Sundays in the Sewing Room- Sweet Retreat “What’s In My Bag?”

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Today’s post is short and sweet. I am packing up for Quilt Retreat. This is an annual event in Gander, Newfoundland, hosted by The Fabric Shop. It’s also a mini family reunion for a few of the girls in our family who attend. My Mom is the shop owner and this year’s retreat projects are so amazing, so I hope to bring home lots of ideas for future posts.

What’s In My Bag:

Here are a few photos of what I plan on taking to visit my Mom and for retreat weekend.

A few kits and fat quarters:

A few bag patterns

 

And of course my travel sewing kit. I made this at retreat a few years back and it has served me well. It holds all my essentials.

Stampin Up Frappuccino Coffee Cafe Bundle

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Grab a cuppa and join me in creating this card:

I have a love for coffee (and tea)! When I saw this set it immediately went to My TOP 5 favourite sets in the new catalog…and there is a companion set in the Holiday catalog, more on that next week.

I was inspired by another stamper to create this card. I kept the layout but changed up the embossing folder (Brick Wall) and the DSP (Eastern Palace Designer Series Paper).

To create this card:

Tranquil Tide: cut 11″ x 4-1/4″, scored at 5-1/2″- fold in half; and a small piece to cut out the straw

Very Vanilla: 5-1/4″ x 4″- emboss using the Brick Wall TIEF

Dapper Denim – 1-1/4″ x 4″

Eastern Palace Specialty Designer Series Paper – 1″ x 4″

1/8″ gold ribbon – 8″

Whisper white scrap approx  2″ x 5″   to create the cup.

scrap of vellum for the lid – 2″ x 2″

Additional Supplies:

Versa mark ink pad

nice to have- embossing buddy

stampin embossing powder– white

crumb cake stampin pad

early espresso stampin pad

 

Sunday in the Sewing Room- Charity Quilt

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I love to sew! Early on I would sew, mostly my own clothes. I even made my own wedding dress!! Then I discovered quilting..wow, what an eye opener to  me! This encompasses all the things as a child I was drawn to: fractions, shapes, geometry, colour theory, sorting, puzzles, cut and paste, and paper. It’s amazing how I have gone through my creative journey only to discover that the things I loved most in childhood are the things that I revert back to as an adult.

Take a moment and think of your childhood games and activities, what were some of your favourites? (Leave a comment below and share). Our senses play a big part in our creativity. In quilting the feel of the fabric, the colour combinations and the shapes/patterns need to speak to me.

I decided to join a local chapter. I had been cautioned that it was a large group…and it was! I was amazed at the talent and the sharing of that talent within the group. Many quilt guilds give back to the community and this group was no different. The quilts go to 15 different organizations including neonatal blankets.

At my first meeting I came upon a table filled with quilt kit (and I LOVE kits!). I soon found out these kits were to make charity quilts.

I was excited! This kit jumped off the table into my hands..did the polka dots have anything to do with it? Or was it the combination of pink, black and white? I eagerly signed up. One year later here is the finished project ( I never said I was fast!).

 

I love that the pattern was simple to piece together and  ALL the elements for the completion of the quilt were included (great for taking to retreats). The best part is that somewhere, someone will be cuddled under the warmth and love of a handmade quilt. We may never meet, but I am glad that I made the time to create a hug for someone who may need it more than me.

Creatively Yours,

R

 

 

Stampin Up’s Crafting Forever with Watercolour Pencils

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I created this card in the Spring for a card swap. I confess, I love card swaps! They are a great way to share your talent with others and to get ideas for creating cards. As a demonstrator, I  share card ideas with my customers. Card swaps allows me to have cards using stamp sets I may not have purchased ( and then after seeing an amazing card, I am tempted to add it to my wish list…sigh, such is the life of a craft-aholic)

For this card I used the Crafting Forever stamp set, Color Theory Designer Series pack and the new Watercolor Pencils. I love how the pencils glide easily on the paper and the blending

Check out this tutorial on how to put this card together:

Berry Burst card stock: cut at 8-1/2″ x 5-1/2″

Whisper White card stock cut 2 @ 5-1/4″ x 4″

Color Theory  Designer Series Paper Pack cut at5-1/2″ x 1-1/2″

Berry Burst Classic Stampin Pad

Basic Black Archival Stampin Pad

Touches of Texture stamp set

Rhinestones

Blender Pens

Aquapainter

 

 

 

Sunday in the Sewing Room – Fabric Basket

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Does this fabric look familiar?  It is leftovers I had after I made the Sweetpea pods. I was at a card swap yesterday, (more on that later this week), and I used this cute basket for holding my cards. It holds 20 cards, who knew!!

