the aprons

As you know, I gave away an apron for Sew Mama Sew's Giveaway Day. And then I gave away another.

What you don't know, is I made a third apron! While I was stitching up the giveaway apron, my mom was admiring it, so I decided to make one for her too. I guess I've started making sure she doesn't leave for home without something handmade by me. Two Christmas's ago there was a quilt, which for some reason I don't have pictures of. Then there was the pillow, which I also don't have pictures of. Now there is the apron.



Yup! It's Neptune again! I ripped apart a housecoat I was making and had given up on so I could find a piece of Neptune big enough for the apron.



Like the giveaway apron, this one has pintucks at the top and extra long ties so you can make a bow in the front.

I wasn't sure what fabric to use for the contrast, but it was my ever so stylish brother who picked it out.



I'm not sure who makes it because it was a remnant from a local shop and it didn't have a selvege.

I love this apron, and I am glad it's gone to live at my mom's house.



Here are the two together!

I had meant to get some better photos of the second giveaway apron before I mailed it off, but I forgot.

An interesting (if not aggravating) sidenote: We are currently experiencing a "disruption" in mail service here in Canada. It started as a rotating strike by the union members, now they have been locked out. I won't share my opinions on the whole matter here, but I'm not happy. We already pay a lot for our postal service here and it's often unreliable. When I did finally get around to mailing the aprons, it was only 12 hours later that the lockout happened. So far it has been more than 2 weeks of disruptions and it looks like it could be at least a week more. Needless to say, the aprons and a few other letters that I sent out are now sitting in limbo. Wish them luck.

be friends with my friends

So, I have this lovely friend Esther, who really is something of a kindred spirit. We share a love of cats (okay, more of an obsession) and crafty endeavors. Esther definitely has one up on me since she crochets as well as sewing.

The point being, Esther recently decided to spend some time putting her work up on her blog and I love it! We may live in the same city and therefore have regular access to each others work in person, but it's super fun to see her work right when it's done instead of having to wait until the next time I see her.

Esther is currently hosting a giveaway on her blog and I want it so bad. Since I just made 3 different aprons and gave them all away, I am feeling the need for one myself.

Esther is not only a talented crafter but a super thriftier, so her cute little apron is made from some of her recent thrifting finds.

Go check it out and see if you can win!

giveaway day winner part two

As promised, due to the overwhelming response to my giveaway day post (seriously, THANK YOU) I have created a second prize.

Just like with the first one, I flip flipped several times on what to make, and finally came up with this:



Yup!  Another apron.  This one is a bit scrappier and with pleats instead of pintucks.  These photos truly are bad because I have gone back to my regular camera and it doesn't do well in low light.  Like say, when I finish something at 9:30pm on the day I am supposed to blog about it!

What do you think?

Seriously Leah Claire, what do you think?  I hope you like it because you are the winner!  Mr. Random picked you and I have sent you an email asking for your mailing address, so be on the lookout!

Leah Claire was #266 and said:

"Love love love the pintucks on the apron.  so cute!  Thanks for the chance."

Well Leah Claire, it isn't the Neptune apron, but I hope you love it.



Happy Weekend Everybody!

giveaway day winner part one

Drumroll please....

The winner of the Neptune Apron is:

#154 - Just One More Thing

Who said:

"This is the first apron giveaway I've seen and to be honest --I want it!! Very pretty. Thanks for the chance to win."

Congratulations! I've sent you an email.

I would like to take a second to thank everyone who entered the giveaway.  Those lists at Sew Mama Sew were HUGE and I appreciate the time you took to stop by my little corner of the interwebs.

A big thank you also to all the wonderful people who decided to become followers or who were already followers - it feels good to have regulars!

As promised, I am going to make a second giveaway prize. I will make the second prize and draw the winners name on Friday.

And because I hate to post without a picture (unless of course I'm ranting) here is what else I will be working on this weekend:




Any guesses as to what it all will become? A hint: It will be three of the same items in different colour combos.


P.S. I already miss my mom's camera. I want a DSLR back!

giveaway day!

*** THE GIVEWAY IS NOW CLOSED. WINNERS WILL BE ANNOUNCED THURSDAY MAY 26, 2011. ***

It's here, it's finally here!

Welcome to everyone stopping through via Sew Mama Sew for Giveaway Day! And a big welcome also to my regular readers.

