It was all going so well

After a weekend of frantic sewing and cleaning, my studio looked like this:

And then I realized how low my stock of SWAK blankets was, and I was out of suitable material for new ones, so I bought fabric. It was on clearance. I might have gotten a little carried away.

That's a 7-inch-thick stack of fabric, in case anyone's counting. Gonna be a lot of ironing and hemming in my future for the next couple of weeks ...

Hmmmm - scatterbrained much?

It's never a good sign about my current ability to concentrate on one project when my cutting table looks like this:

I can identify pieces from at least seven separate projects, all of which are in process and none of which are done. And that doesn't include the WIP knitting projects (two) down in the family room, or the Easter bunny that needs to be sewn together that was in the kitchen last I checked (wtf? how did it end up there?), or the tote bags for my sister-in-law's wedding party, or the valances I'm supposed to be making for my house.

One of the WIPs is pretty close to done, though, and lacks only a couple hours of handsewing to debut in its finished form ...

Project codename: YoMama

"Yes, it's supposed to look like that."

I'm sure that's the number one response I'll be making when people comment on this sweater (assuming I ever get in gear and make the back ... and the sleeves ... and sew the whole thing together).

Making progress on the list

Remember my ambitious to-do list? I'm making progress. Here's the dress for LazyToddler, now completed and currently in use:

It's made in Plymouth Yarn jeannee, color 20, a worsted weight yarn that's 51% cotton and 49% acrylic. That, plus some madras plaid fabric I've had for at least seven years or so.


I'd love to share the pattern with you, but the stitch pattern is taken from one pattern, the bodice from another, the sleeves from a third, the shells around the hem and sleeves from a fourth, and the actual ruffle I just sort of faked until it looked right.

So basically this is a one-off ... but if you want to duplicate it, my best recommendation is to find a dress that's the shape you want and trace the pieces onto a piece of butcher paper or newsprint. Pick a stitch pattern and crochet until the pieces are the same size as the paper pieces. That's what I did, and I think it turned out okay. It's a bit on the wide-but-too-short side, but I'm thinking on the positive side and saying she'll be able to use it next year as a shirt, and she can just wear a pair of leggings under it this year as a dress.

Why I got no (machine) sewing done this weekend

If that's not the perfect place to get some hand-sewing done, I don't know what is.

Rebound

So the ill-fated alpaca sausage-tube-of-a-sweater has been cut free, although I still haven't found the guts to frog it and deal with the skein-and-a-half of kinky yarn I'll be left with.

That hasn't stopped me from using the remaining yarn to start a new sweater, this time one where my guage was spot on, and there's a lot of play in the directions so I should avoid a repeat of the last disaster. And the design is one that's unlike anything I have in my closet right now, and it's actually a winter-weight style, so the warmth of the alpaca won't be an issue.

I'm using the yarn doubled, which makes the whole wrap-and-drop-the-wraps-on-the-next-row thing a little on the dicey side. I actually had to switch to a long circular needle for one row where there were five wraps for each stitch ... that's more than 400 wraps and stitches on the needles for that row! It's going very fast, though, and after starting at the waist a few nights ago, I'm now about 3" below the armpit area. Hopefully I'll make it through the armpit cast-offs tonight, and it will start looking like the front of a sweater instead of just a pulled-stitch holey mess.

Free project - Fabric postcard Valentines

I made these with my not-quite-three-year-old daughter for her preschool classmates. She picked out fabrics and manned the glue stick; I manned the sewing machine and occasionally told her where to stick things down. It probably took me under an hour to make the five I needed for her class.

