Find Your Color

It's been a while since I've been to Lowes Home Improvement Store and I was so colorfully delighted by the display of Pantone Paints that I almost bought them all!

What gorgeous colors they have chosen...49 to be exact.  Pantone says that the "MyColor inspired by Pantone offers designers and do-it-yourselfers an affordable, easy-to-use solution for adding a splash of color to any paint project including furniture and accent walls. Offered in a 35 oz. size, this ready-to-go, ultra low VOC paint is odor free and provides an elegant, eggshell finish that is both durable and washable. Premixed, factory-precision color ensures an exact match every time while unique stain-blocking and self-priming qualities save time and reduce workload."

What a great idea.  Just open and paint.  Sometimes I find it so difficult to choose the color of paint that I just give up and go home empty handed.  So, if you have a dresser or table that could use a pop of color, why not take a look at these and pick one out for yourself.  Don't have a Lowe's local?  No worries, you can order them online.

Here is a great inspiration post by Houzz with some gorgeous dressers for your liking.

Happy painting!
Jayna

Out to Sea

Last fall XO Gigi sent me some fabric from Sarah Jane's newest line, Out to Sea, which is manufactured by Michael Miller Fabrics.  Gorgeous!!

These fabrics are not only printed on a high quality quilting cotton, but the colors, the illustrations...they are just so beautiful.  I pondered for so long what I wanted to make with these fabrics and knew that I wanted it to be something that I could look at every day and really enjoy the fabrics the way they are meant to be enjoyed.

I have mentioned before that I previously wasn't the biggest fan of table runners, but they have really grown on me.  I decided to do a strip-style so I could use bigger pieces of the fabric...making sure that the whole pattern was visable. 

Backed with a white matelasse, this piece turned out gorgeous.  I put it in my sewing room and that has turned out to be the most perfect place to enjoy it.  I hope you are inspired to create something new today!

Jayna

I love Poms

I just had to share a picture of this gorgeous pom trim that came in a few days ago.  It's Riley Blake's Jumbo Pom trim in Lime.

I was scared that it would be really bright...which is not what I was wanting.  In true Riley Blake fashion, it is the perfect shade of lime, which isn't too bright but not too dark, either.

This trim will go perfectly on my drapes I have planned for my office.  Hopefully I'll get those up this Spring.

Happy Sewing!
Jayna

Score!!

I just love shopping...have I mentioned that yet? 

I took a quick trip to Marshals to return some drapes and I found these two little beauties on a shelf looking for a home. 

There only used to be one kind of Mod Podge....the original.  You know, with the yellow label?  I saw a pin on Pinterest some time ago that showed all of the kinds of Mod Podge there are available now so I was personally very excited to purchase 2 new kinds of Mod Podge that I didn't already have.  What shall I do with the fabric one?  Perhaps decoupage some fabric onto some picture frames?  The outdoor one will be perfect for those summer days when I'm feeling crafty.

The website from Plaid (the company who makes Mod Podge) is actually really cool.  You can search by craft or occasion.  Just the help I sometimes need to be inspired.  

You never know what you're going to find when you're not looking for it.  What a great excuse to get crafty!

Jayna 

Chevron Table Runner

I have to admit that I used to hate table runners.  They always were so old-looking, with tassels on the ends and country type fabric.  I was not a fan.  However, last fall I created a great table runner from Sarah Jane's Out to Sea fabric and fell in love with the possibility that table runners could actually add to my obsession with home decor.

Chevron is one of my latest obsessions and has been for quite some time now and no wonder...it's everywhere!  My customers request it all the time and as a result, I'm addicted. So, I thought I would whip up a chevron table runner for my buffet for spring.  I chose one of Art Gallery's Alhambra II fabric that I had lying around and paired it with Amy Butler's solid in Mist.  The two are simply stunning together.  I have listed a quick tutorial below for those of you who would like to make one too!