I'll get right to it. I had a hard time deciding what to give away this year, but here it is:



An apron made by yours truly! This little baby came together yesterday after much deliberation as to what I would make. I dug deep in my stash and found a rather large piece of some Neptune by Tula Pink. I know it’s super hard to find now, and really, who doesn’t love some sea turtles, so I thought, why not? The apron is a ½ length style but it can be worn up higher to protect your shirt. It measures about 22” in length by about 25 inches wide and has extra long ties for those who like to have a cute bow in front like I do.



The contrasting fabric is another piece from my stash and one of my all time favourites – Happy Dots from the Midwest Modern collection by Amy Butler. There is a pocket on the front just big enough for a recipe card or whatever junk you might want to carry around.



I added some cute pintucking to the waistband for some extra flair and it gives it a bit of support so it doesn’t slip down over time. Plus, seriously, who doesn’t love pintucks?



The apron was created using this tutorial via Delia Creates, but with a few minor tweaks. I added a piece of Kona White to the back as a liner to give it some weight and durability.

To give the prize a bit of extra umph, I’ve decided to add a small scrap bundle to the package before I mail it. I promise to pick some really cute pieces for the winner!

Would you like to enter for your chance to win this cute little apron? Here’s the deal:

- Leave a comment, any comment.
- Make sure you either leave an email address or that yours is visible in your profile.

I will leave comments open until 11:59pm MST on Wednesday, May 25 and draw a winner using the Random Integer Generator on Thursday.

If you decide to become a follower or already are, leave me a second comment for a second chance to win.

One last thing: if by chance, I get more than 350 entries, Since I have now surpassed 350 entries, I will create a second item and scrap bundle and choose a second winner. That prize will be a surprise though.

Good luck! And thanks again for stopping by!

(**I do apologize for the terrible pictures. I got up early to write this and it was cold and dark and rainy outside. Oh well. I will replace them with better ones eventually.)

mom's annual visit

Every year in the spring or summer my mom comes to visit. This week is her visit of the year!

She arrived on Wednesday night and since both my brother and I worked on Thursday, she hung out with Joel and had a relaxing day recovering from he long day and bumpy flight the day before.



Friday was mom's birthday (her 29th of course!) so we went on a photo journey/city wandering adventure. We went down to Inglewood to do some window shopping/real shopping. We checked out a couple of cute kitchen stores and antique stores and then went to the Eco Store. Even though it was my mom's birthday she decided to buy me a signature "hippy dippy" present. A new Kleen Kanteen water bottle and a sweet tiffin and bamboo cutlery set.

After our shopping we were hungry so we headed to a place called the Wilder Nest for lunch. We had heard that they are very accommodating to vegans and vegetarians, so we knew we could find something for mom to eat.



Mom had green tea and a grilled vegetable panini with a funky salad.



I had an apple and pear panini with walnuts, gorgonzola, arugula and a maple spread. Oh gosh, it was so delicious, I would eat that every day if I could! It came with a yummy spinach salad topped with cranberries, strawberries, mushrooms and a lemon poppyseed dressing. So satisfying.

Inglewood is a really cool little neighbourhood in the SE of Calgary. It is historic and ecclectic and full of really interesting stores and things to take pictures of.



There was a whole set of weird billboards on the main drag that included animals doing odd things and food being incorporated into landscapes. I still have no idea what they were about. AND, I missed getting a picture of the one with the moose antlers half submerged in an icy lake.



Seriously. The polar bear is sitting on a stool.



After lunch we went to the Inglewood Bird Sanctuary to see what we could see. Mom is an avid birder so she knew what most of the birds were and which ones were special.



And some wigeons (they are ducks) and lots of really cute but common birds like chickadees and robins. And just because I have to rub it in, I got a picture of the elusive Wood Duck.



Apparently they are really hard to find because they are the only kind of duck that roosts in trees. This one was taking a nap on a long branch over a quiet pond.

The second best part of the day (the best part being spending time with my mom) was getting to use her camera! She brought out her Canon Rebel T2i with a couple of lenses and filters and I had a grand old time getting to know it and figuring out how to get great shots with it.



At the end of our time at the bird sanctuary I decided we needed to take a self portrait.



Clearly I forgot that I had the camera set to manual focus and so the point of focus is in the middle of the photo and not on us. Oh well, I love the picture anyway!

Mom is here until next Wednesday, so I am looking forward to lots more adventures with her before she has to head back to Ontario.

