Sneak Peek

Sometimes things just happen.

For example, I decided to console myself after the "can't-get-a-decent-picture" debacle and surfed my feedly for inspiration.

AND BOY, WAS I INSPIRED!!

THEN...I got a Quiltmaker magazine in the mail.  I thought my subscription was up because it seems like forever ago that I got one.  So I promptly sat down to drool over stuff I would probably never attempt to make.  HOWEVER, an advertisement caught my eye.

EQ7

I have been salivating over this software for some time. It is for quilters who want to design their own quilts.  I guess you can plug in fabric swatches and spin blocks this way and that...but unfortunately I have a dinosaur of a computer and more than likely would never be able to run it on here.  PLUS, it's a tad expensive and we are very short on cash these days.

HOWEVER

When I went to the site there is a FREE EQ Boutique that offers some free (and others not so free) quilt blocks.  Most of which are applique.  So I took one of the free ones to play with.

It was birdies.  CUTE birdies.

I have already made some gifts for each of my moms... There is a pillow cover coming down the pike that is FANTASTICALLY FETCHING and I cannot wait to show it to you.  Until then, here is a sneak peek at the cute lil' birdies!

Lil Birdie

 Depending upon the project, I may give her feet but for this particular one, it wasn't really worth the bother.  I also will probably reverse a couple of the pieces so they work out better, but only if I remember to do it next time I sew one.  :-)  This particular one I resized to 6 inches instead of the standard 9.  Because of that, I was unable to use one of the pieces because it was just too small.  I will probably print out another one a little bigger and slap that together in the future.  She is so cute!  I am feeling the urge to name each and every one.  She is Eve and the next one is Adam, because they were my firsts.  lol.

Too Far?  Okay then...

Then there is my very first attempt:

Mr. Owly

Don't look too closely because this was my "test piece" to see how difficult it was going to be to machine embroider the edges...and to fiddle with the numbers to get it to my liking.  So his eyes are a little scary if you look at them.  Also, I will cry when I run out of the material I used for the eyes because those "pupils" are really just how I cut the material.  So when I am done with it, I am going to need to either make my own pupils or go boring because the pattern doesn't actually call for pupils.  This particular one is done on a burlap body which I am truly loving and will most likely make more like this - and also get darker brown burlap.  The one for the pillow cover does have cute little orange feet, which I totally forgot to put on this one.  Oops.  Thank God Mom loves it no matter how many mistakes I make.  ;-)  The one I put on the pillow cover is on a really cute brown body that I will also use again.  Did I mention the pillow cover?  Navy with white polka dots.  Mr. Owly in the corner glancing up...drool-worthy, I am telling you.

SO?  Do you just love these quaint lil birdies as much as I do?  I am really digging the blue and green together on Mr. Owly.  Any more ideas on what I can do with them?  So far I am thinking pillow covers, bags, and onesies...maybe I will try a book cover?  T-shirts?  Toddler skirts?  Comment me what you want to see Lil Birdie or Mr. Owly on!

Technology is fabulous. Until it isn't.

WELL.

I took bunches of pictures of bunches of items to list in my shop...but I hate each and every picture.  Instead of using my trusty phone (which for some reason takes pretty decent pictures), I thought I would get FANCY schmancy and use a "real" camera.  We have a couple.

One is a dinosaur...Cannon Rebel FILM camera.  I do love it so and pet it once in awhile.  I wasn't going to mess with that one.  I need to see what I'm working with immediately.  No time to DILLY-DALLY.

Then we have a Cool Pix camera.

I HATE IT.  HATE. It.

I just can't seem to get a decent picture with it.  Sometimes I can, but it requires a lot of work on my part and I just got done slaving over pillow covers.  I do not want to slave for another hour over a picture to make them look at least a tiny bit as cute as they are in real life.  I want to point. Shoot.  Fiddle on Aviary or Picasa to bring out coolness and be done.

DONE!

The Cool Pix just doesn't work for me.  I want a digital Cannon Rebel.  End of story.  I want the ability to take a picture, wirelessly send it somewhere, and be done...  but also I want the manual focus and F-stops for when I feel artsy-fartsy.  Which is seldom when I am talking cameras, but I still want the ability to do weird stuff with a camera if I want to do weird stuff with a camera.

So I just used all those complaining words to say:

I don't have any listings to show you because I need to go take all the photos AGAIN.  

*sigh*

Thanks for reading even though you were sorely disappointed.

OH WAIT!  Snap!  I forgot I have a new logo for my etsy shop to show you.  My wonderful cousin did one up for me because she is all things digital and I am all things NOT.  Check it out:

Ain't she a beut!?  This is what I am using as my avatar for my shop.   LOVE IT!  Can't wait to see the banner she comes up with!

Tidings of Comfort and Joy!

