Cleaning my craftroom and Shirt Making..

So.. the other day I got the itch and just acted on it.  I condensed down my scrapbooking stuff down to ONE cabinet.   2 years ago, I had THREE.  When I moved in with Tom, I had 2.  And now... I'm down to just one.  Why? I have found that I just don't scrapbook THAT much anymore to justify having so much stuff.  Plus, once I moved everything to one cabinet, it's not really "squished" in there, tight yes, but there is still room for a few more things if need be.

The other cabinet I put all my fabric in.  Now I can actually see it and it's not in a tote.  Maybe this will remind me how much I actually have so that I don't go back to JoAnns and buy a bunch of remnants again. (although I'm sure I will!)  I have a feeling that I'll be hoarding fabric just like I used to hoard paper.

I've been searching for a pattern to do a Pajama shirt to match all the jammy pants that I've been making, and I finally found one... and had to modify it once, and looks like I'll have to modify again as the arms just seems a little tight for a shirt.

It's a good thing that Bianca can't tell the difference yet between a good sewing job and something mommy just threw together one night!  Even so, it still looks cute on her!

Mr. Rebates

I checked my account just recently and noticed that a few of my referrals have made purchases :)  so I know that its being used and others are earning rebates, so I thought I'd post it again.  So far this year, I have received $30.48 to my paypal account, and I have another $11.40 that is not cashed out yet.  It's not a "get rich" thing, just a little extra here and there. 

Get a Rebate when you shop online!

Here's just a few of the rebates offered.  All you'd have to do to earn the rebate is go to Mr. Rebates first, type in the site on their search and click the link from there.  Then just shop as usual.

HSN - Earn 5% of purchase price

JoAnn's - Earn 6% of purchase price

Walmart - Earn 2% of purchase price.  I use this one a lot for Diapers!  I just do the site to store, get the diapers at the same price as in store.  I just have to go to the back of the store and pick up - they are pulled and ready to go and paid for already (no waiting in the check out line with Bianca!)

Target - Earn 3% of purchase price

Shutterfly - Earn 5% of purchase price

Snapfish - Earn 12% of purchase price (doesn't apply if you pick up at Walgreens, they have to be shipped to you)

Walgreens - Earn 6% of your purchase price - I use this one a lot too for photos

(I promise the next post will be crafting related!)

Sew many pants...

I have found a new addition.  And now, I think I will be renaming my blog to just "Creations by amkscrap" as I rarely use my cricut, and when I do, I use SCAL. (I have the older version before the lawsuit)   Plus I would hate for PC to try to shut me down for using the word "Cricut".

My new Hobby?  Sewing. It is something that I've always had a thing for and more recently have been doing a lot more of.  It reminds me of my Grandma Jeannette Forcier.  I miss her so much! She passed away 12 years ago. *moment of silence for Grandma* 

I know that she'd be thrilled that I have continued to do a hobby that she loved.  And I know she'd love these pants!

So I bought a bunch of Flannel thinking I'd be making a ton of poodle skirts.  Eh, I sold two so I did get my money back for all the flannel that I bought, but now I have a few different colors.  I found a free pattern online, printed it out and traced it on to cardboard so that I could reuse it.

--Please excuse the upside-downness... I thought I could rotate once I uploaded it, but I guess not--

The next day.. I went shopping at JoAnns and checked out their remnant section - Love it! 50% off even if the fabric is on sale!   I can make oodles of jammies out of these!  Flannel and Fleece!

These were the next ones.. I just think this pattern is so friggin adorable!

And even Bianca liked it!

 These next ones, I'm making a matching set for a friend of mine who has 2 boys.. One is a month old and the other will be 3 in May.

Let's go to the HOP!

Wednesday January 31 we went to the Sock Hop at the Surf Ballroom!  The girls all had a blast!  

We had fun watching everyone dance and even joining in on a few. Bianca jumped and jumped to the music - she was a hit!  There was even a couple that stopped dancing to take their camera out and get a picture of her in her poodle skirt!   I think this will be an event that we'll be doing again! 

Poodle Skirt!

Been playing around with the sewing  machine again. 

