Confessions of a Craft Addict

Yes, Santa Claus, there is a Virginia. And I think I’ve now seen most of it.

My oldest and I hit the road Friday and headed to Virginia for a college visit. He’s been accepted at a school here and a road trip was in order so he could make a more informed decision. Of course, no road trip for my family is ever complete without some obstacle or ten; this one was no exception. Crummy weather and a late departure should have clued me into what was ahead of us. And yet I was still surprised when we missed a turn and ended up in the Middle of Nowhere, VA — at midnight. We finally crawled into our motel room around 1 a.m.

Yawn.

After a campus tour and brunch in the dining hall, we got back in the car and drove to Richmond to meet my cousins. First stop? Quilting Adventures! I met Joyce and Phoebe at Quilt Market last fall and could not wait to see them again and check out their shop. It was great to get to visit with them and, of course, to see all the pretties. Some of which may be going home with me. Hee hee!

My cousin and her daughter met us at the shop, which totally made my day. We have not seen each other in probably 8.5 years and our kids have definitely grown a lot since then. Well, J has. My teen-aged cousin (who is five months younger than my son) is just the prettiest little thing (she wear a size 00 short). I felt ginormous next to her! Her mom and I had fun taking pics of the kids together, particularly the ones with them standing next to each other.

Tomorrow, we head home, where it may be snowing. You know you’re jealous.

I know that I babble on and on about sewing, but there’s a reason why this blog is called “Confessions of a Craft Addict” and not “Confessions of a Fabric Addict.”

To whit: YUDU.

I have been salivating over this product since I heard about, so when I saw it on a little Yudu island at Joann’s on Friday, I did a little happy dance in the aisle, then ran over and hugged the box. Fortunately, my sons’ coworkers all know me and can t least feign amusement at my often kooky antics.

“Can’t you hear it? It wants to go home with me,” I asked some frightened looking passerby.

Aforementioned son pointed out that I already own the basics for screenprinting, so I really don’t need to drop $300+ on a fancy-schmancy home screenprinting unit. I, of course, disowned him on the spot. OK, not really. But I did remind him about all the pointless electronic crap he owns and that he does not have to pay rent or utilities plus gets to eat all of my food and take 40-minute showers on a daily basis.

Anyway.

I need this totally awesome toy cool crafty necessity so I can explore a brand-new area of crafting aka screenprinting. Think of all the cool things I could do with it: posters, gifts, special event tees. The possibilities are limitless.

Sadly, I’ve spent two months justifying to Honey buying all kinds of furniture for my sewing studio, so the odds of him giving a thumbs up to buying a Yudu are roughly equal to The Beatles playing at my next birthday party.

Hmmmm. Birthday. I think I know what just shot to the top of my wish list.

I have not sewn in more than a week. Quite a few reasons for this (The Project, among them) but the most noticeable among them is my back. I have done something to it. What, I don’t know. What I do know is that it hurts to sit, stand, walk or lie down, so I’ve let lethargy take over, along with a great deal of whining. I’m getting a massage tomorrow, though, and am optimistic it will get things right so I can be productive and mobile once again. Not that I couldn’t be productive now. It’s just giving me an excuse to procrastinate, my favorite thing ever. If it were an Olympic sport, I’d be a gold medalist.

Of course, all this procrastinating has given me the chance to browse among some yummy (mostly) new craft books. Here are a few that’ll soon be on my shelves:

Weekend Sewing by Heather Ross

I had the opportunity to meet Heather in Houston and could barely form words. She’s incredibly nice and had a proof copy of her book with her, which I eagerly browsed. It’s a truly lovely book and I’m looking forward to getting my own copy. The projects all can be made in a weekend or less (hence the name). I really just love the feel the book evokes: very casual and laid back, like a weekend at the shore or in the mountains, surrounded by your nearest and dearest (all of whom happen to love sewing!).

Sew What! Bags by Lexie Barnes

Sew What! Skirts is one of my favorite books, so I had to flip through this one when I happened upon it at the book store. It’s another draft-it-yourself book, this time revolving around purses and bags (duh). I’m kind of a purse pattern junkie, so I’m sure I’ll be nabbing this oen before too long, even though I have some patterns that are similar to the bags in this book. Still, I really like the aesthetic of the book and the concept — drafting exactly the right bag for my needs — appeals to me on so many levels.

