Perfection. Is it overrated???

Is perfection stopping you from trying? I'm not referring to your own perfection. I'm talking about the perfection of others.

I absolutely love seeing the amazingly beautiful quilting that people do on their quilts, or others quilts, if they do it as a job. Usually the most amazing quilting is done on a long arm machine,  and sometimes it's all quilted automatically - taking out all human error. But no matter how it's done, that doesn't lessen the talent and work that is put into the beautiful workmanship.

But I often notice thoughts in the back of my head telling me that if I can't quilt as beautifully as "those quilters" I shouldn't even try. I should stick to using my walking foot and quilting straight or wavy lines. 

I hear the thoughts, but I never listen to them.

Nothing's Allowed PenPals +

This whole idea started with THIS POST, and subsequent follow-up posts.

I created a sign up form for the Nothing's Allowed Penpals group! You can sign up HERE. or just scroll below, I think I can embed it in this post. :)

To be clear, EVERYONE is invited. My posts lately have been more directed to those who may or may not be struggling with habits they see forming in their own lives, or are trying to overcome them. But this group is for anyone and everyone who likes happy mail, loves to support and lift others, loves to receive support and encouragement, just likes mail, etc. You don't have to relate in any way to any of the posts I've recently shared to join. Everyone is welcome!! So if you are interested in sending out letters or receiving letters, I hope you'll join in! Read through the questionnaire for more details.

I'll be honest, I myself am not always great at sending mail, and responding. I think this will be a fantastic way for me to strengthen my skills in this area. I am going into this with no expectations from myself or from others. I am so excited to send out mail to everyone! But I don't expect everyone to respond. I won't be disappointed or discouraged if they don't. And I hope others won't be when I forget or life gets in the way. I'm not sure how "no expectations" will keep this group going, but hopefully because it's based on our own freedom to join at-will, it will at least for some, become a great and wonderful thing in our lives!! :)

If you ever at any point find yourself struggling, with anything in your life, this is a great distraction to turn your attention to something else! Thinking of others and serving others ALWAYS makes my problems seem smaller or disappear altogether. Please remember this! And if you ever are feeling the need for some mail, just shout out and we can in mass send you some #happymail!! :)

***

I have so many thoughts in response to the responses I've received from my posts from last week. Thank you all for your love and support, and thank you for sharing your stories and experiences. It is wonderful to feel the comradery and trust that we have as a group of strangers, who share in the same hobbies and joys as well as struggles. If you find yourself in over your head with your habits and struggles, PLEASE get some help. I would love to help and support everyone, but I'm not a professional, and I do not have that ability to help to the extent that you may need it. I wish I had received help when I first recognized my situation. Don't make the same mistake I did. It's not worth it. I support you 1000% to get the help you need!! I did a google search for "shopaholic support group" and there are a LOT of links for online support groups, "12 Steps" and other steps and how to overcome links. Unfortunately this is something you have to go through. No one can do it for you. Getting help and support is critical!! Please don't do it on your own. And please don't shrug it off and leave for another day, or expect it to just go away. It won't.


I love the ideas that I've heard for fabric swaps and shopping each other stashes, to avoid purchasing more but still being able to get fabrics you may need or want for specific projects. If you want to start up groups on Flickr, or Instagram, I will do all I can to spread the word and give you the support you need. As much as I'd love to start these groups and get them up and going, I do not have the time right now in my life to do that. My family is at a stage where they need me more and more and I am in a balancing act trying to fit everything in already. So please understand that I'm hear to help you how I can. You have great ideas, and I have no doubt that you can do wonders to help others, so lets all help each other and work together!!! And please keep me updated in what efforts are being made so I can share!! :)


I love this quote that was in my inbox the other morning, and find it applicable.

In my own experience, the only way to truly overcome, is not to replace one habit with another, but to find healing and love. To change the patterns of thought that lead to the problem in the first place. I could go on and on about what has helped me. If you want to know, I'm happy to share. But as I have tried to write all my recent thoughts, I don't even know where to begin.

