And the winner is.....

#25! (as chosen by my husband)
Anna from annabranfordwho said
"Ooh how lovely! What a gorgeous giveaway :)"

Congrats Anna!
Thanks for playing everyone. I'll have another some time soon. Bit of weekend fun.

Go check out Anna's blog. Nice things there.

It is sooo cold here! Wishing I had a fireplace. Winter storm warnings. ooo, I remember what a real storm was where I grew up on the coast of Newfoundland. Power out, neighbours over, eating food from the woodstove/fireplace or coleman propane stove. Kids playing outside during the day digging snow tunnels and forts. Yep, fun times. Now here, in this big city of Toronto, everyone is still expected to go to work. You dig out your street parking spot, leave and come back to find it with someone else's car in it. Yep, no fun here. But I have a friend from Nova Scotia coming to visit for a few days and a clean sewing room to get inspired in with many cups of tea!

Stay tuned!

Amanda

who wants one? - a giveaway!

I've been wanting to host a giveaway for some time now, but just didn't have anything new. Until yesterday!

A toadstool pouch made from a thick wool suiting with wool blend felt accents. The toadstools are from my QuicKutz dies and the scallop is just my scallop edge rotary cutter with holes punched by my crop-o-dile.

Oh looky here, what's this?

Oh, a little tea cozy...

With some of my favorite teas. Shall we have a cup together?

Just leave a message by Monday night. Nothing fancy. A simple hello will suffice. One entry per day. Become a follower, come back and put another comment saying so. That gets you 2.

Have a good one!
Amanda

young sewer

Today, my daughter got the sewing bug.

Bring me something to sew mama. Some buttons on some plastic canvas.

And a heart with a button. She was so hooked, she even sewed on the bench at school. Outside in the snow!

Much concentration to make her friend a birthday present before the school bell rang.

Ah, just in time.

Nice to see this come about. i wonder how long it will last. She amazes me, this growing girl. Reading, playing piano, dancing, being helpful in the kitchen and at school. yep, my youngest is growing up.

thanks for looking,
Amanda

trio of imperfection

The lesson of the day is... don't sew when you have a smashing headache!

Didn't feel like lying down, so I sat. quietly at the machine, slowly sewing. therapy of the best sort yes?
My By Hook & Thread tag is on the wrong side. backwards.
Got the tag right on this one, but the key fob is inside the pocket?!!

Zippy wallets are from Noodlehead. And here are some that I've made before here
Should have quit while I was behind....

The problem with them all is the placement of my tag. This little tea bag cozy comes from the book Pretty Little Cozies . Easy enough. except my own addition of the tag.

Still functional and a little laugh to whomever it is gifted to.

thanks for stopping by,
Amanda

Doll cape

Still sewing little things I can get completed in one go. Here is a cape from my friend's grandmother's pattern. the same set of doll things as thedoll sling .

Very easy.

Even easier with the serger for the ends. no folding, ironing and sewing for me. Just a zip zip with the serger. l.a.z.y.

Bit of velcro and ribbon for trim. done.

ciao,
AP

on the work table

A few stolen moments this weekend made this in the lineup"
weaving a mug rug perhaps. Neve got interested in this and did a smash up job.

I scored this crochet tank top at a thrift store last week, wasn't sure what to do with it.

As I was showing my husband, I turned the side seams as middle seams and then the straps made handles for a bag!
Done deal. here's the lining with a few pockets.


Very easy and thrifty.

Working on this project. it's making me loose my confidence as a precise sewer. Never thought I was, but I'm sure I have done better sewing than what the result of this came to be.

And a few bouts of this.. notice how blurry it is? running from it.


ciao

Fish Cakes Portuguese style

Two nights ago, we had salt fish for supper (salt cod). A common dish in both Newfoundland (me) and Portuguese (DH) cultures. In our house, that means fish cakes the next day!!!
It's a process much like the Croquetes here

Use leftover fish, potatoes, sometimes the leftover carrots and fresh chopped parsley. Apparently, this is important. An emergency market run was in order to get the parsley!

Mash it all up. We used the potato ricer for the potatoes. it made the cakes very "fluffy" compared to the usual mashed potatoes. nice. 2 spoons are used to shape the cakes into triangle shapes. You don't get to work alone in this kitchen. Always a little sous chef around.

With the fat fryer outside, (really, we don't eat that much fat fried food. just had 2 traditional treats in the same month. that's about all we fry, and hand cut fries) a little queue was getting started inside.

And leftovers the next day. It's hard to sit and eat a proper length meal with this type of food. When the first ones come out, there is a constant dipping into the bowl for more before we even get to the table. Everyone is full by the time we sit down!

