Wordless Wendsday

Wordless Wendsday

 louisiana old state capitol

 getting wiggy

mall food

Cowboy's Burp Too

Has it been awhile or what? Sorry but life seams to get away from me, then i waste all my time failing to catch up with it.

OK here goes.  I made these for the new babe in our family. We finally have a male child among us. My sweet husbands sister had a strapping boy that is sure to be spoiled rotten before he is one.

When i got the call from my sister in law that she was in need of burp cloths I was happy to oblige.

Here's what i came up with: saddle bag shaped with horse shoes. Perfect for a little cowboy to spit on.

I used embroidery floss to stitch on the horse shoes(after i had ironed them on with adhesive backing).  Believe it or not i was having a hard time drawing out the horse shoe pattern so what i did was google- printable horse shoe - and low and behold up popped a children's coloring page of the perfect horse shoe, i printed it, cut it out and who knew it would be sew perfect.

For the back sided i used a piece of fleece i had hanging around, not very absorbent but very cuddly. the horse shoe design the a outlined on the front made for a nice accent on the back also.

HINT: If you do this be sure to check your stitches on both sides when embroidering, I left mine rough looking because...well to be frank it was easier and sense its western, I liked the texture it added.  But it did take a little more time to line up my stitches.

I did not cut my binding on the bias because i only had these strips to work with. so i decided to attach them like quilters do quilt binding. I connected my strips and then ironed them in half with right sides out and lined up the open end with the edge of the burp cloth.

After completing that round I folded it toward the bandanna side and sewed it down, encasing the rough edged of all fabrics.

I used plenty of pins, it was a little rough to make the curves with out the bias cut binding but i think the thickness of the folded binding helped make it easier.

i really enjoyed making them, it was fun getting to do boy stuff.

I sure hope my girls get over pink soon, I've been into purple lately.

The Demiun Rug, Finally the finished product

I did a post about how i was making a denim rug, like the one from Good Luck Charlie( click here to see) It seams to have sparked quite a bit of interest so i decided it was high time i deliver the final product.

This project took on a life of its own. Birdie suggested that i "decorate it", "draw some swirls", and "put one of those right there.' So i did my best to bring her vision to life. I used ribbon,  decorative thread, paint, markers and appliques to dress it up. It was actually a lot fun.

I sewed it together much like you would a quilt only i chose not to back it or use batting. It was quite thick and cumbersome when i was all done and although i had every intention of backing and binding i vetoed that when i remembered that eventually(probBLy with in days) it would need to be washed.

After placing it on her new vinyl tile floor i was not really happy with the feel of it, so I ordered a rug pad from Overstock. It has been working well and Birdie and her friends are thrilled with it.

Summer Photo Post

School is back in session and summer has slowed its pace. This is both joy and pain. i oddly miss my screaming happy while smiling sadly girls,  the quiet in my house is down right frightening.

{This Monent}

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

What Have I Been Doing?

Balloon Shades



More Balloon shade making (beautiful isn't it)



A not quite finished but almost balloon curtain
(only picture i had)



A Balloon curtain
in the making

And many more drapery projects that i did not take pictures of. I made a few bucks, stressed myself out(not on these two), and drove my family crazy(thanks mom),but here i am now and this is what i am doing.

I promised Birdie that when a break came from my drapery work that i would redo her hodge-podge bedroom(i made a lot of promises that fell through).  She decided on some fabric, I am very excited with her choice check it out here LINK.  And so Nana is now toiling away at a quilt and i am on the first phase of the redo--brainstorming.

A curtain for the long window.

two drapes for the closet (we took the doors down, they take up to much space and never get closed)


Here's what I've got so far:

A denim rug (yeah, i know it wasn't part of the plan). This baby is Birdies idea , inspired by Good Luck Charlie, thanks so much Disney Channel. 

Although i  have a bit of a mess going, putting the rug together has been really fun. Birdie has been full of fun ideas to personalize our creation, which is making it take longer than anticipated, but still fun. I used my old singer 185j to piece the rug and she glided easily over those thick seams while singing that sweet  humming song, gotta love an old singer. I hope to keep you posted on our progress.


Whats next: a desk(creigslist find), a head board and foot board (garage sale find), paint and more paint, and oh yeah the curtains( that is where we started isn't it).



Silk Lotus Flower - Threads

Silk Lotus Flower - Threads
This is a link to an easy, great,and fun last minute gift idea! This is a wonderful technique from Mr. Kenneth King.
Flower Brooches are great on anything: jackets, scarfs, hats(yes even your ugly go to knit hat), hand bags, etc.

Kids Project link up

Go on over to the csi project blog and check out all the amazing links to fun kids crafting projects.


I promise i will return to my blogging soon but first my sweet little devils must go back to school, there has been no use in arguing with them, they demand every bit of my time so i give it to them, and what little i have left is being spent  finishing project already on  the craft table and  cleaning up around the house.

Summer Vacation 2010

After much deliberation Galveston was our choice for summer fun. It is not host to the most fabulous beaches in the world but there certainly was a lot to do and see. No tar balls or oil slicks to combat just clean fun.

The fairy ride was a great experience, i think i enjoyed it even more than the kids. Its simply amazing  to travel across the water on such a big ship and to see the waterway from a completely different prospective.

The beach was warm and we were lucky to be blessed with overcast days-no sun burn.

