New Hot Pads

In the middle of the holiday rush, I decided to make some new hot pads. I love round hotpads as they don't seem to get in the way (fall into the food) as much. I have been doing a lot of cooking and baking for the holiday season, so this was important to me!

I chose from the stash and found the red polka dot material and red extra wide bias tape.

Looks great, except for..........................



the extra wide bias tape was too wide! It didn't set right on the backside! So I did what any self respecting seamstress would do, if this item was for themselves. I pulled out the glue! Nope no seam ripper tonight!

The fantastic OK to Wash-It glue! I just glued the backside of the bias tape down! Works like magic! Now that bias tape sets flat and doesn't bug me when I am using them! I did wash them to remove the washable marker lines.

Here they are in use...........

making my Mom's famous Chocolate Marshmallow fudge!

I can't believe I waited so long to make these! They are so quick! Jessie does think they look a little bit like pizza though.

Be back soon!

Another Wardrobe Refashion

I bought this Lands End sweater from Goodwill for 99 cents. It had a few small stains around the v-neck, but I knew that wouldn't be a problem for me. Otherwise it looked brand new.


I cut it up the middle, cut a deep v-neck, cut off the ribbed bottom and used my handy dandy bias tape to secure the cut edges and tacked that to the inside.

No, the hard part of this project was deciding how I wanted to use these on the sweater.......

Option 1 looked like this:

Then there was option 2:

Or how about option 3:

Or even option 4:

Sometimes there are too many options!

Option 1 was what I originally planned, so I decided to run with it! After pinning on the flowers for option 1 and Jessie laughing hysterically at it, I began to doubt my choice!!!! Hubby originally didn't like it, but said to try a dark colored camisole under it. Then he liked it! Jessie finally stopped laughing and decided it was "Okay".

Here it is, I really like this one!

I added a hook and eye at the center V part to keep it closed. I also decided to add some pearls to the center of each flower.

I probably should have spaced the flowers a little closer together, but I'm happy with it and plan on wearing it to Jessie's Christmas concert tomorrow night!

I just hope I don't hear hysterical laughing when I walk in the door!

Be back soon!

I Am Dog Gone Crazy!

This week has been busy! I haven't gotten much done except preparing the Dogs for the winter weather. The weather here has turned really cold! I decided to cover my porch furniture with fleece, so the dogs would be a little warmer when they are waiting for me to let them back in. Sometimes I will let them out and go up to my sewing room and forget about them............OOPS! Poor little guys!

Then we have a neighborhood dog that has been spending almost all his time here! He has been sleeping on one of the glider's on the back porch (another reason I covered them in fleece). "Rascal" is a larger dog, and I don't let him in the house. It was turning bitterly cold this week, so I drug a dog house out of a dog pen we have, cleaned it up, and put it on the back porch. There was a pad already in it, but I put some big towels and a blanket in it too. Then I covered the doghouse with a thick quilt for extra insulation. He has slept in it the past two nights.

I know........I am Dog Gone Crazy for doing this for a dog that doesn't even belong to me! But he is always here, he's such good dog and I knew it was going down to about 18 degrees every night this week!

I am in the middle of another wardrobe refashion.


I started by making these fabric roses. I made the roses on the right (with the straight edge) this week and then I decided to make some more with my scalloped edge sewing scissors. I don't know if I will use one or the other or both. That will depend on what I think looks nice. This was a nice sit and watch t.v.project. I hope to finish the wardrobe refashion this weekend.

Be back soon!

That Aqua Thing..................

Remember that thing I was painting on with aqua paint? Well this is the finished product.....




It's a vegetable and dip stand. Vegetables go on the plate with the dip in the tea cup. This will be perfect for a buffet table of appetizers!

I used a vintage plate and cup/saucer that I purchased at the thrift store and combined it with a small concrete planter that I painted and a crystal candlestick.

I repainted the base so many times, trying to get the "right aqua color" that matched the plate. I just could not match the color accurately! I gave up! Sometimes you just have to admit defeat and go on. But I still love it!

I used the glue "Quick Grip" to attach them. I really wanted to show you a nice picture with veggies on the bottom and my "famous-to-me-only" Red Pepper Ranch Dip in the tea cup, but I kept eating the veggies! (I eat raw veggies with lunch almost every day)

I found the little spoon at a small shop in Georgia, where my sister lives.

I did another "Holiday Extravaganza" today at the church, and didn't do as well as the first time, but it was nice to get out and meet/see a lot of people.

Be back soon!

The Christmas Dress that isn't a Dress

Jessie and I went shopping for a Christmas dance dress. The theme is silver and ice (or white - I can't remember). The only thing she found was a dress that was in all black. She loved it, but it didn't fit the theme of the dance! It was also $58.00! It was a simple dress, a black tank top style on the top, with elastic in the middle and black satin on the bottom with black lace over it.

This is our version of the same dress with the Christmas dance theme in mind.

I used a purchased black tank top that looked exactly like what the dress used. I put white lace over a very bright silver fabric that I lined with a black satin, gathered it and then attached that to a piece of wide black elastic. We decided a bow in silver on the side would look good. The original dress didn't have that.