The world is not going to change. It will just keep becoming more difficult to overcome on our own. The fabric markets will keep pushing the new collections, people are still going to keep trying to make a living, I'm going to keep trying to sell my patterns. Selling isn't bad, buying isn't bad. But there is a balance that needs to be found within ourselves. I'm so glad I could help some of you resist the urges of the Labor Day sales. And that you for helping me to do the same!! :) I don't want fabric shops to hate me. I'm not out to destroy anyone!! I have my own coupon code going on for the rest of the day as well (Code: "LaborDayLove" for 10% off $5 or more). It's a fine balance, but when we are in the depths of our struggles, avoiding our temptations is the most important place to start! (ok, sorry to put my code right there, but I want to share for those who want to use it, but don't want to tempt anyone.... urg. it's a tight spot to be in. ;)


I hope you know how much I really care for all of you, even if I don't know you. The struggle I shared last week is so real, and my heart goes out to all of you who relate to one degree or another.

Hugs!! 

 I can't wait to start the penpal group!! :)

You can read all of the posts in this little mini series of ideas in these places:

Hi. My name is Diane, and I'm a fabric-addict.
So Many Thoughts + Thank You! + "Nothings Allowed Pen Pals"
Shop Your Stash Weekend!!!
Nothing's Allowed PenPals +

What I've been up to...

One thing I'm learning, with having four children, is that life is constantly shifting. I think things were a little easier when I only had three, and they were all fairly young, with their needs all bundled into one simple package. But now that my oldest is finishing up kindergarten, and school here in Florida seems SO serious and intense, my bundle of "needs" that I have to meet each day has expanded dramatically. On the other end of the spectrum, the simple baby stage is over. the end. Little Tommy is no longer a baby. He isn't walking just yet, thank goodness, but he is trouble with a capital T. He is fun and happy and a bundle of joy. But he is also sneaky and cunning and HAS to get into anything and everything that he shouldn't. As soon as he spies anything forbidden, he is there in a flash. If he sees me coming he moves even faster, or snags whatever object he's after and "runs" away. Trouble I tell you. I was spoiled with my two, well-behaved, middle children. I think this guy is even worse than Hunter was. ha. So yes, my demands of mother have grown exponentially in the past few months. It's fun, and I'm learning, and with the Mr. working long hours all the time, it is also exhausting. Life is wonderful in it's crazy ways.

As I have been for the past three years, I find my outlet in creating, sewing, quilting, and pattern writing. It's such a blessing to have such a fun and rewarding source of individualism. I don't know how I would mentally survive without this outlet.


So... here's where I'm at creatively right now:

I have one quilt pattern that has been kicking my butt.  BUT I have had some great and patient testers, and with some good feedback, I think I made some good headway this morning. I started all over from the beginning. I realize I got too wrapped up in all the technical stuff, that I skipped right over the simplicity of the instructions. Hopefully, I'll be able to perfect it this time around. I really can't wait to share it and get it finished up.

I have a list of other quilt patterns I want to get written up as well. I'm hoping my brain isn't going out, and that they won't give me as much trouble, as they really are a bit simpler in technique. A few I already have the fabrics for, which means serious business about getting these done. Catnap by Lizzy House, Simply Color (or Style, I can't remember - the second collection by V. and Co.) with some blue ombre fabric. :) and a few more...


In my frustration with the above mentioned quilt pattern, I've returned to paper piecing patterns in full force. I have one new pattern that is  being tested right now, and I am really loving it!! If all goes as planned, I'll be releasing it on Monday. I think it will be fabulous! (This one I'm keeping a secret) :)

I have another pattern that I've already created, and just need to finish quilting my pillow top for. Wanna see the design??  (These are both four blocks together.) I actually came up with this one as I was prepping for Sewing Summit last year. I will be releasing all the patterns I created for the class soon. I also want to put together an ebook, that goes over all the material plus more. I feel so bad that people didn't get more out of the class than we all hoped, me especially. I think it was a mix of running out of time, and everyone being so tired from the fun weekend. I think it would have been better had the class not been the last class of the day on the last day. But I still want to help people learn how to do it!! I'm just not sure how to go about it. Anyway...

 

I really love the lattice design that it creates in the background.

 I'm thinking of calling this one Flower Patch. What do you think?

And then I pulled up this old one from a few months ago,

Last night I came up with this variation, using the same pattern.

and two more this morning, which are basically the same as the first, just coloring in the centers.

What would be a good name for this pattern? I really love the design in the second option. My husband says that the yellow crosses looked like buttons to him.


We've also been trying to go to the beach and the pool when the weather has been nice. And trying to keep up on too much homework for a 5 year old. *roll my eyes*.



