Sewing for a reason

Sometimes you sew to sell, sometimes you sew to experiment, and sometimes you just sew for friends because you can. My friend purchased some extra material when buying new great room furniture so that some day she could make some pillows for the couch. Her 'some day' hasn't materialized yet, and, oh what the heck, I have some spare time on this rainy day.

Virginia Beach Collection

I've added a new collection of pillows to my Etsy.com store. I'm calling it the Virginia Beach Collection after Aunt Virg, who you may recall, was the Aunt that taught me to sew. She's parting with some of her fabric that she's collected over the years and I couldn't resist these two coordinating fabs with a great vintage beach style.

My New Sewing Room!

I'm so excited to share with you pictures of my new sewing room. I can stand up bolts of fabric in the tall cabinets, put all sorts of stuff in the drawers and cubbies. My new table is very sturdy. All I'm missing are the window coverings! Imagine that!

Origami Purse

Here's a little purse I discovered when in AZ. Mom had one from a friend so when I got back I set out to figure out how it was made. The bag measures 8" x 8" so it is large enough to carry sunglasses, lipstick, comb, etc. I thought they'd be cute for those occasions you just want to grab those few things to take along somewhere when you don't want to drag your entire purse along. Let me know what you think.

Couch Potato Table Cover

This table cover was made to create an end table in our family room. It is made from Tommy Bahama fabric; one nautical, one striped, along with a slightly stretchy denim. I'm calling this the Couch Potato Table Cover because in the patterned fabric there is a statement Tropic of Couch Potato. This is a variation of the Simplicity pattern I had mentioned in a previous post. I'm also pleased to report that my serger and I are getting along today, which allowed me to finish off my seams just as I had hoped. I love how it turned out. It has just enough 'nautical touch' to it. Now all I have to do is make another one EXACTLY the same!

Float Interiors is now on Etsy!

I had lunch with a dear friend a while back and she introduced me to Etsy.com. She makes knitting patterns for American Girl doll sweaters (too cute) and sells them on Etsy. If you are not familiar with this site, it features all handmade items. There are some really creative people out there! So I created a store for Float Interiors to sell some of my custom pillows. I actually sold my first thing today!! Check it out.

Simplicity 4096 Issue

I came across something that I wanted to share. I'm having an issue with Simplicity Pattern 4096 Table coverings. On the pattern envelope please notice the striped table topper. You'll also see an image of the actual pattern piece designated with a 3. If your fabric has a vertical stripe in it, I'd argue you can not use that pattern piece because your stripe will become diagonal as you wrap your table. In the image with the longer table topper, I used a straight rectangle and notice the lines in my print remain vertical. In the shorter table topper image I cut the fabric using pattern piece 3 as instructed. Notice those same print lines now run diagonally. So, my suggestion would be to cut a straight rectangle whenever using fabric with a vertical print of any kind. That's it for now.