Supplies:

• Various fabric scraps (I used pieces leftover from the Heart Attack quilt and the sample I made for the Heart Happy Wallhanging pattern)
• A piece of stiff interfacing or Timtex, about 4"x6"
• Coordinating thread
• glue stick or fabric glue

1. Sew fabric scraps together until you have a piece that's at least 4"x6". Repeat to make a second piece.
2. Use the glue stick to apply glue to one side of the interfacing or Timtex, then adhere it to the wrong side of one of the pieces you made in the first step. Repeat for the other side of the interfacing or Timtex.
3. Zigzag stitch or serge around the edge of the interfacing or Timtex, making sure you drop the needle off the edge so that one side of the zigzag is sewing through just the fabric. Trim the excess fabric, being careful not to cut into the stitching.
4. Use the glue stick to apply glue to more fabric scraps, then adhere them to one or both sides of the postcard.
5. Stitch slightly inside the edge of these fabric scraps to raw-edge applique them to the postcard.
6. If you wish, stitch a message onto the postcard (use a darning foot, drop your feed dogs, and spell it out in cursive ... or program your fancy sewing machine to embroider it for you, Ms. Lazypants!)
   

How I'm staying sane

Have I mentioned that my daughter seems to think this month is the perfect time to give up napping? Argh!

The only way to maintain my sanity is to give her something she can do while I work on the computer for an hour sometime during the day. Last week that involved peanut butter toast, dress up clothes, and a Bear in the Big Blue House DVD from the library.

You'd be amazed how much crochet you can do during one episode of Sesame Street ... I can finish most of the body of an Easter bunny before it's even time for Elmo's World. If our DVD player and/or DVR break down, my productivity is going to go down the drain.

Faux Chocolate Easter Bunny Pattern Page

Nothing says “Easter” like a chocolate bunny … unless it’s a chocolate bunny that can be used year after year without getting its ears bitten off!

This pattern is suitable for beginners, but does assume that you know how to make a single crochet stitch.

Finished size is about 10" from bottom to the tip of the ears.

A person with average sewing skills should be able to complete this pattern in less than 3 naptimes (6 hours).

Photos from the pattern:

The vanishing loop method of working in the round

Finishing the head

Pattern includes illustrated instructions, and it is packaged in a resealable plastic bag (6"x9"), ready to hang and sell. Pattern also includes a link to this web site, where buyers can access a free pattern to make a Goodie Basket to match the bunnies.

Wholesale price: $4.00/pattern

Suggested retail price: $7-$9, or whatever the market will bear in your area

Free shipping on your first order! Shipping charges for subsequent orders will be the actual charges for USPS Priority Mail to your destination.

I am willing to make free samples to display in your shop, if you are willing to provide the materials. Please contact me for more information on this service.

For more information or to place an order, please contact Gretchen Woods at Lazy Mama Designs: lazymamadesigns (at) yahoo (dot) com.

NEW!! You can also place orders through my shop at etsy.com - just convo me with a request, including the number of patterns you'd like to buy, and I can post a custom listing for you at the wholesale price.

Thank you for your interest, and I hope to hear from you soon!

Hooray for being early!

I've got most of the new inventory listed in my etsy shop, so cruise on over and check it out:

http://lazymamadesigns.etsy.com/

Here's a sneak peek of some of the things you'll find there:

Results

You're just dying to see what that teeny little skein of yarn looked like when I used it, aren't you? Well, wait no longer - here's the results:

That's the whole skein, minus about 2 feet I had leftover at the end. I love the pattern, which is described as "mutating variegate," which I'm guessing means that the pattern of variegation changes throughout the skein. It's cool, because you only get a stitch or two before the yarn changes color, and the next color isn't always the same. I'll definitely have to keep this in mind after I finish the current pair of socks ... because a girl can only have so many stripes in her sock drawer, after all.

Still no variegated yarn on Meg's etsy shop, but maybe if enough of us ask for it, some will magically appear :)

Grrrrrrrr

Just when I thought things were going so well on the sweater I'm making for myself, I took it off the needles and put it onto some yarn so I could try it on, and lo and behold, the sucker is tiny. Tiny tiny tiny. I mean, it's supposed to be form-fitting - maybe even a little snug - but my arms were turning blue from lack of circulation in my armpits, and I don't even want to tell you what the bust looked like.

Strangely enough, I actually checked my gauge before I started, and it was pretty close. I haven't checked the gauge on the actual sweater, as I'm not quite in the right place mentally to figure out where to go from here.

So is it a good thing I tried it on now, before I had months of time invested in it?