And on a super fun note, I am participating in a few blog hops hosted by some amazing people. I am really looking forward to it. Stay tuned in the next few weeks to find out more...

So what have you been up to?

What do you do when life starts getting the best of you?

Here's how I think sometimes.... plus some fabric and coupons! and a party.

The other day I kind of went overboard eating the peanut m&m's. I thought to myself, ”I just ate my weight in m&m's. ... That would be so gross.” I really didn't eat that many. While this was going on I was looking at my fabric and then thought, ”what if I won my weight in fabric?! That would be awesome.” I started calculating... ” if 1 yard weighs roughly 6 ounces, that would be... roughly 357 yards of fabric!” Now that might also be gross, but I would still take it!

What would you do if you won your weight in fabric? I think I would sell it, well some of it (that would be worth $3,570 if it was $10 a yard!) and pay off some debts, buy a mini van, or maybe a dryer and a lawnmower. Perhaps save it for those days when I just want to buy fabric. (buying fabric in and of itself is fun, even if it just sits on your shelf waiting to be used, would you agree?! heehee.) :)

Anyway, there's one of my recent amusing thoughts I've had. I figured you might enjoy thinking about that too. :)

P.s. What fabrics/collections would you want?
(i'm not even going to try to answer that!) Lol.

oh, and while I'm on the topic of fabric (but when am I not?) Check out what is at Hancock Fabrics?

I borrowed this pic from Colleen on Flickr. Hope you don't mind! ;)

This is Heather Ross! It's based off the Crafty Chloe book and it's cute! The pink doll fabric is kind of scary, but I love the rest of it. ;)

and guess what, someone listed a coupon to use at Hancock's if you shop online: SIZZLING10

 for 10% off!!

AND I don't know if you have ever shopped through Ebates, but I do and I love it! You can get another 4% cash back if you start at Ebates and follow their link to Hancock Fabrics (search for Hancock in the search field and it will bring up the store with the link.) (this is an affiliate link, fyi. I think we both get $5 if you sign up and make a purchase. use it or don't.) :)

I also go through Ebates whenever I shop at Fabric.com. They have a good percentage cash back too, and it's a nice discount to add to whatever coupon I'm using as well. Some people have problems with Fabric.com, but I never have. Ok, sometimes they cut my fabric too big (ok. I don't mind.) or they give me some extra fabric I didn't ask for. Sometimes it's a trade, but it's never been with a fabric I was dying for, mostly just something I wanted while shopping. They have a fantastic return policy! You could return your whole order if you wanted to! And I can't forget the free shipping on any order of $35. Ok. I'm really not trying to sell you on shopping there, that is simply all the reasons why I like it. :)

Anyway, there it is. save a little money, buy some more fabric. heehee.

p.s. I'm going to start a new linky party around here. I think maybe next week (on Thursdays). I know, not another linky. This one is different though, so I hope you'll join me!! I'll give you more info later on. It should be a lot of fun!

blogging intermission...

do you know that I took over 100 photos for my paper pieced tutorial. over 100 JUST for the piecing instructions. I hope you like detail, because it will be detailed, but hopefully not to boring and repetitive. Just informative. :) and for everyone who likes a lot of photos. :)

anyway, I was checking out a new flickr contacts favorites and found this!

Source: kirstyneale.typepad.com via Diane on Pinterest

it's pretty awesome. :)

How do you....???

I have so many questions. I need your help.

1. How do you decide which fabrics to keep and which to add to your "Destash" pile?
2. What are your musts for your stash fabrics? I'm talking about prints, colors, designs that you keep "just in case you need it for something" fabrics. Do you keep them/buy them even if you don't *love* them - but because they could be good filler fabrics?
3. What is your stash made up of? random prints, collections/bundles, what?

don't worry, I have more questions. I'm getting ready to destash my stash and I need some help! I definitely have fabrics I LOVE! Should those be the only ones I keep? I also have a few collection bundles. Do I keep those all together, or take out the few that I don't necessarily love? Is it against the law to break up a collection? lol. 

now to the next set of questions:

1. are there guidelines to selling destash fabrics? What would you be willing to buy and NOT buy?
2. how do you price your destash fabrics? do you determine it on the quantity more (all 1/2 yards are the same price despite the print?), or more off the design? would you pay less for destash fabrics?
3. what's your opinion on washed fabrics? I know some people don't prewash. I used to prewash my fabrics the moment I brought them through the door. Now not necessarily. But most of my destash is going to be prewashed. Does that change anything for the value or desirability?
4. Bundle like colors? or sell everything separate? or only bundle fabrics that are in the same line?

ok, I really have no idea what I'm doing. But I want to get rid of a lot. Kind of embarrassed by some of it. lol. I bought a lot of my stash a few years ago when I really started sewing, and before I knew the who's who of fabric. Some of it was sale fabrics... come to find out I had good taste. :) Sometimes I look through my stash and find a AMH, or some Joel Dewberry. It makes me feel cool that I actually have some of those desirable fabrics in my stash! lol. 

Does any of this really even matter?

Thanks for your help!!!!

p.s. on another note, can everyone please stop blogging for a few days???!!! I basically only read my google reader on my phone, but it's a bit kaput. I got a new one, but it's still having the same problem....  anyway, don't be mad that I don't comment on your blogs lately ok?! Hopefully I'll get it fixed soon and be able to catch up! And so if you all of a sudden get comments on 10 posts at a time, just know that I got my phone fixed. lol. :)

Ch-Ch-Ch-Changin'!

(I think that might be from a song. I don't know what it's called though.
"Changes" by David Bowie. Thanks Rachel!
This song has been in my head the whole morning now. And this is the only line I can remember. lol.)

One thing I've never forgotten from college is something my professor once said (guess I forgot what the class was called. lol),  "The only constant is CHANGE." 

I couldn't agree more. Especially right now. in. this. moment. Things they are a changin'. (that may be a line from Planet 51, I don't remember for sure either.) I guess one thing that hasn't change is my horrible memory. lol.

Anyway, I have made some significant changes recently, and am in the process of making more. 

• I dropped out of the Bee a {Modern} Swapper group (every other month is a normal bee month where you sew blocks for your fellow hive members. The other months are optional fun swaps.) I really loved this group! The set up is the best I think!
• I also dropped out of my do.Good Stitches group. cry. I so love all the wonderful ladies I sewed with. It was so much fun! And I was able to make some awesome blocks and contribute to some beautiful quilts. I will finish up my quilts this month and pass them on.

The reason for dropping these... life is changing. :) Partially I want to have more time for my family (ok, that's a HUGE. like REALLY huge part of it) - doing Learning Time, playing, enjoying my summer.  I also have gotten to the point where I have a list of sewing things for me, my family, and others. And though the list gets longer and longer, I am constantly spending all of my sewing time sewing for these bees or other groups. Ok, so most all of my swaps are now over, and a lot of those commitments are over. I just need a break. I don't mean to be selfish, but it is kind of becoming more of a burden than being fun and rewarding. I also need more sleep. ;) Trying to fit everything in has led to too many late nights. I'm getting old and need my beauty rest. :) I am still in my Moody Blues 2 group (June is the last month), and Modern She Made Swap. (Lovin' it! It's over in May) But that's it! Can you believe I'm only in TWO groups?!! deep sigh of relief. lol. 

• I have too much fabric that I will never have time to use
• I have too many supplies
• too much paper
• and whatever else.

I used to be a huge paper crafter, and when I start a new project I kind of tend to collect all the supplies needed for it at once. What can I say? I like to be prepared... anyway, I am going to start doing some major de-stashing! Wahoo! :) Anyway, I have no idea how to do this, or if there are guidelines or rules to de-stashing, but I will be listing it all in my etsy shop. I sure hope someone wants it all! :)

Ok, I guess that's it for now. I still have two major deadlines that I'm racing to finish up my projects for. You'll see one of them tomorrow! :) 

Here's the other one:

almost finished with these!!

this is one of my [4x5] blocks. I only have one more. :) I love these!

Don't worry, I'll still be around. 

I am definitely not planning on quitting sewing or blogging. :)

The Charming Travelers Update

Ok, well, I just want to let you know that I'm really not that crazy. If you follow me that's awesome! I'm not going to take your fingerprints and tap your phone lines to make sure. lol. :) Just be a follower and that's great. I trust you. I mean, we're friends right?! Just wanted to let you know. :)

sorry for that lack of sleep crazy moment. haha.

I'm. so. tired.

lol.

