Appliqued Heart Table Runner

Greetings!

Fussy cutting. You guys know what that is, right? It's when you cut pieces of fabric so that a particular part of the printed design is centered or featured.

The weekend leading up to Valentine's Day I got a wild hair and started fussy cutting hearts out of some hot pink flannel fabric that I've had in my stash for a long time (and which I used in small doses for this project a couple of years ago). Mainly I was just playing with my new scalloped scissors and getting the feel of them, but the more I cut, the more I realized how much I liked those printed hearts. The fabric on the whole is just too bright for my tastes (and that's really saying something, because you know I love bright colors) but all those darling hearts! So what to do with them?

I know, I'll make a table runner!

I cut a long, wide strip of canvas and without any plan whatsoever, just started spreading out the hearts across the fabric in all directions. I stepped back and squinted a couple of times just to make sure the color was evenly distributed (very scientific, aye?) and when it was, I pinned them down and started stitching.

Here's a picture I posted on Instagram just as I was getting started. I never thought I would like it as much as I do, but I'm really starting to love Instagram for quick little WIP pictures.

Once I started I was a stitching machine. I queued up a book on Audibles (kind of "meh" as far as books go, but an easy listen, and one of my book club picks so I had to get through it anyway)

Somewhere along the way I fell in love with the stitching on the back and decided that I wasn't going to back or quilt this piece, I was just going to add binding and call it a day.

I mean really, look at that! It's kind of accidentally pretty isn't it? I'm not fussed about the knots, it's a table runner, not a hard wearing pair of jeans...

Speaking of binding, Instagram is also great for quick opinions. Like choosing which binding to go with, hot pink or aqua gingham?

Gingham for the win! I loved the pink, but there was a lot of pink in those hearts already, and I thought the aqua was a good balance, and besides... gingham!!

I'm pretty much in love with this runner now, it's one of my all-time favorites out of ALL the things I've ever made and that just tickles me because I really didn't put any thought into this. No planning, no worrying, I just cut a bunch of hearts out of some too-pink fabric and stitched those babies down. Talk about pretty accidents.

Valentine's Day has come and gone, but the runner remains out on the coffee table in the family room. It's just too pretty to put away.

Finally this fabric which has been sitting on a shelf for years met it's best potential (or at least the best I could give it) and has struck the right balance of bright & pretty and just a little bit tame. I love it!

Happy Monday everyone! 

oxo,

Lisa

A Big Heart

Happy Valentine's Day!

I hope you've all had a simply smashing Valentine's Day, have you done anything special?

We had a quiet evening here at home, dinner (Korean Beef , so good!) and a Walking Dead catch up, good times. My honey has to work in the morning, so we're saving our date for tomorrow night, going to a Sweethearts Ball at the Moose Lodge. Oh! I forgot to tell you, we're Moose now! Well, Sean is a Moose, I am a "Woman of the Moose". I wonder if there'll be a secret handshake? 

So earlier this week I came across this pin of a giant cross stitched heart and was so inspired, I had to try a smaller version for my family room right away. 

I bought a piece of red poster board from JoAnn's for $1.79 (with my handy 40% off phone app coupon) and strategically punched holes, after graphing a big heart out on graph paper. Then I stitched the design with big, fluffy yarn.

Hey look, it's the neatest back-of-a-cross stitch you'll ever see from me! Probably a fluke. Anyway, after the design was stitched and I evened things up by cutting the poster board evenly around the heart, then I mounted the entire thing to foam core I already had left over from another project with double sided stick tape.

Those couple pieces of scotch tape are where I accidentally punched more holes than I needed - whoopsies! I simply took the little circle I punched out, put it back and covered it with tape. You can't even see it from the front, not at all, whew!

I used a length of satin ribbon and two long sewing pins pushed into the foam core as hanging hardware and put this baby on the wall,

My girlfriend sent me the most perfect goodies in our Valentine swap which make for a very happy little scene together with the big heart, just look! Two new embroideries, a cute Valentine print out, a wee bucket of sweets and a beautiful Valentine Pin!  

Pam is such a great stitcher, just look at this darling little pup in a basket! He is oh, so sweet.

I do love this big heart. In fact, I'm already planning to make one out of painted wood to leave up permanently. Hearts are okay year round in my book!

The little bunting on the lamp shade is from last years door wreath, reuse and recycle, kids!

When I make the wooden stitched heart, I'll definitely be sure to share. Speaking of sharing, I can't wait to show you the little table runner I made this week as well (I've been a very industrious crafty lady this week!), I think it's one of my all time favorite projects, so come back and visit again soon.

