On the podcast this week, I forgot to put a link to our new sponsor.  Check them out!  They have a lot of great crafting kits.  I particularly like the “Driving Miss Daisy Gloves”.

Craft swaps are a great way to make something different, try a new technique, and be part of our crafting community.  What I love about swaps are that you get the chance to see someone elses work and see how they made the same craft as you.

This time around we are swapping tote bags.  Below are links to several sites with directions or tutorials on how to make different types of tote bags.  Choose any or all or make up your own - whatever suits your fancy.  All bags will be shipped to me and I will swap and ship different ones back to you.

• Craftster – Reversable Tote Bag
• Tiny Happy – Shoulder Bag
• Mama’s Pocketbook – Pink October Basic Tote Bag
• DIY Bag Patterns – Rag Bag Tote Bag
• Sew Mama Sew – Classic Tote Bag
• Got Fabric – 6 Pocket Tote Bag

Here are the RULES:

1. Send me an email, bryelynn@sewstitchcreate.com telling me that you want to participate.  I will respond with my mailing address.
2. Make at least one tote bag.  You can make as many as you wish, but we this swap is so new and we have so few participants, I recommend not doing more than three. 
3. Fabric used to make the bags must be of good quality.  There are no restrictions on color or fabric design.
4. The size of the tote bag must be larger than 12″ but smaller than 21″ wide.
5. Mail the tote bag(s) to me with a self address stamped return envelope.  The weight for postage of the return envelope should be the same or close to the one you shipped to me.
6. I must recieve the bag(s) no later than May 24, 2010.
7. I will swap out the bag(s) with other crafters bag(s), returning to you the same number of bags you shipped. I will try to match the sizes so you get a bag close to the same size you sent 
8. I will ship out no later than May29, 2010. 
9. If you live internationally, you are welcome to participate. 

Grab the Swap Button for your site. 

Help promote the swap!

<a href=”http://www.sewstitchcreate.com/2010/04/14/tote-bag-swap/” mce_href=”http://www.sewstitchcreate.com/2010/04/14/tote-bag-swap/” target=”_top”><br /> <img src=”http://www.sewstitchcreate.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/Tote-Bag-Swap.png” mce_src=”http://www.sewstitchcreate.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/Tote-Bag-Swap.png” width=”125″ height=”125″ alt=”Tote Bag Swap” border=”0″/></a>

I finally finished writing out all my info on how to start your own podcast.  You can find it on the page tabs at the top of the website or click here.

It is really wordy but I wanted to give you all the information.  Please don’t let it scare you.

I hope some of you out there grab this info and act on it.  I really feel like our quilting community needs more podcasts.  It is a great way to get more people involved in our craft.

Email me with any of your questions.

Don’t forget to join our Easter Egg Swap!  So far we have too few people to make it a good swap.  Making the eggs does not take long and they add a great holiday decoration to your table.

For details on the swap Click Here!

Congratulations to Annette!! She is our winner of the tool necklace.  Annette has a great blog at http://fabricateandmira.wordpress.com/  Check it out.  Annette, email me your address and your winnings will be shipped out this weekend.

I have had a very busy couple of days.  Monday was Girls Scouts; I got volunteered to chaperone the upcoming field trip.  Yeah.  Can you hear the excitement…..Dustin says that “it is not about what you want to do, it is about how happy it will make her”.  I really hate getting parenting advice from my 15 year old.  Makes me want to throw him in a dungeon.  Anyway, by the time we got home I was so tired I crashed on the couch.

Last night, I got stuck in the office late.  When I got home I did not want to touch my computer.  My apologies, this is why the winner was announced late.  I played on my iPod for a bit and they jumped on my machine. 

I finally finished Morgan’s apron.  I cut out the body of this apron 6 months ago, but I did not know how to make my own binding – hence the binding tutorial.  So last night I added the binding and a pocket and finished it off.

My “loving” husband says that this apron will probably get used more than mine, since Morgan will be wearing it.  She will cook more than me.

I have some scraps of the pink and quite a bit of the butterfly material.  Any ideas on what to make with it?

