It's good to have crafty friends! Handmade baby gifts.

I obviously love to make things.  I'm lucky that I have people around me that also love to make things.  It seems that all us craft nerds have really similar styles, or at least get each other's style pretty easily.

Gail made me a tons of stuff.  She's the resident seamstress. A baby carrier, burp cloths, bibs and blankets.  I LOOOOVE these shapes.  I had a little panic attack for a minute because I couldn't find the blanket.  It was in the hospital bag.  DUH.

Rebecca made the Solar System cross stitch.  This is perfect for his room.  And I was coveting it for months since she showed me her original. 

The chrome Robot is from Target, the shelf from IKEA and the W is also a gift from Rebecca.  Check out the artist at jimbot.com very cool collection. 

Jasmin, the master of combining fabric patterns and colors.  She made a couple of these for Violet, I'll have to get photos of them, cause they are gorgeous. 

Marsha, my aunt.  She made hats for Violet before she was born because I couldn't crochet yet.  She's an inspirational crafter.   :)  Just lookit that edge. 

Mom, my mom put together this laundry basket.  OMG.  You know how cute it is. 

Then there is a few things I made.  The booties were made from this pattern and the blanket that started the CHEVRON fever.  I bought this fabric at 4 weeks pregnant.  I was sure it was a boy.  I started and finished the blanket the week after our 20 week ultrasound.

This kid is going to be warm and comfy!

...He can get here now...

Twitter!

Now you can follow DforV on twitter!

TWEET!

"Where da moon?" Progress

Violet really like cars, airplanes, trains, cats, the colors blue and purple, Britney Spears, Tool, acting like she is sleeping/ snoring, pulling my short hair and finding the moon in the sky. "where da moon?" Mama, where'd it go??" ... "There he is!"

So much so that I'm going to make her a moon for her room.  

A friend of mine found some cool glow in the dark thread that seemed perfect for the project.  These are Kreninik brand, which I haven't used before.  I'm excited to try.  

I whipped up this moon.  It's 10 x 10 and meant for a 12" embroidery hoop.  

I'm hoping to work on it before Christmas.  I gotta catch her while she still cares where the moon is.  :)

BONUS!!!  Comment below and I'll send you the pattern as a pdf. 

Update: 9/25/13

So, I can't wait.  I tried to wait and finish other things.  But I just can't do it.  

GAME ON.

Just a couple notes about this project already.  It's actually going to end up being about 8by8 in a 10" hoop.  That just felt better to me.  

The thread is, as you know, Kreinik Metallics, but it is also medium braid.  Having only bought basic DMC thread previously I didn't realize how thick this was.  It was actually a pleasant surprise.  I had been wanting to do something other that straight up cross stitch for this project.  Because the thread is thick I think it looks great with only one pass.  More sketchy.  :)

Also the pattern is kinda huge.  So I'm printing corner by corner.  The yellow bits are where I highlighted the middle gray color.  This is just to help me see it a bit better.  

This is now my main project.  At least until the new crochet book I ordered comes in...and until I get up and print out the embroidery pattern that I'm planning to do for this.

And the baby is due in 10 days.  UHOH!

Update: 9/26/13

This is about 2 hours of work today.

I like it :) I'm debating on taking out the green.  It's the darkest of the three "grays" and I think it would cool just not there are all.  Hmmm.

A completely not important blog.

There are lots of things that I think to myself, "I should blog this" but then I never do.  I don't take the photos (the booties and multiple hats I made for the baby or the scarf I made for myself or Violet) I don't finish the project (three or four of those in arms length at the moment) or I just move on to something else.  

You can be pretty sure that I'm working on something everyday in addition to making cross stitch patterns everyday, and spending sometime in books and pinterest and bloglovin and craftsy each day.  

I'm not the very best blogger I can be and in a few weeks I'm sure I'll be even worse with the arrival of the boy.  I guess what I'm saying is... I'm ok with being a mediocre blogger.  It's still enjoyable to me.  I like to think about new ideas, even when they don't pan out or ever get started.  I like to make small things that I have never made before.  

I like to show you what I made.  I hope you like you see.  Please share me with other people that might like what I made.  

Take inspiration from me.  I take it from you. 

Bloglovin, DMC Mentor, and Craftsy. OH MY!

I'm trying to get a little more into this.  There is more options for crafter/bloggers than I had anticipated.  One of which is Bloglovin. 

Follow my blog with Bloglovin.

I'll have to add an icon to the right when Jeff has a minute.  I attempted it myself, but honestly, why?  My husband codes.  Duh. 

Bloglovin seems to be the thing that I've been looking for.  You can't search blogspot, which is annoying. Pinterest can only take you so far and Facebook, well Facebook is not the place and I'm sick of staring at it waiting for something to happen. 

Bloglovin allows you to follow blogs that you like and even notifies you when there is an update to a blog you follow.  God knows I don't need to be on the computer more than I already am.
Hopefully this will help to make my time a little more efficient. If this is a service you already use, please, feel free to follow me here.  If not, check it out, there are a ton of different categories.