Have a great weekend, sweetstuffs!

oxo,

Lisa

Valentine Pins

Hell♥!
I just can't seem to stop myself playing with more hearts this week, I'm beginning to understand why my pal loves them so much, they're so versatile!

This sweetie pie crust heart is a pin that I made for a friend, this is our third year swapping Valentines. 

This year we decided to make each other pins, something pretty to pin to our sweaters for Valentine's Day and this flowery heart is what I made for her. When you see what I got you'll agree that she got the short end of the stick, she spoils me! 

This little pin was the first to fly from my fingers this year, sort of a practice piece, but none too shabby, so I sent it far, far away. All the way to Korea where my niece Alex is currently stationed with the US Army. She isn't a girly-girl, so I think she'll like the more "not-so-cuteishness" of it with the touches of black. 

And speaking of black, here's one more for a good friend, a bad boy, my chum, Sic. Yes, Sic. 

He's rad, you'd like him.

I only wish now that I'd thought to add little devils horns at the tops of the heart, that would have been perfect for him. Sigh... there's always next year.

That's not all the hearty goodness I have to share, stay tuned! 

Are busy making Valentine's tonight? Do tell!

oxo,

Lisa

Love Is In The Air

'Ello Sweeties!

Hearts, hearts everywhere! I've had hearts on the brain lately, been fiddling around and making sweet little things, these are a few of them. I made these heart pins for a Valentine's Swap organized by Aunt Peaches. The idea was simple, you make and send three Valentines and you'll receive three back - but not from the same people, which makes thing interesting because what you get, and from whomever really is a surprise.

As I've repeated often, I'm not so great at papercraft, I dunno, I try, but it just doesn't seem to be my thing, thank dog I'm handy with a needle! *wink* Having said that, I knew I'd stitch something for the ladies whose names I was given.

Small and sweet pins, cute, but not too over the top, something I would wear in public myself. I added a little pin to the back of each so that my Valentines can wear them on a jacket or sweater, or lanyard, or whatever floats their boat.

I enjoyed making these pins, it really felt like playing, and got to use a new tool that I purchased recently, which I've wanted forever, scalloped sheers! Found them on eBay for a song. I have pinking shears and they're great, but I adore the soft bumps of a scallop.

I made (very) simple little cards to attach the pins to and wrote a note to each gal on the inside, then away they went. Off to Kentucky, New Mexico and Idaho, fly away little pins, be free!

I hope my Valentines like their pins and don't find them too gauche. I have had two Valentine's come back to me so far, pretty handmade things, crafty people are my favorite people!

Do you have any Valentine making going on in your neck of the woods? Do tell!

oxo,

Lisa

Happy Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine's Day, Sweeties!

It's been fun sharing a few Valentine things with you this week, Sean and I aren't too much for the mushy stuff, and don't generally make a big deal out of the day, but reds & pinks are two of my favorite colors and if nothing else, I enjoy this day as an excuse to douse the house in them. 

Today, I have something extra sweet to share, the best for last! I had a little swap with a few of my friends and these pretty Pennie Pockets are what I made for them, filled to the brim with sweets and a couple little goodies. I loved these as soon as I saw them on Pinterest, and found the pattern in the Moda Bake Shop.  

I got to make new yoyo's! It's been a while since I made my last batch, and it was fun to make a few new ones for this project.

The original recipe called for the little pearl drops as above, but I found some pretty heart shaped Swarovski crystals and I couldn't help myself, they were just too perfect.

Stuffed and ready to go, these pennie pockets got sent all over the country!

Oh, one other goody I made and packed into my friends packages...

 

Scrunchies! 

Remember scrunchies, ladies? Don'cha miss them just a little? I remember a time when I always had a scrunchie with me, either in my hair, or around my wrist, sometimes multiples. 

These were a fun little sewing project and could easily be adapted to any holiday simply by changing up the fabric choices. The pattern was originally from one of my favorite fabric designer/quilters, Monica Solorio-Snow, I ran across some that she made for Christmas, adorable!

So, any special plans for today, chums? Nothing spectacular here, I think I'm going to make pizza & salad for dinner and catch up on the last episode of Downton that I missed on Sunday (Sean won't admit it, but he likes that show!), maybe I'll make the pizza in a heart shape this time! Oh, that sounds pretty good actually. I think I'll do it!

Sending you all a squeeze and a big fat Valentine's Day smooch!

oxo,

Lisa

Make Do & Make New

Hey Y'all,

Did you have a nice weekend? Ours was pretty low key, but on Sunday we had a chance to get the scooters out of the garage and be in nature for a bit, it was a gorgeous, crisp day. We went to the Consumnes River Preserve, and walked a couple of paths, then stopped for a late lunch at a famous local joint. Best darn pork chop ever, and we sat next to a Hells Angel. For realsies. We fit right in with all those Harley guys on our Vespa's, lemme tell you what.