Sew & Stow by Betty Oppenheimer

I don’t care what they say about judging a book by it’s cover. I saw the cover of this book and immediately had to grab it off the shelf to flip through it. Oh, the pretties! I wanted to carry it over to the coffee shop and sip my Frappuccino while trying not to drool on the pages. Lots of cute and useful projects for everything from the kitchen to the garden to the craft room. I’m thinking this is THE book to have for sewing gifts for some of the favorite people in my life (like teachers).

Zakka Sewing: 25 Japanese Projects for the Household by Therese Laskey and Chika Mori

My love for Japanese sewing books and magazines is beyond comprehension, so when I ran across this title it literally took everything I had not to run to the counter and buy it on the spot. I need it. I want it. And I. Will. Have. IT! I have no need for a squirrel teapot cozy, and yet I want to make one and then more to share with my friends. I’m not sure how practical of a book it is but sometimes I just like to look at pretty pictures and daydream.

Do you ever get a wacky idea and decide to try it? That’s sort of the impetus behind this giant Rice Krispy Treat Cupcake “Cake.”

I bought this giant Wilton cupcake cake pan on clearance at Target more than a year ago. It’s been sitting on the shelf, completely unused, which is kind of par for the course for me.

And then inspiration struck. “What if I make some Rice Krispy Treats and use them in the cupcake pan? I bet that would be so darned cool!”

Not sure about the coolness of it but it’s definitely different. (I live in fear of seeing this pop up on Cake Wrecks. Seriously.)

The pan has two separate wells, one for the base of the cupcake and one for the frosting. I used almost an entire batch of Cocoa Krispy Treats for the frosting and a little more for the original RKT in the base side. Before I started filling, I buttered the heck out of the pan, which I think was the only way that sucker would have come out of there.

I layered the leftover bits in a bundt pan and ended up with a “chocolate frosted” Rice Krispy Treat bundt cake. It did require making an additional batch of originals. Oh, the sacrifices I must make.

It was much easier to get the two pieces of the “cupcake” to stick together than I expected. I unmolded them before they’d cooled down all the way through. They were firm enough to hold the shape but with just enough warmth in the center to stick together nicely.

I used some royal icing to delineate the lines on the “cupcake liner” and swirl around the top. I think that turned out OK but not so fabulous that I’d do it again. Better idea than execution, maybe. Didn’t take away from the taste, though. Yummy!

I recently admitted on my Twittermoms blog that I love Valentine’s Day because I see it as a great excuse to craft. It’s totally true; I love having another opportunity to play with fun crafty things (like I need one!). I derive particular pleasure from designing Miss L’s Valentine each year.

This year was no exception and I think it’s my favorite one yet. (I say this every year; indulge me.) I used a digital fairy kit from Fairy Scraps (LOVE!) plus a digital photo border from Two Peas. It does require a bit of proficiency in a photo editing program (I use Adobe Photoshop) but it’s easy enough to master with some patience and practice.

I designed the cards as a 5×7 photo so I could print them at my local camera store and mail them to grandparents (always a good idea, in my opinion). I turned the canvas sideways and reduce the card to print two side by side, then trimmed them to 3.5×5. I found cute red envelopes at Michaels that were the perfect size to hold them. School Valentines are done!

I like the final product so much that I’m toying with the idea of making a larger print to hang in my studio.

We’ve gone through a ridiculous number of nicknames for Miss L. Punkin Baby, Bunny, Punkiny, Bits, Bitsy, Bitser and — obviously — Miss L. (Seriously. Honey and I refer to all the kids by initial. It’s weird but whatever.) The most recent is Sweetheart and it really seems to suit her. OK, maybe not so much with that cranky face but it was a brief moment that’s now been immortalized.

My new issue of Ottobre finally arrived and I had to dive into it right away. (And BIG props to Jan at The Wooly Thread, who took such great care of me!) There’s so much I can’t wait to make from it! The first thing I had to make was the Kerttu tunic. I used some Valentine fabric from Hobby Lobby that I bought back in November and then promptly ignored. L’s preschool party is Friday, so it wasn’t a moment too soon.

The top sewed up so quickly and easily. My biggest issue had nothing to do with the construction. Instead, it was a matter of notions: I had no skinny elastic on hand. None. Easy enough to remedy but it certainly would have been finished more quickly without that 90-minute detour.

I cut the 104 with the hopes that she’d be able to get a lot more wear out of it, and I’m convinced it was the right choice. It’ll work well with a tee under it on Friday. I think the neckline looks a little loose but I’m pretty sure a shot of steam will help the elastic recover a bit.

