was deployed. My Dad is my own personal car mechanic. And even though we weren’t close when I was younger, my Dad is now my rock. When I need someone to talk to I just call my Dad. He always listens. I Love You Dad!!!!

And now onto the picture. I need help deciding the size I should have it printed at. I made it big enough to be printed up to a 20 x 30. So please help me decide.

Ps. Click the picture for the best view!!!!

~Tracie

Who can craft…..

2009-05-28T09:44:00.001-05:00

with faces like these starring at you?

~Tracie

Memorial Day

2009-05-25T23:36:00.001-05:00

This is a “pieced together” picture of the Traveling Vietnam Wall.
Last summer my husband had the privilege of working with the great guys who set the wall up. He took me and our daughters to see it after it was set up. It was very moving to see.

The names are great in number.

I remembering watching one gentleman. He was a few panels in front of us. I was trying not to be nosey, but he turned his head back at us, I guess to see how far away we were. There were tears in his eyes. I’m sure he found a family member, friend, or fallen comrade. All I could do was watch as he placed his hand on the wall.

I know I am late, but I want to say a Thank you to all of our service men and women for their service. Thank you to those who have given us freedom and to those who protect that freedom. Thank you just doesn’t seem like it’s enough.

My hubby is in the Army.

This is us the day he came home from his second tour in Iraq. Around 100 soldiers came home that day. The last of their unit. There were a lot of other family members there to pick up their soldiers too. But when I finally found him in the crowd, it seemed like it was just the two of us. His uniform was smelly. He hadn’t showered for days, but I didn’t care. He was home, in my arms, safe and sound.

I want to add a special Thank You to the families of past and present service members. Even with today’s conveniences, I still found it hard to deal with deployments. But can you imagine how the families did it during WWI, WWII, The Vietnam War? They received letters. Not emails or phone calls. I can’t imagine the strength it took to get through those days.

There’s a lot of give and take and compromise, but we are Military families. We march on.

Thank you to every Military service member out there. We are so Thankful for you and your family.

~Tracie

Tutorial How to make a Soothie Pacifier Keeper

2009-05-14T22:19:00.002-05:00

My little man will be 4 months old tomorrow. I can’t believe it. But call me silly, I made him a new pacifier keeper for the 4 month mark.

If your baby using a soothie pacifier you know how hard it is to find a pacifier keeper. Then when you find one for it, you realize it is so huge that it covers your child’s whole face.

So I made this….

Supplies:

One piece of 1/4” wide ribbon cut to 7” in length
One piece of 1” wide ribbon cut between 12” to 15” you chose the length.
One suspender clasp. They come in a pack of 2 I believe. I found mine at Joann’s.

Oh yeah and a bottle of this stuff. Fray Check

When you cut your ribbon put a dab of this stuff on it and let it dry. That way your ribbons won’t fray!!!

Let’s begin.

After the fray check has dried fold over the main ribbon 3/4”

Fold it one more time again at 3/4”

Sew it together

Thread your other piece of ribbon the that loop you just made.

After threading it through, sew the two ends of ribbon together.

Pull those ends through so they are hidden in the main ribbon. Top stitch to hold the ribbon in place.

It should look something like this.

Next thread the suspender clasp through the other end of ribbon. Make sure your ribbon is laying face down and so is your clasp.

Fold over 3/4” twice like you did on the top piece and sew it together.

You are finished sewing.

Next pull the small ribbon up through one of the holes on the pacifier.

Pull your wider ribbon through the middle of the smaller ribbon and tighten up. Now you have your very own pacifier keeper.

Enjoy and if you have any questions leave me a comment or email me at traciec19athotmaildotcom

~Tracie

Day 3 of Teacher Appreciation Week

2009-05-13T23:07:00.001-05:00

I made these Fabric Covered Notebooks from Skip To My Lou
I love these. I hope the Teachers’ enjoy them too.

(For some reason my pictures are correcting for me. So tilt your head sideways. That’s what I’m doing. LOL)

~Tracie

Day two of Teacher Appreciation Week

2009-05-13T23:03:00.001-05:00

I’m behind. Sorry…I have a sick little man at home.

Here is Day two of our Teacher Appreciation week.

Felt Postcard Thank You

Those are my daughters’ actual handprints that they drew. I traced them onto felt.

~Tracie

Teacher Appreciation

2009-05-10T22:45:00.001-05:00

Teacher Appreciation was last week, but because my hubby was sick (men are worse than kids when sick) and my little man was sick I couldn’t craft. So we chose to celebrate the teachers this week. Here is their first gift.

A Coffee Sleeve. I made 3. Emily has two teachers. Allyson has one. Each are personalized with their names.

These are so easy to make. Only take 10 minutes tops.