Or is it a bad thing, because now I'm probably going to abandon ship, and if I'd waited at least I would have had a completed (tiny) sweater to give to someone or to sell?

Or is it a good thing, because as I was knitting I was sort of regretting my decision to use my alpaca yarn to make a sleeveless sweater (alpaca = ridiculously warm, sleeveless sweater = spring and summer)?

Or is it a bad thing, because now I'm going to have to do more research to find a pattern for a 3/4-sleeve sweater I like, which will take me lots longer to finish than the sleeveless one, so I won't get to wear this until next winter?

Or is it a good thing, because now I can legitimately start working on a pair of socks with the yarn that's been taunting me for the last week?

You decide. I'm going to go knit.

Next major etsy shop update scheduled!

I'm putting my nose to the grindstone this weekend and getting a whole mess of stuff ready to list on my etsy shop on Monday, February 11. This includes a bunch of lightweight SWAK blankets in some fun colors, as well as some knit and crochet goodies I've been stockpiling for a while.

I don't know exactly what time they'll be up, since that sort of depends on whether LazyToddler cooperates and lets me get on the computer ... but I'll post a message here to let you know when everything is ready. Check early! Check often!

Hope everyone stops by to take a look!

Note to self:

No matter how cold your feet are, do not wear hand-knit socks when the contractors are tiling your kitchen backsplash. You WILL step on a tile full of mortar. Good thing that stuff rinses out, right? Right?

It's about time

I think the QuiltSmart approach to the Double Wedding Ring makes sense ... until I sit down to sew it and it's just one tedious step after another, and every time I think I'm past the worst of it, it just gets more tedious, and I'm never super-happy with the results. At any rate, I've gotten through the worst of it (which hopefully I'm thinking for the last time), and I've got something to show for it. The blocks are done, even if they're not pieced together yet.

Whew.

Bad light day

Gahhhhh - the photos of these dudes are just awful. You know it's a bad photo day when Crocheted Faux-Chocolate Easter Bunnies aren't cute. I really need to dig the Easter baskets out of the attic and try this again the next time we see sun. So, like, May, I guess.

In the meantime, show the ugly photo some love: http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=9385110 Please?

SWAK customer feedback

Actual message from a customer regarding the lightweight Swaddled With A Kiss blanket she bought earlier this year:

Hi there, just wanted to let you know I received this -- and have gotten compliments on it the two times I've used it as a nursing shawl so far. I love how lightweight it is; the fabric is really pretty. Thank you!

Thanks for the feedback, and I hope you continue to enjoy it!

Readers, if you're interested in purchasing one for yourself, you can find a selection of lightweight swaddling blankets in my etsy shop in the Baby Gifts section.

Aha! Steampunk mystery solved!

Now I know where you're all coming from ...

http://community.livejournal.com/steamfashion/365312.html

Hope somebody sends me a photo of my free fairy skirt pattern under a steampunk outfit, because I would totally post it and love it and hype it within an inch of my life.

Whew! Made it just in time

Off the needles at 11:30pm on Friday:

Basic toe-up socks for LazyHusband, made from custom-dyed self-striping yarn (in Virginia Tech colors) from WhimsyPinsy. I loved how this yarn knit up, and she got the guage on the stripes exactly how I had requested. Thanks a ton - the socks look great!

And in the mailbox at 3pm Saturday:

Colorway Octarine from Twisted Fiber Art. I really like that Meg offers her colorways in different blends of yarn, so even if she's sold out in one type you can pick up the same color in a different fiber blend. The particular yarn that I bought is 30% bamboo, so it will be interesting to see how differently it knits from the 100% superwash I'm used to using. Hopefully it doesn't bag out like the 100% bamboo I knit into this sweater, which becomes 3 sizes larger after wearing it for an hour or so.

Oh, and Meg sent along a little bonus sample of another colorway, Karma, in her 100% superwash merino yarn:
Is that not the cutest skein you've ever seen in your entire life? Don't you just want to put it in your pocket and pet it? I'm going to have to find something really cool to do with a tiny amount of yarn, because it's a really nifty colorway, and I don't see any more of it for sale on her etsy store, so I guess I'm stuck with just this much.

