CraZee CrafteeZ

I was just featured on this blog...

2009-02-05T13:34:00.000-08:00

for my Hana origami earring!
http://sochicandvintage.blogspot.com/2009/02/art-of-origami.html
Yey!!!!
I haven't posted for ever because I've been crafting, carafting, crafting!

Daughter and Mother set

2009-01-16T09:38:00.000-08:00

I made this set on special request for my friend Caro and her daughter Camille. How I had not thought of that blows my mind, what a great idea!
I hope they will both enjoy the set! What little girl doesn't want to wear the same things as her mommy? :)

Cross stitched Gingerbread man ornament

2008-12-30T09:02:00.001-08:00

Since we've decided to NOT hang our very large glass ornaments this year, we were kind of running out of ornaments for our tree. I made a few simple felt hearts, and this cute gingerbread man that I cross stitched for Gabe. It's funny he's always trying to grab that one ornament, he must know it's his :)

Handmade ornaments for Grandma JeRena

2008-12-12T06:39:00.000-08:00

I made these two felt heart ornaments for JeRena, one's for her granddaughter Imari, and the other one for her grandson Gabe :) Both names are cross stitched and I've sewed buttons on both hearts: Peter Rabbit for Gabe and a heart for Imari (who well deserves tons of hearts!!!)

New items for my showcase today!

2008-12-02T09:41:00.000-08:00

I am trying new shapes: round and square rings, beautiful, along with a matching bracelet. All the bases are in sterling silver, purchased from Polymerclayexpress.

My first jewelry showcase on Etsy!!!

2008-12-02T09:27:00.001-08:00

Cherry Blossom Geisha Bunneez

2008-11-28T20:56:00.000-08:00

I've just finished these new bunnies, just in time to put them up in my shop on black Friday! I'm so inspired by everything Japanese, I needed to make something with cherry blossoms. I'm very happy with the way the dolls turned out, they are as pretty as can be. Collector's items! And you can collect them all :P By the way, free shipping to the US and Canada for the holidays! Check out my store!

It's my birthday!!!

2008-11-20T15:27:00.000-08:00

Actually it was yesterday.
Shad got me a silk screen printing set, I've been dying with curiosity on how it works, and the endless possibilities to make crazeecrafteez tshirts, pouches, and tons of other stuff... Our house is NOT big enough for all this!

Crazee Ghostly Bunneez of all kinds

2008-11-20T15:17:00.000-08:00

These are part of my shop, I think people like them a lot, I always get good feedback, they're soft, look different and a little crazy... Which is the point! It's too bad it's so hard working with mink, or should I say, so messy... Babies love them, that's what matters. What wouldn't we do for our babies!!

Fairy Tulle Necklace

2008-11-18T13:28:00.000-08:00

I crocheted tulle to make this airy light necklace on which I added Swarovski crystals to add some sparkle. I'm very happy with the result!

I'm selling!

2008-11-18T12:10:00.001-08:00

I've sold more than I thought for this first week of CrazeeCrafteez. The opening of the Etsy store was a success, it makes me happy and want to do so much more! I'm also going to work on postcards to broaden my advertising. This is where I am not good at - at ALL! Remember to spread the word!!!

Please come visit my Etsy shop!

2008-11-11T14:00:00.000-08:00

Welcome dear friends and family to my new Etsy shop at http://www.crazeecrafteez.etsy.com

Come visit us frequently as I will be adding new stuff very often! I make mostly jewelry and baby items, so think about your loved ones with Xmas around the corner, and the multiple babies popping everywhere!!!
To all my blogging friends, there is no shamefull advertising! Would you mind putting a quick post in your blog with the link? That would be awesome!

You can check more of my stuff here in this blog.

Thank you!!!!

Crazee Bunny for Andrew

2008-10-30T13:28:00.001-07:00

I made this bunny for Andrew to wish him a quick recovery from his eye surgery. My poor little boubou. But he's a brave little boy, and still smiling and running around. He seems to love crazee bunny, as I'm sure crazee bunny loves him too! Plus he's so sooooft :)
I need to make many of those and put them up on Etsy. Only problem, I'm running out of this amazing fleece that I use to make paws, ears, butts with...

New curtains in the master bedroom

2008-10-22T13:58:00.001-07:00

New curtains in the master bedroom
Originally uploaded by manueb

After approximately 8hrs of intense work, finally, here are our new curtains, made from scratch, with my little hands. Some what rewarding, although it clearly wasn't what I enjoyed doing the most!!! We still need to find some hooks to hold the fabric back, but we're ready to "move in" now!