Enter to win this cute little tool holder. There are many ways your name can be entered, and entered multiple times:

1. For each comment you leave between now and March 7th.
2. For emailing me a picture to feature on the podcast.
3. For calling me and leaving a voice mail

A random winner will be drawn on March 8th.

Tonight I am participating in a Friday Night Sew in. I have my comfy clothes on and a fresh cup of coffee; Morgan is at grandma’s, Dustin in hiding out in his room and Rick is on the Xbox. I have the living room to myself.

Join me! Check out the details at http://www.handmadebyheidi.blogspot.com.

Sorry – no podcast this week.  Here’s the story:

I really did not do much this week.  I worked on my sock; got about 80% of it done.  I am really psyc’d to start on a new knitting project, so I am working quickly on that.  I also worked on my embroidery software, trying to digitize the podcast logo and my company logo.  It really is A LOT to learn that software and make it stitch out nice.  Right now, it is just s0-s0; not perfect.

So that was it.  I probably could have still gone on with the show……if, I had a topic.  But it didn’t.

A lot of the week was spent researching vacation spots on the internet and going back and forth with my husband about where to go.  Planes, hotels, tourist attractions….. my mind was spinning and by Saturday, I could not stand to be at the computer another minute.

Forgive me.  In the meantime, I uploaded the United States template I made for my DC Quilt.  If you want to make something similar, this may come in handy.  Enjoy!

DC Quilt – United States Block

We will talk again next week.

Any topic ideas?

Tonight my husband spilled YooHoo on my Frolic blocks.

I had them sitting on my table, waiting to be sewn together once my machine is working again.  He has a really bad habit of using my sewing table as a rest for his drinks.

Luckily, it is all washable and I intended on it to be washed.  Right now, I have rinsed them and hopefully I got it all out.  The are drying on my Sham Wow!!! lol

Maybe he will learn – but I doubt it.

Our new home came with a “pet”.

This pigeon is living on our roof.  He rarely leaves.  The neighbors have told us that he is the neighborhood pigeon and spends time on all the houses, but as you can see, there is enough poop to prove where he lives.  I believe he is a homing pigeon, so I have no clue how to get rid of him.

He really isn’t doing any harm, but I don’t know much about pigeons.  Will he peck a hole in my roof?  Will all the poop damage something?

It has been freezing in Florida and this poor guy is out in the middle of it.  I was truly surprised to still see him in his spot when the temps dropped below 20 degrees.

Rick my hamburgers for dinner tonight. My only job was to cut up tomatos and lettuce. What a perfect opportunity to use my new mandolin.

Here is the disaster I made. Tomato Mush.

I can’t figure out what I did wrong. Maybe a mandolin is not meant for a soft veggie.

I better stick to the Easy Bake Oven! Morgan and I did melted chocolate in her EB. We made chocolate covered bananas and peanut butter for desert.

Yesterday, a receptionist at a business I frequent gave me an idea for a quilt. She is so sweet and friendly, I would like to bring her idea to life for her. She thought about making a quilt out of buttons – or having a quilt with buttons all over it.

The idea has been stewing in may head and has morphed into several different designs. But in the end, it always comes down to needing several hundred buttons. No doubt making this quilt too expensive to bring to life.

So here is my shout out to the community. If you have some unwanted buttons lying around your sewing space, please consider donating them to this project. I will take buttons of any shape, color, or size; cheap or expensive; old or new. As the project unfolds, I will share it on the podcast and blog.

If you can help, send an email to BryeLynn@sewstitchcreate.com and I will email you back my mailing address (at the new house! I should be moved in within the next week!).

Thank you.

Just a quick podcast today to announce the contest for a FREE seat in Annie Smith’s next online class.

Check out this new podcast – Mirkwooddesigns – Adventures in Creativity

Check out this “New to me” podcast – Creative Mom

My new coffee pot

This is the cutting board my son made me.

I canned my Jalapenos.

Here is my harvest

What they looked like while they were soaking

What they looked like before processing

After processing – see how much the water reduced.

Check out my new sewing chair!  Best of all – it was FREE!!

