A Stitch in Time - Part II

Here is something intense! My grandma Carmen stitched this some time ago. My mom pulls it out for special family dinners with my dad's family. Now you have to understand, my grandma had arthritis so bad that her fingers curled. She was a phenomenal artist non-the-less! Aside from embroidery, she painted, carved wood and made paper sculptures! Here's a look at her amazing stitching:

The time it must have taken her! I love all the colors!

It's a face of ???

Butterfly

Pear, apple and bananas

An eye

I have to imagine this is an outline of her hand!

If it is, we have the same size hand!

It looks like a flower in a raindrop! :D

Beautiful bird!

You can probably tell from this photo that she re purposed a cloth rice sack! Yes, this use to be just a plain ol' rice sack! She use to recycle/re purpose things all the time! As above mentioned she made paper sculptures as well. This is a picture of one of her birds:

She created it using either a cardboard soda or beer box! Then she wrapped it in masking tape and painted it. And the eyes (you'll love this) are the little ball beads from rubber bands!!! (Remember those, you would wrap them around your pony tail and one would click over the other!) She used the same technique to paint her couch! (minus the cardboard boxes!) More pictures on that infamous couch later!

A Stitch in Time - Part I

Recently my mom unearthed this quilt that her mother (my grandma Connie) stitched some time ago. They're all these beautiful outlines of birds:

It just so happened that it matched the "guest" room (my old bedroom) perfectly!

You can see it hanging on the right side wall:

(very "Shabby Chic" inspired!)

I love it all! All soft pink, roses, girly!

Here's some closer shots of the individual birds:

I think it's awesome that she included a humming bird because it just so happens to be my other grandma's favorite bird!

Then & Now

My how time flies! It's amazing to see a little girl grow before your eyes!

It's also amazing to see a man survive a tragic accident!

A little over nine years ago my dad got hit head-on when he was coming home on his motorcycle. It was a beautiful bike...# 8 out of 100 in that style! Needless to say, the bike didn't survive - thankfully, my dad did survive! After a month in the hospital & countless months of recuperation, he was able to get out on a new bike and ride!

This picture was taken the summer following that accident:

My niece was just a little thing at the time! She always loves to get on the motorcycle with her "Tata"! Here she is now all grown...a month away from being 12! She's already taller than me! (Not that that takes much! Everyone who knows me, knows how vertically-challenged I am! - LOL! :D )

It's just crazy to see what a beautiful young lady she has become! As mentioned, she is about to turn 12 years old! And for this occasion, her mother (my sister) and I are planning a special Alice in Wonderland themed event! Tea party, costumes, jewelry and a viewing of the new movie in 3D!!! Please stay tuned to see the projects we (my mom, sis & I) are working on!

Valentine Swap

When Claire had asked for volunteers for a Valentine swap (on the Glitter & Grunge blog) I didn't hesitate. I love to participate in swaps! Especially cute heart-filled ones!

I usually have a bad habit of procrastinating on projects; but I was so into doing this one I jumped right into it! I decided to make cute, but simple cards & fun little heart bracelets for my five partners in the swap. Here is what they received:

<3>

fun card & beaded heart bracelet inside!

Each was slightly different from the other!

These are the beauties I received:

l-r: Shannon, Sabrina (cute crocheted flower pin!) , Jozen (I love the little clothespin!),

Claire, & Kathryn

Bracelet stitched by Shannon Udell (Creative Studio Arts)

Delicate heart by Claire (Little Lovelies Handmade)

Thank you ladies! I had so much fun making my valentines & then opening all the others one by one & seeing the surprises inside!

I also did another little swap with my friend Stacey. This is what I sent:

I hope everyone enjoyed their Valentines as much as I did! : D

Indie Sacramento - March vendors announced!

March vendors announced!

Bonnaroo

Bonnaroo

I want to go to Bonnaroo!

I totally want to go! There's some AMAZING acts playing this year! I made a silly video using their video generator...here it is:

Didya catch the pic of Chris & I??? If you have the time, you can make a cheezy video of your own! (www.bonnaroo.com) ;)

My Bloody Valentine!!!!