Be sure to check out The Fabric Shop when you are in Gander, Newfoundland. They have a great selection of fabric, classes and notions.

I made this to put next to my sewing machine for all my tech stuff- I love to listen to instrumental music while I sew. It helps me to focus on the task, and block out the distractions…like cooking and cleaning. Who has time for that when there is a sewing project on the table?

I created this basket using 2- 10″ squares and 1-10″ square of fusible batting.

I quilted the outer layer and batting in straight lines on the diagonal.

Then RST I sewed around, leaving a 2″ opening to turn it RSO. Edge stitch making sure to catch the opening.

To create the corners fold in half with RST and mark a 2″ triangle on the bottom of each corner, sew.

Fold in opposite direction and repeat. Turn RSO and fold flaps down. I attached mine with daisy buttons.

Here is a great tutorial from Seaside Stitches

Creatively Yours,

R

 

 

 

Paper Pumpkin August 2017 Alternate Projects…take 2

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I went a little crazy with this kit.In total I created 12 cards and I still have bits left over.  Here are four more designs.

Floral Birthday
To create this card cut a piece of Powder Pink card stock 11″ x 4-1/4″

Ink up ‘happy birthday’ greeting and stamp on bottom right corner

Cut leftover scrap of Calypso Coral card front (4-1/4″ x 1-1/2″)

Attach a piece of navy twine to the middle of this then attach to card front

Add dimensionals to the back of three flowers and place them in a row on top of the twine

Add pearls to the center of each card

Voila!

Coral Sympathy

To create this card I used the Calypso Coral card base from the kit

The blank oval in the kit was used to ink up the greeting

Punch two daisies using the Daisy Punch, add the floral centre.

I used the leaves and the stamp in the kit to add details to the leaves and under the greeeting

Old Olive twine was tied with a bow, under the oval. I adhered the oval and the daisy with dimensionals.

A pearl was added to the center of the flower.

Voila!

Navy Sympathy
To create this card, cut Night of Navy card stock 8-1/2″ x 5-1/2″

Cut Calypso Coral scrap 3-1/2″ x 4-1/4″ attach to card front

Ink up greeting with Night of Navy and stamp on blank oval ( from kit)

Create flowers and leaves as per kit instructions

I adhered the oval flat to the surface and used dimensionals to pop up the small flowers

Add pearls to the center of the flowers

Voila!

 

Navy Floral Bouquet

This one is my favourite!

I used the different flowers in the kit and leaves to create the floral bouquet in the center of the card.

I turned the oval, portrait, adhered the flowers with dimensionals. The leaves are flat to the surface.

Cut a piece of Night of Navy cardstock 8-1/2″ x 5-1/2″

Cut a piece of scrap Calypso Coral 1-1/2″ x 4-1/4″ and flag both ends, attach to the center of the card

Ink up greeting with Night of Navy on a piece of scrap (this is the back of the Calypso Coral card I used in the previous cards), attach to bottom right of card

Attach oval floral spray..and add some pearls and you are done!!

 

Thanks so much for visiting my blog today.

To keep up to date to on what’s happening on my blog, click the envelope at the top of the page:)

 

Stampin Up is offering coordinating kits for the months of October and November…my guess is it will give us a head start on our holiday paper crafting. Click on the link and sign up today!

 

Creatively Yours,

R

 

 

Colour with Wink of Stella

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I created this card to feature this colouring technique.

Inking up the Wink of Stella glitter brush with the Fresh Fig ink allowed me to add a subtle shimmer to the card without all the mess and fuss of glitter.

Scroll down for cutting instructions and supply list. The video gives details on how to put the card together. This is a quick and easy card to put together.

In this photo I am showcasing the card done in each of the new 2017-2019 in colours:

 Lemon Lime Twist; Powder Pink; Fresh Fig; Tranquil Tide and Berry Burst. It was hard to pick a favourite!

This would be a great gift to give to a teacher, friend or co-worker.

Check out the video to see how to put this card together:

To create this card, cut:

Whisper White  base: 8-1/2″ x 5-1/2″

scrap to punch out two daisies and the flower centre.