Where was I? Oh yes, making do and making new. I like wreaths on the front door, I think they're pretty, and I like to change them up for the seasons & holidays, but I don't want or need a stack of wreaths taking up space, and have you priced a pretty wreath lately? They're spendy! I have a couple different ones that I can change up with a little imagination and very few, or NO pennies, like this one! 

Made new for Valentines Day.

I have a pretty good stash of felt, both synthetic and wool blend, so I cut out some simple heart shapes with the pinking shears and sewed & stuffed them. I attached them to this pretty, but plain, white flower wreath with safety pins. I clipped the pins around some of the stems of the wreath, which is great because nothing is permanently stuck to the wreath and I can switch it up whenever I like.

Using scraps from the hearts, I cut a four small triangles and chopped letters out of some white, felt scraps to spell out, love. Oh, la, la! I punched some little holes in the corner of each triangle and ran the whole thing through with bakers twine, which I tied to each side of the wreath. Easy peasy and I didn't spend one red cent.

But this is something new, and so simple! The little hearts, pictured above are those stiff, felt stickers they sell for every holiday at JoAnn's. The package was $2.99, but marked 50% off. I bought two packs, so for a whopping three bucks I made five of these long strings of hearts, stuck back to back with more bakers twine in between. The hearts are adorable, they're printed to look like they're stitched, which is perfect for the embroidery lover, such as myself (and a bunch of yous guys, too)!

Here's how it would look if y'all were coming to visit. Come on over, I'll put the kettle on!

I know I'm not reinventing the wheel or anything with my remixed wreath, but I thought it was cute and it surely was cheap (hello, it was free!), and sometimes that's the name of the game.

I hope you liked the peak at my porch! Do you decorate for the little holidays? What do you do, and where do you do it, do tell, I'm always curious about these kinds of things, post links in the comments if you've got one, I'd love to come for a visit!

oxo,

Lisa

Just A Dash

Happy Saturday!

Aren't the weekends loverly? I love to sleep in a little, then mosey out to the family room and have a couple cups of coffee with Sean. I catch up blogs, the weekend news, and critter cuddles. It's not unusual to have both of us, both dogs and both cats all snuggled up on the couch at once, especially on cold winter mornings like this. I love Saturdays.

This week, I decided it was time to get my rear in gear and make something that I meant to make last Valentine's Day, a small, quilted table runner to liven up the pub table in the family room. I already had the fabric, I just needed to get moving before I missed V-Day again this year. 

I used this little, laminated pattern that I picked up at a local quilt shop some time back. Easy peasy!

Basically, sew three long strips together, slice them into 5" pieces, flip every other one, sew together and viola!

I backed the piece with this pretty, pink striped Moda, Love those stripes.

I only quilted the long seams where each slice was sewn together, I used one of the fancy stitches on my machine, it kind of looks like a feather stitch.

I guess that might be why this runner feels puffy to me, it doesn't have much quilting. I actually wish it lay a little flatter, anyone have any tips on that? Maybe a trip through the washer & dryer and a pressing? I'm all ears.

See? It's kind of thick-ish...

Just a dash & a kiss.

All in all, I'm pretty pleased with this sweet & simple project, I don't think this runner took more than a couple of hours start to finish, but it makes a nice addition to the table. In fact, it was so easy that I think I might make another one soon, maybe for St. Pats.

SO! What'cha doing this weekend, chums? 

Got any exciting plans? Do tell!

oxo,

Lisa

Fresh Start, Full Heart

*Edit*
Woohoo, my crazy heart has been featured on Craft Gossip!

Howdy How!

How've you been, my dearies? Oh my goodness, I've been gone from this space for so long, it's hard to figure out where to start this post, how to explain my absence. I had so much to share with you back when it was still fall, like my best friends wedding, our trip up to see the leaves change in Hope Valley, pumpkin carving with my nieces & nephew, and so much more.  

December whirled by, as its wont to do, full of busy fun, too much food, and lots of visiting, not to mention all the making. I wanted to share those times with you too, but the days just flew. By the second week of December, I'd resigned to take the rest of the year off from blogging to concentrate on being present in those fleeting moments, trying to soak it all in, but I still meant to pop in and say hello. We spent Christmas in Tahoe with my brothers family this year, so much snow! 