A little etsy love

I was just poking around the list of items I've marked as "favorites" on etsy, and I found this:
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=8805717

Oh, how I love it. Anyone want to make a donation to the "Lazy Mama needs some new art for her studio walls" fund?

Or, if you're feeling a little more generous, how about this:
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=8802838

Things I need to be doing instead of napping

If I have to pick up the arcs for my double wedding ring destash project one more time, I'm going to kill the two-year-old. You wouldn't believe the distance she can get on these suckers ...

Oh, and here's the official "thank you" to both adult Wendlings and LazyHusband, who all helped me finish turning and pressing the arcs this weekend over a game of Munchkin. You guys rock (especially the guys, who owe me for not posting the incriminating photo I took of them Crafting - oh, the horror!).

Looking for a Valentine's Day gift?

I've got you covered:

Might have a sock problem

Not even finished Jason's pair yet, and I've already purchased this:

http://www.etsy.com/view_transaction.php?transaction_id=7267708

But I might have his second sock finished by the time this gets to my house, so it's okay, right? Right?

Bad sign

Any time that little blue-handled seam ripper comes out, bad things are afoot at Lazy Mama HQ. Good thing my #1 Sewing Buddy was there to help keep up my spirits.

I'm so excited!

1. One of Jason's birthday socks was finished on his birthday! So he can hop proudly, at least for a week or so until I finish the other one.

2. I came up with a realllllly cool new idea for a series of quilts. I need to let it stew a little more and do some planning, but the concept has definitely got promise. Want a hint? One of the titles in the series may be "2D6."

3. I did some reorganization in my studio, and I now have all of my yarn stash in two plastic totes ... and a plastic shoebox ... and a couple bags that house yarn for my WIP pile. But that's it! Of course, I only did that by switching the yarn out of three small totes and into two large ones, while taking the contents of the large totes (upholstery fabric and silk), pitching about 1/3 of it, setting 1/3 of it aside to see if I can foist it off on fellow Cleveys, and packing the rest back up in the smaller totes. But still - two totes! That means I can go buy more yarn, right?

Memory Lane

I was just rereading some of my early posts, and I'm kind of wishing I had gone with my alternate slogan for the company:
http://lazymamadesigns.blogspot.com/2006/11/tagline-development.html

Sort of feeling like I wimped out on this one. Oh, well - benign is good, I guess.

2008 Goals

Okay, I've been brainstorming and stewing over this for almost a month, and I think I've got it narrowed down to five key goals for the year. In no particular order, Lazy Mama's professional goals for the year are:

1. Develop (and sell) at least 10 new patterns.
2. Track how my resources are spent (time and money) so I can become more productive in the limited time I work each day.
3. Present a more unified, businesslike appearance to the public (which includes making sure that all of my branding is consistent and professional, as well as making sure that my new products fit in with an overall "style" of design for the company).
4. Sell my patterns to at least five new shops.
5. Investigate ways to promote my business while earning money, such as teaching classes based on my patterns or writing articles for special interest magazines.

I'm also going to try to establish a schedule of posting in the blog on similar topics on a schedule - you know, Monday is "My Favorites," Wednesday is "WIP Day," etc. Either that, or maybe grouping my posts so that I have a theme for the week.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go be exceedingly productive and professional ... while wrapping my husband's birthday presents. Sheesh, isn't writing down the goals enough work for today?

Because I haven't hawked my stuff here for a while

New SWAK blankets are up in the shop, including one I love so much I'm tempted to keep it, even though I have no earthly need for another baby blanket ...

Oh, and can we stop for a moment and savor the wonderful light I managed to catch this morning while LazyToddler was parked in front of a DVD from the library? Light like this in January in Cleveland is a godsend ... and I'm loving how the new color in my living room photographs. Shame that once the renovation is done, I'm going to have to move the couch in order to get to this wall.

Thanks for the free press, Valerie!

