Thankful day, Buy handmade!

A very warm & Thankful day to you and yours! My shop is on vacation mode to allow me time to get ready for the holidays. I may offer up a sale or coupons (so stay tuned!). So while I work on that, I hope you have a relaxing holiday and time at home. We have already had our first snowfall of the season.

my cat will be sleeping the cold days away

If you must make purchases this week, please consider buying from artisans & small businesses. When you support the arts you help them maintain a business and income. You also support hand made, sweatshop-free, entrepreneurs.

What I'm working on

Sorry I haven't shared anything for a while! I get busy, start new things and have twice weekly stuff to attend. Somehow in all this I manage to start some new work for my crafty shop.

Felt charms, in the works!

I made a charm for my purse, ever since I get compliments and questions. So I decided to make a few charms that I will sell in my etsy shop. They are inspired by some favorite animated films ~ I hope you recognize them! 

Can you guess who it is?

We are also getting ready for some Halloween fun-time! Each year there is plenty to do where we live, like corn mazes or haunted houses. There is a pretty cool jack o lantern event that - people, get this - is an hour long line to get in! But it's worth it, it's so much fun to go view. But until I have some neat photos of those, here is my cat in his dinosaur costume.

Roar, I'm a vicious snuggling kitty! 

Scalloped edge DIY shorts

Hi everyone, how are you? Summer is packing it's bags and heading out. My garden is ready to be turned down for another year. The leaves on trees are just showing signs of changing color of foliage. But before we leave summer behind, the last shorts DIY!
I had shorts I just found were too long in length. I decided it was time to make them fancy! You will need some fabric markers or chalk, an object with a round edge (such as a glass or cup), scissors and bias tape for the edge.

First, decide where on the shorts you want the scalloped edge. You may want it higher then the hem of the shorts or right on the hem - it's up to you. Next take your round edge item (I used a glass) and place it by the hem. Trace with the fabric marker/chalk to draw a half circle. Repeat this step around the leg opening.

Cut the traced scalloped edge. You can use bias tape which comes folded for you - or, I used colored lingerie elastic. You will then pin around the edge and you may: sew it by machine Or sew by hand. I did mine by hand since the elastic is a tad silky (and slipper) on the sewing machine.

sewing edge by hand

It's that simple to complete! It's a fun way to make your clothing unique and personalize. It's also resourceful and you don't need to purchase new styles. 

I hope to be involved in some craft fairs this holiday season. So I will mention where and when as that time approaches. Otherwise I have some new patterns I might be sewing and offering to customize in my Etsy shop. Until then, welcome autumn weather! Pumpkin spice everything! 

2nd video is up, spring time

Happy Spring everyone! The rain has arrived and it will surely bring May showers our way. Some thunder storms are expected in my area for the rest of this week.

April showers bring May flowers

My new YouTube channel is up and running! I added a 2nd video of a DIY bunny basket you can make. Follow this LINK to view it. You need some basic sewing knowledge and sewing machine with some flat 8" x 11" felt to work with. It's a fun project for an afternoon and you can make it from your own sketch. 

finished bunny bag

And I am on Twitter sharing my photos of my handmade items on Etsy. I've only been active a short time now but guess what? I already was noticed by an Etsy page on Twitter! They saw and liked one of my tweets ~ I feel special for just a moment!

I hope to continue to update all my social media pages for my followers and fans to enjoy. I still enjoy taking special request custom orders. You can contact me via my Etsy shop if you wanted a custom order. 

Felties and boutique!

Oh Winter, you have truly out stayed your welcome. Ice storm, snow storms the whole 'arctic' storms - we are no longer friends and you need to leave Winter! I have my fingers crossed Spring is arriving soon, I welcome the muddy season and return of birds.

So I have been up to quite a few things. My most exciting is NEWS! A local boutique has accepted a few of my items for consignment in their shop. They took 8 of my greeting cards, with my own hand drawn images - and a felt bird.

rabbit face greeting card

I drew several animal faces, then I machine stitched them to the cards - the inside I left blank. I thought it was a smart way to do sewing & drawing on one medium. I also brought in some other cards I had made with stamps I had bought, I just love cards. I love sending them, making them & receiving them. 

This same boutique also expressed interest in some other items if I make multiples of them. So some of my felt foodies, felt animals and this new felt hedgehog! I hand painted the button on this fella, I plan to make more in different colors.

felt hedgehog made by hand

And as always, I'm a complete altering-clothes junkie! It's a bit of an addiction I think *laugh!* I love finding a piece of clothing and seeing it in a new way. I tend to adjust collars a lot or the length of sleeves. And when it comes to pants I'm an expert! If you have pants that are too large the best way to adjust is take in the inseam a little. It's not too hard at all and even a beginner can do it! If you need a  visual reference just visit a blog geared towards altering pants or find good instructions (such as this one Alterations Needed). I started by altering clothes I had to fit me better. And if you want to experiment you can purchase something from a thrift store *very cheap!* and have no worries if it comes out funny.