Oh and before I end this post - here's a quick heads up. Monday is Giveaway Day! I love this awesome day hosted by Sew Mama Sew. If you don't know about it, it consists of over 500 bloggers all giving away awesome prizes on their blogs. Sew Mama Sew organizes it and keeps a master list of all the bloggers participating.

I will be participating again this year and I can't wait. I have yet to decide what my giveaway will include, but I have some ideas and it's going to be good. Make sure you drop by on Monday to check it out.

giveaway alert!

In case you haven't come across her yet, I wanted to let you know about the fabulous Angela of Fussy Cut. You may know her as Raggedy Owl.

Just recently, Angela switched her blog over to her new site (which looks super cute!) and as a nice little reward to all her followers who made the move with her, she is hosting one HOT giveaway!

She is graciously giving away 7 fat eights of the coveted Heather Ross Lightning Bugs and Other Mysteries!! Included is 2 colours of the gnomes, some happy vans, Matrioshka dolls, and even some goldfish!

To enter, all you have to do is become a follower of her blog (and I highly recomend that you do!) and leave her a comment letting her know.

If you would like an extra chance, go ahead and post on your blog about it. See, like I did! I am seriously crushing on this little stack and hope I am lucky enough to win!

So head on over to Angela's new site and check it out!

milestones

I'm sure that many of you can relate to this:

As a blogger, I put my work "out there" as a record for myself, but it feels nice to think that there might be other people reading and enjoying what I made and write about.

Recently, I added a bunch of my Flickr photos to different groups, and was surprised to see how much action those photos get now! I always find it interesting to see which photos people fave, because it's not always my favourite projects that people love.

The point being, it feels really good to know that the things I put so much love and work into are being appreciated. Call me an ego-maniac - I don't care!

It's also been neat to see the number of subscribers grow from my husband and friend Candace to 19 people now! I also discovered that Google Reader keeps track of the number of people who subscribe to my RSS feed, and that number is a whopping (at least whopping to me) 33! It's pretty cool to have officially surpassed 50 readers.

Another milestone I am going to reach soon is 100 posts. I thought about counting years instead of posts, but since I took such a huge hiatus while trying to figure out if I really wanted to blog, I won't. Including this post, and several scheduled posts that will be coming out in the next few weeks, I am up to 85.

All this to say, I think it's almost time for a giveaway! I think what I will do is schedule the giveaway for the 100th post. The reason I am announcing this now (15 posts ahead of time) is to get some input from my readers. What would you like to win?

Here are your options:
A buttercup bag
Children's apron(s)
A mini quilt/mug rug
Or something else (you name it!)

The most popular idea named in the comments will be what I give away. No comments means I choose, and well, it will just end up being whatever I feel like making at that moment. :)

So, PLEASE, if you don't normally comment, but you do read, let me know!

And now, because I want to add a picture, look at this cuteness:



More on the pile of fabric later.  It's (somewhat) quickly becoming a new quilt.

giveaway alert!

In keeping with my promise to share really neat giveaway alerts with you, here is another one:

I think we all know Rashida Coleman-Hale of I Heart Linen, right? Well, she has graciously offered up a fantastic prize on Petite Purls. Seriously, SO good (it includes a copy of her book)! So go check it out and win yourself something nice!

aprons for twins

As you must know by now, I am a nanny.  I've mentioned before how lucky I feel to have such a great job and how much I love the little ones I work with.

Well, the twins turned 2 last week!  What a great age!  I have been spending 2 or 3 days a week with A & C for almost a year and it has been an adventure every step of the way.  So of course, as their birthday neared, I was racking my brain for what to make them.  They have lots of books, toys and stuffed animals so I wanted to cross those things off the list.  I thought about a couple of ideas for dress up clothes (ballet skirt, crown, super hero cape, etc) but none seemed quite right.

Finally, it hit me!  Aprons!  What 2 year old isn't getting messy with markers, paint, food or something else all the time?  Aprons would be a great solution for keeping clothes clean but also inspiring little helpers in the kitchen.

I did a little searching online to find out sizing for the average 2 year old, looked at some pictures of kid aprons, made a couple drawings and BAM! I was on my way!  I made my own template because none of the tutorials or free patterns I had found seemed quite adjustable enough or were too big or I just didn't love the design.



A's is made from Amy Butler's Fresh Poppies in Fuschia from the Midwest Modern line and a coordinating green solid.