Remember me saying that this bad economy has hit my work particularly hard?  Well, one of our plants shut down about a year ago.  I had to go over to the abandoned plant today to search for some paperwork.  While I was there, I raided the offices for goodies.  I picked up some much needed things that I needed for work – then I spotted this chair.

Yes, I did get permission to take it – I was not stealing!  lol  It is practically brand new.  Not sure if it is real leather, but I will find out the first time I sit in it with shorts.  It is very comfy – my neck will thank me!

Fast Tube by Casper

Fast Tube by Casper

This just hit me today.

When I first learned to embroider, I was taught to always use a hoop.  It holds the fabric taunt and makes the stitches neater and tighter.  I have been adding embroidery accents to my applique blocks.  I just realize that I never hoop them.  I just hold them in my hand and stitch.

Hey – Quilt Police – Am I doing this wrong?!?!?!

Everything seems to be coming out good.  In fact, some of the accents are so close to the edge, I don’t think I could have hooped it.

Drinking enough water is essential to be healthy.  I have never been too good at making sure I am getting enough.  Lately, my skin has not been looking too good and I realized that I was barely drinking two glasses of water a day, let alone the recommended 8. 

This weekend I picked up two 33 oz bottles of water at Wal-mart.  (It was actually sparkling water – but who cares, I only wanted the bottles).  My goal is to drink both bottles by the end of one day – 66oz total, right at 8 glasses of water.  I refill them with tap water and put them in the fridge for the next day.  Once a week, I throw them out and get new ones so bateria doesn’t start growing.

Sorry everyone – my website is not coorperating.  I recorded the podcast already and I am having trouble uploading it.  I have been trying all day.  I will troubleshoot more tomorrow.

This is the kind of day I have been having.  I am not surprised.

I finally got my new machine. My husband is on the way home with it right now. While I wait, I thought I would share a TST (Time Saving Tip).

When you buy thread for your project, always buy two spools. One for stitching with and one for winding your bobbins. I hate it when I have unthread my machine; wind a bobbin; and then re-thread the machine. Every time I do this, it is a 5 minute delay and I lose my rythem.

Many new machines have a dedicated bobbin winding motor (like my new one!!!). But the “Sidewinder” is a great notion to use for bobbin winding. Having the extra spool of thread allows you to use these tools without unthreading your machine.

You can also pre-wind bobbbins – this never works for me, I still run out!

My machine did not come in today – I have one more day of waiting.  I did stop by and pick up accessories!  I got the circular attachment, the ditch quilting foot, clothsetter, bobbins, needles, and 14 different colored embroidery threads.  I am ready and waiting. 

They also gave me the digitizing software – at least I have something to play with while I wait.

Here is a video of my new machine

Fast Tube by Casper

Here is a video that has been passed around at work after a seminar.  Not this exact video, but it is done the same way.  It’s a neat trick.

Fast Tube by Casper

I had a very busy, crafty week.  I didn’t have time to organize a planned topic, so, instead of skipping a week I thought I would share everything that went on.

Thank you to Nicole for sharing her pictures.  Nicole took one of her husband’s old shirts and made this dress for her daughter.  LOVE IT!!!  She got the idea from Crafster.org.  Leave a comment and let Nicole know what you think.  I love the idea and I may be running to the thrift store to pick up an old shirt to try it!

Tiffany shared with us how she trys to break the stereotype of only older people craft.  She always brings her crafts with her – knits in public as much as she can.  Join her – help spread the word and change this stereo type.

Picture from the baseball game – here is my WONDERFUL husband; he’s a cutie, isn’t he?

Picture of the card catalog I swiped from the junk mail pile at work.  Great place to get fabric postcard ideas.

This is my sewing table ready and waiting for my new machine.  One more day!!!  This picture does not give this table justice.  I love this table so much.  It is the perfect size not to be too overwhelming in a room.  The “L” shape is perfect and very comfortable to work at.  It doesn’t have much storage, but everything can’t be perfect.  the fact that It doesn’t have storage allows me to sit where my cutting mat is, if needed.

