New Project

Ok, so I've been hoarding fabrics like no one's business and as I've mentioned before, I LOVE COLORS! Which lead me to my new project. I've been procrastinating a little on it because I didn't have the motivation to really do all the detail work that I kind of assumed would be involved in this. But it wasn't that bad!

I found a picture of a similar project in a book a few weeks ago as I was sitting on the Borders floor waiting for my husband to pick out books he wanted to buy. There was only one person at the time that I thought would appreciate it, so it became her birthday present. Shhh... don't tell.

It took me awhile to actually pick out the fabrics that I wanted to use and still make it a complete, yet flowing appropriately color wheel. The main body is made of a duckcloth canvas and once rolled up, ties with ribbon.

Wallet!!

Ok, so no one will really understand how excited I am about this wallet. Not only is it made from the fabric I so dearly love, but it is what has been running through my mind as I lay awake the past two nights. Not that I was being stubborn and not wanting to use a pattern, but I wanted something I would use, which meant a little bit of an original design. I'm also very excited because this is one of the only projects that I've actually completely finished this month. YAY!

The second great thing about this is that my VERY BRAND NEW SEWING MACHINE is rockstar! It was able to gauge the size of the button and do all the work for me!

More Fabric

Ok. So I had every intention of working on my project yesterday with my other new fabric, but instead I sat around working on other things around the house. Oh, well. They needed to be done too, right?

Then, I went and bought more fabric. I think that I'm now stocked for awhile.

Fabric

My husband had to be in bed early last night and I thought it sounded like a fine idea to go to bed early and start fresh in the morning with a new project. I have been blog-browsing for days looking for places to buy great new fabric (and you'll see I'm following a few new ones too). I am all about cheap fabric that looks great, which I'm sure everyone is...

So as he started drifting of to sleep, I couldn't stop thinking about the new fabric I'd just purchased and what I was going to do with it. I stayed up for HOURS, seriously, hours planning how I was going to make my new project work. Haha. I'll have to let you know what I come up with, but until then, it is a surprise.

P.S. I also found TONS of additional fabric that I'll have to show later.

Quilting Blogs

I cracked open my new sewing machine almost immediately.

Since I was still in the Spirit of the Season, I figured I'd make my wonderful husband a new Christmas stocking. Last year when I was still living in Wisconsin with my parents, I used my Mom's sewing machine quite a bit and being that I am IN LOVE with colors and textures, I accumulated a lot of craft supplies and fabric. It was with these fabrics and fat quarters that I was able to piece this together. Ultimately, I just wanted to knock something out with my new machine. I like the colors and patterns on the fabric, but I probably should have used a real pattern to cut out the shape of this stocking. Haha.

So then I used the scraps of the fat quarters to just practice a little with different cuts, shapes, etc. It, like many of my projects is unfinished, but I want to turn this into a tote. Just have a quilted side and I think it'll work as a good bag.

And since I still had fat quarters left, I wanted to try a Bargello. I know, I know... lots of work. And it was, but I just want to test the waters right now with all my projects. I'm sure some things are WAY out of my league, but I just want to try things to get ideas. So here's a quick shot of my Bargello. Again, just like most of my things, it is unfinished.

Another thing I got "into" if you will, when I was in Wisconsin was working on baby quilts. Now, I know NO ONE that is having a baby, but I still love making baby quilts. I had purchased some fabrics that I really wanted to work with and so I've finally cut them all up and started putting together another baby quilt. I don't think it'll take me very long to make it, but my husband likes the "nine-patch" more than the "disappearing nine-patch", so that cuts out some of the work.

New Start

The new year started a little different than I expected, but the changes have been amazing. My new hubby returned from Iraq and my big personal change was that after leaving my job, I was able to drop my muscle relaxants, anti-depressants, and response drugs for migraine issues. I think that was one of the best things I could have done.

In the search for change, I started fixing up the house. I started with my "craft room". It is kind of my catch-all room, including our guest bed and craft storage. I feel incredibly organized and inspired by this room. It is un-cluttered and ultimately, makes me happy. It has rapidly become my little sewing center thanks to my wonderful Mom who bought me my first sewing machine for Christmas.

The next room I had to change thanks to really out-dated wallpaper and the new towels we got as wedding presents was the bathroom. I didn't get any good pictures of this, but imagine a light teal with cream and chocolate accents. I LOVE it!

From there, I took on the dining room. Now, I'm going to show a picture and I'm well aware that the pictures do not do the work justice. The house is from the 50's or 60's and the wallpaper must have been too. It was a horrific solid wall of green and pink plaid with baskets of fruit as a high border around the entire room. Small details, but the curtains must have been original to the house also, seeing that they were the worst winter scene I've ever seen. By removing the wallpaper, I had to spend another 8+ hours with goo and a scraper to get all the glue off. Which, in turn, scraped off all the texture. My next move was to fumigate the place by putting new texture on the walls. And finally the paint. As I said, you definitely can't see the extent of the work that went into it, but it is there.

So now that everything is done, I started on new projects. All of them include fabric, thread, needles, and a lot of stitches.

It makes me happy.

Fear Vs. Opportunity

Today I had someone tell me, "When I die, I want to come back as you." I laughed and responded with, "This isn't courage; it is stupidity."

This theme of fear versus opportunity came up in several conversations for me today.

We ended up talking about how courage and the confidence of looking at something fearful can also be seen as an opportunity. I fully agree. I think I look at a lot of situations that scare me and think how that fear is hurting me.

For example, I'm shit-scared of airports. Has nothing to do with the crowds or actually flying, but I just very much dislike airports. But I REFUSE to let that stop me from seeing all the places in the world that inspire me. How can I let it? How could I possibly let one irrational fear hold me back from exploring my dreams?

Granted, the people that travel with me are well aware of this fear and, while probably really annoyed, have always helped me. Gradually, I feel I'm getting better with airports, but since I don't fly much more than maybe once a year, it is hard to practice this growing confidence because I feel like I'm starting over every time I take another trip. ANYWAY.

Unlike I said, it isn't stupidity either. I think sometimes it can be, but mostly, it is courage and confidence to overstep your fears. Just because I jumped off a platform and had to stare 90ft down into a ravine, doesn't mean I wasn't scared.

Today, I also heard a lot people say, "Oh, of course she'll do it, she's used to this!"

Thrill-seekers may come across as fearless, but that isn't always the case. Maybe it is them feeling empowered by their opportunity to push past their fears?

But it is all about the opportunity... right?

So, what about when you don't "take the plunge" or do something else that makes you uneasy? Does that make you a coward?

The answer is NO! I also feel that knowing you own personal limits is a strength and a voice of confidence. It shows that you are comfortable with yourself and you are aware of your own capabilities.

Empower.
Jump.
Be Confident.