Craft Items at Ramshackled Treasures

These are items I have made and have on consignment at Ramshackled Treasures. Knitting and felting are relaxing and rewarding for me. How the yarn changes once felted is a marvel and the texture is never the same.

Summer Sewing For Noray

I found this fabric while out shopping with my Aunt and my Gramma.
We don't usually have character stuff as we watch little TV and do not have cable or satellite. However, Noray was given a Strawberry Shortcake doll and blanket for her 1st birthday and she loves them.
She sleeps with them both at night and has to be covered with her blanket no matter how warm it is.
She calls Strawberry Shortcake "Cookie".
I thought it would be fun to sew up some summer clothes with this light cotton fabric.

This sweet fabric is a bright sunny yellow. It says, "Jesus and me", "He is Love", "He gives me friends that make me laugh."
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This is the pattern I plan to use for shorts and shirts.
I'll also be making sundresses and matching bloomers. Noray loves dresses and wears one nearly every day..

Ramshackled Treasures

This a a great store in our small town of Zimmerman. There are a variety of vendors, and old items mixed with new. Here is their website: Ramshackled Treasures
You can sign up for a newsletter when you visit the site.

Sewing

I have been thinking about my sewing journey. It is the one craft that I return to over and over again.
Yes, I am a knitting/felting addict, but it causes muscle spasms in my arms so I try to space myself, exercise my arms and visit my chiropractor.
But sewing doesn't hurt!
Okay, cutting out patterns or quilt blocks gets hard on my back, but if I can do it on the counter or sitting down I can cut, sew, and plan forever!
I am currently sewing in my son's old room. He moved out last summer because he got married!!!! The room is supposed to go to my daughter, but somehow my crafting things have been finding their way in there. Now I really shouldn't take the room over, but I just covet this space.
I didn't learn to love sewing until I was 22. I took a class in junior high, but it was awful.
When my first baby was born and she was a girl I wanted to make cute clothes for her. And back then, sewing was cheaper than buying clothes. I don;t think that is the case any longer.
I still had the Singer sewing machine my Mom had bought me when I was 12. My darling mother-in-law helped me along the way and I sewed a dress and pinafore for my Chandra. By the time I had three children I was sewing all their summer clothes, all of Carissa's clothes, most of Chandra's clothes, hair scrunchies, shoe decorations, big hair bows and clothes for myself.

Using your mouse with your non-dominant hand

I was looking on the web for a way to solve a mouse button problem I am having with my optical mouse and I stumbled upon this interesting article and idea.
The author recommends using your other hand when using your mouse. The author explains how it helps brain function.
Another article shares this added benefit, less wear, pain and fatigue on your dominant hand.
So I tried it for about 10 seconds and was frustrated. I am EXTREMELY right dominant and very uncoordinated. I can not even do simple aerobic steps without tripping over myself. But I have decided to take some time and implement this new habit. I'll just pretend I have a cast or something on my right hand.
Let me know what you think about this?
Are you going to try it?
Would it be easier on left-handed people because they are quite adroit in using various products in a "right-handed" world?

WARNING!

Watch out for this scam!

I hate for people to forward those pesky "warnings" as much as anyone, but this one is important! I hope I'm not too late. Send this warning to everyone on your e-mail list.

If someone comes to your front door saying they are conducting a survey on deer ticks that carry Lyme Disease, and asks you to take your clothes off and dance around to shake off the ticks, do not do it!

IT IS A SCAM; they only want to see you naked.

I wish I'd gotten this yesterday. I feel so stupid now...

Tea set

I REALLY want to make a set like this for Norah and my nieces. If anyone has a pattern or knows of one, please let me know where I can get it?

Our Lovies

My Felting Creations

These are my fun, mindless creations!
I just sit and knit until I think the dimensions are okay. Then I stitch up the sides, leave a flap and felt it in my washing machine. I have a front loader washing machine and they do not felt well at all. However, it works find for these smaller pieces because I can let them spin. NOTHING spins like a top loader!!! I can also further SHOCK my felt by dumping boiling water on it, with a wee bit of laundry soap, agitating it and hitting it with a potato masher and then rinse it in COLD, COLD water. After I shape it and let it dry for a few days I make a design on the front with dry needle felting.
Confession time: The top one was SO ugly after I felted. I thought, "How can I send this to someone??" I added the green because that was her favorite color. I didn't have the green when I started the pouch. So my mind went crazy thinking how I could make it more appealing. I added more green with overhand stitching on the sides and then tried different needle felting designs. Nothing was looking good so I ripped them out. I turned to beads for some sparkle on the sides, Rissy picked out the orange button and that is what inspired me to add the sun. Then came the sparkled spirals. The bead work took a bit of time, but it was relaxing to sit and hand sew during American Idol. :-0
It is the pouch I get the MOST compliments on. Isn't that funny! Just like an ugly duckling story.

These were my first coin purses:

I love the two tone blue one and how nice the flap curved. The ribbing in the taupe one is cool, but I don't recall if I did that on purpose or not.

Purse Swap

This is the purse I sent for the Swapbot Purse Swap. She likes Asian things and for some reason this purse looked Asian to me, maybe it is the tiger paw. It is a high quality purse and well-made; I think it is classy looking in a hip sort of way. The recipient is a doula and when I saw this bag it also reminded me a wee bit of the black medical bags of old, so it seemed doubly fitting.

These are the goodies I put in her purse.



This is the purse and goodies I received for the purse swap. I think this purse is SO cute! Rissy tried to take it from me!
Purse swaps are hard for me to resist. Probably because it is so laborious to shop for purses. Additionally I get to try style I might not pick out for myself.

Birthday Flowers

I received these lovely flowers for my birthday.

My sweet Mom sent these to me. Carnations are one of my favorites and purple carnations are even better! I love it when Fed Ex comes to the door! :-)

Flowers in my yard

Here are some of the flowering delights in my otherwise mangy yard.



I LOVE lilacs. I wish they bloomed longer.

birdies hanging out

hanging out
Originally uploaded by drewzel.

Birdie Brooch

Pregadeira Pássaro Diva
Originally uploaded by Carla M. (Birra de Sono).

This little birdie would look nice on my purse.

Miss Lemoncello

Miss Lemoncello
Originally uploaded by Alicia Paulson.

Maybe someone who loves me can make me a
sweet birdie in a cage....
I'll put it in my upcoming inspiration room.