Everything I bought at JoAnn’s. 

My first knitting attempt.  I knitted a little, I purled a little, then I stockinette stiched a little.  See Friday’s post for a picture of the supplies I picked up at Hobby Lobby.

Today, I started to teach myself how to knit.  I took a trip to Hobby Lobby and JoAnn’s.  I picked up the “Taught Myself to Knit” kit – the same kind I got when I taught myself to Crochet.  I also picked up a few free sock patterns and 4 skeins of yarn.  The yarn is super soft.

Right now I am working on learning how to cast on….wish me luck!

This week I just caught you up on what I have been doing and how my projects are going.  No topic, but plenty of craftiness.

My traveling with my stitching went very well.  Here are some pictures of how I organized everything.

I wound my thread onto bobbins and they all fit into a pin case. I left the ends hanging out so that I could get thread without opening up the case.

I used a small piece of material to organize some pins and needles.

I kept my scissors on lanyards.

Everything fit into a gallon size zip-lock bag.

Here is my lastest block finished or the Frolic Quilt.  I did this while on the road to DC.

Here are the blocks I received from the Facebook Quilt Block Swap.

Check out my daughter’s “Flower Party”!

Don’t forget to answer our question of the week.

Email me pictures of your projects and your ideas of what you would like to see in an iPhone App.

I am back from vacation.  we had a wonderful time in our nation’s capitol.  It is a great vacation spot – especially if you are interested in our history.

My family is not very fond of waiting while I go into quilt shops, so unfortunately, I did not get to go fabric shopping.

I did find one quilt in the museum of American History.  But my husband quickly dragged me away.  I did snap these few pictures.  I didn’t get to read too much about it, but I do know that it was from the World Fair (I just don’t know what year).  I don’t think you can see it in the picture, but it is all hand stitched. 

I spent Independance Day on the lawn of the Washington Monument, waiting for the fireworks to begin.  My five year old took this picture of me with my stitching.  What a perfect day – sewing with the White House and monuments all within view.

I am on Vacation in Washington, DC. Sorry that I can’t post a podcast until well after July 7th. You can view pictures from my travels at www.flickr.com my profile is under “BryeLynn”.

I hope everyone is enjoying their summer and for those in the state – have a great independance day!! We will be watching the fireworks in our nation’s capital – Awesome!

Everything in my life has a purpose, even if that purpose is just to make me smile! Here are few things recently that made me smile.

 My handmade coffee cup.  I picked this up at a craft fair about five years ago.  I love it!  It has groves that fit my fingers perfectly.

When my kids get along.  Nothing is sweeter to me than this picture.  I wish every moment of everyday was like this.

This week we talked about Whitework Quilting.  This topic was a suggestion from one of my listeners.

Sorry I missed posting a podcast last week.  I forgot my headset microphone at work.  I plan on pre recording a few episodes so that if it happens again, I am more prepareded.

Thank your for all the comments and suggestions.

• Allison Rosen, Lisa, Debby, Tammy, Betsy, Grammie2Maddie
• Jan, Rhonda and Village tunes for leaving comments on iTunes

Special thanks to Emily for sharing her work and suggestion for an online quilt class.  Check out the website www.AllPeopleQuilt.com.  They have online video classes; some for under $10 a month. 

This is the project that Emily shared.  The pattern was from the Quilt Sampler Magazine.  It is machine pieced, hand appliqued and hand quilted.  I think this is absolutely beautiful.  Please leave comments and share your thoughts on Emily’s work.

Facebook - if you send a friend request, please send me a message telling me you know me through my website.

New Quilting App for the iPod touch and iPhone – seach for it “QuiltFab”.  It tells you how much fabric you need for binding, backing,a nd borders.

If you want to make money freelancing administrative work – send me an email and I will pass on what I know. 

I found Fons & Porter’s and Quilting Arts TV shows on my local cable.  Plus some great sewing shows.  Search your PBS and set up your recorder.

I need to crochet some baby booties for an upcoming shower.  If you have any easy patterns, send me an email and point me in the right direction.

Quilt shop visit – look what I got!!!!!

