Tag Archives: Sewing

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In Praise of the Automatic Buttonhole

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It’s only been recently that I’ve had a sewing machine with an automatic buttonhole feature.  If you’ll recall, Paul bought me a Janome for our anniversary this past March.  I’ve been working it hard, let me tell you.  And when I can manage not to get in its way, the automatic buttonhole feature works like a dream.

I just made a new outfit for Oona using two Oliver & S patterns: the “2+2 Blouse” and the “Puppet Show Bloomers“.

These patterns are always my favorite to sew – they go together beautifully and they are such classic designs.  If I could I’d dress my kids only in Oliver & S.

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A New Space To Create

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You may or may not know that recently Paul started a new job.  He has been commuting to work every day and is traveling only rarely now.  It’s not bee as big an adjustment for us as I was originally worried it would be, and the kids are certainly benefiting from more papa time during the week.

The other side benefit?  Since he is working every day out of a regular office at a regular 9 – 5 (ish) job, he no longer had any use for the home office.  Since we bought this house the room that had been designated by the builder as “Living Room” has been Paul’s office.  It’s far too small to be a living room, and since the room with the fireplace next to both the dining room and kitchen (labeled “family room”) was much bigger, we had a living room already.

But this smaller room is in a primo spot: in front of the house with floor to ceiling windows and nice french doors. In other words, I’d been eying it for years.

Well, I no longer have to wish.  Paul gave it up for me now that his office is at work.  I spent the last week cleaning it out, painting it, and moving all of my stuff (Including a massive desk that should never be moved by anyone).

It took two tries to get the color just right, but now I am glad I went back.  I love this colonial blue.

I painted around and behind Paul’s post – surgery chair and the server rack.  It took FOREVER to get all of that stuff organized and moved out.

Before Paul could get all of his stuff out I began moving mine in. I couldn’t wait!

Everyone got excited when we moved the big comfy chair from the bedroom in.  It’s a favorite spot to nap and read.  I spent the first two months of Oona’s life sleeping in this chair.  Very comfortable.

Now that the room is complete you can see a good reason for the comfy chair in here – the flat screen tv Paul mounted to the wall above my desk (the monitor on top of my desk are the cameras outside – these will be important once the animals come home).

Everything fits quite nicely.  I kind of want to spend all my time in here.

I have a room surrounded by things I love, that is all me.  It has already become the center of family activity – Paul likes to sit in the big chair and relax while I work on creative things, and the kids like to watch me and the tv.  Even the dogs are in on the action.

I may have to make use of those french doors before too long.

 

 

 

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The Shape of Things To Come

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Summer isn’t moving by quite as laconically as I’d like.  It’s almost July already and I have barely tackled anything on my summer to – do list.  This can be blamed partially to my own laziness, partially to the landscaping going WAY past deadline, and partially because we’ve thrown another project on the heap (Paul doesn’t need his home office anymore, so I am cleaning it out in preparation to make it my new sewing room!).

Of course there has been plenty of swimming since we opened the pool this week, and since I have to be out with the kids (as the only adult) that has further slowed me down.  I have done A LOT of reading while they’ve been splashing about.

In more exciting news, though, I ordered a darning needle a few months back for my sewing machine, and I managed to get my patchwork quilt from last summer almost done.  All that is left is the binding.

It’s not the neatest or most precise quilt ever crafted, but I did it ALL myself. And it made good use of all the beautiful Heather Ross scraps that I had hanging around.

Okay, so I might have had a little help from someone with 7 toes on each of his massive paws.

I have told myself I will finish the binding once the new sewing room is all set up (I’ve already bought paint – I can’t wait for it to be done!).  My current sewing spot overlooks the back yard, and it can be a bit distracting watching the work going on out there (and soon, livestock grazing!).  My new spot faces the front, but it will have more light, so fair trade.

Soon I will be able to sit in the dining room with my coffee and see my animals.  We are very, very close.

A few days ago the view looked like this:

As of today it looks like this:

That field back there is deceptively huge.  Our main portion of land sits in a little hollow – a fact we didn’t really realize until we started clearing.  It’s odd; we have our own little micro – climate here.  All of my plants bloom later than my neighbors, who are on higher ground around us.

I kind of like being in a little hollow.  I should have called the farm “Magpie Hollow”.

Hmmmmmm.  You never know.

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Lizzy Project Complete!

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A month or so ago I teased y’all about a project I was working on with Lizzy House’s  Hello Pilgrim.