Bad Idea???

I think NOT! But seriously, how am I supposed to get anything done when all I do all day is read your wonderful giveaway comments and am left dreaming about perfect birthdays of family, fun, relaxation, sun, no chores, no one else's needs to take care of, being pampered, sewing, buying fabric, no cooking, eating wonderful meals, and all the other good things everyone is dreaming of. :) as well as all the goodness of blogging and the great community we've all helped in building for one another! - whether by blogging or commenting, it wouldn't be what it is without each of you! Thank you!! :)

Thanks as well for everyone for following! I did a happy dance last night when I saw my followers hit 200! heehee. You have permission to laugh at me. I also appreciate all the help in spreading the word for these giveaways! I never EVER thought I would get this good of a turn out! THANK YOU!!! In deed an AWESOME Birthday week!! :)

I really do love it! And I agree with all of you! I wish I had the time to respond to every comment as well!!! But for now I need to finish up todays giveaway prize!! heehee! I am really excited for this!!! I hope you will like it too. :)

stay tuned... the giveaway will be up shortly!!! :)

it's friday...

Source: perfectionisnthappy.files.wordpress.com via Diane on Pinterest

I sure wish I had this kind of energy today! ;)

(I stayed up WAY too late last night cutting fabric and stuffing envelopes. I have a huge pile of fabric that is almost to my knees that now needs to be folded and put back away (except I actually didn't even cut enough of it! (over 200 strips and it's not even close!)) and I have a blister on my hand to prove it! Oh the crazy things we do for Bees! I can't complain about getting ~20 finished blocks back though! That will be nice!) :)

Happy Friday!!

Stay tuned for a giveaway!!! :) 

It's coming I promise! 

(I just need to find the pause button for my life - just for a moment.)
Oh, and did I mention that everyone is sick? Temperatures and coughs all around.
Croup is a well-known visitor in this home... :p

All ready already.

Can I just say that I'm kind of embarrassed?! First I'll say that I went to bed way too late last night, woke up WAY too early this morning (no thanks to a certain little boy) and have been pretty out of it all day. Anyway, for some reason somewhere I was trying to type "already" today. I tried "allready" but of course that wasn't right. So I went ahead and wrote "all ready". duh. I don't know where it was so now I can't fix it. I guess I'll just unknowingly feel stupid every time someone reads it. lol.

Anyway, if you find it will you let me know so I can fix my error? Or at least know that when you read it... there is a reason why I wrote it like that and that I really do know that it should be "already".


Oh the things that happen on days like this. ;)



oh, and to add some visual interest to this post, here is the boy that wakes up too early in the morning and likes to tickle me. grrrr. Just ask my sister, I am NOT nice when people wake me up too early. ;) lol. (remember every day in Texas when you would try to wake me up for school?! my arms and legs were flailing every where. lol.)

I think he is the CUTEST in sweatshirts!!!

And this boy is too funny! He insisted on wearing this hat to the grocery store one day. Not surprised. The first thing he does in the morning when he wakes up is find his baseball hat and sunglasses, or Captan America mask and put them on. (and they don't come off easily). :)

here are the sunglasses. Where did we get these???

And this girl. She is just as wacky as the rest of them! She is fast as lightning scooting and rolling all over the floor (especially when she sees something she can't have - like the boys milk, which she is always sneaking drinks from!). And the other day when they were supposed to be sleeping, she was just as crazy in her crib as the boys were running around the room. And that boy above in the sunglasses makes her laugh like NO ONE can! so fun!

boy do I love this girl!

Today

Today I am...

• going to sew ALL day (Christmas gifts!)
• listening to Fleet Foxes, Regina Spektor, Ingrid Michaelson, Jolie Holland, Christmas music on Spotify
• Happy!! :)
• finished with Christmas "shopping" - except for the chocolate. Can't forget the chocolate. :)
• messing up a LOT sewing my HST's. (How many times have I sewn ON the line instead of using it as my 1/4" guide? don't ask.)
• feeling MUCH better than I did the rest of the week.
• eating a lot of chocolate.
• in love.

Source: etsy.com via Diane on Pinterest

I hope you are having a lovely day!

Still swyping away

We are still without internet, and I am slowly swyping away on my phone. It takes so long to write an email without a keyboard! (not to mention a blog post.)