ValerieTyler has a blog she uses to promote local artists, and she decided to send some love our way:

http://artaddict.wordpress.com/2008/01/23/valentines-day-was-not-invented-by-hallmark/

Thanks for the mention, Valerie!

Trying something new

When I busted out my new sock yarn I was pleased to find that it was already split into two skeins, each of which was nicely twisted into a standard hank. Rather than start off by turning both of the skeins into center-pull balls (booooring), I decided to try out a method I read about on the Yarn Harlot's blog back in November.

Basically, I just untwist the skein and let it sit in a large loop on my lap (or around my neck like a necklace, which is what I've been doing so far) and knit it straight off the skein. There's a much greater chance that I'll end up tangling the whole thing into a giant Gordian knot, but so far it seems to be working well. When I want to get up, either the knitting (and yarn) come with me (as it did for a stand-around-and-make-decisions-about-my-new-kitchen-counter meeting this morning), or else I pick up the yarn, retwist it into a skein, and tuck it away with the knitting in a place where LazyToddler can't reach it.

One benefit I've seen to doing it this way is that every time I unwind one loop from my skein, I can knit for a long time, much longer than I can with one pull out of a center-pull ball. Instead of knit,knit,knit,pull,knit, it's more like unwrap,knitknitknitknitknitknitknitknitknitknitknitknit,unwrap. I don't think it actually saves me much time, as it takes less time to pull from the ball than it does to unwrap a loop from the skein, but at least I look a little less spastic when knitting.

Hah!

My first ever pair of toe-up socks are complete! I can't imagine why they took so long to finish ...

Oh, yeah. I don't know how to stop when I'm ahead - that's why. Silly ridiculously long socks. At least they (mostly) fit!

And LazyHusband's socks are already on the needles. I'm going to try the toe-up approach again and see if it goes any faster when I'm not trying to do a seed stitch and use two different yarns to make stripes. Um, yeah - I'd say it's a good bet that it will go faster - I finished the first four inches while "watching" the second Fantastic Four movie tonight, and that was only 90 minutes long.

Latest custom order

Yet another adult size zombie bunny hat, this time with funky spiral eyes, which I think is even cuter than the previous versions. Like what you see and want one for yourself? Email me or convo me through etsy.com, and I'll hook you up.

Could one of the steampunk folks please explain ...

... why you visit my blog? I've noticed quite a few visitors coming over from a LiveJournal steampunk fashion community (http://community.livejournal.com/steamfashion/?skip=80 ) and I can't for the life of me figure out why.

I love the look of steampunk, but nothing I make is remotely related to it, as far as I can tell.

Do I know one of you in real life or via etsy?

I'm not trying to get rid of you or anything - heck, we love the company, don't we, folks? - but I AM curious about how you ended up here, and what keeps you coming back. Any feedback would be appreciated! Thanks, punks!

Might be time to whittle down the to-do list a little

• Finish the toe-up socks (about 3" to go on the final sock).
• Finish the crocheted top to a dress for Liza (all finished except for one mercifully short sleeve)
• Make socks for Jason's birthday using the custom-dyed yarn I got on etsy at Whimzy Pinzy (not even cast on yet).
• Finish alpaca sweater for myself (about 2" finished of a top-down sweater in the round).
• Finish quilting and binding on the kimono quilt.
• Finish quilting and binding on the Heart Attack quilt.
• Figure out what I'm going to do with the double wedding ring pieces I'm trying to use, which are currently scattered in three rooms of the house.
• Figure out what I'm going to do with the dozen white cotton crocheted flowers that are supposed to be turning into accents for a quilt, which isn't designed yet and I don't even have an inkling of what it's going to look like.
• Start writing out the directions for the Whatisit Tote pattern.

And this is just stuff that's actually started or has a deadline. Don't even get me started on the pile of "maybe I'll work on this next" projects next to my cutting table. I try not to walk to heavily near it, lest it collapse and crush me.

Some days I'm focused, some days I'm not. Can you tell what kind of days I had last week?

Stylin'

Outfit by Beneath the Rowan Tree; styling by LazyToddler.

