Fear and Peanuts

I pushed myself to go outside of my comfort zone today.  Some people fear public speaking.  Some people fear heights.  I, on the other hand, get a bit (ok, a LOT) anxious meeting new people, especially in places where there are NO familiar faces.  So today I decided to meet that fear head-on and go to a quilt shop open house "sew-in".  It was an informal "meet, greet, sit and sew" event here in town.  I have to admit I had a semi-serious argument with myself on the way over as to whether or not I was going to actually go or not.  In the end I decided that it was important to bust through the fear, and so I did.  I took my most favorite project, my Pocket Peanuts, to sew while I was there.  And lest you think I had forgotten that this is a blog where I share my creative things, here they are!

These are my original Pocket Peanuts.  They are a smash hit with my kids.  They're all shaped like peanuts (similar to Russian stacking dolls), and though they are called peanuts, they are completely peanut free (no allergens here!).  They are approximately 3" tall (1.5" wide) and are stuffed with non-allergenic polyfil stuffing, so they are fun little pocket-sized dolls.  [And in my best announcer voice: "but wait...there's more!"]

These little Pocket Peanuts are finger puppets, too!  They are made with a strip of elastic securely sewn into the seams, so little fingers (and big fingers, too) can wear them.

I have oodles of other things to share with you, but I have to close out this post for now.  I'll be back later with details on my shop opening (!!!!!) and more fun stuff!

Have an amazingly blessed Monday!

:) Caren

Aliens on the Brain

I'll admit it.  I'm a little boy-crazy.  In a crafty sort of way.  Yep, I love my boys to pieces, and I love "making stuff" for them.  My 5 year old Spunky is such a creative little guy.  I bounce ideas off him continually.  He's got great input into my creations.  He named this one (below) "Salien" (because he's got what looks like a sun on his face).

We were discussing aliens a couple nights ago and he had "a great idea!", so he drew me an alien.  It was so stinkin' cute!  He described every part of it, from the shape, to the eyes, "then there's a mouth, and another mouth, and stripes like a zebra, and this one squiggly stripe goes all the way up to his second mouth!!!".  And yes, I do know that he was stalling because he didn't want to go to bed, but those are the moments I cherish...

So, yeah, I've had aliens on the brain.  Here's how I created 3D aliens from the pictures: two scraps of quilting cotton (Spunky picked the fabrics), and an old t-shirt.

I am no good at free-hand copying, so I used an iron-on embroidery pen and some freezer paper to make a transfer, and after I transferred it, I copied over the lines with my fabric pen.  It was my first time using this method and it worked beautifully!

Sprout saw me taking pictures of the aliens and made a bee-line over to investigate.

He started TALKING (ok, babbling, but who's to say the aliens can't understand?  Never know, maybe he was speaking their language?!!).

He was so excited he even gave me the nose-crinkle that I adore!

Spunky got home from school and was thrilled.  Now if I could only figure out how to make antennae that are kid-friendly, I'd be a super-hero momma!

Blessings,
:) Caren

Odds and Ends

I've just been working on my sister's chair cover thingies but the machine I'm using keeps snapping the thread.  I gave up in frustration after the fourth time I had to re-thread it. Some day I will own a sewing machine - one capable of doing at least a zig-zag stitch.  But what right have I to complain?!!!  My friend loaned me (indefinitely) her grandmother's sewing machine.  What a dear, sweet, trusting friend.  

"Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things". (Philippians 4:8)
This verse gives great insight on keeping positive, and how to stay that way.  I could grumble and complain, but I'm not going to.  And since you are reading this, I'm going to let you see a bit of my thinking about "such things".  In pictures!

 First off, this past year I was thinking about a "label".  I kind of like this one.  It's my own design and a professional could probably do better.  But for now, it will work!

Then there are the many embroidery designs I've done.  Like this one.  I kind of like it, too. Here's how my first attempt turned out:

Not the greatest (I was trying to figure out which way I liked to wrap the letters).  But it's a fun start, right?

And then there's fabric.  Does fabric make you happy, too?  Well, these gems are from my quilting friend Brooke, and I made this piece of loveliness with some of them:

(And my Sunshine looks so adorable in it.  I love this fabric - thank you so much, Brooke!!!)

Here's a UFO from my pile: a quiet book.  These are the pieces for my OHIO TIC TAC TOE and PLANT THE VEGGIES pages.  The tic tac toe pieces are buckeyes and ladybugs (state tree & insect) and velcro on/off.  The Veggies are carrots, potatoes, and beets and are inside pockets.  If any of you have made quiet books before, you know how much time they take.  I really do want to show you the finished pages, but that will have to wait for a bit.  


And still keeping on the "such things" theme, here's some more:

A sweet "Mermaiden" I made (from Hilary Lang's book Wee Wonderfuls).

And a couple of pincushions.  The one on the left is a porcupine (I made his nose a little too platypus-ish, but he's still cute.) 

Alien Blobbies (another cadamsCREATIONS original)

And here's the robot I made for Spunky when Sprout was born.  He actually designed it (pretty great for a 4 year old, if you will pardon my bias!)

And the "E" bag I made for my sister.  I was so impressed with how well this bag turned out.  It was one of my first bags!

OK, I know this blog is about my crafty stuff, but here's a little randomness about me:

I love big fat fluffy squirrels.  (These were in my back yard.)

And last (but not least) for the day:  I love my Sprout, who just recently turned one year old.  He's grown so much!  I remember when I found out I was pregnant he was about the size of a blueberry, so we called him "baby blueberry".  Then he was born and had to be in NICU for a little bit, and when I took him home he shrunk.  And kept shrinking.  On his 23rd day (after losing almost 2lbs) he was hospitalized.