Fresh Fig  1-3/4′ x 5-1/2″

Fresh Florals DSP: 1-1/2″ x 5-1/2″

SUPPLIES:

Fresh Florals Designer Series Paper Stack
Fresh Florals DSP 144131

Daisy Delight Photopolymer Stamp Set
Daisy Delight Stamp Set 143669

Daisy Punch

Daisy Punch 143713

Wink of Stella Glitter Brush 141897

1/2" (1.3 Cm) Circle Punch

1/2″ circle punch 119869

Fresh Fig 8-1/2" x 11" Cardstock
Fresh Fig card stock 144242

Fresh Fig Classic Stampin' Pad
Fresh Fig Classic Stampin’ Pad 144082

Whisper White 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock
Whisper White card stock 100730

Snail Adhesive
Snail Adhesive 104332

Stampin' Dimensionals
Stampin’ Dimensionals 104430

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sweetpea Pods

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Sunday in the Sewing Room:

The fabric for this project came all the way from Gander,Newfoundland!!!  

The fabric is part of the Row by Row collection. Participating fabric shops  can create a collector license plate. Last year they collated the plates into fabric yardage. I love reading the plates, they are very punny. The lining fabric is black with white daisies –
OOPS! I forgot to take a photo of the inside 🙁

The pattern is from Lazy Girl Designs.

The trickiest part of this project is figuring out the zipper. I found the step-by step photos very helpful.

Once I had that down, I was good to go! Two 10″ squares will get you two sweetpea pods. One for you and one for a friend. A great way to use up stray layer cakes.

I hope that you will give it a try, if you do, leave a comment.

Creatively Yours,

 

 

 

Daisy Delight Thank You

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I designed this card with the Daisy Delight stamp set, Delightful Daisy Designers Series Paper and Crushed Curry Mini Chevron Ribbon.

Here is the video tutorial:

 

Measurements (inches):

Wisteria Wonder: 8-1/2 x 5-1/2

Crumb Cake: 4 x 5-1/4

Very Vanilla: scrap

Old Olive: scrap

Vellum: 1 x 3-1/2

Delightful Daisy DSP: 3 x 4

Mini Chevron Ribbon: 6

Additional Supplies:

Daisy Delight Stamp Set

Clear Block H

Clear Block C

Hardwood Background Stamp

Clear Block F

Layering Ovals

Big Shot

Pearls

Versa Mark Pad

Embossing Buddy

Gold Stampin’ Emboss Powder

Old Olive Classic Stampin Pad

Crumb Cake Classic Stampin Pad

Clicking on the products will redirect you to the item at my online shop.

To shop additional items click here!

Creatively Yours,

Rox

 

 

 

Sweet Treats – Candy Baskets

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These baskets were created using a kit from a shop hop I did in 2013.

Yes, I am FINALLY getting to them!!

We moved recently and as I am going through my craft stuff, I realized how much I love kits. ( it’s because I have TONS of them!)

This particular kit had all the materials. I had to supply the thread. I find that most kits include the main fabric and I am left to hunt around for the perfect piece of fusible interfacing. In some cases this slows me down enough to get distracted and start another project, or sorting my fabric. I was able to get straight to the cutting mat and finish up these baskets in an evening.

I think these baskets will be handy for small gift giving: socks, nail polish, jam and of course candies!!!

Small Baskets ( 3″ x 3″ x 2.5″)

Main, lining, interfacing: cut 1 @ 7″ x 9-1/2″

Handles: cut 2@3″ x 5″

 

Large Baskets ( 3.5″ x 3.5″ x 4″)

Main, lining, interfacing: cut 1@ 8″ x 11-1/2″

Handles: cut 2@ 3″ x 5″

 

Sweet Summer Treats

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Bag Lady! That’s me. I love to shop for bags, bag patterns, fabric to make my own bags! I have often been heard saying ” I love this fabric, it would make a great bag!”

I originally bought the donut fabric to create favours for my Mom’s annual quilt retreat. As most fabric lovers can relate, I bought WAAAAY too much fabric. So, what’s a bag lady to do with this leftover fabric, but make a tote bag!

The ice cream fabric was purchased to create a summer mug rug for a swap I participated in.

Last month I was invited to a birthday party and found myself looking for a tote to put the gift in…but all I had was Christmas totes. I set out to create these totes so I am ready for the next summer birthday!

For these bags the inner fabric is simple. I have made quite a few of these bags, sometimes with fun fabric both inside and out and they always get rave reviews. My sister-in-law tells me that it fits A LOT of STUFF!

