Sawtooth Stars

I decided on Sawtooth stars to back the potholders I'm making for Christmas and set to work on them. In this one "simple" potholder project I have done my first ever snowball blocks and flying geese units. Not to say there haven't been mistakes made, obviously this completed back is about 1/4 too small for the front. I'm leaving it though. I figure once it's bound no one will ever know. I am forever correcting myself that way.



Obviously I learned from my measuring mistake on this one, but all of the mistakes on the first block (directional prints are not my friends and I had to re-do a couple flying geese) left me with not enough fabric to outline the star in for this block. So I just repeated the star fabric. I think it looks a little too busy this way, but I might do a couple more like it just to make them all look intentional. More corrections of mine. HA!



I also decided that the snowmen for the fronts of the holders definitely need arms. That means this guy goes back in the embroidery hoop. Just when I thought I was so close to finishing the holder up. Oh well, he'll look better and that will make me feel better.

Monday Moments

We took the kids to go see Santa last night. Part of my husband's plan to spend at least an hour out of the house every day to get the dog completely cage trained before we have to travel for Christmas.

I had no desire to go. I whined so bad about the long lines and how Gabe wasn't going to get it that you would think I had some traumatic Santa experience as a child. But I didn't. And he didn't really get it, but he loved looking at the fake reindeer and wearing the little cardboard elf ears they gave him (except when the camera was on him, of course). The line wasn't even that long. I felt kind of like a boob, but I guess it's the pressure of the season and not being sure how much I will, or want to get done off of my list. Even possibly thinking about wasting an hour in line is enough to stress me out this time of year. And despite that pile of gifts, I am not done shopping. I could be, if I HAD to be, but I want three more.

Busy Bee

A few years ago, on my tiny single girl budget I decided that to make my family's Christmas gifts more special I'd buy those cheap plaster ornaments and hand paint them with each person's name to use as gift tags. I unwittingly started a family tradition for my sister. When my niece was born another ornament with Ava written on it was at the top of my sister's Christmas list. This year, with the new baby, she didn't even ask, but I figured she was probably expecting it. I searched around and found the cutest little reindeer ornament. I painted it, adorably, I might add. And then I wrapped it. Without taking it's picture to show you all. I realized it as I got it downstairs and put it in the gift pile and kicked myself. Not literally.



Speaking of...look at this pile! I have been a very busy bee this year. Very busy.



And that isn't even all of it. Shhhh! Don't tell anyone I showed you, but this little broom closet is where Santa is stashing his loot this year.

Progress Report

Well, the quilting is done and the million slits have been cut. The outside of the bag has been washed and dried (in order to fray it). I'm torn on what to do next. I seem to remember washing the last bag I made from this pattern twice to get the amount of fraying I wanted. But if I don't wash it again then I am free to actually start sewing the sides together and cutting the lining. Hmmmm....

Monday Moments

This is my husband's busy season at work, as it is for a lot of folks, I'm sure. He is an unbearable grump, working six days a week, and when he comes home, the last thing he wants to do is more work. I am having one hell of a time trying to balance everything this year. I absolutely have to finish this diaper bag, and I have to finish the snowman potholders, and I have to make up five jars of cookie mix and a box of cookies for each family Christmas that we're going to. I have to find a gift for my mother, another gift for the husband who I know I'll love again in a few weeks, and order the gift for my mother-in-law in time to have it wrapped and ready to go, and I have to do it all while throwing in extra loads of laundry and dishes to make up for what my husband isn't doing.

And then, on top of all of this, there are the snow days. It saves me driving back and forth to school twice a day, but it also means that I have two lunches to serve and two kids to watch.



Or four kids to watch when the neighbors' come out and hop on our sleds too. It really was an enjoyable thing to see, but in the back of my mind I was thinking about the sewing room the whole time. Maybe I'll be more fun on snow days in January.

Monday Moments, Tuesday Edition

First, a little explanation of why I forgot to post yesterday. On the way to my parents' for Thanksgiving we encountered some snow. Just a little bit, but enough for my husband to see that the tires I had been bitching about for months were actually just as bad as I said they were. (He rarely drives the car, so he hadn't been on wet roads with it for eons.)

My husband's work week is Tuesday through Saturday, so Mondays always end up being our day to run around and get everything done. In this case, it was seemingly endless trips to tire shops.



Then we had the actual plans we had made for the day. We drove out to the same Christmas tree farm that we got our tree from last year and made a selection that we were pleased with. My husband sawed it down while the kids looked on in awe.



Then we got it home and realized our tree tastes were far bigger than our space. That tree is HUGE! Little branches are poking into my TV stand and my lamp stand that the tree usually sits perfectly sandwiched between. Oh and did I mention the spiders that came crawling down the windshield when we hoisted it onto the roof? It's things like this that make me want a fake tree. But it's things like these photos that make me realize what I'd be giving up along with the hassle.

Sheesh...

Has it been almost a week already? I decided to go with Erin's suggestion and re-use some of the bag fabric as the side panels, being that I would be the only one who knew that the pattern called for each panel to be a different fabric. I ended up following the yellow monkeys with the cream/red/brown polka dot and then the green polka dot.



I decided the easiest way to make the bag taller (rather than redoing the entire trapezoid shape to make it longer/larger) would be to add a single strip of fabric in the width I want the bag to be to the bottom. This is also the fabric that I'll be using to bind the bag and make the straps. I probably took a picture of it in the worst spot because it isn't really apparent that the colors do actually coordinate.

The next step is to layer it over top of some canvas and a couple layers of batting and quilt it. Then I have to cut about a MILLION little slits in the edges so that it frays nicely, wash it and I can finally begin the parts that make it take the shape of an actual bag. I love that part! I love seeing something come together and seeing if it looks how I envisioned it.