The prettiest ghost in Austin

2008-10-17T13:08:00.001-07:00

The prettiest ghost in Austin
Originally uploaded by manueb

I made this poncho/ghost outfit for Gabe for Halloween, out of a yard and a half of fabric and a little felt, and little ribbon, a lot of stitching :) You can't tell but there's also a spiderweb on his left shoulder. Just the cutest thing (my baby :))

New pillows for our TV room sofa

2008-10-04T17:23:00.000-07:00

I made those pillows with the amazing fabrics I found at the quilt store on W.Anderson Lane. That store just makes me dizzy. I love the different patterns all mixes together, it turned out great.

Chococat pillow for Gabe's bedroom

2008-09-18T07:52:00.001-07:00

Chococat pillow for Gabe's bedroom
Originally uploaded by manueb

Here's a cross stitched pillow for Gabe, he loves his Chococat plush (who wouldn't?!). I looked for a pattern and found this one on line: http://www.geocities.com/lullaby_lambie/
I replicated it so that I would have the classic black, a turquoise (own personal fave) and an orange chococat. Looks very pretty and cozy and it's in Gabe's bed now. Highly populated bed :)

Black & white & sparkly ring

2008-09-09T08:28:00.001-07:00

Black & white & sparkly ring
Originally uploaded by manueb

I just finished my first ring. Made with Fimo polymer clay and mounted on a silver sterling deep-welled ring from Amate. I added 3 little Swarovski crystals on top. And, voila!! One more pretty ring for my collection!

Safari beads

2008-08-26T08:42:00.001-07:00

Safari beads ready to be hung
Originally uploaded by manueb

This is a little wall hanging that I made for Gabe's room with Fimo clay. I made the animals with cookie cutouts and rolled faux wood logs and beads. Looks very pretty and bright and colorful, and amuses Gabe a lot. That's the whole point. To keep him entertained :)

Gabe's new bedroom painting

2008-08-21T09:00:00.001-07:00

Gabe's new bedroom painting
Originally uploaded by manueb

I made this painting for Gabe's bedroom, to hang above his crib. He's been grabbing everything that we hung too close for his reach, he broke his crib mobile and was always going for a wall hanging too. So, there was nothing above his bed for a week or so, which made me sad. So I made this for him, and he loves it, loves the bright colors. I was very inspired by "Ange Lapin", so cute :)

Stone necklace

2008-08-21T08:54:00.001-07:00

Stone necklace
Originally uploaded by manueb

I made this necklace a couple of days ago with beads found in various stors around Austin. There's so much to choose from here, it's awesome.
It's Lemon Chrysoprase, Quartz with Tourmaline insets, Onyx beads and the pretty drop like pendant is also Onyx. I love stones. I like them better raw then shaped and polished, but I like how this turned out :)
I just wish I had more time for crafts right now... Too much house work going on. Oh well!

Gift for Ryker - part 2

2008-07-03T11:02:00.001-07:00

"Hey dude, what's up?"
Originally uploaded by manueb

A couple of crazee bunneez hanging out in a wiker chair in our backyard. Nothing unusual at our house! Blue polka dot bunnee left us though, he now belongs to Ryker (his nursery theme is bunnies, I hope he will love this one!).

Gift set for baby Ryker - part 1

2008-07-03T11:01:00.001-07:00

Gift set for baby Ryker
Originally uploaded by manueb

I made this for baby Shillington numero 2, now due in 7 weeks! A little quilted blankey and a set of geometric toys. Somehow the dodecahedron can end up stitched as a star if you rotate the pentagons in the right way. COOL. I think Ame liked it a lot, success!

Gift for baby Zelie

2008-06-11T12:32:00.001-07:00

I made this set for baby Zelie, Isa and Torstein's newborn daughter: a blanket, a blankey or receiving blanket, and a plush cube toy.

They just received it today so I can finally post it online, I think Isa likes this set a lot.
It's totally something I should think of selling!!

Little zipped pouches

2008-05-31T12:55:00.001-07:00

Little zipped pouches
Originally uploaded by manueb

I started making little zipped pouches, they haven't turned out perfectly so far. I still need to figure out how to stitch the zipper so that when I turn the work inside out everything looks neat. But on the picture, you can't tell..
I found those beautiful fabrics at the Silk Road on Lamar. Great store with very unusual patterned fabrics, a lot of asian-japanese ones too.

