My New Favorite Photo

We call her our little Mexican jumping bean. She jumps everywhere! I asked her to say "pickle"... and she said it with so much enthusiasm, it lifted her off the ground. The dress is on sale in the store. I've marked it down a bit as I was disappointed that the logo is a little askew and there are letter on the shoulder (when cutting, I didn't quite clear the words on the back). But, it is still a cool dress as it makes it more obvious that it's a recycled tshirt. It's a great deal!

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More Muffin Tin Monday!

Today, I was able to make the same lunch for both kids (yay!). It has a tiny Asian flare to it.

We have grapes (I slice these... otherwise, if I serve them whole, Alyssa won't eat them. I'm not sure why), corn on the cob from last night (we grilled it - yummy!), edamame, rice, udon noodles, and imitation crab (Robbie's favorite).

I missed dairy - so they are each having a glass of milk to wash it all down. Another fun Muffin Tin Monday!

Katy from Sycamore Stirrings as set up a Flickr group for the muffin tin pictures. Check it out here!

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A Sunny Weekend

Yesterday was a fabulously productive day. Alyssa and I spent the first part of the day together thrift shopping and running an errand at Joann's. We found some great shirts and some nice bright colors... so watch for some new things coming soon!

We also made our way to the EtsyRAIN craft show in Ballard. Conveniently, we were there at lunch time and also enjoyed some BBQ. I was pleased that this craft fair was a large majority of new vendors that I hadn't seen or met before. And of course, it was also nice to see those that I do know.

I even made a purchase! I bought this cute little zipper wallet from Population One. If you read my blog on a regular basis, you'll remember that I had blogged about her after seeing a Flickr photo of hers! It was nice to meet her in person and to check out her wonderful purses! I am truly impressed with the quality, craftsmanship and creativity that goes into each of her bags. If you haven't already, you should check out her shop! The one I bought is called the Emma and has a clear little window in the front for your license.

One other seller that I met - and I almost bought from (she didn't have the owl skirt in Lyssie's size) is York Patty. Her kids clothes are SOOOO cute! And can you believe that she has five kids (or was it six?). Regardless, I'm not sure how she does it as I have trouble with my two! The skirt that I've pictured was another one of my favorites.

After the fair, we came home, spent some time lounging outside in the nice weather... and then I got to work! I managed to cut out several sets of my Color I-Spy Bean Bag sets for the Mill Creek fair (lets hope I can get them sewn up) and a rainbow of colors cute out for more Emotional Bean Baggage sets (you can see all the fun colors in the photo above behind the wallet). Each of the craft fairs I've done, I've had people ask if I brought the I-Spy bean bags... I figured this time, I should have some available... plus it's about time I get them listed in the store again.

It's supposed to be another hot day today. I'm looking forward to spending some time in our air conditioned house cutting out some more things so I can concentrate on sewing all week. Today my plan is to cut up the scraps from yesterday into Scrappy Little Monsters. I also hope to cut out some more capes and dresses. It should be a busy week!

Enjoy the rest of your weekend! Oh - and I'm looking forward to Muffin Tin Monday! Yippee!

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What are your plans this weekend?

I'm planning on going to the EtsyRAIN craft show in Ballard to support all my craft friends! It's sure to be a great show... and there is going to be food! BBQ, yum!

This show will feature many artists that weren't at the last EtsyRAIN (PSIA) show in Edmonds... so I'm looking forward to seeing some new faces, meeting some new people... and maybe I'll even pick up a thing or two for myself.

It's sure to be a great event, so stop by and check it out!

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T-shirt Yarn Tutorial

Okay, so I've been having fun with my kids the past few days. I always enjoy finding ways for them to help me out. They love it and we spend time together while accomplishing something productive.

The latest way I found to have them help me out is to make t-shirt yarn with the TONS of t-shirt scraps I've accumulated. It was tons of fun... and useful! The kids also helped me make a tutorial (fun in itself).

So here it is - my second tutorial!



Materials:

• Tshirt(s) - I use scraps from the tshirt dresses I make, but I can see myself doing this with tshirts that have stains. Heavily painted tshirts will work, but you need to cut the paint out as it will not stretch.
• Scissors (or Rotary Cutter, Mat & Ruler)

Step 1:
Cut the tshirt into strips (between 1/2 to 5/8 of an inch is the width that I use. I use scissors because my scraps are all different sizes... and I like the non-uniform look. You can cut right through the seams. Be sure that you are cutting the tshirt horizontally, not vertically as it will not stretch correctly.

Step 2:
Pull each piece tightly (I have both kids demonstrating this in the photos - click on photos to enlarge). You need to pull it tight enough that the pieces curl. If any of the tshirt seams come apart while you are pulling, just tie the ends together and keep pulling.

Step 3:
Tie all the pieces end to end. Pull each knot tightly leaving about 1/2 an inch on the ends.

** I have done this in the reverse where I've tied all pieces together, then pulled it before I wound it into a ball. Either way works. The kids did get them pulled tighter (perhaps because they weren't concerned with pulling the knots out) and this made for a thinner yarn. **

Step 4:
Roll your yarn into a ball and it's ready for your project! We made a scarf with two other textured yarns. I plan on doing this again and having the kids help me make them wash cloths for the bath.

They are ready to make more... I just need to find the time to make more strips. This ball of yarn was made from the left over pieces of binding that I had made for dresses and capes. It made the scarf above (with a little left over). The scarf is about 70 inches long and 3 inches wide (5 rows). I used the largest crochet hook I could find.

I've started listing these scarves in the On A Whimm store. For now, I'm keeping them out of the NueToMe store because they aren't made completely of recycled items.

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