I created them using:

Outer Fabric -cut 2 @ 13-1/2″ x 14-1/2″

Inner Fabric- cut 2 @ 13-1/2″x 14-1/2″

Handles: 4″ WOF

The tutorial I used was from Skip To My Lou

The bag is reversible. I have made a few adaptations to the original design.

I added pockets to these ones. I have made pockets with multiple slots so that a pen and phone can fit.

I have made them larger or smaller depending on the amount of fabric I have.

The smallest I have made is 12″ x 11″, to fit a standard coil notebook.

Please leave a comment below if you have tried this tutorial, would love to see what others’ are creating.

Creatively Yours,

R

 

Paper Pumpkin August 2017 Alternate Project Ideas

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I decided this month to feature alternate projects using supplies from my Paper Pumpkin kit and a few additional supplies. I challenged myself to use most of the kit ingredients and was able to come up with 9 card designs plus the 3 that were originally featured in the kit. That’s a total of 12 different cards. The kit comes with a beautiful gift box. I might divide up the cards into two gifts and create my own box with the envelope punch board.

I hope you enjoy the video and it inspires you to create some one-of-a-kind handmade cards.

For a limited time, new subscribers can save 50% of the first month. Offer ends September 10

Go to My Paper Pumpkin.com

For additional supplies, check out my online store

Night of Navy cardstock

Calypso Coral cardstock

Pool Party cardstock

Powder Pink cardstock

Wink of Stella glitter pen

Metallic Enamel Shapes

Basic Pearls

Creatively Yours!

Sunday in the Sewing Room

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At my local quilt guild we were presented with a President’s Challenge that lasted the whole year. Each month we were to bring in 40 – 5″ charm squares (all the same), then the next month we would pick up our packet of assorted 5″ charm squares. The challenge was to create something with the charm squares. While I did not participate in all of them I did choose three: Halloween, Christmas and blue. I missed purple month…boohoo)

I created the totes on the left and right with a tutorial by Missouri Star Quilt Co.- you can get three totes from one pack of charm squares! I was amazed! The tutorial is quick, easy to follow and she offers some great tips.

The basket in the middle is aptly named Charm Baskets.( 20 charm squares). This pattern came from a quilt store I found on a shop hop in 2010. Threads That Bind is located in the small town of  Maxwell,Ontario.

I have made a few alterations on the original pattern. The pattern calls for fusible fleece for both the lining and outer fabric. I used soft & stable foam stabilizer for the outer and nothing for the lining. What I liked about the foam stabilizer is the ease of use. I intentionally quilted “stitch in the ditch” at the parts of the basket where it would fold, this helps the basket keep it’s shape.

Next time I will try a lightweight stabilizer for the lining. While it is fine without, I feel it would give the inner basket a bit more stability and the lining would have an overall smooth clean finish.

I was left with 4 charm squares, so I created the mug mat. This was a fun challenge…stay tuned to see what I made with the Christmas charm squares.

Creatively Yours!

 

 

Top 5 Reason I Love Paper Pumpkin

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I have been a Paper Pumpkin subscriber since it’s inception. I took a short leave and signed up again. They have made some amazing improvements over the years. I LOVE KITS!!!!

TOP 5 Reason I LOVE PAPER PUMPKIN

  1. You need minimal additional supplies. I gather my paper snip, adhesives and clear block and I am ready to create a one-of-a-kind handmade creation in just a few minutes.
  2. Everything is in ONE box, ready to take with you anywhere: the camper, a friend’s house, the coffee shop, the library, even your own dining room table!
  3. The price point is fair for what you get. Most card kits come with 6- 8 cards, with matching envelopes. Sometime there is a project…last year it was a cute wreath.
  4. They have great bling and plenty of it! I often find I have leftovers that I can inspire me to create something of my own.
  5. A link to a YouTube video to quickly show you how to put the kit together- for us visual learners.

 

It’s a great way to share, create and inspire.

For a limited time NEW subscribers can save 50% off their first month. So, if you have been sitting on the fence wondering if this is for you.. then jump off and go to My Paper Pumpkin and get started on your creativity in a box.

StampinUP 2017 Holiday Haul

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Perks of a Demonstrator #2 : Pre-orders

As a demonstrator we get a sneak peek at new products before they go live with the catalog launch! We also get the opportunity to pre-order products so that we can get ready for classes.

When that UPS truck slows down as it approaches my house, I get giddy with excitement! My pre-order has arrived!!!!

Check out this video to see all the products I have purchased to gear up for some fantastic card classes: