Project FINALE!!!!

This is it!!!!

The final day of our 2014 3rd Quarter Project!

I'm still hoping to get a few receiving blankets finished up tonight to add to the goodies heading to our Crisis Pregnancy Center. 

Then.....tomorrow.....it's time for the 4th Quarter, and FINAL, Project of 2014 announcement!

I'm so excited as I have recruited a most adorable assistant for this special project! Will share all about it tomorrow! :)

Neon Studded Jeans - Bring dreary denim back to life!

These new Neon Studs from My Buttons are the perfect thing to bring life back to a dreary pair of jeans! 

Simple & fun to use, I turned my 13 year old daughter loose with a rubber mallet and a handful of the Neon Studs and she embellished a pair of her jeans so cute!

Simply slide a sturdy book or piece of wood inside of where you will be applying the studs to prevent it from securing to both layers. Create whatever pattern you desire with the studs. Gently but firmly thump each stud with the mallet to secure it in place. 

And in no time, you're all set and very stylish! ;)

Seen here also wearing her "Button Bling", you can find that tutorial HERE.

You can find the new Neon Studs at your JoAnn's store or on-line at buttonlovers.com.

Thanks to Button Lovers for providing the studs for our project! 

GIVEAWAY!!!! $25 Gift Certificate from Fabric Outlet!

***ADDED NOTE*** Friends, just to clarify.  I am hosting the current giveaway for Kim at Fabric Outlet as an effort to show my support for her small business and get the word out about her shop. This can be especially difficult for smaller businesses today, and I have seen many have to downsize considerably or close because they can't compete with Big Box stores. The current giveaway was designed specifically to help her as she stepped out into Twitter to broaden her reach. She is one small fish in a huge ocean, so my effort is to simply try and help create a few extra splashes in her direction. 

Thanks for your support and understanding. Good luck and thanks for keeping this fun!

It's your LUCKY DAY!!!!!

Fabric Outlet is new to Twitter and is looking for new friends to share their tweets with! Help introduce them to the Twitter world and enter for your chance at a $25 Gift Certificate to their shop!

I've been ordering from Fabric Outlet for a long while now, and here's just a peek of some of the great quality fabrics I've snagged at their incredible discount prices! Each Thursday they host a "Thrifty Thursday" on their facebook page, with designer fabrics marked down to unbelievable prices! You'll want to check it out! 

If you'd like to join the fun and enter for your chance at the $25 Gift Certificate, just follow the easy Rafflecopter prompts below. Open to all! 

**NOTE - The gift certificate is for material purchases from Fabric Outlet and does NOT apply towards shipping. Shipping fees are the sole responsibility of the gift certificate winner.

a Rafflecopter giveaway
Winner to be announced & emailed Friday, September 26 and expected to respond within 48 hours or an alternate winner may be selected.

Thanks to Fabric Outlet for this generous giveaway!

Good Luck to All!!!!

You can find Fabric Outlet's On-line Shop HERE.
Fabric Outlet on Facebook HERE.
Fabric Outlet on Twitter HERE.
Fabric Outlet on Instagram HERE.
Follow all to be sure not to miss anything! :)

#TBT - Throw Back Thursday, Babyville Cloth Diapers

This week I FINALLY had the privilege of meeting with the young mothers that I made all these darling diapers for! It was such a wonderful class and I look forward to many more! 

They all loved how cute these sweet diapers were and hopefully at least a few will take on the money saving challenge of using cloth with their little ones, even if only part-time. 

Be sure to click over HERE to see all the adorable diapers sewn with the fabric generously provided by Babyville Boutique for this special project.

And here's a couple of snapshots of the class in action.

Thanks again for your continued support and encouragement of m y projects Babyville Boutique!

Button Bling! + Tutorial!

How about a little more button fun this week???

Today I'm sharing some "BUTTON BLING" we made up in a snap! Whether it's earrings or rings, I'll show you how quickly you can be stylin' with your favorite buttons. I have a "thing" for buttons, and often find ones that I don't have a specific project for, but love so much they find their way into my stash. This is a perfect way to showcase them so you can enjoy them regularly!