Actually.. this was by request of Sarah.  Each year in February, her class (well, the elementary) goes to the Surf Ballroom  and tours the Museum.   The Surf was the location of the last performances by Buddy Holly, Richie Valens and the Big Bopper.  On January 3, 1959, they were on the Winter Dance Party Tour and their plane crashed just five miles out of our town of Clear Lake, IA while they were en route to Moorhead, MN.   There is more on the story via Wikipedia. 

Anyways, Sarah wanted a poodle skirt last year when they went, just that we didn't have the money for one at the time.  She asked again this year and after doing all those quilts, you'd think I'd be sick of my sewing machine, but I did have some fabric left and figured that I'd google a pattern and try to make one.   I was talking with a friend about them, and asked her on if she'd think they would sell on the "FB Garage sale sites" in our area.  With the Family Sock Hop being about 2 weeks away, along with the Winter Dance Party Celebration, she gave me a big thumbs up and said I better get sewing incase there's a huge demand for them. 

The Hot pink one is for Sarah and boy was she VERY HAPPY when she got home and I had her try it on!  The smile on her face was priceless.

This pink one is what I put up on our garage sales sites... and it was only up for an hour when some asked for one in Red and little bit larger.  I'm sending Tom to JoAnn Fabrics tomorrow to pick up some fabric (and it's 50% off this week!) and more elastic... and a big cardboard box so that I can use it to make a few different sized patterns. 

Abby is Home!

Sorry for the delay in this post.. but Abby came home on Sunday!  Just in time to ring in the New Year!

I don't know how long the Stint will be in, sounds like they are just playing it by ear for now.

Thank you all again for your prayers and well wishes!  Here's hoping for a full recovery!

A Gift for Lilly

I just finished up one of Lilly's Christmas presents.  This fits a twin sized bed.  

This quilt has a double meaning, to me at least.  First, I made it just for Lilly, so it's something that she (hopefully) will be able to use and hold on to for a loooong time. Second, I did this pattern in High School during my Sophomore year.  My grandmother, Jeannette, helped me with it one weekend when she was staying at our house.  She was a quilter herself and did many many of them through out the years (she even made dresses for my mom when she was younger, and made some doll clothes for me one year) Anyways, she passed away in 2001, my Junior year of High School.  I know that she's smiling down on me tonight and enjoying my creations, and proud that I am sharing with my daughter my love for quilting like she did with me.  I wish I had more time with her to learn a few tricks, but I'm picking up some as I go and learn myself. 

The pattern that inspired this design is called "Windmill"  Mine uses 4 fabrics, where I have seen some use only 2 or 3.  Some other examples are here and here.  The blocks are approx 16" square. After doing all the individual blocks, I decided to use an idea that the manager at JoAnn Fabrics in Mason City gave me when I purchased the fabric.  Ok, his words were "Are you making a rag quilt?" and that got me thinking.  So, I did the rest of the quilt in the rag style, modified since my squares are bigger than the average ones.  I used a thicker batting in between the top piece, and then a solid color piece (either in black, white or pink) made a sandwich, and then sewed them together down the middle and side to side.. so a big + sign. then, I sewed it so that on the backside, you don't see the seams/edges, but the front side you do.  Let me tell ya, it was a PITA getting the pattern to match up as closely as possible since the 2 solid colors were back to back. I did not take the time to fray the edges, mainly because I didn't have a chance to buy one of those spring action scissors and my fabric scissors that I have won't cut the 1/2 inch of fabric (they are sharper on the the inside part vs the outside, if that makes any sense lol)  But I figure in time it will fray.  There is a black border around the outside edge that adds another 2 1/2 inches on both sides. 

Abby Update..more surgeries..

Please everyone, keep those prayers coming that Abby gets better soon.  The only details that I have is that she had surgery again today, and will have another one either Friday or Monday to put in a permanent drain tube for her head.

sorry everyone that doesn't know: I was woken up this morning to things are great fever has come down and white blood cells are going down. then i get woke up a few hours later to we're taking your daughter back in for surgery. they put the drain tube back in. they thought maybe the infection was coming from the old one. so they opened it up and they said it wasn't like they thought. so they think her h

ead can't take the pressure she is not releasing it like she should be so that's why the old wound wasn't healing like it should have. so now as far as i know by Dr. Wilson is that she will have surgery again Friday or next Monday to put in a permanent drain tube. so that took all out of me. i cried like a baby. i hate to see my baby girl go through all this and them just keep chopping up her head like it is nothing.