idonteatpeas

Free is good.. yes?

It sure is!

Head on over to Julie's Blog to enter a giveaway for a clip or headband from my Petal Collection.

Awesome, right? :)

I have a huge order of flowers that came in that I will add next week as well!

Lazy..

*yawn*

Wudup? lol

I have been so lazy.. I had so much I should have done yesterday and instead I poked around online and played with the kiddos.. much more fun then 'work'. I took this week off from sewing so I am not wanting to do anything now. I always like to start my day off sewing.. for some reason getting busy first thing in the morning keeps my whole day rolling.

I need to do some cleaning..I have been slacking over here. I also should go shower.. I mean.. it's been a few days (lol j/k.. ew.)

OH! Yeeeees... I just realized American Idol starts tonight! Whoot! Sorry.. that was random but.. I am random.. so there!

Bleh.. ok, ok. I should go do something. I think I just have so much to do it's making my head spin and makes me not wanna do anything. Makes sense, right? lol

... A totally random fact for you... Austin takes a poopie pretty much everytime I blog. I am SO not kidding. Ick. Guess I know what I will be doing first!

As My Friend Julie Likes To Say...

I live in BFE! (Bum 'f' Egypt!)

I do.. I do. And I love it!

I love the whole country feeling out here. I live in the mountains where we get great weather year round. Our community is gated and it's a really 'everyone knows everyone' area. I live walking distance to a lake/park and we have a country club down the street... very nice.

But.. no shopping. And for someone who loves to shop it's not a good thing. No mall unless you drive an hour away.. and it's a crappy mall. Starbucks is a 30 mile round trip! GASP! Our best stores (if you want to call them 'best) are Kmart, Home Depot and Albertsons. Yay.. not. We have a lot of mom and pop shops but none have anything I am interested in.

Today I am really hating living here in BFE. I need wire.. one single $2.00 spool of wire. It's too late to order it online (I need it this weekend) and that means we have to drive an hour for.. wire. *sigh*. I neeed it though so it's a must! As many of you know Austin's party is this weekend and I want to use the wire to make 'shooting stars' off of his cake. It will be awesome! I am sure I will find other things to buy while on our little trip for wire... he does need another gift!

Hmmm... what should I do today? Maybe make fondant to cut my stars out so they can harden a bit before Saturday? Or maybe clear out Austin's room since we will be re-doing it right after his party? I dunno. I need to do something though besides sit on this computer all day!

Until next time!

 

Just Blow Up Already!

I just typed up a post and right when I hit 'publish' my computer froze. bye-bye post. Grrrr! That's what I get for using this stupid laptop. I wanna toss it in the fireplace!

OK.. let me go try this again!..

Gathering and Making Fabric Buttons

Since I will be posting a little skirt tutorial soon I thought I would share a tutorial on how to gather first.

Gathering is super easy to do.. some people think it is a pain in the butt (because sometimes it is lol). They make gathering foots for your sewing machines and sergers.. but.. I have never tried one out. From what I hear people prefer to gather by hand anyways.

So.. we're going to get this huge piece of fabric onto that tiny waist band.

I use a cheapie starter machine. The Brother CS 6000i (computerized machine). I told myself that once I got serious about sewing I would upgrade to a better (more expensive) machine.. Nope.. I love this machine! It's very easy to use (I do not like using a  foot pedal so being it's all 'hands on' really got me hooked) All the preset stitches work great and it does wonderful buttonholes (my old machine would jam if I did anything but a straight or zig-zag stitch). Honestly.. if this machine breaks I would probably buy it again!

I adjust my tension to 5 (I found sometimes 6 and higher can be just a tad too much on some threads/fabrics and the thread breaks). I put my stitch length at the longest it will go which is 5.0. Also.. use a good quality thread to prevent breakage.. I love Sulky thread and pretty much stick to that brand.

To adjust your stitch length use the top button (if you have this machine).. ignore the scratches.. darn kiddos!