Anyway, after many phone calls and some crazy bartering (ok, I really didn't have to do much) we got a super sweet deal with our current provider to keep us from switching! 3+ years of being a loyal customer definitely has it's perks! They matched the price of the competitor we were going to switch to but extended the offer for twice as long! Plus they threw in a free modem (ours died, thus the reason we've been shopping around). Who likes saving $100??? Me! Me! As well as giving us a credit for the time we've been without internet!

It took three tries, but I finally talked to the right person and boy did she ever hook me up! Love Century Link!

So Monday is the special day that my friendly UPS driver will drop off our magic box to the outside world.

Other than that, things have been pretty adventurous around here. We are on a quest to figure out what is going on with my healthy. Monday I blacked out trying to pick up Hunter. Thank goodness I already had a dr appointment scheduled for that morning! He kindly told me that I pretty much have EVERY symptom of a hyperthyroid. One or two would have been enough thank you very much. But I'm still waiting on more tests to come back to rule out any other possibilities. So the next few weeks are bound to be full of dr visits and more tests, and hopefully a lot of answers and direction.

In the quilting/sewing/crafty world I am happy to say that the do.Good Stitches quilt is coming along nicely! :) As well as some fun orders from my shop. And and and.... I'll have to save some things for Monday. :)

Have a great almost weekend!

Internet is down...

I was going to catch up on some blogging today but our router kicked the bucket. Of well. I probably wouldn't have gotten to it anyway. ;)

Hope to post again soon! I was finishing up the Zip-it tutorial yesterday... Guess my ugly nails will just have to wait a little bit longer to be shown to the whole world. ;) (the one thing that makes me hesitate to post it) heehee.

Running on Empty

Our car has been on empty for the last little while, and on our last errand run I debated stopping to fill it up, or at least add a little extra just in case. But the ice cream in the trunk made me decide otherwise. Saturday I jumped in the car to run to the post office and it started fine, but died before I even made it a foot from the curb. I didn't want to chance it, though I keep wondering where the fuel light is supposed to be???

Anyways, that's not exactly where I was going with this, but it fits too. :) I also feel like I've been running on empty lately. Ok, more like since baby number 3 came along, well, more like a month or so before that. It's been one long, dragging thing to another I feel like. I have good spurts, but then I'm right back to wanting to sleep the day away. :)

I did get some results back today of some blood work they did last week. My thyroid is a little low. Well, one aspect of it, and I can't remember what they called it. My vitamin D level is also a little low, though still in the normal range, just the low normal. They want me back in 3 weeks to check them again. I also told the nurse today that I forgot to tell the dr last week that I am constantly dizzy and light headed. She said it's probably my blood sugar and that I needed to eat every 2 hours. Does that mean I have diabetes? I'm not sure I know what the difference is. :) (crazy day last week: we were on our way home from the dr office and I thought I was going to pass out in the car! I stopped and parked in the walgreens parking lot for like 5 min before I dared to drive home! What is wrong with me?!!!) I've also just been a bear lately. Yup. I'm letting it out. I am not a nice person. :) ok, I'm sure I still am, but sometimes I feel far from it. I blame it on the fact that I feel so crappy and am so tied all the time.

And I'm not the only one. Hunter had his yearly croup last week, Jackson's got a cough. And today Hunter did not look well at all! He had the biggest circles around his eyes and they look kind of sunken. I'm sure he's so tired too. He seems to never get enough sleep.

If I'm going to start talking about sleep, I have to mention that I'm having tornado dreams again! Maybe the fifth one this year, a few weeks ago I dreamt a storm was coming and we sought cover in this huge building out in the middle of the desert. And get this, the storm was of giant rolling donuts, with chocolate frosting and colorful sprinkles, that were at least 3 stories high. It was so weird and so stressful!
Then last night I dreamt that Neil and I were at a park at night with a lot of other people, and we were attacked by a mob of vampires. We all ran to this store and were getting trained on what to do if a vampire attacks you. Except Neil never showed up and I was so afraid that he turned into a vampire!