I started with some test fabric to see how big I wanted to make my quilt squares, so some of these first pictures are with Riley Blake's medium zig zag in navy (in case you're confused:)

I decided I would start with 6"x 6" squares.  I cut 21 of each the patterned fabric and 21 of the solid color fabric.  It's essential that the two fabrics you choose are contrasting if you want the chevron to really pop.  With right sides together, place a solid and a patterned piece together and sew around the perimeter, with a 1/2" seam allowance.

Once you have sewn all of your squares to each other, Cut on the diagonal both ways so you have 4 triangles. Open and press seams to one side.  You should have a square that consists of both fabrics.

Sew pieces together matching solid to solid and pattern to pattern. I continued this until I made one chain the length of my entire table runner. Press well, seams to one side.  Then make another length, press.

After you have your rows sewn and pressed well, its time to sew them together.  Pin and sew, then press.  Voila!!!  The top is done, so gorgeous!

I use Warm and Bright batting as it is just the best in my opinion.  It's a little more money than the other brands but it's clear when using it that your money did not go to waste.  I chose a white matelasse for the backing and I also used it for the binding. I also stitched in the ditch on the chevron to quilt it a bit.

Don't you love my little clips?  They are the best.  Perfect for working with minky as well.  There are many places you can buy them, but I got mine at XO Gigi Fabrics:)

This pattern would be great for a quilt, but I would definitely make the squares much larger to begin with so you aren't sewing a million little squares together.  Get some crafting done today!!

Jayna
 

On the Cheap

I just love shopping.  It's called retail therapy and I'm addicted. Many times I stroll through the store looking, touching, wishing....but really have no desire to purchase unless it's something really, really special.  I've come across two of those items lately.  Two items that I simply could not go home without.

I often frequent stores like Marshall's, TJ Max and the like.  You know, designer items at bargain prices?  A new store opened up recently in Fort Collins called HomeGoods.  I'm sure you've heard of this one, too.  I know it mostly from that really happy guy on HGTV, David.  He does the cool paintings and redoes the whole room for a family.  Color something........

Anyhoo....I just love perusing these stores for my latest must-have.  Here they are:

Very current...chevron is outrageously popular right now and HomeGoods had burnt orange, lime green, grass green, brown, red.....I had to have the green.  Even better, when I got home I discovered that it matched my rug to perfection.

Number two was just purchased this last weekend at Marshalls.  Too adorable and only $4.99.  Really!!??  For under $5 I could have this adorable owl?  Did you notice that it matches my new chevron throw and the rug? 

I have learned that when you're decorating a home or a room to take your time.  You can't just go out to the store one day and buy everything you need.  These creative, decorative goodies must be acquired one at a time.  If you follow this strategy you'll end up with a room that is dressed with treasures, not just things that match.

Happy Decor!
Jayna

Not Yo Mama's Shelf Paper

What a lovely afternoon strolling with my mom through store after store when we ended up at Marshall's.  My day became even lovelier when I saw some gorgeous shelf paper that was a stunning shade of aqua blue and had a very uncanny resemblance to some Dena Design's fabric that I use in my Etsy shop.  Naturally, this made me very happy.  In case you don't know; I have a fabric addiction.

Of course, I had to buy it.  I hadn't used shelf paper in quite a few years and the last time I remember it was this hideous yellow and white gingham, which at the time was the prettiest at the store.  Maybe I'm just lagging behind in the shelf paper deptartment, but I don't remember seeing so many beautiful designs.  There was zebra print, lime and white damask, and amongst others was this gorgeous aqua.  I could hardly wait to get it home and in my drawers:)

My husband thinks I'm a big nerd when it comes to stuff like this, especially when I make him get up off the couch when reading his Sunday newspaper just to come look in my drawers.  He thought I was an even bigger nerd when I got out my camera to take photos.

Happy Superbowl Sunday!
Jayna

DIY - Fabric Headboard

This last fall I was looking for some design inspiration and found it with (surprise) fabric!  I scored a great price on some Waverly fabric at my local JoAnn store.  The fabric itself was 50% off and I had a coupon for another 20% off your purchase, so it was a steal!  I had been looking to do a headboard for quite some time and of course, wanted to do it myself, so here I went.