WIP Thursday

Tentative name: Heart Attack

Heart fabric was bought during a trip to Lancaster (PA) this summer, and the red strips are leftover from a scrappy bearpaw quilt I made years ago. And the white is leftover from ... something, I don't remember what. So this is another attempt to use up some pre-cut stash fabrics, and given the size of the sucker (35x70 ish), it's going to take me long enough to quilt it that I STILL won't be able to make any money off the thing, even with my supplies for free. Oh, well - at least it's brightening up my studio this week.

Brrrrrrrr

Knitters beware - read if you dare

http://www.yarnharlot.ca/blog/archives/2008/01/15/i_dont_want_to_talk_right_now.html

You really have to have read the lead-up posts about knitting the leaves and the sock to get the full impact of this post. Let's just say I hit the climax of the story and threw up a little in my mouth, it's that distressing. At least to a knitter with a bit of a perfectionism problem ... my husband would probably be like, "oh, that's a shame." No, this is a tragedy for which there is not enough alcohol or chocolate in the world to aid recovery. The type of tragedy that makes you want to bang your head on the desk and ask, "why me? WHY ME????" and then possibly flush the project down the toilet, just to spite it.

WIP Monday - Look familiar, Kylie-Ann?

When we lived in Japan I stocked up on used kimono fabric in a variety of colors, including some very nice silks. This wasn't an easy purchase, since it involved buying used kimonos, then ripping out all the seams, washing the fabric, ironing it, and sticking all the fabric in a plastic tote for eight years. No, not kidding about the length of time.

Before it went into hibernation, though, I made a couple quilts out of the silk, including one for our friend Kylie-Ann. I only made two quilts with it, primarily because while the silk drapes beautifully and looks great when it's done, it stretches like a rubberband and will not stay where I want it to. You know when you crack an egg and get a piece of shell in the egg white, and every time you try to grab it it squirts out between your fingers? Yeah, that's pretty close to what it's like.

While I was working on K-A's quilt, I made an extra block that's been sitting in my UFO* drawer for, you guessed it, eight years. Well, in my effort to come up with projects I can finish quickly to sell on etsy without investing a lot in materials, I dug a bunch of UFOs out to work on. This one is first, and it will be going on for some time, since I decided to hand-quilt portions of it, which is going to take me forever. So much for making something that will give me a good return for the amount of time I invest in it ... but I couldn't stand to let it sit in the drawer any longer, and it's going to look so good when I get it done.

Likely next project - using up the leftover pieces from a double wedding ring quilt I made for Jason's friend's wedding like five years ago. I seem to remember there was a high curse-to-sewing ratio on that project, so if you see a blue cloud drifting over from Ohio, you'll know I've started.

Stupid UFO drawer. Somebody hand me a big chunk of uncut flannel so I can go make a baby blanket or something.

*UFO - UnFinished Object

Please explain

Would someone please explain to me what it is, exactly, that compels me to have my next knitting project on the needles before I've even sewed up the seams on the previous one? Because I've got an earless zombie bunny hat custom etsy order sitting in my sewing bag, but an inch of an alpaca sweater for myself already finished. And don't even get me started on the toe-up socks that would not die. Gahhhhh.

Gotta love the free publicity

http://jjmfinance.blogspot.com/2008/01/lazymamadesigns.html

Thanks, Jason, for the write-up! Fellow etsyians, go check out his products ... they look really cool, if you're in this as a business and not a hobby. If I get one, I'll let you know how it works for me!

Genki Ginkgo Table Runner pattern page

Genki Ginkgo Table Runner Pattern

approximate finished size: 16"x40"

Bring the Japanese concept of “genki” (“vigor, energy, or vitality”) to your table with this simple appliquéd quilt. Pattern includes full-size templates, several alternate arrangements of the leaves, plus instructions on an easy way to finish the quilt with a traditional Japanese quilting pattern known as “counterweights.”

A person with average sewing skills should be able to finish this project in about three naptimes (six hours).

