I’m over my panic attack. I feel so silly for letting that happen to me. Crafting is supposed to be fun, but I worked myself up into a real frenzy by deciding to make most of my holiday gifts this year–and then planning too many presents for each person. I’m cutting back a little, taking care of the projects closest to completion and focusing more on enjoying the process rather than worrying about getting everything done.
Here are two gifts I finished up yesterday afternoon:
These earrings are for my mother. They’re an attempt to replicate a pair I made for her a couple of years ago. She lost them and was heartbroken. I hope they’re close enough in style to the lost and mourned for pair to make her happy!
I bet you can guess who this cute robot is for. My sweet boy, of course, who specifically asked for a robot toy. I don’t think this is exactly what he had in mind–something computerized that moves on its own and makes crazy noises–but I bet he’ll like this soft and quiet version too. A person can’t comfortably snuggle with a metal man at bedtime!
(I might hunt for the robot-of-his dreams…I just haven’t started holiday shopping, yet.)
Putting things into perspective is certainly important. I gained a fresh appreciation for this while helping Sam with his homework last night. He was tasked with writing a list of things he was grateful for. Here’s it is:
- Home
- Family
- Outerspace
- Animals
- Art
- Yummy Food
- Wiggly Tooth
- Funny Movies
- Puzzles
- Mrs. H (his teacher)
- School
- Comfy Bed
That’s a pretty fantastic list, don’t you think? I’m going to think a little more about what I’m particularly grateful for throughout the rest of my day.
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Help. I have too many projects underway right now. I feel like I’m drowning in yarn and fabric and I’m making very little headway on anything because I keep flitting from project to project. I really need to sit down and F.O.C.U.S.
I don’t even know where to begin telling you about my sewing projects. I look around this room and all I see are heaps of fabric cut into odd shapes, loose threads and pins and needles. On the knitting front, though, I have four projects. Perhaps you can help me prioritize them?
This is Cassidy, my hooded cardigan. I have five inches to go on the back. I haven’t worked on any of the other pieces yet.
This is Pascale, my beaded beret. It’s a slow, but fun project. I am a few rounds away from the more dramatic decreases. It would be nice to wear this to Montana for Thanksgiving.
This is the start of a felted teddy bear for my son, which I plan on giving to him for Christmas. If I finish this in a timely manner, I plan on making a felted hedghog for my daughter…
And this here is the start of a Yukon Leaf sock. I’ve only knit the ribbing–but the last pair of handknit socks I have in the drawer is totally worn out. I need a new pair…soon!
That’s a lot of yarn and needles to keep track of! Luckily, I finished a new bag in which to haul it all around:
This is the Pleated Beauty bag from Amy Karol’s Bend the Rules Sewing. I modified it to suit my tastes in a few ways. Instead of pleating the lining fabric, I trimmed it so it would fit smoothly inside the bag. I also sewed the handles a little differently. Instead of pressing the long edges of each piece inward and sewing them together near the folds, I sewed the pieces right-sides together and turned it right-side out. I then top-stitched each long side near the edge. This resulted in much straighter stitching.
I also designed the embroidery myself. It was loosely inspired by the accent fabric I used in the pleats.
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This is what has been depriving me of computer time for the past few days:
Yes, I finally finished this quilt, which is destined to be a Christmas present for my son. It took me a little over a year to complete 
Why so long? Hunting down the perfect fabric for each part occupied a lot of my time. I also discovered that my old sewing machine just wasn’t cut out for creating a bed-sized quilt, so I had to shop for a nicer machine–and I do love my Bernina!
Then, there was the episode where I tried to quilt the thing myself, broke four needles and injured my shoulder. As much as I wanted to do the whole thing myself, I just couldn’t. I sent it out to the Quilting Loft for long-arm quilting. I’m so glad I did! They did a fantastic job! If only the lighting were better, I’d show you a close-up of the border. It’s amazing…really. The quilter stitched little cars and “beep beep” along the top and bottom portions. The sides are decorated with little airplanes and pilots.
If my son isn’t totally ga-ga over it when I give it to him on Christmas day, then I’ll gladly keep it! 
I not-so-secretly think this is the best thing I’ve ever made.
The pattern is by Hot Possum, an Australian company. They offer a number of patterns for cute kids’ quilts. Now that I see how this applique thing works, though, I’m more likely to try drawing my own patterns in the future. The technique would lend itself well to personal expression.
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