New Year

I am so glad to start a new year. Everyone I know is looking forward to a great 2011.  I never make New Year Resolutions but feel that I need to this year.  I need to balance my family and work.  So, I have made a promise to myself to do something for or with  family or friends each week.  This may just be a phone call to catch up with an old friend or a cup of coffee with a son, sister, brother or dear friend.

So, my new motto is "Love like you have an expiration date!" Life is too short not to enjoy every minute of it with loved ones.

I have been working on some Valentine's Day projects...


Love the penguins....



This one says "I love you" ... this is for Chucky's Birthday.  I am working on his real birthday present but I will have to post that after I give it to him next week.

"I Love You" towel

I made this a movie themed basket for a friend and her family for Christmas. I embroidered the towels with popcorn and candy box.. Filled a popcorn bucket with Mike & Ike candy, licorice, chocolate covered raisins and a DVD. She loved it....

I know, the bow SUCKS! 



Christmas Sewing

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I have been working on some Christmas gifts... I made this cute coffee sleeve for myself... I am making some for my staff that will include a Starbucks Card... I just love the Red poka dot fabric with Grinch Green Monogram! Super cute and even easier to make.  I have stitched the monograms on all of them already now I just have to sew them all.  I hate those cardboard bands.. these are so much cuter.

Thanksgiving is Coming....

I absolutely love Thanksgiving and wanted something new and fun for my dinner table. So, I thought the easiest way is to make some placemats. I found the little turkeys on Embroidery Library.  I purchased them for $1.49. So worth it.... and then I went to my favorite local fabric store, Beverly's. I found this great Robert Kaufman orange fushions fabric.  I will definitely be using green and red when I start my Christmas crafts/sewing...  The brown is Kona cotton.

[From this .. ]

Started wtih this



[To This..
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And got this...

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I just love how they turned out. The orange is so bright and cheerful. These just make me smile. I LOVE THEM.. I made a set of 8....



I love the Fall..

Anybody and Everybody that knows me knows how much I love the Fall.  Especially Thanksgiving...I love everything about it. The cool crisp days, the beautiful colors the trees change too and especially getting together with my family for no reason.  Just because I love them so much and love their company. I do however miss my sisters alot. They do not live here in California but I speak to them almost every other day. So, they are always close to me.

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So, I was so happy when my sister, Betty, asked me to design something for her Thanksgiving Dinner.  She wanted some napkins but she wanted them a bit more fun. So, we decided I would embroider a beautiful saying "Bless All who gather here" on them and the fun part, we decided to do them on a Bar Mop. I love the idea.  Not formal as a linen napkin but very absorbent since it is more like a towel. I just ran a test and LOVE the way it came out. The leaves are from Embroidery Library. I did have to do some editing to it but I love that company. ~I forgot to iron a bit before I took picture~ this is right out of the washer and dryer after I embroidered. Beautiful!

Towel update

I just finished the other towel for Corina's fairy towels. I bought this towel on clearance for $2.

 From Drab

                                                                        To FAB!!    

Aren't they beautful together??  And for only $3 bucks!

Some new towels..

I found this really cute orange w/burgundy tea towel  at Ross and knew it would match Corina's kitchen. Unfortunately, they only had one but it was on clearance for $1...  I embroidered a beautiful fairy on it with burgundy and gold thread and I just love how it turned out. I can't wait to give it to her.

I also purchased a few towels at Wal-Mart to make some Halloween towels.  Turned out cute but I hate the towel material. It came out of the washer looking like it had a million snags. And  I won't use these in the future.  I will stick with tea towels or terry towels. They always turn out so beautiful. Click on the image and you will see what I am talking about.

Happy Halloween Banner

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I made a great Halloween fabric banner today.  It turned out so cute. 

I have it for sale on my Etsy shop. http://www.etsy.com/shop/thatsastitch

What do you think?