I marked on the presser foot where I line my fabric up to gather. I always use a 1/2" seam allowance. Using that mark as my guide will help keep everything nice and even and then when I sew in my waistband at 1/2" seam allowance all my gathering threads will be hidden in the seam.

You will want to start at one side seam and then end at the other.. and then again... it makes it easier to gather when you have separate gathering stitches running on each side of the item you are gathering... at least in my opinion! *wink*

See how the fabric will gather very slightly after you run your gathering stitch?

Depending on the weight of the fabric it may be gathered more or less... it doesn't really matter though.

Time to start gathering. Grab your loose thread on either side and start pulling with one hand and lightly pulling the fabric with the other hand so it bunches up.

Keep gathering.. once I gather one side a little bit I will tie it off so it doesn't unravel while I continue to gather.  I am still working on the front portion of the skirt. Side seam to side seam.

To check to see if you gathered enough pull the side seams of the skirt and hold it up to your waistband.. make sure it's about as wide as your waistband. Mine is the exact same width when I am pulling it.. but.. I had to take a photo so it appears to be a little small.

I circled my side seams :)

Tie a bunch of knots! You will not be too happy if you did all that gathering and as you're sewing you notice half the skirt is unraveled and then you start calling your skirt (or whatever) all sorts of names! (not saying I have ever done that...)

Another way to do this without lining them up like I do.. is you can use a measuring tape or ruler.. measure the width that you need to gather to.. and then keep checking it. Eventually you will get to the point where you can gather, gather, gather and just know when you have gathered enough which is exactly what I did with this skirt.. lol.

Now.. gather the back panel... tie your knots.

You then turn your skirt inside out and line up your side seams. I always pin at the sides so they do not move.. then 1-2 times in the middle. Then sew at 1/2" in seam allowance.. and that gathering stitch will be sewn into your seam.

Now... if you do not have a serger your going to want one! LOL! You can zig-zag stitch over the open seam.. but it will get bulky if you are gathering a large amount of fabric like I have.

A serger will cut the fabric as you go and keep a nice clean line.

Also.. if you look at my seam you can see where the gathering stitch is.. and then where I stitched it together :)

See.. a nice pretty serged seam. Not bulky at all!

Stitch and serge nice and straight and when you turn your skirt right side out you should have a nice and perfectly straight seam.

Then you topstitch :)

And that's it for gathering.. easy peasy! It takes some practice.. but you will get it. I use to gather horrible.. the gathers were uneven so one section would be tightly gathered when another area would almost be not gathered at all lol.. so make sure you pay attention to how everything is spaced out. It gets a little harder when paneling because you want each panel to be gathered the same amount so it looks even, etc.

OK.. now onto fabric covered buttons.. I looove me some fabric covered buttons! I have had people new to sewing ask where I get matching buttons from.. so.. here ya go!

Unless you have a tool for these you will want to make sure they say 'no tools required'. Don't be an idiot in a hurry like I was the other day and buy the wrong ones.. unless of course.. you have a tool. :)

They come in several sizes.. flat or half balls.. I use half ball.. just a personal preferance. I didn't take a picture but the inside has little 'spikes' that will hook your fabric.. and fingers.. lol. I use an eraser for the smaller buttons to really get the fabric on the button well. (duh.. you can see the little 'spikes' on the package of buttons to the left in the above photo)

They even have a handy little fabric pattern so you do not cut too little or too much fabric.

Completed buttons! ooooh.... ahhhhhh!

You will need a needle, thread and I use a marking pen because I like 'em even. The pen mark will fade away after a day or two. If you are using heavier buttons use an interfacing between the bodice and lining so it can support the buttons so they do not hang weird.

All done! Now I can sew the bottom on and send it on the way to it's new home!

Thanks for coming by! Do you love the pretties shown here but don't sew? Lemme sew for ya! Hop on over to my Etsy shop to find the skirt and dress BlissClothingCo.etsy.com

 

Admit me to the crazy house!

