Love Fridays

This week has gone by so fast I didn't realize I hadn't posted anything since last Friday. That's all right, it may have been a fast week but it was also uneventful.

I'm loving this Friday because of the awesome weather the last two days. It's been beautiful...in the low 70's and sunny...my favorite kind of day.

This is the view from work, ignore all the ugly power lines and industrial buildings but look at that green and blue. I love it!

Normally it's brown and, well, brown. Brown dried up grass and brown smoggy sky. But there are days, two times a year (during spring and fall) when the days are like this. It reminds me that living here is a privilege and I should take full advantage.

I also got a couple of projects done today. The first is another pencil roll, another very late Christmas gift for L.

L. reads my blog but it's ok, she already knows it's coming. Now she'll see how awesome it is and she'll maybe come over to get it and we can go see a movie...maybe Watchman. Just a suggestion.

Anyway, here's some more detail of the pencil roll...

All rolled up and ready to go.

Open.

I made (from left to right) a few pockets for normal pens and pencils, pockets for a 6 pack of highlighters (all my highlighters are at work so let's pretend that the pens and batteries in the pockets are highlighters), 2 miscellaneous pockets and one flapped pocket for milk money.




Here's the pocket up close. No, I'm not giving her that milk money (it's actually my phone bill money).

The other project was another zippered pouch, slightly different in design, slightly better made than the first. This pouch was actually designed to be long enough to be used as a pencil case. I made it from more vintage sheets in my favorite color...purple.

For more reasons to love Fridays, visit Tinnigirl and check the list. Oh, and be sure to wish her luck on her craft fair stall.

Do you hear the angels singing?

I do!! It's finished...whew! I'm finally finished with my doll quilt and just in the nick of time too. I think I just bit off more than I can chew with my design - considering it was the first thing I've ever quilted, embroidered, bound, & sewn with more than just straight lines. But I am pleased with the way it came out. I do wish I could have done some more actual quilting on the bottom half of it but I just ran out of time. Next time there will be no procrastination (no, really, I promise!). I just hope the person I'm sending it to likes it. That's really all that matters at this point. Anyway, I hope you enjoy it.

Here's the whole thing...



Here's the trunk - with a knot...



I quilted in some clouds all over the top...

and here it is all wrapped up and ready to go.


And that's it. Ready to go half way around the world.

Let the creative juices flow!!

I've been in a frenzy lately about finding ways to let off some creative steam. I did some scrapbooking but that just doesn't cut it for me (hee hee - get it - "cut it" cuz you do alot of cutting in scrapbooking...*sigh* I slay me). In the past I have made a few sewn projects but never really felt a passion for it. Then, at Christmas, I made a couple of lap quilts for my work friends, Fred and Gloria, and something changed. It was like a fever - a big old I gotta sew fever. Yeah, sewing fever...that's what I gots! So, lately I've been buying fabric by the metric ton, ok, not that much but definitely pounds and pounds of it. It's amazing how therapeutic and relaxing sewing can be. I just tune out the world and I'm in the "zone".

I came a cross this flower making tutorial and can't stop making them...I even make them at work on my lunch break. I've never been OCD but I'm teetering on the edge, man!! Anyway, I'm toting around fabric and needles and thread, etc with me everywhere I go so if you see me with "the bag" you'll know instantly that my mind probably isn't on whatever it is I'm doing at the moment but, more than likely, it's on when I can get to making my next flower. Alright, I'm not just teeterng, I'm way over the edge. I included some pics of a few of the flowers and some fabrics that I think would make awesome flowers. I'm also doing a couple other "crafty" projects but they've been put on the backburner for now cuz it's all about the flowers, baby!