Obsessed with geometry :)

2008-05-31T12:52:00.001-07:00

Obsessed with geometry :)
Originally uploaded by manueb

I made more stuffed toys for Gabe, after the cube, a pyramid and a dodecahedron (12 faced polehydra, each face is a pentagon). I love geometry and the dodecahedron makes a nice ball, Gabe loves it.

Necklace with funky beads

2008-05-17T08:43:00.001-07:00

Necklace with funky beads
Originally uploaded by manueb

I made this necklace yesterday with beads my mom had sent from Paris (La Droguerie). I just love those beads, and the vintage lucite ones. Very happy with how it turned out.

Making some toys for Gabe

2008-04-30T12:35:00.001-07:00

I can't believe it's almost been a month since I made anything! I haven't had time for any crafting lately, which makes me kinda sad. Gabe and I are occupied most of the day with walks and playdates, and I spend a lot of time cooking his meals, and playing some more... Not much room left for sewing!! Although I have lots of ideas, just no time :)

My mom had got me lots of cute fabrics at a craft exhibition in Paris, I made a little pouch to store toys in it. I guess it could also work as a fancy diaper pail :)

I love the funky button and the pretty ribbon.

I also made a fabric plush cube, I've been looking for a while now for good cubes for Gabe, but couldn't set my mind on anything.

Here's the inside-out cube, it's funny:

We'll see if he likes this one, so far he does, but let's see past the few minutes of surprise and feeling of new :)

Baby clothes pouch

2008-03-31T11:59:00.001-07:00

Baby clothes pouch
Originally uploaded by manueb

This is the first pouch I made with pretty linen fabric I found at... IKEA! And one of those big "Confetti" buttons that I love, Shad got me some for Xmas... The bias is made with jeans fabric. It's quite pretty, I'm proud of it, and a good amount of baby clothes fit in it.

Blanket for Gabe

2008-03-31T11:55:00.003-07:00

Blanket for Gabe
Originally uploaded by manueb

Of course, I made one for Gabe :) I love how the polka dots mingle on this fabric. He loves the softness!

Baby blanket for bebe Huchon-Dastugue

2008-03-31T11:55:00.001-07:00

Baby blanket for bebe Huchon-Dastugue
Originally uploaded by manueb

This blanket and receiving cloth/blankey I made for Manue and Thierry's baby-to-come in June! I hope he'll like it.
Hurray for the Apple and Pears pattern! So fancy :)

Blanket for Lilas

2008-03-31T11:53:00.001-07:00

Blanket for Lilas
Originally uploaded by manueb

I have started making baby blankets and burp/receiving cloths. Hoping to open an Etsy shop one of these days... when I'll have time or have the courage to sew during the night, once Gabe is down.. :P
Anyway, this is the blanket I made for Lilas, with a beautiful brown w/pink roses fabric, pink ribbon, on one side and mink on the other side.
Laure and Lilas loved it!

DIY Baby wrap

2008-02-13T14:14:00.001-08:00

I made this wrap to carry Gabe - he's kind of got to big for the initial one we had (although it is supposed to work for toddlers), and the B.B. kills my back, neck and shoulders.
It's a very classic wrap, about 5 yards long in order to do the cross-carry, personalized in the center with a nice button and the Crazee Crafteez label.

The fabric is 100% organic cotton, which is best for little ones to nibble on, and it's washable, dryable, and doesn't shrink.

I have to admit I still need to get used to the wrapping part, but Gabe seems very happy and comfy in it, and it's so much better on my back!

Total cost: about $25 of cotton fabric, $1.25 for the button and some cents for the thread. A money saver!!!

Azalea's Pink Elephant

2008-02-05T20:01:00.001-08:00

Azalea's Pink Elephant
Originally uploaded by manueb

I made this pink fleece elephant - with Hawaiian fabric - for Azalea, her bedroom theme bein elephants. Or at least it was the theme for her nursery... :)

Tom's 31st bday candle toy

2008-01-16T12:27:00.000-08:00

I made this for my brother's 31st bday... an ever-burning candle, comes in very handy, especially in his big house with all these tall stairs and in his attic!

For some reason, he's got a skull on his butt :P

Japanese skirting for the dinning room

2008-01-16T12:22:00.001-08:00

I stitched this skirt for a piece of furniture that ended up in our dinning room - handy, but ugly.

