Etsy Sale!

Quick little post to share...I just got my first sale on etsy from a stranger!!!!

This is a picture of what I sold.

It's a set of men's monogrammed handkerchiefs. So fun!

I am so excited about the future of my little business! Feel free to check me out on etsy...

Checklist Thursday: The Everything Sewing Box

For Hanukkah, I got my daughter a complete sewing kit. Most people would probably just go to JoAnn's or Hancock Fabrics, find a ready-made kit and be on their way....but not me!

Sew, here it is, my checklist for the perfect Sewing Box...(for an 11 year old)

1. A box. My mother and grandmother had those really cool, old school wicker baskets...that no one makes anymore. I bought a curvy padded sewing basket from JoAnn Fabric and Gifts. Here's a link to a similar basket.

2. Scissors. And not just any scissors. At a minimum, there will be 3 different kinds.
Fabric scissors or dressmaker shears: These are good for cutting large amounts of fabric, stabilizer for applique and other fabric needs. They will quickly become dull however, if you allow them to be used for other things. Typically the blade is longer  (4-5" or more) and the handles are angled so that the blades stay flat on the table or cutting surface.

Embroidery scissors: These are very small and very sharp. They are best used for cutting small threads or little pieces of fabric in an applique. It is important that these scissors are strong and that they are kept sharp.

Rotary cutter: This is a circular blade on a wheel with a handle. It is designed so that you can cut a consistent, straight line without stopping. Again, the blade needs to be kept sharp and the rotary cutter should be stored safely away from small children, as it is easier than the other two scissor types, to cut yourself.

3. Needles. There are three kinds of needles that should be stored in a sewing box to call it a basic sewing box.

Machine needles: There are lots of brands and lots of sizes of machine needles out there. It is important that if your machine only uses a particular brand of sewing machine needle that you get that brand. Otherwise, I prefer the singer brand sewing machine needles. In terms of what size needle to get, that depends on your fabric/project. The project determines the needle size. this means that with lighter weight fabrics you will use a finer needle gauge and with heavier fabrics, you will use a larger needle gauge.

Hand sewing needles: These also come in different sizes, different guages and different lengths, they are all intended for different projects, fabrics and threads.

Head needles or straight pins, whatever name you want to use, either way, these are the straight needs that you use to pin your fabric as you work. It is a tedious and annoying part of any project, but oh, so necessary. 

4. Thread; comes in as many colors and thicknesses as you can imagine!

5. Cutting board, any style will do. But make sure you include one. These are very useful when using a rotary cutter. Most are self-healing, which means you can use them over and over again without them loosing their shape. It's handy to have so that the rotary cutter does not cut the table or some other surface.

If I think of other things, I will be sure to come back and add them.

If you think I left something out, feel free to add it to the comments!

Happy Sewing

Lots of things happening around the house...

So, lately there have been lots of crazy things happening around our house! We're getting ready to get Jonas' dresser thrown out, since, well, it's trash.
Geoff has finished anhilating the bushes in the back that we intended to throw out and it looks like getting the supplies for our dog run won't be too expensive....
that is...as long as you don't count the $800+ we're gonna have to spend to get the mercury mountaineer fixed! YIKES!

Jonas will be going back to school tomorrow, thank goodness!

One of my friends is attempting to patiently wait the arrival of his son, due today! Needless to say, both he and his wife are having a hard time with these (hopefully) last few hours...

I finally broke down and paid retail (sh, don't tell!) for a maternity sweatshirt from Liz Lange at Target...it's pretty comfy.

This weekend was Annie's swim meet. (The one I made the corn dip for.) She did such a good job, it was AMAZING! She dropped time on every event and event dropped 23 seconds on the 200IM!!! (For those of you who are not swimmers or are not familiar with the swimming world; the 200 IM is where a swimmer swims 50 yards of each of the 4 strokes; Butterfly, Backstroke, Breaststroke, Freestyle.) This is a fun event for Annie because she usually picks up a lot of time during the breaststroke and it's always fun to watch! But this time was even cooler! The hardest to watch, and the most nerve-racking, was the 50 breast. This was a tough one for me because she really wants to make a SouthEastern cut. (This means she gets to go to Championship Swim Meet for our Swim Conference, ie a really big deal!)

In baby news, I went shopping for fabric to make a quilt and a baby play blanket. I was kinda grustrated that I couldn't get the fabric I really wanted, because it was gender fabric, but it's super cute. (Pictures to come soon...)

Hopefully, the kitchen can get started and finished quickly and I can get my embroidery machine and start working on cute baby things!