REALLY?! Can I just please get some rest at least in my sleep?! Lol. Welcome to the story of my life. I always have weird dreams, and it seems to be more and more common that something is wrong with me... Though the hubby never believes me. ;) I'm sure it doesn't help that I can also be a hypochondriac sometimes. :)

Ok, that is the end of my rambling pitty party. :)

Tomorrow

Have you ever heard someone say, "I don't want to go to bed because I don't want tomorrow to come."? I don't understand that. Doesn't staying up late make the tomorrow that is inevitably going to come whether you go to bed or not, that much worse? Because not only is it tomorrow, but it's tomorrow and you are more tired than had you faced that tomorrow is coming and actually went to bed in preparation for it. As I went downstairs to get a drink of milk before bed I wondered why I was still up, seeing as how I was going to go to bed over an hour ago. Then I thought of "that sentence" (I have no idea why I put that in quotations, but the fact that I did reminds me of this super funny post my sister shared with me. Check this one out too. I was dying!) and I was so confused. What do I have to dread about tomorrow? Neil doesn't have to work, period. That's all. If Neil doesn't have to go to work then it is a good day to be a tomorrow day. Perhaps Tuesday could be a bad tomorrow day, but then why do I want to make Tuesday worse by staying up late before hand? And really, a whole extra day before hand? A whole bunch of nonsense if you ask me. Anyway, I am now off to face tomorrow. Goodnight to all! :)


p.s. can I just tell you that I had the weirdest dreams last night. My family was in it, plus some people from my mission, and then what's his name from Lost - uh, Swanker. lol. I don't know. Skywalker? Skype. not Skyler, anyway, the guy with the longish hair that was in love with Juliette Sawyer was in it too. It was a vacation/travel dream and was great! We were in a nice hotel, blah blah, then it turned into a vampire dream. Super weird. I don't know where that one came from. Anyway, guess you better go check out my brothers awesome book. This. He redid the cover, revised a few of the chapters, and redid the website. Don't miss it. :) They look great!

Links:

Funny Links:

http://www.avoidthisjob.com/posts/2010/03/notable-quotables.html

http://www.avoidthisjob.com/posts/2010/01/questionable-questions.html

This. book link

http://www.thisvampire.com/

db By Design: The Shop is Up and Running, Improvements and Announcements

Yes, I am happy to say that I am back into crafting mode. :) It has been a nice break these last couple of months, and much needed as well. But I am happy to be back at it again.

I have relisted a few items, as well as some custom items in my etsy shop. Made some awesome improvements to a few items, have a couple of patterns on the way (one sooner than another, but they're coming), and finished up a couple items that have been waiting by the side lines.

Here's a peak at what's new:

Erasable Activity Book

I have about 7 more of these sitting on my desk waiting to be finished. Here is the first one, and it is finished and listed! :)

I am really excited about the new pocket on this one! Instead of having individual pockets for the crayons or markers (Which it is impossible to make them the right size for both at the same time), I made one giant pocket on the back page! I love it! It is velcro closure, so nothing will fall out. And now you can carry any other trinket along with you (or more than two crayons or markers). :)

You can find this here.

Bags

I've noticed that I've gotten a few searches for a British flag handbag on my site, and decided to whip up another one of these cute bags! :) 100% receycled t-shirt, and everything on it is made from the one shirt. I love the pocket inside that is made from part of the collar. :) 

You can find this here.

Camera Bag

 

I relisted my custom order camera case. But now it is even better. Improvement number one from my first case is the key ring in the second picture. Just thread your camera strap through there and you don't have to worry about dropping the case in the snow or loosing it when you want to take a picture!
Improvement number two and three (pictures to come): VELCRO. :) Instead of the button closure it is now secured with velcro. (We actually lost our button a while ago, and since velcro is a lot longer lasting and stronger, it was the only way to go.) After talking to my dad about his boring black case that he likes for his camera ;), I also decided to add a velcro loop to the back (optional) so that you can attach the case to your belt of bag strap, or where ever. And since it is also velcro, it's easy to attach to things that don't come undone (such as your belt that you would have to take off and thread through the loop).
Improvement number four: a small pocket in the front that will fit an extra SD card. It will blend in pretty well, so it shouldn't effect the overall design and appearance. It will also have a little velcro to keep it closed and the contents secure.

I will have pictures coming soon of all these great things. :)

You can find the custom order here.

I am also currently working on a pattern for the simple camera case (Though it won't include the instructions for the back loops or the pocket). But it will still be nice! We love our simple camera case! :)


I also added a custom listing for this beautiful Children's Afghan/Lap blanket. :) I can't believe it's been so long since I first took these pictures! My boy is getting so big!