 For the rings you'll simply need...

Ring Base of your choice (we've bought these at Hobby Lobby & online on Etsy)

Colorful & Funky My Buttons from buttonlovers.com or JoAnn's

All it takes is a dab of that super strong E6000 glue like I shared in my Button Bows tutorial placed right on the center of the flat of your ring base. Center your button on the ring base and allow to thoroughly dry. Then, make another...and another! :)

All set for some fun & unique accessorizing!

The earrings are just as easy!

For the earrings you'll need...

Earring Flat-pad Studs (we found our's online)

Some SUPER CUTE My Buttons found at buttonlovers.com or Joann's.

If your buttons aren't flat backed, you'll need that handy Button Shank Remover to snip the shank off. Then, just a little dab of that super strong glue, center your button choice on the pad of the earring and allow to dry thoroughly. (Remember from before I suggested using this glue outside since it's so stinky!) ;)

 Aren't they adorable!?!?!?

And just think of the endless number of styles and colors you could have in no time! 

Once again, a BIG THANKS to buttonlovers.com for sending us all the awesome buttons for these projects as well! 

More Baby Sewing with ONLY 2 weeks left in our Project!

 ONLY 2 WEEKS LEFT!!!!!

That's right....our 3rd Quarter Project is coming to a close! 

Have you been Baby stitching along with us? If so, we'd love to see & share your finishes. Just add them to our Flickr Album HERE so we can! 

Here's my latest finishes for donation to the project...

 These cheery tag blankies are a great quick sew project that helps finish off fabric remnants and those end of roll ribbon pieces! The playful hedgehog print and red dot minky fabrics came as part of the last "Bits of Binkeez" donations received from Binkeeze For Comfort. These blanket trimmings have been such a blessing to me and allowed me the opportunity to sew and share so much more!

I had the orange fleece as a remnant and was able to clear out all kinds of ribbon bits from bow making and the like while making these! I finished a stack of 8 to add to the other goodies going to our Crisis Pregnancy Center. 

I also finished another 16 bibs. These were all made using remnants from other projects, so they helped clear out a bit more of my stash I've been trying to purge. 

I'm hoping to finish up a few more things over the next couple of weeks as time allows. We'll be excited to deliver all these goodies knowing they will be a blessing to the families that receive them and the workers that are able to share them. :) Still time to join in....and I sure hope you will! Find all the details linked at the top of the sidebar.
 

Tutorial: Sweet & Simple Button Bows

Buttons are a perfect embellishment for hair accessories and today I'm going to share two simple options that look so sweet on!

Here's what you'll need:
Items will vary based on which type of hair accessory you wish to make.
Ribbon - if making the bow style
My Buttons from buttonlovers.com or JoAnns - the adorable polka dot buttons are part of their newest collection for kids and some of my favorites!
Hair Clips or Bobby Pins
Hot Glue or E6000 glue
Button Shank Remover Tool

If making the bow style, you'll need to start by making the bows using ribbon of your choice. This TUTORIAL shows how I make my bows.

Once your bows are made, use your Button Shank Remover tool to snip the shank from your buttons to create a flat surface on the back. 

Hot glue the button in place. TOO CUTE!!!! 

The next one is even faster!

Once again, remove the shank from your buttons with the Button Shank Remover.

Drop a small dab of glue on the back of your button and secure in place on the flat circle of the bobby pin.

You'll want to use a very strong glue for these like E6000. It holds best when there isn't something textured like fabric or ribbon for the glue to adhere to. It's VERY strong in odor, so I only use it outside. Just a little PSA to help avoid any unnecessary headaches from the fumes! ;) It also take a bit of time to fully dry.

How cute are these!?!?! My teen girls enjoy using this type of hair accessory.

There you have it!
Sweet & Simple and fun to make!

Thanks to buttonlovers.com for providing the buttons for this sweet project.