All you need is:

Fabric - Preferable home decor fabric and enough to wrap around the back side of the wood by 3" on each side
Staple Gun with staples
Scissors
One sheet of Plywood/OSB - Measure your bed and know what you need before heading to the store.
Batting
Spray Adhesive

I believe that Home Depot or Lowes will make straight cuts for you at the store for free, but please don't take my word for it. If you don't own a saw and the hardware store won't do it for you, make sure to ask that hottie neighbor of yours to cut it for you or head on down to the local firehouse, where there is sure to be a hot firefighter that would LOVE to get his saw for you and cut your wood.

I did a rectangle as that's what I was wanting for my space, but if you have skilled saw cutting abilities, you could do round or some other funky shape.  Just remember that you can't re-do a cut, so measure twice and mark your board well before cutting.

I do want to mention that if you are hanging this on your wall or standing this on stilts, etc...make sure to attach everything to the back of the board before you cover it in fabric.

I dusted off my board and cleared a big space in my living room.  Here are the steps one by one:

1.  Unroll the batting and lay it on your board ; smooth out the wrinkles.  Cut off excess, leaving about 3" extra on each side.

2.  Take the batting off and spray the adhesive onto the board.  Apply batting.  If your board is large, you might want to do this in half or quarter sections.

3.  Let the adhesive set for a minute or two and then flip your board to batting side down.

4.  Staple the batting every 9 inches or so to secure.  Pull taught, but not too much.

5.  Stand the board up and lean against a wall or table out of the way.  You may need help with this. If you haven't ironed your fabric yet, do so.  Please do not skip this step.  Lay the fabric right side down in the area that your board was just laying.  Take a look at the pattern and mentally note where you want the board to go.  Smooth out your fabric flat and get help laying the board, batting down on top of the fabric. Do this slowly as you don't want to shift your fabric. Feel free to give the fabric a little tug every 12" or so to make sure it's wrinkle free. 

6.  Be picky.  Be very picky about exactly how the board is laying on the fabric, where the pattern placement is, etc.  You don't get to re-do this part.

7.  Take your staple gun and securely staple each side in the middle.  Top center, bottom center, right center, left center.  Make sure you are pulling taught with each time you staple.  However, you don't want to pull so tight you mess up your pattern.  When stapling, fold under the raw edge of the fabric so it isn't showing.
 
8.  Move to the end of each side and fasten in the same way you did before.  Top, bottom, left, right.  The goal is to secure the identical spot on each adjacent side.  It's like tightening a drum head.  You just can't start in one spot and move around from there, you have to do it in a fashion that is evenly distributed. I have noted a little bit of what I'm talking about with numbers here:

9.  For the corners, fold those like tucking in the sheet corners on your bed.  Nice and neat folds, tucking under those raw edges.  You don't want a big wad of fabric at the corners, either, so trim away fabric as needed.

10.  Eventually you have stapled all around the headboard and should have a staple about every 3 inches or so.  Now you can pick up one side and see the wonderfulness!!!

I hope you had fun!  Play around with patterns and colors.  Be bold!  You can even drill little holes in the wood before this process and then add buttons after it is all done for a tufted look.  Feel free to add decorative brads or whatever else your creativity seeks.

Happy Crafting!
Jayna

Button Monogram

My goal is to start sharing with you my crafts that I do (on occasion) that you can do at home as well!

My first is the adorable button monogram. I chose to do it on a backing of scrap fabric, but you can use a pretty piece of scrapbook paper, construction paper or you can even do it on a piece of wood covered with fabric...the list goes on and on.

I went to the thrifty (aka the thrift store for those who have never called it the thrifty) and looked through their used frames. You'll find some great frames for super cheap and even less expensive are the frames with no glass. Perfect for this craft.

I started off with an inspiration from this blog.