I found japanese fabrics at JoAnn's and made this in no time with my super tools :)

Our own personalized stockings

2007-12-22T12:30:00.001-08:00

I made these pretty stockings for our family. Shad's, mine, Gabe's, my mom's (Mamino (grandma)) and my Dad's (Papilou (grandpa)), all personalized. Shad's has a camera and a polaroid of Gabe, cause he likes taking pictures, mine has a Geisha - I love all Japanese stuff -, Gabe has a blue bunny cause he can't part from his blue bunny toy. Mamino's has a cupcake for all the cooking/baking she does, and Papilou has a flying osito (private joke) :P.

Many hours of sewing there! Especially when I had to juggle with Gabe's feedings and naps and stuff!
I added the crazee crafteex label on all of them :)

Our white Xmas Tree

2007-12-22T12:24:00.000-08:00

I am kind of dreaming of a white christmas... Took some fallen branches in our yard and spray painted them white and sparkle to create a snowy finish, and I cut out some paper snowflakes and heart baskets, and also a couple of white felted ornaments.

And finally added some cute little birdies purchased at JoAnn's on sale. TA-DA! It's set in the dinning room and it looks great :)

Happy Holidays!!

2007-12-21T06:45:00.001-08:00

Tree skirt for Project Xmas 2007 :)

2007-12-13T10:32:00.000-08:00

I made this tree skirt in no time , less than 2 hours. With the cool sewing tools my hubby got me for my birthday: I cut out 12 triangles with an acute 30 degrees angle, and the outter part of it is just straight cut.

TA-DAAAAA! Easy quick xmas crafting!

Crazee Bunneez blanket for Gabe

2007-11-28T14:45:00.000-08:00

There are tons of things I want to do for the holidays, not sure I'll have time for everything though. It includes crafting and sewing, but also cooking and baking... But there is only so much time in one day, especially with our 3months old baby boy :)

Here's where Project Xmas 2007 starts...

Here's the crazee bunneez blanket, they all came to visit and Gabe loved them...

But they wanted to leave the house, so I had to hunt them around the house and pin them down... on flannel!!! Trapped.. for ever! Seems a bit cruel but Gabe loves them that way hehehehe :)

And also, this pretty blanket features the brand new Crazee Crafteez label, although I haven't figured out yet how to properly sew them. The PaperFabric is quite sturdy and doesn't work well with the sewing machine...
Still, it looks more "professional" :)

Ready to be wrapped for Xmas!

Gabe's Xmas blanket

2007-11-28T06:44:00.000-08:00

All nice and cozy in pretty xmas flannel from JoAnne's Fabrics.

We didn't have our printer yet, so this blanket doesn't have the label on..

The Crazee Crafteez label is out!!!

2007-11-27T07:19:00.001-08:00

We brainstormed and crafted over Thanksgiving weekend to make a fabric label to stitch on my creations...
Shad had got me Paper Fabric for my bday and I couldn't wait to try it. I've been wanting to do that for a long time, ordering labels online is quite pricy and I don't have the satisfaction of designing them myself.

We did throw away a couple of sheets before getting it right. It is not straightforward the amount of time you have to let the ink dry.. My advice is: over night! It does leak a lot when you rinse the paper. But anyway, it turned out good. After a few designs, we finally setteled with this one, and we're very happy with it!

Jacko and Spidey

2007-10-31T12:43:00.000-07:00

This is the first post in a very long time!!! Since before Gabe was born!
I managed to make this in between 2 feedings and two diaper changes, for Halloween. I have lots of other ideas, but can't find the time to do more right now, oh well... :)

Jacko the pumpkin got crawled on by Spidey-the-spider ... And Spidey is just weaving ,weaving, weaving away... but Jacko doesn't want to be covered in spiderweb! :(

CraZee BerlingoZ

2007-08-29T11:03:00.001-07:00

A new little family has joined us...

In honor of the french candies "Berlingots", little colorful sweet sugar cones :)

Their feet are filled with fresh lavender buds which make them great to hang in wardrobes, or on your baby's crib, or just about anywhere, thanks to their long legs!!

Here is the preparation of the feet and heads:

The filling.

Funny colorful faces. They will come in every possible color, or as requested :) that's what's fun, the endless possibilities!

I'm really working towards the opening of an Etsy shop now, 'as soon as' I'll have given birth.. so, in a few weeks (months?) from now (for the shop, not for the baby)!
Gabe's now due in 10 days... CRAZEE!!!