If you didn't see last week's tutorial for my Cute as a Button Bow Holder, be sure to check it out here! You'll need somewhere pretty to display all those beautiful button bows you've made! :)

Craft Book Month - Woodland Bunnies from Sewing Bits & Pieces

Craft Books.

I love 'em. 

I have a wonderful collection thanks to a family that enjoys visiting bookstores too.

But.....I find that I tend to enjoy them more like a good magazine....flipping through them page by page, reading and looking at all the lovely images, and then putting them neatly on my shelf .(or I suppose I should say shelves.) 

What??? You too???

Well, that's one of the very reasons I love participating in Craft Book Month so much!!! It has helped me pull those books from the shelves and put them to the use they were originally intended for. Plus, it is soooo much fun! 

This year I chose the book Sewing Bits & Pieces by Sandi Henderson.

 I made the Woodland Bunny from the book, and well, I just love him! 

So much that I ended up not only making 1, but making 4!

They were all made using the last coordinating fabric pieces of a beloved, long ago Riley Blake collection knows as Just Dreamy. Since these may be for little ones, I've used wool felt eyes instead of buttons. I also added a little coordinating ribbon bow just 'cause. :)

  

 This one will be donated to our ongoing FLUFF Project, where we are FAST approaching 1,000 stuffed friends donated to children in foster care! Very exciting!!!

I hope you'll take a moment to learn more about this outreach and how you can be a part here.

The FLUFF Project = stuffed friends for children in foster care.

Also, if you'd like to see my previous Craft Book Month contributions, you can check out these posts...

2011 Craft Book Month - Softies

2012 Craft Book Month  - Making Children's Clothes

2013 Craft Book Month - Kaleidoscope

There's still plenty of time for you to play along too and PLENTY of inspiration from a list of wonderful bloggers below! ++ Did I mention the chance at some exciting crafty prizes???

September marks the 4th Annual Craft Book Month at Craft Buds! This year, we're excited to celebrate all month long with a blog hop of inspiring craft book projects and LOTS of giveaways for sewing along with a sewing, knitting, cookbook or other craft book of YOUR CHOICE. If you are a craft book hoarder, you are not alone. Several years ago, I had an urge to dust off my craft books, unfold those crisp pattern sheets and put those patterns to good use by actually making some projects. :)

2014 Craft Book Month Blog Hop!

I've teamed up with some fabulous bloggers who will be showing off their projects made from craft books, all month long!

Monday 9/1: Fabric Mutt / Lindsay Sews
Tuesday 9/2: Rae Gun Ramblings / Craftside
Wednesday 9/3: The Feisty Redhead / The Fabric Studio
Thursday 9/4: Marci Girl Designs / Small Town Stitcher
Friday 9/5: LRstitched / A Prairie Sunrise

Monday 9/8: Hopeful Threads (YOU ARE HERE!)/ sewVery
Tuesday 9/9: 13 Spools / Lisa Liza Lou
Wednesday 9/10: Stitch This! / My Sewcial Hour
Thursday 9/11: The Littlest Thistle / Fabric Seeds
Friday 9/12: Sew Sweetness / Clover + Violet
Monday 9/15: Inspire Me Grey / amylouwho

Link Up

9/1-9/30: Link up your craft book project at Craft Buds from your blog, instagram or Flickr account, and enter to win prizes. To participate in the month-long contest, just link up any project you've made from a pattern in a craft book. That easy! You'll tell us a little about the book, the project, how you personalized it, etc. Winners will be announced on Wednesday, October, 1!

Rules

1) One entry per person. 2) Your craft book project must have been completed in 2014. 3) Create a new blog post, instagram or Flickr photo (dated September 1, 2014 or later) and link back to Craft Buds/Craft Book Month in your post or photo description (tag #craftbookmonth for instagram). In your post or photo description, make sure to list the craft book you used and provide a link if possible. 4) All winners chosen via Random.org. Some prizes available to international winners, so please join us!

Prizes

Visit Craft Buds and link up your craft book project during the window of Sept 1-30 and you'll automatically be entered to win some fantastic prizes from the Craft Book Month sponsors!