Oh yes.  Look at those eyes!  He's beautiful.  Anyway, he's better now, and growing like a weed (hence the name Sprout).  He started standing on his own on Christmas day, and just took his first step (toward me!) today.

This was at his birthday party - after he devoured his cake (though I'm not sure how much of it actually got IN his mouth!)

Oh, writing this post was good for my heart.  I am so amazed at the things that my hands have made in the past year (that's about how long I've been sewing) and grateful for the friends I have (new, old, creative, and not-so-much). And just thinking about the growth and development of my youngest child (and my other two as well, but that's for another day....) makes me smile.

Hope your life is full of "such things" to think about.  I encourage you: keep those good things in your remembrance.  It will do your heart good!

Blessings,
:) Caren

Miss Badger

Meet Miss Badger.  This little friend was made from a thrift store wool sweater that I washed in hot water to "felt" it.  I could not share this project with you all before now because she was a Christmas gift for my sister in law, whose maiden name is Badger (she was a teacher, hence "Miss Badger").

Miss Badger and Foxy were great friends.  (I introduced Foxy in this post).  They were both made using patterns from the book Countryside Softies, which I highly recommend to anyone interested in using felted wool for soft toys.

Look at this tail!  I love the button joint!

I love all the little stitching details.  The body was machine stitched, but everything else was done by hand.  I was going to add a little bow, but I kinda like her just as she is!

Now that Christmas is over, I am looking forward to the new year.  I look back at this year and am so surprised by all of the creations that have emerged from my hands.  To you, dear readers, I offer my wishes for a wonderfully creative, and peace-filled 2012.
Blessings,
:) Caren

Meet My New Hedgies!

Last week I joined a link party over at Love Affair with My Brother and I received quite a few comments (and several new followers - thanks, Sunni!).  I have been making my own soft toy patterns for about a year now and have had many requests, but never for the patterns themselves.  So now, by special request, I have drafted up a hedgehog pattern, and made a few hedgies for today's show & tell.

Source

In my quest to draft a hedgie pattern I have been scouring the internet for photos.  I love this little one.

Source

Or how about this one with the cute flower?  Lookie! - you can actually see her legs!

This is more typical of what I have seen.  Just a big ball of spines with a nose (and ears and eyes, if you look closely).  So that was where I started.  And without further ado, let me introduce you to my newest creations!

(Oh, and per special request, I'll be sharing my pattern and tutorial with you all in an upcoming post!)

Before I post the tutorial, however, I'd like to introduce you to my little family of felted wool hedgies.  First up is Snoot, who may look like a traditionally colored hedgie, but his "spines" are really navy blue and deep maroon.  I didn't happen to have any brown wool today, so I used what I had in the house already.  

And here is Sniffles.  Her spines are made from a 70% wool, 30% polyester ribbed sweater.  I wasn't sure how the ribbing would work and then I made her using my tutorial and she looked like an armadillo! 

See what I mean?  Anyway, I figured I wouldn't have to actually MAKE spines, I'd just have to give the SUGGESTION of spines.  So here's how I did that:

Just a bit of embroidery floss makes for an interesting addition to both the look and texture of this girlie.

And last but not least is Stella.  She's a "sophisticated" hedgie, subdued in both color and personality.  But she's sweet none the less.  I decided to go with embroidery floss for the eyes - 12 strand French knots.  Let me say that I was more than a bit nervous about that, but I took courage and pressed on.

Are you still with me?  OK.  I told you I'd be sharing my pattern and tutorial, and I promise you won't have to wait long (my next post, in fact!).  And yes, my crafty followers, it is absolutely free!  But before I go, can I share just a few more fun photos?  Because I took a gazillion and no one around here really cares about seeing them.  So if you are interested, here's just a few more!

A heart.  'Cause I love my followers!  :) Caren

Uncomplicated

This blog post is a reminder to myself to keep things simple.  

At the moment I have a million (ish) fabulous ideas floating around in my head.  I start by drafting my patterns and adding elements, and by the time I'm sewing I realize that I have made things WAY TOO COMPLICATED.  Has that ever happened to you?

If you haven't noticed, I get pretty excited about uncommon animals.  You know, the ones that are totally unique.  Yep, teddy bears and stuffed kitties are nice, but they're fairly common.  A stuffed kangaroo?  Now that's not as easy to find!

See, it all started with a realization that I have a baby shower to go to this Saturday (eek!).  And yes, I do already have a gift to give, but it is not hand-made.  So I decided I'd make a small stuffie for the new baby.  Here's my sketch.  A bunny.  Not so difficult, right?

Ha!  Then I thought - oh, I bet that baby would like a crinkly toy!  So I added the crinkle factor (in this case, a sanitized pretzel bag).  Then I thought - oh, one is not enough!  I'll make a family!

  But even before I could finish one bunny, I had a "great idea" (anyone ever seen Wallace and Gromit?  "Don't worry, I have a GREAT idea!").  Yeah.  A kangaroo family.

Yes!  A pocket!  A little joey to snuggle in it's mommy's "pouch"!  Great idea!

But by then the crinkle bunny family was partially finished.  So now the kangaroo daddy has been finished.  So I'm kind of committed.  (Or maybe someone should consider committing me!)

I mean, really - look at those ears.  Gorgeous!  But ouch - they were fussy!!!  There's a bit of the "crinkly" in there, and then I gathered them, then the patch on the inside.... what was I thinking?!  And that's only the daddy kangaroo!

And since I was already committed, I decided not to leave this poor bunny family unfinished.  They deserve to be together, right?  So here's mommy:

Doesn't she look happy?

And if I ever get Mrs Kangaroo and little Joey finished, I'm sure they'll look every bit as happy to be a family...

...IF, of course, I can tear daddy kangaroo away from my little Sunshine!

Have a very blessed (and uncomplicated) week!  :) Caren