Oh hell... I am crazy. It's official (I think I have started a blog post like these at least a million times now LOL) Why?... because I have another 'idea'. It's going to eat at me until I do it.. I know it.. but.. I am going to build Austin's furniture for his new room! Seriously, folks.

Who is laughing? All of you.. right?

I knew it. *hangs head*

Really though... someone on a message board I am on posted this ladys blog, Knock Off Wood... I am in owe over here! She makes up plans for furniture that is really $$$ so you can make them for less.. yay! Pottery Barn, Land of Nod, Restoration Hardware.. etc. I looked over her blog for almost 2 hours already.. then that lead to shopping around for tools, etc. I dunno why I all of a sudden think I am some woodworking genius now and can magically know exactly what to do with a saw when I don't even use a steak knife correctly... but hey.. I will do it! lol. I might rent tools.. or hunt someone down that has them. Eveything I want to make has straight lines pretty much. I... ummm.. Ryan (hubby) has a nail gun.. power drills.. air compresser, etc.

What am I going to make?.. THIS BED... looks super easy! Or maybe THIS BED.. she just posted the twin size version today. Which do you all like better for a boys room? It will be painted white. His room is a space theme so.. helloooooo!!! Ana's very own design, a ROCKET SHELF! Austin will loove it! And then I will probably make this TABLE. Honestly, there is SO much stuff on her website that I want to make.. I might have my entire house re-furnised soon! LOL!

I talked ot Ryan about it and he is on board.. which is a surprise because he doesn't understand my need for wanting to do different things all the time.

Soo.. I am sure I will blog about my progress.. Yay! I am so excited! Wish me luck and that I keep all my fingers! LOL!

Sorry dudes and dude-ettes.

Blah. I fail..

I made a boo-boo in the Potato Cheese Soup recipe. It is NOT 1.5oz of Velveeta.. it's 1/5th of the package (a 32oz package).. sooo. yeah. Don't throw any rotten tomatos.. or potatos! I am not perfect.. I am crazy.. and now you know that.. so we can all carry on and eat soup! :)

I fixed the recipe.

Laundry Day

So.. is it sad that we have had Finn for about 6 weeks and I am JUST NOW doing my kids laundry since he has been here?

Yeah.. I thought so. I mean.. I have washed jammies and towels for them.. but not all their dirty laundry. I am shocked we could go that long! lol.... OK.. maybe I'm not shocked.... Anyhow.. the girls needed clean undies so it was time!

I pulled out all the laundry and dumped it out on the livingroom floor to sort... as always. Finn.. ah yes.. my sweet little Finn... he was having a ball! And irritating the crap out of me! Why? Oh sure.. it's cute watching this furry mess of a puppy jump around through dirty clothes after he just had a bath.. but.. he was after the dirty undies! Ewwww! I walked away for a bit and came back and he already had 3 under the couch.. he was just trying to help I suppose.. I mean.. he was trying to CLEAN them.

Ew.

So I was trying to pick up all the clothes and put them into baskets.. he was going crazy. I wish I had a video. He was yappin' like crazy while running laps around me .... and he would dive in and try to snag a pair of undies as fast as possible.. I was chasing him all over the house! It's like catnip.. for dogs..

Dirty kiddo undies = Dognip.

Again.. Ew.

What's going on.. and What's coming up.

Ebay--

Love it and hate it.

I love it because in 1 weeks I can makes a few thousband on my kiddos outgrown clothes and get them all outta here in one shot.

I hate it because.. well.. the fees for one.. egh! Not to mention the crazies.. My last round of selling went fairly well and I made a lot of cash.. which rocks! I only had one punk who bought $300 of stuff from me and never paid but yet she kept buying and paying other people... Ended up in her getting banned from a message board her and I are on. Psssh. I have a feeling she did it because she doesn't like me for whatever reason.... story of my life. Oh well.