~Tracie

Mother’s Day

2009-05-10T22:40:00.001-05:00

I love being a Mom. It is the best job. I got lots of hugs and kisses and smiles today. I hope you had a great day too!!!!

~Tracie

It’s Finished

2009-05-06T12:17:00.001-05:00

I finally finished my Mom’s Mother’s Day present. It will probably get to her a day late (sorry mom), but it’s finished. I hope she likes it.

I would have had this finished last week, but while quilting, I jammed a needle half way through my finger. Funny thing was (well at the time) I didn’t even know I had injured myself. All I remember was taking a break and seeing blood. Thankfully now you can’t even tell I did anything. I had a bruise and a little hole for a few days, but now my finger has healed.

And now onto the finished piece. Please tell me what you think. Oh and before I forget. My dad requested that it not be a hanging quilt. LOL. My mom loves to hang everything she possibly can, so he asked me to make it so they could lay it on the back of their couch.

~Tracie

Family Quilt Pt.1

2009-04-23T22:28:00.001-05:00

So I decided to go the fabric route. And well…let’s just say, I probably won’t be making more than one of these.

I’m not a quilter. It’s not that I don’t like to do it. I would rather quilt by hand than by machine. But now, I have kiddos and time doesn’t permit me to quilt by hand. So…here is the first part of the quilt.

My borders aren’t even, but I’m working on that. My blue background is a little too dark, but I like it. And the leaves are coming. I’m sewing the names on them now.

Tell me what you think of it so far. I would love to hear.

~Tracie

Decisions….decisions….

2009-04-19T21:57:00.001-05:00

I drew this up.

I want to make something for my mom for Mother’s Day.
This is my version of a family tree quilt. On the leaves of the tree I want to write the members of my immediate family.
I wanted to make this out of fabric. Kind of do a mini hanging wall quilt. She loves stuff like that. I figure I can make the leaves 3-D so I can add more later (if my sister has more children).

But then my hubby suggested I paint it instead. He thinks I will be in a time crunch. But trust me, when I set my mind out to make something, it gets done in less than a week.

What do you think???? Better on fabric or canvas????

~Tracie

Home…

2009-04-16T23:19:00.001-05:00

We recently went “home” for Spring Break. I call it “home” because we are an Army family, but that will always be our home. It’s where I grew up, married, and where two of our three kids were born. Thankfully we now only live 6 hours from there.

While visiting I like to go on drives to see how much the town has changed. What’s new, what’s not there anymore. Things like that. Surprisingly they finally opened a Starbucks and Sonic. That’s a big deal for the city I grew up in. LOL.

I found this little fabric store while I was there. It’s placed in a log cabin, smells like cinnamon, and was fully stocked with lots of fabric. Yay!!! I bought some fat quarters while there. Unfortunately I didn’t have my camera with me to take a picture of the store. But when I arrived back at my parent’s house, I took a picture of my loot. They even have “prim” bags. Too cute. Oh and the fat quarters were wrapped up with raffia. Take a look. Now I’m trying to figure out what to make with them. Any ideas???

~Tracie

In action

2009-04-16T23:17:00.001-05:00

Here are the skirts and shirts to match in action.

~Tracie

Stroller Bag

2009-04-03T00:06:00.001-05:00

I’ve only made six of these, but I absolutely love them. And it seems I add a new feature each time. Here is the latest addition. I wish I had a picture of it hanging on the stroller, but it was raining today. This bag has velcro handles and attaches to the stroller handle. I got tired of bending over to get something out of my diaper bag while it was in the bottom basket of the stroller. I thought this would be more handy. Boy do we love it. It can even hang on shopping carts. A friend of mine attached hers to the back of a chair.

Mine is packed full….diapers, wipes, changing pad, clothes, bottles, etc. It even has pockets on the outside for sippy cups or cell phones (that’s what I use mine for).

Enjoy and tell me what you think.

~Tracie

Skirt from scraps

2009-04-02T23:59:00.001-05:00

I made this skirt for my niece with leftovers from the other two skirts. I think it turned out cute. When the girls’ have their skirts and shirts on together, I’ll take a picture and post it.

~Tracie

“Whirl” (twirl) Skirt Tutorial

2009-03-28T00:10:00.001-05:00

Ok….first I want to say, please forgive me if this sounds crazy or confusing. This is my first tutorial. Also please forgive the pictures. I just have my little point and shoot.

This tutorial is picture heavy, so it may load slow. Again please forgive me if this is confusing. I tried to write the directions down as I went.

The inspiration for the skirt came from Heather Bailey's Blog. The fabric that I have used is by Patty Young. It's from the Andalucia line.

My daughters’ call this a Whirl skirt. But most call it a Twirl skirt.