Well, it’s done!  And I am pretty darn happy with the results.

The pattern is Sew Lisette’s Traveler Dress, with mods.  The shirt dress pattern was the closest I could find style – wise to what I had in mind, but the skirt wasn’t quite full enough.  I didn’t want a straight shirt – style, nor did I want a too – full skirt, so I added a slightly flared panel on the sides.

My only complaints are that I made it not – quite long enough (another inch would have been my perfect length) and the top isn’t quite as fitted as I’d like around the collar and underarms.  Otherwise I am quite pleased with it.

It’s darn comfortable and I adore the fabric, so I think it will get plenty of wear this summer, especially as it works well with my farm boots!

Then again, Hunter boots do look good with just about anything!

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Oh, Lizzy!

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Lately I have been on quite the sewing streak.  Ever since I went to the Lizzy House workshop at Susan’s, and Paul bought me a new machine for our anniversary, I’ve been remembering that sewing is fun – not frustrating (an older, not quite “right” machine can really make you dislike sewing).

I also was inspired by the fabrics that Lizzy has created and have been snatching them up as budgeting allows.

But what do you make with such treasured fabrics?  It’s kind of hard to decide, as it turns out – the more you like a fabric, the more you don’t want to mess up badly whatever you are making with it..  But, I’ve made two things so far that I am very pleased with (though I really want to buy more of the same fabric and make MORE things with it!!).

This is my new “Schoolhouse Tunic” by Sew Liberated (dress length) in Lizzy’s “Outfoxed”.  I love how it fits and it’s very comfortable and flattering.  But I just love this fabric so much I want to make MORE dresses, tunics and skirts with it.  I mean, just look at the little hedgehogs!

I think this calls for a skirt as well, don’t you?

These are my new Wide – Legged Lounge Pants from Amy Butler’s In Stitches. This fabric is also from Lizzy’s “Outfoxed” collection.

I have been wearing these nearly non -stop around the house since finishing them.

Right now I am working with another Lizzy Fabric from her new “Hello Pilgrim” collection – no sneak peeks today, but I am nearly finished with it so I’ll be showing it off soon enough.

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Weekend In Pictures

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Happy Saint Patrick’s Day!

As you may or may not know, St. Patrick’s Day is our wedding anniversary.  This year was number 16 – and we celebrated the way we always do: with good food, cold Guinness, and watching Darby O’Gill and the Little People together.  Maddie made a lovely Chocolate Stout Cake with Bailey’s Cream Cheese frosting, and I made Jamie Oliver’s Steak, Guinness & Cheese Pie (from Jamie At Home).  I made fresh granola and played with my new Janome sewing machine,  and Paul brought home his new toy: a giant trailer.

There’s no real recipe at play here: I just toss some oats, sesame seeds, coconut & sliced almonds with some dried blueberries, some honey, some maple syrup and canola oil and bake it lightly.

Truffles and Speckles fighting over a nesting box.  Neither one would cede to the other, and they ended up both laying their eggs at the same time.

No, I don’t particularly like “Hello Kitty”.  The machine just happened to be  branded that way and it was a steal.

Paul’s new toy.

What do you mean I can’t have this marshmallow Oona dropped that’s bigger than my head??!!

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Quilt Sneak Peek

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Remember that quilt top I was working on with Caroline when Lizzy House was at Susan’s?

I finished it.

Just the top.  But it’s beyond gorgeous.

I don’t have any wall space where I can hang it for a proper picture right now, so bear with me.  This is just a peek.  The color is off and I realized it’s also upside – down.

More details and better pics to come.

For now I am back out to digging garden trenches.

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Lizzy House Quilting Weekend! (extra-long post)

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Let me start by saying that if you work with fabrics you should know Lizzy House.  Because if you don’t, you are missing out BIG TIME.  Lizzy has beautiful prints in beautiful colors – so much so that Susan collects hoardes bundles of it to display in her house.  It’s that beautiful. 

Lizzy came to the farm this weekend to give a quilting workshop (farm plus BFF’s plus quilting?  I was SO in) and I was thrilled to be a part of it.  I’ve not done a lot of quilting myself, and what I have done has been mostly frustrating because I never really bothered to figure out how to quilt, so when things went wrong I wasn’t really sure how to fix them.  This class was perfect because I am not necessarily a beginner, but I needed to see people properly working a quilt to fill in the knowledge gap.  And now that I know what I was doing wrong I realize how kind of simple the fixes were.  Quilting is so very much easier than I was assuming it is, and so very much more fun!

