A move, a monster, and a baby

Well, it has been a ridiculously long time since I last blogged or, honestly, crafted anything. We have been busy buying and fixing up our first home. Couple that with my kiddos (one that is firmly planted in the beginning stages of the terrible two's) and being generally tired from growing a tiny human, sewing and the like has fallen off of the to-do list. I took a day to do nothing, as my 5 year old suggested, and found myself seeking out several sewing tutorials. This lead to an 8 pm run to our local Joann's, that is now only 2 miles away, and I am now about to attempt this adorable pillow case dress. I will post a picture whether I succeed in actually turning out something that resembles the picture or not!

Sew Easy

I finally learned to sew this weekend and I am loving it! I am not perfect by any means, but I am enjoying straight line projects. It just so happens I have a few pregnant friends and I thought a good gift and easy to make item would be burp cloths. The lines aren't professional and some experimenting with different stitches did not pay off, but all in all I would say it was a success!

He is finished!

I think for a spur-of-the-moment idea he looks pretty good! If I had it to do again, I would find a more accurate skin color paint for the face, but otherwise I think our Santa Gourd turned out quite nicely! Thanks to my dad for his help and my mom for her patience while a giant veggie dried on her kitchen table for two days.

The Great Anne

One thing I know I cannot do is paint. For some reason I have a huge issue with drip, and honestly, everything else that has to do with painting. When I saw this "Joy to the World" painting on pintrest (originally pinned from etsy.com), I knew just who to ask to duplicate it! My fried, Anne, gave me this today and I LOVE it! She is so very talented, and kind, and generous!

Gourd Stage 2...

He is ALMOST finished! All he needs are a few minor paint touch ups and a Santa hat, but I wanted to post an updated picture. Life has been crazy busy around here and I didn't get to update as quickly as I'd hoped. My dad and I used spray adhesive and cotton balls for the beard and eyebrows (so easy!) and electric tape for Santa's belt. After drawing them on, we decided buttons for the eyes and nose would be far cuter! I think we were right.

Coming Soon...

While decorating my parent's exterior for Christmas, we had to pitch the fall produce-turned decor. They had a 2 foot tall and very fat green gourd that I thought we should turn into Santa Claus. My dad generously carried it to the garage where we primed it and began to paint the bottom half red. Sadly, the first coat still hadn't dried and it is going to take a few days to get this guy done. I forgot to take a before picture but I did remember to snap one after our first couple of steps. Here is what it looks like now....

I can't wait to finish him!

Quite simple

While browsing pintrest, I came across a beautiful damask wreath with hot pink flowers from The Patriotic Peacock and my immediate thought was that I could do a Christmas version. Honestly, a smaller pattern 0n the fabric would have been easier to work with, but for a first attempt I am very happy with the results. I have made four of these for family and friends so far and they take roughly 30 minutes to assemble start to finish. I suggest this tutorial!