I contemplated making pants or leggings to wear under it (and I still may go the leggings route) but then recalled how many too-short jeans my child has and decided to add ruffles to a pair. Love how they turned out and the length is just right, even without my sweetie here to let me check the length.

We had kind of a whirlwind weekend, Honey, Miss L and me. Honey’s brother turned 40 on Groundhog Day and our sister in law invited us to fly to their home near New York City to be his birthday surprise.

I was a little on the fence about going — considering the cost and the much colder NY weather — but was sold on the idea once I recalled that one of my favorite people lives just a few miles away from the ILs. After I bought our tickets, I called her up.

“So, guess who’s coming to Staten Island in a couple of weeks?” I teased.

After I convinced her that A) I was not joking and 2) I was not some crazy psycho Internet stalker, we made plans to hook up. I’m so glad we did! The Diva picked me up at the door and whisked me off to a fabulous buffet breakfast at the nearby Hilton, where we sat and gabbed for what felt like 20 minutes but really was closer to 2.5 hours. We even managed to sneak in some business talk and Lisa was kind enough to give me some great feedback on The Project, which was just so helpful and wonderful. She was the first person I told about it and she’s been very encouraging and supportive, as well as delivering a kick in the behind when needed. I am truly fortunate to know her and having met her in person made it even more clear.

And then I snapped a picture with my phone and sent it to a certain mutual friend to rub it in. (Neener, neener!)

We love our play kitchen around here and spend lots of time “cooking” up ” ‘tend” meals, then serving them up to be “eaten.” Obviously, I couldn’t wait to test Patty’s upcoming Lil’ Chef pattern, with its play oven mitt, chef’s toque and cutesy little apron.

Patty told me to use just any ol’ fabric I had on hand, so I grabbed some of the sweet birdy fabric from Joann’s that I used for my niece’s birthday present and got cracking.

What a seriously fun little set to sew! And it’s been a hit with the Little Miss, although it took a couple of days for her to agree to model it for a photo.

The hat sews together super fast — and it’s only two pieces, to boot! I think the longest thing about making this was quilting the fabric for the oven mitt (it may be optional but it looks so cute that I had to do it LOL!). By the way, the hat really does fit; Liesl just insisted on putting it on all by herself and didn’t make the band snug enough to stay put.

I can’t wait to make more and think it would be great to embroider the owner’s name on the hat band to really personalize it.

The patterns aren’t available yet but add Patty’s blog to your feed reader to find out when they’re released.

I totally fell for the Mamu Carlotta pattern when Myrinda added it to her shop. Add some funky Euro fabrics (including a pretty babywale cord) and some trimmed elastic and … voila! Three fun shirts! I made the girl and doll ones match, although the shirt is more of a dress on the Bitty Twin (imaginatively named “Bitty Twin” by Miss L LOL! ). Mine is a really soft cord, such a nice hand and I love the color. The pattern was easy enough to follow, although the directions are a little skimpy. If you need step-by-step directions, this is not the pattern for you. If, however, you’re comfortable with more generalized instructions (“sew darts.” “Attach straps.”) then you’ll do just fine with this pattern. I’m quite happy with the fit, especially of the top for me. I used my bust measurement and it was spot on. That makes Mary a happy girl. I did add a couple of inches in length to the bottom of my top because I like a little more coverage there. I also like that top is cut modestly. I’ll definitely make this one again, probably in the dress length for summer.

My friend Katie has been sewing and selling the cutest little ruffled wristlet for a couple of years now. It’s seriously one of those things that has tempted me so many times because it’s just so darned cute. When Katie asked if I’d be willing to test the wristlet pattern for her, I did a goofy little jig that made my children and pets wonder if I’d lost my mind. Needless to say, I said yes.

I could not be more thrilled with the results. I made two of them fairly quickly, using some scraps of fabric I had on hand from some recently completed projects. Love, love, LOVE! The zipper was the trickiest part for me but I think it came together much easier than I expected. And it’s great that it can be made with small pieces of fabric, so it’s easy to make one to match every outfit. (Left wristlet made with Japanese fabrics from Lecien; right is made with JayMcCarroll’s new fabrics for FreeSpirit.)

Actually, when my son walked in and saw the first one (the Lecien), he immediately tried to walk off with it because he thought it would make a great gift for one of his girl friends. He’s totally right, of course: it would be perfect for a teen or even a little bitty thing like Miss L (who likes to tote around purses every chance she gets). Of course, he’ll have to make his own because I’m not giving up my wristlet! LOL!

You can check out the pattern in Katie’s Etsy shop.