Things you need/I used:

paper
printer
fabric
frame
buttons
hot glue gun/hot glue
pins



For the fabric background, pick a fabric that isn't too busy. Solids are great or something like I chose (eyelet) is great because it uses a solid color but it has a design element because of the texture. Something like matelasse or pique would do nicely.

I took a printout of a lowercase "e" sized nicely for an 8"x10" opening and pinned it underneath my fabric. If you are using fabric, make sure you are taking into account that you will need to overlap the fabric behind the frame backing. Because I was using a white fabric, the letter shown through nicely. If you can't see through your fabric, I would suggest cutting out the letter and tracing around it with a pencil or even a pen. For those using card stock or other paper, you can print your letter right on that.

Heat up those glue guns! I haven't talked about glue guns much before, but make sure you have a low-temp glue gun. Those high-temp guns will result in 2nd degree burns for sure--ouch!

I used a package of buttons that I bought at JoAnn Fabrics. Of course, you can use assorted buttons that you have collected over the years or were lucky enough to score at that last estate sale.

I started by taking the larger buttons and placing a small amount of glue on the back and placing them within the boundaries of your letter. It's important not to stray over the lines! Also, don't use too much glue as it will seep out from under your button creating unsightly glue bubbles that aren't easily removed. Don't worry about the glue spider webs, those are easily remedied at the end with a blow dryer;)

I should have taken pictures of this whole process, but I didn't. Thank goodness for my BFF, Sarah. We did the craft together and she took pics.

After you've staggered the larger buttons and filled up as much space as possible, you can start filling in the empty spaces with the smaller buttons. It's important to really try to not cross over the lines. I took some of the smallest buttons to see if I could squeeze them into the space on the first layer. Then, I started working with color and size to create 2-3 layers of buttons throughout the design. Just go with what you think looks good. As long as you're staying within the lines, you can't mess this up. Don't be afraid to use cute shapes like butterflies or airplanes. Go with your creative instinct!

You'll know you're done when you look at it and you smile. I unpinned the paper from underneath, and framed this gorgeous creation. It's going to go perfect in my little girls room.

Have fun!!

Cheers,
Jayna

Cutting Corners

I'm in my 7th month of pregnancy which it seams (haha) is much like my first trimester. Tired, painful and the lack of ability to sleep come 4 am. Such as it is, this is a very productive time in my day. I get up, answer Etsy convos that came to me late last night, look at new fabrics and veg. This morning I was perusing the Riley Blake Blog for new fabrics when I came across a post about Cutting Corners. It seems that I have stumbled upon yet another source for free quilt patterns. But alas after looking, they have a lot more than quilt patterns. So far I have discovered FREE tutorials on key fobs, children's clothes, a table runner, a zipper flower and so much more. These are some of the designs I already love!!

Even more, with this adorable girls dress (and other patterns), they actually have the pattern pieces there for you to print out. These tutorials are very detailed. The instructions and explanations of fabrics, cutting and technique are just what we all need. Sure, I'm a good seamstress, but there is a ton of room for improvement and better technique.

There's also a "Rotary Club" where they review useful sewing tools and that's where I discovered this little ditty, the Skip Stitch.

Just put on your rotary cutter and you can run this little bugger along the edge of fleece, flannel or other fabric to create slits for your over-edge finishing with crochet or knitting or whatever else your little heart desires. Talk about cutting corners. I can imagine there are several ladies out there using scissors or a knife for this very task. Here is a cute blanket I found on Etsy thanks to Heart2HeartStitchery with a gorgeous crocheted edge ....and it's made out of flannel Riley Blake fabric. How fantastic is that??

My mom makes these blankets for each of her grandchildren and I'd love to post a pic of one of those, but did I mention that it's 4 am and my children are nestled all snug in their beds?

Thankfully it's Sunday. I'm looking forward to taking a nap this afternoon while hubby reads his Sunday paper and looks after my precious daughters while I lay dreaming of wonderful new fabric and the many ways to use it. As always, thanks for reading:)

Nighty night.
~Jayna