I am playing with some different themes on my blog (ie Made IT! Monday and today's theme). I am just trying something new. I have all these ideas in my head and I am trying to make them tangible. This is a Re-Form post.
A family friend, who is the creator of the event
HOTOBERFEST here in Atlanta asked that I work with the little ones to make some art out of recycled materials. The art will be sold to benefit the
Joseph B. Whitehead Boys and Girls Club. If you are in town this Saturday come check it out. I will be volunteering in one of the booths.
Project #1 - We had some leftover while tiles from a bathroom in our old house. In Martha Stewart's Encyclopedia of Crafts book she has a project on making coasters and trivots using old tiles and ceramic paint (you "fire" the tiles in the oven after you paint them so the paint sets and is dishwasher safe and heat resistant). My daughter painted these by using non-writing end of a color pencil and toothpicks (the kind where one end is a small circle). I think she did a good job. I helped by filling in some of the empty spaces. I learned that I need to take a back seat in her creative process. I think I gave a little too much direction because she got frustrated fast. We added felt to the bottoms so they won't scratch surfaces.
Project #2 was made from a mirror I found at a thrift store for a buck. I sanded it down and then painted it a solid color. I found some old CD's in the basement (while moving boxes out of water) that we bought awhile ago but never used because they were the wrong type of rewritable discs. The technology is now obsolete due to jump drives. I cut the CD's up (this part should be done by adults only) and then glued them to the mirror. Little people can help with arranging the pieces - though with care and close supervision because some of the pieces can be sharp depending on how you cut them. The end result is kind of cool. One CD was silver and the other was blueish. It was tough to get a good picture because the mirror and CD pieces are reflective. I had to do most of this project because of the sharp pieces involved.
I also took another pic this morning of the finished product. Natural light is a good thing. Now you can actually see the detail.
She is part of the Babylock family also known as BL40A. My mommy purchased this little gem for me back in May but it was on back order until July. Isn't my mommy so sweet! She insisted that I needed a new machine since I was using her old Singer from the mid-80's. I haven't had time to take my new owner's class yet - the kids are keeping me oh so busy this summer, but that hasn't stop me from playing with her. I did purchase from a authorized dealer here in GA so I could have local support. As I use her more and more I'll let you know how she runs. My old Singer will still be used just not as frequently. I think it will be fun to have 2 machines. Does that mean double productivity? In my case since I haven't been sewing 0 x 2 still = 0. I'm buckling down and really trying to manage my time better. Hope to see some results soon from my efforts and I plan to have more to show. Plus one kid is heading back to school so that gives me a little extra time.
I found a striped knit at one of the neighborhood discount fabric stores along with the sundress material mentioned above. There are 2 discount fabric stores near my house. I'll have to post about them one day. Anyway, I think I want that fabric to turn into a cap sleeve raglan T-shirt. I'll be modifying a long sleeve raglan pattern.
I know several people bought this fabric last year from Hancock. It's time that is has left the stash and turned into something. I'm not sure how much I'll get done this weekend but I'll steal some time here and there to sew.
On with the post, I finally made this super simple Built by Wendy shirt that has been made like a million times. I love how easy this shirt is to make and I think it's cute. If you've read the reviews, you know there are fitting issues and of course I didn't modify for these (ie a little snug in the arm area and the neckline is a little high). Next time I'll make it a little roomier in the arms and maybe scoop out the neckline a little. An old co-worker of mine use to sew like crazy but now only sews home dec stuff. She gave me a few items from her apparel fabric stash back in 2006 and this was one of the pieces. I will make one of the dresses but no time soon:) I am trying to get the summer wardrobe in order.