Mwahahaahaa!

For those of you with a dark side, I created some special pieces just in time for Valentines Day!

Etsy Buy Handmade Rainsembellishments

Inspired by Other Artists - Part II

I had to teach an Intro to Wire Work class today...So I decided to make myself a "LOST" inspired charm bracelet like one I found on Etsy.

Here's a picture of the bracelet I found made by Atlantis804:

This is the one I made in class:

Her "Dharma" symbol is a lot cooler & more accurate to the shows symbol, but I definitely like the fun (colorful) almost tribal type beads I incorporated into my bracelet!

I also found this one made by Denise Jewelry Designs:

I can't wait for LOST!!!!

I'm so excited! I started watching season 5 again!

Chris was nice enough to buy it for me for our Anniversary!

Here's a teaser trailer...

******Warning: It contains film from Season 5! Possible SPOILER!!!****

Enjoy!

(Being LOST!)

I need to knit!

Must stop by Joanns & pick up this:

Stitch Nation by Debbie Stoller Bamboo Ewe Yarn :
medium - 4 :
yarn :
knit & crochet :

Shop | Joann.com

I love the bamboo yarn! I made a scarf for my godson with bamboo yarn...it's so soft! :)

Inspired by Other Artists - Part I

I just couldn't help myself when I saw this Vintage Necklace tutorial on the Glitter and Grunge blog. I rummaged through my collection, and found these pieces:

Black lace applique and Jack Skellington iron-on patch.

A little less elaborate, a bit more gothic, and shock, barely any beadwork...but I love it!

Below is the actual tutorial. Please visit the G&G blog for tons of other fantabulous projects!

Vintage Puppy Dog Necklace Tutorial(Original post from Glitter and Grunge blog)

We have a treat for you today! A tutorial designed by the awesome Holly Stinnett. Thanks so much Holly!

Vintage Puppy Dog Necklace

Designed by Holly Stinnett

I used a sweet vintage puppy brooch that belonged to my grandmother as the focal point for this piece. Any brooch that appeals to you will work great!

Utilize a lace appliqué as the base and background for the fabric necklace.

Take a piece of fabric and cut a little larger than the appliqué. Machine stitch around the edges.

Cut the fabric just slightly behind the edge of the appliqué. I like the frayed look so I was not concerned with bits of fabric or strings peeking out.

Pin the brooch in a desired spot. Stitch in a couple places to hold securely (if needed). In this case, the brooch was a little top heavy so stitching around the puppy’s ears and tail helped to keep him secure.

Randomly cut flowers out of felt. Secure with pearls or beads. I use a beading needle and beading thread. It’s extremely sturdy and easier to use with beads than a regular thread and needle.

Randomly bead more beads in various areas. You can do as little or much beading as you like. For this tutorial, I just added a little beading here and there for some sparkle.

Select a chain necklace and cut to desired size (this chain was from a vintage broken necklace). Use the beading needle and thread through the last link to secure the chain into place. Stitch the link several times to make it very secure.

Add a charm bead by creating a little loop so it will dangle from the piece of chain.

Randomly sew beads onto the appliqué.

Select ribbon. Machine sew the ribbon directly onto the appliqué. Hand sew vintage buttons for more embellishing directly on the appliqué and ribbon. You can add another piece of ribbon with more buttons at this point if you like. The overall length of the ribbon is about 20 inches. This will be tied around your neck.

As a final step I like to cover the back to hide all the threads and stitching so I cut another piece of fabric and this time glued it with fabric glue.

Then gently cut around the edges of the appliqué one more time. Again, a little fabric peeking out is fine and adds to the sweet, homemade look.

Your necklace is complete. Simply tie it around your neck!

Thanks Holly, for this great tutorial! Friends, we'd love to see your versions of this adorable necklace. I'll be starting a Flickr group for GG tutorials so add your pictures! --Claire

Disc Golf Inspired Crafting

Disc Golf Quilt mom helped me make for Chris for Christmas.

Pattern from www.fuseeasyquilts.com/

Christmas Cards using goodies from my Glitter and Grunge package.