C's is made from MoMo's Bouncing Balls in Ivory from the Freebird collection and hte same coordinating green solid as A's.

Both aprons used a fat quarter of each fabric plus 2 selvedge to selvedge strips of the backing fabric for bias tape.  As per usual, I made my own instead of buying some.

I have to say, I am pretty darn proud of these aprons.  They are perfect.  perfect size, perfectly adjustable (I figure they will fit until 4, maybe even longer) and perfectly sewn.  Not a missed stitch or crooked seam is to be found on these babies and that's a pretty big win for me!

After the kids opened their presents, they wanted to wear them all day.  So a bit later we all donned an apron (me in their dad's Guinness apron) washed our hands and set to baking cookies!  This was their first experience baking and it was an instant hit.  It was messy and crazy and so much fun - with the hardest part being trying to keep them from eating the raw dough.

Here they are enjoying some flour and raisins on the floor while I got the cookies ready for the oven.  Aren't they SO cute??

The cookies turned out great and the kids have been asking for them non stop since then.  For those that are interested, here is the recipe (which by the way is the best oatmeal raisin recipe I've tried!)

INGREDIENTS

1 1/4 cups butter

3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
2 1/2 cups oats
1 cup raisins

PREPARATION

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Cream butter and sugars until smooth.  Mix in egg and vanilla.  In a separate bowl mix together dry ingredients, leaving oats and raisins aside.  Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and mix well.  Add in oats and raisins.  Drop by rounded spoonful approximately 2" apart.  Bake for 8-9 minutes for chewy cookies.

I've been considering writing a tutorial/patter for the apron, but I wanted to gauge interest before I went to the trouble.  Would any of you be interested in said pattern/tutorial (for free)?  If so, please let me know and I will post one in the coming weeks with a giveaway attached to it!

giveaway day winner

And the winner is....

Number 112 - Bee Damon from Germany!  Bee writes "This bag is so beautiful, well done! Right now I love sewing for my first child, which is due in December. Blankets, plushies and so on. =)"Congratulations!  

I was so overwhelmed by the sheer volume of comments and the kind and wonderful things people were saying.  Before I posted my giveaway I made a goal of 75 comments and 300 visitors and thought if I reached that I would feel it had been a success.  In the end I received 365 comments and over 1500 visitors!  AMAZING!  

I can't thank all of you enough for taking the time to stop by.  It feels so nice to give things away, I think I'll do it again!  Stop by near the end of June where I will be doing another giveaway in celebration of my 24th birthday.  And don't forget to tell your friends to keep visiting.

Later today I hope to put up a post about my current project which may just kill me, so stay tuned.

P.S.  Bee, I have sent you an email asking for your shipping info, so look out for that!

P.P.S  A big thank you to all the other blogger friends out there who participated.  I had so much fun checking out new blogs and seeing the fabulous things other were giving away.  I am positively drooling at the prospect of winning something!

giveaway day

It's here!  It's here!  It's finally here!

I am so VERY excited about Sew Mama Sew's Giveaway Day!  Not only do I love going through the dozens and dozens of blogs for inspiration (and of course a chance to win something awesome) but this year I am finally hosting a giveaway myself.  It's such a fun idea and I love creating for other people, so why not?

Without further ado, let me introduce you to the prize:



A Buttercup Bag (made of course, from the pattern by Made by Rae).  Exterior fabric is my fabric home decor weight Ikea Bladd fabric in grey, and interior is a hot pink "Bubbles and Blooms" print.



And for an extra special treat: 2 fat quarters and a .4m piece of fabric!  The prints are: Heather Bailey Pop Garden Swirlybuds in turquoise, Amy Butler Midwest Modern 2 Park Fountains in yellow and Gail Kessler Summerhouse Collection Butterflies in purple.



Excited?  To enter, please leave a comment on this post telling me where you're from, and either what your favourite thing to sew is, or what fabric you're currently obsessing over.  I will leave comments open until Thursday, May 20 at noon (Mountain Time) and choose a winner by random number generator after that.

Good luck!

giveaway day

Just a heads up: I am excited to say I will be participating in the May Giveaway Day held at Sew Mama Sew.  Check back on Sunday evening or Monday morning for my post.  I'm not going to say what I'll be giving away, I'll just let you know I am in the Handmade Items and Supplies/Materials category.  Yay!  And because I can't post without a picture, how about this:



Poor little cone head.  She gets it off this weekend though so she won't be sad for long.