Question of the week results:

• 30 votes
• over 75% do not belong to a guil
• Will do a show on how to start a guild – we need to promote our craft!

Topic this week was whitework quilting, we reviewed what I covered in the articles posted this week as well as I preferred techniques

Check out Terri’s Whitework Tutorial

Here are some links to whitework patterns:

• Colonial Quilts
• Forest Quilting
• Jo’s Place
• Red Leaf Sales
• Victoriana Quilt Designs

Create your own Motif:

[
drafting motifs from Adam Chenevert on Vimeo.]

Book about Whitework Quilting and the authors video:

Fast Tube by Casper

Whitework is a type of whole cloth quilting.  This process uses one piece of fabric as the quilt top.  When you quilt with white thread on white fabric it is called “whitework”.  When completed, instead of the patchwork being the main focus of the quilt, the quilting itself is the highlight.  On the flip side, needlework can be called white work when white thread, floss, or yarn is used on a white background.

This style of quilting was first seen during the 17^th century.  Also known as Marseilles quilts, from the area in France where they were often seen, white work has remained popular in the quilting community.  In modern times, these quilts are also called trapunto or stuffed quilts.  This can be misleading; not all white work is stuffed and not all stuffed quilts are white work.

The quilting in a whitework piece is generally very close with intricate designs.  The quilter plans and places the larger elaborate quilting patterns first, adds some boarder patterns and fills in the background with a decorative grid.  The real beauty of the piece does not come out until it is washed; after washing a whitework piece the decorative quilting stands out and is almost mesmerizing.  The time, effort and attention to detail really shows.

There are several stitching styles that can be used when working with whitework; these include regular quilting, cording, stuffing (trapunto), candle-wicking, embroidery, drawn work, pulled fabric, or stump work.  With an arsenal of stitching styles available, the variety of whitework quilting is limitless.

Unfortunately, I do not have copyrights to any photos so that I can share this exquisite technique.  However, I found several websites for you to explore.

• Webshots
• Region of York Quilter’s Guild
• Quilter’s Muse Virtual Museum
• Dream Weaver’s Quilts
• The Purl Bee
• NY Times
• Forgotten Arts Quilting

Plus, this is a great book about the history of whitework quilting.

Check it out!!  I have joined the Facebook and Twitter revolution. 

I am super excited.  When I first joined Facebook, I found out that almost my entire family is on there.  So even though they are over a 1,000 miles away, I now feel closer.  I may even connect with some of my High School Alumni.

Anyway – click the links to the right and add me as a friend to Facebook and follow me on twitter.  I even have the two connected so twitter updates Facebook.  (time management!!!).  Next I am off to update my iPod so I can do my tweets while I am on the go.

One more thing.  I had to change my RSS feed.  This was due to an iTunes issue.  If you subscribe via iTunes you are fine, but if you are subscribing to the blog for a blog reader, bloglines, google reader, etc….. you may have to resubscribe if you are not getting the latest posts.

More crafty goodness next time and a new podcast tomorrow.  Have a great day!

Early this morning I went outside to get something out of my car and there were three peacocks strolling down the street.  I live on the edge of a National Forest and this is only the second time in 14 years that I have seen peacocks in our neighborhood.  And it is a close community – each lot is less than 1/4 acre – I think it is strange to see these birds around a busy neighbor hood.

Anyway, I ran in the house so I could share it with you.  My camera, I did not realize, was still attached to my computer.  When I grabbed it and ran, all went flying.  By the time I got back outside, they were headed to my neighbor’s backyard.  So the picture isn’t the greatest.

While I was waiting and hoping for them to come closer or at least to show their feathers, I thought about quilting.  Peacock feathers are so beautiful, don’t you think they would make a gorgeous quilt.  Think about it…this is a picture I got from Microsoft Office.  We could piece together the circles and bird’s body, making the pattern so the circles get closer together towards the center.  The details can be accomplished with quilting (in metallic thread!)

 After walking around the neighbor’s yard, the turned and went down the street toward’s the main road ~ just like three friends taking a stroll.