Materials

1 yd main body (in my photos its the flower print)
1 yd solid fabric (the white fabric)
1 yd accent fabric (waist band and ruffle)
Elastic

You will have fabric left over. I always buy 1 yd to be safe.

Thread. Scissors. Sewing Machine. Ruler. Fabric marker.

First you will need to decide the skirt length. I measured my daughters’ from their waists down to their knees.

Example: (These measurements fit a size 7-8 possibly 9-10 in little girls).

Waistband A (accent fabric) 6” x 30”

Skirt A (main body fabric) 14” x 41”

Waistband B (solid fabric) 6” x 30”

Skirt B (solid fabric) 8” x 41”

Ruffle (accent fabric) 6” x 41”

Make sure the fabric measurements of A and B are equal. My A fabrics equal 20 (6+14=20). My B fabrics equal 20 (6+8+6=20). For the waist measurement I added 5 to the measurement of my daughter’s waist.

The cutting:

Cut 1 of waistband A
Cut 2 of Skirt A

Cut 1 of waistband B
Cut 2 of Skirt B

Cut 2 of Ruffle

Sew together the sides of Waistband A. Then sew together Skirt A.

Do same with Waistband B, Skirt B, and Ruffle.

Iron open seams.

Take your Ruffle piece and iron 1/4” on bottom. Fold over and iron. Sew your hem in place.

Next pin your ruffle to Skirt B. Matching centers and seams. Sew together. After I sew them together I like to top-stitch on top of the ruffle. Gives it a cleaner look.

Gather the top of your skirt. I actually just pin mine by hand because my sewing machine doesn’t have the length stitch I need. But here is a great tutorial to show you how. Gather Up After you gather the top of the skirt, pin it to Waistband B. And sew in place. This is the bottom half of your skirt.

Now onto the main body. Take Skirt A and sew a hem in place just like you did for the Ruffle. After you sew the hem, gather up the top of the skirt and pin it to Waistband A. Sew in place. DO NOT TOP STITCH. This will be done later on. You should now have two pieces that look like this.

The next few steps are tricky. But no worries you will get through them.

Turn both of the pieces inside out. Pin Waistband B to main body skirt where Waistband A and Skirt A meet. Sorry I know that is confusing, but I am hoping the picture below helps.

After you get them pinned together, sew in place. Make sure Waistband A is folded down into the skirt and doesn’t get caught in your stitches. You want to sew just on the seam itself.

After you sew those two pieces together, turn your skirt right side out. Top-Stitch where Waistband A and Skirt A meet.

You should now have something that looks like this.

Next we are going to sew the casing for the elastic.

Fold over 1/4” of the waistband and iron. Fold over again until the casing is at least 1”.

Then sew in place. Leave about an inch opening so you can insert your elastic.

Cut your elastic to fit waist measurement. My daughter’s was 25 inches, so I cut my elastic to 23 inches.

Use a safety pin to insert your elastic.

After you thread your elastic through, sew the ends together.

Next sew up the hole you left for the elastic. And you are done.

Just a note

2009-03-20T23:09:00.000-05:00

Hi and welcome!!!!

This blog is my creative place. I will be posting my sewing projects and paintings (if I find time for it). I hope you enjoy your time here.

My Crafty Side

Surviving Cancer~ Guest Blogger

Too much time off.....

Purse/Diaper Bag **Tutorial**

**Thank a Soldier**

Sorry

Do you feel guilty???

Handmade Christmas : Nintendo DS Case

Handmade Christmas: Photo Blocks

Handmade Christmas: Fleece Scarf

Having a Handmade Christmas

Halloween

I was tagged…..

What I’ve been up to…..

We will never forget....

Moving kind of stinks

Crayon Apron *Tutorial*

My first Stroller Bag

T-shirt Dress *Tutorial*

Reverse Child’s Apron

Got formula???

Liquid Stitch

Another Stroller Bag

Sew Love Fabrics- Etsy Shop

Kid’s Messenger Bag **Picture heavy**

Finished product

Father’s Day…

Who can craft…..

Memorial Day

**Tutorial** How to make a Soothie Pacifier Keeper

Day 3 of Teacher Appreciation Week

Day two of Teacher Appreciation Week

Teacher Appreciation

Mother’s Day

It’s Finished

Family Quilt Pt.1

Decisions….decisions….

Home…

In action

Stroller Bag

Skirt from scraps

“Whirl” (twirl) Skirt Tutorial

Just a note

Purse/Diaper Bag Tutorial

Thank a Soldier

Crayon Apron Tutorial

T-shirt Dress Tutorial

Kid’s Messenger Bag Picture heavy

Tutorial How to make a Soothie Pacifier Keeper