summer belt

i am telling you- all i want to do is sew now- the passion for the machine is on full force here- i picked up these great fabrics at the shop in fat quarters- cut them into small strips- and started sewing them together-

after i felt the strip was long enough i put some heavy interfacing and a pattern fabric for the back- stitched up the sides by turning the fabric under and used bias for the tie- which i love- it frays a little and looks super cute-

used a small piece of fabric on both ends to cover the stitching that came together at the ends-

 a few samples of how it looks

 i also wore the bias through my belt loops in the front-
 loved that look a lot

tons of compliments on this-
 i love to dress up my plain wardrobe with color

-birdie

the dress

so this is how the dress was made..

it started with a Amy Butler Pattern:

lotus-tunic and cami

 laying out the fabric with the pattern

 cutting

 and more cutting

 uff da! that was a whole lot of cutting

 

(total side note- jods, krissy- does this rug look familiar?) 

after all the cutting the sewing begins! 

a dress and a liner was sewn

dress-mom

liner- me 

sewing on my moms ancient singer...

my liner all finished

 i now give you a

dress

i love how it turned out- it is so much cuter than i had imagined

i love it on- super comfortable

*******************************************

the sewtropolis grand opening was a hit by the way- 

here is a pic of all us employee gals

 (minus one & owner nikol is in the turquoise dress) in our "red dresses" and turquoise tights (store colors) of course- i made flip flops to match

 what a fun time- 

a million thanks to my wonderful-talented momma for all your help- 

it would not have been done with out you- xoxo

are you inspired to make a dress yet?

-birdie

flowers and flip flops

spring is in the air-  i am bringing back my famous flip flops!

 

purple- blue and yellow- oh my!

the production starts in my craft area 

quickly it grows to the dining room table!

i love seeing all the little girls and moms walking around with my flip flop creation- i really do enjoying making them too-

 i made over 50 pairs last summer!

if you need a pair- let me know your size- i will ship to you-

if you are local check out sewtropolis in the new location at:

 Chicago and 47th- mpls

 i will get some into the store soon-

-busy birdie

sewing sunday

first sunday of every month i have sewing club- we meet at my moms house- my mom is always up 2 something on sewing sunday- this month the theme was aqua! all i have 2 say is- CUTENESS.. not only does she always seem to find the cutest treasures- she displays them in a way you just want 2 drop everything 2 stare- this woman has talent i tell you- she has an eye for great things and she can sew- fix and create things most people only dream of- i am glad i got most a sliver of her talent! :)

here is the buffet she had set up in the "aqua" decor

aqua bowl w/mints- aqua masons- aqua ribbon- aqua tea cups- aqua yarn- aqua vase- aqua buttons- aqua wooden kitty (holds matches) all vintage and yummy! aqua-aqua-aqua!

she also made us all dish cloths with yellow and aqua and put the flower of the month daffodils in them- also had daffodils on the table too!

is she just unbelievable or what? it was so cute i can't even stand it- the pictures DONT do justice for the cuteness it was-

 sewing bird

she even crocheted little jackets for these candles- :)

and then- when i thought the day was complete with cozy sewing aqua

my sister surprises me with....

a camera strap!!!!

is it my birthday? nope- she just loves me-

or was tired of hearing me ask for one :)

honestly- best.sister.ever.

a little pocket for my lens cap to hang out while i am busy shooting- 

 check out the cute vintage red button- anyone jealous yet??

she got way more then a sliver from my mom-

 this girl oozes talent- you should see the things she makes-

   she didnt stop at sewing- she added some hand stitching of course- xoxo

 lucas took these- a little blurry- but needed some action shots!

  thanks again sissy- LOVE it more than you know!!

i only got one wash cloth done at sewing- but i learned a new stitch- the V stitch- displayed on this lovely vintage table cloth with the owl glass-
fun day indeed!                             -birdie

slippers

wanted to give you a peak at those slippers i told you i was making at sewing sunday- then i felt it would be a good time for some good old fashioned show-in- tell!

my new slippers!

how yummy is this yarn?!?!!

time for the show-in-tell.......

throwing you back- early 80's here... this is a pair of crocheted slippers my grandma made me when i was little-

how fun is this? i can't believe i still had these- i found them stored away in the attic at my moms house- i am so glad i kept them!! i love seeing the work my grandmas hands made- xoxo

a little different then the ones i wear now- but i totally dig the tassel

sporting these ones while i work on my blog- cozy and cute!

the entry

hello! happy sunday- i am here to post the entry make-over for you all to see- so here it goes-

before pictures of the entry-

 this is a 1950's house

 my little helper

i never realized how dark our house was- back in 06' we did a complete gut on the kitchen and so the new white kitchen broke up all this dark wood- now that its white i can't believe how long we lived like this... yuck.
dont get me wrong- original wood work is beautiful- but i am much more into the updated look for this house!

and...............................................wait.. are you ready???.....

so yummy- right? i love the door color- i love the rug and i also love this little extra decor piece i made to match the entry-

  i made him too but not for the entry :)

picked up this frame for cheap and sprayed it- used scrap book paper- sanded and painted the "c" the green from the rug- a little hot glue and it was finished-

so what do you think?
do you think i should spray the baskets on the shelf?

take a peek here at the kitchen nook before and after-

 the dark wood again- this is the only before pic i have :(

 the updated kitchen nook

i painted this door the same as the entry- i just love how it stands out against the white trim- ( boy do i need something on that table)
 i have been a busy gal- i am moving on to the next room! hope you enjoyed!

-birdie