I have finally received my stencils!  I tried them out almost immediately because I have been absolutely ITCHING to make one of these pillow covers:

Pottery Barn Inspired Chalk Pillow Cover

 I saw a very similar one being "knocked-off" all over pinterest and I must say, I was smitten at first sight.  Mine is done on burlap, but I will probably make others from linen in the future also....definitely more black and probably some natural burlap and/or linen with black or red or green or.....  whatever suits my fancy that day colored writing.  Maybe I will even get a little bit saucy and embellish with SEQUINS!  My only concern with the burlap is that the pillow form may show through.  Since I am probably keeping this gem for myself, I will test the theory and possibly line any future covers.

I know you love the front just as much as I do...but check out how captivating the VINTAGE Christmas fabric on the back is:

Dreamy vintage snowmen frolick on the back!

Keep your eyes peeled....some delectable bags of many kinds will be coming down the pike soon.  Purses, market bags, little zippered darlings....So fun!

If you want to order any pillow covers, check out my etsy shop:  Lydia's Purple Cloth.  Ignore my hideous banner because I am working on one that better suits my "flavor"....also coming soon!  Check back soon, favorite my shop and comment.  Thanks for your support.

Santa and Pumpkins and Toile, Oh My!

How stinkin' adorable is this garland?  I was actually making some natural colored garland for my own tree because I will have ornaments in the above colors and just wanted white or neutral garland so it didn't compete....

...and don't get me wrong, I really love the neutral ones (though the picture of course doesn't do them justice).  HOWEVER. When I saw how cute the multi-colored one turned out, my first thought was that it was going to be really hard to sell it!  SO CUTE!  I like making them just before knocking off for the day...when I have cleaned up, but still have some time to work before the kids get home.

I have also been working on my pillow covers.  So far this is the only one I have a photo of:

It just a simple red toile on a beige background.  It is civil-war-esque... since there is a flag, and guys with guns.  And stuff.  Yeah, so  I love toile and don't care that people are shooting other people on my pillow I guess.

I just finished up sewing up 4 more tonight.  One is made of a cute red, white, and blue Waverly fabric, and frankly may never be allowed out of this house.  Just sayin'.  I would actually like to get more to make curtains for my living or dining room with it.  Another may never be let out of the house for a different reason.  (that being:  I HATE it)  I will explain about that one later when I post the picture.  Maybe I won't need to explain much. ;-) The third one is a Santa pillow.  The front is embroidered by MOI in red on coffee-stained muslin and the back is the sweetest red polka-dot fabric. It is only a 12X12 rather than a 16X16 because I chose not to put a border on it.  I will be putting a border on the remaining 9 Santa pillows I have yet to make.  It's just missing something.  Still cute because Santa is cute, but needs a border to focus all that cuteness, Y'KNOW? And then the last one was also adorable, and also may never leave the house.  ( I know, I know...how do I make a living if I keep it all!?) It is also an embroidered pillow front - this one with a proper border.  It is a trio of cute little punkins with the word "Pumpkins" under it.  I used a couple different colors and bordered it in brown.  I WILL let it go ONLY because the embroidery worked up so fast, I can always make one for myself if I really want to.

SO.  Is that a good excuse for not posting in....
er..... well...

Anyway.  BEEN BUSY!

Cannot WAIT to show you the work I've been doin'!  Look for me at my shop on Etsy.com: LydiasPurpleCloth.  Favorite something!  Favorite my shop!  Thanks for reading.

Blue Polka Dot Pumpkins, Oh My!

I have successfully confirmed that I have a Robin's Egg Blue obsession.  OB-SESS-ION!  I had a moment where I considered painting my kitchen back splash in robin's egg blue chalkboard paint.  Seriously.  Or maybe the cupboards. Or the fridge...  See?  I need help.  My kitchen is temporary anyway right?  Eventually (like within the next decade), we are going to gut and re-do it.  So why can't I use it as my own personal experimentation?  Right?

Anyway, the picture actually makes the pumpkin look a little more blue that it really is in real life.  In real life it is a touch more pale. I used some random spray paint that I completely intend to use again and again (backsplash?!  lol...okay maybe not) I used a pouncer to apply my trusty Mod Podge (another obsession - decoupage...just wait until you see my next project involving Mod Podge!), and sprinkled on glitter!

GLITTER!

I am still finding glitter in places glitter should probably not be.  I had a tiny moment where I wanted to do swirlies instead of polka-dots...but I think that would have been hard with loose glitter and I may attempt it on small pumpkins using glitter glue.  That should be easier to draw pretty swirlies.  I have big plans for carrying pumpkins into Thanksgiving!!!  

WHITE!

BLUE!

BURLAP!

LOVE!

Purse-Sized Tissue Holders

Oh my how adorable are these!?  

I finished them up today and I may be in love.

Find them on my Etsy shop: Lydia's Purple Cloth if you would like to purchase one for you and each of your friends! Each of them is a one-of a kind...except the orange pumpkin with the green lining (top row, second from the left).  For some reason I made two of those.  But the rest are just one and done.  I do have plans to scour my resources to find more of the swirly black material and the black polka-dot because I love them soooo much, so it is possible that you will see more items with those materials popping up in the future.

Also, as always, if one of the fabrics jumps out as you as something you would love to see on here or in my shop in other ways...definitely let me know...

STAY TUNED!