New Years came and went, and left us feeling... not well. January was not kind to me, friends, I am not sorry to see it go. Most recently, I've been struck with the dreaded flu that's making its rounds, and my poor hubby has bronchitis... again. I don't remember ever being so sick, this flu is beastly! Oh, then there was that whole "oh-god-i-think-i'm-having-a-heart-attack-what-is-going-on-i'm-too-young-to-die!" episode at the beginning of the month, in which I was rushed by a co-worker from my office to the EKG machine to see what the hell was happening to me. I think I understand the phrase "my life flashed before me eyes" in a way I never did before. I do not wish to repeat it anytime soon. Needless to say, much of my month was spent in various doctors offices, laboratories and waiting rooms. Thirty-eight year old females are not prone to heart attacks, after all.

Lol, what fun! 

HAHAHA... NOT.

Yeah, goodbye January, smell ya later!

And now February!

{{deep breath}} 

A fresh start! A new beginning, MY new year!

I'm ready to begin anew, to start taking better care of me and my slightly broken (but still mighty) heart! And to get back in the swing of things here on my blog, too. Speaking of hearts, the little cutie pictured here is something I've worked on a few evenings recently. Crazy quilting makes me swoony, and although I don't think I'll ever really be great at it, I sure do enjoy playing with it, and that's just what I did here, play! A little bobble I made for myself, I think it's cute.

I'm looking forward to catching up with you all! I've been lurking this last week, peeking in on so many of your blogs, peek-a-boo! I've added a TON of photos to my Flickr account, if you're curious about catching up with me too, there's lots of new things to see over there, please feel free. 

So here's my question, how's winter treating YOU? Are you well? Did ya miss me as much as I missed you? Heheheh...

Do tell!

oxo,

Lisa   

Swapping Is Fun!

Hello All!

I wanted to share the other half of my Valentine's Day swap with you last week, but the cord that connects my camera to my computer disappeared... now that I've got that resolved (and it's just occurred to me as I'm typing this that, hello, I could have just put the memory card into the computer... doy! If I used my noggin' the way I'm supposed to, I'd be dangerous!) I'm back on track.

As you may recall, my partner for this swap was the wonderful & fabulous Pam, you might know her from her super fun and cheery blog Faster Kittykill. I like it there, it's a nice place with lots of glitter and puppies. Sometimes I hang out at Pam's blog and just dream of the day I get to hang out in her cool-ass tiki yard in Portland and have cocktails with her. She's awesome, possum.

The whole package, I tell ya! Even the outside of the box is special.

Ooooh, what's in here?? At this point I can tell you I started making little grabby hands and squeaky sounds.

Would ya look at this haul! There's so much good going on there! From right to left, there's an adorable little lunch tote filled with the prettiest delicate little sugar cubes topped with iced flowers, handmade tea wallet, a new tub of lip shimmer, a Love Bot, a new mug (which I'm sipping coffee from right this moment), Bee Mine Valentine rings, treats for Lola, and two gorgeously stitched vintage hankies. Let's take a closer look at those handmade goodies!

This little tea wallet is just the best, I love the fabrics and the stitching, just look at that perfect blanket stitch. 

Here's the inside, perfect for a few bags to take on the road.

Oh you guys, this tea is lovely! So good with sugar & milk, a treat all on it's own.

Here is the the first of the TWO hankies Pam stitched for me, isn't it great? A lady in a pretty window stitching and conversing with a songbird. When I saw this I ran to my purse because I thought I had a matching one. I always have at least one pretty hankie in my purse. I collect them, so why not always have one on ya?

Alas... not a match, but close - the colors are very similar. I really do always have one (and sometimes two) with me, they're dead useful, and not just for blowing your nose, in fact I can't say that I've ever used a hankie to blow my nose. Real life moment here, girls... ever have the under wire in your brassiere snap unexpectedly? I have, and I can tell you, having one of these pretty, little babies in your purse will save you from being stabbed to death until you can get home or to a department store for a replacement. 

This is the second stitched hankie, such sweet kitties! They remind me of my own two kitty cats, Chyna Cat Sunflower & Egypt The Great.

I love these two hankies ever so! I'm concocting plans for them. I think I might mount the first one so that I can hang it on the wall so everyone can see it. The kitty one may be a pillow some day ♥

So that's my wonderful Valentine Swap! It was really fun putting Pam's box together, but it was even more fun to getting a package from her.

Thanks again for everything Pam, it was all so very perfect!

I hope you all are having a great weekend, it's beautiful outside here today, I think we might seize the opportunity to grab some of this early spring sunshine, maybe take a scooter ride and get some lunch. Nothing like crisp air in your face on a sunny day.

oxo,

Lisa