TUTORIAL: Table Setting Placemat

This blog has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and The Coca-Cola Company. All opinions are mine alone. #BestSummerMemories #CollectiveBias

As a family we don't dine out often, but we make dinners special by eating together and listening to music while we eat. And in the Summer we do it outside! Of course The Peanut sets the table for us and she still needs cues where to place the glass, the napkin, the fork and knife. So I created these happy, Summer-ready placemats with subtle cues for table setting. Now you can, too!

TUTORIAL: On-the-Go Diaper Caddy & Changing Pad

Sew a portable changing pad with dipes & wipes storage built right in!

My little sister is a Mommy! She has been for about three months now. I've already sewn some adorable itty bitty things, but this month is her birthday and I wanted to sew something just for the new mom. Or at least, something for her new title. That she can also share with the new dad. Let's just say I got an idea in my head about three months ago and this birthday month gave me a good reason to actually sew it. You can, too!

This blog has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #SkinCareForBaby #CollectiveBias

TUTORIAL: Felt & Pom-Pom Garland

Is there a blank space in your home crying out for some festive cheer? Do you need one more something that you just can't find in the stores? How about this contemporary Felt & Pom-Pom Garland: super fast, machine-sewn, and you can customize it to match your seasonal decor!

PICTORIAL: Christmas Forest Pillow

Christmas is my most best favorite AWESOMEST time of the year! I can never get enough music! Or lights! Or decorations! [Mr. Wren and I were even married during the Christmas season just so we could have the music, lights, and decorations as part of our ceremony. True story.] Today I’m starting my Christmas celebrating by joining Deanna from Sew McCool for her 12 Days of Christmas Holiday Blogger Challenge. I'm sharing a pictorial for a custom pillow (or print) with a Forest of Christmas Trees to bring the holiday into your home.

TUTORIAL: Hand Sanitizer Jacket

Always have sanitizer at hand perfectly coordinated with your accessories when you sew up this Hand Sanitizer Jacket.

It's that time of the year, when the Halloween decorations are still up but the seasonal music station is already playing the Christmas tunes. That time of the year when you realize the gift list is longer than you thought (how many teacher's does The Peanut have?!) and your grand plans of going all hand-made are already slipping away before the turkey has even been purchased. I'm here to help with a simple, seriously quick little project that is perfect for teachers, new moms, workplace grab bags, and stockings everywhere. Pull some indoor/outdoor home dec out of the remnant bin, grab a few metal buttons and coordinating elastic, then pull up a chair and follow along step by step to sew a custom jacket for your travel hand sanitizer. You'll have a dozen presents checked off your list before the last leaf falls.

TUTORIAL: Asymmetrical Color-Blocking on Knits

The calendar flipped to October and the air magically turned chillier this weekend, at least in our little corner of the world it did. Time to break out the long sleeves and hoodies! Knit long sleeved tees are the staples of The Peanut's wardrobe (mine, too) once the weather turns cooler. I still prefer shopping for fabric in a brick an mortar so that  I can feel the fabric and see the color. Sadly, the knits necessary for tees are still underrepresented in our local stores. So I turn to appliques and color blocking to keep things interesting. I first put together this tutorial in August, so I'm excited The Peanut can actually wear the top now. And as long as I've pulled it out of the drawer for her, let me pull it out for you, too.

TUTORIAL: Pocket Tissue Pack Cover

Sew up this quick, self-binding Pocket Tissue Pack Cover to help you smile through the sniffles.

This month's tutorial is a quick one as I play catch up from a Summer's-full back-log. But it's one I needed. As we head back to school and into fall, I foresee many sniffles and runny noses. I'll stash a pack of pocket tissues in my bag and another in my coat pocket, so I whipped up these quick, self-binding pocket tissue packet covers from my scrap stash to make me smile every time I have to reach for one. And you can, too.

TUTORIAL: Clear View Crochet Hook Case

I loved my previous crochet hook case. I loved it because it was crocheted for me by my kid sister. I loved that I could see at a glance the size printed on each hook. I loved that it had a center pocket for other crochet tools (scissors, tape measure, and the like). And I loved that it matched my project basket. But I also hated my previous crochet hook case. The hooks fell out of it so easily that it barely did its job. (Sorry, Kid.) I decided it was time to replace it. I wanted a new case about the same size as the old case; a case that would contain the hooks in a way I could still see the sizes and also have space for the other tools. I solved my problem by sewing my own case out of canvas and clear vinyl, and now you can, too.

