Snap Bag Success and an EPIC FAIL!

Our family gathered at our home this past weekend to celebrate three birthdays & Mother's Day. I'd actually already visited my Mom on Mother's Day & gave her some cloth napkins I'd sewn up, but since I was on a snap-bag-making roll, I whipped one of those up for her too :)

Butterflies for my SIL, and the blueish for my MIL

The Hair Dresser for my oldest daughter, and Daisies for Mom

Penn State for my younger daughter, and Musical Notes for me

This pattern by Stitchin' Sisters for these "Snap Happy I" bags is easy to follow, and they're great fun to make (ie: fairly immediate gratification.) As you can see, they're perfect for those novelty fat quarters that seem to breed sorta like the piles of dirty laundry in my house!

The secret to their snap closure is a metal tape measurer inserted into the casing! Below is a pic of someone demonstrating how to open it using the flaps.

These fit nicely in a purse, tote, diaper bag, whatever... I like to hide my "girl supplies" in mine, but I've heard gals use them for make-up, pens/paper, medication, money, etc.

So those were a success. Now my EPIC FAIL....

I started with my blue tote of scrap fabric (if you look closely you can see that Stan Stan the Hairy Man climbed into it)...

Found some darks, some lights & cut them into 1/2" strips, not really caring how long they were -- and really, truly DID consult the pattern shown, "Get Hooked 2" by Grizzly Gulch Gallery. Was attempting to make a small table runner as shown...

Sewed all the many strips together, opting to go light, dark, light, dark, and so on.

Rolled them into a nifty fabric ball & began crocheting.

And this is what I was left with by the time I'd run out of strips that had been that nifty fabric ball...

Does this resemble the shown runners, placemats, center pieces on the front of that there pattern.... ANYTHING?? How 'bout a banana boat or the bottom of a crocheted slipper?!?!?

*FAIL*

I obviously didn't understand WHEN exactly to put the extra stitches in, thereby making the "corners". I did do those extra stitches in what I thought were the right places, but well, you can see how that turned out.

I will have to consult with my Crochet Expert On Hand, a.k.a.: MOM!! 

I found the crocheting soothing & fun to do -- I was stitching away while watching a movie, so perhaps I wasn't paying attention, thought it was mindless stitching, and thus I've borne a banana boat...

A Belated Happy New Year!

I'm not one for New Year's Resolutions. In fact, I can't remember the last time I made one. Some time back --like a decade or more ago-- I became so very ambivalent about them. I suppose it has something to do with the quickness with which my life seems to change. Just when I think I've accepted what my life *is* at the moment, it changes.

And I quite believe this is how it is for lots of moms out there, because so much of *us* is wrapped up in *them*. That's not a bad thing in many ways, I suppose, since by pouring our hearts & souls into little bodies of reckless energy whom we hope will then turn into adults filled with caring hearts & souls, we are fulfilled. 

But I digress.... the new year has begun. I'll not sugar coat it & say "the holidays were nice, went too fast & let's all look forward to the new  year". How 'bout I just admit there's a big part of me that's just glad the holidays are over?? Holidays are hard enough in a whirlwind kind of way for all Moms trying to orchestrate the perfect season for making holiday memories.

But I do believe holidays are harder for those of us grieving. There's an extra "load" we carry upon our shoulders. We miss so much what we can't celebrate with those who have left this earth. I know in my heart where Montie is, and I trust he's in a better place for him, but I miss him. 

All the time.

In any spare moments in those weeks leading up to Christmas I kept busy sewing. Now you & I know there aren't many down times in those weeks, but I wanted, or needed, to keep exhaustingly busy. Being busy keeps me from wallowing. And so I sewed up a bunch of gifts.

This first set is for a very special family way out in Australia! I met such a supportive mom on the The National Marfan forum who also has a son with Marfan Syndrome, and our boys look so much alike! She also has two daughters & all the kids' names start with M -- just like us! 

Buzz Lightyear/Toy Story quilt...

.... with dragonflies quilted in to mimic those on the printed blue squares!

The next set of pictures show a set of place mats I made for my mom for Christmas. She requested royal blue be included, but I had free-reign on the patterns! These were so much fun to make...

That's all for now! We're expecting snow today, but only 2-4", which is really just enough to be annoying!!