Don’t you just love this Hello Kitty machine Virginia is sewing on?? Virginia owns “Gather Here” a beautiful yarn & fabric shop in Cambridge, MA.  If you’re in the neighborhood, drop in and check it out.  And tell her I said hi!!

The bonus?  Aside from spending the weekend sewing at the farm, my dear friend Amanda came down from Boston.

I do not get to see Amanda nearly enough.  That has to change.

I collaborated with Caroline and I am pretty sure a new quilting fiend has been born in her – she took right to it and loved it.  Don’t be surprised if she’s designing quilts by this time next year!

Lizzy herself is just as beautiful and friendly and fun as her designs.

We were all working on making our own version of the quilt you see behind her – but not just “making” it.   She shared a story of personal loss that spurred her to begin quilting, and how it saved her.  How all of the emotion and love and sorrow and all of it went into the quilt until it became more than just “a quilt”.  This is very familiar to me as a knitter, and to other knitters as well.  Our craft is a kind of therapy and I have spent many hours knitting while mulling over whatever is happening in my life at that moment.  From then on, that project always reminds me of that moment, like a snapshot.  There are knitters I know who will call something their “angry scarf” or their “lucky socks” because that is what they remember most about knitting them.  I oddly have a project that makes me think of Niagara Falls because I was listening to a “This American Life” segment about the Falls while I was knitting it.

Lizzy’s fabrics being bundled into a gorgeous stack.

This quilt project was about that, but in a more “intentional” way.  Lizzy tasked us with deciding what we wanted our quilts to be about and to focus on that while working on it.  I can tell you my intentions for it were all about my friendships at the farm (both old and new) and my hopes and feelings about finally getting my own farm underway.  This will be an intentionally happy and lucky and grateful quilt.  And Caroline and I worked on it together!  I will remember that every time I see it and it will make me happy.

This is Lisa.  Lisa lives locally (YAY!!!) and for all of you who are local, she and her husband own Revolutionary Soup.  Right??!!!  You can also check out their blog at Red Row Farm.

Caroline and I used a collection by Moda called “Papillon”.

I can’t wait to show off the project when it is all finished.  We knocked out 12 of the 18 squares for the top.  I’ll be machine quilting it once I’ve gotten the backing fabric and sandwiching material.  Nothing fancy – I think the fabric does a knockout job on its own.

If you’re thinking about learning to quilt but are unsure – find a class.  I can’t promise it will be as fun as this was, but it will take away much of the fear factor and get you going on the right track (if you live in the greater Boston area, Virginia’s shop is a great place to take classes, and you can use her machines there by the hour).

If Lizzy is going to be in your area giving a class or workshop – DO IT. I can’t speak highly enough of her.  And for heaven’s sake if you find some of her fabric GET IT!!!

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Let’s Start a Magazine Together!

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This is the post where I steal an entire bit from Susan’s blog and pass it on here.  She and the crew at JMF are starting  magazine.  A beautiful, lovely, useful magazine centered around all things done by hand.  Cooking, sewing, knitting, building…..you name it.  I’m super excited about it (and having a hard time not boasting that I’ve known about it for quite awhile and have seen some of what’s going to go into it…..it’s too exciting to keep to myself!).  Here it is in Susan’s words. There’s some lovely prizes to be had for those who can help get it off the ground.

Very Big News!

by Susan on March 2, 2012

So for months now I have been alluding to a big secret I’ve been keeping. I am thrilled that today I can finally share the news with all of you.

Juniper Moon Farm is starting a magazine called By Hand. By Hand will be a lifestyle magazine for people who make, with departments for cooking, crafting, DIY, gardening, and do-gooding, with a bit of travel and profiles of makers every month.

The idea is to celebrate creating things with our hands, and to explore the motivation to make things in a world where there are cheaper and immediate alternatives. It will be both practical (patterns, DIY projects, etc) and thoughtful, with a lovely and gentle aesthetic.

We have lots of amazing contributors and editors on board already, and the first issue is well underway. But before we go any further, we need your help!

We are holding a Kickstarter campaign to raise the rest of the money we need to make the magazine everything we want it to be. And as an added inducement, we have commissioned so amazing rewards! Our art director Michelle Lukezic has designed posters and t-shirts that are going to be incredibly popular with people who make things with their hands. Here’s a sample:

There are posters and t-shirts for each of the sections in the magazine!

If you like what you see and want to support us, great! If you can help us get the word out about the Kickstarter and the magazine we will be forever in your debt!