Jessie decided that it was silly to destroy a perfectly good tank top, so we left it as a skirt.
So the Christmas dress is now a tank top and skirt. I think it turned out cute and for a total of $15.00!

I started and completed this on Tuesday night, all except removing the basting stitches. Just what I needed a Quick and Cute sewing project!

Be back soon!

The Recipe for a Nervous Breakdown

Here it is:

1 pair of ripped jeans from your skinny legged granddaughter

Scraps of purple polka dot fabric

My granddaughter needed this pair of jeans to have fabric behind the ripped areas. Simple right? I had done one pair for her already with no problems. Well this nearly did me in! The purple fabric kept shifting and the strings on the ripped areas kept attaching themselves to my screws and prongs on the sewing machine and .............. let's just say everything that could go wrong, did go wrong! I spent a lot of time with the seam ripper though to correct things.

The skinny little legs and the fact that they had never been washed and were stiff was what caused the problem! I need to make a note of that!


I will give her a scrap of the fabric in case anything needs to be repaired later. I know I will be keeping my fingers crossed! LOL!

Next up, a simple dress for Jessie for the Christmas dance on Friday. She just needs to decide what fabrics she wants me to use:



The theme is silver and white.

Decisions, decisions.............she needs to decide by tomorrow!

Be back soon!

Golidlocks Costume

Jessie had her play this weekend. It was called "And They All Lived" It was a cute 30 minute play that I thought everyone did great in! We really enjoyed the play! Here is Jessie in her Goldilocks Costume minus her blonde wig. I took pictures of her in her wig during the play, but they came out awful!

A closer view of her costume. I was going to make an apron to go with it, but her director didn't think she needed one.

And here she is when I say just one more picture!

She hates the fact her Mom is camera challenged!

I think the costume tuned out good. She looked really cute in it! Notice that hairband on her right hand. It gets her in trouble almost every day at school. They consider it a bracelet and that is against school policies! I think it is her security blanket, because she rarely wears her hair up!

Be back soon!

Coffee Table Remake Finished

The coffee table remake is done. Remember this bargain at $4.99?

I should start out by telling you how Hubby didn't like my bargain coffee table. He thought it was ugly. It was purchased to replace the one in the boy's TV room. Hubby made the one in there. It was made from our butcher block kitchen countertop. It was the sink cutout. It is 2" thick and very heavy. Well, one of the legs on this coffee table kept turning in, looking like it was going to break at any moment. We have done several things to try to remedy the situation, all with no luck.

Well, I have to walk past this all the time to get to my sewing room. It literally bugged the heck out of me! Somehow (to me) it made the walls and floors look uneven. Hubby kept saying it could be fixed, but it wasn't. It has been well over a year since it started it's opposite "leaning tower" position. So when I brought this one home to replace it, you know what he did? He actually fixed the the opposite leaning tower coffee table and took it to his "Man Room". Why this couldn't have been fixed sooner.........nobody knows.

He decided we needed to use my bargain coffee table in the family room for the TV and move the coffee table the TV was currently sitting on to the boy's room. Well, this coffee table was an inch shorter than the one we had, and I thought that one was too low. (It was fine if you are slouched on your leather man chair though.)

So he built it up, I spray painted it, he added the knobs to look like drawer pulls and here it is:

This table isn't as long as the one we had before, so it makes the room appear larger. There is a speaker under the the shelf, so that is why you can't really see the shelf. We had everything to fix it up, so there were no additional expenses.

I just love creating something from nothing and that is unique!

And I won't have to bend my neck down to watch TV. Hubby might have to sit a little straighter though!

Be back soon!

This Blog is Handy!

Well, I made it through the "Holiday Extravaganza" without have an anxiety attack. It actually went better than I thought. The other people said things were a lot slower this year. They didn't have as many sales as the previous years. There wasn't much advertising for this, so that could have been the problem. I was just glad I sold some things! Yeah!

On Sunday I ran into the Goodwill looking for a mug tree. I thought that would be a neat way to display my ribbon key fobs at the show. I didn't find one, but I did find this....


A really solid coffee table for $4.99. A remake is in process.

I have been driving myself crazy looking for this purple and white gingham fabric. Someone wanted rice bags with purple and white fabric. All of a sudden it occurred to me that I used this fabric for a little baby dress. (I think)

Well, I went through the posts and there it was right here! When I saw it, I knew exactly where the fabric was! Fabric I have cut out of usually goes in one place. Uncut fabric goes in another. It sounds like I am really organized, but I know the truth!

Boy, this blog is handy! It saved me hours of hunting and wondering if I was crazy!

Be back soon!

Another This and That Post....

I inquired about a "Holiday Extravaganza" at Jessie's school, and before I knew it, I was committed to have a table at this event. I have been as busy as I can be, but as life goes, everything is topsy turvey. I thought I would be able to take a few days off this week and actually produce an inventory........................but life happens. I did manage to get a few things done though.

Ribbon key fobs....

Purse/Pocket Tissue Holders...

and I have been working on some potato bags. (no photo) This "mini craft fair" is on TUESDAY!