TUTORIAL: Simple Mesh Bag

Sew a simple mesh bag without a zipper, great as reusable produce bags or anytime you use a gallon freezer bag for organizing.

Vacation is coming. I've been singing "Holiday Road" for a couple of weeks now. The Peanut is not amused. And it's almost time to pack. When I pack for The Peanut I use gallon plastic freezer bags. Into each bag goes one complete outfit (top, bottom, socks, undies). One bag per outfit. As many bags as days in our trip plus two (so a 7 day trip = 9 bags, because you never know). At one point I had thought of labeling them with the days of the week, but then I realized I needed the flexibility to switch a day's outfit based on weather or activity. So unlabeled bags go into the suitcase and each morning I can present two bags and let The Peanut choose her outfit for the day. At the end of the day the used clothes go back into the bag they came out of. Dirty clothes are separated from clean clothes and there's no digging through the bottom of the suitcase to find small socks. But the plastic bags get beat up. And buying new each time adds yet another expense to a trip. It was time for a reusable solution in the form of a simple mesh bag.

Of course these bags could also be used for keeping one's delicates safe in the laundry, containing your unmentionables in your drawer, and gathering your produce at the grocery store or farmers market. However you'd like to use them, you too can make your own zipper-less, drawstring-free mesh bag.

Accio Gillyweed, It's CraftingCon!

I’m the very first ever competitor in the brand new CraftingCon! I volunteered and was thrilled to receive my owl informing me I would compete with the theme of my choice, Harry Potter. I'm as excited and nervous as a Seeker facing her first Quidditch match.

You must see more! Head here to see the (winning!) post originally published at CraftingCon on Mae & K to view my full entry. See all the pictures taken by Great Lake on the grounds of Hogwarts, and read as I let my geek flag fly—or should I say, levitate—for all things Potter. Keep reading here as I go all Hermione into the details of creating a Triwizardly look.

TUTORIAL: Prop-Up Tablet Case

I love my Kindle. It's the best thing ever. I can throw it into my big tote and take a library of books with me wherever I go. As a known introvert, one of my favorite activities is taking myself out to lunch with a good book. Before, when I got to the table and dug my Kindle out, I used to have to brush off all the crumbs and junk from my tote (I really should clean that out), then I'd have to figure out what to prop it on so I could read hands-free: the ketchup bottle, the sugar packet holder, maybe a napkin roll if the waiter left an extra one on the table. I needed an envelope case. And I needed a portable stand.

I bet you do, too. Or maybe your mother does! This envelope case with a prop-up stand built right into the flap can be sewn to fit ANY tablet, and it's a quick afternoon project. There are still a few days to whip one up for the tech-savvy mama in your life.

TUTORIAL: Lined Canvas Tote

Create a fully-lined canvas tote with an outer pocket and reinforced bottom!

In the midst of sewing along with Project Run & Play, I took a detour to sew up this tote as a gift for a friend. I chose it because it can have big impact and yet it really is a quick project to put together once you have the cutting dimensions figured out. It just so happened I still had my sketch from the Tote of Protection with the numbers already jotted down. As long as I was already sewing the bag again, I thought I’d share the dimensions (and the directions) here.

TUTORIAL: Vinyl Lunch Bag

Mid-school-year The Peanut needed a new lunch bag, one that was easy for her to open and to fill herself. Luckily three-plus years of sewing backpacks and bags and totes have left me with a sizable collection of large scraps of canvas. I purchased remnant of clear vinyl, drew up a quick sketch enlarging the snack bag I made in January, and set to work sewing this lunch bag. You can, too!

TUTORIAL: Burrito Cuff PJ Pants

Making PJs for The Peanut is so satisfying. They are a quick sew and a chance to use the darling, seasonal quilting-cotton prints that greet me every time I walk into a fabric store. The first pair of pajamas I made for The Peanut were for Pajama Day at school on Halloween. I had just made a couple of pillow cases using the Burrito method. Inspired by that technique I decided to add an accent cuff to the bottom of her PJ pants. You can do it, too!