RH-V3 - Shad's Robot

2007-08-20T08:41:00.000-07:00

It was Shad's 30th birthday yesterday, look what came out of his birthday bag:

Oh WOW! It's RH-V3!!! The new version of RH - the Robot Helper. Shad had version 2.9, but just upgraded to version 3.0.

For the little story... Shad's birthday was themed around robots, because I got him the LEGO mindstorms.. The Evite for his birthday was a robot theme where I asked our friends to come and witness the upgrade of Shad 2.9 to Shad 3.0!

Here's the original sketch of RH -V3.

And all the cut-outs done...

RH-V3 completed... about 7 hours of stitching and putting together! His eyes are watches that not only give time but also his birthday: 3 and 0! And the arrow on the control panel gives the number of the update: 3.0... Very ingenious little dude!

What's great with RH-V3 is that we can turn him on and off, and also charge him or put him to sleep...

The whole purpose of this little guy is to help Shad in all his future endeavours around the house, he's got an extra wrench on his head that comes in really handy!

Roger the Door Keeper

2007-08-13T15:55:00.001-07:00

"Hey, anybody there?", I heard coming from the hallway. "Hey there", I said. "Are you a purse?!". Like I don't have enough already...

"Pfffff, no! I'm a door hanger. Can you hang me on the doorknob? I tried to levitate but my mind power isn't what it used to be..."
So, I hang the little dude.

"Thanks! So, you have to keep me. During the day I'm your normal smiling happy dude. And at night, I turn around and look scary."

"I'm a bedroom keeper, I am so scary I get rid of ghosts, gouls, mean bugs, so you can dream away...".
Hmm, doesn't look so scary to me, but maybe I'll ask him to bring a friend for Gabriel... :)

Orange Agent Onion

2007-08-11T16:10:00.001-07:00

We were coming back from shopping this afternoon, and we found this weird little guy on our door step. It had been a while since we'd had a visitor....

"Hi, my name is Orange Agent Onion. I was sent from my planet - Planet Onion - to inspect your home and make sure it is a happy one!"

My planet is quite peculiar as it actually rotates around your moon, so it shouldn't be called a planet but a moon... you know?"

"I traveled so fast from there that I still have some star dust on my forehead!"

"So, will you let me in? There are tons of other homes I need to visit after yours!". "Sure" I said, come on in. May I ask you why you're orange?".
"It's obvious, because Shad likes orange", he replied, looking at me like I came from another planet... :)

Cute little pillow for the nursery

2007-08-09T15:41:00.000-07:00

I just finished this cute little green pillow with an onion alien for Gabe's room.. It's 14x14 in. and I found the cute alien fabric at JoAnn's. I'm very happy with the result!
Just looking at it makes me smile a lot, I think I might try making a plush toy out of the alien :)

Here's the CraZee CrafteeZ label, in close up. Very colourful, turns out well also.

The pillow is on the glider we just got for the nursery... no unhappy breastfeeding and waking up in the middle of the night!! hihihihihi

Fresh lavender pouches

2007-08-06T08:36:00.000-07:00

I ordered fresh new farmed lavender online and made these lavender pouches for all our clothes drawers around the house :)
I just love the smell of lavender, it's so relaxing!

These yellow ones are for Gabe - it's the same Winnie the Pooh fabric as the one I used for his blanket.

These are made from various Japanese fabrics I've purchased over time.. I just wish I had so many more!!!

I tied the little pouches with Sashiko thread and attached tiny glass beads. Very simple but pretty!

Mobile for Gabriel

2007-08-03T06:54:00.000-07:00

I finally finished the mobile for Gabe a few days ago. It was a long preparation work of cutting out all the pieces (almost 4 hours, the letters were particularly painful :)) and figuring out how many pendulums would look ok on the wooden circle I got for it.

Here's what it looks like after the main assembly, the letters are hung and inserted in between each is a little animal pendulum.

My favorite is the mini cat pendulum...

Here's what it looks like finished, hung in our back porch. It was quite hard to photograph and the light was working against me... But still, it gives a pretty good idea :)

A close-up of all the little buggers just hanging out :)

Chester the Cat

2007-07-27T13:17:00.001-07:00

Shad found Chester sneaking in my cooking magazines in the kitchen. He wanted to help me out with a recipe, but he's way too tiny.
He talked a lot and asked lots of questions though, it was hard for me to concentrate on my cooking! "I like goat cheese, do you like lard?". He just made me laugh "Always remember you can't blow your nose in aluminium foil!". Who would do that anyway?!