Photos from the pattern -

quilting the appliques

marking the background quilting designs

Pattern includes illustrated instructions, a full-size template for the appliques, and suggestions for additional variations on the project. It is packaged in a resealable plastic bag (6"x9"), ready to hang and sell.

Wholesale price: $3.50/pattern
Suggested retail price: $7-$9, or whatever the market will bear in your area

Free shipping on your first order! Shipping charges for subsequent orders will be the actual charges for USPS Priority Mail to your destination.

I am willing to make free samples to display in your shop, if you are willing to provide the materials. Please contact me for more information on this service.

For more information or to place an order, please contact Gretchen Woods at Lazy Mama Designs: lazymamadesigns (at) yahoo (dot) com.

NEW!! You can also place orders through my shop at etsy.com - just convo me with a request, including the number of patterns you'd like to buy, and I can post a custom listing for you at the wholesale price.Thank you for your interest, and I hope to hear from you soon!

Product review - more handmade kid toys!

One of the things I like about etsy is that sometimes I am able to find less-expensive versions of toys I see in catalogs. That was the case with the silkies I bought from Beneath the Rowan Tree. I had seen similar scarves in several of the higher-end, granola-friendly toy catalogs, but I finally decided to get them after finding them (slightly) cheaper and handmade.

Basically, it's a set of six different colors of silk scarves, each about a yard square. It doesn't sound like much, but put those in the hands of a two-year-old ("I'm two-and-a-half, not TWO!!!!!") who has recently discovered her imagination, and you'd be surprised to see what happens.

I've been waiting to post this until I could get the video uploaded, because it really helps you understand what a great toy these are. This was what she came up with in the first 20 minutes we played with them:


Since then they've been wrapping paper, and a giant pool to jump into, and giant fish in the giant pool, and a wig, and flags, and ... And this is all since Saturday night. Score!

This is another gift I could have made ... after all, they're just squares of fabric with rolled hems. Hear that? Rolled hems. As in, "those curse-inducing banes of my existance any time I deal with sheer fabric" rolled hems. Thank you, but I'll pay someone else to roll them for me, and dye them, too, while they're at it :)

Heart Happy Wall Hanging Quilt pattern page

Heart Happy Wall Hanging Quilt pattern

Finished size: approximately 32”x32”

A little bit of piecing, a little bit of raw-edge appliqué, a little bit of quilting – this project has something to make any quilter’s heart happy in record time!

A person with average sewing skills should be able to finish this project in about three naptimes (six hours).

Photo from the pattern - pinning and cutting the appliques.

Pattern includes illustrated instructions, a full-size template for the appliques, and suggestions for additional variations on the project. It is packaged in a resealable plastic bag (6"x9"), ready to hang and sell.

Wholesale price: $4.00/pattern
Suggested retail price: $7-$9, or whatever the market will bear in your area

Free shipping on your first order! Shipping charges for subsequent orders will be the actual charges for USPS Priority Mail to your destination.

I am willing to make free samples to display in your shop, if you are willing to provide the materials. Please contact me for more information on this service.

For more information or to place an order, please contact Gretchen Woods at Lazy Mama Designs: lazymamadesigns (at) yahoo (dot) com.

NEW!! You can also place orders through my shop at etsy.com - just convo me with a request, including the number of patterns you'd like to buy, and I can post a custom listing for you at the wholesale price.

Thank you for your interest, and I hope to hear from you soon!

Peek

I'm done. I think.

There's some more quilting that could be added, but I'm not sure it should, so I'm going to bed. Sneak peeks after I get some sleep, y'all.

And in the midst of my late-night sewing frenzy, I came up with my next idea, which is possibly book-worthy. I've been biding my time, waiting for a book-worthy project to hit me before I bothered to research the whole craft publishing biz. Looks like I've got some catching up to do ...

Duh

So I've been working for the past week on developing a new quilt pattern to roll out in January, and I've got the sample made and the text written and the photos finished and I've printed out the first copy to proofread ... and then last night it occurred to me that I've been meaning to make a Valentine's Day version of the Simple Snowflake pattern, and if I want to be able to sell it this year, I'm going to have to pull some late nights to get the sucker done, since I haven't even started it yet.