A picture of my helper with all of this............

When I am in the sewing room, he throws a bunch of stuff out of the basket (under my sewing counter) and settles in.

Be back soon!

Goldilocks Costume

Well, I'm not through with the mending basket, but I did manage to complete the Goldilocks costume. I used this pattern, but went for the non-sexy style.

I lengthened and lined the skirt and decided just to do an elastic waist instead of adding a zipper.


Wow, these pictures actually came out pretty good for nighttime. I guess I need to take pictures in the laundry room more!

The vest, I created more of a V front and used pre-made loops on a tape instead of doing the grommets.

She will wear a white blouse with puffy sleeves. She doesn't like the white collared shirt I bought, so we'll try one with an elastic neckline. I may make an apron too. I'll ask the coach if she thinks it needs it. I've seen it both ways.

Be back soon!

W-I-P and the Mending Basket

Well the mending basket is overflowing and hubby decided I really needed to fix his work pants, so nothing really exciting going on here. I am in the middle of another sweater transformation and I am painting this thing here. It is that wonderful "can't decide if it aqua or blue" color.


I will hopefully be able to finish this project this weekend. So in between mending, I run over and put another coat of paint on. It will take about three or four before I am satisfied with the coverage.

I was reminded of this project when I saw a "Christmas Village" billboard. Christmas Village is a craft show in Nashville that I have been to in the past. This is one of those ideas that I saw at the show and thought "I can make that", accumulated all the supplies and never got around to. At least I kept all the project items together! Usually I am running around looking for the things I bought that I put in 20 different locations!

For anyone that paints, the turntable is a necessity. I picked these up long ago at yard sales with my sister-in-law for 25 cents. I use them all the time! Everyone should have one! Or in my case 6!

Be back soon!

Wardrobe Refashion - Thanks Son #2

Son #2 comes to the rescue again! ANOTHER item left behind after Christmas last year! So for me it was another wardrobe refashion!

The suspect: a black cotton crew neck sweater.

Who wouldn't want one of these to keep warm??? Obviously Son #2!

Even though he was living in an old uninsulated house near the college campus, he refused my generosity. O.K. fine by me! I have plans for this!

Well, I just love what I did with this in an hour!



In fact I have plans for the gray sweater he left behind 2 Christmas' ago!

I did put my stamp on this sweater:


Gotta get rid of those homemade labels somehow!

Be back soon!

Halloween Wrap Up

Well, the big day is over. We went to my sister's in Atlanta, so I could see some trick-or-treater's. She usually has about 3oo of them. This year there were only about 150. It was cold and had rained almost all day. Maybe the weather kept people from coming out.

We had 3 stations set up on the porch. My sister's friend always comes over because she doesn't get any at her house either. They started coming early. It wasn't even dusk yet.

This was our first trick-or-treater. (My sister's neighbor with her grandson)

and a picture of kids heading our way.

No more pictures after that. It got pretty hectic. I loved seeing all the kids dressed up! The costume award went to a mother who dressed her 3 kids from the show "The Adam's family". She did a fantastic job with their makeup and outfits.

I did manage to get a picture of Jessie and my niece Lauren before they took off.

Jessie is Minnie Mouse. This was last years costume.

My daughter Amber took a picture of her in the Detectives costume I made. Click on the picture to see it in detail. (oops that doesn't work on this picture) She wore it to work on Friday.

Looks Great! Don't you think? I think I want this back!

I had a great time in Atlanta, it's too bad next year Halloween will be on a Sunday.

Now I have to get busy on the Goldilock's costume for Jessie's play.

Be back soon!

Happy Halloween!

Some of my favorite Halloween pictures:

I wish I hadn't put these jars in the Halloween basket. I really liked them! But at least I have the picture!


Just love my Boo sign!

I took this picture on my back porch and I kinda like the fuzziness of it! Not to mention it hides the fact my porch needs cleaning! When I have time, it's raining. When it's not raining, I am busy!

I hope everyone has a great Halloween!

Be back soon!

Completed Projects

I finished some projects this weekend. Remember the "Young Detectives" costume my daughter Amber wanted. This was in the new Martha Stewart Halloween magazine. Well here is the cape.......

This turned out really nice! In fact I'm thinking I need one too. With different fabric of course. Here is a closeup of the fabric.

Here is the cap.

The dog coat is pretty small, but I didn't have much fabric left. I bought the amount the Martha Stewart magazine suggested, unfortunately I forgot that I was making a larger size adult cape. Duh!


Max didn't want to co-operate for the picture taking. He didn't seem to mind wearing the cape though. It was shipped by Priority Mail today - should be there just in time for Halloween! She better email me a picture with her wearing it!

I finished my project from two years ago, that I found in the closet. Orange felt circles were stitched around the edge

and faux fall leaves hot glued on.


It became a placemat for Thanksgiving or any fall inspired event.

I'm not sure I'm loving it. I like it, but it may be better as a hot pad in the center of the table. Sometimes I have to live with things for awhile before I decide it I really like it.

Be back soon!