One of the other things I did recently was sign up to become a DMC Mentor.  They accepted me! 

This means that I am qualified to do small classes of cross stitch and embroidery.  They will send me kits and give some information and tips for of instructors/mentors.  This is absolutely something that I would want to get into.  They are sending me a starter kit and I'll post about the goodies when they get here.  :)

If you want to learn to cross stitch, embroider or crochet, let me know.  I'm qualified.  :)

I even got a business card!

I've also requested to be an affiliate with Craftsy, and was accepted.  That's just kinda cool.  You will notice my new Craftsy button on the right.  ----->

They really are a great spot for fiber arts and especially sewing.  I'm going to use the credit they give me for a class for a sewing class.  Onward Operation: Learn All The Crafts!

Just a little Sprinkle to show we care.

I always said this blog would be about my craft.  Not about my life or my children.  But today I'm going to muddy that area.  

You may have heard that I'm pregnant.  37 weeks, full term, today.  That means that not only will I have to begin the obligatory "how do I get this creature out of me" google searches but I'm pretty sure he dropped, like yesterday.  

Last weekend we had a shower for him.  Because my daughter and my son are only 22 months apart, we didn't need a whole lot of baby stuff.  But we do need diapers, wipes, "boy" clothes, etc.  But more to the point.  We needed a party.  Violet will have the photos and keepsakes from her shower forever.  She will be able to see that so many people came to "see" her and contribute to her life before she was even here.  

I felt sad that Wes wouldn't have that.  I'm a documenter.  I keep stuff.  Things have meaning to me.  I'm not a hoarder, far from it.  But I remember everything and Vi has a box of things from her life that I can pull out and explain what they are to her.  I was very sad Wes wouldn't have some of those things.  

So I kinda said screw it.  We are having a party for him.  For him.  To show that he is important and loved whether he is born yet or not.  

I'm glad we did.  :)

I designed and made the invitation and these little cards.  So there.  This IS a post about my craft. 

These cards made me cry when they were filled out.  I haven't done one yet.  It feels too important somehow. 

Onesie decorating.  

One proud little big sister and a Border Collie butt.

 The guys in the kitchen.  I love that that is where they hang.  Hey, Jeff, Make me a sammich!

We got some stuff, this is a hamper my mom had made for me. SO MUCH CUTE.

My little couch is less comfy than it used to be.... 

My mom, I can't get much done without her.  <3 you mum. 

Finished Onesies.  

Guesses.  I have disowned anyone that wrote anything over 10/5 and 9lbs. 

My family in our home.  I'm old and lame but damn it feels good to be a housewife gangsta. 

DIY Rice Heat Pad. Mmmm That's Nice.

I'm 37 weeks pregnant with my second child.  I know, uf.

One of the things that I learned in child birth class (and while being a woman and having a crampy back and legs for a week a month every year for the last 20 years) is that heat feels good on sore muscles.

I wanted an awesome heat pad for my back during labor, they are a little expensive.  And I feel kinda dumb buying one when I can make one.

So instead of this....

I opened for this...

I cut up one of Jeff's old denim "dress" shirts.  Which I was very happy to do.  And found this pretty orange thread from the lot of sewing stuff in the case I got a the thrift I referred to in my last post.

It is 18x8 and fits really well across my lower back.  I filled it with a cup of uncooked rice in each compartment and the weight of it feels SO good.

I'm excited to use it in labor, considering I've been using it daily.  :)

I used a well written tutorial I found on Pinterest, here.

Alley Art Fest!

on Aug 31st I participated in my first big "Craft/Art Fair".  You may have heard about it if you are around the Aurora area.  Alley Art Fest is full of some of the best local artists.  Many of whom I am lucky enough to call friends.  I didn't get as many photos of the other participants as I would have liked because I was busy limping around all pregnant like and manning the booth I shared with Gail Chrisse, Jeff Weber, Jessi Cox, Ellis Maldonado and Gail's Mom, Jean.  All great artists in their own right.  

Other notables are Damon, Steve, Chris, Roz and Don.  Please click on each link.  

With the money I made that day, I spent a chunk of it on Chris's creatures.  

This was the beginning on the day.  

Right after we got there the rain started.  It threatened all day but ended up being pretty nice considering the forecast.  

Here is my spread.  

The bow necklaces did well.  The canvases, which are my personal favorite don't sell.  I'm not sure people get that it's touchable wall art.  I'm not sure how to make them more lovable or at least how to translate how much I love them.  Something to think more about.

Also, I found this wooden sewing case at the locally loved thrift store.  It's amazing.  I've never seen anything like it.  It's perfect to hold supplies and to use a a display case.  Here it is when I brought it home.

Amazing.  Then a few days later a good friend of mine let me know she found ANOTHER ONE and picked it up for me.  The second one is exactly the same but about half the size.  You can see it on the table in the photos above. 

It was a good day.