We make fish cakes in Newfoundland also. But it is more chunky shaped in a hamburger patty shape and pan fried. My mama makes the best salmon cakes! yum.

And yes, they are even good cold!

Ciao,
Amanda

cell phone cozy

By joining the 21st century and the cell phone technology, I needed a cozy for my touch screen phone. I cut a cuff from a felted sweater and used it for awhile until I decided what to do with it.
Today, I knew what I wanted to do....

Here is the cozy opened...

A few squares (i couldn't cut a diamond. How do you cut an elongated diamond?)

And a few machine stitches...

A seam on the inside, which I serged. score for sergers. Can you tell I'm still excited about it after a year?

And you get a pretty pile of phone cozies to give to your friends. Yes, Char, you can have one. Whatever is left over after Michele chooses. unless, I see you first?!!?

Oh, the back. Don't forget to show the back.


Thanks for looking,
Amanda

fabric baby blocks

A dreary, warmish, rainy day. thus poor photos!
But I'm not in the mood to retake them, so here ya go!
All those pregnant friends I talked about in the fall are having their babies now. Some prezzies are in order.
The large one was cut at 4.5 square out of cotton fabric. I put a letter C on it for the baby's name, reinforcing it with some heavy iron on interfacing and a small zigzag stitch. I put 3 jingle bells in some mesh, much like an onion bag, sewed it shut and put it inside the stuffing.

The middle size is cut at 4 inches SQ out of fleece. I stitched some shapes on it to give a sort of relief. I like it. To keep the shape of the block when stuffing, I ironed heavy interfacing on the squares before I sewed the shapes and the places together. It works much better than leaving it plain. In this one, I put some beads in a small watchmaker's tin from Lee Valley and taped it shut. it makes a great sound.

The last cube is cut 3 inches SQ, I think. I made it last year when I ordered my first batch of felt from Feltorama. It's a bit of a joke, as when I was making it in the park, the mother of the baby asked what i was doing it for. Why was I making a block? She'll get a chuckle that I had her in mind. At least, i hope so. This one has a cat toy with a bell inside and is stuffed with wool roving.


A few little things to put with a welcome baby gift.

Ciao,
Amanda

balsam fir

Don't you miss the scent of your Christmas tree? Here's my secret. When we're taking down the tree, I sweep the needles and save some in a dish. Then I put a new bag in the vacuum cleaner and pick up the rest. Now, whenever I vacuum, the warmth of the motor in the machine warms up the needles and gives a familiar reminder of the family time of this past Christmas. The kids are getting older, they bring much joy, imagination, laughter to our home.

And when I don't feel like hauling out the vacuum cleaner to reminisce, I just give this bag a little squish and smell it again.

Stamps are from Stampin' up! many years ago. I don't know if it is still in the catalog.

I have been doing a bit of sewing this weekend. A few small projects in the works, just perfect to get back into the swing of things. Oh, and a nice clean sewing room without all those threads on the floor! yes, I can see the floor. bonus. The little foyer/vestibule at the top of the attic stairs was transformed into a lounge area today with popcorn, goodies and a movie. Lollipops. Don't underestimate the power of a lolli. I always make sure we have some on a long car ride. Keeps them busy for a bit.
k, I'm getting a bit off topic. And while I am, how 'bout those shoulder pads in the Golden Globes!

Ciao,
Amanda

Happy Birthday buddy

What to do with a 7 year old? Seriously! He's 7.

Which explains the lack of crafting. Preparing for the big day. And the cleaning up of the big day. And maybe put a dent in the big christmas sewing mess from the rush. Still don't have that done yet. Then. maybe then, I'll get some desire to sew. and craft.

But stick around, never know when the bug will hit.

Cheers,
Amanda

the olden days

here is the kid's new favorite toy

yep, hubby came home with a rotary phone that was at his work. they were so focused on it. And a learning curve to dial all the way to the end. Remember when you would have to redial all the numbers if you didn't get the rotor all the way to the end. I had a phone number with 2 zeros. Man, mess that up and it was a long time to call home.

We plugged it in, it worked. the kids called their uncle. Then they realized they were stuck where they were. No wandering or bringing the phone to someone else. Remember that phones used to have their own table and a chair? We should have called it. I'm sure the bell ringing will bring some reactions.

Continuing on with our trip down memory lane, here is my grandmother's knitting needle case

I haven't opened it up in a few years. I remember taking all the big needles out back then.

I was wondering why my nan had so many of the same sized needles and then remembered that she used to teach classes at the community college. I think she was a senior then. Oh to talk to her now that I'm in the sewing frame of mind. she made so many wonderful things. I'm sure there would be many tips.

It's nice to own some of her treasures. I always felt special as I was her namesake.

thanks for looking,
Amanda