I think he got bored trying to get our attention, so he called his friend mini-mouse to hang out. I wasn't too happy about that, I don't like mice in the kitchen so much... Mini-mouse carries a bobin of thread everywhere she goes... they're weird!

I could tell Chester was getting ansty and needed to ask more questions... He just launched them without giving us time to reply to any: "Do you think it ever snows on the moon? What's the difference between eggs and post-it notes? Staples are cute...!".

"Doorknobs are fun dont you think? Do you think your toenails would be heavier on jupiter?". There was no way to stopping him...
Who said curiosity killed the cat???

Big Round Green Bunny and Mini Green Bunny

2007-07-24T15:55:00.000-07:00

Our neighbourhood's getting quite crowded these days... This morning I went into my crafts' room, and these two ladies were clearly waiting for someone.

"I'm Green Bunny" said the bigger one, "Grey Bunny's sister. And this is mini Green Bunny, Grey Bunny's niece. We stopped by to visit him as he told us he was living here now".

"We're going to see uncle Grey Bunny!!! Hurray!!!", said the little one, jumping around with joy.
"Sadly", I said, "Grey Bunny's decided to go to work with Shad today, so unfortunately, he's not home right now...".

That seemed to really disappoint them a lot, so they turned their backs on me and showed me their big round butts.. It runs in the family!

Mini CrafteeZ for boys

2007-07-20T16:47:00.000-07:00

Here's what I've been doing these last few days, still thinking of mobile ideas for Gabe, so making small tiny felt toys.... Their size is in between 2 and 3 in.

Sleepy cloud.

Soft blue whale.

Bright blue blinking octopus.

A Totoro-like mouse. Very cute and round!!

Assembly of a tiny cube, I had the idea after browsing in an antique store where they had lots of wood blocks for kids... :)

TA-DA!!! It all makes a cute set of small felt toys. The mouse and the cube took be about 2 hours to assemble. So not really profitable if I were to sell them...

Gus the Octopus

2007-07-17T16:17:00.000-07:00

Here's the clumsiest little dude I've ever seen... I found him while he was resting for a while, on top of my sewing machine... super easy for him to climb up there!

Bumping into everything, he's full of bruises except we can't tell because he's already blue! Lucky for him he's round, he can also roll a bit :)

Clumsy as he is, he made his way to the dinning room where Grey Bunny was hanging out:

Grey Bunny's obviously still upset to have no arms, and very jealous of 8-legged Gus!

One big round one-toothed Grey Bunny :)

2007-07-13T18:00:00.000-07:00

I've tried making a felt ball pushy.. I turned out much flater than spheric, so I still need to figure out a bit of geometry to get it to the right size... It's also a bit bigger than I would like (the size of a melon), as my goal is to make a hanging mobile for Gabe, with lots of different round animals/thingies...

It still looks pretty good though, Shad loves it! But this silly Grey Bunny forgot he was short-legged and broke one of his front tooth when he jumped off the table! He's in distress now...

He's turning his back on me, pouting, and showing me his big round butt :)

This is where it all takes place now!

2007-07-13T17:39:00.000-07:00

We've been doing so much housework lately that I haven't had any time to sew anything nor think about what to make next. I used to 'monopolize' the dinning room, but since that room has become a total war zone in the last month, I've just put everything away :(

So, these last few days, I've started using my backroom. It's a bit hard because I feel very isolated from the rest of the house and the desk is not really big enough to use my sewing machine. But on the other hand, it's got AC (yeah!!!!) and I don't have to clean that room at all!!! It's MINE hehehehe.

Settling back there helped me get back to sewing and I have new ideas...

Sashiko Seasons - Summer

2007-06-15T06:21:00.000-07:00

Here's the next season, it just keeps getting prettier and prettier.

Sashiko stitches.

Sashiko Seasons - Spring

2007-06-12T17:03:00.000-07:00

Here's Spring. I got this kit from www.eurojapanlinks.com. It was much less difficult to assemble then the kimono wallhanging! And I enjoyed doing the sashiko stitching.
Once finished it's 13x18in.

I actually bought all four seasons, I can't wait to have all four done to decide what to do with them!
I might put this one in our green room...