Then I had one demand a refund when I didn't ship the very next day (I state in my listings I ship in 2-3 days).. I shipped the day after though.. and they gave me a negative feedback for slow shipping and not refunding them LOL. (it's gone now because they got the boot.. thankfully.. but still!) I have heard some horror stories from others though.. oh man, I hope those people stay far away from me!

Who am I kidding? We have Etsy crazies too. Let's talk about one from Dancing Dandelion real quick (my old shop) This one sent me a photo of her daughter in a set I made... about 2 months later.. or a little less.. she emailed me going ape crazy saying she never got her outfit, calling me a fraud.. was going to 'call me out' on the message board we post on, etc... how did I reply? With the photo of her daughter in the outfit.. with a smile face. Doh! Somebody must have forgot and then decided she wanted her money back. *eyeroll* Not to mention I had delivery confirmation on it. I thought it was a joke at first.. but she never replied back.

Why this post about Ebay, anyways? Welp.. it's that time of year again! Time to get my spring and summer clothes ready to hit Ebay. I actually didn't buy a ton last spring/summer because it was our first spring/summer up here and I knew we wouldn't need much because it's nit hot here too long. So now the fun begins.. I start going through the huge wardrobe boxes full of cuteness. Hopefully I will have my auctions up in a couple weeks.

My little mans party -

People are droppin' like flies! At this rate their might be 2 people here. lol. Most my family/friends can't make it.. so sad. Their loss because my birthday parties are always complete awesomness LOL.. Actually, I don't plan to go all crazy on Austin's party. We're doing his room for his gift and need to buy bedding, furniture, etc. So.. $$$$. We decided to go with this one really cute 'solar system' bedding from Land of Nod. I Can't wait! I will probably paint his room a medium grey.. do glowing stars on the ceiling and maybe white letters on the wall with the planet names.. I dunno yet. I am always, always.. ALWAYS changing my mind on things. My mind is always wandering. It's sick.

If you follwed me here from Pieces of Me, my old blog... you were probably wondering why I never shared photos of the girls finished room.. (or maybe you could care less? lol) well.. because it turned out to be just Alannah's room (loooooong story there) and I still need to finish up a few small things before I am 100% happy with it. Then I will probably change it 3 months later LOL! No.. I wish I was kidding. I bet I will change something.. even if it is a small something.

Anyhow.. back to party stuff. Since I am making up my theme I am just winging it for decorations. I will probably print some stuff out and do homemade confetti and whatnot. Maybe a homemade birthday banner. Of course, I am doing his cake, cupcakes and cookies... and all the other food. (just thinking of all that work is making me grumpy). The colors I chose to go with are grey, lime green and orange with a little yellow thrown in.. like his invitation which I posted a few posts down.

I am excited, though! I always love doing parties and I hope the whole 2 people that show up have fun! lol.

Now.. what's coming?

Next will be the skirt tutorial. I already have it typed up and saved but I wanted to finish a couple orders from my Etsy shop before I made it. Sooo.. look for it in a few days. I know.. waiting sucks. But.. if I shared everything back to back without my nonsense inbetween.. well, I would run out of cool stuff to show you all in like.. a week! lol.

I have a couple of my Photoshop actions I want to share with you all as well.. so stay tuned for those.. and of course more recipes, crafts etc... I will probably even show you how to do your own acrylic nails at home! (with good stuff.. not with cheapie 'kits'.)

Hugs to all! Thanks for stopping by!

 

1600 people..

...Have visited my blog today... and that number is growing!

Julie.. you were right.. that is pretty awesome! A fellow blogger and friend from Angry Julie Monday did something with one of my posts.. Stumble Upon or sumtin'.. I dunno.. but yeah.. neato. If at least ONE of those people become a regular blog reader then that's great! :) I am not familiar with all this blog spammin' stuff.. but maybe I should look into it.. afterall.. I don't wanna do all this typin' and picture taking for like.. 4 people.. lol j/k. I love all four of ya! ;)