You can find the listing here.

I just feel so crafty, and when I saw this picture, I knew I couldn't wait any longer....

Yup. That's right! Number 3 is on the way! We're trying really hard to stop calling Jacks "Baby" since soon we really will have a baby again, but it's kind of hard. ;)

And thus the reason for being so sick, and so absent in the past few months. 

We're super excited! :) We find out in less than a week what it is, and then it should be here by June 1st! Crazy how the time flies! :)

Happy Crafting!

Blog Update

I am currently coming back to blog land, and have been working on cleaning up my blog a little bit.
I wanted to let you know that I just finished fixing my Tutorials tab at the top of the posts. There is now a nice, clean picture list of all the tutorials I have done on my blog, linked to their tutorials. There aren't a lot, but I do have a few on the way (3 or 4 more I'm hoping to get out by the end of next month, at least. Plus I need to bring a few over from my old blog). I also pretty much finished my Made It tab, but still need to link the pictures. It is now much easier to brows (is that the right spelling for this meaning???) through the different projects I've made.


I also have a giveaway planned for next month, a big announcement to make, along with a sew-along (if you want to join me). I have a super big kid project I'm working on, but have been a little stumped with, and thought it might help to blog the process. It will be fun. :)

I really have so many projects I need to finish, so I'm hoping that planning it all out on my blog will help me get everything finished up. :) Good luck with that right?! haha.

Thanks for joining me!

And here's a random picture to add some interest to this post. Haha. :)

some random side street in Wuerzburg Germany.

I LOVE the art on this wall!

Email: BET YOU CAN'T DO IT ON THE FIRST TRY

My sister sent the following to me in an email, give it a try! It's pretty cool. 

Leave a comment and tell me how you do! :)

This test takes 10 seconds...try it!

ALZHEIMERS' EYE TEST
(i love this part.. its absolutely amazing!)
Count every " F " in the following text:

FINISHED FILES ARE THE RE
SULT OF YEARS OF SCIENTI
FIC STUDY COMBINED WITH
THE EXPERIENCE OF YEARS...
(SEE BELOW)




HOW MANY ?

WRONG, THERE ARE 6 -- no joke.
READ IT AGAIN !
Really, go Back and Try to find the 6 F's before you scroll down.


The reasoning behind is further down.



The brain cannot process "OF".



Incredible or what? Go back and look again!!



Anyone who counts all 6 "F's" on the first go is a genius.



Three is normal, four is quite rare.

Send this to your friends.
It will drive them crazy.!
And keep them occupied

For several minutes..!

Isn't that so crazy?!?!?! 

For the life of me I could only find 3, then when I saw there was six it took me a long time until I saw the F in "OF". Then they all showed up. 

So crazy. :)

Why do sewing projects take so long?

It seems like every sewing project I start, no matter how small or simple it is, always seems to take F.O.R.E.V.E.R.!!! So, as I've knowingly, or unknowingly, dragged out all my Christmas projects, I think I've figured it out:

• I dread ironing = a huge delay before I even get started. Plus numerous delays throughout whatever project I'm working on.
• I get this unconscious anxiety when starting a new project. For some reason I have to become mental best friends with whatever I'm going to be making before I can begin.
• I have 2 little boys. enough said.
• Crafting + a clean house = IMPOSSIBLE! which means a bigger mess to try and craft in, or less time spent crafting and more time spent cleaning.
• Crafting is like reading books. I can't ever seem to start and finish one book at a time, I always end up reading 5 different books at the same time. If I start one crafting project, it seems to attract 5 or 6 more to go along with it.
• Burn out. I guess this is why I always have multiple projects going at the same time, some projects I get sick of before their done, so they sometimes don't get done until I come back around again. Though some never do get finished. oops.
• ironing. again.
• life. and everything else that demands some time.
• blogging. ;) though I guess I haven't been doing too much of that lately, so at least for now it hasn't been too much of a distraction.
• on the other hand, having the computer right next to the sewing machine really isn't a good thing. I'll be right in the middle of sewing something, stop and start surfing the web, check my email or get on facebook. Computer and sewing machine is not a good combination. ;) lol.

I guess those are some good reasons why things take so long.... now if I could just figure out a solution. ;) 

What keeps you from finishing your projects?
or do you fly through them?! ;)