]

Moody Gardens was wonderful. It takes at least two days to see everything with out rushing.  The aquarium and rain forest were fun and the 3D movies amazed the kids, so when it came to the 4D film they could hardly keep still long enough to enjoy it.

     


       Another great part of Moody Gardens was the Beach in fact i enjoyed it so much i forgot to take pictures. These are all I've got and they don't even begin to show you the fun.

{this moment-that moment}

{this moment}

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. If you're inspired to do the same, leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see. 

Wishing you a beautiful weekend!--soulemama

{that moment} the one my girls capture themselves, it fascinates me to look through the photos in my camera and find little glimpses of how my children see their world. A simple, special, extraordinary moment.

A mission for a Little Bit Funky

I came across this post a little while ago and was truly touched by it, so in keeping with her passion for this  mission i am re-posting it and encourage anyone reading it to do the same   little bit funky click there see the original post and enjoy the music.

are ya'll ready for this?

I am SO excited to be writing this post.  You really have no idea...I am almost day before Christmas excited...but not why you think.  Well maybe...if you know me...if you can beleive it...the finished quilt is not the most exciting part to me.  

It's the fulfillment of a promise that is making me all giddy with excitement.  

You see...a couple of months ago I felt the nudge to do more with my blog than just write and share...I felt like I was being led to use my blog as a catapult for showing God's love...

Honestly, I was like...ok...just what do you mean God?

And I waited...and prayed.  And then things started clicking...I found the quilt pattern over at Film in the Fridge. You can find it HERE.

"YES!" Is what I wanted to scream when I saw it...I knew what I was supposed to do...and how.

And quickly, because I am human and humans both chicken out AND forget easily what God tells them to do...I emailed a small group of women that I trust and love...some who I knew would kindly remind me of what I had shared with them that God told me to do. 

Basically, I told them..."God told me to do this...please call me out on it if I don't".

Then I contacted sweet Jody from Fabric Shoppe...and told her what I was on a mission to do...wouldn't you know it...she is a pastors wife and hopes to adopt from Africa one day.  She almost immediately offered to donate ALL of the fabric I would need to make the quilt.  

Thinking about it...that is a pretty crazy thing.  That is a LOT of fabric to just send to a stranger who promises to make a quilt to benefit a charity.  I cried in the parking lot after getting her email.
Then a good friend offered to pay for the batting and the shipping. 

God is SO good. 

God is responsible for all of this coming together.  God loves all people.  God loves Africa...and all those sweet people who are suffering from something that is SO easily helped...

To me...each piece of fabric in this quilt stands for a family or person...or BABY...that together we can help...and this may sound crazy...but if you are one of the many who have told me of plans to adopt from Africa...the net you buy just may save YOUR future baby.  Crazy cool, right?

Malaria kills over 1 MILLION precious people PER YEAR!!!

In fact, there are 10 new cases of malaria every second. 

Every 30 seconds, a child in Africa dies from a malaria infection.  A child that is no less precious or loved or held dear by his parents than our own children.

By buying ONE net a family of four can sleep under an insecticide-treated bed net, safe from malaria, for four to five years.

AND

The benefits of bed nets extend even further than protecting those sleeping underneath them. The insecticide woven into each net makes entire communities safer – killing and repelling mosquitoes so that they can’t go on to bite others who may not be protected by a net.

Although $10 for a bed net may not sound like much, the cost makes them out of reach for most people at risk of malaria, many of whom survive on less than $1 a day.

Just think...to us $10 is a couple of latte's...a movie...a shirt...a lunch out...a CD...a couple of magazines...any number of frivolous things that we all throw money at...can I challenge us all to give those up for a day...or a week or a month...and give a net or two or three instead?

Can you help me show God's love to people in Africa?  And wait with me for God to show up in a big way?  Each net you buy is ONE entry into the raffle to win this quilt!

It's a beauty...if I do say so myself...considering that I only started sewing a little over two years ago...I feel so BLESSED that God would use me in this way to do something big.

It is approx 51in by 73in.  It would be cute as a twin coverlet...or on a couch...or hanging on a wall.  

And fyi--my home is smoke and pet free. :)

And as a special little touch...to help you remember what this quilt represents...I added this cute little tag. :)

God IS SO GOOD!!!

And now for the begging...

PLEASE go buy a net...you can click HERE to go to our page.

If only each daily visitor to this blog bought ONE...we would more than double or triple our goal.  So YES...one net DOES make a difference!

PLEASE feel free to copy this ENTIRE post and repost it on your blog...you will probably have to check the links but feel free to post away....anyway you choose.  I would LOVE nothing more than to go through my reader and see this post over and over and over again!!

We will choose a winner NEXT FRIDAY the 23rd!!  So every net bought by Thursday the 22nd at midnight will count as ONE entry...and I have a totally unbiased judged in mind to do a VIDEO reveal of the winner!!!

 AND there will be other prizes as well.  If you would like to donate a prize PLEASE contact me...I already have several offers and I would like to extend the deadline to donate.

You guys are awesome.  And I love you...truly.  I can't wait to hit "publish" post...I feel like all of this before was like heading up to the highest point of a roller coaster and hitting "publish" will push it over the edge...

Now...pretty, pretty, PLEASE...go BUY A NET...and spread the word!!
GOD IS SO GOOD!

xo