Oops.

Good thing I already had some Valentiney prints in my stash, and I had a chance to run over and get some coordinating fabrics without the two-year-old who likes to play hide-and-seek at Joann's, and Jason's going over to a friend's house tonight and won't be home until 2am. Can you say, marathon quilting session? I can!

Just a quick promo for a fellow etsyian

I don't know if I've mentioned it here, but we're renovating our kitchen starting on Monday. "Gutting" is the word that comes to mind, as does "demolishing" and "fixing the stupid things the original builders got wrong."

This means that over the past two weeks I've had to devote valuable craft time to packing up stuff in the kitchen ... and living room and dining room, since we have to move everything in there to paint and install hardwood floors. This happened, of course, AFTER we had gotten rid of all the moving boxes from this spring. Oops.

But a fellow Clevey just finished a move and was looking to get rid of a whole bunch of boxes ... so VirtualLori hooked me up with something like 30 copy paper boxes, plus a whole mess of food cartons and boxes. The first minivan load took care of loading out all the books and dining room stuff; the second load is currently being used to build forts in the living room while I finish cooking a few last things this weekend. Then, it's off to the basement with just about everything from the kitchen, and I get to learn various take-out numbers by heart over the next six to eight weeks.

Where am I going with this? In addition to her freelance day job, oversight of the ClevelandHandmade web site and blog, and willingness to share her cardboard, VirtualLori has REALLY cool jewelry for sale on her etsy site.

As a "thank you" for the boxes, I'd love to send some business her way - or at least some extra hearts for her shop. Show her some love, will ya? And if you buy anything, tell her the Cardboard Queen sent you :)

Simple Snowflakes Table Runner now a class at Quilter's Hive in Newark, DE

So, you want to make a Simple Snowflakes Table Runner, but you think you need a little hand-holding?

Why not drop by the Quilter's Hive in Newark, DE, on January 28th to take the class based on my pattern? Call 302-737-5699 to register.

(Thanks to my father's woodworking friend for seeing this - I never would have noticed it on my own. New Year's Resolution #342 - get on the mailing lists for all of my customers' shops.)

Let there be ...

... light!

Gotta run - there's actual natural sunlight entering my home. Could be the last time for months - and I have a LOT of photos that need to be redone. And some basking to do on the living room floor, if I can get the cats to move over.

Thou shalt not ...

... post smugly before the socks are done, lest ye accidentally start turning the heel on the second one an inch too early and not notice until you've finished the heel and gotten another inch up the leg. Gaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhh. There goes another Battlestar Galactica and two-thirds of a Dirty Jobs.

Working without a net

Yes, that's right - I'm following a pattern that pretty much tells me to "do this until it looks right." Then "do that, but I'm not going to tell you how to do that, you'll have to look it up on your own if you don't already know how."

The result? After four hours (maybe five - one stint was during Pirates of the Caribbean III, which was what, like four days long?) of knitting, I have this much of a pair of toe-up socks:

I managed to do the entire toe up through where you start to turn the heel, all during the pirate movie. The rest was done during two episodes of Battlestar Galactica, if I remember correctly. One and a half episodes of Dirty Jobs with Mike Rowe later, I've got another half of a foot started.

I'm loving this method - you get to do the exciting stuff right away! And when you get to the boring part, you can put it on a spare set of needles, start the other exciting stuff, and work until you get to the boring stuff again, all in the name of "making the cuffs as long as I can with the yarn I have left." And if the boring stuff gets too boring, I can say "well, I needed some anklets, anyway" and stop knitting! And I don't have to haul a pattern around with me, at least once I get the hang of short-rowing the heels.

The only thing I'm not loving right now is the striped pattern I'm doing, which was necessitated by a "they only have enough yarn to make one sock of each color" purchase back in September. Knitting the stripes is fine, but there's not enough contrast between the purple and the variegated yarn so that they actually show up. Oh, well - I know they're there. Plus, still warm, even if not super stripey.

Need more sock yarn. NEED MORE SOCK YARN! Oh, etsyians.......