"Kiss me I'm the dad"

2007-06-12T08:02:00.000-07:00

This is a gift for Shad :)

To show how cool dads can be (alhtough Shad's not a dad yet... but almost!).
They can do everything, the cooking, feeding and attending their baby :)

This Bunny-dad even has his own apron! Who says dads aren't modern these days?

Ninja Cat

2007-06-07T12:27:00.000-07:00

Yesterday night my hubby came home with flowers and I heard some sobbing and noises like someone was in pain... It was coming from the bathroom...

To my horror, Ninja Cat was there on the sink, with blood all around him (although he did do a pretty good job at cleaning up!)

"Look at me in the eyes", he said. "Tell me why I am not the only love in your life!". I had to tell him "because I love Shad".

"You love him more because he brings you flowers? Look, I've cut my heart out for you, and it hurts a bit now!"

I think he's done a good job with the stitching!

Hello Kitty pillow for Lila

2007-06-07T07:51:00.000-07:00

Here's a little cross-stitch project for Lila, Laure and Ian's daughter (expected as soon as Gabriel).

I found the pattern on line and bought this great HK fabric at JoAnn's.

I also have a Chococat pattern that I might use soon, too bad I don't have matching fabric :)

Kimono wall hanging

2007-06-06T13:40:00.000-07:00

I bought this kit online at www.eurojapanlinks.com
I thought it wouldn't be too hard, actually it's just pretty long, between all the cutting and then putting the 5 different kimonos together... Maybe 6-7 hours total.

I almost lost my temper though, when I was to the point where I had to sew the ditch all around the fabric and the batting. The patern for it was way to thin for me to stitch (someone more used to this would definitely sdo a better job) and I really struggled and ended up not enjoying myself so much. Though the result is not super straight, I still hung it in our living room :)

I think I definitely enjoy doing little felt/fleece monsters much better! Let me get back to that..

Introducing Mr Bee, Bumble Bee

2007-05-31T12:34:00.001-07:00

Strange stuff has been going on in our backyard lately.
This morning I was outside checking on our tomatoes, when I saw the grass moving.. and came accross this funny little fellow...

"Hey there", he says. "I'm Mr Bee, but my friends call me Bumble. I hope you don't mind, I've been cleaning up the flower garden a bit".

I think he's been stealing our flowers to make honey, that's what it is!! By the time I try to catch the little bugger, he escapes and flies away into the bougainvillea...

"Catch me if you can!", he naggs me...

And he took off, just like that!

Celestial Gabriel

2007-05-30T08:06:00.000-07:00

I found this little guy in our back yard yesterday, he landed on the deck..

"You're very lucky to see me", he said. "No one knows I exist, I blend in the sky and the clouds with my camouflage skin".

His wings are kind of small, I'm surprised he made it safe!

We liked his name so much though that we decided to keep it for our little boy :X

I heart Grey Bunny

2007-05-24T13:47:00.001-07:00

Here's a new little guy with a big heart.

He looks puzzled though "where are my arms?!"

It doesn't matter to the pink gremlin who's happy to have a new friend to play with!

New asian pillows for our living room

2007-05-24T09:28:00.000-07:00

I found these japanese fabrics in a store in Portland ('Fabric in the City', great store btw).

I saw a great opportunity to make more pillows in our living room (we love pillows!).

I made tassels out of real Sashiko thread (www.eurojapanlinks.com).

I also found these chinese beads in a bead store in... Portland ('Bead It').

Black bead with white Sashiko tassel.

Red bead with red Sashiko tassel.

Someone wants to say hi

2007-05-23T11:27:00.001-07:00

Meet our new friend :) Inspired from a sewing book I got lately... I am just having too much fun!

Our baby's first book and blanket

2007-05-23T11:26:00.001-07:00

I just can't get enough of my sewing machine... We found this pluch Winnie the Pooh book at Joann's Fabrics... My 1st more "difficult" thing to put together... as I had NEVER used a sewing machine before the japanese pillows...

I also made a nice comfy blanket out of a bright yellow Winnie the Pooh fabric (though it's not at all a theme for the nursery, we just happened to like it). And, I must say proudly, it turned out really well :)

My new toy

2007-05-23T11:25:00.001-07:00

Ok, our new toy... :) It's just, I've been using it a lot! I've already made brand new pillows for our sofa with beautiful japanese fabrics bought in Hawaii.

They fit and match perfectly (much better than the original ones.. blaaaaa). Small improvements make the best ones :)